Virtual Assistants

learn more about the HPAP Down Payment Assistance Program \- Get up to $202\,000 in funds from the House Assistance Purchase Program \- Learn what the funds can go towards and the timeline to get approved \- Understand how to sign up for HPAP orientation \- Learn the benefits and challenges of HPAP in detail \- Discuss the current market conditions for HPAP buyers\.

We’re excited to continue building AI in Practice with our monthly social! 🎉 Each month, we’ll host an informal happy hour and dinner at Upside on Moore in Rosslyn. Come join fellow AI builders, professionals, and curious minds for a relaxed evening of conversation, connection, and community. Whether you’re working on AI systems, advising on responsible adoption, or just interested in how AI is shaping law, compliance, finance, healthcare, defense, software, mission-driven organizations, or public service — this is a chance to meet like-minded people and help shape what this community becomes. 🍸 Drinks and food are available for purchase at the venue. 🤝 No formal agenda — just introductions, networking, and sharing what excites us about AI in practice. We’re so grateful for the early enthusiasm, and we look forward to seeing you each month as this community grows! **Date, Time & Location** 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM Thursday 23 October 2025 Upside on Moore 1831 Moore Street Arlington, VA 22209

Join the DC Portuguese Conversation Group at Dacha Beer Garden in SHAW for an evening filled by practicing Portuguese on Tuesday the 13th. (IF YOU ARE STILL LEARNING THAT IS FINE, ALL LEVELS WELCOME). Come practice Portuguese, build new connections and broaden your cultural/lusophonic horizons with us! Whether you are a native Portuguese speaker, an English-speaking expat looking to practice Portuguese, or simply interested in making international friends, this event is perfect for you. Come ready to engage in stimulating conversations, make new connections. Ate ja, tchau!

## Details Zoom Link : **[https://jesushousedc-org.zoom.us/j/3167877043](https://jesushousedc-org.zoom.us/j/3167877043)** Register for our guest list/book: [Forms for Invite](https://forms.gle/Qowi1t4aDbQaJhvG8) Come join your neighbors in developing your leadership and public speaking skills. We are a group of students, professionals and ambitious individuals interested in personal development. Daniel Leadership provides a fun environment for both working with groups, leading, and speaking in front of an audience. We meet every 2nd and 3rd Monday of the month, in downtown Silver Spring, convenient to the metro. Come join us to develop your professional skills, practice public speaking in front of a supportive group, or to just make friends. We hope to see you there! Come join your neighbors in developing your leadership and public speaking skills. We are a group of students, professionals and ambitious individuals interested in personal development. Daniel Leadership provides a fun environment for both working with groups, leading, and speaking in front of an audience. We meet every 2nd and 3rd Monday of the month, in downtown Silver Spring, convenient to the metro. Come join us to develop your professional skills, practice public speaking in front of a supportive group, or to just make friends. We hope to see you there! What to expect: • Come by and meet the members from 7:00-7:15 • Be wowed by 3-4 speakers practicing their craft • Practice your own public speaking with table topics • Learn about evaluating speeches to understand critical thinking • Make great friends with others interested in personal development Transportation/Parking: • We are 1/2 mile from Silver Spring metro • Located on the F4 bus line & 1 block from 4, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20 bus lines • Convenient street parking • 2 blocks from Fenton Village Garage 4 Parking Lot (https://www.google.com/maps/place/Fenton+Street+Village+(Garage+4)/@38.9896363,-77.0262983,17z/data=!4m8!1m2!2m1!1sSilver+Spring+parking!3m4!1s0x0:0xc69eb61284ac2daa!8m2!3d38.9909589!4d-77.025231)

Bonjour! Are you missing your French? Have you been wanting to practice your French in a day-to-day setting? Join the Alliance Française Library during our Salon de Conversation every 2nd Tuesday of the month to practice your French in a fun and informal setting. This event is for all levels of French speakers. Please note that on January 13th we will be meeting IN-PERSON in the AFDC Library from 5:30 to 6:30 PM, and ONLINE via zoom from 6:30 to 7:30 PM.

How Blockchain Responsibly Contributes to Secure, Transparent, and Trustworthy Elections GBA Emerging GovTech Livestream Series - Kicking Off 2026 with Critical Conversation on using Blockchain in Voting & Elections Government Blockchain Association Voting Working Group Tue, Jan 13, 2026, 12:00 Noon - 1:00 PM (New York Time) Event link https://youtube.com/@GBAorg/streams Registration https://lnkd.in/e5F2HBrC GBA Emerging GovTech Livestream will discuss... Ensuring every vote is counted and verified Technical and procedural standards needed to prevent fraud, waste, and abuse Responsibly integrate blockchain - not as a replacement, but as a trusted security layer within existing election systems Provide auditability & legal integrity - real-time transparency for observers, without compromising ballot secrecy Provide identity & access management, spanning both physical and digital security Handle hybrid & provisional voting models, including inclusive access (e.g., multilingual closed captions) Provide clear governance: focusing on who is eligible to vote - and eligibility verification Develop standard protocols for blockchain solutions across jurisdictions Panelists Amelia Powers Gardner’s, Government Innovation Leader - Disruptive Technology Advocate - Public Official - Consultant - Speaker - Technology Implementation Expert - Mother - Entrepreneur - Mentor for High Performance Women Eugene Morozov, CPA, MS - CEO, DeVote & author of 2026 Public DLT and Blockchain Governance & Implementation Playbook, WEB3 Evangelist • Domain Expert • Investor • Entrepreneur Passionate about driving innovation in blockchain, digital assets, decentralized applications (dApps), and governance systems (DAO). Linda Hutchinson Director of Quality Assurance & Certification, Voatz Moderated by Felisha Stevenson Business Developer & Investor GBA Voting Working Group.. How Blockchain Responsibly Contributes to Secure, Transparent, and Trustworthy Elections Event link https://youtube.com/@GBAorg/streams Registration https://lnkd.in/e5F2HBrC GBA Emerging GovTech Livestream Series - Sponsored by CESS Network CESS Network supports open scalable and decentralized infrastructure that empowers next-generation public-sector innovation. About GBA The Government Blockchain Association (GBA) is a nonprofit (501c6) organization committed to advancing blockchain technology standards, facilitating industry education, and ensuring a trusted, secure ecosystem for blockchain solutions. For more information, visit https://gbaglobal.org/. For more information contact Bob Miko, bmiko@pacificdialogue.com 203 378 2803. Bob Miko GBA Director of Public Relations Editor in Chief/Producer Pacific Dialogue 203 378 2803 bmiko@pacificdialogue.com

Pitch your idea, get feedback, give feedback, meet with a mentor and most importantly, take action. Come to the meetup with a specific issue you are stuck with. **10:30 am Introductions:** 2-minute pitches tell us who you are? What you're working on? and what you need help with? **11:00 am Problem Solving:** Let's figure out how we can help, and what action you can take today to move forward. **12:00 pm** Open Networking: Keep the discussion going and connect with other attendees. Bring yourself, notebooks, laptops and anything else you need to pitch your idea and get work done. Interested in joining the Studio? [APPLY NOW](https://unstucklabs.com)

Do you like having a reason to get up and get out the door in the morning? How about regular events to make part of your routine? If that's you, join us on Wednesday mornings! Drop in for as long as you like during the session, just leave a comment in the event here if you plan to arrive more than an hour after the start time.

It is irresistible, to enjoy a Spanish and Portuguese convo with appetizers, glass of wine and rail drinks. ***GRAB A DRINK AND YOU ARE ALL SET TO FLEX YOUR LANGUAGE CAPACITY. YOU NEED TO GET AT LEAST A DRINK OR FOOD :) To get the event going and show support. We know that you like our events. P.S. : We have non-alcoholic drinks as well.*** We have a tiny venue and we hit capacity often and early arrival is suggested. We have the discretion to decide entry. HOW IT WORKS : We will try to assign tables for each represented languages and will direct attendees to their respective tables accordingly. Rules to abide : 1. Event is free and 21+ (bring ID). 2. Be respectful to your counterparts and give them a chance to exchange with others as well. 3. We all are native speakers of one or two languages and be willing to help others and try to accommodate as much as possible. 4. If you don't speak the other person's required language, LEAVE THEM ALONE. 5. Rude or aggressive members are removed from the group at an organizers discretion. 6. This is a face-to-face language exchange event. DO NOT try to arrange an online meeting, by using the comment box or direct message. 7. Most of our members complained about people writing in the comment box. Since it sends notification to all attendees. If you have any questions, send a message to the organizers. Don't write in the comment box. 8. We have ZERO TOLERANCE for solicitation. We don't allow anyone to run their own agenda at the Event. If you are interested to promote/sponsor/collaborate; contact us via ([info@merevents.com](http://info@merevents.com)). 9. When you get there, we will greet you and take you to your respective group. 10. Don't be shy of your local languages. We have diplomates assigned to different countries, who would love to practice your languages. 11\. Be patient for the first 30 minutes\, up until we form your respective language group\. 12\. We will have a registration station and check you in\. 13\. This is mainly a social for Intermediate/Advanced/Native Speakers\. It is not as such to learn a language\. Beginners\, if you want to learn a language\, reach out to us \(info@merevents\.com\)\. We have a school and will arrange you a class\. ***AFTER THE EXCHANGE, WE HIT THE DANCE FLOOR! BRING YOUR DANCING SHOES, WE WILL DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY!***

Hi all! This week we'll be at All Souls Bar near the Shaw Metro. I’ll shoot to be there at 5:45. We love regulars and new faces and anything in between. Start the year off right. Come and go and your convenience.

Namaste and Blessings! We welcome you to join us for a House Kirtan Concert on **Sunday, Jan 18** in **Silver Spring MD** (address below) ***4:00 - 6:00 pm. (****mask optional)* ***We chant the Hanuman Chalisa at 4 pm – after which there is a break and regular chanting begins at 4:30 pm*** \~\~***Doors open at 3:45 pm - come early to get settled*** \~\~ **Please note:** This kirtan will be live-streamed using **Facebook Live** on this page: Bhakti Chant Kirtan (from 4 to 6 pm) **So about kirtan in Silver Spring** \- this is a private residence \- open to the public \- all are welcome \- bring a friend\, the family\, the kids\, the parents\, the spouse \- comfortable setting\. If you want to sit on the floor, it might be wise to bring something to sit on - Zafu or pillow or the like. *This is chanting with meditation* - we chant in Sanskrit and English, mantras and bhajans, honoring the many aspects of the Divine. ***Feel free to bring a percussion instrument***, if you are moved to do so. (This will be percussion by committee!) 
***Donation***: Suggested $10-20 (no one turned away) **On Paypal:** [paypal.me/RufusJuskus](http://paypal.me/RufusJuskus) **On Venmo**: Rufus-Juskus \*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\*\* **Snacks afterwards!** Many thanks -- peace and blessings to all! -Rufus Juskus **Address:** **9516 Pin Oak Drive** **Silver Spring MD 20910** The event page for this event on Facebook is here: https://www.facebook.com/share/1DCXR47yRb/

DC Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. It's community-led and community-run by devs, for devs. People of all skill levels attend. Whether you’re dev-curious, aspiring, or a professional developer, we’d love to have you! Come chat or learn to code on a Sunday afternoon with coffee and cool-inclusive people. Bring your laptop! We typically meet every month on the weekend. **Join our online community!** For all things Tech in DC and to get latest updates and tech events from the DMV area, join the [DCTech Slack](https://dctech.chat/). All DC Code & Coffee announcements are in the #dccodecoffee channel **How it works** Near the beginning of the event, we do an introduction circle. You say your name, what you can help others with, and what you would like help with. You can also share job opportunities. After the introduction circle, everything is self-organized. **Event Host and Directions** TEMPORARY LOCATION! We'll be meeting at West End Library for January.

We're starting off this year nice and easy with a Power BI DC User Group social! Please save the evening of January 15th in your calendars as we ring in the new year together with our trademark mix of camaraderie and general nerdiness. We're working on nailing down the specific location but will ensure that it is metro accessible. See you then!

**Happy New Year, GeoDC! We’re kicking off 2026 on Wednesday, January 14th, from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM at Sudhouse DC (1340 U St NW).** **The program begins at 7:00 PM, but you’ll want to arrive early—our sponsor for the evening, Earth Genome, is providing limited appetizers and drinks for the community! Sudhouse also runs its regular happy hour until 8:00 PM. Please RSVP on the GeoDC Meetup page to help us coordinate the catering.** **This Month's Sponsor: Earth Genome** **A huge thank you to Earth Genome for making this month possible. Earth Genome is a nonprofit at the intersection of AI and environmental data, building the tools needed to monitor our planet’s health in real-time. We are excited to have their team on the ground to show us exactly how they are turning satellite pixels into climate action.** **Speaker Lineup** **Ben Strong, Earth Genome Talk: Earth Index and the New Frontier of GenAI Mikel will lead a live demo of the Earth Index platform, a "search engine for the planet" that uses geospatial foundation models to find environmental patterns globally. He’ll also be giving us a first look at some very beta GenAI features that allow users to query the planet using natural language.** **Dan McCarey, Earth Genome Talk: Visualizing the Invisible: Building Climate TRACE Plumes Dan will walk us through the build process of the Climate TRACE plumes visualization. This tool maps the real-time flow of air pollution from over 9,000 industrial sources into urban areas. He’ll discuss the technical architecture behind the project—combining atmospheric modeling with facility-level emissions data—and how it serves as a call to action for environmental justice.** **We’ll have our usual rapid-fire community updates before the demos. If you're hiring or looking for work in the DMV geospatial scene, this is your chance to grab the mic!** **See you all next Wednesday!** **The GeoDC Organizing Committee** **Chad, Tom, Dan, Puneet**

We are recruiting new group leaders for virtual men's groups! Our primary groups are outdoor movement groups, but we are launching virtual groups for the state of Ohio and beyond and the groups will move outside in the spring, creating room for men's groups, women's groups and coed groups all over the country. Read below to learn about our groups and click the links at the bottom to apply. ### **What is an Outdoor Empowerment Group?** Our Outdoor Movement & Community Empowerment Groups are simple, guided experiences designed to help people reconnect with nature, themselves, and others. We combine some form of movement (hike, walk, run, bike, yoga, workout) and meaningful conversation within a simple community circle to create a space where individuals can support each other while prioritizing mental and physical well-being. Whether you’re seeking stress relief, personal growth, or community, our groups offer everyone a unique and welcoming environment. ## **Why Join?** * **Improve Mental & Physical Well-Being** – Movement, nature, and supportive conversations reduce stress and promote balance. * **Feel Less Alone** – Build genuine connections with like-minded people in a safe, welcoming space. * **Gain Clarity & Perspective** – Step outside daily routines and into a space designed for personal growth and reflection. ## **The Ideal Group Leader** The ideal group leader * Has a born-in passion for mental health, movement, connecting with nature and building community. * Has 5 extra hours per week to dedicate to a meaningful cause for at least one year. Yes, you can leave any organization at any time and we can also ask you to leave, but we are building with legacy in mind and we need people who can commit and be ALL IN on this mission to build with us. * Is independently financially stable with the ability to volunteer with no expectation of pay. This is a deeply beautiful journey of service that all participants commit to at Speak Your Mind. * An ability to manage groups with high emotional intelligence and desire for human connection. * An ability to self-motivate and market/promote their group on Facebook and other social platforms. * Nature informed therapy or clinical therapists/psychologists a plus. ## **Our Impact**  Since launching, we have helped thousands find support, connection, and healing through our Outdoor Movement Groups. 100% of participants surveyed have reported: * A noticeable improvement in mental clarity and emotional well-being. * An increase in social connection and a sense of belonging. * Said they would return again. We believe mental health should be accessible, community-driven, and rooted in nature. Join us and take the first step toward a more connected, grounded, and supported version of yourself. ### **Why Our Groups are Donation-Based** Our Outdoor Movement Groups are made possible through a donation-based model. This approach allows us to keep our events accessible to everyone, regardless of financial circumstances, while also ensuring that we can continue expanding our reach. It’s a great way to pay it forward and support the growth of this beautiful mission! Every contribution helps us: * **Cover Essential Costs** – Donations allow us to pay essential legal, marketing, insurance, and admin costs as well as nourish the important people who run the organization. * **Grow Our Mission** – With your support, we can bring these healing experiences to thousands more people in the future and execute our long term plan to expand across the USA, affecting up to 500,000 people per year. By choosing to contribute, you’re not just leading an event—you’re helping build a mental health movement that supports long-term well-being and connection for all during a severe mental health epidemic. ## **Come Join Us!** We’d love to have you be part of this growing community of people prioritizing their mental health, movement, and connection. 🔹 **Visit Our Website to Learn More:** https://speakyourmind.men/joinusoutside 🔹 **Apply Here to Lead Your Own Group!** – https://form.jotform.com/taketimespeakyourmind/sym-group-leader-application 🔹 **Support the mission**: If you resonate with the mission and want to support, feel free to join a group before applying or donate to help us reach our goals to help more people! You can donate here: https://secure.givelively.org/donate/angels-for-angels/speak-your-mind Please text Mario with any questions: (808) 855-8831

Are you passionate about supporting other men on their mental health journey? We’re building a movement of virtual and in-person men’s groups across Ohio — and we’re looking for group leaders who want to make a real difference with us. As a group leader, you’ll create a safe space where men can connect, reflect, and grow together. Training and support are provided — you just need heart, presence, and a willingness to lead. **Apply now to lead a group in your area:** 👉 https://form.jotform.com/taketimespeakyourmind/sym-group-leader-application Speak Your Mind is a mental health non profit dedicated to bringing our community together to end the isolation that leads to mental struggle and suicide. Learn more about them here: https://linktr.ee/taketimespeakyourmind

2026 may be the last year many developers write code by hand. We need coding agents to solve complex problems in production codebases, but vibe coding alone won’t get us there. Vibe coding is all gas, no brakes. It burns up the context window until the agent slips on its own slop. You can go fast at first, but the more you stuff into the context window, the more tangled its outputs get. While the industry is rapidly increasing code generation speed, we still have to understand, review, merge, and maintain what gets shipped. This talk featuring Michael Geiger will outline how coding agents (Claude Code + Gas Town) work and a framework for orchestrating them to solve complicated problems in complex codebases. It’s about steering the model: doing the research to align intent, planning the approach up front, implementing in parallel steps, and breaking early. Human judgment still matters, but it should be spent on high-leverage decisions: what to build, what to forbid, and “what is quality?”, not cleaning up slop. Attendees will leave with a checklist to identify workflow and environment gaps that hold agents back, so you and your team can ship higher-quality software starting tomorrow.

Rev. Steven Clevenger is an ordained spiritualist minister with over 40 years experience as a Spiritual Healer, Clairvoyant and Spiritual Teacher, educated and trained at the White Lily Chapel. Rev. Siobhan Wolf Shaffer is an ordained spiritualist minister and certified medium and healer with over 20 years experience. She began her development in 1988 in Pennsylvania and continued when she moved to Ohio in 1998 where she studied at Rays of Lights Church with Rev. Steven Clevenger. Our full worship services consist of an inspirational lecture, healing meditation, and messages from the spirit world that serve to demonstrate evidence of eternal life. Please visit our Official Church Website (http://raysoflightchurch.com) for more information.

**Important time note:** Please plan on arriving between 5:30 and 6:00 as the elevators lock after 6 and you'll need to message us and we'll need to come get you. The building address is 4450 Bridge Park The entrance is 6620 Mooney St, Suite 400 **Abstract** GitHub Copilot is rapidly changing how developers write, understand, and maintain code. Powered by generative AI and deeply integrated into modern development environments, Copilot acts as an intelligent coding assistant, helping developers move faster while maintaining quality and focus. In this session, we’ll explore what GitHub Copilot is, how it works, and where it fits into a real-world developer workflow. We’ll break down what Copilot can (and cannot) do, where it can be used, and how licensing differs for individuals and organizations. Most importantly, this talk goes beyond theory with a live, hands-on demo showcasing Copilot inside the IDE and on GitHub, demonstrating how it can assist with code generation, refactoring, learning new APIs, and accelerating day-to-day development tasks. Designed for developers, technical leads, and engineering managers, this session provides a practical introduction to AI-assisted development, highlights best practices for getting value from Copilot, and closes with guidance on how to continue learning and evolving alongside this rapidly advancing tool. Attendees will leave with a clear understanding of how GitHub Copilot can enhance productivity, improve developer experience, and fit into modern software teams today, not someday. **YouTube Link** TBA

**Doing KPIs Right: a KEY to Analytics (and AI!) Impact!** On the one hand, KPIs are such a Business 101 concept that it may seem a little silly to dedicate an entire session to the topic. On the other hand, KPIs get handled so poorly so often that a case could be made that this meetup could just be one of the most impactful sessions of the entire year! We’re starting off the year at a new location: [COhatch Upper Arlington](https://www.cohatch.com/locations/columbus/upper-arlington/) but with a familiar speaker, Tim Wilson! We’ll be back at Rev1 in February, when the speaker will presumably not be Tim. Tim will make the case that effectively measuring performance of projects, campaigns, and initiatives (and even meetups!) should be a foundation for any data analytics program. Topics covered will include: the “two magic questions” of performance measurement, how to help business partners distinguish between outcomes and outputs, and effective tactics for collaboratively establishing KPI targets. He will also stick his neck out by demonstrating some of these techniques in real-time by measuring whether his talk lives up to the promise of this description! All CBUSDAW events are free thanks to our 2026 Sponsors: Clarivoy, Conductrics, What Box Consulting Group, and Piwik PRO. Check out [cbusdaw.com](https://cbusdaw.com) for more information.

NFT's are here to stay folks! This is a group for like minded people interested in understanding, leveraging, using, creating for, profiting from, trading too i suppose, NFT's.. everything around them, complexity, fear and exploits, best practices and more. **PLUS** This group will talk AI ART tools, techniques, artists, video, audio, prototypes and more in the AI assisted production space- ART specifically, but we can get into any aspect of some of the cooler things happening in AI in general.