Abell community comes together after the June 15th fires

I’m grateful to live in the Abell neighborhood, and honored to represent this community. The fires that took place on June 15th were a shock to all of us. While we do not know if this is connected to other fires in the area, or if it was a hate crime, many of our neighbors feel threatened and attacked. One of the homes that caught fire had a PRIDE flag and PRIDE decorations, and one house down the street had a PRIDE flag that was burned.

Abell neighbors did what Abell neighbors do - we come together. One neighbor was able to get 200 PRIDE flags and flag poles donated and now they don almost every house in the neighborhood - including mine (pictured). Donations came from Flags for Good, ACE Hardware, and Loews. Another neighbor organized painting the crosswalk in front of the fires in PRIDE colors - again thanks to ACE Hardware.

There is more to come. We pull together, we support each other. Abell and Charles Village were the first neighborhoods in Baltimore where the LGBTQ community felt comfortable. We will keep it that way.

I want to thank everyone who has been a huge supporter in our neighborhood. Neighbors came and fed us and made sure we had something to drink as we were waiting by the fire for any updates. Neighbors searched high and low for the cats that were missing (one was found!), and neighbors came together to show our support for our LGBTQ neighbors and friends. One reporter asked me if I was surprised that the community would come together like this - and of course I said, “No, this is who we are.”