Charities

o Read more Paula Green Shupp columns at washingtoncountyliving.com Way to go, Conococheague LL Congratulations to Conococheague Little League. Conococheague's 11-12 All Stars won the Maryland District 1 Little League tournament for the first time since 1974. They will advance to the Maryland State Tournament in Waldorf, Md. They are managed by Mike Iseminger. Conococheague's 9-10 All Stars have advanced to the third round in the state tournament in Salisbury, Md. Their manager is Mick Byers; their coach is Johnny Byers.

gregs@herald-mail.com The director of a company that has been soliciting donations in Washington County was ordered by the Federal Trade Commission in May not to telemarket for six charities she ran, a Hagerstown City Police detective said Friday. County residents have been contacted by solicitors for the Firefighters Assistance Fund, which is run by Tamara Bell, of Anaheim, Calif., Det. Tammy Jurado said. Jurado said another company run by Bell, the American Veterans' Council, may also be soliciting donations in the county.

Last week's question: The owner of a Smithsburg-area liquor store recently said the store sold a winning Mega Millions ticket worth $250,000. If you won, what would you do with your winnings? o Pay off my bills and my mortgage. - 77 votes (57 percent) o Help family members, including my children, who are having financial difficulties. - 37 votes (27 percent) o Contribute to my church or my favorite charity. - 11 votes (8 percent) o Assist with a local nonprofit, such as Holly Place, which is having problems making ends meet.

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. - Heirs of the late Cora I. Grove have filed a lawsuit with the Franklin County Orphan's Court challenging the will she signed the day before her death and asking the court to accept an earlier will. The suit claims the 87-year-old widow of the late businessman John L. Grove was terminally ill, heavily sedated and not competent when she signed a will June 3, 2005, reducing by $1.25 million the bequests to heirs and charities made in a will Jan. 19, 2005. The suit asks that the earlier will be accepted for probate and that $350,000 in commissions paid to the executors, attorney Martha B. Walker and Patricia Carbaugh, be repaid to the estate, as well as $125,000 paid to the law firm of Barley, Snyder, where Walker formerly worked, for administering the estate.

ANNAPOLIS - The Washington County legislative delegation voted Wednesday to cut charities' percentage of tip jar gambling profits in order to reduce the county's $52.3 million water and sewer debt. cont. from front page Lawmakers also agreed to other changes to the gambling law, including one designed to offset the charitable loss by promoting more gambling at bars. The delegation still has to vote on two other pieces of a broad legislative package to be submitted to the Maryland General Assembly.

CHAMBERSBURG, PA. - A judge has ruled that an appeal by heirs of the will of the late Cora I. Grove was filed too late and that they failed to show it was fraudulent when admitted for probate in 2005. Senior Judge Paul Millin filed the opinion with the Franklin County Clerk of Courts Office on Friday. He dismissed the appeal, writing that it was filed after the statute of limitations expired and failed to demonstrate "facts which would constitute a forgery, likewise there are not facts alleged that would constitute a fraud" on the Franklin County Register of Wills.

Editor's note - Please be as brief as possible when calling Mail Call, The Daily Mail's reader call-in line. Calls should be limited to 30 seconds. Mail Call is not staffed on weekends or holidays so it is best to call Mail Call during the week. The Mail Call number is 301-791-6236. You are welcome to leave a recorded message on any subject, but some calls will be screened out. You must include your town or county of residence. Here are some of the calls we have received lately: "I want to thank Bon-Ton for sponsoring the 'Care to Share' event so that charities could earn donations.

National Night Out was a great success To the editor: More than 900 people filled Hagerstown's Fairgrounds Park on Tuesday, Aug. 5, for the National Night Out event. All who attended enjoyed lots of entertainment, safety demonstrations and free refreshments. Collaborating sponsors were C SAFE, Target, the City of Hagerstown, the Hagerstown Housing Authority and the Memorial Recreation Center. I want to thank everyone who helped make the night a huge success, especially those who prayed with me for good weather in spite of the forecast.

John Davidson of Fayetteville, Pa., is the winner of a Hagerstown Suns promotion in which a funeral package worth an estimated $5,500 to $6,000 was awarded to the writer of the best essay planning his own funeral. The funeral package was given away by Gerald N. Minnich Funeral Home, which sponsored the promotion with the Suns. Here is Davidson's winning essay: By JOHN DAVIDSON Ashes to ashes, dust to dust ... if the taxman don't get you, the undertaker must. Death is an inevitable part of all our lives.