As another year passes and winter gives in to spring, bicycling continues to be an important part of life, work, and play in Takoma Park. While the recent utilities work has created challenges for cars and bikes along Carroll Avenue, there is reason to be optimistic as new bike-friendly projects and plans in Takoma Park and beyond take shape.

In March, the city’s agreement with the Maryland Department of Transportation was executed, committing $100,000 to bike improvements in Takoma Park, including bike lanes in the Ethan Allen Gateway Streetscape project and new and improved bike parking at the Community Center and Recreation Center on New Hampshire Avenue. There will also be “sharrows” – arrows painted on the road surface to indicate a shared road for bikes and cars – along Carroll Avenue where it is too narrow for a bike lane, and on Takoma Avenue near the Metropolitan Branch Trail (MBT).

Meanwhile, the District of Columbia is moving forward to extend the MBT north from Fort Totten Metro into Maryland (see story on page 11), and the Montgomery County Planning Department is revamping its 10-year old Bicycle Master Plan. Takoma Park residents can celebrate Bike Month this May in Takoma Park with the following local events:

Bike to School Day

Wednesday, May 6

All Takoma Park elementary and middle school students are invited to ride their bikes to school on Bike to School Day, Wednesday, May 6. Get your bike ready for spring and summer fun. Wipe off the spider webs, check the tires, brakes and chain and be sure to strap on your helmet. Here’s what’s happening in Takoma Park on May 6:

Takoma Park Middle School students participating in Bike to School Day will be met with refreshments when they arrive at school. Bike related prize drawings will occur during the course of the day.

Rolling Terrace Elementary School encourages walking and biking to school every Wednesday throughout the year and especially on Bike to School Day.

Piney Branch Elementary School will meet at the Franklin apartment building parking lot, 7620 Maple Ave. at 8:45 a.m. The ride to school will start at 8:55. Maple Avenue will be closed to traffic during the ride and the Takoma Park Police will escort the bicyclists. Extra bike parking will be available in the Community Center basketball court. Students riding a bike, scooter or skateboard must wear a helmet to participate.

Piney Branch will also celebrate the #SaveKidsLives Campaign for Global Road Safety Week (May, 4-10) during ts Bike to School Day event on Wednesday, May 6. Piney Branch joins communities around the world working hard to stop deaths and injuries to children on our roads. On Bike to School Day, students, teachers, staff, parents and other community members will have the opportunity to sign the United Nations’ Child Declaration urging decision makers to take strong action to make roads safer for children.

They can also take a #safie (not a selfie – a #safie). Taking a #safie is a fun way to show your support. To take part in this campaign, download the #safie signboard, write a safety message and share it on social media including the #Safie and #SaveKidsLives hashtags. All city residents who are concerned about road safety can sign the Declaration and take a #safie. For more information about the Declaration and to download the signboard go to www.safekids.org/safe-roads-safe-kids.

Bike to Work Day

Friday, May 15

If you’ve been telling yourself this will be the year you start commuting to work by bike, then why not start on Bike to Work Day? For the past several years, thousands of commuters in the greater Washington metropolitan area have participated in this morning event to celebrate bicycling as a clean, fun and healthy way to get to work. Three Bike to Work Day pit stops will again be in Takoma Park, at the Gazebo in Old Takoma, on Sligo Creek Trail at New Hampshire Avenue, and at the Takoma/Langley Crossroads Professional Building (7676 New Hampshire Ave.). All three locations have been a big hit with local riders as the event grows every year. Even in last year’s torrential storms, cyclists made their way to the rain-orshine pit stops. Registration is free and participants receive a T-shirt, refreshments, and are entered into a raffle for a bicycle and other fun prizes! Register at www.biketoworkmetrodc.com.

This article appeared in the May 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

Were you in Washington, D.C. or College Park area in early April when the power went out at the White House, the Capitol, 13 metro stations, the Smithsonian, the University of Maryland campus and surrounding areas? How did you manage? Was your cell phone working to call family or were you underground at a Metro station without power? Were you in College Park wandering around trying to do without street-crossing lights?

Although the April power outage was caused by the failure of a transmission conductor in Charles County, Md. it’s a good warning for what may happen in Takoma Park in the summer due to storms or generator problems. So—what can you do?

Long-term outage, continuing storms

The following will ensure you’re ready if the power goes out for days:

• Have a plan to stay in touch with your family and a meeting place if you get separated.
• Make a basic emergency kit: 1 gallon of water per person per day; food for three days per person; flashlight and batteries; and a battery-operated radio to stay informed.
• Schedule a block or building preparedness meeting with our City Emergency Preparedness manager Ron Hardy (ronh@takomaparkmd.gov)
• Go to www.ready.gov or www.redcross. org to learn more on preparedness.

Short term outage

• Consider this an ‘indoor camping’ experience – without having to put up the tent! Make sure you have the following on hand:
• A lantern with a large battery (periodically check this to make sure the battery is OK)
• Several flashlights close at hand (near the bed, the desk, and downstairs) that you can easily retrieve when the power goes out
• Working batteries that fit each item (try using masking tape to mark when they were bought)
• Phone numbers for contacts that are easily accessible
• Alternative phone options, such as a non-cell phone or car charger (be careful going down the stairs to get to the car!)
• Easy access to medications that must be taken in evenings (take the flashlight or lantern);
• Bottled water

This article appeared in the May 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

The National Volunteer Fire Council presented Takoma Park Volunteer Fire Department Chief Jim Jarboe its 2015 NVFC Fire Prevention and Education Award last month. The award, sponsored by First Alert, honors a volunteer firefighter or nonoperational volunteer who exemplifies the philosophy of fire prevention.

Jarboe is well known in the community for more than 50 years of service, offering safety education through his long association with Takoma Park Fire Department. What Takoma Parkers may not know is that Jarboe also participates actively with a number of Maryland fire safety groups, including the Maryland State Fireman’s Association Fire Prevention Committee and the Fire and Burn Safety Coalition of Maryland.

“He dedicated much of his life to public service and made major strides to bring prestige, credibility and recognition to volunteer firefighters nationwide.”

On the home front, Jarboe has coordinated and been the lead instructor of the Takoma Park Volunteer Fire Department’s Babysitter’s Safety Training Program since 1964. More than 2,500 girls and boys have completed the 10-hour program under his leadership. Since 1982, Chief Jarboe has authored the monthly Firehouse Report column in the city’s newsletter, which includes fire safety messages, response statistics, fire loss data and more. Each Halloween he paints pumpkins and displays them throughout the area with safety tips for trick-or-treating. He also coordinates a partnership with the Lions Club and Holy Cross Hospital blood drives to provide fire safety information to blood donors.

Throughout his tenure at the department, Jarboe has helped to design emergency preparedness brochures; developed, organized and coordinated the city-wide Operation Smoke Detector Check project; served as a safety monitor at the city’s annual Halloween haunted house; and provided a weekly hour-long fire safety segment at the local college radio station. Jarboe also continues to provide fire safety tips during department programs and city events.

The Fire Prevention and Education award was established in memory of volunteer firefighter Marc Mueller. According to NVFC’s web site, Mueller “energetically promoted the causes of volunteer firefighters and supported all efforts to elevate the volunteer program to its highest level. He dedicated much of his life to public service and made major strides to bring prestige, credibility and recognition to volunteer firefighters nationwide.”

Jim Jarboe exemplifies a similar community spirit.

This article appeared in the May 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

By Jim Jarboe

As of Mar. 31, 2015, the Takoma Park Volunteer Fire Department and the personnel of the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service assigned to the station have responded to 168 fire related incidents in 2015. The department addressed or assisted with 746 rescue or ambulance-related incidents for a total of 914. Totals for 2014 were 160 and 689, representing an increase of 65 incidents.

During the month of March 2015, the Takoma Park volunteers put in a total of 1,402.5 hours of standby time at the station, compared to 1,247.5 in March 2014. Grand totals as of March 2015 are 4,412 hours compared to 3,617.5 hours in 2014, an increase of 794.5 hours.

Maryland fire deaths

The Maryland State Fire Marshal Office reported as of March 20, 23 people have died in fires in 2015, compared to 26 in 2014.

Junk vehicles needed

Do you have an old junker littering your driveway? The Takoma Park VFD can take it off your hands – we are currently looking for vehicles to be used for training. If you have a vehicle you would like to donate, call Chief Glenn Butts at the station, 240-773-8954. We’ll be glad to pick it up and dispose of it after we finish training with it.

Be prepared for fire

Plan ahead! If a fire breaks out in your home, you may have only a few minutes to get out safely once the smoke alarm sounds. Everyone needs to know what to do and where to go if there is a fire.

• MAKE a escape plan. Draw a map of your home showing all doors and windows. Discuss the plan with everyone in your home.
• KNOW at least two ways out of every room, if possible. Make sure all doors and windows leading outside open easily.
• HAVE an outside meeting place (like a tree, light pole or mailbox) a safe distance from the home where everyone should gather in an emergency evacuation.
• MAKE sure you have working smoke alarms on all levels of the home. Check them monthly.

This article appeared in the May 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

Many May Events

Remember to mark your calendars for three author events in May! First, on Wednesday, May 6, at 7:30 p.m., humorist and kids’ author Dave Barry will present his newest book for young readers ages 8-12, “The Worst Class Trip Ever.”

Barry’s event will take place in the Takoma Park Community Center Auditorium. Then, on Wednesday, May 13, at 7 p.m., author Michelle Knudsen and illustrator Matt Phelan will read their new picture book, “Marilyn’s Monster.”

Finally, graphic novelist Jorge Aguirre spotlights his newest graphic novel for kids, “Dragons Beware!,” Monday, May 18 at 7:30 p.m. Both of these events will take place in the Library’s Children’s Room. Politics and Prose will be selling copies of the authors’ books at each event, but the programs are free and no purchase is required. Hope to see you at one or all of these fun events!

Book sale returns

The popular Friends of the Takoma Park Maryland Library book sale will return on Saturday, May 16 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the Library lawn. Used books in good condition of every description will be available at bargain prices.

The book sales are a major fund-raising event by the Library Friends, and all proceeds go the Library in the form of donations for programs and other services and resources. Volunteers are needed to help at the sale in approximately two-hour shifts between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Volunteering is a wonderful opportunity to find some great books, meet your neighbors, and help the Library. High-school students may earn service learning hours toward graduation by volunteering at the sale. To volunteer, or for further information, contact Ellen Robbins at ellenr@takomaparkmd.gov.

This article appeared in the May 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

By Patti Mallin

This spring, the Sunday afternoon MOOC crew investigated the worlds of historical fiction. At each gathering, anywhere from five to a dozen people explored ever-changing definitions of historical fiction, which we found to be quite the moving target. We heard the differences between how an historian and a journalist approach the research and writing of historical fiction, from the authors themselves. And we learned the phrase “anxiety of influence” to label our concern over how readers of fiction might mistake a novel for historical record – an example would be the enormous number of stories written about the Salem witch trials compared to the small amount of time spent examining primary sources.

In theory, throughout the week and at our own paces, we followed an online class offered by the University of Virginia via Coursera, where we watched lectures and read excerpts from texts written over the course of hundreds of years. In practice, we staked our Sunday claim to Computer Room B where we discussed the lectures and the assigned readings, explored issues in writing our own works of historical fiction, expressed excitement over Wolf Hall finally appearing on PBS, talked about volunteering for Project Gutenberg, and drank increasing amounts of coffee.

New Takoma Park resident Jean Krueger compares this MOOC to a book club. “I get to hear other readers’ take on whatever I’m reading and have often gained insights I would not otherwise have. I find that so in this group, as well. I had not previously given much thought to how historical fiction developed or considered how each author approached it, given known historical facts. I think I will question this more in the future as I read each new book.”

“I think I will question this more in the future as I read each new book.”

Jennifer Bunch, who is currently writing her own work of historical fiction, has a different takeaway from the MOOC. “I’m finding the class discussions extremely helpful in planning my own historical novel by providing the opportunity to hear what other readers of historical fiction like, don’t like, and hope to gain from the historical novels they read.”

There are a core group of library patrons who participate in almost every MOOC we offer, and others who join for one specific program. In the past we have explored courses titled Ancient Greek Hero and the Moralities of Everyday Life, we have learned “How to Learn” and how Hollywood storytelling changed with advances in technology. As we ease into summer, we are going back to the movies.

Coursera’s “Marriage and the Movies” begins online May 18, and we will meet for the five following Sundays at 12:30 p.m. to watch and discuss films that demonstrate how the depiction of marriage has changed over time since the silent film era. To join us, sign up for the online portion of the course at www.coursera.org/course/marriageandmovies and register for our Sunday meetups at www.takomapark.info/library/programs.html.

All are welcome!

Patti Mallin is a Library Instructional Assistant who presides at our popular Sunday afternoon massive open on-line course offerings along with public services coordinator Rebecca Brown.

This article appeared in the May 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

Join the Friends of the Library Reading Group on Wednesday, May 13, as they discuss selections from the collection “Ficciones,” by Jorge Luis Borges (1899-1986). The discussion will be held at 7:30 p.m. in the Rose Room of the Community Center.

“Borges was an Argentine poet, essayist, and short story writer who is considered one of the foremost figures in world literature of the 20th century,” according to the New World Encyclopedia. “Borges’s reputation rests primarily on his complex and startlingly original short stories, which…present relatively simple philosophical propositions or thought experiments – What would it be like to be immortal? What would it be like if one could not forget anything? – and proceed through fantastic dream-like narratives… His works have been included by critics in the category of ‘magical realism,’ which introduces some magical elements into an otherwise realist narrative.”

“The seventeen pieces in ‘Ficciones’ demonstrate the whirlwind of Borges’s genius and mirror the precision and potency of his intellect and inventiveness, his piercing irony, his skepticism, and his obsession with fantasy,” adds the publisher’s note. “Borges sends us on a journey into a compelling, bizarre and profoundly resonant realm; we enter the fearful sphere of Pascal’s abyss, the surreal and literal labyrinth of books and the iconography of eternal return. To enter the worlds in ‘Ficciones’ is to enter the mind of Jorge Luis Borges, wherein lies Heaven, Hell and everything in between.”

According to John Updike, “…Borges has lifted fiction away from the flat earth where most of our novels and short stories still take place.” A reviewer in The Atlantic Monthly wrote that its stories “throb with uncanny and haunting power.” And Mario Vargas Llosa has called Borges “the most important Spanish-language writer since Cervantes.”

All are welcome to join the Friends’ book discussions. Copies of “Ficciones” are available at the Library.

This article appeared in the May 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

The Maryland Recreation and Park Association named Howard Kohn its 2015 Community Volunteer of the Year on April 16, during National Volunteer Week. The statewide award, presented at a ceremony in Ocean City, is presented annually to recognize outstanding volunteer service to community parks and recreation program.

Kohn is a familiar face around town, on soccer fields, in city gardens and community festivals, and is known for pitching in just about everywhere he goes. The Recreation Department knows him as a model volunteer who encourages others to pitch in as well.

On the sports scene Kohn was one of the original organizers of the local youth baseball and softball league, the youth soccer league, the winter basketball league and the adult coed softball league. He’s still a soccer commissioner and the baseball fields coordinator, and “Team Howard” still plays softball, with Kohn occasionally “pitching” in as emeritus coach.

On the civic scene Kohn was in the forefront of the campaign for the community center, chaired the Recreation Committee for many years and helped revive the Takoma Foundation. He’s also been active in the Takoma Junction revitalization, the Old Town “main street” effort and upkeep of the woods between Piney Branch Elementary and Takoma Park Middle School. He also helped lead the fight for the new Blair High School and served at Blair as a soccer coach and PTSA officer

At present Kohn is a member or organizer of the Independence Day Committee, Community Health and Empowerment through Education and Research (CHEER), Takoma United for an Engaged Community, MLK Service Day, the Celebrate Takoma festival, the Ready-by-21 Youth Collaborative and the Takoma Park Commemoration Commission. His most recent passion is as a weekend teacher at the youth demonstration gardens on Community Center grounds.

Over more than 30 years as a Takoma Park resident, Kohn has led by example, engaging other volunteers and helping to create a vibrant, engaged community here in this small city. As staff members of the Takoma Park Recreation Department, we congratulate him on this well-deserved award and extend our most sincere thanks for his continuing and generous contribution of time and talent to our programs, and to the community at large.

This article appeared in the May 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.

The City of Takoma Park Safe Routes to School Program brings iCan Shine Bike Camp to Takoma Park, from July 6-10 at Takoma Academy, 8120 Carroll Ave.

iCan Shine is a non-profit organization that teaches individuals with disabilities to ride a conventional two-wheel bicycle through its iCan Bike program. This five-day camp requires riders to attend one 75-minute session per day.

iCan Shine uses adapted equipment, trained professionals and volunteer spotters. With 75 minutes of instruction over five days, more than 80 percent of riders learn to ride a conventional bicycle independently by the end of camp.

Spaces are available for riders ages 8 to 14 years old. To be eligible to enroll, riders must have an intellectual or physical disability, be able to walk without an assistive device such as a walker or cane, be able to side-step quickly to both sides, must have a minimum inseam measurement of 20 inches and weigh no more than 220 pounds. Riders must wear their own bike helmet and must have an appropriate personal bike available for the iCan Bike program by no later than Thursday (Day Four) of the program. The goal is to transition all riders to their own bikes towards the latter part of the week.

Two volunteer “spotters” are needed per rider. Spotters work with the same rider for each of the five days and experience the thrill of giving the gift of riding a bike! Volunteers must be at least 16 years old (unless accompanied by an adult); be able to attend 90 minutes at the same time each of the five days of camp (15 minutes of training/daily debriefing, 75 minute session); be able to provide physical, emotional and motivational support to the assigned rider and be able and willing to get some exercise (light jogging/running) for a great cause!

This iCan Shine Bike Camp is free. Spaces are still available.

To register for the camp or sign on to volunteer, contact Lucy Neher, lucyn@takomaparkmd.gov.

This article appeared in the May 2015 edition of the Takoma Park Newsletter. The Takoma Park Newsletter is available for download here.