Sean Connolly

Local mosque talks about Major Hasan’s D.C. roots

Sean Connolly — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 20:34:12 +0000

The Muslim Community Center in Silver Spring has been serving D.C. area Muslims for three decades. CC-licensed photo by Flickr user miss_leslie.

Major Nadal Malik Hasan, the suspected gunman in the Fort Hood shooting, lived and worshipped in the D.C. area for many years. While here, he attended prayer services at the Muslim Community Center in Silver Spring.

I spoke with leaders of the mosque about their reaction to the shooting.

Markoff’s Haunted Forest scares up funds for charity

Sean Connolly — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 15:23:02 +0000

Local haunted houses in the D.C. area are frightening visitors with ghosts, ghouls and goblins this Halloween, but one area haunt raises money for a good cause while doing it.

Markoff's Haunted Forest is one of the area's most popular Halloween attractions. Photo by Erissa Scalera.

Street Sense silent auction helps the homeless

Sean Connolly — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 20:17:07 +0000

Street Sense supporters attended the silent auction to keep the paper up and running.

Street Sense, a biweekly newspaper written and sold by D.C.’s homeless, held its fourth annual silent auction Thursday. The paper’s done well in the harsh economy this year after what was a rocky spring. The auction, called Bidding for Change, is deliberately scheduled ahead of the cold winter months that lie ahead.

The silent auction featured a variety of donated items which supporters of the paper bid on throughout the evening. Also at the auction, some vendors of Street Sense, who write much of the paper’s content, performed spoken word poetry, stand-up comedy, and sang.

Click here for an audio slideshow of the event.

How has Metro’s tough year affected riders?

Sean Connolly — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 23:07:53 +0000

CC-licensed photo by Flickr user nickherber.

This summer has been particularly tough on the D.C. Metro, leading The Washington Post to describe it as “an unprecedented summer of tragedy.”

June saw the most fatal accident ever in the transit agency’s history, and customers have had to face frequent delays for track work ever since.

I asked riders how the accident and many maintenance delays have been affecting them.