By Paul Showalter

The 99th Spring Fair was a sunny experience of joy, sugar, and fun. 

Setup for the Fair began on Friday with several people (David Grahn and Peter Zirnite) bringing all the games, tables and supplies out of the basement before the torrential rainstorm hit. Darcy Rosenbaum (the Spring Fair chair) and son Benton and husband John worked late into the night prepping the center for a day’s worth of fun.

Saturday morning started early for a bunch of us, to make sure the day went off without a hitch. And it was a spectacular day. The sun was shining; the park was full of kids playing games and bouncing in the moon bounce; cookies and other baked goods were selling quickly at the Woman’s Club bake sale; the kitchen was pushing out Danville Street hot dogs, Troy’s pizza, fresh pasta, and lots lemonade; lions and tigers were painted on faces; popcorn, popsicles, and cotton candy were sold; and prizes were exchanged for prize tickets. We played numerous games of “Cake-A-Bout” in the sun, with kids winning baked goods (I served as the event’s emcee).

The Rosenbaum’s homemade games were a big hit again this year. The “Bull Ringer” – “Hole in One” – “Frog Flinger” and the reimagined “Duck Pond” fascinated the kids once again.

This event, like every event at Lyon Park, could not happen without a large group of volunteers. The Danville Street Crew (Mark Trachtman, Charlie Wall, and Sharon Showalter) staffed the kitchen and fed lots of hungry kids. Many other neighbors stepped in to help and it was appreciated. 

We had more than twelve high school and college volunteers with us on Friday and Saturday. We even had a crew of Long Branch Elementary school students (Alex and Helen Peters, Benton Rosenbaum, Alexys & Alejandro Linder, and Niam and Dhilan Bahl) running games and painting faces (Their parents even pitched in to help). All volunteers worked tirelessly throughout the day to make sure everyone had fun—and we appreciate their efforts. 

Special thanks to Tyler Hawkins, Theo Roiniotis, and Tabitha Ricketts for sticking around and helping with the cleanup. They packed away every game, tent, and table. They even carried everything into the basement. An extra special thanks goes to my wife Sharon, for not only helping with setup on Friday night, but working all day in the kitchen, and cleaning until the last box was packed away in the “little blue pickup truck.”

Next year, we celebrate our 100th Spring Fair. For our signature event to be a success, we need more people to be involved in producing the Fair. Please step up and offer to help. We need you. Reach out to LyonParkEvents@gmail.com if you are interested.

If you have a rising sophomore, junior or senior who wants to volunteer in our community, have them reach out to LyonParkEvents@gmail.com. We have many volunteer opportunities during the summer and fall. 

By Paul Showalter, Santa’s Head Elf

Santa, his sleigh, and his trusty elves (Paul Showalter, Benton Rosenbaum, Elizabeth Schwab, Ellen Malloy), visited nine parks in North Arlington on Tuesday December 24. Santa had the opportunity to visit with many children during his tour (he especially enjoyed visiting with children at Lyon Park). Santa’s elves handed out hundreds of candy canes and took lots of photos of kids (and family’s) visiting with Santa.

After finishing his world tour on Christmas Day, Santa made time to swing back through Arlington to hand deliver a few “Santa” gifts to children.

Santa will be visiting Lyon Park again very soon, so make sure you stay on the “Nice List.” 

For the LPCC Board of Governors (BOG), this is the end of one era and the start of something new.  For well over a decade, we’ve been fortunate to have Jeannette Wick’s leadership of the BOG, Cindy Stroup’s services as rental agent, and Bill Short’s work as janitorial engineer, preserving the beauty of our Community Center and ensuring its availability to our community.  After all three had decided it was time for them to pursue other passions, the BOG elected David Newman as the new Chair and Ann Reimers Pitts as Vice Chair of the BOG.  Their highest priority from the start has been finding the best available talent to fill the rental agent and cleaning services positions.  Their goals for the search included finding people who would bring experience, expertise, and outstanding customer service skills.  The BOG believes that finding a cleaning service provider that offers affordable prices and outstanding cleaning services is key to reducing the stress of event planning and execution for LPCC renters.  This is central to the BOG’s mission of finding the best new cleaning service provider for the LPCC.

To form a committee dedicated to this effort, the BOG leadership solicited community participation for a committee reviewing applicants for these positions.  Community members Bess Zelle, Laureen Daly, and Sara Alepin stepped up, joining four members of the BOG on the committee – Shelya White, Elizabeth Wray, Ann Reimers Pitts, and David Newman. 

At the end of a rigorous journey, the committee drafted its recommendations for the next rental agent and cleaning services provider.  The ultimate decision must be made by the BOG, which is still deliberating.  The current rental agent will help train the new agent during a transition period in December, and the new rental agent will take full responsibility for the role starting January 1, 2025, when the new cleaning service also will begin its work.  

The new LPCC team also is committed to placing the highest priority on building relationships with the
community, while keeping the LPCC well maintained, beautiful, and available for future generations.  We encourage your questions and comments.  You may email David and Ann directly at their new email address: LPCCGovernors@gmail.com.

Watch this space for future reports from the BOG on the final selections for rental agent and cleaner and on the many projects they are planning for the future. 

The highlight of the November LPCA meeting was a presentation by David Povlitz, Fire Chief of the Arlington County Fire Department. Chief David Povlitz oversees a department of 375 uniformed and 25 support staff covering nine fire stations. He reviewed the excellent coverage enjoyed by county residents, ensuring quick response to fire and safety emergencies. He also discussed the strong relationships Arlington shares with neighboring jurisdiction, mutually helping each other as needs arise. He is extremely proud that construction of Arlington’s newest station, Station 8 located on Langston Blvd., came in on-time and under its budget of $32 million. Arlington has state-of-the-art equipment and strives to use it efficiently by focusing on preventative measures. Thank you, Chief Povlitz.

The latter portion of the meeting was devoted to a discussion on Tyndale School, currently housed at 715 N Barton Street. The school has been operating since September with 40 students, and the LPCA membership voted to support the school’s use permit for the same student population through 2025. However, this issue will be revisited at the December meeting, when we will discuss approving the expansion of the school to 80 students (see recap from Anne Bodine on page 2).

The meeting closed out with a cake celebrating
100 years since the first Lyon Park Community Center meeting in 1924. As the Fire Chief had already departed, the candles were kept to a minimum. While consuming cake, good conversation was shared by all. 

At its first meeting of the 2024–2025 year, the Board of Governors (BoG), which manages the operation of the Lyon Park Community House and the park, elected new leadership. The ten BoG members (five representing the LPCA and five from the Woman’s Club) meet monthly to approve repairs and maintenance, review budgets, and manage the calendar of community events, such as the Halloween Bonfire and Chili Cook-off.

After 15 years, Jeannette Wick is stepping down as chairman of the BoG. (See write-up in the September 2024 newsletter.) Jeannette served during a particularly intense period, as the community embarked on a million-dollar renovation. She helped negotiate a creative loan, followed by relentless fundraising that allowed the mortgage to be retired early—just months before the Community Center closed down during Covid. 

The new chairman is David Newman, who first moved to Lyon Park in 1995. He and his wife Sara raised three daughters (Sharon, 24, Emily, 22, and Carolyn, 19), all attending APS. David recently retired after 34 years “lawyering” for the federal government, giving him more time to care for Jethro, the family’s Bagel (Basset Hound/Beagle). He keeps busy as a substitute teacher in APS, as well as volunteering with the Red Cross for deployment across the US in mass disaster care situations. 

Ann Reimers is also new to BoG leadership, elected vice-chairman. She moved to Lyon Park in 2017, living right on the park for five years. She moved a block from the park with her husband, Bruce Pitts, two years ago. Both are engineers, she a mechanical engineer, he a civil engineer. No doubt Ann’s background teaching mechanical/aerospace classes at UVa will come in handy in a century-old building.  

David and Ann are already hard at work, strategizing how to approach Lyon Park concerns for the next 100 years. Their initial goals are:

– Instill a greater sense of ownership of the community center among our Lyon Park neighbors, supported by more transparency and responsiveness on the part of the BoG, and publishing more volunteer opportunities related to community activities at the Community Center

– Improve customer satisfaction with renting the community center

– Continue to act as fiscally responsible stewards of our valuable community-owned property 

– Continue to host more neighborhood activities that build community and a sense of inclusion 

Rounding out the Board of Governors roster: 

LPCA Reps

Woman’s Club Reps

Be sure to thank them all for their service to our very special community!