Greetings To Our Greater Gladstone Neighbors,
Happy Fall 2015 from the Greater Gladstone Civic Association (GGCA). We hope you all have had a wonderful summer… and a terrific year since we last sent out our membership letter. Both the winter and summer were roller coasters weather-wise, but so far this fall, the weather has been delightful and we hope you are able to take advantage of it.
As we’ve done in past fundraising letters, we want to remind you that the GGCA feels – and hopes you agree – it is important for our community to continue to cultivate and build new relationships as well as to maintain and deepen our existing relationships and the connections that enhance our lives and define this very strong Gladstone neighborhood. And we feel quite strongly that we can continue to work together to make these things happen through our association – the GGCA — which supports and represents each resident in this great neighborhood. And as we also remind you each year, in order to do this, we need your support to continue this work.
We’re asking once again that you consider making a contribution to the GGCA this year. Your generosity is what makes it possible to continue our work toward community-building events, neighborhood-improvement projects, and other member-driven activities.
As you are no doubt aware, the GGCA is made up of residents who volunteer their time and efforts towards making this community a wonderful place to live. These volunteers have continued their work to expand the organization and its representation in Lansdowne and again have accomplished much in the past year, including the following:
- The issue of the intermittent outages of the lampposts that were problematic over the last couple years has been addressed and rectified in co-operation with the Borough, who were dealing on our behalf with PECO. While this issued seems to have been taken care of, we want to remind and encourage you that, if you notice any lamppost outages, please contact the Association officers or via our website.
- Another area that has become of concern recently, and with which we are in communication with the Borough and subsequently our neighbors, is the ongoing work with the traffic lights along Baltimore Pike as well as the status of repairs to our roads. A communication regarding these matters was recently sent via e-mail to those of you who have provided an e-mail address, but postings were also made to our Facebook page and our website (see above).
- Our various Association-sponsored events continued the positive trend of attracting increasing numbers of friends and neighbors. The annual holiday tree lighting was again a great success this past year and continues as a way to connect with each other and extend our good wishes for the season. Other successful events included an Easter-egg hunt at Marlyn Park and participation in the Lansdowne July Fourth parade. Because July Fourth has fallen over the weekend the past couple of years, we have tabled for now the annual picnic and in its place we have had ice-cream socials, which seem to be a welcome end-of-summer event. We are very happy to provide these opportunities for all to visit with one another and hope to see you this year.
- Beautification projects began, as they do each year, with spring plantings in and around the Manor and continued with bed maintenance throughout the warmer seasons.
- Our website – gladstonemanor.org — that was begun several years ago continues to improve and provides another vehicle for communicating Gladstone news. It contains meeting minutes, event updates, photos, and newsletter pieces. Also, whenever possible and/or relevant we post items on Facebook and Nextdoor Gladstone Manor.
- Our Association newsletter continues to be issued throughout the year and includes items of interest about our neighborhood, the Borough, the environment, and life “back in the day.”
- Residents from the Greater Gladstone neighborhood meet routinely, both formally and informally, to press on with our work of making this community a terrific place to live. Formal meetings take place at Borough Hall on the dates listed below; informal meetings occur as needed.
Our plans for the upcoming year are to continue these kinds of community-building activities and the traditions that make us a strong neighborhood. However, we cannot do them without your support. We are always open to fresh ideas and new efforts, so please let us hear from you about other activities you’d like to see. But because we are an entirely volunteer-based group, and our efforts reflect the interests and passions of those involved, we really hope you would join us in this work. So, in addition to your much-needed financial support, please think about getting involved by indicating an interest in helping with a new or current activity. And by all means, please feel free to attend any or all Association meeting(s). As you can see, we are in need of a vice-president and secretary; so if you have any interest in either of these roles, contact any of the existing officers or, preferably, come to a meeting to tell us in person.
Thank you so much for your continued generous support!
Sincerely,
Melissa Englund, President
Kathy Kauffman, Treasurer