CAPTURE

The Moment

The inauguration of Maryland Governor Wes Moore and Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller on Jan. 18, under the motto "Leave No One Behind" brought out a diverse crowd including a few celebrities. (Photos

5 Veteran news anchor, Paul Berry, arrives at the inauguration ceremony for Gov. Wes Moore and Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller.

4 Urban jazz armonicst Frédéric Yonnet attends the inauguration ceremony for Gov. Wes Moore and Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller.

Informer)

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3 Congressman Kweisi Mfume (MD-07) attends the inauguration ceremony for Gov. Wes Moore and Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller.

4 Wanda Durant, mother of famed professional basketbally player, Kevin Durant, attends the inauguration ceremony for Gov. Wes Moore and Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller.

Submitted by Washington Gas

If you visited The Wharf DC this winter, you probably saw giant snowflakes guiding you to a WAFF warming tent. As you watched the holiday boat parade, you might have enjoyed a freshly made s’more that helped support WAFF donations. You might have chatted with our volunteers at the Jan. 11 Rock the Rink while cheering on the Washington Capitals.

This past weekend, it was hard to miss our life-sized WAFF Ice House, constructed entirely from oversized ice blocks. As you enjoyed all that The Wharf DC offers during the winter, you might have noticed our logo and QR code posted across the District Pier.

These events and activities have sparked a lot of curiosity about WAFF. Thank you for so many fantastic questions!

TELL ME AGAIN.

WHAT IS WAFF?

WAFF stands for the Washington Area Fuel Fund program, the flagship community service program founded by Washington Gas in 1983. WAFF has one goal: to help area families who are having trouble heating their homes during the winter, even when other sources of assistance might not be available. On average, it takes $500 to warm a single household during the winter season.*

Approximately 16.5% of Washington D.C. households live at or below the poverty line.** However, as the COVID pandemic recently reminded us, sudden events can strike any household at any time. Doing without essentials like food and medicine just to have a warm home is a reality for thousands of local families. To date, WAFF has distributed over $33 million to more than 300,000 households for home heating.

Winter. Warmth. WAFF.

WHO CAN APPLY FOR WAFF?

Any household within the Washington Gas Service Territory (Washington D.C., Maryland, Virginia) that has already pursued existing federally funded assistance programs can apply for WAFF. You do not have to be a Washington Gas customer. Income, family size and residency help determine WAFF eligibility, and you may also qualify during emergencies where your heat is about to be or has been disconnected. No matter how you heat your home—natural gas, electricity, oil, coal, wood, kerosene or others—you can apply for WAFF.

HOW DO I APPLY?

Visit www.waffhelp.com and click Get Help, You can complete an online application now through May 31.

HOW CAN I HELP OTHERS THROUGH WAFF?

Just scan the orange WAFF house at the top right side of this page to go to the WAFF Give Help page. Every dollar you donate to WAFF goes directly to someone in need, and Washington Gas covers all program and administrative costs.

We gratefully accept donations year-round. When you visit the Give Help page, you will see several easy ways to give:

• Give when paying your bill online at http://www.washingtongas. com.

• Add a donation to your paper bill by marking the WAFF box on the stub and adding your contribution amount.

• Set up an automatic monthly pledge to your bill (cancel at any time).

• Donate when you pay your bill by phone at 703-750-7944.

Corporate sponsorships are also available throughout the year and are a great way to help WAFF while enhancing your brand. For more information, please contact alexandra. alleyne@washgas.com.

What Events Does Waff Have Planned

IN 2023?

At Rock the Rink at The Wharf DC on Feb. 11, you can show your Washington Capitals pride while supporting WAFF! Visit our booth on the District Pier to buy raffle tickets for two club-level tickets to see the Caps take on the Florida Panthers on Feb. 16. You can also skate at the ice rink and enjoy food and shopping before watching the Caps face the Boston Bruins on the Jumbotron. We are also finalizing a schedule of summer events later this year, so stay tuned at http://www.waffhelp.com. We hope to see you in 2023!

*http://www.waffhelp.com **https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/DC posed by Lou Mosca, executive vice president and chief operating officer of American Management Services.

Mosca proposed that the USCM produce a mayor’s publication to small businesses that can advise municipal chief executives how to engage the small business community and what resources are available to firms on the federal, state and local levels.

“This is city hall’s way of stepping up and saying to small businesses ‘we have resources for you’,” he said.

Many mayors have programs in place to aid small businesses and shared those with colleagues. Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said his city has had a historic commitment to reach out to small, minority and women-owned firms and the effort continues presently.

“In Atlanta, we have a program where 35% of all of our city business is directed to disadvantaged business enterprises,” he said. “That program operates at our airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and with government agencies. We also encourage small businesses to do joint ventures with large companies.”

Dickens said his administration will create a virtual platform where large companies will find small business subcontractors to partner with on city projects. He spoke of weariness in hearing large firms complain that they couldn’t find small businesses who can handle the type of work needed on projects, saying the virtual platform should solve that problem.

Birmingham, Alabama Mayor Randall Woodfin said his city’s Build- from Page 1 tions in the workplace and protection under the Human Rights Act. “As chair of the newly formed Committee on Hospital and Health Equity, I will explore whether we have done enough in the District to codify and protect these rights,” Gray said on Monday.

“There will always be new frontiers to blaze in pursuit of equity,”he continued. “As well, issues that were seemingly settled sometimes require revisiting. Throughout my career, I have advocated for the rights of individuals who are often overlooked or taken advantage of. This chapter of my career will be no different.”

Earlier in January, Gray unsuccessfully argued before the council that Mendelson violated the Human Rights Act when he removed him from the helm of the Committee on

5 Birmingham, Ala. Mayor Randall Woodfin with Deniver Mayor Michael Hancock, addresses a luncheon at the U.S. Conference of Mayors' 91st Winter Meeting. (Courtesy photo/US Conference ing Opportunities for Lasting Development (BOLD) program serves as a key program for small businesses that seek city contracts. Woodfin said BOLD has helped many struggling businesses during the pandemic get funds to continue their operations.

Robin Mack, the director of Business Development for the city of Mount Vernon, N.Y., said small businesses are being engaged by the administration of Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard.

“We have found many small business owners have great ideas and skills but don’t have the technical knowledge on how to manage a business successfully,” Mack said. “We offer programs to help them get up to speed with their accounting, marketing, banking and e-commerce. If the plan for a business is to have a brickand-mortar operation, we can assist them with that also.” WI

@JamesWrightJr10

Health. The former council chairman made a motion, which he put before the body, but only had the support of D.C. Councilmembers Janeese Lewis George (D-Ward 4) and Trayon White (D-Ward 8).

Shortly before the committee reassignments in December, Gray submitted a letter to the council saying that his doctors cleared him for work and related activities. Mendelson went on to change Gray’s committee assignment, after, what he described as, concerns he and others on the council had about their eldest colleague’s recovery.

Mendelson, speaking to the Informer earlier this month, argued that the Human Rights Act doesn’t apply to decisions about committee assignments because it’s not a matter of an employer-employee relationship. He added that though Gray’s doctors cleared him to work, they suggested has stood the test of time,” Carper, 76, said. “Unfortunately, ‘taxation without representation’ is the current reality for nearly 700,000 citizens living in the District of Columbia. These citizens do not have a voting representative in either chamber of Congress. They pay more federal taxes per capita than citizens of any of the 50 states, but have no say in how these taxes are actually spent. They serve in the military and can be sent to battle in a war that had no say in fighting. This is wrong and not consistent with the values we hold dear as Americans.” they limit his work hours.

Carper said D.C. statehood is an issue that goes bipartisan beyond politics.

“This isn’t a Republican or Democratic issue—it’s an issue of fairness. I am proud to once again partner with Congresswoman Norton on this important issue and look forward to the work ahead to make D.C. statehood a reality,” he said.

Carper made his bill introduction as the new 118 th Congress, which started earlier this month, proceeded to conduct its business. Carper first introduced legislation to grant the District statehood in 2013 and has sponsored legislation in every congressional session since. In September 2014, Carper held the first hearing on D.C. statehood in decades as chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. In June 2021, Carper joined his colleague, Sen. Gary Peters (D-Michigan), the chair of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, in leading a hearing on the issue of D.C. Statehood.

Though stroke rehabilitation differs from person to person, experts say that performance in the realms of mobility, speech and strength can significantly improve within a year to 18 months. Cognition is most likely to improve within the first three months of recovery, as that’s the period when the brain is actively attempting to repair itself.

After his mild stroke in late 2021, Gray spent much of last year engaging in physical therapy and speech therapy.

Despite his progress, Gray continues to experience challenges verbally communicating. In his recent letter, he said a staff member will accompany him while conducting council business to read his remarks. He also expressed plans to temporarily communicate through written statements.

Gray’s staff has spent several weeks

Carper has garnered 42 original cosponsors for his bill, all Democrats and independents. One of the original cosponsors, Van Hollen, said the District not being a state amounts to a “national scandal.”

“It is a national scandal that the people who live in the capital of the oldest democracy in the world have fewer political rights than those who live outside it,” Van Hollen, 64, said. “Simply put, denying the people of the District of Columbia the same rights to voting representation in the House and Senate enjoyed by other citizens is undemocratic. It’s time to grant the District statehood, end taxation without representation, and deliver equality and fairness to its residents.”

Norton, 85, picked up on the unfairness of taxation without representation and thanked Carper for his commitment to the D.C. statehood.

“The single idea of ‘taxation without representation’ that gave rise to the American revolution still resonates today,” she said, emphasizing the fact that Washingtonians pay the highest federal taxes per capita— an injustice also echoed by Mayor Bowser. “[D.C. residents pay] more federal taxes than 23 states, and the District has a bond rating higher than 35 states. They’ve fought and died in every war since the Revolution, and they deserve voting representation in Congress and full self-government. Thank you to Senator Carper, our longtime ally, for leading the charge in the Senate.”

Carper didn’t speculate on when a Senate committee will consider his bill.

Presently, Norton has 173 cosponsors for her D.C. statehood bill, and previously led efforts for the House to pass her statehood bill in 2020 and 2021.

Mendelson, 70, said he realized that many Republicans oppose D.C. statehood because of the political demographic of the city.

“They say we are too liberal and too Democratic,” the chairman said. “Therefore, this has become a partisan issue.”

Mendelson said the District is penalized because of its lack of statehood noting that the D.C. Council could not send its laws to the Congress for review a few weeks ago because of the House’s stalemate in electing its speaker and Wall Street firms' ongoing concern about the city’s financial stability-- despite its well-regarded rating-- due to congressional uncertainty.

Charles Wilson, the chairman of the D.C. Democratic State Committee, attended the news conference. While Wilson expressed his satisfaction with Carper’s legislation, he said more work needs to be done in order to ensure the District joins the union.

“We have to win more elections,” he said. “The only way we are going to get statehood is to have a Democratic House, a Democratic Senate and a Democrat in the White House.” WI

@JamesWrightJr10

communicating with constituents to allay concerns about his health. Following his committee reassignment, residents, politicians and community organizers took to social media to support the political veteran and echo his concerns about human rights violations.

Gray has also found a supporter in Bishop Paula Clark, a stroke survivor hailing from Hillcrest who’s faced hurdles similar to the Ward 7 councilmember.

In early 2021, Clark moved to Chicago to serve a senior role in the Episcopal Church that places her before more than 120 congregations in Illinois, from Chicago to Peoria. Shortly after her move to the Windy City, Clark suffered a stroke that altered her speech and, for a brief moment, compelled some insecurity about her ability to speak before 25,000 Episcopalians.

The Ward 7 native, who is also mother of WI Managing Editor Micha Green, said through it all, she continues to soldier on, using her stroke and subsequent recovery as an opportunity to grow stronger and more resilient. She said Gray will do the same in an environment where people have a surface-level understanding of what people with differing abilities can accomplish.

“We come out of these difficulties sounding differently but we’re stronger, intuitive and more reflective having gone through these trials,” Clark said. “Because we’re uninformed about people’s disabilities, we make erroneous assumptions that are hurtful. That’s why people need to give Councilmember Gray the benefit of the doubt and see what he’s made of.” WI

@SamPKCollins