By Wesley Harris
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer
ABINGDON — In the humid and hectic upstairs bar of Black Eyed Suzie’s, Tanya Lynch sat staring vacantly, swaddling a baby boy close to her chest. Lynch and 3-month-old Travis were braving the commotion for a reason, and it wasn’t Saint Patrick’s Day weekend. The large blackboard behind them read, “Tripp Johnson Memorial Fundraiser.”
On the Monday morning of March 11, Tripp Johnson, 7, was killed in a 12-car accident on Route 24 in Bel Air. His mother, Megan Fulleylove, was critically injured and flown to the Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore.
For every bite and beverage, the Johnson family received 20 percent of the profits to cover funeral costs and Fulleylove’s medical expenses. Lynch is a close friend of the Johnson family, the “going on vacation together” sort of close. She’s there to show support with the rest of the community, handing out fliers for a fundraiser at Stonewall Cafe set to take place over the weekend.
Downstairs, the dining tables were filled, and the adjacent bar was swamped. The entrance was boxed in with collapsible tables, laden with sports equipment, baskets and bags. They were donations for a raffle, donations that had washed in overnight, according to Phillip McGuire, the person manning the raffle/donation tables.
McGuire is the owner of a jerky and nut bakery, “Kinda JERKY – Really NUTTY,” and a friend of Black Eyed Suzie’s owner, Brian Acquavella.
“When I heard about this event, I asked Brian if I could wash dishes, anything to help,” McGuire said as a woman approached, handing him a few bills as donation. “He said fundraise.”
On that Wednesday there were only six donations for the raffle that was set to take place on the following Saturday. By the evening of the memorial fundraiser a night later there were 38. The severity of the situation had prompted a sizable response from the community.
“A lot of EMTs, some who have been working for 30 years, said they had never seen an accident like that,” McGuire said.
The accident was severe enough to be seen from a distance.
Travis Johnson, Tripp’s father, was in a nearby Home Depot the morning of the accident. He called a relative to find out if Tripp had been dropped off by Fulleylove, as arranged. They had told him no, and then, Travis saw the smoke rising above Route 24. He drove over to the incident, asking authorities if a red car was involved. When he didn’t get a straight answer, he ran through the tape.
Back at the fundraiser, a band of EMS workers huddle loosely on the outside deck, talking with a reverent restraint. People sat scattered and smoking. Marshall Sadowski and David Williams stood on the back corner, casually talking.
Sadowski graduated from Joppatowne High with Travis, and his best friend is a police sheriff. He was the third person to arrive on the scene of the accident. He called Sadowski later that night, broken.
“It’s fair to say we’re all fighting back tears,” Sadowski said.
Williams, a Bel Air native now Baltimore resident, had to Uber into the area, anticipating the packed lot.
“This time of night, this place is usually a ghost town,” he said.
In preparation for the immense response from the community, Brian Acquavella took precautionary measures, contacting a friend at MaGerk’s Pub around the corner to handle overflow. MaGerk’s also agreed to donate 20 percent of their proceeds to the Johnsons.
“The support was overwhelming,” Acquavella said. It was the following Monday and he had just hustled up from the basement of the bar, away from his mountain of paperwork. Following the fundraiser, the Black Eyed Suzies’ staff pushed its way through one of the busiest weekends of the year. The place looked different with one bartender and two ladies chatting in the daylight, ghostly almost.
“People had complained about the wait,” Acquavella said, reflecting on the insane demand the day of the fundraiser. “We were just doing what we could, trying to raise as much as possible.”
Black Eyed Suzie’s raised $11,000 after the fundraiser and raffles were finished. Other businesses joined in. Dental offices, Burger King and McDonald’s, local football teams, the list went on. The Go Fund Me campaign for the family has raised over $100,000 from nearly 2,000 individuals and organizations.
The money went to Tripp’s funeral, which took place on March 26, and is going towards medical expenses of Fulleylove. She is now in stable condition, and in a rehab facility to recover from the injuries.
“Tripp Johnson’s death is deeply tragic,” said Acquavella, “but the response shows a community that cares for its own.”