Commentary

It takes a brief encounter with me for you to realize that I am passionate about culture and anything that has to do with immigrants thriving in their host country. I am passionate about equity in all of its forms, especially equitable health care access for all. This stems from my experience and background. I came to this country as an immigrant from Nigeria and lived in Pennsylvania for a decade before calling Frederick County home.

That number is larger than the Gross Domestic Product of more than 33 countries. It is also the dollar amount needed for the Prince George’s County Public School (PGCPS) system to rebuild schools and make repairs to bring our facilities up to an acceptable level. And it is more than 30 times the annual budget that the Capital Improvement Program office gets to conduct these rebuilds and repairs.

The condolence calls and texts started coming in Tuesday night, steady and sad. “Just wanted to send a note letting you know I was thinking of you.” “I just heard.” “I just wanted to say I’m so sorry. I know what he meant to you.” The messages were about Brooks Robinson — Mr. Oriole himself — who died Tuesday at 86, taking an entire city’s heart with him. I only met him once, years ago, and corresponded with him briefly.

For longtime Baltimoreans, witnessing the once-proud and bustling Harborplace pavilions regress over their 43 years, from the focal point of downtown to its afterthought, has been a deeply painful experience. Where people once came from far and wide to shop, eat and stroll in what proved to be a masterstroke of urban redevelopment by developer James Rouse, now sits something akin to a boarded-up suburban mall, albeit with a still-spectacular view of the Inner Harbor.

Frederick County, once again you have made us proud. When our community see a real need, we reach into our pockets to help out. So it was for Jana Inskeep, an 11-year-old member of 4-H, who was diagnosed with leukemia and hospitalized just a few weeks before The Great Frederick Fair began. When the word spread about Jana, a wave of extraordinary generosity swept over the fair. Jana received an outpouring of support from friends in agriculture and from the Frederick County community at large.

Montgomery County has had a big last six months: In that time the county has passed an increase to the recordation tax, a property tax increase, and, most recently, passed a (pretty good!) permanent rent stabilization law. So…now what? How can we make sure that Montgomery County can become a more affordable place to live in the future and stay that way?

This is Baltimore, Queen City of the Patapsco Drainage Basin. It doesn’t take much to keep us happy around here. We want good neighbors and friendly dogs. We want to see tall ships in the Inner Harbor once in a while. Give us an excellent crabcake now and then, a cold beer, a juicy corned beef-on-rye, decent pizza, clean tap water and a snowball in July. We want strong schools and safe streets. We want an adequate supply of toilet paper for when it snows.