Silver Spring Pride sign rebuilt in memory of beloved neighbor
Residents of Silver Spring’s Rosemary Hills neighborhood have come together to rebuild a Pride sign. The sign was constructed in June 2020, and was meant to stay in place throughout Pride Month.
Neighborhood residents, however, requested it stay up past its intended month-long display, and has remained in place for more than four years.
The sign spelling LOVE is at the neighborhood’s entrance between Sundale and Richmond Streets. It was made from plywood and the O was painted in the colors of the Pride flag. “We wanted to take it down, but we just felt it was not ours anymore and belonged to the neighborhood.” Tony Brown told the Washington Blade during a telephone interview. “It was a positive thing for the neighborhood and began to take on a life of its own.” Brown and his partner, Mike Heffner, designed the sign and said the Black Lives Matter movement inspired them to create it as a strong symbol of an accepting community.
The sign was vandalized numerous times last fall, resulting in neighborhood residents taking turns repairing it. Brown and his partner could not do the repairs themselves because Heffner was fighting Stage 4 lung cancer.