Thursday, July 24, 2008 St.

Marys County, Maryland

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County Times
County Times
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Inside
St. Marys Largest And Only Locally Owned Newspaper 17,342 Readers Thank You!
By Guy Leonard
Staff Writer
The pressurized sewage system in
Piney Point and St. Georges Island is
receiving too much infow from homes,
rainwater and even the river from
cracks or other damage to the local sewer
system according to MetCom director
Steven King, and if left alone the prob-
lem could result in sewage overfows at
local pumping stations.
King said MetCom has managed
the problem by sending septic tanker
trucks to pumping stations in areas of
the county where the water tables are
high. Now, MetCom is set to examine all
of the 700 odd grinder pumps for indi-
vidual homes in the area to ensure they
are watertight.
Weve noticed a tremendous in-
crease of infow into the system, King
told The County Times of the problems
in Piney Point and on St. Georges Is-
land. There should be no infow we
consider it a serious problem.
King said fow rates in the sewer
lines leading to local pumping stations
have doubled, and sometimes even qua-
drupled on certain days during the past
several months, usually after a heavy
rain or storm that sends tidal waters onto
the land.
Caps to the grinder pumps that have
sus-
MetCom
Probing Sewer
Problems In
Piney Point, St.
Georges Island
Sunday
T-Storms
88
OffcialsWaryOfEmerging
Statewide Land Use Plan
OMalley Brings Cabinet
To Leonardtown
Municipality Named Capital for a Day
See Sewage page A-
See Capital page A-8
Sheriff Timothy K. Cameron was spotlighted for
a brief moment Thursday morning as cabinet mem-
bers and local dignitaries gathered in Leonardtown for
their Capital for a Day event, wherein Gov. Martin
OMalley moved his administration to the municipality
to connect with locals concerning issues in the county.
Sheriff Cameron was issued a Security Integra-
tion award and a hefty amount of praise for his intro-
duction of CompStat Crime fghting technology, which
has moved the county from traditional policing meth-
ods to data driven methods to track and prevent crime.
Gov. OMalleys proclamation stated, Sheriff Timothy
K. Cameron has recognized the public safety value of
accurate and timely information, shared by all and is
actively participating in Southern Marylands regional
online crime mapping.
Cameron graciously accepted his award, noting that
he had been privileged to serve in St. Marys County.
Sheriff Cameron
Awarded by Governor
Andrea Shiell
Staff Writer
Department President Bill Mattingly smiled
proudly as he surveyed the rides on the grounds of
the Hollywood Volunteer Fire Department, as crews
set up the last of the swirling, twirling, and twisting
machines on Tuesday morning, all in preparation for
this years carnival.
But Ferris wheels and cotton candy ma-
chines are scarcer this year than in previous years,
mostly due to a slacking economy, and steel and fuel
costs he says have been rising steadily each year.
Leonardtown Volunteer Fire Department will not
be setting up a carnival this year, and has even lent
some of their equipment to the Hollywood company
for their event.
Three of us have carnivals, said
Economy Driving
Carnivals Out of Town
Fewer Fire Departments Hosting Events This Year
See Carnival page A-5
See Growth page A-
Photo by Andrea Shiell
Photo by Andrea Shiell
Hollywood Volunteer Fire Department will be hosting their carnival this week, featuring rides and games to beneft
the department.
Board of Education member Mary Washington talks with Gov. Martin OMalley as he tours historic
Leonardtown.
Andrea Shiell
Staff Writer
Driving past the Second District
Volunteer Fire Department in Valley
Lee, the eye is immediately drawn to
a large banner straddling the entrance
to the facilities, displaying informa-
tion on volunteer opportunities for
fre, rescue squad, EMS, advanced life
support and auxiliary positions.
But this is nothing new in St.
Marys County.
On the other side of town, Rick
Greer of the Hollywood Volunteer
Fire Department said he had even
seen members of the Lexington Park
Volunteer Rescue Squad trying to re-
cruit volunteers at a local Sheetz gas
station.
Thats going to be the case all
over the county, said Dean Gass from
the Leonardtown Volunteer Rescue
Squad, who formerly worked with the
fre department. The burnout rate is
pretty steepand the need for more
money to pay the bills drives a lot of
people awaymost of the members
that are able to perform at the level we
need them are housewives and people
in home school, he said, adding that
his department could always use be-
tween 20 and 30 more people.
Everybody in the county is in
Volunteers In
Short Supply
Emergency
Departments
Struggling
To Increase
Membership
See Volunteers page A-
Commissioners To Decide
On County Growth Cap
See Growth Cap page A-3
By Guy Leonard
Staff Writer
The Board of County Commission-
ers began discussion Tuesday about
whether to cap the countys annual
growth rate to 2.25 percent as recom-
mended by the community-based Ad-
equate Public Facilities Task Force.
Members of the task force also
asked the commissioners to consider
allowing developers to donate land for
school sites outside of the growth pol-
icy process other than waiting to find
that there are not enough school seats to
support a new housing development.
The process of what task force co-
chairman Ford Dean called mitigation,
actually allowed a developer to move
ahead in the approval process in front
of others if they had land to donate in
an unfair manner.
You cant mitigate for inadequate
school capacity, Ford argued to com-
missioners. If mitigation was al-
lowed you could approve the project
to move ahead despite the findings of
inadequacy.
Mitigation would be unfair.
SectionA-
The
County Times Thursday,July4,008
Route 245
Hollywood, MD 20636
301-475-2531
Route 246 & Great Mills Rd.
Lexington Park, MD 20653
301-862-7702
Route 5 & Mohawk Drive
Charlotte Hall, MD 20622
301-884-5636
Wildewood Shopping Center
California, MD 20619
301-866-5702
The Shops at Breton Bay
Leonardtown, MD 20650
301-997-1828
Price Effective Friday, July 25 - Sunday, July 27
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Whole Rotisserie Chicken
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1 lb. Corn
doz. Fresh Dinner Rolls
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With Gold Card
Thursday, July 24, 2008
The
County Times Section A -
Andrea Shiell
Staff Writer
For those driving down Budds Creek Road in Clements,
past farmlands dotted with barns and houses, the famous
Bowles Farm Corn Maze may not stand out immediately, but
upon closer inspection, one is bound to see how this one fea-
ture highlights the local shift in agriculture.
Though featured in many regions of Europe throughout
the last few decades, agritourism has just started catching
on in St. Marys County, where many farmers are looking to
diversify their income as the Maryland tobacco buyout pro-
gram draws to a close.
Weve been doing it since 2001, said co-owner Tina
Bowles. My husband saw a corn maze in a farm magazine
and he said thats what were going to do.
Tina mentioned that at the same time she and her husband
were adding a maze to their acreage, the Wood Family from
Forrest Hall Farm in Mechanicsville were doing the same.
Theres a group of people who will go to wherever a corn
maze is, said Mary Wood, adding that the infux of visitors
has been a great source of income for her farm. These kinds
of things I think ft right into the tourism here.
As part of Gov. Martin OMalleys (D) Capital for a Day
event, wherein he toured other portions of the county and his-
toric Leonardtown, talking with locals about issues close to
home, the governor also stopped by Bowles Farm. Though he
and his cabinet members opted out of jumping into the laby-
rinth, some discussion abounded as to the importance of agri-
tourism in the region, as well as other issues.
OMalley took part of his meeting with local farmers as a
chance to highlight his administrations successes in the feld
of agriculture.
The decisions we make, whether its about zoning,
whether its about open spacewhether its about buying lo-
calwe are going to follow your lead, OMalley said, men-
tioning that of the 109 recommendations received by his ad-
ministration from Maryland farmers concerning such issues,
all but seven have either been completed or are underway.
One issue raised during Thursdays meeting was energy
and land conservation, as brought up by one farmer who was
interested in seeing more funding to allow for research and
development of wind turbines and solar energy.
We hope that by a certain date20 percent of the energy
we use as people will come from renewable resources, said
OMalley, adding that education and green buildings would
be the countys biggest asset in the wake of the energy crisis.
I think were about to head through 10 to 15 years of rapid,
rapid change, he said.
Some farmers expressed concern about the Maryland To-
bacco Buyout Program, which will end in two years.
We absolutely have a fear of whats going to happen to
our land after that ends, said Tina Bowles after OMalleys
meeting with the farmers, adding that 10 years would not be
enough time for many farmers to switch over to other crops
and still make a proft. Though some like Tina Bowles have
turned to wine grape growing and agritourism to boost their
income and keep their farmland productive, she said yields
would differ drastically as farmers switched to other crops.
When asked what she thought the Governor could do to
help farmers transition, Tina Bowles recommended a task
force or panel be created to look into the matter.
I think the best thing right now is to convene some
sort of work group or task force and really look at the issue
there have been 300 families who have been put out of work
in this county alone, Tina Bowles said. Its a good program,
but it has the potential to be devastating if its not followed
through.
OMalley mentioned during his meeting with local farm-
ers that the amount of acreage per person had declined by 20
percent in the last 15 years, and many echoed this statistic
as they voiced concerns over residential developments taking
over what used to be farmland.
You can eyeball our community and know that that used
to be a farm, and now its a housing development, said Tina
Bowles, who hopes to see development slow down in the next
few years until public facilities and school capacity can ac-
commodate it.
All present seemed heartily enthusiastic about the gover-
nors visit, presenting him with gift baskets and suggestions.
In this world you need a farmer at least three times a
day, Dyson said while addressing the crowd. And if you
ever travel to a farmer and see them, you never leave empty
handed.
Governors Meeting With Local
Farmers Highlights Agritourism
During his visit to Leonardtown July
17 for the Capital for a Day event, Gov.
Martin OMalley sat down with The
County Times for a brief interview on is-
sues close to county interests.
CT: How do you rate St. Marys
County as regards to infrastructure with
regards to other counties in Maryland that
will be undergoing BRAC changes?
MOM: There are infrastructure needs
throughout the state and every county of
the state Its a national challenge but
were doing much better than we were on
a number of scores, but theres a tremen-
dous need throughout out the country and
certainly throughout our state.
On our school construction program
weve in essence taken in two years and
tripled school construction dollars from
$241 million to $733 million and com-
pared to the same time frame of the previ-
ous administration.
On roads and transportation weve
increased that about $350 million a year
but unfortunately most of that has been
chewed up in the price of oil, steel and
asphalt.
Hopefully after this next national
election well get our federal government
back in the game here.
I think theres an awareness in Con-
gress that the next stimulus package needs
to be directed towards infrastructure and
projects that have been languishing in the
design and plan phase just waiting for con-
struction dollars.
CT: Like the Thomas Johnson
Bridge?
MOM: Were putting planning dol-
lars to it as I understand the process we
have to expend our dollars on the planning
end before we can even get in the queue
and apply some for cost sharing of federal
help on that.
There have been so many proj-
ects around the state that have been
languishing.
The tough thing about transportation
for us as a community, and I say that in a
statewide sense, we dont notice that our
state governments not investing in infra-
structure until about six years after they
dont.
All of that stuff takes a while be-
fore the lack of funding manifests itself,
so short term some of the things weve
done to address the budget defcit were
of course on the short term unpopular but
in the long run its whats best in order to
get us back on track in keeping pace with
school construction, with roads also with
water and sewer.
CT: What about getting light rail
down to St. Marys County?
MOM: Id really like to see that hap-
pen and we have a study under way right
now. Id like to see a lot more rail all
around. Rail is really the one thing that
connects all of the various BRAC com-
munities together in our state.
CT: Are you going to put some mon-
ey towards it (light rail) this term or next
term, if youre in offce?
MOM: I sure hope so. I hope that
when the economy bottoms out well start
to come back, so that well be able to start
making these kinds of investments.
CT: Recently you signed a bill that
did away with certain video gaming ter-
minals in the county. Some 20 percent of
students here go to parochial schools that
benefted in someway from those gaming
machines.
Is there anything in the administra-
tion that you have planned to possibly
help out those parochial schools with that
source of funding, of revenue thats not
there anymore?
MOM: I know we do something an-
nually on textbooks; we did not cut that
in the budget. Its a challenge on the gam-
bling front; but that bill didnt eliminate all
of the assorted charitable things.
CT: What about just generally
strengthening ties with Southern Mary-
land, how are we going to do that?
MOM: Theres good things that are
going on with law enforcement coopera-
tion that have gone under the radar, we
had a big interoperability press conference
that (Commissioner Thomas) Mattingly
was involved in, in order to fnally move
towards interoperable communications
between frst responders in the state can
communicate with each other.
Thats actually a move forward; not
many states have been able to achieve
that.
Your (Sheriff Timothy K. Cameron)
has really been a leader in law enforce-
ment down here, we had the gang task
force, CompStat on demand, and [on-line]
crime reports on targeting bad guys re-
gardless of what side of the county border
they live on.
If you look at the increases in school
construction [funding] in this county,
from $10 million to $17 million in a
comparable two year period of the prior
administration.
You look at the test scores in the way
that theyve come along and this years as
another record level of investment in state
aid to public schools.
Everybody agrees that weve got
to strengthen and grow the ranks of our
middle class and how you do that is fun-
damentally by improving public safety,
improving public education and expand
[economic] opportunities.
And thats what your guys do well
and I think they do it in a regional way and
its in a much more collaborative way than
what you fnd in other more rural parts of
our state.
An Interview With The Governor
Mechanicsville
Man Sentenced
For Part In
Theft Of
Weapons
By Guy Leonard
Staff Writer
Circuit Court Judge Mi-
chael J. Stamm sentenced a 19-
year-old Mechanicsville man
to just 180 days in the county
detention center for his part in
the theft of several guns from
a victims residence, locked
away in a safe.
Christopher Allen Wil-
liams admitted that the weap-
ons found at his home Jan. 4
by police were stolen but that
he had nothing to do with the
actual break ins that occurred
in December of 2007.
Williams was sentenced
to charges of theft, posses-
sion of a stolen regulated fre-
arm and possessing a stolen
frearm while being under 21
years of age.
Each of the charges car-
ried a fve-year sentence but
much of that was suspended.
The person who stole the
weapons was on drugs real
bad, Williams said.
Stamm chided Williams
for not owning up to what the
court believed was Williams
part in the burglaries.
Youve never owned up
to your wrongdoing, even in
juvenile court, Stamm said.
You continually get into po-
sitions with people who get
you into trouble.
Theres not a doubt in
my mind you were involved
in criminal activity.
While Williams will only
spend a short time in jail he
will still have 13-and-a-half
years of backup time to serve
in the Department of Correc-
tions if he violates his parole.
He will also be on fve
years of probation after his re-
lease from jail.
Prosecutors believe that
two other suspects were in-
volved in the break ins along
with Williams.
According to charging
documents at the time of the
burglary, St. Marys County
Bureau of Criminal Investiga-
tions detectives alleged that
they recovered six weapons
from Williams own bedroom
during their investigation, in-
cluding some that had been
reported stolen in a Hughes-
ville burglary in December of
last year.
Detectives also found a
sawed-off shotgun, according
to charging documents, al-
tered to have a 13-inch barrel.
Williams has also been
ordered to pay restitution to
the victims in the case total-
ing $4,400 for their losses.
Charging documents stat-
ed that Williams own par-
ents had identifed the stolen
weapons after he had brought
them into their home.
In charging documents
Williams parents stated they
overheard their son make
phone calls in an attempt to
fnd a buyer for the allegedly
stolen weapons.
Photo by Andrea Shiell
Photo by Andrea Shiell
OMalley took some time on Thursday afternoon to talk with local
farmers about agricultural issues.
2008 Miss St. Marys County Farm Bureau Emmilee Guy.
Growth Cap
Continued from page A-
Bradley Clements, chief operating officer for the
county public schools, said that projections showed
that only five schools, three elementary and one mid-
dle and one high school, would be needed in the next
10 years.
Denis Canavan, director of the countys Depart-
ment of Land Use and Growth Management said that
there was enough seating capacity to last the county
for half that time given a certain number of housing
units each year.
There is adequate capacity for the next five years
at 941 housing units built a year, Canavan.
John Parlett, a Charlotte Hall-based developer
and member of the task force, said that the county
needed to find a way to find school sites now before
the system broke down and left the county with too
few school seats and a stop to development.
Itll never be any cheaper to buy those sites than
today, Parlett said.
The task force recommended ways to make incen-
tives for developers to donate potential school sites
including forgiving of school portions of impact fees,
allowing for increased density of housing construc-
tion and relaxing open space requirements.
Theres no incentive for developers to donate
school sites unless they can go to the top of the devel-
opment queue, Canavan said.
Commissioners adjourned the meeting with out
making any decisions on approving the policy except
to say that they needed another work session to mull
over details.
Commissioner President Francis Jack Rus-
sell wanted to ensure that the proposed 2.25 percent
growth rate was the right fit for the countys project-
ed growth.
Wed like to come up with an adequate growth
rate so its not out of whack, Russell told task force
members, who argued that the growth rate could be
changed annually to suit the countys needs.
We dont want to get a backlog of houses on the
market.
Currently there are about 1,000 houses on the lo-
cal market, according to task force information, that
have yet to be sold in the slow down of the economy.
Russell said that market forces will drive much of
the growth policy but a policy was still required to
help manage and guide county growth.
Russell said that the commissioners may decide to
lower the cap closer to just two percent.
Parlett said that potential changes of the make up
of Patuxent River Naval Air Station through base re-
alignment and closure (BRAC) decisions made at the
federal level could be managed with a flexible growth
rate each year.
They could cause us to ratchet it up for a couple
of years or pull it back for a while, Parlett said.
Dean said that the 2.25 percent cap was lower
than the countys average growth rate for the past
15 years, but market forces, which are currently in a
down trend, could play a part in whether that cap is
reached.
It doesnt necessarily mean well develop at that
rate, Dean said.
SectionA-
The
County Times Thursday,July2,2008
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P.O.Box250Hollywood,Maryland20636
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Editorial&Opinion
I am writing in response to Firefghter
Cuts (July 10) in which International Asso-
ciation of Firefghters Representative Gregory
Russell speculated on staffng reductions. The
Navy has investigated these issues and con-
cluded that frefghter safety within Naval Dis-
trict Washington has not been compromised.
NDW is in compliance with the applicable
laws and regulations.
Recently we made a permissible short-
term deviation of less than ninety days in cer-
tain staffng levels in D.C. This is not a staff-
ing cut and did not result in terminations. It
provided temporary relief where frefghters
had been forced to work overtime in order to
maintain normal shift staffng levels while va-
cant positions were being flled.
In 2006, based on a Navy-wide review,
wedideliminatesixunnecessarypositionsat
NAS Pax River, which made our operations
more effcient, not less safe. Regional Fire
Chief Stillwell is a dedicated and career pro-
fessional frefghter. Nothing is more impor-
tant at NDW than the safety of frefghters, and
the people who live and work on our bases, as
well as the safety of the local communities.
Edward J. Cannon
Executive Director
Naval District Washington
I was happy to learn that the Maryland
State Assessment (MSA) scores in Maryland
had dramatic gains in both reading and math.
Regarding those testing profcient or better,
according to the July 19, Washington Post,
reading scores went up six percentage points
and math scores went up four. State wide, St.
Marys County scored above state averages in
all areas except eighth grade math where the
average was 76 percent for profcient or better
and St. Marys scored 70 percent.
Then my bubble burst. The problem was,
we could have been comparing apples to or-
anges. To be frank, the test was changed. Ac-
cording to the July 19, Washington Post article
titled Skepticism Greets Big Gains, tests
were shortened and tweaked this year. The
test used to have questions from the national
exam. Maryland state examiners wrote simi-
lar questions this year.
The bottom line is that state offcials claim
the test was no easier whereas skeptics won-
der if the numbers truly refect the quality of
learning.
According to federal law, by 2014, one
hundredpercentofstudentsmustpassreading
and math. I would like to recommend that we
notchangethetestfromnowuntilthensowe
can compare apples to apples.
We must keep children frst by giving them
the tools they need to succeed in the twenty-
frst century. We must also have tests that ac-
curately measure if they have those tools.
MarilynCrosby
Lexington Park, Md
I am responding to the July 17th letter en-
titled Hoyer Is Part Of The Problem. The
only thing I can glean from the letter is that
Hoyer is a professional politician and is de-
scribed by a quote written in 1929 by An-
drew Jackson. The quote begins by ex-
plaining that few men can stay responsive
to the public interest over a period of time.
This may be true but Steny Hoyer is one
of the few men who has continued to be re-
sponsive to the people and to do so most
effciently. His constituency service is
excellent. His legislative work has brought
many benefts to Southern Maryland. He is
a professional politician and we beneft from
Stenys extensive experience on Capital Hill.
In our current economic situation I want a
professional politician to protect jobs and
bring more jobs to Southern Maryland.

JerryHowie
Bryantown, Md
HoyersExperienceGood
forSouthernMaryland
MarylandShouldFollow
NationalExamforStudents
SafetyatPaxNotCompromised
To The Editor:
Last Thursday was sup-
posed to be Governor OMalleys
frst offcial visit into St. Marys
County. The business of the
people had not been addressed
here locally since taking offce
nearly two years ago. Leonar-
dtown was to be Capital for a
day with many of the Gover-
nors Cabinet Secretaries join-
inghiminLeonardtowntoad-
dress the peoples business.
The concept was also in-
tended as a state wide traveling
road show with stops planned
across the entire State of Mary-
land. The OMalley administra-
tion fgures that bringing a large
show of government offcials to
localcommunitieswillhopeful-
ly improve this Governors poor
public approval ratings.
Offcials from Leonard-
town government, the Mayor
and town council went all out
to host the event in a profes-
sional and business like fashion.
Meetings with all factions of
town and county groups were
planned to provide State off-
cials with a better understand-
ing of St. Marys County and
Leonardtowns needs.
Unfortunately, while town
offcials were busy preparing for
a busy day, trying to fnd ways
to ft as much of the peoples
business into the days agenda
as possible, County and State
politiciansfromtheliberalside
of OMalleys political party
were busy planning otherwise.
On a day that was to be
OMalleys very frst visit into
St. Marys County in an offcial
capacity, OMalleys frst stop,
his frst order of business was
a high roller, high dollar fund
raiser, clearly displaying that it
was politics frst.
Organized by Kathy
OBrien, Democratic Central
Committee Chair, the local
politicos including Roy Dy-
son, and Jack Russell decided
to forgo the peoples business
and treat the frst time visiting
Governor to a campaign event
expected to raise huge money
for their star.
Fundraisers are nothing
new to politics, in fact most
elected offcials hold an annual
event or two while in offce. It
is much easier to raise money
for re-election when you have
no opponent yet and you hold
the purse strings to taxpayer
dollars, which large donors like.
This Governor has been very
busy doing just that. In fact, at
his current pace it is expected
that his campaign coffers will
be flled with nearly $20 million
before a possible opponent even
gets started.
To be fair, the Governor be-
fore OMalley spent a great deal
of time once in offce raising
campaign money as well. The
difference between OMalley
and Governor Ehrlich however
was that Ehrlich keep the peo-
ples business completely sepa-
ratefromthebusinessofongo-
ing campaigns.
In Ehrlichs half dozen trips
to St. Marys County during his
four years in offce, not once did
hebringhisstaffandcontingent
of state paid employees to St.
Marysforthepurposeoffund-
raiser/business. For Ehrlich, it
was business only when travel-
ing on offcial business. The
statewide press would never
have let Ehrlich get away with
anything even closely resem-
bling what OMalley did last
Thursday.
When there was an Ehrlich
fundraiser in St. Marys County
itwasheldafterbusinesshours
where Ehrlich traveled to St.
MarysCountywithouttheben-
eft of taxpayer-funded business
being part of the trip. That is
the appropriate way to do the
peoples business.
Whats more, because lo-
calpoliticoswerebusyrubbing
elbows with the Governor and
Lt. Governor at the home of Dr.
Mark Whitten, a D.C. area oph-
thalmologist who performed
eye surgery on Tiger Woods
and who lives in Breton Bay,
OMalley and crew were close
to an hour late arriving by boat
to the offcial business of the
day, the peoples business.
Closeto50employees
of state, county, and local gov-
ernment being paid by the tax-
payerswereleftwaitingforthe
Governor. Waiting for the Gov-
ernor to arrive is nothing new
either, when moving from one
business meeting to the next.
Having government employees
waiting while the Governor has
chosentodopersonalcampaign
business frst is wrong.
Worse still, OMalley
must have been left wondering
why he ever came to St. Marys
in the frst place. Expecting to
raising $50,000 plus at these
types of events, OMalley
walked away with a measly
$10,000. County Commission-
ers can raise more than that
at a fundraiser. Ehrlich raised
$60,000 at his last fundraiser in
St. Marys.
A day that was well
planned and executed by town
offcials could have left a lasting
positive impression upon a Gov-
ernor who has largely ignored
St. Marys County his frst
two years in offce. Instead,
OMalley leaves town with
pocket change and a memory
of where not to come to raise
money.
OMalley,LocalDemsPlace
CloudOverCapitalForADay
Thursday, July 24, 2008
The
County Times Section A -
Ramblings of a Country Girl
Pop!
Terri Bartz Bowles
Its summertime and the
eating is good, good, good.
Theres so much good stuff
to eat, sometimes I think Im
just gonna pop! You know,
you cant stop eating and next
thing you know, youre fat as
a tick and if you eat one more
bite, pop! Maybe youve never
described it that way before,
but I guarantee youve felt that
way before! And who can
blame us? Theres fresh pro-
duce, plenty of opportunity to
fre up the grill, the chance to
catch your own seafood and
all kinds of picnics, cookouts,
parties, etc. Eat, eat, eat!
Lets start with a favor-
ite of mine and youve heard
me say it before anything
hot off the grill is tasty. The
other night we had cheese-
burgers off the grill and fresh
corn-on-the-cob. Mercy, it
was good. We ate outside and
just made pigs of ourselves. I
dont know if theres anything
much better than burgers off
the grill and fresh corn. And
then we fnished it up with ice
cream. Whats summer with-
out ice cream? Its cold and re-
freshing and the perfect sum-
mer treat. Sometimes the ice
cream truck comes around and
thats fun, too. But I always
keep a supply in the freezer,
Im not leaving to chance my
ice cream eating opportuni-
ties. Hot dogs on the grill
are great, too as are steak and
chicken and sausage. Okay,
everything tastes good when
cooked on a grill.
Then theres the produce.
You can fnd such an abun-
dance and variety of fresh
produce around here, grown
locally and tasting wonderful.
Any vegetable you can think
of is out there somewhere. Ive
been eating a lot of squash and
zucchini which is very good
sliced up and fried with a little
olive oil and Italian dressing
and sometimes a sprinkle of
Parmesan cheese on top. And
I know I dont have to convince
you to eat sweet corn, I think
everybody likes sweet corn. I
eagerly await the frst appear-
ance which is so much earlier
than it used to be. Its great
because its just that much lon-
ger a season to enjoy it. String
beans, especially yellow string
beans are a favorite of mine. I
have a bag on my counter right
now that Im going to cook in
short order. I have to get some
fatback, Im currently fatback-
less having used it all up from
cooking previous batches of
string beans. Theres toma-
toes, eggplant, potatoes, beets
you name it, you can fnd it
at a farm market somewhere
around here. And fruit - water-
melons, cantaloupes, peaches,
berries. Theres no reason to
be eating canned vegetables or
out of season fruit at this time
of year when you live in St.
Marys County.
And of course, theres
seafood you can catch your
own or fnd plenty of places
to buy it fresh. Everybody is
after crabs this time of year
and theyre out there. A little
expensive maybe, but worth it.
You have to eat hard crabs a
few times during the summer.
They can store and preserve
and ship all kinds of stuff year
round but steamed crabs are
still a summertime treat. Go
eat some. Soft crabs bleah.
I know lots of people who
love them, but I just cant like
them. Theyre a summertime
treat but you can freeze them.
Theres a sight in your freezer,
little crab bodies stacked up.
And lots of fsh blues, perch,
spot, hardhead. Try fshing
yourself or buy some from a
local supplier. Fish is good
and good for you. Have some
sweet corn with it! Thats
good eating.
And I know lots of peo-
ple will say that summertime
fruits make for awesome des-
sert time. Fresh fruit pies and
cobblers made with peaches
and blueberries, and zucchini
bread because zucchini is the
rabbit of the vegetable world
and you have to fnd some-
thing to do with it. Of course,
theres always just eating the
fruit out of hand, too. And
whats better than a cold wa-
termelon on a hot day? But to
me, ice cream is the quintes-
sential summer dessert. You
can have your fresh fruit in it
if thats extremely important
to you. Ice cream is so cold
and creamy and refreshing, it
is the perfect summer treat.
You just feel happy when you
eat ice cream and that cold
treat on a hot day is a gift from
heaven.
Get out there this week,
fnd some local goodness and
eat it up. And let me know if
you get to feeling like a tick.
You can email the Coun-
try Girl at countrygirlram-
blings@gmail.com
Mattingly, noting that Mechanicsville and
Ridge will both host carnivals this year, but for
whatever reason other companies have decided
not to have them, but well continue to have
ours as long as the state allows us to.
Though previous years have seen a rise
in attendance at local events such as carnivals,
volunteers at Hollywood VFD anticipate even
larger crowds this year.
When asked about attendance at their
events, 27-year department veteran Rick Greer
said he has seen a dramatic increase in the num-
ber of people coming to the event, especially
after some of the other carnivals have shut down
and quit operating, he said, adding that Leon-
ardtown closed its own carnival a year ago, and
Hollywood and other companies have been see-
ing overfow from those areas in attendance.
Some Friday and Saturday nights its
just jam-packed, said Greer, adding that on the
carnivals busiest nights, it is diffcult to walk
from one ride to another.
Mattingly said that the company will
provide $10 armbands for unlimited ride access
on certain nights, which he admitted are the
busiest nights for their event, even if the price
of fuel and materials goes upwe look at this as
a community event, so as long as were making
a proft, well keep it at ten dollars, he said.
Carnival
Continued from page A-
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SectionA-
The
County Times Thursday,July24,2008
taineddamage,sometimesat
thehandsofunknowinghom-
eowners,orunsealedcleanout
holes in the sewer lines that
may also have been opened
byresidentstodrainstanding
waterfromtheiryards,could
be some of the main culprits
oftheproblems,Kingsaid.
Pipes with misaligned
joints or naturally occurring
problems could also be con-
tributing to the infow of rain
andtidalwaters,hesaid.
The cleanout holes often
look like metallic or plas-
tic caps just sticking out of
the ground, King said, and
can be easily damaged by a
lawnmower or other moving
vehicles.
While they have just
about a four-inch hole when
unsealed,Kingsaid,theycan
letinatremendousvolumeof
water.
King said his offce
has had reports of three to
four residents in the last six
months who have removed
thesealsofthecleanoutholes
todrainstandingwater.That
small number leads him to
believetheproblemcouldbe
muchgreater,hesaid.
Two or three of these
cleanouts being opened can
food out the whole system
on St. Georges Island and
even parts of Piney Point,
Kingsaid.Sofarwevehad
to bring in septic trucks to
pump out the pumping sta-
tion to prevent overfows.
The infow of river and
rainwater has risen to enor-
mous one-day totals due to
the compromising of the lo-
cal sewer system, according
to some recent fgures from
MetCom.
Recordsshowthatduring
the night of May 11 through
May 12, when tidal food-
ing hit St. Georgess Island,
the fow rate into the islands
pumping station reached
192,000 gallons per day; its
annual average fow is just
18,000gallonsperday.
During the week of May
8 through May 16, after sev-
eral heavy rainstorms, the
average fow was more than
twice as high at 42,000 gal-
lonsofwateraday.
On the same day that fow
rates increased10 fold at the
St. Georges Island station,
thePineyPointpumpingsta-
tion fow increased to 417,000
gallonsperdayasopposedto
the average annual daily fow
of152,000gallonsaday.
While the pumping sta-
tions can suffer from too
much infow of water, King
said,socantheMarlay-Taylor
sewagetreatmentplantwhere
the sewage and extra water
willultimatelybechanneled.
The additional infow
decreases the capacity at the
plant,whichisalreadyslated
foreitherexpansionorpossi-
blereconstruction,elsewhere
to accommodate increasing
water treatment demands in
the Lexington Park develop-
mentdistrict.
King and other Met-
Com staff will hold a com-
munity meeting with the St.
GeorgesIslandImprovement
AssociationAug.1toinform
residents of the problem and
correctiveeffortsMetComis
taking.
Themeetingwillalsofo-
cusonwhatresidentscando
to prevent infow to the sewer
system.
Sewage
Continued from page A-
ByGuyLeonard
StaffWriter
MarylandDepartmentofPlanningSecretaryRichardHall
saidlastweekthatthestatewillnottrytotakedirectcontrol
of the land use planning efforts of local governments like St.
MarysCounty,butadmittedthestateisdevelopingacompre-
hensivelanduseplantoguideplanningefforts.
Local offcials are waiting to see just how the competition
forlanduseplanningbetweenstateandlocalgovernmentwill
workout.
Were certainly concerned about the states attempts to
take over any local planning efforts, said County Commis-
sionerThomasMattingly(D-Leonardtown)inthedaysfollow-
ing the visit of Gov. Martin OMalley (D) and his cabinet to
Leonardtown as capital for a day. The one size fts all mental-
itydoesntnecessarilywork.
ThestateiscurrentlyholdingmeetingsoftheTaskForce
forGrowthandFutureDevelopmenttodiscusslanduseissues
andpoliciesthroughoutthestate.Areportfromthetaskforce
isexpectedtocomeoutDec.1.
At his roundtable discussion with local leaders and resi-
dents July 17, Hall said land use efforts would still be dictated
mostlybycountygovernments.
Irealizeitcansoundfairlyscarytolocalgovernments,
Hallsaidofthepossibilityofastatewidelanduseplan.Idont
want to pretend itll be a silver bullet itll be highly infu-
encedbywhatsinlocalplans.
Theresnotgoingtobestatewidezoningwerenottak-
ingawayzoningauthorityfromlocalgovernments.
The state efforts at developing its own land use
guidelinescomeatatimewhenthecountyisrequired
bystatelawtoreviewandupdateitsowncomprehen-
sivelanduseplan.
Thereviewisrequiredeverysixyearsandtheplan
encompassesmanyaspectsofplanning,includingroad
and transportation needs, capital improvement proj-
ects,andzoningandzoningtextamendments.
Denis Canavan, director of the countys Depart-
ment of Land Use and Growth Management, asked
HallandothercabinetheadsattheLeonardtownevent
tocoordinateamongthemselvesandthecountywhen
bothbegantheirplanningefforts.
Canavan said the state needed to pay particular
attention to development in areas like New Market,
CharlotteHallandMechanicsville.
Ineedcooperation;Ineedexpansionforprimary
fundingareas,Canavansaid,especiallyforexpanding
Growth
Continued from page A-
ByGuyLeonard
StaffWriter
CarringtonRaphaelCart-
er, 35, will spend the next 14
years in prison for assaulting
and stalking his estranged
girlfriend in a domestic vio-
lence case where Carter re-
peatedly ignoredwarnings to
stayawayfromthevictim.
Circuit Court Judge C.
ClarkeRaleysentencedCart-
ertoeightyearsinprisonJuly
18 while Judge Michael J.
Stammhadsentencedthede-
fendant to six years the prior
weekforaseparateconviction
inthesamecase.
Assistant States Attor-
ney Daniel White argued for
the stiffest sentence possible
undertheguidelines18to
25yearsforattemptingto
break into Alice Wolinskis
trailerAug.14oflastyearand
othercharges.
This happened in Al-
iceWolinskishome;itwasa
rundowntrailerbutitwasher
home,Whitesaid.Hewent
inherhomeandattackedher
there.
Carter was charged with
beatingthevictimJune13of
lastyearinhertrailerandwas
again charged with attempt-
ingtobreakintohertrailerfor
theAug.14incident.
In that case, police said
that after trying to break in
through the door was unsuc-
cessful, Carter pushed the
air conditioning unit back
through the window of Wo-
linskistrailertogainentry.
Wolinski tried unsuc-
cessfully to stop Carter and
suffered cuts to her face and
armsfromshatteredglass.
Between the two inci-
dents,Carterwasalsocharged
with harassing and stalking
the victim via repeated cell
phonecalls.
Carters defense attorney
Sean Moran said while the
case was serious, Wolinski
wouldoftengetbacktogether
withCarterafterincidentshad
subsided, where they would
both engage in abusing alco-
holanddrugs.
Carter also had seven
charges of drunken driving
onhisrecord.
Its a series of minor
events that give a major re-
cord,Moransaidofhisclient
before the domestic violence
case.
Judge Raley said that
Carter,whoheldasteadyjob
and paid child support for
fourchildrenfromotherrela-
tionships, was different from
manydefendantsconvictedof
violent crime but his crimes
wereseriousnonetheless.
What we have here is
an egregious rejection of the
tools designed to prevent do-
mesticviolence,JudgeRaley
said.Andthejurytookavery
dimviewoftheactionsofMr.
Carter.
Carter showed some re-
morseforhiscrimes.
Idohaveaproblemwith
alcohol and drugs, he said.
This is not what I set out to
do,tocommitthiscrime.
Judge Raley said Car-
ringtons case was an ex-
tremely serious one but the
factsofthecasedidnotmerit
thestiffpenaltythedefendant
couldhavereceived.
IfIfollowtheguidelines,
hes done, theres no hope,
JudgeRaleysaid.
To Carter he said, You
have14yearstogo.Itsenough
underthefactsofthecase.
ManConvicted
InDomestic
ViolenceCaseGets
Combined14Years
Carrington Raphael Carter
septicsystemsinthoseareas.Ivegottohaveinfrastructure
beforeaccommodatingdevelopment.
Mattingly said often times the state planners use
old data to make their assessments of what planners
andofficialsshouldbedoinginSt.Marys.
Smart Growth is a good thing, but it has to be
patterned after the local economy and the desires of
thepeople,Mattinglysaid,addingthatthestateused
data collected on the county sometimes from as far
backto1996upto2005.
What were asking is dont use that data as gos-
pelbutletslookatcurrenttrendsandnothistory.
Oneexample,Mattinglysaid,ofthestatesuseof
outdated information was that their assessments of
countyplanningshowed4050percentofthecoun-
tysdevelopmentinLexingtonParkandLeonardtown,
when in fact the figure was 70 percent of development
inthosetwocommunities.
Mattingly also said recent changes to the states
Chesapeake Bay Critical Area laws actually made
it more expensive and difficult for homeowners liv-
ingonwaterfrontpropertytomakechangestoasoft
shorelinethatresistserosion.
Soft shorelines are characterized by more plant-
ingsandmarsh-likeplotstofighterosionasopposed
toharderdesignsthatuselargestonebuffers.
Im always leery about measures in the legisla-
turethatdealwithlocallandusedecisions,Matting-
lytoldTheCountyTimes.
Whenthecomprehensiveplanissenttothecoun-
ties for approval in the near future, they will learn
whetherthestatewantstotakeamorehands-onrole
inlocalplanning.
ThatllbeatestofSecretaryHallsstatementthe
otherday,Mattinglysaid.
short supplyevery organization out there
needs people, said Dennis Gordge, the
president of St. Marys County Advanced
Life Support Unit, adding that changes
in society and the economy had forced
many people out of home-bound positions
that would afford them opportunities to
volunteer.
Society has changed so much in the
30orsoyearsIvebeendoingthis,Gordge
said, adding that two-income households
andaslackingeconomywereforcingmany
toworklongerhoursandvolunteerless.He
saidthatsomeseemedwaryofthetraining
requirementsaswell.
Othersarguethattrainingisnotasmuch
a hindrance as some might think. The
training requirements are stringent, said
Greer,butitreallydependsonhowhighin
the organization you want to gowe have
frst responders who only need 100 hours of
trainingtogetstartedandallofthistrain-
ing is provided for free by the Maryland
Fire and Rescue Institute. After recieving
the training, many of our volunteer frefght-
ers go on to become paid frefghters for the
government,city,orcounty.
Still,Gordgesaidthatasimplelackof
educationcouldbetoblameforthelackof
recruits,notingthatmanyoptoutofinquir-
ing because, so many people think the fre
andrescuesquadsandEMSarepaidservic-
es.Theyarenot.Hishopeisthatcitizens
will still come out to help their neighbors,
since,intheend,itisnothardtodo.
Volunteers
Continued from page A-
Photo by Andrea Shiell
Cabinet secretaries from OMalleys administration gathered for introduc-
tory remarks at Thursdays Capital for a Day event in Leonardtown.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
The
County Times Section A -
Obituaries
James Elvis Elroy Fen-
wick, 44
James Elvis Elroy Fen-
wick, 44 of Lexington Park
died July 8 in his residence.
Born May 25, 1964 in
Leonardtown he was the son
of Mary C. Fenwick of St.
Marys County and the late
James Andrew Fenwick.
He is survived by his
step-son DeAndre Curtis of
St. Marys County; siblings:
Lisa Thomas of Oakville,
Rose Fenwick, Thomas Fen-
wick, Priscilla Fenwick, Ag-
nes Tink Fenwick, Elijah
Holmes and Ofori Holmes
all of St. Marys County.
He was preceded in
death by his brother Franklin
Fenwick.
Mr. Fenwick was a life-
long St. Marys County resi-
dent where he attended Great
Mills High School and was a
construction worker for 10
years. He loved watching
National Geographic, listen-
ing to Michael Jackson, de-
tailing cars and every time
you saw him, he always had
a cup of ice.
The family will receive
friends Thursday, July 24
from 12:30 1:30 p.m. in
the Mattingley-Gardiner Fu-
neral Home Chapel, where a
Funeral Service will be held
at 1:30 p.m. with Fr. Scott
Woods offciating. Interment
will follow in St. Peter Claver
Cemetery, St. Inigoes. Pall-
bearers will be Thomas Cur-
tiss, Paul Thomas, Wayne
Jordan, George Brisco, John
Maddox and Windell Niles.
Honorary Pallbearers will be
Garry Niles, Danny Young,
Michael Thomas, Herbert
Niles, Sam Brisco and Bub-
ble Scriber.
Arrangements provided
by the Mattingley-Gardiner
Funeral Home, P.A.
Meredith Wood Reb
Fowkes, 68
Meredith Wood Reb
Fowkes, 68, of Dameron died
July 20 in Washington Hos-
pital Center, Washington,
D.C.
Born March 3, 1940 in
Pittsburgh, Pa., he was the
son of the late Merle Fowkes
and Magie (Olah) Fowkes.
Reb is survived by his
wife, Mary Ellen (Seddon)
Fowkes, and his sons; Dan-
iel H. Fowkes of Lexing-
ton Park, David M. Fowkes
of Naples, Fla., and Daryl
Fowkes of Dameron and four
grandchildren.
In addition to his parents,
he was preceded in death by
his brother, Merle Fowkes.
Family will receive
friends Thursday, July 24
from 5 8 p.m. in the Brins-
feld Funeral Home, 22955
Hollywood Road, Leonard-
town, MD 20650. Interment
will be held Saturday, July
26 in Mt. Lebanon Cemetery,
Pittsburgh, Pa.
Condolences to the fam-
ily may be made at www.
brinsfeldfuneral.com.
Arrangements by the
Brinsfeld Funeral Home,
P.A., Leonardtown.
Charles Ralph Langley,

Charles Ralph Langley,

77, of Leonardtown died
July 20 in Solomons Nursing
Center, Solomons, Md.
Charles Ralph Langley
passed away peacefully in
his sleep with his wife by his
side. Ralph will be remem-
bered as a loving husband
and father. He was a strong
fghter for life and will be
sorely missed by all those
who knew and loved him. He
graduated in 1949 from St.
Johns High School in Wash-
ington, D.C. and graduated
in 1953 from Mt. St. Marys
College in Emmitsburg, Md.
He served in the United States
Navy from 1953 to 1979, with
two tours in Vietnam as ad-
visor to the South Vietnam-
ese Navy from 1969 to 1971.
Ralph also served staff tours
in the Philippine Islands, Ja-
pan and as Executive Offcer
of NAS Naples, Italy. After
his retirement from the U.S.
Navy, Ralph managed his
home in Leonardtown and
performed charitable work
for various military service
organizations.
Ralph is survived by his
wife Margaret Langley of
Leonardtown; two daugh-
ters, Catherine Langley Mc-
Nair, and Mary Pinson; and
two grandchildren, Patrick
McNair and Larry Loukota.
A Mass of Christian
burial will be celebrated
Saturday, July 26 at 11 a.m.
in St. Francis Xavier Catho-
lic Church, 21370 Newtown
Neck Road, Leonardtown.
Interment Services with
Military Honors will be held
Oct. 15 at 3 p.m. in Arlington
National Cemetery, Arling-
ton, Va.
Memorial contributions
may be made to Leonar-
dtown Volunteer Rescue
Squad, P.O. Box 72, Leonar-
dtown, MD 20650.
Condolences to the fam-
ily may be made at www.
brinsfeldfuneral.com.
Arrangements by the
Brinsfeld Funeral Home,
P.A., Leonardtown.
Roland Reese McKay,
82
Roland Reese McKay,
82, of Valley Lee died July
15 at Prince Georges Gener-
al Hospital Center, Cheverly,
Md.
Born April 24, 1926 in
Valley Lee he was the son
of the late Joseph Roland
and Beatrice Goldsborough
McKay.
Mr. McKay, Reese as
he was known to family and
friends, was a fsherman,
hunter, frefghter, farmer
and school bus driver. He did
it all and told stories to prove
it.
He is survived by his
wife Mollie Rea McKay
(Howard), whom he married
June 23, 1949
in Holy Face Catholic
Church, Great Mills, three
daughters, Linda McKay Ga-
teau of Chaptico, Mary Car-
olyn McKay Prett of Hunts-
ville, Texas and Sharon Anne
McKay of Washington, D.C.,
two sons, Roland Rea McK-
ay and Thomas Allan McKay
both of Valley Lee, one sis-
ter, Robena Keatley of Valley
Lee. He is also survived by
fve grandchildren and three
great-grandchildren.
Relatives and friends
attended Mr. McKays Life
Celebration in the Brinsfeld
Funeral Home, Leonard-
town, Friday, July 18 from 5
8 p.m. with prayers recited
at 7 p.m. Mass of Christian
Burial was celebrated Satur-
day, July 19 at 10 a.m. in St.
Georges Catholic Church,
Valley Lee. Monsignor Karl
A. Chimiak, pastor of the
church was the celebrant.
Memorial Contributions
may be made to the Second
District Volunteer Fire &
Rescue Squad, P.O. Box 1,
Valley Lee, MD 20692.
Condolences to the fam-
ily may be made at www.
brinsfeldfuneral.com.
Arrangements by the
Brinsfeld Funeral Home,
P.A., Leonardtown.
William Andrew Billy
Norris, 65
William Andrew Billy
Norris, 65, of Leonardtown
died July 17 in his residence.
Born Nov. 13, 1942 in
Leonardtown he was the son
of the late Calvert Ignatius
and Mary Elizabeth Gatton
Norris.
He was the beloved
husband of Helen Rebecca
Becky Wood Norris.
He is survived by his
children William Anthony
Tony Norris and his wife
Sheri, and Karen Leigh Nor-
ris Tippett and her husband
Troy of Mechanicsville;
siblings Mary Lou Ching
Mattei, Betty Ann Bea-
van and Jackie Norris all of
Leonardtown, Dickie Norris
and Joan Payne both of Me-
chanicsville; grandchildren
Courtney and Garrett Nor-
ris, Kaitlyn and Alex Tippett
and Ryan McLean.
He was preceded in death
by his brother Bobby Norris.
He was a lifelong St.
Marys County resident
who was employed by A &
P/Super Fresh as a meat cut-
ter/butcher for 30 years until
his retirement in 2001. He
enjoyed yard work, camping,
spending time with his fami-
ly and helping his neighbors.
The family received
friends Sunday, July 20 from
2 5 p.m. in the Mattingley-
Gardiner Funeral Home with
prayers being said at 3 p.m.
A Mass of Christian Burial
was celebrated Monday, July
21 at 10 a.m. in St. Josephs
Catholic Church with Fr.
Keith Woods offciating. In-
terment followed in Queen
of Peace Cemetery, Helen.
Pallbearers were Adrian
Hill, Jr., Jason Farrell, Tim-
my Downey, Quintin Wood,
Jr., Wade Wood, Gary Nor-
ris, Georgie Payne, Bob Nor-
ris, Jim Norris and Bernie
Beavan.
Memorial Contributions
may be made to the Mechan-
icsville Volunteer Rescue
Squad Auxillary, P.O. Box
552, Mechanicsville, MD
20659 and/or Hospice of St.
Marys, P.O. Box 625, Leon-
ardtown, MD 20650.
Arrangements provided
by the Mattingley-Gardiner
Funeral Home, P.A.
William Elmer Russell,
63
William Elmer Russell,
63, of Great Mills died July
15 in his residence.
He was born June 22,
1945 in Leonardtown.
For arrangement details
for William Elmer Russell
please visit www.mgfh.com.
Arrangements provided
by the Mattingley-Gardiner
Funeral Home, P.A.
Ethel Cleo Sellers
Sparks,
Ethel Cleo Sellers Sparks,
77 of Great Mills died in her
residence Sunday, July 20.
Cleo, who did not use her
frst name of Ethel, was born
Oct. 30, 1930 in Riverview,
Va. She came to Maryland
in the early 1940s with her
parents, the late Dallas and
Bertie Sellers of Valley Lee
along with her three sisters
and one brother. Cleo met
and fell in love with George
Sparks. They were married
at the Episcopal Church in
Leonardtown June 17, 1946.
They endured many ups and
downs, but theirs was a last-
ing love of 62 years.
During her life, she
worked at the Atwood Bus
Station, Belvedere Motel,
Patuxent River Naval Air
Station and the Lord Cal-
vert Motel and Restaurant.
Cleos greatest joy in life was
her family. Besides her own
children, grandchildren and
great-grandchildren she was
mammaw and aunt to many,
many more. Her door was
always open to anyone that
needed a helping hand or a
good friend. There was al-
ways a hot cup of coffee and
a meal. After your visit, you
were counted as a friend. She
loved to crochet and was most
proud of the many beautiful
baby sets she made for her
children and many others.
After a heart attack in
May and a stroke, she was
determined to make a blan-
ket and cap for her newest
great-grandson. With the
help of her daughter, she
completed her task with time
to spare. She welcomed the
newest addition to her family
in late June.
Cleo was also an avid
book reader and loved mys-
tery. One of her greatest
pleasures was to know a se-
cret before others. She was
always eager to learn all
she could. Cleo and George
loved to travel around the
United States and visit with
family and friends. Many
hours were spent together
working in the garden. She
and George canned and pre-
served a lot of their own veg-
etables. She loved working
in the yard and shar6ing her
fowers with friends.
Cleo was very proud
of her children that have
worked in the military. Dur-
ing her lifetime, two of her
sons were in the Army and
served in Vietnam and a
grandson served in Iraq.
Two other children were in
the Air Force. When peo-
ple went to visit, she would
talk of her love and support
for her soldier boys as she
would call them. Her chil-
dren brought many friends
home with them at a mo-
ments notice and she and dad
always made them welcome.
She was the devoted mother
of: Wallace Sparks, Tommy
Sparks and his wife Pam,
Steve Sparks, Debbie Shor-
back of Great Mills, George
L. Sparks and his wife Deb-
bie, Denna (DeeDee) Nor-
ris and her husband Ronnie,
Dan Sparks and his wife
Lou, Bobby Sparks and his
wife Patty of Hollywood,
Janice (Cissy) Chaney and
her husband Randy of Port
Tobacco and Ronald (Chris)
Sparks of California. She is
also survived by 29 grand-
children and 23 great-grand-
children, her brother Bobby
Sellers and his wife Brenda
of Mechanicsville, and her
uncle Gene Sexton of King
George, Va.
Cleo was preceded in
death by her sons James Dal-
las (JD), Ernie Ray and Barry
Ken Sparks, her sisters Ma-
rie Clark, Unive Dean and
Cassie Underwood.
The family received
friends Wednesday, July 23
from 5 8 p.m. in the Matting-
ley-Gardiner Funeral Home,
Leonardtown, where prayers
were said at 7 p.m. A funeral
service will be held Thurs-
day, July 24 at 10 a.m. in the
funeral home chapel with Fr.
Raymond Schmidt offciat-
ing. Interment will follow in
Charles Memorial Gardens,
Leonardtown. Pallbearers
will be Wallace K. Sparks,
Sr., Thomas T. Sparks,
George L. Sparks, Sr., Steve
C. Sparks, Chris Sparks, Sr.,
Dan A. Sparks, Bobby L.
Sparks, Miks E. Sparks and
Wallace K. Sparks, Jr. Hon-
orary pallbearers will be her
grandsons.
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.
Elizabeth H. Betty
Sterling, 83
Elizabeth H. Betty
Sterling, 83, of Leonardtown
died July 15 in St. Marys
Hospital.
Born July 29, 1924 in
Baltimore, Md. she was the
daughter of the late Rob-
ert M. and Maria Elizabeth
Greenwell Hunt.
She was preceded in
death by her husband B. Har-
ris Sterling July 17, 1987. She
was married to him Oct. 20,
1949 in St. Aloysius Catholic
Church, Leonardtown.
She is survived by her
children Lisa Houser and her
husband John of Chaptico,
Betty Lynn Armsworthy and
her husband Philip, Bobby
Sterling and his wife Judy and
Gail Ridgell and her husband
Ron all of Leonardtown; sib-
lings: Robert M. Hunt, III of
Esperanza and Patricia Abell
Guy of Leonardtown; 10
grandchildren and four great
grandchildren.
Betty was a lifelong
St. Marys County resident
where she graduated from
St. Marys Academy Class
of 1942 and attended Mercy
Nursing School, Baltimore,
Md. She was employed as
a nurse for Dr. William D.
Boyd, Sr. for 16 years until
her retirement in 1967.
Mrs. Sterlings frst and
foremost love was her fam-
ily. She was a member of St.
Aloysius Catholic Church.
Both she and her husband
were avid supporters of
catholic education. She loved
pets of all varieties and she
was always willing to take
in another. Betty was fun-
loving and enjoyed all of the
traditions and folklore of St.
Marys County. She was an
avid Orioles fan and loved
a good NASCAR race on
Sunday.
The family received
friends Thursday, July 17
from 5 8 p.m. in the Mat-
tingley-Gardiner Funeral
Home, where Prayers were
said at 7 p.m. A Mass of
Christian Burial was cel-
ebrated Friday, July 18 at 10
a.m. in St. Aloysius Catholic
Church, Leonardtown, with
Fr. John Dakes offciating.
Interment will follow in St.
Aloysius Cemetery. Pallbear-
ers were Ryan Armsworthy,
Stephen Armsworthy, Ben
Sterling, Brent Armsworthy,
Galen Ridgell and Garrett
Sterling. Honorary Pallbear-
ers were Christy Sterling,
Grant Ridgell, Rhonnie
Ridgell and John Houser.
Contributions may be
made to Leonardtown Vol-
unteer Rescue Squad, P.O.
Box 299, Leonardtown, MD
20650 and/or Hospice of St.
Marys, P.O. Box 625, Leon-
ardtown, MD 20650.
Arrangements provided
by the Mattingley-Gardiner
Funeral Home, P.A.
Joan Marie Tennyson,
6
Joan Marie Tennyson,
67, of Scotland, died July 17
in St. Marys Nursing Cen-
ter, Leonardtown.
Born Oct. 14, 1940 in
Washington, D.C. she was
the daughter of the late Mi-
chael and Eleanor (Brad-
burn) Balta.
Joan is survived by her
husband George P. Tennyson
of Scotland, whom she mar-
ried March 24, 1958 in St.
Michaels Church; daughter
Susan Norman of Lexington
Park; three sons; James Ten-
nyson of California, Donald
Tennyson of Dameron and
Russell Tennyson of Scot-
land; three sisters; Linda Ral-
ey of Ridge, Nancy Ridgell
and Bonnie Balta both of
Denton, Md.; one brother
Michael Balta of Tucson,
Ariz. She is also survived by
seven grandchildren.
She is predeceased by
son Raymond Tennyson.
Mrs. Tennyson retired
from the U.S. Postal Service
after twenty-four years of
service in 1996. She worked
in a number of local post
offces in Southern Mary-
land. She was a member of
the Ladies of Charity at St.
Michaels Church, where she
also helped in the cleaning
of the church, taking care of
altar cloths, and making bap-
tismal bibs.
Relatives and friends
were received Sunday, July
20 from 2 5 p.m. in St.
Michaels Catholic Church,
Ridge, with prayers recited
at 4 p.m. A Mass of Chris-
tian Burial was offered
Monday, July 21 at 10 a.m.
in St. Michaels Catholic
Church. Monsignor Mau-
rice OConnell, pastor of the
church was the celebrant.
Interment followed in the
church cemetery.
Serving as pallbearers
were Patrick Boothe, Steven
Tennyson, Drew Ridgell,
Vince Ridgell, Roy Norris
and Eddie Raley.
Memorial Contributions
may be made to the Ridge
Rescue Squad, P.O. Box 456,
Ridge, MD 20680 or St. Mi-
chaels Catholic Church, P.O.
Box 429, Ridge, MD 20680.
Condolences to the fam-
ily may be made at www.
brinsfeldfuneral.com.
Arrangements by the
Brinsfeld Funeral Home,
P.A., Leonardtown.
SectionA-
The
County Times Thursday,July24,200
B63/@B=4
JOAN HUMPHREYS
SHOV RUNS AUGUST 1 - 30
PLEASE JOlN US
FRlDAY, AUG. 1 : 5-8 PM
FOR OUR ARTlST'S RECEPTlON
TH!S !S ALSO 1ST FRlDAY !N LEONARDTOWN!
/ll gallris ano many shops stay opn lat ano
clbrat in a town-wio party. Com |oin th un!
2276D WashinQton St., Leonardtown
B]^]TbVSA_cO`S\Sfbb]1]`PSZa
3D1.475.DD88
HeronsWayGaIIery.com
AndreaShiell
StaffWriter
The Leonardtown Volunteer Fire Depart-
ment was buzzing with dignitaries Thursday
morning when Gov. Martin OMalley (D)
broughthisentirecabinettoSt.MarysCounty
fortheday.
County Commissioner President Francis
JackRussellbegantheproceedingsbywelcom-
ingthegovernortoSt.MarysCounty,aswellas
commentingontheneedformorefrequentand
fuent communication with his administration.
Sometimes, to be honest, we feel like
one department pushes us one way while the
otherdepartmentspushustheotherway,Rus-
sellsaid,echoingpreviousstatementshemade
about smaller counties being overlooked by
state level offcials.
Delegate John Bohanan praised the coun-
tysprogress,saying,Thereisnoonewhoever
comes down to St. Marys County who is not
impressed.Amonghislistofprioritiesforthe
areawererelationswiththePatuxentRiverNa-
val Air Station, from which 80 percent of the
countyseconomystems.
SenatorRoyDysontooktothecenterofthe
roundtabletospeaktothegovernor,pirouetting
back and forth across the space between the
tablesashespoke.
This is probably the frst cabinet meeting
in St. Marys County since 1637, Dyson ex-
claimed. This was the frst capital; it should
have been your frst visit.
Dyson listed the Thomas Johnson Bridge
asatoppriorityfortheregion,sayingimprove-
mentsneedtobemadeassoonaspossible.
Imnotanalarmist,butifyouwerehere
in 1988 and got stopped at the Thomas John-
sonBridgeandtoldyoucouldntcrossbecause
itwasntsafe,youdhaveagoodideaofhowfar
weve come, he said, adding that serious im-
provementswerestillneeded.
Dyson also took some time to address
school crowding, referring to the countys
learningshacksasacauseforconcern.
I think if some of your predecessors had
donemore,youwouldntbehavingtodealwith
suchabigissue,hesaid.
The countys progress was front and cen-
terduringthisopeningmeeting.Leonardtown
Mayor Chip Norris illustrated this when he
described the reopening of the Leonardtown
Wharf.
Formerly,thewharfwasanenvironmen-
taldisaster,hesaid,describingitasadumping
spot for industrial odds and ends, and adding
that in the frst weekend of the reopening, there
were3,500parkvisitors.
FollowingawalkingtourofhistoricLeon-
ardtownbythecabinetandanelectriccartour
by the governor and Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown
(D), some cabinet secretaries broke off to at-
tend meetings with local offcials throughout
thecountywhileothersconvenedintheSquare
in Leonardtown for the offcial proclamation
designatingthetownMarylandsCapitalfora
Day.
After taking his tour of Leonardtown and
havinglunchatthewharf,OMalleywenttothe
Bowles Farm in Clements to see their famous
corn maze, and to have an informal discus-
sionwithlocalfarmersaboutissuesfacingSt.
MarysCounty.
OMalley then went to the Naval Air Sta-
tionPatuxentRivertoparticipateinaroundtable
discussiononthedefenseindustryandatour.
Thoughthedayitselfwashotandmuggy,
OMalleyandhiscabinetmaintainedacoolde-
meanorastheytouredthetownandspokewith
residents and offcials.
ItssmalltownslikethisthatmakeMary-
land, and make America, OMalley said.
Youcanreallytellwhenyourewalkingwith
themayorthepridepeoplehaveinatownlike
this.
Capital
Continued from page A-1
Photo by Andrea Shiell
Gov. Martin OMalley took a tour of historic Leonardtown in an electric car with Mayor Norris and
others on Thursday.