HFCA Board Needs a President!

By Ben Noviello, Secretary

In order to maintain our common areas, support community-wide activities that enrich our lives, keep our development safe, and be responsive to the concerns of homeowners, the Hickory Farms Community Association relies on an all-volunteer board.

We currently have an opportunity for a motivated homeowner to make a major contribution to the community by volunteering to be the president. Please keep in mind that you would be assisted and supported by an experienced group of motivated people. Ideally, we are looking for someone with free time, communication skills, and enthusiasm. The official duties are located here.

If you are interested in volunteering, and by doing so help keep Hickory Farms a wonderful place to live, please contact the board by emailing hfca@hickoryfarms.org.

HF Annual Assessment is Past Due

By Judy Deng, Treasurer

The annual HFCA HOA dues payment ($290) deadline was January 31st; any unpaid dues need to be immediately paid. For questions, please contact the HFCA Treasurer at treasurer@hickoryfarms.org or visit the Annual Assessment page.

Hickory Farms Community Association Bylaws Article VII, Section 2(c) governs annual assessments. Assessment payments are the responsibility of the property owner. Payments that are not postmarked or in the physical possession of the Treasurer by February 7, 2024, are late and the homeowner will be charged an additional $50. Payments received after that date that do not include the additional $50 charge (total payment of $340.00) will be returned to the homeowner for non-payment. On March 1, 2024, delinquent accounts will be turned over to the Association's attorney for collection. At that point, the amount owed by the delinquent homeowner will be $340.00 plus all associated attorney fees and could include significant court costs if HFCA files a lawsuit. These procedures are in accord with the Hickory Farms Community Association Bylaws, which have no provision for waiver.

In-Person Early Voting for Presidentail Primary

In-person early voting is now underway for the March 5th 2024, Democratic and Republican Presidential Primaries, from January 19 to March 2. To vote by mail, request an absentee ballot by February 23.

Visit https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/elections/early-voting for sample ballots, voting locations, and information on voter registration and voting by mail.

The Walkinshaw Advisory

James R. Walkinshaw, Braddock District Supervisor, publishes a regular e-newsletter, The Walkinshaw Advisory, with information and updates pertinent to our district. The latest issue includes information on the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicle’s new Braddock Road Customer Service Center (https://www.dmv.virginia.gov/locations/fairfax-braddock-road), 9855 Braddock Road, located adjacent to Erickson Senior Living’s Woodleigh Chase facility.

Visit https://linktr.ee/jrwalkinshaw for more information and to subscribe.

When it Snows... Again!

Don’t forget to check out https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/snow/remove for helpful information about snow removal, including…

Remember to shovel safely. Take breaks while shoveling and do not overexert yourself, especially if you are usually inactive. Shovel small amounts of snow at a time. Push the snow instead of lifting where possible.

The county also recommends to not overdo salt - a 12-ounce mug of salt should be enough to treat a 20-foot driveway or about 10 sidewalk squares.

The Birds of Hickory Farms

By Bob Cosgriff

The new year started off with a bang as we counted 18 species on 1 January. The first backyard bird of the year was Downy Woodpecker, which was also #1 in 2017. As the month progressed, we added several new birds, including both the Cooper’s Hawk and Sharp-shinned Hawk. We observed the Cooper’s Hawk make a kill (Mourning Dove) and feast on it in the rear of our yard. Other notable sightings include Bald Eagle (an adult flying over on 1/16/24), Hermit Thrush, Brown Creeper, Eastern Towhee, Yellow-rumped Warbler, and Pileated Woodpecker. At the time that this article was submitted (25 January), our year-to-date species count stood at 31 (tied for second-highest total for January) and our daily average species count was 20 with the high day being 24 (1/16) and the low day being 16 (1/25, one of the warmest days of the month at 61 degrees!). We can expect to add perhaps 10 more species in February and March before the influx of spring migrants arriving in April, peaking in the first two weeks of May. We are hoping for a better migration than last year when the usual neo-tropical birds just never showed up.

Two neighbors have reported seeing sizeable flocks of Eastern Bluebirds in the upper commons. We have had small flocks in our yard regularly as well. This is evidence of the very successful breeding season we had in 2023. Bluebirds tend to flock together in the winter. Since we offer them food sources and shelter in our tree islands, they are hanging around. Come spring, there will be intense competition for our 10 bluebird houses. Hopefully, we will have a repeat of last year in this year’s record-breaking breeding season.

My choice for Bird of the Month is the Brown Creeper (Certhea americana) since it is a bird that we don’t see all that often—there have been years when we did not see one at all—but this year it has shown up four times so far. These tiny birds are well-camouflaged which allows them to creep up tree trunks probing with their sharp, decurved beaks for spiders, insects, and insect eggs hidden in the crevices of tree bark. They move very quickly, often circling around the tree trunk, then flying off to the base of another tree. We have seen them on our suet feeders as well as our Tulip Poplar, Red Maple, and White Oak trees. Here are two photos that I took on 2/1/2021 as well as a link to learn more about this unique little bird.
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Brown_Creeper/

Join Our Listserv!

Don’t miss any news! There’s no better way to stay in touch than through our Hickory Farms email listserv. Visit Email Listserv and follow the instructions.

HFCA Board Meeting Notice

HFCA Board Meetings are held via Microsoft Teams. Unless otherwise notified or due to an unforeseen change, HFCA Board Meetings will be held the 2nd Tuesday of the month at 7 pm.

To join a Board meeting, contact any HFCA Board Member or send a request to join to hfca@hickoryfarms.org. You will be provided with the Zoom meeting URL, meeting number and passcode.

Student Yellow Pages

If you offer services such as those listed above, or others such as tutoring, etc., and wish to be included in future listings, please email the Newsletter Editor at newsletter@hickoryfarms.org.

Newsletter Item Deadline and Distribution Notice

Newsletter items are due the 25th of the month, for the next month’s issue. Please send submissions to
newsletter@hickoryfarms.org.

Newsletters are distributed via the HFCA listserv and posted on the HFCA website. All are encouraged to
access the digital newsletter via the listserv or the HFCA website.