Dodgeball

The City of Hagerstown's Parks and Recreation Department is going through some changes, and officials say the goal is to provide more interactive activities for people locally. The recreation department is planning to have six adult sports leagues this spring, but the operating details of other attractions, such as the historic Jonathan Hager House and Railroad Museum at City Park are still being ironed out, newly hired Recreation Services Coordinator Andy Hoffman said last week. Hoffman said the recreation department will host leagues for outdoor basketball, kickball, dodgeball, four-man flag football, Ultimate Frisbee and touch football, starting with kickball on March 12. Sign-up dates have not yet been decided, he said, but games will be held in the various parks around the city.

According to MarylandWrestling.org , "51,682 people can't be wrong. " That's the number of times the official Web site of the Maryland State Wrestling Association was viewed on Dec. 12. Although it might be more like 51,679 people, since I probably was counted more than once that day. Not only am I largely responsible for this newspaper's prep wrestling coverage, I also am a big fan of the sport. But it hasn't always been that way. In my past life, I was one of the millions who seemingly are wrong about the oft-overlooked sport of wrestling.

Good luck trying to get Smithsburg coach Ray Shriver to choose the highlight of this past cross country season. "I don't know," Shriver said. "I could say sweeping the county titles, sweeping the Antietam, the girls winning the region, both my sons (Jake and Phil) making second-team all-conference. "I'd be hard-pressed to pick any one of those out because they're all pretty special to me. " For guiding the Leopards through such a special season, Shriver is The Herald-Mail's 2007 All-Area and All-Washington County Boys and Girls Cross Country Coach of the Year.

With the continued rise of childhood obesity in the United States, I think it's time to take a good, hard look at what the causes are for this scary trend. I'm going to ruffle some feathers with this one because I'm calling out the parties most responsible for the terrible disservice that our kids are being dealt in our increasingly inactive nation: parents. It would be easy to blame the schools for cutting back on physical education or the food industry for aggressively marketing crap food to young consumers.

by Ric Dugan / staff photographer Club director hopes to be an inspiration By CLYDE FORD Staff Writer, Charles Town CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - Tim Grove remembers how coaches influenced his life when he was growing up and playing on different sports teams. They gave encouraging words and pats on the back. Maybe without even realizing it, they helped shape his life and guide him. "All my life I've had coaches ... who inspired me. Hopefully I can pass on a helping hand or a listening ear like those coaches did for me," Grove said.

With childhood obesity on the rise in the United States, I think it's time to take a good, hard look at what the causes are for this scary trend. I'm going to rustle some feathers with this one because I'm calling out the parties most responsible for the terrible disservice that our kids are being dealt in our increasingly inactive nation: parents. It would be real easy to blame the schools for cutting back on physical education or the food industry for aggressively targeting young consumers to sell crap food.

WASHINGTON COUNTY - "Bad hours, low pay, but it's the greatest job ever. " It is a mantra that Matt Krantz, director of the Boys & Girls Club of Washington County's Pennsylvania Avenue office, has embraced since joining the club eight months ago, according to his boss, Buck Browning. "He really gets it," said Browning, the club's director of development. "This job isn't for everybody, and Matt really understands what it takes to do it. " Krantz, 27, oversees the day-to-day operations of the club at 805 Pennsylvania Ave. in Hagerstown, as well as the county's Hancock and Cascade clubs.

The seniors from Washington County's girls and boys high school soccer teams will gather one more time to play for a cause.  “Kicking it for a Cause” will be played Monday, Nov. 12. The girls will play at 6 p.m. and the boys will play at 7 p.m. at Clear Spring High School, giving the seniors one last time to play together. The game will feature the senior players, divided into East and West teams. The East teams will include South, Smithsburg, Boonsboro and Goretti high schools.  The West teams will consist of Clear Spring, Williamsport, North and Hancock players.   Proceeds from the game will benefit the Shirley B. Robison Memorial Fund, which helps improve the quality of life for local cancer patients and their families.  Tickets cost $4 for adults and $2 for children.

Editor's note: Chad Smith's computer ate his homework. Here is a column he wrote last May. Parents, start your kids right. With the continued rise of childhood obesity in the United States, I think it's time to take a good, hard look at what the causes are for this scary trend. I'm going to ruffle some feathers with this one because I'm calling out the parties most responsible for the terrible disservice that our kids are being dealt in our increasingly inactive nation: parents.

It's been decades since Tim Kemp attended the Boys' Club as a youth in Salisbury, Md., but the profound impact on his life remains. Kemp, 54, was the youngest of four boys raised by a single mother who worked long hours to make ends meet. He also had a younger sister. "If it wasn't for the Boys' Club, Lord knows what would have happened to me," said Kemp, who lives in Clear Spring. It was at the club, which Kemp attended before girls were invited to participate, that he found the father figure he needed in Benny Riddick, who continues to be an inspiration.