December meeting: Christmas Coffee.

Join us Thursday, December 11 for our holiday meeting at the home of Lauren Harkins Wiuffs' at
5016 Lynbar. The meeting starts at 7p and although we have done an ornament exchange in the past, we will NOT be doing that this year. Just bring yourself and some holiday cheer. We will also have your pottery ready for pick up.

This will be our last meeting till February. We will have Progressive Dinner in January; invites to follow.

November meeting: Paint a Piece.

Our next meeting is on Tuesday, Nov. 18th at 7p. PLEASE NOTE THE LOCATION HAS CHANGED to Stephanie Hubbard's house at 92 East Charlotte Circle. We switched locations so we could paint inside, due to weather. Did you not pay or not want to paint? No problem; we still want you to come and chat.

Crime alert: Robindale.

On Wednesday, Nov. 5, a homeowner on Robindale left to take her daughter to school and then go to work. Ten minutes later she got a call from her alarm company about a break-in. They took whatever they could grab easily, DVD players, a wii, they overturned drawers. It appears they moved quickly and didn't spend much time because the alarm was going off.

The police told her a few things:
-- there have been a lot of early am break-ins in East Memphis. It appears they are watching people leave for work. They said to be suspicious of parked cars, cars driving up and down streets, etc.
--- they said her front bushes were too high ( around her yard near the street)-- it gave the thieves privacy to break in.
--- they said to please call and report suspicious cars to 545-cops.

Crime alert: Mary Ann/Rich.

There was an incident around 4p yesterday on Mary Ann near Rich. A woman was at home, but there was no car in the driveway. She went out to a storage room and when she re-entered her house, a white male in his 30's was inside dressed in a Terminex shirt. He slit her wrist, but she is ok, not in critical condition. If you know anything else please post a reply here. Brooke will contact the police and ask them to attend our meeting next week. Please feel free to call her with any more info or comments: 246.5584.

MIssing dog: Travis.

Here is a picture of our beloved Travis. Your assistance is GREATLY appreciated. Missing since 11/4/08 from the area of Perkins Extended & Poplar. We realize he could be anywhere. Hopefully a kind caring person has our Travis and we will get him back.

Thank you,
Linda Reilly
848-0982

Crime alert: Normandy.

From email on Nov. 6:

At about 6:45 this morning I saw a truck stopped in front of my neighbor's house, directly across the street. I saw a BM get out of the passenger side, go to the garbage can, open the lid to look inside, then get back in the truck and continue to slowly drive down the street towards Mendenhall. I called my husband to come look, and he immediately got on the phone with the police. It didn't even occur to me that it might be the same people who were on Charlotte Circle, until a few minutes later. I also noticed that my neighbor had an empty TV box beside the garbage can, so I can only assume that's what caught their attention. I watched them as much as I could from the front door, but didn't see them stop at anyone else's house. I gave the police as much info as I could remember, but I will definitely be paying more attention to minor details.

Free infant massage class.

Jennifer Smith is teaching a Certified Infant Massage Training next week - Nov 9, 10, 11. We have a FREE infant massage class for parents and babies each day of the class from 10:30-12:00 at LeBonheur. Please pass this on to your friends and call me at 491.4575 if you have interest in attending!

Crime alert: Walnut Grove & Mendenhall.

From recent emails:

I live at the intersection of Walnut Grove and Mendenhall and my house was broken into yesterday. I work with someone who is a member of the Avon Normandy Neighborhood Watch and who had told me about the recent spree of crime in the area. I know that several houses around ours were also hit yesterday. The thief kicked in the door and took as much as he could in a short amount of time. It occurred around 10 a.m. after my husband and I had gone to work.

----------
As of 8:30 AM today, there have been two burglaries in our area on Robindale and Briarcliff.

Crime-fighting tips.

The following notes were from the Sycamore Grove Neighborhood Watch group meeting led by Col. Mark Collins along with Maj. Phillips and Dep. Chief Smith, all of the Central Precinct.

• The top problems in our area are 1) theft from motor vehicles and 2) residential burglaries.
• There has been a rumor going around that there are no police officers on duty after midnight in the area between Perkins and Yates and Poplar north. This is not true.
• The MPD’s holiday plan is being put together right now. There are three big events coming up that will tax them: Halloween is on a Friday night (please mind your children and know where they are); the COGIC convention is getting ready to start, and restaurants and hotels will be full; Election Day is next Tuesday.
• Officers like riding our ward.
• Go to MemphisPolice.org (I think this is correct) and click on Real Time Crime Center. It updates crimes constantly…right now. If you have specific info on cases, email them or call 545-COPS.
  
• Call the Central Precinct and tell them if you are going to be out of town, and they will check on your house.
• Many auto thefts are older vehicles, which were easier to steal.
• Thieves will look in a car, and, if they see nothing, likely they will pass it by. Never leave a weapon in a car, or, for that matter, anything else.
  
• When asked if a sting could be done around here, Col. Collins said it is very labor intensive and hard to do in a large area like this, but it isn’t impossible. It is easier to do in a more confined area.
• What often happens with break-ins is that one person will drop another off and he will come back after they communicate by cell phone. Often they will knock on the front door, and, if no one answers, they will go around to the back door and break in. Good lighting will help.
• They cannot patrol for every large party but will try to check up if you are having one and notify them. But don’t count on them for your security
• Blake Elliot asked about possibly getting speed bumps on Oak Grove to slow up criminals as they try to speed off as well as others who generally drive too fast. This will take an organized effort, but Blake is going to look into it by calling the Traffic Engineer’s Dept.
• If you see a suspicious person, call 545-COPS or email Cyberwatch. Use 911 for emergencies. One of our neighbors who saw a burglary in progress recently and didn’t realize until too late what was happening was brave enough to tell us about it and was very apologetic. Col. Collins told her not to apologize, that police officers sometimes do the same.

Crime alert: various locations.

A wrap-up of recent crime-related emails:

**********
This morning I was leaving the house at 6:30am and saw a suspicious white truck driving slow onto E Charlotte Cir. I thought it was odd since those that cut through Charlotte Cir drive faster and why would you need to cut through at 6:30am?

Okay - he drives slowly past my house, David's house (Fyfe's old house), with his brakes on. He slows completely to a halt at Merrill's driveway, backs up and shines his lights at an angle into the carport. He backs up further to semi parallel park on the left hand side of the street - approx 10 ft from the curb & sat there.

I back out of my driveway and move closer to his location. He moves forward and around the corner. If he was cutting through the neighborhood, he would've turned left onto MaryAnn and out onto Walnut Grove. Instead he turned right onto MaryAnn. So (being stupid!), I followed him. He tried to park on the side of the street before N Charlotte Cir (so I could pass him)
but I just waited for him to move. He obviously knew I was behind him and watching his actions. Then he turned into the driveway next to Leah's house and sat. He was waiting for me to move forward and pass the driveway but I waited. I knew he didn't live there and thought I'd wait it out (Again, stupid!). He turned around and our cars are now facing each other. I sped past - took a right on Charlotte N and race around the corner to see if he exited the neighborhood or was heading back toward Merrill's house. I didn't see him so I guess he left?

I called David (husband) a few minutes ago (now 11:00am) and he said he noticed the same white truck slowly driving through the neighborhood. I'm tired of these guys casing/breaking in/stealing in our neighborhood. He was absolutely without a doubt casing houses.

I did not call the police. I was trying to memorize the plate when the incident on Mary Ann went down and I lost all train of thought. The truck was a White older model F-150/Silverado type truck. David said he saw BM driving and there was a black scratch in the bumper area.

**********
On 10/29/2008 a home was burglarized some time between approximately 9am and 5:30pm at 215 Avon Road. Door in the garage was pried open and they took a laptop, video camera, jewelry box, DVD player and digital camera. The videos and pictures on the cameras are the most important thing so keep your eyes peeled for any items possibly thrown out on the street.

**********
My friend's house was broken into 10/29 while he and his wife were at work. They live on Charleswood west of Waring. The back door was kicked in and they were completely cleaned out. The only item of value that was not taken was their securely mounted TV, though it was destroyed as they completely tore down the mantle and sheetrock while trying to steal it. This seems to be yet another break-in where the door was kicked in to gain access.

**********
I'd like to report a car break-in (broke rear driver's side window) on the corner of Elwood and Mendenhall. The package stolen from the vehicle was discarded on Mendenhall and recovered.

**********
Corner of Shady Grove & Mendenhall...
I wanted to inform you that our house was broken into Thursday, October 23 around 11:00 a.m. We have an alarm system that went off, an 80 lb lab, and baby gates that are an obstacle even if you do know how to operate them; but the burglar did come into the house and rummaged through drawers and closets. Fortunately, it does not appear that anything was taken.

This morning I was informed by our postman that yesterday, Thursday, October 30, there was a suspicious vehicle pulled into our carport at 12:44 p.m. The postman watched the car and the occupant, took down the car's description and tag number, and the car finally pulled out and left. Of course, these two instances could be related or completely exclusive of each other. Here is the car information:
Silver Grand Am
Shelby Tags - 399 LQM
Rear tinted window
Multiple decals on front windshield above the windshield wipers

Community Meeting.

There will be a meeting organized by Councilman Reid Hedgepeth regarding recent crimes in our area. Please plan to attend, November 17th at 5pm in the Galloway Golf Course Clubhouse. The purpose is to invite the many neighborhoods involved in increasing crime so we can begin to make all of our community safer.

Memphis Union Mission: bargain update.

You'll have to shop today to get these, but Kroger has Brut deodorant and 2 oz. bottles of Purell for $1 each. Schnuck's has GUM micro and supertip toothbrushes on sale for $1.

Walgreen's has Arrid XX and Arm & Hammer deodorant for $.99 with the store flyer coupon. Walgreen's baby powder is also on sale for $.99 with flyer coupon. Walgreen's medicated lip care is 2/$.99. These prices are good through Saturday.

Please bring your donated men's toiletries to the next meeting and Minetry will deliver them to the Memphis Union Mission.

Crime alert: Barfield.

From a recent email:

My parents were robbed at gun point on my front porch in the 4600 block of Barfield. There were two BM and possibly another in a large white older type car (old Lincoln, Cadillac?). My parents noticed the car pass them as they parked curbside in front of my house and it was heading towards Avon. As my parents were about to unlock the door, the robbers jumped out of the shrubs attacked/robbed them. It was horrible. They beat my dad with a pistol, took his wallet and mom's purse, then ran towards Perkins. Probably their ride was waiting for them. Thankfully, they didn't shoot him and my four children never woke up or witnessed this.

The police & ambulance response was fast. The police officer said to call and report whenever anyone suspicious is in the neighborhood. They said if they don't look like they should be here, then they probably shouldn't.

Marci's note:
A lot of the crime reports we get are outside of Normandy Meadows. Still, please take precautions whenever you can. Report suspicious people and vehicles to 545-COPS. Keep your doors locked at all times, and install security doors at all entrances. If it appears someone is following you to your house, don't stop. Keep going and call 545-COPS. Keep outdoor lights on at night or install motion detectors. Don't keep valuables in your car. Don't hide keys to your house under the mat or in other obvious places. Be smart and protect yourselves!

Crime alert: 80s Astro Van.

From a recent email:

A police officer from our precinct just let me know that we have had an increase in break-ins in our area. The most recent have been during the day, between 9 - 1. A 80s model Ford Astro Van gray or dark green has been spotted with two white males ages 18 -21. Please be on the lookout for this van and call if you see it. A mailman spotted the van on Sequoia.

He also said that we need to call anytime we have any info or see anything: 545-COPS. He also wanted to remind me that once we start the holiday season there will also be an increased possibility of break-ins. He also told me that there is a new man in charge at our precinct who he states "seems more interested in the crime issues".

Lost cat.

From Roylyn Parks:

Yellow was let out at 8 a.m. Wednesday and hasn't been seen since. He always checks in frequently during the day and is ALWAYS in for the night by 5p. He was wearing a red collar with tag but perhaps that could have been lost. We are worried sick. I have put out signs on posts and fliers at houses along our street, Mary Ann, across Peg Lane a few houses. He is so friendly I worry he may have climbed into someone's truck and they drove off with him. We checked the house on Mary Ann where he was trapped underneath several years ago. He is so into chipmunk hunting this time of year he could have gone in a garage etc. I will take a flier to Cloverleaf and put an ad in the paper. Any help is appreciated.

10/25 UPDATE: Yellow has returned home!

Crime alert: Charlotte Circle, Princeton, Walnut Grove Court.

The following have been reported in our area on Monday:

Break-in at 115 E. Charlotte Circle in the morning. The thieves pulled into the driveway and kicked in the side door to the kitchen.

Burglary in 4500 block Princeton Rd, also in the morning. Jewelry and electronics were taken.

Theft from vehicle in 100 block Walnut Grove in the evening. Credit cards and handgun were taken.

Yard of the Month: October.

October meeting: Tom Pellet, master gardener.

Our next meeting will be next Tuesday Oct. 21st. It is at Morgan Westbrook's house at 5095 Norich. Katie Redeker is the cohostess. Please note that this is a location change!

Tom Pellet, master gardener, will be speaking. He was very informative last year, and has asked that we prepare some questions ahead of time. Please post your questions in the comments below or email them to Suzanne Houlden at shoulden@comcast.net by Monday.

Also, if you plan on participating in the November "Paint a Piece" meeting, please remember to bring your check to the next meeting. You must pay for your pottery by Oct. 21 in order to guarantee that it will be available.

October is your last meeting to pay your dues and be in the directory. Dues remain at $25 per year. Bring your checkbook!

And you can always bring your St. Jude pop-tops and items for the Memphis Union Mission to any monthly meeting.

Crime alert: Lynbar

From Oct. 10:

Last night two tall thin white males came from my neighbor's driveway on Lynbar at 12:45a, crawled into a waiting neutral colored Mercury Marquis or Ford Crown Victoria, with at least two other people, and headed east down Lynbar, crossing at Mendenhall. I called the police and gave the description and within a minute, I could see several blue lights flashing across Mendenhall.
My neighbor is out of town, but locks her gate and sets her alarm, so the officers checked the doors and windows with flashlights and could not find anything amiss. They were probably looking for cash in cars. All of the 16- and 17-year-olds were issued a curfew violation, which I hope will be a hassle for the parents. If you have anything missing, refer to this e mail if you call police.

Memphis Union Mission: bargain update.

Minetry Apperson is leading a call to supply the Memphis Union Mission with toiletries and supplies for the men they serve. From time to time, we'll post weekly bargains here in the hopes that we'll be able to stretch our dollars and donate even more products in these tough times. Bring your donations to any meeting.

These posts will make the assumption that you save the weekly coupon inserts from the Sunday paper. Here's what you could pick up this week:

WALGREEN'S*
Bic Comfort 3 Disposable Razors $3.99

$2.00 off 9/14 SmartSource insert

$1.00 Easysaver coupon (the little booklet by the flyers in the store)

final price = $0.99

Ban Roll-On 2 for $3.00 with in-ad coupon (the flyer found in the paper and at the store)
$0.75 off 10/12 SmartSource insert
final price = $0.75 each


*You may use both a manufacturer's coupon and a Walgreen's coupon on the same one product at Walgreen's. But you must have as many items overall as you have coupons. So if you do either of these deals, throw in a drink or candy bar for yourself so you have two items to cover the two coupons.

Infant Massage classes.

Massaging your baby is a beautiful and loving way to begin a lifelong relationship. Early psychological and sensory input is essential in facilitating the development of all infants. Garden Club member Jennifer Smith offers infant massage classes in private or community settings.

Infant Massage is a preventative program that provides loving touch right from the start. Understanding and beginning touch early in life can improve the quality of parenting and family life and promote the well-being of the infant. Infant Massage contains critical elements of bonding such as eye-to-eye contact, smiling, smoothing vocal sounds, loving touch, caressing, smell, and mutual interaction. Studies show that bonding increases a parent’s feeling of attachment as well as the desire to nurture and care for their infant.

A series of three free classes will be available Nov. 9, 10, 11 at LeBonheur as part of CIMI training program. Parents and caregivers of babies from birth to eight months are invited to take one or all of the classes.

Interested? Contact Jennifer at jennifercarslysmith@hotmail.com or 491-4575.

Phone tree committee.

Jennifer Smith would love to have some additional help with the phone tree committee. All you need to do is call several members to remind them about our monthly meetings. The more people who help, the fewer the calls you have to make. Contact Jennifer at 901-491-4575 or jennifercarslysmith@hotmail.com.

Halloween Fest: October 25.

Michelle Campbell is hard at work preparing our Halloween Fest. It's October 25, starting at 3pm at 5029 Minden (the corner of Barfield and Minden). Your family's admission is a bag of candy. The event features a "trick or trunk" in the driveway, games, crafts, food, face painting and play areas (including a haunted house!).

To make this a truly spectacular event, Michelle needs some assistance with the following:

• People to volunteer to decorate their trunks
• Any bouncy things for kids so we don't have to rent one
• Items to decorate photo op area (hay bails, mums, pumpkins, etc)
• Tables for activity areas
• Kid chairs for musical chairs

If you'd like to help out in any of these areas, please contact Michelle at 832-2190.

November 18: Paint a Piece.

Our November meeting features "paint your own pottery", but you need to order your piece by the October 21 meeting. Please see the above selection (click to make images larger) and make a check payable to Jessica Olson. Bring the check to the next meeting or contact Suzanne Houlden (shoulden@comcast.net) to make other arrangements. If you ordered a piece at the September meeting, please make sure Suzanne gets your check.

Finished pieces will be available about a week after the meeting. Suzanne will pick them up and email everyone who participated so that they may get their pottery.

Please pay your dues!

The yearly dues for Garden Club members are $25, payable by cash or check ("Normandy Meadows Garden Club") to Jean Phebus at 5234 Mary Starnes. Please remember to update your membership directory information. You can email the following to marci@makearteveryday.com:

Your Name
Spouse's Name
Children's Names and Birth Month/Year
Address
Phone
Email

Please note that we will be changing the directory to reflect childrens' birth month/year rather than age. That will save us the time of changing it every year. You may get an email or phone call from Marci to double-check your directory information. Only those who have paid dues will appear in the directory, which will be distributed to all members.

2008-2009 Calendar of Programs.

Here's our line-up for the coming year. Many thanks to Program Chair Suzanne Houlden for pulling it together. And thanks to all the hostesses and co-hostesses for providing our meeting places.

October 21, 7pm: Tom Pellett, Master Gardener
Hostess: Kathryn Westbrook, 5104 Norich
Co-Hostess: Katie Redeker

October 25, 3pm: Halloween Fest
Hosts: Michelle & Jay Campbell, 5029 Minden

November 18, 7pm: Paint a Piece
Hostess: Jean Phebus, 5234 Mary Starnes
Co-Hostess: Angela Griffith

December 9, 7pm: Christmas Coffee
Hostess: Lauren Harkins, 5016 Lynbar
Co-Hostess: Sunny Duffy

January 23, 6pm: Progressive Dinner
Hosts: Laura & Matt Freeman, 5194 Peg Lane
Hosts: Holly & Darin Halford, 216 Leonora Drive

February 17, 7pm: Dr. Alan James, Chiropractor
Hostess: Hikmat Samaha, 5086 Peg Lane
Co-Hostess: Melanie Suria & Jessica Schreiber

March 17, 7pm: Marci Lambert, Make Art Every Day
Hostess: Morgan Westbrook, 5095 Norich
Co-Hostess: Jennifer Smith

April 4, 10am: Easter Egg Hunt
Hostess: Joanne & Robert Maichrowicz, 225 Matilda
Co-Hostess:

April 21, 7pm: Carolyn Bendall, Image Consultant
Hostess: Cindy Waddell, 259 Betty Jo Lane
Co-Hostess:

May 2, 7pm: Shrimp and Beer Party
Hostess:

*Programs subject to change. Hostess provides house. Co-hostess provides snacks & non-alcoholic drinks. Club provides wine & nametags.

Memphis Union Mission.

Minetry Apperson is leading a project through our club to help support the Memphis Union Mission. If you'd like to participate, please collect travel-size personal care products that would appropriate for the homeless population served by the Mission. These include:

• small tubes of toothpaste
• toothbrushes
  
• deodorant
• shampoo
• disposable razors
• soap/body wash
• shaving cream
• pain relievers
• bandaids
• rubbing alcohol
• anti-baterial ointment
• socks
• t-shirts (XL and up)
• underwear
  

Marci will also try to post good deals on these types of things whenever possible. For instance, Walgreen's has its brand bar soap on sale for 4/$1 this week. Reach Advanced Design toothbrushes are $2.59; use a $1 off coupon in the Walgreen's sale booklet (located near the flyers in-store) and you can also use the $1 off 6/8 Redplum Sunday insert to get the brush for $.59. Crest ProHealth toothpaste and Excedrin Gel Caps are free if you apply for the Walgreen's rebate this month. We appreciate it if you let us know if you've found any deals as well.

Your donations may be brought to any club meeting up through December, or given directly to Minetry at 226 Pandora.

September Meeting.

The kickoff to the 2008-09 year is the annual Wine & Cheese meeting on Sept. 16. Join us at 7pm, at the home of Laura Sherman, 31 Mary Ann Drive. You can join or renew your membership ($25, cash or check) and you can pick up a calendar of events for the year. Co-presidents Brooke Shannon and Stephanie Hubbard have a great year planned, and we'd love to see you.

Yard of the Month: September

Crime alert: Kroger

From a recent email:

On Saturday, Aug 30 at 11:30 am, Suzanne Plyler was putting her groceries in car at Kroger on Mendenhall and Sanderlin when two men drove up, jumped out of their car while she was loading her groceries, and grabbed her purse that was wedged between her legs. Fortunately, she was unharmed. The police told her that Kroger has had many occurrences in the past. Apparently, they have only have security from noon to 6:00pm and they are a 24 hour store.

There are two things we should all take a few minutes to do. First, email Charles Cayce (ccayce@weingarten.com) and Justin Robertson (jrobertson@weingarten.com) at Weingarten, property managers for Mendenhall Commons, and demand 24-hour security.

Second, email Pam Cain (pam.cain@memphistn.gov) and Maria Fuhrmann (maria.fuhrmann@memphistn.gov) at Memphis City Council and request your email be sent to all the council men and women. Let them know how strongly you feel about the city fighting crime.

You may also want to ask for help with taking your groceries to the car, especially if you have small children with you.

Found: black dog

From a recent email:

As I was running about 7:15p on Thursday I saw a black medium sized furry dog running up and down Rich near White Station. I tried to catch her/him but the dog would not come up to me. The dog was not wearing a collar. It appeared to have some chow in it. One lady on the street said that she has seen the dog the past few days on rich but could not catch it. So if anyone is missing this dog, they may want to check that area of our neighborhood. Thanks!

Neighbors looking for...

Jessica on N. Fernway is looking for a dog sitter to come a few times per day to let her Pomeranian dog out and fill food/water bowls while the family is on vacation. Could be a responsible teenager. If interested, contact Jessica at symonsj1@yahoo.com.

Melanie Suria: home computer services

Melanie Suria, who is based in our neighborhood, has a home-based business in computer service/repair/software or hardware install or upgrade/advice/training, etc. for anyone who needs it. She can handle both Macs and PCs and will work around your schedule. Melanie is also a recruiter (mostly technical) and would be happy to hear from you if you are looking for employment.

Contact Melanie at melaniesuria@yahoo.com or call 496-8949 for more information on prices and appointments.

Crime alert: Elwood, Summer, Verosa

From recent emails:

Elwood:
I came home from work this afternoon around 5:15 p.m. When I pulled into the driveway, I notice that a 15 speed Diamondback mountain bike was no longer in the carport. Our neighbor had noticed a truck leaving our driveway around 2:30 p.m. She was busy at the time, and did not have a good description. She says it was a large blue truck with an insignia on the side.

Kroger on Summer:
Yesterday morning (last Thursday), my mom was filling up my Suburban at the Kroger gas station on Summer. She had my two-year-old in the back seat and got out ONLY to put the gas cap back on the tank, forgetting this time to lock the doors. While she did that, someone reached in the passenger side and took my wallet and her whole purse while my son watched. She never saw anything or knew that anything had happened...my son was the one to tell her someone took our stuff. IT IS INFURIATING, but we are so thankful that she and my son are ok!!! PLEASE REMEMBER TO LOCK DOORS and be EXTRA CAREFUL at that station.

Verosa:
Early Sunday at 4998 Verosa (a house across the street from my son) burglars broke in between 1:00 and 3:00 AM. Four adults and one week-old baby were sleeping in the house at the time of the entry. The house has no alarm and the back door the burglars used for entry was possibly unlocked as there was no damage to the back entry. Two cars were parked in front of house on the street and a Lexus was in the carport. They stole the Lexus keys (in the kitchen) and then stole the car. Credit cards and money were also taken from the kitchen. Evidently they did not go any further into the house. Charges were already on the credit cards this AM. They found out about the burglary when the mother or baby had awakened near 3:00 AM. Police came and filed a report of the incident.

Last week my son’s car was broken into at 5005 Verosa. Burglars stole golf clubs that were in the rear of his car. They broke a side rear window which cost $300 to replace.

Crime alert: Mendenhall

From Cory Pratt on Peg Lane:

I had a confrontation with a man in a White PT Cruiser with a Coffee County license plate Friday around 1:45 who was stealing a bike out from under my neighbor's carport on N Peg lane.

He was a white male late 30s/early 40s with brown hair and he had a tattoo on his left shoulder/back area as he had no shirt on. He had put the bike in the back of the vehicle when I came out side and lit into him and it kind of spooked him. I made him take the bike back up under the carport as he was constantly trying to lie his way out of the situation.

He had another bike in the back of his car that was probably stolen too. He also had to climb thru the passenger side door to get back in his car which leaves me to believe that it was probably stolen. And he took off in a hurry. I called police but by the time I got thru I had forgotten the entire tag number but I did file a report.

Crime alert: Mendenhall

From Lauren Harkins:

I have heard about a white van on Mendenhall, south of Walnut Grove. This was at night, so they were not sure if it had sticker marks on it. My friends were walking and they live on Mendenhall near the curve. As they got closer to their house, a white van with a older BM was driving and a skinny young WF drove slowly past their home. They took a left onto Lake Dr. and the woman got out. She started walking to gate towards the house. She saw my friends walking towards her and she pulled out her cell phone and the van sped towards her and she jumped in and quickly drove off. They called the police. They had gotten the license tag #, but of course it was not registered to a white van. The officer said that they may have been casing the house and that the woman was probably planning to get in the home through the doggie door. A couple of days before, their alarm went off at 3 am. It makes you wonder if they had been testing ways to get into the house.

Neighbors looking for...

Minetry Apperson needs immediate help finding foster homes for pets:

• My friend, Evelyn, from Animal Adoption Center in Poplarville MS is having to evacuate to Memphis because of the approaching storm. She previously evacuated from Katrina with the animals she could take and we sent her back with body bags for the rest. They lost everything. Her husband Pete is very sick. They got a room at Embassy Suites on Shady Grove last night about midnight. Embassy Suites is not pet friendly. We have about 18 cats and 10 dogs: pit bull, Boston terrier, pug and a pug mix, Boxer dashund, lab and German shepherd mix, and more. I need foster homes for all these animals. The cats can be housed in their trailer which will be at my house. I will need volunteers to clean and feed and love. These animals will once again be so stressed. Please e-mail me at doggonegoodrealtor@comcast.net if you can help. We would appreciate donations as well.

Neighbors looking for...

Photographer Marci Lambert is looking to expand her business to include maternity shoots and she would like to find a volunteer to model for a session:

• Photos will include belly close-ups as well as ones with dad and other children in the family. I'm looking for someone around 6-8 months along who would be willing to pose for me. It'll take about 90 minutes, at your home (preferably in the East Memphis area), and within a few weeks you'll get a free disk of about 20 high-res photos. In return, I get to use the photos as a marketing tool on my website and blog. I shoot on weekends, and during the week from 8a to 1p. If you'd like to volunteer, please contact me at marci @ makearteveryday dot com (take out spaces and put in a real dot) or call 568-0211.

Lost: two dogs

Jenny and Danny Valle, on Lorece, have reported that their dogs are missing. One is named Ollie. He is an 8 year old mixed yellow lab, he weighs about 60 lbs. and does not have a collar on. The second one is named Stella, she is a lasapoo, which basically looks like a black/white poodle. She is 4 years old, weighs about 10 lbs., and probably does not have a collar on either.
If you see either of these dogs, please contact the Valles at 210-9673.

Found: two dogs

From Joy Madison, Lindseywood Cove

We have two dogs that have been in our yard and on our porch since around Thurs. evening or Friday morning. One is blonde and the other a tan color. They are the same breed, medium in size, have pointed ears, but no collar or tags. My husband says they don't seem to be mean in nature. If anyone has lost dogs like these, you can find them around Princeton and Lindseywood Cove. If anyone wants two dogs, you can contact Susan at susan500@juno.com and she will contact me.

Crime alert: Lynbar and Mendenhall

From a recent email:

We were out of town Sat. night. About 7pm a neighbor saw an old white panel van parked on Lynbar (facing west on south side of street) in front of the house closest to Mendenhall that is for sale. Said it was an old Carrier AC van, that letters appeared to have been removed, had an older white male inside. As she was closing the gate he pulled up by our house and just stared at her. She made her male friend go back outside the gate and the van left. When they went back out at 9pm the same van was down on Sequoia (across Avon) in front of another house that is for sale. Told her to get the license plate and call the police next time.

August Yard of the Month

Come meet your neighbors!

The kickoff to the 2008-09 year is the annual Wine & Cheese meeting on Sept. 16. Join us at 7pm, at the home of Laura Sherman, 31 Mary Ann Drive. You can join or renew your membership ($25, cash or check) and you can pick up a calendar of events for the year. Co-presidents Brooke Shannon and Stephanie Hubbard have a great year planned, and we'd love to see you.

Crime alert: Kirby and Poplar

From a recent email:

My assistant was robbed at gunpoint at a gas station near the intersection of Poplar and Kirby yesterday morning in broad daylight. She was at one of the gas pumps, saw the guy coming, and immediately locked her doors. Before she had time to do anything else, he busted through her window with the butt of his gun, held her back against the driver's seat with the gun to her head, and took everything from her wallet to her GPS to her kids' school uniforms to the necklace she was wearing. He then went and ran up over $600 on her credit cards before she could get them canceled.

Obviously, she was not in a "bad" part of town, but the police told her that it's happening often at that intersection, mainly because of easy access to I-240 and 385. As we all know, there are many other places in the "good" parts of Memphis where the same thing (or worse) is happening. Please be careful out there.

Normandy Meadows Yard Sale is Oct. 4.

Clean out your closet and empty your shed: Normandy Meadows Garden Club is sponsoring a Yard Sale on Oct. 4 (7am to 1pm). All neighbors are welcome to hold their own sales that day -- the Garden Club will purchase an ad in the Commercial Appeal to promote the event. We'll list the neighborhood boundaries in the ad; all you need to do is set up your sale and tie some balloons to your mailbox.

Here are a few tips for holding a successful sale:

• Start now looking through your home for unwanted items. Put price tags on your stuff as soon as you put it into boxes or bags so you aren't trying to price things that morning.
• Price your items fairly; people are looking for bargains.
• Get $20 or so in dollar bills the day before so you can make change during the first few sales. Get $5 or so in coins.
  
• Keep your money in your pockets or a fanny pack; cash boxes can be stolen when you aren't looking.
• Be willing to negotiate your sticker price.
• Consider having a box of freebies (like fast food toys). Offer one to kids who come through. Or make it "free with purchase".
• Ask your kids to look through their toys and see if they have anything to sell. Let them keep the money as an incentive.
  
• Think about offering everything for half price during the last hour or so, if you don't want to haul a bunch of things back in your house.
• After the sale, take unsold items to Goodwill or leave on your curb (marked "free").

Neighbors looking for...

Looking for something? Maybe one of your Normandy Meadows neighbors can help you out. We'll post requests on this blog as soon as we get them. Send them to marci@makearteveryday.com and include a contact phone number.

Brooke Shannon is looking for:

• A teenager to babysit a few hours at a time.
• Any Thomas the Train items that you may be planning to sell at our upcoming Yard Sale (Oct. 4). Call 752-5767.

Melanie Suria is looking for:

• Little Tykes or similar outside play sets no matter how little or big (used, not new). Willing to pay reasonable prices. Call 496-8949.

Minetry Apperson is looking for:

• Donated stuffed animals, blankets, towels, twin comforters, wash rags (not sheets) for animal rescue. Please call 767-5378.

Lauren Harkins, your neighborhood realtor.

Lauren lives in the neighborhood and would be happy to talk to you about real estate needs. Call her at 859-3565 or email her at lauren.harkins@crye-leike.com. You can also visit her website by clicking here.

List your business here.

Are you a Garden Club member with a business? Let us promote you here. Just send a short write-up, link to a website, photo or logo to marci_lambert@comcast.net and we'll do a short post and provide a link to the right. And it's absolutely free.

Save the date!

Our first meeting of the 2008-09 year will be 7pm on Sept. 16 at Laura Sherman's house at 31 Mary Ann Drive. Please be sure to bring your $25 dues and any of your neighbors. We'd love to tell you all about our plans for the coming year. Hope to see you there!