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Wednesday, May 28, 2014
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China, up close and personal n
Potomac students cap program with sojourn BY
PEGGY MCEWAN STAFF WRITER
It’s a rite of passage for many of the fifth-grade Chinese Immersion students at Potomac Elementary School: a spring trip to China. After years of learning — the
Potomac program starts in kindergarten — the annual trip allows students to really put their skills to the test. “When the kids are engaged talking to a stranger it builds their confidence,” said Zhian Zhang, one of Potomac’s Chinese teachers. “By the end of the first week, you can see they are comfortable.”
See CHINA, Page A-8
34 years of folk music Annual festival returns to Glen Echo n
GREG DOHLER/THE GAZETTE
Mary Jo Myers (left) greets Jessica Klein at the Chevy Chase Women’s Republican Club luncheon May 21 at a private home in Kensington. Klein was among the caregivers of wounded veterans who were honored at the luncheon. Myers, wife of retired Air Force Gen. Richard B. Myers, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was the guest speaker.
BY
STAFF WRITER
‘Not the life I was supposed to have’ Club honors those who care for wounded veterans n
BY NOAH JONES SPECIAL TO THE GAZETTE
Improvise, adapt and overcome may be the unofficial Marine mantra, but members of the Chevy Chase Women’s Republican Club say it also describes the people who care for wounded veterans. For Jessica Klein, the club’s celebration of those caregivers at their spring luncheon on May 21 was exactly what she needed. About two dozen caregivers attended the lun-
cheon at a private home in Kensington. Klein is a full-time working mother of two who also looks after her triple-amputee husband, Army Capt. Edward “Flip” Klein. He, like the others whose caregivers were honored, is recovering at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda. “This was not the life I was supposed to have; I had to choose this life,” said Klein, whose husband stepped on a bomb in 2012 when he was deployed in Afghanistan. “Once you make this choice, it doesn’t get any easier.” Many women in the club have ties to the military. Member Chrissy Ka-
ELIZABETH WAIBEL
suda’s husband served in the Marines and she said she knows how much effort these women must give to take care of their wounded husbands. “I know their roles,” Kasuda said. “The roles of these spouses and everything they do … they are rocks.” Susan Warren, one of the club’s luncheon coordinators, said she sympathizes with the caregivers because, much like Klein, they are blindsided when the unthinkable happens. “Their life gets turned upside down,” Warren said. “These women have to do so much for their families: hospital visits, taking care of their
A decades-long tradition of music and cultural appreciation returns to Glen Echo this weekend as the 34th annual Washington Folk Festival brings hundreds of musicians, storytellers, dancers and crafters together from around the region. The event is hosted by the Folklore Society of Greater Washington, which is celebrating its 50th birthday this year. Dwain Winters, the festival coordinator, said the festival pulls
IF YOU GO n What: 34th annual Washington Folk Festival n When: Noon to 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, rain or shine n Where: Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd. in Glen Echo. Parking in Glen Echo Park is limited, but free parking and a shuttle bus will be available at the Geico headquarters at 5260 Western Ave., Chevy Chase, near the Friendship Heights Metro station n Cost: Free, but donations are accepted n Information: washingtonfolkfestival.org
See FESTIVAL, Page A-8
See VETERANS, Page A-8
Paying tribute (From left) Cpl. Phil Lew and Cpl. Karl Plitt of the Rockville City Police Department, along with Navy Hospitalman Malcolm Burts of Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, salute during Rockville’s 70th annual Memorial Day ceremony and parade on Monday.
BEATRIZ TUNCER
When Girls on the Run at Cold Spring Elementary School in Potomac ran more than 500 miles this season, Harris Teeter donated 1,000 nonperishable food items to Manna Food Center in Gaithersburg.
Girls run to the rescue n
The girls on the Girls on the Run team at Cold Spring Elementary School in Potomac don’t run just for fun or their health: They run to help feed the hungry. Each season, the girls develop and implement a community service project. This year, the team approached Harris Teeter for help. The girls asked the supermarket chain to donate one nonper-
GEORGE P. SMITH/ FOR THE GAZETTE
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Immigrant students create mural of self-discovery at Rockville school.
St. Andrew’s hopes to increase exposure by launching boys basketball summer league.
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Potomac team works with Harris Teeter
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ishable food item for each mile the girls ran or walked. Donations would go to Manna Food Center in Gaithersburg, the county’s main food bank, according to their coach, Shelley Keneally. Harris Teeter agreed and said it would double its donation if the girls hit 500 miles. That they did, totaling 524 miles. On May 19, the girls loaded up the Manna Food Center truck with the 1,000 donated items from Harris Teeter. — ROBERT RAND
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