MEDICAL HERITAGE

The side of Frederick native Darrell Putman we knew best was his involvement
with the horse drawn carriages in downtown Frederick.

There were his battles with City Hall over fees and licensing requirements,
and his competitive battle with another horse drawn carriage company owner.

It was this competitor, Shaylene Murphy, who originally started the carriage
rides in downtown Frederick in 1984. A couple years later Mr. Putman's
Sundance Carriage Company joined the local scene. They vied for customers
and Mr. Putman even tried legal means to force Miss Murphy away from a
productive spot, claiming she was undercutting his prices.

They finally joined forces when both carriage companies were hired for use
in Barry Levinson's film "Avalon," became closer than close friends and had
two children in a 12 year relationship. That arrangement was formalized in
marriage on Dec. 10, less than two weeks before he died of cancer on Dec. 23
at age 49.

The side we knew less about was his impressive military background. He
retired as a lieutenant colonel after 30 years in the Army, including
service in the Vietnam War as a Green Beret.

Mr. Putman was also known as a conservative Republican who took a more
liberal position on medicinal use of marijuana. It was reported that he
smoked marijuana in the final months of his life to regain his appetite and
gain weight in preparation for cancer treatments and wanted other patients
to benefit from its use.

He felt so strongly about marijuana as a help in dealing with his cancer
that he persuaded the Howard County Farm Bureau, where he was a director, to
endorse his position.

Here was a man with solid conservative credentials who discovered late the
benefits of marijuana's medical use and found the energy to fight for its
legalization. Maybe a change in how we view medical uses of marijuana will
be the heritage of this man of many accomplishments.