(BALTIMORE – July 23, 2025) – While I spent my early years in East Baltimore, most of my upbringing took place on the Westside — at the home my mother owned on Moreland Avenue, near Baker Street. She moved there in the early 1950s, back when the neighborhood was mostly non-Black. I grew up in the 1500 block of Moreland, right across from Easterwood Park.
No disrespect to the surrounding blocks, but I lived among Black royalty on what I still call the greatest block in the world.
Most of us attended Matthew A. Henson Elementary School #29. For me, that was from 1970 to 1976. In hindsight, we had some of the finest educators in all of public education. Thanks to Mrs. Robinson, we learned the Dewey Decimal System. Mr. Kermit Williams introduced us to the morning broadcast. Ms. Hilda Brown directed student productions of The Wiz. And Ms. Salin — a cool white lady — led one of the fiercest school orchestras in the city.
Those were the days. When the 3 o’clock bell rang, you might have to fight — that was just part of it. But back then, you fought and went home. It wasn’t like today. Honor meant something different. Today, it’s a whole other lens.
I remember doing school reports on the groundbreaking mini-series Roots. I remember making model cars, learning about Native Americans, and playing basketball until the streetlights came on…