Open, inclusive, and affirmative, the Torch Club of Frederick is a congenial, multidisciplinary group interested in lifelong learning, companionable inquiry, and exploration of interesting topics. We meet on the fourth Monday of the month for a buffet lunch at Dutch’s Daughter and listen to a stimulating presentation by a fellow Torch member or a guest speaker from the Frederick community.
Next Meeting
Presenter: Ed McMahon
Topic: Frederick: Growth by Fault or Design
Date: Monday, November 23, 2026
Time: Noon—2:00 p.m.
Location: Dutch’s Daughter
Cost: $30 per person
Contact: reservations@fredtorch.org
Reservations are required
Frederick County and City are both growing fast. While growth may be inevitable, the destruction of community character and identity is not. This talk will illustrate how Frederick can grow without destroying the places and landscapes that people love. It will demonstrate how planned growth can be more efficient, more profitable and more beautiful than the current sprawling, cookie-cutter approach to new development.
Bio
Ed McMahon is an attorney, community planner, author and dedicated conservationist. He recently retired as the Charles E. Fraser Chair for Sustainable Development at the Urban Land Institute (ULI) in Washington, DC where he was nationally known as a leading authority on economic development and land use policies and trends. As the Senior Fellow for Sustainable Development, McMahon led ULI’s worldwide research and educational activities on environmentally sensitive development policies and practices. McMahon also recently retired as Chairman of the Board of Main Street America.
Before joining ULI in 2004, McMahon spent 15 years as Vice-President of The Conservation Fund, a national land conservation organization that has purchased and protected nearly 10 million acres of land of natural, historic, or cultural importance, including over 100,000 acres in the State of Maryland.
McMahon is also the founder and former President of Scenic America, a national non-profit devoted to protecting America’s scenic landscapes. Before that he taught law and public policy at Georgetown University Law Center and served in the US Army both at home and overseas.
2026 – 2027 Presentations
September 28 – Frederick Mayor Michael O’Connor on “The State of the City”
October 26 – Nancy Whitmore on “Ghosts and Legends of Frederick”
November 23 – Ed McMahon on “Frederick Growth by Fault or Design”
December 14 – Ed Seidewitz on “Edwin Albert Seidewitz (1866–1918): A Family Legacy in Maryland”
January 25 – John Gardner on “Peaceful Beekeeping: 50 Years with Honeybees”
February 22 – Dorothy Bonnett on “Circles of Women: A Discussion of Chinese Women’s Lives”
March 22 – Karl Bickel on “The Feasibility of a County Police Department”
April 26 – Peter Michael on “Other Humans: The Revelations of Ancient DNA”
May 24 – Lois Jarman on “Art and the Brain”
June 28 – Annual Frederick Torch Picnic