Friends Volunteers Find Soldiers Home Residents Know How to Roll

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Bowling, Volunteering

Friends of the Soldiers Home had a great time assisting Armed Forces Retirement Home-DC residents at their campus bowling alley on May 16. In the first photo, volunteer John helps to steady a resident as he takes his best roll. Having John in tow kind of cramps his style, but it enables him to continue bowling his own way – standing up, and rolling the ball himself. After his turn, he coaches the Friends volunteers! In the other photos, volunteer Brenda brings resident Herbie his ball as he maps out his strategy. Herbie’s system seems to work. That’s a good roll! Join us for FOSH bowling night, always the third Tuesday evening of the month.

Our next session will be June 20. Write volunteerfriendsofsoldiers(at)gmail(dot)com if you would like to help.

Story and photos by Lori Lincoln.

Soldiers’ Home Golf Course Seeks Community Members

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golf

Members of the DC Soldier Home’s golf course are seeking more members, and FOSH is happy to pass along this message from them:

MEMBERS WANTED AT THE OLD SOLDIERS HOME GOLF COURSE LOCATED AT THE ARMED FORCES RETIREMENT HOME IN PETWORTH. For many of you who may be unaware, the Old Soldier’s Home Golf Course, located on the same property as President Lincoln’s Cottage, is open for membership and current members are interested in recruiting new members to help keep the golf course running optimally. This nine-hole golf course and driving range is currently one of the best kept secrets in Washington, D.C. and current members are looking to change that. In the past, the approximately 200 active members of the course may have been inclined to keep the course a secret because it had enough money to operate, so this may be one of the reasons why so few people even know the course exists and that joining is very easy!

Due to a recent drop-off in funding, the plan for the 2017 season is for the members to volunteer a few hours each week to maintain and run the course, mainly, physically maintaining the course by cutting the grass, etc. Those members will still be paying a $700 annual membership for the privilege to play the course and participate in the maintenance, which we believe is a strong testament to how much this golf course is valued by its current members. With an increase in membership, this will not be necessary and members will be free to enjoy as much golf as their schedules can handle.

The Old Soldiers Home Golf Course is attractive to DC residents for a variety of reasons, including, but not limited to, unlimited golf within city limits, the course’s convenient location, low projected annual cost for membership and a great atmosphere with phenomenal views of DC. Currently, with 200 active members, any one member can essentially play the entire course at any time without seeing another soul. Therefore, we believe that we could double the current membership and the course would still maintain a very private/intimate atmosphere while the increased funding would benefit the course for the enjoyment of all members. An additional benefit to increasing the membership base would be to alleviate the financial burden on the AFRH itself, which currently provides the course some funding, albeit not enough to keep it running the right way. In the future, we would love for the course to operate solely on membership fees so that the money the AFRH currently diverts to the course could serve our retired veterans living at the AFRH in other ways.

Anyone who is interested in becoming a member is encouraged to send an e-mail to afrhwgolfcourse(at)afrh(dot)gov.

Resident testimonial:

“Playing a course in the middle of DC, steps from Lincoln’s cottage, is fantastic. I’m incredibly grateful to the residents of the Old Soldiers Home for sharing their back yard with us and am committed to helping them keep their much-loved facility open. It needs community support to survive. I encourage everyone, even those who have never played, to try this incredibly accessible and enjoyable course.” Catherine Mellor, Petworth Resident

Monthly Jingo Brings FOSH Back to Routine After Spring Fling Festival

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Jingo, Volunteering

After an exciting, yet rainy, Spring Fling festival May 6 attended by 500 people from the community, Friends of the Soldiers Home returned to its “ordinary” volunteering schedule with “Fairy Tales” Jingo at the Armed Forces Retirement Home-DC on May 11. Mr. Velasquez-Ortiz won a game, and Mr. Springer and Mr. Brotski won big. Young volunteer Denver Parker just happened to be sitting across from and between them. Clearly, he brought the luck! Join FOSH in volunteering for JINGO the second Thursday of each month at 6:30pm. Mark your calendars for June 8!

Photos by Lori Lincoln.

Here is your guide for enjoying Spring Fling this Saturday, May 6, noon to 5pm. What an event!

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Spring Fling

Marine Color Guard (March on the Colors)

Sponsors: Anheuser Busch, DCCX, Annie’s Hardware and Capital Park Realty

Performance Times:
12:15: St. Michael’s High School Concert Band/Chamber Choir
1:15: Marine Color Guard (March on the Colors)
1:30: Daka 2 Martial Arts Academy Karate Demonstration
2:00: Ari Jacobson
3:00: Suspicious Package

Attractions:
Old Line Garrison, 501st Legion, Darth Vader’s Army!
Games: Double Hoops, Soccer, Ring Toss, Alien Pinball
Food Trucks: Tender Rib, OooDatChicken, DC Ballers
Beer: Delightful draft choices courtesy of Anheuser Busch

St. Michael’s High School Concert Band/Chamber Choir

Weather: Breezy, cloudy, chance of scattered showers, highs in the low- to mid-60s. Event happens rain or shine, with a tent to keep you dry!

Location: Enter Armed Forces Retirement Home at Randolph Road and Rock Creek Church Road in Washington, D.C. For navigation, use 340 Rock Creek Church Road N.W., Washington, D.C.

Ari Jacobson

Cost: Free if you walk or bike in. Friends of the Soldiers Home requests a $10 donation per carload for parking

Volunteer: If you would like to volunteer for part of the event, go here: http://signup.com/go/QK3n1t

See you at the Fling!

Suspicious Package

Daka 2 Martial Arts Academy Karate Demonstration

Star Ward Storm Trooper