Friends of Sligo Creek

FOSC at Parkside Plaza Rain Gardens Opening Ceremony

Saturday, August 15, from 10:00am – 12:00pm
9039 Sligo Creek Parkway at Three Oaks Drive (entrance on Three Oaks Drive)

FOSC will be a part of the opening festivities for Parkside Plaza’s newest rain gardens. Parkside created three additional large rain gardens to capture and filter runoff from the parking area. The gardens enhance the building’s grounds and reduce the speed of stormwater entering Sligo Creek, just down the hill, which will help control erosion of the creek banks.

All are welcome at this event. The Chesapeake Bay Alliance, funders, and dignitaries will be attending.

Intimate Waterscapes: Intepreting the Poetry of Nature with a Camera with Julius Kassovic

Tuesday, August 18, from 7:00pm – 8:30pm
Zoom link to be provided to registrants. Register here.

An exploration of Sligo Creek through the lens of Julius Kassovic, long-time resident of the watershed and internationally exhibited photographer.

“There are many different ways to use a camera, from portraiture to story-telling. I have tried most of them and found them all challenging and rewarding. Shortly after moving to a home near Sligo Creek in 2004, I discovered what was for me a completely new way to see through a lens. It is little bit of both portraiture and story-telling.

For more than 20 years, I have been going down to the creek at all times of day and in all seasons, walking up and down in waterproof boots, often sitting in the water on a shower stool. I usually spend three hours at a time looking and trying to see what the creek has to show me that day.

Over time it has developed into something like meditation, allowing me to become absorbed by the light, reflections, movement and colors. I try to make photographs that are themselves reflections of what I saw and what I felt. My aim is to convey emotion with images that can be contemplated. I have been captivated by Sligo Creek and try to depict its beauty as beautifully in a photograph as the creek does on water.”

~ Julius

FOSC Listservs on

Friends of Sligo Creek – Main Listserv

FOSC Advocacy Listserv

FOSC-Litter Listserv

FOSC-Stewards Listserv (for Section Stewards only)

FOSC-Stormwater Listserv

FOSC-Water Quality Listserv

FOSC-WeedWarriors Listserv (for Weed Warriors only)

Volunteer Stewards Needed!

FOSC is looking for volunteers to become Stewards in Sligo Creek, Long Branch, Wheaton Branch, and Takoma Branch. For more about what being a Steward means, visit the Sligo Stewards page.

Clean up at Indian Spring Terrace Local Park

More than 30 volunteers cleaned up the entire length of this long narrow park on Sunday, March 8. They wrestled a sofa, mattress, various chairs, fencing, many bags of plastic and glass bottles, cans, fencing, and a plastic castle playset – good for many years if not decades or more of decomposing plastic. After removing well over 1,200 pounds of trash from the park, it is looking a lot better. We also had some Weed Warriors who started freeing trees from English ivy!

Thanks to everyone who came out and helped us get this park and restoration site, the headwaters of Long Branch, poised for spring growth without the trash and pollutants that would have been carried downstream into the rest of Long Branch. The restoration area, which has 5 stone stormwater retention ponds and hundreds of native plants installed by the Parks Dept, is worth a visit to see the investment the County is making in our watershed.

Sligo Creek connects us. Become a FOSC member and help protect and restore the Creek for everyone in our community. It’s simple to do and can be free if you wish. Membership gives you early notice of events and the monthly FOSC newsletter.

You can make a donation, either online here or using the button below (both are simple and secure), or by check to FOSC, P.O. Box 11572, Takoma Park, MD 20913. Thank you!