INSIDE REMOTE HANDCUFFS: Police propose buying lasso-type restraint.. P. 3 BLACK HISTORY MONTH EVENTS: See Community Calendar, P. 11
VOL. 18 NO. 2
HYATTSVILLE’S COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER
FEBRUARY 2021
HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY FROM THE HL&T!
Reading between the power lines By Paul Ruffins
The COVID-19 testing site at Six Flags America in Upper Marlboro (shown here on Jan. 29) transformed into a vaccination site on Feb. 5.
JULIA NIKHINSON
Vaccine distribution lags, sites increase By Rachel Logan Erica Wolf, a city of Hyattsville councilmember (Ward 5), went to the Cheverly Health Center Jan. 21 for what should have felt like a significant hospital visit. She was getting her first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, after all. It was a brisk afternoon, and the sun was getting low. Wolf walked across the parking lot to where a security guard stood waiting to confirm her appointment before letting her into the building — the reflection of evergreens visible in its wide windows. Another worker took her temperature and checked she was wearing a mask before di-
The First United Methodist Church in Hyattsville has hosted COVID-19 testing since June 2020. The church’s pastor, the Rev. Dr. Yvonne Penn, quotes Scripture to describe their mission during the pandemic. “We are living by Isaiah 43:19,” said Penn in a phone interview. “God is
recting Wolf to a desk for contactless checkin. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary for the pandemic’s new normal. Wolf was pointed toward a basic exam room, where a nurse asked about allergies and described possible side effects. Wolf pulled up the sleeve of her red Hyattsville polo, with its large emblem reading “a world within walking distance,” and readied herself for the prick. The nurse kept Wolf for about 20 minutes after the pinch to check for an allergic reaction, and then Wolf was free to go. Twenty-four hours after receiving her first dose, Wolf said all she noticed was some
SEE TESTING ON 5
SEE VACCINATIONS ON 13
COVID-19 testing site does ‘a new thing’ By Joanna Turner
Have you wondered how our community became bi-polar? It’s pretty common to see tall, greenish utility poles next to shorter, brown poles just a few feet away. You didn’t see this in 2010 and might not see it much longer. Hyattsville residents have a real advantage over people living in downtown Washington, D.C., or midtown Manhattan. Their utilities are buried underground. We’re lucky — we can watch the fascinating upgrades. Having an overhead grid didn’t always feel so fortunate. In DeSEE ELECTRIC ON 12
Homeschools launch during pandemic By Heather Wright Prior to the pandemic, Hyattsville resident Sharon Chua and her husband had considered homeschooling their children because they wanted the flexibility to travel regularly to the Philippines, where Chua is from. When schools closed because of the pandemic, the family took the plunge and began homeschooling their oldest child. SEE HOMESCHOOL ON 8
CENTER SECTION: The February 9, 2021 Issue of The Hyattsvile Reporter — in Español too! HYATTSVILLE MD PERMIT NO. 1383
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