Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Serviced (MCFRS) responded to a fire at a two-story farmhouse on the 4200 block of Sundown Road between Sunshine and Laytonsville on Saturday afternoon.

According to MCFRS Chief Spokesperson Pete Piringer, approximately 55 firefighters responded to the call. Upon arrival, fire and smoke was coming from the house, which is located in a non-hydrant area with a limited access driveway. Live wires were reported down in the area and all occupants and pets were reported out of the house.


Sherwood High School’s Rock ‘n Roll Revival just had its 52nd annual show– the tradition has been going strong since 1971, with 2020 being the only year a live show wasn’t produced due to Covid (a virtual show was produced that year). It all began when Sherwood students were inspired by a concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Since then, students audition for the show and rehearse for a couple months, working with staff members to put together a show that is routinely seen by thousands of people each year.

Per Dan Gross of MCPS Communications, “performers work on four to five songs a day. Other cast members who rehearse separately accompany the larger group little by little until all 40 songs have been rehearsed en masse. Shortly before opening night, dancers join in when rehearsals move to the theater. In the weeks before opening night, the stage is built and painted, while the tech crew finalizes sound and lighting.” Gross writes that this year’s show involved 250 student performers and crew members and was seen by over 6,000 people over six performances this year. See the full MCPS photo story here.


Per Montgomery County: Four in-person seminars on “Introduction to Women’s Self-Defense” will be offered this spring by the Montgomery County Commission for Women. Each S.A.F.E. (Self-defense Awareness and Familiarization Exchange) seminar is a two-hour “sampler” session for women of all ages and abilities taught by Rape Aggression Defense (R.A.D.)-certified instructors. The seminars, which cost $12 per participant, are exclusively for women and require pre-registration to participate. Women ages 13-17 are welcome to participate, but they must be accompanied by an adult woman who is also registered for the class.


Almost 1 million people have seen the original tweet by MoCo native and ESPN SportsCenter host Scott Van Pelt, asking for help after his dog, Redd, got out of a doggy daycare on Friday afternoon in Rockville/North Bethesda. “Heads up to anyone in Rockville, Md. area: Redd somehow got out of the Dogtopia on Wyaconda Rd. Rhodesian Ridgeback, about 65 pounds. He’s chipped. White front left paw and white markings on chest Please keep an eye out or an ear if you hear of anyone who might have found a puppy”

At 10:37pm, after hundreds of retweets and his tweet being seen by hundreds of thousands of people, Van Pelt announced that Redd was found. “Oh my goodness, they found him!!!! An army of people apparently on the case. I can’t even begin to connect the dots. I’m sitting here in tears on a plane headed home and Redd is gonna be there to greet me. I can’t believe it & I can’t thank everyone enough for their kindness.”


According to the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office, “Today in the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, MD, the Honorable Robert Greenberg sentenced defendant, Maritza Ramirez, 57, of Germantown to five years in prison suspend all but 18 months and five years of supervised probation upon release. Ramirez was also ordered to pay $7,700 in restitution to the families of victims she stole from. Ramirez was a 14-year employee of Marian Assisted Living, located in the 19100 block of Georgia Avenue. On November 29, 2022, she pleaded guilty to Financial Exploitation of a Vulnerable Adults in a Scheme.

The investigation began in March of 2022 when one victim’s family discovered that while their relative, a resident at Marian, underwent surgery and recovery, several items of jewelry and a cell phone had gone missing from the secured bedroom. The ensuing investigation by Montgomery County Police uncovered at least 11 victims and pawn shop records which show that between 2015 and 2022 Ramirez received at least $7,700 by selling 81 items including jewelry and several designer purses. Chief of our Special Prosecutions Unit, Assistant State’s Attorney Bryan Roslund prosecuted this case.”


Fire will take place one day between mid-February and April 2023 to help with the park’s meadow restoration program. 

Montgomery Parks, part of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources will be conducting a prescribed fire at Rachel Carson Conservation Park (located in (Brookeville) one day between mid-February to April 2023 to help restore the meadow located in the park. Prescribed fires are used to enhance and maintain native biological diversity as an alternative to mowing to remove the layer of dead plant material. This allows sunlight and rain to reach the soil surface to promote the regeneration of native wildflowers.


D.C. United have selected Georgetown University midfielder Aidan Rocha with the 60th overall pick (Third Round) in the 2023 MLS Draft. Rocha is a MoCo native (Brookeville) and attended St. John’s College High School before heading to Georgetown. Rocha scored five goals and recorded six assists in 69 appearances (52 starts) for Georgetown University from 2019 to 2022. In 2022, he scored three goals and recorded three assists in 20 appearances.


Per our public safety reporter, Cordell Pugh, At approximately 3:10PM on Tuesday on Heritage Hills Drive, just West of Georgia Avenue (Montgomery County, MD), a male was found unresponsive in the yard of a residence and was pronounced dead on scene. Montgomery County Police working to determine circumstances of death.

We’ll update with additional information as soon as it’s available. Featured photo courtesy of Google Maps


Local singer Pete Looney, who has been providing entertainment across the county and DC Metro Area for years, has passed away according to a post on his Facebook page. His children, Pat and Monika, released the following statement announcing a Celebration of Life that will take place on Sunday, December 11th (now in a new location).

The Celebration of Life will take place on Sunday, December 11th from 6-9pm at Brookeville Beer Farm (20315 A Georgia Ave. Brookeville, MD 20833). Light bites and some wine will be provided. The event organizers ask anyone who is planning to attend to mark “going” on the Facebook event page so that they can plan accordingly.


On Wednesday, Nov. 30 at 7 p.m., the public is invited to a virtual public hearing held by the Montgomery County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) to discuss the proposed construction to rehabilitate the Brighton Dam Road, Bridge No. M-0229, over Brighton Dam. At the virtual hearing, MCDOT will present the project details, costs and schedules and obtain public testimony.

The 602-foot long 15-span bridge, which is supported by Brighton Dam, is in need of repairs to the concrete parapets, bridge deck joints, prestressed concrete beams, concrete abutment backwalls, streetlights, asphalt approach roadways and concrete sidewalks to enhance the safety of the traveling public and the integrity of the dam. Public input is encouraged and may influence final design plans.


Over 50 Maryland breweries submitted 300 unique beers to the 2022 Maryland Craft Beer Competition. A panel of judges reviewed, assessed and awarded entries in 20 different style categories, with MoCo beers taking home first place awards in seven categories. The overall competition was won by Olde Mother Brewing Co. from Frederick, with their Callisto Oatmeal Stout receiving top honors. Below you’ll see the MoCo beers that won awards:

Other MoCo beers from places like True Respite (Rockville), Denizens (Silver Spring), Brookeville Beer Farm (Brookeville) also placed in the competition. Full results can be seen here.


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