by James Rada, Jr. Emmitsburg Free Parking for the Holidays The Emmitsburg Commissioners approved not charging for metered parking in town from December 13, 2019, to January 2, 2020. Because some people still put money in the meters during this time, any money collected will be donated to the Emmitsburg Food Bank (50 percent), Lions […]
Emmitsburg Mayor Don Briggs With a prompt from a timely spike of cold weather—perhaps, an awakening to the holiday season—and the closeout of the 2019 year, it’s a good time to look back at some of the things we did over the last year. • With County Executive Jan Gardner, town staff, commissioners, Boy Scout […]
James Rada, Jr. The Emmitsburg Town Commissioners will hold a workshop to try and decide how best to handle a request from Pradeep Saini, owner of Village Liquors, to change the town’s water and sewer tap costs. Saini owns three acres by the Emmitsburg McDonalds, with an option to purchase four more acres. He has […]
Construction Has Begun for Revitalized 25,000-gallon Koi Pond Landscaping contractors from the tri-state area are converging on Catoctin Wildlife Preserve in Thurmont to complete a new, naturally balanced koi pond. The work is being done as part of a Certified Aquascape Contractors (CAC) Build, which brings water feature contractors and distributors together for real-world training […]
A secret group of soldiers, who are credited with shortening World War II by two years, is being honored locally. The group, known as Ritchie Boys, was part of the D-Day invasion and subsequent march across Europe to defeat the Nazis. An exhibit highlighting the impact of the Ritchie Boys during World War II is […]
Tips to Reduce Holiday Stress As much as we look forward to the fun and festivities of the holidays, the holiday season can also bring with it stress, anxiety, and exhaustion. Most of us are pulled in multiple directions during the holidays, with shopping, cooking, sending cards, baking cookies, hosting family, attending events, and, well, […]
The 63rd Annual Thurmont & Emmitsburg Community Show continues to give back to our local communities by making a $575 donation to each of the Thurmont and Emmitsburg Food Banks. These donations were made possible by contributions from the following areas of the Community Show: the Silver Offering, a free-will collection taken during the show, […]
Thanks to Gateway To The Cure business participants’ donations, along with events held throughout the year, the Town of Thurmont was able to present Patty Hurwitz with a check for $21,000 at the November 19, 2019, town meeting. A few businesses came out to talk about their promotion/donation at the check presentation: Catoctin Veterinary Clinic, […]
Emmitsburg’s accessible playground ribbon-cutting ceremony was held Saturday, November 2, 2019. The ribbon was cut by Mayor Don Briggs with Commissioner Tim O’Donnell, Catoctin Area Civitan’s Ginger Malone, Commissioner T.J. Burns, Commissioner Cliff Sweeney, Frederick County Executive Jan Gardner, and Frederick County Councilman Michael Blue. This new playground will allow children of all abilities to […]
During the annual Catoctin Colorfest, Inc. banquet at Simply Asia in Thurmont on November 18, 2019, Carol Robertson, president of Catoctin Colorfest, Inc., reported that the weather during the annual Colorfest event, held in October, was the “best ever!” The sunny, calm, temperate weekend resulted in record numbers in attendance, sales, smooth operations, and favorable […]
The Emmitsburg Food Bank and the Catoctin Pregnancy Center held an Open House on November 9, 2019, for the public to see their newly relocated facilities. They are grateful for all the people in town who came forward to make this happen. Phyllis Kelly recognized these people that afternoon. David Swomley and Ronnie Wivell came […]
Frederick County Fire & Rescue Museum The Frederick County Fire & Rescue Museum will have a special holiday open house in conjunction with the “Museums by Candlelight,” being held throughout Frederick County, on December 14, 2019, from 12:00-7:00 p.m. The museum will have many artifacts from every fire company in Frederick County. The museum features […]
On October 22, 2019, the Thurmont Lions Club celebrated its 90th Anniversary on its Charter Night, held at Shamrock Restaurant. SVDG Charlie Croft presented to the club a certificate from District Governor Evan Gillett in recognition of its 90 years of service. Past International Directors Ted Reiver and Richard Liebon greeted the audience. SVDG Croft […]
Camille Kime (pictured above), with Karaoke Buddies, was a recent guest speaker for the Thurmont Lions Club. Karaoke Buddies is an all-volunteer organization that provides individuals with disabilities a safe social setting to gather with their friends to dine, sing, dance, and not be judged by anyone. Camille’s disabled granddaughter, Taylor, likes to do all […]
Thurmont Lions Club’s first September meeting fell on the 9/11 anniversary. Its guest speaker was Cindy McGrew, who talked about Operation Second Chance (OSC). OSC began in 2004 and is a 501(c)(3) organization, composed of patriotic citizens committed to serving its wounded, injured, and ill combat Veterans. OSC supports Veterans and their families while they […]
The Thurmont Lions Club announced Don Ely as Thurmont Volunteer of the Year during a November meeting of the Thurmont Mayor and Commissioners. Ely is a member of Thurmont Lion’s Club and received the award because of all his work with the Thurmont Food Bank. Thurmont Lions Club names Don Ely (second from left) Thurmont […]
The National Grange, founded in 1867, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan fraternal organization that advocates for rural America and agriculture. The Grange is part of more than 2,100 hometowns across the United States. The Thurmont Grange serves our Catoctin region. One of the programs administered annually by the Grange is Words for Thirds, where every third-grade […]
National FFA convention is held every year and attracts FFA members from every state, including Alaska and Hawaii. The 92nd National FFA Convention was held in Indianapolis, Indiana, from October 28-November 2, 2019. At the convention, 22 Catoctin FFA members joined over 69,000 other FFA members and guests from across our nation. Throughout the week, […]
As part of the Thurmont Lions Club Literacy Project for September (Literacy month), 648 books were delivered to the Thurmont Primary School and the Thurmont Elementary School. Literacy is one of the core missions of the club. The books Paddington Sets Sail, Sleep Bear, and Amazing Dolphins were delivered to the Thurmont Primary School, and […]
Sabillasville Elementary School hosted its 5th Annual Sabillasville Scenic 5K/1-Mile Fun Run on November 10, 2019, organized by the Sabillasville Elementary School’s Parent Group (SES-PG). The SES-PG would like to thank all of the runners, walkers, and volunteers who came out to help support the SES-PG by participating in this event, “We couldn’t have asked […]
Blair Garrett Catoctin High School football has cruised through the first two rounds of the playoffs, crushing its opponents with a combined score of 100-12. The team followed up those performances with another offensive explosion, smashing its quarterfinal opponents by 20 points. The Cougars clashed with the Southern Rams in the first round of the […]
Blair Garrett The first of many has been achieved. After a long offseason, the Mount St. Mary’s Men’s Basketball team cruised to victory in the team’s home opener of the season, defeating Gettysburg College, 75-58. The Mount opened the game at a torrid pace, immediately igniting the crowd on a dunk by forward Nana Opoku […]
Editor’s note: The Catoctin Banner, in cooperation with Dave Ammenheuser, wrote this story. It has been almost 40 years since John Campbell, Duane Gigeous, Dennis Grandstaff, Larry Martinez, and Mark Williard stood together on the Catoctin High School basketball court. They were members of the 1979-80 Catoctin boys’ basketball team that finished with a 14-8 […]
Part 6: The Challenge Story Written by James Rada, Jr. “The Anger of Innocence” is a six-part original serial set in the Graceham area during 1973. Serialized fiction is something that older newspapers often did as an additional way to entertain their readers. We thought it was about time for serial to make a comeback. […]
James Rada, Jr. The 13th Annual Foothills Artist Studio Tour in Adams County, Pennsylvania, was so successful that printmaker Anne Finucane nearly ran out of the prints she was selling. “It was an amazing day,” Finucane said. “I had to go home and print and frame until midnight to have pieces to sell today.” It […]