Special Olympics

HAGERSTOWN -- Special Olympian Dolly Clay said Wednesday's cold and rainy weather took some of the fun out of the 25th annual Maryland Torch Run. The statewide event is staged by law enforcement agencies to raise money for the Special Olympics of Maryland. Runners began locally at 7:30 a.m. in Hancock and headed east on U.S. 40 until they finished around 3 p.m. at the Frederick County line. Clay and many of the participants didn't run the entire route. They ran a few blocks as the procession came through Hagerstown, stopping at the Square to talk to each other about participating in the 2010 Special Olympics Summer Games this weekend in Towson, Md. "Our motto is 'Let me win, but if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt,'" said Clay 42. "That's what we think about when we're in the Games.

View all of the photos for purchase! View the Special Olympics slideshow CHAMBERSBURG, PA. -- At the Franklin Learning Center, it doesn't matter if you can throw a flying disc 18 inches or 18 feet. Students participating in the Special Olympics and Field Day event on Tuesday were hugged, cheered and high-fived no matter how fast they ran, how high they jumped or how far they threw. Alexa Ochoa, 15, said it's good to cheer on friends at Field Day. She enjoyed running, and throwing the flying discs and balls.

FEB. 8, 1961-SEPT. 12, 2009 Melody Fern Gower, born Feb. 8, 1961, in Hagerstown, Md., passed away to be with her savior on Sept. 12, 2009, after a sudden and brief illness. The beloved and special daughter of Kathleen and Fred Horst, and the late Harry William Gower. Melody was a special child of God born with Down syndrome. She would maintain the innocence and love of a child throughout her lifetime. She was a member of Salem Reformed Church and a past member of Paramount Church, where during her youth, she was a founding member of the God's Angels Sunday School Class for children with special needs.

HAGERSTOWN -- Police officers running through town Wednesday were not chasing bad guys, but rather showing their support for about 40 local athletes who will compete this weekend in the Maryland Special Olympics State Games at Towson University. Eight Special Olympians and officers from the Maryland State Police, the Hagerstown Police Department and the Washington County Sheriff's Department made their way into Public Square at noon. "It's to show our support, let them know we do care," Maryland State Police Sgt. Mike Fluharty said.

Goretti news The annual St. Maria Goretti High School sports banquet is today. It will be held in the Gael Center gymnasium, starting at 5:45 p.m. Dinner will be served at 6:15 p.m. The senior farewell Mass will be Tuesday at 9 a.m. at St. Ann's Catholic Church, off Oak Hill Avenue in Hagerstown. TOPS 77 On May 5, TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) Chapter 77 members went to Reeders Nursing Home and played bingo with the residents. The group supplied prizes and snacks for the residents.

Andrew P. Hummer, 41 FEB. 24, 1968-APRIL 8, 2009 FREDERICK, Md. - Mr. Andrew "Andy" Paul Hummer, age 41, of Frederick, died at Frederick Memorial Hospital on April 8, 2009. Born on Feb. 24, 1968, in Hagerstown, he was the son of Paul J. Hummer Jr. and the late Janice E. Hummer. Andy was a graduate of Rock Creek School, and during his school years he participated in local and state Special Olympics swimming, weightlifting and duckpin bowling. He rode horses for 30 years in therapeutic riding programs.

As a more formal introduction than provided by The Herald-Mail, I would like to offer a brief background to the citizens who will be heading to the election polls this spring to select the next mayor and council to serve the City of Hagerstown. My name is Forrest Easton. My wife and I have called Hagerstown home since graduating from college more than 10 years ago. We met through our employment at the Shriver Center's Americorp Choice Program, a local service organization created to improve the lives of "at risk" youth.

The Washington County Special Olympics tenpin bowling league has been operating for more than 20 years. League members bowl every Saturday morning from mid-September through mid-April at Southside Bowl on Virginia Avenue in Halway. The league started with only a handful of athletes and several coaches. It now operates with more than 40 athletes, 10 coaches and four substitute coaches. About five years ago, the coaches got together and collected funds from families, coaches and support staff to organize an annual Christmas party for all of the athletes.

Five months after the death of its swim team coach, St. Maria Goretti High School has named a successor and kept the program in the hands of the Meinelschmidt family. Cort Meinelschmidt, 29, younger brother of Erik Meinelschmidt, who coached the team for three seasons before his death in May, has been chosen to lead the Gaels, according to a press release from the school. Cort Meinelschmidt, once a nationally ranked swimmer, spends time every spring coaching the Special Olympics swim team for Washington County.

HAGERSTOWN -- Local athletes are participating in a torch run leading up to the Special Olympics Maryland Summer Games 2008 at Towson University this weekend. The Maryland Torch Run Relay involves more than 2,000 law enforcement officers from around the state who take part in a 600-mile, one-week torch relay to pass the Special Olympics "Flame of Hope" across Maryland, according to the Special Olympics Web site - www.somd.org. About 1,175 athletes are expected to compete in the three-day event, according to the Web site.