More than 800 local nonprofits and government agencies are recruiting volunteers at MontgomeryServes.org. You'll find our new "red box" makes searching for ways to serve even easier. Find opportunities by keyword, city or zip code, see the calendar of date-specific opportunities, or go to the entire list of organizations in our database. There is also a link to Advanced Search where you can see more options to search such as opportunities for evening or weekend volunteering, as well as opportunities that are good for families.

Get involved this summer and find ways you can make a difference in your community!  

http://www.montgomeryserves.org/

Gilchrist Center

Celebrating Diversity

As Wheaton gets ready for its annual "Taste of Wheaton", the Gilchrist Center is launching its first International Cookbook! We have created a contest, and have invited all our clients, volunteers, and the greater community, to share their favorite recipes with us. With all the recipes received we are going to publish an electronic cookbook, that is going to be available through our website  www.montgomerycountymd.gov/gilchrist. 

The main purpose of this cookbook is to showcase our diversity and the culture of our residents. And to make it even more fun, all participants will get a chance to win a special prize.  During the Taste of Wheaton we will hold a raffle with all the entries from our cookbook, and will be giving away copies of some of the recipes received. Want to get a taste of our fabulous diversity? Stop by our table, on June 9th, during the "Taste of Wheaton", or check out our website, and download our e-Cookbook! It will be available on July 1st. Enjoy!

Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Reception

County Executive Ike Leggett presented a proclamation in honor of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month at a reception hosted by the Asian Pacific American Advisory Group on May 28th. 

Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett will participate in a special celebration for Caribbean American Heritage Month on Thursday, June 13 at 6:00p.m. to 8:00pm at the Silver Spring Civic Building, located at One Veterans Place in downtown Silver Spring. Mr. Leggett will present a proclamation designating June as Caribbean American Heritage Month, followed by a reception featuring music and food. This year's theme is "Accessing Montgomery County Services & Resources: Health, Education & Housing".

To date, we have more than 800 nonprofit organizations registered to participate in Do More 24.  By June 6, we expect that we will have more than 1,000 participating organizations.  Do More 24 has very ambitious fundraising and social action goals.  Our objective is to get everyone across the Washington, DC region to unite for one day of giving to support the most pressing needs in our community.  In particular, we are hoping to attract and engage a new generation of givers.  We are asking folks to "Give where you live". More: http://domore24.org/

The 16th annual Heritage Days Weekend, sponsored by Heritage Montgomery, will be held on Saturday, June 29 and Sunday, June 30 from noon to 4pm.  Family-friendly activities will be offered at over 30 sites around Montgomery County, all open for FREE!  A few of the weekend's highlights to consider include:

• Visit the beautiful C&O Canal National Historical Park and stop at Lockhouse 10 and Lockhouse 25 (Edward's Ferry) to learn about the history of the Canal.  Hear Civil War-era music performed at Lockhouse 25 throughout the afternoon.
• Celebrate local history at Clarksburg Heritage Day with tours, exhibits, music, and children's activities in the town's Historic District.

The County's new "Be Active Montgomery!" outreach campaign -- aimed at promoting overall health and wellness through participation in healthy recreation and leisure activities - will kick off with a variety of special activities for all ages on Saturday, June 8 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the South Germantown Recreation Park, 18041 Central Park Circle, Boyds.

Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett and County Council Vice president Craig Rice will join Montgomery Recreation, Montgomery Parks and Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) representatives at the kick off.

            The free event will include the United Way Fun, Fly and Fit obstacle course; healthy food vendors; fitness walks; and interactive demonstrations such as Quick Start tennis, Zumba and golf clinics.  Attendees who complete the fitness challenge will receive free admission to the Germantown Indoor Swim Center and the miniature golf course.

This community event highlights the deliciously diverse restaurants in downtown Wheaton. The 18th annual event will take place on Sunday, June 9, from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm in the Wheaton Triangle at the corner of Grandview Avenue and Reedie Drive in downtown Wheaton (one block north of the Wheaton Metro station). So get your forks out!

Annual Summer Concert Series

Kicks Off on July 11 in Downtown Silver Spring

            Montgomery County Recreation announces this year's line-up for the long-running Silver Spring Summer Concert Series, presented by Discovery Communications.  The free concerts will be held on Thursday evenings, July 11 - August 1, from 7 to 9 p.m., on Veterans Plaza at the Silver Spring Civic Building, Ellsworth Dr. and Fenton St.  Performances are canceled due to weather only if it is raining at 7 p.m.

            Concerts feature a raffle with prizes for children and adults.  Attendees can bring a picnic or enjoy food from one of the many nearby restaurants.

            Following is a schedule of concerts:

            July 11 - Bruce Ewan, The Red Harmonica King (Blues)

            July 18 - David Bach (World Jazz)

            July 25 - Elliott Levine (R&B, Funk)

            August 1 - Second Wind (Rock & Roll)

            For more information, call 240-777-6821.

The Public Technology Institute (PTI) has honored Montgomery County with a 2012-2013 Technology Solutions award. The openMontgomery program was recognized in the Web, e-Government and Mobile Technology category. Two additional County programs were recognized for Significant Achievement: a Cloud-Based BikeShare Research Tool, and a Mobile IT Service Desk. Montgomery was the only county in the State of Maryland - and the only jurisdiction in the Washington DC metropolitan area - to be recognized with an award by PTI in this year's technology solutions awards competition. 

Gay pride or LGBT pride refers to a world-wide movement and philosophy asserting that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals should be proud of their sexual orientation and gender identity. Gay pride advocates work for equal "rights and benefits" for LGBT people. The movement has three main premises: that people should be proud of their sexual orientation and gender identity, that sexual diversity is a gift, and that sexual orientation and gender identity are inherent and cannot be intentionally altered.

Please go here for all the info you need:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gay_pride

The Montgomery Corps program will provide one year of meaningful employment serving others. This will be an experience of a lifetime that will help build skills and knowledge that will serve as a valuable stepping stone toward future jobs in the public, private, or nonprofit sectors. 

More:  http://www.idealist.org/view/job/wjTpjFp7sDw4/. 

Residents are urged to sign up for Alert Montgomery to receive up-to-date information on hurricane watches and warnings and other storms. Alert Montgomery sign up information is also available online at the County's Call Center or by calling 311 or 240-777-0311, Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Alerts can be sent to one or more electronic devices, including cell phones, text pagers, wireless PDAs, along with home and work emails.

Storm Preparedness Tips

•     Keep flashlights, battery-powered radios and extra batteries on hand, along with a basic first aid kit, emergency food and water, and a non-electric can opener.
•     Listen to the radio or television for weather reports.
•     Bring in outdoor objects such as lawn furniture, toys and garden tools; or anchor objects that cannot be brought inside but could be tossed by high winds.
•     Clean out gutters.
•     Turn the refrigerator and freezer to the coldest setting in anticipation of a power outage. Open the door only when necessary and close quickly. Frozen food in a half-full freezer will remain safe for up to 24 hours, and in a full freezer, up to 48 hours.
•     Refrain from putting out trash cans the night before the regular pickup. 

Downtown Wheaton will host the 18th annual Taste of Wheaton on Sunday, June 9.  The area's signature event will take place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in downtown Wheaton at Grandview Avenue and Reedie Drive.  Local participating restaurants include The Limerick Pub, Hollywood East Café, Moby Dick Sushi, Los Cobanos and Green Plate Catering, offering food samples at prices ranging from $1 to $5 per "taste."

          For the first time, the Taste of Wheaton will feature cooking demonstrations from area chefs.  Scott Squire of The Limerick Pub, Janet Yu of Hollywood East Café and Kit Wood of Green Plate Catering will cook up dishes and offer samples.  Special guest Joe Yonan, a two-time James Beard Award-winning food and travel editor of The Washington Post and the author of the upcoming "Eat Your Vegetables:  Fresh Recipes for the Single Cook" will also participate in the demo.  Bonnie Beswick, deputy editor of The Washington Post Food section and author of "The Washington Post Cookbook:  Readers' Recipe Favorites," will serve as the cooking demo moderator.  Both will have their books available for purchase.

This year's "Food and Wine Tasting" tent will highlight select wines from Elk Run Vineyards, Mt. Airy; Old Westminster Winery, Westminster; and Linganore Wine Cellars, Mt. Airy.  Local culinary artisans including Three Little Pigs Charcuterie & Salumi, Shepherds Manor Creamery and Caked-Up will also participate.

           Grandview Avenue and parking lot 13 in the Wheaton Triangle will be closed during the event.   Free parking will be available at the Wheaton Metro garage on Veirs Mill Road and at the County garage at Amherst Avenue and Reedie Drive.  The Wheaton Metro Station is one-half block south of the event.

          For more information, call Sidney Cooper at 240-777-8106, or visit www.wheatonmd.org.  

Future Link is a nonprofit organization committed to providing academic and career supports to young adults, ages 17-25.  We help them establish realistic goals and show them the pathway towards those goals.  We teach a Self Advocacy Skills and Career Development Seminar, administer a vocational interest survey, arrange informational interviews with career professionals, schedule career immersion days at local corporations, facilitate scholarship support, solicit internships for our students, and...

We support mentors like you who help our students persist on their pathways to successful careers through support, advice, and sharing the wisdom you have gained throughout your own career. 

For more information, contact Future Link's Director of Student Support

Kristin Trible at ktrible@futurelinkmd.org or 301.346.3463  

Odessa Shannon

Odessa Shannon has fought for human rights her entire life.  As National Program Director at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, she worked with state and local human rights agencies across the nation.  Ms. Shannon served as Special Assistant to County Executive Charles Gilchrist, Deputy Director of Family Resources, and Director of the Office of Human Rights. She founded the county's Human Rights Hall of Fame in 2001.  Odessa Shannon became Montgomery County's first African American woman elected official when she was elected to the Board of Education in 1982.  She was one of the original directors of the National Political Congress of Black Women. Ms. Shannon has served on many community boards, including NAACP and Montgomery Housing Partnership. 

Ms. Shannon has been recognized with a number of prestigious awards, including the Human Rights Hall of Fame, the Hornbook Award for Outstanding Service to Education, the MLK Humanitarian Award, and the Women of Vision Award of the Commission for Women.  Click here for video. 

Teresa Rios Wright

Teresa Rios Wright is the quintessential community connector. From a key position within the school system, she has been the heart and soul of a network of community organizations and government agencies dedicated to making Montgomery County one of the nation's most immigrant-friendly communities.  Ms. Wright taught in Mexico and Illinois before she joined Montgomery County Public Schools in 1979. Since 1995, as a Parent Resource Teacher in MCPS's Division of ESOL and Bilingual Programs, Ms. Wright has worked to ensure that immigrant families and their children in the Gaithersburg and Watkins Mill clusters have an opportunity to achieve success. Ms. Wright has been honored with countless awards, including the Board of Education's Distinguished Service to Public Education, Leadership Montgomery's Outstanding Leader Award, the Montgomery County Collaboration Council's Time Well Spent for Montgomery's Children Award, and the League of Women Voters' Lavinia Engle Award. Click here for video.

May is Asian American Heritage Month!

County Executive Ike Leggett will present a proclamation in honor of Asian American Heritage Month to Asian American community leaders on May 28, 2013. Contact Diane Vu, Asian and Middle Eastern Liaison at diane.vu@montgomerycountymd.gov for details.

 "The history of the AAPI community shows us how with hope and resolve, we can overcome the problems we face. We can reaffirm our legacy as a Nation where all things are possible for all people. So this month, as we recognize Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders who are fulfilling that promise in every corner of our country, let us recommit to giving our children and grandchildren the same opportunity in the years ahead." -President Barack Obama

For full text of the Presidential Proclamation in honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, visit www.whitehouse.gov.

The Takoma/Langley Crossroads Development Authority is once again hosting a pitstop for bike commuters at Kirklynn Drive and New Hampshire Avenue near the bike rack.    We will serve refreshments and give out t-shirts to all registered riders who stop.  Two other Takoma Park pitstops will host bikers on May 17: one at the Gazebo in Old Takoma, and another on Sligo Creek Trail at New Hampshire Ave.   Registration is free and opens in March. Participants receive a free T-shirt, refreshments, and are entered into a raffle for a free bicycle! To learn more, see:

Join the Montgomery County Department of Economic Development and several hundred of your colleagues from throughout the County's diverse business community as we honor individuals and local organizations who have made significant contributions to the vitality of our local economy. On Friday May 24 awards will be presented to eight companies in the following categories:

Learn more and register to attend 

County Executive Isiah Leggett is committed to representation on all of the County's boards, committees, and commissions that is reflective of, and responsive to, our County's residents. Public participation contributes to the work of County government and provides an important service to the community when a variety of issues, concerns, and viewpoints are presented. Currently, there is a valuable opportunity to serve on the following:

Casey Trees works to restore, enhance and protect the tree canopy of the nation's capital. Their Summer Crew is a high school jobs program where students serve as caretakers for D.C.'s trees in the summer. General responsibilities include watering, weeding and mulching trees. Crew members work 35 hours per week at $9 per hour and travel to worksites by truck and bicycle teams under adult supervision. The 2013 Summer Crew session will run from June 27 to August 9. Applications must be submitted by Saturday May 18, 2013

More.

Submit Nominations for the 30th Annual
Governor's Service Awards

The Governor's Service Awards will recognize Maryland residents for their significant contributions to the life and health of the State and its people during 2012 (or longer for a lifetime achievement award). Selected recipients will receive the awards during an event in the fall.

Nominations are now being accepted! To submit a nomination, and to find out more, visit   GOSV.maryland.gov.

Nominations are due on June 3, 2013 by 5:00 pm.  

Mother's Day Tea and Cupcakes

Celebrate Mother's Day with your favorite lady at MCHS! From 1 to 3 p.m., there will be a variety of crafts* (including cupcake decorating!), tea, and tours of the Beall-Dawson House and the Stonestreet Museum of 19th Century Medicine. Reservations are required in order to participate in the tea and crafts, as space is limited. Price of admission is $20 ($15 for MCHS members) - mothers receive free admission**.

Please RSVP by May 8 to Vanessa Herndon at vherndon@montgomeryhistory.org or 301-340-2825.

*Ages 5+
**Only one free admission per group

Carnegie Library at Mt. Vernon Square

L'Enfant Map Room

801 K Street NW

Washington, DC 

Near Chinatown (Red) & Mt. Vernon Sq. (Yellow & Green) Metro Stops 

Tickets for a donation of $150 can be purchased online or by contacting Elise Webb elise@ayuda.com, 202-387-4848.