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F r o m the M a y o r
Thurmont
Mayor John Kinnaird
I am writing from the Maryland
Municipal League Annual Summer
Conference in Ocean City. This
is my eighth time at the summer
conference, and it looks like this trip
will be as exciting and informative
as all the others. The four days
are filled with meetings, discussion
groups, and classes, all of which
help our elected officials better
understand the responsibilities
and mechanics of serving our
communities. One of the best
things I have found is that we get
the chance to speak with others
and see how they address issues
in their communities; but more
importantly, we see firsthand that
other communities generally have
much bigger issues than we have
to contend with. The opportunity
to meet face-to-face with many of
our elected state officials and the
heads of State agencies is another
advantage of attending these
conferences. This gives us a direct
line of contact with those that can
have a positive impact on how
Thurmont fares when dealing on the
state level, as well as with the many
grants and funding opportunities
of which we take advantage. My
thanks to Commissioner Hamrick,
CAO Jim Humerick, Kelly Duty,
and Vickie Grinder for attending
this year’s conference and expanding
their knowledge of governmental
issues and for increasing their
networking contacts.
Two weeks ago, I sat down with
representatives of seven Frederick
County municipalities to help assign
Project Open Space (POS) funding
to our communities. POS funds
are monies granted to counties by
the State of Maryland to be used
to enhance open space or park
lands. Typically the money is split
50-50 between Frederick County
and the municipalities. This year,
a little over $507,922 in funding
was available to municipalities
in Frederick County. Of that
amount, $126,981 was available
for the acquisition of park land
and $380,941 was available for
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improvements to existing parks.
I am happy to announce that
Thurmont was able to garner a total
of $107,000 for two projects we
applied for: $89,000 will be used
to help complete the All Inclusive
Playground at the East End Park
(more about that later), and
$18,900 will fund the installation of
an ADA-compliant restroom facility
at the East End Park. It is always
an interesting evening when we get
together to discuss the POS funds.
As you can imagine, there is never
enough funds to satisfy everyone’s
requests. This year, there was
almost $800,000 in requests from
the seven municipalities, so it was
obvious to the seven of us that we
could only fund 50 percent of the
proposals. Given this, it would seem
to be a real problem. But as I have
seen repeatedly, the municipalities
are always willing to take less so
that others can get funding for their
special projects. This year, the Town
of Thurmont benefited from this
practice and was awarded almost
30 percent of the money available!
In past years, we have cut back on
our request during the discussions
to assist others, and this year we
benefited from that courtesy.
Earlier, I mentioned the All
Inclusive Playground at the East
End Park. This project is a joint
venture between the Town and
the Catoctin Area Civitan Club.
The Civitans made a proposal
to establish an All Inclusive
Playground last year, and I am
happy to say that with funding from
both the town and the Civitans,
the project is moving forward. The
town portion of the initial funding
came from Project Open Space; and
now with the recently awarded POS
funds, we will be able to move the
project closer to completion. The
first phase of this amazing park has
been dedicated and is now open.
Be sure to stop for a look and
remember that this playground is
designed to be used by children with
all levels of physical and emotional
capabilities. All the equipment
can be accessed by children in
wheelchairs and walkers, so they
can enjoy the thrill of outdoor fun
with their friends and family. I want
to thank the Catoctin Area Civitan
Club for their vision and help in
establishing this playground right
here in Thurmont.
I look forward to seeing everyone
at the Guardian Hose Company
Carnival, and I hope you have a
great time watching the Annual
Fireman’s Parade!
As always, I can be reached by
email at jkinnaird@thurmont.com,
by phone at 301-606-9458, or on
Facebook.
The Catoctin Banner Newspaper
F r o m the M a y o r
Emmitsburg
Mayor Don Briggs
In June, the Town of Emmitsburg
received the Maryland Green
Registry 2017 Leadership Award.
Due to a lot of “sweat equity” from
lots of people in a body of work,
we are very proud of receiving
the reward. “Green” is shorthand
for living in a more natural way,
with a determination to reduce
waste, use renewable energy,
and enhance walkability through
community connectivity. A simple,
workable definition of Green is:
“use what you need today and save
what you don’t need for future
generations.” Green is shorthand for
sustainability. Sustainability, boiled
down, is to keep, hold, or maintain
for an extended period of time.
Sustainability is nothing new to
the crop farmers working the land
around us, who plant, grow, reap,
and replenish, to then plant again,
all the while taking care of their
soil. These farmers, like farmers for
thousands of years, are renewable
energy reliant on the seasons, sun,
and water—surface, ground, or
rain, and do everything they can to
reduce waste. Now is the time to
bring that consciousness to our uses. members nominate community
As a strong impetus to and
validation for our sustainability
goals, the town was honored to
host on separate days the 4th-grade
classes of Mother Seton School and
Emmitsburg Elementary School. Our
special guests moved in small groups
throughout the office to meet with
staff in four stations: accounting,
receptionist–office manager, the
town clerk, and mayor’s office,
before moving on to the council
meeting room. Every student sat in
the mayor’s and/or council member’s
seats and introduced themselves
over the microphones. A mock
hearing was conducted before a
visit to the Frederick County Fire
Museum and Fire Heritage Center,
where they climbed aboard.
Coming up are several town-
sponsored events in the park.
Please check the town website and
Facebook page for descriptions,
dates, times, and specific locations.
Please note on your calendar
Tuesday, August 1, from 5:00-
8:00 p.m. for National Night Out
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July 2017 Page 5
(NNO) at the field behind the town
office. NNO is an annual event
that promotes police-community
partnerships and neighborhood
camaraderie to make our
neighborhoods safer, more caring
places to live. This is a new event to
Emmitsburg, “but across the nation,
different communities host block
parties, festivals, parades, cookouts,
and various other community
events, with safety demonstrations,
seminars, youth events, visits from
emergency personnel, exhibits, and
much more.”
What is the Impact Club? And
what is Blessings in a Backpack to
Frederick?
Blessings in a Backpack to
Frederick was started by educator
Hermine Bernstein, who literally
stumbled on the problem in
Frederick County of over 11,000
children that are on FARM (Free
And Reduced Meals). Hermine saw
a greater calling in helping these
kids, so she started Blessings in a
Backpack to Frederick for children
in strained family situations.
The Impact Club is a group of
people wanting to contribute to
the good of the community. Every
quarter, Lib and I, along with 230-
plus other residents in Frederick
County, donate $100. Every quarter,
causes from which one is selected by
membership vote. For this quarter,
Blessings in a Backpack to Frederick
was selected and received a $23,600
check.
Community Heritage Day
2017: Thank you to the Lions
Club, American Legion, Knights
of Columbus, Christ’s Community
Church, and many businesses and
civic organizations in Emmitsburg,
for working together to provide a
day full of fun and activities, ending
with Independence Day Fireworks.
Please go to Emmitsburgevents.com
for details on a great day of fun.
Finally, the Square revitalization
and sidewalk project has begun on
the west end of Main Street.
PEACH FESTIVAL
July 15 th
PEACH FESTIVAL
4-9 PM**
Mt. Tabor Park
Everyone Welcome
Silver Eagle Band Call Jeff
for more info
301-447-6387
Big PicNic
Aug. 12th