Tri State Area

Thumbs up to Lisa Key, circulation manager for Washington County Free Library, who was named the 2012 Outstanding Paraprofessional by the Maryland Library Association. Key will mark 35 years working for the library system July 1. Thumbs up to the several thousand students in the Tri-State area who have graduated or soon will graduate from high school. We wish them well as they enter the next chapter of their life, be it higher education, the military or the work force.

Washington County and all neighboring counties in Maryland, Pennsylvania and West Virginia are under a tornado watch, effective until 9 p.m. Friday, the National Weather Service announced at 1:30 p.m. The NWS forecast for Hagerstown  called for showers and a chance of thuderstorms Friday afternoon and evening. Some storms could be severe, with gusty winds and heavy rain, the weather service said. Portions of Frederick County, Md., were under a tornado warning from about 2:30 p.m. until 3 p.m. after a storm capable of producing a tornado moved thorugh the Mount Airy area.

Friday storms that brought heavy winds and dropped roughly an inch of rain didn't do much damage in the Tri-State area, according to emergency dispatchers from Washington County and surrounding areas. The heaviest damage appeared to be in the east end of Frederick County, Md., where three tornado warnings were called at 3, 6 and 9 p.m., said Chip Jewell, director of Frederick County Emergency Communications. “I think all of them were Doppler-reported on radar,” Jewell said.

Dennis I. Wilhide, 64, a resident of Fahrney-Keedy Home and Village in Boonsboro and formerly of Keedysville, Md., passed away peacefully on Thursday, May 17, 2012, at Fahrney-Keedy Home and Village. Born on Aug. 24, 1947, in Hagerstown, Md., he was the son of Irene R. (Summers) of Hagerstown and the late Timothy E. Wilhide. He was a member of Mount Vernon Reformed United Church of Christ in Keedysville. Dennis was a 1967 graduate of Boonsboro High School. Upon graduation from high school, Dennis worked as a tractor-trailer driver for various trucking companies in the Tri-State area for 30 years.

On Friday at 7 p.m. at the Hancock Town Hall and Community Center, noted historian and author Steve French will present a program titled “Thomas J. 'Stonewall' Jackson: The Early Years.” French's talk will focus on Jackson's early frustrations and failures while in the area before the Valley Campaign. French's take is always appreciated and well enjoyed by enthusiasts, serious historians and new disciples to the cause. The community is invited. If there is a strong response, future Civil War lectures will be considered.

Mary Ellen Waltemire of One Step Closer Coaching connects with individuals, businesses and organizations in coaching partnerships. A life and leadership coach, Waltemire started her business in June 2011 and is certified by the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching. Her passion is working energetically with individuals, collaborating and supporting them as they work to get where they want to be, personally and professionally. Waltemire also works with organizations and businesses in the Tri-State area for effective leadership, teamwork, project management, strategic thinking and planning.

Monday, April 16, 2012 RUNNING BOSTON - Hagerstown's Cameron Hanlin finished 54th overall with the fastest time of any Tri-State area runner at Monday's 116th running of the Boston Marathon. Hanlin, 24, a North Hagerstown High School graduate, covered the 26.2 miles in 2 hours, 36 minutes, 4 seconds on an unseasonably hot day. Three Tri-State runners finished in the top 10 in their respective divisions. Mark Cucuzzella, 45, of Shepherdstown, W.Va., finished in 2:46:49, good for 154th overall and fourth in the men's 45-49 division.

The National Weather Service has issued a freeze warning for Saturday morning in much of the Tri-state area, with temperatures expected to sink into the low 30s overnight. The National Weather Service in Sterling. Va., has issued a freeze warning for Western Maryland, including Washington County. The warning is for 2 to 9 a.m. Saturday. For Franklin County, Pa., the weather service office in State College, Pa., is predicting a low temperature overnight of 30 with the freeze warning from 3 to 8 a.m. The warm weather in March resulted in early growth for many plants, said Sue Kiefer of Snavely's Garden Center in Hagerstown.

A freeze warning is in effect for the entire Tri-State area, effective from 3 a.m. to 9 a.m. Tuesday, the National Weather Service reported Monday. Overnight temperatures are expected to drop below the freezing mark in Washington County, as well as Franklin and Fulton counties in Pennsylvania and Berkeley, Jefferson and Morgan counties in West Virginia, the weather service said. The expected freeze ends a weeks-long period of unseasonably warm weather in the region. In Hagerstown, the mercury hasn't dropped below the freezing mark (32 degrees Fahrenheit)