Special Olympics

Participants in the Cops and Lobsters program hope to raise hundreds of dollars today when Washington County Sheriff Charles Mades and some of his officers take time out from their duties to serve as celebrity hosts and waiters at the Red Lobster restaurant. From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., customers will be encouraged to make donation "tips" to benefit the Special Olympics. The Cops and Lobsters program is coordinated annually with Red Lobster personnel at the Wesel Boulevard restaurant.

Special Olympics volunteer to carry torch Editor's Note: This is one in a series of occasional features highlighting Tri-State area residents selected to carry the Olympic Torch on Dec. 20 on a course through Martinsburg, W.Va. More than 20 local residents from Maryland, West Virginia and Pennsylvania have been selected. By ANDREW SCHOTZ / andrews@herald-mail.com Amid perpetual wet, white weather on Kodiak Island, Alaska, the Tolands tried to stay sane. "One of the things about Kodiak: You had to fill your free time with something or you'd go nuts," Lin Toland said.

Police to serve Special Olympics "Cops and Lobsters" is hoping to raise hundreds of dollars on April 19 when Washington County Sheriff Charles Mades and some of his officers take time out from their duties to serve as celebrity hosts and waiters at the Red Lobster restaurant. During a three-hour span from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., customers will be encouraged to make donation "tips" to benefit the Special Olympics. The Cops and Lobsters program is coordinated annually with Red Lobster personnel at the Wesel Boulevard restaurant.

When 50 police torch runners entered Hagerstown's Public Square at noon Wednesday, supporters were there to cheer them on. Among them was Hagerstown City Police Chief Arthur Smith, who is familiar with the goal of the 15th annual Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics. "My wife teaches special education," Smith said. "We don't always realize what these children go through in their lives. " Money and awareness are raised by the torch run, which snakes across Maryland until it reaches College Park on Friday.

Carrying in the torch to launch the 27th annual Washington County Special Olympic Games was "cool" for Jonathan Martin, but he said the games are much more. "The Special Olympics is a training-for-life thing," said Martin, while waiting to compete in the long jump, shot put and 100-meter dash. "It's a good place to be and it helps keep me active. When I'm 30 or 40, I'll still be in good shape," he said. Martin, 28, was one of 65 athletes competing Saturday at the Athletic Recreation & Community Center at Hagerstown Community College.

By KATE COLEMAN / Staff Writer Michael Peterson, the man country music fans selected as Male Star of Tomorrow at the 1999 TNN Music City News Awards, played football and majored in psychology at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Wash. [cont. from lifestyle ] Then he spent 12 years as a motivational speaker in high schools. "I figured it was a place for me to do what I love - move people," he said in a phone conversation from somewhere in Ohio, with a little more sleep in his voice than you hear on his recordings.

BOONSBORO - World class bowler Nathan Needy brought back two bronze medals from the 1999 Special Olympics that ended Sunday in Raleigh, N.C. He won the medals in the mixed doubles and male doubles tournaments. Needy, 20, of Boonsboro, said he was pleased to have performed so well in his first international competition. Fourteen members of the athlete's family made the trip from Washington County to North Carolina for the games that began June 26. They showed their support by waving signs and cheering at each tournament, said his mother, Kim Needy.

photo: YVETTE MAY / staff photographer Heat and humidity didn't discourage area law enforcement and correctional officers from participating in the 1999 Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics on Wednesday. "It was a good run for a good cause," said Capt. Robert Hart, interim Hagerstown Police Chief, who ran about a mile into the Hagerstown Public Square. Washington County's leg in the 14th annual event began at 7:30 a.m. in Hancock. The distance covered by the runners varied, depending on their fitness and fortitude.

By KIMBERLY YAKOWSKI / Staff Writer photo: JOE CROCETTA / staff photographer This week, Lt. Bruce Smith will be in training for an aquatic event unlike any Mark Spitz ever competed in. [cont. from front page ] Cold baths, cold drinks and cold showers will be part of his regimen as he prepares to strip down to his swimsuit and take an icy dip into the Chesapeake Bay for charity at 2 p.m. on Jan. 16. Smith will be one of about 1,000 hardy souls participating in the Third Annual Polar Bear Plunge at Sandy Point State Park.

Washington County Sheriff Charles Mades and six of his officers took time out from their duties March 4 to serve as celebrity hosts and waiters at the Red Lobster restaurant - all in the name of charity. "We raised $363.83 for the Special Olympics," Mades said. The money came during a three-hour span when customers were encouraged to make donation "tips" to benefit the cause. The Cops and Lobsters program was coordinated with Red Lobster personnel at the Wesel Boulevard restaurant.