Hagerstown

The winner of the $100,000 grand prize at Saturday's Bonanza Extravaganza at Hagerstown Speedway has asked that his name not be released, according to John Murray, president of the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 1605. Murray did say Sunday that the winner is a man from Alexandria, Va. The winner was not present when the winning ticket was announced, he said. There were plenty of other winners, with more than 60 people walking away with cash prizes from $1,000 to $15,000, Murray said.

ThompsonGas recentlly announced the acquisition of a Virginia propane business that will increase its annual capacity by approximately 1.5 million gallons. The Hagerstown propane service provider purchased the assets of Campbell's Bottled Gas Inc. and Campbell EasiGas Inc. of Manassas, Va., the company said in a news release last week. It was the 26th acquisition by ThompsonGas since it was founded in 1946 in Boonsboro, the release said. The Campbell companies serve approximately 1,350 bulk customers with 2,000 propane cylinder racks dispensing 20-pound grill cylinders, President J. Randall Thompson said in a May 6 email.

Sports are kind of misunderstood. They aren't exactly recognized for the philosophical, logical thinking it takes to play. Usually, the first thing that comes to mind when the word “athlete” is mentioned is “dumb jocks” … at least to some. To be really honest, all sports have their own chess-like strategy. It's just a different kind of thinking and discipline applied in different manners. Game plans are like battle plans. Games, in a way, are like term papers.

A deputy used a stun gun on a man Sunday morning after the man acted wildly when approached by police, who were responding to a call about a suspicious person on Basore Drive, Washington County Sheriff's Office officials said. Sheriff Douglas W. Mullendore said the man appeared to have mental issues and deputies didn't know if he was “coming off some drugs.” “Apparently he was going wild,” Mullendore said. A stun gun was used once on the man, who was taken to Meritus Medical Center on an emergency petition for the psychiatric issue, Mullendore said.

Brown LeFevre Downey, 89, died Friday, May 10, 2013, in Hagerstown. The family will receive friends Tuesday from 6 to 8 p.m. at Brown Funeral Home, Martinsburg, W.Va. Graveside services with military honors will be Wednesday at 11 a.m. at Rosedale Cemetery, Martinsburg.

Samuel Bender Baker, 91, of Hagerstown, Md., passed away Friday, May 10, 2013, at his daughter's home. Born Tuesday, Feb. 28, 1922, in Security, Md., he was the son of the late Samuel Evers Baker Sr. and Florence Elizabeth Fisher Baker. He retired from the Western Maryland Railway. He was a World War II veteran and was of the Catholic faith. He is survived by his daughter, Brenda Joyce Hull and her fiancé, Steven Kramer, of Hagerstown; son, Thomas Dean Baker of Hagerstown; brothers, Allan Baker of Hagerstown and George Baker of Williamsport, Md.; numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.

The Hagerstown Police Department accepted four guns Saturday as part of Attorney General Doug Gansler's first statewide Gun Turn-In Day. Patrolman Kevin Brashears said residents turned in two handguns, a rifle and a pellet gun during the event, which was held locally from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Hagerstown Police Department. Brashears said the guns would be stored in gun lockers at police headquarters for the time being. The Maryland Attorney General's Office sponsored the event to give people a chance to safely dispose of any unwanted firearms.

Stanley Plumly has received many awards and published many books in his long career in poetry. And for the past four years, the University of Maryland, College Park English professor has been Maryland's poet laureate. But this particular honor doesn't go to his head. “I guess it's an honor. I was talked into it,” Plumly said by phone from his office in College Park, Md. “The governor (Martin O'Malley) is very good. He's very literate. And he loves to quote poems. He knows a lot of old Irish poems.

Twenty-five pairs competed in an International Fund game Wednesday, May 8, during a meeting of the Hagerstown Bridge Club. North-South winners in Flight A were: first place, Dennis Wick and Ronald Orr with a 60.5-percent game; second place, Melva Urban and Robert Robey with 60.4 percent; third place, Nancy Burger and Alan Brown; fourth place, Deborah Kiser and Rick Elbo; and fifth place, Stephany East and William Griever. East-West winners in Flight A were: first place, Madeline and Bill Davis with 61.3 percent; second place, Barbara Beard and Myrna Kinman with 60.3- percent; third place, Candy Greenway and Edward Conner; fourth place, Barbara Shaw and Richard Taylor; and fifth place, Emma Eaton and Ronald Clawson.

Harold Douglas "Doug" Parker, 60, of Hagerstown, died Friday, May 10, 2013, at Meritus Medical Center in Hagerstown. Services will be private. Burial will be at Sunset Memorial Park. Arrangements are by Adams Family Funeral Home, Cumberland, Md.