The Maryland State Police Crash team continues the investigation into a multi-vehicle crash which claimed the life of a Pennsylvania woman and injured nine others last night in Montgomery County. Full press release per Maryland State Police below:
The deceased is identified as Elizabeth Velez, 36, of Easton, Pennsylvania. She was the driver of a Nissan Pathfinder involved in the crash. Velez is the mother of three children, ages 2, 5, and 15, all of whom were passengers in the vehicle.
Per Montgomery County: Montgomery County will be offering funding support for independently owned and operated businesses with 20 or fewer employees impacted by the Purple Line construction through Phase III of its Purple Line Light rail grants program. Eligible businesses can start submitting applications on Aug. 15.
The County’s Business Center will host informational webinars on the program on Aug. 29, 30 and 31 in English, Spanish, and Amharic languages respectively at 8070 Georgia Ave. in Silver Spring. This is the third round of grants through which the County’s Business Center will offer $5,000 to qualifying small businesses in the construction corridor. This grant program is made possible through an $815,000 grant provided by the Maryland Department of Commerce.
Per Montgomery County: Montgomery County officials continued storm cleanup efforts days after severe storms and heavy rain caused significant damage and power outages on Saturday evening.
“Even though efforts to clear and repair damage from this weekend’s storms continue across Montgomery County, I want to recognize and thank our storm responders for their hard work and long hours,” said County Executive Marc Elrich. “Over the last few days, countless Montgomery County Government employees have worked diligently to help residents and businesses recovering from severe storm damage. We assisted those in need to find shelter, rescued boaters during the thunderstorms, removed trees and debris from streets and sidewalks, distributed water on Ride On buses and directed traffic when lights were out. I thank my County colleagues, as well as those working for the State and utility companies, for their response to these storms. Their tireless efforts made recovery from a difficult weekend much better for so many people.”
Per Montgomery County: Montgomery County Alcohol Beverage Services (ABS) has leveraged its direct import capacity and is now offering eight creative and cutting-edge wines from the Domaine de Galuval winery in the Rhône Valley of France. ABS serves as the exclusive distributor of these wines in the Mid-Atlantic Region. Only a few other U.S. outlets—in California, Puerto Rico and New York City—carry Domaine de Galuval products. The Domain de Galuval wines are available now in all ABS Liquor Wine retail stores and Oak Barrel & Vine stores throughout the County. They also are available at participating privately owned beer and wine stores and restaurants.
The eight highly rated wines are unique creations, inspired by nature and true to the individual character of each vintage. The eye-catching labels feature works of art that represent the unique geology and character of the terroirs of the Domain de Galuval Estate. By importing directly, ABS is able to offer the products at attractive price points.
MoCo Lite, the collaboration between The MoCoShow and Lone Oak Farm Brewing Co. in Olney was recently named the Best Light Beer in the Country by Wine Enthusiast. NBC Washington’s Jummy Olabanji came out to Olney to speak with the team behind the beer.
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Dr. Earl Stoddard, who is the Assistant Chief Administrator in Montgomery County and has served as the Director of the Montgomery County Office of Emergency Management & Homeland Security (OEMHS) since January 2016, has provided an update on storm clean-up efforts via Twitter. The full update can be seen below:
“Just to provide an update on storm clean-up. Right now, the primary focus remains power restoration and road clearance. That requires coordination between the County and power utilities given the intersection between vegetation and power lines.
From the Office of Council President Evan Glass: The Montgomery County Anti-Hate Task Force will hold its second meeting with all six cohort groups representing the Jewish, Black/African American, LGBTQ+, Asian American and Pacific Islander, Latino/Hispanic and Muslim communities on Tuesday, August 1 at 7 p.m.
The meeting will feature a presentation by Montgomery County Public School leaders with an overview and plan on combating hate and bias incidents in schools.
Per Montgomery County: A community mosaic mural that was created by families living in Montgomery Housing Partnership (MHP) apartments in Wheaton working with artists from the Wheaton Arts Parade organization was formally dedicated on Thursday, July 27. The mosaic panels were created in 2019, but installation was delayed due to the COVID-19 health crisis. The Wheaton Arts Parade “Community Mosaic” was supported in part by a grant from the Arts & Humanities Council of Montgomery County.
The mosaic mural is installed on the wall of the Pembridge Square Apartments at 2319 Blueridge Ave. and is visible from the side facing Elkin St. in Wheaton. Residents from nearby Amherst Gardens also participated in its creation. Among those at the dedication were Montgomery County Councilmember Natali Fani-González, MHP representatives and mosaic artists Edwin Salmeron and Ge’Vonna Keyes. Dan Thompson of Wheaton Arts Parade led the ceremonies.
MoCo native (Brookeville) and 2023 Sherwood graduate, Bryan Kim, has won the 75th U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, held at Daniel Island Club in Charleston, South Carolina. He will be attending Duke University in the fall.
Kim, 18, joins Jason Widener (1988) as Duke players to etch their name on the U.S. Junior Amateur Trophy that includes the likes of major champions Tiger Woods, Johnny Miller, David Duval, Jordan Spieth, Scottie Scheffler and Brian Harman, this year’s Open winner at Royal Birkdale who sent a congratulatory video message to the champion. Kim advanced to the championship match, where he defeated Joshua Bai. A breakdown of the championship can be found here. Kim is 11th in the latest iteration of the American Junior Golf Association rankings and 443rd in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. As champion, Kim receives the following:
MoCo native Katie Ledecky’s gold medal in the women‘s 800m has given her the most career individual swimming world titles of all time, with 16 overall. She has surpassed fellow Marylander Michael Phelps, who previously held the record with 15.
Ledecky won the 800m freestyle race on Saturday with a time of 8 minutes and 8.87 seconds. She now holds the 29 fastest times in history in the event and also became the first swimmer to win any event six times at worlds. She has never lost since winning her first 800m back in 2012 when she was just 12 years old. Ledecky finished the world championships in took gold in the 800m and 1500m frees along with two silvers.
A severe thunderstorm that rolled into the late afternoon on Saturday, July 29th has caused damage in several parts of Montgomery County (a thunderstorm caused severe damage on Friday, July 28 as well). There are power outages across the county. Reminder: Treat traffic lights without a signal as four-way stops. Incidents reported and photos below:
• 12200 Braxfield Court near Academy Way, Rockville, large tree down, no injuries, tree landed in front of four-story apartment building