Slate

Improvements are on the horizon for two Hagerstown parks. The Hagerstown City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a design contract to begin the restoration of the lake at Pangborn Park and a section of the adjacent Hamilton Run stream. The council also approved a paving project at Hellane Park. Pangborn Park's artificial lake, installed in the late 1930s by the city Public Works Administration, will be improved, including dredging of the lake bed, and aesthetic and environmental enhancements, City Engineer Rodney Tissue said.

The Relay For Life of Washington County 2012 kick off will be from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 29, at Leitersburg Cinemas, 20145 Leitersburg Pike, Hagerstown. A free movie will be shown and participants can information about this year's Relay For Life of Washington County event. The theme is 1970s, so dress in your grooviest outfit for the costume contest. Admission is free. Snacks and drinks will be available for purchase. RSVP to Cathy Thomas at 301-733-8272 no later than Wednesday, Jan. 25, to reserve a seat.

The Washington County Commission on Aging will hold its third local Maryland Senior Idol Contest Saturday, Feb. 18, at 2 p.m. at Broadfording Church of the Brethren Fellowship at 14010 Greencastle Pike in Hagerstown. People ages 60 and older may enter the contest. The deadline for applications is Friday. The winner and runner-up will represent Washington County at the statewide contest April 4 at the Bowie (Md.) Center for the Performing Arts. For more information, call 301-790-0275, ext. 205.

The Food Lion under construction within view of the Interstate 81 exit for Marlowe and Falling Waters, W.Va., is slated to open by the end of the year, a spokesman for the supermarket chain said last week. The 35,000-square-foot store off Williamsport Pike (U.S. 11) is the anchor to the Riverside Marketplace shopping center and is Food Lion's ninth location in the Eastern Panhandle. "We look forward to serving the Falling Waters community, and providing low prices to local customers," Food Lion spokesman Benny L. Smith said.

A Civil War Tour with Tom Clemens and Dennis Frye will be from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5, at  Hagerstown Community College, 11400 Robinwood Drive, Hagerstown. The “1861 Civil War Tour” will guide participants to important Civil War sites in Maryland and West Virginia, including Maryland Heights; Harpers Ferry, W.Va.; Falling Waters, W.Va.; Shepherdstown, W.Va.; Ferry Hill; Williamsport; Dam 5 on the Potomac River; and parts of the Chesapeake and Ohio (C&O) Canal.

Hagerstown Community College will hold a launch party for the most recent publication of The Hedge Apple, the college's literary arts magazine, on Tuesday, Oct. 18, at 6 p.m. at HCC's student center. The Hedge Apple was founded in 1999 by Askold Skalsky, former professor of English and foreign languages at HCC. The magazine is published once a year by the students and faculty of HCC and features poetry, short fiction, and artwork by HCC students, faculty, staff and alumni. The reception will begin with prose, poetry and fiction readings by recent Hedge Apple contributors.

The community is invited to Porch Pickin' Bluegrass Saturday, Oct. 22, from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park Hancock Visitors Center, 439 E. Main St. in Hancock. The event is free and open to the public. The visitors center, also known as the Bowles House, is open Memorial Day weekend through Oct. 30, Friday to Tuesday, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The historic house features a variety of videos, photographs and exhibits that interpret the stories of families who lived and worked along the C&O Canal near Hancock.

Two paving projects slated to begin tonight and Monday night will cause delays on Eagle School Road and East Moler Avenue in the Martinsburg area, the West Virginia Division of Highways announced this week. The removal of existing pavement from than a half mile of Eagle School Road, beginning at the intersection of U.S. 11, is scheduled to begin today at 8 p.m. and continue until Monday at 6 a.m., according to DOH officials. The removal of existing pavement might resume again Monday night, if necessary.

The Potomac Valley Audubon Society will sponsor an overnight  birding trip to the Dolly Sods Wilderness Area of Monongahela National Forest on Saturday, Sept. 10. The trip is free and open to anyone with an interest, regardless of their birding skills. Participants must furnish their own transportation and arrange for their own accommodations. The trip will be led by local birding expert Matt Orsie. It will include a morning of birding focused on fall warblers, a visit to the Allegheny Front Migration Observatory to view bird banding in progress, and afternoon hawk watching.

SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. - Shepherd University will sponsor an open meeting for the community to hear a presentation about the pedestrian underpass planned for W.Va. 480 on Wednesday, Aug. 3 at 7 p.m. in Reynolds Hall. Engineering designers for Alpha Associates will present the project design and anticipated timeline. University personnel will be available to answer questions about the project. The pedestrian underpass is slated to be constructed at the intersection of W.Va. 480 and West Campus Drive.