(BALTIMORE – August 31, 2023) – Last night’s Sandtown-Winchester Community Meeting was packed to the rafters at the historic Sharon Baptist Church. It was the first meeting for the community in several months. Nonetheless, there was much participation and much to discuss.
Representatives from state and local government were present, and a presentation was made by the Salvation Army of Central Maryland. This included Major Matt Corell of Western District and Howard Tutman of the Baltimore City Department of Housing. Both men presented the community with viable information.
Facilitated by Danise Jones-Dorsey, the meeting had zero hiccups.
“We are very grateful to the many people who helped make this meeting happen,” said Doni Glover. Glover, who has been a homeowner in Sandtown since 1992, has been working with other homeowners, like Cyndy Collins and Consuella Simms, to host several informational meetings since the 2015 Freddie Gray Uprising.
“People like Tia Richards of the Showdown for Sandtown initiative, Linda Lomax from Councilman John Bullock’s office, and Howard Tutman from Baltimore City’s Department of Housing deserve a lot of credit for this meeting,” he added.
It was announced in the meeting that the Salvation Army of Central Maryland will be moving its headquarters soon from Light Street to the former William Pinderhughes building on Fremont and Winchester. This is the most significant investment in Sandtown in decades.
Inez Robb, Emma Middleton, Eric Stephenson, Stacey Fowlkes, Craig Jernigan, and Jayson Green of New Song are just a few of the names of attendees. Many thanks also go to State Senator Antonio Hayes, Councilman James Torrence, and Councilman John Bullock.
“I was blown away by the number of people who came out to demonstrate how much they love their community,” said Major Roger Glick of the Salvation Army. He continued, “And these people are willing to fight to make Sandtown-Winchester better. It was an honor to be among good people. I will fight alongside them!”
Tia Richards, who worked arduously with her teammates from Showdown for Sandtown, said of the meeting, “Last night’s Sandtown-Winchester meeting was very exciting.” She added, “To see so many community members and partners come together concerned about the future of their community made me feel like we are ready to put the “neighbor” back in our “hoods”.
Danise Jones-Dorsey has a long history working in this community. She also attends mass in Sandtown.
She told BMORENews, “It was my honor to facilitate the Sandtown Winchester Community meeting.”
Dorsey continued, “Sandtown Winchester Community members showed up and enthusiastically demonstrated their long-term commitment to ensuring Sandtown-Winchester is a mixed-income community of choice that responds to the needs of its most vulnerable community members. One partner, The Salvation Army, hopes to assist the Sandtown-Winchester community in achieving its goals by relocating its administrative offices to Sandtown-Winchester and establishing a comprehensive Boys and Girls Club The Salvation Army shared its proposal with the community leaders. What’s needed now is Sandtown-Winchester community members with interest and the willingness to work with the Salvation Army to actualize their proposal.”