The Neighborhood Monthly eNewsletter – February 2026

Housing People

Safety Tips for Seniors at The Bonifant 

Fire safety is essential for everyone. Emergencies such as fires pose a greater risk for seniors, especially those with mobility challenges, oxygen support, hearing impairments , and more. Residents of The Bonifant at Silver Spring recently participated in a fire safety training with James Resnick. James develops and provides fire safety and injury prevention education and outreach programs and support for senior citizens in Montgomery County, Maryland, in partnership with Fire and Rescue Services.  

What’s New at The Chimes at North Bethesda 

What’s new at The Chimes at North Bethesda? Short answer: a lot! This ground-up construction property is making excellent progress and if things keep moving along as expected, MHP will hold a ribbon cutting in fall of 2026. Wondering about the name? The Chimes has a subtle musical theme with interactive playground and community elements that make sounds. It is walking distance from the North Bethesda Metro station, offering residents easy access to public transportation, which in turn supports access to jobs, groceries, shops, education, medical care, and more.

Empowering Families

Week of Love 

Love is in the air! Community Life students celebrated Valentine’s Day with crafts, snacks, games, music and more! It’s important to promote respect, empathy, and consideration of others in the classroom. When children work on these social skills at a young age, it sets them up for successful relationships in the future. Valentine’s Day is an opportunity for students to spread love. 

Centering Student Choice  

Sharp, our independent evaluator, recently observed MHP’s Great Achievers Towards Outstanding Results (GATOR) Club at Pembridge Community Center. 

According to the Weikart Center, “giving youth opportunities to make decisions encourages them to explore their interests, participate as group members and leaders, and ultimately become stronger decision makers in life.”     

We’re proud to share that MHP Community Life staff were observed to be particularly adept at providing numerous opportunities for all students to make both content and process choices. Students appeared familiar with pre-established guidelines to suggest content choices to staff (e.g., “let’s make slime” or “let’s make glow stick jewelry”), and were observed selecting new activities supplied around the room at the beginning the session (e.g., “I wanna try these new foam animals!”). Students were also observed making numerous process choices (e.g., how to design their artwork, how to build Legos), and were encouraged by staff to try new processes (e.g., “I calculate area like this, show me how you would do it”).  

Student choice makes learning more fun and effective! 

Strengthening Neighborhoods

Adventist Healthcare Partnership 

New year, new partnership! MHP runs a unique Community Health Worker (CHW) program that serves more than 250 of our residents in Wheaton, MD.  Nearly a quarter of households lack health insurance, many live with chronic conditions such as diabetes, high cholesterol, and asthma, and almost half experience food insecurity. CHWs are trusted, culturally sensitive members of the community who provide health education, connect residents to resources, and serve as liaisons with healthcare systems. Through place-based outreach, navigation support, and coordination with providers, the program seeks to reduce disparities for low-income families. We’re excited to announce a new partnership with the Adventist HealthCare Community Partnership Fund that will help our CHWs improve health access, reduce preventable illness, and eliminate barriers for underserved populations, while establishing a replicable model for other high-need communities. 

Winter Coats Bring Warmth in Wheaton 

Temps in Montgomery County dropped into single digits this month. Fortunately, MHP was able to provide winter coats for 100 residents in Wheaton thanks to the support of a donor and the organizing efforts of our Neighborhoods team and Community Health Workers. When we work together as a community, we can look out for vulnerable neighbors, especially during inclement weather. 

Seeking Pembridge Food Pantry Donations

Did you know that our resident outreach team runs a food pantry attached to our Pembridge Community Center? This small but mighty storage location can hold many nonperishable food items for residents in need. We’re seeking donations of canned goods on an ongoing basis. Please contact Fatima (fcoreas@mhpartners.org) to schedule a drop-off at the Pembridge Community Center.  Thanks for helping us provide food for the community! 

Combatting Food Insecurity with Fatima

Discover Fatima’s perspective on her work helping residents with SNAP benefits and combatting food insecurity in the latest MHP on Mic.

Building Dreams Tour

MHP’s Building Dreams tours provide a one-hour opportunity to see our work first-hand. Join Rob Goldman, Jaimee Goodman and other staff members for a deeper drive into our holistic approach and mission to expand and preserve affordable housing. RSVP and learn more by emailing Jaimee: jgoodman@mhpartners.org.