<div>Dear friends and neighbors,</div>
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<div>I want to inform you of a community meeting that will be taking place this coming Wednesday, February 11, 7:30 at Town Hall. </div>
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<div>As many of you know Riverdale Park signed a Sister Cities proclamation with Ipala, Guatemala early last summer. We are in the planning stage for 3 separate activities that are developing out of this relationship. As all three activities are intended as community building activities, and not as government interactions, I want to tell you a bit about them and ask that you please come and get involved if any of this catches your fancy! If interested please try to make our meeting and find out more and help us plan for some work and fun. The activities are:</div>
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<div>1. Earth Day Cleanup and Celebratory Soccer Game. On April 18th the Town will participate with The Anacostia Watershed Society and the Ipaltecos de Maryland, DC e Virginia (local beneficent group made up of immigrants or children of immigrants from Ipala) will gather at various points along the Northeast Branch to cleanup OUR river. The town will then dispose of the refuse. We will all gather at a field in the area to eat and then have a celebratory soccer match--Baltimore's Ipalteco community v. the parks area Ipaltecos. Any possibility of a Riverdale Park town team to go out there and represent?</div>
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<div>2. ESOL (English as second language) teachers from around our area are going to go to Ipala for several weeks this July. If you you happen to have the skills to teach English, or would simply be interested in visiting Guatemala next summer stop in and see about this program. </div>
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<div>3. We have extended an official invitation to a marimba band from a school in Ipala as well as to a folk dance group to participate in the festivities at our next Riverdale Park Day in October. </div>
<div>While an exact itinerary has not been established yet, we assume our guests will be in town for about a week. Our primary need as a community will be to find host homes to house our guests next fall. Obviously at least a rudimentary knowledge of Spanish will be needed for volunteers. </div>
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<div>Hope to see you on the 11th.</div>
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<div>Vern </div>
<div><br>-- <br>Vernon Archer, Mayor<br>Town of Riverdale Park, Maryland<br></div>