Yard Sale

On Saturday September 30th, there will be a yard sale at 1215 5th. from 8AM-4PM.

October: a Month of Neighborhood Events

This October, there are a number of things going on in our neighborhood. Don't forget to check the calendar.

Blessing of the Animals

Wednesday, October 4th

bring your petrs for a blessing in recognition of the feast of St. Francis of Assiss, an Italian saint who loved animals. Blessings will be given at Assumption church at 5:30 PM.

Neighborhood Clean-up

Saturday, October 7th

Neighbors will gather from 8-10 to pick up trash in the neighborhood in preparation for our annual Oktoberfest celebration.

Oktoberfest

Saturday, October 14th

Oktoberfest is an annual event in our neighborhood. Proceeds from the festival benefit Historic Germantown neighborhood, Assumption Church and Monroe Street methodist Shurch. Festivities includ a 5K Bier Run, Historic germantown Homes Tour, music, food, arts and crafts, and children's activities.
The event needs your help to succeed. To volunteer, contact Kim Unertl, volunteer coordinater, at 476-8787 or by email.

Pumpkin Carving

Saturday, October 28th

BYOP (Bring Your Own Pumpkin) and join neighbors in carving pumpkins for Halloween from 3-5 PM at the curner of 5th and Monroe.

Halloween

Saturday, October 31st

Beginning at 5pm, 5th Avenue North between Madison and Monroe will be blocked off for Halloween festivities. Join neighbors for a Halloween Parade, trick-or-treating and refreshments.

Hands on Nashville Day

Paris Masters is leading a volunteer effort with Hands on
Nashville who are a community volunteer resource hub. They are organizing Hands on Nashville Day, saving the Metro Public School System over $100,000 on Saturday, Sept 30 from 8 AM to noon.

Paris needs volunteers to join her team"Lofty Neighbors". Please contact Paris to find out how you can help out on the Germantown Neighbors team.

Celebration of Culture Showcases City's Increasing Diversity

Metro Parks' and Scarritt-Bennett Celebration of Culture Showcases City's Increasing Diversity
Day Long Event Brings International Focus to Centennial Park

Metro Parks' and Scarritt-Bennett Center have joined forces to bring one of the city's most beloved festivals, Celebration of Cultures, to Centennial Park. The event, which is free and open to the public, is scheduled for Saturday, October 7, will showcase the changing face of the city through music, food, art, and exhibitions.

"This festival will be unlike any seen here before," said Metro Parks Director Roy E. Wilson. "On Saturday, October 7, Centennial Park will become a unique international destination offering visitors the option of experiencing a variety of cultural encounters designed to educate, entertain and strengthen our resolve as a community to embrace cultures that might be very different from our own."

The day-long, multi-faceted event has several components designed to give visitors a glimpse of cultures beyond the nation's borders. Four different stages will feature music and dance from countries as far away as Ghana, West Africa to as close as Cancun, Mexico. Visitors will enjoy tasting delicacies from many nations and shopping at the World Market which will showcase original art, imported crafts and, trinkets from around the globe. There's also a children's area which will feature interactive music and dance programs, story telling, nature activities, arts and crafts, and a most unique Instrument Petting Zoo.

"Local and global communities are stronger when people gather in celebration of their diversity," explained the President of Scarritt-Bennett Center H. Sharon Howell. "Celebration of Cultures will offer an opportunity for people in the Nashville community to come together and discover the richness of the different cultures and ethnicities that represent our area. Scarritt-Bennett Center has a historical and current commitment to diversity and is thrilled to partner with Metro Parks to help provide this gift to Middle Tennessee," she said.

An important complementary event to the Celebration of Cultures festival is the Doctors Without Borders/ Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) exhibit, "A Refugee Camp in the Heart of the City," appearing in Centennial Park from October 4-8. This interactive outdoor exhibit brings to light day-to-day living conditions of the 33 million people around the world who have been forced to flee their homes because of violence and persecution. Guided tours by experienced MSF humanitarian aid workers illustrate the challenges of delivering medical care to people caught in upheaval and conflict. MSF is an independent international medical humanitarian organization that delivers emergency aid to people affected by armed conflicts, epidemics, natural and man-made disasters, and exclusion from health care in more than 70 countries.

"We are pleased to have the opportunity to engage the diverse community of Nashville in our efforts to raise awareness of the plight of people uprooted by conflict around the world," said Nicolas de Torrenté, Executive Director of MSF USA. "This interactive exhibit aims to move beyond headlines and sound bites to foster a deeper understanding, on a human level, of the challenges faced by 33 million displaced people who must seek safety, shelter, food, and clean water on a daily basis in order to survive."

Adding to the international flavor of the day is the National Conference for Community and Justice's annual Walk as One. The walk-a-thon, which was designed to promote understanding and respect for all people, also helps raise funds for youth and community leadership programs that benefit the regions in which they are held. The walk begins at 9 a.m. at the Centennial Park Event Shelter.

Event sponsors include: HCA, Bridgestone/Firestone, BellSouth, Fifth Third Bank, Castleman Drilling & Pump Service, Ten Thousand Villages, National Renal Alliance, Nashville Scene, Holmes Pest Control, Lanier, Friends of Centennial Park and The Parthenon, Profitsherpa LLC, Comcast, Nashville Parent, and Celebrate Nashville.

For more information on Celebration of Cultures, log on to www.celebrationofcultures.com.

National Black Police Assoc. Fundraisers

Hungry! Without! What horrible words- especially devastating when associated with a young child or youth. The National Black Police Association - Nashville Chapter has answered the call and will remain a helping hand in a young person life. Our commitment involves fundraising and listening to the needs of the community.

We have assisted with Thanksgiving Baskets for over 200 families for several years and a Christmas Toy Drive for 175 families. Despite the number of families, the need continues to grow as economic hardship falls on so many families. We want to increase our level of giving, but we need your assistance.

We are hosting the 1st Annual Old School Jam on the Shelby Street Walking Bridge on September 22, 2006. There will be retail and food vendors, music, and special entertainment.

We are looking for sponsors to help us to reach our goal of 300 Thanksgiving Baskets and 225 families for our Christmas Toy Drive.

If you have any questions please contact me at 615-400-0084 or contactus@nbpanashville.org.

Mosquitoes Test Positive for West Nile Virus

Health Department Trapping Finds High Infestation Mosquitoes

NASHVILLE, Tenn., September 1, 2006 Mosquitoes collected by the Metro Public Health Department's Pest Management Division in a section of Goodletsville and in an area of Old Hickory have tested positive for West Nile virus. The mosquitoes that tested positive were trapped in Goodletsville near the intersection of Greer Road and Ivy Point Road, and in the Old Hickory area near the intersection of Old Hickory Boulevard and Robertson Road.

Health Department trapping efforts have also identified high infestation of mosquitoes in a section of south Nashville. A trap in the south Nashville neighborhood captured more than 100 female culex mosquitoes in one night. The culex species of mosquitoes are the ones most likely carry WNV.

There have been no human WNV cases reported this year in Davidson County.

The Health Department's Pest Management staff continues to trap mosquitoes in all parts of Davidson County and conduct surveillance of standing water and apply larvacide when mosquito larvae are present.

The most likely method of WNV transmission to humans and other animals is by biting mosquitoes that are carrying the disease. Therefore, the Health Department recommends community members take the following steps to protect themselves from mosquito bites, including:

* Limit time outdoors at dusk and nighttime hours when mosquitoes are present.
* If you must be outdoors then wear a mosquito repellent that is approved for use by the CDC - those include products that contain DEET, Picaridin, and Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus
* Wear shoes, socks, long sleeve shirts and pants when outdoors during dusk to dawn when mosquitoes are most prevalent. Clothing should be light colored and made of tightly woven materials to keep mosquitoes away from the skin. Pant legs should be tucked into shoes or socks, and collars should be buttoned.
* Make sure your windows and doors have screens and are in good repair.

Health Department officials will continue to monitor standing water areas and apply larvacide when mosquito larvae are present and place mosquito traps in all areas within Davidson County. Residents who would like to report mosquito problem areas are encouraged to contact the Health Department's Pest Management Services at 340-5660.

The Health Department seeks to make the spraying process as safe and effective as possible. We use all communication resources available to notify community members of when and where we will conduct spraying. Notification is provided on Thursdays for areas to be sprayed for the upcoming week.

MPHD Spray Notification Activity:

* Spray notification details with maps placed on MPHD website. (healthweb.nashville.gov - please note there is no www in our Internet address) To sign up for our e-mail notification, please go to our website and follow the step by step directions. Spray notification details placed on MHPD telephone hotline (340-5668). Use of Reverse 911 technology to send spray notification details to all households within the planned spray area with a telephone.
* Spray notification maps and details placed on Metro 3.
* Distribution of news releases with specific boundaries to news media complete with maps of the area to be sprayed.
* E-mail spray notification specifics with maps to Mayor's office and Mayor's Office of Neighborhoods.
* E-mail spray notification specifics and maps to Metro Council Members.
* E-mail spray notification specifics to Health Department "Health E-Mail" Subscribers.
* Spray notification details with maps provided to Davidson A.M. Section of the Tennessean.
* Health Department staff drive through each neighborhood within the boundaries two hours leading up to spraying to inform those outside that spraying will occur.
* Each spray team is made up of a three vehicle caravan:
* The lead vehicle is in place to provide any last minute notification to drivers or anyone outside that the spray truck is in operation. (When necessary, the person in the lead vehicle will radio to alert the person in the spray vehicle to turn off the spray unit before exposure occurs.)
* The second vehicle in the caravan is the truck with the spray unit. Each spray truck is equipped with yellow flashing lights. It is important to know the spray unit sounds similar to a chainsaw and that the compressor continues to operate even when the spray has been turned off.
* The third vehicle in the caravan with street signage stays well behind the spray unit and alerts vehicles or children on bicycles that they are approaching the spray unit while in operation.

The Health Department regularly contacts other cities that spray and has found no other city that provides more notification than what is done in Nashville.

Health officials recommend taking the necessary spraying precautions:
* Do not allow children or pets to follow the Mosquito Control truck while spray unit is engaged.
* Make sure children and adults are indoors during the spray process.
* Make yourself as visible as possible if you are outside when the trucks are in your area.
* Make sure pets are indoors or out of the front yard during the spraying process.
* Do not allow children or pets to play in your front yard until at least 30 minutes after the spray has been administered.
* Close windows and doors in your home during the spraying process.

The Health Department's caravan approach is in place as an added precaution to keep from administering the spray where people or pets are present in the front of any property.

Residents who do not want their property sprayed should contact the Health Department at 340-5668 or go to the Department's website (healthweb.nashville.gov) and sign up to be placed on the no spray list.

Spraying and larviciding will not fully eliminate the presence of mosquitoes. The health department stresses taking the necessary measures to reduce mosquitoes in your neighborhood:

* Reduce or eliminate all standing water in your yard - especially in children's toys, bird baths, clogged gutters, tires, flowerpots, trashcans, and wheelbarrows.
* Aerate ornamental pools or stock them with Gambusia fish.
* Apply mosquito dunks in standing water areas on your property.
* Cut back overgrown vegetation (mosquito hiding areas).

The Metro Public Health Department has a mosquito control information hotline with a recorded message about mosquito control efforts in Davidson County - 340-5668. Information is also available on Metro Channel 3 for Davidson County residents with cable and the health department's web site at healthweb.nashville.gov.