August 2012 Hyattsville Life & Times

A SOLDIER’S STORY From Africa to Afghanistan, local man sees war on two continents. PAGE 4

Whole Foods clears its last zoning hurdle

by Susie Currie

Developers for the Cafritz property in Riverdale Park have been granted the rezoning required to bring the county’s first Whole Foods – as well as nearly 1,000 residential units and four acres of retail space – to one of the last wooded stretches of Route 1.

The 36-acre parcel just northeast of the East-West Highway intersection had been zoned as residential, allowing for up to 250 single-family homes. On July 9, the Prince George’s County Council voted 7-2 to extend the boundaries of Riverdale Park’s mixed-use town center (MUTC) zoning to include the property.

That designation allows for a much higher density of residential units, in addition to retail and commercial space.

In the Cafritz plan, the retail space alone is more than four times the size of Hyattsville’s recently completed shopping center on Route 1. The Shoppes at Arts District Hyattsville, at the intersection of Jefferson Street, has 37,000 square feet of retail on three acres.

At 35,000 square feet, the proposed Whole Foods will be nearly as big. But it represents only a fraction of the project’s 162,000

HYATTSVILLE HIRES

THAT’S A WRAP

City moves to fill top positions from within. PAGE 7

Winning design will transform The Bus. Three of them, in fact. PAGE 3

Hyattsville Life&Times

Vol. 9 No. 8

Hyattsville’s Community Newspaper

August 2012

City requests dismissal of lawsuit against police Claims harassment charges missed the filing deadline

by Paula Minaert

The city of Hyattsville has filed for the dismissal of a federal lawsuit against it by a former police officer on the grounds that it was filed after the statute of limitations had expired.

Pfc. Marsha Mutchler Lessard, a Hyattsville Police Department officer from 2004

to 2009, filed a lawsuit on June 28 alleging sexual harassment and discrimination, and then retaliation for complaining about it.

Then, on July 27, city attorneys asked that the case be dismissed because Lessard did not file charges within 300 days, the legally mandated time period for a sexual harassment complaint.

“If the case is ultimately held to be timebarred, then the case is over,” said local attorney Joseph Gigliotti, “regardless of its merits.” He serves as general counsel for the Hyattsville Life & Times and has no connection with the case.

The facts of the case are complicated and are presented in starkly different lights by Lessard and the city.

LAWSUIT continued on page 13

HL&T wins top national awards

CAFRITZ continued on page 12

Hyattsville Life & Times PO Box 132 Hyattsville, MD 20781

PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID Permit # 43 Easton, MD 21601

By HL&T Staff

PAULA MINAERT Hyattsville authors discuss and read from their books at a Busboys & Poets event July 29. From left: standing, Richard Morris and David Levy; seated, Julia Duin and Andra Damron.

The Hyattsville Life & Times captured three community journalism awards, including two first-place wins, in an annual nationwide competition that drew nearly 2,000 entries in several divisions.

The National Newspaper Association announced the winners of its Better Newspaper Contest on August 1. The HL&T, in its second year of competing, won first place for Best Breaking News Story for Susie Currie’s “Keeping vigil: After fire, community rallies to help family.”

The article described a house fire in January 2011 that killed two of four sisters and left the family home uninhabitable. It went on to chronicle the outAWARDS continued on page 13

Included: The August 8, 2012 Issue of The Hyattsville Reporter — See Center Section

Page 2

Hyattsville Life & Times | August 2012

FromTheEditor

Looking for a village square

By Paula Minaert

When I first moved to Hyattsville more than 30 years ago, the local Dunkin’ Donuts (now Shagga Restaurant) was a neighborhood hangout. Whenever I went, the same group of older men would be there.

They liked the counter and perched on tall stools with ripped vinyl seats, talking and smoking. (You could smoke everywhere back then.)

These men knew each other and knew the server. After a while I got to know some of them as well. When the owner remodeled and got rid of the stools — and banned cigarettes — the regulars stopped going and the

A community newspaper chronicling the life and times of Hyattsville

place changed dramatically.

That Dunkin’ Donuts was an example of what a recent Washington Post article called “third places”: places where you can go to be with other people, to see and be seen, that are neither home nor work. The Professional Carry Out, which closed July 28 after nearly 20 years in business, was another one. A lot of people who used to go there regularly have lost their third place and are not happy about it. The workers at St. Jerome Child Center sent a big poster with good-byes and expressions of thanks to the owners.

It could be that some of the newer restaurants along Route 1 will become third places. Franklins already has for some people, I know. Busboys & Poets certainly has the ambience for it and they have many varied events that draw

people in. And other locals have probably found other places.

The downside to some of the newer places is that they’re often very noisy. Someone I know is married to a contractor and she says this is done on purpose; restaurants and similar places are built to be noisy in order to create a trendy, exciting feeling and thus attract customers.

But for us baby boomers – whose numbers here are growing, according to the last census – it sometimes has the opposite effect. I have a hard time carrying on a conversation in many of these gathering spots — and no, I’m not the only person to complain of this.

Conversation isn’t the only element of third places, but for me it’s a crucial one. How can you hang out with other people without talking?

There’s something else I’d like to see in whatever third places

develop near us, but it’s hard to describe. I’m also not even sure that the places I’ve mentioned above, Dunkin’ Donuts and the Professional Carry Out, had it.

But I would like to find in third places a variety of people, people who are like me and people who are unlike me; people I don’t normally spend time with. It’s like the village square in times past, where everyone came, from the miller and the teacher to the clergyman and the alewife.

In his book “The World We Have Lost,” Peter Laslett says this doesn’t happen in our communities anymore. And sociologist Robert Bellah points out that we cluster in what he calls “lifestyle enclaves,” rarely encountering anyone very different from ourselves.

Who knows? Maybe we’ll find this here in Hyattsville.

PAULA MINAERT The owners of the Professional Carry Out, Hyun Joong Shin and Song Hee Shin, hold a framed photo card given to them by appreciative customers on their last day, July 28.

Mailing address: PO Box 132, Hyattsville, MD 20781 Hyattsville Life & Times is published monthly by Hyattsville Community Newspaper, Inc., a 501c(3) nonprofit corporation. Interested reporters should send their e-mail addresses to the editor to be reminded of deadlines and receive internal news. Articles and news submitted may be edited. The deadline is the last week of the month for the following month’s issue. Letters to the editor and opinions are encouraged. For all e-mail correspondence with HL&T: news, features, tips, advertising and business write to hyattsvillelifeandtimes@gmail. com. To submit articles, letters to the editor, etc., e-mail susie@hyattsvillelife.com.

Executive Editor Paula Minaert paula@hyattsvillelife.com 301.335.2519 Managing Editor Susie Currie susie@hyattsvillelife.com 301.633.9209 Editorial Intern Scarlett Salem Production Ashley Perks Advertising advertising@hyattsvillelife.com 301.531.5234 Writers & Contributors Victoria Hille, William Jenne, Valerie Russell, Kimberly Schmidt, Fred Seitz, Hugh Turley Board of Directors Joseph Gigliotti - President and General Counsel Chris Currie - Vice President Paula Minaert - Secretary Peggy Dee, Bart Lawrence, Karen J. Riley, Valerie Russell Susie Currie - Ex Officio Circulation: Copies are distributed monthly by U.S. Mail to every address in Hyattsville. Additional copies are distributed to libraries, selected businesses, community centers and churches in the city. Total circulation is 9,300.

HL&T is a member of the National Newspaper Association.

MyTwoCents Does your baby smoke?

by Kimberly Schmidt

The words “Honey, I’m pregnant” are often followed, in six to nine months, by Severe Nesting Syndrome. Every corner of the house is scrubbed, organized and decorated.

Paint colors are chosen, and the merits of strollers and diapers are discussed with more vigor than an election-year debate.

In these preparatory stages, parents inadvertently make their first big mistakes. Many paints contain volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and are highly toxic. And that beautiful convertible sleigh crib? Chances are that underneath the perfectly coordinated linens lies a flame-retardant mattress – also made with toxic materials, to conform to legally required flammability standards for bedding.

And so begins the life of an American baby, immersed in alarming levels of dangerous chemicals from his or her first days on earth.

What’s more, these harmful chemicals are bio-accumulative, stored in our children’s tissues, the foundation of an ever-increasing toxic burden. The average American home interior is five to six times more toxic than the outside air quality. We live in Code Red interiors most of lives.

At a Hyattsville Preservation Association spring meeting, green interior designer Robin Buck shared with members some alterna-

tives to carcinogen-laden products. The challenge, she said, is knowing which products to avoid – and where to find safer options.

Buck had several suggestions for homeowners planning to renovate. Among them: Reuse: Always the best decision for the environment is to use what you have – or what someone else no longer needs. For renovation projects large and small, check out the local architectural salvage warehouse Community Forklift.

Pre-existing toxins: The fine asbestos filaments that are a health hazard are generally harmless if left undisturbed. But during a renovation, asbestos must be disposed of by certified professionals.

Paint: Look for zero-VOC paint products.

Some brands have no VOCs in the base, but the yet-to-be-added pigment adds a high concentration of toxic substances. Ask before mixing begins. (HPA members, remember you get discounts at Will’s Decorating, a Benjamin Moore dealer. Ask for the Natura line.)

Kitchens: Instead of granite countertops, which may contain radon, consider using a product like PaperStone. Made of compressed recycled paper, the finished product looks remarkably like slate and is extremely durable; stains can be easily sanded out. For floors, wood is a comfortable, forgiving and renewable surface. Look for eco-friendly

sealants and wood that is FSC-certified.

(That means it meets Forest Stewardship Council requirements for sustainable harvesting.) When shopping for plywood, look for the formaldehyde-free kind.

Bedrooms: For mattresses, look for natural latex foam wrapped in wool batting with a cotton cover. Wool is a naturally selfextinguishing fiber (no flame retardants required). It also moderates body temperature and is inhospitable to dust mites.

CORRECTIONS: Our July issue contained some mistakes. The article “What’s on Route 1?” incorrectly referred to the “former” Japanese Auto Service & Repair.

That business, in the 4800 block of Rhode Island Avenue, is actually open and thriving.

After reading “Postcards from the Past,” astute reader Flawn Williams wrote on our Facebook page: “I enjoyed most of Betty Moreau’s memories. But I don’t think she heard FDR announce the end of WWII on the radio. He died a month before the European theater war ended.”

Finally, in a story about Hyattsville residents who sell their creations on Etsy.com, Kathleen Hellington’s name was misspelled.

We regret the errors.

Hyattsville Life & Times | August 2012

Page 3

Online voting opens for new bus design Winning art will wrap vehicles on Route 1 bus line

TALAVERA

The winning design will be featured on the three buses for at least three years. ford and Boshwell Talavera each received a $500 honorarium; the winner will be awarded an additional $4,000.

Axner’s design, featuring a giant tube of paint, pays homage to a burgeoning creative community in the Gateway Arts District. Talavera opted for a photomosaic, with hundreds of small pictures making up the Maryland state flag and the

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Buses are a common sight in Hyattsville, as in any metropolitan area. By late fall, though, three of them that run along one of the city’s main roads should be a bit more distinctive.

Currently, the buses bear the familiar yellow, blue and white logo of The Bus, part of the Prince George’s County transit system, as well as their line number: 17. They circulate exclusively on the Route 1 corridor, with 75 stops from the College Park IKEA to the Mount Rainier traffic circle.

But soon, the vehicles will be wrapped in artwork that reflects their surroundings – and you can help choose it by voting for your favorite of three designs at www.Route1Ride. org.

The contest, sponsored by the Route 1 Ride Collaborative, started July 24 and runs through September 9. It garnered 350 votes the first week.

Earlier this year, a call to artists within 50 miles of the Route 1 corridor resulted in 38 entries from 27 artists. A panel of county, municipal and University of Maryland officials whittled the list down to three finalists, whose names were announced on July 24.

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Gifford chose different scenes for each side of the bus.

One side resembles an iTunes ad, with a vibrant palette of purples, oranges and blues depicting a woman wearing headphones that incorporate one wheel. The design on the other side includes a riverside sunset, a nod to ECO City Farms in nearby Edmonston, where Gifford is putting the finishing touches on a 50-foot mural along the banks of the Northwest Branch.

The winning design will be featured on the three buses for at least three years.

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Hyattsville Life & Times | August 2012

African refugee serves as U.S. soldier

by Susie Currie

When Alfred Kollie walked into the U.S. Army recruiting office on Belcrest Center Drive in 2010, he knew more than most what the future might bring.

At the time, he was managing a store in the nearby mall and attending Prince George’s Community College part-time. But just three years earlier, he and his family had been living in a refugee camp in

Ghana while civil wars ravaged his native Liberia.

“When I told the recruiter where I was from, he asked whether I was willing to go back to war, because that’s where I was headed,” said Kollie, now 27 and serving in Afghanistan. “I told him as long as I got paid and had money for school, I’d go.”

Kollie spent eight years — most of his childhood — in the refugee camp with his family.

“Over there, being 10, you’re not

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really young anymore,” he recalled recently, sitting at a picnic table in a small, wooden hut on a hot summer night. “They had 6-year-old rebels walking around with AK-47s, killing innocent people. [The rebels would] kill their families and take the boys and compel them to join.”

The future in Liberia, to put it mildly, looked bleak.

“All we prayed for was to come to America,” Kollie said. When his father became ill, the family of 12 feared for more than his life.

“If he died while we were in the refugee camps, we were never going to come to the United States,” he said. “If the head of the family dies in the process [of relocating], the entire family stays back. You’re done. It happened to a lot of families over there.”

But on June 14, 2007, the news came that they’d be leaving for the United States within weeks as part of a resettlement program.

“I ran to the church, and all I could do was praise God,” said Kollie. “Everybody in the family couldn’t believe it. It was like a miracle.”

That July, the family arrived in Louisiana, where they stayed with a relative. Kollie, then 22, got a factory job packaging chicken spices.

In 2008, he and his sister Saba decided to strike out on their own.

They came to Hyattsville and found an apartment on Queens Chapel Road, where Saba still lives.

ERIC PAHON Spc. Alfred Kollie at his fuel truck. As a U.S. Army petroleum-supply specialist, he provides aviation support to ground forces in Afghanistan.

Kollie landed a job at Jimmy Jazz in the Mall at Prince Georges, eventually becoming a manager. But what he really wanted was a college degree, and community college, even part time, was putting too much of a strain on his budget.

Then he heard about the G.I. Bill, and thought it might be the answer.

Since childhood, Kollie had been fascinated with the military lifestyle — although not that of the rebel armies he grew up avoiding in his own country.

“They’re not an organized fighting force. There’s a lot of abuse,

and I didn’t want … that situation,” he said. “Once I found myself in a country where the military is widely respected, and the military would provide shelter and food, pay me to do what I enjoy and pay me to go to school, I decided to join. It was a win-win situation for me.”

He joined the Army in September 2010 and went to Afghanistan a year later with the 82nd Airborne Division. As a petroleum-supply specialist, he provides aviation support to ground KOLLIE continued on page 7

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Page 5

Two city staff positions filled

by Paula Minaert

Based on recommendations from Human Resources Director Chris Vermillion, the Hyattsville City Council has moved to fill two core city positions from within.

At its July 23 meeting, the council voted to promote Abby Sandel to director of the newly created Department of Community Services.

Sandel had been the city communications manager and, since July 2011, acting head of Recreation and the Arts. It also promoted Chris Giunta, acting director of Code Enforcement since November 2009, to head that division.

It didn’t happen without controversy, however. The motion to promote Giunta passed unanimously, but the one concerning the community-services director met with some opposition. “I think [the position] should be an outside hire,� said Paula Perry (Ward 4). She said residents in her ward aren’t satisfied with this proposed promotion and she wouldn’t accept Vermillion’s recommendation But Shani Warner (Ward 2) said that Sandel has done “a wonderful job� of programming in recreation and the arts and praised her for “stepping up to the plate� in running that department when its director, Steve Yeskulsky, left after less than a year.

Councilmembers Matt McKnight (Ward 3) and David Hiles (Ward 2) agreed with Warner, and Candace Hollingsworth (Ward 1) said both promotions were an opportunity to foster the talents of current employees.

On a procedural matter, Ruth Ann Frazier (Ward 5) pointed out that the motion to promote shouldn’t have come before the council without a position description or salary information. She had asked for both, she said. “We know nothing.

How can we make an educated decision on nothing?�

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After more discussion, the motion did pass. Ward 1 councilmember Nicole Hinds Mofor joined Tim Hunt (Ward 3) and Frazier in voting against it. Perry left the meeting before the vote, an action she said later was made in protest.

The promotions are part of a general restructuring of city departments. Code Enforcement has been renamed the Division of Code Compliance. Another change will put parking enforcement, currently under the aegis of the police department, in this new division. It will function under the Department of Community and Economic Development, headed by Jim Chandler.

The staffing changes are based partly on recommendations made in a 2009 city management and efficiency study and partly on a reorganization plan Sandel submitted in January.

The new Department of Community Services will bring together various functions currently performed by different city offices. As director, Sandel will oversee cable operations, communications, recreation and the arts, senior services, special events and volunteer services.

The description of this department in the 2013 budget book states that “Community Services� is a term used by similar jurisdictions to describe a broad range of services focused on quality of life issues.

These shifts stem from a couple of factors. One is the city’s stated desire to move away from a focus on punitive measures in code enforcement and toward what it calls a community partnership model.

The other factor is the city’s recognition of the importance of parking services as a tool to support community revitalization.

Mayor Marc Tartaro said of the changes, “It makes sense to do it this way. Other [municipalities] have done this. [It’s] best practices and not something new.�

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Hyattsville Life & Times | August 2012

MissFloribunda Dear Miss Floribunda, This hot weather seems to agree with tomatoes because I have a bumper crop this year. However, the beneficiaries of the crop are the hordes of squirrels that get to them before I do! The best I can do is pick them when they first start to ripen and put them in the windows, but

I do love a vine-ripened tomato.

Now, I followed the advice you gave last spring to plant native berries that birds prefer to our cultivated ones and I have to admit that this did help some. Is there anything your average squirrel might prefer to a tomato?

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Dear Plundered, Until the acorns drop, garden tomatoes are the number-one treat on a squirrel’s menu. I have asked various successful vegetable gardeners for advice.

My brother-in-law Picante uses hot chili sauce to deter squirrels, but he has to apply it daily — a lot of trouble. Aunt Sioux assures me that black plastic netting works for her. She strings clothesline over her plants, making a tent of the netting and secures it at each end at ground level with rocks or heavy pots. I think chicken wire might do well too.

The tomato guru of the Hyattsville Community Garden, Dave Pomodoro, builds a U-shaped tomato-training structure of bamboo and prunes his tomatoes so that only the top branches bear fruit. The Community Garden squirrels are evidently too lazy to climb this — perhaps they are overweight from gorging themselves on lower-lying fruit.

Ivan Grozni offered a recipe for squirrel pie, but when I rejected it he sent a picture of the cage he built around his plants. My neighbor Patapanelope plants tomatoes of different colors and has found that Cherokee Purple and some of the pink and yellow ones tend to lure squirrels away from the luscious red varieties she likes best.

She also places sandwich bags over her tomatoes when still green.

Brother Ardilla at the Franciscan Monastery tells me he plants sunflowers with his tomatoes because the squirrels love the seeds.

Why we need to protect our tomatoes.

He also makes sure to keep some water nearby, believing that just as birds go for juicy cherries when they are thirsty, squirrels go for tomatoes for the moisture when they have no other source.

My favorite remedy, though I dare not recommend it, comes from my Cousin Tipsy Dipsman.

Quite by accident she discovered one year, when she wasn’t well and failed to pick pears from her tree, that the squirrels went crazy over the fermented fruit that fell on the ground. Now she purposely puts out dishes of fermented mash of

various kinds around her tomato patch. She claims she finds squirrels flat on their backs with their paws waving in the air, emitting little giggling sounds.

I have not witnessed this, but she does seem to have lots of tomatoes.

For more on vegetable-growing lore, please come to the next meeting of the Hyattsville Horticultural Society at 10 a.m. on Saturday, August 18. It will be at the home of Jean and Millard Smith, famed for their vegetable garden, at 3600 Longfellow Street.

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Page 7

KOLLIE

continued from page 4

AuntieDiluviana Dear Auntie Diluviana, My husband and I believe that an elderly neighbor is being abused by his nephew. What do we do?

A.V. Dear A.V., Call the local police if you believe he is in immediate physical danger. Otherwise, call the Prince George’s County Adult Protective Services at 301.909.2228 to report your concern.

According to the office of State’s Attorney Angela S. Alsobrooks, most elder abuse goes undetected. Principal Deputy Tara Harrison told an elder-abuse forum in June that it “is a major concern” for Alsobrooks, whose office has a unit dedicated to combating it.

“Seniors deserve the fullest protection that our laws can provide,” said Harrison.

This mistreatment can take many forms: violence, neglect, abandonment, and sexual and emotional abuse. It is usually, but not always, perpetrated by someone close to the elderly person, such as a spouse, adult son or daughter or caregiver.

Financial exploitation, too, is a big threat to the elderly. More, in fact, than physical assault.

“As people grow older, their chances of being victims of crime decrease dramatically,” according to the National Crime Prevention Council. “But a lifetime of experience coupled with the physical problems associated with aging often make older Americans fearful. Though they’re on the lookout constantly for physical attack and burglary, they are not as alert to frauds and con games – in reality the greatest crime threat to seniors’ well-being and trust.”

Experts say that those most at risk are women and the very old.

Dementia is a significant risk factor and isolation can also contribute to risk.

Elder abuse can also occur in nursing homes and other care facilities. To report suspected abuse in one of these, contact the county’s Long-Term Care/Ombudsman hotline at 301.265.8483.

Auntie Diluviana features the insights of Hyattsville Aging in Place, which meets the first Wednesday of each month in the municipal building. It is edited by Molly Parrish.

forces. His office is, essentially, a full-service gas station for aircraft: His team receives, stores, filters and pumps hundreds of thousands of gallons of fuel.

They work in 12-hour shifts, day and night, hot or cold, keeping the “birds” in the air.

Kollie has gained a reputation in his unit for his work ethic, attention to detail, and, according to others in his unit, for his oneman crusade against “wastefulness.”

“Where I’m from, you just can’t waste stuff,” he explained.

“Like I was telling my sergeant today, someone said ‘That food’s been sitting over there for a while, [so] it’s not good anymore,’ and I told him I was going to eat it [anyway]. There were days in the camps when you knew the food wasn’t good, but … you had to eat it, or you weren’t going to eat at all.”

Stationed in Fort Bragg, N.C., Kollie hopes “to attend any good college in North Carolina” when his 12-month tour is finished.

“I wish we were home, but the mission comes first,” he said.

Eventually, he says, “I want to establish a family in the United States, and my dream is to give my family what I didn’t have.

My entire youth was taken away.”

ERIC PAHON Spc. Alfred Kollie left Hyattsville for Afghanistan.

And yes, that means he intends to come back here.

“I would love to settle down in Hyattsville,” he said, “the day I am done with the military.”

With reporting by Sgt. 1st Class Eric Pahon, a U.S. Army public affairs officer who travels across eastern Afghanistan covering aviation soldiers and missions.

HANDMADE ON HAMILTON

An International Celebration of Craft, Music, and Food

Come and shop for handmade crafts from 40 different artisans!

Performances by Cirque Oya Batala DC • Glade Dance Collective Music by Pigeons Playing Ping Pong • Old Man Brown • Nayas Road Dog • Unity Reggae Band

Saturday, november 3 Noon - 7 PM

Enjoy cuisine from around the world! Children’s activities!

Hyattsville Reporter Page HR1

Hyattsville Life & Times | August 2012

the

No. 246 • August 8, 2012

www.hyattsville.org • 301-985-5000

ANNOUNCEMENTS

More Chances to Learn About the Small Town Energy Program: Visit us at the Downtown Hyattsville Arts Festival, or Host a STEP House Party This summer, you may have noticed students in green shirts at the Outback Steakhouse Summer Jam or walking throughout our neighborhoods introducing Hyattsville residents to the Small Town Energy Program (STEP). STEP is a community program offering $400 - $4,650 in rebates to help residents lower their energy bills and create a more comfortable home through energy efficiency improvements. The program is running in Hyattsville, College Heights Estates, Riverdale Park and University Park. Already, dozens of your Hyattsville neighbors have signed up for STEP. STEP will have a booth at the Downtown Hyattsville Arts Festival on Saturday, September 22nd beginning at 11:00 AM. Residents of Hyattsville who drop by the booth will be eligible to enter their name in a drawing for $500 worth of energy upgrades to their home! This is also a chance to meet some of the participating STEP contractors and to have your questions answered about the program.

STEP is also looking for a few homeowners to volunteer to host a STEP “house party”.

The idea is to open your home for the STEP staff to join you and up to 10 other neighbors to learn more about the program. During the party, STEP staff will answer questions and actually demonstrate what is involved in having your home evaluated for energy efficiency. STEP covers all the costs, brings all the refreshments, and will even pay the cost of having a home energy evaluation performed on the host home (a value of $100).

Interested residents should contact Suzanne Parmet at energycoach@smalltownenergy. org or 240-695-399.

STEP allows homeowners to make easy and affordable changes to the energy efficiency of their homes with the help of an “Energy Coach,” who works with STEP participants

Registration open for three-day yard sale Mark your calendar for Friday, October 5 through Sunday, October 7!

Twice each year, the City of Hyattsville’s porches, front lawns, and sidewalks offer up some of the best local bargain shopping you can imagine. By popular demand, our Yard Sale Saturday becomes a three-day event this Fall.

Here’s what you need to know to take part: All City Yard Sale permits and fees are

waived during Community Yard Sale Day. Registration is open now. Call 301/9855000 or visit http://www.hyattsville.org/yardsale.

You don’t need to register – but if you do, we’ll add your address to the maps distributed to bargain hunters so they can find

their way to your sale.

Speaking of maps, if you’re shopping instead of selling, check back after 3:00 PM on Wednesday, September 26, and we’ll have a complete map of participating addresses ready to print at http://www.hyattsville.org/yardsale.

They will also be available in the lobby of

0 5 . $5

the City Municipal Building, 4310 Gallatin Street, Hyattsville.

Residents can operate their sale at any time during daylight hours; however, the hours the City will publicize are Friday, October 5 from 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM; Saturday, October 6 from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM; and Sunday, October 7, 2012 from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM. Watch future newsletters for more details!

AUGUST TENTH SUMMER JAM FEATURES N2N

Crowd favorite N2N returns for a can’t-miss August Outback Steakhouse Summer Jam! It’s the fourth in the series.

Held from 6:30 to 8:30 PM. on the second Friday of the month from May 11 through September 14, this event includes delicious food (burgers, chicken and hot dogs) provided and prepared by Outback Steakhouse of Hyattsville, a beer and wine garden, musical entertainment, the ever-popular moon bounce, and Mandy the Clown and her very talented face painter.

The Summer Jam Series is held at the Municipal Building at 4310 Gallatin Street - rain or shine! In the event of inclement weather, the Jam moves into the multi-purpose room. Attendance at Summer Jam is free and open to everyone. There is a charge for food and beverages.

Rock with a cop! Just Us, featuring our own Sgt. Chris Purvis, will close this year’s Outback Steakhouse Summer Jam Series with some good time Rock ‘n Roll.

Tonight is also the Hyattsville City Police Department’s annual open house, with chances for residents of all ages to tour the station and learn more about police work.

September is the final Jam of the 2012 season. The 2013 season kicks off on Friday, May 10, 2013! http://www.hyattsville.org/summerjam

PARENT & CHILD PROGRAM – SUMMER SESSIONS

CALENDAR August-September 2012 Friday, August 10

Outback Steakhouse Summer Jam Featuring N2N 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM @ City Municipal Building - outdoors on the parking lot and Gallatin Street in fair weather; indoors in the Multi-Purpose Room in the event of rain!

Tuesday, August 14

Community Crime Watch Meeting, 7:00 - 8:30 PM Hyattsville Library 6530 Adelphi Road Hyattsville, MD 20782

Wednesday, August 15

Hyattsville Environmental Committee Meeting 7:30 PM - 8:30 PM

Monday, September 3

Labor Day City Administrative offices closed No Yard Waste pick-up City Council Meeting 8:00 PM - 10:00 PM

the growing retail and restaurant developments in the area.

Visit http://www.hyattsville.org/parking to view a map.

MOSQUITO REMINDERS

The Maryland Department of Agriculture’s Mosquito Control Program performs all mosquito control activities in the state.

The program started in June and continues into early September. State Mosquito Control personnel conduct adult mosquito surveillance and, if certain state-mandated thresholds are met, conduct spraying operations. For 2012, adult mosquito surveillance and possible spraying will be on Tuesday nights. To report a problem area in your neighborhood, please call the City’s Department of Public Works at 301/985-5032 or visit our website: http://www.hyattsville.org/mosquitos.

We will pass on the required information to the state MDA. Please be prepared to share the following: your address; time of day when mosquitoes are the worst; and any area of stagnant water in the vicinity.

The reported areas are relayed to the Mosquito Control Section on a weekly basis.

For more information, please visit http://www.hyattsville. org/mosquitos.

SENIOR SERVICES

Families, caregivers and seniors: Do you have any age-related questions or concerns? Please call Hyattsville’s Senior Services Coordinator, Emily Stowers at 301/985-5058, or email estowers@hyattsville.org.

If you’re a regular at the school year Parent & Child Program, good news! A mini version of the program will be held Wednesdays at the City Municipal Building beginning later this summer. Dates for the rest of the summer are August 8 and August 15. Join us from 9:00 AM until 1:00 PM in the first floor Multi-Purpose Room. $3/child; pre-paid admission coupons valid. A parent or caregiver must remain with the child during the program. Free play and structured activities are included.

AGING GRACEFULLY EDUCATION SERIES (AGES) BEGINS THIS FALL

ON-STREET PARKING COMING TO BALTIMORE AVENUE/ROUTE 1

SAVE THE DATES – FALL & HOLIDAY 2012

Parking is coming to the Route One/Baltimore Avenue corridor during off-peak hours. The State Highway Administration is expected to install signage within the next few weeks.

New spaces will be created between Madison Street and the Route One Alternate Bridge. The City requested the changes from the State Highway Administration to help accommodate

Page HR2

Tuesday, September 4

IN OTHER NEWS...

SEPTEMBER FOURTEENTH SUMMER JAM & HCPD OPEN HOUSE free of charge and guides them through every step of the program.

Participants begin by having a home energy evaluation performed by a qualified home energy evaluator. If they choose, they can then have a qualified contractor make the recommended improvements that will increase their home’s energy efficiency and comfort.

Energy Coach Suzanne Parmet works with homeowners to answer questions and ensure they receive every possible financial incentive. These incentives include limited-time rebates that can range from $400 - $4,650 (depending on the improvements made to the home), which may pay for more than half of the cost of the improvements. In addition, below-market financing rate loans are available to qualified borrowers through a special agreement with Sandy Spring Bank.

The innovative STEP program is only available to Hyattsville residents for one year. Interested residents seeking lower energy bills and a more comfortable and valuable home are urged to learn more at http://www.smalltownenergy.org, or contact Suzanne Parmet at energycoach@smalltownenergy.org or 240-695-3991.

Hyattsville Life & Times | August 2012

The Office of Senior Services will offer a series of workshops and seminars on topics of interest to seniors and their families. The first session is on Thursday, September 20 at 10 AM in the City Municipal Building, 4310 Gallatin Street, First Floor Multi-Purpose Room. The topic is Medicare 2012 Updates. Our speaker will be Jack Davidson, Community Liaison with Home Physicians.

Mark your calendar now! Recreation & Community Services will offer the following events for the remainder of 2012: Hyattsville Cyclocross races into Magruder Park on Sunday, October 7. Spookyfest will take place the afternoon of Saturday, October 27 – please look for a location announcement in September! Three seasonal events complete the calendar year.

The Magruder Park Tree Lighting is scheduled for Friday, De-

cember 7, complete with seasonal music and hot chocolate, plus a very special guest. Dine with Santa on Saturday, December 8 at the City Municipal Building, 4310 Gallatin Street.

And Clause Applause, the annual holiday decorating contest, will be judged the evening of Wednesday, December 12.

THIRD ANNUAL MULTICULTURAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS FAIR SET FOR SEPTEMBER

Save the date for the Third Annual Hyattsville Community Multicultural Health and Wellness Fair, scheduled for Saturday, September 15, 2012 from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM at First United Methodist Church of Hyattsville, 6201 Belcrest Road. A free community-wide event of screenings, demonstrations, education and training, and information dissemination. Questions? Contact Mary CarterWilliams, Ph.D. at carterwilli@theisgrp.com or 301/927-6113.

Home

Monday, September 10 City Council Meeting 8:00 PM – 10 PM

Friday, September 14

Outback Steakhouse Summer Jam Featuring Just Us & HCPD Open House 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM @ City Municipal Building - outdoors on the parking lot and Gallatin Street in fair weather; indoors in the Multi-Purpose Room in the event of rain!

Unless otherwise noted, all events take place at the City Municipal Building, 4310 Gallatin Street.

REDISTRICTING PLAN ADOPTED; FIND DETAILS ONLINE

The City adopted a redistricting plan earlier this month. Find details here: http://www.hyattsville.org/redistricting.

CITY BUDGET DETAILS AVAILABLE ONLINE

The City’s new fiscal year, FY13, began on July 1, 2012. Residents can view documents related to the FY13 budget online at http://www.hyattsville.org/budget.

VETERAN SERVICES

Looking for counseling, assistance with veterans’ benefits, or other information? The Prince George’s County Vet Center services County residents who have served their country.

Services are provided at no charge to the veteran. For more information, visit www.vetcenter.va.gov, or call the Prince George’s County Vet Center, located at 7905 Malcolm Rd., Suite 101, Clinton, MD 21735, at 301/856-7173.

NIXLE

The City is now using Nixle to send public safety alerts and information via both email and text message. This system replaces the SafeCity website previously in use. Many of our neighboring jurisdictions also use Nixle to send out information. Please note that Nixle won’t report on every incident – typically alerts are sent when the HCPD needs to alert the public to a potentially dangerous situation, or when we are

asking for your help solving a crime. In other cases, Nixle messages relate to road closures, power outages, etc.

If you have a nixle.com account, there is no need to create a new one. Simply log in and add the City of Hyattsville to your wire. New to Nixle? Register at www.nixle.com or enroll using the widget online at http://www.hyattsville.org/stayinformed.

FIND US ON FACEBOOK

Are you on Facebook? You can now keep up with City events and happenings at www.facebook.com/cityofhyattsville. When you see Vainglorious, the silver metal bird sculpture at Centennial Park, you’ll know you’re in the right place. He is kind enough to serve as the City’s wall photo.

Page 8

Hyattsville Life & Times | August 2012

COMMUNITY CALENDAR NASCAR IS BACK!

Through August 18 What better place for Glass 2012 to show than the artdc Gallery? Housed in the windowwalled former Lustine showroom, it makes a fitting backdrop for a show of artists working at DC Glassworks. Free. 5710 Baltimore Avenue. Hours vary; call 301.209.0116 or visit www.artdc. com for details.

AT

BRING IN AD FOR FREE GIFT!

August 28-29, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

while supplies last

August 11

See the NASCAR show car!

At the 17th Annual Battle of Bladensburg Encampment, see a re-enactment of the British and American troops preparing for one of the central battles in the War of 1812. Free. Noon to 4 p.m. Riversdale House Museum, 4811 Riverdale Road.

301.864.0420.

Raffle for 6 pairs of tickets to the Federated Auto Parts 400 on September 8 in Richmond Food, fun, games, door prizes

4919 Kenilworth Ave Hyattsville, MD 20781

301-277-8565 Visit our website for additional offers: www.ddtires.com

Test your tire changing skills with the Pit Crew Challenge.

presents

Summer

Jam 2012 The second Friday of every month, May through September, 6:30 to 8:30 PM City Municipal Building, 4310 Gallatin Street Rain or Shine!

Admission is free; delicious food for sale August 10 – N2N September 14 – Just Us

ALSO: Hyattsville Police Open House

August 15 Bring a blanket or lawn chair to Jazz on the Lawn and enjoy a performance by M.S.G. Acoustic Blues Trio. You can also bring a picnic or buy dinner from the Calvert House.

7 p.m. Free. Riversdale House Museum, 4811 Riverdale Road, Riverdale Park. 301.864.0420.

Community Meeting: University Hills Green Streets Design Wednesday, September 12 at 7:30 PM or Thursday, September 13 at 7:30 PM St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church 7501 Adelphi Road Hyattsville, MD 20783 The City will host a community meeting to share the 30% design for the University Hills street projects. The content of both meetings will be identical. Engineers will be available to discuss the plan and to answer questions.

Tour the station, get your mug shot taken, and more!

Questions? Please contact Acting City Administrator, Elaine Stookey: estookey@hyattsville.org. View the plans here: http://www.hyattsville.org/universityhills

Hyattsville Life & Times | August 2012

Page 9

COMMUNITY CALENDAR August 16 See the 1986 movie that made Tom Cruise a star: Top Gun (rated PG). It’s part of the College Park Aviation Museum’s Summer Outdoor Movie Series, which includes pre-show hands-on activities. Museum doors open at 7 p.m., movie starts at 9 p.m. Free with museum admission of $4 (discounts for children and seniors). 1985 Cpl. Frank Scott Drive, College Park.

301.864.6029.

August 18 Learn paddling skills from a certified instructor and sign up for Canoe Lessons while it’s still nice outside. Reservations required. No children under age 10; ages 10 to 16 must be accompanied by an adult. $25. 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Bladensburg Waterfront Park, 4601 Annapolis Road, Bladensburg. 301.779.0371.

Did your summer reading include Abraham Verghese’s Cutting for Stone? See what others thought of it at a book discussion. Free. 3 p.m. Hyattsville Branch Library, 6530 Adelphi Road. 301.985.4690.

August 25 Learn the story of America’s “Second War of Independence,” also known as the War of 1812, at the Battle of Bladensburg: A Bicentennial Celebration. Tour the new Visitors Center and learn about the dramatic events that took place in Prince George’s County as the British marched on Washington, D.C. Familyfriendly activities include cannon demonstrations, guided boat tours and more. Free.

Noon to 5 p.m. Bladensburg Waterfront Park, 4601 Annapolis Road, Bladensburg.

301.779.0371.

September 1 to 3 The National Capital Trackers bring a constantly moving display of model railroads to town with the exhibition Trains and Planes. The exhibit features miniature trains, villages, tunnels, and depots that bring history to life. Free with museum admission of $4 (discounts for children and seniors). College Park Aviation Museum, 1985 Cpl. Frank Scott Drive, College Park. 301.864.6029.

Ongoing

Community Calendar is compiled

by Susie Currie and Scarlett SaThe city is inviting vendors to lem. It’s a select listing of events apply for “Handmade on Ham- happening in and around Hyattsilton: An International Celebration of Craft, Music and Food.”

Think of it as a local Etsy pop-up: 5th only handcrafted, original items created by local artisans will be displayed. The festival is set for November 3 at Queens Chapel Town Center. For more information, call 301.985.5020 or search “handmade” on the city website, www.hyattsville.org.

Area couple Milton and Linda McGehee have distributed thousands of care packages to wounded soldiers over the years and still deliver regularly to the local veteran’s hospital. They welcome donations of new items, including disposable cameras, toiletries, puzzle books, playing cards, DVDs, and, especially, new towels and washcloths.

Call 301.559.0864 to donate or volunteer.

Through October 28, Anacostia River Boat Tours are held Tuesdays through Fridays at noon and weekends at 5 p.m.

All ages are welcome to join a park naturalist on a 45-minute pontoon boat ride to search for birds and other wildlife.

Free; registration required for groups of 12 or more. Bladensburg Waterfront Park, 4601 Annapolis Road, Bladensburg.

301.779.0371.

A group bike ride starts every Sunday at 9 a.m. at Arrow Bicycles, 5108 Baltimore Avenue. This is a 32-mile, moderately paced ride that emphasizes group-riding techniques.

New group riders welcome.

301.531.9250.

Our own Hyattsville Farmers’ Market is open every Tuesday through the season from 2 to 6 p.m. at its new location, the former BB&T building, 3505 Hamilton Street. 301.627.0977.

The producers-only Riverdale Park Farmer’s Market offers a variety of local vegetables and fruits, honey, baked goods, meat, jams, flowers and more.

Free. Thursdays, 3 to 7 p.m.

Riverdale Park, 301.332.6258.

Every 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month, the Peter Pan Club for preschoolers includes storytime and hands-on craft activities. Free with museum admission of $4 for adults ($2 for children). 10:30 a.m. College Park Aviation Museum, 1985 Cpl. Frank Scott Drive, College Park. 301.864.6029.

ville from the 15th of the issue month to the 15th of the following month. To submit an item for consideration, please e-mail susie@

hyattsvillelife.com or mail to P.O. Box 132, Hyattsville, MD 20781.

Deadline for September submissions is August 23.

. 22nd t p e S , y a d r u t a S

11am – 5pm

See over 50 exhibiting artists, enjoy live entertainment and eat some great food on the happening streets of Hyattsville.

Train Printing

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301-864-5552 fax: 301-864-0740 • email: info@trainprinting.com

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NEW LOCATION FOR 2012

Hyattsville Farmers Market Fresh local produce — the best from Southern Maryland farms

Tuesdays, 2 to 6 p.m.

Cookbook giveaway and exchange!

We accept SNAP, WIC, & senior coupons

A CommunitySponsored Enterprise 3505 Hamilton Street (the former BB&T Building, across from Bestway)

Sponsored by the Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission

Page 10

Hyattsville Life & Times | August 2012

COMMENTARY & OPINION ON HISTORY & POLITICS

Hugh’sNews

Reflecting on war poetry

by Hugh Turley

In 1963, addressing Amherst College, President John F. Ken-

nedy said, “When power corrupts, poetry cleanses, for art establishes the basic human truths which must serve as the touch-

stone of our judgment.”

After more than a decade of fighting, Americans might reflect on war poetry. The website www.

Helping Sell Hyattsville

And our Neighboring Community

Ann Barrett, Realtor® Salesperson, Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc.

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cell: 240-938-6060

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office: 301-441-9511 ext. 261

email: annbarrett@ longandfoster.com web: ANNBARRETT.LNF.COM

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Honored As: Top Producing Agent Long & Foster College Park 2009, 2010 and 2011!

Hyattsville is gearing up for a strong fall market with low inventory, low interest rates and lots of pre-approved, motivated buyers! Please call me if you are thinking of making a move. It’s a great time to buy and sell here in Hyattsville!

Honored as Long & Foster’s Top Sales Agent for Southern Maryland/Prince George’s County Region for 2011!

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warpoetry.co.uk features poetry from World War I to the present, including Afghanistan.

At its best, poetry is an art form that captures the truth and is timeless. Siegfried Sassoon’s WWI poem “Suicide in the Trenches” is pertinent today, as American soldiers kill themselves in record numbers: I knew a simple soldier boy Who grinned at life in empty joy, Slept soundly through the lonesome dark, And whistled early with the lark.

In winter trenches, cowed and glum, With crumps and lice and lack of rum, He put a bullet through his brain, No one spoke of him again.

You smug-faced crowds with kindling eye Who cheer when soldier lads march by, Sneak home and hope you’ll never know The hell where youth and laughter go.

Sassoon joined the war filled with patriotic spirit. After several distressing experiences he suffered “combat fatigue,” now called post-traumatic stress disorder.

Sassoon was once hurled into the air by a mortar and landed beside the remains of a fellow officer.

Sassoon encouraged Wilfred Owen, one of the best-known WWI poets. Owen wrote over 600 letters, most to his mother, and she saved them all. In one letter to her in May 1917, he wrote, “I am more and more a Christian. ... Suffer dishonour and disgrace, but never resort to arms. Be bullied, be outraged, be killed: but do not kill.”

While their poetry condemned war, both Sassoon and Owen won the Military Cross for their gallantry. Sassoon, of a prominent Jewish family, survived the war and later

became a Roman Catholic.

But Owen, just seven days before the war ended, was shot and killed near Ors, France. His mother received the news of his death as church bells tolled the end of the war.

In the current conflicts in the Middle East, British officers are still writing poetry. In memory of two men killed in Afghanistan in 2009, Ed Poynter wrote “Dulled Senses”: Pomp, ceremony and bold rhetoric, like the smiling face of Janus allow man and nation to beautify this savage calling; to believe that this destruction of bodies and souls can be justified, nay ... required and even lauded!

Medals, congratulations, proud condolences and bachic parties, with revellers in braid and lace, belie the sin that man commits against his naked self.

Mark Lentz of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, wrote the song “At What a Cost” after listening to the reflections of a First Gulf War veteran. “After one too many drinks,” said Lentz, “he started .. saying how he had to be a rock, could not show any emotion, had to kill against his beliefs. How could this be him?”

Lentz’s song can be heard on YouTube: You planted the seed I fought for your greed Now I live with the deed I’m your rock.

The local Busboys & Poets might consider a War Poetry event and invite Lentz to perform. In the words of Wilfred Owen, “All a poet can do today is warn. That is why the true poet must be truthful.”

Hyattsville Life & Times | August 2012

Page 11

HOMEOWNER ALERT!

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WATCH OUT FOR SCAMS! There is only one Independent Foreclosure Review.

Beware of anyone who asks you to pay a fee for any foreclosure review service such as completing the Request for Review Form.

Learn more at www.IndependentForeclosureReview.com

Page 12

Hyattsville Life & Times | August 2012

CAFRITZ

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continued from page 1

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square feet of retail space. Plans also include 22,000 feet of office space and 995 residential units.

The ambitious plan has been the subject of intense controversy among local residents. Opponents cite traffic and environmental concerns, as well as long-term impacts on the existing infrastructure, such as roads and schools.

Supporters claim the project would attract business, make the area more walkable and boost the local economy. Any potential school overcrowding, they say, would be alleviated by Hyattsville’s new elementary school.

It’s scheduled to open in August 2013, whereas groundbreaking for the Cafritz project is expected no earlier than January 2014.

The College Park City Council voted against the plan, while Riverdale Park’s supported it unanimously. Hyattsville and University Park also voted to support the change, but by much thinner margins.

In February, after hours of impassioned hearings, The Prince George’s County Planning Board unanimously approved the rezoning request. When it came before the District Council, as the County Council is called when it votes on zoning issues, the issue proved so divisive that the vote was delayed for three months as the council heard hours of testi-

mony and received stacks of documents on both sides.

County Councilmember Eric Olson (District 3), who represents the district containing the property, voted against it.

Before the vote, he said that “a mixed-use property or a new town center was never envisioned for this property,” which is “more than 90 percent wooded” and has “limited transportation access.”

Rather than ignoring the current zoning, he said, “we must follow the zoning ordinance and we must have more respect for our communities than to say that we will take development at any cost.”

There had been whispers of the organic-market chain coming to the area since at least 2006, when the Cafritz family first began floating development plans at community meetings.

Discussion intensified in May 2011, when Whole Foods signed a lease. Chip Reed, a lawyer representing the Cafritz family, said that the company has committed to opening the store by January 2015.

It will be the centerpiece of Phase I, which includes 100,000 square feet of retail and 100 townhomes.

The property is owned by Calvin and Jane Cafritz. Calvin’s father, Washington developer Morris Cafritz, acquired it in 1954.

The last major development of the site was in 1942, when the National Capital Housing Authority built tract houses for federal workers at an aircraft factory.

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Hyattsville Life & Times | August 2012

LAWSUIT

continued from page 1

Lessard was hired as a private in the police department in November 2004. She attended a Fraternal Order of Police convention in Louisville, Kentucky, in August 2007 as did Sergeant Patrick O’Hagan of the Hyattsville Police Department.

In February 2008, she was presented with a service award by the Hyattsville FOP. That same month, the department transferred her to a squad led

by O’Hagan. That September, an attorney for Lessard wrote to Chief Douglas Holland stating that O’Hagan had attempted to rape Lessard at the 2007 convention, that his actions were “condoned by the Hyattsville City Police,” and that Lessard requested $200,000 in compensation.

After that letter, the city asked the Maryland State Police to conduct an investigation of the incident. It did so and administrative disciplinary charges

Page 13

were brought against O’Hagan.

According to case documents, on October 27, 2008, Lessard was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder related to the 2007 incident and put on disability leave with pay. In

“The City has long forbidden discrimination in its workplaces in any form and will continue to do so.”

— Abby Sandel city spokesperson November 2008 the department opened an investigation of Lessard in response to a complaint made against her for “improper language” during an April traffic stop. The investigation was closed administratively in December because the complainant did not cooperate. On March 18,

AWARDS

continued from page 1

pouring of generosity from friends, neighbors and strangers in the tragedy’s aftermath. Judges called it “a well‐developed, meaningful community story that shows the reporter spent time observing and interviewing.

Very strong writing [and] careful choice of language, perfect grammar and punctuation.”

The newspaper’s other blue ribbon was for “Home births on the rise in Hyattsville,” which won Best Health Story. Written by Amira Aycock and Susie Currie, the piece was praised by judges as a “very thorough examination of a much‐debated issue. This kind of story is a real public ser-

vice, providing readers with real‐ life examples as well as expert opinions.”

Both stories appeared in the February 2011 issue.

A third accolade for the HL&T came as Paula Minaert’s column, “Can we really listen to each other?”, earned an honorable mention for Best Editorial. Published in the November 2011 issue, it looked at biology as a possible reason why people find it so hard to hear differing opinions. Judges said it was “A fine appeal for us all to listen to one another. That really doesn’t happen much these

2009, Lessard filed a discrimination charge with both Prince George’s County Human Relations Commission and the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

On May 11, 2009, Lessard was involuntarily terminated from the police department; the city stated it was because she had failed to return to work within six months after her leave.

On March 5, 2012, the county Human Relations Commission ruled that her claim of a hostile work environment was time-barred and found no evidence to support her claim of retaliation.

On June 12 the EEOC ruled the same. On June 28, Lessard filed suit against the police department in U.S. District Court.

In the suit, Lessard claims the existence of a pervasive discriminatory and hostile work environment for women within the police department, with remarks and harassment commonplace. days, does it?”

It’s the second year in a row Minaert’s editorials have been singled out. Last year, her October 2010 essay, “What’s the definition of ‘neighbor’?” took second place in the Best Serious Column category. In addition, longtime sportswriter Chris McManes earned an honorable mention for Best Sports Feature Story or Series with his March 2010 piece “Stags go out with a bang as exalted coach looks on.”

Judging was performed primarily by active community newspaper editors and publishers and retired university journalism professors.

Established in 1885, the NNA is the largest group of its kind in the country. It represents more than 2,200 newspapers in all 50 states.

Witnesses for the city claim that Lessard engaged in unprofessional behavior (discourtesy and foul language) and did not perform her duties adequately.

Abby Sandel, spokesperson for the city, said, “The City can’t discuss the matter publicly while the case is ongoing.

However, we believe strongly and without exception, that all City employees have the right to be treated equally and fairly. As a matter of policy, the City has long forbidden discrimination in its workplaces in any form and will continue to do so.”

The deadline for Lessard to respond to the city’s motion to dismiss her case is August 13.

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Hyattsville Life & Times | August 2012

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