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The top pie makers: From left to right -- Kathy Washburn, Pam Causer and Katie McDonough. Photo: Norm Metzger

A perfect autumn afternoon was a harbinger of the sunny atmosphere at the second anniversary of Capitol Hill Village (CHV), which marked the occasion with a lively Harvest Fest for Village members, supporters and guests on Oct. 3 at the Frances Taylor Center for Community Life at the Townhomes on Capitol Hill. The fest was organized by event coordinator Jojo Neher, aided by Village volunteers.

Some 70 CHV members compared notes on Village activities and progress and partook of a parade of competitive desserts based on fruits of the season. Offerings ranged from carameled apples through a cranberry-apple delight to a “flag pie,” and prizes were awarded for the three best fruit recipes by a three-person jury. As it did last year, the Agricultural Research Service of the USDA offered a variety of apples to taste and take home. One table was available for families and kids to decorate small pumpkins, and another allowed attendees to confect bird feeders from large pine cones. A raffle was conducted, with prize certificates from Hill restaurants Café Berlin, Montmartre, Jordan 8, and Trattoria Alberto.

CHV Board President Mary Procter presided over a brief ceremony at the event, highlighting the Village’s significant progress in the last year. She noted that the organization now claims more than 200 memberships, constituting over 300 people (the current annual membership fee is $530 for an individual and $800 for a household). Those members are served by about 150 volunteers of every age and skill. Monthly service calls by members recently passed 160, Procter reported, with three-quarters of them handled by volunteers.

Procter also announced the Village's second annual Geoff Lewis Award for the “Volunteer of the Year” (named for a CHV founder). The recipient was Mike Neuman, honored for his indefatigable and kindly assistance to members in driving them to appointments and events, as well as for his task of grant writing for the organization. His work in the latter sphere has resulted in both a major grant to enhance the Village website and a city appropriation to help underwrite the low-income “Membership Plus” program.

Founded by community-minded neighbors on Capitol Hill, CHV is “a neighborhood, nonprofit corporation that aims to give local residents both the practical means and the confidence to live their lives to the fullest in their own homes as they grow older.” It has become the “volunteer model” nationwide within the burgeoning village movement.

As a volunteer-first organization, CHV offers a wide range of services for members, such as transportation, minor home repairs, acting as medical advocates, preparing meals, lawn care, running errands and home sitting. The Village also schedules an ongoing series of lectures and advice on a wide range of personal and financial matters, and offers opportunities for pot-lucks, group restaurant visits, museum and study tours, and discounts to performing arts events.