Last Updated on April 1, 2024
Ah, Spring has sprung. It is so good to see our flowering trees in close to full bloom already. And, with a little help from climate change, our other trees may already be blooming too. What a great time to see nature coming back in all its beautiful regalia. And the great sounds of birds and our favorite flyers, the geese.
I want to spend just a moment of time talking about our Residents’ Council finances. Since we had a wonderful response to our Council fundraising campaign last year and our carefully controlled expenses, the Council has decided NOT to have a fundraising campaign this year, since we believe we have adequate funds to cover our Council operations during this year and next. Three cheers for the Council.
During the last few months, I have mentioned the fact that we have had three Sustainability working teams – Grounds, Dining, and Transportation – working to develop ideas for a more friendly/sustainable environment on our campus. It was always planned that these teams would have a fixed period, approximately six months, to develop appropriate/relevant/achievable goals for their assigned areas, which would then be presented to the Administration and the Residents’ Council for their review, discussion, and approval for execution. We recently received the Grounds Sustainability team report. Some of the more likely possibilities of implementation from the Grounds team include adding clover to the seed mix for routine overseeding and the use of native grasses where traditional turf grass is not suitable. Also, native plants should be used in bare areas or areas prone to erosion. A combination of native plants and brush mattresses in the steepest, most problematic eroded areas, would significantly reduce erosion. This gives you some idea of the many recommendations made by the Grounds working team. We are expecting similar reports from the Dining and Transportation Sustainability working teams.
By the time you read this article, the St. Charles design review team will have met twice with the Administration staff and arrived at some positive conclusions with respect to the furniture, lighting, carpeting and the like for that building’s renovation. We are now in the process of assembling the Historic District design review team to deal with the renovation issues related to that area of our campus as it begins that lengthy process.
I might also mention that I just had the opportunity to attend a MaCCRA (Maryland Continuing Care Residents’ Associations) meeting in Annapolis where there was great enthusiasm about the probability of the passage of a MaCCRA sponsored bill relating to measures like improvements in the Governance of CCRCs, improving and strengthening Grievance policies and procedures at CCRCs (Continuing Care Retirement Communities), and strengthening the policies for insuring the refunds of entrance fees/deposits at CCRCs. This bill has already passed the House of Delegates. I should go ahead and report that our Charlestown community is well within the boundaries of the rules included in this new Maryland legislation. Your own membership in the Charlestown MaCCRA has a potential benefit to you personally and certainly to all CCRCs in our state. Our local chapter has a membership of over 150 members and is active in the state organization. Among other things, it tracks and supports CCRC legislation pertinent to Charlestown. Our Residents’ Council Legislative and Political committee also tracks this type of legislation as well as tracking much other legislation related to Charlestown’s overall welfare.
Finally, we continue to be in the process of recruiting candidates for next year’s Residents’ Council. If you might be interested personally or would like to suggest someone as a candidate, please contact co-chairs Mark Buehlman or Joe Carrick. Their contact information is in MyErickson.
ISOLATION IS MY ENEMY! SOCIALIZATION IS MY FRIEND!
John Remias, Residents’ Council President