Friday, January 25, 2013
A Maryland company started making bulletproof school supplies in response to the shootings at Newtown, Conn. Company owner tells Capital News Service the supplies are a last line of defense.
Since the shootings in Newtown, Conn., much of the discussion has swirled around gun control and school security, whether there should be armed police officers or guards in America’s schools. But what about bulletproof school supplies? Several Montgomery County Patch sites picked up a Capital News Service story about Hardwire LLC. The Eastern Shore military armor company started making bulletproof whiteboards and clipboards in response to the tragic school shootings. The company’s CEO George Tunis told CNS that the bulletproof school supplies could be effective if incorporated into a broader security strategy. He donated 90 of the white boards to a school in Worcester County, according to the report. "Inside every classroom, with every …
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
If the Montgomery County Council approves the request, all 132 elementary campuses could receive the upgrade by July.
Montgomery County parents may rest a little easier after the county school board voted Tuesday to speed up spending to increase security at Montgomery County elementary schools. The Montgomery County Board of Education voted unanimously to request an additional $364,000 to place video intercom systems at the entrance of every county elementary school. If the Montgomery County Council approves the request, all 132 elementary campuses could receive the upgrade by July, the Washington Examiner reported. Passage by the County Council is likely. On Monday, Council President Nancy Navarro (D-Dist. 4) of Silver Spring and Education Committee Chair Valerie Ervin (D-Dist. 5) of Silver Spring sent a letter to school board President Christopher …
Thursday, January 3, 2013
The Montgomery County Council of PTAs will host a school safety forum later this month.
The shock of December’s tragic shootings in Newtown, CT, has caused some parents in Montgomery County to speak out about school safety in their elementary schools. Parents and family members of students at Bradley Hills Elementary in Bethesda have written to county leaders, including county council members, the Montgomery County school board and Montgomery County Public Schools Superintendent Joshua P. Starr asking for security improvements at the elementary school’s temporary location, according to a Wednesday Gazette report. Students and teachers at Bradley Hills are currently housed at the Radnor Center, while the school undergoes modernization, scheduled for completion in August. “Our school has no security system in place and our …
Thursday, December 27, 2012
The angels will be on display in the Children's Chapel of the Washington National Cathedral through Jan. 6, 2013.
The 20 children who were killed earlier this month at Sandy Hook Elementary School are represented by angels on display at the Washington National Cathedral. The "childlike angels made of paper doilies" are on the altar of the cathedral's Children's Chapel. Each angel is between 8 and 10 inches tall, with white-feather wings and gold-wire halos. They sit on clouds made of fluffy white cotton, according to a cathedral news statement. "These angels are spontaneous presentations made in loving memory of the children lost in Newtown," CT, said Linda Roeckelein, head of the Washington National Cathedral’s Altar Guild, which is made up of more than 100 volunteers. "They all sit in a row on the altar, as if on clouds in [heaven], representing the…
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
The parents of Josephine Gay, 7, remembered their daughter—who was killed in the Sandy Hook school shooting on Friday, Dec. 14—as a smiling, affectionate little girl who had an indomitable spirit and loved hugs.
The parents of Josephine Grace Gay, 7, remembered their daughter as a smiling, affectionate little girl who had an indomitable spirit and loved hugs. Gay—who was born in Columbia, MD, and lived in Howard County for three years before moving to Newtown, CT—was killed in the Sandy Hook shooting on Friday, Dec. 14. Gay had turned 7 three days before the shooting and was looking forward to celebrating her birthday with her friends the day after the shooting, said her parents. "Josephine loved the color purple," wrote Bob and Michele Gay. "Born in Maryland, she grew up in a family of Ravens fans and developed an affinity for all things purple. She rarely left the house without wearing something purple. After her passing, many friends who …
Monday, December 24, 2012
Sales jumped following the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary.
Following the school shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, sales of bulletproof backpacks are soaring, according to a story in The Washington Post. Bullet Blocker, a company that sells bulletproof tactical gear, saw sales jump from 15 to 20 backpacks a week to 50 to 100 per day, according to the report. Patch contacted several manufacturers, but none returned comment before publication. The Washington Post wrote: In Arizona, a body-armor manufacturer called Amendment II says sales of its bulletproof childrens’ backpacks—Avengers for boys, Disney Princesses for girls—have jumped more than 500 percent. Black Dragon Tactical, a survivalist company in New Hampshire, is promoting armored backpack-inserts on its Facebook page.
Thursday, December 20, 2012
The volunteer group hopes its animals will bring some solace to those affected by the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre.
- VOLUNTEERS IN THE NEWS
- Adam Bednar
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Thursday, December 20, 2012
Volunteers from Pets on Wheels, a Baltimore area nonprofit that provides therapy visits with pets, will be heading to Connecticut Friday to help those affected by the school shooting in Newtown. "The dogs are a great outlet for people and children, and we hope that they can bring them some comfort," said Barb Wasaieicz, a Pets on Wheels volunteer. The caravan of two vans and passenger cars will be leaving the Baltimore area and headed for Newtown at 3 a.m. on Friday and will return the same day. According to the group's website, Pets on Wheels was founded in 1982 by Dr. Frank Folke Furstenberg, a retired Sinai physician, to study the effect of animal visits on "shut-ins." "Visits are most often to nursing homes; however, assisted living …
Monday, December 17, 2012
Police say they will discuss plans with school officials for police presence at schools during the rest of the week.
The Montgomery County Police Department released a statement Monday explaining its presence at elementary schools during arrival and dismissal times, in the wake of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut on Friday. Here is the full statement: The Montgomery County Police Department wishes to express its deepest sympathy to the families of the victims and to the residents of Newtown, Connecticut. The Montgomery County Police Department has no indication of a threat to any of the schools in the county. Police Chief Manger and School Superintendent Starr continue to communicate and coordinate efforts. To provide a presence and reassurance to the community, officers were at county elementary schools during the time of …
Jay Levy
8:47 am on Sunday, January 27, 2013
What a great idea. Of course, kids only wear their backpacks to and from school so why not also put as little derringer in the backpack. Oh, wait a minute, maybe dleivering the kids to school in tanks would be better, then they would be hustled into a totally fortified school building for their complete protection. more ›