Musical Morning for Mason

Mason’s Sing-Along

After the Ravens’ win in Miami on Sunday and his first touchdown of the season, Derrick Mason had a lot to sing about on Tuesday.

Mason brought along his fellow wide receivers Justin Harper and Ernie Wheelright to Oak Crest Retirement Community Tuesday morning, as a group of more than 100 residents joined at the Acorn Pub for two and a half hours of karaoke and dancing. Mason may be a Pro Bowl performer, but he is certainly no American Idol. He encouraged the Oak Crest residents to join in, and not laugh too hard.

He didn’t have to ask twice. The group was eager to participate, and after a few warm-up songs, Mason had to tear the mic away from Harper and Wheelwright, who proved to be quite the duet. Jackie, the first resident to perform, got the crowd moving with “Gigalo” by David Lee Roth. She was followed by repeat performer Billy B., who sang various Frank Sinatra hits.

Jackie and Billy were two of the many playful performers throughout the morning, but the highlight was a group-sing with Ellie, Madelyn, Ruth and Jean. The ladies dedicated “Hey, Good Lookin” to Mason, Harper and Wheelwright and asked them to share the stage.

You didn’t have to sing to earn your stay at the karaoke party. Residents who weren’t blessed with superb vocal chords enjoyed watching the performances of their peers and the players. They also cleared some space to dance along to their favorite songs. The crowd got especially excited when a conga line was formed during resident Nancy’s rendition of “Copacabana.”

After years of focusing on children, Mason chose to connect with a different age group this season. He decided to share his singing “talent” at local retirement communities. Oak Crest was the second of four stops on Mason’s karaoke tour, which kicked off in September at Charlestown Retirement Community.

Samari’s Playground Build

In addition, Ravens cornerback Samari Rolle joined volunteers from The Home Depot, organizers from the nonprofit KaBOOM! and members of the local community on Tuesday to build an entire playground for the Druid Heights area. The build was in honor of Rolle being chosen as a Home Depot NFL Neighborhood MVP.

Home Depot, the official home improvement sponsor of the National Football League, created the Home Depot NFL Neighborhood MVP program to recognize players who are making a positive impact in their local communities. The program honors 17 players, one for each week of the regular season, with a playground build in each player’s honor.

Rolle was chosen as one of the 17 players to be honored for his work in founding the Rolle With Me Foundation, which raises funds through several annual events, purchases Thanksgiving dinners for families in need, provides equipment for youth athletic leagues and donates book bags and school supplies to underprivileged children in the Baltimore area.

Ravens mascot Poe brought his tool belt along to assist Rolle with a few tasks at the playground build. When the playground was finished, Poe put down his hammer and joined the volunteers in a ceremony, at which Home Depot presented Rolle with a $1,000 check for his foundation.

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