The fourth of July may be Independence Day to you but at Cedar Village we call it our Harkavy holiday!  This year's festivities began with our annual car show and, despite the heat,many residents came out and enjoyed looking at the new and vintage vehicles on display.  Folks went for rides, including in a rumble seat (!), and really enjoyed the chance to admire new cars and share memories prompted by some of the antique models.  At the same time,we had a great project going indoors in the Wilbur and Mary Jean Cohen Religious and Cultural Center.  Residents from throughout Cedar Village were engaged in making birthday cards for our troops  (click here to see them in action).  Operation Thank You Troops, with whom we have worked in the past to send packages  and cookies, had requested birthday cards and they will be receiving some spectacular ones  from our Cedar Village family.  It was a great project and a great way for folks to celebrate the 4th of July.

In the afternoon, our Harkavy holiday continued, as has become a tradition, with a performance by the Buffalo Ridge Jazz Band. Their lively blend of patriotic and old time music gets folks to clap, sing along and we even see a little dancing sometimes!  While the concert was being enjoyed, we also served Graeter's ice cream to all!  It is a beloved treat and there were more than a few bowls that were filled a few times!  All in all, it was a great day and a great time for all.

Our Chesed Corps (those residents who serve as volunteers and do ongoing community projects) were feeling proud of one of their accomplishments this week.  Last fall, they helped coordinate a letter writing campaign in support of the Creating Hope Act, a piece of legislation that has now been passed. The Creating Hope Act is the key project of an organization called Kids v Cancer, founded by Nancy Goodman whose son Jacob died of brain cancer.  Nancy's only staff person at Kids v Cancer is Adrienne Westcott, whose mother, Marcia, is one of our Cedar Village management staff.  The Creating Hope Act provides a method to incent pharmaceutical firms to develop new drugs to treat pediatric cancers.  We learned about it through Adrienne and even met with she and Nancy when we were in Washington for a conference.  When the opportunity to support this legislation was shared with our residents, they embraced it immediately and enthusiastically.  While the credit for this bill's passage certainly goes to Nancy and to Adrienne, we like to feel that Cedar Village residents and staff also played a tiny role in this huge achievement.   

Here is a link to a column from this week's Washington Post that will give you more background and insights:  http://tinyurl.com/kidsvcancer.

Don't forget to join us on Sunday, July 8 at 2 p.m. for a Friendship Concert as part of the  World Choir games.  We will host four choirs, two U.S. groups as well as the choirs from New Zealand and China!  There are no tickets required, admission is free.  Click here for "day of" information!  The concert will be outdoors and we expect a huge crowd so bring your blanket or lawn chair, a sunhat, umbrella (just  in case) and your friends and family!  We are the only Mason site for the games and are very excited to have Cedar Village as a host location!

All the best,  

carol@cedarvillage.org