Frank’s Memorial Day BBQ

May 28

For many years Frank has hosted a backyard barbecue at his GHI house on Independence Day that has become a tradition of sort. This year he has a schedule conflict so he moved it to Memorial Day. He invited me to the party as a photojournalist, and as I am interested in capturing both public and private events that tell the way Greenbelters live in this 75th anniversary year, I eagerly accepted his invitation. These are the photos.

Red, white, and blue are the colors for today’s party. On the door the sign says; “Welcome! Please join us in the back yard. Enter here and walk through the house.”

Greenbelt Nursery School 5K Race

May 19

Every year in the spring the Greenbelt Nursery School organizes a Tortoise and Hare 5-kilometer race that is also a fundraiser for the school. Runners start and finish in front of the tennis courts by Greenbelt Youth Center and complete two laps around Greenbelt Lake. They then gather at the Nursery School for post-race awards and snacks. This year there is also a 1K Family Fun Run.

This is a USATF certified flat loop course that begins and ends at the tennis courts by the Youth Center. Runners then run around Greenbelt Lake clockwise twice, and there is a water station at Buddy Attick Park. The advance registration fee for the 5K race is $25, and race day registration is $30. The 1K Family Fun Run costs $5.

Mother’s Day Concert at Mishkan Torah

May 13

On Mother’s Day, the Mishkan Torah Synagogue in Old Greenbelt presented an afternoon concert titled “Generations United.” It featured fourteen classically trained performers who have all been involved with the synagogue, and the program included performances by a mother and daughter, two fathers and sons, and a father, mother, and son combination. The following is a selection, with biographical information from the program booklet.

Pianist Don Anderson plays Etude-Tableau, Opus 39, No. 1 by Sergei Rachmaninoff.

Cinco de Mayo at Greenbelt Chevys: Children Activities

May 5

Cinco de Mayo (Spanish for “fifth of May”) commemorates the Mexican army’s unlikely triumph over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. The date is celebrated in America as a de facto Mexican heritage day, with festivals and parties, many held at bars and Mexican restaurants. In Greenbelt, each year on May 5, Chevys Fresh Mex Restaurant in Greenway Center hosts a Cinco de Mayo celebration with food and drink specials, outdoor dining, and DJ music. The party usually takes place after work but this year, because May 5 is a Saturday, children’s activities were added.

Banner at Greenbelt Chevys celebrating the 150th anniversary of Cinco de Mayo. It shows a blindfolded, mustached man wearing a broad-brimmed Mexican hat breaking a pinata.

Greenbelt Federal Credit Union Shredding Day

May 5

The Greenbelt Federal Credit Union was established in 1937 shortly after the first residents moved into Greenbelt and is the first cooperative in the city. Housed in Roosevelt Center, the Credit Union today has 3,400 members and an asset over $19 million. Each year it organizes two shredding events for its members and members of the community in the Roosevelt Center parking lot.

The advertisement in the Greenbelt News Review reads: “The Greenbelt Federal Credit Union will be shredding your documents in the parking lot behind the Roosevelt Center at 112 Centerway. Only 5 file boxes/bags per person. Must be present for shredding. Personal records only (no business). No contaminants accepted. Abandoned boxes/bags will be put in the regular trash.”