Trade

BALTIMORE (AP) -- The Chicago Cubs finally lost patience with former prized prospect Felix Pie, trading the outfielder to the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday for left-hander Garrett Olson and minor league pitcher Henry Williamson. The 23-year-old Pie hit .241 in 43 games with the Cubs last season after batting .287 in 85 games with Triple-A Iowa. He was chosen the top player in Chicago's minor league system by Baseball America in 2007 and 2006, and appeared in the Major League Futures Games for the World team from 2003 through 2005.

RANSON, W.Va. -- Frank McCluskey on Thursday clued in about 125 people on what it was like to be a firefighter in New York City the day of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. McCluskey, provost and executive vice president of American Public University in Charles Town, was a volunteer fire chief in suburban New York who responded to the World Trade Center. At a 9/11 remembrance at Independent Fire Co. along Fairfax Boulevard, McCluskey recalled how emergency radio frequencies were jammed and how cell phone networks were overwhelmed.

SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. - While they might never have their own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the Federal Little League 11-12 All-Stars are learning what it's like to be celebrities. At the Little League World Series, all the players are stars. "It's been pretty cool because all these little kids will come up to you and ask for their autograph," said Josh Moats. "It's been awesome. When I was a little kid, I'd always dream of coming up and playing here, and my dream has come true.

Pauline Mentzer puts her more than 50 years of food-service experience to work as a permanent substitute food-service assistant at E. Russell Hicks Middle School and the four satellite schools it serves. "Whenever they need me, I move around," Mentzer said. Mentzer, who turned 82 on May 25, was surprised at work with a birthday cake, balloons, photograph with the principal and a visit by Dave Reeder, director of middle school education for Washington County Public Schools.

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. -- Jefferson County's budget process grew tense again Wednesday when Jefferson County Commission President Frances Morgan and Jefferson County Sheriff Everett "Ed" Boober exchanged barbs over funding for the sheriff's department. The commissioners have been struggling to come up with a balanced budget for the upcoming fiscal year after realizing they were facing about a $2 million funding shortfall. The commissioners have looked at various cost-cutting scenarios, one of which was cutting funding to all county departments, elected officials and outside agencies by five percent.

HAGERSTOWN - If the blackboards at the Barr Construction Institute seem a little low for a class of carpentry students, think of it as a tribute to adaptive reuse of space. Before the institute bought the 530 N. Locust St. building in 2005, it served as a day-care center, a private Christian academy and an elementary school, speakers said Monday at an open house for the renovated building. Several years and more than $2 million later, the building is home to the institute's eight construction trade education programs, as well as the offices of the Cumberland Valley Chapter of Associated Builders and Contractors, which runs the institute, said Joan Warner, ABC chapter president.

HAGERSTOWN - It was easy to see why they put caution tape around construction sites. Carpentry is not a spectator sport. Saw dust flew and hammers pounded as a room full of apprentices worked to complete a project in about six hours. Forget the distractions, including judges watching their every move. These men were on a mission. About 35 Tri-State-area apprentices competed to be the best in their trade Saturday during the 2008 skills competition at the Barr Construction Institute on North Locust Street in Hagerstown.

HAGERSTOWN -- It was easy to see why they put caution tape around construction sites. Carpentry is not a spectator sport. Saw dust flew and hammers pounded as a room full of apprentices worked to complete a project in about six hours. Forget the distractions, including judges watching their every move. These men were on a mission. About 35 Tri-State-area apprentices competed to be the best in their trade Saturday during the 2008 skills competition at the Barr Construction Institute on North Locust Street in Hagerstown.

Leo Komorowski is one of those people who tirelessly volunteers behind the scenes. A member of St. Ann's Catholic Church for 31 years, many fellow members don't even realize how much time Komorowski has devoted to keeping things in working order. "He's the absolute Mr. Fix-It," said Joan Komorowski, his wife of 30 years. Leo Komorowski, 78, has built a lot of things around the church, sung on the choir for years, been a eucharistic minister and a sacristan. "He's kind of a jack-of-all-trades," said the Rev. Doug Kenney, pastor at St. Ann's, off Oak Hill Avenue behind Long Meadow Shopping Center.

Last year proved to be one for the ages for the Clear Spring boys soccer team. Held to one win in 2005, the Blazers turned it around in 2006, going 13-5 and winning the Class 1A West title to reach the state semifinals for the first time since 1993. "They far exceeded their goals last year and it set them up for this year," said Blazers coach Mark Myers, who is starting his second stint as Clear Spring's leader, the first lasting from 1987 to 1991. "They're a lot more mature and solid.