Middleridge News
Middleridge Civic Association reaching 578 Homes and Families
Middleridge
Civic
Association
Executive
Board
President Al Obuchowski
Vice President –
Catie Morales
Secretary –
Mary Vander Maten
Treasurer –
Al Melanson
Other MCA Contacts
Webmaster –
Paul Armstrong
Newsletter Editor –
Vernon Campbell
Distribution –
Sandy Obuchowski
Directory Editor –
Roy Wagner
Beautification –
Vacant
Neighborhood Watch –
Mike Proffitt
Community Service –
Stephanie Ly
Welcoming Chair –
Laura Jaumillot
OTHER CONTACTS
Middleridge Book Club
Liz Brown
Middleridge Women’s Club
Lucia Boger
Middleridge Mailing
Address
P.O. Box 208
Fairfax Station, VA
22039-0208
Al O’s Offerings
I hope everyone is still enjoying the
green of spring; it will not likely last too
much longer as we head into the heat of
summer.
If you took advantage of the Tour of
Homes, I trust you enjoyed seeing what
some of your neighbors have done to
modify their homes to make them more
livable and comfortable. It is always fun
for me to see what others have done to
change things around. A BIG THANKS
to Amy Young for planning and
monitoring this event. This is one of the
events we hold during the year that is
limited to members only of the
Middleridge Civic Association so we
encourage non-members to consider
joining the association to take advantage
of one more of our benefits.
Speaking of membership, we will soon
begin our membership drive for the
upcoming year. We have been “kicking
off” the drive at the Middleridge
celebration of National Night Out. It will
run from August through September so
plan ahead to send in your application to
join early. If you don’t act on it when
you receive your application, we find that
many people forget about it and don’t
even realize they have not joined.
Yes, National Night Out will be upon us
soon. It will be Tuesday, August 7, at
the Middleridge Park. Once again, the
Bulovas, Gretchen and David, are taking
on the planning and conduct of the event
since no one has stepped forward to “take
it off their hands”. They are so
committed to the event, which is
certainly the biggest of the year for
Middleridge, that they do not want to see
it not happen. If you can help, please
July 2007
contact the Bulovas and offer your
support.
Speaking of the park, I want to pass on
some disappointing news that we
recently had some vandalism there.
Some graffiti was painted on the play
sets and there was trash left on the tennis
courts after an apparent party by
someone. Thanks to Lori Bassford who
was able to get the Park Authority to
clean up the mess for us. I encourage all
of you that are in the area to take a walk
down to the park whenever you can just
to “check it out”. I’ve also asked our
Neighborhood Watch coordinator to ask
our volunteers to visit the park as a part
of their watch tour. Hopefully, we may
be able to prevent a reoccurrence of the
vandalism.
Another BIG THANKS to John Mitros
for his efforts in placing signs around the
neighborhood to remind us of events
during the time just prior to the event. I
know the signs help because people have
told me they are an excellent reminder.
I’ve already seen one of our Traffic
Calming “humps” and expect to see the
other soon (if it’s not already up by the
time you read this. Thanks again to
Debbie Holston for spearheading this
effort.
Finally, I hope you have noticed that our
old signs have been taken down in
preparation for the new ones, which will
be delivered soon. Thanks to Al
Melanson and his crew for their
demolition work. Keep your eyes out for
the new ones to be placed soon.
Have a great month! See you at
National Night Out!!
Middleridge News
Middleridge
Civic
Association
********
Newsletter
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Page 2
Scholarship Winners Selected
The Bonnie Brae, Country Club View, Middleridge, and Woodbury Woods
Scholarship Committee recently completed another very
challenging series of interviews to select the 2007 scholarship winners.
Each year it becomes more difficult to choose the recipients - they all are
winners and the Committee regrets it cannot give each applicant an award.
This year there were 15 applicants, the most for one year since the program
kicked off in the early 1990's. Due to your generosity and that of our
neighboring subdivisions in contributing to the scholarship fund, this year
we raised the three awards to $1,000 each from $600. Two of the three
winners are proud Middleridge residents, Matthew Baer and Wes Chappell.
Both will be attending the University of Virginia. The third winner, Tammy
Lin from Country Club View, is a graduate of Thomas Jefferson, will be
going to Duke, and is undecided as to whether she will study bioengineering
or go to medical school.
--------------------------------------------
Middleridge Website
http://www.pawpo.
com/middleridge
Look for:
- List of MCA Officers
- Committee Contacts
- Photos of Events
Past & Present
- Past Newsletter
Issues
- Neighborhood Police
Reports
- Middleridge Map/
Street Name History
And much more !!!!!
Sign up to be notified
every time the
Website is updated
Both Matthew and Wes were recognized at the Robinson High School
awards ceremony on June 14th, and were presented to the assembly by Mrs.
Sue Hartsel, the Country Club View Scholarship Committee representative.
She advised that scholarships valued at over $5.5 million were awarded to
Robinson graduates this year. Mrs. Hartsel also stated the value of our
scholarship certainly stood out among the local awards and she was proud to
have been a part of the program. The future of our nation is bright as long
as we have such fine young individuals following us of another generation.
Thank you, Middleridge, for your generosity and making this a very
successful program.
Darrell Walker
Middleridge Scholarship Committee Representative
Monthly Deadline
for ads and articles:
25th of the Month
Make Checks Payable
to: Middleridge
Civic Association
P.O.Box 208, Fairfax
Station VA 22039
E-mail or Drop off
Ads to Newsletter
Editor – Vernon
Campbell
IN SYMPATHY
We extend condolences to Amy Young and her family – husband Pete and sons,
Evan and Alex – on the death of Amy’s mother, Jane E. Harty of Skaneateles, NY.
Your neighbors and friends offer our deepest sympathy.
(MCA_Editor@pawpo
.com)
July 2007
Middleridge News
.
July 2007
Page 3
Middleridge News
Page 4
2006-07 MIDDLERIDGE CALENDAR OF EVENTS*
AUGUST
National Night Out
Tuesday August 7
MCA Membership Drive
Starts
SEPTEMBER
OCTOBER
NOVEMBER
Labor Day 3rd
School Starts on the 4th
Community Yard Sale
Saturday, 22nd, 7am-1pm
Laura Jaumillot and
Catie Morales
General Membership
Meeting
Thursday the 4th
8 pm Bonnie Brae ES
Music Room
Halloween Parade
Saturday 27th 2-4 pm
FALL CLEANUP
Saturday November 10
10am-Noon
Sarah Mayhew
Every Month:
MCA Board Meeting: 1st Thursday of the month
Newsletter Deadline: 25th of the month
Neighborhood Watch: Friday & Saturday nights
Welcoming: as needed. Please notify Laura Jaumillot
For Sale:
Two Payne Model replacement windows for
kitchen sink and laundry room windows. White
vinyl windows with E-glass, tilt in clean, and
mullions between the glass. Custom sized for
Payne model and new in plastic. Original cost,
$236.00 each, now $200 for both. Call Roger or
Laura at 703-352-7320
July 2007
Middleridge News
July 2007
Page 5
Middleridge News
Page 6
Fairview Firefighters Get Another Feast
By John Valenti
Our “Feed Our Firefighters” program went back to Fairview Station on June 30th to provide
another shift with a home-cooked feast from generous Middleridge families. Once again it was a
big success.
This event would not be possible without the caring people of our Middleridge community.
A Great Big thanks to Deanne Bland who volunteered to collect all the food and deliver it with her
husband Chad and their children – Tyler and Cowen. The Blands had help from the Piwowar
Family – Eileen, Mike, Sean and Brigid who also helped deliver the goods to the firehouse.
Thank you cards were made for the fire fighters from Middleridge children too. Thanks Tyler &
Cowen Bland, Sean & Brigid Piwowar, Stephanie & Kelley Johnson and Nicky Boger for
being so thoughtful and creative for the fire fighters.
The kids seemed to have a good time at the firehouse too.
Many Thanks all who made the home-cooked food:
Mary Sue France
Denise Rachel
Eileen Piwowar
Rosanne Jones
Barb Johnson
Amy Reznick
Rae Milbourn
Deanne Bland
Volunteers are needed to coordinate the next Feed the Firefighters event. Please contact
John Valenti at 703.599.7757 or jvale2222@aol.com to help out. Thank you!
July 2007
Middleridge News
Page 7
June Executive Board Meeting – June 7, 2007
The meeting of the Executive Board of Middleridge Civic Association was called to order by Al
Obuchowski at 7:40 PM at his home. In attendance were Al Obuchowski, President, Al Melanson,
Treasurer, Mary Vander Maten, Secretary, Paul Armstrong, Webmaster, and Sandy Obuchowski,
Newsletter Distributor.
Al Obuchowski opened with a few comments:
-The Tour of Homes went very nicely last Saturday.
organization of the popular event.
Al will thank Amy Young for her
-There was some vandalism in the Middleridge park. Mike Proffitt was notified, to alert the West
Springfield Police Station. Lori Bassford informed the Park Authority, which cleaned the park.
-We owe appreciation to John Mitros for faithful sign placement, and to Vernon Campbell for
excellent Newsletter editing.
Minutes: Minutes from the May General Membership meeting were approved as written.
Treasurer’s Report: The Treasurer’s report was approved as presented.
Committee Reports
Entrance Sign: Al Melanson has put together a work group to remove the old signs next week. The new
signs are scheduled to arrive in early July.
Dinner with the Firemen: The next meal for firemen is scheduled for June 30, for the third shift
workers at the Firehouse on Burke Centre Parkway.
National Night Out: We are grateful to Gretchen and David Bulova for organizing this year’s NNO.
Membership for 2007-2008: We are planning a meeting for the section leaders (8) and block captains
(44). Al O. will prepare a membership letter. Many thanks to Roy Wagner for handling our database
information for many years. Paul Armstrong has volunteered to be the new database manager for our
Middleridge information.
Traffic Calming: One of the traffic tables was installed today. The signs were placed a couple of weeks
ago.
Scholarship Committee: The committee is interviewing second round candidates tonight.
The next board meeting will be on Thursday, July 5, at 7:30 PM, at the home of Catie Morales.
The meeting adjourned at 8:45 PM.
July 2007
Middleridge News
Page 8
Sneakers Needed Now!
Used (or new) Sneakers are needed for an orphanage and school in Liberia, West Africa. These
very poor children are ages 3-15 and need our help.
Simply machine wash and/or disinfect the sneakers your children no longer use or need.
Drop them off at our house – 10804 Stanhope Place. We will send them through the Liberia
Orphan Education Project to the children who need them.
What is the Liberia Orphan Education Project?
It is a small group of concerned people who have been touched by the compelling plight of
orphans in Liberia, West Africa. LOEP is an all-volunteer, not-for-profit operation with absolutely
no overhead costs and is registered as a corporation in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Why Liberia?
War-torn Liberia is one of the three most desperate nations on our planet and children are the
ultimate victims of nearly a generation of strife in that country.
Please look around your home – do you have old sneakers that the kids have outgrown but
are still usable? Just drop them off at our house – you can leave them on the front stoop if
you want – that would be great and the kids would be so grateful.
Thank you for helping out the children.
If you have any questions please contact Helene or John at 703-218-1017 or at email
jvale2222@aol.com
Also check out the web site for the Liberia Orphan Education Project at:
http://www.loeproject.org/home.
Thank you for your help!
July 2007
Middleridge News
Page 9
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Call for details.
Middleridge resident Rory Kelly and his staff are ready to serve you.
Call now to reserve your special date:
Office-703-278-8000
Cell-703-618-LIMO (5466)
Call today for your special rates
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July 2007
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Middleridge News
Page 10
Audubon At Home in July, 2007 by Sarah Mayhew
July has come in with heat and humidity, as usual. Less obvious are the arrivals of
many baby birds and animals in our backyards. The loud dawn chorus of singing
birds winds down quickly in July because the adult songbirds are busy parenting –
feeding insects to their young and teaching them to fly. We can help these baby birds
survive a treacherous period in their lives by taking a few small steps to make our
backyards friendlier to wildlife. First, put out a birdbath with shallow, sloping sides.
Young birds are not adept at landing gracefully on small perches or at determining
when water is so deep that they would drown. Properly designed bird baths give
them the fresh water they need to drink in a safe environment. Birds are attracted to
the sound of dripping or splashing water, so more will come if you equip your birdbath
with a drip or spray water feature. To keep mosquito larvae from growing into biting
adults, you should empty the birdbath once a week. A sharp spray from a garden
hose across the birdbath will wash away the mosquito larvae and clean the bath at
the same time. A birdbath gives a lot of amusing views of splashing birds for minimal
weekly effort.
A second way to help young birds survive is to limit the use of pesticides on your lawn
or in your garden, since birds will feed insecticide-laced bugs to their young. I admire
gardeners who forgo pesticides completely, but I use them when I see the pests
getting the upper hand on my flowers. I use an approach that I have discussed
before in this newsletter – Integrated Pest Management. I determine what insect is
causing the damage and choose the insecticide that will kill that pest with the least
“collateral damage” of killing other beneficial insects. There are a number of local
resources available to help you identify a pest. The friendliest is the “Master
Gardener” table set up at farmers’ markets and local libraries every week. I have
also
used
the
Virginia
Tech
website
to
identify
insects.
See
www.ento.vt.edu/bughunt. Once you have identified the insect, ask the helpful
people at your garden center of choice to give you the least toxic insecticide for that
particular insect. For many insects, you will need to apply the insecticide twice, about
7 to 10 days apart. The first application kills the adult insects and the second kills any
young that hatch out afterwards. Limit where you apply the insecticide to the plants
where you have seen the pest. With this simple change in pesticide use, you will
greatly improve the diet of hungry baby birds.
Finally, if you allow your cats to roam outdoors, this is the one month when you can
most help wildlife by keeping your cats indoors or, at a minimum, putting a bell on
their collars. Domestic and feral cats kill millions of birds every year and baby birds
are especially vulnerable in low nests and when they are first learning to fly. Even
when your cat is well fed, it will kill when the opportunity presents itself. For
information on keeping your usually outdoor cat happy inside, go to the website of
the American Bird Conservancy, www.abcbirds.org/cats.
July 2007
Middleridge News
Page 11
The Fairfax County Park Authority’s IMA program continues in Woodglen Lake Park.
The next workday is Wednesday, July 18, 2007 from 9:00 am to 11:00 am (Rain date
Thursday, July 19, 9:00 – 11:00 am). If you are available to spend two hours helping
remove English Ivy from trees in a new section of the park, please email
sarah.mayhew@yahoo.com or telephone 703-278-0103.
Curb Appeal
I’ve noticed recently that cracks in sidewalks and between the cement gutters and
asphalt paving in Middleridge have sprouted lots of green weeds. To improve the
“curb appeal” of our community and maintain high property values, please get rid of
this unsightly growth in front of your homes. The best method I have found is to
pour hot water on the weeds. It kills the weeds and sterilizes the weed seeds that
remain in the crack, keeping the area weed-free much longer than using Round-up.
To avoid heating up your kitchen more than necessary this summer, save the hot
water from cooking pasta and pour that on the weeds. I drain the pasta over a large
pan and carry the hot water outside right away. In two minutes the weeds are wilting
and I’m back in the kitchen finishing dinner. That’s a win-win technique for the
environment and the good looks of our neighborhood.
PIANO INSTRUCTION
MIDDLERIDGE PIANO INSTRUCTOR, ROBERTA COMACK-KATLEMAN IS CURRENTLY
ACCEPTING A FEW NEW STUDENTS FOR SUMMER AND FALL PIANO LESSONS IN
HER HOME STUDIO.
ROBERTA HAS BEEN TEACHING PIANO FOR OVER 20 YEARS AND IS EXPERIENCED
WITH AGES 4 YEARS OLD TO 104 YEARS OLD.
PLEASE CONTACT ROBERTA AT: (703)
278-8151 Home or (703) 606-3130 cell
July 2007
Middleridge News
July 2007
Page 12
Middleridge News
Page 13
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July 2007
Middleridge News
INFORMATION
Page 14
FROM THE EDITOR:
Throughout Middleridge there are numerous Natural
Gas Lights wasting both this resource (by continuing
to emit gas 24/7 without being lighted) and a
significant sum of money in resident’s monthly
Washington Gas Light bills.
If a resident with a gas light in their front yard wishes
to stop these losses, there is a small screw just inside
the hole in the post where the post meets the lantern
top, that when turned clockwise will stop the flow of
gas. Residents who wish to burn their lights can
obtain the necessary Mantels (little white socks that
control the burn of the gas and emit the light) from
most any hardware store.
I have been lucky enough this year to see my
oldest daughter graduate from Robinson
Secondary School, and win scholarships from
the school she has selected to attend as well as
from the St. Mary’s Knights of Columbus.
Elsewhere in this newsletter you will read of the
scholarship winners who were awarded from the
Middleridge Scholarship Committee.
I have watched and participated in many of my
daughter’s school activities since she was in
kindergarten, and even though I have three other
children with whom I am actively involved, this
graduation marks an end of an era for me. For
the first time, one of my kids will be continuing
on her life ELSEWHERE, not from home. One
of the great opportunities presented to me over
the last four years in particular from my
involvement was to meet and interact with a
large number of my daughter’s friends from
Robinson. I cannot express how sharp, talented,
and outgoing these kids are. I didn’t really
appreciate some of it until I read, saw, or heard
some of their accomplishments.
One of her friends, Ms. Stephanie Ly, also
received a scholarship and award for Squire
Rose Woman of the Year from the St. Mary’s
KOC. Stephanie is a Middleridge resident, is
already in attendance at UVA, and has been our
Community Service co-coordinator for the past
year. While we congratulate and wish Stephanie
well in her endeavors, it also means we need to
find a replacement for her in that position.
IT’S HOT!! GO ON VACATION!! ENJOY THE
SUMMER. GET INVOLVED. RENEW YOUR MCA
MEMBERSHIP ON AUGUST 7!!
Any high school student who would like to take
on the position of Community Service
Coordinator for MCA, please contact one of the
Board members listed on the front page banner,
or email the newsletter. Your rewards can be in
your future, as Stephanie’s have been.
July 2007
Middleridge News
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