Blendon Woods Civic Association

THE BLENDON BULLETIN - OCT 2009 Vol. 8 Issue 5

THE BLENDON BULLETIN - OCTOBER 2009 Vol. 8, Issue 5

(for the PDF version, go to the home page, the column on the right OUR INFO and click on or click here:  NEWSLETTER)

 

ANNUAL COMMUNITY PUMPKIN DROP - OCTOBER 25th

   Sunday, October 25: Our Annual Pumpkin Drop will be held from 1:00—3:00 pm at the Ginty’s on Bear Tooth Court.  This event is fun for families and kids in the community. Free pumpkin to members of BWCA, refreshments, and  more. A visit from Columbus Fire is usually scheduled for the event, which is also Fire Prevention Month.

A donation of non-perishable canned and boxed foods are collected for the Food Pantries.  

 

 

 

ANNUAL M EMBERSHIP DRIVE 

   Tr acy Stocker is our Mem bership Drive Chairperson. Our membership drive helps to pay for our Community Garage Sale, Pumpkin Drop, snow removal, our newsletter and telephone directory. Please support our membership drive by paying your dues of $20.00. We will have a table set up at the Pumpkin Drop for Membership Forms and dues collection.

 

HOLIDAY MAIL FOR HEROES

For the third year in a row, the American Red Cross and Pitney Bowes are working together to collect, sort and distribute holiday cards to service members, veterans and their families. The Red Cross and Pitney Bowes will begin accepting cards on November 2, 2009. So get your pens and postage stamps ready and watch for the address in the coming weeks on RedCross.org. All cards must be postmarked no later than Monday, December 7, 2009. Cards postmarked after December 7 will be returned to the sender. This deadline ensures enough time to sort and distribute cards before the holidays.

 

SWACO OFFERS ADDITIONAL FALL YARD WASTE SITES

SWACO will offer City of Columbus residents six (6) additional free Saturday yard waste collections beginning Saturday October 31^st. The collections will continue on Saturdays through December 5^th from 9am until 3pm. The new sites are in addition to nine (9) other locations available now for Columbus and Franklin County residents. See page 2 for more information on where to take your yard waste.

 

MEETINGS 

NCC Meetings: The NCC meetings are held at Friendship Village.  Held on the FIRST TUESDAY of each month, at 7:00 P.M.  The next general meeting is November 3rd at 5800 Forest Hills Blvd. 

NCC Development Committee-Wednesday, October 28th @ Minerva Park Community Center at 7 pm.

NEW  LOOK TO WEBSITE  FROM NEIGHBORHOOD LINK

 

Our Website: Our website has BWCA By-Laws and Deed Restrictions, links to other important websites. Check out the new look to the website from Neighborhood Link!

Membership Drive:  Come to the Pumpkin Drop and fill out a Membership Form and pay your dues, if you haven’t already. Dues are ONLY $20.00.

Welcoming Committee: Area Reps should contact Janet Fletcher at . 893-5565, when new residents move in.

 

SWACO AND CITY TO PROVIDE FALL YARD WASTE DROP OFF LOCATIONS

   “We are working together with SWACO to make it more convenient for Columbus residents to drop off their leaves and other yard waste during the peak of the fall yard waste season,” said Mayor Michael B. Coleman. “Until we are able to restore regular yard waste collection next spring, it is important to provide these additional locations that will be more accessible to our neighborhoods.”

 

“SWACO saw a need on the part of Columbus residents,” says SWACO Executive Director Ron Mills.  “We are glad to be working with Columbus to assist residents with their fall cleanup.  This will help us keep leaves and branches out of the waste stream and ensure that they will be properly composted.” 

 

The collections are for residents only.  Only yard waste will be accepted at the collections. Leaves and grass clippings must be delivered to the collections in biodegradable bags.  Twigs and branches should be cut to no longer than 4 feet in length and bundled together with string or twine. 

 

SWACO suggests residents lessen their environmental footprint by home composting their yard waste.  Also, grass clippings are a good nutrient for lawns.  Residents are urged to “just mow it” and not bag their grass clippings.   More information on yard waste collections and composting is available by clicking on the “yard waste” button at www.swaco.org

 

4665 Westerville Rd. (Ohio Mulch); (614) 891-3242

6055-C Westerville Road, Westerville (Kurtz Bros.);  (614) 882-0200

SWACO, in partnership with the City of Columbus, is happy to provide Columbus (only) residents six (6) additional free drop off locations for yard waste this fall. These additional collection sites will be operational:

 

Starting October 31st and ending December 5th
Saturdays 9am until 3pm

• Columbus Dept. of Public Service 25th Avenue Material Yard; 1881 East 25th Avenue
• Columbus Dept of Public Service Transportation North Outpost; 500 Scherer’s Court
• City of Columbus Westgate Park; 455 South Westgate Avenue
• Columbus Dept. of Public Utilities Electricity offices;
  3568 Indianola Avenue
• Columbus Dept. of Public Utilities Fairwood Avenue Facility; 1250 Fairwood Avenue
• Columbus Fleet Management Facility; 4211 Groves Road

 

NEED HELP KEEPING THE UTILITIES ON?

 

Several utilities and agencies offer assistance with paying bills, avoiding service disconnection and other help:

 

• Ohio Office of Consumers' Counsel provides help with complaints about utilities and avoiding disconnection, 1-877-742-5622, www.pickocc.com/crc.
• American Electric Power will work with customers on electric-bill payment plans or credit arrangements, 1-800-277-2177, www.aepohio.com.
• Columbus/Franklin County Community Action Agency administers Emergency Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) which provides money to eligible households for heating and cooling bills, 614-252-2663.
• The Breathing Association offers utility assistance year-round. 1-866-861-6399, www.breathingassociation.org.
• Columbia Gas of Ohio will refer customers to the appropriate agency, 1-800-344-4077.
• Ohio Dept. of Development oversees HEAP statewide, 1-800-282-0880, www.development.ohio.gov.

   Americans invest over 75 % of their utility budget on heating, cooling, lighting, cooking and other appliances and electronics in the about the home.  For example heating the shower water for a typical family of four can cost as much as $35 per month at the time of this writing.  With energy costs (both natural gas and electric) on the rise, becoming more energy efficient can mean a money savings for your family.  By making a few changes, some households can reduce the energy and water usage and save 10 to 30 percent on their natural gas, electric and water bills a year.

How To Be More Energy Efficient

1. In the Winter, keep the draperies and shades on South-facing windows, which receive the most sunlight, open during the day to allow the sunlight to enter the home and closed at night to be used as a type of insulation and reduce the chill in the room.
2. Minimize the use of the fireplaces. Warm air escapes through the chimney. Make sure the fireplace damper is closed unless a fire is burning.  If the fireplace is never used, plug and seal the chimney flue.
3. Use kitchen ventilation fans (that vent to the exterior) wisely.  In just a short period of time the fans can pull out a house full of warm air.  That air is being replaced by outside air and now needs to be conditioned.
4. When baking, keep preheating time to a minimum. Use the smallest pan possible so that less energy is required to heat it.  Limit the number of times the oven door is opened as heat is lost with each opening.
5. Scrape food and bones from dishes into the trash, don't rinse.  Soaking and prewashing are generally recommended only in cases of burned-on of dried-on food.
6. Cover pots and pans with lids to retain heat and reduce cooking time.
7. Situate the kitchen so the refrigerator or freezer is away from direct sunlight or warm air (such as a range, dishwasher, heat ducts....etc) so the appliance does not use additional energy to remain cold.
8. Plug all holes in the walls including light switches, outlets, and windows to prevent air infiltration/exfiltration.
9. Unblock all heating registers, air supplies and return vents.   If the return vents are outside the room be sure the entry door is not in contact with the carpet preventing air flow when the door is closed.
10. Clean registers, baseboard heaters and radiators.

SEND A TOUCH OF HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS

 

   Send a touch of home to the real heroes of America and their families! Holiday Mail for Heroes is back again!

   For the third year in a row, the American Red Cross and Pitney Bowes are working together to collect, sort and distribute holiday cards to service members, veterans and their families.

   The Red Cross and Pitney Bowes will begin accepting cards on November 2, 2009. So get your pens and postage stamps ready and watch for the address in the coming weeks on RedCross.org.

   All cards must be postmarked no later than Monday, December 7, 2009. Cards postmarked after December 7 will be returned to the sender. This deadline ensures enough time to sort and distribute cards before the holidays.

   Every card received will be screened for hazardous materials by Pitney Bowes and then reviewed by Red Cross volunteers working around the country.

   If you would like to begin working on your cards now, here are some quick guidelines to ensure your cards makes to a hero as quickly as possible:

 

Do...

• Ensure that all cards are signed.
• Make cards more meaningful to a wide variety of recipients by using “Dear Service Member, Family or Veteran” rather than any more specific language.
• You are encouraged to send holiday-neutral cards rather than religious-themed cards. Note: Cards addressed to specific individuals cannot be delivered through this program.

 

Limit the number of cards to 15 from any one person or 50 from any one school class, business or group. If you are mailing a large quantity, please bundle the cards and place them in large mailing envelopes. Each card does not need its own envelope, as envelopes will be removed from all cards before distribution.

 

Do not...

• Send letters. Only cards are being accepted.
• Include email or home addresses on the cards, as the program is not meant to foster pen pal relationships.
• Include cards with excessive amounts of glitter. Because cards may be received by wounded service members and veterans in hospitals, large quantities of glitter could aggravate existing health problems.

• Include inserts of any kind, including photos, as these items will be removed during the reviewing process