Bishop saves boy from fiery crash

There was a dangerous scene on the Beltway near Maryland Route 4 the morning of April 8. Just before 11 a.m., a dump truck had a flat tire, overturned and caught fire. An SUV trying to void the dump truck also overturned.

Bishop John Adonteng Boateng, of Divine Word International Ministries in Woodbridge, and his wife were driving to a meeting when they came on the crash scene, pulled over and seconds later there was a huge explosion. The Bishop saw a child in the wreckage and braved the fire to pull the boy to safety.

The Bishop is being heralded as a hero, and indeed he is.

Those of us in the neighborhood only knew that traffic was at a standstill. It took hours to get back to normal.

Old-time Skyline residents take a walk down memory laneKevin McMonigle, who lived on Goodfellow Drive, in Skyline, from 1963-1976, and attended Skyline School once it opened, was back in the neighborhood on Sunday, April 7, to take a nostalgic walk with former neighbors Kevin and Jim Reilly.

They walked Elmendorf Drive, Goodfellow Drive, Offutt Drive and Ladd Road.

There were lots of memories of delivering The Washington Post and The Evening Star. They all delivered one of the papers at some point. Jim Reilly says, “When you deliver the paper, you know the names of all your neighbors.”

How many of these old Skyline names do you recognize: Capt. Perkins, Stitzer, Oxman, Pennfield, Gurtowski, Fisher, Webb, H.E. Reed (the plumber), Waby, Duffy, Minigoe, Gatz, Ostrander, Flarhety, Jurnigan, Farrar, Cray, Oppido, Mulraney, Perriera, Law, Lambert, Neri, Busky, Homan, McGhee, Major Lewis, Owens, Ansell, McGrath, Krausman, Cazellet, Goldsmith, Vance, Thorpe, Crumm, Lutman, Slavin, and Weiss, just to name a few.

Kevin is currently living in Jonesboro, Arkansas, to be near his mother, Mary Jo McMonigle.

Town of Morningside: 75th anniversary!The Town will celebrate its 75th Anniversary on Saturday, April 27, 6-9 p.m. Featured will be a Moon Bounce, games, food trucks, 360-photo booth, music and raffles. And there’ll be a movie after dark. I’ll have more details in next week’s column.

The annual Town election will be held Monday, May 6.

The Town Hall meeting room is available for rent. It’s a very nice, large room with an attached kitchen. Call 301-736-2300 to reserve, or for more information.

Slow down! New speed cameras are headed to Suitland Road.

Morningside grew 30 years agoIn the spring of 1994, the Town of Morningside annexed the site occupied by two establishments, Silver Hill Florist and Suitland Beer and Wine, both right across from the Morningside Fire Department. The stores were owned by Alice Sussan.

This annexation was the second across Suitland Road. The first annexation involved VFW Post 9619 and the now-gone Village Barn. That was in about 1970.

Neighbors & other good peopleThe Knights of Columbus in Forestville honors Knights of the Month and Families of the Month which are always mentioned in their newsletter. Richard Peluzzo was Knight of the Month in November; Jonathan Hunter was Knight in December. Recent Families of the Month were The Weiler Family in November and The Richardson Family in December.

By the way, for information about K of C Bingo Night, call the chairman, George Hoehl, 301-599-0307.

Places to go and things to doAre you interested in volunteering? Do you love history? The Dr. Samuel A. Mudd Society, in Waldorf, is seeking docents, Gift Shop salespeople and admission staff. A love of history and a willing heart is all you need. The Dr. Mudd House staff will welcome you and provide training. For information, call 301-645-6870.

The Fairytale Museum is open 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at 2935 Festival Way, in Waldorf. The museum offers interactive exhibits, birthday celebrations, literacy programs and etiquette activities. Admission is $12, free for adults with paid child. Call 844-722-4642.

MilestonesHappy Birthday to Jill (Gilmartin) Booth and Tiffany Jackson, April 21; Taylor Foster, April 22; Cindy Pitts, Jim Reilly, David Titus. Barbara Sparks and Margaret White, April 23; Edna Lucas, April 24; Janet and Brian Spivey, Sue Stine McConkey-Mason, Daisy Young, Kenia Spivey and my grandson David McHale, April 25; Christy Miller (Cooper) and G.A. DeFelice, April 26; and Michael Call, April 27.

Happy Anniversary to John and Ruth Anthony, Jr., their 46th on April 22; and to Lewis and Trisha (Pitts) Woods, their 35th on April 22.