President Joe Carrick called the regular meeting of the Residents’ Council [the Council] to order at 3:00 pm on Tuesday July 1, 2025. 84 residents attended in addition to Don Grove, Charlestown Executive Director and Paul Edelman, Director of Dining.

Moment of Silence
The Council observed a moment of silence for those who have passed away.

Previously distributed minutes of the June 3, 2025 meeting of the Residents’ Council meeting were approved as presented.

Mission Moment
Pat Kasuda celebrates the nine Fireside Artists who have created a “gallery of art” on Fountain Hill’s Main Street, transforming “a construction hall into a reason to smile.”

Sandy Mack, President of the Fireside Artists, was asked by the Administration if the club would be interested in painting the temporary wall panels to brighten the halls in Fountain Hill during construction. The members whose names are shown on the screen volunteered for the project. Using acrylic paints, the artists worked for a month, generously choosing to paint at night and on weekends so as not to interfere with the constructions.
From the beginning of the project, residents and staff were thrilled with each completed painting and eagerly awaited the completion of each new panel. They even dubbed the artists “The Midnight Painters.”
The “Midnight Painters” certainly demonstrated many Charlestown values: Caring for residents and staff, respect for the construction workers, and teamwork, excellence, and enthusiasm in working their whimsical magic to bring the otherwise plain hallways alive.
Please join me in congratulating the Midnight Painters who are with us in the audience.

Executive Team Reports

Joe Carrick President
Happy July 4^th Charlestown! July is the month we start the Residents’ Council election campaign. You will see a lot more information about the 12 candidates. Every restaurant and every floor of the Continuing Care building will have poster boards with pictures and background information of each of the candidates. There are now channel 972 candidate interviews which can be seen on MyErickson. Information packets were either provided to you electronically or paper copies were put into your covey. Hopefully you will invest some time to get to know the candidates so you can make an informed decision on 7 candidates. August 6^th is not far off. Let’s try to get more than 50% of residents voting this year. Show the candidates that you care by voting.

As you know this is the 249^th birthday of our Country. We celebrate July 4th to honor the courage, vision, and unity of the founding fathers and all those who fought for this country’s freedom. The day serves as a reminder of the enduring values that define the United States and provides an opportunity for Americans to reflect on their shared history, express patriotism, and enjoy traditions like fireworks, parades, and gatherings with family and friends. Charlestown residents will be participating in the Catonsville Parade again this year. Happy Independence Day Charlestown!

Connie Cooney, Treasurer

Balance – April 30, 2025                                   $7,654.58
Expenses                                                         ($ 206.08)
Deposit from Dues Collection                      $     10.00
Balance – June 30, 2025                                $7,458.50

June Expenses 2025 Details
— Secretary:                      $ 145.98   Supplies
— Nomination & Election  $  60.10   Supplies

Total                                     $ 206.08

2025-2026 Residents’ Council Executive Team

Connie Cooney
In May Art Johnson, John Remias and I were appointed to prepare a slate of officers for the Residents’ Council for the 2025-2026 year. Following the guidelines of the By-Laws, we interviewed several people to determine they were willing and able to perform the duties of their respected offices. We feel we have come up with an excellent Executive team for next year’s council.

We give you the proposed Executive team for next year.
Stephanie Leddy, President,
Larry Taylor, Vice President,
Jerry Donaldson, Treasurer,
Virginia Antevil, Secretary.

All Residents’ Association members, i.e.. all residents of Charlestown, who attend the August meeting will vote on this selection.

Committee Reports

Benevolent Care, Virginia Antevil, Chair
Highlights of 2024 Philanthropy Annual Report

• Almost one million dollars ($950,000) was raised for Philanthropy in 2024
• 37% of Households donated
• 16 residents required Benevolent Care Fund support
• $1.67 million from the Fund was spent on long-term care
• $5.26 million of funds rests in the Benevolent Care Foundation

The number of residents needing financial support from the Fund for their long-term care has been holding steady for the past few years, but with steadily increasing costs for long-term care, it has become necessary to increase funding for benevolent care. A “Planned Giving Campaign” has been launched under the direction of new Philanthropy Manager Rachel Susio. As part of this campaign, residents are being encouraged to make “planned gifts” to benevolent care. These gifts can take several different forms, e.g., by designating benevolent care as recipient of a portion of IRA proceeds (from the required annual withdrawals), or as beneficiary of a life insurance policy The simplest and most straightforward way to make a planned gift to Charlestown’s Benevolent Care Fund is by designating the Fund as recipient of a portion (or the entirety) of a resident’s Entrance Deposit to take effect after that person passes away (if those funds are not required for the individual’s own long-term care needs).

Designation of at least $5,000 of a resident’s entrance deposit as a gift to Benevolent Care qualifies the resident to become a member of Charlestown’s Legacy Society. Resident donor names are displayed on leaves and boulders of the “Legacy Society” tree on the wall of the Cross Creek Lobby. The names of those resident donors who have “gifted” the entire amount of their entrance deposit to Benevolent Care are engraved on a special plaque on the wall next to the tree. In addition, resident donors are invited to a special recognition event each year (during August in 2025).

Next meeting: Wednesday, July 23 at 2:30pm in Charlestown Square RM-116.

Communications, Larry Taylor, Chair

• Community Resources – Mary Evans explained why the group and club’s guidebook are facing challenges. The difficulty is contacting the groups and club Leaders. As we all know, lead names changed over time, which is causing problems getting the group or club info updated. They are now trying to call the remaining group and clubs. We are asking if your group or club has made changes, please contact Community Resources.

• Communications General Services updates
• Shopping Carts are still an ongoing problem with residents not returning carts to the building cart rooms. Please care about your fellow Residents and return our carts.
• When we have power outages and when the power comes back on it can cause what is called an electrical surge in your apartments. General Services said BGE isn’t responsible for surge damage. The General Services team agreed that it’s recommended that all residents purchase their own surge protectors for their devices (TV’s, Computers, Printer, Stereo or other electronic products you don’t want damaged. Our Committee will follow up with a write up on what these Surge Protectors provide and do along with what to purchase and why.

 

• CapEx Submissions for 2026 – Communications – Our committee had three CapEx submissions (Mobile Phone Renovation, NetworkA network consists of two or more computers that are linked in order to share resources (such as printers and CDs), exchange files, or allow electronic communications. The computers on a network may be linked through cables, telephone lines, radio waves, satellites, or infrared light beams. See also... READ MORE Infrastructure and Auditorium Renovation). The Auditorium Renovation was a joint submission with our Resident’s Life Committee. And all three proposals were accepted by Finance and will be recommended.

• IT Tech Support updates
• Shuttle Tracker in Herbert’s Run, which was recently installed, is mounted too high for residents to see or reach.
• IT had 158 Work Orders that were completed in May and the average closing time was 1.6 days.
• Quarterly Technology Assistance Day (Tech Bar) was a successful event; it attracted 68 residents and resulted in 11 house/apartment visits.
• The Mobile Phone System for Continuing Care. IT noted this was recently finalized in their financial system.

Reminder – Microsoft Windows 10 will reach End-of-Support on Oct. 14, 2025.

• IT has scheduled two IT Events concerning Windows 11 Compatibility Note if you already have Windows 11 this check isn’t needed. The first is on Wednesday, July 23 from 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM, Outside the Terrace Café.  The CCI IT Team will be available to check residents’ devices for Windows 11 compatibility. If a device is compatible, they will assist in creating a work order to schedule the upgrade if you want.  For residents with desktop computers, they are offering free in-apartment appointments to check compatibility.  However, please note this upgrade itself is a billable service. If a resident decides to proceed with the upgrade during the appointment, it will be considered a billable session. Residents are not required to upgrade immediately after the compatibility check.
• Second Opportunity is on August 13th Tech Bar. This Tech Bar event is on Tuesday, August 13 from 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM, in the Chesapeake Dining Room. They will also have a Compatibility Check Table available. This table will be specifically for residents who were unable to attend the July event. Please note that the upgrades scheduled from this event will also be billable, even though the Tech Bar follow-ups are normally free.

For this complete events information, it has been posted to ccicharlestown.org., Under News, Windows 11 Compatibility Check or call Erickson Resident Computer Services  1-800-677-0211.

Next Communications Committee meetings will be held on Tuesday July 23, at 2:00 PM. The Website Committee will precede the Communication meeting at 1:30 PM.  Both meetings will be by ZoomAI Companion is a generative AI-powered assistant from Zoom (for those with the paid version). It uses large language models from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta, and has also trained itself by listening in on thousands of meetings between Zoom employees.  Some of its uses include:
• Summarizing... READ MORE. If you need the ZoomAI Companion is a generative AI-powered assistant from Zoom (for those with the paid version). It uses large language models from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta, and has also trained itself by listening in on thousands of meetings between Zoom employees.  Some of its uses include:
• Summarizing... READ MORE link, contact me at cherokee405@verizon.net.

 

Conservation Committee, Charles Robinson & Jack Flood, Co-Chairs

• Andy Kochis report on aluminum cans: The results of his trip to Maryland Recycling center on 6/24/2025 was a ½ pound valued at $102.50 making the grand total for 2025  $2,625.00. This amount was given to the Benevolent Care Fund.
• Display Charts on recyclable items were placed at the Terrace Cafe, Fireside, Atrium, Shortline, and the Chesapeake dining venues.

Next meeting: Tuesday, July 15, at 2:00 pm in BR1.

Dining Services, Stephanie Leddy and Cathy Stevens, Co-Chairs
Assistant Dining Director Rick Hayes starts June 23

Beginning this month, tables will be present with glasses, utensils, bread and butter plates, butter and coffee creamer, for first seating. Less trips for servers. Servers will replace butter and creamers between seatings.

Cafe on Main scheduled to open in September when Fireside will close for 1 to 2 and a half months. Then Terrace will close for significant renovation. Carryout orders will still be available at Fireside when it closes.

Crab feast tentatively scheduled for 7/8. Date May change. Will be announced

Subcommittee reports:
Atrium all good. Travis, Cynthia and Trey were out on floor and listening to residents.
Chesapeake – eating at Bar takes too long and no greens available.
Fireside- extremely difficult to get reservations. Run out of desserts too early.
Terrace –  silverware not wrapped in napkins. Those who only want soup must wait in entree line.

Next meeting: Monday, July 31 at 1:30 at Caton Woods.

Finance, Art Johnson, Chair

• Budget Challenges being addressed include: the cost of increased employee health benefits, increased overtime costs, and increasing cost of utilities
• Benevolent Care supported 17 residents in May
• Capital expenditures are expected to rise due to major projects starting in July
• The final report from the Finance Committee was CapEx26 can now be found on org (go to Finance Committee) and  MyErickson (go to

CapEx27 Process — (“Residents’ Council Information” & scroll down to the last item – “CapEx Proposals”) Recommended proposals also will be identified in the July issue of the SunBurst
The process for proposing Cap Ex proposals will be entered into the Council’s Policies and Procedures for 2025-26
Next meeting: Tuesday, July, 2025 at 9:00 am in Brookside 1.

Grounds, Dick Voelkel Chair
Adam Narivanchik provided a written report on the current efforts by the Grounds Department to meet the recommendations in the Grounds Sustainability Report.  The Department has already implemented many of the recommendations.

Adam also reported that the Hydro Raking Project is awaiting County approval of the maps indicating the sediment placement.
Additionally, Adam reported that the Herbert’s Run erosion project at the Herbert’s Run/St. Charles bridge walkway is awaiting permit approval – anticipated beginning in late summer/fall.

Exterior lighting issues were discussed and determined to be best addressed under the Maintenance & Engineering Committee.

The Caton Woods Courtyard shrubs near gazebo need pruning.

At the Edgewood Dock on the steps side larger rocks are required to limit the erosion.

Recommended trimming back the shrubs at the entrance/exit of Edgewood parking lots for better sight lines of vehicles coming down the hill.

Next meeting: Tuesday July 22 at 11:00 in BR1.

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

• We’re happy to report that grab bars are planned for non-handicapped stalls in all public restrooms, men’s and women’s, and the first of 2 shipments of bars has arrived and await installation.
• Welcome to Carol Benner who will be joining Pat Kasuda as a liaison between Independent Living and Continuing Care. Wilton Overlook had multiple events, including Nature and Polish Dance programs. Caton Woods is discontinuing their Saturday entertainment in favor of more bingo,  but Independent Living volunteers will be introducing ballroom dancing to Caton Woods residents.
• Dr Pelczar reported that tick activity is very high locally, so use Deet if going into grassy or bushy areas. There are now over 1000 cases of the Measles, and CDC recommends that international travelers born after 1956 get vaccinated at least 2 weeks prior to travel.
• Jim Fitzsimmons reported that the technology group plans several public service spots on channel 972 He noted that Custom Interiors has produced a brochure of safety devices that can be installed in residents apartments.
• Jane Vess, from the Parkinsons group, reported that Dottie Reitwiesner, has started a bridge group tolerant of player who may require extra time, and the Sunflower lanyard program is now active at BWI airport.
• A new Substance Abuse sub-committee has formed and is in the organizational phase. An educational program is being planned for the fall
• There was discussion about a cell phone app, Live Caption, that can translate the spoken word into text for those with low hearing.
• The next Medication disposal event will be on Aug 25.

Next Health Services Committee Meeting is Tuesday, July 8, 11:00 AM at BR 1.

Housekeeping, Jean Williamson, Chair
I would like to begin by honoring those residents that have served on the Housekeeping Committee, who do an inspection of halls in their building every month, at a minimum, with reports then being sent to cciworkorders@erickson.com. As a resident, if it is easier, you can also just call General Services, but emailing cciworkorders@erickson.com provides a written report that also goes to Michele Fenn and Jason Dennis for follow up as needed. However, it is also the Housekeeping staff that truly work diligently collecting trash, vacuuming halls and lobbies, dusting, and cleaning up spills – probably just to name a few of what they do – but helping to keep our home here at Charlestown healthy, safe, clean and attractive!

While I know the cleaning of Charlestown is the job of Housekeeping, each resident also has a responsibility to help. If you See Something, Say Something! For instance, as Housekeeping staff responsibility for Herberts Run, St. Charles, or Brookside, or any of the buildings, there is no way one can know what is happening on each floor all throughout the day. So, being contacted that there has been a spill, stain, accident, or whatever, allows for a quicker clean up.

However, I also know, sometimes things are reported and then seemingly not addressed within a proper time. So, while frustrating, and I understand, reporting it again may be needed. Again, it is working together!

As you can see on the bullets, updates from General Services includes the success of the June 6 Dumpster Day, as well as completion of the Pest Control Inspections by Orkin, General Services and Housekeeping to identify and close any openings in the apartments, which I understand to have also been successful. Finally, coming up, look forward to the outside Window Washing, which is scheduled for August.
Next meeting: Monday, July 23 at 10:00 in BR 1.

Legislative/Political, Paulette Hammond and Richard Lee, Co-Chairs

• Councilman Pat Young presented an update of redistricting process and upcoming 2026 County election.
• Charlestown League of Women Voters will show the documentary film “She Rises Up” July 9, at 1:00 pm in the auditorium.
• Meet and Greet for 2026 state legislative session is planned for December.
• Committee plans to schedule candidates’ forum and interviews for 2026 County Executive and Council election.

Next meeting is July 9, 2025, at 10am in BR Classroom 1.

Maintenance and Engineering, Rob Vickerman, Chair

• Outside Lighting: General Services has purchased the wall-mounted outside lights for the Brookside parking area and will be mounting them on the building. The outside ground lights in Edgewood circle and the Edgewood path to Fireside are not working. General Services will investigate this issue. The light pole by the Maintenance Department that is down will be up by August 1^st
• Low Vision: The black strips on the exterior stair treads will be done by July 1 and are on schedule
• The contrasting numbers in the CTS elevator is done. General Services is replacing the floor numbers next to the floor buttons in all other elevators with many of them already done. The numbers being replaced are gray with a black background to white with a black background. This enables people with low vision to better distinguish the floor numbers
• Hallway Mirrors: General Services will be placing an overhead mirror at the stairway from the Terrace to the Auditorium and at the bridge at Chapel Court and Arborside intersection.

Next meeting: Wednesday, July 22, at 2:00 in BR1.

Nominating and Elections Committee, Nancy Meier and Connie Cooney, Co-Chairs
Being that this is July 1, the election campaign has officially begun. Election packets should be in your cubbies. The exception is the ePreferred residents who will receive an email with a link to the packets. The posters are up in the dining areas and the candidates’ videos can be seen on MyErickson if you go to TV and Videos and then, Residents’ Council. At this time, I would like to welcome the 12 candidates:

• John Arnold
• Betty Elder
• Edith Hahn
• Sandy Mack
• Brian McGill
• Patti Ormiston
• Gary Rogers
• Cathy Stevens
• Hope Tillman
• Patricia Whittier
• Dick Zabela
• Barbara Zimmer

They will each have a Candidate ribbon on their badges. So, please meet and get to know them.
Election Day will be Wednesday, August 6. See your election packets for your polling places and times and how to obtain an absentee ballot if you need one.

Resident Life, Bill Jones and Fred Sadler, Co-Chairs

• The Tapestry program has tentatively scheduled their fall events for October 7^th and October 15^th in the Atrium Restaurant. The tentative theme for the sessions will include a “getting to know you” group of questions. More information will be distributed later as final plans evolve.
• The newly named Accessibility and Inclusion group continues to focus on upgrades to apartments and common areas to make the campus safer for people with physical limitations. Past efforts have contributed to a newly published brochure, by the Custom Interiors Department, detaining many options available to residents and are available at lobby desks.
• The Low Vision Program will be scheduling a series of quarterly sessions on topics relevant to residents with sight impairments. The first session is tentatively planned for November 22 in the Chesapeake Restaurant. The format will be small discussion groups.
• The Dining Ambassador Program is being expanded to new neighborhoods. Recently flyers were distributed in Caton Ridge and Harborview and several new Ambassadors were recruited. We will involve other neighborhoods soon.
• Margaret Vincent continues to publish the New Resident Newsletter each Sunday and is looking for a few volunteers to act as “cub” reporters to provide her with information on club activity. She is also upgrading the campus map to include the changes upcoming in the historic district.
• The Transportation Sustainability group has been given information on the Senior Lyft Program that could greatly benefit residents. We understand the Riderwood Community is Beta testing this system and we will be contacting them to see if this is feasible at Charlestown. We are continuing to look for transportation alternatives for our residents.

Next meeting: Wednesday, July 16, 2025 at 2:00 at Brookside Classroom 2.

Safety and Security, Ed Appel, Chair
Congratulations to Shawn White, promoted from Charlestown Assistant Security Manager to Erickson Senior Living’s Grandview Security Manager in Bethesda and to Bre Jones, promoted to Assistant Security Manager here at Charlestown.

The committee has been discussing traffic safety, near misses and failure to stop at stop signs by drivers at Charlestown.  On June 23^rd, Security, led by Craig Nelson, accompanied by Bre Jones, with Leslie Johnson, Jason Dennis, Greg Johnson and a couple committee members, conducted an event to discourage speeding at the speed monitor near the pond on Erickson Way.  About half of the cars were exceeding the speed limit and were issued reminder-warnings.  Some staff and residents were speeding.

Committee members submitted suggestions with photos proposing a safety review of the crosswalk between Parkview and St. Charles, and the stairs, railing and parking blocks at the Parkview parking lot.  Suggestions included better signage for crosswalk safety and improved railing and modification of parking blocks to avoid trip hazards.  Jason Dennis and his team are reviewing the situations.

The committee decided to try to create a more active “neighborhood watch” to improve reporting of unsafe driving issues, rather than establishing a subcommittee on traffic safety.  We ask that all Charlestown residents report to Security incidents where unsafe driving is observed.  Please try to get a description of the vehicle and driver, including a license plate or partial plate.

Charlestown residents continue to receive scam messages by text, email and phone call.  You can see examples of scams in a Channel 972 short video created today and soon to become available.  Also, the year-ago FBI presentation on scams is available on Charlestown’s YouTube channel.

Reminders: Do not respond to unexpected calls, texts, emails.  Never click on links or call telephone numbers you get in these texts and emails.

“Emergency” demands for money, and threats to charge your credit card or cancel your account are almost certainly bogus.  Money demands, especially from a government agency, bank, merchant or credit card company, are not sent by text or email.  Don’t believe them. Notify Security of suspected scams, as well as safety incidents and concerns about resident security.

Next meeting: Thursday, July 10 at 1:00 in CTS 116

Update from Don Grove

Don announced a number of staffing changes:

• Jason Dennis has been promoted to Director of General Services, and Stephen Miller (from Oakcrest) joins Charlestown on July 14 as new Assistant Director.
• Richard Hayes will be assisting Dining Services Director Paul Edelman as Assistant Director.
• Gregory Johnson has been promoted to Manager of Security S
• Jennifer Hayes will Joan join Charlestown on July 14 as new Catering Manager.
• Resident Life Director Karen Leighton is moving to Erickson Grandview in Augus Leslie Johnson will serve as Interim Director until there is a replacement for this position.

Other announcements and Responses to Questions:

• Don reiterated the importance of Planned Giving to make the Benevolent Care Fund strong, and indicated that Rachel Susio, new Philanthropy Manager, will be leading this initiative.
• Benevolent Care Month has been switched from September to August for 2025, and on August 27, a Brunch will be held for Legacy Donors (residents who have pledged or donated $5,000 or more to Benevolent Care).
• Hydro Raking of the Lake will definitely take place this summer.
• Concern was expressed that loading docks are unsightly because of trash in the area. Staff will follow up on this.
• A question was raised about when the Harborview elevator will be modernized. Staff will check and respond to this question, and it was noted that all elevator modernizations are on a schedule.
• Concern was expressed that air conditioners in the hallway of Parkview are not functioning. Staff will check on this.

Respectively submitted,
Nancy Meier, Residents’ Council Secretary
Virginia Antevil, RC Assistant Secretary.