The August 2010 Polish Hill Voice is off the press and ready for your enjoyment. The newsletter is available for download. Following is the President’s message.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
President’s message
As I write this, summer is in full swing on Polish Hill. Gardens are growing, and vegetables, flowers, and herbs are being traded around the neighborhood. Get out and enjoy a good long walk around Polish Hill. Try a walk down a street that you haven’t explored yet. Our community offers hidden little treasures. Through a space in a fence you may glimpse a garden with picture-perfect flowers. Perhaps it’s time for your own yard to become a treasure, a place to relax from the labors of the day. This is a wonderful time to get some dirt under your fingernails and break a sweat.
Just like we did last winter, take a moment to help out your neighbors. While you’re pulling weeds or cleaning up, go a few feet farther. These extra bits of effort really add up. If you fight the weeds a little each day, they will not spread as far next year. I have to remind myself that community improvements are a process, and the process takes time.
We all get a better place to live because of the people doing good works in our community. But we do need to take the time to enjoy what we have worked so hard to build. We have fantastic views from our hillsides. Pick out a good spot and take an occasional evening to view a few sunsets this season. We could all use more sunsets.
As we walk and bike through the neighborhood, there is more of a chance to encounter friends and neighbors. Our four-legged friends take their owners for long walks these days and are the facilitators of many a conversation.
With the opening of The Urban Gypsy, Lili Coffee Shop. Mind Cure Records and Copacetic Comics, we now have new spaces where our residents have an opportunity to gather. These new businesses give residents more destinations and entertainment options right here in Polish Hill, and provide a few of our residents the chance to live and work within their own community. I hope to see this trend continue. To all of our Polish Hill businesses owners, new and existing, I would like to extend a “thank you” for being here.
Late summer is also a time to fix up our homes and apartments. I encourage residents and property owners to take advantage of the materials that are available at Construction Junction in Point Breeze. You can save money and find quality materials to repair, renovate or redecorate your space. If you have leftover building supplies or architectural salvage, like old fireplaces, radiators, stair posts, and the like, please donate them to Construction Junction. Your leftovers could be exactly what someone else needs to finish their project. Along with saving money and keeping materials out of a landfill, there is always a thrill to finding something just a bit different for your home.
So take some late summer advice from a Polish Hill resident: add a few enjoyable items to that project list. Take a walk, go out and do some gardening, spend some time with friends, and enjoy our community.
Terry Doloughty
The photo of Terry was taken by Julie Gonzalez, whose black and white portraits of Polish Hill residents are on display at Lili Coffee Shop. Julie hopes to eventually photograph every resident of Polish Hill!
If you’d like to be included in this project, get in touch with us at phcapgh@gmail.com and we’ll let you know when the next photo session is planned.
