Community Corner

Hurricane Season and Louise Harrison And Other Nuggets

As Friday, June 1 marks the start of the Atlantic Hurricane Season, one Sarasota resident and sister of a Beatle had ties to relief efforts to Hurricane Andrew in 1992.

Talking with , some notes had to be left out unless I wanted to write a book. 

I tend to have a lot of questions for the sister of a Beatle.

So here's some items left on the cutting room floor that will make you go "huh."

Find out what's happening in Sarasotawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Harrison and Hurricane Andrew

• Today's the kickoff to the (weather expert appointed) start of Atlantic Hurricane Season, and this year also marks the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Andrew — one of the most destructive hurricanes in American history.

Find out what's happening in Sarasotawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

You could find Harrison there on the front lines of trying to cheer people up in Homestead. While living in Sarasota, she organized concerts called We Care to provide free entertainment to people in tent cities with the help of the 10th Mountain Division of the Army to build the stage.

Later, the We Care concept evolved into her environmental organization called We Care Global Family. Both efforts were in large parts thanks to folks living in Sarasota County.

"I found the people in this area, when someone's trying to do something that's good and decent with no ulterior motives, the people in this area just rally behind. I'm hoping the same thing will happen again," Harrison said.

"I certainly made sure I've never done anything underhanded or suspicious or anything like that. Actually, I've been a little bit too naive and honest for my own good.

"The people who know me in this area will rally around and understand that I'm here and what I'm trying to do.

Timeless

• The Beatles have stood the test of time so far, but how about another 100 years from now. Will people still appreciate their music?

"For the sake of the people living on the planet, I certainly hope so," Harrison said. "The music that's around including classical music, Beatle music after 50 years of listening to it, is certainly the music that brings the most happiness and joy to people.

"The people who like The Beatles are the people who have a positive attitude to life who believe in being kind to each other. The people who don't like The Beatles, which fortunately I don't too many of them, they're the ones are negative.

"These are the people who are sour about everything. They're the ones who don't want anyone to have any fun or anyone to do well, and try to spoil everyone's lives.

"I just hope for the sake of humanity that The Beatles keep on going cause the positive people will have something to be positive about."

Mischief

Harrison has quite the sense of humor and she jokes that managing the band helps her to "keep out of mischief."

So, what kind of mischief would she get into now?

"I'm getting too old for the mischief I used to do," Harrison said.

The Dean Digs It

Terry Osborn, Ph.D., is the Dean of College of Education at USF, Sarasota-Manatee, and he was asked for his thoughts on The Beatles' music.

"I grew up in the '70s and '80s so by the time I was in teenage years, the Beatles were the songs of the generation prior to me, but the irony, what's interesting is that I and a bunch of my teenage friends — this was 30 years ago — we were really interested in the music from the '60s.

"It was funny because we listened to a lot of Beatle songs growing up even in the early '80s. It was the whole counterculture time - punk rock, Flock of Seagulls, Go-Go's and all the other kinds of things, which is also great music, but we did a lot of listening to The Beatles, The Doors, Jimi Hendricks and all the '60s stuff back then.

"Would I call myself a Beatles fan? Absolutely. Who isn't?

"The great thing about The Beatles is that it works with this whole idea of arts integration. There's something for everybody in their whole repertoire of music.

If you prefer the sort of what would be called today pop music, some of the earlier songs that they had were very popular. 

"But if you prefer music that is more, I don't know, maybe Avant-garde is the right word, maybe you can get into some of the later Beatles music. That's the real interesting thing as sort of a cultural force.

"So much can be wrapped into the work that they did.


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