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Gibson Heights Neighborhood News, April 2001
Brightside Blitz and more:
   The "blitz" cleanup for Gibson Heights will be Saturday, April 28. Both trash and yard waste dumpsters will be emptied. Appliances, tires, car batteries, and motor oil will be collected for recycling. All debris must be bagged and put into the dumpsters. Trash bags, shovels, brooms, weed whips, and rakes are available by request. Groups of 15 are eligible for a "party pack" of hot dogs, buns, chips, and soda.
  Flower planting days will be May 3, 4, and 5. Periwinkle and marigold plants for public areas must be ordered by April 18.
  The second annual "Take a Walk on the Brighside" will be on May 19, with activities and prizes. The 2.5 mile walk around downtown starts at Market and Seventh (Kiener Plaza) at 9:00 a.m.
  Registration and request forms will be at the associations's April 17 meeting. Or call president Sonda Thompson at 534.1709 and see the Brightside web page.
Home Safety and Fire Prevention Funds:
   Forest Park Southeast homeowners can get a $300 credit for smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. They are also eligible for low-interest home safety loans (no income guidelines) provided by UMB Bank and the City. Loan funds can be used to repair or replace items such as water heaters, furnaces, roofs, and wiring. For more information, call Neighborhood Housing Services, 314.533.0600.
Small Improvement:
   After complaints by 10xx block of Kingshighway residents at the March meeting, the flapping awning on the building at Arco and Kingshighway was removed.
Easy Communication:
   The City Information Network provides a neighborhood email list (listserve). With just one email message, you can reach more than sixty neighbors. To get on the list, send an email message identifying yourself to Bob Babione.
Community Council:
   FPSE Community Council adopted simplified rules and meeting format in March. The council's meetings are open to all and will continue with the fourth-Tuesday schedule at Lighthouse Community Outreach Center. The time, however, is changed to 6:30 p.m., starting with the April 24 meeting.
Forest Park Access:
   On May 17, the Forest Park Advisory Board will discuss what format will apply if, at some future meeting, it entertains a presentation on restoring vehicle access to the park via Clayton.
"Where's Maude?"
   That was the question on election day, April 3. Maude Coleman was absent from her accustomed post at the Gibson Heights precinct because she had suffered a stroke. Maude is back at home (45xx Wichita), doing her rehabilitation exercises, getting around with a cane, and sharing her memories about the neighborhood. Maude was active with the neighborhood association from its beginning. She also worked with the Ranken Health Committee that preceded the opening of the Neighborhood Health Center. She remembers Christmas times when the neighborhood was decorated by sidewalk candles and her neighbor, Mr. Berg, sang Silent Night in German. She wants to keep neighborhood stabilization going and says things can be done without lots of money, for instance, picking up the trash and giving a birthday party for a young girl who never had one before. And Maude still has her front door sign: Protected by Angels.
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