Maxwell Park Neighborhood News

by Sarah Hipolito

Party in Maxwell Park Because there is no better way to celebrate the diversity of your neighborhood, come to Maxwell Park, Fleming between Courtland and Monticello, Saturday, September 15, noon to 5 p.m. There will be a stage featuring local musicians and other talent, activities for kids and youth (including a bike-repair clinic), barbecue by Youth Uprising, and neighborhood chit chat. New this year—a safety bike course for kids to test their skills, a live hula-hoop demonstration, and line dancing led by Joe Davis, local Zydeco enthusiast. Some devoted people at work on this event still need your help. If you can't donate time, your financial donation will help buy supplies for activities, drinks for everyone. and other critical supplies that will make this event happen. All money goes towards this event, and it is not too late to make a contribution. You can use Paypal at the maxwellparknc\@yahoo.com e-mail address, or send a check to MPNC, P.O. Box 14875, Oakland, CA 94619. Belated Thank-Yous Last year's party in the park included a raffle for many wonderful prizes. No raffle will be held this year, but neighborhood businesses will showcase their services. Perhaps next year, you will volunteer to be the raffle coordinator. As a lucky winner, I spent an hour with a professional organizer and an hour with a skilled masseuse. Camilla Hardmeyer, from Organizing with Heart, helped me sort out various home reorganizing ideas. Thanks to her creative support, I started a project that took me three weeks of vacation and many more weekends to accomplish. I am almost done, but without her encouragement, I probably would have just let things be. Now, I have created an atmosphere that suits me to a T! JoAnn Strang, RN, L.Ac., has a master's in Oriental medicine. She is an accomplished practitioner of acupuncture, massage, and medicinal herbs. Her donation allowed me to experience the joy and relaxation of massage accompanied by the sounds of a meditation group that was meeting at the yoga studio that night. It was just the thing I needed after time spent laboring to organize my home. Boys & Girls Club Entryway Project Delayed Adelle Foley wrote about the sale of engraved bricks for the entryway of the High Street Boys & Girls club in the August 2004 Metro. Since then, she has followed up on the project several times. She got reassurance in November 2006 that the bricks were to be installed in December 2006. However, as of this September, the project has not yet been done. I contacted the Boys & Girls club only to learn that the bricks are being stored until a brick mason is located. If you know of a brick mason, please call the Boys & Girls Club with your referral. If you donated for this project, someday soon you will enjoy seeing your name in brick and will be proud of your contribution to the beautification of the Anna Marie Whalen branch. Contacts: Park Party cochairs Krista Gulbransen, krista_gulbransen\@yahoo.com, and Helen daSilva, hds2288\@aol.com; JoAnn Strang, 530-3686; Camilla Hardmeyer, 531-5320; Boys & Girls Club, Karen Seid, Kseid\@BGCOakland.org.? Sarah Hipolito can be reached at shipolito\@sbcglobal.net.