Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk

2025 Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk

/ Anna White
Photo by Jay Mallin

Begun in 2018, the Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk is an annual family-friendly local community event that weaves together neighborhoods once divided by racial segregation and fittingly takes place during Montgomery County’s Remembrance and Reconciliation Month.  All are welcome!  Come join us in shining our lights in the darkness, promoting unity over division, remembering the past and taking steps toward a brighter future.

WHEN: Saturday, November 8, 2025 at 5:00pm.

  • Gather: 5:00-5:15 pm
  • Short Program & Lantern Walk: 5:15-6:00 pm
  • Community Reception: 6:00-7:30 pm

WHERE: Rosemary Hills Elementary School parking lot, just below intersection of Talbot Ave. and Lanier Dr. Address: 2111 Porter Rd, Silver Spring, MD 20910

The route will start and end at the same place, crossing over the new Talbot Avenue Bridge twice and going around the two blocks closest to it, one in North Woodside and one in Lyttonsville. To view the route, click here and scroll down.

BRING: Warm clothing, comfortable walking shoes, and a lantern

RSVP: CLICK HERE

For more detailed event information and updates: see event webpage.

The Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk is organized by the Talbot Avenue Bridge Committee and co-sponsored by the Lyttonsville Civic Association, North Woodside Citizens’ Association, and Rosemary Hills Neighbors’ Association.

2025 Lantern-Making Workshop

/ Anna White
Screenshot

Come one, come all to a lantern-making workshop this weekend! Make a lantern to carry in the 8th Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk* the following weekend.

When: 1:00-4:00pm, Sunday, November 2 (drop by any time)

Where: Gwendolyn E. Coffield Community Center
2450 Lyttonsville Road, Silver Spring, 20910
Come to the Art Room (2nd floor, located to right at top of stairs, across from elevator)

Cost: FREE

For more information, click here.

* The Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk is organized by the Talbot Avenue Bridge Committee and cosponsored by the Lyttonsville Civic Association, North Woodside Citizens’ Association, and Rosemary Hills Neighbors’ Association.

Photos: 2024 Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk

/ Anna White
Civic association representatives and children of Lyttonsville, North Woodside, and Rosemary Hills participate in the lighting of the community Unity Lantern at the commencement of the 7th Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk on November 16, 2024. Photo by Lilian Pintea

Thanks to all who came out to the 7th Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk in mid-November!

Organized by the Talbot Avenue Bridge Committee and co-sponsored by the North Woodside Citizens’ Association, Lyttonsville Civic Association, and Rosemary Hills Neighbors’ Association, this year’s Lantern Walk was the first to cross the completed new Talbot Avenue Bridge. It also honored the memory of lifelong Lyttonsville resident and civic leader Charlotte Coffield.  Check out photos and videos at these links:

Banner created by North Woodside Roots & Shoots group. Photo by Jay Mallin

Special thanks to all the North Woodside neighbors who contributed their time, energy, resources, and talents to the event.

For more event details and a full list of acknowledgements see bit.ly/TABLanternWalk.

Lantern-Making Workshop

/ Anna White

Come make your very own Lantern to light up the sky for the annual Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk this weekend.

Workshop includes all supplies: 2 liter plastic bottles*, tissue paper, glue and more!

What: Lantern Making workshop
When: Friday, Nov 15, 4:30-6:30 pm
Where: Bertie’s Art Studio in North Woodside

All are welcome as long as supplies last!

Please RSVP.

* Feel free to bring your own 2 liter plastic bottle, large juice, water container or anything that will make a beautifully decorated lantern.

2024 Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk

/ Anna White

Mark your calendars for the 2024 Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk on Saturday, November 16 at 5:00pm!

As many of you know, this is an annual family-friendly community event that weaves together neighborhoods once divided by racial segregation and fittingly takes place during Montgomery County’s “Remembrance and Reconciliation” Month.

The event is organized by the Talbot Avenue Bridge Committee and co-sponsored by the Lyttonsville Civic Association, North Woodside Citizens’ Association, and Rosemary Hills Neighbors’ Association.

This year, for the first time, the Lantern Walk will cross the fully completed new Talbot Avenue Bridge. We will also be honoring the memory of lifelong Lyttonsville resident and longtime civic leader Charlotte Coffield.

Start location: Parking lot of Rosemary Hills Elementary School, just below intersection of Talbot Ave. and Lanier Dr. (Lyttonsville side of bridge). Lantern Walk will start and end here and be immediately followed by a community reception in the all-purpose room of Rosemary Hills Elementary School.

For more information and updates about the event go to: bit.ly/TABLanternWalk

We hope you will be able to join us for an evening filled with light, love, and community!

6th Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk

/ Anna White

*** IMPORTANT***

The new Talbot Avenue Bridge remains an active construction zone. The bridge is not currently completed, nor open to pedestrians and cars, and will not be so by the date of the Lantern Walk. The Purple Line team has confirmed that Lantern Walk participants may cross the bridge within a designated area and limited time frame, in order to access and participate in the event. Participants may cross, but NOT hang out and linger on the bridge. Please be respectful of these guidelines. After the community reception at Rosemary Hills ES has concluded and the lights on the bridge have been turned off, anyone entering the construction site will be considered trespassing. Please review the full safety guidelines on the Lantern Walk webpage and visit it for any last-minute updates.

Special this year: New route, new bridge, and the first time the community will have an opportunity to cross this historic space in 4 1/2 years! In observance of Montgomery County’s “Remembrance and Reconciliation Month,” be part of marking the beginning of a new chapter in the relationship of the communities connected by the bridge. Many special guests will be joining us, including members of Washington Revels’ Jubilee Voices.

WHEN:     Saturday, November 11, 2023 at 5:00p
Gather: 5:00 – 5:15 pm
Short Program & Lantern Walk: 5:15 – 6:00 pm
Community Reception: 6:00 – 7:30 pm

WHERE:   Intersection of Talbot Ave. & Lanier Dr. (Lyttonsville)
The route will start and end at the same place, crossing over the new Talbot Avenue Bridge twice and going around the two blocks closest to it, one in North Woodside and one in Lyttonsville.*
(scroll down to view map)

BRING:     Warm clothing and good walking shoes, and a lantern
                  (and a bell to ring, if you have one)
Note: Any type of lantern will do, from a tea light candle in a glass jar to something more elaborate, either handmade or store-bought. You can find many ideas online: bit.ly/HomemadeLanterns. If you have the time and energy, we encourage you to get creative!  Extra lanterns and  tea light candles will be available for those who need them.

* The Lantern Walk will conclude with an indoor community reception at Rosemary Hills Elementary School.  All participants are invited to join us for refreshments, music, and warm mingling! The reception will be held in the school’s all-purpose room, which is accessible from the Lanier Dr. side of the school, right next to where the Lantern Walk will start and end.

For more information and to RSVP go to bit.ly/TABLanternWalk.

Support the 2023 Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk! Make a tax-deductible donation to support this and future Talbot Avenue Bridge-related events and programs and/or sign up to bring a refreshment or fill a day-of volunteer role.

Event organized by the Talbot Avenue Bridge Committee and co-sponsored by the Lyttonsville Civic Association, North Woodside Citizens Association, and Rosemary Hills Neighbors Association

Map of Lantern Walk route:

A Season of Change & Light

/ Anna White
Pat Tyson (Lyttonsville), Genevieve McDowell Owen (North Woodside), and Eva Santorini (Rosemary Hills) light a community Unity Lantern at the 2022 Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk. Photo by Jay Mallin

by Genevieve McDowell Owen

As the crisp air and falling leaves signal the arrival of autumn, our neighborhood is beginning to glow with the enchanting colors of the season. Fall and winter bring back beloved North Woodside traditions, both new and old, along with change.

The opening of the new Talbot Avenue Bridge is one of the changes coming. This important link between the North Woodside, Lyttonsville, and Rosemary Hills neighborhoods is scheduled to be finished and open to traffic around the new year. Residents will hopefully get a chance to walk the new bridge before that, though, during the upcoming Lantern Walk. I especially enjoy this newer
neighborhood tradition; walking and singing in the warmth of candlelight and community. Plus I enjoy the opportunity to talk with the local elected officials who typically attend.

The Lantern Walk, scheduled for November 11 at 5pm (rain date November 12), commemorates the historic Talbot Avenue Bridge and serves as a bridge of remembrance that connects our past and future. I encourage everyone to participate in this event, which not only honors the historical importance of the bridge but also fittingly takes place during Montgomery County’s Remembrance and Reconciliation month, a time to “remember the past and dedicate ourselves anew to the work of justice and reconciliation through action.”

Just across the bridge another change is in the works: a new Lyttonsville park*, situated just on the other side of the Purple Line tracks from North Woodside. This welcome addition promises to be a space where neighbors can come together, play, enjoy the outdoors, and see restored parts of the historic bridge. I also look forward this time of year to seeing neighbors new and old at one of our long-time traditions, the Holiday Tree and Menorah Lighting festivities. Keep an eye out for more details about these events coming up in December. In the meantime, happy Halloween!

Genevieve McDowell Owen is President of the North Woodside Citizens Association. This “Letter from the President” ran in the Fall 2023 issue of NWCA’s neighborhood newsletter, The Beacon.

*On September 7, 2023, the Montgomery County Planning Board voted to approve the design of the future neighborhood park in Lyttonsville, which, when completed, will be the closest park to many North Woodside residents. Pat Tyson, President of the Lyttonsville Civic Association, and Anna White, a NWCA board member, were among the many community members and groups who provided oral and written testimony in support of the park. It will feature a Bridge Memorial made from the historic Talbot Avenue Bridge’s steel girders. For more information, including NWCA’s written and oral testimony, click here.

Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk 2022

/ Anna White

Begun in 2018, the Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk is an annual local community event that weaves together neighborhoods once divided by racial segregation. All are welcome! Come join us in shining our lights in the darkness, promoting unity over division, remembering the past and taking steps toward a brighter future…

WHEN:     Saturday, November 12, 2022*
Gather by 5:15pm, Lantern Walk will commence soon after

WHERE:   4th Avenue and Hanover Street
(North Woodside) to Talbot Avenue (Lyttonsville), via Brookville Road
                   View Route

See below for three different ways to participate

BRING:     Warm clothing, a lantern, and a bell to ring, if you have one

                   Note: Any type of lantern will do, from a tea light candle in a glass jar to
                   something more elaborate, either handmade or store-bought. You can
                   find many ideas online: bit.ly/HomemadeLanterns. If you have the time
                   and energy, we encourage you to get creative!  Extra lanterns and
                   tea light candles will be available for anyone who needs them.

For more information and to RSVP for this event: bit.ly/TABLanternWalk

Questions? Email Event Organizers

* Rain date: Sunday, November 13, 2022 (any event updates will be posted to bit.ly/TABLanternWalk)

Ways to Participate

Residents of Lyttonsville, North Woodside, and Rosemary Hills are invited to participate in one of three ways:

1) Join for the whole lantern walk.  As the route is not a loop, residents of North Woodside will need to walk back or have someone pick you up in Lyttonsville.

2) Join for a portion of the lantern walk.  For example, residents of North Woodside can join for the portion that goes through the neighborhood (e.g. 4th Ave -> Warren St/A Wider Circle).

3) Watch the lantern walk pass by.  Neighbors who live along the route can come out of their homes to watch, wave, and hold a candle or lantern of their own in solidarity.  Neighbors who live elsewhere can come stand along the lantern walk route and do the same.

Safety Precautions

Any young children who participate should be closely supervised by adults. And organizers encourage participants to RSVP ahead of time at bit.ly/TABLanternWalk, so they have a good sense of expected numbers and can adjust safety precautions accordingly.

Check out videos of past Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walks:

1st Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk (2018). Video by David Rotenstein
4th Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk (2021). Video by Jay Mallin

4th Annual Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk

/ Anna White / 1 Comment

Begun in 2018, the Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk is an annual local community event that weaves together neighborhoods once divided by racial segregation. All are welcome! Come join us in shining our lights in the darkness, promoting unity over division, remembering the past and taking steps toward a brighter future…

WHEN: Saturday, November 13, 2021
Gather at 5:15pm, Lantern Walk will commence at 5:30pm

WHERE: 4th Avenue and Hanover Street (North Woodside)
to Talbot Avenue and Lanier Road (Lyttonsville), via Brookville Road
See below for three different ways to participate
View route

BRING: Warm clothing, a lantern, and a bell to ring, if you have one
Any type of lantern will do, from a tea light candle in a glass jar to something more elaborate, either handmade or store-bought. You can find many ideas online. If you have the time and energy, you are encouraged to get creative!  Extra lanterns and tea light candles will be available for anyone who needs them.

For more information, any event updates, and to RSVP for this event visit:
bit.ly/TABLanternWalk

Questions? Contact the Talbot Avenue Bridge Committee (consisting of Lyttonsville, North Woodside, and Rosemary Hills residents): talbotavenuebridgecommittee@gmail.com

WAYS TO PARTICIPATE

1) Join for the whole lantern walk.  As the route is again not a loop, as in previous years, this means that North Woodside residents will need to walk back or have someone pick them up in Lyttonsville.

2) Join for a portion of the lantern walk.  For example, some North Woodside residents could join for the portion that goes through the neighborhood (e.g. 4th Ave -> Warren St/A Wider Circle)

3) Watch the lantern walk pass by.  Neighbors who live along the route can come out of their homes to watch, wave, and hold a candle or lantern of their own in solidarity.  Neighbors who live elsewhere can come stand along the lantern walk route and do the same.

Safety Precautions: Any young children who participate should be closely supervised by adults. And all participants are encouraged to RSVP ahead of time, so we have a good sense of expected numbers and can adjust safety precautions accordingly.

Video of the inaugural Talbot Avenue Bridge Lantern Walk (2018):