annabel and david levy, david heffernan, quinn mulligan

January 3-9, 2018

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WellbeingPage 6

Bravo To Present ‘Fiddler On The Roof, Jr.’News, Page 3

Transforming LivesNews, Page 2

Ready for the ColdWellbeing, Page 6

Welcoming in the New YearNews, Page 3

Annabel and David Levy, David Heffernan, Quinn Mulligan, Jared Needham, Avery Klotz, Zachary Doria-Rose and Annette

Levy welcome in the new year on the ice on the C&O Canal.

2 ❖ Potomac Almanac ❖ January 3-9, 2018 www.ConnectionNewspapers.com

News

By Susan Belford

The Almanac

Potomac’s JillianCopeland is a womanwho provides innova-tive solutions for tough

problems. She wanted her sonNicol to have the best possible edu-cation; thus, she founded and ledThe Diener School, a school serving specialneeds children from kindergarten throughsixth grade. For the past three years, shehas been anxious about what his futurewould look like. After extensive research,she and her husband Scott have launcheda plan for an inspirational new developmentcalled Main Street. In their desire to seekthe best possible life situation for their son,they hope to change the world for the bet-ter for young adults with disabilities, theirfamilies, and the community.

On Dec. 13, the Rockville Planning Com-mission passed approval for Main Street tobe built. “This meeting was historic,” saidCopeland. “It was a wonderful gathering ofour local special needs community. We weredeeply grateful to have the support of allmembers, friends and family. We have feltan incredible and palpable energy from theextraordinary support for our mission —and it feels great. Thanks to everyone forhelping our dream of Main Street becomea reality.”

The statistics tell the story: More than500,000 young adults with autism will en-ter adulthood in the next decade. Fifty thou-sand young adults with disabilities willgraduate from high school each year. Sev-enty-five percent of these young adults livewith family members, 20 percent who areover 60 years of age. Nearly one in threeadults is disconnected with no communityparticipation in the past year. In the Stateof Maryland, 6,924 adults are currentlywaiting for daily living supports from theDevelopmental Disabilities Administration.

“Main Street will be an inclusive commu-nity where adults with and without disabili-ties will thrive,” said Copeland. “MainStreet’s philosophy is ‘multi-age, multi-stage’; a setting that bridges abilities, ages

and economics and fosters aculture of inclusion. Whatmakes Main Street differentfrom other housing projectsfor adults with disabilitiesis this is a community-fo-cused model. It will be amix of different ages andabilities to create organic,meaningful interactionsand opportunities thatinspire the pathways tofriendship and indepen-dence. Enriching on-site activities will re-move the physical bar-riers often associatedwith group homes.”

The 2020 comple-tion plans for MainStreet reveal a 70-apartment complexlocated in the heartof Rockville TowneCenter. Twenty-five percent of theunits will be de-signed and designated for adultswith disabilities. The first floor of the build-ing will house a large comfortable lounge,game rooms, wellness center, classrooms,kitchen, computer lab, cafe and more. MainStreet is located within walking distance ofpublic transportation, restaurants, the li-brary, movie theatres, shopping and mul-tiple activities.

The Copeland’s vision is long-range andinnovative, nurturing the whole person ashe or she grows and becomes more andmore independent. Main Street’s core val-ues are: Live, learn, play, work and thrive.Thus, not only will Main Street provide the

apartments and sup-ports for independent and affordable liv-ing but it will meet its core values throughinnovation and thoughtful planning. Whena young adult moves into his or her space,the following will be provided: Partnershipswith local universities and organizations tooffer social, educational and therapeuticprogramming; gathering rooms in the build-ing to provide space for meeting friends andjoining an array of planned activities; flex-ible, affordable spaces for nonprofits andresource-oriented organizations to access

Main Street residents and the growingRockville community; and vocational sup-

ports — from job coaching toride shares —to provide resi-dents the toolsthey need formeaningful em-ployment. An at-tached neighbor-hood coffee shopwill offer employ-ment opportunitieswhile supportingthe caffeine habitsof Rockville’s publicand private sectors.

The special needscommunity is opti-mistic about the inclu-sive and innovativenew residence for theirchildren and others.Ellen Jennings said,“Main Street representshope — having nor-malcy, knowing that mychild is around his friendsand peers in a safe place— and that he has a pathfor life. I feel happy know-ing he will be living inde-pendently. It’s going to begreat and we are all goingto help make it happen.”

Joyce and Nelson Migdalsaid, “The stars are alignedto make this a go. We haveall been aspiring, dreamingand hoping that somethinglike this would become a real-

ity — andMain Street is the answer to ourprayers.”

Nicol Copeland will be going from theIvymount School to Riverview School inCape Cod for the next few years. He toldhis mom, “I am sad to be going to Riverdale— but happy because I know once I leavethere, I will have Main Street as my newhome.”

To learn more about Main Street, visitwww.mainstreetconnect.org.

Main Street to providehousing for disabled adults.Transforming Lives

Scott and Jillian Copeland with (from left) Ethan, 16; Danny, 22;

Nicol, 18; and Jack, 21.

Potomac Almanac ❖ January 3-9, 2018 ❖ 3www.ConnectionNewspapers.com

NewsPotomac Almanac Editor Steven Mauren

703-778-9415 or [email protected]

See www.potomacalmanac.com

By Susan Belford

The Almanac

“Fiddler on the Roof, Jr.” tellsthe tale of the preservation offamily traditions, relation-ships, love and marriage.

Bravo Productions’ presentation pulls to-gether more than just the story-line; it en-compasses three generations of involvementfrom the same family.

“Bravo Productions,” said Executive Pro-ducer Laurie Levy Issembert, “has alwaysbeen a family-oriented performing arts or-ganization. Children are taught the art ofmusical theatre production and perfor-mance, while their parents are encouragedto share the experience with their childrenand work on some aspect of the show. ‘Fid-dler on the Roof, Jr.’ with a cast of 30 chil-dren and four performances at theRandolph Road Theatre on Jan. 13-14, ex-pands that family feel to include grandpar-ents.”

“Fiddler on the Roof” is a musical set inImperial Russia in 1905. It is based on“Tevye and his Daughters” and other talesby Sholem Aleichem. The story centers onTevye, the father of five daughters, and hisattempts to maintain his Jewish religiousand cultural traditions as outside influencesencroach upon the family’s lives. He mustcope both with the strong-willed actions ofhis three older daughters, who wish tomarry for love — each one’s choice of ahusband moves further away from the cus-toms of his faith — and with the edict ofthe Tsar that evicts the Jews from their vil-lage.

Will Sexter is performing as Tevye in thisproduction. Playing Tevye in “Fiddler on theRoof, Jr.” is part of a parallel educationaljourney for Will as an 8th grade student atthe Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School.Though Fiddler’s overwhelming appeal isthat it translates to every culture worldwide,

Will can relate to this particular storylinebecause his Jewish forebears came fromRussia and Eastern Europe and undoubt-edly led a life similar to his theatrical fam-ily. Will’s previous credits with Bravo Pro-ductions have been as Smee in “Peter PanJr.,” Mr. Mayor in “Seussical Jr.,” and PrinceEric/King Triton in “Disney’s The LittleMermaid, Jr.”

As in Fiddler’s theme of family relation-ships, Issembert has had a theatrical rela-

tionship with Sexter’s family since beforeWill was born. Since 1997, Issembert hasworked with Will’s three aunts GabriellaBender-Laskow, Diana Bender-Bier, SaraBender-Bier and Will’s grandfather, Dr.Charles J. (Kevie) Bier on over a dozen pro-ductions. Diana is now a member of theEmory Dance Company and continues todance and choreograph at the college level.Issembert was the producer at the MusicalTheater Center (MTC) in Rockville for 15

years and during that time, Gabriella, Dianaand Sara were cast in such student produc-tions as “Seussical,” “Annie,” “Children ofEden,” “High School Musical,” “Footloose,”“Fiddler on the Roof,” “Charlotte’s Web,”“Anything Goes” and “Peter Pan.” Kevie Bierwill be backstage again, serving as stagemanager for his grandson in Bravo’s upcom-ing Fiddler . He says, “Although some of thedemands are a lot for a senior citizen likeme, the underlining theme of the show istradition — and I am there for Will andLaurie — and for Bravo Productions.”

One of the most unforgettable shows —due to a variety of mishaps for bothIssembert and Will’s grandfather Kevie Bier— was the Rockville Musical TheaterCenter’s “Peter Pan.” This show had manyhumorous and scary moments — and it cre-ated not-to-be-forgotten memories for all.Bier, who practices internal medicine atWashington Preventive Medicine and Lon-gevity came on board as stage manager for“Peter Pan” because of the use of Broadway’sflying specialists, Foy, to lift Peter, Wendyand Michael up into the audience sky. Bieralso served as production doctor and wascalled upon to tend several serious injurieson that production, but ironically, none in-volved in the flying. Peter Pan (ValerieIssembert and now Bravo’s artistic director),threw a theatrical “bomb” offstage whichBier caught on the chin. He ended up inthe emergency room where he waspromptly treated and returned for the sec-ond performance of the day. Peter Pan her-self met with an ankle injury while duelingon Captain Hook’s boat and Bier gave her aquick off-stage shot to ease the pain andflew her back onstage. At Bravo Produc-tions, “the show must go on” and “up” in“Peter Pan.”

Welcoming in theNew YearIce skaters on the C&OCanal practice ice hockey,slide around, skate, andbrave the cold while catch-ing up in the new year.

Photo by Deborah Stevens/The Almanac

TicketsTickets for “Fiddler on the Roof Jr.” at the

Randolph Road Theater are $21 availablethrough showtix4u.com or $25 at the door.

Upcoming auditions for Bravo’s next produc-tion, “Disney’s Beauty And The Beast Jr.,” are onJan. 27. Details are posted on its website –www.bravoproductions.org.

Bravo To Present ‘Fiddler On The Roof, Jr.’At the RandolphRoad Theater.

Dr. Kevie Bierwith grand-

son, WillSexter, who

stars as Tevyein Bravo

Productions’“Fiddler on

the Roof Jr.”

Will Sexter as Tevye in Bravo Productions’ “Fiddler on the Roof Jr.,” Jan.13-14, at the Randolph Road Theater.


Opinion POTOMACALMANAC

www.PotomacAlmanac.com

Newspaper of PotomacA Connection Newspaper

An independent, locally owned weeklynewspaper delivered

to homes and businesses.

1606 King StreetAlexandria, Virginia 22314

Free digital edition delivered toyour email box. Go to

connectionnewspapers.com/subscribe

PUBLISHERMary Kimm

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EDITORIALPHONE: 703-778-9415

E-MAIL:[email protected]

EDITORSteven Mauren, 703-778-9415

[email protected]

ASSISTANT EDITORMike Salmon

[email protected]

CONTRIBUTING WRITERSSusan Belford, Carole Dell,

Cissy Finley Grant, Carole Funger,Colleen Healy, Kenny Lourie,Peggy McEwan, Ken Moore

ContributingPhotographers

Harvey Levine, Deborah Stevens

Art/Design:Laurence Foong, John Heinly,

Ali KhalighProduction Manager

Geovani Flores

ADVERTISINGFor advertising information

[email protected]

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVESDisplay Advertising:

Kenny Lourie [email protected]

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Potomac Almanac is publishedby Local Media Connection LLC

Five Time First PlaceAward-WinnerPublic Service

MDDC Press Association

Four TimeNewspaper of the Year

An Award-winning Newspaperin Writing, Photography, Editing,

Graphics and Design

By Ginny Barnes

WMCCA President

The Potomac Subregion is fortunateto have one of our borders be aNational Park along a great river.The same river supplies drinking

water to over 4 million people in the Washing-ton metropolitan area. The WSSC water filtra-tion plant on River Road collects water enter-ing the river from the Watts Branch stream.Because Watts Branch collects and carries ex-cessive stormwater runoff, a midriver intakeis being proposed that will severely impact theNational Historic Park (NHP) and the river it-self.

WMCCA has opposed the new intake in fa-vor of cleaning up the Watts Branch. Stabiliz-ing flowing water is crucial to maintenance ofthe towpath and canal as well.

Recently, a contract wasawarded to repair and stabilizea variety of historic structuresalong the Montgomery County

section of the canal in order to preserve thetowpath and canal for current and future visi-tors. It includes Swains Lock (MP 16.9 Breach),Great Falls Tavern (Level #20 and Lock #19),Olmsted Island (Lock #18 and Lock #17),Carderock (Culvert #15), Lock #10 (Rock RunCulvert), and Level #7. During construction,visitors will be directed to follow local detoursaround the work areas. Beginning this winter,the work will be completed in the Spring of2019. Portions of the repairs will be conductedintermittently to minimize the number of de-tours.

How will this affect local users of the NHP?You may have noticed removal of hazardous,dead or diseased trees is underway through-out the park and that the canal is dewatered

in places we are not used to seeing. The C&OCanal NHP is a treasure we as a communityneed to help preserve and protect. Keeping upwith changes, needs, and impacts to the parkhelps our community be a vital part of one ofthe most diverse and frequently visited parksin the National Park system.

ZONING VIOLATIONS(Illegal Uses/Activities & OccupancyLimits)

By Barbara Hoover

At our December General meeting welearned zoning compliance in MontgomeryCounty is “complaint driven,” so it takes vigi-lant neighbors to bring concerns to the atten-tion of authorities. These include improperuses/activities in residential, business, andother zones and violations of building restric-tions such as setbacks, lot coverage, and heightlimits. The Department of Permitting Services(DPS) will investigate alleged zoning violationsinvolving such topics as home occupations,commercial vehicles on residential properties,illegal signs, and Special Exceptions.

If you are concerned about possible zoningviolations, there are two ways to file a com-plaint:

❖ By telephone - Call 311 in MontgomeryCounty; Outside of Montgomery County, call240-777-0311. Your complaint may requiremultiple departments to investigate and MC311 is equipped to coordinate the investiga-tion.

❖ On line at the DPS website: https://permittingservices.montgomerycountymd.gov/DPS/Home.aspx. Go to the bottom of the pageand click on “Submit an Online Complaint”.

UPDATE ON 10-YEARCOMPREHENSIVE WATER SUPPLYAND SEWERAGE SYSTEMS PLAN

By Ken Bawer

The full County Council is expected to voteon a proposed updated Water and Sewer Plan(https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/w a t e r / s u p p l y / c o u n t y - w a t e r -plan.html#2017draft) as soon as January,2018. The Water and Sewer Plan guides wastetreatment and drinking water service for ru-

ral, suburban, and urban areas of Montgom-ery County. At stake: our ability to support theAgricultural Reserve and its adjoining low-den-sity areas which protect our drinking water.

Representatives from WMCCA, ConservationMontgomery, and Montgomery CountrysideAlliance have been meeting with County Coun-cil staff and councilmembers to build supportfor changing the draft Water & Sewer Plan tolimit sewer line extensions into low density andrural areas of the county — this includes theAgriculture Reserve and WMCCA neighbor-hoods. Unfortunately, sewer line extensionswill become easier to approve with languagein the draft plan. This would threaten drink-ing water for 4.3 million Washington, D.C. arearesidents. Once sewer service is available, wa-ter quality and the environment inevitablydegrade due to rezoning, higher density de-velopment, increased impervious surfaces, andincreased stormwater runoff resulting in in-creased sediment and contaminants in streams.

We are also engaged in a vigorous effort toeducate about the enormous downsides of thesewer lines themselves. Not only does theirastronomically expensive construction oftenentail destruction of habitats in our environ-mentally sensitive stream valley parks, WSSCsewer lines have spilled about 2 million gal-lons of raw sewage in 2015 and another 2 mil-lion gallons in 2016. And the situation dramati-cally deteriorated this past year: more than 5million gallons of raw sewage were spilled in2017. (https://www.wsscwater.com/customer-service/emergency-sewerwater-problems/sanitary-sewer-overflow-reports.html)

While WMCCA, as an organization, is work-ing hard to stop unwarranted sewer extensions,individuals can also help. Please send a shortnote to the County Council [email protected] a message such as the following andplease copy WMCCA at [email protected]:

“Do not allow the County’s Water and SewerPlan to sprawl sewer lines into our long pro-tected low density and rural areas. I am out-raged that WSSC spilled more than 5 milliongallons of raw sewage into streams in 2017and more that 4 thousand gallons in the last 3years into Muddy Branch and Watts Branchwhere my friends, neighbors, and childrenwalk and play.”

Next MeetingAt the next West Montgomery County

Citizens Association meeting, Kevin Brandt,superintendent of the C&O Canal NationalHistorical Park, will discuss changes at thepark. Bring questions and concerns to themeeting. The public is always welcome toattend.

If schools are closed because of inclementweather, the meeting will be cancelled.

Help Protect C&O Canal National Park

WMCCA

See Year in Review, Page 7

By Roger Berliner

Council Outgoing President

Montgomery County Council President Roger Berliner,who concluded his one-year term as council president lastmonth, reflected on the work the council did in 2017. Hisstatement was edited for space.

As my year as serving as president of thisbody comes to a close, allow me toshare a few reflections on our year to-

gether as a council and on the past year gen-erally.

2017 has certainly been an unprecedentedyear. There was a seismic change at the na-tional level and this shift created an atmo-sphere of uncertainty and — for many — fear.This was true across the country and it wascertainly true here. The actions of the TrumpAdministration consistently threatened, andcontinue to threaten, our community’s corevalues.

From day one of the New Year, we foundourselves at the forefront of the resistance. Thewords of the Pledge of Allegiance suddenlytook on greater meaning: “one nation, underGod, indivisible.” With that command in mind,we stood with our immigrant community andfor public safety. And in the face of an uptick

in hate crimes that many, including our policechief, laid at the doorstep of the President, wecame together to reaffirm our county’s com-mitment to the safety of all MontgomeryCounty residents, denounced racism, anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, and providedfunding to protect our houses of worship.

Local government, while always relevant tothe day-to-day life of our residents, becameeven more significant. To the fabric of our so-ciety, to individuals fearing for their safety, tofamilies facing a myriad of challenges, to thewell-being of our environment, and to model-ing and practicing civility in our actions and

In light ofnational changes.

Local Government Stepped Up


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Entertainment

Submit entertainment announcementsat www.connectionnewspapers.com/Cal-endar/. The deadline is noon on Friday.

ONGOINGSilver and Gold Exhibit. Various

times through Jan. 6 at The WaverlyStreet Gallery, 4600 East WestHighway, Bethesda. 301-951-9441.

CAMPS, CLASSES & WORKSHOPSArt Explorers Open Studio. Every

Saturday, 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m. at TheCandy Corner Studio, 7300MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Artactivities for parents and children.Activities change weekly and there isno pre-registration; $10 per child.Visit www.glenechopark.org.

Ceramic Classes. Various dates andtimes. VisArts, 155 Gibbs St,Rockville. An opportunity to try thenew ceramic workshops. Visitwww.visartsatrockville.org/ceramics.

SATURDAY/JAN. 6Art Retreat. 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. in the

Buchanan Room, VisArts, 155 GibbsSt., Rockville. $50. Visitwww.visartsatrockville.org/.

An Evening of Russian Jewels. 8p.m. at the WestmorelandCongregational UCC Church, 1Westmoreland Circle, Bethesda.Pianist Alexander Paley,internationally acclaimed concertsoloist and soloist with orchestrasthroughout the US, Europe, Chinaand South America, returns for hisonly annual concert in the DC area.Visit www.westmorelanducc.org/.

SUNDAY/JAN. 7Meet the Artist. 3-5 p.m. at the River

Road Unitarian UniversalistCongregation, 6301 River Road,Bethesda. Judith L. Smith will bedisplaying her “Journeys!” exhibit.Call 202-234- 4887 or [email protected].

FRIDAY/JAN. 12Meet the Artist. 6-9 p.m. at the

Waverly Street Gallery, 4600 EastWest Highway, Bethesda. “Going fora Walk,” paintings by Leni Berliner.Call 301-951-9441.

Meet the Artists. 6-9 p.m. at GalleryB, 7700 Wisconsin Ave., Suite E,Bethesda. “Points of View,” willfeature paintings by Sara Becker,Nancy Butler, Helen Gallagher,Caroline Orrick, Ann Rossilli,

Elizabeth (Penny) Smith andMaureen Ward. Exhibit will be ondisplay Jan. 10-Feb. 3. Call 301-215-7990.

MONDAY/JAN. 15Special Tribute Ceremony. at 3:30

p.m. at the Music Center atStrathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane,North Bethesda. This specialpresentation will celebrate Dr. MartinLuther King Jr’s life throughreadings, music, dance performancesand a choral performance by theCarlton Reese Memorial Unity Choir.Visit www.strathmore.org.

FRIDAY/JAN. 19Fine Arts Quartet and pianist. 8

p.m. at WestmorelandCongregational UCC Church, 1Westmoreland Circle, Bethesda. FineArts Quartet and pianist AlonGoldstein will be featured as part ofthe Washington ConservatoryConcert Series. Email [email protected] or call301-320-2770.

SUNDAY/JAN. 21Design Seminar. 1-3 p.m. at Gallery

B, 7700 Wisconsin Ave., Suite E,Bethesda. Subject: “How to IntegrateArtwork into your Home.” Call 301-215-7990.

Hot Jazz Jam Session. 3-6 p.m. atThe Potomac River Jazz Club atNormandie Farm Restaurant, 10710Falls Road, Potomac. Bring andinstrument and sit in with theConservatory Classic Jazz Band orjust come on by to listen and enjoy.$10 admission, free for jammers andstudents. Info at 301-762-3323 orPRJC.org.

Art ExhibitNancy Butler’s art will be on display at Gallery B, 7700Wisconsin Ave., Suite E, Bethesda. “Points of View,” willfeature paintings by Sara Becker, Nancy Butler, HelenGallagher, Caroline Orrick, Ann Rossilli, Elizabeth (Penny)Smith and Maureen Ward. Exhibit will be on display Jan.10-Feb. 3. Call 301-215-7990 for more.

Art by N

an

cy Butler


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By Marilyn Campbell

Frigid temperatures and the chill of winter canusher in dangerous health conditions, particu-larly for those most vulnerable: the elderly and

young children. Two of the most prevalent cold-weather ills are hypothermia and frostbite. For thosewho have to be outside when it is dangerously cold,knowing the warning signs and prevention tech-niques for these conditions are the keys to keepingthem at bay, say health care providers.

“Even a typical winter in this area can be danger-ous,” said Amy Talbot, Ph.D, of George Mason Uni-versity. “But extreme conditions can make it evenworse for those most vulnerable.”

Hypothermia, which occurs when one’s body coretemperature drops, can develop more quickly thanmany people realize, says Talbot. “Obviously feelingvery cold is a warning sign, but also shivering andexperiencing signs that the cold is affecting yourbrain, so feeling disoriented, stumbling or losingbalance easily, unusual speech pattern or changes inpersonality.”

Frostbite is when the skin and underlying tissueare damaged by cold temperatures, says Beth Lowe,RN, a private-duty nurse inArlington. “During the begin-ning stages of frostbite, youmight see your skin turn redand you’ll feel numb or tin-gling or stinging,” she said.“The main thing to rememberis not to try to re-warm yourown skin, because you can domore damage. It’s best to seekemergency medical treat-ment.”

Dressing in layers and wear-ing shoes that are appropriatefor extreme cold are keys topreventing hypothermia andfrostbite, advises CarolynJohnson, Ph.D. of Montgom-ery College. “When it’s ex-tremely cold you want to wear

Ready for the ColdPreventing, recognizingand treating hypothermiaand frostbite.

clothing that traps your body temperature and pro-tects you from cold air and wind,” she said. “A basicformula to keep in mind: a base layer that should bemade from a fabric that wicks away moisture. Thesecond layer should trap heat so it should be madeof a polyester fleece over something similar. The toplayer should be waterproof and windproof.”

Lowe recommends avoiding cotton clothing dur-ing the extreme cold because if it gets wet, it canmake you cold. “Many of these preventative mea-sure are things that most people already know, butmay not think about until it’s too late,” she said.

Another preventative component, says Talbot, isnutrition. Both food and liquids can help keep one’sbody warm. “Skipping a meal can make you moresusceptible to hypothermia and frostbite,” she said.“It’s important to eat carbs and protein for energywhen you’re going to be outside for a prolonged pe-riod of time, like if you’re hiking or playing sports.”

If you believe that you are beginning to developfrostbite or hypothermia,Lowe says in order to avoidadvancing the seriousness ofthe condition, move yourbody by doing jumping jacksor some other vigorous move-ment and get out of the frigidelements. “There’s no setamount of time that it takesfor [hypothermia or frost-bite] to develop, so it’s impor-tant to keep an eye on thosewho are most vulnerable. Butonce you notice the warningsigns you can try to stop theconditions before they ad-vance, by drinking plenty offluids, eating carbs and get-ting inside to a warmer tem-perature.”

Wellbeing

Record coldtemperaturescan lead tofrostbite andhypothermia.

Local Shelters

For those who are not able to seek shel-ter, social service providers in Virginia andMaryland are ramping up efforts to provideshelter to those who need to get out of thecold. For more information:

Fairfax County703-691-2131 or fairfaxcounty.gov

City of Alexandria703-548-7500 or alexandriava.gov

Montgomery County240-777-3289 ormontgomerycountymd.gov

Arlington County703-228-1300 or 703-228-1010publicassistance.arlingtoncounty.gov

Photo by

Marilyn Campbell


Kenny Lourie is an Advertising Representative forThe Potomac Almanac & The Connection Newspapers.

By KENNETH B. LOURIE

Since I don’t have to write for a deadlinethis week (12/27/17 papers have already goneto press), maybe I’ll write for pleasure. Notthat writing this column is ever not my pleas-ure, but it is time-sensitive, at least on aweekly basis. And though that “weekliness”can occasionally induce some pressure, mostlyI can manage it. Besides, it contributes towhat you read and my feelings about havingwritten. As such, my columns are rarely aboutthe past, well, only in so far as it gives the pre-sent and future concerns some context.Generally speaking however, I am writingabout extremely-current events. It’s notexactly real time, but the timing is exception-ally real.

This sort of holiday break occurs at TheConnection every year as we condense ourpublication schedule and finish/publish threeweeks of newspapers in nine business days.And even though this “condensation” is noth-ing new for any of us long-sitting employees, itdoes present its own unique set of challenges,yet it is a schedule which has stood the test oftime. Time which eventually leads to pleasure.

And time off is part of what drives this mid-to-late December rush. Because in the news-paper business, especially considering the24/7 news cycle, with which we are all famil-iar, even for a weekly publication – for botheditorial and sales, you are mostly on. So get-ting a chance to publish and then pause, givesus all an opportunity to refresh and recharge.And since I’m honeymooning, so to speak,(see column dated 12/13/17 titled “As GoodAs It Gets”), I have nothing particularly cancer-centric to write about and/or worry about,well, top of mind anyway. There’s plenty ofcancer stuff bottom of mind though. The diffi-culty is keeping it there.

The problem/reality is, even when you’remeandering around in your head, in order towrite, there is a cancer section which inevita-bly fights its way to the top. It’s not as if I havea multiple personality disorder: Kenny-without-cancer and Kenny-with-cancer (mywebsite, by the way:www.KennyWithCancer.com), but sometimesI think I must. Thinking one could totally com-partmentalize the facts and fissures that a “te-rminal” lung cancer diagnosis/”13 month totwo year” prognosis imposes is an admirable,much talked about goal but in truth, it’sprobably unrealistic and likely leads to thatdual personality. But who’s kidding whom? It’shard/IMPOSSIBLE to know.

So for the moment, I can pretend/presumethat Kenny-without-cancer is front and center,top of mind and in control, free to wanderaimlessly in print and ponder his fate as ifnothing much – other than one’s own mortal-ity, is effecting his judgment. Ah, one candream. And oddly enough, I have beendreaming more, and sleeping longer anddeeper, too. I’m sure it’s simply a coincidencethat having five weeks off from any cancer-related activities/obligations, and likewise hav-ing nine days off from any newspaper-relatedactivities has contributed to this semi peaceand quiet. A quiet which will soon end whenwe leave for two days in Pennsylvania tospend Christmas with my wife Dina’s cousins,which, along with the cheesesteak I plan oneating, provides it’s own sort of comfort andjoy.

Still, any port in the cancer storm providesa welcome respite from the – with apologiesto Shakespeare – slings and arrows of outra-geous misfortune (Shakespeare’s quote was“fortune”), however real or imagined. To besure, cancer is no joke, neither is being diag-nosed with a “terminal” form of it: non-smallcell lung cancer, stage IV, at age 54 and a half.But making fun of it and the circumstancessurrounding it, has been my stock and tradesince I first went public – in print, in June2009. The means I’ve justified to prevent mypremature end. So far, so good.

I’m Very SeldomWrong, But ThisTime I’m Write

From Page 4

Opinion

our public discourse. We marched, wespoke out on social media, and we legis-lated from the dais seeking to heal the divi-sions intentionally created.

Yet in the midst of this great national tur-moil, we continued to do the work that was— and is — ours alone to do. And we did itfor the most part with professionalism, col-laboration, and good spirit. As a nine-mem-ber body, we will never agree on everything,but generally, I thought that we exempli-fied the civility that is one of the bedrockprinciples of our county’s political culture.

We balanced our budget without raisingtaxes and our fiscal responsibility was onceagain recognized by the bond rating agen-cies who unanimously reaffirmed our AAAbond rating. We did this while fully fund-ing the Board of Education’s $2.52 billionoperating budget that will continue classsize reductions and fund initiatives to helpclose the achievement gap. We also addedmoney to the operating budget to expandpre-k, one of the most important steps wecan take to set children on a path to educa-tional success.

We supported those in greatest need bymaintaining and strengthening our strongsafety net, supporting our county’snonprofits that do such important work,raising the minimum wage in order to helplow wage workers support their families,and as a result of a great deal of hard workby the Food Council, we received a strate-gic plan to end hunger and began its imple-mentation. And we addressed the threat toour public safety posed by the scourge ofMS-13.

AT THE SAME TIME, we recognized thatthe best way to meet the needs of our com-munity going forward is to grow our taxbase rather than rely on increasing tax rates.We supported our Economic DevelopmentCorporation as it continued to grow and

mature and implemented a number of mea-sures to help small businesses thrive here.We created and funded a Business SolutionsGroup to build upon the good work of theSmall Business Navigator; we created amicroloan program for aspiring entrepre-neurs; and increased funding for the smallbusiness Impact Assistance Fund to helpbusinesses negatively impacted by countyconstruction projects. Small business is bigbusiness in Montgomery County and theirsuccess is critical to our economic future.

THIS YEAR marked the long-anticipatedgroundbreaking of the Purple Line, a much-needed transit and community revitaliza-tion project decades in the making, andplans for key BRT corridors moved forward.At the same time, the council also increasedfunding for road resurfacing that affirms ourcommitment to a core local governmentresponsibility. And we look forward topartnering with the state going forward toaddress the unacceptable congestion ourresidents endure every day on the beltwayand 270 all the way to the American Le-gion Bridge.

At the same time as our President contin-ues to do everything he can to weaken en-vironmental protections at the nationallevel, our council took several strong posi-tions and actions to help fight climatechange. It is, as a resolution before us eventoday states, a global emergency. We urgedthe state to ban fracking, something ourcouncil banned years before in Montgom-ery County; we urged our investmentboards to divest from investments in fossilfuels that undermine our commitment tothis work; supported increased use of re-newable energy; and adopted a new greenbuilding code that will increase energy ef-ficiency and sustainability. Our commitmentto the environment and a sustainable fu-ture has made our county a national leaderin this realm.

Year in Review

Marcus Goodman Raskin, 83, an aide toPresident John F. Kennedy who left govern-ment to co-found and co-direct the Insti-tute for Policy Studies in 1963 and becamea leading liberal intellectual and activist,died on Sunday, Dec. 24, 2017 in Washing-ton, D.C. He was a professor at GeorgeWashington University’s School of PublicPolicy and Administration, the author ofmore than 20 books, and a member of theeditorial board of the Nation.

Raskin leaves his beloved wife, LynnRandels Raskin, a passionate environmen-tal activist to whom he has been lovinglymarried since 1985 and who was by his sideat his passing, and four children, ErikaRaskin Littlewood (and her husband, Dr.Keith Littlewood), Jamie Raskin (and hiswife, Sarah Bloom Raskin), Noah Raskin(and his wife, Heather Maurer) and EdenRaskin Jenkins (and her husband, BrandonJenkins). Raskin is survived by nine grand-children, Emily Littlewood, Zachary

Obituary

Marcus Goodman RaskinL i t t l e w o o d ,M a g g i eL i t t l e w o o d ,Hannah Raskin,Tommy Raskin,Tabitha Raskin,Mariah Raskin,Boman Raskinand DaisyRaskin — and a

tenth on the way. He also is survived by agreat-grandson, Gray Lopatin.

There will be a Memorial Service on Mon-day, Feb. 12 at the Sixth and I Historic Syna-gogue in Washington, D.C. More details willbe available in January from the office ofMaryland U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin and fromIPS.

The family thanks the thousands offriends and mourners who have been intouch and asks that, in lieu of flowers, con-tributions be sent to the Institute for PolicyStudies.

annabel and david levy, david heffernan, quinn mulligan

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