Our neighbors at Lakewood United Methodist Church (2443 Abrams Rd., ph. 214-823-9623) have a few upcoming events of note.
Vacation Bible School – July 25-28 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Designed to involve the whole family, each evening a meal will be provided at 6 p.m. for the nominal cost of $2/per person. There will be an opening worship at 6:30 p.m. which will be followed by classes for ages 3 years through 5th grade and an adult Bible study that will coincide with the lessons being taught to the children. For addition information, contact Penny Mitchell, Children’s Minister at 214-823-9623 or by email at mynickel@airmail.net.

Marvelous Mondays – Fun and fellowship for kids grades K – 5th grade on July 12 and 19, and August 2, 9 and 16 from 9 a.m. – noon. Contact the church office at 214-823-9623 if you’re interested.

Crime Watch Updates
From DPD Central Watch: Tailgate thefts from domestic model pick-ups continue on the rise. Offenses are evenly scattered throughout our division with no specific pattern having been determined.

Recommendation: Parking in a well lit area or backing the tailgate up to a fence or garage door helps securing the tailgate. There are inexpensive commercial locking devices that can be purchased and installed. As always – report suspicious activity.

From the Advocate blog: “Bob O’Link residents have reported a white male in his early 20′s going door to door attempting to sell his security system,“ [Lakewood area, crime watch chair Nancy] Wilson notes via email. “To the best of my knowledge, this person is considered a ‘suspicious person’ and the police need to be called if this man solicits your home. Please call 911 with a full description of this person.“

Other Neighborhood Notes from David Kindle, President, Lakewood Heights Neighborhood Association

• Fantasy Football – If anyone is interested in starting a neighborhood fantasy football league, let me know (lakewoodheightsna AT gmail dot com). Since LHNA does not endorse gambling, there won’t be any money involved. But perhaps I can drum up some prizes for winners. You will need to be a dues paying member of the Association to play.

• Garage Band Enthusiasts – Is your inner rock star looking for an outlet and Guitar Hero isn’t doing it for you?  You’re not alone.  Contact Chip Larkin (ed larkin pa AT gmail dot com) if you’re interesting in forming a local band.

• Pumpkins in the Park Planning – Pumpkins in the Park is being planned for October 16. If you’re interested in helping out or providing a sponsorship, please contact Wendeline Jongenburger (wendeline AT earth link dot net) or Barbara Koegl (mv dot bk AT tx dot rr dot com)

• Real Estate Signs – If you have any old real estate type yard signs, the neighborhood association is looking to recycle the frames and use them for announcements.  Please contact me and we’ll take them off your hands.

Summer heat getting to you? Well, then come cool off and hang out with your neighbors!

Lakewood Heights, Lower Greenville and Wilshire Heights Neighborhood Associations, along with Friends of Tietze Park, are co-sponsoring a Pool Party at the Tietze Park pool on Saturday, July 24 from 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. Everyone in the neighborhood is invited!  FREE!

Tax-deductible donations are appreciated – and benefit The Friends of Tietze Park Foundation. If you’re interested in volunteering (help is needed for set-up tear-down), please contact Lisa Marshall at lhmarshall AT sbcglobal . net or 214-824-8864.

Two kinds of pests are on the prowl in Lakewood Heights these days: mosquitoes and thieves.

We talked about ways to deter mosquitoes in a recent post, but didn’t mention one of our very best skeeter repellers – a simple house fan. A recent New York Times article agrees that keeping the wind moving outside with a portable fan can make pests bug off. Give it a shot!

We have had reports of activity by even pestier pests – criminals – in our neighborhood. The highest incidence of crime noted is burglary of a motor vehicle (BMV). The Dallas Police Department website has great flyer: Crime Prevention Tips – Preventing Burglary of a Motor Vehicle. Basically, to prevent your vehicle from being broken into, TAKE, LOCK and HIDE.

Lock Your Vehicle. Breaking glass makes noise so locking your vehicle makes it tougher.

Hide any Valuables – or better yet Take valuables with you. Don’t leave anything in the vehicle to encourage a criminal to steal from you.  Laptops, Purses, GPS, iPods, Cell Phones are all magnets for hoodlums who want to steal from you.

Also, parking in a well lit area may also help. If you are unfortunate enough to be a victim of crime, be sure to call 911 immediately to report it to the Dallas Police Dept.

Want to get out of the triple digit heat and hear some good music?

Italian cellist Francesco Mastromatteo will perform works by J.S. Bach, Paul Hindemith, and Benjamin Britten on Sunday June 27 at 5:00p.m. at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, 3204 Skillman at Monticello in the Lakewood Heights neighborhood. Free, but an offering will be taken to support the church’s upcoming chamber music concert series in August. www.standrewsdallas.org or 214 821-9125.

Mosquito season has arrived in Lakewood Heights. Although it is tempting to “nuke” your yard with a chemical cocktail, why not try some organic methods first. The first thing you should do is make sure you have no standing water. Check your gutters, french drains, flower pot saucers, old tires, even a soda can – anything that can hold water is a source for a mosquito breeding farm! Add Bti (Bacillus thuringiensis – often sold under the name Mosquito Dunks) to places, such as bird baths, where you mean to have water.

Lakewood’s Howard Garrett (aka The Dirt Doctor) is a great resource for natural organic gardening and living tips. His mosquito control newsletter offers solutions for both personal treatment (check out his recipe for the Vanilla mix repellent) and for site treatment. We have had luck using the dry granulated garlic he suggests spreading in the yard to repel mosquitoes. I know other neighbors who have success using Dr. T’s Mosquito Repelling Granules.

Using natural methods will repel the pesty mosquitoes, but not kill every single living organism in your yard. Remember, there are lots of beneficial insects like dragonflies – who eat mosquitoes!

Don’t forget the Lakewood Heights yard sale April 17!

If you have any questions about the City’s garage sale guidelines, please visit the city website for more information. [Pretty standard rules: two garage sales permitted each year per property.  The sale may last no longer than three days and a person cannot sell merchandise acquired solely for resale purposes in the garage sale.]

New to garage/yard selling? Some great tips can be found in The Ultimate Tag Sale by Real Simple magazine.

If this is a success, we’ll make it an annual event.  Special note:  this is also “Bulky Trash” weekend, so if you can’t sell it, and don’t want to drag it back into the house, leave it on the curb!

On April 3, 2010 at 10:30 am, Gracehill Community Church is having a Community Easter Egg Hunt at Tietze Park
Details at the Gracehill Community website.

Believe it or not, more and more Dallasites are finding the benefits of keeping chickens at their homes. On April 18, 2010, from 11:00 to 5:00, you can see first hand city chicken coops in East Dallas.

Here’s the scoop on the coops from A Peep at the Coops website.

Twelve coops for city chickens will be featured on this FREE, self-guided tour that will take place in the beautiful East Dallas area. The coops will highlight different approaches to keeping and enjoying these pampered pets, “eggsellent” layers, and a great addition to a green lifestyle. Visitors will have the opportunity to see many different breeds of chickens, from small to large, and learn about their unique personalities and characteristics. Several other sustainable practices will be on view as well, such as beekeeping, composting, rainwater harvesting and more! Come and engage in a little “chicken chat” with our interesting hosts and sponsors.

Maps to the coop sites will be available at Walton’s Lawn and Garden Center, Green Spot Market and Fuel, Whole Food’s-Lakewood, East Lake Animal Hospital and at apeepatthecoops.blogspot.com.Proceeds benefit Our Savior Community Garden and the garden at Stonewall Jackson Elementary.

Visit A Peep at the Coops for more information.

Early voting for the April 13 runoff election, for both the Democrat and Republican party primaries, starts April 5. Click here to access the Dallas County Elections website, where you will find Early Voting dates, places and times, as well as Election day polling places and sample ballots.

Democrats will be nominating 2 District Judges, 2 Criminal Court Judges, a Probate Court Judge and County Judge

Republicans will decide their nominee for US Representative (District 30) and Supreme Court Justice, Place 3.

Got any old documents that you need to be toss but really need to be shredded first? Come to Tietze Shred 3, a Document Destruction Event & Fundraiser for Tietze Park.

Saturday,  March 27th
900 a.m. to 100 p.m
Parking Lot – Skillman Church of Christ, 3014 Skillman St. (at Monticello).
Tietze Park on Google Maps

2 TRUCKS THIS YEAR! On-site document shredding services provided by Brink’s Document Destruction.
Cost: $7.00 for up to 1 standard banker’s box (30 lbs. approx.),
$5.00 per additional banker’s box, Seniors (65 or older): $5.00 each box.

10% of proceeds benefit Skillman Church’s Angel Food Ministries.