Mary Cheh

Everyday hygiene products can make a world of difference to the health, wellness, and comfort of our neighbors in need —and they’re very easy products to buy in bulk and donate.

And Ward 3 Mutual Aid & the Feed the Family Pantry are great local organizations to support in this work!! 👇

Meet a Beekeeper @ Fessenden Park, April 9th!

At 10 am, Sherry Cohen, a local beekeeper, shares her knowledge of bees and their important role in our ecosystem. Explore the tools of beekeeping, including beehive components, a smoker, suits, and tools, and peek inside a small observation hive to see what a real beehive is like. Don't worry the bees will be safely locked inside. Suitable for all ages.

Save the date and follow the event, here: https://fb.me/e/2gL121hz5

Earlier this afternoon, an elderly driver crashed his SUV into the outdoor dining area of the Parthenon restaurant on the 5500 block of Connecticut Ave.

Two women have died as a result. Nine others were seriously injured, with eight people taken to nearby hospitals (three of whom remain in critical condition). Early accounts indicate that this was a circumstance of a driver who lost control of his vehicle, but we will learn more about the circumstances once MPD's major crash investigations team completes their investigation.

In the meantime, please keep the neighbors we have lost, those who are injured, their families, and the Chevy Chase community in your heart tonight.

More on this crash from WTOP News:

2 dead, 9 injured after car crashes into outdoor seating at NW DC restaurant | WTOP News Several people were injured after a vehicle crashed into an outdoor seating area at a Northwest D.C. restaurant Friday afternoon.

📣 Update: Optional School Masking & New Data Reporting📣

Today, Chancellor Ferebee announced that, starting next Wednesday, March 16th, mask wearing will be optional for all students, staff, and visitors at DC Public Schools. This decision follows the new guidance (available: here) released from DC Health that officially lifted the mask mandate, but left the masking policy decision up to the Chancellor/DCPS and individual charter schools. As there is no vaccine yet available for our youngest students, the weekly test-to-stay model for those in our Pre-K programs will continue. Families of older students are encouraged to regularly test in order to detect new cases or breakout cases early to reduce the risk of classroom spread.

Having our students get vaccinated now is especially important to emphasize in the absence of universal masking. With what we now know about the effects of long on children and teens and the risks of further spreading the virus to other, potentially vulnerable, members of their household, inoculation efforts against COVID-19 and staying on one's booster schedule will be critical to creating safer school environments. As a reminder, anyone in the District who is over the age of 5 and in need of the COVID-19 vaccine or a booster may get vaccinated at any local COVID Center (these sites also provide children's sized KN95 masks, adult KN95 masks, and rapid tests).

DC Health has also shifted from reporting daily case data to reporting weekly case data. Furthermore, the data that DC Health will be reporting is the weekly case rate (not the actual number of new cases. For example, the past week's weekly case rate is 55.5 cases per 100,000 residents, which puts the District in the low-risk category of severity and community spread. On our last Council-Executive pandemic response conference call, DC Health indicated that they are representing the data in this new way in an effort to help residents realistically evaluate their degree of risk and safety as part of the broader community of over 700,000 residents.

For the best visualization of this data, click on the 'Key Metrics' tab under Data on the District's coronavirus website.

Update with Links ➡️ http://www.icontact-archive.com/archive?c=653228&f=109&s=27705&m=930292&t=e9e88f3478ef96a84e6da9a6a941197473e9c0f17a04da6fc6e40bf22670a9a5

Our Spring Pop-up Market is fast approaching and we're excited to have local small business Schway Nostalgia Co. join us for the festivities. You'll have a unique opportunity to shop a variety of vintage toys, clothes, pins, comics, cards, collectibles, and more, March 25 - 27. Be sure to follow this event for updates: https://fb.me/e/4iZD6nV8w

In case you missed last week's update, it included:
-Clarification on data discrepancies reported on coronavirus.dc.gov
-An update on VPP passes
-News on heritage trees, Metro cards, & the renaming of the Melvin Hazen Park & Trail
-A legislative spotlight on the Healthy Hospitals Act
-A word on
-News on the No Senior Hungry Act
-Safety updates on the Days Inn
-An alert on bird flu by City Wildlife
-How to become a volunteer gardener with Van Ness Main Street

Full Update here ➡️ http://www.icontact-archive.com/archive?c=653228&f=109&s=27705&m=929923&t=e9e88f3478ef96a84e6da9a6a941197473e9c0f17a04da6fc6e40bf22670a9a5

I've participated in many years of 🍏, but this year's is particularly important due to the exacerbated rates of food insecurity among children due to the pandemic.

Join DC Hunger in combating hunger ➡️ http://dchunger.org

Applications are NOW OPEN for the 2nd round of 2022 Chevy Chase Main Street Small Business Grants! These grants of up to $3,000 can be used for technical assistance, exterior and storefront improvements, interior renovations, security improvements, and/or equipment.

Application can be found here ▶️ http://bit.ly/ccms-grant-2

Applications are due on April 8 by 5PM.

🗓️ Mark your calendars for an info session on Wednesday 3/16 at 3PM (stay tuned for login info)

The Council of the District of Columbia is 🇺🇦

To the brave & resilient people of :
We light the John A. Wilson Building (Washington DC’s city hall & statehouse) in blue & gold in solidarity with you & your fight for democracy

To my neighbors: