The City of Gaithersburg is collecting classroom supplies including Sharpies, Post-Its, decor & more to distribute to local teachers. Donations can be dropped off at the Activity Center at Bohrer Park now through October 19. Additional information available in the flyer below:
The Powerball drawing scheduled to take place tonight, Monday, September 25, has an estimated jackpot of $785 million, with an estimated cash option of $367 million. Powerball drawings take place every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday at 10:59 p.m. The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million. The odds of winning a prize are 1 in 24.9. Additional details below courtesy of Powerball:
“The Powerball jackpot now stands at an estimated $785 million for the next drawing on Monday night. The jackpot has a cash value of $367 million. The jackpot currently ranks as the game’s fourth-largest prize – only behind three grand prizes that reached the billion-dollar mark:
The Fall Makers Market will take place on Saturday, September 30th from10:00 am – 4:00 pm. “Join us for the Fall Makers Market on Saturday, September 30, from 10 am – 4 pm along Ellsworth Drive between Georgia Avenue and Fenton Street!”
Kick off fall, grab a latte, and get a jump on holiday shopping with unique and handmade products from local artisans at the Pop Up Makers Market. Shop handmade products from more than 35 local artisans. Enjoy live music and plenty of outdoor dining options.
Montgomery County, MD is commonly known as being a suburb of the nation’s capital, but what might surprise some is that it is also home to a thriving biotech ecosystem. With over 350 life sciences companies, including global brands like AstraZeneca, United Therapeutics, and Novavax, Montgomery County anchors the third largest biophama hub in the U.S., behind only Boston and San Francisco.
Running annually in Washington D.C. for over 25 years, World Vaccine Congress attracts an international audience from over 80 countries and convenes more than 3,000 people to learn about the latest trends, research, and technologies in the vaccine industry. This year, Montgomery County took center stage, with a featured session on the extensive Biologics Value Chain in the County, as well as a session during which County Executive Marc Elrich spoke about the extensive resources available to companies here, and an exhibit space showcasing these resources.
A Complete Biologics Value Chain in One Region
One of the defining strengths of Montgomery County is its ability to support the full lifecycle of biologics, all the way from early research to large-scale manufacturing. During the panel discussion, moderated by Dr. Stefanie Trop, Director of Life Sciences at the Maryland Department of Commerce, local leaders emphasized that the region’s strength lies in its network of partners who work collaboratively across discovery, development, testing, and production. Panelists from companies in all stages of the value chain spectrum included Dr. Andrew Lees, Founder of Fina Biosolutions, Benjamin Moutier, Senior Vice-President, Vaccines and Immune Therapies at AstraZeneca, Dr. Helen Sabzevari President & CEO of Precigen, and Dr. Frederick Holtsberg, Chief Scientific Officer of Integrated BioTherapeutics.
This end-to-end capability in close geographical proximity gives companies a unique advantage and is rare to find in other markets, even established ones like San Francisco and Boston. In fact, only a handful of places worldwide offer the combination of infrastructure, expertise, and collaboration found in Montgomery County and if diversity, education and population density are taken into consideration – then Montgomery County standouts even more.
“Gaithersburg is one of the six places in the world where we can do what we’re doing,” explained Benjamin Moutier, Senior Vice-President, Vaccines and Immune Therapies, AstraZeneca. “We have the right partners at every step of the value chain [in Montgomery County].”
A Strong Partnership Network
Biotech breakthroughs rarely happen in isolation. They depend on strong partnerships between private companies, local and state governments, academic institutions, and workforce training organizations. Montgomery County has intentionally cultivated these connections, making collaboration and coordination defining characteristics of its life sciences ecosystem.
Dr. Frederick Holtsberg, Chief Scientific Officer at IBT Bioservices, a full service CRO offering clinical & preclinical contract research services, says the company’s close partnerships between them and local stakeholders have been crucial to its success. “As a Rockville-based company, we’re grateful for the partnership and support from city, County, and state leaders,” explained Dr. Holtsberg. “These programs have helped fuel our growth, and we’re excited about the continued momentum of our community.” (more…)
The 42nd annual Takoma Park Street Festival will take place on Sunday, October 1st, 2023 from 10:00 am – 5:00 pm and once again will fill the streets of Takoma Park with music, artists and makers, community groups, green companies and great food.
Music: The free event celebrates local music with 18 performances on 3 stages, with a mix of soul, funk, roots rock, blues, swamp funk, folk, working girl blues and new grass, and more.
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After shredding, stick around to enjoy:
Dogfish Head Alehouse has announced it will be closing its Fairfax location later this year, according to a post on its social media. The restaurant, which will only have its Gaithersburg location left (800 W Diamond Ave), has decided not to renew its lease at the Greenbrier Town Center in Fairfax (13041 Lee Jackson Memorial Highway).
Dogfish Head Alehouse, which is owned and operated independent from the Dogfish Head brewery in Milton, DE through a licensing agreement, recently closed its Falls Church, VA location at 6220 Leesburg Pike in the Seven Corners Shopping Center. The Gaithersburg location will remain open. The message left on social media can be seen below:
Per the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Columbia: A government contractor is charged by criminal complaint, unsealed today, with espionage. Abraham Teklu Lemma, 50, a naturalized U.S. citizen of Ethiopian descent living in Silver Spring, Maryland, is charged with gathering or delivering national defense information to aid a foreign government; conspiracy to gather or deliver national defense information to aid a foreign government; and having unauthorized possession of national defense information and willfully retaining it.
Lemma worked as an IT administrator for the Department of State, and as a Management Analyst for the Department of Justice. In those positions, Lemma was granted a TOP SECRET security clearance and granted access to classified systems. According to the criminal complaint, between December 19, 2022, and August 7, 2023, Lemma copied classified information from Intelligence Reports and deleted the classification markings from them. Lemma then removed the information, which was classified as SECRET and TOP SECRET, from secure facilities at the Department of State against protocol. The materials related to a specific country and/or geographic region. Lemma accessed, copied, removed, and retained this information without authorization.
Let us know in the comments for any missing scores.
Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) responded to the 13500 blk of W. Old Baltimore Rd, near Lake Ridge Dr in Boyds for the report of a fallen tree on a vehicle. According to Chief Spokesperson for MCFRS Pete Piringer, the person that was driving vehicle is out and there were no serious injuries.
W. Old Baltimore Rd is blocked between Lake Ridge Dr and Broadway Ave. We will provide an update if additional information becomes available.
The identification of the deceased is pending next of kin notification. The victim was struck and killed shortly before 2:00 a.m. today on the southbound side of I-495 in the area of Ritchie Marlboro Road. Emergency medical service personnel from Prince George’s County Fire Department responded and pronounced the victim deceased on the scene.
Currently, information developed by State Police Crash Team investigators indicates the striking vehicle was a 2009 – 2014 Mini Cooper. The preliminary investigation indicates the victim was walking on the southbound side of I-495, south of Ritchie Marlboro Road in lane 3 when the crash occurred. Investigators believe the striking vehicle sustained damage to the right front-end as a result of the crash.
Trip Advisor is a popular American online travel company that offers ratings of restaurants primarily from those who have traveled to the area, rather than locals. If you’re interested in seeing the opinions of those who have traveled to the area, you’re in luck, as today we’ll be sharing the top 10 restaurants according to Trip Advisor.
10. Silver Diner (12276 Rockville Pike, Rockville): With a 4 out of 5 rating after 639 reviews, Silver Diner comes in #10 overall in the county and #2 in Rockville. The restaurant has an additional MoCo location at Gaithersburg’s Rio.
Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) responded to Georgia Avenue, near International Drive, for the report of a vehicle fire on Sunday, September 24, around 11am. Chief Spokesperson for MCFRS Pete Piring reports that northbound Georgia Avenue is blocked off at Rossmoor Drive, near Leisure World. Drivers should expect delays. We will provide an update if additional information becomes available. Featured photo courtesy of @izzy.g5451 on Instagram.
Georgia Avenue near International drive, @mcfrs PE725, AT740, PE740 responding, vehicle fire, some lanes blocked