| |  | | We have a new way to live, learn and laugh as a neighborhood!This digital publication has been established to build community and connect our neighbors along with supporting our greater community in the Madison area. We recognized that without a community gathering space or town square we needed to look to multiple means to connect each other as neighbors and collectively work to build our community. The Birchwood-Oaks Neighborhood Association was established to do just that! Please feel free to forward this publication and encourage neighbors to sign up to become a member of this association using this form. | | What’s happened around our neighborhood recently? Tailgate Party Thanks to neighbors coming out and getting connected at the Tailgate party! Much fun was had chatting and getting to know each other. Hope to see you again at our next neighborhood party. | | | If you have suggestions for our next party or want to volunteer, please email us at BirchwoodOaksNA@gmail.com | | What’s coming up in our neighborhood? | Halloween Party in the Park! |  | Join us in Sugar Maple park on Sunday, October 30th from 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM! We’ll have some fun games, pumpkin painting and a costume contest! We are also hosting our second annual porch decorating contest! Entry fee will be $10, and submissions are due by October 23rd so we can create a street map of all participants. Neighbors can go to each home, and we will also have pictures available for voting! Cash prizes (50/50 split with the NA) will go to 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners! Please sign up here to let us know if you’re attending and participating in the porch context and paint the pumpkin: https://forms.gle/WmcHfeVCiWhJN5S46 The City of Madison does not set trick or treating hours, but in the past, has suggested guidance that trick or treating happens on Halloween, October 31st from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM. We will adhere to that guidance. | | Kids Corner Call for Halloween costume/porch decoration photos We would like to gather costume photos for the November newsletter. If you are willing to share the costume photos, please send them to tiayuan3@gmail.com. We will highlight your creativity in our "Kids Corner". Enjoying Family Fall Adventure in Madison, Wisconsin Fall is officially here in Wisconsin, and there’s no better time to explore our beautiful Capital City, Madison! The greater Madison area is bursting with autumn adventures: from apple orchards & farm markets, to pumpkin patches & corn mazes, to amazing hiking opportunities, and plenty of countryside fall fun. Take a day trip to the Madison area to enjoy all of the fall festivities before this brief season ends! Click the links below for more details! | | | We’d love to spotlight our many neighborhood kiddos’ joy, duties; promote entrepreneurial items like lemonade stands, yard work, snow removal, etc. If you have an item to share, please complete this form and we will follow up for details. | | Family Profile - Getting to know your neighbors We would like to feature a neighborhood family and get to know a little about each other in this neighborhood profile. Submit pictures, answer a questionnaire, tell us a little bit about each of these highlighted families in our neighborhood. If you would be willing and able to be a featured family please email jeremy.schlitz@gmail.com and we will get you featured. | This month…. Meet the Boyers |  | Bridget, Josh, their 18 month old boy, Braeden (B for short) & sweetest girl, Tully, their 6 year old goldendoodle purchased their first home in Birchwood Point 5 years ago. They moved to Madison in 2016, after Josh accepted his role as the Activities Director at Sauk Prairie High School. They decided to build their home in Birchwood Point in 2017 because it was close to the city - they love all the food and fun Madison offers, though finding time is harder to come by with an 18 month old! Plus, it's a quick drive to get to their respective offices. Josh and Bridget officially met in High School! They both attended West Bend High School: One to East and one the West though in the same building. After High School, Josh attended St Norbert College for his undergraduate and later Cardinal Stritch University for his Masters in Sports Management, so he could pursue his passion of becoming an Athletic Director. Bridget moved to San Francisco for a year before moving back to be closer to family and good friends. Their paths didn't officially cross until years later when they randomly ran into each other while they were out with mutual friends in Milwaukee in 2010. The rest is history! Josh proposed in 2015, and they got married in Milwaukee, WI the following year. They officially moved to Madison in August of 2016, and adopted Tully, our Goldendoodle (she's probably a lab - if you've met her, you know) a week later. | | | | NEW ADDITION: PET PROFILE If you’d like your pet/s to be featured, please send their profile and pictures to tiayuan3@gmail.com. | October Pet: Walter Payton |  | Hello everyone! My name is Walter Payton. I’m a terrier mix and I live with my mom on Watts Rd. I’m a former hall of fame running back with the Chicago Bears. You can also call me Sweetness. I’m at least 11 years young. I love to walk, and love to bark at every dog I see. Nothing wrong with a soft couch and blanket! My favorite snack is baby carrots. I’m really a sweet, sweet dog that was adopted from a humane society in central Wisconsin. At the end of the day, life is great. | | | | Diversity matters in our neighborhood | We live in a neighborhood with diversity. We added this section with the mission to educate, advocate, celebrate and empower all of us to create an inclusive, equitable, and diverse environment. We encourage you to learn about all the diverse dates and events this month. October Diversity CalendarOctober is full of holidays and events that reflect the diverse, global environment in which we work. There are public holidays in virtually every part of the world, including many major religious holidays that affect work schedules and other business-related planning. LGBT: Coming Out DayIn the United States, October 11 is National Coming Out Day. It has included marches on Washington of up to 600,000 people to protest anti-gay discrimination and demand a stronger federal government response to the AIDS crisis. To foster more tolerance and respect at your organization, please browse the LGBT training videos. Columbus Day/Indigenous Peoples; Hispanic EventsThere are a number of notable Hispanic holidays in October. Columbus Day is celebrated in the United States on October 10, 2016. However, a growing movement seeks to reinvent the holiday as Indigenous Peoples Day. The movement started in Seattle, Minneapolis and Albuquerque, and spreading to counties and school districts. Elsewhere in the Americans, in Argentina and many other Latin American counties, October 12 commemorates Día de la Raza. In Brazil on Oct. 9, people celebrate Círio de Nazaré, which draws nearly two million pilgrims from around the country to join the procession winding through the city of Belém. On October 30, Mexico honors the birthday of Francisco Madero, who in 1911 established democracy in Mexico after deposing dictator Porfirio Diaz. HinduismHindus will celebrate Dussehra (Durga Puja) on October 11, which means “the tenth day” and is celebrated at the culmination of the “nine nights” festival of Asuj Navratras. Celebrated with feasting and rejoicing, it commemorates Rama’s victory over Ravana and honors the goddess Durga. On Oct. 19, Hindus celebrate Karva Chauth when married Hindu women fast and pray for the well-being, prosperity, and longevity of their husbands. These online diversity training help instill awareness and respect for religious diversity. National Business ClosuresIn October worldwide, nearly two dozen countries will celebrate independence and republic days. In many cases, business will shut down and people won’t be working. But it’s an opportunity to reach out to business contacts and employees to support their celebrations. If you have Asian employees – or your organization does business with Asia – there are many October holidays. The People’s Republic of China and Hong Kong celebrate National Day on October 1. The Republic of China also celebrates Double Tenth Day October 10, commemorating the outbreak that led to the nations’ foundation. In South Korea, Hangul Day commemorates the creation of the Korean alphabet on October 3, followed by National Foundation Day on October 13. In Japan, Health and Sports Day is celebrated on October 10. Thanksgiving – in October?The United States celebrates one of its largest holidays, Thanksgiving, in November. In Canada, however, that same holiday will be celebrated on October 10. | | Winterize Your Home Checklist It’s always best to start winterizing your home a bit early. Rather than waiting for temperatures to plummet, get started on your weatherization project in the fall. It is the perfect time to carry out these activities. Of course, you would want your home to be ready before the cold winds hit, as nobody likes to work on home improvements in chilly weather with numb fingers! Here are 20 cost-effective winterization tips & tricks which only require minimal effort! This handy winterizing a home checklist has everything you need: | Get your Heating System Checked Use Smart Home Devices Winterize Your Pipes Add Reflectors to Your Radiators Slash the Bills Flush the Water Heater Upgrade Your Attic Insulation Get Rid of Unvented Space Heaters Use Chimney Balloon Get Draft Guards Weatherproof Your House Spaces Use Weatherstripping Check the Gutters House the Hose Run Fans Counterclockwise Replace Screen Windows and Doors Get Your Chimney Professionally inspected Inspect Roof Shingles Test Your Detectors Trim Your Trees & Plant a Windbreak
| | | Contributing to Fire Station 12 Do you want to make a meal for our firefighters? Or do you have any other ideas on how to show our appreciation for them? Please email us at BirchwoodOaksNA@gmail.com if you’re interested in contributing. |  | What do you like about our neighborhood? We would like to hear your stories or a short note of what you like or what would expect to improve in the neighborhood and why you chose to live in our neighborhood. Please send your stories and notes to tiayuan3@gmail.com. We will post it in next month's newsletter! Please note that we would use your name unless you state you’d prefer to be anonymous. Request/Offer help corner: Do you need help or want to offer help for neighbors with shoveling, cutting lawn, etc.? Please send your requests/offers to tiayuan3@gmail.com. We will post it in next month's newsletter! Please note that we would use your name and contact information (email or phone). | Milestones We also would like to feature birth/death/anniversary/graduation and other milestone announcements. Please submit via this recognition form what you’d like to be announced next month. Housekeeping Is your Newsletter getting lost in your Gmail account? You may want to check your “Promotions” tab. If you find the Newsletter there, you can add the NA's email (BirchwoodOaksNA@gmail.com) to your Google contacts and explicitly move that email to your inbox. Ideally, this should teach Gmail to send future Newsletters to your main inbox. | | Community Events and Resources | Parks The City has put up the recording of the second public master plan meeting for the three proposed parks in and around our neighborhood. You can watch and learn more here: https://www.cityofmadison.com/parks/projects/acer-park-master-plan
https://www.cityofmadison.com/parks/projects/birchwood-south-park-master-plan
https://www.cityofmadison.com/parks/projects/acacia-ridge-park-master-plan ElectionAre you ready to vote? The deadline for requesting an absentee ballot is November 3. Early voting begins on October 25. See the City’s website to find out where to vote, view a sample ballot or register/update your registration here. A number of offices are up for election: Governor/Lieutenant Governor Attorney General Secretary of State State Treasurer U.S. Senator U.S. Congressional Representative – District 2 State Senator – District 27 Representative to State Assembly – Districts 46, 47, 48, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80 Dane County Sheriff Dane County Clerk of Circuit Court
All Dane County voters will see three referendum questions on their ballots. Voters who reside in the Sun Prairie, Waunakee, Middleton/Cross Plains, or Verona Area School Districts will also see school district referendum questions on their ballot. Voters are encouraged to ensure their absentee ballot certificate envelope is sealed and complete before returning it to the City Clerk’s Office. A complete absentee certificate envelope will include: Voter signature, Witness signature, and Witness address. Property Tax Relief CreditsPlease check out here to see if you are qualified to apply for the credits like Lottery and Gaming Credit, and First Dollar Credit to save your property tax bills. What property tax credits are available in Wisconsin? What credits are directly applied to my property tax bill? What credits can I claim on my income tax return? Are there other programs that help with paying property taxes?
Sugar Maple Park - Dog Request StatusThe City of Madison Board of Park Commissioners will consider changing Sugar Maple Park from its current status as a “dog free” to a “dog friendly” park at an upcoming meeting. A dog friendly park allows licensed, leashed dogs in the park. If you wish to comment on this change, please submit your comments via email or letter by November 4, 2022. You are invited to attend the meeting to provide comments or input on the proposed project. Meeting: November 9, 2022, at 6:30 p.m.
Location: TBD
Email: Pacommission@cityofmadison.com Streets Division Updates:Brush collection is over. Do not set out more brush for pickup at this time. Take your brush to a drop-off site (www.cityofmadison.com/DropOffSites) Yard waste & leaf collection starts is underway. Get the dates when you should set out your leaves and yard waste for pickup at www.cityofmadison.com/YardWaste The food scraps recycling drop-off is coming to a close of October 25. To learn more about where you can take food scraps, and the hours and locations of the farmer’s market drop-off sites, visit www.cityofmadison.com/FoodScraps
| | | Submitted articles: Please consider penning an article or repurposing something you created and want to share with your neighbors | If you would like to submit an item for this Monthly magazine, please email jeremy.schlitz@gmail.com | | Sponsors of our Association |  | | | As our community and membership continue to grow, we recognize the importance of supporting local and family owned businesses right here in Birchwood-Oaks. We'd love to feature your Business Ad in an upcoming newsletter! Please contact us at birchwoodoaksna@gmail.com, and include your name, business name, location, phone number, website, email address and applicable logo and/or pictures! | | | *Please continue to let your neighbors know about the NA and encourage them to sign up to receive info and updates to build our community If you would like to donate to the neighborhood association please donate to:
Jeffrey Thorn Venmo
Ali Reinhard – Vice President & Interim President
Bridget Boyer – Community Events Coordinator
Jeffrey Thorn – Treasurer
Kayla Briehl - Secretary | |
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