Just a quick note to all of you that our pool season is here. For those of you who are up to date on your assessment payments, you should have received your pool passes and revised pool rules and regulations. Our pool season began Saturday, May 21 and runs through the Sunday following Labor Day weekend, Sept. 11. On weekdays before Memorial Day and on weekdays after Labor Day, the pool will be closed. On weekdays after Memorial Day and on weekdays before Labor Day, when public school (CMS) is in session, the pool will be open from 4 – 8 p.m. On weekends before Memorial Day and weekends after Labor Day, the pool will be open from 12 – 6 p.m.

June 2011 Volume 3, Issue 6 The Villager

Inside This Issue Gardening Column. Page 2 Contact Numbers/ Classified. Page 3 Neighborhood Services. Page 7 Block Party. Page 8 Pool Opening Party. Page 10

Pool Season is Finally Here!

Take Part in Free Aerobic Swim Class A free aerobic swim class will be led by Leacroft neighbor Michelle Dunham beginning Tuesday, June 14 and will meet every Tuesday and Thursday from 10 - 11 a.m., weather permitting, through Aug. 18. You do not have to attend all sessions. Just come whenever you feel like it. The first class will meet at the shallow end of the pool. For more information or to sign up,

Once school is out of session, on Saturday through Thursday, the pool will be open from 10 a.m. – 9 p.m. On Fridays, the pool will be open from 10 a.m. – 10 p.m. We look forward to seeing you there!

T h e V i l l a g e s o f L e a c r o f t

contact Deb Peters at (704) 231-4669 or via e-mail at DSPeters9@aol.com, or contact Michelle Dunham (704) 547-1311 or via e-mail at madunham01@yahoo.com. The best part about this class is that it’s free. NO COST! Tone up, lose weight or cool off all right here in the Villages of Leacroft. It doesn’t get any better than this.

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LenCon Travel Lencontravel.com

Lentucker@Carolina.rr.com 4500 Highcroft Lane

704-907-1430

Bucket List

Do you have a bucket list? If not, maybe you should start one. What would you love to do or where would you love to go? My insurance man always wanted to go to Australia. That was his goal all of his life. He is now in his 90s and tells me that he is now too old to go. A bucket list that will never be completed. Don’t let that happen to you. My bucket list included a river boat cruise in Europe, zipline across the tree tops in Costa Rica, climb Machu Picchu (at least part of the way) and the list goes on. Let me know what is on your list.

What a beautiful North Carolina Day! The heavy rains of the last few days are gone and your vegetable plants should be thriving from the cleansing bath and the strong sun. If you’ve been following my Gardening 101 column, you should be beginning to see some yellow flowers on your tomato plants. A farmer in New Jersey once told me that if you tickle the flowers it will help them grow faster. It’s similar to pollination. (He didn’t exactly use those words, but this is a family newsletter.) I still make sure to tickle them every year. The tomato plants should be the first to flower, but the others won’t be far behind. If you planted herbs, you should already be using your cilantro in your cooking. Some of the residents of The Villages of Leacroft have already tested mine out.

OK, so now you have a very impressive looking garden. I would love to come and see it during one of my many walks through the neighborhood. When I visited with Maryann and Joe Mercier last week, they introduced me to fresh rosemary. It’s very fragrant and can be used as a wonderful landscape plant. I now have rosemary in my garden. The hot weather in June will start bringing out all the bugs. There are many ways to get rid of the pests both chemically and organically. I haven’t heard of anyone in The Villages of Leacroft being bothered by deer, but I do know that our neighborhood has an over-abundance of rabbits. Rabbits don’t like the smell of marigolds, so surrounding your garden with marigolds will help keep them out. Another natural deterrent to rabbits and small rodents is cayenne pepper. You can sprinkle this around the garden, and it won’t harm any of the plants. The cabbageworm is another large problem in this area. The cabbageworm will make large holes in the leaves of your cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and collards. The best way to deal with them is by just picking them off. Of course, you have to see them to do this, and they are pretty sneaky little things. They are usually not out in the garden the same time as we are. Small insects like aphids can be washed off

either with a commercial insecticide spray or just plain soap and water. Don’t get discouraged about the number of bugs and insects, remember the vegetables you buy in the supermarket have already been cleaned and washed of bugs. Also remember, the bugs and insects were here first, and we are on their turf - the outdoors. We don’t want them inside, and they probably don’t want us outside. In the meantime, take it easy, enjoy the sunny, longer days and happy gardening. Next month: Helpful books and Internet sites on gardening in the Piedmont.

Gardening 101 – by Deb Peters

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Classifieds

Sofa Bed For Sale!!!

$100 or Best Offer Contact Louis or Stacye

at (704) 503-5305

Are you selling something? Leacroft residents receive free classifieds for personal items only and for up to a maximum of 3 consecutive months.

HOA Board HOABoard@Leacroft.org

President, Joe Mercier (704) 302-1565

Vice President, Nick Sackinger (704) 641-0046

Secretary, Tami Merry (704) 717-4942

Treasurer, Jennifer DeMartino (704) 503-7723

At-Large Member, William Blackburn (704) 548-9866

Leacroft Committees

Architectural Review mw99nd@gmail.com Mike Wisniewski (704) 728-2098 Common Areas (Pool, Pool House, Tennis Courts, Playground, Parking Lot) Frank Keenan fkeenan989@aol.com Events Chair dsjsmoore@earthlink.net Jessica Moore (704) 549-1449 Outreach asbger1234@edandgerrigercak.com Gerri Gercak (704) 280-6034 Communications divamom3@bellsouth.net Cheryl Jefferson (704) 549-0549 Landscaping eochisolm@bellsouth.net Elvira Chisolm (704) 717-7007 Bylaws & CC&Rs vsmith109@hotmail.com Vince Smith (704) 547-1206 Block Captains dspeters9@aol.com Deb Peters (704) 593-1271 Swim Team Manager campfaler@earthlink.net Wendy Faler (704 510-0052 Yard of the Month maeh_gran@bellsouth.net Bob Matthews (704) 503-0887 Additional Contacts

Henderson Management (704) 535-1122

Fax (704) 569-9669

Contact: Julie Shadrick

Email hoa@hendersonproperties.com 704-970-4155

Pool House (704) 549-5803

University City CMPD Response Area 1 (704) 432-3900

Tennis Courts Code 3241

CharMeck Services 311

Important Contact Numbers

Have a comment or suggestion? Drop

us a note in the locking mailbox in the common area

near the playground.

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Event Committee Join us for our monthly planning meetings. Bring your ideas and suggestions.

Help us determine what events we have and when. You can have a say in how YOUR neighborhood events are run!!!

All first-time visitors will receive a FREE coffee drink of their choice.

All meetings are held on the FIRST Sunday of each month EXCEPT where noted.

June 5th, 7pm July 17th, 7pm

August 7th, 7pm September 18th, 7pm

October 2nd, 7pm November 6th, 7pm

No meeting in December Meet at Dilworth Coffee House ~ Prosperity Church Rd.

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Neighborhood Events

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Neighborhood Events, continued

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Babysitting: Sarah Moore (Red Cross certified)……......704-593-0306 Kylie Brown…….704-549-0674 Jillian Manning…704-510-9296 Pet Sitting: Daniel Faler……..704-510-0052 Colin Moore........704-593-0306 Noah Milan……...704-277-4654 AL’s Pet Sitting (Amy & Lisa DeCoste)……….704-966-6644 Jillian Manning…704-510-9296 Lawn mowing: Daniel Faler……..704-510-0052 Colin Moore........704-593-0306 Parker McGinnis..704-458-2276 Car washing: Daniel Faler........704-510-0052 Please have your parent or legal guardian call or e-mail me to ensure your place on the list. Contact info: Kimberly Blackburn knblackburn@yahoo.com 704-548-9866

Neighborhood Services

Committee Updates

Committee Name: Block Captains Chair: Deb Peters Block captains have delivered The Villager for May to all the houses in their area. As an added request, they were also asked by our HOA to deliver our community surveys. These dedicated people should be thanked for providing the delivery of The Villager each month. If you do not have a tube on your mailbox, they will leave it in your front door. The Villager is one of the many community resources available to find out what is going on in The Villages of Leacroft. In the coming months, with the warmer weather many families will be outside playing after dinner. If you are one of those families and happen to see your block captain delivering The Villager, you may want to introduce yourself. It’s just another way of people meeting more people. Next meeting date: No regular meetings, but we do all stay in touch by phone or e-mail. We will be having a “thank you” barbeque at my (Deb Peters) house sometime this summer for all the block captains. Although we have enough block captains right now, there is always a need for alternatives or back-ups. If interested, you can contact me at (704) 593-1271 or DSPeters9@aol.com. Committee Name: Communications Committee Chair: Cheryl Jefferson We recently had a question about neighbors parking in front of others’ driveways and garbage on pickup day. Did you know that, besides being a nuisance, this is

Continued on page 11

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May’s Yard of the Month

Greg & Judith orth 10322 Fairborne Court

The Orth’s Receive a $25 Harris Teeter Gift Card

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POP 2011

(Pool Opening Party)

When: Friday, June 10th Time: 6pm-10pm Who: Everyone Where: Pool Cost: FREE Bring: B-Y-O-Drinks/Snacks (NO glass)

Come One, Come All to POP 2011.

PIZZA and a movie IN THE POOL.

~~~We will begin serving pizza at 6:30pm.~~~ Hang out, eat and swim with your family and/or friends for a while. Then at 8:30pm, we will pop some popcorn and begin the following movie – in the pool!

~~~“Gnomeo and Juliet” (rated G)~~~ So swim around or relax on your floats while watching this funny family-friendly flick. Rule Reminders: Please remember NO GLASS in the pool area! There is also NO EATING IN the pool.

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also illegal parking? I would personally suggest talking to the offending neighbor first, but if all else fails, I was advised by Char-Meck 311 that you can call them to have the vehicle towed. Response time, I was told, will depend on the call volume on that particular day. We on the Communications Committee would also like to thank all of the neighbors who have become Facebook friends on our Villages of Leacroft page. This has become a great tool for neighbors to communicate anything from general aesthetic concerns, to neighborhood information, to even concerns about possible neighborhood crime. If you haven’t “friended” us yet, take the time to do so! It's a very easy way to keep in touch with your neighbors. Meetings: 4th Tuesday of each month, 7 – 8 p.m. Committee Name: Event Planning Team (EPT) Chair: Jessica Moore

Recently held the Easter Egg Hunt on 4/19 and the Community Garage Sale on 4/30.

Next meeting date: June 5, 7 p.m. at Dilworth Coffee House

Phone number of contact person: (704) 549-1449, Jessica Moore Committee Name: Outreach Program Chair: Gerri Gercak We welcomed a family into the neighborhood on Canterbrook (4022 Canterbrook - Trey and Betty). Pam Wisniewski took over their bag of goodies, and I baked some cupcakes for them. We also made dinners for Deb Peters for about a week and also several of the committee members have been driving her to physical therapy. I have also been around our neighborhood and have made a list of all the houses for sale. Next meeting date: Call Gerri Gercak at (704) 280-6034

Committee Updates, continued from page 7