RAT PACK is BACK
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The Gazette GERMANTOWN | POOLESVILLE | BOYDS
DAILY UPDATES ONLINE www.gazette.net
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
25 cents
A call for holiday school closures
The pride of Poolesville
Students face decisions over Muslim observance
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LINDSAY A. POWERS STAFF WRITER
Standing in front of the Montgomery County Council Office Building in Rockville, Northwest High School senior Anhar Karim said he is one of many students in the county who have faced a hard decision related to two Muslim holidays. Karim said that when a holiday conflicts with school, he can either celebrate and miss class or go to school and miss the celebration. “We are forcing our students into an unreasonable decision,”
said Karim, who is president of the Montgomery County Muslim Student Association. Karim and other speakers urged Montgomery County Public Schools to close when classes fall on Eid al-Adha and Eid al-Fitr during a Monday press conference held by the Maryland chapter of the Council of American Islamic Relations and the Equality for Eid Coalition. Eid al-Adha celebrates sacrifice to God and falls on Oct. 15 this year. Eid al-Fitr marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan and was Aug. 8. The dates of the holidays change because of the Islam lunar calendar.
See CLOSURES, Page A-11
PHOTOS BY TOM FEDOR/THE GAZETTE
Potomac Hunt hounds are led through the streets during the Poolesville Day parade and festivities on Saturday in Poolesville.
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Grand Marshal Maggie Nightingale of Poolesville waves as she rides in the parade.
he town of Poolesville held its biggest event of the year, Poolesville Day, on Saturday. Grand Marshal Maggie Nightingale, a Poolesville resident and longtime advocate of the town’s library, rode in the day’s parade. Kids participated in karate demonstrations and rode ponies while older crowds attended the annual classic rod, car, truck and motorcycle show. Civil War artifacts. muskets and blacksmith demonstrations were on display at the John Poole House and Town Hall Bank Museum. More information can be found at www.poolesvilleday.com. — SYLVIA CARIGNAN
TOM FEDOR/THE GAZETTE
Zainab Chaudry, Council on American-Islamic Relations, Maryland chapter vice president and “Equality for Eid” co-chair, offers her remarks at a press conference outside the Council Office Building on Monday.
Poolesville High School pep band members play from the bed of a pickup in the Poolesville Day parade.
Spirit lifted by fan base Women’s soccer team finds groundswell of support n
Growing local business through the grapevine n
County officials consider winery incubator BY
SYLVIA CARIGNAN STAFF WRITER
DAN GROSS/THE GAZETTE
Cathy and Robert Butz, owners of Windridge Vineyard in Poolesville, check on their cabernet sauvignon grapes as harvest time approaches. These grapes should be ready to harvest sometime this week. The Butzes planted five varieties of wine grapes on 5 acres of their farm three years ago.
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Local and state officials are uncorking ideas that could juice up Montgomery County’s wine industry. Montgomery County Councilman Marc Elrich (D-At large) of Takoma Park is working with wine experts and grape farmers to determine the feasibility of a winery incubator. The incubator, similar to the county’s existing business incubators, would facilitate a small business’ entry into the wine industry. Grape farmers or small wineries would bring their fruit to a central processing facility, saving them the equipment costs that may prevent them from building their own facility, Elrich said. The facility may be a co-op, but its ownership has not been determined. “It’s not a true incubator, but it’s meant to promote the wine industry in Montgomery County,”
See GRAPEVINE, Page A-12
BY KRISTA BRICK STAFF WRITER
Soccer fans will see a slight increase in ticket prices to see the Washington Spirit take on their rivals at Maureen Hendricks Stadium in the Maryland Soccerplex next season, as team owner Bill Lynch said that team gains momentum both in fan base and in league play. On average, the team, which plays in the National Women’s Soccer League, had 3,600 fans at its 11 home games this past season, a little more than the number of attendees who watched the former Washington Freedom games there before that team was bought and moved to Florida in 2011. Lynch said 4,000 fans per game is what is needed to make the organization profitable. “In some respects it exceeded expectations,” Lynch said of the attendance numbers for the
team’s inaugural season. “We really wanted to shoot for 3,000-plus on regular basis. We focused on the name capture and starting to create relationships with fans.” The general admission price on game day for a 2014 ticket is now $25. This year that same ticket cost $20, according to Lynch. Pre-order, season tickets and group rates offer discounts. While the venture has not yet turned a profit, Lynch said his goal is to hit profitability by next year. The organization includes 20 players and six full-time staff. Volunteers are leaned upon heavily to help with game day activities. “There is still a little ways to go, we are definitely at the point where it is sustainable and we have a path to profitability,” Lynch said. The organization pays $5,000 per game to the Maryland Soccer Foundation to hold a game at the Maureen Hendricks Stadium, according to Trish Heffelfinger, executive director of the foundation.
See SPIRIT, Page A-11
SPECIAL SECTION
GAZETTE HEALTH Special Women’s Issue What would you do if you found out you had the ‘breast cancer gene’? One woman tells her story. Plus: why women lose their hair; the latest on the risks and benefits of aspirin; the value of vitamin D
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