The holidays are coming and this is always a busy time and a chance to reflect on the past year. While we had hoped to bid COVID a farewell this year, we aren’t quite there yet. Hopefully by this time next year we will be able to welcome a more normal time. While the holidays are a fun time they can also be stressful. Take a deep breath and be kind to yourself and your neighbors.
Halloween Decorating Contest Results
The Halloween decorations were great this year with some very impressive displays. It was really tough picking the winners this year.
The second place winners were Boyd Clark & Kasey Withers, 2 Spring Valley.
The first place winners were Michael Villard & Ailun Qian 505 Palomar Ln.
Thanks to everyone who participated and we look forward to seeing the holiday decorations in December.
Wow, National Night Out this year was great, we had a big turnout, food and fun. The Berkner Jazz Band and Drum Line both dazzled the crowd.
The Dog Haus food truck and the MTA shaved ice truck were on hand to feed lots of hungry folks. We had a raffle with lots of great prizes many of which were donated by local businesses. Thanks to Bruce Miller Nursary, Applebee’s, Chick-fil-A, Jersey Mike’s, Starbucks and individuals who donated prizes.
A big thanks to everyone who came and a special thanks to the NCPNA volunteers who made it all happen. Vicki Bean did yeoman duty and was key to a great event. More pictures here.
Halloween Decorating Contest & Trick or Treating
As in past years, we will have a Halloween Themed Yard of the Month and neighborhood trick or treating this year. To maximize the time for decorating, the YOTM judging will occur the weekend of October 23 and 24th so be sure to decorate early if you want to participate. First place will receive a $50 gift card and second place, $25 gift card.
Then join us on Sunday evening 10/31 for neighborhood trick or treating. Last year many residents bagged candy individually beforehand and set-up tables in their yard, which worked great. Feel free to leave your front lights on if you want to participate and we hope to see you out in your yard or walking the streets Sunday evening. It’s a great time for sugar overload and costumes galore!
North College Park Neighborhood Facebook Group
NCPNA has an active private Facebook group. One of the administrators will quickly approve your admission to the group. Click here to go to the group page: facebook.com/groups/ncpna
Book Club Update
After some delays and reschedules, we decided to meet over email to discuss “Loving Frank” by Nancy Horan. While many enjoyed it and found Frank Loyd Wright’s life fascinating, the book wasn’t a favorite for most of our club readers. This is both the upside and downside of book club as you find books you might not read otherwise, but you might not always be glad you did. Book club is going on hiatus until the Spring since the organizer is rounding the corner to having a newborn around the house, but we look forward to 2022 and meeting more often!
Step-tember Results
Our Steptember competition just wrapped up and man did our community step it up!! Together we walked almost 3 MILLION steps as a neighborhood which translates to just 111 miles short of enough steps to cross the US from North to South.
Individually our 1st place winner getting a $50 Amazon gift card is Rosa Simpkins with 479,140 steps, our 2nd place winner getting a $25 Amazon gift card is returning champ Melissa Magee with 409,912, and the winner an Amazfit band by a random wheel pick of names for those that turned in their weekly steps on time is Samuel Terrell.
Great job to everyone that participated! See you again next year!!
Small Business Spotlight
If you have a small business you want to highlight, please email April Anderson at adawn0105@gmail.com for consideration. We want to support you!
Crime Watch Report
We did not have a regular meeting with our Crime Patrol officer this month due to NNO, however we continue to have good results in North College Park. The usual vehicle break-ins continue to be an issue.
Don’t forget, take your keys, lock and remove or keep valuables out of site. Good outdoor lighting helps, particularly in the back.
Be alert for porch pirates and remove your items promptly. Enlist a neighbor to pick up things if you won’t be home. Sign up for the alerting service from the vendors which will alert you by text that a package has arrived.
Stay alert, if you see activity in the neighborhood which does not feel right, call 911. We can always use additional crime patrol volunteers, on foot or in your vehicle. Contact our crime patrol coordinator for more information. Doug Freeman at d1004free@aol.com
Welcome Baskets
Welcome New Neighbors Taira & Jeremy Brice, 1115 Morningstar
The Welcome Basket Committee is made up of Linda Brown 214-693-1612, Ioana Bates 469-396-5480 and Vicki Bean 214-949-7805 V.Bean@att.net. We put baskets with home items and food together for our new neighbors and invite them to join the North College Neighborhood Association. Please contact us if you know of a new neighbor on your block! The baskets are sponsored by the NCPNA.
Booster Signs
If you want a “booster” sign, please let Vicki Bean V.Bean@att.net know and we will get you a sign.
Newsletter
This newsletter is the collaboration of several of your neighbors. It would not be possible without their support, thank you!
If you did not receive this newsletter in your email, you can easily sign up to receive your very own copy. We send out a newsletter every month with an occasional special email. We promise to not share your email address and we won’t drown you in emails. Go to http://ncpna.org/enews and fill out the form. Be sure and look for the confirmation email and confirm the subscription.
About North College Park Neighborhood Association
NCPNA is a neighborhood association and, unlike a homeowner’s association, we do not have any authority over anyone’s property. We sponsor activities and projects to help make our neighborhood a more pleasant and safe place to live. Volunteers are always needed, and we look forward to hearing about new ways to achieve our collective goals.
Contact Robert Grinsfelder at rmgrins@aol.com if you can help with any of these activities.
Join your neighbors and families for a fun evening as we celebrate National Night Out on Tuesday evening, October 5th beginning at 6:30 pm! We will gather at Glenville Park on the Windsong side. We will have the Dog Haus food truck (with special pricing courtesy of the NCPNA) the MTA shaved ice truck, games and a visit from our Richardson Police and Fire Fighters around 7:30-7:45. There will also be a performance by the popular Berkner High School Band Drum Line! All attendees will participate in a raffle for some great prizes! Some tables and seating will be available but feel free to bring a chair.
Last year, the city of Richardson won 1st place in the nation for our population and we want to repeat that award! Come out and show your spirit and support to help keep our neighborhood safe!
New Police Chief Gary Tittle to Speak at Annual Meeting on September 21st
Join us for our Annual Meeting on Tuesday night, September 21st to hear our new Police Chief share an update on public safety in our city. The meeting will begin at 6:30 pm and the location is TBD. Following a brief business meeting to select our NCPNA board members for 2022, we will hear from our special guest speaker. If you are interested in attending, becoming active with the NCPNA, or if you have a topic for Chief Tittle to address, please contact Robert Grinsfelder at rmgrins@aol.com.
We want a big turnout for Chief Tittle and will have appropriate COVID guidelines in place.
North College Park Neighborhood Facebook Group
NCPNA has an active private Facebook group. One of the administrators will quickly approve your admission to the group. Click here to go to the group page: facebook.com/groups/ncpna
Yard of the Month
Our dedicated judges again roved the neighborhood looking for yards to feature for the Yard of the month.
The Runner-up for August, Cristian Marquez, 1001 Morningstar. They received a $25 Bruce Miller’s Nursery gift certificate.
The Winner for August, Rodolfo Ruiz, 1103 Horizon, they received $25 Bruce Miller’s Nursery gift certificate.
Well things have started to heat up. The lawns and gardens are looking great.
North College Park Neighborhood Facebook Group
NCPNA has an active private Facebook group. One of the administrators will quickly approve your admission to the group. Click here to go to the group page: facebook.com/groups/ncpna.
Independence Day Motorcade and Kona Ice
Independence Day Motorcade
We had a great turnout for the motorcade and Kona Ice. Thanks to everyone who participated. We hope to resume the traditional parade and picnic in the park next year.
Wow, have we had a lot of rain lately. The good news is that our water bills are lower and all of the flowers, lawns and trees are looking great. Time to get out and enjoy the good weather and start to get back to normal.
North College Park Neighborhood Facebook Group
NCPNA has an active private Facebook group. One of the administrators will quickly approve your admission to the group. Click here to go to the group page: facebook.com/groups/ncpna
Ice cream in the Park, A smashing good time!
The Ice cream social was a great success. Thanks to April Anderson who pulled this together and thanks you to all who attended the May Ice Cream Social by Tongue In Cheek Ice Cream. It was wonderful to see so many neighbors with over 60 scoops served!! The rain held off and we all got to enjoy sweet treats by a wonderful local business. You can plan to see many more of these events in the future.
With the vaccine more readly available and most of our seniors already vaccinated, it looks like the pandemic is reducing it’s grip on our everyday life just a little. Time to get out and enjoy the good weather and start to get back to normal. Caution is still in order and we need to continue to be vigilant and watch the developments.
North College Park Neighborhood Facebook Group
NCPNA has an active private Facebook group. One of the administrators will quickly approve your admission to the group. Click here to go to the group page: facebook.com/groups/ncpna
May Ice Cream Social – Saturday, May 22nd from 11:30am-12:30pm Glenville Park
Since temperatures are starting to heat up, let’s get together and cool down! Join us at Glenville Park from 11:30am-12:30pm on Saturday, May 22nd for a neighborhood ice cream social. Ice cream will be provided by the Tongue In Cheek Ice Cream Truck for $2 per scoop. Tongue In Cheek is a local business run by a Richardson firefighter. We’d love our community to show this great business support while loading up on delicious treats. Bring a blanket or a chair and hang in the park with your neighbors afterwards!! There will be 5 popular flavors on hand with one non-dairy option. Email April Anderson at adawn0105@gmail.com if you can attend so we can gauge attendance.
As in past years, we will have a Halloween Themed Yard of the Month and neighborhood trick or treating this year. To maximize the time for decorating, the YOTM judging will occur the weekend of October 23 and 24th so be sure to decorate early if you want to participate. First place will receive a $50 gift card and second place, $25 gift card.
North College Park Neighborhood Facebook Group
After some delays and reschedules, we decided to meet over email to discuss “Loving Frank” by Nancy Horan. While many enjoyed it and found Frank Loyd Wright’s life fascinating, the book wasn’t a favorite for most of our club readers. This is both the upside and downside of book club as you find books you might not read otherwise, but you might not always be glad you did. Book club is going on hiatus until the Spring since the organizer is rounding the corner to having a newborn around the house, but we look forward to 2022 and meeting more often!
Our Steptember competition just wrapped up and man did our community step it up!! Together we walked almost 3 MILLION steps as a neighborhood which translates to just 111 miles short of enough steps to cross the US from North to South.
Crime Watch Report
Dog Haus food truck (with special pricing courtesy of the NCPNA) the MTA shaved ice truck, games and a visit from our Richardson Police and Fire Fighters around 7:30-7:45. There will also be a performance by the popular Berkner High School Band Drum Line! All attendees will participate in a raffle for some great prizes! Some tables and seating will be available but feel free to bring a chair.
Ice cream in the Park, A smashing good time!