The Driver – Volunteer Newsletter – September 2025

This year, we’re celebrating the stories of community and connection that are the heart of our work at Neighbor Ride. As you know, each ride is far more than getting from point A to point B—it’s an opportunity to make friends, learn more about your community, feel great about giving back, and help seniors in Howard County access all of its resources that help them stay to active and involved.

In the spirit of sharing stories, we invited a client, a volunteer driver, a staff member, and a Ride Coordinator to a special event with our Board of Directors on September 16th. Each shared insights about their unique role in the Neighbor Ride experience, and board members enjoyed the opportunity to ask them questions. The event was both informative and enjoyable, offering a behind-the-scenes look at what we do.

A heartfelt thank you to our guest stars, client Richard Madzel, volunteer driver Josie Griffith, Ride Coordinator Reggi Veatch, for their time, stories, and dedication. And last but not least, Program Director Patrice Cerwonka for organizing the event!  

We invite you to reflect on the stories of your rides. Soon, we’ll ask you to share them as part of this year’s annual fundraising and volunteer recruitment campaign.

We’ve introduced two exciting updates to improve your experience on the volunteer portal:

 1️⃣ Date Range Filter for Pending Rides

You can now filter pending rides by date!

Simply enter a date range on the Pending Rides screen to view rides scheduled within that timeframe, i.e. if you want to view the 10/1/25 rides, enter 10/1/25 in the To and From fields.

If you view a ride and navigate back, your filters will remain intact—no need to re-enter them.

2️⃣ Expanded Zip Code Preferences

On the Driver Preferences page, you can add additional zip codes that interest you. This is helpful for volunteers who live out of county or in a area without many clients. You can go to your profile and add any other zip code of interest to you.

Once added, rides from those zip codes—alongside your primary zip code—will appear under Zip Codes Preferred by This Driver.

These enhancements were prompted by feedback from two volunteer drivers. We encourage you to reach out to Patrice or Andrew if you have any portal suggestions.

Join the Howard County Local Health Improvement Coalition (LHIC) and local partners for a month of walk and move events called Howard County Walktober. Walking is Maryland’s official exercise, so let’s get moving! 

Neighbor Ride will be sponsoring a walk around the Lake Kittamaquandi on 10/21/25 at 10:00 am. Meet at the fountain, — and we’d love for you to bring along anyone who might be interested in volunteering!

There’s no better time to step up for your health and your community!

For the countywide Walktober schedule, go to: https://www.howardcountymd.gov/walktober

Reminder: The 17th is Magnet Day

Our data shows that the car magnets are a wonderful recruitment tool for Neighbor Ride. 

On the 17th of each month, we ask that all volunteers display their magnet on your car throughout the day. 

Mike Murphy
Jan Murphy
Sandy Dietzel
Bridgette Rodell
Melissa Richardson
Patricia Eikenberg
Larry David
Robert Anderson
Anne Padgett

Picture a night that takes you from charming elegance to soaring romance. We open with Tailleferre’s lively Overture, setting an inviting tone. Then, Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations brings a graceful conversation between solo cello and orchestra, brimming with elegance and wit. Finally, Brahms’ Symphony No. 2 wraps things up with warmth and sweeping melodies that will leave you glowing. 

We are saddened by the passing of passenger Patricia Sadler and Charles Wise. Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this time.

Check our our latest stats from August. We appreciate our volunteers for helping us be out there on the roads each and every day for our clients!

• Rides requests filled: 805
• Rides cancelled for no driver: 68
• Ride Unfilled rate: 6.73%
• Clients served: 259
• Different volunteers providing a ride: 182

Did you know you can support Neighbor Ride through your Donor-Advised Fund (DAF)? Just search for Neighbor Ride on your DAF Sponsor’s portal with our Tax ID number: 32-0123282. Even better, most DAFs allow you to schedule a gift in advance or make it recurring, so you can check one more thing off your to-do list!

20 Cars for 20 Years! We accept all vehicles of any age or condition. Anyone can donate, no matter what state you live in!