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BALTIMORE (WBFF) — As if partnerships with Marvel, Converse, and HBO Max weren’t enough, Baltimore artist Akio Evans is now working with Timberland to bring an immersive design workshop to some of Baltimore’s teens.

Timberland hosts workshops in collaboration with a brand called Cnstnt Dvlpmnt, whose goal is to empower the youth and give creative outlets. The partnership was originally posted on the Timberland Instagram account back in August 2021.

The companies reached out to Evans, a local artist who specializes in fine art shoe murals and who is the creative director of Hearts and Heroes studios. He chose to partner with Water P. Carter Elementary Middle School, where his twin sister is the art teacher, to host a shoe design workshop for 30 Baltimore teens.

He hopes to show the Baltimore teens their potential.

“Not only instilling confidence in what they can wear but instilling confidence in what they can do,” Evans said.

At the workshop, students will start the design process with mockups to finish designing. All 30 participants will also go home with a brand-new pair of Timberlands.

Keila Evans, the sister and art teacher, explained that the workshop will allow students, (many of whom are underprivileged) to experience a new opportunity, all while saving families from needing to buy boots as colder months approach.

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“They not only get the opportunity to be exposed to different shoe brands but it also gives them an opportunity, not only to see that process but also give them an opportunity to actually get a free pair of shoe wear,” the sister said.

She selected a group of fifth to ninth graders, including her former students and those in the building who are passionate about art.

The event will be hosted at Open Works from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It gives Akio an opportunity to inspire the youth.

“I would love for the kids to take away from this event is that you can do any and everything you decide to put your mind to,” the show muralist said.

While this event is not open to the public, Evans is hosting a second event – an improv comedy show -- tomorrow at the Baltimore Improv Group at 8 p.m. Tickets can be bought for that event on BIGIMPROV.ORG or at the door.

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And the Baltimore streets will be met with 30 new pairs of Timberland boots hitting the pavement.

“I want to hear everybody – we are excited!” said Delegate Caylin Young (D, 45th) trying to pump up the crowd for the fundraiser that kicked off Mayor Brandon Scott’s bid for a second term in 2024.

Last night’s event attracted about 130 people to the CFG Bank Arena, including a smattering of elected officials, including Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr., five House delegates and four of the city’s 14 Council members.

No marquee name figures showed up to stand with the Democratic incumbent.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore was not in attendance.

Nor was Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson, state Senator Antonio Hayes (40th) or state Senator Cory McCray (45th), leader of the BEST Democratic Club that nurtured Scott’s rise from a backbench councilman to the mayoral suite at City Hall.

There were also no official endorsements of Scott in the wake of Delegate Sandy Rosenberg’s surprise announcement yesterday that he was throwing his support behind Sheila Dixon, the former mayor who lost to Scott in 2020 and is now seeking a rematch.

The media was barred from the gathering, Scott fundraiser Colleen Martin-Lauer told The Brew, but sources provided this website with the mayor’s speech and a partial list of attendees.

A competing fundraiser held last night for Sheila Dixon, the leading candidate challenging Scott, did not prohibit the press.

• Sheila Dixon’s fundraiser draws faithful fans and frustrated newcomers (10/19/23)

Asked to characterize the mood of the Scott event, one participant texted back, “I’d say the crowd felt obligated.”

Hosts of the event, which was staged at the arena’s Fearless Club, were asked to come up with $6,000. But their identity was not apparent since the traditional “sponsor board,” which credits the leading benefactors of a political fundraiser, was nowhere to be found.

Just how much was raised won’t be publicly known until mid-January, when all candidates are required to submit to the State Board of Elections their fundraising haul for the previous year.

As of its last January 2023 report, People For Brandon M. Scott had $450,000 in the bank.

During his 2020 run for mayor, Scott raised $1.3 million, nearly half of which came after he had defeated Dixon in the Democratic Party primary and was coasting to victory in the general election.

Harborplace and Squeegees

After being introduced by Del. Young, who doubles as deputy director of the city’s Office of Equity and Civil Rights, Scott gave a short speech citing his accomplishments after lamenting the shortcomings of recent predecessors.

“I ran in 2020 because Baltimore needed true leadership after failed leadership sent us spiraling. It was time for the tough work of tackling long-term issues, not just talk about them and pointing a finger. A time for a government that was for all of us, not just some of us,” he said, to applause.

Scott cited the $250 million renovation of the downtown arena, the overhaul of Lexington Market and the placement of the Harborplace pavilions “into capable Baltimore hands” as three of his proudest accomplishments.

He lauded Harborplace’s new owner, P. David Bramble, and developer Thibault Manekin for their contributions to the city.

(Not mentioned were their political contributions – $12,000 in the case of Bramble, his partners and his real estate company – while he’s been in office.)

We have to be loud about Lexington Market, Harborplace’s new owner and we don’t see squeegees anymore – Scott citing his accomplishments.

From the time he took over in December 2020 to now, Scott asserted, “I do one thing all the time as mayor, and that’s to do the right thing.”

He said his holistic violence reduction strategies are now bearing fruit, with homicides down 18% and carjackings 25%, and spent quite awhile lauding his “squeegee strategy.”

“Every mayor since Mayor Schaefer had this thing come to them, ‘What are you going to do, Mister Mayor or Madame Mayor, about the squeegees?’

“And quite honestly, I’ve heard the word squeegee more in the last 40 seconds than I have in the last six months because we brought Baltimore together, not to point the finger, but to make this issue better. And not for the short-term, but for the long-term so it doesn’t come back,” Scott stated, noting that 311 squeegee calls for service have dropped 80%.

“We have to tell the story,” he continued. “Whenever something is going wrong with Baltimore, we love to tell that story. We tell it over and over and over again. And when things are going right, people are silent. We have to be loud about the new Lexington Market, and we don’t see squeegees anymore.”

“The work has just begun. The wins are just starting to come in. And now with capable, unbought, unbossed, unbiased leadership, Baltimore can work to see its highest achievements,” he concluded.

Electeds, Labor Leaders and Others

Among those attending last night were:

Delegates Nick Allen (D, 8th), Elizabeth Embry (D, 43rd), Jackie Addison (D, 45th) and Robbyn Lewis (D, 46th); Council members Antonio Glover, Phylicia Porter, Robert Stokes and James Torrence; Deputy Mayor Justin Williams; City Administrator Faith Leach; Scott’s Chief of Staff (and 2020 campaign manager) Marvin James; Calvin A. Young, a close Scott friend and partner at Green Street Impact; and Deputy Chief of Staff J.D. Merrill.

Also on hand were a number of local labor leaders, including Josh Fannon, president of Baltimore Fire Officers, and Jermaine Jones, director of the Baltimore-D.C. Metro Building and Construction Trades Council.

Other guests included:

Developer Richard Manekin; Ashiah Parker, executive director of the No Boundaries Coalition; Christian Johansson, former secretary of the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development; Scott campaign treasurer Leland Shelton, who works at David Bramble’s real estate company; and Delali Dzirasa, founder of Fearless, a software development company and the husband of Baltimore Deputy Mayor Letitia Dzirasa.

Absent from the fundraiser, according to Brew sources, was the mayor’s girlfriend, Hana Pugh, whose employer, Baltimore Empowered, recently received a $50,000 storefront improvement grant co-sponsored by Dzirasa’s company, which also provided the space for last night’s gathering. ___________ • To reach a reporter: [email protected]

The Ravens are tied for the NFL lead in sacks and one of their best outside linebackers is poised to return for Sunday's game against the Detroit Lions at M&T Bank Stadium.

Odafe Oweh practiced fully Thursday and Friday in his return from an ankle injury that sidelined him for the past four games. He does not have an injury designation going into the game, meaning he's physically good to go.

"He looked good," Head Coach John Harbaugh said of Oweh's week of practice. "It was good to see him back out there."

Oweh got off to a strong start against the Texans in Week 1 but suffered his injury the following week in Cincinnati. He would step in alongside Jadeveon Clowney and Kyle Van Noy as the Ravens' top outside linebackers against a formidable Lions offensive line.

The Ravens only ruled out two players – safety Marcus Williams (hamstring) and cornerback Kevon Seymour (ankle) – for Sunday's game. Everybody else practiced fully Friday, which was more of a walk-through practice. It's the healthiest the Ravens have been all season.

"I thought the best thing to do was [to] get a good mental sweat [and] try to really be focused on what we're doing assignment-wise and get ready for Sunday," Harbaugh said.

With Williams out, Stone will again start alongside Kyle Hamilton, a role he is accustomed to at this point. Stone is tied for the league lead with three interceptions.

Three defensive rotational players, defensive end Brent Urban (neck stinger), cornerback Ronald Darby (illness), and linebacker Malik Harrison (concussion) don't have an injury designation and are good to play against the Lions.

Darby came down with an illness this week that knocked him out of practice Thursday, but he was back on the field Friday.

Lions leading running back, David Montgomery, has been ruled out with a rib injury, pushing rookie first-round pick Jahmyr Gibbs into a prominent role.

Though Gibbs missed the past two weeks with a hamstring injury, he will play and won't be eased into action. Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell said the No. 12-overall pick will handle the "load" against the Ravens.

"I'd like to say we'll be careful with him, but the reality of it is we need him, so we'll go as far as he can take us," Campbell said. "He's ready."

Gibbs has top-notch speed and is a dangerous threat out of the backfield. While Montgomery leads the Lions with 385 rushing yards and six touchdowns, Gibbs has a higher per carry average (4.6 to 4.1 yards). He's also caught 14 passes for 70 yards. The Alabama product is looking for his first touchdown.

"We watched him in college, obviously, and he's very talented, a very elusive, tough, hard running back," Harbaugh said. "The snaps he's taken so far for the Lions have been the same, and he's very versatile. [He] can do everything they can do in the backfield, lines up as a receiver, a lot of screens – all those things."

Two key Lions rookies, tight end Sam LaPorta (calf) and defensive back Brian Branch (ankle), were full practice participants Friday and carry no injury designation into the game, meaning they'll play. LaPorta has the third-most receiving yards (325) of any tight end in the league.

The Lions ruled out starting left guard Jonah Jackson (ankle). Running back Craig Reynolds (hamstring/toe), defensive lineman Josh Paschal (knee) and tight end James Mitchell (hamstring) are questionable.

As Terrell Suggs prepares to join the Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor presented by Meritage Jewelers, his longtime nemesis Ben Roethlisberger wishes him well, and with much respect.

Suggs will be honored at halftime of Sunday's Ravens-Lions at M&T Bank Stadium, watching his name join the Ring of Honor with legends like such as Ray Lewis, Ed Reed and Jonathan Ogden.

During his 16 seasons with the Ravens, Suggs was beloved for his irrepressible spirit and irreverent sense of humor, finishing as the franchise's all-time leader in sacks (132.5) and forced fumbles (37). The former NFL Defensive Player of the Year was a seven-time Pro Bowler who had a Hall of Fame worthy career and helped the Ravens win their second Super Bowl following the 2012 season.

However, no rivalry defined Suggs' career like the one had had with the Steelers and Roethlisberger.

"Tell Suggs I said congratulations," said Roethlisberger, the Steelers' retired quarterback whose rivalry with Suggs helped define their careers and the Ravens-Steelers rivalry.

"I loved playing against him because of the competitors we both are, the battles that we would have, the mutual respect that we had for each other. And I absolutely hated it because he was either intercepting a pass, knocking passes down, sacking me – something that just made my day miserable.

"When we were going to play Baltimore, I had to know where he was. I had to try and mentally beat him and that was hard. People talk about his physicality and what kind of physical freak he was. But he was a smart football player. You could outsmart a lot of guys, but not him. When I had to go up against him, I had to stress my brain. Only he can answer if I raised his game, but I know he always raised mine. He was a special player."

529: Terrell Suggs on Ring of Honor Induction, Steelers Hatred, Being the Villain, Greatest Achievements

Ravens legend Terrell Suggs talks about his emotions going into the Ring of Honor, what he's most proud of in his career, his rivalry with Ben Roethlisberger and much more.

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The careers of Suggs and Roethlisberger were closely intertwined – Suggs drafted in 2003 and Roethlisberger in 2004. Their teams met twice every season, and sometimes a third time in the playoffs. Every year, Suggs knew he'd have to get past the Steelers.

"You never want to lose to the Steelers," Suggs said on "The Lounge" podcast. "Especially if we lost to them early in the season. You can't get swept. That's blasphemy. This game is the game that made me the player. This is the most special game in the NFL, Ravens and Steelers. Especially in those days. You had hard-hitting. You had superstars on both sides, primarily defensive guys. That's why the rivalry was what it was.

"Besides M&T Bank, Heinz Field was like my favorite place to play. I loved being the bad guy there. I loved seeing them leave early after whipping their ass. That's why you lined up to play football, for games like that."

Suggs had many signature moments against the Steelers, like his "Thigh Master" interception against Roethlisberger in 2015, when Suggs secured the ball between his thighs to help seal a Ravens' win in Pittsburgh. Nobody ever sacked Roethlisberger more than Suggs – 17 times.

In 2014, before a Ravens-Steelers matchup, Suggs made his famous pre-game entrance through a tunnel wearing a Gladiator mask, encouraged to do so by teammate Haloti Ngata, who is also in the Ring of Honor. When Suggs emerged from the tunnel wearing his mask, Ravens fans went crazy.

It was a moment that encapsulated Suggs' unique qualities as an inspirational leader and prankster, and the Ravens responded with a 26-6 victory.

"Haloti came up with the Gladiator helmet," Suggs said. "I wasn't going to do it. He was like, 'Nah Sizz, we need a boost.' I just decided at the last minute, alright I'm going to do the Gladiator thing. Ravens-Steelers, that's usually when I came up with something. That game brings out the best and the worst in you. I became Terrell Suggs because I had to play the Steelers twice a year."

Roethlisberger said playing against Suggs and the Ravens was unlike any other battle, pushing his body to its limits.

"When I played Baltimore, I knew it was going to hurt," Roethlisberger said. "You were going to get pounded and beat up and you were going to hurt for weeks. It was (Ed) Reed, Suggs, (Ray) Lewis, Ngata, (Bart) Scott, (Chris) McAllister. That was a crazy team. You had to go up against those guys, and they were coming to get you.

"As a quarterback you don't get to hit, you just get hit. The only way to get them back was to win, to score touchdowns. I wanted to earn their respect by being tough, by never giving up, never quitting. Ngata smacked me in the face and broke my nose, but I didn't miss a play. I wasn't going to come out of that game. That's what that rivalry meant to me. Suggs and I during the game, we'd give each other a little dap. There wasn't much trash talk. When it was over, win or lose, you left everything out there. I'm telling you, I miss it, but my body doesn't."

Suggs gave his props to Roethlisberger, saying that competing against him helped bring out his best.

"I have a tremendous amount of respect for Ben Roethlisberger," Suggs said. "I don't have nothing bad to say about the guy. He broke my heart a lot of times, but I probably broke his sometimes, too. I loved playing against the guy. I love where it took me mentally."

Suggs said Sunday's ceremony will be emotional for him, as he hears the crowd and shares his special moment with family, friends and many former teammates. Rising to big occasions is a Suggs specialty, but he expects Sunday to feel surreal.

Suggs hasn't missed watching a Ravens game since his retirement following the 2019 season. He chose not to have his ceremony on a day when the Ravens played the Steelers because other times he attended that game as a fan, the Ravens lost. He didn't want to be a jinx.

"I never imagined this," Suggs said. "I don't know how I'm going to feel. But I know one thing – we better win."

Roethlisberger said he hadn't spoken to Suggs since they last faced each other, but that he expects to see him one day as a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, where the two rivals will one day wear gold jackets.

"There's no doubt he's a Hall of Famer, first ballot in my opinion," Roethlisberger said. "I don't see how he's not. When you talk about who deserves to get in, ask the question, 'Were you one of the best in the generation that you played? If you ask that question about Suggs, it's a no-brainer for anybody who played against him. He's special."

With the regular season coming to a close and the playoffs now in the LCS round, fewer and fewer players and fans are left with something to celebrate. The Orioles had an incredible regular season that came to a disappointing close in the ALDS but will still have plenty of opportunities to celebrate. Awards season is officially underway. Two Orioles rookies can lay claim as the first Orioles to be awarded this offseason.

On Tuesday, the 2023 MLB Pipeline All-Rookie team was announced, and it featured Orioles stars Gunnar Henderson and Yennier Cano on the first team. Both players were major factors in the Birds success this season and are well deserving of the recognition but entered the season with drastically different expectations. Henderson was entering as the number one prospect in baseball and the overwhelming favorite to win AL Rookie of the Year, and Cano began the season in the minors after having no success in limited action during the 2022 season.

Gunnar Henderson and Yennier Cano named to MLB Pipeline all-rookie team

What is left to be said about the season Gunnar Henderson had? Expectations were through the roof for the youngster coming into his first full season in the majors. Henderson finished the 2022 season in Baltimore and looked as if he could live up to his hype but got off to an ice cold start this season.

By the end of April some fans were even calling for him to be sent back to the minors to regain his confidence, but probable Manager of the Year Brandon Hyde had other plans. Hyde brought Henderson along slowly and used him in a platoon role early in the season playing Henderson almost exclusively against right handed pitchers. Then, in mid-May, things clicked for Henderson and the Gunn Show was officially open for business.

Henderson became a mainstay atop the O's lineup alongside Adley Rutschman whenever they faced a righty but also made himself too valuable to the team to take out of the lineup against lefties. He finished tied for the team lead with 28 homers, second on the team with 82 RBI's, and led the team with 100 runs scored. He was also third in baseball with nine triples.

Gunnar appeared in 84 games and made 68 starts at third base but makes the MLB Pipeline All-Rookie first team as the shortstop where he made 83 appearances and 64 starts. He was robbed of a chance to win a Gold Glove at the utility position, but he remains the favorite to win the Rookie of the Year.

Cano on the hand entered the season with no expectations and just the hope to get another chance in the major leagues. After coming to the Orioles as a throw in players in the trade that sent Jorge Lopez to the Minnesota Twins, Cano looked to rebound from a terrible first trip to the majors. In 13 appearances in 2022, Cano allowed 23 earned runs in only 18.0 innings, but he did also have 21 strikeouts. Cano said that he stopped using two different arm slots while pitching, and that change paid off.

Cano began the season with the Norfolk Tides where he did not allow a run in three appearances and picked up a save. He was called up early in the season to steady a struggling Orioles bullpen and never looked back. Cano was the best reliever in baseball during a perfect month of April where he made nine appearances pitching 11.0 innings allowing no hits or walks and converting both save opportunities he got.

He came back to earth in May but continued to be a very good and trusted reliever for the O's, staking claim to the setup man for Felix Bautista. Cano had even greater importance later in the season when Bautista went down with an injury, forcing Cano into the closers role where he continued to shine. Cano was one of four Orioles named to this year's all-star team which will hopefully be the first of many. He earned the only reliever position on the All-Rookie first team.

Even though these two rookies were at opposite ends of the spectrum at the start of the season, they finished the season as two of the brightest stars on one of baseball best teams. Congratulations to these two Orioles stars.