Harford County Council

District A Happenings
April 1, 2015

Volume 1, Issue 6

Sending Out Ripples

Earthquakes start deep underground, the point of land right above where an earthquake begins is the epicenter. When the violent movement begins beneath the Earths surface, earthquakes send out waves of vibration, like ripples on a lake after a rock is thrown into it. Usually epicenters are thought to be places of destruction; however The EPICENTER at Edgewood is far from destructive.
The EPICENTER at Edgewood, under Executive Director Dave Woods, wants to send out those large ripples,
but in a way which will build up the community, not tear it down. Opening in October 2013 at 1918 Pulaski
Highway, Edgewood, MD 21040, it has contributed to the overall revitalization of the area.
The facility itself is a community center which is open throughout the week for various programs. It also
serves as host for the Edgewood Campus of Mountain Christian Church. Mountain Christian Church wanted
to invest in the Edgewood community by opening The EPICENTER to create opportunities for local residents.
The goal was to create a place for people of all different churches to find a place to belong, serve and give
back. The church also wanted to leverage opportunities for grants and other types of support often available
to community centers but not available to churches. They are unsettled by the stigma associated with Edgewood and believe the negativity is often undeserved and over-played, rooted in fear and ignorance. Never(Continued on page 2)

2015-2016
Harford Fire Cadet
Application Deadline

April 15, 2015

Get the Application HERE.
Contact John Richter at
443-903-8098 or jrichter@hcvfa.org

Council Office Contact

Information
Office Phone: 410-638-3521
Cell Phone: 443-752-2598
Email: DistrictA@HarfordCountyCouncil.com
Come talk to me the Second Sunday of each
month at the Joppatowne Flea Market from
2 pm to 4 pm.
Legislative Aide
Donna Blasdell
Office Phone: 410-638-4109 x1813

Sending Out Ripples (Cont.)

theless, they are not blind to the challenges evident
in Edgewood, and wanted to make an investment in
a place they care about.

itual, emotional, and physical growth. Transportation is available from local schools for an additional cost.

One does not have to be a member of Mountain

Christian Church to participate in the programs.
People from all different churches and backgrounds
are invited and encouraged to participate in The EPICENTER programs or volunteer to further The EPICENTERs mission of Empowering People, Strengthening Families, and Building Community.

TEEN NIGHT On Wednesday nights, The EPICENTER partners with Mountain Christian Church to
offer Echo & Collide for Middle School and High
School students. Its a great place for students to
hang out, enjoy some time with friends, and
make new ones. Between the hours of 6:30 pm
and 8:30 pm games, food, fun, music and some
incredible learning are on tap.

The EPICENTER offers programs in four main areas:

Youth,
Adults,
Recovery, and
Health and Wellness.

CAMP EPIC is a six week summer program for

children ages 5 through 14. During the summer,
Monday through Friday from 7:30 am to 5:30 pm
camp will be in session. Children have daily opportunities to explore Reading, Math, Science &
Technology, Sports, Art, Music, Dance & Drama
in fun and different ways. There are weekly trips
to various places (swimming, bowling, skating
museums, etc.). Breakfast, lunch and an afternoon snack are served daily. Camp EPIC has capacity for 150 children. As part of Camp Epic, The
EPICENTER offers a Leader in Training Program
for 14 to 16 year olds. This program has a limit
of 20 children.

Each of these areas have specific programs targeted

to meet the needs of the entire Edgewood community.

Youth Programs
THE ZONE is an affordable after school program for
local students. Between the hours of 3:00 pm and
6:00 pm The Zone features a safe, welcoming, fun,
educational environment for students in grades K-8.
The whole building is open to students with space
to play, to get help with homework, and to experience a variety of enrichment experiences. Caring
adults are available to welcome students and invest
in their education, self-esteem, and all around spir-

(Continued on page 3)

Sending Out Ripples (Cont.)

days at 7:00 OM. Originally started as a jail based
ministry, OIC helps individuals overcome all types of
addictive or dysfunctional behavior such as alcohol,
drugs, sex, and gambling.

Adults Programs
FREE INTERNET CAF. The EPICENTER is open from
10 am to 2 pm for adults to drop in and enjoy a
comfortable environment while getting work done
or searching the web. The EPICENTER offers help
with using computers, filling out forms, and creating resumes for those people who would like assistance

AL-ANON. The EPICENTER runs an Al-Anon program

on Tuesdays at 6:30 pm. Al-Anon is for anyone who
has been affected by alcoholism. If you are concerned about someone elses drinking, the Al-Anon
program can offer help. Al-Anon Family Groups are a
fellowship of relatives and friends of alcoholics who
share their experience, strength and hope in order to
solve their common problems.

OPEN GYM. Tuesday through Fridays, The EPICENTER basketball gym is open for members of the
community to play during the day. To use the gym,
you must register and sign a liability form in person
during posted Open Gym hours.

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS. Meeting on Thursdays at

7:30 pm is Alcoholics Anonymous. This is a fellowship
of men and women who share their experience,
strength and hope with each other to solve their
common problem and help others to recover from
alcoholism. The only requirement for membership is
a desire to stop drinking.

JOBS FOR LIFE. For a very minimal cost, The EPICENTER offers Jobs for Life on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm, running from March
17 through May 21, 2015, The Jobs for Life program
is designed to provide the skills needed to get a job.
Through this training, men and women develop
character and become connected to a community
of support. They learn to obtain more than just a
job as they experience a life filled with confidence,
self-control, coaching, learning, and faith.

NARCOTIC ANONYMOUS. Meeting on Friday at 7:00

pm, Narcotics Anonymous provides help from peers
and offers an ongoing support network for addicts
who wish to pursue and maintain a drug-free lifestyle.

Recovery Programs

Health and Wellness

Addictive behaviors hurt many people in our community. The EPICENTER offers several programs to
help community members learn the skills necessary
to overcome their addiction and stay sober.

In keeping with its goal to help the community in all

areas, The EPICENTER offers several exercise classes
throughout the week. For a fee, community members can participate in classes such as EveryDaie Fitness (featuring certified instructor Daie Henry),
Zumba or Kettlebell Fitness.

OVERCOMERS IN CHRIST. In partnership with

Mountain Christian Church, The EPICENTER offers
the Overcomers in Christ (OIC) program on Mon-

On the second Friday of each month starting at 2:00

pm, The EPICENTER has a free Mini Health Fair. People can have their blood pressure checked, visit a chiropractor, or even receive a massage. At 3:00 pm, in
partnership with several organizations, The EPICENTER opens up its food pantry.

Joppa/Joppatowne community residents

have a way to communicate with each other and share the wonderful things happening in the area. Head on over to Facebook
and join our new community:

Programs run by organizations such at The EPICENTER at Edgewood are always in need of assistance.
Right now the greatest need at The EPICENTER is volunteers , especially adults to work one on one with

https://www.facebook.com/
JoppatowneMD

(Continued on page 6)

More Month Than Money

How did you do with finding way to cut your expenses and free up some of your hard earned cash?
If you think you have gone as far as you can go and
still feel stretched, now would be the time to look
into what other help can be provided. You can visit
the Maryland Department of Human Resources
Service Access and Information Link (SAIL). This
state website can help you determine if you are
eligible for services such as Energy Assistance, the
Food Supplement Program, Child Care Assistance,
etc. Utilizing these types of programs while you are
paying down your debt can help free up even more
of your cash.

vices or cell phones. Cutting out those services for

a time period can save a large amount of money.
One exception is the internet if you use it for
work, but make sure you chose the internet service you need, not the one you want.
Food and groceries are also needed to survive.
This is another area where you have the largest
chance to save money. There are many ways to
save money here. The potential for greatest savings is to stop eating out. Think about using a
crockpot, having meals in the freezer, stop running to the coffee shop for a latte every morning.
The next time will have more ideas on how to save
in this area.

You can also contact BGE directly for a free energy

audit. This program can help identify ways to save
on your energy bill. They will also provide money
saving items such as faucet aerators, low flow
shower head and energy efficient light bulbs. Using
these types of products and being given specific
suggestions on how and where to save money can
increase your savings.

Transportation includes what you need to get to

your job and run the needed errands. This would
include a car payment, the insurance, gas and repair money. Or it could include bus fare money, a
commuter ticket for the train, or other costs for
using public transportation. If you have a large car
payment you may want to consider downsizing to
a different car. Do you really need a high end SUV
to get you back and forth to work? You can sell
the car, hopefully pay off the loan and have
enough to buy a beater car. The beater is a
usually an older car, in decent condition. The goal
is to not have a car payment. With this type of car,
you can probably change your insurance and save
money. The idea behind the beater car is to save
the car payment money and split into three savings areas, car repairs, car replacement, and paying down debt. There will be a column in the future about this topic.

Lets check the progress so far: you know your expenses, know when the money is coming in and
when it has to go out. You have reduced your expenses. However when you check the budget, you
find you still have more expenses that income. In
other words you are in the red and are most likely
using credit cards to fill the gap. hen you make the
conscious decision to stop the debt cycle, it will be
hard, but to get out of debt, it needs to be done.
Now you must be wondering how do you know
what to pay when you cant pay them all?
Think about what are the most important things
you need to survive? Shelter, food and transportation. These items comprise the four walls and are
the ones you pay first.

Once you pay the four walls, you look to what you
have left over to pay the remaining bills. For illustration purposes, lets assume the family has $100
left over to pay the bills. However the monthly
payments on their bills total $200.

Shelter items are comprised

of rent or mortgage, utilities, and insurance. Think
about what expenses keep
the roof over your head.
They do not include things
like cable TV, internet ser-

(Continued on page 5)

More Month Than Money (Contd)

Here is the breakdown of the minimum payments:
Visa 1
Visa 2
Kohls
Student Loan

each credit card. This is how you would figure it

out:

$80
$40
$50
$30

Total monthly payments for these to credit cards:

$40 + $50 = $90.
Visa 2
$40/$90
.444
Kohls
$50/$90
.555
So now what do you do? You dont have the money to
make the all payments. Are you taking a cash advances Each card will receive that percentage of the payfrom one credit card to make the payment on ment. Lets figure out the payments.
the other? If you are, stop it digs a deeper hole.
Money available for payment :
$70.00
The first thing you do with the left over money is to
Visa 2 will get 44.4 percent of the available money.
take 10 percent and put it in a savings account. I know
$70 x .444 = $31.08 = $31.15
you are thinking why should I do that when I cant pay
(Continued on page 6)
my bills. You need to start building a cushion for unplanned expenses, which always come up. Having this
cushion removes the need to use credit card. The first
Volunteers
goal for the emergency fund is to reach $500 and then
$1,000. After you reach $1,000 you can stop for a
Needed!!
while and apply all the money to the debt.
After you take out the $10 it leaves $90 to pay the
bills. What is first thing you should do? Call your creditors, starting with the student loan servicer and see if
you can place the loan in deferment for a time. If you
can do this, it will free up an additional $30.00 to pay
on the other credit cards. Then call the other creditors
and see if you can work out reduced payments. In our
example we are going assume you are able to get a
deferment on your student loan and Visa 1 will allow a
$50 a month payment. With the deferment and Visa 1
reducing the payment your monthly payments are
now $140. With the $30 saving from the deferment
you now have $120 to pay toward your bills. However
it still comes up short, so what do you do?
First of all you pay the $50 for Visa 1. They worked
with you and deserve to paid according to your agreement. Now you have $70 remaining to pay Visa 2 and
Kohls. How do you split it up? There are several ways
to do this. You can write a letter saying you are
splitting the money you have to pay the credit cards
between the two accounts, so each account will receive $35.00. The letter will go with every payment to
each creditor, every month. Another way is add up the
monthly payments and figure up a percentage to pay
5

The Edgewood Community is seeking your

help in planning and hosting two events we
believe help foster a positive image of our
community. We are seeking assistance from
the Harford County community to make
these events happen this year. We strongly
believe helping Edgewood greatly benefits
Harford County as a whole.
If you, or an organization you know are
willing to help please contact one or both of
the event coordinators listed below.
Edgewood Independence Day
Celebration Parade Coordinator
Veronica Black
410-868-2796
veronblack@hotmail.com

Edge WoodStock Coordinator

Jansen Robinson
410-258-4552
Jansen.robinson@hotmail.com

Sending Out Ripples

More Month Than

Money (Contd)

(Cont.)
the youth in the after school program. Mr. Woods
goal is to have at least one caring adult for each
child in the program. Mr. Woods has seen the
difference in a childs life when they have one person there just for them for two to three hours a
week. If you can help meet this goal, please call The
EPICENTER to sign up.

Kohls will get 55.5 percent of the available money

$70 x .555 = $38.85
The payment will total $69.73. You can decide
where to put the remaining 27 cents. Once again,
write a letter of explanation and send it with every
payment.
Lets go through another exercise.

With all of these uplifting and enlightening programs, The EPICENTER has started to make those
ripples throughout the Edgewood community. The
EPICENTER continues to develop programs and opportunities which will be of value to the community. Make sure to visit the website often to see what
fun and exciting new or returning programs are
available. www.TheEpiCenteratEdgewood.com

Visa 1 did not reduce the payment. Now you have

three credit cards to pay. Lets figure out the percentages.
Total monthly credit card payments:
$80 + $40 + $50 = $170.
Visa 1
Visa 2
Kohls

$80/$170
$40/$170
$50/$170

.470
.235
.294

Now figure out each monthly payment amount.

Money available for payment
Visa 1
Visa 2
Kohls

$120.00

$120 x .470 = $56.40

$120 x .235 = $28.20
$120 x .294 = $35.28

The payment total would be $119.88. Again decide how you will use the additional 22 cents.
Once again, write a letter of explanation and send
it with every payment

Internet Caf
Tuesday through Friday
10 am - 2 pm

You now have two tools to help you pay something towards each bill and be able to keep a roof
over your head and feed the family. In the next
column we will focus on saving money in the kitchen.

Free Wi-Fi Access

Loaner Computers Available
Faxing & Copying On-Site

Upcoming Columns
Cooking up the Savings
Emergency Fund. Who Needs it?
Getting That Snowball Rolling

Surf the internet, research, job

search, and connect with others

Around the District Happenings

Anita C. Leight Estuary Center

Abingdon Library (Cont.)

Schools Out! Natural Easter Egg Dying

04/03/2015
3:00-4:30 pm

Sensory Story Time

04/11/2015
10:30-11:30 am

Full Moon Paddle Series

03/15/2015
1:00-3:00 pm

Little LEAPERS 3.5: Digital Camp

4/13/2015
10:30-11:15 am

Muskrat Matinee
04/03/2015
7:00-9:30 pm

Edgewood Library

To Be an Osprey
04/04/2015
10:30 am-12:00 pm

Booked for Lunch

04/01/2015
11:30 am-12:30 pm

Hoppin Down the Leight Park Trail

04/04/2015
1:30-3:00 pm

In the Garden: Baby Plants

04/13/2015
10:30-11:30 am

Monarch and Milkweed Springfest

04/10/2015
12:00-4:00 pm
Invasinators
04/11/2015

9:00-11:00 am

Hello Sun!
04/11/2015

10:00-11:30 am

Legal Education Speakers Series

04/13/2015
6:30-8:00 pm
LEAP: We Love Bees
04/14/2015
6:30-7:30 pm

Joppa Library

High Tide Marsh Paddle

03/28/2015
1:00-3:00 pm

Boating Skills & Seamanship Course

Eight week course, which began on Monday,
03/02/2015 7:00-9:00pm
You must attend all sessions.

Critter Dinner Time

04/11/2015
1:30-2:30 pm
Welcome Back Hummingbirds
04/12/2015
1:00-2:30 pm
Meet a Critter
04/12/2015

Knitting for Beginners and Advanced Beg.

Meets weekly on Wednesdays 6:30-8:30 pm

Sing Along with the Movies Night

04/09/2015
6:00-8:00 pm

3:30-4:00 pm

Volunteer Appreciation: Brookside Garden Tour

04/12/2015
7:00 am-3:00 pm

Teen After Hours

04/10/2015
5:00-8:00 pm
Little LEAPERS 3.5: Digital Camp
4/15/2015
10:30-11:15 am

Abingdon Library
Boosting Morale: Art Out of Conflict Exhibit
04/09/2015 through 05/30/2105

Sustainable Gardening
04/04/2015
10:15 am-12:15 pm
Crafternoon for Teens
04/09/2015
2:00-3:00 pm

House of Worship Events

2015 Lord of Life Lutheran Church
Spring Family Fest
April 25th 8 am - 2 pm
Tables Available for
Flea Market Vendors, Crafters and Businesses
$15.00 per table for flea market vendors and crafters
$20.00 per table for businesses
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Food Pantry Available Every Thursday

5:00 pm - 6 pm
Serving all of Harford County
For more information:
Email: Travel with Shawn@comcast.net
Call/Text: 410-812-2040

501 Sequoia Drive

Edgewood, MD 21040

Copley Parish
Spaghetti
Bingo

Do you want to get the

word out about an
event?

April 11, 2015

Dinner starts at 6:00 pm
Bingo starts at 7:00 pm
$6.00 Per Person

Let us know and we will include it on

this page.

700 Anchor Drive

Joppa, MD 21085

Contact us at
For more information
Call: 410-679-8700

DistictA@HarfordCountyCouncil.com
8

Spotlights on:
Homeland Security and Emergency
Preparedness Program
Joppatowne High School
In 2003, the idea of bringing a unique set of courses to the students of Joppatowne High
School was conceived. This idea quickly materialized into a program based on the emerging
job market of the region, Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (HSEP). It is estimated the Homeland Security industry is increasing from the 40 billion dollar business of
2004 to a 180 billion dollar industry by 2015. The program at Joppatowne High School introduces students to careers and educational experiences available in this ever-growing industry.
The HSEP Program integrates current practices and technologies used by both governmental
and private sector agencies. Instruction revolves around how the United States protects itself
against threats to public health and safety by using effective communication, prevention, response and recovery techniques. All students in the HSEP Program take Course 1 their 10th
grade year.
Course 1: Foundations in HSEP focuses on the interdependence of HSEP agencies, guidelines
and concepts. Students research and develop action plans used at the federal, state, and local
levels. After completing this foundational course, students choose one of three pathways to
complete: Homeland Security Sciences, Administration of Justice or Information/
Communication Technology. In the 11th grade students take two courses specific to their chosen pathway. In their senior year, students participate in an internship/capstone project or
complete a GIS Technician Certification. Students present their projects in the final months of
their senior year.
Students are exposed to hands-on experiences which are unable to be offered in the traditional
classroom setting. The HSEP program trains them for todays emergency preparedness industries, but teaches the
skills needed for tomorrows command, control and communication (C3) demands. The program includes relevant instruction and provides opportunities for networking with
peers and professionals already working in the field. The
program has arrangements with three area colleges to provide college credits for the completed courses.
For more information on this educational opportunity please
contact the program coordinator, Ms. Erica Kelly, by phone
410-612-1510 or email: Erica.Kelly@hcps.org