Carl Henn Passes Away After Lightning Strike [Updated]
Jul 27, 2010 22:25 - 79 Comments
Carl Henn
[Updated; see end for description.] [Go here for a recap of Carl's memorial.]
Rockville has lost a good friend, a tireless advocate, and an important voice.
Carl Henn passed away today at the Washington Hospital Center after injuries sustained during Sunday’s extreme storm.
Carl was apparently struck by lightning while participating in the King Farm Garden Club.
According to one account, when the storm hit, garden club participants ran to cars for shelter. When they emerged, they found Carl lying unconscious, apparently a victim of lightning though no one had seen the strike. After CPR and initial calls to 911 were unsuccessful, local residents took him to Shady Grove Adventist Hospital in a sport utility vehicle. From there, he was flown to the intensive care unit at the Washington Hospital Center.
Carl lived in Rockville for more than 20 years. He was a frequent contributor to Rockville Central (many of his articles stimulated record-breaking comment trails) and ran for Rockville city council in the last two election cycles and in 2001. He was known, among other things, as an advocate for eco-friendly sustainable living and for increasing locally-based community life. He was a key driver behind Rockville’s community gardens.
Carl is survived by his wife Carol and daughters Jessica and Allison.
When we have information about a memorial service, we will pass it on.
Please hold his family in your thoughts and prayers.
Farewell, Carl.
P.S. One of my favorite memories of Carl is the wonderful energy he brought to his City Council races. That sense is captured very well in this video he made for his 2007 run, which but for a handful of votes would have been successful:
[Updated: Added clarification that Carl ran three times for city council -- 2001, 2007, and 2009. Added language to make clear that lightning strike was not seen.]
What sad news. We have all been enriched by Carl’s commitment to and concern for the environment we all share. My thoughts and condolences to his family.
I’m stunned to hear this sad news. Carl Henn seemed to me the epitome of community spirit. My thoughts and prayers are with his wife and daughters.
How terrible. I remember that he was the only candidate for council last time who rang my doorbell (at least while I was home). He was such an interesting and energetic contributor to our community’s civic debates!
Our earth-home has lost a true friend, a rare person who could understand the present, project it into the future, care about it all, and have the courage to tell the whole story straight.
Carl was such a special person and devoted leader. He will be greatly missed by our City…
Carl ran for City Council the first time in 2001. When people asked him if he would run again after this year’s election since “three’s a charm”, he was always quick to point out he had already tried three times.
Carl was definitely ahead of our times. He so clearly saw our future with peak oil and knew our pace to change was too slow. I enjoyed our conversations since he always had an insightful way of looking at all the issues. He had such a kind heart and cared about those in need as well as our environment.
He so desperately wanted change. The best way we can honor him is to make change happen in Rockville. Plant a garden, ride your bike, go solar, or get a green vehicle. Make it happen in the biggest way possible as often as you can.
We have such a gash through our community. He will be greatly missed. Peace to his family as they deal with the pain.
I worked with Carl at NIH, where we discussed many of the issues that compelled him to make his neighborhood, his city and the world better now and in the future. He shared his dreams and I know he worked hard to make them a reality. My condolences to Carl’s family and to his neighbors throughout Rockville on this tremendous loss.
I am stunned by the news.
Carl was a rare and beautiful bird. Everything he did in the Community showed his commitment to improving the lives of others, today and in the future. He was a tireless advocate who lived his life according to the principles he espoused in public forums.
I’m sure that some folks who only caught glimpses of Carl’s life in comments that he made as a candidate for City Council or at a Citizens’ Forum thought of him as a quixotic tilter at Peak Oil windmills. But for Carl, global warming due to mankind’s overuse of fossil fuels was the greatest threat to our environment and our children’s future. He wove that theme into countless proposals to improve our City, whether it was establishing community gardens or opposing the Inter-County Connector because it would do nothing to reduce energy consumption, and it would crowd out investments in public transportation.
I admired Carl so much for living his life consistent with his constant reminders to all of us about the new to reduce our carbon footprint. He biked everywhere — to work, to City Hall, to campaign for election to the City Council. He established several community gardens. He installed solar collectors on his roof several years ago. I was reminded of this when I stopped at his home Monday evening, and his front porch light was shining while every other home in Hungerford was dark due to the power outage.
When I decided to form Rocktrash in 2007 to encourage folks who were part of the pilot to speak out in favor of once-weekly trash pickup, his response was immediate and firm. Yes, of course. He wasn’t particularly concerned about the frivolous waste of money by twice-weekly service. He was motivated by the potential to reduce the wasteful use of fossil fuels and to increase the amount of recycling. So he was the first of many to help me distribute flyers and begin speaking out on the issue at Citizens’ Forum. Without him, I doubt that I would have started on what looked like a quixotic tilting at that windmill.
More recently, Carl joined the campaign to reduce the waste of taxpayers’ dollars to subsidize RedGate Golf Course. Again, I approached the issue from a dollars and cents perspective. Again, Carl thought mainly about the environment and proposed converting RedGate to an orchid or working farm.
I will miss Carl. I will miss his gentle but persistent admonitions to improve our environment. I will miss waving to him each morning as rides past my bus stop, riding his bike to work. I will miss chatting with him as he passed our house on the way to Dogwood Park to walk his two dogs. I will miss his knock on the door asking me to help him shovel path through the mounds of snow at the street corners in Hungerford or to pick up trash along the stream that runs along Ritchie Parkway. I will miss working with him this fall to beautify the entrance to Hungerford at Wooten parkway.
Most of all, I will miss his friendship.
Who can take Carl’s place?
I’m overcome — what a wonderful, kind, incredibly witty and dear man we’ve lost. He will be so missed. Carol, Jessica and Allison, we all send our heartfelt condolences. I can not say enough how much I admired Carl’s willingness to step forward time and again to help in the community, with thoughtfulness and good cheer.
This is a horrible thing to hear, in so many ways.
As a former NIH colleague of Carl’s I am shocked and dismayed at this news. Car. was a devoted family man and a genuine citizen of the earth. Carl truly did think globally and act locally. My heart goes out to his wife and his girls. He will be missed.
This is such sad news; Carl will be sorely missed. My sincerest condolences to his family.
So sad to lose someone who cares about the people around him. Is there something we could do for his family, or in memory of him? Rename the gardens?
Hearing about Carl makes me wonder why bad things seem to happen to the most caring people. Carl was all about making our world a cleaner, safer place. Carl always made me laugh, and I will never forget him.
This is horrible. I always looked forward to Carl’s comments and opinions on rockvillecentral.com. To his family and community friends my condolences.
This is so sad. I met Carl back when our children (now in college) started kindergarten together. He has been such a great advocate for the city and a great friend to all that knew him. Sincere condolences to Carol, Jessica and Allison. Rockville has lost someone very special.
My deepest sympathy to Carl’s family. May god easy your loss and pain. My prayers are with you all.
May God Bless You always in this time of great changes.
Carl, I’m a truly lost for words right now, but please know that my condolences are with you and your family.
I’m am deeply saddened by this news. I didn’t know Carl personally, but I appreciated all that he did to make Rockville a great city. He will be missed
We will greatly miss Carl, a wonderful friend, neighbor, and leader, who never failed to provide inspiration and cheer to all. Words like “thoughtful,” “caring,” and “committed” are immediately what come to mind when thinking of Carl. So many of us were very fortunate to know and enjoy Carl’s energy and spirit because he so earnestly reached-out to everyone in our community. There is indeed a void in that community now.
I am saddened to learned of Carl’s untimely passing. What a tremendous loss for Rockville-he was a true champion of the environment and tireless advocate for the City he loved. My thoughts and prayers are with his family.
I am shocked and saddened to my core to hear this news. In recent years I have been learning much more about the issues Carl raised and advocated for so tirelessly, and had moved greatly toward his views. I was looking forward to getting to know him personally in the future by joining in his cause. I had come to view him as my own city’s eminence grise and teacher on these issues, and I am so sad I never got the chance to tell him that. My heartfelt condolances go out to his family-and my personal pledge to try to honor his life by doing what I can to live and advocate according to the values he exemplified.
As part of the NIH community, I will miss Carl’s untiring effort and WONDERFULLY DRY sense of humor as he helped us wade through the myriad of changing regulations associated with contract management in the government. He is irreplaceable. My thoughts and prayers go to his family and close friends.
Words can not express how I am deeply saddened I am to hear that Carl has passed away. I only knew Carl from a professional stand point but he was the type of person that you just expect to always be “there”. Your deisre to help, sincere kindness and generosity will be the memories that I will cherish. Your family, the NIH/OD community, the city of Rockville, and the planet have lost a terrific human being. You WILL be missed and I am thankful to have known you, Carl.
Carl was a deeply knowledgeable individual, especially about all issues relating to Rockville. In a candidate’s forum you always dreaded having to expound on an issue immediately before or immediately after Carl’s turn. If you went before, he would always add things you didn’t even know about, and if you went after, Carl had already treated the subject thoroughly. He deeply cared about science and man’s impact on the environment and always put his principles ahead of everything else.
Carl was an exceptional person. This was a tragic loss for Carl’s family and also for his Hungerford neighborhood and the entire Rockville community.
I live in Hungerford and we benefited so much from his involvement in our neighborhood. He was a perfect example of “think globally, act locally” with his passion and farsightedness about environmental issues and his willing to get his hands dirty (literally) and act on his beliefs. A truly inspiring man.
My heartfelt condolences to his wife and daughters.
I met Carl when we campaigned together in 2007. It was my first campaign and his second. We were thrown together onto an informal slate as we were both endorsed by the Gazette in that election. Carl taught me a lot. Over the course of three campaigns, Carl easily knocked on more doors than any other candidate in the history of Rockville. He loved the City and the City loved him back. Every City should be so lucky to have a Carl Henn who pushes us to consider progressive solutions. Rockville had Carl and now we do not; he is irreplaceable.
Mayor and Council will work to find a suitable way to honor Carl and his many, many contributions to our City.
I am shocked and can’t believe we have lost a great friend in Rockville. Last night after hearing the sad news with Carl’s passing I had a hard time going to sleep. I will never forget Carl’s campaigning and all the candidate’s forums we participated in. Carl stayed true to himself. His family and coworkers can be proud of his civic work.
May Carl rest in peace! I am sure he is riding his bike in Heaven. Rockville will keep his mission moving on.
God rest his soul and my condolences to the entire family.
As with so many others, I am stunned by Carl’s death — a great loss obviously to his family and friends, but also to his immediate communtiy and Rockville at large. Carl injected a tremendous amount of intelligence, sincerity and credibility (yes particularly with respect to peak oil!) to all discussions in which he engaged. To these traits add a great sense of humor and a deep respect for others which he exhibited genuinely and repeatedly throughout his most recent casmpaigns for City Council. There is a deep hole now in our public life that I fear may not be filled completely. I/we shall miss him dearly.
John
Absolutely shocking. Sometimes we find the people making a difference are putting themselves in situations that prove dangerous to the continuation of their mission. I hope that we can continue to carry on the vision and vigor this man has spent the a large part of his life pursuing! Green to the end! Rest in Peace Carl. I will carry your torch as well as I can!
I cannot believe that I will not see Carl at the NIH Symposium this year or any other year. He was a man with a passion for making the world and better place. He touched so many lives in his life! He had the most enjoyable dry sense of hummer full of witty comments!
Most of all my thoughts and prayers are with his wife and two daughters. It is very hard not to be able to say goodbye to a loved one. Peace to his family as you deal with your loss. Remember he is still with you!!!!!
i always admired Carl’s intellect and his ability to see thru an issue and get to the bottom line quickly. he was a man of action, who followed what he knew in his heart to be the best course of action for all concerned. his passion for his work, the environment, Rockville and all of the issues he cared about will be missed. we have lost an exceptional person.
bob
Wow. This is so sad to hear, I just heard about it today. Carl knocked on my door, as he did many, and I had a yard sign for him. Carl is somebody who talked about topics impacting our quality of life, and made us think. Some may say it was lightning. Me — I’ll always suspect Big Oil.
Rest in peace, sir. You will be missed.
I am saddened by the news on the loss of Mr. Henn. I cannot believe that I will not see any more of Carl’s many email correspondence, informing the NIH community of upcoming Acquisition Training, NIH Symposiums or other related events. He was always available to be of help and willing to share his knowledge and expertise. He was a true gem and his presence will be missed.
My heartfelt condolences to his wife and daughters as well as his extended family. May you find comfort in His Loving Arms and may Carl rest in peace.
I was pleased to get to know Carl during the last council campaign. He taught me a lot about the city, about the issues, and about how to conduct one’s self civilly and with good cheer, even when under a microscope. I had hoped to learn more from him as he continued his service to Rockville. I am deeply saddened at his passing. Farewell, Carl.
Carl will truly be missed. I joined Carl in 2004 as we and a small group of like minded folks began to clear what is now the King farm Community Garden near the old Dairy Barn in King Farm.Carl and I often shared a laugh over the years, since that clearing, whenever we found a rock- they seem to just multipy- we chucked that’s why this city is called Rockville!
Carl was a true friend and great guy both at work( NIH) and in our common interests.
God Bless you Carl!
I am shocked to hear of Carl’s death. Rockville lost a truly caring, committed person who didn’t lose his idealism. My thoughts are with his wonderful family.
As a former co-worker of Carl’s, at NIH, I remember that he was truly one of the “Good Guys”. My heart felt condolences go out to his wife and daughters. Carl, you will be missed.
In additon to being a scientist and adminstrator at NIH, Carl was a past president of the NIH bike commuter group. He was dedicated to the NIH community and will be missed by his colleagues.
We at Rockville Economic Development, Inc. mourn the loss of this intelligent person who cared so much and worked so hard. Our thoughts and prayers go to his family.
Sally Sternbach, Lynne Benzion, and Amanda Wilson
Carl stopped by my house to introduce himself during his first campaign for City Council. He made a significant impression which caused me to subsequently look for his views and comments on the issues affecting our city and to take them seriously. He was clearly committed to making our community and the world a better place. Such a loss for us all. My sincerest condolences to his family.
I worked with Carl at the NIH. I have never met Carl personally; we always spoke over email or a couple of times over the telephone. He was ALWAYS customer service driven and proficient. I appreciated him so much for that type of professionalism. If he did not have an answer he would find one for you and CALL YOU BACK which is rare. He seemed to have a very kind and gentle spirit filled with patience.
I only saw his picture today and was just taken aback by the fact that we have lost a person that was really an outstanding public servant to his colleagues and apparently in the community too. Just from the few times that he and I have had conversation with one another it does not surprise me that he was so dilligent and caring about his community.
My thoughts and prayers are with his family. He will be surely missed at the NIH.
I met Carl few weeks ago at NIH. I cannot believe this SAD news. I am heartbroken. Very much in shock and sad.
I watched his video and it seems as if I was speaking. Meaning his mindset and mine was the same. We lost a great caring and loving American addressing global issues with local solutions to prevent obesity and energy crisis.
Naresh Chand and family
17804 Stoneridge Drive,
Gaitherburg,
MD
Carl was a dedicated, exceptional NIH professional. Everyone knew Carl. He prided himself in making sure we met our educational and professional requirements to enhance our careers. He cared just as much about his environment and community. I am so blessed to have known and worked with him in the NIAID contracts office for many years. He will be missed by many people. My thoughts and prayers go out to his wife and children.
Brutal. Carl brought a rare mix of wit and wisdom to bear on his work at the NIH. I’ll miss his thoughtful guidance. Best wishes to family and friends.
I did not know Carl but am sad to hear about his passing. For those that knew him, you are clearly better from it and that in itself speaks volumes. Peace.
I am truely saddened by the tragic accidental loss of our friend and collegue, Carl Henn. I use ‘our’ because hundreds of us at NIH knew Carl and relied on him to guide us through the complexities of training requirements for administering contracts. Carl’s approach to giving this guidance was to include humor with his clear advice. At one high level meeting, in a forum that can be intimidating, Carl had the whole room laughing - and that group doesn’t laugh often - while explaining what courses staff had to take by when so they could be certified to do their work.
Carl also served as a volunteer member of a staff training committee I help organize, and led a forum on the factors behind the agricultural “Green Revolution,” including threats to and solutions for future food production, population and fertility trends and possibilities for the future. This forum was consistant in topic with the very activity that led to his exposure to the oncoming storm - Carl gave his life, daily, until Sunday, for what he believed in.
I, we all at NIH, will miss Carl. This is so hard to take, so sad. My condolences go to Carl’s family, who must be feeling unbearable pain. What a wonderful man to have lost, so suddenly, so young.
I can’t believe and don’t want to accept that Carl is gone. What a terrible loss for us all. I had grown accustomed to laughing out loud at the e-mails he would send to NIH Project Officers reminding us to keep our acquisition certification up-to-date. Carl could “perfume a pig” like no other. My deepest sympathies to his family. We’ll miss you, Carl. Godspeed.
Carl Henn was a tireless volunteer who often trudged down snowy or densely vegetated creek banks to keep them clean for his fellow Rockville residents and those living downstream of us. A true friend of the environment has left us. He will be missed.
I only met Carl for the first time a few months ago, but was impressed by his kind personality and seriousness of purpose. He had volunteered with our campaign just last week.
My husband, Dennis, and I were with Carl at our Watkins Pond Community Garden picnic in King Farm Park minutes after he was struck down. We were enjoying the dishes made from a fresh harvest that would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of Carl to get this second community garden started in King Farm. Carl and his beloved family need all our efforts to carry on his important legacy. One piece of work that needs our immediate attention is the inability for anyone in our vicinity to get through to 911 for an ambulance with life-saving equipment. Dennis, and another gardener, Andre, an EMT, worked without stop performing CPR while those of us at the picnic tried to vain to get help. Another neighbor, Victor, and his friend, Steve, a nurse practitioner who has served in Afghanistan, put Carl in Victor’s SUV and drove to Shady Grove while Dennis and Andre continued to perform CPR. None of us at the picnic received the normal “Alert Montgomery” warnings on our cell phones prior to the storm. We did receive them on our home computers which were inaccessible due to power outages. This is something we all should get to work on in Carl’s memory. He is much loved here at King Farm and was enjoying homemade dishes from the harvests of his labors of love. Thank you for posting his campaign video so others can see the kind of man this community, and our world, has lost.
We can all think when we are trying to determine the best way to protect our environment with sustainable, healthy practices, “What would Carl say was the right thing to do?”
Reading the tributes to Carl makes me realize what a wonderful tool the internet can be. He was treasured by so many. I will never forget his comment on chickens at a candidates forum : “If they lay, they stay. if they crow, they go”. Carl was an example of exactly what a good citizen should be: funny accurate, dedicated. My sympathy to the family. I’ll wipe my tears and try harder.
Carl Henn was one of the most sincere, humble, and kindest people I have ever known. He truly lived his values each and every day. My heart is aching but I am grateful to have known him. As for Carol, Jessica, and Allison …. he leaves behind a truly beautiful group of ladies. His family was everything to him … Carl loved them above all else and thankfully, they know this well.
We only met Carl once, when he came to see our home in Ocean City to ask about our geothermal heat and air conditioning system. He impressed us with his desire to see a greener environment.
Our condolences to Carol and his daughters, Jessica and Allison.
I was a high school classmate of Carl’s. I am saddened by the news of his death and on behalf of Port Clinton High School, Class of 1980, I extend the deepest of sympathy to his family. Rest in peace, Carl. You will be missed.
It hurts so much to lose the good ones. Carl was a gift to us that was not appreciated enough. He worked for the betterment of the community with little thought for himself. Carl was more interested in using the political campaigns to educate the public than he was in pandering. For this he came up short in votes but he found other ways to serve the community and serve as a model for us all.
Here’s the Washington Post story:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/28/AR2010072805769.html
I have SO many questions about how this could have happened! Was he sheltering under a tree instead of in a car? Yet my overwhelming feeling is pure grief.
I knew Carl just from the most recent campaign, and worked beside him for hours at a polling place on election day. I’ll remember him in his fedora and trench coat, cheerfully greeting voters on that horribly cold day last year. He is among those who have inspired me to become more politically active.
I was always impressed with his intellect and commitment to environmental preservation and willingness to put so much time and effort into issues (eg, his Red Gate piece here) . He exposed me to new ideas (eg, peak oil), and really made me think about ways to reduce my footprint on this planet.
I agree with Ruth-a fitting tribute is to think “What would Carl do?” We should try to be more like him. I don’t know if our future will be as bleak (energy-wise) as he believed it would be, but I know Rockville’s will be less bright with his passing.
I extend my heart-felt sympathies to his wife and daughters. And I thank his NIH friends for sharing your stories about Carl with us Rockville friends. We are all just so sad.
Carl’s loss is also felt in the broader community of resource scarcity and environmental activists; here is an appreciation from The Oil Drum, an international forum to which Carl was a contributor: http://www.theoildrum.com/node/6792.
Carl’s passing is a terrible blow. Reading these comments shows just how involved he was. Carl advocated several options for transforming Redgate. We can honor his legacy by completing a project that he endorsed and perhaps even naming it after him.
Carl and I were coworkers at NIH. I came over each morning to get my coffee and we had a brief (sometime not too brief) discussion about any number of topics: environment, politics, family, etc… Carl was well read and as previously noted he was passionate about helping the environment. At work we teased him about his peak oil passion. If fact to sort of haze a new employee we would send them to Carl to ask him “what is peak oil?” knowing he would inundate them with facts, figures, and graphs. Carl played along because he had a great sense of humor but he also took the opportunity to educate people. I learned to trust Carl’s knowledge and judgment and relied on him heavily to bounce ideas off of. The loss of Carl has left a tremendous void for many of us individually and as a community as a whole.
I was a high school classmate of Carls, and after reading all these heartbroken and heartfelt tributes to him, I see he did well with his life. (Although I cant figure out why he didn’t get elected to City Council?). Our 30th hs class reunion is next weekend. Although I cannot remember much that happened in high school, I do recall him as witty and smart and gangly! His picture looks the same as in 1980! He was a part of many of our lives for many years. But apparently God needed more help with environmental issues on high. One never knows when they will be called.
What a terrible loss. I met Carljust a couple of times when he was campaigning, but have read most of his posts on this website and many of his letters to the editor. These were well written, insightful and passionate, but respectful of other points of view. He was also a key force in getting the Millennium trail built, a trail which I have ridden several times. My condolences go out to his family.
Here are memorial plans (I will be out of town!)
A memorial service for Carl Henn will be held on Saturday, July 31st at 9:30 am at the F. Scott Fitzgerald Center in Rockville. The center is located at 603 Edmonston Drive. Donations to honor Carl can be made to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation or to http://www.bikesfortheworld.org.
The Henn family has planned a memorial service this Saturday at 9:30 am at the Fitzgerald Theatre (Rockville Civic Center). The public is invited.
A funeral for Carl Henn, the President of the Hungerford Civic Association, who died as a result of being hit by lightning during Sunday’s storm, will be held on Saturday, July 31, at 9:30 a.m. in the F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre. In lieu of flowers, the family has asked that donations be sent to either of the following:
Bikes for the World
Box 34
Vienna, Virginia 22183
The Chesapeake Bay Foundation
6 Herndon Avenue
Annapolis, MD 21403
ATTN: Membership Department
Please pass this along to any citizens who may be interested.
I got to know Carl Henn during the last council election and always found him to be an authentic and gentle person, and no matter how crazy the race was becoming, he was able to maintain his focus on improving the community. I also appreciated his good humor and quick wit, and he was in rare form during the Rockville Central Forum at the Thomas Farm Community Center.
In one round, candidates were randomly selected to answer questions and he received the one on whether chickens should be considered as pets or farm animals in the City of Rockville. He not only was able to easily explain the difference among chickens, roosters, and hens (as an expert on hens/Henns), but declared his stand on the issue in a clever rhyme, “If it lays, it stays. If it crows, it goes.”
Although I am very sad about his death (it’s hard for me to even write that word), whenever I saw Carl, he always left me with admiration and a smirk. I’ll miss him but will remember his many contributions to improving and enhancing the community (and the world).
Art Stigile passed along these two links to news coverage of Carl’s passing. The Fox clip includes an interview with Carl’s widow, Carol:
Fox News DC
NBC TV
I met Carl in 2006 when he founded our community garden in King Farm. He impressed all of us with his sincere devotion to improving the community and in particular making community gardening accessible to everyone. He once told me it was his goal to have a community garden within walking distance of every resident of King Farm. I admired his leadership; he led the charge to keep the lot adjacent to our garden from being paved over with asphalt. He taught all of us so much about gardening - he called leaf mulch “black gold” and was a big advocate of composting. He was a man of action - the first to pick up a shovel at any garden work party. He always seemed to have time to talk and I always walked away from our conversations with new information or a new perspecitve.
I also had the good fortune of interacting with Carl at work. I invited him to give a talk to our office and he did not disappoint! The topic itself was pretty mundane - certification requirements for a Contracting Officer’s Technical Representative. Yet, despite the topic, hs talk was unforgettable - he had us doubled over with laughter - you would have thought it was a comedy show! And yet, somehow, with his unique brand of dry wit and humor, he managed to educate us on all the arcane aspects of certification.
In sum, Carl was a truly caring person with a great heart, an unusual and ever present sense of humor, and was a role model for practicing what you preach. It seemed to me that his goal was to make the world a better place. If so, he met his goal and then some!
My thoughts and prayers are with his family who I have not met, except that I did meet Jessica once at the garden a couple of years ago. I know you all have experienced a great loss. May it soothe your soul to know how dearly loved he was by us all.
He will be missed.
The loss of Carl Henn is so tragic. I first met Carl when he started the Rockville Community Garden Committee. The goal was to put a community garden in every Rockville neighborhood. We now have three gardens in Rockville (two in King Farm and one in Fallsgrove) thanks to his vision, tireless efforts and inspiration. He was a truly wonderful person. We will all miss him in more ways than we can know.
Carl RIP Our thoughts & love go to your family as we were lucky enough to call you friend
I want to correct something in my earlier comment that misstated Carl’s approach to RedGate. Carl’s main concern about RedGate was that it remain a green space, in contrast to my concern about its drain on the budget. And that was the point I was trying to make, although I did it poorly, writing at 2:30 in the morning after just learning of Carl’s death.
Every time we discussed an issue, Carl approached it from the perspective of protecting the environment. So when the City began soliciting proposals for RedGate’s future operation, Carl talked excitedly about his idea of converting RedGate to an orchard that would preserve RedGate as green space. And then he worked to convert his idea into reality by meeting with a local farm — Butler’s Orchard, if I remember correctly — to encourage them to submit a proposal to operate RedGate as an orchard. I thought it was a creative and intriguing idea, certainly one that would never have occurred to me, even though I’m very supportive of the cause. Carl was the only person I know who could imagine green solutions to vexing budget issues.
Thanks to Joe Jordan for pointing out my misstatement.
Thanks Carl for making Hungerford a nicer place to live. Your efforts will live on though you will be missed. My thoughts go out to the Henn family. Rest in peace Carl.
Carl, my friend, you are gone too soon but gave us your generous heart, kind and reasoned speech, and more than a lifetime of principled service.
Carl Henn you’re in my thoughts…and in my heart. The news was, and still is, absolutely shocking. I extend my heart-felt sympathies to his wife and daughters.
Carl is my brother and I am heartbroken. I will love and miss him forever. But I wanted to say that reading all of your comments and tributes is immensely comforting. Thank you so much!
I just heard of Carl’s passing yesterday morning at church. I only met Carl on one occasion, which was an evening slideshow talk at UUCR about petroleum dependency and the locally-based thinking to overcome it. I went in skeptical and came away thoroughly impressed and inspired. What a sad loss for our community. I’ll have his family and friends in my thoughts
Carol: you, Jessica and Allison have been in my thoughts constantly since I heard the terrible news. Carl was a good man who was taken from you (and all of us) far too soon. Carl’s legacy of advocating sound environmental policies for Rockville and Montgomery County will live on, and for that we all are grateful for his efforts. If there is anything I can do to help you in your time of grief, please let me know.
I interviewed Carl Henn back in 1997. The video is now on blip.tv at:
http://www.blip.tv/dashboard/episode/4057147