(BALTIMORE – July 3, 2026) – Every day, I have the extraordinary privilege of speaking with excellence.
Not occasionally. Daily.
Just a couple of days ago, my phone rang. On the other end was our beloved former president of Coppin State University, Dr. Calvin Burnett.
He opened the conversation with a smile in his voice.
“Usually, you’re checking on me,” he said. “This time, I’m checking on you.”
Ninety-four years old and still loving life.
Conversations like that nourish my spirit.
Yesterday, I stopped by Benedetto Haberdashery to film Kevin Scott. We recorded another edition of our “Cold-Blooded Sneakerhead Challenge,” which has quietly become one of our most popular social media features. Kevin doesn’t need a script or theatrics. He simply does what he does. Style. Precision. Professionalism. Excellence.
Then there’s Robert Harrington of R.E. Harrington, Baltimore City’s largest minority-owned underground utility contractor. Watching Robert build is about much more than business. It’s about legacy. His company develops people. It prepares the next generation to lead their own enterprises.
I intentionally spare myself much of the local television news.
It’s not that I don’t want to know what’s happening. I do. But I’ve learned to control what I allow into my spirit.
The news will find me.
What often won’t find me on television are the stories that matter just as much.
Stories like retired Judge Wanda Heard.
I needed her guidance recently on behalf of a young woman. Judge Heard not only gave me the direction I needed, but she also offered wisdom that only comes from decades of experience.
Listening to her is a reminder of the greatness from which so many of us come.
She believes in accountability. She understands mistakes. She recognizes the realities of mass incarceration. She also believes in second chances. Strength with compassion—that’s who she is.
And she’s hardly alone.
Every week, I speak with people whose excellence rarely makes the evening news.
Rondy Griffin, my executive producer, somehow manages three television shows while keeping our productions moving.
Mike Nyce, operations manager at WEAA, helps make sure my weekly commentary reaches listeners every Thursday night.
Coach Calvin Ford is only a few blocks from my house at Upton Boxing Gym. The same coach who helped develop world champion Gervonta “Tank” Davis continues pouring into Baltimore’s young people.
Attorney J. Wyndal Gordon remains one of the sharpest legal minds I’ve encountered – along with Professor Larry Gibson, Chief Judge Robert Bell, Billy Murphy, and Warren Brown.
Mia Blom continues to help showcase Baltimore through the Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association.
Filmmaker Calvin Watkins has become family over the years. I first met him when he practically insisted on bringing a group of youth media students onto my old WOLB radio show. He knew I wouldn’t turn down young people eager to learn.
Lawrence Williams, despite being behind just 47 votes in the Baltimore County Council race, demonstrated the kind of leadership and perseverance that deserve respect regardless of the outcome.
Then there’s Mike Hall from Crofton.
He doesn’t wear a suit.
He hauls trees.
His crew was working in my neighborhood this week, and before 9 a.m., they had already done outstanding work. Excellence wears many uniforms.
Attorney Tony Garcia continues to distinguish himself professionally.
Planning expert Dave Green remains one of Maryland’s foremost authorities on land use and development.
Attorney Barry Gogel has spent years helping prepare local students for law school, investing his knowledge in young people who simply need an opportunity.
That matters.
Giving back matters.
Helping someone else reach their potential matters.
Every community needs people willing to pull others forward.
This is the Baltimore I experience every day.
Not the one dominated by crime tape and mug shots.
Not the one reduced to statistics.
I see builders.
Teachers.
Entrepreneurs.
Judges.
Lawyers.
Filmmakers.
Coaches.
Tradesmen.
Mentors.
Visionaries.
That doesn’t mean our challenges aren’t real. They are.
But our greatness is just as real.
Perhaps that’s why I’ve dedicated nearly a quarter-century to independent journalism.
Because somebody has to tell the stories that too often go untold.
Somebody has to remind us that Baltimore produced giants like Reginald F. Lewis, Thurgood Marshall, Dorothy Brunson, Willie Adams, Tom Smith, and countless others whose names may never appear in a breaking-news broadcast but whose impact continues to shape our city.
The mainstream often covers our moments of crisis.
I choose to cover our moments of excellence.
Not because they are rare.
Because they happen every single day.
