The County Times 2008.12.04 A Section

10
By Guy Leonard Staff Writer The Maryland State Department of Education is withholding about $1.5 million in state aid from St. Mary’s County Public Schools because, for the first time ever ac- cording to officials here, the system was late in sending a required internal audit to the state. In a form letter to School Superinten- dent Dr. Michael Martirano, dated Nov. 13, the state declared the county would receive the missing 10 percent of its bi-monthly aid package once the documents were in hand. County board of education Chairman Bill Mattingly said the conditions leading to the audit being late — it was due by Nov. 1 — constituted something of a “perfect storm.” Mattingly said the internal financial au- dit, which the system had never had a prob- lem with before, had to be done alongside a legislative audit required by a relatively new law passed in Annapolis that examined the practices, procedures and money transac- tions of the school system. P I N E Y P O I N T L I G H T H O U S E COUNTY TIMES COUNTY TIMES Story B-1 COMMUNITY ENTERTAINMENT THURSDAY 12.04.2008 e St. Mary’s Largest And Only Locally Owned Newspaper Call 301-373-4125 To Subscribe INSIDE opinion A-4 obituaries A-6 entertainment A-9 sports B-4 lottery B-6 community B-1 classifieds B-9 For Continual News Updates Visit: somd.com Established 2006 • Volume 3 • Issue 47 Baltimore Orchestra Story A-9 Eric Bogosian’s SubUrbia Produced By The SMCM Theater, Film, And Media Studies Department. By Guy Leonard Staff Writer Doug’s Hobby Shop, a local hub for model airplane builders, model rocket and train set en- thusiasts and other hobby buffs, is closing its doors for good Dec. 6 after operating here in St. Mary’s for eight years, but for a full 35 with a store up in Waldorf. Jonathan Wright, one of the store’s manag- Hobby Shop Closing Doors For Good Maryland Withholding $1.5 Million From St. Mary’s Schools By Guy Leonard Staff Writer Police in St. Mary’s and Charles coun- ties are investigating the deaths of two women, one from Ridge the other from Mechanicsville, who were killed in motor vehicle accidents. On Nov. 26 Edna Geraldine Al- bertsen, 76, became the 16 th person to die on county roads this year after the vehicle she was driving collided with another at the intersection of Route 235 and Beck Road in Hollywood. According to reports from the Mary- land State Police Albertsen was driving her 2002 Chevrolet Impala west-bound from Beck Road and tried to cross the north-bound lanes of Route 235 when she pulled in front of a 1996 Chevrolet Blazer truck driven by Kevin Michael Elliott, 23, of Lexington Park. Elliott’s vehicle struck Albertsen’s ve- hicle in the driver’s side fender area, police reports stated. Police cordoned off the site of the ac- cident shortly before noon that day while Trooper 7, a state police medical evacua- tion helicopter, took her to Prince George’s Hospital Center’s Shock Trauma unit in Cheverley. Police Investigate Traffic Deaths Of Two St. Mary’s Women Andrea Shiell Staff Writer The smell of graham crackers and butter cream frosting was palpable as students and volunteers at Lettie Marshall Dent Elementary School in Me- chanicsville assembled the first of more than 80 gingerbread houses for the school’s seventh An- nual Gingerbread Auction scheduled Dec. 5. Teacher Sherri Jilek smiled as she instructed the groups of second and fifth graders, each tak - ing turns wielding piping tubes and balancing crackers. Jilek said she and her cohorts whipped up more than 80 pounds of icing for this year’s houses, as well as preparing some 600 graham crackers, which should make for a virtual city of sweetness at this year’s event. Students Prepare for Annual Gingerbread House Auction A Subdivision of Sweetness By Guy Leonard Staff Writer Gary Bell, vice president of Bell Mo- tor Co. in Leonardtown, said the future of his family’s business could become clear after Dec. 5. That is because Congressional hear- ings set for that day on whether to finan- cially bail out ailing U.S. auto manufactur- ers, including their main supplier General Motors, with billions of taxpayer dollars, will likely impact their negotiations to sell the dealership. Back in late September, the Bell fam- ily, who have operated the second oldest, continually running Chevrolet dealership in the nation for 85 years, decided to close the doors on the business because it sim- ply became too difficult to turn a profit, especially with the high cost of fuel and the economic downturn precipitated by the national credit crunch. Soon after, however, rumors began to circulate about the Bell family talking with numerous other auto dealers in an ef- fort to sell their business. Winegardner Auto Group, which has locations in Fort Washington, Prince Fred- erick and Brandywine, has emerged as a likely buyer. But, Bell said, nothing has been con- firmed yet since General Motors must approve any sales deal on one of its franchises. “We’re hoping it happens, we’re still waiting on GM,” Bell told The County Times. “But from Mr. Winegardner’s point of view, if there’s no GM then there’s not much point [to buying the franchise.]” Chuck Winegardner, owner of the Winegardner Auto Group, told The Coun- Decision On GM Bailout Could Decide Bell Motor Co. Sale Thursday Sunny 49° Saturday Sunny 56° Friday Sunny 49° Weaer By Guy Leonard Staff Writer William Trainor, the man accused of nearly strangling his wife to death in Leon- ardtown more than a year ago, has pleaded guilty to first-degree assault, avoiding a Man Accused Of Strangling Wife Pleads To First-Degree Assault See Audit page A-7 See Collision page A-8 See GM Bailout page A-8 See Hobby Shop page A-5 See Gingerbread House page A-8 See Trial page A-7 Photo by Andrea Shiell Photo by Guy Leonard Students at work on Monday’s gingerbread house building event. This year’s houses will be auctioned to raise money for needy families. Jonathan Wright, left, rings up a load of model airplanes for Jeff Cook, a longtime customer of the store. Cook was buying up all he could since the store will close its doors December 6. William Trainor

description

St. Mary’s Largest And Only Locally Owned Newspaper Call 301-373-4125 To Subscribe opinion A-4 • obituaries A-6 • entertainment A-9 sports B-4 • lottery B-6 • community B-1 • classifieds B-9 Students at work on Monday’s gingerbread house building event. This year’s houses will be auctioned to raise money for needy families. doors for good Dec. 6 after operating here in St. Mary’s for eight years, but for a full 35 with a store up in Waldorf. Jonathan Wright, one of the store’s manag-

Transcript of The County Times 2008.12.04 A Section

Page 1: The County Times 2008.12.04 A Section

By Guy LeonardStaff Writer

The Maryland State Department of Education is withholding about $1.5 million in state aid from St. Mary’s County Public Schools because, for the first time ever ac-cording to officials here, the system was late in sending a required internal audit to the state.

In a form letter to School Superinten-dent Dr. Michael Martirano, dated Nov. 13, the state declared the county would receive the missing 10 percent of its bi-monthly aid package once the documents were in hand.

County board of education Chairman Bill Mattingly said the conditions leading to the audit being late — it was due by Nov. 1 — constituted something of a “perfect storm.”

Mattingly said the internal financial au-dit, which the system had never had a prob-lem with before, had to be done alongside a legislative audit required by a relatively new law passed in Annapolis that examined the practices, procedures and money transac-tions of the school system.

PINEY POINT LIGHTHOUSE

COUNTY TIMESCOUNTY TIMES

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THURSDAY 12.04.2008

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By Guy LeonardStaff Writer

Doug’s Hobby Shop, a local hub for model airplane builders, model rocket and train set en-thusiasts and other hobby buffs, is closing its

doors for good Dec. 6 after operating here in St. Mary’s for eight years, but for a full 35 with a store up in Waldorf.

Jonathan Wright, one of the store’s manag-

Hobby Shop Closing Doors For Good

Maryland Withholding $1.5 Million From St. Mary’s Schools

By Guy LeonardStaff Writer

Police in St. Mary’s and Charles coun-ties are investigating the deaths of two women, one from Ridge the other from Mechanicsville, who were killed in motor vehicle accidents.

On Nov. 26 Edna Geraldine Al-bertsen, 76, became the 16th person to die on county roads this year after the vehicle she was driving collided with another at the intersection of Route 235 and Beck Road in Hollywood.

According to reports from the Mary-land State Police Albertsen was driving her 2002 Chevrolet Impala west-bound from Beck Road and tried to cross the north-bound lanes of Route 235 when she pulled in front of a 1996 Chevrolet Blazer truck driven by Kevin Michael Elliott, 23, of Lexington Park.

Elliott’s vehicle struck Albertsen’s ve-hicle in the driver’s side fender area, police reports stated.

Police cordoned off the site of the ac-cident shortly before noon that day while Trooper 7, a state police medical evacua-tion helicopter, took her to Prince George’s Hospital Center’s Shock Trauma unit in Cheverley.

Police Investigate

Traffic Deaths Of Two St.

Mary’s Women

Andrea ShiellStaff Writer

The smell of graham crackers and butter cream frosting was palpable as students and volunteers at Lettie Marshall Dent Elementary School in Me-chanicsville assembled the first of more than 80 gingerbread houses for the school’s seventh An-nual Gingerbread Auction scheduled Dec. 5.

Teacher Sherri Jilek smiled as she instructed the groups of second and fifth graders, each tak-ing turns wielding piping tubes and balancing crackers. Jilek said she and her cohorts whipped up more than 80 pounds of icing for this year’s houses, as well as preparing some 600 graham crackers, which should make for a virtual city of sweetness at this year’s event.

Students Prepare for Annual Gingerbread House Auction

A Subdivision of Sweetness

By Guy LeonardStaff Writer

Gary Bell, vice president of Bell Mo-tor Co. in Leonardtown, said the future of his family’s business could become clear after Dec. 5.

That is because Congressional hear-ings set for that day on whether to finan-cially bail out ailing U.S. auto manufactur-ers, including their main supplier General Motors, with billions of taxpayer dollars, will likely impact their negotiations to sell the dealership.

Back in late September, the Bell fam-ily, who have operated the second oldest, continually running Chevrolet dealership in the nation for 85 years, decided to close the doors on the business because it sim-ply became too difficult to turn a profit, especially with the high cost of fuel and the economic downturn precipitated by the national credit crunch.

Soon after, however, rumors began to circulate about the Bell family talking with numerous other auto dealers in an ef-fort to sell their business.

Winegardner Auto Group, which has locations in Fort Washington, Prince Fred-erick and Brandywine, has emerged as a likely buyer.

But, Bell said, nothing has been con-firmed yet since General Motors must approve any sales deal on one of its franchises.

“We’re hoping it happens, we’re still waiting on GM,” Bell told The County Times. “But from Mr. Winegardner’s point of view, if there’s no GM then there’s not much point [to buying the franchise.]”

Chuck Winegardner, owner of the Winegardner Auto Group, told The Coun-

Decision On GM Bailout Could Decide Bell Motor Co. Sale

ThursdaySunny 49°

SaturdaySunny 56°

FridaySunny 49°

Weather

By Guy LeonardStaff Writer

William Trainor, the man accused of nearly strangling his wife to death in Leon-ardtown more than a year ago, has pleaded guilty to first-degree assault, avoiding a

Man Accused Of Strangling

Wife Pleads To First-Degree

Assault

See Audit page A-7

See Collision page A-8

See GM Bailout page A-8 See Hobby Shop page A-5

See Gingerbread House page A-8

See Trial page A-7

Photo by Andrea Shiell

Photo by Guy Leonard

Students at work on Monday’s gingerbread house building event. This year’s houses will be auctioned to raise money for needy families.

Jonathan Wright, left, rings up a load of model airplanes for Jeff Cook, a longtime customer of the store. Cook was buying up all he could since the store will close its doors December 6.

William Trainor

Page 2: The County Times 2008.12.04 A Section

SectionA-� The County Times Thursday,December4,�008

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Page 3: The County Times 2008.12.04 A Section

Thursday, December 4, 2008 The County Times Section A - �

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Hospice Director Kathy Franzen seemed to be up to her eyeballs in ornaments and strings of garland, but the glow in her eyes as she traversed the large ballroom at the J.T. Dougherty Conference Center in Lexington Park outshined the lights that graced each corner around her according to those working with her.

And while she beamed with pride over the event, she mentioned that this tree festival was small potatoes.

“There are others that are much bigger,” she exclaimed, explaining that neighboring counties hosted tree festivals featuring 60

or 70 decorated trees, as opposed to the 14 trees lighting up the Dougherty Center that weekend.

“The Festival of Trees in our neighboring counties has been going on for more than 20 years…it tends to be something that hospices do,” she said, “but we’ve never done one be-cause the Leonardtown Rescue Squad Auxil-iary always did one at Bell Motors.”

Franzen said she did not wish to take busi-ness away from other organizations, but after the Rescue Squad Auxiliary told her of their plans to discontinue their festival after this year, she decided to launch her own event to benefit Hospice.

“This is for the Hospice house,” she ex-plained, adding that the house itself was still under construction, but she expects framing to be complete before long. “They’re trying to get under roof sometime in December before the weather gets bad,” she said, nodding to the warm lights all around her as she smiled and

waved to decorating groups.Franzen described the festival as a spon-

sorship activity, with groups and individuals sponsoring specific trees, and vendors display-ing their wares at the festival itself and sup-plying donations at the end. She said since this was the festival’s first year, she was unsure how much revenue to expect, but her hope was to bolster operations funding for the new six-bed Hospice house being built in Callaway, for which construction funding had been secured, but little else.

Franzen said she projected the house’s an-nual operating budget to be around $312,000, but she was unsure how much of that money could be secured from grants or the state. “They do tend to run on losses,” Franzen said,

“and there probably will be a room charge, but if people can’t pay it we’ll care for them any-way…when people need the house and can’t pay for it, that’s when the fundraising money comes in.”

Franzen said she had quickly put togeth-er a planning committee with herself, Nancy Glockner, and Eve Love, and she owed this year’s event to her biggest corporate sponsor, Northrop Grumann, but also, most of all, she owed this year’s event to supporters, one of whom gave her the idea for the festival.

Jeanne Dove secured lights to her large tree across the ballroom as she talked about planting the seed for this year’s festival after her husband had passed. She explained that she had decorated trees in Calvert County for their annual festival, “but really our love and allegiance is with St. Mary’s County because they cared for us, so we really just wanted to bring this here.”

Hospice Hosts First Annual Festival of Trees

ADF Bingo Community Outreach in Mechanicsville gave away 200 holiday bags with turkeys, potatoes, pumpkin pies,

and stuffing this year to needy families across the county, many of whom exclaimed “thanks for giving!”

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In last week’s issue of The County Times a story reported that a man allegedly killed by a former Bay District Volunteer Fire Department member Nicholas Potts III was also a firefighter there. That is incorrect. James Augustus Choporis, Jr. is the

victim in the alleged murder but was not a member of the fire department at that time.

The County Times regrets the error.

Photo by Andrea Shiell

Photo by Andrea Shiell

Photo by Andrea Shiell

St. Mary’s Hospice hosted their first annual Festival of Trees at the J.T. Dougherty Conference Center last weekend to raise money for the new Hospice House being built in Calloway.

Page 4: The County Times 2008.12.04 A Section

SectionA-� The County Times Thursday,December�,2008

Editorial&Opinion

LetterstotheEditorIfyouwishtosendalettertotheeditor,pleaseincludeyourname,

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To The Editor:Ohmy!Ohmy!Ohmy!IsthisYorktown

again? Is the world turning upside down? Well, no. On the afternoon of Senator Obama’s nomi-nationas theDemocraticPartiesnomineeforPresident of the United States I wrote: “ 4:48 Mountain Daylight Savings Time, 27 August 2008 will live in the history of the American dream. The idea expressed in the words, “We declare these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal” has finally been real-ized in our society. 44 years, 364 days after Martin Luther King, Junior spoke his “Dream” to the crowd assembled on the Lincoln Memo-rial and reflecting pool grounds, and to the citi-zens of this country. 142 years, 8 months and 21 days since the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment to the U. S. Constitution declaring “slavery or involuntary servitude” as prohibited practices. We, the voting citizens of this coun-try, have elected a non-white man representing amajorpoliticalpartytostandforelectiontothe presidency of the United States. As the cam-era panned over the faces of the delegates to the Democratic Party Convention they stopped at one. A black woman of a certain age. She was crying silently and discretely. But, her face was at peace. I can only imagine what her emo-tions were: Finally, it has really happened; will it last? Is this real?; Why couldn’t my parents experiencethisjoy?Yes,IcanonlyimagineforI am not of her clan. The politics of the moment aside, I am so happy for the society I live in. We arenowfreeofonemoreshibboleth,onemorenegative. We can fight about policies and phi-losophy, but we need not fight about the color of one‘s skin. Hurrah! “ Again it could be applied to 11:01 PM EST 11/04/2008 when broadcast andcablenetworksprojectedthewinneroftheelection to be that self-same Barack Obama. We the people of this great society of law and liberty have come from the dark of 2/3rds of a human, chattel slavery, night riders and church bombingstotherecognitionthatthemindandcharacterofour fellowcitizensaremore im-portant than hair texture, skin color or boneand muscle conformation. What created this change? I posit the following: Good laws, good executive decisions and their proper applica-tion from 1948 onward. Public acceptance of the reasonablenessof the intentof these lawsand decisions. A change of popular music from a European base to the American trope. Even thoughdefactosegregationstillexists,itisbychoice, not law or skullduggery. Those who will live next to reasonable neighbors no mat-ter theirethnicity, religionorculturearenowlegion rather than lone eccentrics. Sports and thecompositionoftheteamswithstarscomingfrom all ethnicities has been a model. One sa-lient example would be Michael Jordan. Great men and women who braved questioning cur-rent law and convention showing the way to the fruition of the our ideal; “All men are created equal” The mails, airways, cable TV and public squares have been inundated with the entreaties of candidates for various local, state and federal offices. One wonders why and how someone wouldspendthousandsormillionsofdollarstobe elected to an office, which can never repay themoneysexpendedintheremunerationof-fered in salary paid for serving in that office. Is it really just altruistic philosophy that motivates

thesecandidates?Oristheresomeotherbasemotive? First, we must thank those who have served for the last two, four or six years in the various public offices. They have spent much oftheirenergyandtimeattemptingtoproduceforus,thecitizens,abetterworldandhandleour public affairs in a safe and sane manner. In the main the monies given them for their time and talent is far short of the product they have given us. No matter your worldview or political philosophy, theyareall tobecommendedontheir effort. Secondly, we must hold those we have elected to serve honestly and faithfully in theirconductofthepublicbusinessandtotheirstated goals. We must give them the opinions weholdandexpectthemtoproducelawsandjudgments which are fair and honest. Disagree-mentwith theirphilosophymustbe reasonedand fair. Argumentation to change their stated positionsmustbe factbased,notemotionallydriven. Thirdly, during their time as our ser-vants, we must honor their service and pay due respect to their efforts. Fourthly, there are among us many who never stand for election, but serve on boards and offices as volunteers. They may receive reimbursement for their travel or occasionally their time, though it is never enough. They spend many hours out of thepubliceyestudyingthefactsandproblemsandonlyduringthepublicsessionsdowe,thepublic, see their efforts. We must applaud their service as much as and in most cases more than our elected servants. Yes, there are some who use public office for nefarious purposes. When those persons are found and their crimes ex-posedwe should cause themgreat emotionalpainandattempttoassuageourcupiditywiththeir public ostracism. Luckily, the few who are ofthisstripeareusuallyfoundoutandproperlychastised. Finally, let us celebrate our system. Though flawed, mostly because of human frail-ties, it has proved to be the most successful way of managing human affairs in the history ofman. Though based on the basic precepts of the Judeo-Christian ethic and philosophies extend-ingfromthosepreceptsithasandcancontinuetoembraceallethicalpatterns,whichcelebratethe individual human. We must be ever vigi-lanttoinsuretheruleoflawistheonlyruletowhich we are bound. We must not be impatient. Impatienceoftentimescreatestheruleoforderover individuality. Order is not the goal, indi-vidual liberty is. Individual liberty presupposes thatlibertyhasaconcomitantresponsibilitytobe a law abiding and orderly citizen of society. Therefore, we have established a body of law to define the basic terms of order, decency and liberty. Hoorah for the new administration. It maynotbetoyourcompletesatisfaction,butitiswhatwemustsupport,criticizeandmodifyfor the next four years. Hoorah for our collec-tive wisdom and humanity!

James BlassMechanicsville, MD

Hoorah For Our Collective Wisdom and Humanity

Health Share of St. Mary’s, a private non-profit that provides primary health care and prescription medi-cations to uninsured and underinsured individuals in need, will host their 14th annual Holiday Home Tour this Sunday, December 7th throughout St. Mary’s County. The tour will feature seven homes in the Valley Lee, Drayden, Great Mills and Park Hall areas.

Tickets can be purchased until Friday December 6that the PNC Bank branch in Leonardtown, both Leonar-dtown and Lexington Park Branches of the Cedar Point Federal Credit Union, Bank of America’s main branch in Leonardtown, the Apple Basket in Laruel Grove, Community Bank of Tri County’s Leonardtown branch and at Vintage Source on Route 243 in Compton.

The cost for the entire tour is 45 dollars and 8 dol-lars on a per home basis. For more information, contact Anne Bell at 301-475-2129 or Lucy Barbour at [email protected].

Health Share Home Tour This Weekend

Along with our very own Super Walmart, we citizens of St. Mary’s County are blessed with various other local amenities serving to positively accent this place we’re pleased to call home. We have the Patuxent River, tributaries and creeks, ball fields, state parks, public hunt-inglands,stellarroadwaysandwalkingtrails,to name a few. And for your pleasure and safety, these high visibility areas are cleaned, maintainedandprotectedbystateandcountyemployees together with various volunteers resulting in first-rate accommodations which meet or exceed your expectations.

When it comes to less than glamorous at-tributes, however, i.e., the six Convenience Centers, we surely have lesser expectations, that is, till we utilize the Charlotte Hall loca-tion. This operation is meticulously main-tained and appealing, especially consideringit’s merely a place to unload ones’ household trash. A casual observance beyond that of the open dumpster itself and you’ll conclude this place really shines. Grass is always cut, care-lessly strewn trash is quickly retrieved and the

shoestring landscape I a wonder in itself. And therearenonailsandscrewslyingaroundjustwaiting to ruin your day.

My observations reveal there’s one man responsible for the outstanding appearanceof the Charlotte Hall Convenience Center, Mr. Donnie Russell. Whether courteously verifying county resident requirements, en-suring environmental compliance, advising on St. Andrews Landfill or attempting to pre-vent and / or aid in vehicular mishaps, he is always on point. Functioning as worker and management, Russell’s pride, professionalism, knowledge,attentiontodetailandconsistentlycheerful demeanor reflects great credit upon the Department of Public Works & Transpor-tation and that of St. Mary’s County. On your next trash run introduce yourself to DonnieRussell and compliment him for his outstand-ing workmanship. You’ll be as pleased as you were when the same was said of you.

Chester M. Seaborn, Jr.Mechanicsville, Md

St. Mary’s County Beautification Project In Work

Page 5: The County Times 2008.12.04 A Section

Thursday, December 4, 2008 The County Times Section A - �

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ers, lamented the sudden decision by the businesses owners to close up shop.

“We found out this past Saturday,” Wright told The County Times Nov. 25. “I think it’s been open 35 or 36 years, it’s been a long time.”

Modelers were busy going through the store looking for items they said they wouldn’t be easily found now that what seemed to be the regions only local hob-by store was closing down.

Tom Van Cleaf, a county employee, said he could get items on the Internet, but it just wasn’t the same as going to someplace local.

“You can get parts on-line, but cus-tomer service is what you get here,” Van Cleaf said. “They don’t make you feel stupid for asking them questions.”

Doug’s Hobby Shop was the reason he got into tinkering with remote con-

trolled cars, which are now a passion for him, he said.

“It’s like my ‘Cheers,’ everybody knows your name here,” Van Cleaf said.

The business’ owner for more than three decades, Doug Moran, said a series of serious health problems forced him into retirement about five years ago. That meant he had to put much of his business affairs in the hands of one of his son.

A combination of lackluster perfor-mance at the store, Moran said, and the burden it put on his son’s family meant it was simply time to close up shop.

“It wasn’t a decision we took lightly,” Moran said of the store’s closing. “I’ve been a modeler since forever, since I was a little boy.”

That hobby later turned into buying and refurbishing World War II training aircraft, Moran said.

When he opened up the shop in Wal-dorf in 1973, he said, he was just 23 years old. He said his family soon took to help-ing him run the business.

“They were on dad’s college plan,”

Moran said of his three children. “They worked in the store and went to the com-munity college.

“Then they went to Salisbury [state university] for the last two years of school.”

Jeff Cook, an enthusiastic airplane modeler who had been putting glue to plastic since he was a young boy, said the hobby shop was also a favorite hangout for him.

“I’d stop in here every other Friday night,” Cook said. “Jon [Wright] would check his watch by it.”

Cook was searching for deals too, and wound up buying two stacks worth of model airplanes before leaving.

“It’s very disappointing,” Cook said about the shop’s closing. “It’s the only hobby shop in a 60-mile radius.”

Moran said he felt much the same as his customers but had plenty of fond memories about the store.

“We’re not happy about closing the store,” Moran said. “But it’s provided a great life for my family.”

Hobby ShopContinued from page A-�

By Guy LeonardStaff Writer

Two armed robberies at Mechanicsville businesses appear to have been commit-ted by the same perpetrator, according to the commander of the county’s criminal in-vestigative unit.

“We’re investigating them as if they were linked,” said Bureau of Criminal In-vestigations chief Lt. Rick Burris.

Police released infor-mation about the most re-cent armed robbery at the Burchmart in Mechanics-ville on Route 235 last week that contained details seem-ing to match those from an armed robbery of the 7-11 convenience store just about 40 to 50 yards away.

The second armed rob-bery, according to police reports, occurred Nov. 18 when a white male entered the 7-11 at about 2:15 a.m., brandishing what appeared to be a shotgun wrapped in cloth.

The suspect, who stood about 5 feet, 5 inches tall and weighed approximately 150 pounds, got an undisclosed amount of money from the cashier and fled on foot.

The second armed rob-bery, which occurred a little more than a week later on Nov. 26, saw a white male standing about 5 feet, 7 inch-es tall enter the Burchmart at about 4:30 a.m. brandishing a long gun and demanding money.

This time the suspect was wearing a camouflage-hooded jacket, light blue denim jeans, dark colored boots and a ski mask.

The suspect in both rob-

beries wore a ski mask, ac-cording to police reports.

In the second robbery as in the first, the suspect fled on foot.

And, in both robberies, police reports state, an in-tensive search turned up no trace of the suspect.

In the first robbery, sher-iff’s deputies, state troopers, a search helicopter and ca-nine units from both Charles and Calvert county sheriff’s offices searched for the sus-pect, but came up empty handed.

In the second robbery in-cident, deputies, state troop-ers and canine officers from Charles County again were unable to find the suspect.

“Both times he fled on foot,” Burris told The Coun-ty Times. “And there were no vehicles seen at the crime scene.”

Burris said detectives are looking into possibilities of how the suspect made his getaway, including whether he had a vehicle waiting for him after completing the robberies.

The median strip divid-ing Three Notch Road in Mechanicsville experienced a similar crime last year when a suspect robbed the Bank of America of some $10,000 in cash.

Prosecutors are still wait-ing to try Valeriy Valeryevic Kouznetsov, 24, of Rock-ville for the alleged robbing of that bank.

Earlier this year, pros-ecutors dropped charges against David Concepcion, 34, also of Rockville, who they believed had been Kouznetsov’s accomplice, for lack of evidence.

Detectives: Mechanicsville Robberies May Be Linked

County Times File PhotoMolelers have a few days left to buy future projects before Doug’s Hobby Shop closes for good.

Page 6: The County Times 2008.12.04 A Section

SectionA-� The County Times Thursday,December4,2008Thursday, August 21, 2008 The County Times Section A - �

Alice Mildred Brown, 99

Alice Mildred Brown, 99 of Leonardtown died Aug. 16 in her home.

Born Nov. 9, 1908 in Baltimore, Md., she was the daughter of the late James and Lilly Mae Jackson Rebham.

She was a member of St. George’s Episcopal Church, Valley Lee, and Order of the Eastern Star, Chapter 107, Ju-lia Halla, Hollywood.

Mrs. Brown is survived by two sons, Lloyd E. (Jerry) Brown, Jr. of Leonardtown and Willard Bruce Brown of Terra Alta, W. Va. She is also survived by six grand-children, Julie Brown-Rund, Jeff Brown, Nancy Deal, Wendy Jarda, Judy Graybill and Pheobe Brown, and eight great-grandchildren Clay and Will Rund, Kristen and Josh Brown, Shawn and Bruce Deal, Audrey and Samantha Jarda.

She was predeceased by a daughter Betty Ruth Brown and a brother John B. Fenwick.

Relatives and friends at-tended Mrs. Brown’s Life Celebration in the Brinsfield Funeral Home, Leonardtown Wednesday, Aug. 20 from 5 – 8 p.m. with prayers recited at 7 p.m. A funeral service will be held Thursday, Aug. 21 at 11 a.m. in St. George’s Epis-copal Church, Valley Lee. Reverend Greg Syler, pastor of the church, will officiate. Interment will follow in the church cemetery.

Memorial Contributions may be made to The Mis-sions Endowment Fund or Cemetery and Grounds Fund, c/o St. George’s Episcopal Church, P.O. Box 30, Valley Lee, MD 20692.

Condolences to the fam-ily may be made at www.brinsfieldfuneral.com.

Arrangements by the Brinsfield Funeral Home, P.A., Leonardtown.

Francis Joseph Brown, Sr., 66

Francis Joseph Brown, Sr., 66, passed away in his home in Indian Trail, N.C. Aug. 12.

Mr. Brown was born July 1, 1942 in Leonardtown, son of the late Mary Edna Brown Norris.

Mr. Brown is survived by his wife Jacqueline Mer-cer Brown; a son Francis J. Brown, Jr. and his wife Shelia of Stanfield, N.C.; a daughter Jennifer Lynn Brown of Indi-an Trail, N.C. and two grand-daughters Christianna Page and Allyson Grace Brown.

The family received friends Sunday, Aug. 17 from 2 – 5 p.m. in the Matting-ley-Gardiner Funeral Home, where Prayers were said at 3 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated Mon-day, Aug. 18 at 9:30 a.m. in St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church with Fr. John Mat-tingly officiating. Interment followed in Charles Memo-rial Gardens.

Arrangements provided by the Mattingley-Gardiner Funeral Home, P.A.

Luis Antonia Castillo, 70

Luis Antonia Castillo, 70, of Leonardtown died Aug. 16 in St. Mary’s Nursing Center, Leonardtown.

Born Sept. 20, 1937 in Puerto Rico, he was the son of the late Luis Antonia and Elsa Monserrate Morales Castillo.

Luis is survived by three sisters, M. Elaine Ohler of Millsboro, Del., Evelyn Cas-tillo of Chestertown, Md. and Elsie Collins of Las Vegas, Nev. He is also survived by several nieces and nephews.

Family received friends Wednesday, Aug. 20 from 11 a.m. – noon in the Brinsfield Funeral Home, Leonardtown, with prayers recited at noon. Deacon George L’Heureux officiated. Graveside service followed at 2 p.m. at Cedar Hill Cemetery, Suitland, Md.

Memorial Contributions may be made to the St. Mary’s Nursing Center Foundation, Inc.,

21585 Peabody Street, Leonardtown, MD 20650.

Condolences to the fam-ily may be made at www.brinsfieldfuneral.com.

Arrangements by the Brinsfield Funeral Home, P.A., Leonardtown.

Lloyd Raymond Harris, 97

Lloyd Raymond Har-ris, 97, died peacefully Aug. 12 in the St. Mary’s Nursing Center.

Mr. Harris was a longtime resident of St. Mary’s County. He was born in Gallatin, Mo. June 13, 1911 to the late How-ard May Harris and Frankie Lee Jackson. He married his beloved wife of 59 years, Mary Catherine “Sis” Nelson at the Washington Cathedral in Washington D.C. Sept. 2, 1939. She preceded him in death in 1998. He was also preceded in death in 1998 by his beloved sister Margaret Harris.

Mr. Harris served in the United States Army as an As-sistant Chaplain. Following his army service he was em-ployed in Washington, D.C. by the Federal Government for many years before retir-ing. He then worked in the tax department for the State of Maryland and retired in 1971. During his retirement, he and his wife enjoyed trav-eling throughout the United States.

He enjoyed playing cards, dancing and buying new cars. Ray loved life and most of all he enjoyed helping others while expecting nothing in return. He was devoted in the care of his wife and sister un-til their death.

The family received friends in the Mattingley-Gardiner Funeral Home, P.A., Leonardtown, Friday, Aug. 15 from 9 – 10 a.m. with a funer-al service that followed at 10 a.m. officiated by Rev. Keith Schukraft. Interment followed at Charles Memorial Gardens in Leonardtown. Pallbearers were Frank Nelson, Donnie Bowles, Fred Nelson, Harry Nelson, Jr., Michael Russell and Roy Copsey.

Contributions may be made to American Heart Association, 415 N. Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21201-4101.

Arrangements provided by the Mattingley-Gardiner Funeral Home, P.A.

Valorie Anne Henry, 48

Valorie Anne Henry, 48, of Mechanicsville, formerly of Grandview, Mo., died Aug. 17, in Lexington Park.

Born Oct. 31, 1959 in Lincoln, Neb. she was the daughter of James Ray Dick-inson of Mouldrow, Okla. and Hortense Anne Campbell Crawford of Grandview, Mo. She was the loving wife of Earl Allan Henry, whom she married July 16, 1986 in War-rensburg, Mo.

She is survived by her son Earl Ian Henry.

Mrs. Henry gradu-ated from Grandview High School’s Class of 1977. She moved to St. Mary’s County in October 1988 from Wal-dorf, Md.

The family will receive friends Saturday, Aug. 23 from 10 – 11 a.m. in Patux-ent River Assembly of God Church, California, where a Funeral Service will be held at 11 a.m. with Pastor Lanny Clark officiating. Interment will be held Wednesday, Aug. 27 at 10 a.m. in Maryland Veteran’s Cemetery, Chelten-ham, Md.

Contributions may be made to Hospice if St. Mary’s, P.O. Box 625, Leonardtown, MD 20650.

Arrangements provided by the Mattingley-Gardiner Funeral Home, P.A.

Karen A. McEntyre, 51

Karen A. McEntyre, 51 of Lexington Park, formerly of Plano, Texas, died Aug. 13 in Washington Hospital Center.

Born Feb. 24, 1957 in Sweetwater, Texas she was the daughter of Carold and Mary Aleese Benson of Pla-no, Texas.

She is also survived by her children Jeremy Porter of Snyder, Texas, Jonathan Porter of Plano, Texas, Angie Porter, Sheila Horton and Ma-rissa Horton, all of Lexington Park as well as her brother Victor Benson of Plano, Texas and three grandchildren.

Karen was employed as a registered nurse.

All services are private. Arrangements provided

by the Mattingley-Gardiner Funeral Home, P.A.

Timothy Brian McGrath, 50

Timothy Brian McGrath, 50, of Lexington Park died Aug. 11 in St. Mary’s Hospi-tal, Leonardtown.

Born June 14, 1958 in Freeport, Ill., he was the son of Patricia (Chambers) Mc-Grath of Mesa, Ariz. and the late Charles McGrath.

Timothy attended La-salle-Peru High School in La-salle, Ill. where he graduated in 1976. He served in the U.S. Navy from 1976 until 1999. After his service in the Navy, Timothy was employed by a Government Contractor and worked at the Patuxent River Naval Air Station. He was an Elks Lodge member and a past member of the Lexing-ton Park Volunteer Rescue

Squad. In addition to his mother,

Timothy is survived by his wife Debra Kay (Houtz) Mc-Grath, his son, Sean Patrick McGrath of Lexington Park, his sister, Karen McGrath of Mesa, Ariz. and his brother, Michael McGrath of Ill.

A memorial service will be held Saturday, Aug. 23 at 10 a.m. at the Bay District Volunteer Fire Department, Lexington Park.

Condolences to the fam-ily may be made at www.brinsfieldfuneral.com.

Arrangements by the Brinsfield Funeral Home, P.A., Leonardtown.

Patrick Connor Miller 2

Patrick Connor Mill-er 2, of Avenue died Aug. 12 in St. Mary’s Hospital, Leonardtown.

Connor was born Oct. 11, 2005 in Anne Arundel Medi-cal Center, Annapolis, Md., the son of James L. Miller and Krystal Kaldenbach of Avenue.

He is survived by two sis-ters, Lillian and Kayla Miller, a brother Kyle Miller, his pa-ternal grandparents James L. and Darlene Oliver Miller of Chaptico, maternal grandpar-ents, Eugene Kaldenbach of Harrimon, Tenn., and Debra Adams Kaldenbach of Win-chester, Ky.; great-grandpar-ents Francis and Audrey Oli-ver of Chaptico and

G reat-g rand mother s Mary Lou Adams of Waldorf, Md. and Shirley Miller of Newburg, Md.

The family received friends for Connor’s Life Celebration Sunday, Aug. 17 from 3 – 4 p.m. in the Brins-field Funeral Home, Leonard-town, with a funeral service at 4 p.m. Interment was private.

Condolences to the fam-ily may be made at www.brinsfieldfuneral.com.

Arrangements by the Brinsfield Funeral Home, P.A., Leonardtown.

Mary Aleathea Redmond, 84

Mary Aleathea Redmond, 84, of Leonardtown died Aug. 16 in St. Mary’s Hospital.

Born April 18, 1924 in Mechanicsville she was the daughter of Clarence Leo Ev-ans and Gertrude M. (Pilker-ton) Evans.

Aleathea graduated from Margaret Brent High School in 1941. She worked from 1961 to 1971 as a secretary/re-ceptionist for St. Mary’s Col-lege. She enjoyed cooking, croqueting, playing cards, gardening, and sewing; often making clothing for her and her daughter.

She is preceded in death by husband James Franklin

Redmond, whom she mar-ried March 4, 1945 at the Im-maculate Conception Catholic Church in Mechanicville. She is survived by her beloved chil-dren Gayle A. Hancock and her husband William of Fair-fax, Va., and James “Frank” Redmond and his wife Wanda of Fredericksburg, Va. She is also survived by three grand-children, Jeffery A. Hancock and his wife Jennifer of Fair-fax, Va., Mark D. Redmond and his wife Tanya of Fred-ericksburg, Va., Jason P. Red-mond of Fredericksburg; and four great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her sister Agnes Rice.

Family received friends Wednesday, Aug. 20 from 9:30 – 10:30 a.m. in the Brinsfield Funeral Home, P.A., Leonar-dtown. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated 11 a.m., Wednesday, Aug. 20 at St. Aloysius Catholic Church, Leonardtown, with Rev. John Dakes officiating. Interment followed in Charles Memorial Gardens, Leonardtown.

Serving, as pallbearers were Mark Redmond, Jason Redmond, Jeffery Hancock, Bill Hancock, Lawrence Pilk-erton, and Arthur Pilkerton. Honorary pallbearer was Earl Dean.

Memorial contribution can be made to the Ridge Volunteer Rescue Squad, P.O. Box 456, Ridge, MD 20680.

Condolences to the fam-ily may be made at www.brinsfieldfuneral.com.

Arrangements by the Brinsfield Funeral Home, P.A., Leonardtown.

Louis Marshall “Junior” Thompson, Jr., 84

Louis Marshall “Junior” Thompson, Jr., 84, of Avenue died Aug. 4 in his residence.

He was born July 20, 1924 in Dynard to the late Louis Marshall and Catherine Elea-nor Harris Thompson Sr.

He was the loving hus-band of Rose Lee Thompson whom he married July 26, 1942 in Sacred Heart Church, Bushwood. He is also sur-vived by his children, Mar-garet Taylor and her husband George of Hollywood, Buddy Thompson and his wife Deb-bie of Avenue, Benny Thomp-son and his wife Mary of

Morganza, Donnie Thompson and his wife Debbie of Me-chanicsville and Rose Mary George and her husband John of Avenue; 16 grandchildren, 44 great-grandchildren, two step-grandchildren and his sisters Mary Ozella Lacey of Abell, Gertrude Osborne of King George, Va. and Susan Vallandingham of Bushwood.

He was preceded in death by one great-grandchild and his sisters Catherine Hall and Louise Bryant.

A lifelong resident of St. Mary’s County, Junior was a self-employed waterman. While enlisted in the U.S. Army from Oct. 19, 1944 to Nov. 19, 1945, he served as a rifleman, a light machine gunner and a cook.

He belonged to the Knights of Columbus and en-joyed playing cards and being with his family and his two special buddies Maynard and Ringo.

The family received friends in the Mattingley-Gar-diner Funeral Home Thursday, Aug. 7 from 5 – 8 p.m. with prayers being said at 7 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated Friday, Aug. 8 at 9:30 a.m. in Holy Angels Cath-olic Church, Avenue, with Fr. William Gurnee officiating. Interment followed in Sacred Heart Cemetery, Bushwood. Pallbearers were Johnny George, Jereme George, Tina Fay Ferguson, Dave Hodg-es, Matthew Thompson and Donnie Thompson. Honorary pallbearers were his grand-children, nieces and nephews.

Contributions may be made to Holy Angels Sacred Heart School, 21335 Colton’s Point Road, Avenue, MD 20609, Seventh District Vol-unteer Rescue Squad, P.O. Box 7, Avenue, MD 20609 and/or Hospice of St. Mary’s, P.O. Box 625, Leonardtown, MD 20650.

Arrangements provided by the Mattingley-Gardiner Funeral Home, P.A.

Evelyn Tillotson Woods, 86

Evelyn Tillotson Woods, 86, of California died Aug. 14 in St. Mary’s Nursing Center, Leonardtown.

Born Dec. 18, 1921 in LeMoyne, Pa., she was the daughter of the late George C. Tillotson and Eva (Dowhow-er) Tillotson. Evelyn was an avid Pittsburgh Steelers fan.

Evelyn is survived by her daughters, Christine W. Moore of Chesapeake Beach, Md. and Deborah J. Standish of California, four grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.

All services are private. Condolences to the fam-

ily may be made at www.brinsfieldfuneral.com.

Arrangements by the Brinsfield Funeral Home, P.A., Leonardtown.

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EdnaGeraldine(Gerry)CoxAlbertsen,7�

Edna Geraldine (Ger-ry) Cox Albertsen of RidgepassedawayNov.26inPrinceGeorge’s Hospital Center inCheverly,Md.

Born Feb. 12, 1932 inSalmon River, Nova Scotia,she married Peter AlbertsonDec. 20, 1954 in Bermuda.She was the daughter of thelate Sidney Burnthorn Coxand Ethel Blanche (John-stone) Cox and sister of Da-vid (Dave)RobertCox. Shewasprecededindeathbytwobrothers, James (Jim)BurtonCox, Alister Creelman (Pat)Cox,andasisterDorthy(Dot)BurnthornCox, all ofTruro,NovaScotia.

Gerry is survivedbyherhusband Peter and five chil-dren;DebraAnn (Rob);RoyJacob(Patti)andsons,Blaineand Duane; Michael Allen(Cindy)andsons,RobertandRyan; John David (Missy)and daughter, Ashleigh andson,Daniel,allofSt.Mary’sCounty Maryland; WilliamJames(Randi)andson,Noahanddaughters,KylieandLilyofWoodstock,Maryland.Sixgreat grand children com-plete her immediate familygroup.Her extended familyincludes seven more grandchildrenandeightmoregreatgrandchildren.

Gerry first graduated from Colchester Academyand then graduated as a Ca-nadianRegisteredNursefromtheAberdeenSchoolofNurs-ing.Gerrywasemployedbythe Bermuda Hospital as anassistant to the Emergencyand Operating Rooms untilAugust,1955whenshequittoraise her family. While rais-ing their children during herhusband’s Naval career, theylived in Bermuda, Florida,VirginiaBeach,Va.,ImperialBeach, Calif., and PatuxentRiver,Md.Sheownedandop-erated Albertsen’s Foodway,HideawayBar,andtheRidgeGulfServiceCenterinRidgefromMay1971untiltheear-ly 1980s. She then enjoyedtraveling with her husbandduring his employment withSikorsky Helicopters, livinginMalaysia,Jordan,Holland,and the Philippines. Afterhis retirement fromSikorskyinJuly1997,theyreturnedtoRidge,whereshewasahome-makerwholovedtobearoundherfamily.Herfavoritehob-bies were playing pinochleand canasta with family andfriends. Gerry also enjoyedweekends spent eating crabswiththefamilyandoverlook-ingtheChesapeakeBayfromherhomeandgarden.

Relativesand friendsareinvited to Gerry’s Life Cel-ebration in the Brinsfield Fu-neral Home, LeonardtownDec.8from5–7p.m.withaFuneralServiceat6p.m.

Interment will be heldFeb. 12, 2009 at 11 a.m. inArlingtonNationalCemetery.

In lieu of flowers dona-tions may be made to theHollywood Rescue Squad P.O. Box 79, Hollywood, MD20636 orAmericanDiabetesAssociation P.O. Box 11454Alexandria, VA 22312 (visitwww.diabetes.org/support-the-cause/make-a-donation/mail.jsp for further informa-tionaboutdonations).

Condolences to the fam-ily may be made at www.brinsfieldfuneral.com

JosephineClaireZellerBorkowski,81

Josephine Claire ZellerBorkowski, 81, of Leonar-dtown died Nov. 26 in herresidence.

Born June 21, 1927 inStafford, Va. she was the

daughter of the late ChesterArthur Zeller and Mary Ve-ronica (White) Zeller. Jose-phinewasmarriedtothelateJoseph Edward Borkowski,D.D.S.

Josephinewasaregisterednurse.SheattendedQuanticoHighSchoolandGeorgetownUniversity School of Nurs-ing.Shewas a staff nurse atGeorgetown, Mt. Alto, andNational Institutes of Healthaswellasfor theRedCross.She was the head nurse/As-sistantDirectorofNursingattheCarriageHillSkilledCareCenter.

Josephine also was theowner of Cardinal Gifts andAntiques in Sperryville, Va.Shewasamemberof theSt.Mary’s Hospital Planningand Community RelationsCommitteeBoard,St.Mary’sCounty Women’s Club, St.Mary’s Garden Club, St.Mary’s Horticultural StudyGroup, Porcelain PaintersClubofVirginia,PalateChinaPainter’s Club, World ChinaPainters, Rotary Internation-al,FriendsofSt.Mary’sCity,RedCross,andChristmas inApril.Shewasalsoamastergardenerandaninternationalporcelainartteacher.

Josephine is survivedby her children; Anne Ma-rie Borkowski of Tyngsboro,Mass., JosephM.Borkowskiof Chesapeake Beach, Md.,Edward Borkowski of Al-exandria, Va. and DavidJ.BorkowskiofBethesda,Md.,two grandchildren, siblings;Mary Beaven of Pomfret,Md., and Chester Zeller ofSarasota,Fla.

Family received friendsNov. 30 from 4 – 6 p.m. inthe Brinsfield Funeral Home, Leonardtown. Prayers wererecitedat5p.m. AMassofChristian Burial was cel-ebrated Dec. 1 at 11 a.m. inSt.AloysiusCatholicChurch,Leonardtown.FatherConnel-ly was the celebrant. Inurn-ment followed in St. FrancisXavierCemetery.

Memorial contributionsmaybemadetotheAmericanDiabetes Association, Wash-ington DC-MD Office, 1025 Connecticut Avenue, NWWashington,DC20036-4104.

Condolences to the fam-ily may be made at www.brinsfieldfuneral.com.

Arrangements by theBrinsfield Funeral Home, P.A.,Leonardtown.

TheresaAnnSwalesKing,�4

Theresa Ann SwalesKing,64,ofCalifornia,Md.,formerly ofUpperMarlboro,Md.,diedNov.23inherresi-dence after a prolonged andcourageousbattlewithbreastcancer.

Shewasthelovingwifeofthe lateCharlesKing,whomshemarriedin1993.

TheresawasbornMarch21, 1944 in Medley’s Neck,Md. to the lateJamesWalterMilburn and the late MaryElizabeth Swales. She re-ceived her education fromBanneker High School. The-resalefthomeatanearlyageandbeganworkingasaNan-nyinRockville,Md.

Afterworkingas aNan-ny, she began her career inthe private industry as an

Information Reporting Spe-cialist at the National Asso-ciation of SecuritiesDealers,Inc. (NASD) in downtownWashington,D.C.SheretiredfromNASDafter30yearsofservice.Followingher retire-mentin2002,sherelaxedandenjoyedherself.

Theresa was always onthe road doing something.Her favorite activities wereshopping and traveling, herlove for which was matchedonly by her love and devo-tiontoherfamilyandfriends.Afterayearorso,shedecid-ed shewashaving toomuchfun shopping and travelingandfoundapart-timejobatacharterschoolinWashington,D.C.Sheworkedasacafeteriaaide,helpingwithlunch,col-lectinglunchticketsandserv-ingthestudentstheirlunch.

Theresa joined the St.Bernadine of Siena CatholicChurch in Suitland, Md. inJune1997.ShewasappointedSecretary shortly after join-ing. Her limitless optimismandunshakeablefaithinGodwereaninspirationtoallwhoknewher.Shewas an activemember until she became illinApril2008.Whenshewasdiagnosed as having cancer,she did not want anyone toknow.Shewasaverystrongandindependentwoman.Shedidnotwantanyonetobebur-denedwithher illness.Afterseveral treatments of che-motherapy, she decided shewouldmovebackhometobeclosertofamily.ShereturnedtothecountyinAugust2008.Shehadbeeninthecitylightsfor so long, shehardlyknewhowtogetfromoneplacetotheother.Sheoftensaid,“geewiz, these country roads getmeconfused.”

She is survived by threechildren; Joseph CharlesSwales of Lexington Park,Sharon Yvette Williams ofCaliforniaMd.;andJonathanTyrone Swales of Jackson-ville, Fla.; three grandchil-dren,Destiny,TyroneJr.andJoseph Jr.; one sister, MarySwales of California, Md.;twobrothers,JosephAloysius(Sundown) and John Arthur(Johnny), both of LexingtonPark.

She was preceded indeath by her mother and fa-ther; brothers; James Walter(Rock), Joseph Paul Swales(Kay) and James WilliamSwales(Gator).

The family receivedfriends Dec. 3 from 10:30– 11:30 a.m. in Immacu-late Heart of Mary Catho-lic Church where a Mass ofChristianBurialwascelebrat-edat11:30a.m.withFr.JackKennealy officiating. Inter-ment followed in the Mary-land Veteran’s Cemetery,Cheltenham,Md.

Arrangements providedby the Mattingley-GardinerFuneralHome,P.A.

HelenMarieLauer,88

HelenMarieLauer,88ofLeonardtown,andformerlyofYork,Pa.diedNov.24inSt.Mary’sNursingCenter.

Born June 11, 1920 inYork,Pa.,shewasthedaugh-ter of the late John S. andRosellen Lau Ehrhart. ShewasthelovingwifeofthelatePaulP.Lauerwhomshemar-riedonApril29,1939inYork,Pa.

She is survived by herchildren Terry L. Lauer ofHollywood, Md., Dean J.Lauer of York, Pa. and Dr.Lonnie C. Lauer of Bridge-ton, Maine, as well as sevengrandchildren and elevengreat-grandchildren.

She was preceded indeath by her siblings; Lor-raine Campbell, Dorie Beck-er,GeorgeEhrhartandNilesE.Ehrhart.

Helen graduated fromWilliamPennSr.HighSchool“Class of 1937” and movedtoSt.Mary’sCounty in July2004fromYork,Pa.Shewasan instructor of needlepointand crewel, belonged to theEmbroiders Guild of Ameri-ca,andwasapastpresidentoftheWhiteRoseChapter.

A memorial service willbeheldatalaterdate.

Contributions may be

made to the Alzheimer As-sociation,11240WaplesMillRoad,Suite402,Fairfax,VA22030 and/or Cedar LaneAssisted Living, 22680 Ce-darLane,Leonardtown,MD20650.

Arrangements providedby the Mattingley-GardinerFuneralHome,P.A.

WilliamS.“Buck”Law-rence,Sr.,81

WilliamS. “Buck”Law-rence, Sr., 81, of Bushwood,diedNov.29inhisresidence.

HewasbornSept.5,1927in St. Mary’s County to thelateGeorgeL.andPaulineF.LongLawrence.

He is survived by hiswife Ann Fowler Lawrence;his children Paula LawrenceGoodeandherhusbandArtie,MarthaLawrenceCasnerandher husband Fred, GeorgeLancaster Lawrence and hiswife Robin, Mary “Migs”Lawrence Moreland and herhusbandSyd,MargaretLaw-rence Putnam and her hus-bandLarryandWilliamSid-neyLawrence,Jr.andhiswifeJackie.

He is also survived byhissisterMargaretKivlinandhis grandchildren StephanieLawrence,AmberLawrence,MaggieMoreland,LauraPut-nam and Zack Moreland aswellasmanylovingrelativesandfriends.

Hewasprecededindeathby his siblings Tom Law-rence, Ann Abell and AliceLawrence.

A lifelong resident ofSt.Mary’sCounty, hewas afarmer, a game warden andsupervisorofassessmentsforfourteenyears.Hewasachar-termemberofthe7thDistrictOptimistClub.

The family receivedfriendsDec.3from5–8p.m.in the Mattingley-GardinerFuneralHome,Leonardtown,whereprayerswere saidat7p.m. followed by Optimistprayersat7:15p.m.AMassofChristianBurialwillbecele-bratedDec.4at11a.m.inSa-cred Heart Catholic Church,Bushwood, with Fr. FrancisEarly officiating. Interment willfollowinthechurchcem-etery.PallbearerswillbeArtieGoode,FredCasner,SydMo-reland,LarryPutnam,JimmySpenceandBobbyAnderson.Honorary pallbearerswill bethe7thDistrictOptimistClub.

Contributions may bemadetoHospiceofSt.Mary’s,P.O. Box 625, Leonardtown,MD20650.

Arrangements providedby the Mattingley-GardinerFuneralHome,P.A.

ElizabethSusannaLe-Roy,88

Elizabeth Susanna Le-Roy, 88, of St. Mary’s City,diedNov.26inherresidence.

Born May 14, 1920,she was the daughter of thelate Walter Davis and Alice(Steele)Davis.

Elizabeth is survived byherhusband,JohnD.LeRoy,Jr., and her children, SusanLois Long and John WalterLeRoy.

Family received friendsNov. 28 from9 – 11 a.m. inTrinity Episcopal Church,St. Mary’s City. A FuneralService was conducted at 11a.m. with Reverend John A.Ball officiating. Interment fol-lowedinthechurchcemetery.

Memorial contributionsmay be made to the TrinityEpiscopal Church BuildingFund,P.O.Box207,St.Mary’sCity,MD20686.

Condolences to the fam-ily may be made at www.brinsfieldfuneral.com.

Arrangements by theBrinsfield Funeral Home, P.A.,Leonardtown.

CatherineMargaret“Granny”McMonagle,

90

Catherine Margaret“Granny” McMonagle, 90of Leonardtown, formerly ofPhiladelphia, Pa., died Nov.23intheUniversityofMary-landHospital,Baltimore,Md.

Born Oct. 24, 1918 inPhiladelphia,Pa.,shewasthedaughter of the late PalmerJohn and Ella CatherineCoghlanHolland.Shewasthelovingwifeof thelateJamesMcMonagle, who precededherindeathin1973inLeon-ardtown and her first husband, thelateJohnMcFadden.

SheissurvivedbyhersonJohn McFadden of Leonard-town;hergrandsonsJohnandGregMcFadden;hersiblingsJames Holland of Tucson,Ariz. and Delores Vanderg-riftofCapeMay,N.J.andtwogreat-grandchildren.

ShewasprecededindeathbyhersiblingsJohnHolland,RosemaryRitchieandCharlesHolland.

Shemoved toSt.Mary’sCountyin1983fromQuaker-town,Pa.andwasa labspe-cialist forLeeds&Northrupfor44years.ShebelongedtotheSt.Mary’sWomen’sCluband the St. Mary’s HospitalAuxiliary.

The family receivedfriendsNov.30from2–5p.m.in the Mattingley-GardinerFuneralHome,Leonardtown.A funeral service was heldDec.1at10a.m.inPatuxentPresbyterianChurch,Califor-nia, Md., with Rev. MichaelJones officiating. Pallbearers were John McFadden, GregMcFadden, Hilary Copsey,JohnMcFadden,CaseyCops-eyandTedTate.

Contributions may bemadetothePatuxentPresby-terian Church, 23421 Kings-ton Creek Road, California,MD20619.

Arrangements providedby the Mattingley-GardinerFuneralHome,P.A.

RalphD.Morgan,�4

RalphD.Morgan,64,ofMechanicsville died Nov. 24inSt.Mary’sHospital.

Born March 7, 1944 inHelen,hewas the sonof thelateJamesDanielandLouiseMaryWathenMorgan.

He was the loving hus-bandofTeresaMaryMorganwhom he married Oct. 30,1970 inSacredHeartCatho-licChurch,Bushwood.He isalsosurvivedbyhisdaughterAmandaMorganofMechan-icsvilleandhissiblings;Bar-baraLewisofLaPlata,Md.,James Morgan of Leonard-town,BrendaCarleeofJack-sonville,Fla.,RayMorganofWaldorf,Md.andIrmaMor-ganofVirginia.

A lifelong residentofSt.Mary’sCounty,Ralphwas atree trimmer for Penn LineServicefor25yearsuntilhisretirementin1990.

Allservicesareprivate.Arrangements provided

by the Mattingley-GardinerFuneralHome,P.A.

HarrietMoranNorris,78

HarrietMoranNorris,78,ofHollywooddiedNov.26inherresidence.

BornOct.22,1930inHol-lywoodshewasthedaughterof the late Ollie Wellingtonand Lillian Victoria AdamsMoran. She was the lovingwifeofthelateJosephFrancis“Frank”Norris.

She is survived by herdaughters Karen Lee Nelsonand her husband Richard ofLexington Park, Sara ElaineMartinandherhusbandRussof Leonardtown and SusanElizabeth Loflin and her hus-band Scott of Hollywood;her sisters Regina Tucker ofDillsburg, Pa. and DorothyAnn Cullison of Great Millsas well as her grandchildrenMatthew Dobson, Ian Nel-son,MorganWilliams,CindyMartin, Kaity Martin, LeahLoflin and Ben Loflin and her great-grandchildren GavinandKennedyDobson.

Shewasalifelongresidentof St. Mary’s County, whereshe graduated from GreatMills High School “Class of1949.”Shewas amemberoftheH.O.P.E.Charity.

The family receivedfriendsDec.1from5–8a.m.in the Mattingley-GardinerFuneralHome,Leonardtown,whereprayerswere saidat7p.m. A Funeral Service washeldDec.2at10a.m.inHol-lywood United MethodistChurch,Hollywood,withRev.Sheldon Reese officiating. In-termentfollowedinJoyCha-pelCemetery,Hollywood.

Contributions may bemadetoHospiceofSt.Mary’s,P.O. Box 625, Leonardtown,MD20650.

Arrangements providedby the Mattingley-GardinerFuneralHome,P.A.

ChristopherMichaelPatty,34

ChristopherMichaelPat-ty,34,ofCharlesCounty,diedsuddenlyNov.24,fromgun-shot wounds sustained whileprotectinghisfamilyduringahomeinvasion.

Born April 10, 1974 atPatuxent River Naval Hospi-tal, he was the son of LindaGuy, ofLeonardtownandRoyPatty,ofFlorida.

He attended Great MillsHigh School followed by Balti-moreCulinaryInstitute.Hewasa talented chef who worked atBroome Howard Inn, Spinna-kers, and Tavern on the Green.He opened several top line res-taurants in the Baltimore Cityarea and was employed at TheCrossings atCasey Jones inLaPlataatthetimeofhisdeath.Heenjoyed fishing, traveling, and be-ingoutdoors.Hehadabigheartandwasdedicatedtohisfamily.

Chriswasprecededindeathbyhismaternalgrandfather,JohnLevy and his stepfather, Ray-mond“Butch”Guy.

Heissurvivedbyhismother,LindaGuyandhisgrandmother,Pearl Levy; his siblings JessicaGuy,GinaBiscoe,andPaulGuy,three nieces and a nephew; hisgirlfriendTinaDeanandherchil-drenKyli,McKenna,andJadyn.

Family received friends forChristopher’s Life CelebrationNov.29fromnoon–2p.m.intheBrinsfield Funeral Home, Leon-ardtown. A Funeral Servicewasheldat2p.m. in the fu-neralhomechapel.Intermentwasprivate.

Memorial contributionsmaybemadetoJudeHouse,P.O.Box1057,LaPlata,MD20646.

Condolences to the fam-ily may be made at www.brinsfieldfuneral.com.

Arrangements by theBrinsfield Funeral Home, P.A.,Leonardtown.

Page 7: The County Times 2008.12.04 A Section

Thursday, December 4, 2008 The County Times Section A - �

“They both hit at the same time and our [chief financial officer] retired,” Mattingly told The County Times.

If the former chief finan-cial officer, Daniel Carney, had stayed on, this situation might have been averted, Mattingly said.

“Mr. Carney was very ef-ficient,” Mattingly said. “We never had any issues.

“Everything is under a microscope [with a tight state budget], they [system financial personnel] just got overwhelmed.”

Cathy Allen, anoth-er school board member, agreed.

“Our finance department is strapped, we’re having a difficult time filling staff po-sitions,” Allen said. “This [au-dit] has never been an issue.”

Allen said the legislative audit, which essentially sur-veys the entire county school system operation, has been going on since the summer and is set to be complete by the end of the year.

“It’s extraordinarily com-prehensive,” Allen said of the

audit.Martirano said the com-

pletion of the audit in its final form was always on his mind.

“It’s done; it’s in its draft form,” Martirano told The County Times, adding that it still had to be reviewed and sent in. “I’m worried about it every week.

“If we go into the next quarter [without the audit be-ing sent in to the state] then I’ll be concerned.”

So far, though, the draft report was positive according to Martirano.

“The preliminary draft report shows we’re in very good shape,” he said.

The school system can afford to do without the $1.5 million from the state for now, Mattingly said.

“It’s disappointing when it happens,” he said. “But we have enough in the fund bal-ance to maintain.”

Officials expect the audit to be completed soon so the state can release the funds.

Mattingly said the school system is advertising for a new employee to head the fi-nance department with inter-views set to commence.

The operating budget for the county public schools sys-tem is about $180 million.

THEANGLICAN

MISSIONOF SOUTHERNMARYLAND

(Scripturally based worship)

Sundays - 9:30 AM

Southern MD Higher Ed Ctr (Rm, 108/109)44219 Airport Road, California, MD

301/475-9337 www.amosm.net

Consent Agenda

10.03 Personnel - Administrative and Supervisory

In accordance with the Annotated Code of Maryland (Section 6-201), “the superintendent shall nominate for appointment by the county Board of Education all principals, teachers, and other certificated personnel.” The super-intendent “shall assign them to their positions and transfer them as the needs of the system require.”

Motion: To approve the consent agenda as presented.

Motion By: Cathy Allen Second: Mary M WashingtonAction: UnanimousVoting Record:William M Mattingly YesCathy Allen YesGary K Kessler Not PresentSalvatore Raspa Not PresentMary M Washington Yes

Action Items

11.01 FY 2009 Categorical Transfer Requests

Each year in October, staff meets with CareFirst to conduct a review of the prior contract-year ending June 30 of that year. St. Mary’s County Public Schools (SMCS) is “self-insured” with respect to health insur-ance. As such, premiums collected must equal claims paid. When premiums exceed claims, a “Refund” check is sent to SMCPS. Premiums collected exceeded claims paid for FY 2008 by approximately $1.6 million. The employer’s share of about $1.3 ,million is ref lected on the attached sheet as Insurance Refund Revenue for FY 2009, for both the General and Revolv-ing Funds.

The premium cost share paid by retirees and employees was $309,317. In order to re-turn the entire portion paid by the retirees and employees, we are providing them with a premium holiday for the month of Decem-ber which equates to a total cost of $376,000. Thus the school system will cover $66,683 of that premium (shown on the attached sheet), and will need to utilize a small portion of the revenue generated from the CareFirst refund to the school system as the employer’s share.

Also, we semiannually analyze the actual requirement for payoff of leave for those re-tiring, leaving the system, or through con-tract language. We then move the appropri-ate amount from the holding account in Fixed Charges for those category accounts that have been impacted for FY 2009 (as shown on the attached sheet).

Included are requests to transfer a por-tion of the STEM county in-service funds from Other Instructional Costs to Instruc-tional Textbooks and Supplies for purchase of STEM materials of instruction, and to trans-fer the funds allotted for the 403(b) consult-ing services from Fixed Charges – Retirement to a consultant account under Administration – Fiscal Services.

Also shown on the attached, is the recommendation to reinstate the 1.0 FTE Secretary under Administration – Fiscal Services, that was transferred earlier in the year to provide assistance to the Su-pervisor of Safety and Security in Opera-tions. This FTE request will be offset by the reduction of a vacant 1.0 FTE Opera-

tion of Plant – staff position.Funding Source: See the above descrip-

tion of category and account needs, and the attached detailed accounts that will be uti-lized within the FY 2009 General and Revolv-ing Funds.

Motion: To approve the categorical request for FY 2009, which will then be forwarded to the Board of County Commissioners for their approval.

Motion: To approve the consent agenda as presented.

Motion By: Cathy Allen Second: Mary M WashingtonAction: UnanimousVoting Record:William M Mattingly YesCathy Allen YesGary K Kessler Not PresentSalvatore Raspa Not PresentMary M Washington Yes

11.02 Revision to 2008-2009 School Calendar

A proposed revision to the System Opera-tional Calendar 2008-2009 will provide the opportunity for students and staff to attend the historic 2009 Inauguration of the Presi-dent of the United States. The Professional Day, scheduled for Friday, Jan. 16, 2009 will move to Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009. Jan. 16 will be a regular day of school for students and staff. There will be no school for students Jan. 20 with staff having a Professional Day for Pro-fessional Responsibilities/Staff Development.

Teachers are encouraged to use the Inau-guration as an instructional opportunity. Mr. Kevin Wright, Supervisor of Instruction for Social Studies and Student Relations, will pro-vide a list of instructional activities for staff to use with students on this historic occasion. Activities will be identified for all grade lev-els for the days preceding and following the Inauguration.

Staff members will be able to use personal or annual leave should they decide to attend the Inauguration. By shifting the calendar, substitutes will not be needed for staff mem-bers interested in attending the Inauguration.

Motion: That the revised System Opera-tional Calendar 2008-2009 be approved as presented and request that the modification extends to the Chesapeake Public Charter School with their agreement.

Motion By: Cathy Allen Second: Mary M WashingtonAction: UnanimousVoting Record:William M Mattingly YesCathy Allen YesGary K Kessler Not PresentSalvatore Raspa Not PresentMary M Washington Yes

Board of Education VotesMeeting Held Nov. 25, 2008

AuditContinued from page A-�

trial that would have put him at risk for serving a sentence for attempted murder.

Trainor’s attorney, Public Defender John Getz said that an expert psychiatric report on his client’s mental status at the time of the crime showed that Trainor was competent to stand trial but was not crimi-nally responsible.

“It was a combination of severe depression and brain impairment,” Getz said of his client’s mental state laid out in the report from Dr. Neil Blumberg of the state’s De-partment of Health and Mental Hygiene.

In lieu of prison Trainor has been committed to the custody of the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene under the rules of criminal procedure.

According to police re-ports Trainor, 70, had called county emergency manage-ment personnel Aug. 13 of last year and told them he had just strangled his wife.

When they arrived emer-gency responders found Train-or’s wife, also 70 years old at the time, incapacitated but alive at the family home.

She was taken to a trauma center for treatment and Train-or was charged with attempted murder as well as first-degree assault and second-degree assault.

At the time detectives working the case said that Trainor had planned to first kill his wife and then himself.

More than a year passed as Trainor underwent psychi-atric evaluations that eventu-ally showed that he was not criminally responsible for the actions against his wife.

“The state agreed he was not responsible,” Getz told The County Times Tuesday.

According to Getz, refer-ring to the information gath-ered during the evaluation, Trainor had long suffered a stressful home life.

“This ensures that he won’t go back to an environ-ment that contributed to his ac-tions,” Getz said of his client’s plea deal Tuesday. “He was stressed financially and he had a significant history of mental health treatment.”

TrialContinued from page A-�

Page 8: The County Times 2008.12.04 A Section

SectionA-� The County Times Thursday,December4,200�

Dips, Stops, And Circles

Shelby Oppermann

Wanderings of an Aimless Mind

Albertsendiedjustaboutonehourafterthecollisionatabout1p.m.

Elliott, the driver of the other vehicle,hasnotbeenchargedintheincident.

Albertsen’s husband declined to com-mentforthisarticle.

On the same day, Michelle Thornton,49,ofMechanicsvillewaskilledinCharlesCountyafterbeing struckbyanoncomingvehicleatabusstoponRoute301.

According toCharlesCountySheriff’sOffice spokeswoman Diane Richardson, policearestill investigatinghowThornton,whowasstruckatMcConnellPlace,cametobeintheroadway.

Policehavesaidthatjustbeforeshewasstruckshewasarguingwithherboyfriend.

“WeknowshewenttoWaldorftovisither boyfriend who was apparently doingsome work there,” Richardson told TheCounty Times. “They got in an argumentandsheendedupintheroadway.

“What’snotclear ishowsheendedupthere.”

Richardson said that investigators are“exploringpossibilities”astohowthefatal-

ityoccurred.Thornton was declared dead on the

scene. Neither the driver of the Dodge Dako-tapickuptruckwhohithernorherboyfriendhavebeenchargedintheincident.

Both the boyfriend and the driver re-mained at the scene immediately after theaccident,Richardsonsaid.

FuneralservicesforAlbertsenhavebeenset for Dec. 8 at Brinsfield Funeral Home for 6p.m.

AlbertsenissettobeinterredatArling-ton National Cemetery Feb. 12 next yearaccording to information from the funeralhome.

CollisionContinued from page A-�

tyTimeshehadagoodfeelingaboutthedeal,andthattheywerejustwaitingtosee,liketheBellfamily,whetherGeneralMotorswouldapprovethedeal.

“Thewholecarindustry’sprettymuchupintheair,”Winegard-nersaid,addingthathebelievedthedealwouldlikelyhappensoon.

“I would say it would, by the end of December at least,” Win-

egardnersaid,addingthatagoodnumberoftheemployeesatBellMotorwouldprobablystayononcethedealissealed.

ThebigthreeautomakersFord,ChryslerandGeneralMotors,have clamored for financial assistance from the federal government inrecentweeksbecause,theyclaim,theirhugeoperationsareindan-gerofcompletefailure.

TheBushadministrationhasbeencooltotheprospectofspend-inganother$25billiononthebeleagueredautomakerswhileCon-gressional Democrats and president-elect Barack Obama have said theysupportedbailing themoutas longas theyprovideaplan tooverhaultheirbusinessmodels.

GMBailoutContinued from page A-�

“There will be 88 houses total,”Jileksaid,explainingthatthe next two days would seesimilarassemblyanddecoratingwithothergroupsofchildren.

“Eachhouse sells frombe-tween$25to$35,”shesaid,add-ing that school officials are hop-ingtoearnbetween$1,500and$2,000 for needy families thisyear.

Theannualgingerbreadauc-tionwasstartedsevenyearsagobyagroupof teachersatLettieDent along with officials from the St. Mary’s County Depart-ment of Social Services, whocompile lists from needy fami-lies each year during the holi-days.Proceedsfromtheauctionwillgotoprovidefamilieswithitems from their lists, and Jileksaidtheselittledecoratedhousescouldprovetobequitelucrative.

Thoughshesaidshewasnotsure what to expect from thisyear’sauctioninlightoftheeco-nomic downturn, she has seenhousessellfortopdollarinpre-viousyears.

“We actually had a housego for $400 last year,” she ex-claimed. “They just kept bid-ding against each other, it wascrazy!”

In the fifteenth century, gin-gerwasfoundtohavepreserva-

tive qualities, so bakers beganusing it in cakes and cookies.Crusaders returning to Europebroughtwiththemvariousspic-es such as ginger, andCatholicmonksbeganformingtheginger

intocakemolds,turningthefor-eignodditytoanactualconfec-tion.Nuremburg,Germany,washome to themost famousguildof gingerbread bakers in thefifteenth century, and became known for crafting elaboratelydecorated “lebkuchen” ginger-breadcakesandcookies,whichweresoldatfairsacrossEurope.

Gingerbread houses be-

camepopularaftertheBrothersGrimmwroteabout“lebkuchen-haeusle,” the famous ginger-bread house in Hansel and Gre-tel,whichwasmadewith largeslabs of lebkuchen gingerbreadanddecoratedwithsweets.

Thedoorsatthisyear’sauc-tionwillopenat6p.m.andtheauctionwillkick-offat6:30p.m.

GingerbreadHouseContinued from page A-�

ByShelbyOppermann

I love the rolling hills of our county. Wehaveitallhere.Sometimesitfeelslikeweareinthemountainswhenyoucomeuptothetopof an especially largehill and see the topsofthe trees on theother side. Thenyouget tothetopsofcertainhillsandtherearecarslinedupontheshoulderwithcellphonestoearsbe-foretheslowdescentintothenoreceptionzone.The Clements Dip is one example. It’s the 4-waystopattheintersectionofRoutes234and242.Ialwayslaughjustabit,becausepeoplearenoddingtheirheadsorsmiling,usingtheirhands,orinsomecasesnotlookinghappy.

Thereare severalareas in thecounty likethis, we have one in our own development.ThereusedtobeonedownRoute5pastLeon-ardtown High School, but now with all the ad-vancesincellphonesandnewtowers,wewilllikely have reception everywhere. Maybeweneeddeeperhills.

The other thing about the Clements Dip is the4waystopitself.Yes,therehavebeenac-cidents.I’veseenafew.Butallinall,everyoneisgoodatthedance.Thereisacertainetiquetteata4waystop,anddriversarenormallyverygood there. The first one to stop is the first one togo,andthenyouallowthedriverstoyourleftandrighttogoifyouoryouroppositeweren’talreadystopped.

It’s a squaredance inmymindwithalle-manderightsandlefts,onebelows,anddo-si-dos.(Istillremembermysquaredancingdaysfrom Camp Maria in Leonardtown, but that’sanother story). When everyone sits at the 4-waywithnotacluewhattodo,Iconsiderthata“set”,whereallfourdancersareinthereorigi-nalplaces. That’swhenyou start to see “thewave”.Iftwodriversgettotheirstopsignsatthesametime,onedriverwillwavetotheothertogoahead.Andtheotherdrivernods,withaquickhand-upandgoes.Sometimes theotherdriver will wave back, “No, you go ahead”.That’s etiquette, but irritating. But there aretimes,whenthewavesequencebeginsandonedriver, lets say,might not be in a goodmoodthatday,andheorshedoesthe“Go!,JustGo!”wave,andtheotherdriverfeels theangerandsquealswheels to take off. The last scenariois when “thewave” is given, the other driverdoes the “No, you go”, there’s hesitation andthenboth drivers take offwith the “O.k.Youhadyourchance”look.That’snevergood.

Youwouldthinkthatthesmaller,lesstraf-ficked 4-way stops would run even smoother thanClements,butnotso.OneIcanthinkofisinMechanicsville,atOldVillageRoad,andMechanicsvilleRoad.Itisquiteoftenadisas-ter with drivers racing each other to go first. Alwaystryingtothinkthebest,maybeit’stheslightoddanglesatwhich the roadscome to-gether.That’swhatIheardcausedanumberoftheproblemsatChaptico’sintersection,nowabeautifully landscaped traffic circle.

The Chaptico intersection was never a4 way stop, it just had a yellow caution slowdown light, which worked about as well as,well,anyyellowcautionslowdownlighteverworks, hence the circle. At first I was a little nervousaboutthecircleworryingabouttruckstipping over, and thinking in my head aboutthatchildren’splaygroundstandby,themerry-go-round. Not the big ones with horses andsleighs,theplaygroundkindthatthebig,strongkidsracealongsidetoturnasfastastheycan,whilethesmallerkidsinthecenterarehangingontotheU-shapedbarsandscreaming,gettingsick,andtryingtojumpoffknowingtheywillbreak somebones and…(oh sorry, childhoodtraumaagain).

Anyway,thosearethethingsIenvisioned.But, that’s onlypartially true. The trucks dolook as if they are tipping dangerously tomeastheypassmeandrideupovertheconcreteinthecenterandthecurbsonthesides. Andthemerry-go-roundfear, that’snotcompletelytrueeither.PeoplearestillgettingusedtotheideaofthecircleI’msure,that’swhywhenyouarealreadyinthecircletheyforget,ordon’tseeyouandcomefastdownRt.234andenter thecirclewithin two feet of you. Remember the“Where’sShebby”gameItoldyouaboutinoneofthelastarticles.ImustreallybeinvisiblejustasIsuspectedalltheseyears.Well,that’sallthebettertoobservewhathappensinthecounty,solikeSantasays,”Youbetterwatchout.”

Toeachnewday’sadventure,Shelby.Pleasesendcomments to: shelbys.wander-

[email protected]

By:TerriSchlichenmeyer

Younevermeanttodoit.Youwereoutwithfriends,that’sall,just

havingalittlecheer.Thewaiterbroughtyouaglassofsomethingbubbly,andinbetweenreminiscingandlaughter,theglasswasemp-tiedsoyouhadanother.Youtookaweenipfrom thatone til younipped it clear to thebottom.

And themorningafter, you’rewonder-ingwhathappenedthenightbefore.

If heiress Caroline Dixon wants to know how the party went, she looks in the gos-sip pages. Her every move is in there, per-fectfodderfor thetabloidsbecauseCaroisawalking,talkingscandal.Inthenewnov-el,“’Tis theSeason!”byLornaLandvik, itseemsasifCaroisthepersonAmericalovestohatemost.

Caroline Dixon’s life is a wreck. Most of herfriendshavebeendrivenawaybyCaro’ssharp tongue, and her family is horrified by herpartyingandcarousing.Caromakesthetabloidsonaregularbasis;somuch,infact,

thatshe’satthetopoftheMostUnadmiredManandWomaninAmericalist.EventhefewpeoplewhocaredaboutCaroonce,don’tcareanymore.

That is, except two people who knewCarolinemanyyearsago.

AstridBrevaldwasonceCaroline’snan-ny,backwhenCarowasayounggirlwithachiponher shoulder.She remembersCaroasafunnychild,andverylovingdespiteherparents’ indifference. Now, there’s a mes-sageinAstrid’sin-box.It’sCaroline,onStepNumberEightofherTwelve-StepProgram,apologizingforanyhurtshemayhavecausedinthepast.

On the other side of the world, CyrilDale gets a similar e-mail. Cyril and his late wife rana ranch formanyyears,and four-teen-year-old Caroline Dixon was once a temporaryresident,shippedtotheranchonesummerforaskingtoomanyquestionsasherfatherlaydyingofcancer.Eventhen,shehadasharptonguebutCyrilremembersasweetgirlwithattitudehidingabreakingheart.

Not wanting to spend Christmas with

only his horses as company, Cyril invitesCarolineandAstridtocometotheranchforanold-fashionedfamilyholidayonthemesa.Buthehasasurprisegiftforthetwowomen,one that almostmakes the seasona reasonforveryhurtfeelings.

Do your kids clamor for a new Christ-mas book to be read-aloud each Yuletide?Whileyou’relookingforabookforthem,getthisoneforyourselfandstartyourveryownpersonaltradition.

Throughaseriesofe-mailsandgossipcolumns,“’TistheSeason!”unfoldsasCaro-line gains the respect of long-lost friendsas well as herself. Author Lorna Landvikknows how to tell a story, and this flurry-of-messages in book form is a definite delight foroldfansandnewones.

“’TistheSeason!”isabookyoucanreadfasterthana5-year-oldcanripthepaperoffapresent,andIthinkyou’lllikeit.Tisawon-derfulChristmas story tocurlupwith thisyear.

“’TistheSeason!”byLornaLandvikc.2008, Ballantine Books $22.00 / $25.00 Canada 226 pages

Photo by Andrea Shiell

County Times File Photo

Ashley Sullivan enjoys a taste of frosting as she completes the first phase of her gingerbread house building on Monday.

Bell Motor Copmany, Leonardtown Md

Page 9: The County Times 2008.12.04 A Section

Thursday, December 4, 2008 The County Times Section A - �

Andrea ShiellStaff Writer

What was at one point considered a fad in-strument in the United States may very well be enjoying a revival this season, as one of the old-est surviving incarnations of the historical man-dolin orchestra comes to Southern Maryland.

The Baltimore Mandolin Orchestra, which members call “the other orchestra” so they are not confused with the Baltimore Symphony Or-chestra, may even seem, at first glance, like a walking anachronism. Around the turn of the twentieth century, it was common for mandolin teachers and dealers to market their products by conducting orchestras featuring groups of 40 – 50 players on various mandolin family instru-ments, playing together much like the tradition-al string section of any orchestra, performing on any combination of mandolas, mandocellos, mando-basses or other fretted instruments in the mandolin family.

The Baltimore Mandolin Orchestra was first organized in 1924 by conductor, compos-er, and music teacher Conrad Gebelein, who brought together 19 players of mandolin fam-ily instruments, banjo players, vocalists, and Hawaiian guitarists for their first performance in 1925.

By 1929, membership had doubled, but such acts at the time were considered a novelty,

or a marketing ploy, and their popularity died out in the 1930s as general interest waned and the economy crashed. After a period of inactiv-ity, the Baltimore Mandolin Orchestra recon-vened in 1938 and did not disband again until 1941, when the United States entered World War II.

The group stayed dormant until the 1970s, but since then they have been happily riding the wave of increased interest in the instrument, no doubt spurred by its inclusion in popular music in recent years.

After all, what better argument for an in-strument’s merits than a steady stream of songs by the White Stripes, R.E.M., Led Zeppelin, or Dave Matthews Band which feature this small cousin of the lute?

Pop music may not comprise the bulk of the Baltimore Mandolin Orchestra’s repertoire, but the group still does feature some popular mu-sic, as well as an eclectic mix of classical music, show tunes, rags, and marches.

Today’s group is one of 25 mandolin groups active in the United States today, boast-ing 30 members playing this season with direc-tor David T. Evans and soprano soloist Beatrice Gilbert.

Their next performance will be at Great Mills High School Dec. 6, at 8 p.m. Admission is $25. For more information, call 301-475-3225.

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“The Governor’s Office of Crime Conrol and Prevention funded this project under grant number EDUL-2007-1015. All points of view in this document are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the official position of any State or Federal agency.”

“Students Against Underage Drinking”

Poster Designed by: Larry Reyna • 12th Grade • Great Mills High School

Mandolin Orchestra to Grace the Stage in St. Mary’s

Friday, December 5

Holiday Candlelight ToursSotterley Plantation- 6 – 10 p.m.This year’s drama, “A Governor’s Christmas,” is set

in the 1790’s period of Sotterley’s history, produced by the Port Tobacco Players, including period decorations in the Mansion, live seasonal music by area high schools’ premiere choral groups, and complimentary cookies and mulled cider. Reservations required. Call 301-373-2280.

CSM Presents “Frosty the Snowman”CSM Fine Arts Center (La Plata Campus) - 7:30

p.m.CSM’S Theatre Company presents “Frosty the Snow-

man.” Admission is $5. Call 301-934-7828, 240-725-5499, 443-550-6199, 301-870-2309, Ext. 7828 or get details on-line at [email protected] or www.csmd.edu/FineArts.

Solomons Christmas WalkSolomons Island - 9 a.m.Solomons sparkles as thousands of lights lead the way

to holiday fun. Featuring art, music and open houses at local unique shops. Santa arrives on Friday for children’s night. Boat light parade on Saturday. For more information go to www.sba.solomons.md.us, or call 410-326-1950.

Armed Forces Appreciation DinnerHoliday Inn Select (Solomons) - 6 p.m.Free to All Active Duty & Reserve Personnel with

Proper Military ID, members can bring one guest. Retired Military / Dependent $10 per person, general public wel-come at $25 per person. Seating is limited. Special Mili-tary room rates if you wish to spend the evening. Contact Holiday Inn Select, Solomons Island, for room reserva-tions, 410-326-6311. For more information, or reserva-tions, contact Jennifer Spedden. Phone: 301-342-4635, Fax: 301-342-4157, or go online at SouthernMaryland.RedCross.org.

Saturday, December 6

Family Plantation ChristmasSotterley Plantation- 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.Visit St. Nick, his Elves & Mrs. Claus, and enjoy

horse-drawn taxi rides, live seasonal music, caroling, treats, crafts, games, and holiday shopping at Santa’s Se-cret Shop. Concessions for purchase at Mrs. Claus’ Kitch-en. For more information go to www.sotterley.org or call 301-373-2280.

Screamin’ Daisys & DJ RobHotel Charles (Hughesville) - 9:30 p.m.Screamin’ Daisys in the party room with DJ Rob

playing during intermissions. Cover charge. Call 301-274-4612 for more information.

Baltimore Mandolin OrchestraGreat Mills High School Auditorium - 8 – 10 p.m.30 mandolin players in concert with soprano Bea-

trice Gilbert. Admission $25, $15 for children under 15. Proceeds will benefit Leonardtown Rotary commu-nity projects. For more information call 301-475-3225 or 301-481-3171.

Saturday, Decem-ber 6

Christmas Doll and Train Exhibit

St. Clement’s Is-land Museum- noon.

The 23rd An-nual Christmas Doll & Train Exhibit will be open to the public for viewing through Jan. 4. (Wednesday through Sunday noon – 4 p.m. Admission: $3 adults, $2 senior citizens/mili-tary, $1.50 children 6 to 19, kids 5 and under are free. Call the museum at 301-769-2222 for more information.

Sunday, Decem-ber 7

Breakfast with Santa

Bay District VFD (next to Lexington Park Library) - 8 a.m.

Adults: $8, ages 5-12: $5, 4 and under are free. Please visit our website at www.bdvfd.org.

The Nutcracker by COSMIC

Huntingtown High School - 2 p.m. and 6 p.m.

COSMIC Sym-phony proudly brings Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker” ballet to Southern Maryland! The production fea-tures professional bal-let company, Donetsk Ballet, The National Ballet of the Ukraine and 80 local dancers under the direction of Ballet Caliente dance studio. Performances are at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. Tickets are $25 prior to the production and $30 at the door. Tickets can be purchased online via our website at www.cosmicmusic.org.

Handel’s “Messiah”Immaculate Heart of

Mary Church in Leonard-town - 4 p.m.

St. Mary’s College of Maryland’s Choir and Or-chestra will perform G.F. Handel’s “Messiah.” The concert is free and open to the public. For more infor-mation, call 240-895-4498 or visit www.smcm.edu.

Annual Health Share Holiday Home Tour

11 a.m.- 4 p.m.Health Share of St.

Mary’s County, a private, non profit that provides primary health care and prescription medications to uninsured or underinsured citizens, is hosting one of their biggest fundraising ef-forts on Sunday, the Annual Health Share of St. Mary’s Home Tour, which will feature seven homes in the Valley Lee, Drayden, Great Mills, and Park Hall areas of the county.

Australia Rated PG-13, 2 hr 45 min

Showtimes: 4:15, 7:40

Bolt Rated PG, 1 hr 36 minShowtimes: 5:30, 7:50

Four Christmases Rated PG-13, 1 hr 22 min

Showtimes: 5:00, 7:15

Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa Rated PG, 1 hr 29 min

Showtimes: 5:35, 7:55

Quantum of Solace Rated PG-13, 1 hr 46 min

Showtimes: 4:30, 7:35

Twilight Rated PG-13, 2 hr 0 min

Showtimes: 4:45, 7:45

Page 10: The County Times 2008.12.04 A Section

SectionA-10 The County Times Thursday,December4,2008

2ND OLDEST CONTINUOUS CHEVROLET DEALERSHIP IN THE WORLD

ELL MOTOR COMPANY, INC.Located On The Square In Downtown Leonardtown22675 WASHINGTON STREET

301-475-2355866-475-2355www.bellmotor.com

ELL MOTOR COMPANY, INC.Located On The Square In Downtown Leonardtown22675 WASHINGTON STREET

301-475-2355866-475-2355www.bellmotor.com

AN AMERICAN RE

2009 Pontiac VibeFWD, Power Windows, Power Locks, Air Conditioning

Was $18,880Now $17,829

2009 Chevrolet Traverse LTFWD

Was $32,985Now $30,583

2008 Chevrolet Trailblazer LT4WD, Blue

Was $30815Now $22,682

2009 Chevrolet ImpalaLoaded, Gold MistWas $24,020

Now $21,880

2009 Chevrolet HHR LTPanel Van, White, Auto, Remote Vehicle Start

Was $21,015Now $19,930

2009 Chevrolet Impala LSV6 Auto, PW/L, Cruise, Dark Silver

Was $24,215Now $22,046

LS, 2DRWas $18,185

2008 Chevrolet Aveo LT4 Speed, Auto, Trans, Black

Was $16,240Now $14,145

2008 Chevrolet Suburban LT4WD, Lthr Interior, Loaded, Ruby

Was $48,745Now $37,400

2009 Pontiac G8GTLoaded, SunroofWas $33,600

Now $32,000

2008 Chevrolet Equinox LSWhite, 4WD

Was $23,530Now $18,970

2008 Pontiac G5Coupe

Was $17,855Now $14,743

2009 Cobalt LS4-Door, XFE

Was $16,325Now $14,335

CoupeWas $22,180

2009 Chevrolet MalibuAuto, LS, PW/Locks, 4 Cyl., Silver

Was $21,475Now $19,937

2008 GMC Canyon TruckRegular Cab, White

Was 19,865Now $17,500

2009 Chevy Colorado2WD, Extended CabWas $22,275

Now $20,330

2008 GMC AcadiaAWD, SLE2, Towing Pkg

Was $39,400Now $33,299

2008 Buick Lucerne CXLV6, Loaded, Luxury Pkg., Chrome Wheels, Heated Seats

Was $31,955Now $25,500

STILL

OPEN

THROUGH

DECEMBER

AN AMERICAN REVOLUTION

2008 Chevrolet Aveo LT4 Speed, Auto, Trans, Black

Was $16,240Now $14,145

2008 Chevrolet Suburban LT4WD, Lthr Interior, Loaded, Ruby

Was $48,745Now $37,400

2008 Chevrolet Equinox LSWhite, 4WD

Was $23,530Now $18,970

2008 GMC Canyon TruckRegular Cab, White

Was 19,865Now $17,500

2008 Pontiac G5Coupe

Was $17,855Now $14,743

2009 Pontiac G8GTLoaded, SunroofWas $33,600

Now $32,000

2008 GMC AcadiaAWD, SLE2, Towing Pkg

Was $39,400Now $33,299

2009 Chevy Colorado2WD, Extended CabWas $22,275

Now $20,330

2009 Pontiac VibeFWD, Power Windows, Power Locks, Air Conditioning

Was $18,880Now $17,829

2009 Chevrolet Traverse LTFWD

Was $32,985Now $30,583

2008 Chevrolet Trailblazer LT4WD, Blue

Was $30815Now $22,682

2009 Chevrolet MalibuAuto, LS, PW/Locks, 4 Cyl., Silver

Was $21,475Now $19,937

2008 Buick Lucerne CXLV6, Loaded, Luxury Pkg., Chrome Wheels, Heated Seats

Was $31,955Now $25,500

2009 Chevrolet ImpalaLoaded, Gold MistWas $24,020

Now $21,880

2009 Chevrolet HHR LTPanel Van, White, Auto, Remote Vehicle Start

Was $21,015Now $19,930

2009 Chevrolet Impala LSV6 Auto, PW/L, Cruise, Dark Silver

Was $24,215Now $22,046

2009 Cobalt LS4-Door, XFE

Was $16,325Now $14,335

1666

989

2ND OLDEST CONTINUOUS CHEVROLET DEALERSHIP IN THE WORLD

ELL MOTOR COMPANY, INC.Located On The Square In Downtown Leonardtown22675 WASHINGTON STREET

301-475-2355866-475-2355www.bellmotor.com

CoupeWas $22,180

LS, 2DRWas $18,185

OLDEST CONTINUOUS CHEVROLET DEALERSHIP IN THE WORLD

ELL MOTOR COMPANY, INC.Located On The Square In Downtown Leonardtown22675 WASHINGTON STREET

301-475-2355866-475-2355www.bellmotor.com