We were really happy with reaction to our first Cheverly: It's Where YOU Want to Be post, and we are happy to be getting reflections from other members of the community. Throughout the week, we'll be sharing these notes. This morning, Teresa Williams of Touch as Art tells us why she wants to be in Cheverly:
Cheverly is where I want to be because I and my family have always felt welcome here. We moved to Cheverly, from DC, after hearing about it from a friend and we immediately fell in love with the neighborhood and proximity to not one but three interesting metropolitan areas. We also have ready access to natural space, something that is very important to me. After 19 years here, I still encounter places, people and situations that delight me around Cheverly. We required a metro stop and Cheverly has one. I enjoy knowing that I can walk out of my door, greet my wonderful neighbors, board public transportation and begin a trip to anywhere in the world that I may want to go. My adventures do not begin when I reach my final destination, they begin when I walk out of my door, no matter how far my travels eventually take me.
Our children grew up, or are growing up here, and I am proud of that. My daughter recently told me on a walk, as she was admiring her neighborhood, that it was a shame that as an adult she will never be able to live here. When I asked why not, she replied that since, we, her parents already live here she could not even consider it. I'm hopeful that she changes her mind after she has some adventures away from us. I was fortunate and happy to be able to go down a long list of people that she knows who grew up in Cheverly, went away to college or for jobs for awhile, and are now raising their own children here. Even in our own lives our baby-sitting lineage has successfully passed through generations. My daughter baby-sits for the children of one of her former baby-sitters. For some in town that lineage is four generations strong.
I recently had the opportunity to take my sister-in-law on a walking tour of Cheverly and got to see her reaction to sights and symbols that I take for granted. I told her about the Little Free Libraries in the neighborhood as she admired the just blooming azaleas all over town. On our way to Woodworth Park, which is one of my favorite neighborhood gems, we stopped at the Elephant, ‘Puzzle It Out,’ at Town Hall. Even though our family spearheaded the effort to paint it, we could not, on our own bring it to Cheverly. It was part of a larger public art installation in DC that was ultimately intended to raise money for the arts and humanities. All of the Party Animals, including ‘Puzzle It Out,’ were auctioned off after being displayed around Washington for the summer in 2002. (Puzzle It Out was displayed at the Children's Museum in DC, which is no longer in existence.) A heartwarming and inspiring effort by the Cheverly Mayor (Larry Beyna, at the time) and other elected officials, Cheverly citizens, teachers and students at Gladys Noon Spellman Elementary and the Town Administration successfully fought off a determined and unexpected bidder to ultimately bring our Elephant home. Even though I generally identify as a donkey, our elephant at Town Hall is a reminder of the community spirit that is exhibited in so many ways in Cheverly. These are just some of the reasons why Cheverly is Where I Want to Be.
Thanks, Teresa! We love to get everyone's perspectives on Cheverly and what makes it such a special place!
If you're interested in sharing your perspective, please email us. We'd love to include many voices in this series. And don't forget: you can show everyone that Cheverly is where YOU want to be by wearing one of our great Cheverly Day 2016 t-shirts! They'll be available on Cheverly Day at the Midway, or you can contact Pat Nelson to get your shirt early!
