December 30, 2025 • 24 mins
In this podcast, Community Relations and Special Projects, Emily Brewster-McCarthy and Communications and Outreach Program Manager Derek Ross will discuss the visible changes at CUPF. During this discussion, they give shoutouts to all the new faces at CUPF. On this episode, we are joined by our special guest, CUPF's new Director of Community Relations, Eric Rasch!!
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Thanks for listening!!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_03 (00:13):
Welcome to Off the Cuff, a Community Use of Public
Facilities Podcast, the showwhere we explore, discuss, and
introduce you, our listeners, tothe wonderful world of community
use.
I'm Emily Brewster McCarthy.
Derek Ross (00:25):
And I am Derek Ross.
Together, we are your host, andwe are here to provide you with
some of the most up-to-date newsand information about Cuff.
Emily, are you ready to getstarted?
Absolutely, I'm ready to getstarted.
You stop by Mambo?
Oh, yeah, yeah.
I'm ready to Mambo.
Emily, Emily, Emily, I thinkwe're back.
SPEAKER_03 (00:44):
We are back.
Derek Ross (00:45):
We are back.
It feels like we're back.
We're in the studio, feelinggood.
We just came from a meeting, aPIO meeting, public information
office.
For those of you who don't know,in a county, we're always
meeting and figuring out newthings.
How are you doing, Emily?
SPEAKER_03 (00:57):
I'm feeling great.
How about yourself?
Derek Ross (00:59):
I'm feeling good.
We have some people here withus.
We do, we do.
We do, we do.
But before we get to thatperson, surprise, surprise,
let's do some check-ins.
Check-ins, highs and lows.
You want to go first?
SPEAKER_03 (01:09):
Uh sure.
Derek Ross (01:10):
Okay.
All right.
What you got?
SPEAKER_03 (01:11):
Highs, you know, I'm really excited about all these
new changes.
And I keep using the wordexcited, but it really is.
Like, it really is exciting.
I feel so good.
Um, lows?
I know I say I'd never have one,but I'm gonna say it now.
SPEAKER_02 (01:25):
Okay, uh-oh.
SPEAKER_03 (01:26):
I think the low is that you know, I feel like maybe
the fact that I didn't fully eatbreakfast today.
Derek Ross (01:33):
Oh, not the hungry.
SPEAKER_03 (01:36):
Yeah, I'm a little hangry right now.
Derek Ross (01:38):
Okay, okay, okay, okay.
That's a low.
That's a low.
What do I what else do you got?
You got anything else?
SPEAKER_03 (01:43):
Um, you know, I have my daughter's celebrating a
special birthday today.
So happy birthday.
What?
Oh yeah.
Oh, yeah.
But yeah, I mean, that's aboutit.
What about you?
Derek Ross (01:52):
You know what?
You know what?
I feel like, you know, I'llhighs and lows.
That's how where can we go withthis?
Highs, I think it, you know,we're preparing for so much in
the county.
So much.
So many different departmentsare kind of aligned at the same
time.
We're working on so much when itcomes to emergency management,
communications, outreach, whenit comes to languages, and so
many things that we're trying toformulate.
And I find that, you know what,we're all at the same spot.
SPEAKER_03 (02:15):
We really are.
Derek Ross (02:15):
We all are working together and we're going to get
this done together.
But a low is also too that, youknow, technically, this is also
our countdown to New Year's Eve.
We want to thank you all.
So we're closing out the year.
We are closing out 2025.
Wow.
Wow.
But let's jump ahead and let'sget to this special guest.
Emily, would you mind giving thecommunity so much?
(02:37):
Let can we explain who thisguest is?
Can you break it down?
SPEAKER_03 (02:40):
We have a very, very special guest with us, Eric
Roch.
He has joined the team as thenew division manager of CUF for
community relations with specialprojects.
The division has beenestablished to enhance community
engagement, boost awareness ofcuff services, and drive
strategic initiativescountywide.
The division will overseecommunications, which is us,
(03:01):
that's us.
Childcare and Marion Fryer Plazaprograms, fostering stronger
connections and support acrossthe community.
Wow.
So, Eric, welcome.
SPEAKER_04 (03:11):
Thank you, guys.
Thank you.
You guys are amazing.
And this off the cuff podcast isamazing too.
So it's uh it's a real privilegeto be here with you today.
SPEAKER_03 (03:20):
Thank you for joining us.
Thank you for joining us.
Do you have any, you know, anyspecial things that you want to
share with us?
Where are you coming from?
Because you were with Cuffbefore, but now you're in a new
position.
SPEAKER_04 (03:29):
Right.
Well, you know what?
Let me just jump on those highsand lows.
Oh, yeah.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
All right, let's get it.
Let's get it.
All right.
So, a high for me is this newposition, right?
And uh it's moving into thisnewly established division
manager role and leadingcommunity relations and
strategic projects, a positiondesigned to strengthen how
(03:49):
Montgomery County engages withresidents, partners, and public
spaces.
That is a high.
I'm very excited about it.
I'm excited about working withyou guys and the others in the
team and in Wheaton in theheadquarters.
And so that's a that's very mucha high.
And a low is uh leaving theSilver Springs Civic Building.
Oh, yeah.
After more than a decade, it canhurt.
(04:11):
It can kind of feel like uhleaving family.
And so I would say that's a low.
So you're feeling bittersweet alittle bit.
It's bittersweet.
I mean, yeah, and um, and that'sa great way of describing it.
And uh, but I can tell you it'sall within community use of
public facilities, and I'mexcited just to make an impact
and join you guys in themission.
And so there we go for somehighs and lows.
SPEAKER_03 (04:31):
Yeah.
We're definitely uh happy thatyou have joined us over at
Wheaton Headquarters, which iswhere Comms is uh established.
So I know that you have a lot ofwonderful things to add to uh
our team, even though you havealready done amazing, amazing,
wonderful things over at SilverSpring.
We did do a little bit of a softintro to our new um division
(04:53):
manager of Silver Springs uhlast episode, and we'll have you
know other people kind of joinus in future episodes, uh
correct after the start of thenew year, like we were saying
last time new year, new us.
Yes.
Uh, and that really means newyear, new us because we have a
lot of new faces, uh, maybe someold faces that are appearing in
new positions, uh new places.
(05:14):
Um, so if you've loved Ericbefore at Silver Spring, you're
not gonna stop seeing himbecause you're over here and
you're still gonna love him.
Derek Ross (05:22):
He's here.
He's with us.
And you know, we get a chance towork with Eric, and I've got a
chance to get to know Eric for acouple years now and to know
that we get to work under thisumbrella, this whole
organizational chart kind ofenergy.
I am excited.
Eric, you have done so much, somuch.
So, so allow us to embask inyour ambiance and just enjoy.
SPEAKER_04 (05:41):
When you guys say, when you guys say I, you might
as well say we because it is ateam effort.
And I'll tell you, all the folksin Silver Spring that make it
happen day in, day out, they'rereally the unsung heroes.
And um, those are the ones weshould be giving, you know,
kudos to and a round of applausefor.
They're they're really afantastic group in Silver
Spring.
SPEAKER_03 (06:00):
So and this is why he's such a wonderful leader.
Look at this.
Look at this, hyping everybodyup.
This is exactly what we'reabout, right?
Derek Ross (06:08):
So we're we're about to say we're about that life.
We're about that.
We're about that cuff life.
We're we're here.
We have Eric here, and I knowEric, we're announcing as a
special guest, so we don't wantto get too much into it because
we know Eric is just here tokind of enjoy us and just kind
of enjoy this environment, thepodcast environment.
So we're gonna keep it moving.
Eric, we got you here, so we mayjust drop in some couple ideas
and as we're going through it.
(06:29):
And if you want to chime in,please chime in.
You know, give it give us someof that Eric energy and just let
us know.
Let us know.
But, Emily, you know, I justwant to shout out because you
just brought it up.
You know, we always do thiswhole kind of like, did you
know?
But to all our listeners, didyou know Cuff has a new
director?
A new core services operationsmanager, new Silver Spring
Building Operations Manager, anew community relations
(06:52):
operations manager.
We're just going down the list,right?
We're doing a lot of lists.
We're just naming them out.
We also get to bring it upbecause Eric is here, so he
could always chime in if heneeded to.
But Emily, we talked about itbefore, but now that we have
Eric here, this energy is real.
SPEAKER_03 (07:06):
Oh, yeah, 100%.
Derek Ross (07:08):
Okay, okay, okay.
I'm just making sure I'm makingsure I'm not I'm not the only
one just feeling some kind ofway, just feeling all good when
I go home.
Like we got all this good energygoing on.
SPEAKER_03 (07:15):
No, we're all hype over here.
Derek Ross (07:16):
We're hype.
Yeah, okay.
We're hype, we're hype.
So once again, to all of ourlisteners, yes, we do have a lot
of new leadership.
We have a lot going on.
We're gonna make sure we work onour public announcements.
We're gonna make sure that theinformation is shared.
We also have been working behindthe scenes, working with Eric
right now to make sure thatthere's announcements being done
to different organizations,different departments.
We're gonna do everything thatwe can to make sure this
(07:36):
information is shared, shared,shared, shared.
Uh Emily, I think we should talkabout a little bit of some of
the things that are happening atCuff.
I'm talking about some of thegood stuff.
Like right now, I notice whenyou walk into Cuff on our main
building the colors.
SPEAKER_03 (07:51):
Oh, yeah.
We revamp revamped our office.
Yes.
When you walk in, we have abeautiful, beautiful screen that
displays office information likeoperating hours, some of the
cool things that we're doing outin the community, all of our
events, uh places, facilities.
Um, we just have uh a new look.
Derek Ross (08:08):
Yeah.
We have a new look.
I'd probably say there's alwaysthat energy when you just see so
many colors popping, so muchscreens, images, the new faces.
I also want to give a shout outto so many different people now
because when I'm walking in, weget to get talk to our new
director.
There's always a big smile.
Eric is always smiling.
I can joke now with that.
Eric, why are you alwayssmiling?
(08:30):
There's a lot of reasons tosmile.
A lot of reasons to smile.
I say that now because if youever get a chance to, when I've
ever Googled or chatted orlooked up Eric information, Eric
has a big smile, always smiling,doing great things.
That's what makes it so easy forus to kind of work together to
make sure we're gonna tag teamthis and do everything possible
from a cuff comms communityrelations aspect of it.
(08:52):
So, Emily, is there anythingelse about what you see in our
department now that has changed,or is there something that you
want to highlight or anythinglike that?
SPEAKER_03 (09:00):
I mean, we've been working a lot on our
collaborative efforts within thecounty.
We've been reaching out uh, youknow, to different departments.
We're really trying to bandtogether and create one big
unified just resource space.
Um, so whoever comes up to us,we're always gonna be able to
have or lead them in the rightdirection, you know, lead them
to the right resources, whetherit's our department or not.
(09:22):
You know, we really want to makesure that the community knows
that um Montgomery County has alot of opportunities and
resources for the community.
SPEAKER_02 (09:29):
They do.
SPEAKER_03 (09:29):
Yeah.
So we want to make sure wehighlight, you know, some of the
some of the departments that areactually not even some, all the
departments that are doing theseamazing, beautiful, wonderful
things for the community.
Yes.
And I know we have a list ofthings, Derek.
Do you want to uh list some ofthem all?
Derek Ross (09:43):
Sure, sure, sure.
We're we're just gonna go down.
If and if and I'm gonna speaknow.
Say if we miss naming anybody,please let us know.
We're letting you know now.
We're not doing it on that.
SPEAKER_03 (09:51):
Let us know so we can add you to the next one.
Derek Ross (09:53):
We're gonna add you to the next one.
We're gonna keep adding.
But once again, you know, give ashout out with Department of
Environmental Protection, uh,DEP, Montgomery Parks,
Department of Recreation, uhWheaton Urban District, Downtown
Silver Spring, Parks and RecAdvisory Board.
We have the Office CommunityPartnerships, PIO, Public
Information Office, Departmentof Transportation, Montgomery
County Department ofTransportation, Maryland
(10:14):
Department of Transportation,County Cable Montgomery, Tebs
County Technology Team, ActiveMontgomery, Vermont Systems, the
VSI, how everything goes down.
That's just the tip of theiceberg, Emily.
SPEAKER_03 (10:24):
I mean, we have uh the ICB, the interagency
coordinating board, uh, whichare full of members from
different, you know, places, uh,different jobs, different
backgrounds within MontgomeryCounty that all come together to
make decisions um and approvethings for the community uh
through Cuff.
And then we also have umpartnerships with Montgomery
County Public Schools,Montgomery County Um Animal
(10:46):
Services and Adoption Center,the County Department of
Corrections, which has awonderful sweet treat you know
program called Sweet Release.
Sweet release.
And those what is it, theblue-hairy muffins that we're
always Oh yeah, the muffins.
Oh, the muffins.
Oh my goodness, the muffins areso good.
So good.
Derek Ross (11:04):
Yeah, we're gonna talk about them.
SPEAKER_03 (11:07):
Yeah, I think at every meeting uh that we have
now we order breakfast fromthem.
Yes, we do.
Yeah, right.
Uh coffee and uh and some bakedgoods, and everybody's super
happy whenever we uh get fromthem.
So please reach out to them andget your baked goods.
Uh uh MCPL, Montgomery CountyPublic Libraries, we're
partnering with them a lot to docommunity pulse um to kind of
see what the community needs.
(11:27):
Um and then we also have uhpartnerships with the regional
services centers, um, up county,mid-county.
Uh we're we're going around thecounty just to kind of touch
base with whoever wants to sharetheir information with us and we
can share it with everybodyelse.
Um, Silver Spring CivicBuilding, Cuff team.
Yeah, the team.
Right?
(11:47):
And then the Cuff team atWheaton.
And our team is we're not asuper huge, huge team, but you
know, I think we're we're under40, 40 people, right?
On our staff.
And every single person on ourteam plays an uh an integral
part of what we do at Cuff.
And we are so invested in whatwe do with the community, and
(12:08):
it's just such a we're just wehave a lot of opportunities and
a lot of things, I guess, in theworks.
Yes, we do.
Um and so we can't wait for youguys to hear it.
Derek Ross (12:16):
Yeah, yeah.
That's because we're countingdown.
We are counting down to the NewYear's.
The New Year's is coming andwe're getting ready for it.
Eric, you know, I don't want toput you on the spot, but I know
Eric.
Well, how many years?
Was it over 10 years, Eric, ofbeing in the county?
Yeah, over a decade now.
Over over a I like when you saydecade.
Decade sounds different when Isay 10.
Decade sounds like it matters alittle, totally different.
(12:38):
We would name it, no, justrattling off organizations and
departments.
And I know your your network andhow much you've done in the
community.
Are are we missing anybody andanything or anything like that?
Any departments that you want toshout out?
SPEAKER_04 (12:49):
Well, you know what I would say is um the one thing
that just kind of is missingfrom here is the nonprofits that
you know really contribute tothe success of the civic
building and uh community use asa whole.
Those those nonprofits arereally, you know, the heartbeat
of uh the community.
And sometimes they're doingthings that the county
department simply can't do.
(13:10):
They're working with thepopulations that they can't
always do.
So now, you might have done itum strategically, which is
probably a good idea because youcan't name all the nonprofits.
There's just so many of them inMontgomery County that we would
certainly leave some off.
And we don't want hurt feelings,do we, guys?
No.
No.
So you guys are the best.
I really like that.
But yeah, those nonprofits, um,they do make make things happen
(13:33):
in in Montgomery County.
SPEAKER_03 (13:35):
And actually, that might bring us to something that
we just learned about today,right?
Yeah.
Um, we uh want to promotesomething called Montgomery
Gives Local, right?
That's something that uh PIO wejust met with them and uh we
spoke about, you know,promoting, giving back to local
nonprofits or local justorganizations that help the
community.
So again, like what Eric wassaying, we're not gonna say
(13:57):
specifically, right, who, but wewould really appreciate for just
think about, you know, thegiving campaigns, the local
giving campaigns.
Uh try to, you know, see if youcan give back to the local
organizations, just give back toyour community.
And, you know, we'll we'll kindof help along with that as well.
Uh I know we're working withlike um employee giving
(14:18):
campaigns.
We're doing a whole bunch ofwonder, wonderful, wonderful
things.
But really, this one, the localgiving campaign, uh, we really
want to focus on that because wereally want to um help uplift
and bring attention to thesewonderful organizations that are
doing so so many great thingsfor our community that might not
have, let's say, this big of aspace or a voice, right, to kind
(14:40):
of spread their message.
And so whatever we can do tokind of um bring light to that,
you know, we're gonna do it.
Derek Ross (14:46):
I agree.
I agree.
See, see, see, I like that.
See, see, that make me feelgood.
That makes me feel good.
Matter of fact, I need to jumpon that.
And you say, what was it called?
Montgomery Gives Local.
SPEAKER_03 (14:54):
It's Montgomery Gives Local.
Derek Ross (14:55):
Okay, okay.
SPEAKER_03 (14:56):
And then you can um explore all the nonprofits that
are under that at MontgomeryCounty M D.gov backslash
volunteer center.
Derek Ross (15:04):
Okay.
SPEAKER_03 (15:05):
Inspire others by sharing your giving and tagging
hashtag MontgomeryGivesLocal.
Derek Ross (15:09):
Hashtag, okay.
All right.
I like it.
I like it.
So so once again, this is ourNew Year's Eve.
Kind of like we're countingdown.
We're just letting people knowlike who have we talked to over
the years, who has been ourbiggest point of contact in
regards to just 2025, which isnow pretty much almost over.
We only have a few couple weeksleft.
Oh, I know.
No, we we only have a few weeksleft.
(15:29):
I don't know.
Then I'm gonna see you nextyear.
I'm playing with you.
Like, you can start talking likesee you next year.
See you next year.
See you next year.
But once again, as we get tocontinue or get ready to close
out this podcast, we always givein a high fives saying hello.
But we can ask, because Eric ishere.
Eric is here.
Eric, do you have any plans forNew Year's?
Are you doing anything?
SPEAKER_04 (15:47):
Well, you know what?
All right, so I'm gonna in thedid you did you know, right?
The did you know section, okay?
I'll throw a couple of thingsout.
One is a did you know that Cuffis one of only a few public
entities in the county that runson it as an enterprise fund,
meaning access to public spacesis sustained by the very
communities that use them.
That's a did you know?
SPEAKER_03 (16:08):
Okay, okay, hey, snap, snap, snap.
SPEAKER_04 (16:11):
We know that, but a lot of people don't know that
we're an enterprise fund.
And so that's why we really arebalancing the cost with the use
just to be able to sustain uhsuch a known uh department.
Yeah.
Now, here's another did youknow.
Okay, I'm gonna go personal onthis.
Okay, let's see.
Let's hear it.
Let's hear it.
So I got uh me and my wife, wehave two uh boys that speak
(16:32):
French and we love going tofestivals and cheering on
Mbappé.
And because this is a New Year'sspecial, did you know that last
year over New Year's we were inEthiopia?
Ooh, and bringing in the newyear in Ethiopia, and so uh
that's where I was last year.
I have not thought about wherewe'll be.
Actually, uh, we should be inSan Francisco now that I'm
(16:54):
thinking about it.
That's exciting.
So we'll be in the States thisyear, but um, you know, it's
always wonderful to try to bewith family, with friends,
especially at this time of year.
Um, it's not always the easiestfor all of us.
Agree.
And so I like that the wholeseason of giving and what you're
talking about earlier, aboutwhere you can give, let your
(17:14):
heart be light at this season.
Um, and think about those that,you know, they don't have the
friends, they don't have thefamily nearby.
And so um, this is what we are.
It's Montgomery County.
This is who we are.
So yeah, um, but yeah, I wouldlove to know where you guys are
gonna be too for New Year's.
SPEAKER_03 (17:30):
Okay, bounce back, let's go.
Derek Ross (17:32):
Well, Emily, I'm a little upset because every time
Eric talks about going out oftown, going some places, I
always say I'm coming.
He just laughs.
SPEAKER_03 (17:39):
I'm gonna just get in the suitcase and zip myself
up.
Just take me with a few.
Derek Ross (17:43):
Like, I'm joking.
Like, I'm telling, like, I'mgoing with you.
We're going to come here.
We're gonna be in your luggage.
Like, just put us in the carwith it.
SPEAKER_03 (17:50):
Let's get in a way mode.
SPEAKER_04 (17:52):
We'll be in San Francisco, those self-driving
cars, those automated cars outthere.
SPEAKER_03 (17:57):
Oh no, those are those are scary.
Let me not get it.
They're in D.C., you've seenthem, right?
Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_04 (18:02):
You got the drivers in DC.
Derek Ross (18:04):
Yes, no drivers in in San Francisco.
No drivers.
Well, Eric, we're well, I knowfor me for New Year's, it's
definitely gonna stay local, butI'm always looking to find
stuff.
I joke, my joke last time wasthat I have um jokingly, I put
it like this.
I've tried to do New Year's inthe city, doing stuff in DC.
I spent hours trying to findparking on New Year's Eve, and I
was like, you know what?
I'm not doing this right.
(18:25):
You know, I I don't drive aroundright prior to New Year's, the
ball drop, I'm still looking fora parking space.
All this, you know, it was justtoo much.
But this year, I'm definitelygonna go for more or less
something local, catch up withsome people, some friends, and
really drop, bring the ball inright, you know, have some good
times and stuff like that, andprepare for another, once again,
off the cuff podcast.
Just throwing that out thereagain, another season, another
year of it.
(18:45):
But Emily, what's up with you?
SPEAKER_03 (18:46):
Okay, so I know I said I was gonna spend it with
family, which I still am.
Derek Ross (18:49):
Okay.
SPEAKER_03 (18:50):
I'm not sure if I'm gonna spend it with family at
like, you know, an elaborateparty.
By elaborate, I mean at myaunt's house.
And it's always elaborate nomatter what kind of party we
have.
So that.
Um, or maybe it's just kind oflow-key.
I really so I like to ask mydaughter what she likes to do.
Um, you know, sometimes thingscan holidays we're meeting
(19:10):
people like back to back toback.
So she might want to be at homeand just play and you know, have
her cousins over or somethinglike that.
So we'll we'll play by ear.
We'll play by ear.
Play by ear.
I think either way, we're gonnahave fun.
We're gonna have fun.
And we're gonna count, you know,down to the new year, just like
we're counting down now.
SPEAKER_02 (19:26):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (19:26):
So, like I said, new year new, maybe not personally,
new year new me.
Okay, because I'm gonna be thesame no matter where you meet
me, right?
But new year new us for cuff,because we have a lot of just
new, new, new, new, new, newthings.
New.
Um, and not new, like in a waywhere you should be scared of
anything.
People should just be ready forlike the amount of energy we're
(19:48):
just bringing.
Derek Ross (19:48):
We're bringing it.
We're bringing it.
I hope you can hear it in ourvoices, how excited we are.
Just so excited, so excited.
I think you mentioned yourdaughter.
It's like if I ever get a chanceto bring the new year, I
probably as long as I gotnuggets for my son.
Oh, we
SPEAKER_03 (20:00):
We were just talking about nuggets.
Yeah, we were just talking aboutlong.
Derek Ross (20:01):
You got nuggets for the kids.
They love the nuggets anyway.
Oh, it's just my son.
My son loves nuggets.
As long as the nuggets are thereat the party, he's fine.
And I probably like it too.
I'm not gonna lie.
If you want nuggets, I'm gonnaprobably eat some too.
But we're closing out thepodcast.
We want to say, first of all,thank you to so many different
organizations.
And Eric mentioned nonprofits.
There's so many different peoplethat we want to mention, we're
(20:23):
trying to mention, but we have alot of people we could mention,
right?
We have uh a lot of people, andwe're gonna continue to go
through that list.
We're gonna continue to get agood feel for what's going on,
all of this new energy.
Uh closeouts.
You want to do a closeout,Emily?
SPEAKER_03 (20:34):
Um, sure.
Really quick, before um I say mycloseout, I did want to say, you
know, if you're interested injoining us or joining a
conversation or justbrainstorming with us, let us
know.
We are open.
Uh, all of our information is onour website.
We'll also link it hereunderneath um the podcast
information.
Of course.
Uh, yeah, just follow us, youknow, and have fun.
(20:57):
Come on this ride with us.
Yeah, like that.
Uh yeah, you know, I think thatmight be like the closeout,
right?
Like for me, yeah.
Uh I'm feeling good.
Feeling good.
I'm excited.
Yes.
Derek Ross (21:07):
If y'all can't hear it in the you can't hear it, we
can see it right now.
You will smile.
Smiling.
Ear to ear, grinning.
Just grinning, just grinning.
You got me grinning.
I'm trying to be all seriousbecause we have our balls here.
Eric is here, whatever.
SPEAKER_04 (21:18):
No, do you guys do resolutions?
New Year's resolutions?
We can.
Okay.
All right.
We can.
Okay.
This is one for our listeners.
If you're still with us, likeand smash that subscribe button.
SPEAKER_02 (21:28):
I don't know what it is.
SPEAKER_04 (21:30):
But no, if you're still with us, okay, here is a
New Year's resolution for you.
Try a new cuff facility.
Go out there, try one, celebratesomething, uh, get you know, a
group together to use one of thecuff facilities.
There are countless facilitiesall across the county.
Let them know, Eric.
That would be a greatresolution, I think.
Yeah.
(21:50):
To try maybe one new facility amonth or a quarter.
Yeah.
But just put it out there.
Go for it, guys.
Um, don't be scared.
Go on our website, look throughall the different things, and
find the perfect venue for you.
SPEAKER_03 (22:02):
Ooh.
I already have ideas rolling inmy head.
I'm thinking bingo night.
I'm thinking open mic night.
I'm thinking DD Gaming Night.
I'm thinking all these things.
How about how about we, you knowwhat, Eric?
You are absolutely right.
Eric is right.
Let's get people in in ourfacilities.
Let's get them in a facility.
Why not?
Derek Ross (22:18):
We got a lot of them.
Why not?
Why not?
You know what?
I think that's a good way toclose it.
I have nothing to say.
We're just going to just letEric end it like that.
Uh that is great.
I like New Year's resolutionsand all that stuff.
Once again, I have nothing.
I I'm I'm feeling good.
Emily got me smiling.
We got Eric here.
Eric, stop smiling.
SPEAKER_04 (22:34):
No, hey, this was a real pleasure to be with you
guys today, to see the magicthat the off the cuff, you know,
takes every day the work, thepreparation, and it's it's worth
a listen.
I've listened to all theepisodes and I love them and I
think they're really valuable.
We love to hear that.
Derek Ross (22:51):
Thank you so much, Eric.
Thank you so much.
Thank you, Eric.
Once again, to our our ourfriends, our family, to the
community, so many people thatare listening to the podcast,
check out all the other countypodcasts too.
Check out all of thesedepartments in Montgomery
County.
Just check us out.
See what's going on in thecounty.
Uh, once again, thank you somuch.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
And we'll see you again nexttime.
There's a high five.
Is that right?
SPEAKER_03 (23:11):
We'll see y'all next time.
I'm gonna I'm gonna put this in.
I'm gonna fist bump them becausewe recall last time I tried to
give Derek a high five and therewas a splash that just happened
because my hand was very sweaty.
So we're gonna go ahead and say,we'll see y'all later, and we're
gonna fist bump this out.
Oh, fist bump it out.
Derek Ross (23:27):
If you have glasses, cheers to the new year.
Cheers to the new year.
Thank y'all so much.
Thank you so much.
See you next time.
Announcer (23:35):
This podcast is brought to you by County Cable
Montgomery, your source for newsand information from the
Montgomery County government.
Connect with us via cable,Facebook, Instagram, or YouTube
by searching for County CableMoco.
Welcome to Off the Cuff, a Community Use of Public
Facilities Podcast, the showwhere we explore, discuss, and
introduce you, our listeners, tothe wonderful world of community
use.
I'm Emily Brewster McCarthy.
Derek Ross (00:25):
And I am Derek Ross.
Together, we are your host, andwe are here to provide you with
some of the most up-to-date newsand information about Cuff.
Emily, are you ready to getstarted?
Absolutely, I'm ready to getstarted.
You stop by Mambo?
Oh, yeah, yeah.
I'm ready to Mambo.
Emily, Emily, Emily, I thinkwe're back.
SPEAKER_03 (00:44):
We are back.
Derek Ross (00:45):
We are back.
It feels like we're back.
We're in the studio, feelinggood.
We just came from a meeting, aPIO meeting, public information
office.
For those of you who don't know,in a county, we're always
meeting and figuring out newthings.
How are you doing, Emily?
SPEAKER_03 (00:57):
I'm feeling great.
How about yourself?
Derek Ross (00:59):
I'm feeling good.
We have some people here withus.
We do, we do.
We do, we do.
But before we get to thatperson, surprise, surprise,
let's do some check-ins.
Check-ins, highs and lows.
You want to go first?
SPEAKER_03 (01:09):
Uh sure.
Derek Ross (01:10):
Okay.
All right.
What you got?
SPEAKER_03 (01:11):
Highs, you know, I'm really excited about all these
new changes.
And I keep using the wordexcited, but it really is.
Like, it really is exciting.
I feel so good.
Um, lows?
I know I say I'd never have one,but I'm gonna say it now.
SPEAKER_02 (01:25):
Okay, uh-oh.
SPEAKER_03 (01:26):
I think the low is that you know, I feel like maybe
the fact that I didn't fully eatbreakfast today.
Derek Ross (01:33):
Oh, not the hungry.
SPEAKER_03 (01:36):
Yeah, I'm a little hangry right now.
Derek Ross (01:38):
Okay, okay, okay, okay.
That's a low.
That's a low.
What do I what else do you got?
You got anything else?
SPEAKER_03 (01:43):
Um, you know, I have my daughter's celebrating a
special birthday today.
So happy birthday.
What?
Oh yeah.
Oh, yeah.
But yeah, I mean, that's aboutit.
What about you?
Derek Ross (01:52):
You know what?
You know what?
I feel like, you know, I'llhighs and lows.
That's how where can we go withthis?
Highs, I think it, you know,we're preparing for so much in
the county.
So much.
So many different departmentsare kind of aligned at the same
time.
We're working on so much when itcomes to emergency management,
communications, outreach, whenit comes to languages, and so
many things that we're trying toformulate.
And I find that, you know what,we're all at the same spot.
SPEAKER_03 (02:15):
We really are.
Derek Ross (02:15):
We all are working together and we're going to get
this done together.
But a low is also too that, youknow, technically, this is also
our countdown to New Year's Eve.
We want to thank you all.
So we're closing out the year.
We are closing out 2025.
Wow.
Wow.
But let's jump ahead and let'sget to this special guest.
Emily, would you mind giving thecommunity so much?
(02:37):
Let can we explain who thisguest is?
Can you break it down?
SPEAKER_03 (02:40):
We have a very, very special guest with us, Eric
Roch.
He has joined the team as thenew division manager of CUF for
community relations with specialprojects.
The division has beenestablished to enhance community
engagement, boost awareness ofcuff services, and drive
strategic initiativescountywide.
The division will overseecommunications, which is us,
(03:01):
that's us.
Childcare and Marion Fryer Plazaprograms, fostering stronger
connections and support acrossthe community.
Wow.
So, Eric, welcome.
SPEAKER_04 (03:11):
Thank you, guys.
Thank you.
You guys are amazing.
And this off the cuff podcast isamazing too.
So it's uh it's a real privilegeto be here with you today.
SPEAKER_03 (03:20):
Thank you for joining us.
Thank you for joining us.
Do you have any, you know, anyspecial things that you want to
share with us?
Where are you coming from?
Because you were with Cuffbefore, but now you're in a new
position.
SPEAKER_04 (03:29):
Right.
Well, you know what?
Let me just jump on those highsand lows.
Oh, yeah.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
All right, let's get it.
Let's get it.
All right.
So, a high for me is this newposition, right?
And uh it's moving into thisnewly established division
manager role and leadingcommunity relations and
strategic projects, a positiondesigned to strengthen how
(03:49):
Montgomery County engages withresidents, partners, and public
spaces.
That is a high.
I'm very excited about it.
I'm excited about working withyou guys and the others in the
team and in Wheaton in theheadquarters.
And so that's a that's very mucha high.
And a low is uh leaving theSilver Springs Civic Building.
Oh, yeah.
After more than a decade, it canhurt.
(04:11):
It can kind of feel like uhleaving family.
And so I would say that's a low.
So you're feeling bittersweet alittle bit.
It's bittersweet.
I mean, yeah, and um, and that'sa great way of describing it.
And uh, but I can tell you it'sall within community use of
public facilities, and I'mexcited just to make an impact
and join you guys in themission.
And so there we go for somehighs and lows.
SPEAKER_03 (04:31):
Yeah.
We're definitely uh happy thatyou have joined us over at
Wheaton Headquarters, which iswhere Comms is uh established.
So I know that you have a lot ofwonderful things to add to uh
our team, even though you havealready done amazing, amazing,
wonderful things over at SilverSpring.
We did do a little bit of a softintro to our new um division
(04:53):
manager of Silver Springs uhlast episode, and we'll have you
know other people kind of joinus in future episodes, uh
correct after the start of thenew year, like we were saying
last time new year, new us.
Yes.
Uh, and that really means newyear, new us because we have a
lot of new faces, uh, maybe someold faces that are appearing in
new positions, uh new places.
(05:14):
Um, so if you've loved Ericbefore at Silver Spring, you're
not gonna stop seeing himbecause you're over here and
you're still gonna love him.
Derek Ross (05:22):
He's here.
He's with us.
And you know, we get a chance towork with Eric, and I've got a
chance to get to know Eric for acouple years now and to know
that we get to work under thisumbrella, this whole
organizational chart kind ofenergy.
I am excited.
Eric, you have done so much, somuch.
So, so allow us to embask inyour ambiance and just enjoy.
SPEAKER_04 (05:41):
When you guys say, when you guys say I, you might
as well say we because it is ateam effort.
And I'll tell you, all the folksin Silver Spring that make it
happen day in, day out, they'rereally the unsung heroes.
And um, those are the ones weshould be giving, you know,
kudos to and a round of applausefor.
They're they're really afantastic group in Silver
Spring.
SPEAKER_03 (06:00):
So and this is why he's such a wonderful leader.
Look at this.
Look at this, hyping everybodyup.
This is exactly what we'reabout, right?
Derek Ross (06:08):
So we're we're about to say we're about that life.
We're about that.
We're about that cuff life.
We're we're here.
We have Eric here, and I knowEric, we're announcing as a
special guest, so we don't wantto get too much into it because
we know Eric is just here tokind of enjoy us and just kind
of enjoy this environment, thepodcast environment.
So we're gonna keep it moving.
Eric, we got you here, so we mayjust drop in some couple ideas
and as we're going through it.
(06:29):
And if you want to chime in,please chime in.
You know, give it give us someof that Eric energy and just let
us know.
Let us know.
But, Emily, you know, I justwant to shout out because you
just brought it up.
You know, we always do thiswhole kind of like, did you
know?
But to all our listeners, didyou know Cuff has a new
director?
A new core services operationsmanager, new Silver Spring
Building Operations Manager, anew community relations
(06:52):
operations manager.
We're just going down the list,right?
We're doing a lot of lists.
We're just naming them out.
We also get to bring it upbecause Eric is here, so he
could always chime in if heneeded to.
But Emily, we talked about itbefore, but now that we have
Eric here, this energy is real.
SPEAKER_03 (07:06):
Oh, yeah, 100%.
Derek Ross (07:08):
Okay, okay, okay.
I'm just making sure I'm makingsure I'm not I'm not the only
one just feeling some kind ofway, just feeling all good when
I go home.
Like we got all this good energygoing on.
SPEAKER_03 (07:15):
No, we're all hype over here.
Derek Ross (07:16):
We're hype.
Yeah, okay.
We're hype, we're hype.
So once again, to all of ourlisteners, yes, we do have a lot
of new leadership.
We have a lot going on.
We're gonna make sure we work onour public announcements.
We're gonna make sure that theinformation is shared.
We also have been working behindthe scenes, working with Eric
right now to make sure thatthere's announcements being done
to different organizations,different departments.
We're gonna do everything thatwe can to make sure this
(07:36):
information is shared, shared,shared, shared.
Uh Emily, I think we should talkabout a little bit of some of
the things that are happening atCuff.
I'm talking about some of thegood stuff.
Like right now, I notice whenyou walk into Cuff on our main
building the colors.
SPEAKER_03 (07:51):
Oh, yeah.
We revamp revamped our office.
Yes.
When you walk in, we have abeautiful, beautiful screen that
displays office information likeoperating hours, some of the
cool things that we're doing outin the community, all of our
events, uh places, facilities.
Um, we just have uh a new look.
Derek Ross (08:08):
Yeah.
We have a new look.
I'd probably say there's alwaysthat energy when you just see so
many colors popping, so muchscreens, images, the new faces.
I also want to give a shout outto so many different people now
because when I'm walking in, weget to get talk to our new
director.
There's always a big smile.
Eric is always smiling.
I can joke now with that.
Eric, why are you alwayssmiling?
(08:30):
There's a lot of reasons tosmile.
A lot of reasons to smile.
I say that now because if youever get a chance to, when I've
ever Googled or chatted orlooked up Eric information, Eric
has a big smile, always smiling,doing great things.
That's what makes it so easy forus to kind of work together to
make sure we're gonna tag teamthis and do everything possible
from a cuff comms communityrelations aspect of it.
(08:52):
So, Emily, is there anythingelse about what you see in our
department now that has changed,or is there something that you
want to highlight or anythinglike that?
SPEAKER_03 (09:00):
I mean, we've been working a lot on our
collaborative efforts within thecounty.
We've been reaching out uh, youknow, to different departments.
We're really trying to bandtogether and create one big
unified just resource space.
Um, so whoever comes up to us,we're always gonna be able to
have or lead them in the rightdirection, you know, lead them
to the right resources, whetherit's our department or not.
(09:22):
You know, we really want to makesure that the community knows
that um Montgomery County has alot of opportunities and
resources for the community.
SPEAKER_02 (09:29):
They do.
SPEAKER_03 (09:29):
Yeah.
So we want to make sure wehighlight, you know, some of the
some of the departments that areactually not even some, all the
departments that are doing theseamazing, beautiful, wonderful
things for the community.
Yes.
And I know we have a list ofthings, Derek.
Do you want to uh list some ofthem all?
Derek Ross (09:43):
Sure, sure, sure.
We're we're just gonna go down.
If and if and I'm gonna speaknow.
Say if we miss naming anybody,please let us know.
We're letting you know now.
We're not doing it on that.
SPEAKER_03 (09:51):
Let us know so we can add you to the next one.
Derek Ross (09:53):
We're gonna add you to the next one.
We're gonna keep adding.
But once again, you know, give ashout out with Department of
Environmental Protection, uh,DEP, Montgomery Parks,
Department of Recreation, uhWheaton Urban District, Downtown
Silver Spring, Parks and RecAdvisory Board.
We have the Office CommunityPartnerships, PIO, Public
Information Office, Departmentof Transportation, Montgomery
County Department ofTransportation, Maryland
(10:14):
Department of Transportation,County Cable Montgomery, Tebs
County Technology Team, ActiveMontgomery, Vermont Systems, the
VSI, how everything goes down.
That's just the tip of theiceberg, Emily.
SPEAKER_03 (10:24):
I mean, we have uh the ICB, the interagency
coordinating board, uh, whichare full of members from
different, you know, places, uh,different jobs, different
backgrounds within MontgomeryCounty that all come together to
make decisions um and approvethings for the community uh
through Cuff.
And then we also have umpartnerships with Montgomery
County Public Schools,Montgomery County Um Animal
(10:46):
Services and Adoption Center,the County Department of
Corrections, which has awonderful sweet treat you know
program called Sweet Release.
Sweet release.
And those what is it, theblue-hairy muffins that we're
always Oh yeah, the muffins.
Oh, the muffins.
Oh my goodness, the muffins areso good.
So good.
Derek Ross (11:04):
Yeah, we're gonna talk about them.
SPEAKER_03 (11:07):
Yeah, I think at every meeting uh that we have
now we order breakfast fromthem.
Yes, we do.
Yeah, right.
Uh coffee and uh and some bakedgoods, and everybody's super
happy whenever we uh get fromthem.
So please reach out to them andget your baked goods.
Uh uh MCPL, Montgomery CountyPublic Libraries, we're
partnering with them a lot to docommunity pulse um to kind of
see what the community needs.
(11:27):
Um and then we also have uhpartnerships with the regional
services centers, um, up county,mid-county.
Uh we're we're going around thecounty just to kind of touch
base with whoever wants to sharetheir information with us and we
can share it with everybodyelse.
Um, Silver Spring CivicBuilding, Cuff team.
Yeah, the team.
Right?
(11:47):
And then the Cuff team atWheaton.
And our team is we're not asuper huge, huge team, but you
know, I think we're we're under40, 40 people, right?
On our staff.
And every single person on ourteam plays an uh an integral
part of what we do at Cuff.
And we are so invested in whatwe do with the community, and
(12:08):
it's just such a we're just wehave a lot of opportunities and
a lot of things, I guess, in theworks.
Yes, we do.
Um and so we can't wait for youguys to hear it.
Derek Ross (12:16):
Yeah, yeah.
That's because we're countingdown.
We are counting down to the NewYear's.
The New Year's is coming andwe're getting ready for it.
Eric, you know, I don't want toput you on the spot, but I know
Eric.
Well, how many years?
Was it over 10 years, Eric, ofbeing in the county?
Yeah, over a decade now.
Over over a I like when you saydecade.
Decade sounds different when Isay 10.
Decade sounds like it matters alittle, totally different.
(12:38):
We would name it, no, justrattling off organizations and
departments.
And I know your your network andhow much you've done in the
community.
Are are we missing anybody andanything or anything like that?
Any departments that you want toshout out?
SPEAKER_04 (12:49):
Well, you know what I would say is um the one thing
that just kind of is missingfrom here is the nonprofits that
you know really contribute tothe success of the civic
building and uh community use asa whole.
Those those nonprofits arereally, you know, the heartbeat
of uh the community.
And sometimes they're doingthings that the county
department simply can't do.
(13:10):
They're working with thepopulations that they can't
always do.
So now, you might have done itum strategically, which is
probably a good idea because youcan't name all the nonprofits.
There's just so many of them inMontgomery County that we would
certainly leave some off.
And we don't want hurt feelings,do we, guys?
No.
No.
So you guys are the best.
I really like that.
But yeah, those nonprofits, um,they do make make things happen
(13:33):
in in Montgomery County.
SPEAKER_03 (13:35):
And actually, that might bring us to something that
we just learned about today,right?
Yeah.
Um, we uh want to promotesomething called Montgomery
Gives Local, right?
That's something that uh PIO wejust met with them and uh we
spoke about, you know,promoting, giving back to local
nonprofits or local justorganizations that help the
community.
So again, like what Eric wassaying, we're not gonna say
(13:57):
specifically, right, who, but wewould really appreciate for just
think about, you know, thegiving campaigns, the local
giving campaigns.
Uh try to, you know, see if youcan give back to the local
organizations, just give back toyour community.
And, you know, we'll we'll kindof help along with that as well.
Uh I know we're working withlike um employee giving
(14:18):
campaigns.
We're doing a whole bunch ofwonder, wonderful, wonderful
things.
But really, this one, the localgiving campaign, uh, we really
want to focus on that because wereally want to um help uplift
and bring attention to thesewonderful organizations that are
doing so so many great thingsfor our community that might not
have, let's say, this big of aspace or a voice, right, to kind
(14:40):
of spread their message.
And so whatever we can do tokind of um bring light to that,
you know, we're gonna do it.
Derek Ross (14:46):
I agree.
I agree.
See, see, see, I like that.
See, see, that make me feelgood.
That makes me feel good.
Matter of fact, I need to jumpon that.
And you say, what was it called?
Montgomery Gives Local.
SPEAKER_03 (14:54):
It's Montgomery Gives Local.
Derek Ross (14:55):
Okay, okay.
SPEAKER_03 (14:56):
And then you can um explore all the nonprofits that
are under that at MontgomeryCounty M D.gov backslash
volunteer center.
Derek Ross (15:04):
Okay.
SPEAKER_03 (15:05):
Inspire others by sharing your giving and tagging
hashtag MontgomeryGivesLocal.
Derek Ross (15:09):
Hashtag, okay.
All right.
I like it.
I like it.
So so once again, this is ourNew Year's Eve.
Kind of like we're countingdown.
We're just letting people knowlike who have we talked to over
the years, who has been ourbiggest point of contact in
regards to just 2025, which isnow pretty much almost over.
We only have a few couple weeksleft.
Oh, I know.
No, we we only have a few weeksleft.
(15:29):
I don't know.
Then I'm gonna see you nextyear.
I'm playing with you.
Like, you can start talking likesee you next year.
See you next year.
See you next year.
But once again, as we get tocontinue or get ready to close
out this podcast, we always givein a high fives saying hello.
But we can ask, because Eric ishere.
Eric is here.
Eric, do you have any plans forNew Year's?
Are you doing anything?
SPEAKER_04 (15:47):
Well, you know what?
All right, so I'm gonna in thedid you did you know, right?
The did you know section, okay?
I'll throw a couple of thingsout.
One is a did you know that Cuffis one of only a few public
entities in the county that runson it as an enterprise fund,
meaning access to public spacesis sustained by the very
communities that use them.
That's a did you know?
SPEAKER_03 (16:08):
Okay, okay, hey, snap, snap, snap.
SPEAKER_04 (16:11):
We know that, but a lot of people don't know that
we're an enterprise fund.
And so that's why we really arebalancing the cost with the use
just to be able to sustain uhsuch a known uh department.
Yeah.
Now, here's another did youknow.
Okay, I'm gonna go personal onthis.
Okay, let's see.
Let's hear it.
Let's hear it.
So I got uh me and my wife, wehave two uh boys that speak
(16:32):
French and we love going tofestivals and cheering on
Mbappé.
And because this is a New Year'sspecial, did you know that last
year over New Year's we were inEthiopia?
Ooh, and bringing in the newyear in Ethiopia, and so uh
that's where I was last year.
I have not thought about wherewe'll be.
Actually, uh, we should be inSan Francisco now that I'm
(16:54):
thinking about it.
That's exciting.
So we'll be in the States thisyear, but um, you know, it's
always wonderful to try to bewith family, with friends,
especially at this time of year.
Um, it's not always the easiestfor all of us.
Agree.
And so I like that the wholeseason of giving and what you're
talking about earlier, aboutwhere you can give, let your
(17:14):
heart be light at this season.
Um, and think about those that,you know, they don't have the
friends, they don't have thefamily nearby.
And so um, this is what we are.
It's Montgomery County.
This is who we are.
So yeah, um, but yeah, I wouldlove to know where you guys are
gonna be too for New Year's.
SPEAKER_03 (17:30):
Okay, bounce back, let's go.
Derek Ross (17:32):
Well, Emily, I'm a little upset because every time
Eric talks about going out oftown, going some places, I
always say I'm coming.
He just laughs.
SPEAKER_03 (17:39):
I'm gonna just get in the suitcase and zip myself
up.
Just take me with a few.
Derek Ross (17:43):
Like, I'm joking.
Like, I'm telling, like, I'mgoing with you.
We're going to come here.
We're gonna be in your luggage.
Like, just put us in the carwith it.
SPEAKER_03 (17:50):
Let's get in a way mode.
SPEAKER_04 (17:52):
We'll be in San Francisco, those self-driving
cars, those automated cars outthere.
SPEAKER_03 (17:57):
Oh no, those are those are scary.
Let me not get it.
They're in D.C., you've seenthem, right?
Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_04 (18:02):
You got the drivers in DC.
Derek Ross (18:04):
Yes, no drivers in in San Francisco.
No drivers.
Well, Eric, we're well, I knowfor me for New Year's, it's
definitely gonna stay local, butI'm always looking to find
stuff.
I joke, my joke last time wasthat I have um jokingly, I put
it like this.
I've tried to do New Year's inthe city, doing stuff in DC.
I spent hours trying to findparking on New Year's Eve, and I
was like, you know what?
I'm not doing this right.
(18:25):
You know, I I don't drive aroundright prior to New Year's, the
ball drop, I'm still looking fora parking space.
All this, you know, it was justtoo much.
But this year, I'm definitelygonna go for more or less
something local, catch up withsome people, some friends, and
really drop, bring the ball inright, you know, have some good
times and stuff like that, andprepare for another, once again,
off the cuff podcast.
Just throwing that out thereagain, another season, another
year of it.
(18:45):
But Emily, what's up with you?
SPEAKER_03 (18:46):
Okay, so I know I said I was gonna spend it with
family, which I still am.
Derek Ross (18:49):
Okay.
SPEAKER_03 (18:50):
I'm not sure if I'm gonna spend it with family at
like, you know, an elaborateparty.
By elaborate, I mean at myaunt's house.
And it's always elaborate nomatter what kind of party we
have.
So that.
Um, or maybe it's just kind oflow-key.
I really so I like to ask mydaughter what she likes to do.
Um, you know, sometimes thingscan holidays we're meeting
(19:10):
people like back to back toback.
So she might want to be at homeand just play and you know, have
her cousins over or somethinglike that.
So we'll we'll play by ear.
We'll play by ear.
Play by ear.
I think either way, we're gonnahave fun.
We're gonna have fun.
And we're gonna count, you know,down to the new year, just like
we're counting down now.
SPEAKER_02 (19:26):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (19:26):
So, like I said, new year new, maybe not personally,
new year new me.
Okay, because I'm gonna be thesame no matter where you meet
me, right?
But new year new us for cuff,because we have a lot of just
new, new, new, new, new, newthings.
New.
Um, and not new, like in a waywhere you should be scared of
anything.
People should just be ready forlike the amount of energy we're
(19:48):
just bringing.
Derek Ross (19:48):
We're bringing it.
We're bringing it.
I hope you can hear it in ourvoices, how excited we are.
Just so excited, so excited.
I think you mentioned yourdaughter.
It's like if I ever get a chanceto bring the new year, I
probably as long as I gotnuggets for my son.
Oh, we
SPEAKER_03 (20:00):
We were just talking about nuggets.
Yeah, we were just talking aboutlong.
Derek Ross (20:01):
You got nuggets for the kids.
They love the nuggets anyway.
Oh, it's just my son.
My son loves nuggets.
As long as the nuggets are thereat the party, he's fine.
And I probably like it too.
I'm not gonna lie.
If you want nuggets, I'm gonnaprobably eat some too.
But we're closing out thepodcast.
We want to say, first of all,thank you to so many different
organizations.
And Eric mentioned nonprofits.
There's so many different peoplethat we want to mention, we're
(20:23):
trying to mention, but we have alot of people we could mention,
right?
We have uh a lot of people, andwe're gonna continue to go
through that list.
We're gonna continue to get agood feel for what's going on,
all of this new energy.
Uh closeouts.
You want to do a closeout,Emily?
SPEAKER_03 (20:34):
Um, sure.
Really quick, before um I say mycloseout, I did want to say, you
know, if you're interested injoining us or joining a
conversation or justbrainstorming with us, let us
know.
We are open.
Uh, all of our information is onour website.
We'll also link it hereunderneath um the podcast
information.
Of course.
Uh, yeah, just follow us, youknow, and have fun.
(20:57):
Come on this ride with us.
Yeah, like that.
Uh yeah, you know, I think thatmight be like the closeout,
right?
Like for me, yeah.
Uh I'm feeling good.
Feeling good.
I'm excited.
Yes.
Derek Ross (21:07):
If y'all can't hear it in the you can't hear it, we
can see it right now.
You will smile.
Smiling.
Ear to ear, grinning.
Just grinning, just grinning.
You got me grinning.
I'm trying to be all seriousbecause we have our balls here.
Eric is here, whatever.
SPEAKER_04 (21:18):
No, do you guys do resolutions?
New Year's resolutions?
We can.
Okay.
All right.
We can.
Okay.
This is one for our listeners.
If you're still with us, likeand smash that subscribe button.
SPEAKER_02 (21:28):
I don't know what it is.
SPEAKER_04 (21:30):
But no, if you're still with us, okay, here is a
New Year's resolution for you.
Try a new cuff facility.
Go out there, try one, celebratesomething, uh, get you know, a
group together to use one of thecuff facilities.
There are countless facilitiesall across the county.
Let them know, Eric.
That would be a greatresolution, I think.
Yeah.
(21:50):
To try maybe one new facility amonth or a quarter.
Yeah.
But just put it out there.
Go for it, guys.
Um, don't be scared.
Go on our website, look throughall the different things, and
find the perfect venue for you.
SPEAKER_03 (22:02):
Ooh.
I already have ideas rolling inmy head.
I'm thinking bingo night.
I'm thinking open mic night.
I'm thinking DD Gaming Night.
I'm thinking all these things.
How about how about we, you knowwhat, Eric?
You are absolutely right.
Eric is right.
Let's get people in in ourfacilities.
Let's get them in a facility.
Why not?
Derek Ross (22:18):
We got a lot of them.
Why not?
Why not?
You know what?
I think that's a good way toclose it.
I have nothing to say.
We're just going to just letEric end it like that.
Uh that is great.
I like New Year's resolutionsand all that stuff.
Once again, I have nothing.
I I'm I'm feeling good.
Emily got me smiling.
We got Eric here.
Eric, stop smiling.
SPEAKER_04 (22:34):
No, hey, this was a real pleasure to be with you
guys today, to see the magicthat the off the cuff, you know,
takes every day the work, thepreparation, and it's it's worth
a listen.
I've listened to all theepisodes and I love them and I
think they're really valuable.
We love to hear that.
Derek Ross (22:51):
Thank you so much, Eric.
Thank you so much.
Thank you, Eric.
Once again, to our our ourfriends, our family, to the
community, so many people thatare listening to the podcast,
check out all the other countypodcasts too.
Check out all of thesedepartments in Montgomery
County.
Just check us out.
See what's going on in thecounty.
Uh, once again, thank you somuch.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
And we'll see you again nexttime.
There's a high five.
Is that right?
SPEAKER_03 (23:11):
We'll see y'all next time.
I'm gonna I'm gonna put this in.
I'm gonna fist bump them becausewe recall last time I tried to
give Derek a high five and therewas a splash that just happened
because my hand was very sweaty.
So we're gonna go ahead and say,we'll see y'all later, and we're
gonna fist bump this out.
Oh, fist bump it out.
Derek Ross (23:27):
If you have glasses, cheers to the new year.
Cheers to the new year.
Thank y'all so much.
Thank you so much.
See you next time.
Announcer (23:35):
This podcast is brought to you by County Cable
Montgomery, your source for newsand information from the
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