Episode 7: Beacon Connector Kelly Ellenwood (With In-Studio Performance)

Photos by Michael Isabell

Kelly Ellenwood has been a human bridge of sorts, linking up cohorts back before there was any perceptible tension between “new” and “old” Beacon. This week on the podcast, she talks about creating unity, ongoing changes to Main Street and some of her key projects.

Those projects include the Wee Play tot park, expanding Beacon’s art scene (as president of BeaconArts) and the Beacon Free Loop bus. A singer and stage actress by trade, Kelly continues to work on performing arts projects in and around Beacon. This coming Memorial Day weekend she will help produce, and will appear in, a production of The Hunchback of Notre Dame on Bannerman’s Island in partnership with Bannerman Trust (tickets here).

A theme in this episode is the importance of communication and common ground among groups that often don’t see eye to eye.

“People just need to get to know each other or work on projects together, hang out at the Spirit of Beacon day or hang out at the playground or football game,” Kelly says. “And once we get to know each other it all seems to work out. But you have to go out there and do it. You can’t live in your little siloes and little communities. You’ve got to reach across and get to know folks.”