Moment of Silence

The Council observed a moment of silence for those who have passed away.  Stephanie also asked the residents to keep John Remias in our prayers as he is currently in St Agnes Hospital.

Minutes

Minutes of the October 7, 2025 meeting of the Residents’ Council meeting were approved.

Mission Moment 1
Honoree:  Andy Kochis
Nominated by Donna Martin

Donna Martin celebrates Andy Kochis and the volunteer aluminum can collectors for living the Erickson values Andy and his generous team improve the environment by recycling and making it easy for our residents to recycle, while also supporting the benevolent care fund with purpose and joy volunteer Aluminum can collectors inspect every resident shelf on campus the night before or early in the morning of recycling volunteers not only collect the cans, but crush bag and store them every four or five weeks. Andy delivers the cans to the American recycle facility in Elkridge. The money received from the recycled CANS is donated to the benevolent Care Fund. From the beginning of the project in July 2021 to the present, the group has recycled 7638 pounds of cans, contributing $3,545 to the Benevolent Care Fund. For more information about how to add your cans to the collection, or to volunteer see this month’s Sun birth article

Mission Moment 2
Honoree:  Eugenia Davis
Nominated by Joan Green

After a day of shopping, Joan needed two sets of hands, one set to transfer the packages to a cart and one to keep the cart from rolling away. How many of us have been in this precarious position? Eugenia noticed the dilemma and hurried over to help. She not only kept the basket steady, but offered to take the cart to Joan’s fourth floor apartment door, enabling Joan to park the car. Joan is always amazed at how quickly Charlestown’s neighbors offer to help when a need arises. Eugenie couldn’t be with us today because she had eye surgery recently. If you see her, say hi and thank you.

Executive Team Reports

Stephanie Leddy President

Stephanie shares a poem by Donna Schilling, reflecting on the talents at Charlestown.
She announces the treasure sale total of $56,610, a new record, and the staff appreciation total of $426,023.
Stephanie mentions the beautiful wreaths created by quillers and the upcoming bead and jewelry pop-up.
She highlights the return of Hershey’s ice cream and the Little Theater Company’s production of “Must See TV.”
Stephanie discusses the Fireside Artists Fall Winter Showcase and the upcoming holiday arts and crafts fair.
She mentions the community concert series and the Harmonizers’ holiday concert tickets.
The Poets Corner and Saturday Night at the Movies are back, with a new foreign movie on November 14.
Stephanie thanks the Sunburst team for their efforts in creating the monthly newsletter.

Jerry Donaldson, Treasurer

Balance – September 30, 2025          $ 7,054.57
Income                                                   $       50.00
Expenses:                                              ($    220.89)
Secretary, Budgeted   $105.99
President, Budgeted   $114.90

Balance – October 31, 2025                      $ 6,883.68

Committee Reports

Benevolent Care, Sandy Mack, Chair

• Fall Fest

During Fall Fest, a total of 53 individuals participated in the ax throwing game. The event generated $106 in total revenue. All proceeds were donated to support Benevolent Care.

The 50/50 raffle generated a total of $1,470. The fund’s share was $735, and the winner graciously donated their portion to Benevolent Care.

• Planned Giving

Our planned giving program continues to thrive, with 22 gifts committed this year for a total of $1.78 million.

Our Committee’s campus outreach for planned giving is underway. In October, we successfully engaged four campus clubs, and we have already scheduled three additional visits for early November.

• Pop Up Sales

To further support benevolent care, we are launching monthly pop-up sales with clubs who are committed to donating all their proceeds to the fund.

The Bead & Jewelry Group hosted the first sale today. Their dedication and beautiful creations helped raise $636 to support the Benevolent Care Fund.

This is just the beginning. Two more club pop-up sales are already scheduled for March and April 2026 and we look forward to seeing how they continue to make a difference, one pop-up at a time.

• Silent Auction

The silent auction featuring the artwork of resident Angeline Culfogienis is December 10th from 6 – 8 p.m. in the conference center. Rachel Susio and I are in the process of finalizing the details. All proceeds will benefit Benevolent Care.

• Paint Day

We’re hosting a special holiday paint day on Wednesday, December 17th, from 1 to 4 p.m. in the Conference Center. Come and unleash your inner artist, knowing that all proceeds will benefit Benevolent Care.

Next meeting: Wednesday, November 26 at 2:30pm in Charlestown Square RM-116.

Communications, Betty Elder, Co-Chair

Community Resources

• Death notices – at this point residents are removed from MyErickson after 3 days, but Community Resources and the Finance Department are working to change that to 1 week beginning in 2026.
• Residents transitioning to Continuing Care – Since independent living residents who move to Caton Woods and Wilton Overlook will be listed with their independent living address until they have turned over the key to that apartment, we advise these residents to put their Caton Woods or Wilton Overlook address in their MyErickson profile biography to make it easier for residents to find them.

General Services

• Discussion of problems having Lyft and Uber drivers come to the correct address when picking up residents at buildings which share numbers, like Arborside, Greentree Court, Herbert’s Run, and Brookside. Several Council committees are looking at this issue.
• Gatehouse update is in process. They had been updating the HVAC system.
• EMV use on campus. The issue of EMV elevator etiquette was discussed and is also an issue for more than one committee. There was an early video about this topic, which should be reviewed.

IT Tech Support Update

• IT will be providing a report of “resident compromises” each month. This month there were 5 cases – 3 were scareware. one was a remote login but stopped before any financial damage, and the third was malware removal.
• Mobile phone system upgrade at Wilton Overlook and Caton Woods is now complete. Check your cell phone when you visit as all 3 networks are live and broadcasting.
• The next Tech Bar will be held on December 10th in the Chesapeake from 10 to noon.
• Windows 11 – All employee computers have been updated. Windows 10 is no longer supported by IT but residents can make an appointment to get their compatible computers upgraded (for a fee).
• IT “Tech Time” videos – New video is now being shown on Channel 972 and will be added as the third MyErickson Tech Time videos soon
• Shuttle trackers – Fountain Hill shuttle tracker went live in time for the opening of Café on Main. There are instructions at those locations not at staffed desks for residents to restart the system, but there are spikes in Help Desk calls when there are operating system upgrades when a Pin needs to be entered to get it started..

The next Communications Committee meeting is scheduled for Monday November 22th at @ 2:00 PM. on ZOOM, preceded by the Website Subcommittee at 1:30pm.

if you need the ZOOM link, contact hope@hopetillman.com

Conservation Committee, Charles Robinson, Co-Chair

• Recyclable Items Display Board on display 11/1 at Cafe on Main

The current Recyclable Items Display boards have been updated in preparation for the next display starting November 1 at Cafe on Main.

• Leaking Faucets & Fixtures Educational Campaign- flyer posted on MyErickson & CCI-Charlestown

The committee has been working with the administration to mount an educational campaign aimed at repairing leaking faucets and fixtures to conserve water and reduce utility bills. A flyer was developed and was posted on MyErickson and CCI-Charlestown on October 11. We are awaiting feedback to determine the number of residents who have requested the repair of leaking fixtures.

• Eco-Charlestown -looking for resident expertise to update 2017 document

The committee has been requested to participate in the updating of “Eco-Charlestown” a document in 2017 on the natural history of Charlestown, the background on the development, and the outdoor and indoor environment on our campus. The document can be found on CCI-Charlestown. Any resident with the interest and expertise in updating the document should contact Gary or Charles for more information.

• At the November meeting, Mark Buehlmann will provide a presentation on Environmental Ethics

Next meeting: Tuesday, November 18 at 2:00 pm in BR1.

Dining Services, Cathy Stevens, Chair

• Closing of Terrace Cafe

The Terrace Cafe closed for lunch as of Monday, Nov. 3. Cafe on Main remains open for breakfast and lunch from 9-2 Monday thru Saturday.

• Dinners at Cafe on Main

Terrace will close for dinner and brunch on Dec. 7. Cafe on Main will thereafter be open for a buffet dinner from 4-6 Monday thru Saturday and for brunch on Sunday from 9-2.

Next meeting:  Monday November 17th. at 1:30 in CTS 116

Finance, Art Johnson, Chair

• Update on 2026 Budget

Don Grove was present at the Finance Committee meeting on October 28. With the understanding that information about the 2026 budget would be released to the community on November 1, Finance Director David Schneyer gave a general overview of the 2026 budget process and factors that drove the Board’s decision-making.

Consistent with his reports to the Committee in previous meetings, David noted that utility costs and employee health insurance costs were expected to continue to be important cost drivers in 2026. These are external factors and difficult for management to control.

• November Town Hall- details for 2026 Budget

Letters announcing the rental rates for 2026 were issued to residents November 1. More detailed information about the 2026 budget will be shared with the community at the November 20 Town Hall. I strongly encourage all residents to attend this meeting to gain more information and understanding of the 2026 budget and the 5.5% increase in our monthly payments.

• CapEx 26 Projects reviewed

David also presented information about the results of the CapEx26 process and budget. Don Grove participated in the discussion. The 2026 capital budget will be approximately $26.5 million. A portion of the capital budget projects is “repositioning projects” (i.e., Historic District & Outdoor Space); these account for $8.3 million of the total spend. The other portion of projects is “lifecycle” or “refreshing” projects as well as other maintenance projects. These projects account for $18 million of the total.

Nearly all ten of the Finance Committee’s capital project recommendations were accepted. Screening of the transportation knoll was not. There was substantial discussion of the proposal to make significant and necessary improvements to the auditorium. It was made clear that although the Finance Committee’s recommendation was approved, there will not be a significant investment made in 2026 for this.  We should view this as a two-year project. It is important that representatives of those organizations that regularly use  the auditorium continue to be involved in any discussion of the project and make clear what improvements, repairs, etc. are needed.

• CapEx27 process to begin in December

The same process for generating capital budget proposals for 2027 will be used as we did for the 2026 budget. All proposals must be forwarded to Residents’ Council committees. Those committees will send their ranked preferences to the Finance Committee, which will then review and rank the Committees’ recommendations. The Finance Committee will then forward its recommendations to the Administration and to the Residents’ Council. More information about the process will be forthcoming.

Next Meeting:  Tuesday, November 25th. 2025 @ 9 a.m. in BR-1

Grounds, Dick Voelkel, Chair

• Erosion project at Herbert’s Run is still waiting permit approval

still waiting final permit approval

• Hydra Raking Project at the lake is expected to start mid November.

Fencing was installed.

• Deer Control deterrent has been placed with little effectiveness

Bow hunters didn’t catch any on the first hunt but harvested 4 does last Thursday. Venison was donated.

• Garden Plots will be completely refreshed in January with new plots and dirt

Gardeners will need to tag what they want for the new gardens

• Water to gardens & car wash station will be turned off November 3rd
• Branches rubbing the rooftop of the Edgewood/Brookside bridge were trimmed.
• Asphalt walkway to Lake trail will be reviewed for possible improvements.

The surface is rough in some spots.

• A new holiday Nativity scene was purchased and received. This year’s holiday lights are expected to be dazzling.
• Improvement to the swimming pool sidewalk plantings has been requested. Existing shrubs are on their last legs or last roots.
• The planting area outside the Arborside entrance has been cleaned and refreshed.

Next Meeting: will be Tuesday, November 25th. in BR 1 at 11 am

Health Services, Marty White & Lois Eldred, Co-Chairs

• Parkinson’s Group

Fabulous group.  The group reports a new specialist at St. Agnes. Dr. Zahara and shares that with anyone who needs that specialty.   The Parkinson group has been reaching out to continuing care and hope to have a meeting or two over there in the future.

• COVID and Flu vaccines through the Medical Center. Both have had successful drives with over 980 and 1480 shots given respectively. Vaccines are still available through the Medical Center.
• Resident meetings in WO and CW. There has been increased attendance and participation. Staff have been informative and encouraging in getting residents to these meetings.
• There was a discussion about where to find out about activities that independent residents can become involved with. Under Health Care in MyErickson. It may be easier to find on ccicharlestown.org.
• There is a Falls Prevention lecture Nov. 17 through ELLIC. Kevin James, MD an orthopedist living at Riderwood, will discuss the most common scenarios leading to a fall and where they are most likely to occur.
• Continuing Care -Independent Living Liaison

Carol Benner and Pat Kasuda continue to represent us with Continuing Care. In the latest quality visit, there were minimal new deficiencies, and they were not care-related.  The Plan of correction has been submitted.  It is believed they are on their way back to five-star rating.    Very welcome news. And thank Maxim Mendelzon for his leadership.

• Substance Abuse Working Group Lectures

Dr. Gagliardi, a resident addiction medicine specialist, presented Tripping the Brain in Early October with a full house attending.  The second presentation -” I’ll Drink to That!” – was presented on November 3.  These have been videoed and will be available on 972.  A third lecture will be presented on January 5, 2026 at 1 pm in the auditorium.

• Medication Disposal Event:

November 17, 2025/ 1- 3 pm. Fireside and Cross Creek.   We thank Craig Nelson and the Baltimore County Police for their support of this effort.

Next meeting: Tuesday, November 11th. at 11:00, in BR-1 

November is Bladder Health Awareness month. Charlestown Occupational Therapy will present about their services so please feel free to attend.

Housekeeping, Pat Whittier, Chair

• Shout out to Housekeeping Staff & Housekeeping Committee

I wish to begin by thanking the Housekeeping staff and residents on the Housekeeping Committee who work together to keep our home safe, healthy, clean and attractive. You may be seeing some changes in the Housekeeping staff, the staff will be rotated on the campus giving them an opportunity to work in and learn other buildings. At this time we have over 40 resident members on the committee. We welcome anyone who wishes to join us.

• Housekeeping Update

There are monitors in the different buildings who walk their floors to see if there are any spills  that need cleaning up, untidy messes or other housekeeping issues that require attention. Please be aware that some stains are more difficult to address and require multiple cleanings. Members of the committee report back on each building. For example, Parkview has reported that the use of plastic trash containers has increased. Written reminder notices placed on resident shelves have been credited with this improvement. Concerns about the carpets in Harborview and Arborside elevators were reported. Happily, they are both scheduled for replacement as soon as the contractor is available. Edgewood has reported that someone is leaving trash outside by the garbage can, but no one knows who is doing this.  There have been several concerns about mice in the Fireside restaurant.

• What we all can do to make a difference

This leads us to what we all can do to help. Please use plastic trash containers, placing your tied garbage bags inside. This helps eliminate spills, keeps the floor cleaner and deters the mouse population. If you need a trash container, call General Services and they will deliver one to you at no charge. I ask that no one place trash on the ground outside by the garbage cans, this attracts rodents and is unsightly for residents and visitors. We all need to do our part, if you see something, say something.

• Upcoming Events

The window washing has been completed for this year, in two years the windows are scheduled for their next cleaning. In January, there will be a dumpster to collect any larger items that need to be disposed of.

Next Meeting: November 17th. 2025, at 10 AM in BR-1

Legislative/Political, Richard Lee, Chair

• The LWV Charlestown Unit meeting 11/13/25 at 12 in Shortline Craft Room to plan for upcoming voting registration, Voter’s Guides, poll evaluation and precinct evaluation for the 2026 elections.
• Janet Allan, MaCCRA Vice President indicated that MaCCRA will not introduce any new bills during the upcoming legislative session.
• The Legislative and Political Committee is planning a Meet and Greet in the Gallery on December 9, 2025. Invitations have been issued to the members of the 44a and 44b districts. Half of the delegation have already confirmed their attendance.
• Wrap-up after the 2026 legislative session will be held in late April or early May.
• Judy Plymyer indicated that the LWV will follow election and voting bills as usual.
• Candidates’ forum and/or taping for Baltimore County Executive and County Council are still in the planning stage. Once all candidates have been identified. Invitations will be sent.
• The Baltimore County redistricting process resulted in 9 districts, with 3 being majority minority districts on the west side of the County. Catonsville and Arbutus remain intact.
• At least 4 of the current County councilmen are planning on running for County Executive. This will leave their seats open for new candidates.

Next Meeting:  Wednesday, November 12th. 2025 at 10 AM in BR1  All are welcome.

Maintenance and Engineering, Brian McGill, Chair

• Edgewood parking lot cement & handrails project completed
• Aquatic Center locker rooms refurbishment project complete
• Arborside entrance door locks repaired and tested successfully
• Housekeeping requested to clear Refractory floor of chairs and tables for resident groups that use it
• 2026 budget includes $18 million in maintenance projects.

Next Meeting: Tuesday, November 18rd. 2025 @ 2 PM in BR2 

Resident Life, Bill Jones, Co-Chair

• Tapestry

Completed two very successful events in October. They were well attended by approximately 100 residents and the discussion, centered around community, was very valuable to those who attended. Evaluation of the sessions and planning for the spring program is currently underway.

• Accessibility & Inclusion

Continues to focus on the need for renovations that impact accessibility for residents. A survey on the need for more automatic door openers, at certain locations, will soon be completed and sent to General Services. Emphasis is currently being placed on the location of grab bars in public restrooms to make certain they are fully accessible to users. General Services has been very active in getting these modifications made.

• Low Vision

Held a “Meet & Greet Session on October 9th to encourage conversation between people with low vision issues and how they deal with them. In spite of a limited turnout the group hopes to sponsor similar sessions in the future. On November 10th, several group members will visit the National federation for the Blind. There are still seats available on the shuttle for anyone who wishes to attend.

• Dining Ambassadors

The Dining Ambassador Program has recently recruited several new people to invite new residents to dinner. Discussion is also underway to once again promote seating of new residents in the restaurants. The program to seat new residents together, at large tables, has not been happening so we will be discussing ways to regenerate this effort with Paul Edelman and the Dining Services Committee.

• Transportation Sustainability

Met with Dave Schuch, Transportation Manager, and is finalizing the development of a brochure to inform residents of transportation options available to them like Senior Lyft, Uber and Baltimore Ride. One objective is to demonstrate, to some residents, that it would be less expensive to use one of these services than to have a car on campus. We hope to have this completed and into the approval process by the end of the year.

• Margaret Vincent is now distributing “The New Resident Newsletter” to about 125 residents. New residents who came to Charlestown since May 2025 are receiving the newsletter. This remains a very popular means to get information to new residents for their first six months at Charlestown. She is always looking for information from clubs and groups to put into the newsletter.

Next meeting:  Wednesday, November 19 2025 at 2:00 PM at BR 2.

Safety and Security, Ed Appel & Patti Ormiston, Co-Chairs

• New Entry door card readers in place in Brookside, Herbert’s Run & St. Charles. Some glitches have been or will be fixed. The keys still work.  Security’s traffic safety enforcement is ongoing.

A recent incident at the front gate involved Baltimore County PD, which responded when a person on the do-not-admit list attempted to enter.  When the individual refused to leave, he was cited for trespass.  Executive management participated.  This illustrates how Security carefully protects the Charlestown community.

• Committee is planning annual Thank You for BCPD, BCFD & Arbutus VFD

hopefully to be delivered in November-December.  Last year, signed posters accompanied by cookies were delivered by a staff-committee contingent which elicited positive responses from staff at all three sites.  We plan to try to thank the fire and police responders annually.

• A presentation on scams and frauds is online from November 3’s morning briefing, available on Charlestown’s YouTube channel. A previous FBI presentation from a year ago is also there.  The committee is preparing further safety presentations.
• Check out our October Voices of the Council Video & Sunburst article
• BCPD’s monthly public outreach meeting noted only parking violation issues, and no uptick in crimes.
• Committee Recommendations to Increase Pedestrian Safety

At the request of residents, General Services replaced the parking stops with bollards and painted the curb in Parkview parking lot.  A further suggestion to extend the handrails is being considered by General Services.  The committee made recommendations for crosswalk marking improvements for pedestrian safety and is looking at other locations where campus tripping prevention markings could be improved, including the sidewalk from Parkview to the auditorium, where someone had a trip-fall injury, and the stairs from the Terrace down to Edgewood where another fall with injury occurred.  Security is aware of these.

Next Meeting November 20th. at 11am in CTS 116.

Executive Director Don Grove’s Remarks and Responses to Questions

Don thanked all involved for the treasure sale effort and the participation in the resident satisfaction survey. Participation was very good. They set a goal of 80%, we ended up at 76.4%.  We are about 5% ahead of both Oakcrest and Riderwood.  The numbers in continuing care and assisted living, 77.3% participation in memory care, 88% and in skilled nursing, 94.3%.

Annual monthly service package adjustment notification was sent out. The members of the board will join us at the November 20 resident town hall, November 20 at 2pm in the conference center to discuss the budget.  A lot of different projects and new things are coming for 2026.

Cafe on Main is open. Thank you for your patience as the team learns their new space. The floors, the walls, the artwork, all have sound buffering built in. This is a feature that’s built into all our upcoming restaurant renovations, and I think it really works well

The 972 struggles continue. ComcastThe Charlestown Comcast bulk service contract provides basic HD television in the apartments. Address your concerns to General Services. See more information about apartment television and television connections. READ MORE was out today. ComcastThe Charlestown Comcast bulk service contract provides basic HD television in the apartments. Address your concerns to General Services. See more information about apartment television and television connections. READ MORE will be back on Thursday.  Through myErickson, if you go to messages, we are sending out videos of The Daily Show and other things, those videos are clear, can be heard and seen well. So use MyErickson if you are not already.

Outdoor lights
Don gave an update on the street lights around campus and parking lot lights. There is an assessment going on this week, review of all those lights. He stated that to fix one of those lights it takes several days and a lot of effort just to fix one because of some underground wiring. They are exploring ways to make this more manageable going forward so we have fewer outage issues.

Holiday lights. Don thanked everybody for their suggestions, and he hopes we will see improvement in the holiday lighting. They hope to have everything in place by the end of the month.

QUESTIONS

Veronica Coleman asked that when doing the auditorium renovation that thre please use BluetoothA short range wireless connection used by nearby devices to connect with each other, for example letting a computer connect to a nearby printer wirelessly or by a smart speaker that you tell to place a telephone call through your smart phone READ MORE technology for the hearing impaired.

Clock on The St Charles
Don said they are looking for someone who knows how to turn back time there .

Patsy – Closed Captioning on football games
Don said it was unacceptable and a second TV with captioning would be brought in if it is not possible to get it working correctly on the existing TV.

Marty White – seating area outside of the music room and the pickleball court
Don said the  area was not intended to be a seating area but that he would look into what options are available

Restroom signage in historic area
Don will look into what options are available

Stairs from terrace to Edgewood
John Remias, Jerry Donaldson and Wayne Smith are working on these some ideas of what might be able to be done

Submitted by John Arnold, Secretary