President's Letter:

Hi Neighbors –

Happy Holidays! It is hard to believe that my family and I have lived in Zionsville for almost a year now. So much has happened in this past year! The best part has definitely been meeting many members of our Village community through the VRA, the Village Ladies’ and Men’s nights, and the school community. I really enjoy seeing friends and neighbors as we walk around the Village or participate in Village events. It’s a great experience for our kids to see how close-knit our community is.

Speaking of events, one of my favorite parts of the week is compiling the Sunday night e-mails that have all of the events and news for the week. Especially in this holiday season since it is busy with so many events! I am very much looking forward to the upcoming month of Christmas activities in the Village and elsewhere in Zionsville.

Now, on to VRA housekeeping news…

Look for next month’s Village Voice for recaps on the Progressive Dinner and the Holiday House Decorating Contest. I would like to thank the committee for each of the events for all of the hard work that they put in! I know it takes a lot of time and effort to coordinate

The VRA Board met recently to come up with a meeting/event list for 2020. Scheduling is still in flux but we are planning on several social events where members can get to know each other or catch up with friends, with an informational meeting or two sprinkled in. Keep an eye out for future Village Voice letters or Sunday newsletters for updates as we finalize dates.

The VRA will no longer have its PO box starting next year. Dues will be collected online or at meetings, which is how the majority are paid anyway. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the PO box, please email me at president@zvra.com or our treasurer, Phil Martini, at treasurer@zvra.com.

In January we are going to begin a cleanup of member contact information. We will ask that each member update their information by clicking on the “Update Subscription Preferences” at the bottom of any VRA e-mail. Contact information from this e-mail list will then be used for members going forward.

Have a Merry Christmas and I will see you soon!

Upcoming Events:

Holiday House Decorating contest: If you love to decorate for the holidays, this is an event you will want to consider. The contest is open to ALL Zionsville private residences or businesses. We will be distributing flyers to each house and business in the upcoming weeks that will have an entry application attached to it, along with the judging criteria and instructions on how to submit your application. The committee will only judge the houses and businesses that have submitted an application. Seven awards will be given out: First, Second, and Third prize for best business decorations (all property), First Second, and Third prize for best residential (all property) decorations, and one grand prize winner from all combined entries.

Progressive Dinner: The date of the Progressive Dinner has been set for December 7^th! For those of you who are new to the VRA, the Progressive Dinner is a three course meal that takes place at three different houses. The first house will have appetizers, the second will have the main course, and the third will have dessert. It is one of our most in demand events and the spots go fast. Evites for the event will go out in early November to VRA members who have paid their yearly dues. If you have paid but didn’t give us your e-mail address, please send me an e-mail at president@zvra.com and we will update your record. Or, if you haven’t paid for the year but would like to get the Evite, there is a link on our webpage (zvra.com) to pay your dues. Our committee has been working hard on coordinating the dinner and I am looking forward to seeing what kind of magic they worked this year!

2020 Events: The VRA Board is going to meet soon to discuss events and presentations for the 2020 year. If you have any ideas or would like to see any past topics covered again, we would be happy to hear them! You can e-mail them to me at president@zvra.com.

Last but certainly not least, please tell your neighbors about the VRA and invite them to join. They can either sign up through the website or attend the next meeting. Benefits include joining a strong VRA community, keeping up to date with Village related news and events, and participating in VRA social events.

Best,

Julia

president@zvra.com

Town Council:

We are through another election. I’m looking forward to serving with four new Councilors (Joe Culp, Brad Burke, Alex Choi and Craig Melton) over the next four years. I was also happy the Councilors running for re-election (Jason Plunkett and Bryan Traylor) win their respective races. I’ve enjoyed serving with both and am happy to have their expertise going into a new term.

I also look forward to working with Mayor-elect Styron. I’ve met with her a few times over the last few weeks and think that she and the Council will have a productive relationship in the coming years. I know she has several initiatives from her campaign that I think will be beneficial to our Town. I will tell you what I told her, having a “R” or “D” besides your name should not matter for local politics (and I would argue for all politics). What matters is the quality of the idea and how it can be implemented. While we won’t always agree on everything, working together towards a common cause, the betterment of Zionsville, is what matters.

Switching gears, I was fortunate enough to participate in “Fire Ops 101” in November. This is hosted by local fire departments to show the wide variety of skills and dangers that come with the job. I was joined by elected officials from Hamilton County and State Senator JD Ford as we were rookies for the day. Our scenarios included a flashover (where the smoke catches fire), search and rescue, climbing a ladder truck, car extraction, paramedic response and putting out a fire. My kids were super jealous of the experience, but more importantly I received a much better understanding and appreciation for what the men and women of our first responders experience and risk for our safety.

The most eye-opening experience were those that involved smoke, and how quickly it can eliminate any visual clues as to where you are in a structure. It turns out actual fires are nothing like the movies, I’ll never watch Backdraft the same way again!

I hope you each had a good Thanksgiving and happy holidays!