Laura Burns President's Circle: 2022 Wrap-Up

Happy New Year, y’all! As we look forward to the new year, let’s take a few moments to reflect on what the Civic League accomplished in 2022. Many thanks to everyone who helped make our neighborhoods a better place and to those who are committed to improving our community.

The social Events Committee brought many events to our community:

• A Cogan’s Pizza Meet-up
• Two Business Appreciation weeks; one for the North Colley Business District, the other for the Riverview Village Business District
• A Barry Art Museum Tour, followed by a Meet-up at Elation
• A kids’ Neighborhood Bike Ride
• A River Paddle Meet-up
• A Garden Party at the Knitting Mill Creek Community Garden, co-hosted by the KMC Garden. Special thanks to Kim and Mitch Swecker.  
• Worked with Membership Committee to co-host an ODU Tailgate

Media Committee:

• A new website with updated resources, the ability to pay for memberships online, and much more – check it out.
• New opportunities for online advertising developed for 2023 advertisers.

Neighborhood Beautification Committee:

• In April, the Beautification Committee held a “Learn & Prune” event, where the Norfolk Master Gardeners hit the streets and pruned the Crape Myrtles within Riverview.
• Dog park clean-up day

I want to especially thank the volunteers who have helped in so many ways in the neighborhoods. I especially want to recognize a few long-time volunteers who stepped down from committee rolls in 2022. 

• Michael Langston, as the President of the CPRV Civic League
• John Robertson, as the Webmaster
• Tobie Serafim, as the Newsletter Distribution Chair
• David Spriggs, as Newsletter Editor and Media Chair
• Anna Thurmond, as Community Garden Leader
• Audrey Webb, as Chairperson of the Environmental Committee
• A giant shout-out and huge thank you to the countless volunteers who helped distribute the printed newsletter for so many years!

All of these positions are crucial in providing critical information to the residents of our neighborhoods, and I thank you for your service.

We look forward to continued success in 2023. One of our big initiatives is to keep neighbors better informed and connected through digital means, including revamping our social media presence, improving our website with up-to-date information and resources, and digitizing our monthly newsletter. Additionally, sharing our community with Knitting Mill Creek, East Haven Creek, and the Lafayette River makes Colonial Place and Riverview really special. Be on the lookout for opportunities to be involved in improving our relationship with the environment. Lastly, the Civic League does not exist without community involvement, and we want the Civic League to empower residents to make an impact. If you have an idea for improving our community, the Civic League would love to support you! Please contact Laura Burns at president@cprv.net.

We look forward to a great 2023!