Events

Presentation and Book Signing by Margaret Haviland Stansbury, author of "GLASS HOUSE OF DREAMS: BALTIMORE’S HISTORIC GLASS PALACE IN THE PARK"

March 24, 2011 from 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Space is limited-- Advance reservations requested. Tickets also available at the door.

Please join us for a delightful evening as Peggy Stansbury shares with us how she came to spearhead the six year, $5 million dollar renovation of the Conservatory in Druid Hill Park. She founded the Baltimore Conservatory Association in 1977, and partnered with the Baltimore City Department of Recreation and Parks and the state of Maryland to coordinate the restoration of this unique Baltimore treasure. The Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory in Baltimore is the second oldest glass conservatory in the United States that is still standing. The book contains a collection of orginal lithographic postcards through which the history of the Conservatory unfolds, as well as an extensive portfolio of photographs and images of the property itself and the beautiful plants within.

The event will take place on March 24th from 6:00pm - 8:00pm at the home of Helen C. Cohen (3 West Mount Vernon Place, Apartment # 3 in Baltimore) Light fare and wine will be served. Admission is $10 for Friends of Mount Vernon Place members, and $15 for non-members. Space is limited—advance reservations requested. Please email Info@FriendsofMountVernonPlace.org or call Cathy 443-712-8006 to reserve your tickets - they can be picked up at the door. Tickets will also be available at the door.

Books, posters and notecards will be available for purchase. A book signing will follow the presentation. A percentage of all sales that evening will be donated to the Friends of Mount Vernon Place.

The Maryland House and Garden Tour 2011

May 1, 2011 from 10:00am – 5:00pm

The Friends of Mount Vernon Place is partnering with the Maryland House and Garden Tour to open to the public nine of the most prestigious, architecturally exquisite Mount Vernon properties. The properties will be open to the public on May 1st, 2011 from 10:00 am until 5:00 pm. Tickets are $30 in advance and $35 at the door. To purchase tickets for the Mt. Vernon tour, click here. You can also purchase advance tickets by mailing a check to MHGP, 6200 N. Charles Street, # 103, Baltimore, MD 21212.

For the Mount Vernon tour, Lunch will be served at at FEAST @ 4 EASTfrom 11:30 am – 2:30 pm for $15 by advance reservation only. Outdoor dining in the garden will be available, weather permitting. The restaurant, FEAST @ 4 EAST is located in the 4 EAST MADISON INN, which is on the Mount Vernon tour this year. To purchase tickets for the lunch, please click here. You can also purchase tickets for lunch by mailing a check to FMVP, 1221 N. Calvert Street, Baltimore, MD 21202.

All of the proceeds from the Mount Vernon neighborhood tour will be used to maintain and beautify the four parks surrounding the Washington Monument and provide free entertainment in the parks for all to enjoy.

The remaining 2011 Maryland House and Garden Pilgrimage Tour dates and sites are as follows:

Saturday, May 7th: Calvert County click here to purchase tickets for May 7 tour
Saturday, May 14th: Kent County ( click here to purchase tickets for May 14 tour )
Sunday, May 15th: Baltimore County: Worthington Valley ( click here to purchase tickets for May 15 tour )
Saturday, May 21st: Anne Arundel County ( click here to purchase tickets for May 21 tour )
Sunday, May 22nd: Prince George’s County ( click here to purchase tickets for May 22 tour )

Tickets must be purchased for each tour. Tickets will also be available for advance purchase ($30) by mail (MHGP, 6200 N Charles St., # 103, Baltimore, MD 21212). . Tickets purchased on the day of each tour at the first stop will be $35 per ticket.

Tour books, containing complete information on tours, directions, and lunch options will be available March 15th, 2011. For further information about the upcoming tour, please visit www.mhgp.org or send an email to mhgp@aol.com.

Please note that all tours are held rain or shine. Photographs of house interiors are not permitted. Please do not wear high heels, and smoking is not permitted. Please plan to follow the Pilgrimage arrows that will be placed along each tour route. Enjoy the tour!

Flower Mart Lemon Stick Stand

May 6 & 7, 2011

The 100 year anniversary of the Flower Mart will be celebrated on Friday and Saturday, May 6th and 7th at the Washington Monument in Mount Vernon Place. Again, the Friends of Mount Vernon Place volunteers will be assembling and selling Lemon Sticks, a true Baltimore Tradition. Each lemon stick consists of a gourmet peppermint stick gently placed in half of a large, juicy lemon that you can enjoy as you meander through all of the booths and vendors at the Flower Mart.

Please contact Cathy Rosenbaum (Cathy@ccrrar.com or 410-560-0180) or Regina Minniss (RMinniss@cbmove.com) if you are interested in volunteering on Friday, May 6th or Saturday, May 7th. It’s a fun event and continues to generate happy memories for many Baltimoreans.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITES

Mount Vernon Park Spring Clean-up Days

Please join us as we spruce up our neighborhood parks for the spring. Bring your gardening gloves and tools if you have them, as well as a hat for yourself. Refreshments will be served! The raindate will be the next day (Sunday).

Please RSVP to Cathy@CCRRAR.com or 443.712.8006. Thanks!
- SOUTH Park Clean-up: Saturday, March 19th, 2011 - 9:00am – Noon
- WEST Park Clean-up: Saturday, April 9th, 2011 - 9:00am – Noon
- NORTH Park Clean-up: Saturday, May 21st, 2011 - 9:00am – Noon

Past Events

Baltimore Book Festival

September 24th to the 26th
The Friends of Mount Vernon Place and the Mount Vernon Conservancy shared a booth this year. Volunteers from both organizations staffed the booth and had information on hand to distribute about the parks and the Conservancy’s restoration plan. The Friends also handed out free bookmarks that were designed by our board member, Taylor Hubbard. Additionally, we sold gently used books that the proceeds were used to buy bulbs for the parks.

Planting Bulbs in the parks

Volunteers planted over 3600 bulbs in the four parks this past fall. We are all looking forward to seeing them pop up in the spring!

Halloween Spooktacular

The Friends of Mount Vernon Place in conjunction with the Mount Vernon Place United Methodist Church, once again hosted a wonderful Halloween Spooktacular! It was a huge success!

2010 Summer Entertainment

The Friends of Mount Vernon Place was proud to present four movies this summer: Mamma Mia!, Where the Wild Things Are (sponsored by Agora Publishing), Julie and Julia (sponsored by City Café) and Alice in Wonderland. People brought their lawn chairs and blankets, and settled in to watch the movies that were projected onto a large inflatable screen in the West Park. We also enjoyed Wednesday evening musical interludes from Peabody students: Mary Wertheimer on flute, Domenica Romogni on cello, and Sven Rainey on classical guitar. Lastly, The Merritt Athletic Clubs sponsored free weekly yoga classes on Saturday mornings in the West Park, and provided us with a wonderful instructor, Jude Asher, who did a wonderful job of keeping the class fun and challenging for all levels. We’re looking forward to an even more extensive program next summer!

Holly Tour Remembrance 2009

The Friends of Mount Vernon Place has enjoyed sponsoring the Holly Tour over the past several years as well as the community’s support of this wonderful tradition. For the HOLLY TOUR REMEMBRANCE 2009, we hosted a cocktail reception at the historic MOUNT VERNON CLUB. Attendees enjoyed cocktails, holiday music and light fare as they reminisced and leisurely viewed a private collection of photographs from previousy Holly Tours.

Planting Bulbs in the parks

November 7th
Volunteers met in the East Park from 9:00 am until 12:00 noon for a day of planting and refreshments.

Halloween Spooktacular

The Friends of Mount Vernon Place Volunteers, in conjunction with the United Methodist Church, The Mount Belvedere Association and the Mount Vernon Children’s Park hosted a wonderful Halloween Spooktacular, complete with a Haunted House, games and activities, spooky storytelling and a “Trick or Treat walk “ through the North Park where we handed out “grow your own pumpkin” kits and a hand drawing of the park with hidden pictures for the kids to color (done by our member Barbara Gilbert) . The kids then proceeded up to the merchants on Charles Street that happily filled their bags with candies and treats. It was a huge success and fun was had by everyone! We’re looking forward to an even bigger Halloween Spooktacular next year!!

Baltimore Book Festival

September 25th to the 27th
Following tradition, the Friends of Mount Vernon Place had its own booth where we sold gently used books for $ 1 or $ 2 each with the proceeds being used to buy bulbs for the parks. Volunteers staffed the booth all weekend long and enjoyed meeting and talking to people about the parks, and our role in maintaining and conserving them for everyone to enjoy. We also handed out free bookmarks that our member, Taylor Hubbard, designed.

Weeding in the Parks

September 19th 9:00 am to 12:00 Noon
Several volunteers have gathered on multiple days to weed the parks and plant over 2400 flower bulbs that will bloom in the spring. on a gorgeous, sunny day. The goal was to have the parks looking in tip top shape for the upcoming Book Festival. One of our board members generously donated significant landscaping services including additional plantings, mulching, etc. to beautify the parks for all to enjoy.

Summer Movies in the East Park 2009

Friends of Mount Vernon Place was proud to present two movies this summer, Hairspray and Age of Innocence. The movies were projected onto a large inflatable screen in the East Park, as we all sat around the fountain enjoying the entertainment. It was a lovely way to spend a summer evening!

Qigong in the West Park

July 18th (Saturday) at 10:00 am: Sometimes referred to as “Chinese Yoga”, Qigong is the relaxing and enjoyable practice of using gentle and slow movements to relieve stress, clear the mind, and balance the body. All movements are done from a standing position, so mats are not necessary. This is an introductory level class and was appropriate for all ages and fitness levels.

The class instructor is Matt Hayat, Ph.D., MMQ Matt Hayat has been training in the Eastern Arts for 20 years and is Senior Instructor in Kiaido International. He holds a Master’s Degree in Medical Qigong Therapy (MMQ), Ph.D. in Biostatistics, and Master Black Belt Rank in the Martial Arts. He has a private practice treating clients with Chinese Medicine and is authorized by Dr. Park to teach Kiaido. He can be contacted by phone at 301-437-4966, email at martialsigning@gmail.com or through his website at www.martialsigning.com

Holly Tour 2008

presented by Monumental Life Insurance Company

The Friends of Mt Vernon Place Holly Tour 2008 show cased the architectural treasures located in the northern part of our Mount Vernon neighborhood, including the Monumental Life Building. The Tour also featured 13 unique properties, including empire style residences built in the 1800’s, one of which houses a collection of replica jewelry worn by the Duchess of Windsor in the 1930’s. The Duchess, formerly the Baltimorean Wallace Warfield Simpson, lived on Biddle Street for several years during her romance with the Prince of Whales.