Easy Access to Cable Shows Available on Smartphones, Other Mobile Devices

Residents can now easily access and view live and recorded Montgomery County cable shows directly from their smartphones and other mobile devices from the County’s mobile website at http://m.montgomerycountymd.gov

This includes all of the shows cablecast on County Cable Montgomery, the County government channel (Channel 30 on the Verizon cable system and Channel 6 on RCN and Comcast). The shows range from the County’s weekly half-hour news show, “County Report This Week,” to “Council in Brief,” “Seniors Today,” “My Green Montgomery,” and County Council sessions, along with a variety of other interview and magazine-style shows, town hall meetings, and Spanish language programming.

To watch County cable shows using a smartphone or mobile device, go to the mobile site and tap on “apps and sites,” then “sites,” then “County Cable Montgomery,” and finally “programs,” where the shows are listed in alphabetical order by name. Tapping the show name brings up a brief description with air times on the cable channel, and a listing of individual episodes. Tapping the arrow next to the episode launches the show for viewing.

See what other features are on the mobile app.

Seniors, Families and Friends: Need to Get Around? Here’s How

A new flyer listing the variety of transportation options for older adults in Montgomery County is available both on online at the Senior Site or in a downloadable format (pdf). The listing is geared to seniors, their families and caregivers.

In addition, County Executive Ike Leggett has been distributing copies as he visits senior centers to discuss the Affordable Care Act with residents.

Copies will be available in County facilities such as senior centers, libraries and regional services centers in the near future.

Open Houses at Fire Stations Mark Fire Prevention Month

October is Fire Prevention Month and fire stations around Montgomery County will be hosting many educational, family-oriented activities and Open House events throughout the month.

This year’s theme focuses on the importance of preventing kitchen fires. The leading cause of fires in the kitchen is unattended cooking. While there can be “too many cooks in the kitchen,” having no cooks in the kitchen can be potentially far more dangerous.

All Open House events are free and will feature many activities, including tours of the station, fire safety activities, educational information/handouts, and demonstrations of emergency equipment.

See a schedule of Open Houses.

New “Montgomery Mosaic” Radio Show Featured on WOL-1450 AM

Montgomery County’s Office of Public Information is launching a new radio show on WOL-Radio 1450 AM. Starting October 16, the monthly, half-hour “Montgomery Mosaic” show will air live from 10:30 – 11 a.m. on the third Wednesday of each month.

The new show will include interviews with local elected officials and community leaders about topics of interest to the African American community. The show will be co-hosted by Deborah Milo, host of the County’s “Mosaic” cable show and WOL-Radio’s Ron Thompson.

The radio version extends the reach of the County’s cable show, “Mosaic: An African-American Perspective” to a broader audience. The cable show can be found on the Montgomery County government access channel, County Cable Montgomery (Channel 30 on the Verizon cable system, and Channel 6 on RCN and Comcast). Episodes are available for viewing on demand at http://montgomerycountymd.gov/CCM/mosaic.html.

• Read more about the new show.
• Check upcoming radio show calendar.

Film Festival, Presentations, STEP AFRIKA! Highlight Montgomery College’s Humanities Days

Two days of free student work, poster sessions, moderated films, faculty presentations and writing workshops at all Montgomery College Campuses on October 16 and 17 will celebrate the humanities and their effects on society.

Organized by The Global Humanities Institute and the Paul Peck Humanities Institute at Montgomery College, Humanities Days will culminate with a performance by renowned dance troupe, STEP AFRIKA!, Thursday, October 17 at the Cultural Arts Center on the Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus. Tickets are free, but reservations are required for the STEP AFRIKA! performance.

See a complete list/schedule of activities.

AARP Driver Safety Course Scheduled at Germantown Library

A four-and-a-half hour AARP (American Association of Retired Persons) Driver Safety course that will help tune up driving skills, teach safe driving strategies and update information on the rules of the road will be held at the Germantown Library on Wednesday, October 23 from 1 to 5:30 p.m. The library is at 19840 Century Blvd.

Information will be presented about normal age-related physical changes and how to adjust driving to allow for the changes. Students who complete the course will receive a certificate. Some insurance companies operating in Maryland consider drivers who take the course qualified for a reduced auto insurance premium.

Registration is $12 for AARP members and $14 for non-members and will be collected on class day. AARP members should bring their membership cards to class, and all participants should bring a check payable to AARP and a pen.

Registration is required and available online and the deadline is October 22 at 5 p.m.

For staff assistance, call the Germantown Library at 240-777-0110.

Registration Open for Semi-Annual Senior Spelling Bee

Montgomery County residents 55 years of age and older are invited to participate in the semi-annual Senior Spelling Bee, hosted by Friends of the Library, Montgomery County (FOLMC), on Saturday, November 9 at the Little Falls Library, 5501 Massachusetts Ave., Bethesda. All spellers must register by October 25.

The registration fee is $25 per person, and participants may seek sponsors to cover the fee. Sponsors will be acknowledged in program materials and at the event.

Persons may register by downloading an application at www.folmc.org/senior-spelling-bee/, calling 240-777-0020 or emailing staff@folmc.org.

County’s Solid Waste Services Division Earns Multiple Awards for Outreach, Education Campaigns

The Department of Environmental Protection’s Division of Solid Waste Services (DSWS) recently received seven awards in two international competitions -- the Telly Awards and the Hermes Creative Awards -- for its outreach and education efforts.

Founded in 1978, the Telly Awards honor excellence in local, regional and cable TV commercials, non-broadcast videos and TV programs. The 34th Annual Telly Awards received more than 12,000 entries from all 50 states and five continents.

           

Hermes Creative Awards is an international competition for creative professionals involved in the concept, writing and design of traditional materials and programs and emerging technologies.

Nominations for the DSWS campaigns were submitted by TRI (Technical Resources International) a Bethesda-based firm which provides support assistance to DSWS in its communications efforts. 

See a list of the awards.

Montgomery County Designated as Citizen-Engaged Community

Montgomery County has been designated as a 2013-2015 Citizen Engaged Community (CEC) by Public Technology Institute (PTI) for its MC311 online and telephone information system. PTI created this annual designation program to recognize excellence in multi-channel contact centers and best practices for the use of Citizen Relationship/Records Management (CRM) systems, 311 services, web portal technology, telephone systems and mobile communications infrastructure.

In addition, a recent Customer Satisfaction Survey of hundreds of users of the County’s MC311 call center showed that more than 85 percent of callers were satisfied with their overall 311 experience.

Montgomery County was one of 13 jurisdictions with populations of more than 300,000 to be selected for this distinction.

Read more.

October 30, 2013 - Public Meeting on a Proposed Pilot Urban Dog Park in Ellsworth Park

M-NCPPC Regional Office Building Auditorium, 8787 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring. 7 – 9 p.m. Montgomery Parks, part of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, is seeking input from the community about a proposed urban dog park in Ellsworth Park on Colesville Rd., just north of the Silver Spring Library. Park planners will answer questions and take ideas from the public for this and future urban dog park sites. Visit www.ParkPlanning.org for more information or contact the Project Coordinator, Dominic Quattrocchi at 301-650-4361.