Virginia

Isabelle Virginia Jane Baker, 80, of Hagerstown, died Saturday, April 6, 2013, at Meritus Medical Center in Hagerstown. The family will receive friends Friday one hour prior to the service at Benevola United Methodist Church in Boonsboro. The service will be at 10 a.m. Friday at the church. The Rev. John H. Dean will officiate. Burial will be in the church cemetery. Arrangements are by Bast-Stauffer Funeral Home, Boonsboro.

Legislation aimed at eliminating “puppy mills” and providing minimum standards for horse-boarding facilities still are alive in the West Virginia Legislature after passing the Senate, the bills' lead sponsor said. “We've heard enough horror stories of hundreds of dogs packed into very confined spaces and the mistreatment of horses at boarding facilities. It's time to do something decisive, and these bills are a critical step forward.” state Sen. John Unger, D-Berkeley/Jefferson, said in a news release about the legislation's intent.

Virginia Rosalie Shilling, 95, of Aberdeen House in Rockville, Md., died Wednesday, April 3, 2013, at her home. Born July 26, 1917, in Hagerstown, Md., she was the daughter of the late John and Laura Pearl Stouffer Leiter. She was preceded in death by her husband, Richard Good Shilling, on Sept. 14, 1993. She is survived by her daughter-in-law, Izabell Shilling of Bethesda, Md.; one granddaughter, Monique Shilling of Rockville; one grandson, Richard Good Shilling III of Rockville; and five great-grandchildren.

Many who have not studied West Virginia history believe it became a state in the middle of the Civil War because the people who lived in western Virginia objected to Virginia's vote to secede from the Union. True for some, but the schism between eastern and western Virginia at the time ran much deeper and had its beginnings around the time of the American Revolution, according to “Countdown to West Virginia Statehood,” Charles Town author Bob O'Connor's latest book. Seven of O'Connor's works are centered on the Civil War, including some local events and characters.

Two bills - one to free up $100 million for public sewer treatment plant upgrades to meet Chesapeake Bay cleanup requirements and one to protect commuter train service for Eastern Panhandle riders - saw action Friday in the West Virginia Senate. Senate Bill 596, the Chesapeake Bay appropriation, heads to the House of Delegates, where it is assured of passage, said state Sen. Herb Snyder D-Jefferson/Berkeley. “This is the governor's bill,” he said. Twelve plants in seven of the eight Eastern Panhandle counties that feed into the Chesapeake Bay Watershed will have access to the $100 million beginning in January, Snyder said.

Two Martinsburg brothers are among the many Eastern Panhandle students who qualified Wednesday for the West Virginia State Math Field Day in April. David Zollinger and Robert Zollinger took first place in their age groups to qualify for the state competiton. In addition, their brother, Matthew, is an alternate for the state competition. There were approximately 250 students in grades four to 12 who competed in the Regional Math Field Day at Potomac State College in Keyser. Participants represented Berkeley, Grant, Hampshire, Hardy, Jefferson, Mineral, Morgan and Pendleton counties.

McCrae Nicole Wright has been selected to represent the West Virginia Horticulture Society at the 86th Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival. Wright is a 2012 graduate of Martinsburg (W.Va.) High School, where she participated in Key Club and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. She also was the historian of DECA and a cheerleader. Wright is a freshman majoring in general studies at Shepherd University. Wright was a princess at the 33rd Mountain State Apple Harvest Festival and has participated in dance since the age of 5. Wright is the daughter of Brenda and Brett Wright of Martinsburg and the granddaughter of Canna Crowell of Martinsburg and the late Robert Wright and Jean and John Phillips of Boonsboro.

Family members of Wayne Jones, who died March 13 from multiple gunshot wounds when five Martinsburg police officers tried to arrest him during an altercation, claimed at a news conference Wednesday that Jones was struck 15 times by police bullets. The incident is being investigated by West Virginia State Police. The results of an autopsy performed on Jones, 50, of Stephens City, Va., have not been released. “The case is still under investigation,” Berkeley County Prosecutor Pamela Games-Neely said Wednesday.

Shepherd to host literacy leaders conference SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. - Shepherd University's Department of Education and the Jefferson County Reading Association will host a half-day Literacy Leaders Conference for the Tri-State area on Saturday, April 20 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Shepherd's Erma Ora Byrd Hall auditorium and classrooms. The conference will include keynote speaker Clayton Burch, executive director of West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) Office of Early Learning, who will present the “The Common Core and You;” plus breakout sessions; a hands-on activity focused on vocabulary, comprehension, and writing; a poster session; and book donation through Kappa Delta Pi: Literacy Alive.

Virginia B. Anderson, 91, of Hagerstown, passed away Monday, March 18, 2013, at her residence surrounded by her loving family. Born May 2, 1921, in Catawissa, Pa., she was the daughter of the late John Leroy Singley and Helen Esther Prizio (Rupp). She was a member of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church in Williamsport, the American Legion Auxiliary in Clear Spring, Lady of the Elks in Frederick, and AARP. She also loved playing bingo at the Funkstown fire hall. She was the loving wife of Kenneth W. Anderson for 73 years.