"Calendar Girl" Likes to Get Her Hands Dirty

Calendar girls don't usually enjoy getting their hands dirty, but Julie Rowe's hands stay dirty most of the time, and she loves it.

It's hard to get your work showcased in the worldwide Potters Council 2011 calendar without it.

"It's pretty exciting, pretty cool," said Julie, the Clayton Community Center's Pottery Studio Coordinator. "To open the calendar and see a piece of my work is a thrill."

One of her cups, made on the pottery wheel she uses in class, is the featured pottery for March. It was selected from more than 700 entries from members all around the world.

The honor has caused quite a stir at the Community Center, with Julie becoming something of a local celebrity. Linda Payne, the Recreation Department's Administrative Support Specialist, snapped up the winning cup as soon as she could, and now it's one of her most prized possessions.

"I emailed everyone on my email list to tell them," Linda said. "It was very exciting."

Julie says she can teach you to make one just like it--or maybe a better one. Just sign up for a pottery class at the Community Center.

"There's still a lot of space available for people to come and learn," Julie said. "This is such a wonderful studio here at the Community Center. People have no idea how lucky they are to have a facility like this."

Julie, who studied ceramics as a painting and drawing major at the State College of New York in Brockport, markets a lot of her work as JMR Pottery on her web site at http://jmr-pottery.blogspot.com/