An Open Letter from our President:

Little more than a year ago, Poolesville Seniors had just added popular Bridge classes to our roster of activities. A fully booked Cherry Blossom Cruise was approaching fast. Movie and pickleball attendance were both up. A pre-summer baseball–themed social loomed large.  

Then, bam, the Covid pandemic struck, and everything came to a screeching halt. 

What would Poolesville Seniors do? We had to look at our options. No in–person meetings meant no meetings, or did it? How could we keep seniors connected to each other and the community if we weren’t meeting? 

Well, no one said we couldn’t meet on Zoom. So, we did. All our programming went virtual. In July, Kenny Sholes was our first speaker. His talks about the Historic Ag Reserve Properties were a hit! Kenny turned into a treasured regular presenter. We built on from there. Every Thursday night you could learn about something new – lavender and chocolate, tombstones, gardening, local authors, and Black communities. Other days were filled with exercise, Trivia and most recently, Pop–Up Walks and Book Club. Poolesville Seniors has presented over 130 events since that first Zoom experiment. 

We worked on retooling and upgrading our technology and communication, making   it a priority to get the word out to more people faster. That one worked out well. Have you seen our website lately? 

Of course, none of this would have worked if you hadn’t joined with us for the ride. I’m not even sure how to properly thank everyone — friends, neighbors, patrons, sponsors, and the Monocle. A special thanks to our nine months of presenters for sharing their time and talent and everyone else who worked behind the scenes to bring it all to life. 

And so, one year later…As life slowly returns to some semblance of the new old normal – bridge players I’ll be on the lookout for you – and we awake from the numbing effects of this persistent Pandemic, I hope all our futures are filled with lasting and meaningful connections.  

 – Maria Briancon, President, Poolesville Seniors