Family Field Day

The Belmont Country Club 2nd Annual Family Field Day on Saturday, September 11th, will be jam packed with competitions, a parent child race and much, much more! This event will be held at the Fitness Center fields from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM. Please note: Light refreshments will be available for Member Charge. For more information or to make reservations, please contact the FitnessCenter or call (703) 723-5344.

2010 Aeration and Over-Seeding Schedule

The following table lists the Villages in which lawns will be aerated and over-seeded.  If you have an irrigation system, please contact the HOA office to pick up flags.

Date	Village
Wednesday, Sept 1st	Augusta
Thursday, Sept 2nd	St. Andrews
Friday, Sept  3rd	Bay Hill
Tuesday, Sept 7th	Westchester Muirfield Willowbend
Wednesday, Sept 8th	Valhalla Cherry Hills
Thursday, Sept 9th	Gleneagles
Friday, Sept 10th	Cypress Point
Monday, Sept 13th	Inverrary, Spyglass Hill
Tuesday, Sept 14th	Pebble Beach
Wednesday, Sept 15th	Oakmont Troon
Thursday, Sept 16th	Pine Valley
Friday, Sept 17th	Baltusrol Merion
Monday, Sept 20th	Riviera Medinah
Tuesday, Sept 21st	Turnberry
Wednesday, Sept 22nd	Sawgrass
Thursday, Sept 23rd	Birkdale Doral Pinehurst

This schedule is weather dependant.  Please Water Your Lawn 24 Hours in Advance of Service For Best Results.

Belmont News Magazine Delivery

The next edition of the Belmont News is scheduled for delivery this Saturday, August 21st.

Please be on the look-out for your copy at the end of your driveway. If you know of a neighbor who is on vacation, or otherwise out of town, could you please collect your neighbor's copy until they return?

The HOA office will have a small number of additional copies for new residents, or if any resident requires a replacement.

Belmont Book Club’s Next Book

The Belmont Book Club’s next meeting is on Wednesday, September 1st at 7pm in the Clubhouse.  They will discuss Kabul Beauty School: An American Woman Goes Behind the Veil by Deborah Rodriguez. 

Deborah Rodriguez will be in Mexico but has expressed that she would love to join us at our meeting via Skype so we're working to get that set up.  Her son, Zack, will make himself available to answer questions as he was also in Afghanistan during this time.

Here's a little bit about the book from School Library Journal:

In 2002, just months after the Taliban had been driven out of Afghanistan, Rodriguez, a hairdresser from Holland, MI, joined a small nongovernmental aid organization on a mission to the war-torn nation. That visit changed her life. In Kabul, she chronicles her efforts to help establish the country's first modern beauty school and training salon; along with music and kite-flying, hairdressing had been banned under the previous regime. This memoir offers a glimpse into a world Westerners seldom see–life behind the veil. Rodriguez was entranced with the delightful personalities that emerged when her students removed their burqas behind closed doors, but her book is also a tale of empowerment–both for her and the women. In a city with no mail service, she went door-to-door to recruit students from clandestine beauty shops, and there were constant efforts to shut her down. She had to convince Afghan men to work side by side with her to unpack cartons of supplies donated from the U.S. The students, however, are the heroines of this memoir. Women denied education and seldom allowed to leave their homes found they were able to support themselves and their families. Rodriguez's experiences will delight readers as she recounts such tales as two friends acting as parents and negotiating a dowry for her marriage to an Afghan man or her students puzzling over a donation of a carton of thongs. Most of all, they will share her admiration for Afghan women's survival and triumph in chaotic times.–Pat Bangs, Fairfax County Public Library, VA

Future meeting dates and book choices:

• October 6th: The First Family by David Baldacci
• November 3rd: Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Journey to Change the World . . . One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson

Click Here to Sign Up

Turning onto Belmont Ridge is About to Get Safer

Any Belmont Resident who tries to turn left onto Belmont Ridge from Gloucester Pkwy knows just how crazy and dangerous that intersection feels.  The steep descent to the left makes it difficult to see the on-coming cars and trucks.  You quietly wait until there is no traffic, hit the gas and say a little prayer.

Miraculously, in the last few weeks, trucks have arrived and digging has begun on the two corners of this intersection.  The long awaited traffic light is finally here.

Loudoun County Transportation has informed me that Toll Brothers is installing the signal under a Belmont proffer.  Phillip Clarke Electric was awarded the contract and estimate it will be finished in two months. 

-contributed by Katie Ayres, Web Committee Chair

Loudoun County Public Schools are Changing their Web Address

 LCPS Announcement:

On Monday, August 9th, the main Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) website will change to http://www.lcps.org/.

On Wednesday, September 1st, LCPS will officially start doing business as lcps.org.

Why are we changing our domain name?

LCPS needs a shorter domain that is easier to spell, while being just as descriptive as loudoun.k12.va.us.

Will the old web and e-mail addresses still work?

Both domain names will remain active. This means that e-mail sent to the loudoun.k12.va.us address after the switch will continue to be delivered. (Any outbound responses will be from the lcps.org address.)

Web sites accessed with the loudoun.k12.va.us after the switch will be redirected to the lcps.org address.

Since loudoun.k12.va.us will remain active,it will not be necessary to reprint documents, including business cards, that bear the old domain name. The change in domain name will simply be made on the next printing so that the change is cost-neutral.

Protect Your Car and Help a Local Charity

As you know, Belmont continues to experience petty theft of contents from cars, and recently saw a wave of forced break-ins resulting in smashed windows.  The best way to protect your car from these threats is to place your car in the garage at night. 

But perhaps you heave a heavy sigh, because the pile of stuff that has accumulated over the years in your garage has muscled out your car.  I know, I feel your pain, it is one of those chores that just never seems to move to the top of the to-do list.

But it is a good weekend to tackle the job, because once you have made your “donation” pile,  you can bring it to the second donation day for the  Ladies Board of Inova Loudoun Hospital next Saturday, August 14 from 7 am to 7 pm at the Inova Loudoun Hospital, 44045 Riverside Parkway, Leesburg, just across Highway 7 from Belmont.

All donations received will be offered for sale at the 72nd Annual Ladies Board Rummage Sale on October 15th – 16th.  Tax receipts are provided and all the money raised goes to support Ladies Board projects in the community.  The Ladies Board raises several hundred thousand dollars each year toward special needs equipment at Inova Loudoun Hospital and awards more than $100,000 in nursing scholarships each year. 

The sale accepts furniture, clothing, books, household items, linens, lamps, sports equipment, etc., but some items cannot be accepted such as mattresses or large appliances.  For more information on what can be accepted or not, please call 703-771-2985.

If you can’t make it next Saturday, you can also donate your items to the Good Shepherd Alliance who provides help and hope for the homeless.  You can donate during their store hours from Monday to Saturday from 10 am – 6 pm at 20684 Ashburn Road.  It is very close to Belmont, just head on Gloucester Pkwy, make a right on Ashburn Road and it is about a mile down on the left (near the fire station).

Just remember once you have finished the job, it will feel so good to drive your car into your garage and seal it  up for the night!

-contributed by Katie Ayres, Belmont Community Webmaster

Virginia August Sales Tax Holiday: School Supplies and Clothing

This weekend (August 6th-8th) is the Virginia Sales Tax Holiday.  During this three-day period, you can purchase the following without paying the sales tax:

• School supplies for $20 or less per item
• Qualifying clothing and footwear selling for $100 or less per items

The following lists the school supply lists for school year 2010-2011 for Belmont’s schools:

• Newton-Lee Elementary School
• Belmont Ridge Middle School
• Farmwell Station Middle School

Drainage Ditches: A Message from Mark

Drainage ditches and storm water drain pipes have recently grown in popularity among some of the community’s children as interesting play areas.  The draw of the drain pipes, and in one case the drain tunnel that passes under Gloucester Parkway, can be enticing to the curious. 

The large rocks and debris that collects in these areas, and now with the warm weather, the various wildlife like poison ivy, snakes, ticks, and other biting insects that can flourish in these areas, has the potential of causing injuries.  Please educate your children that these areas are not meant for “wilderness explorations” and “hide and seek.”  With the chance of thunderstorms and flash-flooding arriving quickly, these areas can become engorged with rushing water very quickly.

Thank you!

Mark Bailey
HOA Manager

Special Recycling

Did you know that Patriot Disposal will collect the following special pick-up items for recycling? 

• Small electronics including computers, monitors, small TVs, small printers, VCRs, DVD/CD players, cell phones, etc.
• Used motor oil in a sealed, plastic container, clearly labeled “motor oil.”  Place at the curb alongside the recycling bin or container.  
• Scrap metal including pots and pans, small car parts, grills, swings, bicycles, chairs, etc.
• Car batteries

Large items may require a fee which will be negotiated up front.

You can fill out the on-line form with the items you wish to recycle, and Patriot Disposal will contact you.

Click Here to Request Special Recycling (login required)