CJCA News & Minutes from September Meeting

October 18, 2022

Agenda for the Next CJCA Meeting

The next CJCA meeting will be held Wednesday, October 26, 2022, at 7:30pm at the Clara Barton Community Center.  

Feel free to join remotely as well.  We will be using Google Meet to allow remote users: https://meet.google.com/fhf-grxw-ndo.  For more information on Google Meet – https://support.google.com/meet/

Agenda:

  1. Discuss possible merchandise options and uses of the Cabin John poster created by Trudy Nicholson; the framed original was presented to former CJCA President Susan Shipp at the Crab Feast
  2. Share and discuss ideas for the Turkey Trot and Holiday Party
  3. Discuss and vote on making the Cabin John Directory available online
  4. Interview artists Trudy and Mike Nicholson, Cabin Johnners of many decades, and view their art display

Village News Seeks New Production & Layout Editor

Noelle Tower, who has been making the Village News look great for the last 6 years, will be moving to California with her family at the end of 2022, so we are looking for someone to take over the layout of the Village News.  If you have a flair for graphic design and have familiarity with Adobe InDesign or similar programs to layout the stories, pictures, and ads that make up the Village News, please contact Heidi Lewis at cjcapresidents@lawbc.com or VN editor Loretta Devery Ingalls at VNeditorial@gmail.com.

Successful Blood Drive

The Blood Drive held on Sunday, October 2, yielded 40 pints! And that’s with no double reds because Inova was not able to provide the machine. Our drive goal was 32 so that’s a terrific outcome. The total includes most of the 33 who signed up in advance online, plus 14 walk-ins. One pint of blood can save up to three lives so the efforts of the donors and volunteers that day will make a profound difference for up to 120 people. Many thanks to Karen Melchar, Burr Gray, and Justin Weber for organizing and running the blood drive, and Clara Barton Center Director Barry Jones and his staff for opening and operating the community center.  Email cjblooddrive@gmail.com to be included on emails related to future blood drives.

Volunteers Wanted to Help Re-Imagine the Holiday Party

The Cabin John Holiday Party, which will be held on Sunday, December 11 at the Clara Barton Center, has been a community tradition going back several decades. Like all long-running events, there is a periodic need for new ideas and new volunteer coordinators to ensure the event remains vital and meaningful for the community. If you would like to help re-imagine and relaunch the Holiday Party, please contact Heidi Lewis at cjcapresidents@gmail.com.

Minutes from September CJCA Meeting

CJCA Secretary Kelly Banuls prepared the minutes from the September meeting, held online due to a Covid case on the board. There were 15 people in attendance.

  • 1. Crab Feast Preliminary Results – presented by Scott Lewis
  • 511 meals were sold this year, which is down about 40 meals from 2021, but with supplies on hand from previous years and increased beverage sales, the 2022 feast netted around $2,000 more than 2021.
  • The CJCA was short on block coordinators, which may have attributed to lower advance ticket sales door-to-door, though online sales increased year over year.
  • Carl McCabe has volunteered to be coordinator of future Crab Feasts. Thank you, Carl!
  • 2. Pedestrian Safety – presented by Charlotte Troup Leighton
  • Vision Zero, Montgomery County’s future bicycle and pedestrian safety plan, includes a set of recommendations to help the County prioritize investments, including a goal to eliminate accidents by 2030, but limited funds are available.
  • CJCA has been advocating for more crosswalks, specifically on Seven Locks Rd. at the entrance to Seven Locks Park and Palisades Pool. The County has not yet approved a crosswalk, and it will be a continued uphill battle to get the funding.
  • There will be a short sidewalk addition on the west side of Seven Locks Rd. connecting First Agape AME Church and the entrance to Morningstar Moses Cemetery.
  • During open discussion, neighbors mentioned the success of Tomlinson Ave. in petitioning for speed bumps many years ago and the idea of neighborhood funding for the crosswalk, but no specific actions were decided.
  • Charlotte’s presentation will be shared with the community via the Cabin John listerv.
  • 3. CJ Directory Online – presented by Marcy Harrison (see story on page 9)
  • The CJCA has the option to move the directory online, with mobile access as well.
  • The online directory would be password protected and searchable.
  • The plan is to keep the directory centrally managed by CJCA VP of Communication to maintain data consistency and accuracy.
  • There will be a community vote on whether to provide an online version of the directory at the October meeting.
  • 4. Palisades Swim Hours
  • Palisades Pool Association has requested a change to Cabin John residents’ free swim periods, moving from 11am-1pm (Tues/Thurs) to 10am-12pm (Tues/Thurs).
  • Free swim periods for Cabin Johnners were a condition for the Palisades Pool Association to receive support needed from CJCA to build the pool.
  • Discussion included concerns that new hours would limit lunch-hour use and warmer pool hours.
  • Call for vote was motioned by Heidi Lewis and received a second from Darla Cable.
    • There were 0 votes in favor of approving the requested change in hours, and 15 votes against approving the request. 
  • CJCA will respond to the Palisades Association.
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