Peter Howell

Spy Movie Review: Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker

January 9, 2020 by Peter Howell

The Star Wars saga, now in its ninth and allegedly final installment, has a new catchphrase. Once upon a time, it was, “These are not the droids you’re looking for.” Then it was, “There’s always a bigger fish.” And now, the new mantra of Star Wars fans is “Never underestimate a droid.”

That’s what’s new in The Rise of Skywalker, but many of the faces are familiar, having appeared in both Episodes VII and VIII. Adam Driver, whose performances elsewhere tend to be understated if not deadpan, returns, playing against type, as Kylo Ren. Daisy Ridley is back as the indomitable resistance fighter Rey. John Boyega reprises his role as her sidekick, Finn. Poe Dameron is once again portrayed by Oscar Isaac. Domhnall Gleason, who first made a splash as Ron Weasley’s brother Bill in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, returns as General Hux. Academy Award winner Lupita Nyong’o is back as badass Resistance fighter Maz Kanata. Making her second appearance as Rose Tico is Kelly Marie Tran.

There are even a few characters recognizable to baby boomers. The late Carrie Fisher (from the archives) and Mark Hamill are back as Princess (now General) Leia and her brother Luke Skywalker, the latter in a cameo appearance. Billy Dee Williams, with a touch of gray in his hair and a few more pounds on his frame, still makes a dashing, devil-may-care fighter pilot as Lando Calrissian. Anthony Daniels, who’s been around since the beginning, is still inhabiting the golden C-3PO costume. Even Ian McDiarmid is back, making his sixth appearance as the evil Emperor Palpatine and looking more like the portrait of Dorian Gray than ever. Chewbacca, the furry wingman, returns, though with a new actor in the hairy suit. Joonas Suotamo has inherited the role from the late Peter Mayhew. Even though he is uncredited, Harrison Ford is in Episode IX, in a cameo appearance as Han Solo.

Here’s the setup: While the First Order continues to ravage the galaxy, Rey completes her training as a Jedi. But danger suddenly resurfaces as the Emperor Palpatine mysteriously returns from the dead, intent on extinguishing the embers of the Resistance. The old saying “You can’t keep a good man down” seems to apply to bad men, too. While working with Finn and Poe, Rey will not only face Kylo Ren once more but will discover the truth about her parents, as well as a deadly secret that could determine both her future and the outcome of the impending final showdown between the Jedi and the Sith.

For devotees of the Star Wars saga, all the cross-generational connections among characters will be easy to follow. But for the less informed viewer, a subscription to ancestry.com, or at least a flowchart, might come in handy. Nonetheless, like many (but not all) of its predecessors, The Rise of Skywalker is a ripping yarn, full of slam-bam, warp-speed action. Once in contact with her inner Jedi, Rey proves herself worthy of the heirloom lightsaber that comes her way. Like an intergalactic Lara Croft, Rey is a woman you don’t want to cross.

Her relationship with Finn has evolved. Any romantic spark that was struck between them in Episodes VII and VIII has died out, and he now definitely plays second fiddle.

Two supporting performances are noteworthy: Lupita Nyong’o as Maz Kanata and Keri Russell as Zorii Bliss. They are both allies of the Resistance, but each comes from a different starting point. An outcast who, like Richard Gere in An Officer and a Gentleman, has nowhere else to go, Maz is dyed-in-the-wool Resistance material. Zorii, on the other hand, is like Rick Blaine in Casablanca or even Han Solo: an enterprising risk-taker intent on looking out for number one. The contrast is interesting.

Comic relief, alas, is in short supply and largely confined to the droids, R2-D2, C-3PO, and their new buddy, BB-8. Not very original or funny, fellas.

Back in the director’s chair after an absence during Episode VIII, J.J. Abrams demonstrates, for the most part, a sure hand and a good command of his material. He has successfully dusted off a franchise that was becoming shopworn. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker might not justify the $900 million-plus that it has grossed since opening Dec. 20, but there are worse ways to spend a rainy afternoon.

Pete Howell spent ten years as The Star Democrat’s arts and entertainment editor before retiring.

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Spy Movie Review: Ford v Ferrari

December 18, 2019 by Peter Howell

Win on Sunday, sell on Monday. For decades, that was the mantra of every automaker that sponsored a racing team. For the conventional wisdom was that, if your race cars could fly around the track on weekends, consumer models would fly out the showroom door during the following week.

In the late 1950s and early ‘60s, Ferrari ruled Formula One racing, and especially Le Mans, the crown jewel of the F1 circuit. The Italian car maker chalked up nine wins there between 1949 and 1965, including a string of six consecutive victories in the early sixties. No other automaker even came close during the same period.

At Ford Motor Company, Lee Iacocca (Jon Bernthal), a midlevel executive who went on to chair Ford and later Chrysler, was an early convert to the win-and-sell philosophy. But Henry Ford II (Tracy Letts), the founder’s grandson, was daunted by the amount of time and money it would take to build a racing program from the ground up. His solution: buy Ferrari and Voila! Instant dominance.

Suffice it to say, the Ferrari acquisition falls through, rather spectacularly, as it happens. Ford, as furious as any woman spurned, decides to “go to war” with Ferrari.

Enter Carroll Shelby (Academy Award winner Matt Damon), a racer who won Le Mans in 1959, then abruptly retired from racing due to a dodgy ticker. Already a legendary race car builder, he is tapped to wage Ford’s war.

Ford v. Ferrari focuses not only on Ford’s war but also on the relationship between Shelby and Australian driver Ken Miles (Academy Award winner Christian Bale), which can be best described as a sibling rivalry. A prickly sort who definitely marches to the beat of his drummer, Miles is unable to break into big-time racing because the automakers and other sponsors consider him too temperamental. But Shelby, an uncompromising perfectionist who understands what it takes to win (“We’re lighter, we’re faster. And if that don’t work, we’re nastier.”), knows Miles has a deep wellspring of talent and desire and decides to harness it.

And so the battle is joined, and not without complications. Ford’s nemesis, of course, is Enzo Ferrari (Remo Girone), the old-school yet savvy Commendatore of the manufacturing and racing complex that bears his name. Girone shows us that Ferrari is no stranger to hardball. Yet Shelby and Miles have a nemesis of their own, Ford executive Leo Beebe (Josh Lucas). An opportunistic, backstabbing sycophant who’s all about selling on Monday, he is pitted against the racers, who are all about win on Sunday. Reminiscent of the mustachioed villain in a silent movie, Lucas arguably overplays his part, but to good effect.

The intertwining of the Shelby-Miles and Ford-Ferrari storylines works splendidly, broadening this movie’s appeal to an audience far beyond the motorheads you’d expect to gravitate toward it. There’s even a romantic subplot of sorts, centering on Miles’s relationship with his long-suffering wife, Mollie (Outlander star Caitriona Balfe). Quietly exasperated by her family’s hand-to-mouth existence and bemused by Ken’s mercurial relationship with Carroll, she blossoms when her emotions unexpectedly get the best of her. She is at her best when her husband and his mentor fight like two schoolboys while she watches from a lawn chair. That scene alone is almost worth the price of admission.

Based on a script by Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, and Jason Keller, Ford v. Ferrari is not without its flaws. You could drive a Ferrari through some of the plot holes. Why, for example, is Shelby intrigued that another team has a NASCAR pit crew when that factoid goes nowhere? His relationship with Miles seems to have sprung fully formed from Zeus’s brow. What is its backstory?

In its defense, however, the racing scenes seem very realistic, though I could have done with fewer closeups of feet on pedals and hands on gearshifts. The action, especially the crashes, was hair-raising enough to make me glad I wasn’t a stunt driver in this movie.

Yes, there are bumps in the road, but Ford v. Ferrari runs like a well-oiled machine, acquits itself smartly on balance, and makes good time to the finish line.

Peter Howell is the former Star Democrat entertainment editor and film critic.

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Spy Movie Review: Knives Out

December 5, 2019 by Peter Howell

The screenplay for the tongue-in-cheeky whodunit Knives Out was written by director Rian Johnson (Looper, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, and three episodes of TV’s Breaking Bad). But it could just as well have been adapted from one of Agatha Christie’s country house murders. Set in a spooky old mansion aptly described by one of the cast as a life-size Clue game board, it features many of the Christie signatures: a remote location, seemingly cut off from the world; a suspicious death; a houseful of relatives, each with a motive for murder – or maybe not; and a private detective who’s something of a fish out of water among them but remains unfazed by their condescending obstruction.

Legendary mystery writer Harlan Thrombey (Academy Award winner Christopher Plummer) is dead, having apparently slit his own throat. Two local coppers (Lakeith Stanfield of Selma and Sorry to Bother You; and frequent Johnson collaborator Noah Segan) are inclined to buy the suicide theory and close the case.

Not so fast, buster! An anonymous client has hired private eye Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) to investigate the old man’s death. He does so while the official police await the postmortem and toxicology report, ruffling the feathers of the rich, spoiled and dysfunctional Thrombeys. The Thrombeys, like the bloodthirsty Le Domas family of Ready or Not, illustrate the difference between eccentricity and craziness. To wit: If you’re crazy and rich, you’re eccentric. If you’re not rich, you’re just crazy. And like the Le Domases, Harlan is obsessed with games – a byproduct of a lifetime of ingenious plotting.

When the family gathers to celebrate the patriarch’s 85th birthday, internecine tensions simmer and occasionally boil over. Harlan uses the occasion to lay down the law to his son Walt (two-time Academy Award nominee Michael Shannon); his daughter Joni (Academy Award nominee Toni Collette), his son-in-law Richard (Golden Globe winner and Primetime Emmy nominee Don Johnson of Miami Vice); and his snotty grandson (Chris Evans, best known as Captain America). They are the front runners in the motive derby. But it’s a crowded field: There’s enough vitriol in the air to fuel a dozen homicides.

Let the games begin!

Even though his fifth go-‘round as James Bond is due out next April, Daniel Craig, like Sean Connery before him, has escaped being typecast as the suave superspy, thanks in part to strong performances in movies like Defiance and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. While 007 is a man of action, Blanc is more soft-spoken and cerebral, in the Maigret vein. Sporting a day or two of stubble on his handsome face, he has a conspicuously southern accent. In fact, one of the haughty Thrombeys dismisses him as “CSI-KFC.” But he’s a keen observer who doesn’t miss a trick. Like any self-respecting Agatha Christie detective, he is the star of the movie.

Craig sets a high bar, and everyone in the supporting cast clears it handily. Jamie Lee Curtis is especially captivating, in a creepy sort of way, as Harlan’s daughter Linda, an ice queen who has clawed her way to the top of her profession. She’s the only Thrombey who’s made anything of herself, and she makes sure everyone knows it.

Evans, with his background as an Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero, plays adroitly against type as the hotheaded parasite Ransom Drysdale. Less than an hour into the movie, you’ll find it hard to believe you ever rooted for one of his characters.

Nice work, too, by Ana de Armas as Harlan’s self-effacing, almost mousy, nurse, Marta. She is set apart from the Thrombeys by the facts that she is – and more importantly, is treated as – just hired help, and that she is as sweet and selfless as they are grasping and poisonous. De Armas shows more of the talent she displayed a couple of years ago as Joi in Blade Runner 2049.

Johnson’s direction is sure-footed; his screenplay not so much. While it is clever and inventive, the final reveal imposes too much on the viewer’s willing suspension of disbelief. Nevertheless, even though it takes up two hours and 40 minutes, whodunit fans are certain to find the time well spent.

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Spy Movie Review: Last Christmas

November 16, 2019 by Peter Howell

It’s a Wonderful Life meets The Sixth Sense in one of this year’s first holiday movies, Last Christmas. A hodgepodge of romantic comedy and drama bathed in a George Michael soundtrack, it’s the kind of movie you’d expect to see on the Hallmark Channel.

Last Christmas is about Kate (Emilia Clarke), a young woman whose life is a small-time horror show of one-night stands, burnt bridges, tardiness, halfhearted remorse, alienation from her mother Petra, and all-around irresponsibility. The rift with her mother (two-time Academy Award winner Emma Thompson) seems understandable because Petra appears to suffer from Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy. Kate once had heart trouble, and her mother smothers her with TLC long after she has recovered. But the rest is on Kate.

When she meets Tom (Henry Golding), her life takes a turn for the better. For Kate, it seems too good to be true. And the viewer begins to wonder if this movie is too trite to be true. As she drifts through her life, and Tom drops into and out of it, Last Christmas seems to be dancing around the inevitable rom-com question: Will they fall in love and live happily ever after, or won’t they? Yet director Paul Feig, who was nominated for four Primetime Emmys for his work on Freaks and Geeks and The Office, steers it away from the formulaic cliff and offers a denouement that’s both surprising and satisfying. This movie seems to strike the occasional false note from time to time, but they all make sense in the end. When the ingenious plot twist is revealed, you will smack your forehead and say, in your best Charlie Brown voice, “Aaaarrrggghhh!!! It was there all along!”

Clarke is undoubtedly familiar to Game of Thrones fans. Her portrayal of Daenerys Targaryen has won her half a dozen awards and nominations for another 40-plus, including four Primetime Emmy noms. As Kate, she etches a convincing portrait of an unsympathetic chippie with few, if any, redeeming values.

Henry Golding plays Tom, the Nice Young Man, who keeps popping up in Kate’s life and saving her from her most self-destructive impulses. His Tom is the Mister Right of whom every girl’s mother dreams. Golding made a promising big-screen debut, which netted him a CinemaCon Award and six additional nominations, as Singaporean multi-millionaire Nick Young in last year’s Crazy Rich Asians.

Speaking of which, onetime Bond girl Michelle Yeoh (Tomorrow Never Dies, 1997), the actress who played Nick Young’s mother, appears here as the owner of the Christmas shop where Kate works. She is the focus of a charming subplot in which she falls in love at first sight with an attractive yet painfully shy Dane (Peter Mygind). Less haughty than she was as Eleanor Young, but still swift to find fault with an imperfect world, she shows more of the flair for comedy at which Crazy Rich Asians only hinted. Some of the laughs she mines, like the irony of an Asian woman named Santa running a Christmas shop, are low-hanging fruit, but she’s funny nevertheless.

Emma Thompson continues to display her versatility as Petra, a middle-aged Yugoslavian refugee living a lower-middle-class life in England. In addition to feigning a passable Eastern European accent, she co-wrote both the story and the screenplay. The quality of the writing is not surprising, considering that Thompson won both an Oscar and a Golden Globe for her screenplay for Sense and Sensibility.

This movie’s tagline, “Sometimes you’ve just gotta have faith,” seems particularly apt. For despite its rom-com clichés and occasional corniness, Last Christmas will ultimately make you a believer.

Cinema Society announces 2014-2015 Slate of Movies

August 22, 2014 by Peter Howell

It’s Movie Time again! The Talbot Cinema Society has announced its lineup of movies for the 2014-2015 season.

The Cinema Society meets at the Avalon Theatre on the first Sunday of each month, except February, when the meeting is postponed to the second Sunday in deference to the Super Bowl. Doors open at 5:15 p.m., and light refreshments are served at 5:30. At 5:45 one of the society’s famous talking heads introduces the feature, and the house lights usually go down at 6 or shortly before.

This season’s movie menu includes something for everyone: comedy; drama; blockbusters; silent classics; documentaries; and foreign films.

“Every year we try to assemble a slate of movies that will both please our existing members and attract new blood,” says Pete Howell, the Grand Poo-Bah of the Cinema Society. “We like to think that, after much thoughtful deliberation, mud-wrestling name-calling and hair-pulling, we’ve come up with a slate that will broaden the society’s appeal and keep its membership growing.”

As it is every year, the season’s first feature is the Talbot Cinema Society’s gift to the community. Everyone is invited to join the TCS members to watch Hugo, Martin Scorcese’s charming fantasy about an orphan who lives in the walls of a Paris railroad station in the 1930s, free of charge. Hugo won five Academy Awards, and was nominated for six more.

“We have an ulterior motive,” admits Howell. “We hope our guests will like what they see and decide to join the Cinema Society.”

Those who do will be able to join for just $45 per person for the entire season. Memberships will be for sale before and after the screening at the Avalon Box Office. Cash and checks will be accepted.

This season’s lineup includes:

9/7/14: Hugo: 2011. 126 minutes. Adventure/Family Drama. Rated PG. IMDB score: 7.6/10. Metacritic score: 83/100. Leonard Maltin’s rating: 3.5/4 stars. Directed by Martin Scorcese. Starring Asa Butterfield, Chloe Grace Moretz, Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Richard Griffiths, Jude Law and Christopher Lee. In 1930s Paris, an orphan who lives in the walls of a train station is wrapped up in a mystery involving his late father. The boy keeps the railway clocks running on time. The only thing he has left that connects him to his dead father is an automaton that doesn’t work without a special key. Hugo needs to find the key to unlock the secret he believes it contains. 5 Academy Awards, plus 6 nominations. Golden Globe for Best Director, and nominations for Best Drama and Best Original Score. BAFTA Awards for Best Sound and Production Design, plus 8 nominations. American Film Institute Movie of the Year. Art Directors Guild Award for Best Production Design. Nominated for Directors Guild of America Award. Grammy nomination for Best Soundtrack. National Board of Review Awards for Best Film and Director. Nominated for Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.

10/5/14: Picnic at Hanging Rock: 1975. 115 minutes. Australian. Rated PG. Drama/Mystery. IMDB Score: 7.6/10. Leonard Maltin’s rating: 3/4 stars. Directed by Peter Weir. During a rural picnic, a few students and a teacher from an Australian girls’ school vanish without a trace. Their absence frustrates and haunts the people left behind.Australia’s First International Hit! BAFTA Award for Cinematography. BAFTA Award nominations for Costume Design and Soundtrack. Nominated for 7 Australian Film Institute Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress.

11/2/14: My Favorite Year: 1982. 92 minutes. Comedy. Rated PG. IMDB score: 7.4/10. Leonard Maltin’s rating: 3/4 stars. Directed by Richard Benjamin. Benjy Stone (Mark-Linn Baker) is the junior writer on a top-rated variety/comedy show, in the mid 50s (the Golden Age of Television). Alan Swann (Peter O’Toole), an Erol Flynn-type movie star with a drinking problem, is to be that week’s guest star. When King Kaiser (Joseph Bologna), the star, wants to throw Swann off the show, Benjy makes a pitch to save his childhood hero, and is made Swann’s babysitter. On top of this, a union boss doesn’t care for Kaiser’s parody of him and has plans to stop the show. Also starring Lainie Kazan and Bill Macy. Academy Award nomination for O’Toole. Writers Guild of America Award nomination for Best Original Comedy. 3 Golden Globe nominations: Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Comedy/Musical.

12/7/14: It’s a Gift: 1934. 68 minutes. Comedy. IMDB score: 7.5/10. Leonard Maltin’s rating: 4/4 stars. A henpecked New Jersey grocer (W.C. Fields) plans to move to California to grow oranges, despite the resistance of his over-bearing wife (Kathleen Howard). Included in the National Film Registry by the National Film Preservation Board.

1/4/15: Breaking Away: 1979. 101 minutes. Rated PG. Comedy/Drama/Sport. IMDB Score: 7.8/10. Leonard Maltin’s rating: 3.5/4 stars. Directed by Peter Yates. Written by Steve Tesich. Dave (Dennis Christopher), 19, has just graduated from high school, with his 3 friends: the comical Cyril (Daniel Stern, in his movie debut), the warm-hearted but short-tempered Moocher (Jackie Earle Haley), and the athletic, spiteful but good-hearted Mike (Dennis Quaid). Dave enjoys bicycle racing and hopes to race the Italians one day. Meanwhile, he vies for the affections of a college girl as he and his friends try to cast off their townie stigma while fighting with nearby college snobs. Great coming-of-age film shot on location in Indiana. Academy Award for Best Screenplay, plus Oscar nomina-tions for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Supporting Actress (Barbara Barrie). Golden Globe for Best Musical/Comedy, plus Globe nominations for Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best New Male Star (Christo-pher). Writers Guild of America Award. Nominated for Directors Guild of America Award. Won National Board of Review (NBR) Award for Best Supporting Actor (Paul Dooley). Included in NBR’s Top 10 Films.

2/8/15: Closely Watched Trains: 1966. 93 minutes. Czech. War Comedy/Drama. Not Rated. IMDB score: 7.8/10. Leonard Maltin’s rating: 3/4 stars. Directed by Jiri Menzel. Tragicomedy about a naïve apprentice train dispatcher’s attempts to lose his virginity during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia during World War II. In Czech and German with English subtitles. Academy Award for Best Foreign Film. Nominated for Golden Globe and Directors Guild of America Award. Nominated for Best Film and Best Soundtrack by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.

3/1/15: Libeled Lady: 1936. 98 minutes. Comedy/Romance. IMDB score: 7.8/10. Leonard Maltin’s rating: 4/4 stars. A newspaperman, his jilted fiancée, and his lawyer hatch an elaborate scheme to turn a false news story into the truth, before a high-society woman can sue for libel. Starring Spencer Tracy, William Powell, Myrna Loy and Jean Harlow. Oscar nomination for Best Picture.

4/5/15: The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara: 2003. 95 minutes. History/ War. IMDB score: 8.2/10. Metacritic score: 87/100. Leonard Maltin’s rating: 3.5/4 stars. Directed by Errol Morris. A film about the former U.S. Secretary of Defense and the various difficult lessons he learned about the nature and conduct of modern warfare during the Vietnam War. Academy, National Board of Review, Chicago Film Critics Association, Independent Spirit, Los Angeles Film Critics Association, and Toronto Film Critics Association Awards for Best Documentary. NOTE: April 30, 2015 will be the 40th anniversary of the fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam War.

5/3/15: Safety Last!: 1923. 70 minutes. Silent Classic. Romantic Comedy/Thriller. IMDB score: 8.3/10. Leonard Maltin’s rating: 3/4 stars. Small-town boy Harold Lloyd moves to the big city, and goes to work as a department store clerk. But he tells his girl back home (Mildred Davis) he’s the manager. When she visits unexpectedly, he tries to exploit a publicity stunt by convincing a friend to climb the outside of a tall building. But when an angry policeman comes looking for his friend, Harold is forced to make the perilous climb himself. Even if you’ve never seen Safety Last!, you’ve probably seen the still photo of him hanging from the hand of a clock. Included in the National Film Registry by the National Film Preservation Board.
Anyone wishing to join the Talbot Cinema Society before the first meeting on Sept. 7 is welcome to mail his or her check to: Talbot Cinema Society, P.O. Box 222, Easton, MD 21601. Those who prepay their dues can pick up their membership cards at the box office. For more information, contact Pete Howell at piratepete@goeaston.net or 410-924-5752.

PWEC to Liven Up Winter Weekends

February 3, 2014 by Peter Howell

The Phillips Wharf Environmental Center (PWEC) offers you five good reasons to venture out on chilly winter evenings.

Once again, PWEC is sponsoring its Winter Weekend programs, a series of Saturday evening presentations and discussions. Admission is free, and all are welcome.

All five Winter Weekend programs will begin at 6:30 p.m. at Harrison’s Chesapeake House, at 21551 Chesapeake House Dr. Attendees are invited to come at 5 p.m. for dinner before the program begins.

Dr. Darrin Lowery, an archaeologist from the University of Delaware, kicked off the series with his Bay Artifacts Roadshow on Feb. 1. Lowery displayed and discuss numerous artifacts that he has collected over the years. He also examined artifacts collected by audience members and shared some of their history.

On Feb. 15, Kirke Harper and Jack Harrald of Claiborne will discuss the Claiborne Resiliency Project.
The blue crab is the lens through which Dr. Eric Schott of the University of Maryland will examine the Health of the Bay on March 8.
Sewers are far from a sexy topic, but they are a vital component of the quality of life. Ray Clarke, Talbot County’s Director of Public Works, will discuss Sewer Planning for the Bay Hundred on March 22.
The Winter Weekend series will wrap up on April 5, with a roundtable discussion of the Chesapeake Bay’s signature sailing fleet. Captain Buddy Harrison will moderate a panel discussion of SkipjackCaptains: Remembering How It Was.

For more information about any Winter Weekend program, call the Phillips Wharf Environmental Center at 410-886-9200. To make dinner reservations at Harrison’s Chesapeake House, call 410-886-2121.

Habitat’s ReStore: a Victim of its Own Success

October 17, 2013 by Peter Howell

EASTON – There is good news at Habitat for Humanity Choptank’s retail division, and there is bad news.

Business is booming at Habitat ReStore, the retail outlet at 8648 Commerce Drive whose proceeds are used to fund Habitat Choptank’s work.

“My goodness, we are on the map!” says ReStore Manager Lee Weldon. Thanks in part to the rebounding housing market, new sales records were set in March, April and May. In the quarter ended June 30, ReStore contributed $30,000 to Habitat Choptank, bringing the total that ReStore has raised since it opened in November 2010 to more than $230,000. Sales for the quarter were up 12.5 percent, and 11.25 percent for the full fiscal year. That’s the good news.

However, Weldon, Assistant Manager Chris Walls (ReStore’s only other paid employee) and their dedicated band of volunteers are finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with the inflow and outgo of gently used building materials, furniture, housewares and appliances. In his latest quarterly report, Weldon said the volunteer situation is “Reaching desperation levels.” In addition, the ReStore is bursting at the seams. That’s the bad news.

In short, Habitat ReStore is becoming a victim of its own success. “We like what we do here, and we love being able to support Habitat’s mission of building simple, decent, affordable homes for God’s people in need,” says Weldon, “but we need more help to keep doing it.”

In an average month, it takes about 60 people to keep ReStore running smoothly. But summertime is anything but average. Rather, it’s an especially challenging time for Weldon and his crew. “It’s the busiest time of the year, in terms of sales and donations,” he says. At the same time, it’s also the season when volunteers, like everyone else, go away on vacation.

Weldon is looking to recruit, not only former construction volunteers, but also “people who want to support Habitat, but have a different skillset from construction.” Good people skills, for example, are needed for customer service. Construction experience is helpful, but not necessary, as is a general knowledge of hardware and building materials.

“It’s the people in the store that make it work,” says Weldon. “Without the dedicated volunteers, none of the rest of it could happen.” And the more volunteers, the better: “It makes everybody’s job easier if we have lots of help.”

Volunteers perform many tasks at ReStore: pricing merchandise; scheduling trucks; customer service; and warehousing. Intake volunteers unload, store, clean up and perform simple repairs on donated items.

Department leaders are needed in hardware, appliances, electrical, home décor, seasonal and especially plumbing. Leaders know the merchandise in their departments, are able to price items appropriately, advise customers and, says Weldon, “make sure people get the right thing for the right purpose.”

Volunteering at ReStore does not represent a major time commitment. Volunteers are only expected to put in at least four hours a week. And if they have physical limitations, Weldon will work around them. “We take all comers,” he says, “and try to keep them busy.”

Volunteers work the following shifts: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., 12 to 4 p.m. and 2 to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Friday; and 8 to 12, 10 to 2 and 12 to 4 on Saturdays.

Volunteers, by definition, are unpaid. Yet working at ReStore has its benefits. “We try to keep it a fun environment,” says Weldon. “It’s a great spirit of camaraderie here.” In addition, perks include a T-shirt after just 12 hours of service; employee discounts; eligibility for Volunteer of the Month; an annual banquet; and service awards for highly committed volunteers.

Becoming a volunteer is easy. Orientations are held the second and fourth Thursdays of each month at 10:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. Anyone age 15 or older can volunteer, and Service Learning credit is available for students. A volunteer waiver must completed, and it can be found online at habitatchoptank.org//registration.html.

Because ReStore’s warehouse is rapidly filling up, says Weldon, “We can only accept and resell the nicest things.” The fact that they receive them is “a sign of the generosity of our community.”

In the final quarter of fiscal year 2013, the number of donations rose 44 percent. Truck pickups increased 34 percent, due in large part to the addition of Saturdays to the pickup schedule. As a result, the number of miles logged was up 28 percent.

Although area contractors and building supply stores, such as Easton Hardware, Lowe’s and West & Callahan donate surplus materials, “Our primary source of donations continues to be individuals” who are renovating or redecorating their homes, says Weldon. And while “We appreciate all of our donors,” he says, “If you have something you wouldn’t pay for, please don’t bring it to us.” And he asks that donations be made only during regular store hours, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Friday, and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.

“We’re always looking for more and better donations,” says Weldon. Even a broken appliance can be recycled for its scrap metal value. But ReStore is unable to accept certain items: opened paint cans; mattresses and box springs; upholstered furniture that is torn, stained or faded; clothing; and things that are obviously broken or not working.

To volunteer or to arrange for pickup of items you wish to donate, contact Habitat Choptank’s Restore at 410-820-6186 or restore@habitatchoptank.org.

Submitted by Peter Howell for Habitat for Humanity

New Gifts Move Phillips Wharf Closer to New Center

August 30, 2013 by Peter Howell

Kelley Cox in St. Michaels with PWEC’s traveling aquarium, the “Fishmobile.”

The Phillips Wharf Environmental Center’s campaign to purchase the Harrison’s Oyster House property beside the Tilghman bridge just got a big boost with two new gifts totaling $25,000. One donation was for $5,000 and another was for $20,000, both from local residents.

“We believe the Phillips Wharf project can become an important educational center for Tilghman Island and all of Talbot County,” wrote the major donor. “Our hope is that this donation will help call attention to this project and move others to contribute toward the goal of purchasing the Harrison property.”

Kelley Cox, PWEC’s executive director, was most appreciative. “We’re especially grateful because this is the moment when support is most needed,” she said. “Every gift right now encourages others to step forward to secure the property before the mid-October deadline” for raising the requisite amount.

Cox says they are within sight of that goal. “We’re getting close, and I know many people are hoping we’ll have the chance to make the Oyster House Project a reality.” When the project comes to fruition, “It will be very good for our area and for our watermen.”

Asked if she thought the money will be raised in time, Cox replied, “I think because of our recent outreach, our campaign is gaining momentum,” she said with a smile. “This has been a good week, and we really appreciate all the support.”

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