Neighbors, join Halcyon Neighborhood AssociationÕs Facebook group!
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Halcyon Neighborhood Association E-News January 2017
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Items appearing in the HNA E-News are deemed to be of general interest to neighbors but do not necessarily reflect the views of Halcyon Neighborhood Association (HNA), its Steering Committee, or the Editor. The EditorÕs introductory comments express her personal viewpoint.
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Contents
1. Host
Still Needed for Post-Holiday Progressive Potluck, Sunday, 1/29/17
2. HNAÕs Annual Fundraising
Appeal!
3. Whole Foods Market
News: Holiday Schedule & Next Drop-in Meeting Fri., 2/3/17, 8:15-9:00 a.m.
4. Crime
Watch News
5. Disaster Preparedness News
EditorÕs Introductory Note:
Happy New Year! Please check out item 1 and let us know if you can help out by hosting Main courses at our progressive potluck on Sunday, January 29. We also hope youÕll pitch in to our annual fundraising appeal (see item 2). There will be other opportunities to join with neighbors in community as 2017 unfolds. Keep an eye out!
—Nancy Carleton, HNA Co-Chair and E-News Editor, halcyon92@gmail.com
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1. Host
Still Needed for Post-Holiday Progressive Potluck, Sunday, 1/29/17
EditorÕs note: A hosting household for Main courses is still needed for our popular post-holiday progressive potluck. (And please be sure to mark your calendars for this fun annual event, which will take place on Sunday, January 29, 2017!)
Our January Post-Holiday ÒProgressive PotluckÓ is one of our favorite events; thereÕs always a big turnout, and itÕs a great way to meet our neighbors and enjoy the community we so value in the Halcyon neighborhood. We start at 5:45 and ÒprogressÓ to three or four houses for the courses, ending at 8:45; some neighbors attend all of the courses, some just one or two.
If you havenÕt hosted before or if youÕve enjoyed hosting in the past, please consider being a host for one of the courses this January. ItÕs a bit of a mad rush, which provides a good way to meet new neighbors and reconnect with ones you already know. We have hosts for Appetizer and Dessert courses and a possible host for Salads, but we still need a hosting household for Main Courses.
Hosts usually provide paper plates, cups, napkins, etc. They are not expected to provide food for the whole course; itÕs a potluck, with last names determining which dish neighbors bring. (Please note that our city councilmembers and members of our Police Department are always on our invitation list and may show up at your home if youÕre one of the hosts.)
Please respond to halcyon92@gmail.com if youÕre interested in hosting the Main Course on January 29 or if you want more info. Thank you, and we look forward to seeing neighbors in 2017!
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2. HNAÕs Annual Fundraising Appeal
EditorÕs note: Your contributions are crucial to realizing HNAÕs 2017 priorities!
Please give generously. So far weÕve raised a little over $300 toward our 2017
goal of $1,500, so weÕre still just getting started!
HNA doesnÕt have a formal
membership structure or require annual dues because we wanted to keep participation
as broad as possible. At the same time, we incur various expenses during the
course of a year, including:
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Flyer production
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Supplies for disaster preparedness drills and other special events in park
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Supplies for work parties
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In-fill and replacement plants for Halcyon Commons and nearby landscaped
features
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Graffiti removal peripherals (the City provides most of the materials)
And in 2017 we have some special,
one-time projects that require financial support:
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Small projects in Halcyon Commons in the aftermath of the parkÕs 20th
anniversary in 2016 (including refurbishing the mural on the backside of our
bulletin board, plus adding some paver stones at common crossways into the
park).
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Installation of a plaque to accompany the halcyon bird sculpture we installed
for the parkÕs 20th anniversary.
We also use the funds we raise to
enable us to supplement and enhance the supplies in our neighborhood disaster
preparedness supply shed (these items are intended to benefit the entire
neighborhood in the event of disaster and include first aid, search &
rescue, and communications tools plus items for command center setup in Halcyon
Commons park; they are not intended
to substitute for individual household preparedness, but they will help us save
lives and minimize disruption after a large earthquake).
WeÕre asking neighbors who
appreciate all that HNA does to improve and beautify our neighborhood, to keep
us safer (on both crime-watch and disaster-prep levels), and to facilitate
communication and help create a more convivial place to live to give
generously this year, and do your part.
(1) Make a financial contribution
directly to HNA (not tax-deductible,
but allows us maximum flexibility) by writing a check made out to ÒHNAÓ and mailing or dropping it off in an
envelope to HNA Treasurer Susan Hunter, 3044 Halcyon Court, Berkeley,
CA 94705.
(2) Give to HNA online! Go to https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=QSESRB6FZAX3C
to make your contribution. (Again, contributions to
HNA arenÕt tax-deductible but allow us maximum flexibility.) PayPal keeps a fee
of approximately 3 percent.
(3) Make a tax-deductible financial
contribution by writing a check made out to ÒBerkeley Partners for ParksÓ (BPFP, our nonprofit fiscal sponsor,
which charges a 7 percent overhead fee), earmarked
Halcyon, and mailing or dropping it off in an envelope to HNA
Treasurer Susan Hunter, 3044 Halcyon Court, Berkeley, CA 94705.
No contribution is too small (or
too large!). Our neighborhood associationÕs health and vitality depend on your
ongoing support! And in the event of a big earthquake, some of our lives may
very well depend upon it. Please pitch in!
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3. Whole
Foods Market News: Holiday Schedule & Next Drop-in Meeting Fri., 2/3/17, 8:15-9:00
a.m.
EditorÕs note: News from Whole Foods Market, courtesy of Store Team Leader Melody Mestemacher.
Next Drop-in Progress Meeting, Friday, Feb. 3, 8:15-9:00 a.m.
Whole Foods Market (check in at Customer Service)
These meetings are held at the Community Table
at the front of the store, and the purpose is to share our plans for ongoing
changes in the store, street litter control, and progress on any of the ongoing
issues we discuss [with HNA reps and nearby neighbors]. The Store Team Leader
is usually present, and anyone is welcome to join us. Of course there will be
complimentary coffee or tea. Our goal is to follow up immediately on any issues
that we hear about, and to hear how the store can be a better neighbor.
As always, if there are ever any urgent issues, please call the store at 510-649-1333 and ask for the shift manager on duty. We have new shift leaders being trained, so please send an email to the group below so we can follow up appropriately. Always feel free to swing by too, if youÕd like to have a word with us.
Melody.Mestemacher@wholefoods.com
Carlisle.Crumley@wholefoods.com
Rebecca.Breckler@wholefoods.com
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4. Crime Watch News
EditorÕs note: Our HNA Facebook group at http://www.facebook.com/#!/group.php?gid=292160762499 often shares breaking crime reports in between E-News editions (your home and email addresses plus phone are required to participate so we can be sure the group is kept safe for neighbors, and we require this information prior to accepting your request to join). Remember, we rely on neighbors to fill in the details of crimes in our neighborhood, so, in addition to filing a police report (which can now be done online through the City of Berkeley website for some kinds of crimes: http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/onlinereport/), please email halcyon92@gmail.com to pass the word on to your neighbors, or share it on our Facebook page, so we can all stay aware and vigilant. We donÕt want to engage in profiling, so if you include a description, please make it as detailed as possible and avoid generalities.
A Fulton Street neighbor shared on our Facebook page:
ÒFYI. Warning. My car was broken in to earlier this week on Fulton. DonÕt leave anything visible in cars on the street. And, watch out. I donÕt think that the thieves got anything of value to them. But, itÕll cost me a few hundred to fix. Ugh. [Later addition:] I did report. And, [spoke with] the officer [who] patrols this neighborhood in the evening. He said he would come by more often.Ó
EditorÕs note: News was also received of car break-ins on Halcyon Court and Prince Street. Personalized SpotCrime reports for our neighborhood also indicate a number of burglaries as well as car break-ins over the past couple of months.
Nixle Report from the BPD on a robbery at the Starbucks at Telegraph and Ashby:
ÒOn 11/21/16 at 4:19 p.m., the Berkeley Police Department received multiple calls from witnesses who saw a female patron struggling over her laptop with a suspect inside the Starbucks on the 3000 block of Telegraph Avenue. The two struggled until the suspect was able to pull the laptop from the victimÕs hands. A community member blocked the door so that the suspect couldnÕt leave. When the suspect brandished him with a pistol he moved out of the way. Despite the threat of a gun, the witness who blocked the door followed the suspect outside and watched as he fled eastbound on Ashby Avenue in a waiting vehicle. The reporting parties called BPD and provided a description of the suspect, the getaway car, and the direction it was last seen driving. Responding officers saw the car and stopped it near the intersection of Ashby Avenue and Domingo Street. The passenger was positively identified as the person responsible for the robbery. The stolen laptop and a pellet gun were recovered from inside the vehicle. Both the driver and passenger were booked into the City of Berkeley Jail on a robbery charge and possession of stolen property. Arrested were 22-year-old Delamontae Stewart and 19-year-old Zachery Haliburton, both of Oakland. The Berkeley Police Department is grateful for the actions of those willing citizens who got involved and helped us to close this case.Ó
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5. Disaster Preparedness News
EditorÕs note: Received from the City of BerkeleyÕs Office of
Emergency Services.
Our next CERT Volunteer meeting is January 11, at 7 p.m. at 997 Cedar, Topic: Social Media in Disaster and CERT Social Media is changing the way information is shared and used in all types of disasters. On January 11th, at 997 Cedar Street, from 7 to 9 p.m., Jennifer Lazo, from the Office of Emergency Services, will discuss the future of BerkeleyÕs social media plans during times of crisis and how CERT members can be involved in those plans. She also will explain how social media channels can be used to collect and share information useful in disaster response. All levels of expertise are welcome — from social media newbies to online techsperts!
Upcoming CERT classes: See our current schedule of classes on the web: http://www.cityofberkeley.info/certclassschedule/
Happy New Year!
Khin Chin, CERT Program Manager
Berkeley Fire Department
Office of Emergency Services
510.981.5506
EditorÕs note: Useful information at the link below on preparing for winter storms.
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