My sincere thanks to everyone who came out to the Petworth News Shindig on Saturday night at Homestead. It was a great party -- tons of people came by to say hi, enjoy the food and drink and meet neighbors.

The TVs on the patio played a slideshow of 600+ photos of members of the community covering the past two+ years and it was great to see people at the party who were in the slideshow.

Even Mayor Muriel Bowser made a surprise stop at the party!

**What up, Mayor!**
DC Mayor Muriel Bowser poses for a Selfie-with-Drew

I appreciated meeting those who told me they just moved to the neighborhood, having found Petworth because of the blog, and long-time residents who told me they enjoy the community news and information the site provides. There were MPD officers in attendance, two DC Councilmembers, new and established business owners, people from Park View, Takoma, Columbia Heights, Shepherd Park, Brightwood, etc... I think that's awesome, since the blog is all about keeping the community informed and providing a service, and I'm personally heartened to know that it's having a positive effect.

And I admit, I was really touched by a letter of appreciation presented to me and the blog by Councilmember Brandon Todd. Pretty cool.

I'm already looking forward to the FOURTH Petworth News Shindig... as soon as we hit 4,000 Facebook Likes. So be sure to share the Petworth News Facebook page with neighbors and help spread the word!

And I really want to thank Nic Makris, Chef Marty Anklam and the staff at Homestead for hosting the Shindig, graciously offering the happy hour specials and the insanely delicious food. If you haven't had a chance to visit Homestead or the beautiful third floor bar and outside patio, make plans to do so! They're a great partner with the neighborhood, and their menu is kickin.

Special thanks to Phillip Ford for taking photos during the event!