Island Creek Community Association
Island Creek Express - April 2020
The Island Creek Board of Directors will hold a second April virtual board meeting on April 30th at 7 pm.

Residents may join by computer using the below link. You may also join by phone, by dialing (470) 869-2200. https://meetings.ringcentral.com/j/1485948436 Meeting ID: 148 594 8436 

Note To Carrdinal (yes,really spelled that way) Place and Condos at Island Creek Residents : You are welcome to attend the virtual Island Creek Board meeting, but please check with First Service Residential to find out your Boards' of Directors' meeting schedules:
  • Carrdinal Place, email Wayne.McCreedy@fsresidential.com
  • Condos at Island Creek, email Marck.Rossy@fsresidential.com
From the Board

To Our Island Creek Community,

This is, by far, the hardest ‘From the Board’ article I’ve written. I want to start off by saying your Board is closely tracking COVID-19 and its impact to our community and surrounding area.

Based on advice that has been distributed by the Centers for Disease Control and prevention (CDC) and the Fairfax County health department, we took the following actions:
  • All meetings and events previously scheduled at the clubhouse have been cancelled through 10 June. Since the CDC has recommended against any gatherings of 10 or more people, we have cancelled community events and nonessential meetings.
  • Encouraging social distancing: This is the idea of maintaining roughly a 6-foot distance between people. This includes limiting nonessential travel, if possible, avoiding public transportation, working from home, and skipping social gatherings.
  • Precautions for our staff and Board: The Board and Cindy can respond to calls and emails but will not be available at the clubhouse.
  • Closing amenities: We have closed the tot lots, tennis/volleyball/basketball courts. While we put up signs, these closures in some areas (like the basketball/tennis courts) are being ignored. We closed the amenities based off the guidance from the Governor and ask you to speak to your kids and teenagers about not using these amenities through 10 June.

I also implore you to practice patience. We are all in this together. Cindy is working hard and has many emails and tasks she is responsible for. With everyone at home, I’m seeing an uptick in the amount of issues that are being forwarded to her. She may not be able to respond to your calls or email the next day. Or honestly, the day after. I’m asking you please practice patience. In time, your issues will be addressed.

We had to postpone the approval of some contracts during the April 3rd board meeting due to the COVID virus. We will review in a couple of months, and hopefully these projects will be completed in the Spring.

So, what can we all do? Reach out to your neighbors, if you see them say hi and ask them how they are doing. Especially if they are elderly or need help. Take your kids on a walk (adhering to social distancing). Many of us are now part time teachers since school has been cancelled (in person) for the rest of the school year. Go on a scavenger hunt.

Someone gave me great advice, for everything you can’t do, write it on a list. When we finally are released from the ‘lock down’, then make it a point to do those things you couldn’t do before.

We hope you all are doing well. Please take care and stay safe.

Karen Patrick
Island Creek HOA President
Be a Good Neighbor


As residents are complying with stay-at-home orders, here are simple ways to be a good neighbor including:
  • Check on the elderly and vulnerable adults daily by phone, email, text message or some other way that does not require a face-to-face visit.
  • Keep noise to reasonable level, whether from music, voices, kids, pets or the TV.
  • Be a responsible pet owner and clean up after your dog and do not deposit your dog's poop into someone else's trash can.
  • Keep up your curb appeal. Just one ugly home i.e. knee-high grass, dirty steps, peeling paint, trash can out front or toys scattered across the front lawn can reduce property values for the entire neighborhood. Do not wait to receive a violation notice. Instead, be proactive and keep up your curb appeal.
  • Handle conflict judiciously and with tact. Remember, your neighbor may not realize that they are doing something that bothers you and may quickly fix the issue once it's brought to their attention if it is done in a civil and tactful way.
With the increased use of sanitizing wipes due to the coronavirus, the Fairfax County Department of Public Works, Wastewater Management Program, reminds residents  not to flush wipes down the toilet.  Wipes, even those labeled as flushable, may block your wastewater pipes and cause a sanitary sewer backup into your home. If this happens in your home, the repairs and cleanup may cost thousands of dollars.

Keeping yourself and your children clean and virus free is extremely important during the Covid-19 pandemic. Fairfax County says no matter where you live – condo, house or apartment – you can avoid a disgusting sewer backup into your home by not flushing wipes down the toilet. The package may say ‘flushable’ but frequently they are not and will block our wastewater pipe and send all that nasty, dirty stuff right back at ya! Do you really want your toilet to back up into your home? Do you want to spend your hard earned cash on a plumber? Assuming your answer is “NO!” don’t put anything down the toilet except human waste and toilet paper. That means:
  • No wipes of any type
  • No paper towels
  • No cotton swabs
  • No feminine hygiene products
  • No dental floss
  • No tissue

Nothing except human waste and toilet paper may be flushed down the toilet.

For more information about what not to flush, visit Preventing Backups and Overflows.
Local Restaurants
Below is a link to local VA restaurants and their social distancing policy. Many of them also use uber eats or doordash!


Many restaurants are still doing curb side pick up, so support your local restaurants!

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LIST OF EVENT CANCELATIONS : We hope to reschedule these events to a later date and we will keep you updated!
Community Shred Day Canceled
Community Yard Sale Canceled
Island Creek Spring Fling Canceled
Pool Opening Day Canceled
Community Clean-Up Day Canceled
Since we can’t have a neighborhood clean up this year, you can help our community by picking up trash if you see it. For instance, you can have a trash bag and gloves (do not use your bare hands) and pick up the trash while out on a walk. So, while getting some exercise, you can also help keep our community clean!
FUN THINGS TO DO FOR ADULTS & CHILDREN:
Take a Virtual Vacation!
This is the perfect time to explore places you’ve always wanted to visit, and you can do it virtually form the comfort of your couch. Visit Fairfax offers a one-stop location to find  virtual tours and vacations.

You can take, including Mount Vernon, Air and Space Museum’s Udvar-Hazy Center, Arlington Cemetery and many more sites across the D.C region.
KIDS CORNER: Receive Educational Lessons Outside the Classroom
From printable grammar quizzes for youngsters to one-on-one, virtual college prep courses, these nationally known companies make it easy (and free!) for kids to receive educational lessons outside the classroom.
Whether you are a teacher or a parent taking on the teacher role during this current climate, PBS LearningMedia has you covered with thousands of media-focused resources for kids in pre-K through high school. In addition to typical subjects like math, English and science, the database also includes learning tools centered on the arts, physical education, engineering and professional development too. Teachers can sync the program with Google Classroom, bringing entertaining, educational videos and activities to the screens of students while schools remain closed.
While best known for its top-quality learning materials such as building blocks and textbooks, Lakeshore Learning is also an ideal destination for thousands of educational resources. In addition to printable lesson plans, worksheets, calendars, clip art, flashcards and more, Lakeshore offers a  YouTube channel  with fun, interactive videos for little learners. All led by professional educators, video topics include self-help activities for preschoolers, tips for creating daily routines for kids and open-ended reading questions to work through as a family.
Whether your child is 3 years old or 13, multinational publishing company Scholastic has something to entertain and enrich their mind. In mid-March when the coronavirus pandemic began to spread exponentially, Scholastic launched Learn at Home, a database full of free resources to keep kids “reading, thinking and growing,” according to the company’s website. Learn at Home provides 20 days worth of curriculum, consisting of approximately three hours of learning per day, depending on the student’s grade level and interests. From at-home essays to virtual field trips, this resource has it all.
For the past 12 years, online platform Khan Academy has been an essential tool for little learners and teens alike. Spanning a variety of subjects, including grammar, writing, history, math, engineering and college or career prep, the online database is full of practice lessons and tests to further your child’s education while at home. The nonprofit also offers interactive ways for teachers and students to complete their daily tasks in a safe, virtual way.
Based right outside of NoVA in Washington, DC, the Smithsonian Institute is an ideal learning destination for curious kids. While the coronavirus continues to spread, the Smithsonian Learning Lab is a great way to bring all of the Institute’s knowledge from the physical museums directly to your computer screen. Consisting of resources from 19 museums (spanning subjects from American history to globally recognized art), nine major research centers, the National Zoo and more, the Lab encourages discovery and creativity through various activities. The Lab includes podcasts on the moon landing, video courses on language arts and so much more, all just a click away.
While typically recognized as a resource for definitions, Dictionary.com also offers a Learning At Home Center, full of writing-focused academic tools and activities for all grade levels. From thousands of self-guided developmental activities for youngsters to grammar challenges for middle schoolers, there’s plenty to discover. Plus, there’s even a section of innovative games, challenges and writing prompts your entire family can do together.
The YMCA is an integral part of communities across America, and continues to be a resource during the coronavirus outbreak!

The YMCA of Metropolitan Washington, which has branches and program centers in Northern Virginia, Maryland and DC, recently launched free, virtual programs and services for residents  staying at home .
The online community, called  Virtual Y , is designed for adults, kids and seniors. The programs include group exercise classes and workouts under the Wellness Center; exercise videos for seniors called Fit & Well Seniors; culinary videos with nutritional information; and educational programs for school-aged children.
Highlights include virtual tennis and aquatics services (live and recorded), which begin in April. All classes are free and can be accessed at  ymcadc.org . 
American Disposal Services is no longer accepting glass with recycling. Instead, place your glass items in the trash. Fairfax County has closed their recycling centers and ask residents to place glass in the trash.
Classifieds Ads

Island Creek maintains a list of service providers for our community. If you are interested in advertising, please email communitymanager@islandcreek.org .
 
You can check out the current classifieds on the communty website here . 
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