Brookdale Board Officers and At-Large Representatives

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In August 1995, Abner and his wife, Lolly Jewett, moved to Dover Court, in Brookdale South. Their son, Charlie, attended Westbrook, Westland, and B-CC and now lives in Portland, OR. Abner consults for various organizations on school and school district improvement, and Lolly runs Bees’ Knees Design, a garden design firm focused on native plants and sustainability. Abner edits the Brookdale Bugle and runs the neighborhood’s music concerts and its annual fall porch fest; Lolly and three other neighbors oversee Brookdale’s new annual garden walk.

Mike Makuch and his wife, Anne Warner, have been residents since mid 1991 after they moved to Brookdale from Dupont Circle downtown. Their two children Nancy and Elizabeth grew up on Merrivale Road where Mike and Anne still reside, and each attended Westbrook Elementary, Westland Middle School, and Bethesda- Chevy Chase High School.  Mike and Anne are both retired from their respective law practices. Mike was a patent attorney at a Washington DC IP boutique firm that merged with Smith, Gambrell & Russell in 1999 until he retired at the end of 2023. He has served as an officer for Brookdale for several years, and also served two terms on the board at Little Falls Swim Club. Mike is a graduate of Yale University and Case Western Reserve University Law School.

Andrew Clark moved to Brookdale in 2023 with his wife and two young kids. Originally from Chicago, Andrew spent time in Ann Arbor (Go Blue), the UK, Egypt, and Lebanon before settling in DC in 2012. He works at the State Department on international economic issues, and he previously worked on the Middle East and on financial sanctions. He likes reading (at least when he isn’t too exhausted from parenting), hiking, gardening, and soccer. 

David is a relative newcomer to the neighborhood, having moved into 5206 Saratoga in 2022 with his wife Mary and their daughter, Ana, who attended Westbrook and will be attending Westland this coming year.  Originally from Edmonton, Canada, he loves both playing and watching hockey, and although he will always be an Oilers fan is also learning to cheer for the Caps. After college at Queen’s University in Canada, David went to graduate school in engineering at UCLA where he met Mary, and later earned his MBA from Wharton. His career has focused on strategy and business development in the media and entertainment industry, and he is currently the Chief Operating Officer for a growing B2B events and media company with 140 employees across ten countries. Before moving to Brookdale, David and Mary lived in London, England for 12 years, and prior to that in Santa Monica, CA.  

Tom is a native of Washington, DC (Providence Hospital). He and his wife, Sophie, moved to Westport Road in 2006, with children, Charlotte, 18, and Nicolas, 20, having grown up in Brookdale and now out of the house in Dublin and Philadelphia, respectively. Tom is an Administrative Trademark Judge for the US Patent and Trade Office (USPTO).   Soccer, tennis, running, swimming, cycling, and beer are his favorite things to do, but not really in that order!

Kate McCarthy has lived on Newport Avenue with her husband, Patrick, their three children, Lucia (20), Alex (18), and Gabriella (17), and dog, Chewy, since 2011. Lucia and Alex are now studying in Canada and Gabriella is soon to enter her last year at the French International School. Kate is the Director of Programs at the Women’s Media Center, a 501c3 whose mission is to amplify women’s voices in the media. A seasoned political strategist, she previously led the UK Labour Party’s pioneering online campaigns and developed digital strategies involving two prime ministers. Kate has trained advocates globally, from Sweden to Trinidad, and has held advisory and board roles with UNICEF UK, the Hansard Society, and Metro Teen AIDS. 

Darcy and family moved from Berkeley, California to Brookdale in 2002. Their son attended Westbrook, Westland and B-CC. Darcy grew up in a politically active family in North Dakota and completed college in Minnesota. She worked as an attorney in the non-profit, private and public sectors, specializing in immigration law. Darcy has served as secretary on the Brookdale Neighborhood Citizens’ Association Board for several years and as an officer at the Coalition of Citizens of Chevy Chase and Friendship Heights (CCFH) for the past two years. Her current interests include politics, reading, swimming and baking sourdough bread.

Heather has lived on Cortland Road since the late 80s. After three years in the Philippines teaching and assisting in anthropological fieldwork and a stint in Cleveland, Heather moved to the Washington, DC area where she had a career in non-profit leadership here and in New York City.  She served as Exec Director of SAFE KIDS Worldwide for a decade and CEO of SOS Children’s Villages-USA.  She is now a painter and one of ten artists who founded “City Line Studios” in Friendship Heights.  Heather “got some local schooling” with an M.A. in English from The American University and a PhD in American Studies from the University of Maryland. She has a daughter in the Berkshires and a teenage grandson who attends local schools.

Adrienne lives at the corner of Cortland and Westport, and loves to have neighbors walk by and enjoy her side garden.  As a close neighbor of GEICO, Adrienne is well situated to observe what is going on.  Adrienne has a bachelor’s degree from Barnard College, Columbia University and a Masters in Real Estate and Urban Planning from American University.  Adrienne’s career was with the World Bank, where she led projects in urban development, housing and cultural heritage in every part of the world. After her first retirement she became the elected president of the World Bank’s organization of retirees. After her second retirement, she started taking cello lessons, which she continues today while playing in numerous ensembles.  

Matt lives on Harrison Street with his wife and two daughters in a home acquired in late 2016 and subsequently renovated before occupying it in 2018.  In his professional life, Matt is a commercial real estate expert at Stream Realty Partners in Washington, DC where he advises corporations, non-profit organizations, and performing arts organizations in sourcing and executing office and multifamily sale, lease and development transactions.  In his spare time, Matt enjoys spending time with his wife and daughters in their various activities and traveling the world, discovering new music generally with roots in soul/funk/disco/house. Matt also supports his favorite sports teams, including The Philadelphia Eagles, Liverpool Football Club, Formula 1 auto racing, and the Westbrook Elementary girls’ soccer team, where Matt is its head coach. 

Richard Podolske has been a resident of Brookdale since 1978 on Andover Road. He has a BS in Civil Engineering and an MS in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Wisconsin. Dick worked ten years with a domestic consulting firm and over thirty years with the World Bank as a staff member and consultant.  He has had a life-long love of travel, having been to about 100 countries. He is married to Diane Waters and has a daughter, Anya Eisele, who lives in Las Vegas.

Jerry Richman is a retired lawyer, who for several years has volunteered at the Smithsonian Museum of American History. In the past, he was a member and served on the Board of Little Falls Swim Club, including as president.  He and his wife, Suzanne, have lived on Overbrook Road in Brookdale for 42 years, and both sons (long gone from the nest) went to Westbrook, Westland and B-CC. Jerry believes that Brookdale was a wonderful place to raise a family and remains a great and neighborly place to live.  Jerry also believes that the Brookdale Citizens Association contributes to the well-being of our community, and now he would like to help future  efforts by becoming an officer.