Control

SMITHSBURG -- Smithsburg was in control throughout a 25-10, 25-11, 25-18 sweep of Northern Garrett on Thursday night in the first round of the Maryland Class 1A West volleyball playoffs. Smithsburg (10-5) advances to the quarterfinals to play at No. 3-seed Clear Spring on Monday night at 7. "We didn't know what Northern Garrett was going to bring tonight," Smithsburg coach Rachel Brashear said. "I told my girls that we couldn't control what goes on in the other side of the court, but we could control what goes on in our side of the court.

To the editor:/ It seems to be an epidemic of grand proportions on the mountain. I have watched over the last year - so many trees wiped out so that homebuilders can make a quick profit. When will this destruction end? Shannondale, W.Va., used to be such a nice peaceful area, full of birds and other wildlife. Now it is becoming a crowded, overbuilt hodgepodge of vinyl-sided boxes. I am for property rights, but to totally wipe out a forest is criminal. Has there been any environmental study on the effect of this stripping of the mountain?

A car ended up in the C&O Canal on Monday night after the driver lost control of the vehicle, said Lt. Tom Newton, with the Washington County Sheriff's Office. Emergency crews checked out the car's driver, but the driver was not being taken to the hospital, emergency officials said. The one-vehicle accident in the 17100 block of Canal Road, which runs along the C&O Canal and Potomac River, was reported at 8:12 p.m. Monday, a 911 supervisor said. That stretch of Canal Road is about 1 3/4 mile south of the Potomac River bridge to Shepherdstown, W.Va.

In an unpredictable world, control is at a premium. We try to control our weight, our budgets and our time in an effort to find a comfortable space in which to dwell. "We all want to predict what's going to happen in our world," says Larry Stouter, a licensed, clinical professional counselor at Catoctin Counseling Center in Hagerstown and Frederick, Md. [cont. from lifestyle ] For some, ruling their own domain isn't enough. They need to dominate others' lives as well.

If elected to the Washington County Board of Education, Teresa Spruill said she would: · Work to retain teachers by giving them more control of their classrooms and more respect from school administration. · Pressure the Washington County government to control the amount of growth, limiting how many houses and apartments can be built each year. · Get more citizens active in the schools by encouraging volunteerism both from corporations and individuals. The more often people are in the schools the more they will support the push for funding for capital improvements, she said.

BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. - A meeting with Gov. Joe Manchin did little to sway the opinions of two Morgan County Commission members on having the county-owned War Memorial Hospital join forces with WVU Hospitals-East, Commissioner Bob Ford said Thursday. Manchin met with Morgan County Commissioners at Eastern W.Va. Regional Airport in Martinsburg, W.Va., on Wednesday to discuss the future of War Memorial Hospital. Ford said Manchin requested the meeting to talk with Commission President Glen Stotler and Commissioner Tommy Swaim, who are against War Memorial becoming part of WVU Hospitals-East, a matter which was discussed earlier this month at a commission meeting.

SMITHSBURG - The Smithsburg boys soccer team had a chance to pick up an MVAL Antietam victory from Williamsport on Thursday, and the Leopards took control. Smithsburg built a 3-0 lead and then held off the Wildcats for a 3-2 win. "Our game is a possession game and we were able to control the ball," Smithsburg coach Paul Newman said. Smithsburg (6-5, 4-1) broke a scoreless tie with eight minutes remaining in the first half when David Kurz scored on a goal through the middle on an assist by Josh Edwards.

BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. - The coordinator of the Purple Loosestrife Task Force told the Bath Town Council that the invasive plant is about "two-thirds" under control. Gale Foulds said the plant was discovered along Warm Springs Run in 2004, and it can spread rapidly along streams and into wetlands and can overwhelm the natural ecosystem. "The seeds last about 30 years," she said. The plant is a threat to Harperella, an endangered plant found along stream banks, she said.

HAGERSTOWN - The Hagerstown City Council on Tuesday unofficially voted to maintain the city's interest in a piece of land that sits near the American Legion. The 400-foot stretch of land extends from the end of Country Club Road toward the American Legion and separates lots that are owned by developer Jerry Spessard. In the past, Spessard has asked the city to abandon the land, or quitclaim it, so he could split the property down the middle and add it to his lots. Originally, a road was supposed to have been built on the land to connect Country Club Road to Woodland Way, City Comprehensive Planner Stuart Bass said last month.

Three first-half goals were all Maret really needed Tuesday against Saint James, but one more in the second half sealed the game for the Frogs in a 4-0 victory over the Saints. Maret wasted little time getting on the scoreboard as Matt Bainum netted the game's first goal in the fifth minute off an Adam Zeitler assist. From that point, the Frogs took control of the clock by maintaining posession of the ball for much of the contest. “We try and keep possession,” Maret coach Monhan Telfer said.

Joe Hartt spent 13 years of his life flying missionaries and supplies in and out of the jungles of Zaire as a bush pilot. On Saturday, Hartt, 58, of State Line, Pa., stayed in touch with his interest in aircraft on the decidedly tamer landscape of a field off Old Forge Road in Hagerstown. The Pegasus Radio Control Airplane Club hosted a show there to benefit the John R. Marsh Cancer Center. Hartt said that, ironically, he first became familiar with radio control - or RC - aircraft while in Zaire, which is now the Democratic Republic of Congo.

I recently wrote a column about the U.S. Constitution, and 750 words is not enough to explore the nuances of this ageless document. In my marketing class at Hagerstown Community College/Grace Academy (it's a dual credit class; students get both high school and college credit for the course), we were talking about the ethical and moral responsibilities of citizens in relation to marketing. However, talk turned to ethical and moral responsibilities of citizens when it comes to things like our rights and freedoms under the U.S. Constitution.

Two former and two current members of the Fairplay Volunteer Fire Department are asking a judge to take control of the fire company away from its executive committee, according to a lawsuit filed last month in Washington County Circuit Court. The lawsuit was filed by Fairplay fire company members Douglas Moyers and Stephanie Clipp, and former members Mark Kopp and Cory Lescalleet, court records show. The lawsuit asks the court to appoint one or more receivers to manage the Fairplay company and to protect its assets pending dissolution.

The Washington County State's Attorney's Office has filed paperwork with Washington County Circuit Court to try a Clear Spring man charged with receiving methamphetamine through the mail. Washington County Assistant State's Attorney Elizabeth A. Camuti-Carranza said Wednesday that the paperwork filed Tuesday formally transferred the case of Danny Lee Spears Sr., 49, of 13645 Dry Run Road in Clear Spring, from Washington County District Court to the Circuit Court. Spears was arrested on Feb. 22, the Washington County Narcotics Task Force said in court documents.

Two Boonsboro men were charged with possession with intent to distribute hallucinogenic mushrooms and marijuana after a Clevelandtown Road home was raided Tuesday by the Washington County Narcotics Task Force, according to Washington County District Court records. Wesley Andrew Kosco, 18, of 6108 Clevelandtown Road, and Christopher Robert Jordan, 21, of 9364 Childacrest Drive, were charged with maintaining a common nuisance for the distribution and administration of controlled dangerous substances, possession of marijuana, possession of controlled dangerous substances and possession of drug paraphernalia, court records said.

The Maryland House of Delegates approved a major gun control measure Wednesday banning assault weapons, requiring people who buy handguns to provide their fingerprints and limiting gun magazines to 10 bullets. The House voted 78-61 for the bill, one of Democratic Gov. Martin O'Malley's priorities for the legislative session scheduled to end Monday at midnight. All five Washington County delegates voted against the bill. Some called the bill a de facto ban on handguns, while one local legislator said the piece of legislation is one among several that he might try and put on a referendum in the 2014 elections.

The control tower at Hagerstown Regional Airport is included on a list of 149 regional airport control towers that will close because of federal budget cuts known as sequestration, the FAA announced Friday afternoon. “We got the word. We didn't like the word, but we got the word,” Hagerstown Regional Airport Director Phil Ridenour said Friday afternoon. A four-week, phased closure of the 149 control towers will begin on April 7, the FAA said, but Ridenour said it might be a week before he knows where in the order of closings Hagerstown Regional Airport will fall.

Nation, state lack competent leadership To the editor: Publishing Mr. Garrett's letter today (March 17) should be cause for those who have been criticizing your paper as being a bit left of center to pause. I have never met or spoken with Mr. Garrett, but his opinion so closely resembles mine I had to make note. It was a straightforward, and I believe, honest assessment of the goal of this president and his “advisers.”  Personally, I think Mr. Garrett should have sent it to those representatives of ours who are always searching for a camera to babble to, such as Mr. Van Hollen and the gang of three.  I see very little competence in this nation's, and this state's, leadership and problem-solving ability.

The Humane Society of Washington County will host the New England Academy of Animal Control Officers in order to bring an animal control officer and animal care technician academy to Hagerstown.  The animal control officer academy will be held Monday, May 6 through Friday, May 10. The animal care technician portion will be held Monday May 13 through Friday, May 17.  There is a separate euthanasia technician certification within the technician...

Jefferson County Democrat Stephen Skinner was one of only four members of the West Virginia House of Delegates - all Democrats - who voted against a bill calling for the repeal of local gun control laws. The bill passed the House 94-4 with two members absent. Democrats siding with Skinner in opposition were three delegates who represent the city of Charleston, W.Va. Gun control laws in Martinsburg, W.Va., which ban guns on city-owned property, are similar to those of three other West Virginia cities the bill would affect.