Maureen Harvie

The pandemic is distributing financial and other stresses, like its health damages--chaotically. They’re colliding on people who never before reached out for mental-health support but are now seeking help.

Here’s a Mother's Day Stoop Story from Debbie Page, who reminds us: there is no instruction book for parenting.

Two decades ago, just a few months shy of high school graduation, Sherise Holden learned she was pregnant. Today, Holden leads the nonprofit SheRises, which connects teen moms to resources and mentors. We hear about love and perseverance from Sherise and her daughter, Autumn.

Child care is an essential service, but the pandemic rocked the industry: capacity was restricted and cleaning costs soared.We speak with Laura Weeldreyer of the nonprofit Maryland Family Network, and ask what President Biden’s "American Families Plan" would mean for the industry. Then, Christina Peusch, who leads the Maryland State Child Care Association, and Imani-Angela Rose, co-owner of a center in Northwest Baltimore, detail hurdles facing providers.

Only a small number of Marylanders who have received their first COVID-19 vaccine shot have skipped their second dose, less than 4 percent.But Dr. William Moss, who leads the International Vaccine Access Center at the Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, says it’s a risky move. He talks about the factors behind vaccine drop-off.Then, the math that signals the end of the pandemic. UMBC health economist Zoë McLaren gives us a lesson in exponential decay. Read her New York Times piece, "The Math That Explains the End of the Pandemic."

With more availability of COVID-19 vaccines, the end of the pandemic may be in sight. But millions of people who were infected continue to battle lasting complications.Hopkins epidemiologist Priya Duggal tells of a new survey collecting data about COVID symptoms and of genetic research into why some people are vulnerable to long COVID. Check out the Johns Hopkins Long COVID Study.And we hear from Chimére Smith, who has spent more than a year navigating the painful reality of long haul COVID.

The Daily Miracle: A Memoir of Newspapering. The beginning of the title of C. Fraser Smith’s last book may sound reverent--a miracle! Every day! But along with the tales of eccentric newsroom co-workers, the book offers a hint of sarcasm … plus anguish about the threats to newspapers. Smith died this week, but his warning stands; that when papers wither the community loses a valuable ally.

How Tutoring Could Remedy Pandemic Learning Loss

Stories From The Stoop: Duilia de Mello

Patuxent Riverkeeper Fred Tutman On Diversity In The Environmental Movement