Dear Friends,
This week, the County Council elected new leadership for 2025. I want to congratulate our new County Council President, Kate Stewart and Vice President, Will Jawando.
Since joining the Council in 2022, Kate has consistently demonstrated her commitment to fairness, honesty and results. We have built a productive working relationship rooted in shared goals. Her collaborative leadership style has been critical in addressing key issues such as improving public safety in downtown Silver Spring and the “Melanie Diaz Fire Safety Act” that strengthened tenant safety. I look forward to working with her in the year ahead as we navigate state budget concerns and the impacts of a new federal administration and Congress along with the opportunities the County has that will foster our work to continue growing our economy and affordable housing supply.
I also want to congratulate Councilmember Will Jawando on his election as Vice President. Will’s steadfast commitment to progressive principles is evident in his work, and I’m proud of the work we did together last year to pass historic rent stabilization legislation, which provides critical protections for renters in Montgomery County.
I am optimistic about what we can achieve together as we work to meet the challenges and the opportunities ahead and continue building a stronger, more equitable County.
Honoring Ike Leggett
This renaming is a meaningful way to honor his extraordinary journey and accomplishments. His path was not an easy one, and yet he did not let the obstacles stop him; his successes are quite remarkable. It is incredible to think that he didn’t even put a photo of himself on his original campaign literature so that people would get to know him without preconceived ideas - he wanted people to have the opportunity to hear what he had to say before they judged him based on the color of his skin. We talked about his background and experience in government in this conversation from February of 2024.
Throughout his political career, Ike was intent on working with people every step of the way. His legacy is that of a leader who has shaped Montgomery County in profound ways. Ike has always been a champion for equity, inclusion and opportunity—principles that are core to who we are as a community.
His unrelenting commitment to serve, his leadership during challenging times and his dedication to lifting up every resident left a legacy that will continue to inspire us. The County’s executive office building will now stand as a tribute to Ike’s remarkable service and the path he forged for future generations of leaders.
We are planning an official ceremony in February during Black History Month and I will share those details when they are available.
Supporting Community Bridges
I want to thank the Community Bridges leadership for honoring me with a Building Bridges Award. In the picture above I am standing alongside Community Bridges’ executive director Shannon Babe-Thomas and Eun Yang, NBC Washington anchor and the night’s emcee.
The award reflects the work done by County employees every day to focus on helping each of our diverse communities, fostering inclusivity and creating opportunities for all.
Community Bridges helps 4th through 12th-grade girls fill the gaps through school and college mentoring, family assistance and helping women self-advocate. They believe in every girl’s chance to succeed, regardless of their background or circumstances.
As a former teacher, I applaud Community Bridges for helping more than 400 girls every year become better students and exceptional leaders. That guidance provides personal benefits and enriches our community. Every one of the program participants graduated from high school in 2023 and enrolled in college.
I extend my congratulations to Danielle Rice of Donohoe Companies for earning the Girl Legacy Award and Robin Salomon, an affordable housing developer and a member of the Housing Opportunities Commission for taking home the Empowerment Champion Award. They are just two of many in our community focused on helping girls improve themselves and the world around them.
Capital Area Economic Forum Focuses on the Future of Metro Funding
Some of the discussion about the regional economy focused on potential changes to the federal workforce and implications for all our local economies. One key takeaway was how interconnected our region is regarding transportation, housing and economic development. These issues do not stop at County or State lines, and collaboration is essential.
The health of the Metro system and the necessity of ensuring that we can keep it operating and meeting the needs of our region were also discussed. Earlier this week, I attended a DMV Moves Task Force meeting, where we are working to find a strategy for sustainable funding for metro and other regional transit. This is an essential conversation and while we have a better idea of the magnitude of the problem, we are still working towards a solution that has regional support.
We need to find solutions for the long-term viability of Metro and transit in general. Metro needs funding for adequate ongoing maintenance and adequate service. The failure to provide adequate service for the Metro would impact the entire region: regional forecasts presented during the meetings showed that traffic would be 48 percent worse without the Metro than it is now—imagine where that number goes if the Metro is not able to function adequately. That will lead to more gridlock and extended rush hours. A nightmare scenario like that could harm our region’s competitiveness and impact our ability to improve our economy through job growth.
Decisions that impact Metro’s efficiency and capacity are in regional hands because Metro serves all of us. I find it encouraging that leaders all around the region are committed to taking the long view of how Metro can survive and improve.
New Hate-Bias Reporting Form Now Open
This week, we launched a new website portal to make it easy for the public to report these incidents. You can find the portal here. These reports can be made anonymously.
The form is the same whether you are a victim self-reporting or a witness. The drop-down menu at the top of the form page allows you to select dozens of languages. You can also call 311 from 7 a.m.-7 p.m., Monday through Friday, to report an incident.
While we already collect reports of incidents, many go unreported. This week, Captain Jordan Satinsky of the Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD), Assistant Chief Administrative Officer Earl Stoddard and the County’s Faith Liaison, Kate Chance, joined me on my weekly media briefing to discuss the impact these incidents have on our diverse community. You can watch that discussion here.
Monthly summary reporting is available on the MCPD website here.
The more people are aware of this new resource, the better we can accurately gauge hateful acts and biased activity impacting our residents.
Whether it is language, threats, or acts of vandalism these incidents have no place in Montgomery County, and I want everyone, regardless of religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender or immigration status, to report these incidents so police can investigate.
Taking Care of Those Facing Housing Insecurity in Winter Months
During an Extreme Cold Alert, shelters remain open so individuals can get inside. Outreach workers work to urge those living outdoors to come to a shelter, and shelter capacity is expanded during the winter months.
The Homeless Information Line is 240-907-2688 and is open 24/7. If you see someone you are concerned about, call the line, and an outreach person will follow up, try to find the person and urge them to go indoors.
Remember, the extreme cold puts people in danger if they don’t come in out of the cold. Sometimes, they won’t respond to our efforts to bring them inside. If you decide to try to help some of these individuals, please remember to speak kindly to them and encourage them to take advantage of the things the County does to help. For more details on those services, programs and the progress we have made, please visit montgomerycountymd.gov/homelessness.
Grant Funding to Community Food Assistance Programs
The money will support 48 groups which collectively serve nearly 165,000 people every month.
The partners and food providers we work with say demand is up. According to the Capital Area Food Bank’s 2024 Hunger Report, 34 percent of Montgomery County residents are considered food insecure, a seven percent increase from 2023.
These grants are one way we help support Montgomery County’s Community Food Assistance Program, which helps maintain a solid foundation of assistance services for residents. All the available grants are listed here. More than 60 sites are currently tied to the School-Based Food Assistance program, while another grant focuses on improving community health through food. Collectively, this work closes service gaps and helps collect data on hunger issues in the County.
Often around the holidays, many people are inclined to donate their food, money and time to help out those who are hungry, but as we can clearly see, this is a year-round issue for many families. As much as we think about those struggling during this time of year, I hope that people make it a New Year’s resolution to assist however they can. The Montgomery County Volunteer Center can help you find an organization making an impact in reducing hunger issues in our community.
Honoring Rosa Parks
Rosa Parks’ brave act of resistance against racist policies occurred on December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama. She refused to give up her seat for a White man and move to the back of the bus.
Every year our Ride On buses save space for her photo and share why her arrest was so important. It was one of the sparks that ignited a movement that led to protests across the nation in the fight for equal rights.
Civil rights reform did not come easily. When I was growing up in the 1950s, almost every major social and civil institution opposed civil rights. Every battle to provide freedom and the full rights that Americans were supposed to enjoy was hard fought. The truth is that the end of slavery did not make black people free and equal. Barriers to equal rights were erected throughout the country, including Maryland. The barriers and the consequences of past injustices still exist today.
A few years after the Montgomery Bus Boycotts, I attended the March on Washington. Later, when I went to the University of Maryland, I joined other students and faculty to fight for the desegregation of housing and employment in Prince George’s County as well as at the University itself. University recruiters told Black high school students that they should attend the other black schools in the university system and that they would not be welcome in College Park.
We often think of the civil rights struggle being a problem in states in the deep south – but Maryland’s, and even Montgomery County’s own history was just as bad. During the 1960s and 1970s, we watched White mobs object to integration, harassing black students in the ugliest of ways all over the country. It was hard to understand the intolerance that fueled the dehumanizing policies that made it so hard for Black families to find jobs, buy homes and build wealth.
Back then racism was taught, reinforced with bogus science, and that poisonous ideology was inflicted on many of the students I went to school with. I honestly do not think that many Americans and more recent immigrants witnessed or know about the racism that was so openly expressed, and, therefore, have no sense of what black people had to, and in some cases, still must endure.
I am glad to see how much has changed in our County and throughout our nation, but racial bigotry and inequity still exist. Although it has been nearly 70 years since Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat, her life and actions remain an example of why it is important to speak up, demand change and stand your ground when challenged. She was right to break the law when the law was wrong.
Let me leave you this week with one of my favorite quotes from Rosa Parks:
"I have learned over the years that when one's mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear. You must never be fearful about what you are doing when it is right.”
As always, my appreciation for all of you,
Marc Elrich
County Executive
