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Extending roots into the community

 


WASHINGTON — The Newark Street Community Garden is tucked between Wisconsin and Massachusetts avenues: two of the District’s busiest roads. Just north of the garden is the National Cathedral. “We’re fortunate that they haven’t put high rises here; we were worried,” Susan Akman, a longtime gardener, said. The garden, celebrating its 40th anniversary, features 200 plots of land tended by 190 different gardeners. It is the largest of 26 community gardens in the District. Each plot has its own assortment of flowers and vegetables, telling the stories of its caretakers.

Whether sprawled out or carefully organized, each plot reflects the personality and diversity of the gardener. Louisiana native Elwood Gautier meticulously arranges his produce into square spaces and donates it to a local food bank, Miriam’s Kitchen. Many others also make seasonal donations, and gardeners host a day in which they donate produce to SOME (So Others Might Eat).

Longtime gardener Akman is always looking for new ideas for her garden, and she works behind the scenes, constantly trying to beautify the entire four-acre park. She has been experimenting with “companion planting,” such as planting cucumbers alongside plants that smell like cucumbers to keep pests away and to attract pollinators. Her garden is filled with radishes, tomatoes, beans, carrots, lettuce, chard and garlic. She also works with young aspiring gardeners, usually ages 2 to 4, and teaches little ones the basics.

While she enjoys her work with the young children in the park, she also cherishes time alone when the garden is quiet. Akman finds solace in gardening, especially early in the morning when only the church bells toll. “I love to come at about 5:30 in the morning,” she said.

Another avid gardener is Marguerite Pridgen, a garden association board member . She has tended a plot for four years after being on the waiting list for more than a year. She describes herself as an ”urban farmer” because she primarily plants crops. “I like to have control of my food supply,” she says. She enjoys growing organic food and shares it with her mother. Her biggest tip for other gardeners is to employ the use of raised beds because they help avoid weeds.

Pridgen is in charge of enforcing the garden’s rules. For instance, gardeners are not allowed to grow invasive plants, grow plants too close to the fence, or neglect their gardens. All of these rules were implemented to ensure that the people tending the gardens actually want to be there. This is especially important considering that there is a two-year waiting list for aspiring gardeners.  When a member is not complying with the rules, she reports them to the board. “People need to stay on top of them,” she said. Recently, issues have arisen because of infractions that are not written directly in the rules, but need to be addressed. A couple has put a grill in their garden, which has been a point of contention for the board. “We try not to update the rules,” she said. She hates to enforce the rules, but “It’s a lot of common sense things.”

Despite issues, the garden community is finding ways to stretch its roots throughout the neighborhood. The garden caters to everyone, with a playground, dog park and picnic area. “We are a community. We help each other. Everyone pitches in to help,” Akman said.

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Steak ’n Egg: an amiable atmosphere

Clauton Kum talks about his experience at the diner. Photo by Meagan Pruitt

WASHINGTON — Osman and Joe’s Steak ’n Egg Kitchen, a 24-hour staple of the Tenleytown neighborhood, is where Clauton Kum has spent the last three years learning to cook.

“It’s fun to have a staff that works with you,” Kum said. “We goof around with each other all the time, making jokes. It makes the night go faster.”

The 24-hour restaurant features outdoor seating, which looks out on Wisconsin Avenue, and is surrounded with a white picket fence. Eight white tables that can seat about 50 people fill this patio, and if this and the 12 seats at the counter inside aren’t enough, employees make more, said Kum.

The rising sophomore at the University of Maryland came to the United States in 2005 from Cameroon seeking a better education. Osman Barrie and Joe Vamboi, the store’s owners, who befriended Kum’s family, gave him the opportunity to work for their business when he was a sophomore in high school in Silver Spring, Maryland. Through the job, he learned how to cook, working on weekends during the school year and now more hours in the summer months .

Steak 'n Eggs exterior
The patio outside of the diner provides shaded seating. Photo by Meagan Pruitt

Staffers often juggle more than one task— cooking, working the cash register, waiting tables. And Kum’s favorite part of the work is interacting with customers, especially with local college students who frequently come after a night on the town.

“This is the place at the late hour when you’re trying to sober up,” he said. The college crowd energizes the place, adding an entertaining atmosphere filled with spontaneous rap performances and comedic conversations, he added.

The counter, reminiscent of a classic diner, is just inches away from the kitchen, where the staff labors over hot grills. Kum and his fellow staff members work fast; on a recent weekday morning there was a steady stream of people both coming and going.

Kum and other employees are always chatting with customers, laughing with them and trying to make them feel comfortable.

Customers at Steak 'n Eggs
The diner fills up in the morning for breakfast. Photo by Meagan Pruitt

At 10:30 a.m. on a recent weekday, the Jost family, visiting from Indianapolis, arrived after reading a review on Yelp, and ordered biscuits and country fried steak with gravy. Chris Jost described his meal as “great,” while his wife, Candace, said her French toast was “delicious” and daughter Elizabeth pronounced her funnel cakes “the bomb.”

Kum served their table, then dashed back to the kitchen to keep cooking. One of his favorite dishes — and a customer favorite — is the Tennessee Scramble, which features ham, bacon and sausage, and is served with biscuits and gravy.  He said, “the omelettes are a little of a struggle,” but in his time behind the counter, he has now mastered the egg-and-cheese sandwich and pancakes.

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Washington Framers’ Workroom: a 34-year legacy

WASHINGTON– She has met Jane Fonda, worked on commission from the White House and has been entrusted with the care and safety of priceless works of art by famous artists such as Marc Chagall and Rembrandt. Who is she? Not a celebrity, but instead the friendly owner of Washington Framers’ Workroom, a mainstay of the Tenleytown community for more than 30 years.

Gana Browning has been working at the shop since its opening in July 1981. Browning said three friends from Philadelphia, who owned and operated framing stores there, approached another one of her close friends, who recently left a job in the Carter administration, about starting a framing store in the Washington area. The interior design and construction was all done by Thomas Morris, who continues to work, and as the original owners and friends retired or passed away, Browning became the sole proprietor.

Browning said that since the Tenleytown-AU Metro station opened in 1984, development in the neighborhood has been slow but steady. Although interest in building high-rises and large construction projects exists, the neighborhood association has made a strong effort to slow development.

But through all this change, Browning says that “the community has supported us.” Although four other framing stores have since opened in Tenleytown, the competition is friendly. “We support each other,” said Browning.

One special service that Washington Framer’s Workroom provides is a do-it-yourself framing service. “Customers feel like they can accomplish something,” said Browning. With a wide variety of materials for the customers to use, from the Wizard computerized mat cutter that cuts a multitude of shapes to the 250 moldings of wood and metal, the possibilities are endless.

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Map by Laris Karklis, reprinted with permission

With a staff of eight, we have a “much bigger staff than most frame shops,” Browning said. Each employee has the ability to do every responsibility, from operating the cash register to working with the Wizard and the touch-up counter.

The frame shop itself evokes a familiar feeling of home, with the walls covered in personal art, and wicker chairs in the front with houseplants as accents. Personal wall art is displayed up and down the walls of the frame shop. “Almost every single one of [our employees] are artists,” says Browning.

There are six certified Master Picture Framers within the business, which makes them the only frame shop on the East Coast with this specialized training, she said. She herself is a former master, but had to cut back because of arthritis.

Throughout the years, Browning said that she has framed unusual items. A customer came in with “a bun from the head of somebody’s mother and we made a shadowbox,” a display box for items too large to put in a traditional picture frame, Browning recalled. “Nobody wanted to touch it.” Other oddities include Turkish daggers and a gun in a shadowbox on display in the shop.

And the famous customers? Browning smiled and began vividly describing what Jane Fonda looked like the day she walked into their small store: 4-inch heels, skinny jeans, perfect hair. “Her daughter, Vanessa Vadim, went to American University,” said Browning.

The shop frequently has customers of political significance, as well as visitors in newscasting professions, including James G. Watt and Arch Campbell.

Despite these famous customers, most of Browning’s business comes from the community. “We’ve had two or three generations of repeat customers,” Browning said. With the store’s 34th anniversary coming up next month, Washington Framers’ Workroom is poised to be a staple of the neighborhood for years to come.

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Middle C strikes a chord with Tenleytown

Sales Associate Elizabeth Ennis says the store’s pet, Mozart, is a favorite among children. Photos by Danielle Nahabedian

WASHINGTON — “If they want to be a rock star, we have someone who does that,” Elizabeth Ennis says of the clientele of Middle C Music Corporation.

Nestled in the heart of Tenleytown and tucked behind a patch of trees lies Middle C, owned and operated by Myrna Sislen and a cast of friendly characters.

Among these is aspiring costume designer and American University alum Elizabeth Ennis. A sales associate of almost five years, Ennis shared the impact this store has on the community and beyond. Middle C is a thriving, independently owned business that capitalizes on its convenient location in Tenleytown and the exclusivity of their trade, she said. 

The store hosts music lessons run by a variety of teachers who appeal to aspiring musicians from 3 to 80. Ennis estimates that about 40 percent of the students are adults, who study a myriad of instruments ranging from piano and guitar to the harmonica and the ukulele. Beyond the appeal of lessons, the store allows local musicians to sell their work and offers special discounts to piano teachers.

This store has proved itself essential to the community.

“Myrna always says, ‘We wouldn’t be here if the community didn’t want us to be here,’” Ennis said.

This especially rang true when a local Best Buy wanted to have a music section, which could potentially put Middle C out of business. The community rallied around Middle C to maintain their musical presence in the area. “The community fought to protect the store,” Ennis said. Consequently, Best Buy does not carry music in its store in Tenleytown.

Middle C also has made its mark outside the United States through its work with the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay. In this culturally and economically deprived country, this organization creates instruments out of trash and provides them to underprivileged children. Middle C donated 40 factory-made instruments to the program to allow the children the opportunity to work with professional-grade instruments. The orchestra recently visited Tenleytown and attended a reception held by the store.

The Top 100 Award is displayed proudly near the register.

Middle C was recently named one of the Top 100 music stores by the National Association of Music Merchants. The shop received an award for its special event with the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay. The award is displayed proudly near the register of the store.

The store even has its own mascot, a cockapoodle named Mozart, who is popular with all the children. Ennis said, “It’s more than just a store.”