The Neighborhood Monthly eNewsletter – June 2025
Community Life Spotlight
Play & Learn Graduations
MHP’s Play & Learn programs help children ages 3-5 build foundational skills to set them up for kindergarten success. Something as small as holding a pencil correctly or sitting on a rug quietly is huge for a three-year-old. By graduation, most students can neatly write their names, identify letters and sounds in the alphabet, and count to ten or higher. They have established a love of learning, social skills, and enthusiasm for the classroom experience. We’re so proud of our Play & Learn students and know they will thrive in kindergarten!
Great Achievers Towards Outstanding Results (GATOR) Promotion Ceremony
With a focus on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) skills, our GATOR students enjoy a wide range of activities after school from kindergarten through fifth grade. Thanks to grant funding from the State of MD, they have access to many activities, partnerships, and resources that enhance their learning. Wishing our GATOR students confidence and joy as they enter middle school and continue learning.
Future Leaders of the World (FLOW) Promotion Ceremony
When students entered the FLOW program, they were just starting middle school, a whole new world filled with multiple teachers, newfound freedoms, vending machines, and lockers! In middle school, students test their boundaries and explore their identities. With all the changes in life at this stage, it’s comforting for kids to know they have a place in their community with supportive friends and mentors – a safe place to work on homework and grab a snack. Now, our older FLOW students are ready to spread their wings and pursue extracurricular activities in high school. We wish them all the best in their next endeavor!
Haircuts for the Big Day
Thanks to the generosity of a community volunteer and the organizing efforts of MHP staff, the students at Greenwood Community center received free haircuts along with their families. The kids felt extra special and looked extra fresh for graduation. Thank you to Angela of C&B Salon in Gaithersburg for helping our students shine on their big day.
Featured Partnership – Story Tapestries
Through our partnership with local nonprofit Story Tapestries, professional artists share the magic of the arts and enhance individuals’ literacy, social-emotional and STEAM skills through performances, workshops, and resident artist sessions. Our Play & Learn students were delighted to learn about nature and gardening through painting, collaging, and reading books with the Story Tapestries staff.
Special Thank You Song from MHP Students
There were many tears in the audience when the students performed this song that they learned from Washington Conservatory of Music arts educators. They dedicated the song to their families and teachers for supporting them. Watch here!
Building Dreams Tour
MHP provides thousands of low- and moderate-income families and individuals with quality affordable homes where they can thrive. Our Building Dreams tour, a one-hour experience, is a way to see our work first-hand. Each tour is held at an MHP property and explores the heart of all we do.
The tours include learning about our holistic approach to housing. You will walk the property, see facilities like Community Centers where innovative programs are happening, and hear inspiring resident stories.
RSVP by contacting Jaimee Goodman at jgoodman@mhpartners.org or by phone at 301-812-4118.
Let us show you how MHP is fulfilling our mission by housing people, empowering families, and strengthening neighborhoods.
We’re Hiring
MHP is seeking qualified candidates to join our dynamic team in Silver Spring. With a mission that matters, MHP employees make a difference and enjoy a range of professional benefits.
You might be a fit for our featured job openings. Learn more here.
With competitive pay and benefits, a positive and inclusive workplace culture, and a mission to help people in the community, MHP is a great place to grow your career!
The Neighborhood Monthly eNewsletter – May 2025
Housing People
Gardens of Gaithersburg Ribbon Cutting
MHP celebrated the completion of the newly renovated Gardens of Gaithersburg apartment community with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 1st. The event featured remarks by Maryland State Senator Cheryl Kagan, Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich, Gaithersburg Mayor Jud Ashman, MHP President Robert A. Goldman, the St. Jour family, and many other notable speakers.
The project required a total investment of $36 million. With renovations completed in 2025, this affordable community is a modernized gem in a bustling area with access to many transit connections and job opportunities for residents. Located just off N. Frederick Ave, Gardens of Gaithersburg consists of 78 apartment homes, all reserved for those making 60% of area median income (AMI) or less.
We are grateful to the many project and funding partners who made this preservation project possible! Investment partners include Montgomery County Department of Housing and Community Affairs, State of Maryland, Bank of America, Enterprise, Freddie Mac, and NeighborWorks America.
Check out this article and video from Montgomery County Media to see event highlights!
Empowering Families
Mother’s Day with Community Life
The poet Marion Garretty once wrote, “Mother love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible.”
Our Community Life staff recently celebrated the mothers and caregivers who do what sometimes seems impossible – giving life to another person and being there for them throughout all the ups and downs of life. Motherhood is not easy, but for most, it is extremely rewarding. The Glenville Road community held a special outdoor event, bringing families together with food, crafts, activities, and more. It was a time to appreciate the bonds that bring us together and show value for the essential role that parents and caregivers play in the lives of our young residents.
Young Scientists
Students at our Pembridge Great Achievers Towards Outstanding Results (GATOR) program recently took part in a science fair. They enjoyed exploring textures, materials and chemical reactions to gain new insights about the elements that make up our world. Hands-on learning is a great way to motivate and engage students!
Strengthening Neighborhoods
Flower Theater Receives State Preservation Award
Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) named MHP the recipient of its 2025 Excellence in Restoration Award in recognition of our work on the historic façade at the Flower Theater. The awards recognize outstanding education, restoration, and revitalization projects, as well as individual leadership.
Located in Long Branch, the historical edifice opened in 1950 and operated as a movie theater until it closed in 1996. The theater’s signature neon sign and marquee had been dark for many years. Thanks to our fundraising and organizing efforts, plus the support of many partners, we have revived the iconic neon sign, relit the marquee, and renovated the ticket booth using original materials and techniques.
Watch our award ceremony here!
Long Branch Earth Day Features Family Photos
For the first time ever, people who attended Long Branch Earth Day had the opportunity to take free family photos! In addition to food, music, activities and vendors, we’re always looking for new ways to bring foot traffic and business to our placemaking location events. Here are a few of the wonderful (and photogenic!) people in our community.
Recent Awards Spotlight
As the largest nonprofit developer in Montgomery County, MD, MHP aims to preserve and expand access to quality affordable homes. Our wraparound services complement this mission, supporting our residents and neighbors through dynamic programs. We’re thrilled to share some recent awards with you and appreciate your role in making all this possible. Whether you donated money, liked a social media post, came to an event, or read this newsletter, you helped us make a difference.
- Maryland Historical Trust Excellence in Restoration – Flower Theater Historic Façade
- Housing Association of Nonprofit Developers – Developer of the Year
- Affordable Housing Conference of Montgomery County (AHCMC) Marvin Turner Award for Affordable Housing Excellence – The Bonifant at Silver Spring
- AHCMC Ike Leggett Montgomery County Community Partner Award – The Residences at Forest Glen
- AHCMC Architectural Award – Colonnade at the Creek
- AHCMC Architectural Award – Gardens of Gaithersburg
- Maryland Affordable Housing Coalition – Excellence in Affordable Housing Preservation – Residences at Forest Glen
- Urban Land Institute Washington awards – FINALIST- Colonnade at the Creek
Discover more awards here.
Building Dreams Tour
MHP provides thousands of low- and moderate-income families and individuals with quality affordable homes where they can thrive. Our Building Dreams tour, a one-hour experience, is a way to see our work first-hand. Each tour is held at an MHP property and explores the heart of all we do.
The tours include learning about our holistic approach to housing. You will walk the property, see facilities like Community Centers where innovative programs are happening, and hear inspiring resident stories.
RSVP by contacting Jaimee Goodman at jgoodman@mhpartners.org or by phone at 301-812-4118.
Let us show you how MHP is fulfilling our mission by housing people, empowering families, and strengthening neighborhoods.
We’re Hiring
MHP is seeking qualified candidates to join our dynamic team in Silver Spring. With a mission that matters, MHP employees make a difference and enjoy a range of professional benefits.
You might be a fit for our featured job openings. Learn more here.
With competitive pay and benefits, a positive and inclusive workplace culture, and a mission to help people in the community, MHP is a great place to grow your career!
Housing&, formerly known as The Housing Association of Nonprofit Developers, named MHP its 2025 Housing Achievement Developer of the Year. The Housing Achievement awards recognize outstanding individuals, housing developments, programs, and solutions that have made significant investments into creating more equitable communities across the Capital Region. MHP received the award during Housing&’s 34th Annual Meeting and Housing Expo in Washington DC on June 5.
Committed to fulling its mission of housing people, empowering families, and strengthening neighborhoods, MHP has over the years embraced a strategy of focusing some of its investments along transit lines, including along the ongoing Purple Line transit corridor project. The investments along transit lines demonstrate our strategic innovations in expanding access to quality affordable housing for low- and -moderate-income earners. At a time when many neighborhoods across the DMV have seen spikes in rent which bring financial challenges for low- and -moderate-income earners, today, MHP has expanded the total number of preserved or renovated units along the Purple Line corridor to 1,100, a productive step in preventing displacement. This brings the total number of affordable housing homes developed by MHP to about 3,000.
The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) recently presented MHP its Excellence in Affordable Housing Preservation Award in recognition of the nonprofit developer’s work on the Residences at Forest Glen. DHCD Secretary Jake Day presented the award to MHP President Robert A. Goldman during the Maryland Affordable Housing Coalition’s (MAHC) annual Secretary’s Breakfast and awards ceremony. The Multifamily awards highlight some of the best projects in Maryland that have received DHCD support.
The Residences at Forest Glen, a ground up development of 189 units in Silver Spring, is one of the largest affordable housing projects in Montgomery County. Located near the I-495 Capital Beltway, the Forest Glen Metro station, and many bus routes, this $100 million multifamily development is a transit-friendly community with amenities such as a community room, fitness center, multiple courtyards, underground parking, landscaped green space, a community garden, and higher-trim design features such as floor to ceiling windows.
Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) named MHP the recipient of its 2025 Excellence in Restoration Award in recognition of the nonprofit developer’s work on the historic façade at the Flower Theater. MHT will award MHP and nine other organizations throughout the Preservation Month (May 2025) celebrations. The awards recognize outstanding education, restoration, and revitalization projects, as well as individual leadership.
MHP completed the reconstruction of the historic façade of the former Flower Theater in February 2024 after many years of the edifice’s disrepair. Located in the Long Branch neighborhood of Silver Spring, the historical edifice opened in 1950 and operated as a movie theater until it closed in 1996. The theater’s signature neon sign and marquee had been dark for many years, creating public safety issues and underutilized space on the block. For several decades, this historic building was left dilapidated and had its exterior appearance degraded by aging signage. Contracted to Donohoe, the Flower Theater’s project revived the iconic neon sign, relit the marquee, and renovated the ticket booth using original materials and techniques, reinvigorating a vibrant economic community.