YOUR COUNTY NEWSPAPER! Arts.........................11 Legal Notices........L-1 Prep Calendar.............L-20 Nightlife..................10 waxes Classifieds .............14 Opinion ....................4 Federation ...............6 Real Estate ..............5 Landon in Fun Page ...............12 Reflections...............2 Lax Learning Links....L-18 Sports ....................21 See page 21 Celebrating our 152nd year www.thesentinel.com Vol. 152, No. 38 • 25¢ SINCE 1855 April 19 - April 25, 2007 TODAY’S GAS PRICE $2.93 per gallon Last Week $2.84 per gallon A month ago $2.55 per gallon A year ago $2.89 per gallon AVERAGE PRICE PER GALLON OF UNLEADED REGULAR GAS IN MARYLAND/D.C. METRO AREA ACCORDING TO AAA INSIDE Lords of Open for business Deerwood residents ex- press their anger following the Olney opening of a new day laborer center. PHOTO BY MARKETA EBERT Page 7 Jesse Davis demonstrates his skating skills at the new Olney Manor Skate Park during grand opening ceremonies this week. Local students come home But many say their activities won’t change following Tech massacre Virginia Tech is a popular desti- who is now in his fourth year at Vir- Almost two and a half hours earlier, By Drew Pierson nation for Montgomery County stu- ginia Tech, said he was on the bus a 23-year-old senior English major Staff Writer dents. It handed out 278 letters of ac- from his off-campus apartment to named Cho Seung-Hui had entered Monday's massacre at Virginia ceptance to school when the West Ambler Johnston Hall, an un- Tech, the worst mass murder in Amer- county students, shootings oc- dergraduate dormitory with 800- Opening ican history did not claim any lives the third-most curred Monday plus residents, and shot and killed for an out-of- It just didn't seem morning. Emily Jane Hilscher, a freshman, soon? from Montgomery County. But with classes canceled for the rest of the state college and real;‘‘ it's so shocking. "I heard on and Ryan Clark, a nearby residential Tenants in the Rockville week, many Tech students who call eighth overall, the radio that adviser. Town Center are worried that the county home have returned to the according to the But each day it gets there was a prob- Police locked down Ambler delays could hamper business comfort of loved ones, trying to forget latest MCPS sur- lem on campus, Johnston - or A.J. as it's known to stu- Page 9 the senseless tragedy. vey of college more real. and that people dents - in response to the shootings, "My friends and I have all been application and ’’ were jumping and performed a search of the build- spending a lot of time together," said acceptance rates Cindy Fleming out of windows," ing. But after about an hour and a half, Cindy Fleming, a sophomore at Vir- in 2005, though sophomore at Virginia Tech Levy said. "Soon officials lifted the lockdown. ginia Tech and 2005 graduate of that survey did everyone on the Students say they are confused as Gaithersburg High School. "As soon not indicate bus started get- to how this happened. Published re- as we saw each other yesterday, we just whether those ting calls from ports say police may have left to in- hugged each other and started crying. students subsequently chose to attend. their friends. At the next stop I got off vestigate what would later turn out to It just didn't seem real; it's so shocking. Brad Levy, a 2003 graduate of and walked back to my apartment." But each day it gets more real." WoottonHigh School in Rockville- Levy went home about 10 a.m. See Students, page 8 2THE MONTGOMERY COUNTY SENTINEL APRIL 9, 2007 EFLECTIONS The Montgomery County Sentinel, published weekly by Montgomery Sen- tinel Publishing, Inc., is a community R newspaper covering Montgomery County, Maryland. Our offices are locat- ed at 30 Courthouse Sq. Suite 405 Rockville, MD 20850. Founded in 1855 March 1, 1985 by Matthew Fields. All mail to: P.O. Box 1272, Rockville, MD 20849-1272. Sub- scription Rates for The Montgomery County Sentinel – Weekly by mail: $22.05 per year & $15.75 for Senior Citi- Presidential items show up for sale zens. (USPS) 361-100. Bernard Kapiloff Each week, The Sentinel revis- Among those was a linen of White House media relations. as coping skills are discussed. Once PUBLISHER its a memorable story from our tea towel with a painted inscription Some things dealing with the presi- a month the alliance has meetings Mark Kapiloff archives. "To Ronald Reagan and Nancy dency are sent to the archives, in- with guest speakers, usually physi- ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Reagan," a four-foot by six-foot cluding jellybean memorabilia. cians, who seek to educate the pub- [email protected] How did underwear meant for blue-and white flag with a gold ea- Others gifts are donated to Good- lic about mental illness. As the ad- Lynn G. Kapiloff President Ronald Reagan end up in gle, and a purse made of shells will and other charities, Adboo said. vocacy group the alliance fights at CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER a Kensington thrift shop? glued to a plastic frame. In the purse "We do not know how we the local state and national level for [email protected] Volunteers at the Thresh- volunteers had found two copies of came to receive these items, but we the rights of the mentally ill. The al- old Thrift Shop have no idea. The a form headed "White House Gift are grateful to the White House and liance also promotes research on EDITORIAL discovery was made on Washing- Unit." to everyone else who, gives us mer- mental illness. Brian J. Karem ton's Birthday, when while sorting All gifts were scarfed up chandise to sell for a worthwhile "We raise more than half MANAGING EDITOR through piles of donated clothes, immediately. The tee towel sold for cause," Dessoff said. the funds from proceeds for the Al- [email protected] volunteers came across one dozen $1, the underwear for $2 a pair, the The thrift shop is a non- liance for the Mentally Ill from our Josh Bowman men's underpants, never worn, with flag for $7.50 and the purse for $10. profit shop with 40 volunteers. little shop," Dessoff said. [email protected] the monogram "RWR in 84." Rea- "A large number of gifts Funds for the thrift shop go to the The Threshold Thrift gan's full name is Ronald Wilson come to the White House for the Alliance for the Mentally Ill of Shop, which has been operating for Drew Pierson Reagan. first family. The one's he (the presi- Montgomery County. The alliance five years, also serves as a job-train- STAFF WRITERS "We were surprised and de- dent) chooses to keep are reported has 400 members, most of whom ing site for recovering mentally ill Brandy L. Simms lighted," said thrift shop manager each year on his financial disclosure have a mentally ill person in their patients. SPORTS WRITER Loverne R. Dessoff of the under- statement," said Assistant Press families, according to Executive So the President's under- Marketa Ebert wear and other treasures that were Secretary Anson Franklin. Director Mary Kundrat. wear, while not making it into his STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER apparently presented to the White Everything edible is im- The alliance pools neigh- clothes closet, did make it into a Brian Schott House as gifts and ended up at the mediately thrown out for safety pre- borhood member families together shop in need of the money they COPY EDITOR thrift shop. cautions, according to Terry Adboo in support groups where such topics would bring. Michelle L. Ponder CALENDAR EDITOR [email protected] NEWS Patrick Redding YOUTH SERVICES [email protected] CALL 301-838-0788 I-270 resurfacing to begin FAX 301- 838 - 3458 Write us NEWSROOM AND LEGAL ADVERTISING nights, according to a SHA press Shady Grove interchange, replace By Drew Pierson release. Double-lane closures may pavement weather sensors and ADVERTISING Staff Writer occur on those same nights from landscape certain areas along the The Montgomery County Sentinel Martin Friedman 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. highway. welcomes letters. ADVERTISING DIRECTOR The State Highway Ad- Expected to be complet- Later this summer there All letters must be original, signed CALL 202-285-5200 / FAX 301- 306-0134 ministration will begin a year- ed in spring 2008, this SHA pro- will be night ramp closures at the by the author and must include the DISPLAY ADVERTISING EMAIL long, $16 million project next ject will not only patch and resur- MD 28, I-370 and Shady Grove author’s daytime telephone [email protected] week to completely resurface the face the roads on I-270, but also Road interchanges. number for verification. Sherry Sanderson four and a half mile stretch of I- resurface the seven ramps in the I-270 is one of the Send letters to: LEGAL ADVERTISING MANAGER 270, northbound and southbound, MD 28 (West Montgomery Av- busiest roads in Montgomery CALL 301-838-0788 between Falls Road (Exit 5) and enue) interchange, the six ramps County, carrying an average of The Montgomery County FAX 301-838-3458 [email protected] Muddy Branch Road. in the Shady Grove Road inter- more than 260,000 vehicles each Sentinel Commuters can expect change and the six ramps in the I- day, according to the SHA press 30 Courthouse Sq. single-lane closures on both sides 370 interchange. The project will release. No lane closures will be Suite 405 PRODUCTION of I-270 between 8 p.m. and 5 also replace the traffic signal at allowed during the Memorial Day, Rockville, MD 20850 Louise Janus a.m., Sunday through Thursday the bottom of the ramp of the July 4th and Labor Day holidays.