Single Parent

Tri-State area Southern Baptist ministers generally endorsed the view laid out at their national convention this week that marriage refers to a relationship between a man and a woman. --cont from front page-- "Amen. Definitely," said the Rev. Richard Gross, pastor of the Virginia Avenue Baptist Church in Halfway. The 18th Article of The Baptist Faith and Message, which was approved on Tuesday at the national convention in Salt Lake City, defines marriage as "the uniting of one man and one woman in covenant commitment for a lifetime.

HAGERSTOWN - With a teaching repertoire that includes chemistry, physical science, algebra and English, Linda Seibert said she sees some students up to three times a day in her classroom at St. Maria Goretti High School. "It's a lot like teaching in a one-room school sometimes," she said. Seibert recently was named Goretti Teacher of the Year for the Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore and was honored with a plaque at a March 28 dinner. "I was nominated by the administration, my colleagues, as well as parents and students," Seibert said.

SMITHSBURG - Several years ago, Brian and Renee Goodwin learned something about themselves. First, they discovered they could master construction skills. But more importantly, they found they could use those skills to help change lives. Over the past few years, the Goodwins have volunteered with fellow employees at Citi to help build houses for Habitat for Humanity of Washington County. Saturday morning, they volunteered again. "This is important to us," Renee Goodwin said.

Winding down rural Washington County roads in a pack of about 75 motorcyclists Saturday afternoon, Biking Big for Littles participant Michelle Stouffer of Williamsport knew firsthand the good cause she was helping to support. That's because when Stouffer heard that Big Brothers Big Sisters of Washington County was planning a motorcycle ride and raffle, she signed up not only to help lead the event, but to become a "big sister," or a volunteer mentor to a child in the community.

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - The Miss Eastern Panhandle and Miss Mountain State Scholarship Pageants will be held at 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 26, at the Apollo Civic Theatre in Martinsburg. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. Admission is $8 per person and all proceeds benefit the scholarship fund. Miss West Virginia Janna Kerns will host the pageant and perform throughout the evening. Local dancers will be featured throughout the show and with contestants. The opening number is "Get This Party Started" by Pink and will feature the dancers, Miss West Virginia, reigning Miss Mountain State Jessica Stroech and the contestants.

A dedication ceremony for the first Habitat for Humanity home built in Morgan County was held Saturday morning at Union Chapel on U.S. 522 South. The road to the new house on Birch Grove Lane was too icy for travel, said Ashley Laton, executive director of Habitat for Humanity of the Eastern Panhandle. Habitat board member Judith Boykin said the 20 people who attended the ceremony were all involved in the project. An approximately 1.5-acre lot on Birch Grove Lane was purchased by Habitat at a reduced cost, but some lots are donated, she said.

For the past few months, I feel like I live in an acting studio. My daughter's favorite hobby of late is acting out scenes from her favorite books, TV shows, or devising her own scenarios that involve these best-loved characters. We portray numerous characters. It's all up to her. We perform as most everyone who appears on "Dora the Explorer," "Caillou," "Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood" and "The Berenstain Bears," to name a few. Sometimes, it is as simple as a role reversal, where my daughter plays Mommy and I must be the young child.

Rattling off the list of autographs he received during a recent trip to Washington, D.C., 10-year-old Loderique Gordon named a who's who: LeBron, Denzel Washington, Ashanti, Ron Howard and Roxanne. As impressed and excited as he was to meet National Basketball Association superstar LeBron James and Oscar-winning actor Denzel Washington, it was a talk about helping others by Roxanne Spillett, president of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, that led Loderique and Naquan Chung to discuss the possibilities on the ride home.

Mike Ramsey and Harold French have never met, but they probably know all about each other. They both want to leave a mark on the world, but neither seems worried about becoming famous. Fame pales in comparison to being known as a great father. That makes today - Father's Day - special to both men. The holiday serves as a national reminder about a bigger job each has taken on readily and seriously. "The greatest responsibility for a man to have if he has kids is to raise them the right way," said Ramsey, manager of the Hagerstown Suns.

There just never seems to be enough hours in the day! If everyone's day has 24 hours, why does it seem like other people have more time? This is a common problem, especially in single-parent families and families in which both parents are employed. The reality is that everyone has the same amount. Developing time-management skills can help you meet the demand of both work and family, freeing up some time for activities and interests. Learning to budget time is similar to learning to budget money.