Advisory Board

The Salvation Army held its annual civic dinner April 8 in recognition of volunteers and staff members who assisted people in need throughout Washington County in 2007. Majs. Robert and Karen Lyle, commanding officers of the Hagerstown Corps, hosted the event attended by 160 people at Next Dimension Restaurant near Funkstown. The evening was directed by master of ceremonies Ward Childerston with remarks by Christine Henry, outgoing chairman of the advisory board, who expressed her thanks for the tireless work by volunteers and members of the advisory board.

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. -- Working on power lines 20 or more feet off the ground in less than ideal weather conditions isn't a job for everyone. Even longtime Allegheny Power lead lineman Benjamin Saylor admitted being on a 95-foot pole in Hagerstown one time when the wind "wiggled" wasn't the most comforting experience in his near 20 years of aerial work for the utility company. "I didn't think too much of that," recalled Saylor, who as a leading officer of the Utility Workers Union of America Local 102 joined company officials Wednesday to celebrate the launch of a work-force training partnership with Blue Ridge Community and Technical College.

HAGERSTOWN - The reopening of the thrift store operated by The Salvation Army in Hagerstown caused excitement Monday morning among staff, officers and board members. Others couldn't wait for it to be over. Joe Dean leaned against a car in the parking lot. He was a customer who showed up as the store was supposed to be opening to find the ceremony in full swing. "I use things from this store and I recycle other stuff from home," Dean said. "Eventually it all comes back.

HAGERSTOWN The reopening of the thrift store operated by The Salvation Army in Hagerstown caused excitement Monday morning among staff, officers and board members. Others couldn't wait for it to be over. Joe Dean leaned against a car in the parking lot. He was a customer who showed up as the store was supposed to be opening to find the ceremony in full swing. "I use things from this store and I recycle other stuff from home," Dean said. "Eventually it all comes back.

Morris-Swope heads physical therapy department McCONNELLSBURG, Pa. - Robin Morris-Swope has been named Director of the Physical Therapy department at Fulton County Medical Center. Morris-Swope comes to the medical center from Lutheran Home Care Services and Appalachian Rehabilitation, both of Chambersburg. Morris-Swope is a native of Chester County. She completed her undergraduate work at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. She is a member of both the American Physical Therapy Association and the Pennsylvania Physical Therapy Association as well as, a group member of the South Central Pa. orthopedic study.

Veterans Day was a time to stand taller To the editor: I am an American veteran. When I was young America summoned. And I answered the call to duty saying, "Here I Am. " I left the farm, the village, and the city and traveled to a far away place. There I learned my left foot from my right, and "this is my rifle, not my gun. " I learned the manual of arms. It was an education. I made new friends. They were buddies and comrades. We became a "band of brothers. " Then it was across the ocean blue.

Now that the 2006 election is entering the history books, it is time to acknowledge some of the good things that happened during the cycle just ended. A new partnership was formed, between The Herald-Mail, the League of Women Voters of Washington County (LWV), Hagerstown Community College (HCC) and Antietam Cable TV. Working together, the staffs of all four organizations put on televised candidate forums before and after the primaries. The HCC students who acted as moderators during the post-primary forums deserve special praise for their professional demeanor.

Art school and gallery seeks board members Contemporary School of the Arts & Gallery Inc. is seeking community members to participate in the art class programming and gallery activities by volunteering on its advisory board. A term of service is one year. Activities of the board include fundraising, writing grants and serving on a jazz concert committee. The annual meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 9, at the gallery, 4 W. Franklin St., Hagerstown. For information, call 301-791-6191 or e-mail ronlytle3@netzero.

New officers were elected during the fall meeting of the University System of Maryland at Hagerstown (USMH) Advisory Board. John League moved up from his position as vice-chair to accept the position of chair. He replaces Jim Piern. Gaye McGovern was elected to fill the vice-chair position. During the meeting, USMH Executive Director C. David Warner, Ed.D., gave board members a tour of the newly equipped nursing labs and introduced them to the 16 students enrolled in Towson University's nursing program at USMH.

Editor's note - There are a lot of people you see around town that you recognize, but don't know anything about. People like... Carrol Lourie Age - 59. Occupation - Part-time consultant with Washington County Health Department. Hometown - Born and raised in Punxsatawney, Pa., until age 12; lived in Uniontown, Pa., until after college. Where would you see Lourie? - For four years, Lourie has served as president of the Board of Directors for REACH Caregivers.