Author: wingsorb@aol.com

AROUND THE PARK AGAIN by Sharon Lee Tegler

Brought to you by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu & Tai Chi

and Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services

Busier than ever since founded in 1973 by the late Don Riddle, Jr., Homestead Gardens at 743 W. Central Avenue in Davidsonville is celebrating its 50th Anniversary.

It’s the anchor location for the popular Homestead Gardens Severna Park at 522 Ritchie Highway and a draw for many Severna Park residents over the years. The Davidsonville store boasts an impressive 174,000 square feet of retail space with another 35,000 square feet in the Severna Park branch.

Signs posted by every entrance along the Davidsonville garden center’s vast property proclaim its owners’ thanks for customers’ support over the past five decades.

A powerhouse in the greenhouse and gardening industry today with several divisions and three retail stores, (the third is in Smyrna, Delaware) the business had surprisingly humble beginnings.

Riddle, a native of Hyattsville, enlisted in the U.S. Navy upon graduation from high school in 1966. Returning home after his stint in the service, he attended the University of Maryland majoring in horticulture.

His passion for plants, in combination with his family’s longtime success in truck farming – a practice common in Severna Park in the early 20th Century – was the inspiration for starting Homestead Gardens. With support from his parents Don E. Riddle, Sr. and Evelyn Riddle, he started his business in the back yard of the family home in Hyattsville.

The business grew rapidly, and in 1973, Riddle incorporated Homestead Gardens, moving to its present location in Davidsonville. In the late 1970’s, he built the greenhouses and pavilions that are the signature draw for the Davidsonville outlet.

During the same period, Riddle created the company’s Greenhouse Production Division to supply the retail store as well as to sell wholesale plants to businesses, organizations and churches throughout the Metro D.C. area.

In 1980, the Homestead Gardens Landscape Services Division was established. It’s headquartered in one of two beautifully restored homes on the property. (The other is used for the accounting and administrative staff.) Additional structures acquired by the company include an attractive but spacious barn that is currently used for storage.

In 1985, the company purchased additional land on Governor Bridge Road in Davidsonville to introduce a Wholesale Production Division for selling supplies to independent landscape contractors and to supply Homestead Gardens’ retail store with the bulk of its annuals, perennials, and nursery stock.

The greenhouses are filled to the brim with those annuals, perennials, vegetables and herbs and walking through one is a feast for all the senses.

Trellised gardens in the open spaces out back hold myriad tropical and shade loving plants. Just beyond them are white tents set up for outdoor entertaining. Homestead Gardens works with 500 non-profits on various drives and events ranging from a huge fundraiser for the Anne Arundel County Food Bank to a Future Farmers of America barbeque.

Everywhere one looks, there is something beautiful to see. Even areas featuring garden plants and herbs are overhung with baskets of flowers in every color of the rainbow.

A lot of work is required to keep all those plants thriving and the interior and exterior of the greenhouse/pavilion complex in tip-top shape. There are 120 year-round employees plus 150 seasonal employees. Work is going on continually throughout the complex.

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Indoors, the pavilions carry everything from garden seeds, fertilizers and gardening equipment to pet foods and supplies, and even baby chicks in April. There are also high-end barbeque grills and outdoor furniture for lounging or dining.

One of the most special spaces in the pavilions is Evelyn’s Boutique named in honor of Don Riddle’s mother with an extensive collection of casual clothes, handbags, hats and other accessories plus decorative items for the home.

In 2010, Riddle and company further expanded Homestead’s footprint by opening the Severna Park branch at 522 Ritchie Highway, adopting many of the design elements and retail practices of the original store. The building in which the Severna Park outlet is located, along with Zachary’s Jewelers, has a history of its own. After beginning its life as a supermarket, the edifice became home to Frank’s Garden Center for a number of years. For a brief period, it was occupied by West Marine Boating Supplies before being taken over by Homestead Gardens. It was a perfect size for creating a smaller but amazing version of the original location.

In 2021, the company completed its expansion by purchasing Ronny’s Garden World in Smyrna, Delaware to become the third retail branch of Homestead Gardens.

From the moment he opened the Davidsonville location in the 1970’s till his death in 2011, Don Riddle implemented his ideas for transforming Homestead into a destination Garden Center offering a series of events and festivals throughout the year to coax customers into taking a drive into the country. Succeeded by his son Brian Riddle, the company has retained those innovations and created new ones for all three branches.

Each and every December, grandparents, parents and children flock to the Davidsonville store to view unique displays of Christmas lights, holiday season tableaus and, of course, the store’s famed multi-track train display. They come from nearby neighborhoods and from the Annapolis, Arnold, Severna Park, Millersville, Pasadena, Crownsville and Crofton communities and as far afield as Washington, D.C.

Almost as popular in Davidsonville is the annual Crepe Myrtle Festival (to be held this year from June 13 through 17). The festival does so well that it is carried on to a lesser extent at the other branches.

Over the years, Riddle sought opportunities to give back to the community that supported him. He kept Homestead Gardens at the forefront of philanthropic activities within the community. It’s a tradition very much alive in each of the retail outlets.

Beautiful, flower-covered floats from Homestead Gardens consistently appear in the Independence Day Parades of Severna Park, Annapolis and, occasionally, other communities to the delight of spectators.

The Severna Park store has been at the very center of community activities since opened 13 years ago. It’s been a glamorous backdrop for a number of the Greater Severna Park & Arnold Chamber Taste & Sip events.

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Generously discounted holiday items on Black Friday make the Severna Park store a very popular destination for shoppers every December.

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The 2022 holiday season not only saw a busy Black Friday but also included Homestead Gardens Severna Park’s fun-filled Girls Night Out with food, wines, and discounts to boot. Part of the proceeds were donated to the Blue Ribbon Project.

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Corks for a Cause, a fundraiser held at the Severna Park store for the Baltimore Washington Medical Center Foundation has quickly become one of the community’s hottest summer social events. For the third year, BWMC Foundation and Homestead Gardens partnered with NextGen and Fishpaws Marketplace to host the 2022 event on June 15. Tucked in amongst the flowers and plants throughout Homestead’s greenhouse and gardens were tables for 15 wineries or distributors with 90+ point wines to sample from around the world. 

The fourth annual Corks for a Cause fundraiser for BWMC Foundation will be held at Homestead Gardens Severna Park next Wednesday, June 14 from 6 to 8 pm. Contact www.fishpawsmarket.com for ticket information.

Homestead Gardens’ Davidsonville location is celebrating Pollinator Month through June with lots of native plants to choose from and the Crepe Myrtle Festival kicks off Tuesday, June 13. As can be seen from a sign off one of the parking areas, the new Open Air Space for Events will soon be a reality. Stay tuned for more upcoming events and special sales by visiting Homestead Gardens – Garden Supplies, Nursery, and Landscaping.

Lisa’s Cakepops is saying goodbye to Severna Park

Lisa Edelman Schneiderman and husband Glen are retiring from Lisa’s Cakepops on June 15 and moving to Florida to be with family. We’ll all be sad to see them go. However, after 10 years of creating custom cakepops, successfully marketing them and achieving her dream of opening a storefront, Lisa is moving on.

She started the business out of her home kitchen in 2013 in Danville, California. After relocating to Severna Park in 2015, Lisa’s Cakepops was officially born. Finding space in a commercial kitchen, Lisa marketed her pops at local events, developed a lively ecommerce and achieved success after success. Having developing a lively ecommerce market for her custom pops, she opened the storefront at 836 Ritchie Highway with Glen in March of 2020 which did well. After obtaining orders from two Maryland catalog companies with national distribution, Lisa, Glen and their staff were making and shipping thousands of cakepops at a time.

Asked why they were closing the shop and moving to Florida, Lisa explained that most of their family lived in South Florida – including Glen’s father who is 90 and his mother who is 85.

“Both are doing well and we wanted to be able to enjoy spending time with them and the rest of the family. We visit Florida twice a year anyway and we figured it was time,” Lisa said.

Cakepop decorating kits Lisa designed that are especially fun for children have been a very popular item and the couple have decided they’ll probably continue to market them after they are settled.

A going away party is being held by the Greater Severna Park & Arnold Chamber at Lisa’s Cakepops storefront on Wednesday, June 28th from 10 am till noon.

The Around The Park Again column is brought to you this week by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi at 1195 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. – For over two decades providing martial arts training that improves cardio-vascular health, strength and flexibility while reducing stress. Jing Ying is again bringing Tai Chi to the Severna Park Community Center.)

and by Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services at 815 Ritchie Hwy., Suite 206 – When you need someone to lean on, Lean On Dee. Their experienced team of personal care management specialists and friendly companions provide high quality consistent care.

AROUND THE PARK AGAIN by Sharon Lee Tegler

Brought to you by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu & Tai Chi

and Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services

The end of May saw a flurry of activity at The Red Apron Shoppe at 4A Riggs Avenue as the establishment held a closeout sale with prices slashed as much at 75%. Though merchandise was moving fast, the shop still held onto the homey, neighborly feeling it was known for.

Owner MaryAnn Neal, who opened the Red Apron Shoppe with husband Cam in May of 2021, was busily overseeing sales inside the shop while simultaneously greeting friends and customers.

An attractive hearth painted white nestled between some high-end purses, an easy chair and matching footstool and a rack of clothing that included some vintage pieces.

Outside, behind the shop, lawn and garden items were for sale. A sign saying “Estate Sale Today” surprised no one familiar with the Neal’s primary business, Red Apron Estate Sales.

MaryAnn initially created her Red Apron brand in 2012 in order to sell pieces of furniture she’d been collecting and refinishing from estate sales. She sold them at a series of Second Sunday Markets she organized at what is now Boone Station Hall. That same year, she ran her first estate sale as a favor for a bereaved neighbor and found she had a knack for the complicated process of organizing one. Soon thereafter, she and Cam opened Red Apron Estate Sales.

MaryAnn always hated the idea of “one more thing going into a landfill that didn’t need to when it still had a great life left”. Consequently, she continued collecting good quality pieces that didn’t sell – pieces that became the inventory when she and Cam opened The Red Apron Shoppe nine years later in the historic Riggs Avenue building that was built in the 1920’s. (It was home to Dr. Francis Codd’s pharmacy for over a decade before becoming Cliff Dawson’s variety store featuring liquor sales, a soda fountain and a slot machine. It next was home to the Antique Marketplace until the owner decided to retire and the Neals opened The Red Apron Shoppe.)

The couple’s vision for shop was to feature items that would bring back that neighborhood feeling that Olde Severna Park had for many years, including while Cam was growing up there. They largely accomplished that goal.

The store featured old, new and local treasures and was notable for its history and because it carried items well-loved in the past that we can love once more. Every item – from penny candy and vinyl records to fine China and wooden furniture – stirred memories and kindled our imagination to envision what it might become. The Red Apron Shoppe sold homemade breads from local bakers, fresh eggs from a local farm and items from local craftspeople.

It was a place where you could find drawers of vintage hardware and glassware or beautifully refinished and repurposed pieces of furniture by local crafters.

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The shop also served as a hub for family and friends to gather for special occasions like watching the Severna Park Independence Day Parade together or watching the Greater Severna Park & Arnold Chamber’s Community Tree Lighting celebration in December.

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Sadly, The Red Apron Shoppe’s days at 4 Riggs Avenue are over. The Neals noted that there may be some renovations to the building, but the rents were doubling which made staying there untenable. For the time being, they’ll continue to sell their inventory online while keeping their eyes open for another location…but probably not in Severna Park. As The Red Apron Team said in an Instagram message, “This isn’t goodbye, just cya later”.

Meantime, the Red Apron Estate Sales part of the business is booming. According to MaryAnn, estate sales no longer take place only when people pass away. They’re most often held because folks are downsizing to a smaller house or condo. They have too much stuff and no idea how to dispose of what they don’t need. That’s where Red Apron Estate Sales comes in to help them liquidate those no-longer-needed belongings.

Curious to see what a Red Apron Estate Sale was like, we ventured to one two weekends ago. Arriving at the estate sale property, we saw cars lining both sides of the street and people coming and going – some carrying packages or pieces of furniture.

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Entering the garage, we spotted MaryAnn checking to be sure everything was shipshape. Early in the day, things were pretty much intact but later the garage swarmed with prospective buyers.

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A collection of tractor models apparently impressed some shoppers as much as it impressed us. When we later visited the garage as it grew busier, we noticed that the tractor models had been sold.

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A separate machine shop located down the hill from the back yard held woodworking, gardening and mechanical tooling items that were going like hotcakes.

There were many attractive baskets, lots of dishes and, luckily for me, there was an extensive collection of well-priced glassware. I ended up buying some blue glasses to complete a set I already own

There was jewelry to browse through but little was left in the way of clothing save a single pair of cowboy boots.

Among the shoppers preceding me to the Red Apron check-out table was a gentleman buying a dozen faux poinsettia plants that would make perfect Christmas decorations, a woman buying and ornamental grate, and another woman with a wooden box full of CD’s and other items.

You can follow Red Apron Estate Sales & Shoppe online at Estate Liquidator | Red Apron Estate Sales & Shoppe | Severna Park, on Facebook at Red Apron Estate Sales | Severna Park MD | Facebook, and on Twitter at Red Apron (@redapronprod) / Twitter and on Instagram at Red Apron Shoppe (@redapronshoppe) | Instagram.

A new crop of entrepreneurs honored at Chamber’s Small Business Awards

The patio at Garten on Baltimore Annapolis Boulevard was the setting for the Greater Severna Park & Arnold Chamber’s Small Business Awards presentation last Thursday. The evening was beautiful and the garden at Garten welcoming, so the event was something of a social occasion for the chamber members gathered to honor the award nominees and winners.

Sidestreet Framers and Gift Gallery owner Dawn Wilson (who was a Small Business Award nominee) arrived with Stephanie Lavis, the shop’s well-known framer for 31 years. After being greeted by Chamber CEO Liz League, the two split up to circulate.

League was soon seen chatting with Heather Barnstead from Severna Park High School and Christine Joyce from Long & Foster. Joyce serves as “kind of an ambassador for the chamber” at various functions. Barnstead, who’d come to support Small Business Award winner, Zachary Yeatman, was also spotted chatting with Zachary’s parents, Dr. Holly Yeatman and husband Jeffrey.

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Meantime, it was thumbs up from Mad Soaps’ Christian Buchleitner, an award nominee who, along with business partner Travis Wray, fell into conversation with longtime chamber member Betty Winkelmeyer Wells, Voice Media, Inc. publisher Dianna Lancione and Voice Media’s VP of Business Development Jonathan Katz. Buchleitner said Mad Soaps does auto and boat detailing and ceramic coating and just built a shop in Edgewater at Gingerville Marina.

We spotted other winners in the crowd as well as a lot of long-time members of the chamber. Members Jennifer Miller and Theresa Connelly from Chesapeake Think Tank even drove up from the company’s Stevensville office on the Eastern Shore.

Nancy Greer, owner of Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi, and Amy Clark from M & T Bank traded the latest news from the business community while Nkongolo, League and Lancione chatted with Logozone Promotions’ Tommy Sommers about the recent SHOP LOCAL event at Park Plaza.

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Once all of the winners arrived, Liz League announced the nominees for each category and the winner. We list them here:

Rising Star Student of the Year, Zachary Yeatman, JZ Power Washing, LLC – WINNER!
Accounting Advocate – Christy Bennet, Emerald Financial Partners
Financial Services Champion – Jason LaBarge, LaBarge Financial
Minority Owned Small Business – LaToya Nkongolo, Work Life Behavior Health
Woman Owned Small Business – Diane Whittles, SERVPRO
Home Based Business – Karima Davis, Tutor Partners
Young Entrepreneur – Christian Buchleitiner, Mad Soaps, Inc.
Veteran Owned Small Business – Angela Meggs, Angie D Entertainment
Family-Owned Small Business – Dawn Wilson, Side Street Framers

Winner, Zachary Yeatman is a student at Severna Park High School who recently started his own power washing business. He notes that he was trained by someone who has been professionally power washing for 10 years and offer very good prices and premium quality work.

For information about the chamber’s other activities including their next big occasion, the annual Severna Park Independence Day Parade, visit Greater Severna Park and Arnold Chamber of Commerce (gspacc.com).

The Around The Park Again column is brought to you this week by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi at 1195 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. – For over two decades providing martial arts training that improves cardio-vascular health, strength and flexibility while reducing stress. Jing Ying is again bringing Tai Chi to the Severna Park Community Center.)

and by Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services at 815 Ritchie Hwy., Suite 206 – When you need someone to lean on, Lean On Dee. Their experienced team of personal care management specialists and friendly companions provide high quality consistent care.

AROUND THE PARK AGAIN by Sharon Lee Tegler

Brought to you by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu & Tai Chi

and Lean On Dee Senior Home Care

We traveled the byways last Thursday to Edgewater, Maryland where we stopped at CHAD’S Bar-B-Cue off Route 214. Owned by Chad Sargent, who grew up in Severna Park, the quirky eatery dates back to 1948. Like other motorists, we were initially attracted to the restaurant by the supersized metal chicken out front and by the sign beneath the name “CHAD’S” that was blinking “Dogs Welcome to the Patio”. While common in Europe, few American restaurant’s welcome dogs. We later found out the chicken has a name. He is Marco Pollo.

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Entering the restaurant mid-afternoon, we observed several folks having a late lunch while others had arrived just ahead of happy hour. We found owner and executive chef, Chad Sargent, on the patio with his Mastiff Luka, the eatery’s official mascot.

After a final doggie kiss and several licks, Sargent took Luka to his second-floor hangout (where patrons can observe him onscreen through the miracle of security cameras) before chatting with us about CHAD’s long history.

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“Construction on the building we’re in was started in 1947 and completed in 1948 and it has been some type of restaurant ever since,” Sargent said. “It’s had a series of owners and I don’t know all of them but can go back through four or five. Before I took over, it was owned for five and a half years by my father and stepmother Rick and Sandra Sargent and was called Wharfside Bar & Grill.”

According to her stepson, Sandy grew up in Edgewater on Rolling Road. She used to walk to work at a fruit stand nearby when she was a kid. At the time, the area was sparsely populated so there wasn’t much traffic on Route 214.

“She’d walk by the restaurant each day on her way to work and say to herself, ‘One day I want to own that place,'” Chad Sargent said. “Sure enough, she willed it and it happened.”

He added that, before the Sargents owned it, there was an original but short-lived Wharfside Bar & Grill. Prior to that, it was called Peewee’s and owned by a gentleman who went only by the name Peewee through most of the 1990’s.

“In 2017, Peewee actually came in for a visit and I was able to get a photo with him at the bar,” Sargent said.

Before Peewee’s, Sargent was told, the restaurant was called Cookie’s and owned by a gentleman named Cookie and his wife, Miss Lilian. The couple lived in a house on the Sargents’ property that is now home to The Painted Cottage clothing and gift shop – a building with a history of its own that the family leases to the business owner.

For as long as he can remember, Chad Sargent’s passion has been food. He grew up in Arnold and Severna Park and attended Jones Elementary School in Round Bay and Severna Park Middle School and then spent a year at Severna Park High School before transferring to Boy’s Latin in Baltimore.

Moving to Annapolis in the late 1990’s, he bought a home there in 2001 while honing his culinary and managerial talents in the hospitality industry in Baltimore and Annapolis. He was a chef during the ’90’s and early 2000s and eventually was Executive Chef at Harry Browne’s in Annapolis. Being an executive-level chef tends to be a fast-paced 24/7 job. Like others before him, he became burned out and took a break from the hospitality industry for a while.

Eventually, Sargent discovered he missed the creativity and chaos of the restaurant business – a business for which he’s well-suited. Like others who have attention deficit disorder, Chad enjoys being pulled in different directions so running a restaurant enables him to thrive. He made up his mind that, if the opportunity should arrive to have a place of his own that would make the long hours one must put in worth it, he’d jump at it.

That opportunity arrived in 2013, when he took over the operation of the eatery and renamed it CHAD’S Bar-B-Cue. Long before that, his wife Kristi gifted him a smoker for using at home. Sargent began to experiment with smoking meats Southern style (which was different from what he’d been trained to do as a chef). He’d come up with other dishes that were complementary so, by the time he started CHAD’S, he already had the basic recipes for a menu of casual comfort foods that patrons really liked.

Patrons particularly like that the restaurant has a lot of character thanks to a number of unique touches. Both Chad and Kristi are music lovers, and, at her suggestion, they mounted album covers on an interior wall.

On other walls there are menu boards, newspaper clippings about the restaurant from the past and quirky little signs.

Though the casually decorated, dog-friendly outdoor patio already existed, Sargent decided to cover it in October of 2019 six months before the COVID pandemic… which proved a huge blessing.

To everyone’s surprise, the pandemic was an absolute boon for CHAD’S. Because the restaurant already had a thriving counter takeout business, Sargent was able to easily shift to a drive-thru operation for 14 months by retooling the patio.

“We took out one of the long tables on the end, took out the bannister and installed a ramp from the back door to a takeout window we had specially built,” he said.

“We were so successful and busy with the drive-thru that we were running out of food and had to close on Tuesdays in order to dedicate that day to being a delivery prep day so we would have food when we reopened on Wednesdays, said Sargent. “The kitchen and waitstaff were having a hard time keeping up as it was. So, it was good having those two days to catch up.”

(CHAD’S continues the practice of remaining closed for dining on Tuesdays, with a lot of paperwork plus delivery and prep work taking place behind closed doors. They are open Wednesdays through Sundays.)

The dine-in business rebounded after COVID restrictions ended but the takeout business remains stronger than it was before the pandemic.

According to its owner, CHAD’S clientele is quite mixed “which is wonderful”. Many are regular customers who are locals but people from Severna Park, Arnold, Annapolis or Crofton drop by from time to time as well… sometimes with their canine companions. They are surprisingly diverse vocationally.

“We’ll have guys come in and sit at the bar covered in grease because they’re mechanics on their lunch break and they’ll be sitting next to a doctor or attorney wearing a suit and a bright white shirt. They’ll all be sitting there chatting and maybe drinking a beer and getting along, Sargent said.

“This is a place where we treat people, when they walk in the door, like family. I always tell my staff to say ‘hello’ as customers walk in and ‘goodbye’ when they leave…and do it sincerely like they mean it. This building has a lot of charm. I think of it as our house – a place for our patrons to feel comfortable.”

Sargent noted that he’s been asked numerous times if he’ll expand the business. His answer is always no because he and his staff like the charm of the building the way it is.

Customers love to sit around the bar which is relatively small and cozy. High-top tables in proximity provide extra seating and extend the feeling of camaraderie.

Happily seated at the bar while we were there were Lori Cebulski and her husband Art, Jaimie Navarro, Bea Veall and Kim Magnussen. While the Cebulskis 8and Navarro had come in for happy hour, Veall and Magnussen were lunchtime regulars who raved about the Nashville Chicken Caesar salad which they order often.

Should you be driving the byways and have a yen for some ribs or Carolina Pulled Pork or simply have an interest in South County history, you’ll be welcome at CHAD’S at 156 West Central Avenue in Edgewater. You can check them out by visiting Chad’s BBQ – Edgewater, Maryland (chadsbbq.com).

Life of Joy Day on Saturday, June 10 at The Church at Severn Run

The third annual Life of Joy Day will be held Saturday, June 10 from 11 am till 3 pm at The Church at Severn Run, 8187 Telegraph Road in Severn. There will be music, vendors, a scavenger hunt, kickball and other fun activities for the whole family. All proceeds will support the Life of Joy Foundation which helps spread awareness for holistic mental health and suicide prevention. For more information, visit Life of Joy Foundation, Inc..

Cabaret Performance & Silent Auction to Benefit SPAN at Boone Station Hall

Once again actress/singer Laurette Hankins-O’Connell is donating her time and talents to create a cabaret performance to benefit SPAN, Inc. Called ” Musicals, Movies and Moxie—Oh My!”, the performance will take place at Boone Station Hall at 623 Baltimore Annapolis Boulevard on Saturday, June 17 at 7 pm. Pianist Anita O’Connor will accompany Hankins-O’Connell and sing several duets with her. The show is an “exuberant and sometimes irreverent” salute to a wide array of Broadway and movie musicals from six decades.

Tickets are $25 with 100 percent of the net proceeds going to support SPAN. Tickets must be purchased in advance via credit card, PayPal or a check sent to SPAN at 400 Benfield Rd, Severna Park, MD 21146. For additional information, visit SPAN Serving People Across Neighborhoods (spanhelps.org).

The Around The Park Again column is brought to you this week by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi at 1195 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. – For over two decades providing martial arts training that improves cardio-vascular health, strength and flexibility while reducing stress. Jing Ying is again bringing Tai Chi to the Severna Park Community Center.)

and by Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services at 815 Ritchie Hwy., Suite 206 – When you need someone to lean on, Lean On Dee. Their experienced team of personal care management specialists and friendly companions provide high quality consistent care.

AROUND THE PARK AGAIN by Sharon Lee Tegler

Brought to you by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu & Tai Chi

and Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services

By all accounts, last Thursday was a quiet day at HOPE For All’s headquarters at 122 Roesler Road in Glen Burnie. Regardless, we found quite a bit of activity ongoing throughout the charity’s extensive warehouse and office spaces.

Executive Director Connie Cooper met us at her desk to fill us in on what HOPE For All does before giving us a tour of the facility. We’d originally learned about the charity’s good works from founder Leo Zerhusen after bumping into him at various community events. However, we had no idea of the enormity of HOPE For All’s mission and the contributions and support the organization supplies to needy families throughout Anne Arundel County.

Cooper describes HOPE For All as a Christian ministry whose mission is to provide furniture, household items, and clothing to people in our communities who are without the financial means to meet their basic needs.

“We’re a unique resource in Anne Arundel County for those transitioning from homelessness, or just in need of a helping hand,” she explained. “We offer clients the essentials necessary to create a home. We strive to bring some stability to their lives and hope for their future.”

Cooper added that they are able to do this primarily through donations from generous individuals and with help from numerous volunteers. HOPE For All partners with 30 agencies and non-profits in the county that refer families to them like Social Services, the Department of Aging, and the Department of Mental Health and the Housing Authorities of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County along with places like Sarah’s House and The Lighthouse Shelter. In addition, 30 churches refer families and help our organization in other ways.

“We try to provide services to everyone who needs them. We frequently serve those who are moving out of homelessness or transitional shelter and getting their first house – folks who don’t have much of anything,” Cooper said. “We are unique. There is no one else in the county that does what we do.”

She filled us in more fully as we moved from place to place on our tour, starting with the offices.

We began in a conference/multi-purpose room where personal shopper and Baskets Of Hope coordinator Barbara Bryl was putting together baskets including health and personal hygiene items to be given to clients on moving day.

Immediately down the hall we arrived at the office of bookkeeping and scheduling assistant Barbara Willoughby who was on the phone arranging for one of several deliveries of furniture for the day. We learned that she spends much of her time speaking to clients and coordinating with logistics assistants Miguel Rodriguez, Jake Davis and Moses Ballard to work out times for the drivers to drop off furnishings, household goods and other items.

As we passed by other offices and entered the warehouse area, Cooper explained that, since the pandemic, rents have risen so dramatically in the county that families can’t find housing they can afford or, if able to find something are so cash-strapped they are unable to afford the basic necessities.

Needless to say, entering the warehouse was eye-opening. The first section of the clothing department had rows and rows of shelving containing already-sorted donated clothing with many more bags and boxes of garments waiting to be unpacked. As we walked on to the next section, we found operations assistant Diane Neighoff and one of her volunteers (as seen in the opening photo) sorting clothing by category, age, gender, size, season, etc. and placing it in appropriate bins. There are 650 separate categories of clothing. In addition, new socks and underwear are always provided.

Beyond the clothing was the linen department with rows of pillows, pillowcases and sheets and two separate rows that were filled with comforters in a range of colors and patterns.

Aside from furnishings, just about every item needed to set up housekeeping could be found within the first few sections of the houseware department.

Kitchen items ranging from utensils, mixing bowls and storage containers to plates, cups, glassware, pots and pans, and electrical appliances were arranged in bins or on shelves.

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The more serious elements like a bed to sleep in or a table to eat a meal on could be found in the furniture storage area. There were dining tables and chairs, sofas and ottomans, coffee tables, headboards for beds and chests of drawers.

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According to Cooper, giving clients brand new beds (and new pillows) is made financially possible by several grants and an arrangement with a company in Pennsylvania to purchase a large quantity of them.

At the far end of the warehouse, the logistics team of Davis, Rodriguez and Ballard worked to pull the furniture and pre-assembled bins of clothing and housewares for each family getting a deliver. They do their best to fulfill the wish lists clients fill out.

Just past the team was a stairway leading to a loft where a baby department was located with bassinets and cribs, baby blankets, baby clothes and an abundant supply of diapers. The loft also provided storage space for one of the biggest collections of winter coats we’ve ever seen.

We were in for a big surprise as our tour came to an end. Connie Cooper announced that the staff and volunteers were getting ready for one of HOPE For All’s popular indoor “Yard Sales” this Saturday, May 20 by checking over, arranging and pricing hundreds of items. Then, she showed us to a part of the warehouse that opens to the outside so customers can easily enter or exit. The scene that unfolded before us was a feast for the eyes.

The shelves and floors of the yard sale area was filled with all kinds of once-loved treasures that can become much-loved treasures for someone new.

“We receive many donations from downsizers, or as a result of estate settlements. Therefore, we receive many ornamental objects like fine China and glassware or jewelry – things that are not part of what a family needs to set up housekeeping but are very appealing,” Cooper said.

“As you can see, we have many things at reasonable prices that attract shoppers from across the county. We’re particularly popular with decorators, collectors, recyclers, and DIYers. Thus, we hold our yard sales on twice-monthly Thursdays or Saturdays as a way of raising money to cover our operational costs.”

We noticed a display of blue-patterned China which is still popular but has become harder to find so it was interesting to see it as part of the HOPE For All Yard Sale.

We ran into warehouse coordinator Kevin Morgan who was devoting most of his time to completing the yard sale layout. Morgan’s work for HOPE For All has covered just about every aspect of the operation. When asked what client’s reaction is when they receive their delivery, he said most people are overwhelmed by the “amount of stuff we give them” and all are very grateful.

Cooper agreed. She also just happened to have a schedule of the 2023 Indoor Yard Sales to hand out. We’ve reproduced it below.

For more information, visit HOPE For All.

Kick Off Celebration at Severna Park Sunrise for “Cycling Without Age”

Severna Park resident Sandy Bishop recently started a “Cycling Without Age” (CWA) chapter in Anne Arundel County. The chapter is sponsored by Bicycle Advocates for Annapolis and Anne Arundel County (BikeAAA) and it provides rides on a disability-friendly electric-assist trishaw to senior citizens in the community.

 In April, Cycling Without Age began offering rides to residents of Severna Park Sunrise using the B&A Trail. They are having a kickoff celebration at Sunrise this Saturday, May 20 at 10:30am that the community is invited to attend. For more information about the program, visit Cycling Without Age – Bicycle Advocates For Annapolis And Anne Arundel County (bikeaaa.org).

MACARONI KID SPRING FAMILY FUN FEST THIS SUNDAY, MAY 21

Macaroni KID-Pasadena will be holding its Spring Family Fun Fest this Sunday, May 21 at Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi at 1195 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. from 1 to 4 pm.

Enjoy a day of games and family fun activities for all ages. The FREE event will also highlight local kid-oriented businesses. For more information, visit 🎈 Macaroni KID Spring Family Fun Fest | Macaroni KID Pasadena-Severna Park-Glen Burnie.

The Around The Park Again column is brought to you this week by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi at 1195 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. – For over two decades providing martial arts training that improves cardio-vascular health, strength and flexibility while reducing stress. Jing Ying is again bringing Tai Chi to the Severna Park Community Center.)

and by Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services at 815 Ritchie Hwy., Suite 206 – When you need someone to lean on, Lean On Dee. Their experienced team of personal care management specialists and friendly companions provide high quality consistent care.

AROUND THE PARK AGAIN by Sharon Lee Tegler

Brought to you by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu & Tai Chi

and by Lean On Dee Senior Home Care

Crossing her fingers for good weather for the Greater Severna Park & Arnold Chamber’s SHOP LOCAL Fun Fiesta at Park Plaza Saturday paid off for CEO Liz League. The day’s sunshine and blue skies were perfect for one of the town’s most convivial events.

By 9 am, the SHOP LOCAL table and sponsor’s tent were set up with the American flag and a banner listing Gold, Silver and Bronze level sponsors flying in the breeze. When finished, League was free to make her rounds and check on all 70 of the vendors participating.

One of the best things about the twice-yearly SHOP LOCAL events is the familiar sense of community attendees feel. Many businesses participate year after year so it’s like “old home week” for shoppers as they are reacquainted with merchants. Side Street Framers & Gift Gallery’s Dawn Wilson, seen below, helped create the SHOP LOCAL movement and has been a presence at the events ever since.

Longtime chamber and SHOP LOCAL supporter Tommy Sommers, CEO of Logo Zone Promotions, was on hand with Alex Mari to highlight the company’s printing, promotional and apparel products. Regular SHOP LOCAL participant Winsome Brown, from Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services, was there too with sister and co-owner Dee (Danielle) Morgan Brown (for whom the business is named). Having cared for their mother, an Alzheimers patient, the sister’s formed Lean On Dee as Certified Senior Advisors and Certified Dementia Live Coaches and Caregivers in 2020 and quickly expanded to a full care service.

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The familiar bikes and kayaks from Bulldog Bikes and Floats, as seen in the opening photo, were, as always, a cheery sight at the SHOP LOCAL event as was the sign featuring the company’s mascot Huffy the bulldog. The chartreuse tent of event Gold Sponsor Serve Pro stood just beyond them while the Mathnasium tent, with its bright red logos. was next to them. With games and snappy patter, instructors Dustin Ruby, Anastasia Quinn, Johnny Riganati, Anna Minut and Abbey Toro captured the attention of many parents and math-challenged students.

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With so many vendors, it is impossible to mention everyone but stalwarts like Kogen Dojo’s Coach Dwayne Bowie, Robert Van Valkenburg and Andrea Bowie return every year.

A number of new businesses appeared for the first time. Among them were David Bashore’s Severna Park-based Fairwinds Travel, Erik Lyles’ Sugar, Butter, Love decorative sweets, and Lash Lounge which will be opening in Annapolis by the end of May. We also discovered JK Organizing, LLC and picked up one of their nifty magnet clips shaped like a house.

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Aside from Lyles’ sweets, traditional SHOP LOCAL supporters JB’s and Park Tavern supplied wings, meatballs and garlic knots served by Katie Wiseman and Hannah Fleishman. Donut Shack owner/manager Ali Matthews and staff arrived at the SHOP LOCAL Fun Fiesta with donuts – hundreds of them. Matthews said Donut Shack, which reopened in February 2020, survived the COVID pandemic and soaring inflation challenges thanks to support from the community. Giving away donuts is Donut Shack’s way of thanking them.

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Regular attendees were particularly pleased to see Bohemian Black owner and SHOP LOCAL supporter Rose Walker return this year with a new line of stylish fashions. For the past few years, the designer has worked from home and retailed her clothing online. But she is about to open a brick & mortar storefront in the former Listman building on Earleigh Heights Road.

Entertainment was definitely part of the SHOP LOCAL Fun Fiesta. There was an arcade kids loved, a Selfie Station, and martial arts performances by Master Kwon of Kwon’s Taekwondo. Kids loved being taught the fine art of board splitting.

Earlier, students of Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi students had an opportunity to run the show as they entertained the SHOP LOCAL Fun Fiesta crowds own their own since owner/operators Nancy and Billy Greer were away on a trip. Students Lane and Andrew were thrilled to have an opportunity to perform the Lion Dance but equally thrilled to cool down afterward.

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SHOP LOCAL events have something for everyone… and for their pets. Doberman Cinder and cattle dog Swiper were curious to know if there were dog cookies at Higgins and Friends Pet Sitting. At the Fieldstone Animal Inn tent, Hannah Peterson and Liv Williams talked mostly to humans.

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There was much more, from The Blended Essentials teaching children to make soap to the Dance Center of Severna Park Star Elite Dancers performing.

The spring edition of SHOP LOCAL was another success. If you missed it, don’t worry. The fall edition will be here before you know it. Meantime, Severna Park’s Independence Day Parade is just around the corner. For details, see Greater Severna Park and Arnold Chamber of Commerce (gspacc.com).

Filming of TV pilot segments at Woods Church went smoothly

The sidewalk was filled with camera and sound equipment and blackout curtains covered a back entrance at Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church Saturday. Inside, in several classrooms of the Woods Child Development Center, a film crew was setting up to film scenes for a TV pilot for a comedy called “Body Snatchers”.

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“Body Snatcher’s” screenwriter/producer Devin McCord – a Severna Park High School graduate who attended preschool in the very Woods Child Development Center classroom they were shooting in – interrupted filming for a few minutes to fill us in.

“Today, we’re filming the first episode of a TV comedy pilot called ‘Body Snatchers’, which is a cliff-hanger,” McCord said. “The film’s protagonist, Eli, an anatomy student from Johns Hopkins University, finds himself stuck in a small town called Mullingrove.”

He added that, to create the fictional Mullingrove, the crew is filming part of the pilot in Severna Park… and another part in Ellicott City for that slightly spooky small-town energy.

McCord is part of production company Gubz.Co. The director and film crew members are primarily from Washington, D.C. while actor Adam Nurimatsu, who plays a doctor in the scene being shot, is also a native of Severna Park.

“It’s been a great experience filming here. Woods Church and the Severna Park community have been wonderful to us,” said McCord. “I was even able to borrow a skeleton for some of the anatomy class scenes from a teacher at Severna Park High.”

We’ll stay tuned for an update about “Body Snatchers”

Severna Park Republican Women’s Club Luncheon and Fashion Show on May 17th

We visited the table of the Severna Park Republican Women’s Club at the SHOP LOCAL Fun Fiesta and learned they are hosting a luncheon and fashion show at Chartwell Golf & Country Club on May 17 at Noon. For information and reservations visit Severna Park Republican Women’s Club (sprwc.org).

The Around The Park Again column is brought to you this week by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi at 1195 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. – For over two decades providing martial arts training that improves cardio-vascular health, strength and flexibility while reducing stress. Jing Ying is again bringing Tai Chi to the Severna Park Community Center.)

and by Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services at 815 Ritchie Hwy., Suite 206 – When you need someone to lean on, Lean On Dee. Their experienced team of personal care management specialists and friendly companions provide high quality consistent care.

AROUND THE PARK AGAIN by Sharon Lee Tegler

Brought to you by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu & Tai Chi

and by Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services

Friday’s heavy rains ended sometime during the early morning hours of Saturday just in time for Good Neighbor’s Group’s 29th Earth Day Celebration to be given the go-ahead for a 9 am start. At St. Martin’s-in-the-Field Episcopal School, however, the tent set up Friday for Saturday’s evening Field Party sat empty and forlorn, meaning a decision had to be made whether to cancel the event.

Meantime, Good Neighbors Group executive director Julie Shay counted her blessings. Since she could no longer get permission to hold the Earth Day event at Severna Park High School, as in the past, she’d arranged to relocate the celebration to the grounds of the Earleigh Heights Volunteer Fire Department. Now, she was relieved to be invited by EHVFD to move the entire event indoors if she wished.

After consulting with the event’s organizing committee, it was decided to let the participating charities and vendors choose whether they wanted to set up outside in the parking lot or inside the firehouse.

Fortunately, more than 50 vendors/organizations participated with a good representation both outdoors and indoors. Severn River Association’s executive director Jesse Iliff, who’d organized the environmentally oriented participants, chose to set up outside as did the Anne Arundel County Watershed Stewards Academy.

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Other participants set up their displays indoors and, before long, there was an amazing panorama of vendors, school club exhibits, and environmental groups. Looking across the firehall from the main entrance, one could see rows of exhibitors the length of the building.

At the opposite end of the hall, were charities like Life of Joy Foundation plus school-sponsored groups.

GNG is particularly devoted to the idea of cleaning up the environment through recycling and repurposing. Cousin’s Hauling & Clean-Out, LLC found it a perfect outdoor location for attendees to drop off reusables. Likewise, the Orphan Grain Train truck stood by for donations of gently used household goods, clothing and medical equipment. The Millersville-based organization ships donations to needy populations throughout the world including to Africa and, most recently, to Ukraine.

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Indoors, Elizabeth Rice and her husband were selling her Naturally In Knots products – dolls made from yarn, jewelry, clocks, and yoga and meditation products. At the end of their table, daughter Paislee handled the sale of Rice’s Be Well health products that are regularly sold at SassWell, a healing arts venue in Severna Park.

Nearby, vendor Jen DeVries was featuring the fashions of Noonday Collection, a Fair-Trade fashion brand that creates scholarships for young women in East Africa and works with global artisans involved in various crafts.

“We started as a jewelry company but expanded to carry apparel and bags,” DeVries said.

There were so many charities represented, both inside and outside, that they are too numerous to mention. Asbury Church Assistance Network (ACAN) based in Severna Park had operations manager Peggy Wilson on hand inside the firehouse along with volunteer Tess Rottman providing information and collecting donations for their food pantry.

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Outside, Hope For All founder Leo Zerhusen and executive director Connie Cooper were also collecting badly needed donations. Glen Burnie-based Hope For All is a Christian ministry that provides furniture, household items, and clothing to people in the community who are without financial means to meet their basic needs.

“The need is huge right now, we’re serving 40 families a month and requests for clothing are up to 85 families a month with more requests every day,” Zerhusen said.

“We can’t keep up. We’re buying things we haven’t had to buy before because the demand is so high. People just don’t understand what’s happening in Anne Arundel County. The poverty level in this county is growing and growing. We have 18,000 families trying to find affordable housing and the homeless population is growing. The average rent for a one-bedroom apartment is $1,700 now. Last week, 92 families were up for eviction at the courthouse in Annapolis. Employers don’t want to pay benefits so they’re only hiring workers for 20 hours – not enough for a family to live on.”

School organizations and clubs were primarily located inside and included Severna Park High School’s Key Club and Marine Biology Club as well as the Leadership Institute.

Echoes of Nature co-founder Echo Uzzo and son Gryphon showed off Jackson the Bunny and LR61 the snake (rescues that are now animal ambassadors) at their exhibit inside. Outside, Echo’s husband Michael took up a position near the entrance from which to introduce attendees to Echoes of Nature’s beautiful Red-Tailed Hawk. The hawk can no longer be flown as he is blind in one eye but he’s adapted well to interacting with crowds.

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The bees in the hive brought to the celebration by Maryland Queen Bees owner/beekeeper Emily Brown were plenty busy making honey. The exhibit drew crowds of onlookers asking Emily questions while friend Abby Dugense and daughter Ellie Brown sold jars of honey.

Positioned next to the Magothy River Association’s exhibit highlighting its many accomplishments, the organization’s president Paul Spadaro and wife Sandra were selling trivia games based on following sites along the river.

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In order to take part in GNG’s 29th Earth Day Festival students from Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi did double duty. They’d earlier performed for a World Tai Chi Day celebration originally scheduled for the lawn at Boone Station Hall but relocated indoors at the Institute. As we watched their Earth Day performance, the students were doing Silk Reeling Exercises (ChanSiGong), one of the basic movement exercises practiced in Jing Ying’s tai chi classes. The students also did the 18 Posture Chen tai chi form, sometimes called the “essence” form. 

Tai Chi master Billy Greer invited spectators to join along and soon four or five people did…then there were more. The newcomers copied the movements as best they could.

We would be remiss if we didn’t mention Chef Paul Zonn from Cafe Mezzanotte who did a masterful job of preparing salads for the crowds all morning. His tasty creations were based on various melons, arugula, whipped goat cheese and other trimmings.

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Finally, before leaving, we were drawn like a magnet to The Big Bean sign where co-owner Greg Coster was handing out free cups of coffee – a pleasantly warming treat on a still damp morning.

Then it was on to St. Martin’s to see what was happening with preparations for the evening’s Field Party.

St. Martin’s-in-the-Field School moves the Field for the Field Party indoors

Arriving at St. Martin’s-in-the-Field Episcopal School mid-day, we drove around back and saw some cars in the parking lot. We took one look at the tent (as seen in the opening photo) and realized it was deserted. Thus, when we saw an open door to the school with some glittering lights beyond, we entered.

Beneath the lights, the bare bones of the school’s relocated Caribbean-themed Field Party fundraiser began to take shape with teal and coral-colored tablecloths and lots of palm leaves. Head of School Tony Shaffer could be seen talking to various volunteers as he hurried from table to table.

Asked who had to make the decision to move the event indoors, Shaffer replied, “That was me. We spent last night sloshing around in the tent out there. The tent was leaking and everything got wet so bringing the Field Party indoors was the only sensible thing to do.”

“The space we’re using was renovated just last year. It’s shaping up nicely thanks to our team who are all volunteers – our unsung heroes,” he added. “One of our trustees was in here all morning washing off all the chairs. Everything had to be wiped down.”

Already finished setting up donations for the Silent Auction (for which bidding would begin after dinner) Director of Development Christine Hickey and volunteer Jessica Mahfoudi were ready to move on to the next item on their list.

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Lights were still being strung behind volunteers Bethany Baldwin and Elizabeth Ford as they began decorating the tables with tropical greenery and candles as did Bethany’s mother Colleen Baldwin who was involved with planning the Field Party.

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Needless to say, by the time 7 pm arrived everything looked perfect including a festive buffet dinner.

A wonderful mix of alumni, parents and grandparents of students, plus faculty and staff members mingled over cocktails and hors d’oeuvres before enjoying dinner.

It was particularly fun for friends Tarik and Jessica Mahfoudi, Elizabeth Ford, and Asia Jeng to hang out with each other since the gals had helped set up.

According to Christine Hickey, the Field Party was a fine success.

“We’re now planning for our next fun event, our students’ annual Cardboard Boat Race later this month,” she said.

The Around The Park Again column is brought to you this week by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi at 1195 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. – For over two decades providing martial arts training that improves cardio-vascular health, strength and flexibility while reducing stress. (Jing Ying is currently offering Free Tai Chi Classes on May 5 and May 9 and again brings Tai Chi to the Severna Park Community Center.)

and by Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services at 815 Ritchie Hwy., Suite 206 – When you need someone to lean on, Lean On Dee. Their experienced team of personal care management specialists and friendly companions provide high quality consistent care.

AROUND THE PARK AGAIN by Sharon Lee Tegler

Brought to you by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi

and Lean On Dee Senior Home Care

The 11 am “Tea and Tour” event hosted by the Friends of the Rising Sun Inn couldn’t have been more charming. Docents wearing colonial attire served attendees in the historic setting of the circa 1753 house museum. The first of two Tea and Tour sittings Saturday was referred to as “Elevensies”. It recreated the teas held at Rising Sun Inn by the Ann Arundel Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution after assuming ownership of the property in 1916.

According to Friends’ volunteer and docent Susan Giddings, having tea at the Rising Sun Inn was an extremely popular pastime during the period between World Wars I and II. A cabinet in one of the first-floor rooms contains a collection of China used in the Tea Room from the early 1920’s through the early 1940’s, and also for special family dinners.

However, the Friends chose to use two sets of vintage pressed glass and ribbed glass dishes that had been donated to the Inn by a DAR member.

Tea began with the filling of teacups but then servers appeared carrying three-tiered trays filled with sweets prepared by Friends of the Rising Sun Inn treasurer Kris Jenkins. Included were scones, petit fours, lemon cheesecakes, cupcakes, chocolate chip cookies and cinnamon buns… and, of course, Jenkins’ delicious lemon curd was passed around as it would have been in the past.

Giddings said she was very pleased that all of the guests for the first sitting were first-time visitors to the Rising Sun Inn and were looking forward to the tour as much as the tea.

Guests Heather Foster, Kata Kereshi, Juliet Wilson and Charles Ames not only enjoyed taking in their surroundings while sampling sweets but had fun getting to know one another.

Further back and around a corner by the fireplace, guests at other tables openly admired the way the Ann Arundel DAR chapter had restored and preserved the 270-year-old home while maintaining its age-old reputation as a cordial gathering place. Several had an interest in colonial architecture and couldn’t wait to tour the colonial era Tavern Room, observe the brick fireplaces in the kitchens below, and visit the family rooms upstairs.

Their journey through history began when Susan Giddings appeared to reveal how the custom of serving tea at Rising Sun Inn came about.

She began by explaining that Richard “Bo” Williams, the final private owner of the Inn, gifted the Tavern to the Ann Arundel Chapter in 1916 on condition that it be preserved and maintained as a historical site or museum. The women of the chapter took out a loan of $5,000 to start the restoration (equivalent to about $150,000 today).

“The women had to figure out a way to pay for it,” Giddings said. “So through the 1920’s, ’30’s and ’40’s, they operated the Tea Room and occasionally served family dinners. Unfortunately, with the onset of World War II and the rationing of sugar and other products, it became financially unfeasible to continue serving tea even though the Inn served as a Recreation Center for Ft. Meade soldiers.”

With the serving of the first sitting complete, docents Sharon Beard, Elizabeth Davies and Amy Espinoza left the Tea Room and waited in the hall and foyer for the tours to commence.

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There was much to look forward to. The tour to be led by the docents would take groups of guests to the Tavern which is located on the same floor ….

…. then upstairs to one of the family areas that is set up for tea, as seen below, and finally below stairs for a peek at the original kitchen with its double brick hearths.

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The guests that attended the first sitting truly enjoyed the tea and the tour and we imagine those attending the second sitting were equally pleased.

The next events to be held at Rising Sun Inn will be this Saturday, April 29, for an Author Tea and Tour with award winning author, Luke Salisbury with his book, No Common War. For tickets visit Public Events – The Rising Sun Inn Crownsville, Maryland. A Make Your Own Mother’s Day Teacup Floral Arrangement will be held May 5 and the opening of the property’s recently restored Carriage House will take place at a date yet to be announced. For further information on the Inn and a calendar of events, visit The Rising Sun Inn Crownsville, Maryland – Home.

Severn Cross Roads Foundation Flea Market and Craft Fair at Baldwin Hall

By 1 pm, we were on our way to historic Baldwin Hall to do a bit of bargain hunting at Severn Cross Roads Foundation’s Third Annual Flea Market and Craft Fair.

The indoor/outdoor event not only took place in the charming interior of Baldwin Hall where sunshine streamed through the windows…

but also spread across the rolling lawns of the circa 1861 building. The event drew a mix of Flea Market tables and vendor tables.

Community groups are always drawn to events at the Hall – especially Scouts BSA Troop 192 which is based at Baldwin Memorial United Methodist Church. The troop is led by Scout Master Annie Medford who is also building manager for Baldwin Hall. The all-girl troop was seeking $10 contributions from the public to finance its annual scouting trip.

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There seemed to be more flea market tables than usual. One that drew a lot of attention was the table full of American Girl and China Dolls put together by Amy Rink.

“My daughter outgrew her doll collection and said I could get rid of all but one of them – her favorite.”

Just beyond Rink, author Maria Grosskettler had a table filled with copies of her latest mystery, “Tracks”, which revolves around a train station and is set in the small town of Berlin, Maryland where her husband grew up. To the delight of her small son, she also was selling some toys.

Other vendor tables featured girl’s clothing from Kate and Robert Ople and table of Squashmallows from Andy, Gavin and Melony and Bobby Blair.

Inside once more, we discovered Severn Cross Roads Foundation treasurer Sally Burton and other members selling boxes of donuts plus furniture, artwork, crafts and other items. Burton, who is also the Music Director of Chesapeake Harmony Chorus also mentioned that the group will appear in a free friends and family concert at Baldwin Hall on May 10.

Zippy Designz’ table with Valerie Moten at the helm had a very appealing selection of cards as well as shadow boxes and other boutique-type items for sale. Regular vendor Tateen’s Trinkets was there with an extensive display of jewelry handmade by Collene Kane.

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Heavily into downsizing, Ken and Effie Post had quite a few sports items for sale including a golf bag and clubs, tennis rackets, golf shoes and even boxing gloves as well as lots of books.

There were too many vendors and flea market sellers to mention though we did note that artist Diane Davis returned for the third year with her beautiful artwork including hand painted trays made from wine boxes. We also noticed Chelsea Pietlock, who was new to the event, offering a selection of handmade jewelry. In fact, it was her first time as a vendor at any event.

According to Severn Cross Roads Foundation member Janice Crowe, all proceeds from the flea market and craft fair go to the foundation for the maintenance and preservation of Historic Baldwin Hall. For more information and news of upcoming events, visit Home | baldwinhall.

GNG Earth Day Festival happens Saturday at Earleigh Heights VFD rain or shine

A reminder from Good Neighbors Group executive director Julie Shay that the group’s 21st Annual Earth Day Festival will be held Saturday at Earleigh Heights Volunteer Fire Company, 161 Ritchie Highway from 9 am to 12 pm.

“We’re hoping for decent weather but, if expected rains linger, we’ll simply move inside the firehouse. We have a great festival planned.”

To check on the event, visit Good Neighbors Group | Facebook.

Field Party at St. Martin’s Episcopal School happens Saturday evening rain or shine

St. Martin’s-in-the-Field Episcopal School‘s annual Field Party fundraiser will be held as planned on Saturday evening at 7 pm rain or shine. As always, the field party is being held in a large lavishly decorated weatherproof tent for keeping everyone dry and enjoying the Caribbean-themed event.

The Around The Park Again column is brought to you this week by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi at 1195 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. – For over two decades providing martial arts training that improves cardio-vascular health, strength and flexibility while reducing stress. (Jing Ying currently offers a Homeschool Kung Fu Class and again brings Tai Chi to the Severna Park Community Center.)

and by Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services at 815 Ritchie Hwy., Suite 206 – When you need someone to lean on, Lean On Dee. Their experienced team of personal care management specialists and friendly companions provide high quality consistent care.

AROUND THE PARK AGAIN by Sharon Lee Tegler

Brought to you by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu & Tai Chi

and Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services

The day professional photographer David Blecman wandered into Severna Park’s newest store, BD Provisions at 844 Ritchie Highway, the sight of 200 plus barrels of organic food products astounded him. The abundance spread out before him inspired him to snap a few images. His is the opening photograph.

I was equally impressed when I visited the business Monday. My own camera never stopped clicking from the moment I arrived till the end of an informative tour I was given by owners Debra Saltz and Phil Peters.

Not since Good Life Organic Market closed have Severna Park residents been able to buy bulk foods locally and many look forward to visiting BD Provisions.

Saltz and Peters are franchisees for Connecticut-based BD Provisions – a happy situation that came about over the last few years.

“I knew the founders of the business since I went on a study-abroad in college with one of them,” Saltz said. “My husband and I would stop by BD Provisions’ main store in Newtown, Connecticut on the way to and from our home in Maine. We soon started bringing our friends, Phil and his wife, along on the trips. They loved the store as much as we did.”

By then, BD Provisions had opened a second store – a franchise – in New Milford. The friends really liked the store’s business model of providing bulk buy products that are mostly organic.

“Reasoning that we could do the same thing, Phil and I became the first out-of-state franchisees. We are the third BD Provisions store,” said Saltz.

With 240 dry bulk food items to choose from, not including oils, vinegars, teas and coffees, it was hard to know where to start our impromptu tour. The partners chose the first section of barrels we came to and opened the lids of several barrels filled to the brim with 16 varieties of competitively priced nuts.

There were regular and honey-roasted peanuts, natural roasted and salted pistachios, walnuts, pecans, and Marcona almonds as well as their own blend of Virginia peanuts with a Chesapeake spice blend.

We next approached two whole sections of candy and snacks. There were chocolates – really different things people don’t usually see like Buckeyes, various kinds of clusters like Peanut Chocolate Pretzel Clusters, Pecan Caramel Patties, and Sea Salt candies – plus dried fruits, energy bites, and snacks. All were competitively priced.

According to Saltz and Peters, snack mixes like Pineapple Habanero Crunch and 19th Hole Golf Mix are especially popular.

Heading past the Candy and Snacks section, we ran into store manager Corinne Harris who was arranging a display of nutrition-dense CBD dog treats alongside glass containers of bites and chews with tongs so customers could help themselves.

We moved past Harris toward a wall of metal containers filled with blended olive oils and vinegars that shoppers are invited to taste before buying.

We sampled a Blood Orange infused olive oil that was pleasantly light and citrusy and a Basil infused olive oil which was more robust. On the upper shelf were flavor-infused vinegars. We sampled a flavorful Pear Champagne Vinegar that somehow managed to have a fizz similar to the fizz in a glass of champagne. We were equally pleased with the Cranberry Balsamic Vinegar.

“Once they’ve tasted our vinegars or oils, shoppers almost always buy a bottle. The bottles come in three different sizes,” Saltz said.

We wandered by displays of three kinds of maple syrup, Eastern Shore honey, bourban flavored honey and an elderberry syrup that was attractively packaged with deep blue elderberries. There were drinks from eco-friendly Wild Bay Beverages in Baltimore too.

Peters, who’d temporarily left us to wait on a customer, popped up behind a display of products from local artists and gift baskets on the checkout counter.

There were also gift boxes with prepackaged mixes like those seen here that can easily be shipped.

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A Gluten Free section included barrels of grains like millet, buckwheat, rice, farrow and quinoa along with flours and pastas. Sugar-free options included a Milk Chocolate Almond Bark we tasted that was as good as or better than any made with sugar.

Two sections of barrels were devoted to pastas, cereals, oats, granolas, flours and other ingredients for baking including chocolate, cinnamon and other kinds of chips. There were time-saving premade baking mixtures for items like buttermilk pancakes and mixes for tasty party dips.

A stand-alone shelving unit contained pre-made items perfect for gifting. The top shelf included mixes for Hearty Lentil Soup, Vegan Chili, Vindaloo and Mixed Beans. The second shelf featured Rice Krispie Treats in varied flavors. The third shelf boasted hot beverage mixes like Chai Latte Concentrate and Cocoa while the bottom shelf held pre-measured ingredients for Blood Orange or Lemon Lime-flavored cocktails.

The far wall was divided into two sections. The first held a selection of 80 herbs and spices including some that are hard to find. There were also specially blended spice rubs. Shoppers can buy as much or little as they wish.

Both Peters and Saltz tout the fact that customers are able to purchase their products by the spoonful, ounce or pound – a strong selling point.

“If you only need a teaspoon of an ingredient for a recipe, you can buy a tablespoon of it rather than buying a whole bottle that would merely go to waste,” Phil said.

The second section of the wall contained a wide selection of teas and tea accessories that was equally impressive. The fragrances escaping from any one 40 glass tea jars were deep and delightful.

Many of the world’s classic teas like Assam Black, Ceylon, Earl Grey, English Breakfast were represented but there were also blended teas like Citrus Ginger, Berry and Hot Cinnamon Spice.

There was so much more to see including health and beauty products. However, Saltz and Peters saved the best things for last – a coffee roaster and bags and barrels of coffee beans from around the world. BD Provision stores are noted for their on-site coffee roasting.

Like the teas, the aromas of the different coffee beans were unique and amazing. Coffee roasting is Peters specialty. Standing by the 14-pound roaster, he scooped up some coffee beans in their raw state from a burlap sack. They were pure white. Then, for comparison, he held a scoop of beans he’d already roasted that were dark in color. They were the store’s darkest roast called India Monsoon.

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For now, the Severna Park store is roasting only on Saturdays (though the Connecticut stores roast three times a week.) Customers tell Saltz and Peters that the air outside the shop smells heavenly whenever they are roasting. The partners hope to make wholesale arrangements with area businesses to supply them coffee, thereby increasing their volume of sales and number of roasting days.

“We’ll generally roast 11 pounds of beans at a time which yields us about 10 pounds,” Peters said. “We use different beans for different blends. We currently have nine different roasts, and we have two flavored coffees – a white mocha and a toasted coconut. Our most popular in-house blend is Midnight Joe – a combination of Columbian, Brazilian and Indian Monsoon beans.”

Peters grinds various blends of coffee each morning and through the day as needed. He also sells quite a few cups of coffee.

Though open only ten days at the time of our visit, both partners said business has been brisk, with Fridays good and Saturdays packed. The shop’s location is advantageous with nearby businesses like Lisa’s Cakepops, American Home Brew, and Severna Park Lanes Bowling that draw well.

BD Provisions is looking to form wholesale partnerships with area restaurateurs or chefs and with other businesses that are eco-friendly and sustainable. They also plan to host classes, events and networking opportunities. A grand opening and ribbon cutting will be held soon by the Greater Severna Park & Arnold Chamber with a Jing Ying Institute Lion Dance. For information visit BD Provisions- zero waste bulk food store or follow them on Facebook at BD Provisions Severna Park | Facebook.

The Around The Park Again column is brought to you this week by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi at 1195 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. – For over two decades providing martial arts training that improves cardio-vascular health, strength and flexibility while reducing stress. (Jing Ying currently offers a Homeschool Kung Fu Class and again brings Tai Chi to the Severna Park Community Center.)

and by Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services at 815 Ritchie Hwy., Suite 206 – When you need someone to lean on, Lean On Dee. Their experienced team of personal care management specialists and friendly companions provide high quality consistent care.

AROUND THE PARK AGAIN by Sharon Lee Tegler

Brought to you by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi

and Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services

Severna Park residents were astounded to learn that, after 54 years of operation on the corner of Ritchie Highway and Robinson Road, Clement Hardware owner Gordon Clement sold the family business late last month. Hundreds of messages from former clients poured in by phone, email and over social media saying how much the store and its genial owner would be missed.

Nevertheless, the hardware business reopened under new ownership on Saturday, April 1. It was an easy transition thanks to Clement who spent most of Tuesday, April 11, introducing its new owner Rick Miller to some of the store’s long-time clients.

We were honored to sit in on their final meeting of the day at Donut Shack as Clement spoke about his family’s long history with the store and to be introduced by him to Miller. One of Clement’s favorite haunts, Donut Shack was owned until 2020 by his good friend Bill Prevezanos, another longtime family business proprietor. (It’s now owned and operated by partners Ali Matthews and Ben Hilliard.)

“My father David Clement bought the store in 1969,” Clement said. My brother Jeff and I grew up working there along with our mother Edith. “We also had three siblings who worked at the store at different times but none who made it a career.”

“Sixteen years apart in age, Jeff was the oldest son and I was the youngest,” he continued. “The two of us bought the store from my parents 27 years ago in 1996. Sadly, Jeff needed to retire 17 years ago in 2007 due to early onset Alzheimer’s and I bought him out.”

Longtime residents, like Miller who grew up in Severna Park, can recall that Clement Hardware once occupied two stories of their building at 500 Ritchie Highway. Paint, wallpaper and housewares were displayed on the upper floor while hardware, electronics and tools were displayed on the bottom floor. However, in 1990, they moved the entire business downstairs.

“We actually expanded it,” Clement said. “The entire building was only 6,000 square feet and we needed more space. In the late 1980’s we’d started an expansion on our own though we didn’t own the building. Unfortunately, the savings & loan crisis hit and the banks were unable to give us a go ahead for financing. As we’d already arranged a lease for the upper story with Blockbuster, the building’s owners allowed us to go ahead anyway. Thus, we were fully involved in the new construction and doubled the space.

Thereafter, with plenty of room, the business brought in new lines of merchandise and operated smoothly.

There were occasional ups and downs like those experienced by any small business. Then came the COVID pandemic in 2020 which, unbelievably, proved quite a boon for Clement Hardware. Clement was determined to keep the store open throughout the pandemic as a service to the community.

“For the first three months, our store was so busy I didn’t see how we could sustain it,” he said. “I’ve never seen anything like it. We generally did well through hurricanes, snowstorms, ice storms or windstorms but this seemed like a snowstorm that never ended.”

“Essentials like toilet tissue, paper towels and masks and hand sanitizers flew off the shelves but people were also coming in for tools, paint and hardware for home improvement projects. I’d hate to go through another pandemic, but it was a much-appreciated period of sustained profitability for us.”

When asked what prompted him to decide to sell the business after 54 years, Clement responded that “the stars aligned”.

He believes Rick Miller is the perfect buyer – one who will do a terrific job, will be good for the community, and be good for the Clement Hardware staff. Clement also felt the timing was right since he has a real estate business he really enjoys…and he’s turning 60 this year.

“I’ve had years and years of standing on concrete floors which are hard on the knees,” he said.

Rick Miller does seem to be a perfect fit.

“Gordon reached out to me to congratulate me in 2019 when I opened a showroom for our own family business, Zeskind’s, at Arnold Station,” Miller said. “We’d chatted before about both growing up in the hardware business.”

Zeskind’s is a fourth-generation family-owned hardware and millwork business started in Baltimore City by Miller’s great grandfather in 1925.

Miller said he is planning to change the name of the store to Park Hardware.

“I just didn’t feel right putting our family business’ name on his family business,” he said. “We came up with the concept of calling it Park Hardware because it is in Severna Park and other businesses I frequent like Park Tavern, Park Fitness and Park Home also associate their names with the community.”

Miller added that he plans to move the millwork showroom from Arnold which will be located in the back part of the store. He’ll also shift the existing decorative hardware from the front to the back along with the doors and windows and trim and cabinetry that his business has done well for decades.

“We’ll be doing a total refresh inside and out but we’re keeping everything Clement’s Hardware has offered as a service and keeping their entire staff which is very knowledgeable, Miller said. We’re keeping what they made great and hoping to make it even better, building upon that legacy.”

He noted that they’ll be reaffiliating with Do It Best – a cooperative of family hardware stores – instead of True Value and initiating some additional things like online ordering and pick-up, carrying a modest amount of lumber for finishing jobs and bringing back the lawn mower repair service once popular at Clement’s but discontinued.

Miller says there is already a Park Hardware webpage at www.parkhardware.com that will continually be updated with the latest information.

As for Gordon Clement, he’s looking forward to being able to take off for some fun at will. He’ll be heading for the beach this week and will journey to the Cayman Islands with three friends later in April. There are also some exciting travel adventures in his future. He and his wife are planning a trip to Antarctica two days after Thanksgiving. We wish him nothing but safe travels.

Clement and Miller ended the day shaking hands in the parking lot of Donut Shack across Ritchie Highway from Clement Hardware with its familiar red and white sign still in place just over their shoulders.

“It’s hard to believe,” Clement told Miller, “but when we were first open, there was no traffic light at Robinson Road and the busy section of crossroads was known throughout the area as “Malfunction Junction.”

Jing Ying Institute hosts World Tai Chi Day on April 29

The Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi will join hundreds of cities all over the world in hosting World Tai Chi Day on Saturday, April 29th. As in previous years, the event will be held outdoors at the Severna Park Community Center beneath the trees on the lawn of Boone Station Hall from 10 am till 11 am. People of all ages and fitness levels are welcome.

During the event, there will be demonstrations of Tai Chi and followed by free mini-workshops of tai chi and qigong suitable for all levels of fitness. The demonstrations are fascinating to watch.

According to Jing Ying Institute owner Nancy Greer, the mini-workshops are both fun and informative.

Greer also mentioned that, in case of rain, the event will be held inside Jing Ying’s main facility in Arnold. For more information, or to register for the event, visit Best Martial Arts Program in Annapolis, Severna Park (jingying.org).

Eco Adventures 10th Anniversary and Earth Day Celebration this Saturday

Eco Adventures 10th Anniversary and Earth Day Celebration will take place this Saturday, April 15 from 11 am till 2 pm at 216 Najoles Road in Millersville. Theday of family fun will include conservation and local organizations, vendors, performances by Priddy Music Academy, Docksiders’ Gymnastics, Animal Shows, a Pirate Magic Show and more. There will be food, snow cones, Green Screen, facepainting, pony rides, a petting zoo and more.

RSVP HERE or visit Home – Eco Adventures.

The Around The Park Again column is brought to you this week by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi at 1195 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. – For over two decades providing martial arts training that improves cardio-vascular health, strength and flexibility while reducing stress. (Jing Ying currently offers a Homeschool Kung Fu Class and again brings Tai Chi to the Severna Park Community Center.)

and by Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services at 815 Ritchie Hwy., Suite 206 – When you need someone to lean on, Lean On Dee. Their experienced team of personal care management specialists and friendly companions provide high quality consistent care.

AROUND THE PARK AGAIN By Sharon Lee Tegler

Brought to you by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu & Tai Chi

and Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services

Thanks to highly imaginative grandparents, I was entirely convinced there was an Easter Bunny as a small child even though I could never catch sight of him. It was exciting to hear the rabbit scratching at the screen door and such fun searching for the brightly colored Easter Eggs left behind among the high grasses on the family farm.

Those happy memories are why I always dye dozens of eggs on Easter Eve and why I’ve adopted an easy way of coloring them. Here’s a link to my recipe for doing so: Easter Eggs the Easy Way – sharonleestable.com.

I have a deep appreciation for anything “bunny” so, when I stopped by the Red Apron Shoppe on Riggs Avenue last Friday, I was delighted to find bunnies and Easter eggs included in a spring table setting of vintage pastel dinnerware from Russell Wright by Steubenville.

I’d actually entered the shop to do a little retail research for an article about stretching our pennies through the period of high inflation we’re currently experiencing. Robin Love, who was minding the store, was extremely helpful.

She noted that most items displayed in the shop are from the Red Apron Estate Sales side of the business owned by MaryAnn Neal and husband Cam. It’s obvious the glassware, China, furnishings and other items are high quality, in great condition, and, according to Love, relatively inexpensive.

“We’re a rescuer of things that may not have sold but are highly desirable, “she said.

Seen below are two of the articles that caught my attention, with an eye toward pricing them. The first, a three-piece soup tureen set from Holland similar to one I received several years ago as a gift, was priced at $35.00 which was likely half the price of what it would cost new.

According to Love, pillows are priced outrageously high these days selling for $40 and up. However, Red Apron Shoppe’s collection of embroidered pillows was an exception. They were priced at $10 each. In addition, some very attractive non-embroidered cushions were a great deal at $6 each.

We’ll be touching base with Red Apron Shoppe again for a future retail research column. Meantime, we’ll mention some of the upcoming events April is filled with beginning with the Jewish religious celebration of Passover, from April 5 through 13, and the Christian observances of Good Friday on April 7 and Easter Sunday on April 9. Additional events are scheduled throughout the month.

Severna Park Community Center’s Easter Splash on Good Friday

Severna Park Community Center chose the evening of April 7 to hold an Easter Splash from 6:30 to 7:30 pm in the Therapy Pool with a unique in-water egg hunt and a visit from Peter Cottontail. Tickets were on sale for $10 per swimmer at the desk or online at THE SEVERNA PARK COMMUNITY CENTER – SPCC Home (spcommunitycenter.org). They were going fast.

The Annapolis Cup Croquet Match at St. John’s April 15

Though pricey, tickets are still available for the traditional croquet match between the Johnnie’s and Naval Academy on the front lawn of St. John’s College in Annapolis which takes place April 15 from 12 pm to 6 pm. The casual, picnic-like atmosphere with attendees dressed to the nines according to their own taste, is as much fun to observe as the match. Tickets may be purchased at croquet@sjc.edu.

Tea and Tour at Rising Sun Inn on April 22

Enjoy a cup of tea with costumed guides at Rising Sun Inn in Crownsville on April 22 while learning about the historic house’s collection of colonial tea serving pieces and tea caddy which was kept locked by the lady of the house.  The event will be held from 11 am to 3 pm. Upon arrival, guests will be served Elevenses consisting of traditional sweets and tea at 11. Afterward they’ll be given a tour of the circa 1753 Inn and Tavern learning about the building’s history and its role in Anne Arundel County history. For information and tickets, visit The Rising Sun Inn Crownsville, Maryland – Home.

3rd Annual Flea Market & Craft Show at Historic Baldwin Hall on April 22

The Severn Cross Roads Foundation has announced that their third annual fundraiser benefitting Historic Baldwin Hall in Millersville will take place on April 22 from 10 am till 2 pm with vendors indoors and outdoors. For more information, visit Home | baldwinhall or, for vendor information, contact janice.a.crowe@gmail.com.

Life Purpose Course offered at Woods Counseling and Care Center starting April 24

A Life Purpose Course considered helpful for retirees is being offered by Bill Daniel at the Woods Counseling and Care Center from 4-6 pm on Mondays beginning April 10 with subsequent classes April 24 and May 1, May 8 and May 15. For costs, information, and to register, contact Nancy Sullivan at nsullivan@woodschurch.org or Bill Daniel at bdfable@gmail.com.

Good Neighbors Group’s 21st Earth Day Festival on April 29

Good Neighbors Group executive director Julie Shay is excited that the group’s celebrated Earth Day Festival has a new home this year at Earleigh Heights Volunteer Fire Company, 161 Ritchie Highway. The expansive property behind the firehouse is an ideal space in which to highlight informative earth-friendly displays from schools and environmental groups, listen to music and find great food. The festival will be held from 9 am to 12 pm.

Field Party at St. Martin’s Episcopal School on April 29

Long a highlight of the year at St. Martin’s-in-the-Field Episcopal School, the annual Field Party fundraiser is back on the agenda for April 29 at 7 pm. This year the field will be transformed to a Caribbean Island paradise with cocktails, dinner, dancing and a live and silent auction. Tickets are available at https://stmartinsmd.org/event/field-party-gala/.

The Around The Park Again column is brought to you this week by Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu and Tai Chi at 1195 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd. – For over two decades providing martial arts training that improves cardio-vascular health, strength and flexibility while reducing stress. (Jing Ying currently offers a Homeschool Kung Fu Class and again brings Tai Chi to the Severna Park Community Center.)

and by Lean On Dee Senior Home Care Services at 815 Ritchie Hwy., Suite 206 – When you need someone to lean on, Lean On Dee. Their experienced team of personal care management specialists and friendly companions provide high quality consistent care.