This Famous Artist Had an Interesting Answer to the Question "So What Did You Do in the War, Daddy?" If you know the history of the 603rd Camouflage Engineers, the picture below will take on a new perspective. That's because it's a triple salute this week—Memorial Day, the 92nd birthday of Ellsworth Kelly on May 31, and the June 6 commemoration of D-Day.Kelly, while a sculptor and printmaker, is most known for his Color Field painting, a minimalist school that emphasized color and simplicity of form, similar to the work of Morris Louis and Kenneth Noland.Kelly's artistic training includes School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, but his start was in the U.S. Army. In a story kept secret for more than 50 years, he served in the U.S. Army's 23rd He... 05/21/2015

Gaithersburg Water Park Opens for Season on May 23rd Splash into summer at the Gaithersburg Water Park. The season begins at noon on Saturday, May 23 and continues through Labor Day. Hours are limited during pre- and post-season, May 23 through June 12 and August 31 through September 7. The Water Park is located within Bohrer Park near the Skate Park, Miniature Golf Course and Activity Center at 512 South Frederick Avenue, next to Gaithersburg High School.This is a City of Gaithersburg announcement.Use this link for more information. Kentlands Spring Photowalk IMG 2871Photograph by Roy Kelley Roy and Dolores Kelley Photographs 05/20/2015

Kentlands Memorial Day Bash The Annual Kentlands Memorial Day Bash is scheduled to take place on the Kentlands Clubhouse lawn on Monday, May 25, 2015 from noon to 2 p.m. This event is for Kentlands residents only. Single head of household members are allowed to bring a guest. You will need to bring your food and beverages. Grills will be ready. The Kentlands Citizens Assembly will supply side dishes, desserts, condiments and the tools you will need for grilling.Note: Pool passes will not be updated on Memorial Day. Please stop by the office before May 23rd to update your facilities passes to ensure your household can use the pool on Memorial Day. Use this link to register for the event. Kentlands Spring Photowalk IMG 2930Photograph by Roy Kelley Roy and Dolores Kelley Photographs 05/19/2015

DC Metro Area Home Sales: Median Days on the Market, April, 2015 When homes are sold with a very low number of days on the market, it is a good indication that home buyers need to be well prepared for market conditions that will require responsive decisions and may very well involve multiple contract competition.Prospective home buyers are advised to use the services of an exclusive buyer agent to provide local community statistics and conditions that should influence the decisions that will need to be made. “At 14 days, the median days-on-market (DOM) increased by one day from last April, but dropped significantly from 25 days in March 2015.  Median days-on-market remains five days lower than the 5-year April average of 19, and is 15 days lower than the 10-year average of 29 days.  Sin... 05/19/2015

DC Metro Area Median Home Prices by Jurisdiction, April, 2015 When you are planning to move your family to the Metro Area of Washington, DC, one of the first questions is where to live. The area is large, diverse and has some very challenging traffic conditions. The location of a home is often driven by the time and distance to work locations. It is not unusual for people living in Maryland to work in the District of Columbia or in northern Virginia.As a very general guide, communities closer to DC have higher home prices. The following chart shows the median home prices during April for the many area jurisdictions. We recommend the use a a local exclusive buyer agent to provide data on specific communities and to guide prospective home buyers through the decision making process.“Total ... 05/18/2015

Neighborhood Matching Grant Program in Gaithersburg The City of Gaithersburg began accepting applications on Friday, May 15, 2015, for funding under the Frederick J. Felton Neighborhood Matching Grant Program. The program provides an incentive for neighborhood organizations to improve their communities by awarding dollar-for-dollar matching grants of up to $5,000. $60,000 is allocated for this purpose in the proposed Fiscal Year 2016 budget.Neighborhood groups and associations have used these funds for such things as sidewalk enhancement, lighting upgrades, signage, fence replacement, parking lot enhancements, community block parties, and even neighborhood birdhouses.Application forms are available here. The deadline to apply is Wednesday, July 15, 2015.For more information on the progr... 05/18/2015

Kentlands Community Dinner, Saturday, June 13th Saturday, June 13, 20156-10 p.m.Kentlands Market Square Mark your calendars now for an al fresco community dinner to celebrate Kentlands 25th Anniversary. The event is open to Kentlands residents, businesses and neighbors of all ages. Market Square and the surrounding streets (Market Street East and Market Street West from Center Point Way to Main Street) will be filled with tables for diners and tents of food offerings.Sample amazing local fare and enjoy a warm summer evening under the lights and stars with friends, family and neighbors. For added enjoyment, the Wine Harvest will offer an assortment of local beers and wines. Dining tables will be set along the closed streets and in the Square, and local entertainers will circulate through... 05/17/2015

Montgomery County Adult Softball Leagues Registration Montgomery County Recreation has announced that registration is open now until June 1, 2015 for men’s and coed softball leagues.The leagues provide five weeks of doubleheader games and end-of-the-season playoffs. The leagues generally appeal to teams of varying skill levels looking for a shorter season.Men’s (course #407119) games will be played on Sunday evenings beginning June 7. Coed (course #407120) games will be played Wednesday evenings starting June 10. All games are played in the Layhill, Aspen Hill and Olney areas.The team registration fee of $495 for County teams and $545 for non-County teams is due at the time of registration.Registration is available four ways: go to www.montgomerycountymd.gov/rec and click on RecWeb icon... 05/17/2015

Kentlands Pools Opening May 23rd The lap, social and baby pools will open every day beginning May 23 through September 7, 2015.  Any changes will be noted in the Express, on Facebook and the Kentlands website.The lap pool will be closed during Kentlands Kingfish Swim Team meets.  The Kingfish schedule will be available on the Kentlands website at www.kentlandsusa.com in May in the online Summer Recreation Guide.Pool Hours for May 23 through September 7 (Labor Day)Daily - Entire Pool:  9:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.Mon., Wed., and Fri.:  Lap Pool Only (beginning May 27): 6 am to 9 amThe pool hours for July 4:  9 a.m. to 5 p.m.The pool will close at 4 p.m. on August 29 for a special community event held on the pool deck.The early morning lap swim will be available in the social pool when the Swim Te... 05/16/2015

Facebook Group: Flowers If you enjoy flowers and flower photographs, you may wish to expand your social media presence by joining the Flowers group on Facebook. This group has over 43,000 members. Facebook groups allow you to share personal or business interests far beyond the number of your Facebook friends or followers.  Egyptian Star Cluster, Longwood Gardens, Kennett Square, PA USA IMG 2612Canon PowerShot G11 Camera, f/4.5, 1/160 sec., ISO-160, 30 mm, No Flash   Photograph by Roy Kelley   Roy and Dolores Kelley Photographs 05/16/2015

Whole Foods to Cater to Millennials Whole Foods has thrived over the years by selling pricey food to high end customers. Chef Dolores has certainly enjoyed their store in Kentlands, our home community.  However, the current store model evidently is not as appealing as desired from the perspective of the growing millennials base of customers.Millennials are getting married and having children later than their parents did and they are working on modest budgets and largely have households of one according to a Washington Post report by Roberto Ferdman.Whole Foods plans to open lower priced stores that will offer a value oriented experience geared towards millennial shoppers. Details will be provided in future announcements. Millennials have already become the largest living generation in t... 05/15/2015

Help Protect Kids from Heatstroke We have experienced some unusually hot weather in Montgomery County, Maryland and the Montgomery County Fire & Rescue Service has issued this reminder to help protect kids from heatstroke. Reduce the number of deaths from heatstroke by remembering to ACT. A: Avoid heatstroke-related injury and death by never leaving your child alone in a car, not even for a minute. And make sure to keep your car locked when you’re not in it so kids don’t get in on their own.  C: Create reminders by putting something in the back of your car next to your child such as a briefcase, a purse or a cell phone that is needed at your final destination. This is especially important if you’re not following your normal routine. T: Take action. If you see a child alone in a car, cal... 05/15/2015

Confidence Title & Escrow Ice Cream Social Warm weather networking is at it's best at the Confidence Title & Escrow Ice Cream Socials that are held from May through September. The first event for this season will take place on May 20, 2015 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Bruster's  Ice Cream in Gaithersburg. The social is free for all members of the real estate industry. It is a good time to connect with area real estate professionals and mortgage loan officers. I am already thinking about my favorite flavors of ice cream! 05/15/2015

Kentlands Community Yard Sale The Annual Kentlands Community Yard Sale will take place on Saturday, June 6th from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at the Clubhouse lawn. There will be 10' x 10' spaces designated to each participating household at the non-refundable rate of $10 per space. Payment is due by May 31st. Reservations made after May 31st will be $20 per space.Check-in and set-up starts at 7:00 a.m. on the day of the event. Note: Spaces are not guaranteed until payment is received.  Spaces are assigned the day of the event. Chairs, tables, tents and umbrellas are not provided. Be sure to price and sort items prior to arrival. GreenDrop will be available at the end of the event to pick up donations. Donations must be in bags or boxes. GreenDrop does not accept furniture. All items must b... 05/14/2015

Montgomery County Proclaims May as Building Safety Month Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett and County Council President George Leventhal today proclaimed May as Building Safety Month in Montgomery County. A joint proclamation was presented to staff from the departments of Fire and Rescue Service (MCFRS), Permitting Services and Housing and Community Affairs.This year’s Building Safety Month theme, “Resilient Communities Start with Building Codes,” raises awareness of the importance of safe and resilient construction, fire prevention, disaster mitigation, backyard safety, energy efficiency and new technologies in the construction industry.“Often it is not until after a disaster that residents are made aware of the importance of building codes,” said Department of Permitting Servi... 05/14/2015

Straw Hat Day Was a Serious Matter May 15 is the day for men to hang up their winter chapeaus and wear nothing but the cooler straw hats of summer until Sept. 15. What now sounds like nothing more than fashion advice (such as the other century-old rule about not wearing white after Labor Day) used to be taken pretty seriously.Take, for instance, the ruffian tradition of knocking straw hats off heads and stomping those hats to bits once the calendar turned to Sept. 16. In New York City in 1922, some youths started a few days early, and the end result was days of riots.We mark Straw Hat Day with a work by Susan Watkins. It's a portrait of a friend who later became her husband. Watkins was a true pioneer, a renowned female artist at a time when women in the art world were quite rare. From ... 05/14/2015

Book Recommendation: The Bone Tree by Greg Iles The Bone Tree (2015) is the second volume of a trilogy of "blood and race, family and justice" by New York Times bestselling author Greg Iles. If you have not yet read Natchez Burning, I recommend that you first read that book which is the first volume of the trilogy. Click on the links to learn more about this author and his outstanding books.The Bone Tree Review by The Washington PostThe Bone Tree Review by Goodreads  Orchids, Longwood Gardens, Kennett Square, PA USA IMG 2541Photograph by Roy Kelley Roy and Dolores Kelley Photographs 05/13/2015

Washington, DC Metro Area Housing Trends, April, 2015 Families planning a move to the Metro Area of Washington, DC always ask about the housing market. The figures for April will give you an idea of the overall market condition. This is a large market with over 10,000 active listings of homes for sale. Prospective home buyers are advised to use the services of a local real estate professional for data that may more accurately reflect the market conditions in specific communities. “The Washington DC Metro housing market enjoyed a strong April, with solid year-over-year increases in sales, and continued increasing levels of new contracts, and rising inventories.  Closed sales and new contracts both increased by 9.9% from April 2014.  All market segments experienced increases in both close... 05/13/2015

Health Talk: Stroke Prevention Health Talk: Stroke Prevention is the title of the presentation to be held this Thursday, May 14, 2015 at the Quince Orchard Library from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Leni Barry, a Suburban Hospital nurse, will be discussing stroke prevention and symptoms. Admission is free. Call 240-777-0200 if you have questions.Quince Orchard Library15831 Quince Orchard RoadGaithersburg, Maryland Orchids, Longwood Gardens IMG 2531Photograph by Roy Kelley Roy and Dolores Kelley Photographs 05/12/2015

Bethesda Community Garden Club Plant Sale The Bethesda Community Garden Club Plant Sale is scheduled for this Thursday, May 14, 2015 from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. This will be a good opportunity to purchase locally grown perennials, native plants, herbs, annuals and shrubs.Admission is free. Call 301-656-1893 if you have questions.Montgomery Farm Women’s Cooperative Market7155 Wisconsin AvenueBethesda, Maryland Orchids, Longwood Gardens IMG 2539Photograph by Roy Kelley Roy and Dolores Kelley Photographs 05/12/2015