The Cape St. Claire Recreation Council Inc. sponsors an extensive youth sports program in our community. With more than 10 sports to participate in, there is something for everyone—including soccer, rugby, football and cheerleading. The fall soccer season is currently in full swing and having fun is a main priority along with safety and learning. A lot of maintenance improvement work was done on the main Cape field (Graul’s Field) this past year, resulting in one of the best fields in the County. There are plans for improving the fields at Cape St. Claire Elementary School as well. This fall…

The Goshen Farm Preservation Society (GFPS) had a beautiful fall-like day for their open house on Saturday, when visitors had the opportunity to tour the property and see the progress made to improve it. The Goshen Farm property encompasses roughly 22 acres behind the soccer fields at Cape St. Claire Elementary School. When open, Goshen Farm is accessible by the driveway on Cape. St. Claire Road next to the “horse barn,” or by trail behind the school ball field. During the open house, Boy Scouts helped show visitors the way to go and assisted with parking coordination. On the property stands …

Cape St. Claire is home to three churches and there are several other churches just outside the area that offer a variety of places to worship on the Broadneck peninsula. Cape St. Claire United Methodist Church is located at the corners of Chestnut Tree and Summit drives. They hold a 9 a.m. Sunday worship service led by the Rev. Lys Cockrell. Additionally, Cape St. Claire Methodist Church sponsors "The Cape Kid’s Corner," an outreach initiative through which they have served the community by providing preschool and licensed day care services for more than 24 years.  They also host several …

Many businesses, organizations and groups recognize the benefit of social networking sites. Broadneck Patch has a Facebook page and so does the community of Cape St. Claire, and both offer valuable information for locals. Frank Newman, the Cape St. Claire webmaster, started a Facebook group called "I Live in Cape St. Claire." The open group is for those who live near or work in the Cape to communicate. The page features regular posts about Cape activities. Most recently, Capers shared stories about the on-again-off-again power situation, also known as the “power debacle of 2011,” and their …

After a rough few days with no power, this Cape columnist and the entire community is starting to resume normal operations. As of Tuesday afternoon, Graul’s was fully operational, along with the Riverbay Roadhouse and most of the businesses on the left side of the shopping center.  The business on the right side of the shopping center, such as Broadneck Grill, the dry cleaners, the Shell station, and Pizza Hut were still without power.  Cape True Value has been open since Sunday, running on generators and limited power. Kudos to them for trying to stay open to serve the Cape during the …

For more than 50 years, Graul’s Market of Cape St. Claire has been serving the Broadneck Community. The original “Graul’s” was a corner store in Baltimore City which was opened in 1920 by the late Fred and Esther Graul.  On the day after he returned from serving in World War II, Harold Graul, son of Fred and Esther, took over operating the family business.  In the early 1950s, Harold and his wife, Mary, bought a summer home in Cape St. Claire. Mary and Harold opened Graul’s Market in Cape St. Claire in 1958, and moved permanently to the Cape where they raised their four children, Harold, Jr…

It may still feel like we are in the middle of summer, but the 2011-2012 school year starts next week on Tues., Aug. 23rd. Elementary School Cape St. Claire Elementary School will host a “Meet and Greet” this Friday, Aug. 19, from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. for grades 1-5. This is an opportunity for parents and students to meet the new teacher and classmates and help alleviate some jitters. After working out some issues with the traffic challenges at the the elementary school, there are some new traffic policies in place this school year: ● The county Police Department will station two crossing guards…

At this time of year, when gardens are thriving in the Cape and producing wonderful home-grown tomatoes, peppers, squash, zucchini, okra, beans, melons, berries, and more, it seemed like a good time to feature our very own Garden Club.  Founded in 1975, the Cape St. Claire Garden Club provides gardening fun, as well as education to its members and to the community. The Garden Club meets monthly and has themed discussions on topics such as foodscraping, shade gardening, composting, rain gardens and improving the soil.   Garden Club meetings are held the first Tuesday of each month at the …

Did you know that we have a dance studio in Cape St. Claire? Annapolis Dance Factory, located in the Cape St. Claire shopping center, provides quality dance instruction to children and adults while focusing on having fun.  Sue Anderson is the owner of the Annapolis Dance Factory and her daughter, Stephanie, has been dancing at the studio since 1997.  “We loved the studio ... it felt like a second family to us," Sue Anderson said. "In those early years, all the kids seemed to get along and support each other.” When the previous owner decided to sell the dance studio in 2007, Sue Anderson …

As a Cape resident, I invite you to try the Riverbay Roadhouse. If you haven’t been here yet, you will be pleasantly surprised – it is a beautiful family-friendly addition to our community.    Owners/managers, Pat and Danny Miller, a dedicated mother-son team, described how they decided to open a restaurant in Cape St. Claire. Both grew up here, and have incorporated their community ties in hiring local employees and in using local food supply vendors.    Danny said that despite having owned a local plumbing business (DK Miller Plumbing, Inc.) for many years, he has always had an idea for …

This year marks the 38th consecutive year for the popular Cape Youth Sailing summer program. The program is designed for youth between the ages of eight and 17 years of age, and teaches the fundamentals of sailing, catered to each sailor’s level of experience, from first-time beginners to experienced sailors.  Lead Instructor Brad Hill, who has been with the program for more than 20 years, says that the Youth Sailing Program has three goals. “First and foremost is safety," said Hill. "Second, is that the kids have fun. And third, is that hopefully they learn to love sailing.”  The Cape Youth …

At a meeting held back in March of 1955, residents of the Broadneck peninsula met at the Cape St. Claire clubhouse and voted to create what is now the Cape St. Claire Volunteer Fire Company (CSCVFC). A few months later, the CSCVFC bought its first piece of fire fighting equipment, a 1936 Chevrolet fire engine. Located within Cape St. Claire, the CSCVFC serves much of the Broadneck peninsula, from Bay Dale Drive to the Bay Bridge, including all those travelers who use both sides of Rt. 50. Their service area is approximately 64 square miles and consists of more than 25,000 residents.  The …

On a recent muggy evening, I had the pleasure of experiencing the new Goshen Farm Walking Trail with its impressive creator, 17-year-old Cape resident Corinne Bailey, as my guide.   Corinne conceived, planned and constructed the self-guided historical walking trail as her Girl Scout Gold Award project. The informative trail provides interesting facts along an 11-point tour.  The Goshen Farm site includes an historic house built in the 1780's, several remaining outbuildings, and 22 acres of open space that will one day be a center for history and nature interpretation. Corinne explained that …

When their video store tenants left in 2001, Lee and Melissa Wade who owned several storefronts in the Cape St. Claire shopping center knew exactly what the Cape needed - a hardware store.  It was Melissa's job to find tenants for the commercial properties they owned.  Her initial plan was not to run a hardware store, but to interview and find someone who would. Melissa and Lee met with several people who were interested in renting that spot and making a go of a hardware store, but none of them seemed to have a proven track record or the wherewithal to pull it off.  After several months, she …

Technically, it may not be summer yet. But on Saturday, Cape St. Claire celebrated the kickoff to the season anyway with its annual Strawberry Festival. The weather certainly felt summer-like, hot and steamy with temperatures in the 90s and super high humidity. Though threats of showers lingered throughout the day, the rain held off for the entire event. The annual festival was bigger and better than ever with a parade this year featuring a “Berriest Dog” in addition to the Strawberry Princesses and “Berriest Bike” competitions. The “Princesses” competed for the title by writing an essay on …

Cape St. Claire Elementary School has a long-standing reputation for excellence, but parents often find it isn’t the easiest school to access. Although the school is visibly located right in the middle of Cape St. Claire, this attribute is also its greatest hindrance. With well over 700 students, the school has the third-largest elementary student body in the county yet has an exceptionally small parking lot and is bordered on three sides by tree-lined residential roads. Additionally, these quiet streets mean a greater proportion of students at Cape St. Claire over other schools are …

County Councilman Dick Ladd (R-District 5) attended last Tuesday's quarterly membership meeting of the Cape St. Claire Improvement Association (CSCIA) to report on several subjects relating to the 2012 county budget. Ladd, who is chairman of the Anne Arundel County Council, said that the budget will continue to be discussed for the next couple of weeks to review deep cuts that have been presented. He said the county is now operating "under a virtual spending freeze, with a four to four-and-a-half percent reduction of take-home pay for county employees." Ladd reminded residents that officials …

This Saturday, hundreds of pairs of feet will quite literally hit the ground running in Cape St. Claire. The ninth annual Cape St. Claire Elementary School Fun Run takes place on April 30, rain or shine, beginning and ending in the school parking lot. Winding its way through neighborhood streets, the theme of this year’s Fun Run is “Escape Through the Cape.” The run is actually comprised of two events—a 5K race that starts at 8:30 a.m. and a one-mile run that sets off at 8:45 a.m. Event organizers Susan Ogden and Kerry Wilson report that, while they have received 120 entries, many more likely…

Diane Velozo is enthusiastic about her commitment to the environment. While she practices her own green activities at home, her real joy comes from sharing her passion each day with the two dozen first-graders in her class at Cape St. Claire Elementary School.As one of the school’s coordinators for Chesapeake Connections—the environmental education program run by Arlington Echo for Anne Arundel County Public Schools—Velozo has helped bring several projects to the school to teach students how to improve the future of the Chesapeake Bay.Specially certified by Arlington Echo to manage several …

As third grade teachers at Cape St. Claire Elementary School, Debbie Yates and Melissa Cressman don’t just teach their students the three ‘Rs.’ Instead, they have taken a step further to educate children in their classes about the connection to the world around them. Thanks to the teachers’ participation in the Chesapeake Connections program at Arlington Echo Outdoor Education Center in Millersville, Md., students in their classes have the opportunity to learn the importance of preserving the Chesapeake Bay. As the outdoor education program of Anne Arundel County Public Schools, Arlington …