PRINCE GEORGE'S SUITE SUMMER FALL 2024

Suite Prince George’s

Great Wines A Great View Of Prince George’s County

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Of Prince George’s

South Lake Marketplace & Liberty Sports Park: Building A Sports Destination

SUMMER /FALL 2024

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Meet Sheriff John Carr Supporting Military Spouses PGCPS ‘24 Ready Hank Aaron Stamp Unveiled in Bowie

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Suite Prince George’s

A Great View Of Prince George’s County, Maryland

SUMMER/FALL 2024 Raoul Dennis Publisher/Editor-In-Chief D. A. Phillips Associate Publisher Gil Griffin Copyediting

Raoul Dennis, Amir Stoudamire Advertising Kristina Townsend Editorial Assistant Raoul Dennis Art Director/Page Design Maria Lopez-Bernstein Photo Editing & Consultant Amir Stoudamire Senior Photographer

Consultants & Support Barbara Frazier, Mildred B. Dennis, Ysabel Garcia de Lopez and Eugenia Hopkins

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Editor Ad Infinitum Ed Brown

Cover “The Wine Trails Of Prince George’s”

Prince George’s Suite magazine is published four times per year by RADENN MEDIA GROUP, LLC, P.O. Box 1066, Oxon Hill, MD 20750. 410/553-2084. Subscription rates: $20/year in the United States and all its possessions. Single copies $4.95, plus $1.50 shipping and handling. Periodicals postage paid at Oxon Hill, MD 20750, and at additional mailing offices. All editorial and advertising correspondence should be addressed to RADENN MEDIA GROUP, LLC, P.O. Box 1066, Oxon Hill, MD 20750 or [e-mail: editor@pgsuite.com for Prince George’s Suite magazine]. website: www.pgsuite.com. All contents © 2024 by RADENN MEDIA GROUP, LLC. All rights reserved. ISSN No. 1941-6024. All advertising inquiries should be directed toward advertising@pgsuite.com or call 410/553-2084. Nothing in this publication can be reproduced in any manner without specific written permission of the publisher. Prince George’s Suite magazine and the RADENN MEDIA GROUP, LLC will consider but assume no responsibility for unsolicited materials; these require return postage. Postmaster: Please send address changes to Subscription Department, RADENN MEDIA GROUP, LLC, P.O. Box 1066, Oxon Hill, MD 20750. Printed in the USA

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OutlookOutlook Outlook PHOTO: COURTESY ROMANO WINE AND VINEYARD

If you think July was heated, wait till November. With the U.S.

Senate primary (that divided county leaders), the At Large County Council seat up for grabs and the 100+ degree temperatures this summer, the upcoming election season promises to be ‘Hotter than July’, in a very different way.

All the more reason we sought to bring readers more entertainment, destination, and social options in this Summer/Fall edition.

We lead with the wonder of the wine trails that run through the county.

Take a walk through the wineries, an offering by writer/photographer Maria Fisher in “Home Is Where The Wine Is,” Naturally! (See this story on Page 24).

Take note of the destinaiton-building happening at Liberty Sports Park. The $13 million, 10 field sports facility, not yet five years old, is already booked by athletic programs and leagues well into 2025. The complex is well on the way to fulfilling its destiny in becoming one of the finest outdoor youth sports locations on the east coast. But it’s also evolving as a destination. See what world class amenities and brands are coming to Liberty in upcoming months. It will be a commanding destination for sports and entertainment lovers (see “Ahead Of The Game,” Page 16).

Also allow us to formally introduce Sheriff John Carr who has taken the reins of the department in grateful memory of his mentor the late Sheriff Melvin High. See how Carr plans to honor the past while building his own vision for the department. (see “The Lead Carr,” Page 10).

Governor Wes Moore dubbed 2024 The Year of the Veteran. “We honor those service families through our discussion of job and career transitions for military spouses.” (see “Maryland’s Year Of The Veteran,” PRINCE GEORGE’S SUITE MAGAZINE

Page 15).

Several county hospitals have earned recognition and awards. *MedStar Southern Maryland Hospital Center’s National Recognition Award for Delivering High-Quality Stroke Care. *Luminis Health Doctors Community Medical Center Receives ANCC Pathway to Excellence® Designation for Nursing Excellence. *The University of Maryland Capital Region Medical Center’s new comprehensive cancer center is now open.

Take a look at the 2023-24 academic year highlight recap of the Prince George’s County Public Schools system. PGCPS leaders announce many of the best achievements of the previous school year. As the school buses get rolled out for this new school year, students, teachers and parents look to pick up on greater success in the months ahead.

But life is meant to be lived.

Writer /Photographer Gil Griffin went to Sri Lanka last Spring to give us a photo-inspired travel story of the beautiful nation and its culture. (see “Destination: Sri Lanka,” page 32). September includes First Baptist Church of Glenarden’s Annual Car & Bike Show, the Prince George’s Arts & Humanities’ Third Annual Film Festival, the Prince George’s County Fair and much more. We congratulate Prince George’s Chamber of Commerce who are celebrating their centennial anniversary and Toni Lewis’ FAME as she celebrates 20 years in the county, bringing great young artists to the stage and the stars.

We hope you enjoy this edition of The Suite!

Blessings, The Editors

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CON

TABLE OF In This Edition

5. Outlook: The Weather Isn’t the Only Thing Changing In Prince George’s 8. Education: Successes Of The Previous School Year Are Indicators For 2024

10. Profile: The Lead Carr: The Sheriff’s Story And Vision 12. Profile: Support for Military Spouses And Families 15. Profile: Maryland’s Year Of The Veteran: Gov. Moore’s 2024 Proclamation 16. Feature: Ahead Of The Game: NAI Michael Companies Is Setting The Bar For Sports Destination As South Lake Marketplace Plans To Come To Liberty Sports Park 24. Cover Story: Home Is Where The Wine Is 30. Sited: Useful Stories And More That Appear On pgsuite.com

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32. Travel: Gil Griffin Goes To The Beautiful, Peaceful World Of Sri Lanka 38. Health: Medstar Southern Maryland Hospital Center, Luminis Health Doctors Community Medical Center, UMD Capital Region Medical Center

42. Culture: Legendary Hank Aaron Stamp Unveiled, Negro League Honored At Baysox Stadium

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A Higher Grade Prince George’s Public Schools Have A Promising Year Ahead Dr. Charoscar Coleman, Chief Operating Officer for Prince George’s County Public Schools, gave a presentation of the successes of the previous school year at the July meeting of the Greater Prince George’s Business Roundtable.

Charoscar Coleman: I'll be presenting school year 23-24 highlights on behalf of Superintendent Millard House II. The school system hosted a listen and learn community tour throughout the school district. This included a series of town hall events to gather feedback. Through four engagement events, we reached hundreds of people in person and nearly 20,000 online. The town halls allowed us to hear from students, parents, staff members across the county about the things that are working and the areas that we needed to look at for improvement. As a result, a number of improvement themes emerged.

The many points of information gathering have helped us to develop a roadmap that we'll be using as a point-by-point guide for our journey towards a stronger PGCPS. An Audit

The audit yielded several recommendations, and we are taking immediate action to implement solutions that we believe will have a significant impact. For the school year 24-25, upcoming school year, you can expect to see changes aimed at ensuring the safe, efficient, and punctual transportation of our students to and from school is improved. These changes include adjustments to bus assignments and stop locations, as well as the streamlining and standardization of school start and end times. We have also introduced an opt-out option for families who do not require transportation services.

Student safety

PGCPS implemented new safety tools for the 2023-24 school year, including a clear backpack policy for students in 9th through 12th grades. The school system also phased in security screening devices in all high schools, selected middle schools, and one pre-K-8 academy.

Hosted early in the school year, that forum was a call to action to parents and guardians on the vital role they play in the overall safety of our schools. In case you missed that conversation, it's available on demand via the PGCPS YouTube channel. Our primary work is around preparing students for college and career, and the military, and every walk of life.

Scholarship

We're extremely excited about the work of our scholars this past school year. Highlights from the school year that just passed, school year 2324, include results from the Maryland Comprehensive Assessment 8.

Program, or MCAP, for the 22-23 school year showed PGCPS students demonstrated growth overall in both English Language Arts, or ELA as we call it, and mathematics.

More than half of the 50 Maryland schools showing the greatest improvement in ELA are in Prince George's County, proof that our students are trending in the right direction. In ELA, students exceeded pre-pandemic performance across all grade levels, with Black and Hispanic students outperforming the state and scoring significantly higher than their peers across all other Maryland school districts.

English learners and those from economically disadvantaged families also outscored students with similar backgrounds across Maryland in ELA. In mathematics, PGCPS students saw improvement across all grade levels, with Black students demonstrating math proficiency at a rate similar to their peers across the state.

However, Black students from economically disadvantaged families scored higher than their counterparts in the rest of Maryland. The Maryland State Department of Education, or MSDE, report cards and star ratings for the school year 22-23 school year showed 72.4% of Prince George's County public schools received the three highest ratings, an increase from the previous year. Additionally, nearly 75% of PGCPS schools saw gains in academic achievement, including bright spots in elementary and middle school mathematics. 11 PGCPS high schools earned U.S. News rankings in the top 40% nationally, according to a new U.S. News & World Report Best High Schools List.

Recognized and Awarded

Public high schools that scored in the U.S. News rankings top 40% nationally gained eligibility to display a U.S. News Award badge.

PGCPS has received the EverFi Empowered Seal for the third consecutive year. Awarded to only 10% of U.S. school districts, the seal recognizes exemplary commitment to financial literacy, social-emotional learning, wellness, and career education through EverFi's digital programs. Special education. Originally slated for closure, Pointer Ridge Elementary School in the Bowie community will now play a vital role in addressing the needs of special education learners within the district.

Beginning with the 24-25 school year, the school will serve as a site for a regional autism program.

Get Technical

Our Career Technical Education, or CTE, programs are continuing to grow. Recent marketing efforts resulted in a more than 400% CTE program application increase from 920 in 2021 to 5,092 in 2023.

Crossland High School has transitioned to the Career and Technical Education, or CTE, hub for the southern area of the county, and is offering more than a dozen programs through which students can earn

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PHOTO: THOMAS STONE // COURTESY PGCPS

industry credentials, gain work experience through internships, job shadowing, and onthe-job training.

Students in the CTE programs may opt to enter the workforce upon graduating from high school, or they may matriculate to college or university. Finally, students in the Friendly High School Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps, or NJROTC, earned both 1st and 3rd place out of more than 1,500 teams on the 2020-21 season national academic exam.

This exam is taken by NJROTC units nationwide and recognizes academic achievement among units and individual cadets.

Historic school construction.

PGCPS opened the doors to six new state-ofthe-art schools for the 23-24 school year, underlining historic investments in modernizing rapidly aging school buildings and addressing growing enrollment. Known colloquially as the blueprint schools, they include four building replacements, Drew Freeman Middle School in Suitland, Hyattsville Middle School, Kenmore Middle School in Landover, Walker Mill Middle School in PRINCE GEORGE’S SUITE MAGAZINE

Capitol Heights and two new schools, Sonia Sotomayor Middle School at Adelphi and Colin L Powell Academy in Fort Washington.

Overall the schools provide capacity for 8,000 students.

Green School

PGCPS continues to lead the state in Maryland Green School certification, with four schools earning first-time certification and 47 schools being recertified. This raises the total number of green schools in our district to 150. PGCPS is also leading by example with new school construction projects. By ensuring that new blueprint schools are LEED certified, the district is demonstrating a commitment to energy efficiency and environmental responsibility from the ground up.

All six blueprint phase one schools were designed and constructed to be LEED silver equivalent and the district will take further steps by installing solar panels on school buildings.

In our ongoing effort to reduce carbon emissions, PGCPS has electric school buses slated to roll out in the 24-25 school year.

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AI & Technology

With technology, PGCPS announced a groundbreaking three-year partnership with the AI education project to ensure that all students, teachers, staff and school leaders are equipped to thrive in the age of artificial intelligence. In addition, we have introduced a district-wide AI framework. Finally, a new student information system will be introduced school year 24-25 which will contain a new parent view module to enhance home school communication and information sharing.

Other good news.

PGCPS has more than 80 MOUs and community partnerships. We have more than 13,000 approved volunteers and we introduced new hazel health virtual doctor's appointments and teletherapy, that is a free service for our families and our students.

PGCPS class of 2024 graduates received 18,366 acceptances to post-secondary programs.

The Excellence in Education Foundation awarded $325,000 in scholarships this year alone to 60 class of 2024 graduates.

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The Lead Carr

County Sheriff John Carr Sets New Tone

By Maria Bellos Fisher

PHOTOGRAPHY BY LLOYD JEREMIAH

Suitland-Clinton son John D. B. Carr wears the top badge at the Prince George’s County Sheriff ’s Office. A separate agency from the Police, the Sheriff ’s Office handles domestic violence, warrants, child support, landlord/tenant issues, prisoner transport, courthouse security and mental health crises.

Carr’s served as the top sheriff since December 2022. Early on, Carr wanted to be an attorney, but after earning his bachelor’s degree in criminology at the University of Maryland, he worked at a D.C. civil law firm and quickly realized it wasn’t his path. “I wanted to be more hands-on,” he explained. “I started my career at the Prince George’s Sheriff ’s Office and seeing what we do – impacting lives – I’ve been hooked ever since.”

Driven to serve, Carr joined the Sheriff ’s Office in 2002, when cur-

rent-State Senator Michael A. Jackson was running for sheriff. Jackson reminisced, “Two deputies walked through the door that day and I thought ‘One of those two is going to be sheriff of this county.’”

Jackson remained engaged with Carr throughout his career. He knew he’d be a star.

Carr recounted, “I’m one of few who’ve gone through every unit and every rank in the Sheriff ’s Office before becoming Sheriff.”

Carr’s vision for the Sheriff ’s Office is built on four pillars: eradicate domestic violence in Prince George’s County; highlight mental health issues; arrest youth violence and protect seniors.

The Sheriff combats domestic violence by connecting people with resources and information. The Office serves about 2,000 orders each month and is working with the Family Justice Center to provide resources. Deputies also connect families to faith community outreach 10.

programs, tell people what to do if they witness violence and teach children about healthy relationships.

To address the unique challenges of serving mental health petitions, Carr created a behavioral crisis unit. Mental health crises can be dangerous to deputies as well as sufferers. In 30 years, the only two deputies the Office lost were serving a mental health petition.

Carr’s office holds biweekly meetings with mental health nonprofits iMind Behavioral Health, 988 – The Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and the National Alliance of Mental Illness as well as local hospitals, to better serve the mental health community. Carr laments that Maryland lacks a long-term mental health facility. “That’s huge,” he said. His office also partners with mental health court judges to solve problems. “The more partnerships we have, the better off we are,” he said.

Sheriff Carr also recognizes the struggles his deputies face. “The behavioral unit is tough. It focuses on people with court orders to get back to the hospital. We develop relations with the individual and the family.

“We provide top notch training. We pay attention to deputies’ wellbeing. We take care of them mentally and physically. They have mental health care and training. They need a good work/life balance. They’re human too. Whatever happens, they go through their own personal issues in life. We have a responsibility in the agency to take care of them.” Carr explained.

Sheriff Carr’s proactive nature doesn’t end at mental health. The Sheriff ’s office teaches classes at nine middle schools, hoping to expand the program county-wide. The classes cover life issues, helping kids to find personal rules to follow through middle school, high school and possibly the deputy cadet program. Deputies cover employment, STEM, domestic violence, social issues, and self-esteem and character development.

For senior citizens, the Sheriff ’s Office assists fraud victims. Typical swindles start with a call saying the senior’s loved one has a warrant or is incarcerated and the caller requests money or sometimes a gift card.

Seniors can also get phones from the Sheriff ’s Office to help them to age gracefully in Prince George’s County.

Carr’s “think big” strategies come from his parents. His mother, Joyce Turner, told PGS, “He’s got a strong will. If he believes in something he’ll fight for it; stand up for it. He won’t shy away. He puts himself out there.“ Given the strides he’s making, Prince George’s County is fortunate that he’s put himself out there for us.

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11.

Making It Work On Military Terms Overcoming The Complicated Process Of Aiding Relocating Military Spouses With Employment Certifications And More

By Kristina Townsend

For most Americans, moving from one state to another to start a new job is often a hassle.

But it can be exponentially worse for the country’s estimated 130,000 spouses and life partners of active duty military members working in professions requiring licensing that varies from one state to another.

Because of a lack of national standard for qualifications for work in myriad fields, from teaching, childcare, real estate and cosmetology, to construction, medicine, and mortuary science, and because active duty military personnel routinely move interstate, spouses and partners may face financial hardships once they resettle. In a worst case scenario, this dilemma potentially impacts up to 12 million current American active duty military spouses and partners, worldwide.

“They are essential to the readiness of our fighting force,” says Col. Todd Randolph of military spouses. Col. Randolph recently completed his tour of duty as the commander at Joint Base Andrews. “Our military spouses, they are the hub that takes care of our housing dynamics. They help with our education of our kids. We need to work to make sure that our spouses have opportunities for employment when they go from state Col. Todd Randolph to state and county to county. We need child care that is affordable for our service members and their families, and we need to make sure that they're able to have access to health care anywhere and everywhere. Our spouses help make sure those five pillars are always met for our military families, and we couldn't have the readiness at the level we need to defend America were it not for the spouses and all they do.

With Joint Base Andrews-Naval Air Facility being a longtime Prince George’s County institution, this snafu hits close to home. Retired U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. E. John “Dragon” Teichert deems it a national security issue.

“There are many states, including Maryland,” Teichert says, “where we have shortages of nurses and teachers and other positions, and now because of the rules in those states, these military spouses that could immediately add benefit to their communities, cannot do so because they’ve got to go through this long, drawn-out, expensive process to be able to do the job that they had just been doing in another state. If people decide to M.H. Jim Estepp get out of the military because of this issue, we’re losing skilled and talented military members.”

M.H. Jim Estepp is founder and chair of the Andrews Business & Community Alliance (a subsidiary of the Greater Prince George’s Business Roundtable). The Alliance is “a means to aid in impacting the lives of the men and women who serve our nation in the United States Air Force and all of our Armed Services.” As such, the issues military spouses have faced are an important aspect of the Alliance’s agenda.

“In 2018, the Chief of Staff of the Air Force met with his Civic Leader Group, and we were told the results of a service-wide survey which made very clear that the greatest concerns of servicemembers and their families were education and spousal employment,” Estepp says.

“Through research, we learned that Maryland did not have sufficient license reciprocity for military spouses,” he continued. “Andrews Business & Community Alliance leadership sat down with then-Senate

Dragon Brings The Boom!

Teichert Pens Amazon Bestseller Applying Career Observations To Life Goals, Success This September 2019 Chuck Yeager picture includes John and Melonie Teichert. It was taken on the 75th anniversary of the United States Air Force Test Pilot School.

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Likened to U.S. Air Force Pilot Chuck Yeager, the first person to break the sound barrier by flying the Bell X-1 rocket in October 1947, the Amazon bestseller, BOOM! demonstrates the need for the innovation to look beyond just great ideas to keep up with this ever-changing world. Written by retired Brigadier General John “Dragon” Teichert, BOOM! SUMMER/FALL 2024

encourages professionals every industry-science, math, technology, medicine, the military, etc–to imagine the unimaginable, to push the envelope of ideas that will improve lives.

Teichert and his wife, Dr Melonie Teichert, are now Maryland residents.

PRINCE GEORGE’S SUITE MAGAZINE

President Mike Miller in October of that year in an effort to bring the matter to light, and, in January of 2019, with the help of Senator Melony Griffith, we engaged in bringing some measure of reciprocity to the state.”

Over the next two years, the Alliance engaged the Maryland Senate on several occasions to address the issue.

“Every year since, the state has made strides, and expanded compact agreements with other states, and healthcare and teaching reciprocity is beginning to turn the corner to provide greater ease across the board for families coming to Joint Base Andrews and other state military operations,” Estepp says. “There’s still more work to do, but we’ll be there, working with our Air Force and state partners to ensure the process moves forward.”

While the war on state-to-state bureaucratic red tape hasn’t yet been completely won, military families have won a string of battles through new federal initiatives or legislation and with the rigorous efforts of a North Carolina-based nonprofit organization.

In June, U.S. Senators Jon Ossoff (D.-Ga.) and Lisa Murkowski (R.-Alaska) were pushing to pass their co-sponsored, bipartisan READINESS Act, which would help military spouses with federal jobs keep them when their partner gets relocated or help them find similar employment near their new bases.

Earlier in 2024, Congress approved a provision to the bipartisan, 2023 Military Spouse Licensing Relief Act — amending the 2003 Servicemembers Civil Relief Act — simplifying the process for military spouses and partners and active duty military to transfer professional credentials from one state to another, and in some cases, remotely perform work they’re licensed to do.

The legislative victories come more than eight years after the work started by Instant Teams, a nonprofit North Carolina-based employment organization that partners with state and national businesses in different locations to help connect military families to job opportunities — many of them remote — and increases access to various services.

“There are many challenges in relocating military spouses when it comes to relocation and career progression and job security,” says Erica McMannes, a retired military spouse who in 2016 co-founded Instant Teams with active PRINCE GEORGE’S SUITE MAGAZINE

Brig. Gen. (ret) John Teichert and wife Dr. Melonie Teichert

duty military spouse Liza Rodewald. “Most of those challenges come down to access to employment in the new location.”

McMannes — who before co-founding SUMMER/FALL 2024

Instant Teams, worked in Silicon Valley, California as a consultant to veteran-owned, startup businesses — says upwards of 800,000 active duty military families living in 13.

Instant Teams has helped relocated military spouses and partners earn about $40 million through positions they’ve found with various employers.

Erica McMannes, a retired military spouse co-founded Instant Teams with active duty military spouse Liza Rodewald in 2016

the United States are living without dual income, possibly brought about by the bureaucratic red tape associated with licensing transferability involved in state-to-state moves “That’s a pretty substantial number of families who, without dual income security, might be struggling financially. They might have challenges in building savings and wealth and children’s education. They also have to adapt; they have to assimilate into new cultures and new communities. It’s a multilayered issue.”

Inc. magazine ranked Instant Teams as No. 208 on its 2022 Inc. 5000 fastest growing companies list. McMannes says Instant Teams has helped relocated military spouses and partners earn about $40 million through positions they’ve found with various employers, since their

interstate relocations. Last year, Instant Teams created a free, online “digital community” called Twelve Million Plus, serving any and all active duty U.S. military spouses.

Instant Teams, McMannes says, “walks military spouses and families through challenges with high-problem-solving skills and empathy.”

Still, challenges with interstate professional license portability for military families, persist. Individual state legislatures may have different interpretations of parts of the Military Spouse Licensing Relief Act. Lawsuits from military families, which spurred legal changes, continue to keep state courts busy. Not all state institutions have made conditions easier for military couples and their children when it comes to the civilian parts of their lives.

Children of military families who move interstate — especially in the middle of an academic year — sometimes face difficulties in transferring their credits between public school systems. While some public school districts have been supportive of the children of inbound military families, not all are. Some schools aren’t equipped to meet students’ needs adjusting to varied curriculum, or joining athletic teams or academic clubs, leading to possible exclusion from extra-curricular activities. That greatly affects children’s social development and self-esteem.

But even as the struggles of moving military families continue, McMannes celebrates the successes, but presses on as an erstwhile advocate, knowing more work remains.

“The reward of people succeeding every day,” she says, “is what gets me out of bed in the morning.”

Additional reporting by Raoul Dennis and Gil Griffin Spouses and partners of active duty military personnel, or active duty military personnel facing difficulties with transferring interstate professional accreditation or needing assistance or support with employment and educational opportunities may visit instantteams.com for more information.

Greater Prince George’s Business Roundtable

Quality of Life Index

bizroundtable.org/quality-of-life-index

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Maryland’s Year Of The Veteran New Legislative Acts Prioritize Maryland’s Military Families Two tremendous changes have taken place within the Moore-Miller Administration and at the Maryland Department of Veteran’s Affairs 1. Governor Wes Moore recently announced

a legislative package designed to support the state’s service members, families, caregivers, and survivors. The first legislative announcement by the Moore-Miller administration for the 2024 legislative session includes the Families Serve Act–encouraging preferential hiring for active-duty military spouses by both private sector employees and state government–and the Time To Serve Act, granting paid military leave to members of the National Guard or Reserves. “Before I deployed to Afghanistan, I thought military service was toughest on our soldiers. After I deployed, I realized it was toughest on our families,” said Gov. Moore.

Senator Dawn Gile (District 33), with the Governor’s support, also unveiled a bill to change the Maryland Department of Veterans Affairs to the Maryland Department of Veterans and Military Families. Moore has PRINCE GEORGE’S SUITE MAGAZINE

declared 2024 the year for military families.

“Our military families sacrifice everything so their loved ones can serve,” says Moore. “They are just as much a part of the American story as those in the armed forces.”

2. The Maryland Department of Veterans

Affairs has a new name. Secretary Anthony Woods announced the Maryland Department of Veterans Affairs has officially changed its name to the Department of Veterans and Military Families.

Members of this broader military-connected community play an important role in ensuring the well-being of our service members and veterans and are similarly eligible for earned benefits and resources.

The Departmental name change resulted from legislation, SB0411 and HB0431, championed by Senator Dawn Gile and Delegate Andrew Pruski. Governor Moore signed the bills into law on April 9, 2024. The legislation renames the Department and mandates the appointment of a Deputy Secretary of Military Family Policy and Programs, who will be responsible for overseeing agency strategy, policy, and initiatives to respond to the SUMMER/FALL 2024

unique needs of our military and veteran families.

“Since the founding of the Department in 1999, military families have always been

The legislation renames the department and mandates the appointment of a Deputy Secretary of Military Family Policy and Programs included in our mission statement,” said Woods. “Changing our name better reflects our mission and serves as an important reminder that military families - including dependents, veteran caregivers, and survivors play a vital role in service to the nation and they have an advocate in our Department to support them through life’s transitions.”

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Ahead

Lib L

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d Of The Game

berty Sports Park And South Lake Marketplace Set The Bar

By Maria Bellos Fisher PHOTOGRAPHY BY LLOYD JEREMIAH

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By Maria Bellos Fisher PHOTOGRAPHY BY LLOYD JEREMIAH Liberty Sports Park, a premier athletic complex for youth and adult

sports, is one of the hottest new destinations in Prince George’s County. The facility, composed of 10 floodlit sports fields, both turf and grass, hosts tournaments every weekend, from February through Thanksgiving, averaging about 30 tournaments each year.

Since it opened in 2021, Liberty has grown to host teams for practice, camp and tournaments. “We host between 100 and 300 games per weekend,” Scott Morrison, Liberty Sports Park president, told PGS. Most of the tournaments at Liberty are adult or youth soccer and lacrosse, but the fields are also used for football, field hockey, ultimate frisbee and rugby. Liberty is considering adding additional fields on its property.

The sports venue is constantly adding improvements to the facility despite the fact that it has been open for less than five years.

“As we look forward to the upcoming year, we are excited to unveil our plans for 2024-25, which encompass several key initiatives aimed at enhancing the Park’s facilities and amenities,” says Chairman Green Branch Foundation - Liberty Sports Park Chairman Tom Graham.

Among those additions is a new parking lot.

“To better accommodate the growing number of visitors to Graham Liberty Sports Park, we will be constructing an additional parking lot, providing increased accessibility for patrons,” Graham says.

He added: “In line with our commitment to sustainability, we will be adding solar canopies to the park's parking areas. These canopies will not only provide shade for vehicles but also generate clean energy, reducing our carbon footprint.”

Maryland United FC is now partnered with the facility—expanding the strength of the Liberty Sports Park experience.

“We are thrilled to announce the groundbreaking of the South Lake Marketplace, a new adjacent retail addition that will bring exciting food options to patrons in the live, work, and play South Lake Community. This marketplace will serve as a vibrant gathering place for residents and visitors, enriching the community experience,”Graham explains.

Liberty is adjacent to the South Lake Marketplace in Bowie. The development’s public spaces are “curated to complement Liberty Sports Park,” said Gary Michael, president of NAI Michael Companies, the South Lake developer. The plan includes an indoor sports facility on South Lake’s property beside a gym that will feature sports CONTINUED ON PAGE 22 18.

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The facility is averaging 30 tournaments each year.

We host between 100 and 300 games per weekend,” says Scott Morrison, Liberty Sports Park President Scott Morrison, Liberty Sports Park President

Liberty Sports Park Schedule www.libertysportspark.com 20.

•September 28th and 29th – Maryland Lacrosse League Tournament, 10 a.m. start time •October 2nd – Legacy Sports Kickball Games, 8 p.m. to 11 p.m.

•October 5th and 6th − Annual DMV Soccer Tournament, 9:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.

•October 9th and 16th – Legacy Sports Kickball Games, 8 p.m. to 11 p.m.

•October 19th and 20th − Next Level Lacrosse Tournament, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday •November 2nd and 3rd – Red and White Lacrosse Terrapin Fall Classic, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Sunday •November 9th and 10th – Next Level Lacrosse Tournament, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday •November 23rd and 24th – Bethesda Soccer, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday SUMMER/FALL 2024

PRINCE GEORGE’S SUITE MAGAZINE

The Making Of A Sports Vacation Destination New Retail Brands, Opportunities Are Coming To South Lake Marketplace

By Maria Fisher South Lake Marketplace and Liberty Sports Park are part of a $1.3 billion grand design. South Lake’s 600,000-square-foot mix of shops, restaurants and hotels will be anchored by a Giant Food store. convenient to the development’s housing, is carefully curated to benefit sports fans and residents.

The 1,360-household residential development consisting of single-family homes and townhouse condos is a project of Owings Mills-based Chesapeake Realty Partners.

Residential amenities include a PRINCE GEORGE’S SUITE MAGAZINE

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Home 2 Suites by Hilton will be one of the hotels anchored at South Lake Marketplace helping to make it a national destination location in years to come.

Gary Michael

Doyle Mitchell

swimming pool, dog park, wooded trails, a clubhouse and the convenience of onsite retail and entertainment.

“South Lake is more than a mixed-use development – it’s a true sports destination,” Lanham developer NAI Michael President Gary Michael told citybiz. “With Liberty Sports Park hosting major events year-round, South Lake Marketplace will give traveling athletes and families convenient lodging, dining, shopping, and entertainment steps from the fields. No

Tom Graham

Lance London

other development integrates at this level with a high-profile sports complex, which will continually drive customers to South Lake Marketplace.”

So far, in addition to Giant Food, South Lake has signed Panda Express, Panera Bread, Tropical Smoothie Café, Ma Pearl’s Louisiana Grill, McDonald’s, Sheetz, N’Style Hair Grooming, AJA BLU Salon and Spa, L. London’s Fine Wine & Spirits, Home 2 Suites

by Hilton and Residence Inn by Marriot,

Dennis Brownlee

Angie Rodgers

according to South Lake’s website.

South Lake sits in the Baltimore/Washington Corridor at the intersection of U.S. 301 and Maryland Route 214, easily accessible to Route 50, I-495 (the Capitol Beltway) and I-95, facilitating commutes to Washington, D.C., Baltimore and Annapolis for residents and quick passage for Liberty Sports Park visitors and shoppers.

Liberty Sports Park Will Become A Premiere Sports Destination On The East Coast Continued From Page 18

performance training.

South Lake will be a mixed-use area, with homes, hotels and a town center. When completed, visitors to Liberty Sports Park will be able to stay, eat and play at South Lake, making the venue a unique “sports vacation” destination.

South Lake’s first phase of retail businesses are slated to open at the end of 2024. Construction of the first hotel should begin this summer. Many South Lake homes are complete but part of the property is still under construction.

Visitors are flocking to Liberty from all over the DMV, but many migrate from states throughout the U.S. as well as parts of Canada, Morrison said. Spectators can pull up a chair at the fields and take in a game or tournament – the vast majority are free – and if they get hungry, during larger tournaments, food trucks offer dining options.

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It’s time to speak up, reach out and break the stigma about mental health.

Luminis Health’s new behavioral health pavilion on the campus of Doctors Community Medical Center in Lanham provides support for ages 4 and up. No matter what you’re dealing with, we’re here to help.

Our services include: • A behavioral health walk-in urgent care for ages 4 and up • Outpatient therapy and medication management • A partial hospitalization day program • Substance use assessment • Inpatient psychiatric services

Learn more at Luminis.Health/BehavioralHealthLanham 8200 Good Luck Road, Lanham, MD 20706 240-757-1381

Luminis Health (formerly Anne Arundel Health System) is a nonprofit health system providing care for 1.5 million people in Anne Arundel County, Prince George’s County, the Eastern Shore, and beyond. Our system encompasses nearly 100 sites of care, including Luminis Health Anne Arundel Medical Center, J. Kent McNew Family Medical Center and Pathways in Annapolis, as well as Luminis Health Doctors Community Medical Center and Doctors Community Rehabilitation and Patient Care Center in Lanham.

Home IsWher

Story And Photography By Maria Bellos Fisher

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reTheWine Is PRINCE GEORGE’S SUITE MAGAZINE

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The Nectar Of The Ancient World Today Has Budding Vineyards And Pathways Coursing Through Maryland And Prince George’s.

It’s A Journey Just Outside The Door And Worth Taking.

Story And Photography By Maria Fisher Winemaking is relatively new to Prince George’s and local wine-

makers produce some excellent wines. They’re growing their grapes in the soil that nurtured tobacco for hundreds of years. We visited Prince George’s four vineyards, in the Brandywine area, to learn about their wines.

Two Lions Vineyards follows the old-world European winemaking style. “It leans much more French than California style,” vintner Callie Hankey explained. “If I’m making really good base wine, with great grapes, anything I do to the wine after that should be to complement it, not overpower it. You don’t need to add sugar. It doesn’t need to be overlooked.

We age everything in neutral French oak. It takes time – three years from the first harvest, then it needs to sit for a year and a half. The second-year open is usually your coming-out party as a winemaker,” she said.

Asked about fan favorites, Hankey said, “Our bestselling white is ‘Cuvée 382.’ We sold out of it in three months. It’s kind of a trifecta. High acidity, a little carbonation, a little bit of sugar, balanced. We call it ‘The Great Uniter’ because people who like sweet wine like it; people who like dry wine like it.”

Two Lions’ bourbon-barrel-aged “The Lions Share” is its bestselling red, but Hinkley believes that “The Saintly Lion” is the best wine she’s made to date. “It’s a Right Bank-inspired Saint-Émilion blend. The cabernet and merlot work beautifully together.”

Rosa Harris, of Laurel, was enjoying a white flight at Two Lions. She told us her favorites are “Cuvée 382” and the strawberry-basil sangria Two Lions mixes for visitors.

Customer Jennifer Lankford and Krystil Callison, of Lusby, love 26.

“The Lion’s Share.” They said that aging the wine in Buffalo Trace bourbon barrels took the wine to “the next level.”

Jane Vogt, vintner at Janemark Winery & Vineyard, also follows the European winemaking method. Her favorite wine, “Aviation” – a dry red Bordeaux blend – is her best seller.

“With this one, you’re going to get a lot of cherries, chocolate. Very smooth tannins. It’s a blend of cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, merlot, and malbec. I spend a lot of time blending it to make sure I have the right percentages of those grapes in there. [It’s got] a really great mouth feel. It’s ready to drink. You don’t have to lay it down for 10 years to get the tannins to settle down on it,” she told Prince George’s Suite.

“Our vidal blanc is our second best-selling wine, aged in stainless steel,” Vogt said. “Customers also love the way I make my chardonnay, and I did the petit manseng the same way. We use new barrels for those wines because I like a lot of oak influence and then we aged it sur lie - on the yeast - you stir it up every couple of weeks. It gives it that really nice creamy-velvety texture on your mouth, which is so yummy.”

“We have a huge variety of wines,” Vogt continued. “We want to introduce something for every palate. Our dessert wine is another one that sells very well - Sweet Heidi.”

Chris Endres, of Baltimore City, visiting Janemark for the third time, loves “Aviation.” “It’s dry but soft, in the sense that a Cabernet is dry but bold. It would go with salmon or chicken,” he told Prince George’s Suite. “It’s got a fruitiness that’s unusual for a cabernet sauvignon blend. I don’t like sweet at all and I could keep drinking this all day.”

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Gemeny Winery and Vineyards follows the Italian winemaking style, co-owner William Livingston explained. “We’re not so focused on stylizing like California. We do very little oaking, so the majority of our wines are what we refer to as naked. They’re not over-oaked. It lets the vibrancy and the fruit notes come out a lot easier than an oaked wine.

“We have several different wines. In our whites categories, we have everything from vidal blanc, pinot gris and a steel chardonnay.

“We specialize in traminette. It’s an American/French hybrid - the Americanized gewürztraminer. We have two different styles - a straight up traminette and a blend.”

Gemeny’s reds include merlot, cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, PRINCE GEORGE’S SUITE MAGAZINE

pinot noir and zinfandel. “Probably our biggest sellers would be everything from our vidal blanc to chardonnay and merlot to zinfandel,” Livingston said. Gemeny has sweet wines as well.

Livingston described Gemeny’s wines. “Our vidal blanc is crisp, clean, very light - a neutral wine - has a citrusy finish to it. Our Merlot is dry, but fruity - very, very light for merlot. It’s un-oaked, so It’s virtually a white wine that’s pretending to be a red. And then our zinfandel, which is probably our heaviest seller in the oak category, is robust, vibrant with a hint of smoky whiskey, almost like a bourbon.”

Catie Sullivan, of Dunkirk, loves Gemeny’s vidal blanc. “I love it here,” she said. “It’s my first time here after COVID. I like that they still talk to you while you’re tasting.” During the COVID crisis, many wineries

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The Romano family include Jo-ann and Joe Romano (far right) their children and grandchildren. The Romanos launched their award winning vineyard and winery in 2007. It’s based in Brandywine, MD

So many wines and plenty of time.

changed their tastings from staff-led at their bars to self-guided tastings at their tables.

Robin Hill Farm and Vineyards has a wide array of wines, from dry to dessert.

“Most of our consumers here, maybe 60 to 70 percent, are going to ask for a sweet wine, but we appreciate a dry wine as well, so we want to make sure that we have a nice balance of the dry and the sweet,” said Susan Watson White, co-owner.

“Our biggest selling wine is our ‘Home Sweet Home.’ It’s a dessert wine that tastes like 28.

blackberries and chocolate,” Watson said “We enter wine competitions so we can make sure our wine is doing well in the industry. All of our wines have won awards.” Robin Hill’s “Rooted” white wine has won many competitions including a best-in-class award.

Russell Labrie, a regular customer from Waldorf, likes Russell’s Reserve (no relation) because it’s a dry, bold red that goes well with cheese and beef – everything, he says. He and his wife Mana also like Legacy white, a semidry clean spring/summer wine. “It’s crisp and SUMMER/FALL 2024

refreshing – good with salad or salmon,” Mana said.

Although there are a handful of wineries in Prince George’s County, there are numerous wines to delight visitors. The nascent industry is growing, with another winery expected to open this year, and winemakers hope Prince George’s County will become a wine destination. Until then, Prince George’s residents can be the first to discover new wines in their own backyard.

PRINCE GEORGE’S SUITE MAGAZINE

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Prince George’s County Announces Renovated facility will expand access to mental health, behavioral health, and substance abuse service

“The Dyer Care Center represents a crucial step forward in our efforts to improve access to emergency behavioral health services for our residents,” said County Executive Angela Alsobrooks. It will be the first Crisis Stabilization Center In Maryland New Procurement Office

“This office will help foster transparency and efficiency in our procurement process every day while also providing a high-impact means to promote equity. Through the new Office of Procurement, we can support small, local, and minority-owned businesses, creating new opportunities for our residents to work in and improve the community where they live.”said County Executive Alsobrooks.

New Play Space For Pups

New Hyattsville Dog Park makes more space for doggos to bark in the park.

A new dog park is coming to the Columbia Park Kentland Community Center at 6432 Columbia Park Road in Hyattsville.

FAME Celebrates 20

County Sets Human Trafficking Law

Toni Lewis took her dream and decided to turn it into a reality on stage that would be a beacon of light for generations. FAME (Foundation for the Advancement of Music & Education) recently hosted its 20th Year Anniversary.

Prince George’s County Becomes First County in U.S. To Pass Groundbreaking Legislation Aimed at Combating Human Trafficking.

The county has taken a major step in combatting sex and labor trafficking with the passage of legislation that prohibits county contractors and subcontractors from engaging in sex and labor trafficking.

A New Approach To Fitness

Hotworx 24-Hour Infrared Fitness Studio Opens In Bowie Hotworx, billed as a 3D-training studio, combines heat, infrared energy and exercise to the platform. The studio held its grand opening August 3 in Bowie.

“Prince George’s County, with its significant Black population, faces a high rate of preventable illnesses. We believe Hotworx can play a crucial role in addressing these health challenges,” says Hotworx Owner Eric Watson.

County Students Win State Finals

Gabriel’s Law To Save Lives

Gabriel’s Law, officially known as the Public Safety - Wellness Checks - Requirements (Gabriel’s Law), was introduced by Delegate Jamila Woods in response to the inadequate jurisdictional policy that led to the loss of her son. The new law now has national implications.

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On June 8, the Maryland Chamber Foundation hosted the 3rd annual National Civics Bee: Maryland State Finals, sponsored

by Amazon and Comcast at Bowie State University.

Gianna S., an eighth grade homeschool student from Prince George’s County, emerged as the winner of the competition, earning the first-place trophy, a check for $1,000 and a brand-new laptop.

SUMMER/FALL 2024

Tracking Those Who Assault Women

Maryland Lets Sexual Assault Victims Keep Track Of Evidence Via Bar Code.

Maryland’s new statewide tracking system for sexual assault evidence represents a ray of hope, enabling survivors to monitor the data online.

Apple Sweetens Its Core In Maryland

Apple Has Reached Its First-Ever Union Contract With Store Employees In Maryland The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers’ Coalition of Organized Retail Employees, which represents the employees at a retail location in Maryland, announced Friday evening that it struck a three-year deal with the company that will increase pay by an average of 10% and offer other benefits to workers.

For more details on the story items go to www.pgsuite.com

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Destination Sri Lanka Story And Photography By Gil Griffin

GIL GRIFFIN // PRINCE GEORGE’S SUITE MAGAZINE & MEDIA

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Story And Photography By Gil Griffin

Elephants, it’s said, never forget.

Neither will my wife and I, after being farewelled by a young, 8,800pounder, nonchalantly strolling alongside our car, glancing at us, as we traveled south on a forested highway to Colombo, the Sri Lankan capital.

It’s saying goodbye, we first thought, about the week we’d spent in this idyllic, teardrop-shaped island. But a quick re-read of the gentle giant’s countenance revealed more of a wink and an unspoken, “Next time, y’all.”

Even before immigration officers at Colombo’s Bandaranaike International Airport desk could stamp our passports after arriving from Singapore, a slogan on a video screen flashed foreboding words: “Sri Lanka — You’ll Come Back For More.”

It took a while, though, for the country to offer that to outsiders.

“A brutal, inter-ethnic, quarter-century civil war — unsparingly chronicled by my former reporting colleague Jimmie Briggs, in his haunting 2005 nonfiction book, Innocents Lost: When Child Soldiers Go to War — which kept away potential visitors, mercifully ended in 2009. Two years ago, Sri Lankan author Shehan Karunatilaka reflected on the devastating, complex conflict in his devilishly comic, Booker Prize-winning, historical novel, The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida.

Since peace prevailed, irresistible Internet images beckoned.

They didn’t disappoint.

That shot of a passenger train traversing tea plantations, rice fields, and lush, green mountains? What a spectacular ride.

Those pics of Sigiriya, the UNESCO World Heritage Site — the ancient, stone-carved royal complex atop a rock seeming to teeter in the clouds?

Worth every steep step to its 1,150-foot summit.

The videos of scuba diving and snorkeling in the Laccadive Sea? We’ll let the turtles we saw tell the story.

The elephants weren’t the only stars of the safari we took through Udawalawe National Park, on the benched bed of a tricked-out pickup. Wild peacocks, toucans, crocodiles, monkeys, water buffaloes, and spotted deer made a great supporting cast.

Warning: First time visitors to Sri Lanka, which gained independence in 1948 — after centuries of Portuguese, Dutch, and British occupation — may revel in blissful sensory overload.

Feeling both the tropically humid sea air in palm-laden, southwest seaside towns Mirissa Beach and Weligama Bay and, surprisingly, chilly breezes in the central highlands alpine city, Nuwara Eliya, will do that.

So will tasting pungent dhal curry (spicy, coconut milk-infused, sauteed lentils) topping soft, foldable, fermented rice flour discs called string hoppers, and kiri pani — a creamy, cool dessert of buffalo milk curd generously drizzled with coconut honey, served in a clay pot.

Still, spending most of our time in Sri Lanka’s largely Sinhalese, Buddhist south and west, we haven’t seen the half. The north and east, with its Tamil, Hindu heritage now entices with its own imagery we’ve seen.

And like the elephants, we don’t forget.

We live to return another day. Soon.

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Luminis Health Doctors Community Medical Center U.S. News & World Report has named Luminis Health Doctors Community Medical Center as a 2024-2025 High Performing hospital. LHDCMC has achieved this prestigious distinction for excelling in four critical procedures and conditions: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Heart Failure, Pneumonia, and Stroke.

This is the highest distinction a hospital can earn for the U.S. News’ Best Hospitals Procedures & Conditions ratings.

U.S. News evaluated nearly 5,000 hospitals across 15 specialties and 20 procedures and conditions. Hospitals awarded “Best” designation excelled at factors such as clinical outcomes, level of nursing care and patient experience.

Stroke

Care

MedStar Southern Maryland Hospital Center MedStar Southern Maryland Hospital Center has received the American Heart Association’s Gold Plus Get With The Guidelines® - Stroke quality achievement award for its commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, researchbased guidelines, ultimately leading to more lives saved and reduced disability.

Stroke is the No. 5 cause of death and a leading cause of disability in the U.S. A stroke occurs

when a blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked by a clot or bursts. When that happens, part of the brain cannot get the blood and oxygen it needs, so brain cells die. Early stroke detection and treatment are key to improving survival, minimizing disability and accelerating recovery times.

UM Capital Region Medical Center

University of Maryland Capital Region Medical Center (UM Capital), a member of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), has been rated #1 in Maryland and among the top 10 percent in the nation for Stroke Care according to new research released by Healthgrades. UM Capital also received five-star recognition in Cardiac, Orthopedics, Pulmonary and Critical Care. passionate care. These recognitions are an outward showing of the work we con"This achievement reflects UM Capital’s dedication and tinually strive to provide and I could not be prouder.” commitment to providing excellent care in Prince George’s Healthgrades evaluates hospitals on patient outcomes to determine top-perCounty and the surrounding area,” said Nathaniel forming hospitals for specialty care in each of the 32 states assessed.

Richardson Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer of Healthgrades' 2024 analysis revealed that patients who seek care for a particular UM Capital Region Health. "We remain steadfast in our condition or procedure at a top-ranked hospital have a better chance of a good pursuit to bring our community high-quality, safe, and comoutcome.

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SEPTEMBER 26–29, 2024

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“Midgett Parker has been a consistent positive voice in the Prince George’s County Community for over 30 years.

A trustworthy and respected counselor of law in business and commercial real estate.”

–David C. Harrington, President & CEO, Prince George’s County Chamber of Commerce

Commercial Real Estate Acquisition, Land Use, and Zoning Law Business Entity Formation and Business Law Major Construction Projects, Contracts, and Financing

The Law Office Of

Midgett S. Parker, P.A. Midgett S. Parker, Jr. began the practice of law upon admittance to the Maryland Bar in 1985. He developed and refined his legal acumen in commercial real estate and business law in Prince George’s County and other local jurisdictions in Maryland while in private practice in large law firms in the Washington metropolitan region. In February of 2020, he opened the Law Office of Midgett S. Parker, P.A. Midgett has won numerous land use cases before local zoning officers, boards, commissions, and councils. On behalf of his clients he has worked with government officials at all levels of government on matters ranging from tax legislation to affordable housing and land use regulations. Midgett has the highest rating for strong legal ability and ethical standards (AV) in Martindale-Hubble peer review.

Midgett has developed a niche in representing commercial land owners, developers, houses of worship, and non-profit entities in all aspects of their real estate portfolio, development activities, and construction projects. In addition to land use, zoning, and real estate, he counsels clients on a broad range of issues from business concerns, financing, contract negotiations, and internal operations.

midgettparker-law.com 301-825-8600 5827 Allentown Road, Camp Springs, Maryland 20746 email: MidgettParker.Law@gmail.com PRINCE GEORGE’S SUITE MAGAZINE

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A Slice Of Baseball History, A Stamp Forever Legendary Hank Aaron Stamp, Negro League Honored At Baysox Stadium Story And Photography By Maria Fisher

make the major leagues.”

It all started when Dwayne Renal Sims visited Bowie’s National As animated stories filled Sims’ head, his serendipity revealed a higher Negro League store and met a baseball legend. Mamie “Peanut” purpose. “I was never into baseball. I’d never read about this in any Johnson, the first female pitcher to play baseball in the Negro Leagues, library until I was introduced to it in 2002. I started my journey after was minding the wares I met all those guys.” that day.

Sims created the Negro Unwelcome in the white League Legends Hall of women’s leagues during Fame, where he brings World War II, Johnson Negro League Baseball found a home in 1953 stories to life. The webregaling fans with trick site led to a book, pitches for the Scurlock “Negro Indianapolis Clowns, a Leagues,” filled with Harlem-GlobetrottersScurlock Studio’s phoesque comic team. tographs.

Enchanted by Johnson’s So when the 50th stories, Sims’ interest anniversary of (former spurred Johnson to introClown) Hank Aaron duce him to some of the breaking Babe Ruth’s Negro League’s players. home run record came Sims, who grew up in along (April 8, 1974), Prince George’s County, Sims wanted to do recalled, “She gave me something special. As it Kasim Amir Sims, Griffin F. Fritz, Violet K. Fritz, Founder and CEO of the Negro League Legends Hall of Frank’s (Evans) number Fame, Inc. Dwayne Sims, Artist Chuck Styles, USPS Mark Wahl representative of D.C., MD, VA ,Honorable turned out, so did the and Willie Mays’ address Aaron R. Rouse State Senator of Virginia.

U.S. Postal Service and introduced me to the (USPS). story. I didn’t realize there was the Negro National League, the Negro “Dwayne reached out about having the stamp dedication event in American League, the Eastern Colored League and the Negro Bowie. This was Perfect timing with the Hank Aaron stamp and for Southern League.”

Dwayne and his efforts with the Hall of Fame and I get goosebumps Magic sparked again when Sims and Frank Evans met. “He opened thinking about it,” Mark Wahl, USPS Strategic Communications up his heart and gave me a list of 50-plus Negro League players’ Specialist, told PGS. phone numbers. I met over 25 players in Montgomery, Mobile, On July 31, at the Atlanta Braves’ stadium, USPS released the first Birmingham, Huntsville, Atlanta. I felt privileged to hear great stories Hank Aaron stamp. Thirty million will be printed. On August 17, about riding in the car with Hank Aaron. Willie Mays was a 14-year- Prince George’s County celebrated that moment in philatelic and baseold kid on the field at the time. Charlie Pride was on the Birmingham ball history at the National Negro League Legends Hall of Fame Black Bears. It was great for (other players) to see Jackie Robinson CONTINUED ON PAGE 44 42.

SUMMER/FALL 2024

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FAME Celebrates 20 Years Of Music Toni Lewis took her dream and decided to

turn it into a reality on stage that would be a beacon of light for generations. Now, two decades later, her light is shining more brightly than ever.

FAME (Foundation for the Advancement of Music & Education) recently hosted its 20th Year Anniversary with a Gala and Awards Celebration at the University of Maryland’s Samuel Riggs IV Alumni Center.

Founded in 2004 by A. Toni Lewis, FAME's mission is to give every young musician the best opportunity to succeed by providing music training and academic support.

They believe that children, teens, and young adults should have access to quality music and education regardless of social and economic needs. The evening featured a special performance by The Chelsey Green Project and the FAME Jazz Ensemble. Attendees enjoyed music, awards, and entertainment celebrating the organization's journey over the

past two decades.

Four community leaders were honored: Enid Doggett - CEO and Founder of INSPR Media - Community & Nonprofit Champion Award Colonel James Paige - Executive Director of CCNA–Outstanding Community Partner Award Dr. Portia Barnes - Principal of Eleanor Roosevelt High School - Education Leader of the Year Award Benjamin McKnight - Music Chair of The Andrew Jackson Academy - Outstanding Educator Award. ”This event showcases the contributions of four notable leaders who have significantly impacted our community," said Greg Wells, FAME board member and event chair. "Our esteemed honorees have done impactful work throughout their stellar careers worth celebrating and emulating."

This year, FAME supported 1,200 middle and high school youth in the Greater Washington Region for college and career through its three main programs: Music Is Central Program, Summer Music Program, and the FAME Jazz Band Program. They are strategically located across Prince George’s County to serve all youth: University of Maryland School of Music (north), Dr. Henry Wise High School (central), Harmony Hall Arts Center (south), and The Andrew Jackson Academy (south).

Hank Aaron Forever Stamp Unveiled At Bowie Stadium CONTINUED FROM PAGE 42

Photo Left: NLLHOF East player Sterling Swann, NLLHOF Angela Y. King, Dwayne Simms, NLLHOF Evelena Swadley, NLLHOF West player Josh Jacks

Photo Below: Renal (left) with National President of ESPER Howard Ingram, Jay Quander owner of 1799 restaurant, USPS Mark Wahl representative of D.C., MD, VA PHOTO: TENECIA INGRAM

East/West All-Star Vintage Baseball game at the ballpark in Bowie.

The event featured a stamp dedication at 10 a.m., with stamps for sale and a pictorial Bowie Ball Park postal cancellation in honor of the event. The game was scheduled to follow, starring minor league Baseball, Chesapeake Independent League, Tri-State Leagues, collegiate and 2023-24 high school PRINCE GEORGE’S SUITE MAGAZINE

graduate players, sporting vintage uniforms and representing the diversity of the early 20th century leagues. Due to heat temparatures, the game was postponed until September 1. To learn more about the game, the stamp and the National Negro League Legends Hall of Fame, go to https://nllhof.org/.

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