Montgomery Chapter Approved at Annual Meeting

Attendees at the MWA’s 2012 Annual Meeting voted unanimously to approve the charter application by the Montgomery Chapter. The chapter becomes the fifth MWA chapter to form.

Following a brief presentation by Alix Moore and Judy Kelly recapping the formation of the chapter that began with a call for volunteers on the MWA Discussion list in April, MWA Annapolis President Rolf Renner moved that the charter application be accepted. Sonia Linebaugh, MWA Contest Coordinator and incoming Board Member at Large, seconded; Nicole Schultheis, MWA President for the 2010-12 board term, called for a voice vote, and all the voting members gave a resounding “aye!”

The chapter’s initial meeting schedule will alternate between the second Wednesdays and the second Saturdays of each month at the Metropolitan Center for the Visual Arts (aka the VisArts Center), 155 Gibbs Street, in Rockville (visartsatrockville.org). The chapter’s first order of business will be to elect officers. The chapter plans to launch a website soon, but in the meantime please contact Alix Moore at alix@tappingthewellwithin for meeting details.

The Montgomery County Chapter joins active chapters in Annapolis, Baltimore, Carroll County, and Howard County. The chapter in Frederick is currently inactive, although the Board has decided to keep its charter active in the hopes that volunteers will step forward to serve as chapter officers.

Congratulations to the new Montgomery County chapter, and thanks to Alix, Judy, and all the MWA members in and around Montgomery County who came together to launch the chapter!

UPDATE: 6/28/12

The Montgomery County Chapter’s first official meeting will be held July 11, 2012, from 7:00-9:00 p.m. at the VisArts Center in Rockville Town Center, www.visartsatrockville.org

Agenda: The July meeting is mostly a housekeeping meeting to address the start-up needs of our new chapter. However, we are excited to shine the spotlight on affiliate member Larry Mathews, who will be sharing his just-released novel Saving Charles.

There will also be a short open mic session. For general questions, contact interim chapter president Alix Moore at alix@tappingthewellwithin.com. To participate in the open mic session, please contact interim secretary Carolee Noury at caroleenoury@gmail.com.

And be sure to save the date for the chapter’s August meeting, Saturday, August 11, 2012, from 10:00 a.m.-noon at the VisArts Center in Rockville. Speaker Alix Moore will talk about “Freeing the Genie Within: How to Use Meditation to Connect to Your Creativity (And Why You Might Want To).”

Election Results for the 2012-14 MWA Board

Sonia Linebaugh, MWA’s Immediate Past President and Nominations Chair, has announced the official results of online voting for the 2012-14 Maryland Writers’ Association Board. With over 10% of the membership voting in our first all-online ballot, the results are:

• President: Jim Heimberg (95%)
• Vice President: Paul Lagasse (97%)
• Secretary: Eileen McIntire (97%)
• Treasurer: Open
• Communications Chair: Steve Berberich (100%)
• Publications Chair: David Joyner (100%)
• Conference Chair: Nicole Schultheis (95%)
• Long-Range Planning Chair: John Dentico (97%)
• Program Chair: Louise Harris (95%)
• Membership Chair: Bryan England (97%)
• At Large: Ally Peltier (95%)

Congratulations to the new Board!

MWA members and friends are invited to celebrate the election at the 2012 MWA Annual Meeting, Saturday, June 23, 2012 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at The Annapolis Bookstore, 68 Maryland Ave, Annapolis, MD 21405 (www.annapolisbookstore.com). Sonia will officially introduce the new Board; outgoing President Nicole Schultheis will make her final annual report; and incoming President Jim Heimberg will preview his plans for the upcoming term. Additional items of business will be taken up as needed, but there will be plenty of time to mingle and enjoy the food.

Please come!

Volunteers Needed for C Street Arts Festival

Volunteers are needed to staff the MWA table at the C Street Arts Festival in Laurel this Saturday, June 9, from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Authors are invited to sell their books at the table, if they are willing to promote MWA and their fellow authors as well. For more information, e-mail MWA President Nicole Schultheis.

The C Street Arts Festival will feature readings, music, and other performances. C Street is approximately three blocks west of Route 1, and intersects Main Street in old downtown Laurel. From Main Street, turn onto B Street (just east of C) and park in the lot nearby.

Here’s the schedule of participants at the festival:

• 10:15………..Mark B. Carp (Baltimore)
• 10:35………..A. Jarrell Hayes (Baltimore)
• 10:55………..David MacAleavey (The George Washington University)
• 11:15………..Melanie Hatter (Washington Writers’ Publishing House)
• 11:35………..Open Reading/Mike
• 11:50 ………..Arin Greenwood (The Huffington Post)
• 12:10………..Jessica Dotson (Baltimore)
• 12:30………..Kathleen Hellen (Washington Writers’ Publishing House)
• 12:50………..Ann Bracken (University of Maryland)
• 1:10………….Open Reading/Mike
• 1:25………….Rick Peabody (Gargoyle)
• 1:45………….Danuta Hinc (University of Maryland)
• 2:05………….Brandel France de Bravo (Washington Writers’ Publishing House)
• 2:25………….Sally Rosen Kindred (“No Eden”)
• 2:45………….Open Reading/Mike
• 3:00………….Saundra Maley (Montgomery College)
• 3:20………….Linda Joy Burke (Little Patuxent Review)