the insta-weather plus forecast as 11 news today continues right now. [captioning made possible by constellation energy group] >> good morning. happy friday. i'm mindy basara. >> and i'm stan stovall. thank you for joining us for 11 news today. >> we're rude, have a lot of traffic but we're out of shape but we're lucky. i like that. we are a lucky city. and we're going to luck out at least start the day as far as the rain goes but we're going to see showers move in. give it a couple hours and the rain will start to drift in. let's take a look at the current conditions. 66 at the airport. kind of muggy. feels like a summer morning out there. the rain is just south of d. cranlt getting ready to move in. the beginning of the drive time will be fine but the rain will be with us throughout the afternoon. the high temperature near 73.

let's say good morning to sarah caldwell. >> good morning tony. not exactly a lucky morning for folks heading north on the harrisburg expressway. a tractor-trailer went into the guardrail. as you make your exit on the outer loop ramp you'll find closures. one lane is getting by at the time. 14 miles per hour as you make your way north on the harrisburg expressway. we'll update you on that as we get more information. looking at a smooth ride in anne arundel county and glen burnie area 58 miles per hour on 57 at 100. 12 minutes drive time on the outer loop northbound. eight-minute ride on 895 south toward harbor tunnel. you can see the activity here. just that one lane squeezing

by. you may consider york road as your alternative. a live view of traffic at the key bridge. a smooth ride here in both loops. rest of the major roadways looking pretty good. that's the latest on traffic pulse 11. >> our big story this morning, his mother is dead. his step father in police custody, but this morning the big question remains. where is 11-year-old william mcquain? >> despite an amber say letter search, the anne arundel boy has not been seen in two weeks. jennifer franciotti has more on this story. >> as you can imagine police are very concerned. william's mother jane mcquain was found dead in their home. william was missing and so was his step father. police had a vehicle description with an amber alert and found curtis lopez the step father and charged him with first-degree murder. they hoped to find william safe with lopez, however, william

was not with him. he was last seen in his montgomery county condo subdivision, the same spot where his mother was found murdered. >> the two people, you see mother, you see son. every time she would go somewhere, he would go somewhere. >> william is a sixth grader, and right now it's unclear whether his school followed policy when he failed to show up to school for more than four consecutive days and in fact he didn't show up to school for two weeks. anyone with information is asked to call the police department. >> thank you. the suspect who was who shot a man inside a downtown parking garage remains on the loose. the shots were fired around 6:00 p.m. at the university garage down the street from university hospital. the victim identified only as a man in his 40's was shot in the back in what police believe to be a robbery attempt. given the random necessary of the attack and the number of people that go in and out of

the garage, this is a crime that has many people concerned. >> i use this garage pretty much daily. so now i'm definitely going to be having all -- walking around, looking around every corner, everything. just because i don't know what's going to happen. >> i was very disturbed. my daughter is up there now with my wife. and it's something terrible terrible. >> we're told the victim is in critical but stable condition right now. meanwhile police have no description of the suspect. >> the search continues for an inmate who escaped during a transfer. 21-year-old jermaine stroud was being transported after being charged with arm robbery wednesday but somehow managed to escape and police say he should be considered armed and dangerous and anyone with information on his whereabouts should call 911. >> and 35 gang members were arrested.

the south side bloods are accused of dozens of charges. as back -- far back as 2005. >> it's not enough that we arrest these folks. we need to make sure they are incarcerate rated and seventh out of the state to federal prison. because when we leave them in local facilities here in maryland they continue to influence fellow gang members who come back to the streets and commit more crimes. >> the u.s. attorney says a coordinated effort is needed to disband the gangs. >> and two were smuggling more than $300,000 worth of marijuana. the trooper stopped to help the two men fix a flat. after receiving permission to search their truck found 67 pounds of marijuana in the bed

of the vehicle. the two men from florida are facing numerous drug offenses. >> on capitol hill the back and forth over jobs continues. the president's bill was killed and republicans have now offered their bill. kate amara has more. >> good morning, stan, and happy friday. so this new legislation is called the jobs through growth act and it does not include a single identity m from the president's jobs bill. >> in a 10-minute phone call president obama and house speaker john boehner talked jobs. according to the speaker's office he told mr. boehner they are ready to introduce other things. >> i think we can find common ground. we'll continue to work with him. >> senate republicans introduced their own jobs legislation. it would overhaul the tax code,

cut business regulations and boost offshore oil exploration. >> they believe government spend aing creates jobs, and we believe business and growth creates jobs. >> the plan would repeal the health care law and include a balanced budget amendment. >> what are we doing but wasting time? >> they want to spend money on public works projects. >> anytime and any place they are serious about working on putting people back to work we'll be prepared to work with them. >> the president said what he plans to do now is break his jobs bill up into pieces and then put each piece up for a vote. i'm kate amara. wbal-tv 11 news. >> so kate, is there anything in this new g.o.p. plan that could pass? >> that's a great question. there's a couple of things. there's support on both sides of the i've for overhauling the tax code and eliminating some

deductions. there could also be bipartisan support for a proposalal to allow u.s. companies to bring home $1.4 trillion in profits, profits that are currently overseas because of high tax rates. >> i notice you used the word could. >> yes. it's the most important word here. >> thank you, kate. appreciate it. well, in these lean economic times, it's expected to get a tough sale to get legislatures to go along for a bump for state judges. they gave approval for a $29,000 pay raise for a lowest paid judge pulling down a salary of $156,000 and the top tier judges earning $191,000. a similar proposal failed years ago. >> when you think of cities synonymous with luck you think vegas, is that right but baltimore is listed as the

second luckiest city in america. the number of megaajackpot winners,al lightning strikes and deaths from falling objects were looked at in "men's health" magazine. d.c. ranked 22nd. that brings us to our water cooler question of the day, what do you think makes baltimore one of the luckiest cities in america? share your response on www.wbaltv.com and on our facebook page or send an email to watercooler@wbaltv.com. >> go buy some lottery tickets. >> the time now 6:09, 66 degrees on tv hill. which of the nation's airports have the most crowded tarmacs? >> and a deadly crash in colorado claim the lives of six people. find out what police believe caused this tragedy. and the showdown as the up a wall street protesters are being told to move on.

the reason that has the mayor and police chief on edge. that's still ahead. >> and we are live at the finish line of the baltimore marathon and half marathon and we'll be talking to runners getting ready for the race. >> and not exactly the way you want to start your friday morning commute. delays on the north side of the beltway as a result of an accident on the harrisburg accident on the harrisburg expressway.

>> good morning. here's a live view of the skycam. it's a little bit hazy and foggy out this morning, but pretty warm. 69, the current temperature

down at the maryland science center. that's not far from where we are now. i'm at the finish line of the marathon and half marathon outside m & t bank stadium. and we're talking to runners gearing up for tomorrow. i'm here with mika and leian and you are with a group called black girls run. it gains attention. tell us what this is all about. >> it's basically to create awareness about obesity in african-american communities. we want to promote a healthy lifestyle. >> what a better way to do it than running. so tell us how people can join. >> you can reach us by www.blackgirlsrun.com. we give information about thousand join our group. >> you ran a half but now are running the full marathon. how excited are you? >> i trained well, so i think

we're going to be able to accomplish this and make everyone proud of us. >> leian, you're running a half. do you feel you've trained enough? >> yes. it's my first half marathon and i'm excited to finish. >> i'll be out there cheering you guys on. let's check on the forecast of what you guys will be dealing with. a little bit chilly to start off but you definitely dweent overdecrease, because you will be warming up throughout race. winds could be up to 25 miles per hour toward the afternoon. that's going to be something runners will be battling against. we'll head back to tony. great story. i know you're going to get a lot of awareness by running in this event. >> yes. i wonder if they'll let you turn around and run with the wind as you hit it? doesn't matter which direction, as long as you run 26 miles, is

that right [laughter] we had thunderstorms yesterday evening, even tornado warnings and there was some severe weather in maryland. cleared out overnight. we're starting out with dry weather overnight. you see all this rain coming up out of virginia. it's approaching d.c. right now. so it's going to take another hour-hour and a half to teach beltway. so even though it's not raining at your house, take an umbrella with you and leave as early as you can. this is all aligned with a cold front that will come through. you can see how temperatures drop off. and the cooler air will be visits -- visiting us in maryland. temperatures are in the upper 60's. the average high temperature right now is 6. so we're close to the average

high temperature but rain showers will be likely today. especially once we get past 8:00 a.m. this morning. and they will stay with us throughout the afternoon. sunrise in about an hour at :15. -- at 7:15. temperatures will drop back into the upper 40's to around 50. over-the-weekend it will be windy. but it should stay dry. if you're going to the ravens game on sunday, good football weather. sunshine. upper 60's to 70. then it will get chilly next week with highs only in the 50's. the time is 16 minutes after 6:00. let's look at the roads. >> so tony -- runners look for tony, he'll be running backwards. we have an accident from the outer loop just past the beltway. only one lane getting by.

a jackknifed tractor-trailer into the guardrail. and a fuel spill along with it. here's worse news, descendant on the outer loop at charles just coming into us adding to the delays on the outer loop top side. west side looking good at baltimore national pike and 97 to and from the glen burnie area. we'll start with the ramp from the outer loop to the northbound harrisburg expressway. left lane is squeezing by but delays past york with that initial accident. here's where your delay begins at york road continued to northbound 83. within that delay at charles watch for that accident. stan? >> taking a look at some of our top stories this morning a connecticut jury will now decide whether or not a man will live or die for an horrific home invasion and murder back in 2007. yesterday 31-year-old joshua was found guilty for breaking into the home of dr. william pettitte, beating him, raping

his wife and 11 and 17-year-old daughters and then setting the house on fire. dr. pettitte was the lone survivor. >> a van carrying a children on the way to school slams in the back of a tractor-trailer. 12 people were onboard and all the children in that van were from a home for adopted and foster children run by a male driver who was driving the van. he also died. protesters who had been occupying lower manhattan are being told to move on. mayor michael bloomberg personally delivered the message that the wall street protesters need leave the park to be cleaned. some skeptical that they won't be allowed to return started cleaning the area themselves. the eviction order goes into effect at 7:00 p.m. this evening. >> in this morning's "consumer

alert," people who receive social security could see their first flaze benefits in over two years. based on the rising cost of food and transportation and other daily essentials, retirees could get a cost of living increase. a formal announcement on the details should come today. >> retailers continue to see sales slide and more congestion on the tar max. >> -- on the tarmacs. >> good morning, a shocking report on air traffic from the accountability office. they say u.s. air traffic is -- jets that veer off runways to controllers who now allow aircraft to get too close together, the federal aviation administration needs to better track safety lapses at the airports. and the latest reports on retail sales. forecasting to show a rise as

more people went out and bought cars last month. the gap plans to close 200 stores in the u.s. it wants to focus on expanding its international and online business. no word on if any stores in the baltimore area will be affected. and lower losses for j.p. morgan chase and the nasdaq rallying on the word for chip makers. did you know it's rodent prevention month. according to a survey by de con, more than 70% of maryland customers have encountered a mouse. at the new york stock exchange, i'm jane king. >> now you know where to avoid. >> not surprised rats like the water. >> the time now 6:20, 66

degrees on tv hill. a major tieup on the harrisburg expressway is going to cause problems. sarah caldwell will bring us up to date on that. >> also you've heard the phrase that's the way the ball bounces? that perfectly describes the american league playoffs. keith mills joins us live next to explain. and here's a look at last night's winning lottery numbers.

>> good morning to you. sarah caldwell with a look at your morning commute. this friday we're dealing with problems on the harrisburg expressway just as you pass the beltway from the rather than to the outer loop. we're dealing with a jackknifed tractor-trailer also associated with a fuel spill. not pretty. the delay is spilling over to the outer loop. and the outer loop at charles. so two problems to deal with. nothing major on the west side where it's 50 miles per hour. the outer loop at liberty, good. j.f.x. in pretty good shape. moderate speeds. if you're traveling towards the tunnel, the fort mchenry and harbor tunnel looking ok. the accident from the ramp to the outer loop northbound 83, watch for the closures. left lane squeezing by.

that's the latest on traffic pulse 11. we check in with tony for a look at the forecast. >> it's dry right now but we expect rain after 8:00 this morning. so good idea to leave early and take an umbrella. 66 at the airport and 63 at parkton. 64 at westminster. we'll make it up to 70 but rain showers likely this morning and through this evening. we'll check the forecast for the evening, but first, here's keith mills. >> now 11 sports with keith mills. >> good morning, everybody. the ravens play the texans on sunday with a little history on their side. the ravens, 6-0 at home since 2002 after their bye week. and even though andre johnson not expected to play, matt schaub can wing it and they will provide a major offensive

challenge for the ravens defense. in that wild game against ravens in houston, and chuck knows beating the texans starts with stopping arian foster in the running game. >> big, fast, physical. hard-nosed, downhill runner. they run the stretch game to a tee. he gets on a track. sees an opening and puts one foot in the ground and gets north and south. he's a big guy, a load. you've got gang tackle him. >> gerry sandusky, qadry ismail and the call of the game. they'll join me at 1:00 with pete gilbert and johnathan ogden for the pregame show at m & t bank stadium. >> the brewers win. game five is tonight. the american league championship headed back to texas as justin verlander and the tigers win game five.

ian kinskinsler, brandon inge, that's a double play to and then jam then in the bottom of the sixth. hit them where they ain't and where the theab bag is. miguel cabrera off the theab seat. that's what you call good placement. tigers win 7-5, trail the series 3-2, next game in arlington. last night in pittsburgh, alex ovechkin and nice feed from backs strom. 3-2, the caps win in overtime. start season at 3-0. baltimore marathon tomorrow morning, and i kid you not, there's an indian wedding in town and they want to bring an elephant and walk the streets before the race tomorrow. lee told us that yesterday. >> yes. that ought to be interesting. >> that's incredible. can he run a four-minute mile though?

>> elephants are actually pretty fast if they decide to run. >> thank you for that fact, stan. the time is 6:27, 66 degrees on tv hill. >> the search is on for a missing 11-year-old. i'm jennifer franciotti. details are next. >> when he bit my leg, it was, like, shaking around and he was biting my skin off. >> the victim speaks out about her run-in with a pit bull. the message the mother has this morning for the dog's owner. >> and on the outer loop top side due to an accident, we'll

>> good morning, everybody. welcome back to 11 news today. i'm stan stovall. and i'm mindy basara. thank you so much for joining us. tony pann with a check of the forecast. >> bere starting out dry, but we're going to get rain once we get past 8:00 a.m. so good idea to leave early if you can. the rain will be with us

throughout rest of the day. high of 73. we'll check your full forecast in a few minutes. >> this morning a desperate search for an 11-year-old boy whose mother was murdered at the hands of his step father allegedly. >> still no sign of 11-year-old william mcquain. jennifer franciotti joins us with the latest. >> good morning. the sixth grader was last seen on september 30. so now investigators want to know not just where he is but why it took so long for anyone to say he was missing. >> these are pictures of william. at priority our focus right now is to locate william mcquain. >> police in montgomery county make a desperate plea to help find missing boy. officials launch an investigation after his mother, jane mcquain, was found dead in

her home. >> an amber alert was act rate ised for ms. mcquain's vehicle and their 11-year-old son. the vehicle was located at the econolodge. >> police arrested curtis lopez and charged him with first-degree murder in her death. he is believed to be the boy's step father. but the search continues for the missing 11-year-old. he was last seen at his home in montgomery county. it's the same spot where his mother was discovered murdered. william is a sixth grader at niche martin luther king junior middle school. according to policy the school calls home when the child is absence and a guidance counsel or gets involved after a child is missing school for four

consecutive days. >> i wouldn't speculate as to why we didn't get information earlier. >> of course if you have any information about william mcquain's whereabouts, you're asked to call police. back to you. >> a baltimore county jury has convicted a man in the deadly robbery of a convenience store that left a customer dead and the owner severely wounded. he will be sentenced in november for the shooting. he is already serving 11 life sentences for a shootout with police days later. >> and after a natural gas leak forced residents to flee yesterday, firefighters had to clear a foursquare block area after a contractor punctured a gas line just after noon yesterday. residents were evacuated after officials were afraid the gas

could mix with oxygen in niche businesses. and r.g. steel has agreed pay $135240urks after a lawsuit was filed over a 2009 incident involving a pressure surge involving a blast furnace. under the terms of agreement r.g. must resolve other alleged violations as well. >> a 6-year-old rosedale girl is recovering after being attacked by a pit bull. she was outside playing with her friends when a pit bull darted across the street and clamped on to the girl's leg. the attack has sparked an investigation. and her mother says there must be consequences to prevent this from happening again. >> we have to take responsibility for ourself and owning an animal, you have to take responsibility in your animal and suffer the consequences.

>> later this morning the health department will decide whether to pick up the dog, cite the owner or both. >> funeral arrangements are now in place for the atlanta pist and former -- and -- -- archbishop edward o'brien is expected to officiate and the baltimore ravens will pay tribute to mrs. mow del with a moment of silence. patricia model died following a long illness at the age of 80. >> we're looking at delays on the north side due an accident on the harrisburg expressway. from the outer loop to northbound 93. meantime a new accident coming in right now. 105 at 108. northbound 83 just past the beltway, we have an accident.

the left lane is squeezing by. a tractor-trailer involved with that. also a fuel spill. also an accident at the outer loop at charles. 18 miles per hour is what we're down to on the west side outer loop from 75 to liberty. it hasn't stretched down to i-70 yet. not tracking anything major at the fort mchenry or harbor tunnel. the left lane is squeezing by. may want to consider york as your alternate. if you can get off at the ramp for york road, that's your alternate. now ava marie joins us live downtown at the finish line getting ready for the marathon, although you're not running in it, right? >> correct. i have run a half before and i don't know if i'll ever do it again, so i give props to these people whether you're running the relay or half or full

marathon. we've been talking to women who are running for fallen soldiers, women running for helping beat obesity in african-americans and then a shoe diner for underarmor. let's get a check on the forecast for the race. warm to start off today and we'll be in the 70's this afternoon but cooler tomorrow. in the 60's around race time and windy. and colder weather next week. tony keeps mentioning we could see our first frost. we'll have to see how that holds up. >> and you can watch complete coverage of the running festival here. kate amara and gerry sandusky will be live. >> and a team of reporters stationed along the course. our live coverage starts tomorrow morning at 7 a.m. >> and coming up a reminder that you're never too old to get in shape.

wait until you find out how told marathon runner? -- marathon runner is. >> and we're still taking your comments to our water cooler question of the day, what do you think makes baltimore one of the luckiest cities in america? share your response at www.wbaltv.com and on our facebook page or send an email to watercooler@wbaltv.com.

>> hey, who doesn't like dessert? chances are you wouldn't be ordering up a dessert bringing a new meaning to rich dessert. a chef created the world's most expensive dessert. the dessert is made out of high

quality chocolate, gold, champagne caviar, edible gold leave and capped off with a two caret diamond but doesn't break a record until someone orders it off the men knew and phase $35,000. >> may be too late to train for the marathon but this man proves it's never too late to train for one. at 100, he is never too late to train. he will run in his eighth marathon ranning an average of seven to eight miles a day, he began running after losing his wife at the age of 89. that's incredible. >> just walking at age 100 would be great. 6:40. 66 degrees on tv hill. still ahead, your answers to

our water cooler question of the day. >> and we'll update you on roads affected and an update on the harrisburg expressway. >> he's the fastest in his age group? how many people do you think are in his group? three? one? whatever, it's impress i have. coming up we'll check h.d. doppler. it's dry right now. weather is next.

>> welcome back to 11 news today, and it's 6:444. in the headlines an glee at the harper county detention center was taken to the hospital after handling something in the mail that made her feel light headed and developed a metallic taste in her mouth after coming into contact with a material in the

mail. hazmat crews were called in andment to substance believed to be some kind of narcotic is being evaluated. >> the suspect remains on the loose who shot a man in a parking garage. the man in his 40's was shot multiple times in the back in the parking garage listed in critical but stable condition. a "men's health" magazine lists baltimore as the second luckiest city in america. they looked at things like the number of megaajackpot winners and lightning strikes and deaths from falling objects. the least lucky city in all of america we're told is charles to know, west virginia. >> that brings us to your answers to our water cooler question of the day. >> this morning we asked what do you think makes baltimore one of the luckiest cities in america? >> conner writes baltimore is the luckiest city because we

have great history whether it be the war of 1812 to the success of the orioles in the 1960's and 1990's and we have one of the best if not the best harbor in the world. we'll post more of your comments at www.wbaltv.com. >> we have a lot going on out there this friday morning on the roads. we'll start in upperco. an accident at old hanover road. and closures on the rather than from the outer loop north decide 83. a jackknifed tractor-trailer. a left lane squeezing by. they are trying to clear up a fuel spill with that. it's affecting your ride. 25 miles per hour approaching york. eastbound 175 at 108 a crash and westbound 50 on the ramp to northbound 97. so if you're traveling in anne

arundel county, watch for delays developing on northbound 97. on the ramp to northbound 83, left lane squeezing by. york road is your alternate. the delays start to fall into place on the outer loop. ava marie is previewing the marathon at the finish line where everyone loves to be eventually. >> yes. this is the place to be on saturd. it will be the end where everyone's so excited to be done for such a great cause. the marathon, half marathon and relay and 5 k. i'm talking to jennifer william. in 2009 you were diagnosed with ovarian cancer at the young age of 28. what did that mean to you? >> it was devastating. i was diagnosed following a major surgery for an unrelated

illness, so it was complete devastation when i found out. >> and you will be running in the fk. being diagnosed with cancer is what brought you to become a runner. >> yes. it was added to my bucket list during chemo. runners to me are strong and healthy, and what i wanted to be. so i signed up for running after cancer, so yes. cancer definitely led me to become a runner. >> well you look strong and healthy and we'll be cheering you on. let's look at the weather. we were talking about the wind. that's a bigger concern later, so for the 5 k runners it will be gusty and you'll have the wind at your back for half the race. it will be chilly in the 60's but you'll warm up towards end of the run. tony? what a great way to help fight

their fight every day. >> yes. you'll find a lot of inspiration and great stories. we'll talk to you again during the 7:00 hour. they are usually not professional runners but have their own personal motivation and fantastic stories, most of them. yesterday we had some tornado warnings in southern maryland. the skies managed to clear a bit but the clouds are thickening up right now. it will be raining if it's not already at your house later this morning and afternoon. give yourself time. if you wait until 8:00 or 8:30, the rain will start to move in. it's just south of here. most isn't hitting the ground in howard county but sprinkles are reported in d.c., and this is all drifting in our direction. once it starts here, it will be with us through the night. a cold front will sweep through here during the day.

right now in maryland, it feels like summer. temperatures in the mid to upper 60's. 66 at the airport. almost 70 downtown. 62 in andals town. the forecast for today, rain showers likely once we get past 8:00 or 8:30. high temperatures between 70 and 75. overnight tonight still a chance for a shower this evening then skies will clear up and temperatures will drop back. the winds ava was talking about will start to kick in. the high temperature will be 68. after the ravens game on sunday, sunshine, high temperatures in the upper 60's. great football weather. next chance for rain tuesday and wednesday. then it will get chilly. wouldn't be surprised if we have our first frost of the season on thursday or friday. >> time for a last look at our

big story this morning, the search continues for an 11-year-old boy whose mother is dead and whose step father is accused of her murder. jennifer franciotti joins us live in the studio with more. >> william's mother jane mcquain was found dead wednesday in their germantown home. william was missing and so was his step father. an amber alert was issued for the 11-year-old yesterday. they had a vehicle description and found the car and found step father and charged him with first-degree murder. they hoped to find william safe with lopez but he wasn't with him. he was last seen on september 30. so police want to know where he is and why it took so long to discover that the boy was missing. and anyone with information is asked to call police. reporting live in the studio, jennifer franciotti. >> the time is 6:51. it's 66 degrees on tv hill. >> coming up we'll take a look at your look -- traffic and weather.

weather. stay with us.

>> dealing with some accidents this morning. >> we have quite a few actually. it's a busy friday morning. we'll start northbound on 83 just past the beltway. it's a jackknifed tractor-trailer taking up all but the left lane. so you can squeeze by. but consider york road as your alternate. you are seeing delays. an don't route 7 at old hanover road and howard county at el

east bound and a quick live look outside shows what it looks like on the ramp to 83. switching to a live view to show you the tail end of the delay on the outer loop. >> things will improve for the weekend weather-wise. >> yes. but today the rain is going to be with us off and on through the evening. in another hour the rain will start in baltimore and stick around until early tonight. but better news over the weekend. >> if you're looking for more weather and traffic before you head out the door, join us for 11 news at 7:00 a.m. on 11 news plus. >> you can find it all on comcast channel 208 and 11-2. >> thank you for joining us for 11 news today. >> we're back with a live update at 7:25. >> have a good one. >> follow breaking news at www.wbaltv.com and stay connected with us on facebook connected with us on facebook and twitter.

>> on any given night there are 4,000 people sleeping on the streets of baltimore city. shelters, cars, or locations other than housing. last year 24,000 people accessed programs serving the homeless. 1/3 of these people are women and children who have been homeless for a year or more. in these tough economic times cities are grappling on what to

do. there's a 10-year plan to tend homeless necessary. mayor stephanie rawlings-blake has formed a council joined by the united way and businesses and service providers and other city agencies and organizations to imply meant that plan. the basis of journey home is to provide services to homeless people can get in permanent housing with services they need to be eventually independent and self-supporting. some 100 families that have already been helped proved it gives them ability to address their other needs and move forward. the council is also moving to end stereotypes and misconceptions of the homeless population and understand the essential pieces. wbal-tv 11 news is hosting the first evening of unexpected delights at the baltimore convention center on october 29.

proceeds from the event will be specifically targeted to programs working with children experiencing homelessness and employment problems. ending homelessness is a lofty goal but one that can be achieved one family at a time. for more information go to www.wbaltv.com and click on