Human Nature by Valerie Nusbaum As a writer and an artist, I’m fascinated by humans. I tend to sit quietly and observe how people move and interact with each other. I notice their bone structures and coloring, and I spend a lot of time pondering their actions. Why do people do and say the things […]
by Christine Maccabee What is Delawnification? First of all, delawnification is not a word. However, its meaning should be pretty clear. At the People’s Climate March in Washington, D.C., this April, one of the speakers talked about the importance of creating and allowing more habitat for native plants and reducing the size of our lawns. […]
Well-thrown Lasso Saves Boy from Icy Death by James Rada, Jr. Charlie Jones, a twelve-year-old Thurmont youth, spent one December afternoon in 1915 walking through the forests around Thurmont, gathering pine boughs and other greens to use to make Christmas decorations. With his bag full of greenery, he headed home. Though young, Charles was the […]
by Jim Houck, Jr. Richard (Dick) Fleagle Sons of AMVETS Richard (Dick) Fleagle is AMVETS Post 7 Thurmont’s AMVETS Son of the YEAR 2013. Neighbors, I am honored to have him as a friend and comrade, and one of the most respected men I have had the privilege of knowing. Dick Fleagle—known by many in […]
Food Pro Buck Reed Urban legend tells a story of a young woman in the late 60s and early 70s, who upon graduating college, decided to hit the farmers market scene. Her booth in New Jersey had a single apple pie that she had placed at the audacious price of $100 (that’s $12.50 per slice). […]
Catoctin Mountain rose from a primordial lake to heights taller than Mount Everest. As time wore it away, many of its secrets were lost with its dwindling peaks. In the era of man, though, its history has been better preserved, although it still holds onto its secrets. In his new book, Secrets of Catoctin Mountain: […]
James Rada, Jr. It’s a new year, and with it comes a new beginning. It’s a chance for you to challenge yourself to meet some of the goals you want, whether it’s to lose weight, find a new job, save for a dream vacation, or something else. We at The Catoctin Banner hope you can […]
December 2016 Emmitsburg Emmitsburg Institutes Voluntary Water Curtailment The Emmitsburg mayor and commissioners voted on December 6 to implement Phase I water curtailment. This restriction asks residents on the town water system to voluntarily conserve water. It will remain in place until conditions change, and the curtailment can be lifted or more severe measures need […]
Mayor John Kinnaird It is hard to believe that another year has come and gone! This past year, we had a lot of things going on in Thurmont, and I am happy to say that many improvements were made for the good of our residents. We completed another year’s worth of I & I infrastructure […]
Mayor Don Briggs During the month of December, Emmitsburg lost an outstanding member of the community when Bob Hance of the Carriage House Inn passed away. The Hance family has hosted the Annual Evening of Christmas Spirit in Emmitsburg the first Monday evening in December for the past twenty-eight years. Mayor Briggs wrote the following […]
Vickie Grinder has been named as the new Economic Development Manager for the Town of Thurmont. Grinder has recently served as Thurmont’s Main Street Manager, a part-time position, since 2013. During her tenure as Thurmont’s Main Street Manager, Grinder has overseen many popular events, including Christmas in Thurmont, the Thurmont Business Showcase, the Main Street […]
The Town of Thurmont is inviting all interested parties to bid on the following surplus equipment: 1999 Chevrolet C-7500 Dump Truck. Unit comes with snow plow and salt spreader; 5 speed hi-lo transmission. Mileage: 36,241. Minimum bid is $500. 1982 GMC 7000 Dump Truck. 5-speed manual transmission. Mileage: 85,741. Minimum bid is $500. Both vehicles […]
Congratulations to this year’s winner of The Catoctin Banner newspaper’s 5th Annual Holiday Home Decorating Contest! This year’s winner receives $50.00 (please call 301-447-2804 to claim your prize). This beautifully decorated home in Thurmont is adorned with thousands of lights and festive lawn decorations, so much so that it was hard to capture all the […]
For years, we have wanted a mascot character to represent this good-news community newspaper at events and parades. At one point a few years ago, John Nickerson (AKA Gnarly Artly, who draws our monthly cartoon) created a newspaper character as a mascot for us, but it was not used due to the cost of creating […]
Michael Cantori (shown right, performing levitation) is a magician who performs astounding illusions right before your very eyes, for audiences of any size. He also lives in our local area. Whether he’s performing a venue with a full stage production, corporate events, colleges, a comfortable living room, or walk-around magic at festivals, Cantori presents the […]
Originally from Panama City, Florida, Jenny Snuffer, has lived in Thurmont for the past ten years. Her first professional career was that of a flight attendant. She left that profession to compete, full-time, in professional Barrell Racing. She worked the racing circuit for about ten years, while working as a bartender to make ends meet. […]
Alex Uphold’s State Farm Insurance Office has relocated to 31 Water Street, Suite A, in Thurmont. She is officially open for business in this brand new space. Stop by for an insurance quote today. Store hours are 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m., Mondays through Fridays. Call 301-271-3113 for more information. Thurmont Mayor John Kinnaird is shown (center […]
Summer Creek Farm, a USDA Certified Organic farm, located in Thurmont, announces the creation of a new business division: Monocacy Valley Mushrooms. Summer Creek has built a 200-square-foot environmentally controlled growing lab, and added Mycologist Anita Phillips with over twenty years’ experience in Mycology, to produce high quality Oyster Mushrooms for the mid-Atlantic region. Using […]
The Frederick County Solar Co-op has selected Sustainable Energy Systems to install solar panels for the growing sixty-one-member group. The Co-op’s Selection Committee selected Sustainable Energy Systems through a competitive bidding that included proposals from eleven firms. The co-op is open to new residential and small business members until February 28, 2017, and the group […]
James Rada, Jr. When Thurmont Police Officer Tim Duhan showed up at the town office on October 25, 2016, he thought he was there to recognize his fellow officers who had investigated the pipe bomb that had been planted on his police vehicle. “They didn’t tell me why I needed to be there,” Duhan said. […]
The Town of Thurmont Streets and Parks Department, the Thurmont Green Team, the Frederick County Forest Conservancy Board, the Maryland Forest Service, and approximately twenty additional volunteers gathered together on November 5, 2016, for a tree planting project in Thurmont Community Park. Thurmont’s Community Park is located on a 24-acre site on Frederick Road. The […]
Drumroll, please…. Thanks to all of the generous Thurmont Think Pink Business Contributors, and all who patronized these businesses, as well as to all who purchased Thurmont Think Pink “Gateway To The Cure” merchandise, and all those who participated in the Thurmont Think Pink 5K! On Tuesday, November 29, 2016, the Thurmont Think Pink Third […]
The Red Canary Tattoo’s fundraiser for the Cuddles Cat Rescue has raised $11,760! All the kitties and volunteers at Cuddles Cat Rescue want to thank Rick and his crew, and all the guest tattoo artists, who volunteered their time and material to help out. Pictured from left are: (standing) Cuddles Cat Rescue volunteers, Devin Stine […]
The volunteers in the Trinity United Church of Christ’s Kitchen were working on apple pies when we caught up with them the week after Thanksgiving. They were taking orders for their yummy soups, fruit pies, chicken pot pies, lemon cream pies, cakes, sandwiches, and many other menu items. They had just raised $11,365 in sales […]
On November 5, 2016, at the Maryland Association of Agricultural Fairs and Shows (MAAFS) annual convention in Ocean City, Maryland, C. Rodman Myers of Thurmont received the 2016 Maryland Fair Person of the Year Award. The Fair Person of the Year recipients are outstanding individuals who exemplify the best in our industry by believing in […]