Women

Editor's note: This is part of an occasional series of profiles of local restaurant chefs. Six years ago, Pam Smith faced the future and made a decision. The Martinsburg-area mother of three realized her kids would soon be out of high school and getting on with their lives. She decided she should get on with her life, too, and tackle something new. "I've always been a vegetarian, interested in health food. My husband is an old hippie. So it kind of fell into place that way," Smith said "It" was opening Good Natured Market & Vegetarian Cafe near downtown Martinsburg.

martinsburg@herald-mail.com Most of the customers at the nightclub were men. Most of the women were naked. Women seductively shed their clothes to thumping music, stepping and whirling on a long runway stage - they were the show. A mostly male audience drank it in with their eyes and with help from the bar. A spring Saturday night was flowing into Sunday morning in Berkeley County, W.Va., where strip bars draw cheers from customers and jeers from government officials who want to stop them from spreading.

mailto:andrear@herald-mail.com More than 200 years of history were represented at Fort Frederick State Park near Big Pool on Saturday. The park's Muskets in Maryland event featured living history re-enactments, tours and demonstrations staged to educate the public about the strenuous daily lives of Maryland settlers and the stone fort's use during the French and Indian War, Revolutionary War and Civil War, Park Manager Ralph Young said. He expected between 800 and 1,000 visitors to the two-day event.

Women at the Table is a political-action committee that encourages women to pursue active roles in public life. This year the group recognized Sharon Chirgott and Marge Peters for their leadership in Washington County during an awards ceremony at the Fountain Head Country Club. Chirgott, a former middle school science teacher, is the only female member on the Funkstown Town Council. Peters, a breast cancer survivor, is the former executive secretary and administrator of the Washington County Historical Society and has served with a variety of county boards and volunteer organizations.

The work of 10 Washington County women artists will be featured in an exhibit at Washington County Arts Council Gallery Sunday, Oct. 25, to Saturday, Nov. 7. The exhibit is hosted by the arts council and Washington County Commission for Women in recognition of National Arts and Humanities Month. --cont. from lifestyle -- Washington County Commission for Women was established by Maryland state law in 1987 at the request of Washington County Commissioners. The members of the Commission for Women wanted to see the many talented women artists in Washington County get some recognition, says Joan Fell, immediate past president of the commission.

The fourth annual Tri-State Women Connecting event will be Friday, April 24, from noon to 4:15 p.m. at Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel in Hagerstown. The afternoon will focus on issues facing professional women at the start of the millenium. The program is sponsored by local chapters of three professional women's organizations - American Business Women's Assocation, Professional Business Women's Association and ProNet. Julie Gaver will speak on "The Ripple Effect" during lunch beginning at 12:30 p.m. An instructor for Dale Carnegie Training, a member of Toastmasters International and National Capital Speakers Association in Washington, D.C., Gaver has more than 18 years of professional experience in human services, sales, marketing and public relations.

Resistance is an important element in women's fitness. Not resisting exercise, mind you, but resisting the weight of your own body or that of plates or dumbbells to build strength. [cont. from lifestyle ] Weight training decreases body fat and increases lean body mass, which increases the rate at which you burn calories while at rest, says Douglas Lentz, director of fitness and wellness at Results Therapy & Fitness in Chambersburg, Pa. "It gives us a bigger furnace," says Carolyn Thomas, instructor of women's weight lifting at Shepherd College in Shepherdstown, W.Va.

photo: KEVIN G. GILBERT / staff photographer enlarge By KATE COLEMAN / Staff Writer Elaine Whipp says her mother, Virginia Crowl, always was dressed up. She even wore high heels - size 4 1/2B - when she cleaned her house. "She was extremely particular. " Dawn Hutchinson, Whipp's daughter, says her 4-foot-7-inch grandmother was "like our little china doll. " --cont from life -- Virginia Crowl, 80, is in the final stages of Alzheimer's disease.

The Apollo Civic Theatre in Martinsburg, W.Va. is hosting a production of “Little Women, The Musical.” Louisa May Alcott’s tale is set to music with 20 songs. Performances are scheduled at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. Sundays through Dec. 19. The Apollo Civic Theatre is at 128 E. Martin St., Martinsburg, W.Va. Tickets cost $7 to $15. For information, call 304-263-6766.