President’s Message Kevin

I hope everyone is enjoying spring with the warmer weather and colorful flowers, trees and bushes in bloom. The Board of Directors met in early April, prior to our annual meeting, with a special guest from Shentel. We learned more about the process that goes to get cable from one location to another and the costs involved. The Board approved getting input from our Attorney on potential legal concerns on this project as well. To read more about this, please read the article later in this newsletter on communications.

Our treasurer, Keith, brought attention that our CD was about to come due for renewal. The Board needed to decide to renew the CD at the current rate or move the money into our money market account. It was decided to move the money into our money market account at this time and review moving to a CD later not knowing what our needs may be in the near future plus knowing our bank will be merging with BB&T. On other business the Board approved the new layout that you see in this newsletter. We know this will make editing the newsletter easier but hope you will also enjoy it. The Board was updated on the status of our covenant updates, with the covenant committee being close to turning this over to the Board after a final review.

I was glad to see everyone at our annual meeting on April 13 and I would like to thank our outgoing Board members, Keith, Betsy, Jim, Deb and Ginny for their service to Walnut Run. Jim has devoted nearly two decades to Walnut Run in several roles and was presented with 2 plaques, one for his home and one to be put by a tree that is to be planted in his honor. I want to welcome our new Board members, Charles, Wilson, Toni and Charlene. I look forward to working with all our Board members in the coming year. You will see at the end of the newsletter, in its new layout, the current officers. I would like to thank everyone who was able to attend the meeting for coming and hope you all left feeling the board was keeping you informed on items.

As you may have noticed Franklin County has replaced the street sign at the corner of Wysong Mills and Walnut Run Drive. VDOT has informed me that Walnut Run is on the schedule for this year to complete the slurry work that was started last year but could not give me a date at this time.

Have a wonderful Summer!

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Hospitality Committee News Pat

Danny and Vickie Family

Please welcome Danny & Vickie family to the Walnut Run Community. They and their pets have moved into their home on Walnut Landing Circle. They discovered Smith Mountain Lake during the 1990’s and have been visiting the lake since. While Danny and Vickie reside full-time at their home in Greenbriar, WV, buying a second home here was just a natural extension of their love for the area. They can be seen frequently visiting the lake with their 2 dogs in tow.

Danny is an Army veteran having served from 1970 to 1972. He was stationed in South Carolina and Georgia, with a thirteen-month duty station in Korea. Sargent Whitt was trained in communications and artillery. Before retirement, Danny and Vickie owned their own business designing and building fine oak furniture. Several attractive pieces (a china cabinet, display hutch, coffee table and end tables) have a prime place in their SML home. Their furniture is solid oak and crafted with care and attention to detail. Quality features such as glass doors and complimentary hardware add to the beauty of the furniture.

Danny and Vickie have two grown children, Heather and Tammy, as well as two grandchildren Danielle and Zack. Danielle is a nurse and Zack is a senior in high school. Heather & Danielle live full-time in the home on Walnut Landing Circle. They both work as nurses in the Roanoke area. Heather, previously an LPN for 11 years, is an RN at Davita Acutes Dialysis at Lewis Gale Medical Center. Danielle, also an RN, works for a home health care company called Kindred at Home. Heather and Danielle graduated together in 2017, with nursing and associate degrees. Their three dogs and one cat make it a full house. When Danny and Vickie visit that makes five doggies in residence!

The whole family enjoys the water and boating. When time permits a good book is a relaxing pastime. As the weather warms and we’re all out and about, please stop and introduce yourself. Walnut Run is happy to have the Danny and Vickie family in our neighborhood.

Richard and Diane Family

Please extend a warm welcome to Richard and Diane family, new homeowners on Viewmont Trail. Richard and Diane live full time in Yorktown, VA, and will frequently visit the lake on a part-time basis for now. Diane grew up in

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Nebraska and Rich was a military child, so we know he moved around a lot. Rich and Diane met in the Air Force. Diane was an USAF nurse and Rich was a fighter pilot flying F-15’s. They are both now retired from the Air Force, however, Rich is currently employed with the USAF. During their service with the military they were stationed in Florida, Arizona, the Philippines, Holland and Virginia.

Daughter Rebecca, a Virginia Tech graduate, is an architect residing and working in Baltimore, MD. She will help her parents design a remodel. Their son Phillip is a graduate of Virginia Military Institute and is currently in pilot training with the Air Force in Del Rio, Texas. Daughter Rachel attended Longwood University. She works for the Navy in Newport, Rhode Island as facility manager of a workout & aquatic center.

We look forward to the family visiting the lake throughout the year and most likely attending Virginia Tech football games. Along with boating, Rich also enjoys kayaking and fishing. Diane is a real do-it-yourselfer and has already painted the inside of their new home. She attributes this talent to “having to do it” when Rich was frequently deployed on USAF missions. She also enjoys cooking and baking-the addition of a newly remodeled kitchen will be a real treat! Gardening, quilting/sewing, kayaking and running round out her favorite activities.

Take a walk or ride down Viewmont Trail and introduce yourself to Richard and Diane family. We welcome them to Walnut Run, the best community on the lake!

Landscape Committee Report Janie

Spring Has Sprung!

The daffodils have come and gone …

The Easter eggs went up, and Bob and Pat helped get them down…

And now it is time for the annuals to go in the ground!

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I got word from the sisters at Walter’s Greenhouse that I can pick the annuals up mid-week, May 10 th, in the latter part of the day. I should be ready to dispense your plants to you on Thursday.

I will also have a calendar on hand for folks to sign up to tend the main sign garden for a week or two this summer. If you are not a sign parent but would like to help with summer watering and being on the lookout for the deer munching on any of the shrubs at the main sign….please let me know!

If anyone has a good recipe that works to keep the deer away from the gardens, I would love to share it with everyone.

Happy Gardening!

Architectural Review Committee Lee

Even though Jim has retired as ARC chairman, the committee remains the same and is committed to helping you with any modifications that you're considering to your house's exterior, dock, or yard this summer. Please contact us:

Lee – ChairmanJim – Vice Chairman

BettieBob

WilsonDenise

Ray

Communication Committee Kevin

We had a very good discussion on the “highspeed internet” project that we have been talking to Shentel about and have learned much about the process and costs that go into running fiber optics to a community. Shentel is now working with Franklin County on ways to help finance this project and keep the cost to our members at a minimum. Franklin County has submitted to the Tobacco Commission several projects, including our project with Shentel, for a grant to help offset the cost of this project and we hope to hear the results by early June. In the meantime, the Board authorized checking with our attorney to review our bylaws and covenants on the Board and membership’s rights to put in place a special assessment should it be needed. Shentel is also working with its executives on other options to pay for the project as well. As it stands, without any grants and with the current routing of cable, the latest numbers from Shentel to provide cable to Walnut Run is a total of $324,514 of which Shentel is crediting $219,600 based on the number of homes that they will be passing along the way which leave $94,000 that has to be covered in some other manner if we are to get cable here. If this

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were to divided by the 119 lots in Walnut Run, it would equate to $800 per lot. Shentel is looking at alternate options on running the cable here as well which could reduce the costs as well. At the April Board meeting the Shentel rep asked if we could survey our membership on what services people would be interested in signing up for if we had fiber optics here. This information would be used by the project manager to provide the Shentel executives the numbers that they would be looking at having sign up and hopefully give more incentive for them to move the project forward. The Board approved doing the survey and the membership agreed at the annual meeting that this was something we should do. As of this writing, we have over 50% of the homeowners replied with services that they would be interested in getting from Shentel. It was also stated that in the last 4 or 5 years having the highspeed internet option for your property has become as necessary as having any other utility. Not only is having highspeed internet pretty much a requirement to sell a property but it also increases the value of the property by over $1,000. Research has also been done on the other new technology that is in the works - “5G”. This is not currently available in our area and the local vendors do not believe it will be for at least a year. It also has many of the same draw backs of current wireless technology in that it will be affected by the lay of the land, weather and trees. It will also require more towers closer together and to your location to be useful. As we learn more and get more information it will be passed on via emails from walnutrunpoa@gmail.com to keep you informed. You may also send any questions or concerns that you have concerning highspeed internet to walnutrunpoa@gmail.com.

Walnut Run Marina Association News Bill

The Marina Board is happy to announce the resumption of boat inspections at the Walnut Run Marina.

Coast Guard Auxiliary members will be at the marina from 10 am until 2 pm on May 11 th to conduct courtesy inspections. The inspections are open to all Walnut Run POA members. The inspections are being held in conjunction with lake clean up in the hopes that we can have a great turn out. This is a wonderful opportunity to ensure your boat is safe to operate for the 2019 boating season.

If you are not a marina member, please bring your boat to the marina and dock in one of the vacant slips. Please use caution in the marina as there will be boat traffic in and out of the marina while doing lake clean up.

The marina will, in the near future, be having work done on the pilings. Existing pilings will be re-worked, and new pilings will be added. This work is necessary due to high water and wake action causing the docks to shift.

The Marina has slips available for assignment or rent. If interested, please contact Bill.

Please remember to carry out any personal trash you make while using the marina. The trash can at the marina is for lake debris only.

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Take Pride in Smith Mountain Lake Cleanup Bob

On Saturday, May 11, 2019 over 40 Walnut Run POA residents are signed up to participate in the annual Smith Mountain Lake Cleanup Event held at the Walnut Run Marina. This year’s event begins at 8:30 A.M. with a complimentary lunch at 12:00 noon provided by the Walnut Run Hospitality Committee. The Take Pride in Smith Mountain Lake event is in its 32nd year and is sponsored by the Smith Mountain Lake Association, Tri-County Lakes Administrative Commission, and SML Regional Chamber of Commerce. Participants are provided with free gloves, orange trash bags and commemorative T-shirts. As a special thank you from the SML sponsors, a free post-event dinner celebration is being held on May 22 at Mango’s Bar and Grill from 5:00 to 7:00 P.M. Tickets for the celebration are available for Walnut Run participants during the Saturday cleanup event.

We received feedback from our TLAC contact that each year Walnut Run POA is consistently one of the events largest organized groups to participate. For example, last year our hard-working Walnut Run cleanup participants collected logs, other trash and one auto tire from around our community shoreline and marina and filled a dumpster with 4.6 tons of debris. The report on the activities and photos from this year’s event will be provided in the next issue of the newsletter.

July 4th Parade Sylvia & Larry

Spring has sprung, flowers and trees are starting to bloom, and our minds are thinking of summer-time activities.    So mark your calendars to participate in Walnut Run’s Annual 4th of July Parade.   When:                  July 4th @ 9:00 a.m.                              Rain or shine Where:                Staging in front of Walnut Landing Circle (Larry & Sylvia home – beside the Water Tower house) Entry Theme:      Patriotic Pride               Prizes (1st, 2nd, 3rd) awarded for the best use of red/white/blue when decorating your entry Kid’s Theme:      Patriotic Pride               Prizes (1st, 2nd, 3rd) awarded for the best use of red/white/blue. This parade was the brain-child of DJ who orchestrated it for approximately 20 years.    We will remember her at the parade. 

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Whether as an actual parade participant or a spectator, this is an amazing Walnut Run tradition you won’t want to miss. Hopefully, the Burnt Chimney Fire Department will be available to lead the parade.   The parade route is the same as last year: Walnut Landing Circle, Walnut Trace, Walnut Run Drive, Charlotte Lane, back to Walnut Trace, ending at 30 Walnut Landing Circle for a Community Social.    Prizes will be awarded at the Community Social immediately following the parade – judging by last year’s winner.    Come visit with your neighbors and share in light refreshments.   While not necessary, feel free to bring a treat to share.    Any questions contact me.

Hope to see you there! Sylvia

Submissions of pictures or articles to be included in the newsletter are always welcome & appreciated. Deadline is the 5th of publish month (February, May, August, November).

Newsletter Editor: Mary

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