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Area favorites Fink and Marxer throw a musical pajama party in Takoma Park. A-13

The Gazette GERMANTOWN | POOLESVILLE | BOYDS

DAILY UPDATES ONLINE www.gazette.net

Wednesday, December 4, 2013

25 cents

Verizon’s antennas may see higher rent

A clutch win

Nextel removing cell equipment in Poolesville n

SYLVIA CARIGNAN STAFF WRITER

Poolesville’s commissioners want to raise the rent on Verizon’s cell antennas while another cell service provider makes plans to leave town. The commissioners voted to set the terms of their contract with Verizon, which wants to add three antennas to the nine that top the town water tower. Verizon, which was paying $2,500 per month for its water tower lease, will now pay $3,240 if it signs the new contract. According to Town Attorney Jay Gullo, $3,200 is the market price for cell antenna leases in Poolesville. The higher lease “brings everyone in town into line,” Yost said at

BILL RYAN/THE GAZETTE

Northwest High School quarterback Mark Pierce hugs his father, coach Scott Pierce, after defeating Paint Branch in Friday’s Class 4A state semiﬁnal football game in Burtonsville. Northwest (11-2) plays the winner of Saturday’s 1 p.m. Meade (10-2) at Suitland (12-0) game at 7:30 p.m. Friday at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. For more on Northwest, see Page B-8.

Community meeting to be held Dec. 10

Alcohol measures on tap for upcoming General Assembly

KATE S. ALEXANDER STAFF WRITER

A Montgomery County lawmaker will try again to give archery hunters more room to help cull the county’s growing deer population. Del. Eric Luedtke again has proposed a local bill to shrink the safety zone around Montgomery County buildings from 150 yards to 50 yards for bow hunters. Current state law prohibits

shooting any ﬁrearm or deadly weapon, like a bow, within 150 yards of an occupied home, church or other building or camp. Around schools, the safety zone is 300 yards. Under Luedtke’s proposal, Montgomery County would be lumped with Carroll and Frederick counties, which have a 50-yard safety zone. With the exception of Harford County, which has a 100-yard buffer, the rest of the state must follow a 150-yard safety zone. Luedtke (D-Dist. 14) of Burtonsville proposed a similar bill in the 2013 legislative session that became a point of

significant debate among the delegation and did not advance. Few solutions are effective for deer management in Montgomery, but about a dozen citizens who testified in favor of the bill at a delegation hearing Monday say giving archers more room to hunt will go a long way in controlling the deer population. Many who testified told of complications suffered from Lyme disease, a debilitating disease carried by ticks that often feed off the blood of deer. Others spoke of the many deer killed

See DEER, Page A-9

See ANTENNAS, Page A-9

County is set to restore historic Poolesville store n

County bill would open land to deer hunting

the commissioners’ Monday meeting. But Nextel, which currently pays $3,700 per month for its cell antennas on the water tower, will remove its equipment, Yost said. Sprint, which merged with Nextel, will keep its own antennas on the water tower. A Sprint spokesperson said the company is shutting down the Nextel network, but it is not yet clear if Sprint will need to add antennas to replace the lost capacity. According to Yost, the town will lose about $3,800 in monthly revenue when the Nextel antennas are removed. Gullo said he anticipates further negotiations with Verizon about the terms of a study the town is asking the company to fund. In the lease, the town is asking Verizon to pay for a new third-party assessment of the

SYLVIA CARIGNAN STAFF WRITER

Montgomery’s parks department wants to hear from the public about turning the historic Poole’s Store in Poolesville into a heritage tourism destination. A community meeting on the proposal is scheduled for Dec. 10. The store is at 16315 Old River Road in Poolesville in the county’s Seneca Landing Special Park. The parks department wants to rehabilitate the building and revive it as a functioning general store with a new tenant. Poole’s Store was a family-run business that closed on the last day of 2010. The Poole family operated the business for 45 years. The structure was built in 1901.

In 1972, the county’s parks department bought the building after a hurricane left a foot of water in the store and the owners were unable to pay for repairs. The general store once sold state hunting and ﬁshing licenses, livestock feed and gardening supplies, and had a deli counter. The store is now closed to the public, but the park and a nearby agricultural supply store remain open. A 2011 study of the site showed sagging ﬂoors, water damage, stuck windows and code violations. According to Eilleen Emmet, the parks department’s project manager for Poole’s Store, the department decided to try to restore the property after seeing “strong interest from the community” in 2011 to keep it a retail store. Since the study was conducted, the county parks department has

See STORE, Page A-9

Some companies ﬁnd Cyber Monday bargains Rockville company had employees looking for deals n

KEVIN JAMES SHAY STAFF WRITER

When it comes to Cyber Monday — which this week stretches through Friday for many retailers — some company executives get concerned that workers are spending too much time on the job hunting for online bargains. But not Robert Epstein, president and CEO of AboutWeb. In fact, the Rockville information technology company

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BEER FESTS COULD BE ON TAP

— which focuses on Web application development, mobile applications and system integration and design — had some employees searching on Monday for deals on laptops and other electronic products for the company itself to purchase. “It’s a great opportunity for us,” Epstein said. “We ﬁnd the prices are really good on this day.” He was not the only one. More than 131 million Americans shopped online during Cyber Monday, up from 129 million a year ago, according to a survey released by the National Retail Federation. But only 12 percent — some 16 million

— said they used a work computer, with most shopping at home or on a mobile device. Increased online sales has been a big trend in recent years, affecting bricksand-mortar stores, said Patrick Donoho, president of the Maryland Retailers Association. “It’s not just online retailers like Amazon, but traditional retailers — Best Buy, Walmart, Target — have stepped up their online operations,” he said. Some smaller retailers, such as Route One Apparel, a Hunt Valley cloth-

Residents tour the closed historic Poole’s Store in January 2011.

See CYBER, Page A-9

HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL PREVIEW

County leaders are seeking state permission to celebrate local brews.

Region becoming a hotbed for schools that specialize in developing top college basketball players.

A-9

B-1

Automotive Business Calendar Celebrations Classiﬁed Entertainment Opinion School News Sports Please

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2011 FILE PHOTO

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Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

PEOPLE& PLACES More online at www.gazette.net

Germantown resident wins National Bible Bee Germantown resident Ryan Sinni became the first person from Montgomery County to win the senior division of the National Bible Bee on Nov. 23. Ryan, who is homeschooled, spent six hours a day over the past few months learning Bible verses and reciting them from memory to prepare for the event. At the national competition in Tennessee, he took written and oral tests, and emerged as the winner after the final round on Nov. 30. This year marked his fifth entry into the competition. He has placed in the top 15 almost every year, then took the top prize last weekend. Ryan, 17, competed in the senior division, limited to teens age 15 to 18. The competition organizers encourage entrants to learn verses with their family and spend time together every week to share what they’ve learned. “I’ve enjoyed it so much,” Ryan said. “It’s really not about memorizing a bunch of verses, it’s about learning God’s word.” Ryan said his entry into the final round, then a tiebreaker, surprised the crowd because a male contestant had not won the competition since 2009.

His winnings include $100,000 in scholarship money, plus scholarship offers from a handful of colleges and universities. Ryan said he hasn’t decided where he will attend college, but he is considering a few of the schools that have offered funding. For Ryan, the competition wasn’t about the money. “I’m so grateful for the opportunity to memorize God’s work,” he said. “My hands spent less time handling the GameCube controller.” Ryan and his family attend Shady Grove Presbyterian Church in Derwood.

December meetings of the English Conversation Club at the Germantown Library will be held on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays. The club is open to adults and seniors who would like to practice speaking English in a friendly setting. Discussions are led by volunteers. Attendees may drop in for as many sessions as they choose. The next sessions are scheduled to be held on Dec. 4 at 10:30 a.m. and 7 p.m., Dec. 6 at 10:30 a.m. and Dec. 10 at 10:30 a.m. The library is at 19840 Century Blvd. in Germantown. For more information and future session dates,

EVENTS Metropolitan Orchestra and Camerata Concert, 7:30-9:15 p.m., Parilla

Performing Arts Center, 51 Mannakee St., Rockville. Free. 240-567-5209.

SATURDAY, DEC. 7 Country Breakfast Buffet, 7-11 a.m.,

Mt. Carmel United Methodist Church, 22222 Georgia Ave., Sunshine. $8 for adults, $3 for ages 3-8. 301-330-0539. Holiday Bazaar, 9 a.m.-2 p.m., Rockville Senior Center, 1150 Carnation Drive, Rockville. Free. 240-3145019. Holiday Bazaar, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Episcopal Church of the Ascension, 205 S. Summit Ave., Gaithersburg. Free. 301948-0122. Holiday Bazaar, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Salem United Methodist Church Community Hall, 12 High St., Brookeville.

Boy Scout Troop 1397 Christmas Tree Sale, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Cedar Grove

Elementary School, 24001 Ridge Road, Germantown, also Dec. 8. 301-4142326. Resident Artists Open House, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., Sandy Spring Museum, 17910 Bentley Road, Sandy Spring. Free. 301-774-0022.

Northwest’s Martin Foray (right) forces Paint Branch’s Johnny Littlejohn to fumble in a state semifinal football game on Friday. Go to clicked.Gazette.net.

PHOTO KATHY SINNI

Germantown resident Ryan Sinni won the National Bible Bee competition in Tennessee on Nov. 23. visit the Germantown library’s schedule of events online or call the library at 240-777-0110.

Local graduate gains renown for photography Seneca Valley High School graduate Sandy DeWitt has been

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Send items at least two weeks in advance of the paper in which you would like them to appear. Go to calendar.gazette.net and click on the submit button. Questions? Call 301-670-2070.

THURSDAY, DEC. 5

GALLERY

English Conversation Club holding December sessions

Make a Paracord Bracelet, 3-4

p.m., Damascus Library, 9701 Main St., Damascus. Free. 240-773-9444. Madrigal Dinnner, 4:30-7 p.m., Trinity United Methodist Church, 13700 Schaeffer Road, Germantown. Free. trinityumc.music@verizon.net. Community Christmas Concert, 5-6:30 p.m., Potomac United Methodist Church, 9908 S. Glen Road, Potomac. Free. 301-299-9383.

SUNDAY, DEC. 8 Breakfast with Santa, 9-11 a.m., Kentlands Mansion, 320 Kent Square Road, Gaithersburg. $20 for adults, $15 for kids. kking2@gaithersburgmd.gov. Montgomery Village Community Tiny Tots Concert, 3-4:30 p.m., Lake

Marion Community Center, 8821 East Village Ave., Montgomery Village. Free. 240-243-2361. The Milkshake Trio Concert, 3:30-5 p.m., Congregation B’nai Tzedek, 10621 South Glen Road, Potomac. $5 for adults, free for kids. 301-299-0225.

Christmas Carol Sing Along and Children’s Concert, 4-5:30 p.m., Gaith-

ersburg Presbyterian Church, 610 S. Frederick Ave., Gaithersburg. Free. 301-948-9418. Gospel-Aires Concert, 4-6 p.m., St.

FRI

Third Annual Holiday Shoppe and Vendor Night,

6:30-8:30 p.m., Lake Seneca Elementary School, 13600 Wanegarden Drive, Germantown. Free. shelbypta@bidwellfamily.net.

MORE INTERACTIVE CALENDAR ITEMS AT WWW.GAZETTE.NET Anne’s Episcopal Church, 25100 Ridge Road, Damascus. Free-will offering. 301-253-2130.

Vintage Flicks: It’s A Wonderful Life,

6:30 p.m., Damascus United Methodist Church, 9700 New Church St., Damascus. Free-will offering. 301-253-0022.

TUESDAY, DEC. 10 Little Hands and Big Hands ASL Story Time, 10:30-11:30 a.m., Damas-

cus Library, 9701 Main St., Damascus. Free. 240-773-9444.

Montgomery Parks Community Meeting on Seneca Store Restoration,

7-8:30 p.m., Darnestown Elementary School, All-Purpose Room, 15030 Turkey Foot Road, Darnestown. Free. 302-495-2550. A Civil War Christmas at Home, 7-8:30 p.m., Kentlands Mansion, 320 Kent Square Road, Gaithersburg. $5. 301-258-6160.

SPORTS Check Friday night for coverage of the Class 4A state championship football game between Northwest and Suitland high schools.

For more on your community, visit www.gazette.net

named Architectural Photographer of the Year for 2013 by the Miami chapter of the American Institute of Architects. DeWitt graduated from the Germantown high school in 1983. She is an architectural artist who lives in Florida and photographs subjects worldwide.

ConsumerWatch What happens if you show up at the airport and forget your ID?

CORRECTION A Nov. 27 BizBriefs item about the expansion of Activity Rocket gave the wrong ﬁrst name for Lisa Friedlander. Also, businesses still have the option of a free subscription to the service in addition to having paid advanced marketing options.

DEATHS Reginald Calvert Orem Jr. Reginald Calvert Orem Jr., 82, died Nov. 10, 2013, in College Park.

LIZ CRENSHAW

Liz turns to the TSA to secure this answer.

WeekendWeather

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 11 Singer Songwriter Series: Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion, 3 p.m.,

Kentlands Mansion, 320 Kent Square Road, Gaithersburg. $25 for concert, $45 for concert and workshop. stakahashi@gaithersburgmd.gov.

Get complete, current weather information at

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Mobile

Claude Harris Hall Claude Harris Hall died Nov. 30, 2013. Stauffer Funeral Home in Brunswick handled arrangements.

SUNDAY

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GAZETTE CONTACTS The Gazette – 9030 Comprint Court Gaithersburg, MD 20877 Main phone: 301-948-3120 Circulation: 301-670-7350

THE GAZETTE

Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

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LOCAL Black Friday: Shoppers on a budget, retailers hoping for more robust sales Westﬁeld stores offered extended sales throughout the weekend n

ALINE BARROS STAFF WRITER

DAN GROSS/THE GAZETTE

Anna Glenn, the market manager for Rocklands Farm in Poolesville, pours a glass of Chardonel wine in the tasting room, which is an old blacksmith’s shop on the farm. The Chardonel grapes are all from the Rocklands Farm vineyard.

Wineries aided by new state laws Legislature has passed various measures to boost the industry in the state n

KEVIN JAMES SHAY STAFF WRITER

For several years, Rocklands Farm has humanely raised cattle, chicken and other animals on its 34 acres and maintained an organic vegetable and produce garden. Now, the Poolesville farm has added vino to its offerings, taking advantage of a new law allowing tax credits on 25 percent of the capital expenses to establish or make improvements to a winery. Opened in mid-November, Rocklands Farm’s winery has a couple of acres of vineyards and offers seven wines. “It’s a fairly small operation right now, but we plan to grow,” said Shawn Eubank, the business manager. The winery expects to produce about 9,000 bottles by the end of the year. The tax credit law, which the Maryland General Assembly passed this year, took effect in July. It is one of several pieces of legislation approved in recent years to boost the state’s wine industry. A two-year-old law lets Maryland wineries obtain a permit to ship their products directly to customers, a longtime desire by local producers. Previously, wineries had to ship to a wholesaler, which would send it on to a retailer. The law has helped Elk Run Vineyards and Winery boost sales, said Carol Wilson, coowner with her husband, Fred. “We are seeing an increase in the number of orders,” she said.

People regularly request wine to be shipped to them after a visit and particularly during the holidays to give as a gift, said Wilson, who is also marketing director of the Mount Airy winery. Established in 1979, Elk Run’s offerings include white wines such as Liberty Tavern Reserve Chardonnay and Gewurztraminer, red wines like Pinot Noir and sparkling wines. Elk Run uses a shipping company to deal with various states’ tax regulations. “It’s easier for us not to have to keep up with how much in sales taxes that each state charges and the related paperwork,” Wilson said. Maryland issued 629 direct wine-shipping permits in ﬁscal 2012, when 49,350 gallons of wine were shipped directly to consumers, according to a state comptroller’s office report. Wholesalers still accounted for more than 99 percent of wine sales, with some 14.66 million gallons sold in the state. Wineries and businesses outside Maryland that want to ship wine into the state have to be licensed to manufacture wine and obtain a permit from the state comptroller’s ofﬁce.

Lifting restrictions on farmers’ markets Another beneficial law that was passed this year lifts restrictions on wineries to sell their products at farmers’ markets in Maryland. Wineries pay for one state permit, rather than having to get special event permits each time they want to sell at a market. “It gives us more opportunities to be out and about,”

Wilson said. Elk Run has sold at markets in Frederick, Bethesda, Silver Spring and Potomac, among others. Lifting the farmers’ market restrictions also has helped Great Shoals Winery, which produces hard ciders and sparkling wines, owner Matt Cimino said. “We can attend more markets easily,” he said. “We don’t have to ﬁle so much paperwork.” Markets must invite a winery to participate, and wineries cannot sell by the glass. Local regulations regarding the sale and sampling of wine are enforced and not superseded by the state. Farmers’ markets selling locally produced vegetables, fruits and other products have become increasingly popular, with the number in the state rising to 131 this year from 88 in 2008. Great Shoals, which formed in 2010, has its tasting room at Heyser Farms in Silver Spring. The winery does not currently have its own vineyards, but works with partners and larger producers, Cimino said. “We would like to one day have our own vineyards,” he said. Great Shoals also has seen more shipping orders this year, Cimino said. One concern with direct shipping is that big wine companies, such as in California, could ﬂood the state with shipments, but it’s too early to tell if outside wineries are having much impact, he said. “A lot of residents don’t know about the shipping law,” Cimino said. kshay@gazette.net

Michele Easley of Baltimore showed up at the Montgomery mall in Bethesda after midnight Friday, but she did not plan on buying anything. Instead, she came with her friends, who were taking advantage of the sales at the Michael Kors and Forever 21 stores. “No shopping for me. ... I am just blessed to be able to be around friends,” Easley said. The mall had special hours for Black Friday. Some retailers opened at 8 p.m., and the mall ofﬁcially opened at midnight. “Black Friday is sort of the inaugural start to the holiday season. It is when people start to get in the holiday mindset, and it is becoming a tradition for a lot of families to shop early together,” said Christa Allen, the mall’s senior director of marketing. The mall also organized sales with stores extended throughout the weekend. Customers could get from 30 percent to 50 percent discounts throughout the mall. The 8 p.m. shoppers on Thursday were a “real family crowd” who finished their Thanksgiving dinner and came to the mall for holiday shopping. At midnight, a younger crowd visited the retail stores, she said. “There had been people here shopping for many hours now waiting for the next wave of doors to open at midnight ... [or] People who go to Best Buy ... they get their electronics and come here afterwards,” Allen said. The National Retail Federation estimates that holiday sales will increase 3.9 percent this year to $602 billion from last year. Some shoppers had bud-

DAN GROSS/THE GAZETTE

Waiting for Foot Locker to open Friday at the Montgomery mall in Bethesda are (seated, from left) Wais Ahmad of Potomac, Bobby Blue of Germantown and Mina Aziz of Silver Spring. They had been up all night and arrived at the mall at 5:30 a.m. gets and knew exactly what they wanted. Charles Attiglah, 31, of Montgomery Village, went to get some men’s accessories. He had a $100 budget and hoped to get the best deals for clothes during the midnight opening. “I came here to get some pants. ... I’m on a budget. ... I got to save up my money for my business,” Attiglah said. To start the holiday season, the mall had for the ﬁrst time a cast of elves called the Merry Makers. They were walking around the mall delivering to shoppers “random acts of magic” — including cups of coffee, mall gift cards ranging from $5 to $500, or just helping customers carry the bounty of their shopping sprees to their cars. The Merry Makers will choose people randomly to make the shopping experience more fun, and they will be out in the mall throughout the full holiday season, Allen said. “They also sing and dance.

About 30 families affected on Thanksgiving n

SYLVIA CARIGNAN STAFF WRITER

About 70 Poolesville homes lost water service when two water mains broke this past week. According to Town Man-

OFFER EXPIRES 12/24/2013

ager Wade Yost, a 6-inch water main broke on Walters Avenue around 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving evening, affecting about 30 homes in the area. Then, an 8-inch main on Westerly Road broke around 2:30 p.m. on Dec. 2, he said. About 40 homes were affected by the second break, and water service was unavailable that day

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Study 3 • Hunt game or other wildlife • Fish recreationally • Observe, feed or photograph wildlife Study 4 • Teach in a public or private elementary or secondary school • Are a principal in a public or private elementary or secondary school

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until about 10 p.m. Yost said the breaks were likely caused by seasonal changes in temperature. The town, which is on well water and is not served by the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission, sent out its own work crews to make the repairs.

Holiday Shopping in Clarksburg Town Center

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Two water main breaks hit Poolesville neighborhoods

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They might see a family with a crying child and be able to stop and sing a Christmas carol or do a little dance. ... They will be out in the mall. You don’t know when you are going to encounter them,” she said. Andy Salamanca, a wireless expert at a Sprint kiosk, said despite the early opening, sales had not been great. He was hopeful that throughout Friday it would be a better turnout. “It is been kind of slow [but] we are going to be open tomorrow, too. ... Everybody is shopping for clothes and shoes so when they come out that’s when we get the trafﬁc,” Salamanca said. With holiday shopping accounting for 30 percent to 40 percent of many retailers’ annual sales, it’s “a big chunk of business, so it obviously is really important to them and we’ve seen some great trafﬁc already in the mall,” Allen said.

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AROUND THE COUNTY Upcounty Ride On route to MARC starts next month n

Bus will take commuters to Germantown station BY

SYLVIA CARIGNAN STAFF WRITER

In January, Montgomery County will offer a new Ride On bus route to connect

upcounty commuters with MARC trains. Route 94, alternatively called “Meet the MARC,” will start on Jan. 13 and run between Clarksburg and the Germantown MARC station. Buses will run on the route during rush hour and will make stops on Clarksburg Road, Snowden

Farm Parkway, Little Seneca Parkway and Meadow Mist Road. The route will have a total of nine Clarksburg stops in the morning and 10 in the evening. Route 94 replaces the existing Route 94, which ran from the Kingsview Park and Ride lot near Clopper Road to

the Germantown MARC station. The last day of service for the current Route 94 was Oct. 18. The “Meet the MARC” route is one of a series of upcounty Ride On schedule and route changes the county considered earlier this year. Councilman Craig L. Rice asked for the con-

nection to MARC’s Brunswick line after he saw commuters ﬁghting for parking spots in the crowded Germantown MARC station lot. For more information on bus arrival and departure times, visit the Ride On website. scarignan@gazette.net

Barnesville, Poolesville students create habitat for bivalves Fourth-grade students at Barnesville School of Arts and Sciences created a “reef ball” to provide a home for oysters in the Chesapeake Bay. They worked with Poolesville High School students this fall to fill a ball-shaped plastic mold with an inﬂatable bladder and a mixture of concrete and cement, according to Kristen Carter, spokeswoman for the Barnesville School. Once the concrete set and the bladder was removed, the students sent their project to be placed in the Chesapeake Bay, where oysters will live inside the ball, safe from ﬁshermen. The Barnesville School of Arts and Sciences is a pre-school through eighth-grade program that is not part of Montgomery County Public Schools. The school is located in Dickerson. — SYLVIA CARIGNAN

Fitness for child’s play

Leggett to hold a series of budget forums in January Sessions to generate feedback from residents for budget process n

RYAN MARSHALL STAFF WRITER

Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) will hold a series of forums around the county in January to gather feedback in developing the county’s ﬁscal 2015 operating budget. The sessions will allow Leggett to get input from residents as he prepares to submit the budget to the County Council on March 17.

The ideas discussed tend to run the gamut from countywide issues to more local concerns, county spokesman Patrick Laceﬁeld said. Each session will start with a presentation on the various aspects of the county budget and the budget process before the executive opens it up to suggestions, he said. Education, public safety and help for the most vulnerable members of society through the county’s Department of Health and Human Services are always big parts of the budget, Laceﬁeld said. Final decisions on what makes it into the operating budget are made in early

March, before it’s sent to the County Council for their consideration and input. “This is all grist to help us do that,” Laceﬁeld said. The budget sessions will take Leggett to: • BlackRock Center for the Arts in Germantown on Jan. 6. • Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center in Bethesda on Jan. 13. • Eastern Montgomery Regional Services Center in Silver Spring on Jan. 16 • Mid-County Community Recreation Center in Silver Spring on Jan. 27 • Silver Spring Civic Building in Silver Spring on Jan. 29.

All five sessions are scheduled to start at 7 p.m. The council will have a set of public hearings once Leggett submits his budget, council spokesman Neil Greenberger said. Those hearings usually take place over a series of four nights in April at the council office building in Rockville, he said. The council must pass a budget by the end of May. The council passed a $4.8 billion operating budget in May for fiscal 2014. rmarshall@gazette.net

Germantown’s Craig Rice elected to council president During one-year term, he plans to focus on small businesses, working with Annapolis BY

Poolesville ’s annual tree lighting ceremony is scheduled to be held at 6 p.m. on Dec. 6. The theme for this year’s tree is “Woodland Owls.” The giant tree will be adorned with owl ornaments made by local elementary school students. At the event, children can decorate gingerbread cookies and visit Santa, ride the Holiday Express Train and hear a special reading from Mrs. Claus. Musical performances, dance groups and food will be part of the event, which will run until 9 p.m. The tree lighting ceremony will be held at Whalen Commons in Poolesville, in front of town hall at 19721 Beall St.

With temperatures slipping below freezing, the Montgomery County Humane Society needs warm bedding for the animals at its shelter. The organization needs comforters, blankets, ﬂeece and other bedding, but not heating blankets. Donations can be dropped off at the shelter at 14645 Rothgeb Drive in Rockville. For more information and a complete list of items on the shelter’s wish-list, visit mchumane.org or call 240-773-5960.

PHOTO FROM KRISTEN CARTER

Poolesville to light the town tree

Baby, it’s cold outside!

Fourth-grade students at Barnesville School of Arts and Sciences created a “reef ball” to provide a home for oysters in the Chesapeake Bay. They worked with Poolesville High School students this past fall to ﬁll a plastic mold with an inﬂatable bladder and a mixture of concrete and cement.

InBrief

RYAN MARSHALL STAFF WRITER

Montgomery County Councilman Craig Rice took over as council president Tuesday, saying he plans to focus on helping small businesses thrive while advocating a powerful role for government in making sure the county’s residents are taken care of. The council voted unanimously for Rice (D-Dist. 5) of Germantown, who served as vice president under outgoing President Nancy Navarro (D-Dist. 4) of Silver Spring. Rice laid out four areas he plans to emphasize during his one-year term: promoting an aggressive business agenda, including changing the county’s procurement rules to prioritize businesses located in Montgomery County; pushing for more state funding for school renovation and construction;

protecting and promoting farming in the county’s Agricultural Preserve; and restoring as much funding as possible to the county’s libraries, parks, social services, and police and ﬁre services to make up for cuts during the economic downturn. Rice, who served a term as a state delegate from District 15 before being elected to the County Council in 2010, said he believes the relationships he built and maintains in Annapolis can be an asset for the county. He said he wants Rice to focus on helping the county’s small businesses thrive. “Jobs are important to Montgomery County,” Rice said. “And we know the number one contributor of those jobs is our small business sector.” But he also outlined an active role for government in protecting residents and making sure they’re taken care of. No private entity has the ability to

protect the council’s constituents like the county government can, whether that’s preventing crime, keeping unscrupulous companies from exploiting employees or protecting and rescuing residents after natural disasters. “It is government that has the responsibility to step in and provide the service,” he said. Rice was nominated for president by Councilman George Leventhal (D-At large) of Takoma Park, who cited Rice’s communication and people skills and political experience in making the nomination. Although Rice, 41, is the youngest member of the council, he’s by no means the least experienced, Leventhal said. Minutes after he nominated Rice, Leventhal himself was nominated for vice president by Councilman Roger Berliner (D-Dist. 1) of Bethesda. The council also elected Leventhal unanimously. Councilman Marc Elrich (D-At large) of Takoma Park was absent from the meeting. Leventhal said he looks forward to working with lawmakers in Annapolis on money for school construction, as well as focusing on issues such as the White Oak

Science Gateway and Clarksburg’s Ten Mile Creek. The county’s budget will also present some tough choices, he said. Leventhal has been on the council since 2002 and served as council president in 2006. Both Rice and Leventhal praised Navarro for her accomplishments during her time as president. “You’ve led us through some difﬁcult decisions and some important policy advances,” Rice told her. The council took on a huge workload this year, including oversight of the Silver Spring Transit Center project and a redevelopment project in Wheaton, Navarro said before the new ofﬁcers were elected. But the item she called the council’s greatest accomplishment of the year came only last week, when they voted 8-1 to approved a bill Navarro co-sponsored to raise the county’s minimum wage to $11.50 an hour by 2017. That vote will go down as one of the greatest accomplishments of this council’s four-year term, she said. rmarshall@gazette.net

The Zumba studio in Poolesville will host a holiday ﬁt-

ness party for Toys for Tots on Dec. 4. Public class fees for December will be donated to Toys for Tots, but attendees can bring a new, unwrapped toy to receive a waiver for the $5 fee. Cash donations to Toys for Tots are also welcome. Attendees are encouraged to wear white or neon clothing for the black light party, and will receive free glow sticks at the event. The ﬁtness party will be held from 6 to 7 p.m. at the Poolesville Athletic Club at 19942 Fisher Avenue. For more information, contact Karen McPhatter at kmcphatter@yahoo.com.

POLICE BLOTTER Full report at www.gazette.net The following is a summary of incidents in the Germantown area to which Montgomery County police responded recently. The words “arrested” and “charged” do not imply guilt. This information was provided by the county.

Ofﬁcer-involved shooting • On Nov. 18 at 9:40 p.m. at Great Seneca Highway and Grotto Lane, Germantown. Strong-arm robbery • On Nov. 15 at 11:20 p.m. in the 19700 block of Crystal Rock Drive, Germantown. Took property. • On Nov. 19 at 6:45 p.m. at Dawson Farm Road and Liberty Mill Road, Germantown. The subject assaulted the victim and unsuccessfully attempted to take property. Commercial burglary • On Nov. 19 at the Center for Pain Management, 19735 Germantown Road, Germantown. Residential burglary • 24600 block of Ridge Road, Damascus, between 5 and 9:30 a.m. Nov. 16. Forced entry, took property. • 13200 block of Country Ridge Drive, Germantown, at 7:25 p.m. Nov. 17. No forced entry, took property. • 20200 block of Shipley Terrace, Germantown, on Nov. 19.

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Grants available for students who talk the right walk New county project targets high school pedestrians

LINDSAY A. POWERS STAFF WRITER

Montgomery County high school students have been asked to help their peers navigate the streets more safely. A new county Department of Transportation project is challenging student teams in Montgomery County Public Schools to come up with ideas to help other students learn more about pedestrian safety. The transportation department will award grants of up to $2,000 to teams to help them carry out their plan. The project is called “Walk Your Way.” Nadji Kirby, the project’s coordinator and the county’s Safe Routes to School coordinator, said the transportation department has worked with elementary and middle school students on walking and biking safety, but much with high schools. The transportation department has worked with two high schools in recent years. Starting in the 2010-11 school year, the department partnered with Montgomery Blair High School to help educate students in the Silver Spring area where the county identiﬁed a high number of pedestrian accidents, Kirby said. The department’s efforts later spread to Seneca Valley High School in Germantown, where a student died after she was struck by a car in October 2012 while crossing a road near the school. Using submitted ideas, the school system and the county transportation department will create an online toolkit to inspire student organizations, parent teacher associations and schools. The County Council budgeted $100,000 for the high school project this ﬁscal year, some of which will go toward

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grants, she said. Students teams from the district’s 25 high schools have until Dec. 16 to submit grant applications and must complete their projects by April 30. The teams must have the support of a teacher or school staff member. Information from 2010 to 2012 shows 172 pedestrian accidents within a half-mile of Montgomery County high schools, 30 involving high school-age kids, Jeff Dunckel, pedestrian safety coordinator for the Montgomery County Department of Transportation, previously told The Gazette. The accident near Seneca Valley is one of several recent cases in which students were hit while walking near their schools. On Oct. 10, a Richard Montgomery High School student was struck by a car while walking in a Rockville Pike crosswalk. Another Richard Montgomery student was struck by a car Oct. 7 while crossing Wootton Parkway where there was no crosswalk. Marc Cohen, principal of Seneca Valley High School, said the county transportation department has helped support the school’s pedestrian safety efforts since last year, when it lost one of its students in an accident. Christina Morris-Ward, 15, died after she was struck by a car on Md. 118, one of four busy roads around the school. The school’s efforts to educate children and adults since then include an assembly, presentations to its parent organization, a video public-service announcement, and volunteers at intersections near the school handing out reﬂectors for backpacks. “We have a signiﬁcant portion of our student body walking to school,” he said. Now, Cohen said, the school is applying for a grant to train a group of students, who would teach peers and younger students about safe walking. Todd Watkins, director of transportation for the school system, said the school system identifies routes around each school that are safe for students.

“It seems like a no-brainer to get some fresh ideas from kids. I think kids see things from a different perspective.” Susan Burkinshaw, Montgomery County Council of Parent Teacher Associations There are crosswalks and countdown timers, Watkins said, but distracted students and drivers don’t always pay attention to them or their surroundings. Susan Burkinshaw — health

and safety committee cochairwoman of the Montgomery County Council of Parent Teacher Associations — said it would be a huge beneﬁt if high school students could create an environment in which students are more aware of how to be safe pedestrians. Having more kids walk to school translates to health benefits for them and lower bus transportation costs for taxpayers, she said. “It seems like a no-brainer to get some fresh ideas from kids,” Burkinshaw said of the new project. “I think kids see things from a different perspective.” Students can submit applications to walkyourway@montgomerycountymd.gov or Walk Your Way, 101 Monroe St., 10th Floor, Rockville, MD 20850. lpowers@gazette.net

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Leggett says he’ll sign wage increase Thursday Bill will raise wage to $11.50 an hour by 2017 n

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Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett is scheduled to sign a bill Thursday that will raise the county’s minimum wage to $11.50 an hour by 2017. The County Council passed the increase 8-1 after a sometimes contentious discussion on Nov. 26. Councilman Phil Andrews (D-Dist. 3) of Gaithersburg, who expressed a desire to wait for a vote to see whether the General Assembly will take action on a statewide minimum wage increase from the current rate of $7.25 an hour, opposed the measure. The vote will gradually raise the county’s wage by October 1, 2017, a year later than in the original proposal sponsored by Councilman Marc Elrich (D-At Large) of Takoma Park. The ﬁrst increase in the rate will be Oct. 1, 2014, when

the minimum wage rises to $8.40 an hour. The bill doesn’t tie the wage to a consumer price index that would allow it to keep pace with inﬂation, unless the state passes an increase that’s indexed. After the vote, Elrich said he still considered the vote a victory, despite the extra year to implement it. “It would have been a victory whatever we passed,” he said. The bill’s supporters said it was necessary to allow workers to survive Montgomery’s high standard of living, while its opponents argued that minimum wage jobs are meant to be entry-level jobs and that almost all the workers in the county make more than the current minimum. The bill requires employers of tipped workers to provide a base pay equal to half of the state minimum wage, with an obligation to make up the difference in any pay up to the county’s minimum wage; eliminates a credit for employers that provide health care to employ-

ees; exempts workers 18 years old and younger who work 20 hours a week or less; requires the county executive to delegate enforcement of the law to a state agency that enforces the state wage laws and is authorized to enforce a county minimum wage law; prevents employers from retaliating against an employee who files a minimum wage complaint; speciﬁes that worker in the county must be paid the wage even if their employer is based outside the county; and applies the county minimum wage to county employees. The health care exemption was removed because the passage of the federal Affordable Care Act is expected to make it easier for workers to get health care on their own. The county has about 2,200 temporary employees, some of whom make less than $11.50 an hour, prompting the move to apply the wage to county employees. County Executive Isiah Leggett, who had suggested an alternative proposal, said in a

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“The council doesn’t have to guess what the state is going to do.” Phil Andrews, County Councilman statement after the vote that he looked forward to signing the bill into law.Leggett’s position would have created a four-year phase-in period to increase the county’s wage to $10.75 an hour. In the ﬁfth year, the wage would have been the lesser amount of either $11.50 an hour or a dollar above a state minimum wage, as long as that amount was equal to at least $10.75 an hour. The extra year raises questions about how Montgomery’s bill will affect legislation pending in Prince George’s County and the District, which would raise the minimum wage to $11.50 an hour in those jurisdictions by 2016. The Prince George’s County Council passed a similar bill 7-0 on Nov. 27, while the Washington Council’s Committee on Business, Consumer, and Regulatory Affairs favorably reported the bill out of committee Nov. 25 and recommended approval by the full council in a vote set for Tuesday.Uncertainty over what action, if any, the General Assembly will take during its session that starts in January to pass an increase in the state’s minimum wage was a concern for some council members during the discussion leading up to the Montgomery council’s vote.Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) has said he plans to make an increase in the state’s minimum wage a priority in the next session, after a similar effort failed this year. Several council members expressed concern about moving ahead without knowing what the state will do. Andrews urged his colleagues to wait until the picture is more clear on the state level before forcing a vote. “The council doesn’t have to guess what the state is going to do,” Andrews said. Council Vice President Craig Rice (D-Dist. 2) of Germantown proposed the council postpone a vote until Jan. 28.Rice, a former state delegate, said he’d been told by leadership in Annapolis that a state bill will be ready by early January. “There is no better regional approach than a statewide approach,” he said. Rice withdrew his motion after it became clear it didn’t have support from a majority of the council. But supporters of a county increase said they believe action by Montgomery and Prince George’s will help spur action in the General Assembly. They cited a letter from Del. Tom Hucker (D-Dist. 20), a member of the Economic Matters Committee in the House of Delegates. The letter outlined the recent history of minimum wage legislation in Annapolis, and urged the council to approve the bill. “It is abundantly clear that passage of a higher minimum wage in Montgomery County (and Prince George’s County) will only increase the likelihood that the General Assembly will pass a statewide increase in the minimum wage, possibly significantly so,” Hucker wrote. “In no way will the passage of a higher minimum wage in Montgomery and/or Prince George’s counties hinder our efforts to pass statewide legislation.” Councilman George Leventhal (D-At Large) of Takoma Park said opponents of an increase will ﬁght a state bill “tooth and nail,” and if the council didn’t take action it would send a message to legislators that the issue was so hot politically that it caused the council to back away. Councilwoman Valerie Ervin (D-Dist. 5) of Silver Spring said there’s no telling what the General Assembly will do and Montgomery had a duty to Prince George’s and the District to move ahead. “I think that delaying the bill is killing the bill,” she said. rmarshall@gazette.net

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Minimum wage increases with maximum drama at County Council RYAN MARSHALL AND KATE S. ALEXANDER

STAFF WRITERS

Before the Montgomery County Council voted Nov. 26 to raise the county’s minimum wage, one councilman alleged that he was told the president of the Maryland Senate could torpedo the effort. Councilman Hans Riemer (D-At Large) of Takoma Park said a Montgomery County senator told him that Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. had a message for the council: the higher the new wage, the more likely the state would try to take away its wage-setting authority. He later said the senator might have told him it was a message from Senate leadership, not Miller. But Miller (D-Dist. 27) of Chesapeake Beach, when asked about the allegation, released a statement saying he “respects” Montgomery County’s right to set its own wage level. In a statement to The Gazette, Miller did not directly address Riemer’s allegation. “While I believe that one uniform wage is the most effective for the state, if Montgomery County chooses to proceed in this manner, they are within their rights to do so,” Miller said. “We have different formulas for school funding and other matters in our state because of the high cost of living and I can understand why urban areas feel a need for wages to be higher there than in Southern Maryland, Western Maryland or the Eastern Shore.” Riemer said the next day that he didn’t remember exactly what words were used to relate the message, but its intent was clear: The state didn’t want the county to raise the wage on its own. “The higher you go, the more likely we are to pre-empt you,” Riemer said he was told. He declined to reveal the identity of the senator, because the conversation was private. Seven of Montgomery County’s eight senators said they did not give such a message to Riemer. The eighth, Sen. Brian J. Feldman (D-Dist. 15) of Potomac, did not return calls for comment. Councilman Marc Elrich (DAt Large) of Takoma Park said he gives Miller credit for supporting the county, and doesn’t believe county wage autonomy was ever

in doubt. The County Council voted to increase the minimum wage in the county to $11.50 per hour by 2017, after a nearly four-hour discussion that featured several frosty exchanges among council members as they attempted to promote or beat back various proposals. On Nov. 27, Prince George’s County voted to increase the minimum wage there, also phased in over a four-year period. A similar increase is in the pipeline in Washington, D.C. Elrich, who authored the Montgomery County bill, said his bill had been the victim of a deliberate effort by some people to create misinformation about several aspects of the bill in the weeks leading up to the vote, none of which turned out to be true. Rumors said Miller wasn’t happy with the legislation, but no one could ever conﬁrm them, Elrich said. Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) has said he plans to make a minimum wage increase a priority and Maryland is expected take up a bill in the 2014 session to raise the statewide minimum wage to $10.10. Part of the Montgomery discussion hinged on whether the council should postpone its bill until the General Assembly takes action. The state’s minimum wage now is $7.25 an hour. Councilman Philip M. Andrews (D-Dist. 3) of Gaithersburg argued that acting ahead of the state meant the county would be “ﬂying blind,” while Council Vice President Craig Rice (D-Dist. 2) of Germantown suggested the council put off action until late

January to see what the state legislation will look like. Even if members of the Senate wanted to pre-empt Montgomery’s wage authority in favor of the state’s action, most of the county’s Senate delegation say such a proposal is unlikely to gain momentum. Sen. Brian E. Frosh (D-Dist. 16) of Chevy Chase said the General Assembly will be focused on

its own efforts. “I’d be very surprised if the state took actions based on Montgomery County,” he said. It would not get support, said Sen. Nancy J. King (D-Dist. 39) of Montgomery Village. Montgomery is also not the only county to raise its local minimum wage, Sen. Roger Manno (D-Dist. 19) of Silver Spring noted.

“Counties have broad, broad authority, granted by the state,” Manno said. “I haven’t heard anyone suggest that the counties shouldn’t have autonomy over their wage rates.” Others found the threat that Riemer raised not so far-fetched. Sen. Richard Madaleno said, that even though he hasn’t heard it mentioned, he would not be surprised if someone

were to propose a bill to preempt the county’s ability to set a local minimum wage. “The state, obviously, has a role to play to make sure that none of the local governments go in a direction that is bad for the state or detrimental to the state,” Madaleno (D-Dist. 18) of Kensington said. “We put in all sorts of ranges and limits and prohibitions on other issues.”

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passed away on Tuesday, November 19, 2013 at his home in Damascus, MD, surrounded by close friends and family. He is survived by two sisters, Mary Margaret Wade and Linda Jane Wade, two sons, Christopher Ray Wade, Jason Wade and three grandchildren. He was born in Lee County, Virginia, worked as a truck driver (CDL) in Gaithersburg, MD. Services will be held on Saturday, December 7, 2013 at 2:00p.m. at the Christian Life Center Church, Gaithersburg, MD. Arrangements handled by Going Home Cremation, Greenbelt, MD. 1913032

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WOO-HOO! IT’S THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAIN! “It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.”Albert Einstein. This sentiment is the reason why Mid-Atlantic Federal Credit Union (MAFCU) is proud to sponsor The Gazette’s My Favorite Teacher Contest.

The votes are in and the winners will be announced in next week’s edition! Please visit our website at www.gazette.net/teacher to see our sponsors who made the program possible.

Barrie School is a community of learners from age 18-months through Grade 12. We empower individuals to expand their intellectual abilities, develop their creative talents, and discover their passions to make a positive impact in a rapidly changing world. We offer an exemplary Montessori Lower School program for ages 18-months through Grade 5 and a rigorous, projectbased Middle-Upper School curriculum for Grades 6 through 12. At all levels, Barrie strives to know and understand our students as individuals, guiding their way to excellence. We foster respect for self, others, and the environment in every member of our community. Visit www.barrie.org<http://www.barrie.org.

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“The teachers of Montgomery County assist in building the backbone to our communities’ future leaders. They help develop, instill qualities of character, challenge and educate all students in a positive manner. Mid-Atlantic Federal Credit Union wants to help recognize all teachers for their commitment to our students.” –MAFCU President and CEO, Richard Wieczorek Jr. Similar to the dedication teachers have for their students, Mid-Atlantic Federal Credit Union is dedicated to make Montgomery County a better place to live and work. We achieve this by supporting local causes, offering innovative financing solutions to our neighbors and sponsoring free educational programs for both consumers and businesses.

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Germantown Dental Group is proud to sponsor the My Favorite Teacher Contest. We believe the values and skills learned in the classroom are vital building blocks for life, and teachers are a major factor in passing on these skills to our children. When children take a greater interest in learning, they continue to make better and smarter life choices. At Germantown Dental Group, we support our local teachers who are teaching children values and positive behaviors, not to mention helping kids explore their unique talents so that they can reach their potential. That makes for confident kids today and contributing and engaged adults tomorrow.

Based in Germantown, Md., Mid-Atlantic Federal Credit Union (MAFCU) is a not-for-profit institution managed for the sole benefit of its members, and offers many financial services at better rates and fees. Profits are returned to MAFCU members in the form of higher savings rates, lower loan rates, and lower fees. MAFCU currently has over 25,000 members and over $270 million in assets. Membership is open to anyone who lives, works, worships, volunteers or attends school in Montgomery Country, Maryland. For more information, please visit www.mafcu.org, email mafcu@mafcu.org or call: (301) 944-1800.

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Brazilian investment company Beer festivals brewing in Montgomery County seeks opens its U.S. base in Rockville state permission to n

$200 million to be invested locally BY

KEVIN JAMES SHAY STAFF WRITER

An investment business formed by Brazil’s largest pharmaceutical company has opened its U.S. headquarters in Rockville and plans to invest $200 million in operations, state ofﬁcials said Tuesday. The announcement came as Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) is leading a trade mission in Brazil this week. The delegation, which includes representatives of Bethesda defense giant Lockheed Martin and Germantown weather monitoring company Earth Networks, also plans to visit El Salvador on Sunday and Monday. Last year, Brazil was Maryland’s 11th-largest export market, with exports increasing 15 percent from 2011 to $308 million. The Port of Baltimore last year exported 1.4 million tons of goods to Brazil. Brace Pharmaceuticals, an investment

DEER

Continued from Page A-1 each year along their streets by motorists. Kevin Kommitt of the Sycamore Acres Citizens Association told the delegation that it needs to support the bill to protect children and residents in the county. “Odds are it [a deer-auto collision] will happen to someone in this room in the next year,” he said. Rob Gibbs, of the Montgomery Parks Department of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, acknowledged that reducing the safety zone could increase the opportunity for hunting in the county. However, even a 50-yard safety zone would not allow hunting in the county’s more densely populated areas, he said. Luedtke’s bill was one of 13 local bills

STORE

Continued from Page A-1 made repairs on the property. Gutters and downspouts were repaired, debris has been cleaned up and a wheelchair ramp has been installed. Montgomery Parks spokeswoman Melissa Chotiner said in an email that the available

ANTENNAS

Continued from Page A-1 radio-frequency energy coming from the antennas. In May, the town commissioners voted to hire the Kansas company Radiofrequency Safety International Inc. to conduct a hazard assessment monitoring of the antennas. The $3,000 report found nothing of concern; the amount of radio-frequency energy the antennas produced was below the limits to which humans can be safely exposed. Town commissioners discussed having a study done regularly, and funded by the companies that pay rent for the water tower, but the ﬁnal details have not yet been worked out. According to Town Manager Wade Yost, Verizon is seeking to expand its data transmitting capacity from a 3G network to 4G, which is

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company created by EMS S.A., has three employees in the Rockville Innovation Center, a publicly funded facility that helps young companies grow. Brace invests in the research and development efforts of pharmaceutical companies, including Baltimore-based Gliknik. The Maryland trade delegation visited EMS’ headquarters near Sao Paulo. A key reason to form Brace’s national base in Rockville was the top-ﬂight life sciences community in the area, a company executive said in a statement. O’Malley also announced that DK Diagnostics, a Sao Paulo biotechnology company, plans to invest $1 million in operations in the state and grow to 20 employees over the next two years. The company, which manufactures and markets a parasite testing kit, has four employees in Frederick. “It is our goal to become an export company to NAFTA’s market from our plant in Maryland,” Jose Carlos Lapenna, DK Diagnostics president and CEO, said in a statement. kshay@gazette.net

the delegation has ﬁled so far for the 2014 legislative session, which starts Jan. 8. Among the crop of legislation are nine bills that seek to change alcohol regulations, including ones that would allow serving wine at beauty salons and ease restrictions on microbreweries. Others would prevent self-checkout sales of alcohol, permit beer festivals and create an annual license for small performing arts facilities that pay thousands each year for one-day licenses. Four bills would change regulations for class B licenses, which are for beer, wine and liquor at hotels, motels, taverns or restaurants. One bill lowers the required food-to-alcohol ratio. Currently, license holders must have no more than 50 percent of sales to alcohol. The bill would increase that to 60 percent. One bill removes some geographic restrictions on licenses, and removes a

celebrate local brews

KATE S. ALEXANDER STAFF WRITER

Montgomery County is already home to multiple wine festivals each year but the county now wants to also celebrate beer. A bill will go before the General Assembly in January to give the county permission to host up to four beer festivals each year. The legislation is one of nine local bills from Montgomery that seek to change alcohol regulations. The beer festival bill was requested by Delegation Chairwoman Anne R. Kaiser (D-Dist. 14) of Burtonsville on behalf of Montgomery County. Currently, the county can

cap on the number of duplicate licenses a holder can have. Another removes the sunset provision for allowing to-go alcohol sales at Takoma Park restaurants. One bill allows more licenses to be issued in Kensington. Also proposed is a bill by Del. Ana Sol Gutierrez (D-Dist. 18) of Chevy Chase to require most Montgomery County Police to carry automated external defibrillators in their vehicles and a bill that clarifies Montgomery County’s role in tort claims. With the exception of the archery and defibrillator bills, the legislation will be considered by the delegation’s County Affairs Committee before moving to the General Assembly. The other bills will go to the delegation’s Land Use and Transportation Committee for discussion. kalexander@gazette.net

funding for the project’s design and permits comes from a $50,000 state bond bill and a $47,000 state grant, plus county bond funds. “It’s too early to say how much funding will be needed to cover construction costs to rehabilitate the store and site and install a replacement septic system,” she said. “At this time, we are guessing

costs will be above $400,000, so we will be actively working to secure [additional] funding sources.” The meeting will be held 7 to 8:30 p.m. Dec. 10 at Darnestown Elementary School at 15030 Turkey Foot Road in Darnestown. The meeting was previously scheduled for Dec. 3. Public input will be ac-

cepted via mail, phone and email until Dec. 17. Comments can be sent to Eileen Emmet, project manager, M-NCPPC Montgomery Parks, 9500 Brunett Ave., Silver Spring, MD 20901; or Eileen.Emmet@ MontgomeryParks.org. Comments also may be left for Emmet at 301-495-2550.

generally faster, but the coverage area would not change. Instead of having nine antennas, they plan to have 12 atop the water tower. “As more and more customers are upgrading to 4G LTE-enabled smartphones and tablets...the company continues to expand and enhance both the coverage and capacity of our wireless network to best serve our

customers’ needs,” Verizon spokesperson Melanie Ortel said in an email. “This does bring beneﬁt to people in town,” Town Commissioner Brice Halbrook said. The new $3,240 lease includes a 4 percent yearly increase, or “escalator,” to account for inﬂation. Rental agreements for the top of the water tower on Wootton Avenue are a sizable source

of revenue for the town of Poolesville. According to budget documents, the town collected over $158,000 in revenue in ﬁscal year 2012, and expected to collect $170,000 by the end of ﬁscal 2014 before Nextel decided to remove its antennas. The town has budgeted about $2.6 million in total revenue on average since 2012.

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scarignan@gazette.net

host wine festivals each year but not beer fests, said Kathie Durbin, division chief of the Montgomery County Department of Liquor Control. Seven years ago when the wine festival license was granted by the state, the county also sought the nod for beer festivals. Yet somewhere between draft and approval the word beer was removed, she said. “Now beer is trending,” Durbin said. “I think there were some folks at the time who were afraid of having a beer festival, afraid it was too high risk, too big and that only big companies would be there.” But the license the county now seeks to create for beer festivals speciﬁes that the purpose must be to promote Maryland beer. The bill would allow up to four festivals each year and would require the organization hosting to obtain a license as

well as each vendor who serves beer. Much as the wine festivals held locally, the beer festivals would celebrate local brews and products, Durbin said. Montgomery is home to several brewers, including Baying Hound Aleworks and Gordon Biersch in Rockville, Growlers in Gaithersburg and Rock Bottom in Bethesda. More craft breweries are expected emerge, Durbin said, like Citizens Brewing Co., a craft brewery that Julie Verratti plans to open in Silver Spring next summer. A sister bill proposed by Del. Sam Arora (D-Dist. 19) of Silver Spring would ease restrictions on microbreweries by allowing tastings and pours without serving food. Under current regulations only breweries with restaurants may serve their beer on site.

CYBER

Holiday sales are expected to rise by almost 4 percent nationally to $602.1 billion from last year, while online sales should increase as much as 15 percent to $82 billion, according to the National Retail Federation. The Black Friday weekend showed good customer traffic for the Maryland retailers Donoho heard from, but sales didn’t meet expectations, he said. Many association members are smaller retailers who benefited greatly from the Small Business Saturday promotion. “People are sticking to their budgets,” Donoho said. A survey he read said that 49 percent of consumers had not really begun holiday shopping by Tuesday, so there is still a lot of time left in the season, Donoho said. Customer traffic — at brickand-mortar stores nationwide — on Thanksgiving Day, which featured Black Friday sales, reached 45 million — about 10 million more than the same day in 2012, according to the retail federation survey. About 3 million more shoppers went out on Friday than last year. The Wal-Mart store in Germantown set up gates to herd people through the line at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving. Tensions flared when some people cut in line, but there were no reports over people fighting over items, as reported in some areas of the country. Wal-Mart saw more than 22 million customers on Thanksgiving Day in its U.S. stores, more than last year, according to a company press release. Among the top sellers were big-screen television sets, iPad minis, laptops, video games and systems, and towels.

Continued from Page A-1 ing retailer that sells exclusively online, have also taken advantage of this trend, Donoho said. AboutWeb doesn’t put out an edict to its 85 employees in Rockville, Baltimore and Vienna, Va., to limit surfing for deals to work breaks or when work is done. “Our employees are professionals. I don’t micromanage people,” Epstein said. “We aren’t really a 9-to-5 type of work environment. They might be working late, and if they want to take a break to do some online shopping, that’s fine. It’s the end result that counts.” Ben Landers, CEO of Blue Corona, a 36-employee Gaithersburg business that provides online marketing, Web design, marketing analytics and other services, has a similar philosophy. “I don’t police it,” he said. “We have some retail clients in e-commerce, so we ask employees to look at what other companies are doing in this area in case there is something that might be beneficial to our clients.” Employees are busy enough, especially those taking care of retail clients, that Landers doubts many have much time to shop at work. “We trust them to police themselves because their bonus depends a lot on their output,” he said. “One of our core values is to have employees who act like owners. We have great employees who understand and follow that mantra.” Maryland retailers expect a 2 to 2.5 percent increase in sales this holiday season from last year, slightly lower than what is expected nationally.

kalexander@gazette.net

kshay@gazette.net

The Gazette OUROPINIONS

Forum

Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Page A-10

The people’s information

Any government body that pledges to expand public access to information instantly has our attention. In this case, it’s Montgomery County, which has an expansive portal called dataMontgomery and is working to make it bigger and better. In mere minutes of surfing the site, you can find mounds of data about food inspections, county spending and election polling places. Naturally, a section on employee salaries has more page views than the next nine data sets combined. What your neighbor gets paid in a government job will never stop being interesting to curious people. But no one should feel guilty or shy about following their tax money. It’s our right to know how government spends our money. Other readily available information at dataMontgomery tells us much more than what the next-door neighbors are earning. For example: A Comcast customer on Leonard Drive in Silver Spring filed a billing complaint against the cable provider in July 2010. It wasn’t resolved until the following February — 218 days later. In Montgomery County’s database of more than 3,400 cable complaints, 218 days isn’t common. Most disputes appear to be resolved in a day or two, and the average is about a week. One sign of growth in the county could be a glance at commercial permits. As of earlier this week, the county had given final approval to 151 permits in Silver Spring and 111 in Clarksburg. The numbers were 88 in Rockville and 73 in Bethesda. This is an excellent website where the public can go for answers without needing a county employee to intervene. What’s infuriating about “public” information is that even if it is collected, maintained, analyzed, interpreted and stored in the public’s name, quite often it’s retrieved at a cost. Sometimes the cost is nominal, but other times it’s excessive. Many police departments, especially, charge several dollars a page for documents when the actual cost is no more than a quarter or two. Often, the cost of accident reports is absorbed by an attorney or an insurance agency, and no one complains. Here, the county’s data.montgomerycountymd. gov project turns the request-research-reprint-charge cycle of government information on its ear. Instead, the county finds data and provides it through a web portal. At the state level, Maryland has a weak and porous law that allows ratcheted charges. Agencies can charge “reasonable fees” for copies, but the law doesn’t set numerical boundaries. Instead, a reasonable fee is defined as one “bearing a reasonable relationship to the recovery of actual costs incurred by a government unit.” If a rapid-copy shop can charge us 8, 10 or maybe 15 cents per copy, our government should, too — but it usually doesn’t. Government bodies have little incentive to comply with a toothless, murky state law. We urge state legislators to tighten this long-ignored weakness, as a commitment to fairness, transparency, accountability and public enlightenment. Last month, the county asked residents what kind of information they’d want to see on the site. Among the suggestions: traffic flow, parking, bus stops, realtime service alerts, weather updates and Intercounty Connector usage. If we get a say, we’d like to see Department of Environmental Protection actions listed by ZIP Code and travel expenses for each county department. We also suggest an equal focus on simpler, individual pieces of information, such as contracts. Sometimes, getting the entire sewing basket is overwhelming and excessive when all we need is a needle and thread. Remember that information about the governed belongs to the people, and should be offered easily and conveniently. There’s no excuse for electronic records, especially, to not be posted online, unless they fit the narrow exceptions to the law in which they may remain secret, for valid reasons. Copying fees should start to fade away thanks to easy techniques for emailing large data files or as residents show up at government offices with thumb drives, for an easy transfer. Any charge should be viewed as a failure of an agency to store records efficiently. The county deserves hearty accolades for dataMontgomery project. The next step is getting other agencies, particularly Montgomery County Public Schools, to provide similar access to their data sets. We’d like to hear from every small and large government in our county or with ties to it: How are you compiling public information, distributing it and presenting it, so the interested people can sift through it, at their convenience? Tell us, and tell your constituents.

The Gazette Karen Acton, President/Publisher

LETTERS TOT HE EDITOR

M-83 isn’t the solution you think it is This letter is in response to the Planning Board approving the M-83 highway option [“Planning Board votes to support highway option,” Nov. 27]. Everyone north of Montgomery Village may think this will solve traffic problems, but in my opinion it will drop you into a traffic congestion and gridlock situation where you will just sit in traffic. It just moves the congestion and gridlock to a new location. Additionally, something the Planning Board may not have considered in their decision is that the Montgomery Village Golf Course is being developed into about 600 residential homes, which will add hundreds if not a thousand or so new drivers to

the mix. Monument Realty (developers of the golf course) is not doing a trafﬁc impact study for this new situation for the master plan. M-83 extended may have been a good idea 20 years ago, but it’s not relevant to the current situation. The Planning Board needs to go back to the drawing board for this situation that is misleading everyone. This is another trafﬁc congestion and gridlock situation, and poor planning by the county, which will cost the taxpayer millions of dollars and will solve nothing, just saying. “The City of Gaithersburg officials weighed in on the county project in a July letter to the Maryland Department of the Envi-

ronment and Army Corps of Engineers. In the letter, Gaithersburg Long-Range Planner Rob Robinson took issue with the study’s claims that the master plan route would improve congestion and decrease commute time.” I concur wholeheartedly with Mr. Robinson’s assessment quoted in The Gazette. What we really need is a new bridge across the Potomac river from Interstate 270 into Virginia toward the Dulles Airport area (i.e. Va. 28 Sulley Road). That would relieve a signiﬁcant amount of trafﬁc on I-270 and the Beltway and provide a new avenue to shopping areas for both Fairfax and Montgomery County.

Neal M. Zarin, Montgomery Village

Preservation and redevelopment can coexist I am writing to address a misconception that the existing Wheaton Youth Center must be demolished in order for Montgomery County to build a new libraryrecreation center in Wheaton [“Wheaton Recreation Center determined historic,” Nov 18]. The county Planning Board recently reviewed whether the center should be considered historic, and found that preservation and redevelopment can peacefully coexist. The Planning Board found that the Wheaton Youth Center, a 1963 modernist, award-winning structure, could potentially be preserved without compromising plans by the Montgomery County Department of General Services for a new consolidated library/recreation center/Gilchrist Center facility, except perhaps for part of planned playﬁeld outside the new recreation center. In response to the county executive’s call for community input in spring 2013, the county’s Historic Preservation Commission began a review of the Wheaton Youth Center and ultimately recom-

Deer attacks dog

mended that it be designated historic. Convinced of the exceptional merits of this resource, the Planning Board also voted to recommend historic designation of the Wheaton Youth Center with the stipulation that the Historic Preservation Commission should review any proposed changes to the exterior of the building needed to accommodate the new recreation center and its programming with leniency. The County Council is expected to take up the historic review of the Wheaton Youth Center in early 2014. The Planning Board hopes that in the intervening period, additional information will become available about the cost and practicality of reusing the Wheaton Youth Center, to aid the County Council in making this important decision.

The rut is full on in Montgomery County. Our sweet Cali, the most gentle dog on earth, was gored by a huge buck this Saturday. After a costly trip to the emergency room, many, many stitches, and a bunch of drains, she is healing painfully. We won’t even talk about how much it cost before Christmas. The buck was back the next day and went after our neighbors little white pup, who was curious, a dangerous thing indeed. Of course, there is nothing the police can do, but joggers, children, pets and even people in cars are in danger. The deer easily could have killed our dog had his antlers gone in her underside and was so aggressive that he was completely unafraid of us. I ﬁnd it disappointing that in such a sophisticated city that there is nothing we can do to protect ourselves and our pets. We are tied by laws to protect the very people who are threatened by rogue animals.

Francoise M. Carrier The writer chairs the Montgomery County Planning Board.

Penelope Johnson Wilsker, Rockville

Support for stormwater fees On Nov. 19, we released Potomac Conservancy’s annual State of the Nation’s River Report. The river’s health earned a grade of a C and we declared polluted runoff public enemy No. 1. Polluted runoff from urban areas is the only source of pollution to the Potomac River and its tributaries that is increasing. Runoff carries toxic pollution to our neighborhood streams and the Potomac River, causes ﬂooding that damages our homes, and destroys the natural playground where

our families recreate. We know how to fix this: by capturing and filtering rain water where it falls. Maryland is making a key investment that will be spent locally on proven, commonsense solutions to filter, control and clean polluted runoff through the countylevel stormwater fee. In January of 2012, the Maryland General Assembly deliberately called upon county governments to develop programs and fees that address their locality’s unique water pollution needs and fund necessary safeguards

for local waterways. Potomac Conservancy calls upon the General Assembly and Gov. Martin O’Malley to keep this important framework in place. A polluted Potomac, our region’s drinking water supply, is an important local public health issue. The fact is we all need clean water. Working together, we can stop the pollution of this critical community resource.

Amanda John The writer is the Silver Spring policy manager of the Potomac Conservancy.

9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, MD 20877 | Phone: 301-948-3120 | Fax: 301-670-7183 | Email: opinions@gazette.net More letters appear online at www.gazette.net/opinion

Douglas Tallman, Editor Krista Brick, Managing Editor/News Glen C. Cullen, Senior Editor Copy/Design Meredith Hooker, Managing Editor/Internet Robert Rand, Managing Editor/Presentation

Nathan Oravec, A&E Editor Ken Sain, Sports Editor Andrew Schotz, Assistant Managing Editor Dan Gross, Photo Editor Jessica Loder, Web Editor

Dennis Wilston, Corporate Advertising Director Doug Baum, Corporate Classiﬁeds Director Mona Bass, Inside Classiﬁeds Director

Jean Casey, Director of Marketing and Circulation Anna Joyce, Creative Director, Special Pubs/Internet Ellen Pankake, Director of Creative Services

POST COMMUNITY MEDIA Karen Acton, Chief Executive Ofﬁcer Michael T. McIntyre, Controller Donna Johnson, Vice President of Human Resources Maxine Minar, President, Comprint Military Shane Butcher, Director of Technology/Internet

THE GAZETTE

Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

Hate mail beats no mail Editor, The Gazette has every right to publish opinion pieces, no matter how lopsided and ﬂawed their argument. But, then, by limiting your regular op-ed columnists to just Blair Lee, do you not have a corresponding obligation to feature opinion pieces likely to reﬂect dissenting judgement? I can’t believe your existing practice comports with the philosophy of the Post Community Media family of which you are a part. Joel Darmstadter, Bethesda Joel, Since when does the Washington Post, The Gazette’s corporate sibling, practice editorial balance? Here’s a list of the Post’s liberal MY MARYLAND opinion BLAIR LEE writers: E.J. Dionne, Dana Milbank, Eugene Robinson, Ruth Marcus, Colbert King, Dana Balz, Chris Cillizza, Stephen Perlstein, Harold Myerson, Anne Applebaum, Marc Thiessen, Robert McCartney, Ezra Klein, Al Kamon, Greg Sargent, Courtland Milloy and Petula Dvorak, and I could go on. Here’s a list of the Post’s conservative opinion writers: George Will, Charles Krauthammer, Jennifer Rubin. That’s about as much “balance” as a Tom Toles editorial cartoon or the Post’s Style section. Come on, Joel, open your eyes. The deck’s stacked in your favor, you can’t lose. Are you really that worried about one crazy guy writing in The Gazette? Blair Mr. Lee, I recently has an opportunity to read your Sept. 27 article in The Gazette,“Why Baltimore Is Not Detroit.” I notice that you selectively omitted the concentration of pov-

erty comparison between Baltimore and Montgomery County. It seems you also missed the concentration of not-for-profit/government land ownership between the two jurisdictions, as well. I understand that those issues may not fit neatly into the narrative, but they are real. Bill Ferguson, Baltimore (Sen. Ferguson represents South Baltimore in the Maryland Senate.) Senator, First, Baltimore City lawmakers fought tooth and nail to locate all those non-property-tax-paying state agencies in Baltimore because Baltimore benefits from all those captive state jobs they bring. I dare you to suggest moving them out of Baltimore. Second, yes Baltimore is poor and that’s why the overwhelming bulk of state aid is distributed to poor jurisdictions, primarily Baltimore, largely thanks to “enlightened” Montgomery liberal lawmakers. In return Baltimore screws Montgomery every chance it gets by repealing state aid programs benefitting Montgomery and recycling the money to Baltimore and P.G. True, our lawmakers are so inept that they’re easy pickings in Annapolis, but please spare me the moral outrage. Carving up the state aid pie has nothing to do with the merits, it’s all about politics. Blair Members of the Montgomery County Delegation, I was absolutely shocked to read in The Gazette last week that Maryland taxpayers are sending well over a billion dollars a year to Baltimore. The article describes a recent study by George Mason University. According to the article [“Why Baltimore Is Not Detroit,” Sept. 27], “Baltimore runs on OPM, other people’s money. Much of what taxpayers in Maryland’s other 23 counties send to Annapolis is recycled to Baltimore as direct and indirect state aid. Thanks to the city’s politicians and those in the state legislature, Baltimore

Page A-11

LETTERS TOT HE EDITOR

is now the most subsidized city in America.” Instead of relying solely on The Gazette article (because it’s author, Mr. Lee, sometimes is a little bit biased toward the right) I downloaded the actual GMU study and read he whole thing. Everything Mr. Lee stated is 100 percent supported by the GMU study. Just three weeks ago my wife and I wrote a big check and mailed it to Annapolis. And just a week ago we paid our Montgomery Co. property taxes. In total, my wife and I shelled out a HUGE chunk of our money in state and local taxes. And now we learn that a large portion of that is going to Baltimore. It’s outrageous! Lately my wife and I have been considering relocating to a neighboring state where the tax burden is not as great. Now we are redoubling our efforts to ﬁnd another place to live. Thomas J. Keller, Chevy Chase Mr Keller, I hear the same story from folks like you every day. Blair Editor, Isn’t it time The Gazette pulled the plug on Blair Lee and his puerile, reactionary, Johnny-one-note drivel? As a 50-year journalism veteran I can assure you his column never would have gotten past me into the paper. Robert E. Cohen, Bethesda Mr. Cohen, Here’s an idea; if you don’t like my column, don’t read it. Instead, you want to silence my opinion because it doesn’t agree with yours. Where did you spend your 50 years of journalism, in the Soviet Union? Blair Blair Lee is chairman of the board of Lee Development Group in Silver Spring and a regular commentator for WBAL radio. His column appears Fridays in the Business Gazette. His past columns are available at www. gazette.net/blairlee. His email address is blairleeiv@gmail.com.

Fight porous pavement technology in Ten Mile Creek watershed Clean and healthy drinking water is something that most of us take for granted, and rightfully so; when we turn on our faucets, we have no expectations other than to be greeted by pristine, wholesome and sanitary water. However, what if I told you that this indispensable resource that so may people rely on for sustenance could be in serious jeopardy? According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Stage 4 in the Clarksburg Master Plan could effectively degrade the water of vulnerable Ten Mile Creek in Clarksburg and the drinking water supply for the entire Montgomery County Agriculture Reserve via the Piedmont Aquifer (which is the sole source of water for those outside of the WSSC) because it includes new development and construction implementing porous pavement technology? “The use of porous pavement does create risk of groundwater contamination,” the EPA said in a fact sheet published on stormwater

Twenty groups in the Coalition to Save Ten Mile Creek and the Montgomery County Planning Board’s Staff all agree: Unless imperviousness (hard, paved surfaces) in the Ten Mile Creek watershed are strictly limited, development will degrade the water quality of the creek — the last, pristine creek in Montgomery County that is the main source of clean water to Little Seneca Reservoir. It is obvious to the citizens of Montgomery County that keeping a reservoir as clean as possible is a wise decision, especially when it is our most proximate drinking water supply. The Montgomery County Planning Board did not follow its own staff’s advice and increased the recommended level of devel-

The Gazette welcomes letters on subjects of local interest. Please limit them to 200 words. All articles are subject to editing. No anonymous letters are printed. Letters are printed as space permits and

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Corey Ahearn, Poolesville

County must limit paved surfaces Ten Mile Creek watershed

WRITE TO US

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technology. “Therefore, it is not advisable to construct porous pavement near groundwater drinking supplies,” which is precisely what is happening in the Clarksburg plan. As a resident of the Reserve, I am alarmed, troubled and concerned for my health and the health of fellow residents. Progress and development, like what is going on in Clarksburg, that meets certain critical needs of citizens is very important but is this development worth the environmental and health costs that are an inescapable byproduct? When it comes to the potential harm of humans, there can be no deliberation. The EPA says there is a “risk.” No, risk does not imply inevitability, but that risk is something we cannot afford to take. I, for one, will not stand to have my health endangered. Let’s move forward with development that ﬁts into parameters appropriate and sound, health-centered judgment.

opment in the watershed to levels that will irrevocably damage our water quality. This is an outrageous disregard for our future water needs, currently of 4.3 million people in the Washington, D.C., area. We hope that the County Council will listen to its constituents, thousands of whom are deeply concerned, weigh the choice of sound use or destructive development and recommend reduced levels of development to protect our drinking water supply and valued recreational resource, Little Seneca Reservoir.

Anne James, Germantown The writer is the chair of Timber Oak Citizens Association.

are limited to one per person per month. Include your name, address and daytime telephone number. Send submissions to: The Gazette, attention Commentary Editor, 9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, MD 20877; fax to 301-670-7183; or email to opinions@gazette.net.

THE GAZETTE

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Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

BUSINESS Entrepreneur stays nimble to keep in business Employee Navigator weathered recession, possible competition from Obamacare n

Have a new business in Montgomery County? Let us know about it at www.gazette.net/newbusinessform

GEORGE REESE n Age: 44

A duffer’s delight

n Position: Co-founder and CEO of Employee Navigator

ELIZABETH WAIBEL

n Education: Bachelor of arts in business from St. Anselm College

STAFF WRITER

George Reese picked a terrible time to start his business. Reese of Gaithersburg and Walter A. Hill co-founded Employee Navigator, a company that provides benefits management software for companies, in 2008, just as the Great Recession really kicked in. “We signed the lease the week Lehman Brothers went under, so it couldn’t have been a worse time to start the business,” Reese said, able to laugh about it in retrospect. “I guess you could say it’s been uphill since then.” He and Hill may have picked an inauspicious time for starting a business, but they persisted. Reese said they were able to stay afloat through the economic downturn because he was funding the startup himself. Employee Navigator licenses software to insurance brokers who provide an exchange or marketplace to companies throughout the United States. The Gaithersburg business has grown about 300 percent this year, Reese said, and now serves 2,700 companies with anywhere from five to 10,000 employees. “Our objective is to bring down the cost of administering benefits by about 90 percent,” Reese said.

n Family: Wife and ﬁve sons n Residence: Gaithersburg n Best business advice ever received: Make sure that you’re always re-evaluating your business plan. If you have a great idea and you think you’re going to take that through [the life of your business] without it changing, you’re probably going to go out of business.

The insurance exchanges Employee Navigator offers are similar to a larger program that came into being soon after Reese’s company did — Obamacare. Reese said the federal Affordable Care Act fell in the company’s lap after the election cycle, but the jury’s still out on whether it will reduce demand for Employee Navigator’s products. He said the online insurance exchange rollout has been a disaster, but it won’t stop the movement away from paper and toward digital beneﬁts management. “I think the movement to a digital marketplace is going to ultimately help the business and pressure people to move away from the

BILL RYAN/THE GAZETTE

“It’s really important just to make sure that you can trust [your team] and have smart people to work with,” says George Reese, CEO of Employee Navigator. old, traditional paper,” he said. Reese has been in the insurance business in one way or another since graduating college. Before starting Employee Navigator, he was the founder and CEO of FlexAmerica Inc., which offered ﬂexible spending account administration. He sold that business to a private equity ﬁrm in 2007. As a business owner, Reese said it’s important to have a good team to work with. Reese hired John Crowley, whom he knew growing up, to be Employee Navigator’s chief software architect, and he said Crowley is great to work with. “It’s really important just to

1906088

2013 Holiday Worship

Extend your hand in hope and assistance. Share your Holiday Services and special programs.

Invite your local community into worship with you.

Reserve your space today!

301-670-7106

Montgomery County Circulation 200,000 Prince George’s County Circulation 105,589 Fairfax County Circulation 105,000

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BizBriefs

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make sure that you can trust [your team] and have smart people to work with,” he said. Since founding Employee Navigator, Reese said he’s had to keep his business model ﬂexible by reducing the cost of licensing. He said entrepreneurs must always be re-evaluating their business plan to change what’s not working. “If you have a great idea and you think you’re going to take that through [the life of your business] without it changing, you’re probably going to go out of business,” he said. ewaibel@gazette.net

A new store in Rockville is aiming to release your inner club champion. Club Champion, opening a 2,700-square-foot location this month, uses state-of-the-art technology to ﬁt each golfer, regardless of skill level, for one to all 14 clubs in a bag, and custom builds the clubs using thousands of combinations and premier golf brands. Players then test the custom clubs at Club Champions’ in-store virtual hitting bay. This is the company’s ﬁrst location in the Washington metro region. Club Champion originated in Chicago in 1995 and operates seven locations across the country. Club Champion will host a grand opening at 6 p.m. Dec 11 at 192 Halpine Road, Suite C. Store hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Thursday; and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday. For more information, call 301-881-3030 or visit www. clubchampiongolf.com.

Search for new location ends in Takoma Park Fusion SEO, a Baltimore company specializing in organic search engine marketing, opened a new location at 6411 Orchard Ave., Takoma Park. The new location features a large multimedia conference center for training and special events. Evan Featherstone, owner of Fusion, said he picked Takoma Park partly because he lives nearby in addition to its proximity to Washington. “Also part of the appeal of the location is the abilty to expand within the building in early 2014,” he said. Fusion has ﬁve employees. More information is at www.fusionseo.com.

MOVIE REVIEW

The Gazette’s Guide to

‘FROZEN’ FUN

Arts & Entertainment

Disney ﬂick is big, bright and often beautiful. Page A-17

www.gazette.net

Wednesday, December 4, 2014

Page A-13

28TH WINTER FAMILY CONCERT

Slumber

party! n Blankets, pillows and pajamas welcome at Takoma Park concert BY

CARA HEDGEPETH STAFF WRITER

Fixtures of the Takoma Park music scene, Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer will present their 28th Annual Winter Family Concert at Takoma Park Middle School on Sunday afternoon. This year’s pajama party-themed show will feature special guest artist and Grammy Award nominee Justin Roberts. “I met Cathy and Marcy probably 10 or 12 years ago and we’ve been talking about doing a show together since the beginning,” Roberts said. “For me, it’s a big thrill to get to play with them … They’re both such excellent musicians, I’m kind of thrilled to have them playing on my stuff and get to play on their songs, as well.”

TODD ROSENBERG.

Justin Roberts, pictured here with his band, will perform Sunday with Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer in Takoma Park.

See PARTY, Page A-19

REVEL IN

Country music legend Crystal Gayle will be performing at the Strathmore on Thursday.

COMMUNITY

GOR MEGAERA

Washington Revels rejoice with holiday show BY

CARA HEDGEPETH STAFF WRITER

WILL C. FRANKLIN

STAFF WRITER

World-famous performer talks about music, family and how she got her name

fter graduating high school, Brenda Gail Webb was set to sign with Decca Records, much like her sister, Loretta. At the time, Decca Records — which later became MCA — already had a well-known singer on the roster named Brenda Lee. Loretta, who was 19 years older than Brenda, suggested she change her name to Crystal. Loretta had seen it on a sign and liked the way it looked. Loretta, in this case, is Loretta Lynn, the country singer famous for her song, “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” And Brenda became a household name, too. Just not as Brenda Gail Webb. “I didn’t care what they called me. They could have called me John or anything,” said Crystal Gayle. The country star known the world over for her hit country song “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue,” will be performing at The Music Center at Strathmore along with Lee Greenwood on Thursday. There is a bit of humor in her name, however. “Loretta saw the name and she thought it

was very bright and shiny,” Gayle said. “She saw a sign … in the South, there’s the Krystal hamburgers — so I’m sort of named after hamburgers.” Gayle is the youngest of eight. Her family didn’t have a lot of money, but having music in their lives was important. “Being from Kentucky, that was a form of entertainment,” Gayle said. “It was part of life. A lot

In 2003, Kendra Hendren went to see her sister perform in a Christmas Revels show. “My confession is I was dragged to it,” Hendren said. But within 20 minutes, Hendren was hooked. “I was completely mesmerized by it,” she said. That’s the magic of the Washington Revels, said Roberta Gasbarre, the group’s artistic director. “It is so full of people who are really wonderful talent and love to do it even though they don’t make a living

CHRISTMAS REVELS

n When: 7:30 p.m. Fridays, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays, 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. Sundays, Dec. 7-15 n Where: George Washington Lisner Auditorium, 21st and H St., NW, Washington, D.C. n Tickets: $12-$50 n For information: 1-800-595-4849; revelsdc.org/revels2013

out of it,” Gasbarre said. The Revels, a national organization with chapters in cities across the country, was founded in Cambridge, Mass., in 1971. Gasbarre came to the Washington Revels in 1991 as a

See REVEL, Page A-19

See CRYSTAL, Page A-19

CRYSTAL GAYLE WITH LEE GREENWOOD n When: 8 p.m. Thursday n Where: The Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda n Tickets: $39-$69 n For information: 301-581-5100; strathmore.org

The Washington Revels during their 2012 Christmas Revels show.

SHEP FERGUSON

THE GAZETTE

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Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

Samurai SHAKESPEARE

PHOTO BY MIKE HORAN

Megan Graves as Seven Swan and Diedra LaWan Starnes as Shirley in “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” running to Dec. 30 at Adventure Theatre-MTC.

True love x ‘Twelve’ “The Twelve Days of Christmas” continues to Dec. 30 at Adventure Theatre-MTC in Glen Echo. Directed by Michael Dove, the

world premiere by Helen Hayes Award-recipient Renee Calarco follows the quest of Shirley (the partridge), who must brave bickering French Hens, six geese gone AWOL and much more to discover just who stole the ﬁve golden rings. For more information, visit www.adventuretheatre-mtc.org.

Ben Lickerman stars in the title role of Lumina Studio Theatre’s “Kabuki Coriolanus,” opening Saturday. Lumina Studio Theatre will shed new light on William Shakespeare’s last great tragedy when “Kabuki Coriolanus” opens Saturday at the Round House Theatre in Silver Spring. Adapted and directed by David Minton, in collaboration with Shizumi Shigeto Manale, Gretchen Schermerhorn and Franc Rosario of Pyramid

Atlantic, “Kabuki Coriolanus” is a multimedia production set in Japan following two tribes — one traditional with strong ties to the old ways, the other a modern, forward-thinking pack — and the titular warriorturned-enemy of his homeland. Featuring two separate casts of 45 young actors, ages 8-16, and a live score per-

PHOTO BY RON MURPHY

formed on stage by Wendy Lanxner on ﬂute, sax and vocals; Roger Coleman on keyboards; and Taiko drummer Mark Foley, “Kabuki Coriolanus” runs to Dec. 15. Tickets are $15 for adults, $8 for students younger than 18 and seniors. For show times, visit www.luminastudio.org. Visit www. roundhousetheatre.org.

Building a 50th birthday celebration The Wheaton Youth Center will celebrate its 50th anniversary from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, complete with cake, live music and tours. Footage from a 2009 reunion also will be screened, including memories from former director Sharon Ward Ellis. The celebration will be hosted in conjunction with regularly scheduled activities at the center, located at 11711 Georgia Ave., Wheaton. For more information, visit www.montgomeryparks.org.

The National Philharmonic Singers will present a free holiday concert on Saturday at Christ Episcopal Church in Rockville. STAN ENGEBRETSON

Holiday in song

The National Philharmonic Singers will present a free holiday concert at 8 p.m. Saturday at Christ Episcopal Church, 107 S. Washington Street, Rockville. Directed by conductors Stan Engebretson and Victoria Gau, the program will feature a candlelight choral procession and the music of Praetorius, Lauridsen, Rutter, Gardiner, Skriven and Tchesnokov, among others, as well as a special audience sing-along. The philharmonic promotes works suited for smaller ensembles, whether with accompaniment or a cappella. Its repertoire ranges from 15th to 21st centuries, and it often premieres new compositions by local composers. Admission is free, but donations will be accepted. For more information, visit www.nationalphilharmonic.org.

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Wheaton Youth Center auditorium with proscenium stage. The center will celebrate its birthday Saturday with a music-ﬁlled, educational celebration.

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Bah, humbug! A series of shows explores Dickens’ famous tale Scrooge’s story plays out in different venues

SCROOGE — THE MUSICAL

VIRGINIA TERHUNE

n Sandy Spring Theatre Group

STAFF WRITER

Charles Dickens’ Victorianera story of the mean-spirited — but ultimately redeemable — miser, Ebenezer Scrooge, tends to pop up around Christmas-time, and this year is no exception. “Scrooge — the Musical,” a show with a large cast of adults and children, runs Friday to Dec. 22 at the Arts Barn in Gaithersburg. Presented by the Sandy Spring Theatre Group, the musical is based on the 1992 stage musical with book, music and lyrics by English composer Leslie Bricusse, who also wrote the score for the 1970 movie starring Albert Finney. “There are about 30 people in it, which is rather sizable for the Arts Barn stage,” said director Ken Kemp. “It certainly makes for a big experience.” Probably the most familiar song from the show is “Thank You Very Much” in the second act, he said. The stage version also includes six songs that were not in the movie version. “There are some upbeat songs that almost make you want to dance, and there are some somber and introspective songs,” Kemp said. In addition to the spirits who visit Scrooge on Christmas Eve, there are also some ghostly gray phantoms who double as stage helpers. “They do the scene changes,” Kemp said. The hand-painted Victorian set has a “storybook feel” that looks “like an illustrated version

n When: 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays, Dec. 6-22 n Where: The Arts Barn, 311 Kent Square Road, Gaithersburg

PHOTO BY LAURA HARNEY

Bob Schwartz as Scrooge and Kaycie Goral as the Ghost of Christmas Past in the Sandy Spring Theatre Group’s production of the musical “Scrooge!” running Friday to Dec. 22 at the Arts Barn in Gaithersburg. of ‘A Christmas Carol,’” said Kemp, adding that the performers also don 60 Victorian costumes during the show. “Being a musical, it tends to be a little light-hearted [versus] gloom and doom,” he said.

A cast of one Meanwhile, already on stage in Olney is Paul Morella’s oneman show running to Dec. 29 at the Olney Theatre Center. Now in its fourth year, Morella’s show, in which he plays 45 characters, is based almost entirely on the text of Dickens’ original 1843 novella, “A Christmas Carol.” “Every year I take it apart and put it back together,” said Morella. “I look for different things that are relevant to whatever’s taking place today.” The story’s cast of characters also gives him the latitude to “ﬂesh out some of the minor characters” from year to year. Morella’s set resembles an 1840s Victorian parlor, with a desk, a candle and holder, piles of books and papers, rugs, lived-

in furniture, and — new this year — some potted plants. “There’s a warmth and an informality about it, like telling a story around the fire,” said Morella, who personally greets audience members as they walk into the theater. The action unfolds as Scrooge is visited on Christmas Eve by the ghost of his equally miserly business partner, Jacob Marley. Dead seven years, Marley is condemned to walk the earth in chains. Scrooge and Marley ran a counting house, and Scrooge continues to lend money, treating his impoverished clerk, Bob Cratchit, his nephew and other people poorly. Three more ghosts arrive — the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come — who remind Scrooge of his childhood, his cold-hearted treatment of people, and the grim future he faces if he doesn’t change his ways. Dickens was paid by the word for some of his long serialized novels, but the sparsely written “A Christmas Carol” was

n When: to Dec. 29 n Where: Mulitz-Gudelsky Theatre Lab, Olney Theatre Center, 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road, Olney

A WAKE FOR JACOB MARLEY

n For information: 301-9243400, olneytheatre.org

n When: 7 p.m. Dec. 14

A CHRISTMAS CAROL

n For information: 301-2586394, gaithersburgmd.gov

n When: 8 p.m., Dec. 13-14, 20-21; 2 p.m., Dec. 14-15, 21-22

A GHOST STORY OF CHRISTMAS n Paul Morella

written quickly, in six weeks, to meet a holiday publishing deadline, said Morella. “It’s bigger by staying smaller,” he said about the 66page book, which was popular in Dickens’ time and continues to be so today,

Spirits in Silver Spring Silver Spring Stage is also presenting “A Christmas Carol,” a 90-minute adaptation of Dickens’ story by Ed Monk, which run Dec. 13-22. “It moves very rapidly from place to place,” said director Erin Bone Steele, who is working with a cast of 22. “It was a challenge for us – the actors have to be very agile and the set ﬂexible,” she said. The stage crew is also using a fog machine to create some ghostly effects, said Steele, adding that she has loved the play

n Silver Spring Stage

n Where: Silver Spring Stage, Woodmoor Shopping Center, 10145 Colesville Road, Silver Spring

since she was a child. Silver Spring Stage often presents edgy productions, but “A Christmas Carol” is a family show and very accessible, she said. There are some sad, dark moments, but because the story moves along quickly, “the audience experiences the emotion and then moves on,” she said. “It has a very uplifting ending,” said Steele, about the mean and miserly Scrooge and his ultimate redemption.

Marley was dead, to begin with Meanwhile, the Unexpected Stage Company based in Montgomery County is of-

IN THE ARTS DANCES Hollywood Ballroom, Dec. 4, Social Ballroom Dance from 8–11 p.m. ($10); Dec. 5, 12, Tea Dance from 12:30–3:30 p.m. ($6); Dec. 6, drop-in lessons from 7:30-9 p.m., West Coast Swing Dancing with Dance Jam Productions at 9 p.m. ($15); Dec. 8, free West Coast Swing lesson at 7 p.m., Social Ballroom Dance at 8 p.m., ($16); Dec. 11, International and Standard Latin Night with Paul Huston, workshop from 7:30–8:30 p.m., dance from 8:30–11 p.m. ($16), 2126 Industrial Highway, Silver Spring, 301-326-1181, www.hollywoodballroomdc.com

Glen Echo Park is at 7300 MacArthur Blvd. Blues, Capital Blues: Thurs-

days, 8:15 p.m. beginner lesson, 9-11:30 p.m. dancing to DJs, Glen Echo Park’s Spanish Ballroom Annex, $8, www.capitalblues.org. Contra, Dec. 6, Adina Gordon calls to Maivish; Dec. 13, Warren Doyle with the fabulous Glen Echo Open Band; Dec. 20, Sargon de Jesus calls to Morrison Brothers; Dec. 27, Bob Isaacs with Perpetual e-Motion, 7:30 p.m. lesson, 8:30 p.m. dance, Glen Echo Park Spanish Ballroom, $10, www.fridaynightdance.org. Contra & Square, Dec. 8, Adina Gordon calls with Maivish; Dec. 15, Susan Taylor with Sligo Creek Stompers; Dec. 22, Janine Smith calls with Morrison Brothers Band; Dec. 29, Anna Rain with Perpetual e-Motion, 7:30 p.m., Glen Echo Park Spanish Ballroom, $12 for general, $9 for members, $5 for students, www.fsgw.org. English Country, Dec. 4, Caller: Melissa Running; Dec. 11, Caller: Liz Donaldson; Dec. 18, Caller: Anna Rain, 8 p.m., Glen Echo Town Hall (upstairs), www.fsgw. org.

Now and Then Dance Studio, Saturday ballroom dances,

second and fourth Saturdays, beginner group lesson at 8 p.m., open dancing at 9 p.m., $10 cash at door (all men admitted at half price throughout October), 10111 Darnestown Road, Rockville. 301424-0007, www.nowandthendancestudios.com. Scottish Country Dancing, 8-10 p.m. Mondays, steps and formations taught. No experience, partner necessary, T-39 Building on NIH campus, Wisconsin Avenue and South Drive, Bethesda, 240505-0339. Swing, Dec. 14, Daryl Davis, lesson at 8 p.m., dancing at 9 p.m., Glen Echo Park, $15, www.ﬂyingfeet.org. Waltz, Dec. 15, Sugar Beat; Dec. 29, Terpsichore, 2:45-3:30 p.m. lesson, 3:30-6 p.m., dance, $10, www. waltztimedances.org.

MUSIC & DANCE Bethesda Blues & Jazz Supper Club, Meredith Seidel, 7:30 p.m.

Dec. 4; VMA Big Band Christmas, 8 p.m. Dec. 8; The Artie Shaw Orchestra with Swingtopia, 6:30 p.m. Dec. 11, call for prices, 7719 Wisconsin Ave., Bethesda. 240330-4500, www.bethesdabluesjazz.com. BlackRock Center for the Arts, A Charlie Brown Christmas with The Eric Byrd Trio, 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 7; Holiday Swing with Daryl Davis and Gotta Swing, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 19, call for tickets, 12901 Town Commons Drive, Germantown. 301-528-2260, www.blackrockcenter.org. Fillmore Silver Spring, Megadeth, 8 p.m. Dec. 4; NOFX plus Special Guests, 7:25 p.m. Dec. 6; Sara Bareilles and Gavin DeGraw, 7 p.m. Dec. 11; Steve Winwood with Cris Jacobs, 8 p.m. Dec. 12;

Gary Allan WMZQ Concert for Kids w/ Cole Swindell and special guests, 8 p.m. Dec. 13; Andrew Dice Clay, 8 p.m. Dec. 15, 8656 Colesville Road, Silver Spring, 301960-9999, FillmoreSilverSpring. com, www.livenation.com.

Institute of Musical Traditions — Takoma Park, April Verch, 7:30

p.m. Dec. 4, Takoma Park Community Center, call for prices, times, Takoma Park Community Center, 7500 Maple Ave., Takoma Park, 301-960-3655, www.imtfolk. org.

Institute of Musical Traditions — Rockville, Robin Bullock, Ken

Kolodner & Elke Baker, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 9, Saint Mark Presbyterian Church, 10701 Old Georgetown Road, Rockville, call for prices, www.imtfolk.org. Strathmore, Afternoon/Specialty Teas, 1 p.m. Dec. 4, 9-11; AIR Mentor: Dr. James Ross with Piotr Pakhomkin, guitar & Nistha Raj, violin, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 4; Teatro alla Scala Academy Orchestra, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 4; Sultans of String, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 5; Crystal Gayle and Lee Greenwood, 8 p.m. Dec. 5; BSO: The Four Seasons, 8 p.m. Dec. 7; Bohemian Caverns Jazz Orchestra, 3 p.m., 5 p.m., 7 p.m. Dec. 8; MCYO: Dawn of a Musical Season, 4 p.m. Dec. 8; Stone Ridge Christmas Concert, 7 p.m. Dec. 10; Zemer Chai: The Jewish Community Choir of Washington, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 11; BSO: Holiday Cirque, 8 p.m. Dec. 12; Spanish Harlem Orchestra: Salsa Navidad, 8 p.m. Dec. 13; Friday Night Eclectic: San Fermin, 8 p.m. Dec. 13; Miniatures Workshop, 10 a.m. Dec. 14; National Philharmonic: Handel’s Messiah, 8 p.m. Dec. 14, call for venue, Locations: Mansion, 10701 Rockville Pike, North Bethesda; Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, 301-581-5100, www.strathmore.

org.

ON STAGE Adventure Theatre, “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” to Dec. 30, call for prices, times, Adventure Theatre MTC, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo, 301-634-2270, www.adventuretheatre-mtc.org. Do or Die Mysteries, TBA, 6:30 p.m. buffet, 7:30 p.m. show, $47.50 buffet and show, Flanagan’s Harp and Fiddle, 4844 Cordell Ave., Bethesda, 443-422-3810, www. doordiemystery.com Imagination Stage, “Lyle the Crocodile,” to Jan. 10, call for prices, times, Imagination Stage, 4908 Auburn Ave., Bethesda, www. imaginationstage.org Olney Theatre Center, “The King and I,” to Dec. 29; Olney Ballet Theatre’s “The Nutcracker,” Dec. 13-24; “A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story of Christmas,” to Dec. 29, call for prices, times, 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road, Olney, 301-924-3400, www.olneytheatre. org. The Puppet Co., “The Nutcracker,” to Dec. 29; Tiny Tots @ 10, select Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, call for shows and show times, Puppet Co. Playhouse, Glen Echo Park’s North Arcade Building, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., $5, 301-634-5380, www.thepuppetco.org. Round House Theatre, Bethesda, “The Lyons,” to Dec. 22, 4545 East-West Highway, Bethesda. 240-644-1100, www. roundhousetheatre.org. Round House Theatre, Silver Spring, “Meena’s Dream,” Jan. 8-14, call for show times, 8641 Colesville Road, Silver Spring, $15 for general admission, $10 for subscribers, patrons 30 and younger

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See IN THE ARTS, Page A-16

w No ing! w Sho F.

Scott Fitzgerald Theater

603 Edmonston Dr. Rockville, MD 20851

240-314-8690

www.rockvillemd.gov/theatre

The Nutcracker 2013 Presented by Rockville Civic Ballet December 7 & 14 at 2pm and 7:30pm

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December 8 & 15 at 2pm Tickets $17 to $13

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n For information: 301-5936036, ssstage.org

n Tickets: $36 for adults, $18 for students (Recommended for ages 10 and older)

n Tickets: $18; $16 for Gaithersburg residents; $9 for students through grade 12

A CHRISTMAS CAROL:

n Tickets: $10 for general admission, $5 for children

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AN UNEXPECTED FUNDRAISER n Where: The Writer’s Center, 4508 Walsh St., Bethesda n Tickets: $55 at the door; $45 ($25 tax deductible) in advance; $10 extra for a photo with Jacob Marley (cocktail attire is encouraged) n For information: 301-3378290, unexpectedstage.org

fering a twist on Scrooge’s story by hosting a one-night wake for his equally miserly but deceased business partner, Marley, in The Writer’s Center Reading Room in Bethesda. The event serves as entertainment, with actors working from a script and portraying Bob Cratchit, Tiny Tim and others while eulogizing the departed. It also serves as a fundraiser for the theater company, which formed four years ago. “It will feel like a wake but it’s lighthearted as well,” said Christopher Goodrich, who founded the company four company with his wife, Rachel Stroud-Goodrich. vterhune@gazette.net

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Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

Euro vision comes to AFI Silver Theatre n

Movies from 27 countries start Thursday in Silver Spring BY

n When: Dec. 5-22

VIRGINIA TERHUNE STAFF WRITER

As the European Union continues to expand, so does the annual European Union Film Showcase at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in Silver Spring. “Croatia is an addition this year,” said Todd Hitchcock, director of programming for the festival, now in its 26th year. “All the [28] countries in the EU are represented except Malta,” said Hitchcock. The showcase features at least one film from each nation, and more if a country — such as France or Germany — has a large film industry. Screening will be 53 films, about 10 more than last year. “Typically these movies have already had a commercial run in their home country,” Hitchcock said. A list by country with synopses, and a calendar showing films by date, is posted at afi.com/silver. Films nominated for Academy Awards in 2013 are also noted. The series opens Thursday with “Walesa, Man of Hope,” a film about Nobel Peace Prize winner Lech Walesa, and closes three weekends later on Dec. 22. In 2012, the showcase took place in November, but this year it is running in December when there is more time to screen all of the films, said Hitchcock. Hitchcock recommended buying tickets early, as some movies, especially those marked “special presentations,” feature Q&As and receptions with directors following screenings and sell

IN THE ARTS

Continued from Page A-15 and seniors, 244-644-1100, www. roundhousetheatre.org. Silver Spring Stage, “A Christmas Carol,” Dec. 13-22, Woodmoor Shopping Center, 10145 Colesville Road, Silver Spring, see website for show times, www.

AFI EUROPEAN UNION FILM SHOWCASE n Where: AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center, 8633 Colesville Road, Silver Spring n Tickets: $12; $10 (combo for eight or more); $175 passport ($135 AFI members) n For information: 301-495-6700, aﬁ. com/silver

out quickly. “There are also a lot of European thrillers,” said Hitchcock, who last year presented a retrospective of Swedish crime movies. “This is something with a real fan base,” he said about the genre in Europe. The screenplay for “The Keeper of Lost Causes,” from Denmark, was written by Nikolaj Arcel, co-writer of the Swedish ﬁlm, “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.” The movie is about a detective investigating the apparent suicide of a politician ﬁve years earlier, and is already a hit in Denmark. Other thrillers include “The Exam” from Hungary and “Hidden Child” from Sweden.

Polish hero Hitchcock said the decision to lead off the festival with the ﬁlm about Walesa was because of its broad reach. “I liked a subject and a story that had a pan-European appeal and importance,” he said. Directed by legendary Polish director Andrzej Wajda, it stars Polish ﬁlm

ssstage.org.

The Writer’s Center, TBA, 4508

Walsh Street, Bethesda, 301-6548664, www.writer.org.

VISUAL ART Adah Rose Gallery, John James

Anderson and Mei Mei Chang, to Dec. 28, 3766 Howard Ave., Kensington, 301-922-0162, www.

star Robert Wieckiewicz, who will attend opening night. “He’s tremendous in this,” said Hitchcock about the actor who also starred in Polish director Agnieszka Holland’s 2011 film “In Darkness.” An electrician, Walesa was a tradeunion activist in the Gdansk shipyards who lead the Solidarity Movement in Communist-run Poland during the 1970s and 1980s. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983 and served as Poland’s president from 1990 to 1995. Scheduled for Friday is Elijah Wood of “Lord of the Rings” fame in “Grand Piano,” a thriller in which he plays pianist Tom Selznick as he prepares to perform in a comeback concert but finds a note waiting for him: “Play a wrong note and you die.” The film’s Spanish director, Eugenio Mira, will be present at a Q&A and reception after the screening. Filmmaker Ulrika Bengts, who directed Finland’s “The Disciple,” will also be present for a Q&A and reception after his movie screens on Monday. Set in 1939, “The Disciple” is about an eager-to-please orphan who works so hard in a Baltic lighthouse that the lighthouse keeper begins to favor him over his own son. Screening Dec. 15 is “The Invisible Woman,” a film about a young stage actress, Nelly Ternan, who became Charles Dickens’ lover. Ralph Fiennes, who plays the novelist, also directed the film, which features Kristin Scott Thomas and Tom Hollander. “Fiennes also directed ‘Coriolanus’ a few years ago,” said Hitchcock. “His future as a director looks very promising.”

adahrosegallery.com

The Dennis and Phillip Ratner Museum, TBA, hours are 10 a.m. to

4:30 p.m. Sundays, noon to 4 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10001 Old Georgetown Road, Bethesda. 301-897-1518. Gallery B, December Exhibition: Eric Garner, Dec. 4-28, opening reception from 6-9 p.m. Dec. 13, gallery hours are noon to 6

AFI SILVER

“Walesa, Man of Hope,” from Poland, is a ﬁlm about Solidarity Movement leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Lech Walesa.

From France via Iran On Sunday, AFI Silver will present a single screening of “The Past,” filmed in France by director Asghar Farhadi. Farhadi won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film in 2012 for “A Separation,” the first Iranian film to win the award. “The Past” is about a man from Tehran who returns to Paris to complete a divorce from his French wife. She has two daughters from her first marriage and is living with her fiancé, who has a son. “It’s a domestic drama, and there’s a lot of nuance, a lot of gray areas,” said Hitchcock. “It’s a situation [that involves] peeling away layers.” The annual European film festival is one of the largest events presented

p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, 7700 Wisconsin Ave., Suite E. www. bethesda.org. Glenview Mansion, Rockville Art League Juried Members’ Show Varied Media, Dec. 8-30, Rockville Civic Center Park, 503 Edmonston Drive, Rockville. www.rockvillemd.gov. Marin-Price Galleries, William Woodward, to Dec. 24, 10:30 a.m.

by AFI/Silver, said Hitchcock, who also organizes its annual Latin film festival. Hitchcock said he learns about films by traveling to festivals, where he sometimes watches five movies a day, and also by talking to people and researching their recommendations. “There are stacks and stacks of things to watch, and out of that process comes 40 to 50 titles,” he said. AFI/Silver doesn’t always get every film it wants, but Hitchcock said there are always movies coming down the pipeline throughout the year. “There’s always new stuff,” he said. “If you’re enjoying this, there’s much more out there. Rejoice in watching some great films!”

to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, 7022 Wisconsin Ave., 301-718-0622. VisArts, Michael Sellmeyer: Paintings, Drawings, Prints, That Mostly Go Together, Dec. 11 to Jan. 12, opening reception from 7-9 p.m. Dec. 13, Common Ground Gallery; Lauren Boilini: Rabid Habits, Dec. 11 to Jan. 12,

vterhune@gazette.net opening reception from 7-9 p.m. Dec. 13, Gibbs Street Gallery,155 Gibbs St., Rockville, 301-315-8200, www.visartsatrockville.org.

Washington Printmakers Gallery, “A Life with Line,” Lila Oliver

Asher, to Dec. 1, Pyramid Atlantic Art Center, second ﬂoor, 8230 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring, www. washingtonprintmakers.com.

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AT THE MOVIES

‘Frozen’: Defying meteorology BY

MICHAEL PHILLIPS CHICAGO TRIBUNE

Big, bright, often beautiful and essentially an action movie, as are most animated features these days, “Frozen” comes from Walt Disney Animation Studios. While Disney credits the 1845 Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale “The Snow Queen” as primary inspiration, the movie owes a lot more to the Broadway blockbuster “Wicked.” Example: In “Frozen,” when its misunderstood young sorceress (voiced by Idina Menzel, who won a Tony for originating the green one in “Wicked”) unleashes her magical powers and starts designing her permafrost castle in exile, she wallops a tune called “Let It Go,” which is very, very, very much in the spirit of “Defying Gravity,” the “Wicked” Act 1 closer. The eight songs in “Frozen,” very good in the main, were written by the team of Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez. The latter — co-writer of “Avenue Q” and “The Book of Mormon” — has described “Let

It Go” as “the biggest, beltiest diva number” imaginable. It’s almost a parody of itself. When it comes to such numbers I tend to respond the way Mr. Darling does in “Peter Pan”: A little less noise there, please. But if you like that sort of thing, “Frozen” has that sort of thing. And the ﬁlm basically works. It’s entertaining, and following an old Disney tradition “Frozen” works some old-school magic in its nonhuman characters. There’s Sven the reindeer, stalwart best friend of the hunky Nordic love interest Kristoff (Jonathan Groff), who harvests ice for a living. But especially there’s Olaf the joyfully needy snowman, with a charming overbite and three or four twigs for hair. He dreams of sunny summer vacations courtesy of the fetching ditty “In Summer,” in which Olaf yearns for scenarios that would spell his demise. Olaf is voiced by Josh Gad, who worked with Lopez in the original iteration of “The Book of Mormon.” You can hear the smile in Gad’s vocal delivery; his

FROZEN n 3 stars n PG; 100 minutes n Cast: Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, Jonathan Groff, Josh Gad n Directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee

comic timing’s very sly, a little behind the expected beat, and there’s a sweetness to his delivery. What Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella did for Disney’s ﬁlm “The Lion King,” Gad does for “Frozen.” The movie takes the bare bones of the original fairy tale and builds its own contraption. It’s a tale of two sisters. Elsa, voiced by Menzel, has been blessed/cursed with the emotion-triggered ability to whip up ice and snow in threatening amounts. Anna, voiced by Kristen Bell, is nearly killed by her sister’s magic as a young girl, so their parents devote what’s left

Fearless optimist Anna meets rugged and snow-covered mountain man Kristoff for the ﬁrst time in Walt Disney Animation Studio’s “Frozen.” of their lives to protecting one girl from the other. Years pass, as they do, and Elsa is to be crowned queen of Arendelle. At the coronation sister Anna, insta-smitten with a dreamy suitor from a neighboring kingdom, asks Elsa to bless the union. No soap, says Elsa, whose outburst turns her icemagic into “The Day After Tomorrow.” The coastal kingdom is plunged into a deep freeze. Elsa squirrels away up north, alone, to sing power ballads.

Anna eventually becomes the problem solver and ﬁx-it sibling. Co-director and screenwriter Jennifer Lee’s script goes in for a fair amount of complication and political intrigue, though like so many animated features, whatever the studio, the story cannot wait to get back to the thundering imperilment. Still, Anna’s a gratifying heroine, a shrewd mixture of assertiveness and relatability. The project was tasked with two directors, ﬁrst-billed Chris Buck and sec-

DISNEY

ond-billed Lee. The sheer scope of the story, encompassing ice monsters and Broadway power anthems, probably required as much. As Anna gets closer and closer to discovering the reason why her sister abandoned her emotionally years earlier, “Frozen” cracks the exterior of its radically revised Snow Queen (Elsa, that is; nothing like Andersen’s original). The happy ending feels genuine and heartfelt. And Gad’s Olaf, in the nicest way, kills.

Performers during the 2008 Christmas Revels show. This year’s show, featuring more than 100 singers, dancers, instrumentalists and actors, is titled “Echoes of Thrace: Music, Dance and Drama of Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey.”

REVEL

Continued from Page A-13 choreographer and became artistic director in 1998. She’ll oversee the group’s 31st annual Christmas Revels show beginning Saturday at George Washington University’s Lisner Auditorium. This year’s show, featuring more than 100 singers, dancers, instrumentalists and actors, is titled “Echoes of Thrace: Music, Dance and Drama of Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey.” “Every year we try to do something different than the year before,” Gasbarre said. “ … We started to talk about visiting that [part] of the world thematically … as we delved more into it, we found these regions had incredible holiday traditions … We thought it would be a good place for us to look into.” According to Gasbarre, the Christmas Revels tend to focus

on material up to the 20th century. She said this year’s show will draw on “a blend of ancient and modern tradition from the region,” including Bulgarian customs such as Kukeri, costumed men performing a ritual to ward off evil spirits, and the Survachka, brightly decorated sticks used by children in Bulgaria on Christmas morning to wish fellow-villagers luck. Special guests Bulgarian singers Tanya Dossera and master Kaval player Lyuben Dossev will also join the performance. The introduction to different cultures has continued to be a draw for Hendren and her family. “I’m a homeschool mom and one of the things that is so valuable to me is that the Revels expose them to cultures around the world like nothing else can besides going to those places,” Hendren said. “The programs tell you the background on every song. It’s like a homeschool textbook … I hang

PARTY

Continued from Page A-13 Sunday’s show, ofﬁcially The Blanket & Pillow Concert, will feature a selection of low-key songs from both Roberts — who released his album “Lullaby” last year — and the “Sing To Your Baby Series,” which Fink and Marxer released around the same time. “For years we’ve wanted to do a sing-along pajama party,” Fink said. “We had talked about trying to do a show that would feature … softer songs that we don’t normally play in concert, but at the same time make it fun,” Roberts added. Sunday’s bedtime-themed set is a far cry from Robert’s usual repertoire. His latest CD release, “Recess,” is more typical of Roberts and his ﬁve-piece rock band, the Not Ready for Naptime Players. “‘Recess is kind of the polar opposite of ‘Lullaby’,” Roberts said. “It’s a much more kind of rock ’n’ roll kind of record … [So] this concert is going to give me a chance to highlight the more folk side of my music.” Roberts, who’s based in Chicago, never intended to become a children’s musician. In the early 1990s, shortly after graduating from college, the musician was living in Minneapolis playing in an eclectic folk rock band called Pimentos for Gus. During the day, he had a job teaching at a Montessori preschool. “I told them I was a musician and they said, ‘Bring your guitar,’” Roberts recalled. “I started playing songs for kids initially and then eventually writing songs for kids in the classroom.” The singer/songwriter quickly discovered he had a knack for children’s music.

on to them. From that aspect it’s just fantastic that they get to learn all of that.” Hendren started as a volunteer with the Revels in 2006 after her son Jacob made the children’s chorus, just one of the Revels ﬁve performance ensembles. Though she longed to audition for the Revels herself, Hendren decided to dedicate her energy to the children’s chorus and making sure Jacob had the best possible experience. This year it’s a different story. With both children in their teens, Hendren and her husband Pat both have roles in Echoes of Thrace. “[We’re] cast as Bulgarians,” Hendren said. “My husband and I are part of a family; yogurt makers. We have goats.” Jacob has a larger role as Jason in the Jason and the Argonauts story while Julia is a member of the props crew. While Jacob and Julia have the support of their real-life

BLANKET & PILLOW CONCERT n When: 4:30 p.m. Sunday n Where: Takoma Park Middle School, 7611 Piney Branch Road, Silver Spring n Tickets: $12 in advance, $15 at the door (Groups or organizations interested in tickets for underserved communities, please contact info@ cathymarcy.com) n For information: 301-270-9090, imtfolk.org n Note: Audience members are encouraged to wear pajamas and bring blankets, pillows, stuffed animals, etc., and are asked to consider bringing a new toy to donate to The Marvelous Toy Drive.

As Pimentos for Gus disintegrated, Roberts recorded a children’s album before moving to Chicago for graduate school. After receiving positive feedback, Roberts said he made the decision to pursue children’s music. “It kind of took off on its own and people were asking me to make another record so I thought, ‘Maybe I should do this,’” Roberts said. “I was never intending to … I tried to listen to the voices around me that I was hearing [saying] I should do it.” He may not have set out to sing children’s music but over the last 15 years, Roberts has become somewhat of a star in the industry. He’s released 11 albums — nine for children and two aimed at families and based on Bible stories. He performs regularly in schools, outdoor amphitheaters, community centers and festivals. He’s also appeared on The Today Show and had his music featured on Nick Jr. In 2011,

family on stage, Hendren said the Revels also stress the importance of an on-stage family. “They basically cast everybody into families,” Hendren said. “So if you’re up on stage and you’re a little lost, you can look for your stage family … it’s like a supportive community.” The Washington Revels are all about community. In addition to Christmas Revels, which is their largest production, and their annual May Day celebration, the group runs after-school classes in music, dance, storytelling and crafting for children ages 4 to 14. The Washington Revels have released six CDs and often gather for causal sing-alongs at McGinty’s Public House in Silver Spring. “Because we’re a community group, there’s room for a number of things, large and small,” Gasbarre said. “That’s why we’re here, to say, ‘Come join us. Get involved.’” There’s perhaps no greater

Roberts was nominated for a Grammy for Best Musical Album for Children. It appears Roberts has made the transition from rocker to children’s rocker almost seamlessly. “I still try to put the same kind of care and craft into writing the songs,” Roberts said. “I don’t really think I’m just writing them for the kids. I think I’m writing for the whole family …” In fact, Roberts said he’s found more similarities than differences between the children and adult audiences. “I just saw Dave Davies from The Kinks recently perform and he would start a song and then just start clapping above his head getting the audience to clap with him,” Roberts said. “And I was thinking, ‘Well, that’s pretty much what I’m doing with the kids’ shows.’ But with the kids’ shows it’s even more present. You’re doing a lot of call and response singing, a lot of different hand motions and dancing …” “Justin shares the Cathy and Marcy philosophy,” Fink added. “When we’re performing, we’re singing together with the crowd.” Beyond his performance style, Roberts said he hopes the content of his songs appeal to both children and their parents. “I think a lot of times what I’m trying to do when I’m writing this material is ﬁnd that common connection between a childhood experience and an adult experience,” Roberts said. “If I’m writing a song like ‘Recess,’ I’m thinking about my own memories of being in a classroom and waiting for the bell to ring. And [now] I’m thinking about a pile of work on my desk I need to ﬁnish before I can go outside and play ball with my dog. It’s the same kind of thing.” chedgepeth@gazette.net

PHOTOS BY SHEP FERGUSON

A member of the Washington Revels during the 2010 Christmas Revels show. testament to the power of community among the Revels than the two-hour commute the Hendren family makes at least once a week from their home in Castleton, Va., to rehearsals in Silver Spring. “I think what I love about it is

CRYSTAL

Continued from Page A-13 of music has come out of the hills of Kentucky. People would go out on the front porch and play the guitar. My mother was a twin and they would sing at church. Music was there and it was great. I always say music heals. So I think that a lot of the reason there’s music in the hills of Kentucky — and a lot of the rural areas — is because it [heals]. It makes you feel good.” Family, too, is important to Gayle and her relatives. Late in November, Lynn received the Presidential Medal of Freedom — which is given by the president to those who have made an impact on the interests of the United States. “I’m so excited and she was, too, when I talked to her on the phone,” Gayle said. “We’re all very proud of Loretta as a whole, not just for getting this honor. It’s a highlight for her, I’m sure. And it’s a highlight in the sense of the family knowing that she has done so much. Loretta’s not just a singer. She’s a person out there who’s more than that. … We love our sister.” Gayle was destined to be a singer. With crystal blue eyes, a sweet smile and silky voice, Gayle knew early on she was going to be in the music industry. “We would always have career days and you would write about things,” Gayle said. “Mine was not the normal. I wrote about … being an archeologist and stuff like that. But no, I was a singer. I love singing. I’ve made so many really good friends all over the world and that means a lot.” Recently, Gayle released a duet with singer/songwriter Sherry Lynn

that it is such a nurturing group who are committed to bringing tradition to life,” Hendren said. “They really embrace everyone and bring them into the tradition … I just can’t get enough of it.” chedgepeth@gazette.net

called “Beautiful Life,” which was coproduced by Gayle’s son Chris Gatzimos. “Oh, Chris is great,” Gayle said. “Of course, I’m a proud mother and just seeing him in the studio and being able to do what he’s been doing … he’s writing and doing his own music as well. But working with him — and we’re working on a few other projects as well in the studio — it’s just great to see … I never pushed my children as far as going into music. They really didn’t want any part of it when they were younger, as far as being in the business. All of a sudden it was an about-face. So I’m excited.” For her career, Gayle has won all kinds of awards — from Country Music Awards, to American Music Awards to a Grammy. She’s been inducted into several halls of fame and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame — right next to her sister Loretta’s star. “You know, I never had a list for my career, like, ‘This is my goal, I’m going to head that direction …’” Gayle said. “I sort of let things fall into place as they would go. I was very shy as a child. My father was very shy. Mom was outgoing. “If you saw the movie ‘Coal Miner’s Daughter,’ they had the person playing mom not play her at all like she was, which I couldn’t understand. Let me put it this way, ‘The brighter the lipstick, the better’ was my mom. When I started singing, I’d go out on the weekends to sing and we’d be ﬁghting over what I was going to wear because she wanted me to wear the bright, shiny thing and I wanted to be in something that wasn’t. She was trying to get me out of my shell, I think.” wfranklin@gazette.net

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2013-2014 HIGH SCHOOL

B BASKETBALL ASKPREVIEW ET BA LL

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Wednesday, December 4, 2013

GIRLS BASKETBALL

4A West Region up for grabs

Montgomery Blair ready to compete for regional title n

ERIC GOLDWEIN STAFF WRITER

PHOTOS BY RAPHAEL TALISMAN/FOR THE GAZETTE

Riverdale Baptist junior guard JeDon Young drives to the basket during a game on Saturday evening at the Riverdale Baptist School in Upper Marlboro.

FACTORY

SCHOOLS THAT SPECIALIZE IN DEVELOPING TOP BASKETBALL PLAYERS BECOMING MORE COMMON IN THE REGION

EXPANSION BY TRAVIS MEWHIRTER STAFF WRITER

Riverdale Baptist junior guard DaJuan Abroms attempts a three-point-shot Saturday.

1858031

hen Bryan Bartley ofﬁcially took over the storied Montrose Christian basketball program last summer, he inherited a roster that was 100 percent vacant — he literally didn’t have a single player. Those who hadn’t graduated in 2013 bolted to other schools when longtime coach Stu Vetter announced his resignation. But a Montrose Christian roster doesn’t stay empty for long. The name sells itself. Within months, Bartley hauled in eight different transfers from six different states — Missouri, Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, Washington, Illinois — needing very little persuasion other than the use of two names: Montrose Christian, and his own, names prestigious enough that when they come calling, it’s difﬁcult to decline. And so, Patrick McCaw (from

Montgomery Blair High School’s girls basketball team started to turn around its season at the midpoint last season and now it wants to reap the rewards. The Blazers finished the season strong after a slow start, closing with a 46-43 4A West Region quarterfinal loss to Walt Whitman, the reigning region champions. “We thought we played well and did compete well, but we also saw we have the potential to go further,” Blair senior Erica Adarkwa said. Like many 4A teams, Blair players say they have a shot to take the title in a region coaches are saying is up for grabs. “It really is wide open,” Adarkwa said. “Anyone who is willing to go for it, they definitely have a chance.” Adarkwa is one of Blair’s four returning starters and five seniors. Joining her in the backcourt is senior Maggie McLain, a sharpshooter who missed last season due to injury. Senior Shannon Healy, a top-scorer, will start at power forward. Senior Debbie Olawuyi will play in the middle and help the team on the boards. “We have a significant amount of leadership returning, which is great,” said seventhyear coach Erin Conley. Blair entered last season coming off a 20-5 year, but lost several key seniors and had a new starting lineup. The team’s inexperience showed at the beginning of the season, Adarkwa said.

BILL RYAN/THE GAZETTE

Montgomery Blair High School’s Shannon Healy practices Nov. 25.

“IT REALLY IS WIDE OPEN. ANYONE WHO IS WILLING TO GO FOR IT, THEY DEFINITELY HAVE A CHANCE.” ERICA ADARKWA,

MONTGOMERY BLAIR SENIOR “I think we were trying to ﬁnd out what type of team we were becoming,” Adarkwa said. Gradually, the Blazers picked up their play before peaking in the postseason. The three-

See 4A WEST, Page B-9

St. Louis), Jarrell Brantley (South Carolina) Allonzo Trier (Seattle) and Raymond Doby (Illinois) left behind their families, prior teammates, coaches — everything familiar — to play a season or two in a Montrose uniform. “Our kids are all different,” said Bartley, whose two sons, Justice and Jaylen, followed him to Montrose. “They’re from all different places in life.” This practice, hauling in players from all over the country, most for no more than two seasons, has brought on a variety of monikers for the Rockville private school — and several others in the surrounding area and country — from mercenary program to basketball factory. “The name deﬁnitely says a lot when it comes to getting recruits in the area,” said ﬁrst-year assistant coach Calvin Seldon, who came via Grace Brethren Clinton and brought with him senior A.J. Cabbagestalk. “The foundation starts with a good coaching staff from the ground up.” Barely an hour down the road in Upper Marlboro is a similarly struc

See FACTORY, Page B-9

BILL RYAN/THE GAZETTE

Montgomery Blair High School’s Debbie Olawuyi practices on Nov. 25.

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HIGH SCHOOL BOYS’ BASKETBALL PREVIEW Posting up has fallen out of fashion

More big men are playing like small men In today’s offenses, there’s no room for the back-to-the-basket center n

TRAVIS MEWHIRTER STAFF WRITER

Back in the winter of 1989, a much younger Diallo Nelson suited up at point guard for John F. Kennedy High School in a 4A state semifinal game with High Point. When the final buzzer sounded, Nelson’s Cavaliers lost 9284. “Yeah,” Nelson, now in his 14th season coaching the Cavs, explained, “They had two 6-[foot]-8 guys. One went to Duke and one went to North Carolina. That would never happen these days.” But why? What has happened to the art of a true center, the back-tothe-basket species which burned Nelson’s 1989 Kennedy team? Coaches from Prince George’s and Montgomery counties floated out their various theories, most drawing parallels to one another, from what the kids are seeing in the National Basketball Association to private schools monopolizing big men to the very simple conclusion that the skill set of a post player isn’t just dead among the kids, it’s dead among coaches.

“It’s the new fad.” “How many back-to-the-basket NBA superstars are out there?” Eleanor Roosevelt coach Brendan O’Connell asked rhetorically. “One. There’s Dwight Howard and that’s really it.” If playing in the post were a fashion, it went out with track suits and oversized baseball jackets, popular when centers such as Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing and Chris Webber were in vogue. Those days are long gone, replaced by run-and-gun, 3-point happy offenses seeking to light up scoreboards and stuff box scores. “The game has changed so much,”

“Coaches have outcoached themselves. They’re trying to make everybody skilled — dribbling, passing, shooting.” — Kennedy boys’ basketball coach Diallo Nelson Henry A. Wise coach Rob Garner said. “It’s not like the old school way where if you’re 6-foot-8, we’re going to put you on that block.” Nelson went as far as to say that “every big guy has been brainwashed.” It has worked for some, take Malachi Alexander, Roosevelt’s 3-point shooting big man who is now starting at Holy Cross. He helped lead the Raiders to the 4A state championship last season by scoring from everywhere from the perimeter to the post. But still, the most dominant big man in Prince George’s County was, by deﬁnition, not much of a big man at all, rather a small forward. “Sometimes kids just don’t want to play that way,” Springbrook coach Tom Crowell said. “Sometimes some of the biggest players want to play outside. Kids like to shoot the three. It’s the new fad.”

“The nature of the beast.” BeeJay Anya is perhaps the one true example from last year for both counties of a prototypical center — back to the basket, drop step, score. He, of course, played for DeMatha Catholic, one of the most prestigious private basketball schools in the country. “If there’s a true, polished big

man, a lot of times private schools will scoop them,” O’Connell said. “A lot of times we’re working with the ones who the private schools don’t scoop.” Alexander was nearly a head taller than most he matched up against, with a few exceptions being Wise’s Micah Till and Devin Moore, DuVal’s Edward Polite, and a handful of others. Nelson couldn’t name a big man in Montgomery who played a center’s traditional role. Springbrook’s Alex Evans is likely to be a traditional post player this season. “That’s the nature of the beast,” said Nelson, who has 6-foot-7 Bruke Hawkins on his roster, the ﬁrst athlete he’s had taller than 6-foot-3. “When I was playing, we had four big guys go [Division I]. That would never happen nowadays because the private schools would scoop them up.”

“Phased out.” It’s easy for Nelson to recall the days when Springbrook won its three consecutive state titles from 20082010. Jamal Olasewere, currently playing professional ball in Italy, couldn’t be stopped for one distinct reason: he was the only one who knew how to play the post. “He dominated,” Nelson said. “If you have a guy who scores in the post, you have an advantage right off the bat.” Because it’s not just playing in the post that has gone unpopular — there’s nothing glamorous about coaching it either. “The center has been completely phased out. Coaches have outcoached themselves,” Nelson said. “They’re trying to make everybody skilled — dribbling, passing, shooting.” Which makes the value of a true post player all the more valuable. “I mean, I’d like to have them,” O’Connell said. “If you have a kid who can post up like that, they’re going to be hard to stop.” tmewhirter@gazette.net

GREG DOHLER/THE GAZETTE

Springbrook center Alex Evans (right) soars to shoot the ball above defenders from visiting Takoma Academy during a basketball scrimmage in Silver Spring.

The ﬁve-guard offense

Lack of size forces coaches to keep their guards up Teams adopt more guard-oriented play as traditional big men become part of the past n

BY JENNIFER BEEKMAN STAFF WRITER

Twenty years ago, if a 6-foot-7 high school student walked into the gym for boys’ basketball tryouts, there would be no question where he was going, eighth-year Thomas S. Wootton High School coach Chris Bohlen said: Under the basket. But the game of basketball is changing and more athletic teams that emphasize guard play are starting to become the mold. Some of the most successful Montgomery County teams in recent history — Col. Zadok Magruder won the 2012 state championship, Springbrook won from 2008-10 — have been predicated on this, Bohlen said. “I think [versatility] is why Montgomery County has been so successful at the state level,” Bohlen said. “You look at those Springbrook kids, they had Jamal Olasawere and C.J. Garner and they weren’t just towering over everybody. There were just a lot of things they could do on the ﬂoor from a variety of positions and it caused a lot of problems.” Even in the NBA, the days of the traditional back-to-thebasket big men, guys like former Houston Rockets seven-foot center Hakeem Olajuwon, are coming to an end and giving way to more versatile all-around basketball players. The introduction of the 3-point line to the NBA in 1979 and high school ball 26 years ago likely set this trend in motion, longtime Col. Zadok Magruder coach Dan Harwood, who has been coaching in the county for 28 years, said. Coaches agreed they certainly wouldn’t complain if they were handed a true center, but it might be possible to count on one hand the number of Montgomery County

Thomas S. Wootton High School basketball player Richard Hum shoots at practice. He is the Patriots’ point guard this season, which hopes to rebound from an off year last season. teams that will rely primarily on size inside. It’s easy to assume the more guard-oriented approach is merely a Plan B for teams without that dominant presence in the paint and that might be partially true. This style of play helps smaller teams counter a size disadvantage by spreading the ﬂoor against bigger opponents. That spacing lends itself to 3-point shooting and an increasing number of players are polishing their long-range accuracy. But it would be impossible to reap all the beneﬁts of a true guard-ori-

ented offense without a certain type of all-around player with a deep skill set. “You look at versatile big guys like Kevin Garnett and Dirk Nowitzki and they’re just basketball players,” Bohlen said. “They can defend, they can run, they are athletic, they can handle the ball and make good decisions. They can shoot it. And, oh, yeah, they just happened to be 6-10. We all want players who can dribble, pass, shoot and defend, whatever package they’re in.” These more dynamic players provide invaluable ﬂexibility on

the hardwood. Coaches agreed there are more opportunities for players to freelance rather than feel restricted by carefully calculated plays. Teams’ defenses can also benefit from smaller, quicker lineups, coaches agreed. A good scrambling defense can put pressure on opponents and draw turnovers that result in transition buckets. “We don’t have to run as many plays because our guys are versatile,” Harwood said. “It’s not, ‘This guy has to cut here, this guy has to set a screen.’ We

don’t need to run plays to get guys in certain positions. Everyone wants to be a guard. No one wants to not dribble or shoot unless they can’t.” While the pattern has trickled down from the NBA, county coaches agreed better coaching in youth basketball organizations has also led to an abundance of more dynamic high school athletes in recent years. Players are taught full skill sets these no matter how tall they are, Bohlen said, to ensure they will be able to play any position. “Kids are being taught at a

DAN GROSS/THE GAZETTE

younger age to dribble, pass and shoot, how to play the game no matter how big they are,” Bohlen said. “Kids are bringing in a big skill set and it allows us to play around with different formations. I think coaches nowadays are looking beyond the traditional positions and looking more at skill sets. We’re moving away from, ‘Oh, you’re 6-foot-7, you’re playing in the post,’ and just trying to see how we can use [players’] skill sets to the advantage of the whole team.” jbeekman@gazette.net

THE GAZETTE

Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

Page B-3

HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS’ BASKETBALL PREVIEW

Private ranks are wide open Good Counsel’s rebuilding allows other teams to step forward n

NICK CAMMAROTA STAFF WRITER

During the holiday season, most students are home with their families, which sometimes requires a fair amount of traveling. But for the members of Connelly School of the Holy Child’s girls’ basketball team, their post-Thanksgiving trip took them a bit farther. Jamie Ready’s team spent the week in the Bahamas on the aptly-named Paradise Island where they played three games and also took in the championship game of the Battle 4 Atlantis men’s college basketball tournament. The Tigers, who traveled to DisneyWorld last year to kick off the season in style, played games against teams from Canada and Kentucky and bonded in a way of which many other teams can only dream. “I have six freshmen on my team and a sophomore,” said Ready, now entering her fifth season. “From that aspect it really benefitted us from a team building perspective.” These trips provide more than a bonding opportunity, however. They help elevate a program to a different class. Much like what first-year Academy of the Holy Cross coach Clyde Singleton has planned for his talented team — trips to New York to face nationallyranked powerhouses in Christ the King and Long Island Lutheran. It’s all part of the budding private school girls’ basketball scene in Montgomery County. At the same time, Our Lady of Good Counsel, long a dominant force in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference and beyond, lost five seniors from last year’s team to graduation and is in the process of rebuilding. So does that open the door for another team to lay claim to Montgomery County private school dominance? “When it came to the Bahamas trip, the girls had to miss two days of school,” Ready said. “I went through a lot to get it approved and part of it was a comparison of what Good Counsel and St. John’s and those schools do for their players.” For years, the Falcons have set the standard of excellence in Montgomery County as Bullis School, Holy Cross and Holy Child, among others, chased the four-time WCAC champs. But this season appears as though it will present an opportunity for another team to

GREG DOHLER/THE GAZETTE

A.J. Cabbagestalk (right) transferred from Grace Brethren to Montrose Christian. He is one of an entire roster of new players for the top-ranked Mustangs.

BOYS

FILE PHOTO

Academy of the Holy Cross’ Jillian Dunston (right), who is committed to the University of Michigan, is expected to be one of the top players in the county this winter. step to the forefront and establish itself in the national spotlight. “At Good Counsel, Splaine somehow puts 12 kids together and makes them all play as one every year no matter what,” Singleton said. “It’s just funny. I think that’s what really attracts a lot of people to the conference. The other day I had seven kids in the gym that all were considering us, Good Counsel and St. John’s. The draw is that they’re going to play at a highly competitive level.” Among the five seniors who graduated from last year’s Falcons team was University of Virginia recruit Amanda Fioravanti. Sophomore Kendall Breese will attempt to ﬁll the void left by last year’s leading scorer at the point. “This is a building process. We’re trying to rebuild our team again,” Good Counsel coach Tom Splaine said in an interview with The Gazette this summer. Meanwhile, at Holy Cross, forward Rhamat Alhassan (University of Florida) and guard-forward Jillian Dunston (University of Michigan) re-

turn to headline a team that is playing one of the more difficult schedules in the area. And at Holy Child, while the competitive balance of the ISL might not be as intense as the WCAC, Ready — a St. John’s graduate — has noticed an increase in the amount of attention her program is receiving. “I think that Holy Child is starting to get a lot more attention than we ever have,” she said. “Now all of sudden for us, things are starting to change and girls are starting to make decisions to come and play for us who might have gone elsewhere.” Who comes out on top this season — in both the WCAC and Montgomery County private school basketball in general — remains to be seen, but the games will almost assuredly be competitive. “Some used to consider our conference [WCAC] the best girls’ basketball conference in the country,” Singleton said. “I think it’s been that way forever. It’s never dropped. It’s been really good forever.” ncammarota@gazette.net

FILE PHOTO

Academy of the Holy Cross senior Rhamat Alhassan (right), who is committed to Florida for volleyball, is expected to be one of the top players in the county this winter.

LAST YEAR’S TOP SCORERS Boys Name, school Brandon Thompson, Covenant Life Justin Senou, Richard Montgomery* Nick Grifﬁn, Magruder* Alex Sotomayor, Watkins Mill* Donnell Diggs, Takoma* Marcus Murray, Kennedy* Byron Hawkins, Good Counsel Andrew Robinson, Springbrook Ethan Walﬁsh, Jewish Day* Marcus Adkinson, St. Andrew’s

PRESEASON HOW THEY RANK

The 10 best boys’ basketball teams in Montgomery County to start the season as ranked by The Gazette’s six-member sports staff:

Rank

PPG 20.2 19.8 18.7 18.6 18.4 18.2 17.8 17.6 17.2 16.9

Girls Name, school PPG Jasmine Dancy, Springbrook* 20.5 Amanda Fiorvanti, Good Counsel* 20.2 Eboni Staple, Don Bosco* 19.5 Kiara Colston, Paint Branch 17.8 Laurie Kostecka, Clarksburg 17.2 Daisa Harris, Paint Branch 16.5 Kelli Prange, Damascus 16.0 Lynee Belton, Bullis 13.9 Sherri Addison, Wootton* 13.8 Taylor McCarley, Holy Cross* 13.8 * Graduaded last year

School

Montrose

Bullis

BRIAN LEWIS/THE GAZETTE

Returning starters Lynee Belton (left) and Kirby Porter (right) are one of the reasons why the Bullis School opens the season ranked No. 1.

Last season Points

19-5 60

GIRLS

The 10 best girls’ basketball teams in Montgomery County to start the season as ranked by The Gazette’s six-member sports staff:

Rank

School

Last season Points

Bullis

23-4 54

Damascus

22-3 53

Springbrook

13-10 48

Paint Branch

21-4 47

Blair

15-9 41

Good Counsel

27-6 39

Einstein

11-14 28

Whitman

21-5 33

Clarksburg

11-13 27

Holy Cross

13-14 32

Magruder

24-3 25

Gaithersburg

18-7 27

Churchill

18-6 19

Kennedy

15-9 19

St. Andrew’s

15-10 10

Poolesville

19-6 12

10.

Rockville

12-11 7

10.

Walter Johnson

18-6 10

Others receiving votes: Poolesville 6; Georgetown Prep 4; Paint Branch 1.

Best bet Churchill at Paint Branch, 7 p.m. Friday

Two strong teams last year, two mysterious teams this year. The Bulldogs begin their season with a new coach; the Panthers begin with an entirely rebuilt roster.

22-4 60

Others receiving votes: Thomas S. Wootton 2;

Winston Churchill 1.

Best bet Whitman at Good Counsel, 7 p.m. Friday

The Vikings return two starters from a region championship team and usual top-ranked Good Counsel is starting over with ﬁve new starters this season.

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HIGH SCHOOL BOYS’ BASKETBALL PREVIEW AVALON

n Coach: Kevin Davern 2nd season n Last season: 19-10 n Starters returning: 2 n Last league championship: N/A

BETHESDA-CHEVY CHASE

Outlook: The Black Knights return two starters and most of their key players from last year’s team, which went 19-10 and won the St. Anselm’s Abbey School Invitational Basketball Tournament. “It was a great ﬁnish but we’re hoping to build on what we did and keep getting better,” second-year coach Kevin Davern said. Look for 6-foot-1 senior guard Zamir Courtney and 6-foot-5 senior center Berthin Mayo to help carry the team through a difﬁcult schedule. “I like the chemistry with the group,” Davern said. The Black Knights will play a forward-heavy lineup with only one “pure” guard, Davern said. “We’re relatively long for a high school team.” The Knights graduated two of its leading scorers: Emmett Sloan and Tracy Johnson.

n Coach: Sean Tracy 2nd season n Last season: 5-17 n Starters returning: 2 n Last state tournament: 2008

— ERIC GOLDWEIN

BULLIS

n Coach: Bruce Kelley 10th season n Last season: 23-4 n Starters returning: 3 n Last IAC title: 2013

n Starters returning: 4 n Last state tournament: 1999

Outlook: When a team has a multifaceted 6-foot-10 guy in the paint, it’s hard not to build an offense around him. The two-time defending IAC champion Bulldogs will certainly look to take advantage of the strength Hofstra University recruit Andre Walker provides inside but they will not be onedimensional because of a slew of interchangeable players, coach Bruce Kelley said. Bullis will also look to spread the ﬂoor and create open shots for its collection of scoring options. Among them are senior guards Russell Sangster, who averaged 14 points per game a year ago, Jamaal Greenwood and Aaron Briggs. “It’s almost like we have two different styles of play within the same team,” Kelley said. “We blend what works with what we like to do.”

n Coach: Robert Bean 1st season n Last season: 18-6 n Starters returning: 3 n Last state tournament: 1978

Outlook: The Titans were 2-10 to open last season, but went 9-4 after, including upsetting second-seeded North Hagerstown in the 3A West Region’s quarterﬁnals. “We may have snuck up on some people last year, but we’re not going to surprise anyone this year,” Einstein coach Rich Porac said. Opponents will focus on slowing down 6-foot-7 senior shooting guard Joe Bradshaw (16.4 ppg). The Titans have height, including 6-4 junior Raheem Hayes, 6-5 junior Gil Reynolds, 6-3 senior 3-point specialist Daniel Seifu, and 6-6 senior wing Abraham Camara. The key, however, may be the one new starter, freshman point guard JD Guerrero (6-0). “The county doesn’t know about him, but he’s very talented,” Porac said.

WALTER JOHNSON

n Last season: 10-13 n Starters returning: 0 n Last state tournament: 1987

n Starters returning: 3 n Last state tournament: 1979

Outlook: Coach Mark Karver is optimistic despite returning just one player who saw signiﬁcant playing time. “What this team is good at is they know what they do well and they play to their strengths,” he said. Sharpshooter Alex Horrick is the returnee with some varsity experience. “He comes off the bench and we get better,” Karver said. Post-player depth kept senior center Gabe Foreman on the bench last season, but no longer. “If we can get him the ball down low, good things will happen, and if he plays well, we’ll be at the top of our game,” Karver said. Guard Matt Konapelsky is expected to play a large role in the offense and transfers Wade Bishop, Chris Espejo and Charalampos Argyriadis could have an immediate impact.

— HARVEY VALENTINE

Outlook: Some high school basketball players have very little freedom to use their instincts on the hardwood. There are set plays and they must abide by what is called each trip down the ﬂoor. Firstyear Churchill coach Robert Bean said he doesn’t want his team to be like that. “I don’t want to say [mine] is a unique system but it’s one based on reading the defense,” Bean said. Guards Allen Njumbe, Jesse Lock and Bobby ArthurWilliams anchor a group that will rely on its athleticism and ﬁtness to keep opponents under pressure. Once the Bulldogs come together and adjust to the new system, Bean said this year’s Churchill team is one that can still compete for the Montgomery 4A South Division championship.

GAITHERSBURG

n Coach: Tom Sheahin 1st season n Last season: 4-19 n Starters returning: 1 n Last state tournament: 1998

Outlook: Despite its record last year, Trojans’ coach Tom Sheahin is very excited about his team’s possibilities. “We should be one of the favorites in the region this year,” he said. “We are going to be very quick with an up-tempo attack and pressure defense. Our goal is to average 80 points per game and hold our opponents to 60.” While Dion Etheridge (6-foot-1) is the lone starter returning, Sheahin has plenty of conﬁdence in the rest of his starters: 5-8 senior and Quince Orchard transfer Aaron King (point guard), 6-3 Seneca Valley senior transfer Geron Braithwaite, 6-4 junior forward Anthony Tarke and 6-9 center Zach Coleman. Juniors Tyrik Etheridge (6-0 guard), senior forward Kamonte Carter (6-5) and junior forward Sean Pressley (6-5) add depth.

n Coach: G.J. Kissal 2nd season n Last season: 11-13 n Starters returning: 4 n Last state tournament: None

n Last season: 18-7 n Starters returning: 1 n Last state tournament: 1996

— KENT ZAKOUR

n Last season: 10-14 n Starters returning: 1 n Last state tournament: 2010

Outlook: Senior forward Josh Hardy and senior guard Dennis Singleton are back and opponents will likely focus on them this winter, but for second-year coach G.J. Kissal, the difference in the Coyotes this year will be their improved and deep supporting cast. Senior guards Xavier Sewell and Caleb Carter should also contribute, along with junior varsity call-ups Austin Duffy, Devinne Greene and Andrew Kostecka. “Dennis and Josh are proven, but I’m most excited about is the improvement I’ve seen from the guys that didn’t get the headlines,” said Kissal, who preaches balance on both ends of the court to his team. “They’ve all made huge leaps forward. We’re more complete and anyone can lead us in scoring on a given night.”

GEORGETOWN PREP

n Coach: Herb Krusen 4th season n Last season: 15-11 n Starters returning: 1 n Last IAC title: 2006

Outlook: With seven seniors, but only one returning starter, the Little Hoyas are gearing up for another run at the Interstate Athletic Conference title. In 2011, they fell in the conference tournament final. In 2012, they bowed out in the semifinals after a 7-3 league regular season earned them a first-round bye. This year is more likely to resemble the former; it will take time to weld the new pieces together. A tough nonleague slate, which began with a win over Gilman and a tripleovertime loss to Boys Latin last week, should prepare them for January’s conference opener. Senior Brandon Green returns to an experienced backcourt, and a promising sophomore class includes 6-foot-6 forward Kevin McDonald and 6-4 guard Trystan Pratapas.

DAMASCUS

n Coach: Butch Marshall 4th season n Last season: 11-13 n Starters returning: 3 n Last state tournament: 1952

n Coach: Andy Luther 8th season n Last season: 3-17 n Starters returning: 3 n Last IAC title: 2010

Outlook: Luther’s slogan for his 2013-14 team is worth printing on its warm-up shirts, if it is not already. “We make being short look good,” Luther said. The Bears’ roster lists ﬁve forwards, including freshman Brett Bates, against 10 guards. They won’t scare anyone out of the gym, particularly after posting a single win after December last season. The points they lose on the eyeball test, they hope to make up in tenacity and chemistry. Five seniors return to the varsity squad, among them guards Clayton Collins and Khaleef Bradford and forward Harry Laird, who all started at times last year. Luther said he would like to see his team rack up more assists in each game than they had in the one before.

— JOHN Y. WEHMUELLER

Outlook: Damascus will be small again this year, with 6-foot-2 senior forward and returning starter Stephon Jacob being the team’s tallest player. Jacob, however, may miss some time at the beginning of the season due to an injury, according to coach Butch Marshall. Classmates Connor Burke (shooting guard, 5-10) and Joe Daniels (G/F, 5-9) round out the returning starters. Senior James Ngonda is also expected to start and initiate the offense from the point. “We are super small and if rebounding becomes an issue, we are going to have a hard time all year,” Marshall said. “But Connor, Joe, James and Stephon are all capable of scoring 20 point on any given night. We were about .500 last year so we just hope to improve.”

— KENT ZAKOUR

GOOD COUNSEL

n Coach: Robert Churchwell 1st season n Last season: 12-18 n Starters returning: 0 n Last WCAC title: None

— JOHN Y. WEHMUELLER

LANDON

Outlook: “It’s deﬁnitely a rebuilding year,” said Blake coach Marcus Wiggins, whose team lost eight seniors and returns just one starter. That starter is versatile 6-foot-5 senior DeMonte Ojinnaka, who Wiggins called one of the better players in Montgomery County public high school basketball. He averaged more than 13 points per game last season and Wiggins looks for him to increase his rebounding and other statistics. “Being in the Northeast Consortium, I’m pretty sure he had some opportunities to make some changes. It was really nice to see that he was willing to show some leadership and loyalty and stay,” Wiggins said. Ojinnaka will get help inside from junior Jamal Ngana, who returns after a year at Good Counsel, and 6-6 senior Thomas Stanton.

— HARVEY VALENTINE

— KENT ZAKOUR

JOHN F. KENNEDY

n Coach: Diallo Nelson 14th season

n Coach: Marcus Wiggins 8th season

CLARKSBURG

— JOHN HARRIS III

Outlook: For the ﬁrst time in four years, Diallo Nelson will be breaking in a new point guard. And 5-foot-10 junior Robert Wilson is the heir apparent to the graduated Marcus Murray. “Anyone that knows anything about basketball knows you got to start at point guard,” Nelson said. “So far, I like what I’ve seen. He’s very intelligent and a passer ﬁrst and, most importantly, can control the tempo.” Returning senior starter and all-around contributor Keif Williams (5-11), who Nelson calls “the best kept secret” in the county, should carry the scoring load. Forward/guard Michael Scott (6-1) and true center Bruke Hawkins (6-7) should also contribute. “I’ve never had a pure post guy before,” Nelson said. “And I’m excited for that.”

Outlook: The Blazers will look to up the defensive intensity in 2013, led by a trio of returning starters in Danny Canary (guard), Damar Bess (forward) and Raymond Burtnick (center). Senior Trey Wainwright returns with varsity experience, and Lonnie Feldman will fortify the low post after transferring from Kennedy. Anthony Davis, Jordan Johnson, Ishmael Sangare and Yosef Yishack will all work into the rotation for coach Damon Pigrom, who looks to run nine or ten deep this season. “We are going to play a lot of people, because we are going to try and really get after it defensively,” Pigrom said. “Coming off of a good season last year and with the pieces we have, I’d like to think we are going to be pretty good.”

JAMES H. BLAKE

— KYLE RUSSELL

— JENNIFER BEEKMAN

— KEN SAIN

n Coach: Mark Karver 3rd season

n Last season: 15-9

WINSTON CHURCHILL

ALBERT EINSTEIN

n Last season: 11-14

n Coach: Damon Pigrom 3rd year

— KYLE RUSSELL

— JENNIFER BEEKMAN

n Coach: Rich Porac 3rd season

Outlook: Second-year coach Sean Tracy is looking for some improvement from his Barons in 2013 after a disappointing showing last season. Forwards Kaleb Stewart and Matt Schaengold both return to provide B-CC with a strong presence in the paint. New faces for the varsity program include Karl Baare — who will see playing time at point guard after transferring from Denmark for his senior season — and sophomore Kevin Holston — who will play both guard positions after showing the ability to score from all over the court. “It was a rough season for our seniors last year, who had four coaches in four years,” Tracy said. “We are looking to gel, come together, and be one cohesive unit, and do better than last year.”

MONTGOMERY BLAIR

Outlook: Good Counsel will head into the 2013-14 schedule with plenty of new faces on the bench, including coach Robert Churchwell, a former Georgetown University and NBA player, who will not have a single returning starter on the ﬂoor this winter. The Falcons’ probable starting unit consists of Nick Gittings, Shane Eberle, Kyle Turner, Curtis Williams and Dominic Ezeani, a group that Churchwell, a physical education and health teacher at the Olney school, expects will continue to improve over the course of the season. “Our ﬁrst goal is to simply get better every day,” Churchwell said. “We’ve looked OK in our scrimmages, but we certainly need to improve in a lot of ways.”

— TED BLACK

COL. ZADOK MAGRUDER

n Coach: Dan Harwood 24th season n Last season: 24-3 n Starters returning: 0 n Last state tournament: 2013

Outlook: After graduating a senior class that won 22 or more games and reached the state tournament the past three seasons, longtime Colonels’ coach Dan Harwood says this year will be different. “The last two years we were good from the ﬁrst day,” Harwood said. “This year is a lot more teaching.” Magruder will execute its traditional offense, which features good shooters, but defensive pressure should be higher. “If we each had 50 possessions in a game, we would beat you,” Harwood said. “Now, we are going to need to get more touches.” Junior forward Joe Hugley (6-foot-6) will take on an expanded scoring role along with seniors Josiah Jones and Danny Schaerr. Guards Kenny Oxman (5-9) and Imani Blackmon (6-0) will also contribute.

— KENT ZAKOUR

THE GAZETTE

Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

Page B-5

HIGH SCHOOL BOYS’ BASKETBALL PREVIEW RICHARD MONTGOMERY

n Coach: David Breslaw 2nd season n Last season: 9-14 n Starters returning: 1 n Last state tournament: 1967

Outlook: Last season the Rockets relied on one player, the county’s leading public scorer Justin Senou (19.9 points per game). This year Richard Montgomery doesn’t have the luxury of a Senou, someone who can lead the team in just about every category, but the Rockets do have a core of capable scorers whose playing styles complement each other nicely on the hardwood. Six-foot-5 junior center David Bottenberg adds a new dimension and Richard Montgomery will look to take advantage of his size in the paint, coach David Breslaw said. But the Rockets will also stick to their style of running the ball. Guards Renzo Farfan and Colin Mattingly will man the backcourt and provide perimeter scoring options.

MONTROSE CHRISTIAN Outlook: The players hail from six U.S. states and one foreign country. The heights extend as high as 6-foot-11. The travel itinerary includes New York, Las Vegas and Atlantic City. And the Rockville post ofﬁce still has bins stuffed with mail from Division I men’s college basketball programs. The coaching staff has changed, but Montrose Christian should remain the area’s premiere producer of talent. The 2014 crop includes 6-4 guard Patrick McCaw and 6-7 forward Raymond Doby, both from St. Louis. College programs are also lining up a year early for 6-5 junior guard Allonzo Trier out of Seattle. The sophomore class goes 6-9 LeAndre Thomas (of Florida), 6-10 Christopher Efretuei, and 6-11 Nwanko Samuel (both of Nigeria).

n Coach: Bryan Bartley 1st season n Last season: 19-5 n Starters returning: 0 n Last national title: 2011

— JENNIFER BEEKMAN

n Coach: Walter Hardy 16th season n Last season: 21-4 n Starters returning: 0 n Last state tournament: 2000

POOLESVILLE

n Coach: Kenny Krameck 2nd season n Last season: 18-7 n Starters returning: 3 n Last state tournament: 1962

— KEN SAIN

ST. ANDREW’S

n Coach: Kevin Jones 3rd season n Last season: 15-10 n Starters returning: 2 n Last MAC championship: None

Outlook: With a pair of returning All-Conference players in Marcus Adkinson and Cedric McFadden, St. Andrew’s coach Kevin Jones said he is conﬁdent his squad can challenge for a conference title this winter. Despite graduating ﬁve seniors from last year’s 15-10 squad, St. Andrew’s will have a solid supporting cast in Drew Singleton, Mason Horst, Myles Law, Tyler Stewart and Gheorghe Murasan, son of the former Washington Bullets’ player. Reserves Jacquinn Thomas (6-8) and Jacob White (6-5) will also get playing time. “If we can keep getting better each day, we’ll be competitive in our league and I think we’ll be in position to make a run for the conference championship, which is our ultimate goal,” Jones said.

n Last season: 13-9 n Starters returning: 1 n Last state tournament: 1991

— JENNIFER BEEKMAN

n Starters returning: 1 n Last state tournament: None

Outlook: Trevor Stottlemeyer, Andy Baker and Anthony Papagjika could take the Falcons to the next level and an appearance into the Class 2A state semifinals. The trio averaged a combined 30 points per contest during 2012-2013. Poolesville just missed the goal last season, falling to Oakdale in the region finals. Gone are Collin Turner and Kirby Carmack, but Craig Morton and senior big man John Bateky, a possible Division I defensive lineman in football, fill in. Kramek also expects contributions from senior Mitchell Poe and baseball star/Barton College (NC) recruit Hunter Pearre, who took a year off from hoops last season to concentrate on baseball. “Last year we went about six [or] seven [players] deep. This year, the goal is to go 9-10 deep,” Kramek said.

n Coach: Tony Harrison 2nd season n Last season: 0-23 n Starters returning: 1 n Last state tournament: 2009

Outlook: After a 0-23 season and the transfer of one of its best players, rising sophomore forward Alex Choloh, the Screaming Eagles don’t need to be reminded that they have plenty to prove this season. “I think we are more talented overall this year and it looks like we are gelling really well,” coach Tony Harrison said. Senior shooting guard Keion Adams is the lone returning starter after averaging 11 points per game last year. Harrison said he thinks Adams has potential to play at the next level. Seneca Valley’s frontcourt features senior Alvin Botsue and 6-foot-7 sophomore Terry Milburne. Junior point guard M.J. Robinson is a solid defender and offensive penetrator. “We’re young, but talented,” Harrison said.

n Coach: Marco Basso-Luca 1st year n Last season: 10-13 n Starters returning: 3 n Last state tournament: 1997

Outlook: The Knights will look to push the tempo in 2013 under the direction of new coach Marco Basso-Luca, who was a varsity assistant the past two seasons and coached at the junior varsity level previously. The squad returns ﬁve seniors for the campaign, including three starters in Michael Patterson, Langston Payne and Ibrahim Kallon. Daquan Moore and Seydina Diop will work into the rotation, as will juniors Jacob Payne and Carey Brown. “The bottom line is that we are just trying to improve as the season goes on,” Basso-Luca said. “It may take a little while to gel due to the fact that we have a new system, but we just want to improve and be peaking for the playoffs in late February and early March.”

— KYLE RUSSELL

Outlook: The Gladiators return three starters, including junior guard Jauvenal Leveille, Jr., who averaged 14 points a game last season, senior point guard Justin Thomas and senior guard William Grigsby. “We work hard and we have a little bit of toughness. We shoot the ball pretty well,” coach Tony Dickens said. “We don’t have a lot of size, so we have to be really gritty and hardnosed. I think gang-rebounding is important for us.” Moving up from junior varsity and expected to contribute are 6-1 guard Holden Redparth and 6-3 forward Sam Walker. Dickens makes no predictions. “The season takes on a life of its own,” he said “You really don’t know what’s going to happen. You have no idea. What’s predictable is the unpredictability.”

n Coach: Tony Dickens 8th season n Last season: 8-12 n Starters returning: 3 n Last state tournament: 1975

— HARVEY VALENTINE

QUINCE ORCHARD

n Coach: Paul Foringer 13th season n Last season: 18-7 n Starters returning: 2 n Last state tournament: 2000

Outlook: The Cougars ran the “Five in/Five out” system last season, netting some impressive results. With fresh bodies sprinkled throughout 32 minutes, Quince Orchard marched its way to the region title game, where it fell to Magruder, 47-30. This season, Foringer may go with a more traditional approach. “We’re still trying to ﬁgure out who will start at a couple of positions, and you have to have the right [personnel] to run Fivein/Five-out,” Foringer said. The coach graduated Charles Porter, now playing at Salisbury, but hopes to ﬁnd depth with varsity returners such as seniors Collin Jones, Tobin Pagley, Perry Konecke, and junior varsity call-ups junior guards Sam Ling, Daryl Lewis and Paint Branch sophomore transfer guard Damon Daniel.

ROCKVILLE

n Coach: Steve Watson 2nd season n Last season: 12-11 n Starters returning: 2 n Last state tournament: 1982

— JOHN HARRIS III

SHERWOOD

n Coach: Tim Gilchrist 1st season n Last season: 12-10 n Starters returning: 1 n Last state tournament: 2012

— JOHN HARRIS III

WHEATON

Outlook: At Northwest this fall, the good news is that the football team made a deep run in the postseason. The bad news at Northwest is, for the boys’ basketball program, that the football team made a deep run in the postseason. The Jags are waiting for several football players, who are also pretty good basketball players, to ﬁnish with their season. Players such as junior guard Jamar Wilson, and senior transfer guard Rasheed Gillis will more than likely add more punch on the hardwood for Northwest. Gillis, a transfer from John Carroll High in Bel Air and a former AAU teammate of Kansas University freshman phenom Andrew Wiggins while in middle school, is reported to be an impact player.

NORTHWOOD

— JOHN HARRIS III

SENECA VALLEY

WATKINS MILL

n Coach: Jay Tringone 7th season

n Last season: 14-11

— JOHN HARRIS III

— TED BLACK

Outlook: The Wolverines are coming off back-to-back 13-win seasons and though they only return one starter, shouldn’t experience much of a drop-off. What Watkins Mill lacks in experience it makes up for in its players’ familiarity with one another. Guards Javon Daniels and Obi Patrick and forward Robert Montgomery have spent the last two-plus years together, which coach Jay Tringone said is a major strength. With much of its scoring from last year gone, there will be a different dynamic this winter, more of a physical, attacking the basket style of ball. The Wolverines look to compete for their second division title in three years; they ﬁnished in the top three last winter after winning in 2011-12.

n Coach: Usman Jamil 3rd year

— JOHN Y. WEHMUELLER

PAINT BRANCH Outlook: Paint Branch graduated its top seven players. In addition, it lost projected leading scorer, junior Donovan Walker, who transferred to St. Maria Gorreti (according to Walker’s Twitter page). Paint Branch coach Walter Hardy couldn’t conﬁrm that. “He has a lot of potential, I’m just disappointed I haven’t heard from him,” Hardy said. Leading the offense are two seniors with size, Doug Gardner (6-foot-3, 200 pounds) and Armando Nwizu (6-3, 190). Senior shooting guard Reuben Edwards should keep defenses from packing it in. Directing the offense are point guards Drew Jacobs and Stephen Adebesin. “[Jacobs] knows the offense better than I do,” Hardy said. Hardy was waiting the arrival of two football players, Jordan Hill and Isaiah Harrod.

NORTHWEST

Outlook: Following an inconsistent season and a coaching change, Sherwood will institute an up-tempo style of play this winter with a lot of pick-and-roll action on offense under ﬁrst-year coach and alumnus Tim Gilchrist. Senior center Ellis Dozier (6-foot-8) is the lone returning starter from last year and he should be joined by senior point guard Mike Crooks (5-8), junior guard Xavier McCants (6-0), junior small forward Drew Davis (6-4), senior power forward Tyler Reeves (6-2). With no dominant scorer, the Warriors will have to share the ball. “Sherwood is historically not known for fast-breaking style of playing,” Gilchrist said. “But we want to get the transition game up and be in the face of our opponents on defense.”

— HARVEY VALENTINE

SPRINGBROOK

n Coach: Thomas Crowell 9th year n Last season: 13-10 n Starters returning: 2 n Last state tournament: 2010

— KENT ZAKOUR

WALT WHITMAN

n Coach: Chris Lun 10th season n Last season: 14-10 n Starters returning: 1 n Last state tournament: 2006

Outlook: Senior combo guard Max Steinhorn is the Vikings’ only returning starter this winter, but coach Chris Lun said he is not worried since several players return that played signiﬁcant minutes off the bench. Sophomore guard Kyle Depollar transferred in from The Heights and will solidify the Vikings’ backcourt. Senior center Josh Fried (6-7), senior forward Adam Lowet (6-0) and junior forward Riley Shaver (6-2) round out the starting lineup. Whitman is expected to play 10 or 11 players and Scott Adkins, Ben Castagnetti, Adam Joel and Anton Casey will bolster a strong bench. “This is the most athletic team I’ve had since I’ve been here so we will be able to do a few more things this year,” Lun said.

— KENT ZAKOUR

Outlook: Steve Watson moved up from junior varsity last season, leading the varsity to its ﬁrst winning season in more than a decade. Patience will be important as he integrates three new starters with all-division senior guards Nehemiah Jackson and Brian Ball. “I’m excited about our talent,” Watson said, calling 6-foot-4 senior forward Nnamdi Osakwe “one of the best athletes I’ve ever coached.” Osakwe only started playing basketball as a sophomore and his skill is still catching up to his athleticism, but he could be a difference maker. Sophomore guards Ben Wiebusch and Essex Thompson also have expanded roles. “Hopefully when it gets closer to playoff time we’re clicking on all cylinders,” Watson said.

Outlook: Coming off of the worst performance in coach Thomas Crowell’s nine-year tenure, the Blue Devils look to return to their 20-win ways. “Thirteen-and-10 was a very disappointing season for us,” Crowell said. “We were in close games with everybody, but we just couldn’t ﬁnish.” Springbrook will be led by a pair of returning starters in Andrew Robinson (guard) and Isaiah Eisendorf (forward). Alex Evans and Aaron Robinson both return with varsity experience from 2012, while Tavon Ngangum — a transfer from James H. Blake — has also impressed in his short time with the team. Youngsters Jermaine Ukaegbu (sophomore) and Kobe Colston (freshman) have also earned spots in the rotation.

— KYLE RUSSELL

THOMAS S. WOOTTON

n Coach: Chris Bohlen 8th season n Last season: 3-20 n Starters returning: 3 n Last state tournament: 1985

Outlook: Wootton won three games a year ago, but that means little this winter. Last season all ﬁve starters were new and it forced the Patriots to mature quickly, coach Chris Bohlen said. A bigger, stronger, smarter bunch that is quicker to make the right decisions looks to re-position itself among the county’s more competitive teams. Point guard Richard Hum excels at getting the ball to his playmakers but can also knock down 3-point shots and get himself to the basket. Justin Feldman is reliable around the perimeter and 6-foot-4 Kwame Frimpong has become more versatile than ever, Bohlen said. “Last year we were inventing the wheel, now it’s more reinforcing things,” Bohlen said.

— JENNIFER BEEKMAN

THE GAZETTE

Page B-6

Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS’ BASKETBALL PREVIEW BETHESDA-CHEVY CHASE

n Coach: Jennifer Rushin 2nd year n Last season: 13-12 n Starters returning: 0 n Last state tournament: None

Outlook: Second-year coach Jennifer Rushin hopes to continue her turnaround of the Barons’ program after helping B-CC improve from a two-win season just two years ago. Seven seniors graduated from the 2012 squad, including all five starters, but Rushin said she believes her returners can continue the upward trend for the program. Senior captain Kelly Markham holds down the backcourt with juniors Julia Barakat and Mariama Tunkara. The Barons also feature a young frontcourt of sophomore Daisey Leahy and freshman Shantal Perez. “The chemistry is the biggest thing I have noticed early on.” Rushin said. “They are feeding off each other at practice — finding each other on the court — and that is definitely a different feel than we had last year.”

MONTGOMERY BLAIR

n Coach: Erin Conley 7th year n Last season: 12-14 n Starters returning: 4 n Last state tournament: 1997

— KYLE RUSSELL

n Coach: Kate McMahon 5th season n Last season: 17-7 n Starters returning: 1 n Last state tournament: 2003

n Coach: Adrian McDaniel 8th season n Last season: 18-7 n Starters returning: 4 n Last state tournament: 2012

Outlook: After three consecutive trips to the state title game and two straight state championships, the Trojans missed a trip last season to the University of Maryland, Baltimore County in March for the ﬁrst time since 2009. McDaniel doesn’t want his players to his team to forget. “I told the girls in the locker room the night we lost in the region title, ‘Remember this feeling, you don’t ever want to feel anything like this again,’” McDaniel said. “Hopefully the girls will take this experience and be able to move forward.” Senior forward Jessica Fauntroy, a second-team AllGazette selection, anchors Gaithersburg’s frontline. Senior guards Stephanie Pantos and Christine Mabry, along with senior forward Danielle Rojas are back. Senior guard Deja Hilliard rounds out the seniors with experience.

n Coach: Sissy Natoli 8th season n Last season 4-18 n Starters returning: 3 n Last state tournament: None

n Coach: Clyde Singleton 1st season n Last season: 13-14 n Starters returning: 4 n Last WCAC title: 2007

Outlook: With veteran coach Clyde Singleton taking over the program after serving on the staff since 2010 and a dynamic class of returning players, the Tartans appear poised to compete in the WCAC. Singleton — who has 25 years of coaching experience, including at nowrival St. John’s College — is expected to lean on all-everything volleyball star Rhamat Alhassan (University of Florida) and guard-forward Jillian Dunston (Michigan) to bolster a strong returning class of ﬁve seniors. With a schedule packed with games against nationally-ranked teams (Christ the King, Long Island Lutheran, etc.), Holy Cross will be tested. “We’re excited,” Singleton said. “There are some good teams out there, but I feel very fortunate because we’ve got ﬁve returning seniors.”

— NICK CAMMAROTA

n Starters returning: 2 n Last state tournament: 2009

Outlook: Clarksburg struggled at times last season with a young lineup, but returns the vast majority of that roster this winter and that can only bode well for longtime coach Sissy Natoli. Seniors Andie De Celis (forward) and Laurie Kostecka (guard/forward) are four-year varsity players. Sophomore forward Gabby Haddad (5-foot-8) and 5-10 senior Dasia George are expected to be the Coyotes primary options in the post. Natoli, who expressed concern about her team’s penchant to turn the ball over, expects her team to be better in February than it will be this month as players develop and become more experienced. “We’re going to try and run and get the ball into the post,” Natoli said. “We’re working on a lot of things and we’re getting better.”

GOOD COUNSEL

n Coach: Tom Splaine 4th season n Last season: 27-6 n Starters returning: 0 n Last WCAC title: 2013

Outlook: The Our Lady of Good Counsel girls basketball team has been among the perennial powers in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference in each of Tom Splaine’s ﬁrst three seasons at the helm, winning the WCAC title in 2012 and 2013. But the Falcons graduated all the starters from those teams. The Falcons will rely on four seniors, Sara Woods, Taylor Scott, Stavrula Koutris and Elizabeth Gittings, junior Nicole Enabosi and sophomore Kendall Breese. Splaine noted that Breese will play the most important role in the team’s rebuilding process as point guard. “This is going to be a challenge for us,” Splaine said. “We’re looking to rebuild this season, but we still think we’ll be competitve in our league.”

— TED BLACK

WALTER JOHNSON

n Coach: Lindsey Zegowitz 3rd season n Last season: 18-6 n Starters returning: 2 n Last state tournament: 1986

Outlook: Last year’s Montgomery 4A South Division co-champion lost six seniors, including All-League post player Kristen Larrick. “We graduated most of our post players, so we’re a little bit smaller this year than we have been in the past,” said Lindsey Zegowitz, an 18-game winner in each of her ﬁrst two seasons. “We’re more of a guard-oriented team.” Starting guards Melanie Ackerman and Sam Lee return to a team that will no longer run its offense through the post. “We’ll be playing a little bit of a different basketball game,” Zegowitz said. “We’ll be running a lot more, shooting more threes than normal.” Among those getting increased playing time will be post players Katherine and Margaret Howie, and junior point guard Erika Boyd.

— HARVEY VALENTINE

Outlook: Senior point guard Asha Henley and junior guard Citiana Negatu return for a young Blake team that has endured two straight losing seasons. “We’re going to be on the young side. We have three or four sophomores,” coach Patricia Gilmore said. “I think this is going to be an exciting season just watching them improve over the course of the year.” One to watch is sophomore forward Monica Hallmark. Gilmore said, “She’s just solid all the way around, extremely good passer, nice scorer, good rebounder, does a lot of things well.” Other returning players include seniors Brigit Ngaleau and Kimia Gaines. “The area that I think we need to improve the most is just being physical, rebounding,” Gilmore said. “That would be my biggest concern.”

BULLIS

n Coach: Clinton Perrow 1st season n Last season: 22-4 n Starters returning: 3 n Last ISL title: 2013

— HAVERY VALENTINE

DAMASCUS

n Coach: Steve Pisarski 16th season n Last season: 22-3 n Starters returning: 4 n Last state tournament: 2013

— KENT ZAKOUR

— JOHN HARRIS III

HOLY CROSS

n Last season: 5-15

CLARKSBURG

— JENNIFER BEEKMAN

GAITHERSBURG

n Coach: Patricia Gilmore 8th season

— KYLE RUSSELL

WINSTON CHURCHILL Outlook: Churchill will be young this winter with only two seniors but that doesn’t mean it’s a rebuilding year. The Bulldogs’ lone returning starter is last year’s leading scorer, junior Japria Karim-Duvall (11.3 points per game). An inside-outside threat, she is effective from all areas of the ﬂoor. Churchill will employ a more guard-oriented style this year that coach Kate McMahon said is predicated on better overall team speed than in recent years. Sophomore guard Nicole Brodkowitz led the team in ﬁeld goal percentage last winter and was one of the strongest defenders. The Bulldogs will use their speed to put more pressure on their opponents, defensively, with a variety of sets, McMahon said. “I think we’ll be able to run a lot more full-court defenses,” McMahon said.

Outlook: The Blazers look to bounce back after a disappointing showing last season and will be led by a quartet of seniors. Erica Adarkwa, Shannon Healy and Debbie Olawuyi are back in the mix, while Maggie McClain will resume her starting role after missing most of last season with a stress fracture. Blazers coach Erin Conley said she expects them to catch teams off guard compared to last season, and McClain’s scoring ability will play a big part in that. “We are expecting to have a really good season,” Conley said. “We have a really strong ﬁrst ﬁve or six, but the crux of the season will be how well we can develop our underclassmen, and how much they can impact and contribute to games and practices.”

JAMES H. BLAKE

Outlook: Four established starters return and the Swarmin’ Hornets should be strong once again, but coach Steve Pisarski has concerns about a lack of depth coming off the bench. Seniors Jenna Kaufman (G/F), Kelli Prange (G/F), Lauren Green (G/F) and Anna Warﬁeld (G) are all back in their starting roles while classmate Libby Bowles (G) steps into the lineup to replace the graduated Becky Barrett. The starters, barring injury, should be one of the best units in the county despite a lack of team height. “We will pressure the ball and have better quickness, but we may not rebound as well,” Pisarski said. Damascus may start slow record-wise with a difﬁcult early schedule (St. John’s College, Liberty Christian, Bowie and Riverdale Baptist), but should be ready come playoff time.

— JENNIFER BEEKMAN

ALBERT EINSTEIN Outlook: Einstein coach Julian Barron says the Titans are more comfortable with his system heading into his second year. “They have a better understanding of my system and the expectations,” Barron said. Another reason for hope is that this year the Titans will be much more experienced, returning seven players, including three starters. Sophomore guard Dalina Julien and senior point guard Abbey Buckingham should carry the scoring load. The other returning starter is senior center Mattie Taylor. The other two starting spots were still open a week before the season. Barron said they’ll have to rely on rebounding by committee this season. “This is a much more athletic team, we’re going to play more man-to-man, which we couldn’t really do last year.”

n Coach: Julian Barron 2nd season n Last season: 2-21 n Starters returning: 3 n Last state tournament: 1989

— KENT ZAKOUR

— KEN SAIN

HOLTON-ARMS

n Coach: Julie Treadwell 4th season n Last season: 7-11 n Starters returning: 4 n Last ISL title: 2008

Outlook: The Panthers have been a consistent presence in the ISL AA Division since winning the lower (A) division in 2008 but have not yet seriously challenged for the top division’s title. This year, they return four starters and look to take major strides from their 5-9 league record a year ago. Seniors Cameron Kelso, a 5-foot-6 guard, and Maddie Merkle, a 5-11 forward, captain a veteran cast. Last year’s weakness, a short bench that saw Holton tire and fall short in a number of close games, should be ﬁxed thanks to a talented ﬁve-member junior class, led by guards Sydney Chapman and Gaites Layton. But the Panthers may have to wait before that depth kicks in; Treadwell said injury and illness somewhat hampered their preseason work.

HOLY CHILD

n Coach: Jamie Ready 5th season n Last season: 18-6 n Starters returning: 3 n Last ISL title: None

— JOHN Y. WEHMUELLER

JOHN F. KENNEDY Outlook: With seven seniors who have played in his system for at least two years, Cavaliers coach Kevin Thompson believes that this winter “could be a good year” for his veteran unit. With a seven- or eight-girl rotation, Thompson says he will rely heavily on his startn Coach: Kevin Thompson ing ﬁve to all contribute on both ends of the court. Senior 7th season guard and last season’s leading scorer, Makeda Wright, n Last season: returns, along with class and 15-9 backcourt partner Daysha Adn Starters ams, who missed most of the returning: 3 previous two seasons due to a thyroid gland issue, according n Last state to Thompson. “I don’t want to tournament: put undue pressure on any one None player,” Thompson said. “The biggest strength we have this year is experience. We have a lot of different pieces so are still ﬁguring our style of play out.”

— KENT ZAKOUR

Outlook: The Bullis School’s lineup is slightly polarized this winter with three Division I recruits in 6-foot-1 Kirby Porter, Lynee Belton (6-3) and Ashleigh Williams surrounded by mostly underclassmen with little varsity experience. But young and lacking talent do not go hand in hand and defending Independent School League “AA” Division champion Bulldogs intend to be right back in the thick of things this winter, coach Clinton Perrow said. Belton, Williams and Porter each bring something different to the court. Belton is the Bulldogs’ biggest enforcer in the paint. Porter is more of a slasher, Perrow said, and Williams can do whatever is needed to give Bullis good balance.

Outlook: Heading into her ﬁfth season as the girls’ basketball coach at Holy Child, Jamie Ready admits she will have her deepest, most basketball-savvy team. In addition to three returning starters from last year’s 18-6 squad — Tally Britt, Lilly Parrows, Colby Evans — Holy Child will have six freshmen on the varsity squad, including Jennifer Gribble and Marlee Burgess. Holy Child won its opening game last week and will head to the Bahamas Nov. 30-Dec. 4 to compete in the Paradise Island Tournament. Ready’s ﬁrst game there will be her 100th as the team’s coach. The Tigers reached the ISL A Division championship game last year, but lost to National Cathedral. The Tigers leading scorer last year, Eileen Williams, graduated.

— TED BLACK

COL. ZADOK MAGRUDER

n Coach: Erin Borsody 6th season n Last season: 11-12 n Starters returning: 5 n Last state tournament: 1985

Outlook: The Colonels had one of their best seasons in recent history last winter, ﬁnishing the regular season at the .500 mark and nearly doubling their win total from the previous four years combined. This year, they should be able to build off that success with the entire veteran core returning, including senior guard/forward Janel Brown (6foot-1) and classmate forward Adjowa Pinkrah (5-7), both of whom coach Erin Borsody expects to be dominant presences on the court for the Colonels. Juniors Hope Randolph (5-9) and Hannah Barr (6-2) are also expected to make key contributions. “The girls and I are very excited about this season,” Borsody said. “... We have added depth in our bench. This year we will rely on maturity and veteran leadership to guide us.”

— KENT ZAKOUR

THE GAZETTE

Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

Page B-7

HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS’ BASKETBALL PREVIEW RICHARD MONTGOMERY

n Coach: Mark Yantsos 2nd season n Last season: 7-13 n Starters returning: 2 n Last state tournament: 1996

Outlook: The Rockets showed glimpses of their potential with wins over teams such as defending Class 4A West Region champion Walt Whitman. But they struggled to ﬁnd consistency. Of course with only 10 players, only eight of whom were healthy most of the season, it was hard to compete night in and night out. With a bigger, more seasoned roster, the Rockets look to improve on the 2012-13 season. Richard Montgomery will employ an up-tempo game and look to score in transition but the Rockets do boast better perimeter scoring this winter, coach Mark Yantsos said. Senior Brittany Brown is a multifaceted player who will be relied upon for big scoring numbers. Junior Guard Allie Parrish is strong in the backcourt.

NORTHWEST Outlook: Former Northwest boys’ coach Nathan Lewis is back with the girls’ team in 2013. He has taken inventory of his team and already knows how he and his players will approach the season. “We’re not that big, so we’re either going to get blown out, or we are going to do our best to run past [other teams],” Lewis said. “No matter what, we are going to play hard.” At 5-foot-11, senior Ketsia Muteba is the tallest player on the Jaguars’ roster. However, Lewis has plenty of conﬁdence in senior speedster Kendra Meredith, a four-year varsity starter. Sophomore guards Celine Jordan, Isabelle Durkin and Daija Black offer athleticism and quickness, and senior guards Grace Sekscienski and Dominique Anderson add to the team’s stability.

n Coach: Nathan Lewis 1st season n Last season: 16-7 n Starters returning: 2 n Last state tournament: None

— JENNIFER BEEKMAN

POOLESVILLE

n Coach: Fred Swick 17th season n Last season: 19-6 n Starters returning: 3 n Last state tournament: None

n Starters returning: 5 n Last state tournament: 2010

Outlook: The Falcons came within a point of advancing to the state semifinals last season and will attempt to at least duplicate the feat with three of its starters back. Rosie Barry, Whitney Carmack and Anna Murgia return while junior forward Anna DeSoto and sophomore forward Karen Comfort should fill out the rest of the rotation with their varsity experience. “I think we can be good this year, the cupboard is definitely not bare,” Poolesville coach Fred Swick said. The Falcons’ coach also noted how the style of his team may change slightly for the coming year. “Normally, we are a finesse team, but this year, we have some girls who don’t mind mixing it up,” Swick said. “We’re not a very tall team, but we have good size.”

Outlook: When a team can play both up-tempo and slowdown style, it usually holds an advantage over most opponents. Quince Orchard coach Ken Buffum’s goal is to get his squad to solidify its half-court sets in order to be able to handle any type of defense thrown at it. “We could run last year, we like to fast break, but we need more control in our halfcourt game, Buffum said. “I think we can really improve if we learn how to play both styles effectively.” The Cougars have an all-senior starting lineup, with forwards Brittany Beckwith, Babette Sanmartin and Summer Jones, along with guards Jasmine Chang and Megan Fisher. Buffum said Beckwith and Sanmartin averaged around 15 points per game apiece last season.

n Coach: Ken Buffum 2nd season n Last season: 10-13 n Starters returning: 3 n Last state tournament: None

Outlook: The Screaming Eagles boast an all-senior starting lineup, and an experienced junior as a sixth player. Guards Juanita Craig and CeAyra Brown along with frontcourt players Erin Gary, Elissa Kensack and Nicole Dorgan will lead the way for former Richard Montgomery High coach Jennifer Hoffmann. Hoffmann plans to bring junior Alanah Roy off of the bench ﬁrst, as she is able to play at either the guard or forward spot. “These girls are chomping at the bit,” Hoffmann said. “They’ve been together for the past couple of years, and you can see them really trusting each other. They had a good summer and a good fall too. We’re we are pretty quick, and I think we can play up-tempo and we can slow things down.”

SHERWOOD

n Coach: Chris Campbell 1st season n Last season: 4-17 n Starters returning: Not available n Last state tournament: 1996

n Starters returning: 1 n Last state tournament: 1992

n Last state tournament: None

Outlook: The Wolverines have a lot of work ahead of them this season with only eight players on the roster. But at the heart of Watkins Mill’s lineup are two talented players around which coach Ivan Hicks said a successful team can be built. Junior guard Danielle Durjan, who averaged eight points per game a year ago, provides great ball handling skills in the back court as well as strong perimeter shooting while guard/forward Dominique Walker adds a presence in the paint. Isolating these two will be key on offense. Defense will be extremely important this winter, Hicks said, as will limiting opponents’ chances by rebounding well. Everyone will get lots of minutes, Hicks said, working together will be integral to the team’s success.

— JENNIFER BEEKMAN

Outlook: First-year coach Chris Campbell comes from the college ranks and hopes to revitalize a once proud program that won just four games last winter. Campbell, who coached at Churchill High, Catholic, Marymount, Delaware and Maryland, says the Warriors’ style of play will adapt as he learns his personnel, but they will likely be perimeter-orientated with a lot of four-out offensive sets and high-pressure defense. Junior Nicole Stockinger returns to the starting lineup as one of the Warriors key cogs along with point guard Stacey O’Neale and post player Marybeth Bidwick. “The girls have had to learn a new system and terminology and I’ve had to teach a lot and be kind of patient,” Campbell said.

WHEATON

n Coach: Michelle Snape 3rd season n Last season: 8-15 n Starters returning: 5 n Last state tournament: 1999

Outlook: The Knights will look to continue the upward trend after posting an eight-win season in 2012 following a winless campaign the season before. Third-year coach Michelle Snape returns seven varsity contributors from a year ago, including all five starters. Key players for the Knights will be the guard tandem of Danielle MacKenzie and Rakeb Teklu, and forward/center Brittany Briffiths. “The girls have been working extremely hard to gain respect back in the county,” Snape said. “We are going to continue to try and improve every day and keep our momentum going. They went from winning no games to eight games, so we are definitely moving up the ladder. I do expect them to continue the trend of moving up and not down.”

— KYLE RUSSELL

PAINT BRANCH

Outlook: It’s a new season and another new coach for the Gladiators as Tenisha Davidson takes over after coaching at the Barrie School and with the AAU Edge Lady Bulldogs in Wheaton. She inherited a roster featuring seven returning players, including four seniors and two starters (Gabby Henderson and Mandisa Murray), and is assessing what roles they’ll play. “We have some talented girls. I feel like we can be better,” Davidson said. So far, she’s been focusing on fundamentals, including ball-handling, shooting and defense. After some lean years, Davidson said this group is open to change. “I feel like these girls see and know that we’re trying to do bigger and better things for this program, so they’ve been on board from day one.”

n Coach: Rochelle Coleman 3rd season n Last season: 21-4 n Starters returning: 4 n Last state tournament: 2009

— HARVEY VALENTINE

n Coach: Kurtis Cross 2nd season n Last season: 5-15 n Starters returning: 2 n Last state tournament: 1987

ST. ANDREW’S

Outlook: Coach Kurtis Cross committed to youth last year and hopes that will pay dividends this season, as Rockville returns two starters, sophomore guard Hazel Carmona and junior small forward Kathleen McTighe. “Hazel grew up a lot last year and she’s ready to return as our starting point guard,” Cross said. “Kathleen is a scorer and a great defender.” He expects strong contributions this year from sophomore guard Paige Hailstock and senior guard/forward Elizabeth Barrett. “We’re young once again, but we’re young with one more year of experience. The girls are ready,” Cross said. “We did lose some seniors who contributed, but I think we have some girls who are ready to step in and ﬁll those shoes. I think we’ll be exciting to watch.”

n Coach: Andre Foreman 2nd season n Last season: 6-11 n Starters returning: 3 n Last ISL title: 2010

— HARVEY VALENTINE

n Last season: 8-15 n Starters returning: 2 n Last state tournament: 2006

Outlook: Despite losing eight varsity players, coach Tonya Banks expects her young team to improve on last year’s eightwin season. “We’re young, but I’ll say one thing: they work hard. I love the enthusiasm and the team work that I’ve seen so far,” Banks said. Look for senior Lauren Moore, junior Ria Peralta and sophomore Jada Holland to contribute. Moore is the lone full-time starter from last year’s team. “She’s pretty versatile. She can shoot and she’s also pretty good at penetrating. We’re excited about her coming back and possibly taking a leadership role,” Banks said. Peralta started several games last season and is expected to be one of Springbrook’s top scorers. “It’s going to be tough. But I think I got a group that’s willing to work,” Banks said.

STONE RIDGE

n Coach: Michael Thiede 3rd season n Last season: 7-19 n Starters returning: 5 n Last ISL title: 1995

WALT WHITMAN

n Coach: Pete Kenah 12th season n Last season: 21-5 n Starters returning: 2 n Last state tournament: 2013

Outlook: The Gators are looking to get back in the top half of the Independent School League with 10 varsity players returning. “I expect to compete for a top-four finish in the league this year,” said coach Michael Thiede, a third-year varsity coach. The team went 7-19 and tied for sixth last season but brings back its entire starting lineup. Four seniors are in the projected starting lineup: Laura Keehan, Raina Williams, Bella Vagnoni and Joslynn Watkins. Williams, a center, averaged seven points per game last season and finished strong, recording several double-doubles. Junior guard Kaitlin Ballenger is the projected fifth starter. Eight of Stone Ridge’s 12 varsity players are juniors or seniors. Thiede said he expects the team to be balanced, which should give the offense flexibility.

— ERIC GOLDWEIN

Outlook: The Vikings reached the state semiﬁnals and won a region title last season, and might be better this year. “There’s a real conﬁdence about them, there is a hunger to get back where we were last year,” Whitman coach Pete Kenah said. Wing Marie Hatch scored 20 points against Paint Branch as a freshman, but suffered a shoulder injury that limited her after. Kenah says she should lead a much improved offense, with returning starters Maddie Cannon and Avery Witt. Other key players this year are Marissa Cannon, Nicole Fleck and Rebecca Ford. The Vikings will score more, but the defense likely won’t be able to match last year’s team. No opponent scored more than 37 points against the Vikings in the playoffs last year.

Outlook: After two seasons with the junior varsity squad, St. Andrew’s coach Andre Foreman got his ﬁrst taste of varsity competition last winter at St. Andew’s and remains optimistic that this year’s squad, which boasts three returning starters (Hannah King, Rachel Daniels, Kristen Butler) and a freshman, Samantha Winter, who earned a spot in the starting lineup, can earn a home game in the postseason. “We want to get one of the top four seeds this year,” said Foreman, whose team is 2-2 through the ﬁrst two weeks of the schedule and will host a tournament this weekend (Dec. 4-5). “Having three starters back is going to help and we have two really good freshmen, one of which is due back soon from an injury.”

— TED BLACK

SPRINGBROOK

n Coach: Tonya Banks 8th season

Outlook: The Panthers return four starters, including their top two scorers, off a 21-4 team that reached the region title game. Expectations are high. “Our goal, as it is every year, is to make it to the states,” Paint Branch coach Rochelle Coleman said. Guards Kiara Colston (senior, 17.8 points per game) and Daisa Harris (junior, 15.7 ppg) both return. Seniors Jasmine White and Symrin Greenhow are the other returning starters. “We graduated six seniors, so there’s still a lot of teaching going on,” Coleman said. “Their basketball IQ is high. Pushing the ball is a strength of ours, and we’re a little bit bigger.” Helping ﬁll the gaps of the graduating seniors is a transfer student from James H. Blake, 6-foot-4 sophomore center Soﬁlia Ngwafang.

— KEN SAIN

ROCKVILLE

— KENT ZAKOUR

WATKINS MILL

n Last season: 11-16

n Starters returning: 2

— JOHN HARRIS III

n Coach: Ivan Hicks 7th season

n Last season: 1-19

QUINCE ORCHARD

SENECA VALLEY

n Last season: 14-8

n Coach: Tenisha Davidson 1st season

— JOHN HARRIS III

n Coach: Jennifer Hoffmann 1st season

NORTHWOOD

THOMAS S. WOOTTON

n Coach: Maggie Dyer 11th season n Last season: 17-6 n Starters returning: 3 n Last state tournament: None

— KEN SAIN

Outlook: This year’s reclassiﬁcation split Wootton from its traditional rivals in division competition but coach Maggie Dyer said the change could be refreshing for the Patriots. Wootton lost two major contributors to graduation but return a trio of dynamic guards — leading scorer Sheri Addison (12.8 points per game) and twin sisters Cece (10.5 ppg) and Ellie Kobylski (10 ppg) — who have been starting together since they were freshmen and can be effective from all angles. “They’ve grown so much, and they’ve all grown together,” Dyer said. “This will be a big year for them and I think they’re going to embrace it.” The three will be supported by two returning players Jenny Welch and Kaitlin Klausing, who Dyer said have also vastly improved in the offseason.

— JENNIFER BEEKMAN

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THE GAZETTE

Page B-8

Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL

A TALE OF OPPOSITES n

4A STATE TITLE TEAMS HAVE LITTLE IN COMMON

STATE CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE CLASS 3A BILL RYAN/THE GAZETTE

Northwest High School receiver Matt Watson runs around the flank and down the field to score during Friday’s victory against Paint Branch in the Class 4A state semifinal football game in Burtonsville.

Franklin (11-2) vs. Linganore (12-1) BRIAN LEWIS/FOR THE GAZETTE

Northwest High School quarterback Mark Pierce drops back to pass in the 4A West ﬁnal.

BILL RYAN/THE GAZETTE

Suitland’s Robert Wigfall runs against Duval during a playoff game on Nov. 23.

NORTHWEST: QUICK STARTS

SUITLAND: SLOW STARTS

The Jaguars have been hot to start games in their current winning streak, jumping out to big leads early and holding on while opponents try to claw back. They have outscored foes 35-6 in the ﬁrst quarter of the past four games.

The Rams had to rally in the fourth quarter to defeat Bowie (a spread offense) and DuVal. They were tied with Flowers 0-0 at halftime before dominating the second half. Last week, Meade scored ﬁrst and the Rams went scoreless in the ﬁrst quarter.

NORTHWEST: HIGH-SCORING OFFENSE The Jaguars have averaged 34.1 points per game. It’s 37.8 during the current win streak, which includes two wins against Quince Orchard, usually one of the top defenses in the state.

7:30 p.m. Friday

The Rams’ defense gave up only 7.2 points per game in the regular season. It hasn’t been as good in the playoffs, up to 16.3. Still, it is the strength of the team.

Fort Hill (13-0) vs. Douglass-Balt. (13-0)

Despite being a run-ﬁrst team, Wesley Wolfolk has proved to be one of the top quarterbacks in Prince George’s County by completing 61 percent of his passes for 1,832 yards and 20 touchdowns. He can also run with the ball.

Noon Saturday

CLASS 2A

SUITLAND: RUN FIRST

The Jaguars run a spread offense with a short passing game that tries to ﬁnd the gaps in the defense’s coverage. What makes it work is Northwest’s team speed. They can run it too, behind E.J. Lee (176 yards the past two weeks).

While they can pass if they need to, the Rams prefer to run, mainly behind senior running back Robert “Trey” Wigfall. He has nearly 1,700 all-purpose yards and 16 touchdowns. Wolfolk does throw deep passes to keep defenses from packing it in.

Northwest vs. Suitland

Middletown (13-0) vs. Patuxent (13-0) 3:30 p.m. Saturday

FEARLESS FORECASTS

n All games at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore

Ken Sain

Nick Cammarota

Jennifer Beekman

Dan Feldman

Travis Mewhirter

Kent Zakour

154-30 306-59

152-32 304-61

153-31 303-62

151-33 301-64

148-36 300-65

144-40 288-77

Suitland

Northwest

Suitland

Northwest

Suitland

n Tickets are $8 n Games shown live on The CW network in Baltimore and Washington, D.C. and streamed on the web at www.nfhsnetwork.com/ channels/maryland

Suitland advances to 4A state championship BY ERIC GOLDWEIN STAFF WRITER

The afternoon started with a 68-yard Meade High School rushing touchdown, followed by an assortment of penalties and a couple dysfunctional offensive possessions.

1905950

But what Suitland’s football team lacked in the first quarter of Saturday’s Class 4A state semifinal football game, it made up for in the next three. The Rams scored seven touchdowns — all after the first quarter — en route to a 46-25 victory against Meade to earn a berth in Friday’s state championship game. “Ultimately we wanted to win the championship,” senior quarterback Wesley Wolfolk said.

Wolfolk threw for 281 yards and rushed for two touchdowns, sealing the victory with a 47-yard score in the fourth quarter. The offensive line played a key role against a much bigger Meade defense. After giving up two sacks in the ﬁrst quarter, the line cleared lanes for Suitland’s running backs and gave Wolfolk more time in the pocket. Senior running back Robert Wigfall ran for three touchdowns, including a 72-yard

score that gave Suitland a 33-17 lead. Rams senior Nick Nelson caught four passes for 141 yards and a touchdown. He helped set up a Suitland touchdown with a 64-yard reception in the second quarter. Wigfall ran for 129 yards on 11 carries and Wolfolk added 60 yards on the ground. The Rams fell behind 7-0 after Meade’s Kyle Evans ran for a 68-yard touchdown on the ﬁrst play from scrimmage. Evans

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Rams overcome slow start; offensive line keys 46-25 victory over Meade n

ERIC GOLDWEIN STAFF WRITER

CLASS 1A

NORTHWEST: PASS FIRST

Montgomery County record All games

Sophomore QB scores seven TDs to lead defeat of Paint Branch

SUITLAND: SENIOR QB

In the ﬁve games since the Jags lost to Clarksburg, Mark Pierce has completed 95 of 134 passes (71 percent) for 1,427 yards and thrown 18 touchdowns and ran for another. He has had four interceptions in those games.

The Gazette sports staff picks the winners for this week’s games involving Montgomery football teams. Here are this week’s selections:

CLASS 4A

Northwest (11-2) vs. Suitland (13-0)

SUITLAND: LIGHTS-OUT DEFENSE

NORTHWEST: SOPHOMORE QB

Northwest a win away from state title

7 p.m. Thursday

Northwest High School football’s offense rushes to line up for the play, but then the quarterback calmly steps back, looks to the sidelines and waits, patiently, for the signals from the coaches. It’s the “no-play,” as sophomore quarterback Mark Pierce calls it. The team runs a hard count while offensive coordinator Justin Sickeri selects a play based on the defense he sees. In Friday’s 4A state semifinal victory against Paint Branch, the “no-play” worked to perfection. Led by Pierce’s seven touchdowns, Northwest defeated Paint Branch 55-36 to advance to next week’s Class 4A state championship game. Northwest (11-2) plays Suitland at 7:30 p.m. Friday at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. “It’s great. I throw it to everyone,” Pierce said. “It’s good to have a good six or seven people that you can rely on to throw it to every down.” Pierce completed 29 of 37 passes for 335 yards, throwing six touchdowns to four different players. Senior Matt Watson caught two touchdown passes and ran for a third. “We didn’t want to lose, period. We were trying to go to states, and we’re championship bound,” Watson said. Northwest pulled away late in the fourth quarter. After a red zone stop on fourth down, the Jaguars regained possession deep in their own territory. Following a short run play, they ran an end-around for Watson, who sprinted for a 93-yard touchdown to seal the victory. “It just happens,” said Watson, who has eight postseason touchdowns. “Whoever’s hot on the field, we

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try to go to them as much as possible.” Pierce was hot to start the game, completing his first seven pass attempts and 19 of 24 in the first half. Senior Joshua Gills was his favorite receiving target. Gills caught eight passes for 159 yards and a 32-yard touchdown. “We just have a bunch of playmakers,” Gills said. “If you get the ball to any of our offensive skill players, something good is going to happen, every single time.” Northwest’s defense allowed 29 points in the first half but picked up the intensity as the game progressed. On a rare occasion when the Jaguars offense stalled in the second half, the defense stepped up. After Northwest was stopped on a fourth-andgoal play, senior Rasheed Gillis forced a Paint Branch fumble and helped the Jaguars regain possession. The offense capitalized, with Pierce connecting with Watson for a 21-yard touchdown to extend Northwest’s lead to 43-29. “We were relying on [the defense] and they definitely stepped up in the second half to help us out,” Pierce said. Paint Branch quarterback Gaston Cooper completed 15 of 33 passes for 280 yards. The senior struggled in the first half, starting the game with seven consecutive incomplete passes before settling into a rhythm in the second quarter. Johnny Littlejohn caught two long touchdown passes and ran for a 93-yard firstquarter touchdown to finish with 180 yards from scrimmage. Javan Grafton added 160 receiving yards on five receptions. Northwest has not won a state title since 2004. “We just got to execute the next [game]. We’re so close. It’s just so motivating,” Watson said. egoldwein@gazette.net

THE GAZETTE

Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

Page B-9

4A WEST

Continued from Page B-1 point playoff loss was a sign of progress, but it left the Blazers wanting more. Several other 4A teams could contend in the region, including Walter Johnson. The Wildcats suffered a close loss to Whitman — a 49-42 defeat in the region semiﬁnals. “I honestly think it’s anyone’s game this year,” Walter Johnson’s third-year coach Lindsey Zegowitz said. Whitman graduated several key players but returns two starters — Maddie Cannon and Avery Witt — and will contend again this season after reaching the state tournament for the ﬁrst time since 2007. Twelfth-year coach Pete Kenah said Whitman has a chance to repeat this season. “There’s not the one, dominant heavyweight team out there,” Kenah said.

BILL RYAN/THE GAZETTE

Montgomery Blair High School’s Maggie McClain practices on Nov. 25.

The parity is new to the region. Gaithersburg was the regional and state champions in 2011 and 2012, winning 53 consecutive games.

The winning streak ended early last season, but the Trojans still made it to the region ﬁnals where they lost, 46-31, to Whitman. Gaithersburg coach Adrian McDaniel, entering his seventh season, said the team will need to develop chemistry if it wants to take back the title. “Whoever is peaking at the right time during the playoffs is the team that’s going to succeed,” McDaniel said. Blair could make its ﬁrst state tournament since 1997 if it wins the region. Adarkwa, a four-year varsity player, said she wants to end her senior season on a high note. “As a senior, I don’t want to leave with any feeling that we could have done better … I just want to push others and push our teammates to realize our full potential and go as far as we possibly can,” Adarkwa said. egoldwein@gazette.net

PHOTOS BY RAPHAEL TALISMAN/FOR THE GAZETTE

Riverdale Baptist junior power forward Taron Oliver is double teamed during a game on Saturday evening at the Riverdale Baptist School in Upper Marlboro.

Continued from Page B-1 tured team in Riverdale Baptist, which also relies on transfers too talented to glean much else from playing in the public school ranks or even middle-level private schools. There were no more realms of public school hoops for Nigel Johnson (Kansas State) to conquer when his junior year ended at Broad Run. During his ﬁnal year in the public ranks, Johnson averaged nearly 30 points per game, eclipsed that number 11 times, and once scored 55. Yet his highest suitor was George Washington. As a senior, with barely three months at Riverdale under his belt — in which he led the Crusaders to a Capital Beltway championship and was named tournament MVP — Johnson reneged on his oral commitment to GW and opened up the recruiting process again. Within a few weeks, Kansas State, a No. 4 seed in last year’s NCAA Tournament, came calling, and Johnson was soon a Wildcat. “I try to instill upon my players that this is the level you want to play,” said longtime

Riverdale coach Lou Wilson, who is a career 556-215 at the school. “When you go off to college, there are going to be 12 players on a scholarship who were probably the best players on their high school teams.” Like Montrose, the majority of Riverdale’s seniors are shipped off to college with a Division I scholarship in hand. Wilson estimates that in any given year, there could be as many as seven. And then it’s back to bringing in new names, new faces and new Division I talents — reloading. “Coach Lou produces good players and that’s what college coaches want,” said Riverdale alumnus Justin Drummond, a former first-team All-Gazette player now with Toledo. “He creates a lot of opportunities for guys. There’s just a lot of tradition there. A lot of good players come through and play all different type of levels.” And it’s not limited to Montrose and Riverdale. Capitol Christian, which played as Princeton Day, churned out nearly half a dozen Division I — or professional, in Aquille Carr’s case — players last year and the upstart Clinton Christian will likely be doing the same in the near future. Many

tmewhirter@gazette.net

Montgomery Blair High School’s Debbie Olawuyi and Maggie McClain practice on Nov. 25.

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may point to DeMatha Catholic as a similar “factory” producing basketball players on a figurative assembly line, but Mike Jones’ program has created a different identity. The Stags, who are a part of the historically powerful Washington Catholic Athletic Conference, have established themselves as mostly a fouryear program. There are those who transfer out, Quinn Cook bolting for Oak Hill for example, but rarely does Jones take in a transfer for just one season. The Riverdales, Montroses, Capitol and Clinton Christians — all of which competed independent of a conference just two years ago — of the world rely on a high influx of transfers, taking them in for a year or two, sometimes three, grooming them for the collegiate level, and sending them back out as a more polished basketball player. “I don’t really have to recruit,” Wilson said. “We entertain phone calls and kids visiting Riverdale. Ninety-five percent of the kids reach out to me, and the other five percent are from parents, uncles, grandparents, cousins. Things like that happen quite often.”

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FACTORY

THE GAZETTE

Page B-10

Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

SCHOOL LIFE VOICES IN EDUCATION n Age: 33

Lanise Stevenson

n Job title: Sixth-grade science teacher n Hometown: Baltimore County n Education: Bachelor’s of science in biology, master’s in science education and master’s in human resource development, educational leadership, all from Towson University n Family: Son, Ethan Stevenson, 10 n Hobby/favorite vacation spot: I enjoy playing chess and other brain games. I teach Zumba. I enjoy watching football and golf. My favorite team is the Baltimore Ravens. I love traveling to Nassau, Bahamas. n Lesson to live by: Pursue your passion in everything you do and encourage others to do the same. Radiate positive energy as much as possible. Share your zest for life with everyone around you. Remain authentic. Take nothing for granted.

Lanise Stevenson is a science teacher at Shady Grove Middle School in Gaithersburg. She was interviewed at the school on Nov. 19. In an email suggesting I interview you, your principal intern said you have created a love for science in your sixth-grade students. How have you been able to do that?

I have a way of exciting kids about a class that you usually don’t see. It’s because I make every concept meaningful and relative to [them]. It’s the teacher’s charge to make the information effective. In every class I teach, I have students with special needs: emotionally disturbed, those with learning disabilities or new English-language learners, and I make it meaningful for each. The difference is when you can apply every concept to their lives, then the classroom no longer has walls. There is a connection to everything in their lives and science becomes exciting. I impress on students that everyone, to be a good citizen, needs to be scientifically literate. When our kids grow up they are going to have to elect officials that reflect their views on energy, pollution, superstorms, superbugs. Our kids are going to have to be proactive. Everything you think of that we will have to

address involves STEM [science, technology, engineering and math]. It relates to everything. I tell them about math being the language of science, it allows them to learn math concepts better. When we approach writing in science, I talk about the importance of being articulate, write what you mean, be speciﬁc. That corresponds with the message in English class, you should be clear and concise. Science connects everything and it makes everything else exciting. What do you actually teach?

Investigations in Science 6 for sixth-graders. It involves physics, environmental science, a little chemistry and biological science. How did you become such an enthusiastic science teacher?

I love learning! I am passionate about teaching and learning in everything I do. My ﬁrst degree was in biology; I was a premed student. I volunteered at the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center and though I touched people there I realized I wouldn’t be best utilized [in medicine]. I did research at Procter & Gamble and realized that people in research didn’t look like me. They were not

women or women of color. As I reﬂected I wondered if I should be a teacher. I realized that if I could teach more students and get them excited about science it could change science. Researchers would look like them, there would be more women. I started to teach biology in high school in Baltimore County and became a STEM master teacher at University of Maryland, Baltimore County, working with teachers working for their scienceeducation degree. Then I applied to Montgomery County. I wanted diversity. The diversity in my classes is amazing in terms of race, ethnic background, socio-economic status. My classes are equally diverse: about 30 percent African-American, 30 percent Hispanic and 30 percent Caucasian and Asian — I have colorful classes. Each student brings a different approach. Their prior knowledge is amazing. What I do never gets old. This is my 11th year and I still get excited about it. I love science. I don’t look like a science geek, but I am. We work very hard but I deeply care and I impress upon [the students] how meaningful what they learn is. How do they do?

Very, very well. This year

we are focusing on cooperative learning, working in groups and critical thinking. I have modified a lot of the curriculum to increase the difficulty and increase cooperative learning. The whole purpose of learning is for kids to open their eyes and see the world differently. Every year I get to see kids see things differently and that is very exciting for me. I want kids to think for themselves but not by themselves. There is something important that happens with discussion. How about girls in science — do you find them less interested?

I ﬁnd it much easier to reach the girls because I’m authentic. They think I’m so smart and I am but I tell them it’s because I have a zest for knowledge. They realize that they too can enjoy the STEM track. We need them, we need diversity in the STEM ﬁeld. It’s vital to create a community of critical thinkers who will be able to solve problems that don’t exist yet. “Voices in Education” is a twice-monthly feature that highlights the men and women who are involved with the education of Montgomery County’s children. To suggest someone you would like to see featured, email Peggy McEwan at pmcewan@ gazette.net.

EDUCATION NOTEBOOK Students move to the rhythm in Latin Dance Competition Teams from 10 Montgomery County high schools put their best feet forward at the 14th Annual MCPS Latin Dance Competition held Nov. 25 at the Music Center at Strathmore in North Bethesda. The students competed in four dance categories: Cha Cha, Merengue, Bachata and Salsa. There were also specialized competitions including: Parent/ Child, Alumni, Best in Show, Jack and Jill and the Verizon Audience Best in Show Award which went to Gaithersburg High School. The results by category are: Cha-Cha Division: First Place – Albert Einstein High School, Kensington Second Place – Gaithersburg High School Third Place – Clarksburg High School Merengue Division; First Place – Einstein High School Second Place – Watkins Mill High School, Gaithersburg Third Place – Gaithersburg High School Bachata Division: First Place – Watkins Mill High School Second Place – Einstein High School Third Place – Seneca Valley High School, Germantown Salsa Division: First Place – Einstein High School Second Place – Gaithersburg High School Third Place – Watkins Mill High School Parent/Child Division:

CARLOS SIHUAS

Students from Albert Einstein High School in Kensington perform during the Best in Show competition at the Montgomery County Public Schools Latin Dance Competition on Nov. 25 at the Strathmore Music Center in North Bethesda. Einstein dancers took ﬁrst place in Best in Show. First Place - Gaithersburg High School Second Place – Einstein High School Third Place – Clarksburg High School Best in Show Division: First Place – Einstein High School Second Place – Clarksburg High School Third Place – Watkins Mill High School Rookie Best in Show Award: Wheaton High School Alumni Division: First Place – Einstein High School Second Place – Watkins Mills High School Third Place – Montgomery Blair High School, Silver Spring Jack & Jill Division: Einstein and Seneca Valley This year marked the ﬁrst time that Wheaton and Montgomery Blair high schools participated in the event. Other schools participating were James Hubert Blake, Silver Spring; Quince Orchard; Gaithersburg; and Springbrook, Silver Spring.

Nonproﬁt’s Student of the Year candidates Three students from The Academy of the Holy Cross, Kensington were selected as Student of the Year candidates by the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s National Capital Area Chapter. Leah Barteldes, Margaret Capizzi and Samantha Heavner, all juniors at the school, will compete in the Student of the Year Campaign, a six-week initiative during which the candidates raise money in honor of a teen patient hero who is battling or is in remission from a blood cancer. The candidate who raises the most money at the end of the six weeks is named Student of the Year. The campaign runs from Jan. 16 to Feb. 28, culminating at the Grand Finale Gala celebration where the winners will be announced. The Student of the Year will receive a $5,000 scholarship to a college or university of his/ her choice. In addition, three

students will be awarded Citizenship honors with the Community, Leadership and Mission Awards. Each Citizenship Award winner will receive a $2,500 scholarship and every candidate who reaches the minimum fundraising requirement of $10,000 will receive a scholarship in the amount of $1,000. Holy Cross was the only school in the National Capital area to have three students selected to participate in a fundraising competition to benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s National Capital Area Chapter, according to the society.

High school photographers exhibit work at gallery The Washington Gallery of Photography and Capitol Arts Network will open their “All-Montgomery County High School Photography Exhibit” with a reception from 6-9 p.m. Friday, Dec. 6 at the gallery, 12276 Wilkins Ave., Rockville. For more than a decade, Washington Gallery of Photography has hosted a high school photography exhibit, giving young photographers the opportunity for their work to be viewed by friends, family, gallery owners and representatives from local art colleges. This year’s exhibit features over 100 images taken by students between the ages of 14-18, and includes a variety of topics. The public is welcome to attend the opening, meet the photographers and hear ﬁrsthand stories of their experiences learning photography. The show will be on exhibit from Dec. 6 through 30 from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, Saturday

and Sunday. For more information visit www.WashingtonSchoolOfPhotography.com.

Students’ skills tested in egg drop competition Twenty-one students from the Math Matters club at Thomas W. Pyle Middle School, Bethesda, competed in the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Carderock Division Third Annual Egg Drop Competition on Nov. 20. “The drop is an annual design competition as part of the Division’s outreach efforts designed to spark students’ interest in science, technology, engineering, and math,” Nicholas Malay, a Carderock Division spokesman, wrote in an email. The event is a test to see if students could design protective casings for raw eggs being dropped from about 20 feet in the air onto a cement target below. The students are tutored weekly by co-organizers and NSWCCD engineers Kavi Dotson and Alyssa Littlestone at Pyle. The egg drop was the culmination of a ﬁeld trip to the Carderock facility which included a tour of Carderock’s Maneuvering and Seakeeping and Rotating Arm basin led by Toby Ratcliffe, the facility’s education and outreach coordinator, who has over 34 years of experience as an ocean engineer working to test scaled ship and submarine models. “The classroom and real world application experiences help our students to get excited about mathematics,” said Stacy Levy, chairwoman of Pyle’s math department and math resource teacher. “Through

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our math team activities, the middle schoolers see first-hand how math is incorporated in their lives,” The students also participated in a discussion on ‘The Wonderful Language of Math’ led by Carderock Technical Director Tim Arcano. The final event of the visit was the egg drop, where the students, who were divided into six teams, dropped their eggs, hoping for a solid outcome. Based on a numerical scoring equation, success in the competition was dependent on three factors: protecting the egg; the cost of the design relative to that of the other teams and accuracy of hitting a target directly below the drop site. Team “Temple Runners” earned the winning medal with the highest score. Their design used Popsicle sticks, masking tape, and a plastic bag. The winning design was the only one of the six groups to prevent the egg from cracking. “This year the students were really challenged by the new rules,” Littlestone said. “I think everyone had a lot of great ideas and it was fun to watch them work together to construct them in the classroom.” Eighth-grader Ryan Shaffer said he thought it was really cool to learn about the work engineers do at Carderock. “Their technical work and the math they use can change the country and strengthen national security,” Ryan said. “The basins were huge and it was really cool learning about how they can generate their own waves. ... This field trip gave all of us Math Matters students a first-hand view of what naval engineers do every day.”

THE GAZETTE

Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

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CELEBRATIONS HEALTH CALENDAR WEDNESDAY, DEC. 4 ’Tis the Season to be Jolly, from 10:3011:30 a.m. at Margaret Schweinhaut Center, 100 Forest Glen Road, Silver Spring. Join the Suburban Hospital HeartWell nurse in discussing strategies for stress management during this special but hectic season. Learn relaxation techniques, time-management tips, and exercises to feel the joy in each day. Made possible by a generous grant from the Wolpoff Family Foundation. Registration not required. Free. Also 10:30 a.m. to noon Dec. 5 at Macy’s Home Store, Westﬁeld Montgomery Mall, 7125 Democracy Blvd., Second Level, Bethesda. www. suburbanhospital.org.

SATURDAY, DEC. 7 Safe Sitter, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Suburban Hospital Lambert Building, 8710 Old Georgetown Road, Bethesda. Comprehensive training course teaching 11 to 13-year-olds the essentials of babysitting. Course includes tactics in handling emergencies basic ﬁrst aid and child-care skills. Registration required. $95. www.suburbanhospital.org.

Garﬁnkle

MONDAY, DEC. 9 CPR for Friends and Family, 5-8 p.m. at Suburban Hospital Lambert Building, Second Floor, 8710 Old Georgetown Road, Bethesda. Receive instruction for adult, child and infant CPR and choking rescue. AED will also be discussed. Designed for the general public who want to learn how to save a life. Non-credential course. $75. www.suburbanhospital.org.

On Nov. 8, 2013, Harriet and Stanley Garﬁnkle celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. Both were born in Washington, D.C., and met in their early teens. They were married in Washington and have lived nearly all of their married life in Silver Spring. Their families join their children, Jay of North Carolina and Beth Stein of Virginia, and their two granddaughters, Shelby and Mallory, in wishes of love, health and happiness. They are celebrating the occasion with a trip to Mexico with their family.

TUESDAY, DEC. 10 Heart Smarts, from 5-7 p.m. at Suburban Hospital, CR 6/7 (lower level), 8600 Old Georgetown Road, Bethesda. Educational program focuses on strategies for hearthealthy living. Learn how to care for, prevent and reduce the risk of heart disease and other heart-related conditions. Family members are encouraged to participate. Registration required with a ﬁve-person minimum to hold class. Free. www.suburbanhospital.org.

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 11 Eat, Drink and Stay Healthy, from 1-2

p.m. at the Friendship Heights Community Center, 4433 S. Park Avenue, Chevy Chase. Registered dietitian Jill Johnson will share tips to help prevent weight gain for a healthier holiday season, including small changes in food and drink choices and a review of healthy dessert options. Free. www.suburbanhospital.org.

Breastfeeding for Working Moms at MedStar Montgomery, from 7-9 p.m. at Mont-

gomery Medical Center, 18101 Prince Philip Drive. The AAP recommends breastfeeding for the ﬁrst year, but many new moms struggle with trying to balance work and breastfeeding. Discussion includes aspects of planning, preparing, pumping and returning to work while breastfeeding. www.montgomerygeneral.org.

ONGOING New Mothers Postpartum Support Group, 10-11:30 a.m. Mondays at MedStar Montgomery Medical Center, 18101 Prince Philip Drive, Olney. Ever wonder if you are the only

one feeling stressed and alone now that a baby has joined your family? Wasn’t it supposed to be easier? If you are finding yourself feeling sad, anxious, angry or irritable, group support can help. Group led by two therapists who specialize in the postpartum period. Babies are welcome. Free; registration required. 301-774-8881, www.montgomerygeneral.org. Senior Fit, meets from 9-9:45 a.m. once a week at MedStar Montgomery Medical Center, 18101 Prince Philip Drive, Olney. Free 45-minute exercise program designed for seniors age 55 and older. Senior Fit focuses on increasing strength, flexibility, balance, coordination, and cardiovascular endurance. Exercise is an important factor in preventing falls, managing chronic illnesses and improving quality of life. Classes are ongoing and a physician’s consent form is required to participate. Free for people over the age of 55. 301-774-8881, www.montgomerygeneral.org. A Diabetes Support Group, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. the first Saturday of every month at Suburban Hospital, 8600 Old Georgetown Road, Bethesda. A social network that provides peer support for people living with diabetes via open discussions and speakers on various diabetes topics. Light snacks available. Call Maria Chamberlain, diabetes nurse educator, at 301-896-3056 with questions. www.suburbanhospital.org. A Harris Teeter supermarket tour, from 11 a.m. to noon second Wednesdays, 18169 Town Center Drive, Olney. Join Andrea Ciccone Troutner, a registered dietitian and certified diabetes educator, during a supermarket stopand-shop tour for all your nutrition and wellness needs. You’ll be able to identify the right healthy foods for you and your family. Free; registration required. 301-774-8727.

RELIGION CALENDAR UPCOMING Neelsville Presbyterian Church, 20701 Frederick Road, Germantown, welcomes all to attend its upcoming Christmas Events: Christmas Music Sunday at 8:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. Dec. 15; Christmas Jazz Services at 8:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. Dec. 22; Christmas Eve services on Dec. 24 — Family Service at 5 p.m., Jazz and Candlelight Service at 7 p.m. and Candlelight and Communion Service at 11 p.m. www.Neelsville.org Northgate Community Church, 20300 Pleasant Ridge Drive, Montgomery Village, invites area residents to come and celebrate the true meaning of Christmas at a special Christmas Eve Candlelight Communion Worship at 7 p.m. Dec. 24. www.Northgatecc.org. Trinity Lutheran Church, 11200 Old Georgetown Road, North Bethesda, will offer a “Blue Christmas” church service in the sanctuary at 6 p.m. Dec. 8, for those who are going through a difficult time during Advent season. Service will provide an opportunity for quiet reflection and support to people who have lost a loved one, endured a job loss, a divorce or any type of loss. Readings, reflections, prayers and song. www.TrinityELCA. org.

Coronado Dec. 3 marks the 25th wedding anniversary of Lisa and Troy Coronado. In the past 25 years of military life they have lived in Germany, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Georgia, Texas and currently reside in Germantown. Lisa and Troy are blessed with three beautiful daughters: Raquel, a 2013 graduate from the University of Texas; Jaqueline, a senior at the University of South Florida; and Mindy, a junior at Clarksburg High School.

PLACING AN ANNOUNCEMENT

ONGOING Damascus United Methodist Church, 9700 New Church St., Damascus, offers traditional Sunday morning worship services at 8:15 a.m., a youth contemporary worship service

at 9:30 a.m. and a service of liturgy and the word at 11 a.m. with Sunday school at 9:30 a.m. for all ages during the school year. Emmanuel Lutheran Church, 7730 Bradley Boulevard, Bethesda, offers services at 8:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. each Sunday, with Sunday School for all ages scheduled at 10 a.m. Child care is offered from 8:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. A fellowship and coffee hour follows the 8:30 a.m. service. 301-365-5733, www.elcbethesda.org. Liberty Grove United Methodist Church, 15225 Old Columbia Pike, Burtonsville, conducts Sunday morning worship services at 8:30, 9:30 and 11 a.m. Sunday school, nursery through adult, is at 9:30 a.m. 301-421-9166. For a schedule of events, visit www.libertygrovechurch.org. “MOPS,” a faith-based support group for mothers of children, birth through kindergarten, meets from 9-11:30 a.m. the ﬁrst and third Wednesdays of the month at the Frederick Church of the Brethren, 201 Fairview Drive, Frederick. Childcare is provided. This year’s theme, “A Beautiful Mess: Embracing Your Story,” focuses on remembering that beauty can come out of chaos and that your past, present and future can be used for good with God’s love. For more information call 301-662-1819. Email mops@fcob.net. Neelsville Presbyterian Church, 20701 Frederick Road, Germantown, has returned to its Fall worship schedule, with services at 8:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. Sundays. Sunday School for all ages at 9:40 a.m. www.Neelsville.org. Providence United Methodist Church,

3716 Kemptown Church Road, Monrovia, conducts a contemporary service at 8 a.m. followed by a traditional service at 9:30 a.m. Sunday mornings, with children’s Sunday school at 9:30 a.m. and adult Sunday school at 11 a.m. For more information, call 301-2531768. Visit www.kemptownumc.org. Trinity Lutheran Church, 11200 Old Georgetown Road, North Bethesda, conducts services every Sunday, with child care from 8 a.m. to noon and fellowship and a coffee hour following each service. 301-881-7275. For a schedule of events, visit www.TrinityELCA. org. Chancel choir auditions and rehearsals, 7:30 p.m. Thursdays at Liberty Grove Methodist Church, 15225 Old Columbia Pike, Burtonsville. Call 301-421-9166 or visit www. libertygrovechurch.org. “Healing for the Nations,” 7 p.m. every ﬁrst and third Saturday of the month at South Lake Elementary School, 18201 Contour Road, Gaithersburg. Sponsored by King of the Nations Christian Fellowship, the outreach church service is open to all who are looking for hope in this uncertain world. Prayer for healing available. Translation into Spanish and French. Call 301-251-3719. Visit www. kncf.org. Geneva Presbyterian Church, potluck lunches at 11:30 a.m. the second Sunday of each month at 11931 Seven Locks Road, Potomac. There is no fee to attend. All are welcome to bring a dish to share; those not bringing dishes are also welcome. Call 301424-4346.

The Gazette prints engagement and wedding announcements, with color photographs, at no charge, as a community service. Copy should be limited to 150 words and submitted in paragraph form. Announcements are subject to editing for space. Please include contact information, including a daytime telephone number. Photos should be professional quality. If emailing photos, ﬁle size should be a minimum of 500 KB. Wedding announcements should be submitted no later than 12 months after the wedding. Send to: The Gazette, 9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, MD 20877, or email kgroff@gazette.net. Montgomery County celebrations are inserted into all Montgomery County editions.

Free Hearing Tests set for Montgomery County Area Age 65+

Free electronic hearing tests will be given from Monday, December 9th through Friday, December 13th at select locations in Montgomery County. Tests have been arranged for anyone who suspects they are losing their hearing. Such persons generally say they can hear but cannot understand words. Testing with the latest computerized equipment will indicate if you can be helped. Everyone, especially adults over 65, should have an electronic hearing test at least once a year. If there is a hearing problem, hearing tests may reveal that newly developed methods of correction will help, even for those who have been told in the past that a hearing aid would not help them. If you suspect you have hearing loss, call for a free hearing test appointment. Our licensed specialists are trained in the latest auditory testing methods and will be the first ones to tell you if you don’t need a hearing aid. If you do have a hearing loss, we will explain your results and provide you with a list of options.

Free hearing tests available only at a location listed below.

One week only: Monday, December 9th through Friday, December 13th

Beltone Hearing Aid Centers 1-800-701-3573 to schedule an appointment

Bethesda,MD

Wildwood Medical Center 10401 Old Georgetown Rd. Suite 102

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Gaithersburg,MD 1912877

Sears Hearing Center by Beltone Lakeforest Mall 701 Russell Ave

Silver Spring,MD

Connecticut Belair Medical Park 3915 Ferrara Drive

Frederick,MD

Guilford Professional Center 5950 Frederick Crossing Ln. Suite 100 Sears Hearing Center by Beltone Francis Scott Key Mall 5500 Buckeystown Pike

www.beltone.com 1912876

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THE GAZETTE

Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

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Page B-13

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301.622.7006 (Fax) Email: randolph@hrehllc.com

GAITHERSBURG

Cider Mill

GAITHERHOUSE APARTMENTS

501B S. Frederick Ave #3 Gaithersburg, MD 20877

DON’T WAIT APPLY TODAY!

• Garden-Style Apartment Homes • On-Site Laundry Facilites • Kitchen w/ Breakfast Bar • Private Balcony/ Patio • Free Parking • Small Pets Welcome • Swimming Pool

301-948-1908

Senior Living 62+

• Emergency Response System • 24 Hour Maintenance • Transportation Via Community Van • Pet Friendly • Full Size Washer & Dryer

www.PinnacleAMS.com/GardensOfTraville

Se Habla Espanol

The New Taste

of Churchill

18201 Lost Knife Circle Montgomery Village, MD 20886

OPEN OPEN

SSaturday aturday from f ro m 10:00 am am - 4:00 4:00 pm pm 10:00

We look forward to serving you!

Apply online and get approved today+

1 Month FREE Rent

• Huge Floor Plans • Large Walkin Closets • Private Balcony/Patio • Fully Equipped Kitchen w/Breakfast Bar

21000 Father Hurley Boulevard Germantown, MD 20874

• Minutes away from I-270, Metro, and MARC Train

301-528-4400

+ subject to credit approval

301-948-8898

340 N. Summit Ave. • Gaithersburg, MD

www.churchillseniorliving.com

SILVER SPRING

GAITHERSBURG

It’s BRAND NEW at Amber Commons 7 McCausland Place, Gaithersburg, MD 20877 “If you are looking for the distinctive, the uncommon, the out of the ordinary then welcome home to Amber Commons where we have the perfect blend of tradition: brick, mature landscaping, and gracious space combined with the best of brand new: GE clean steel appliances, energy efficiency and more!”

Advertise Your apartment community here!

LEISURE WORLD:

DAMASCUS: 3BR

Lrg 4BR, 2.5BA TH. Wood Flrs, W/D, Eat in Kit, Nr Shops, 355, 270. HOC Ok. 240-383-1000

KENSINGTON:

to advertise call 301.670.7100 or email class@gazette.net

SILVER

SPRING:

2Br, 2Ba, English Tudor, rent through Sept 2014, near beltway & metro/bus, $2100/month Please Call: 301-493-5301

MT AIRY: Unfurn 1 BR Apt. Beautiful Mntn Vws, Convenient Loc, close to 270 & 70. $975. 301-829-9003

GAITHERSBURG:

2 months FREE rent on 1 bedroom apartment with 14 month lease!!!! Across from Rio/Washingtonian Center, Call Oakwood Gaithersburg today! 877-566-6910

LAKESIDE APTS GAITHERSBURG

SIL SPG/BEL PRE:

Remodled, new paint, carpet, appls. Big 4br 2fb wlkout garden apt. Pool, Tennis, Playground, parking & utils incl. HOC Ok, close to bus. Move in now. $2300 or HOC Voucher Amt. 240-793-7802

ADELPHI:

1 Br + den 14th floor . $1245 uti inc + SD & Move In Fees, Front Desk. Ref req. 240-418-5693

TH 3BD 2.5 BATH PARKING CALL 301526-7385 OR 240354-4722

Apt. $1250 incl util, CATV, Free Parking Avail now. NS/NP CALL: 301-424-9205

TH: both shr Ba $600 each plus shared utliities Please call: 240-305-6331

GAITHERS: 1BR in

SFH unfurn. $650 utils incl. Male NS/NP, 1 mile frm I-270. Avail Immed 240-372-1168 Bsmt Br, $500 , Upstairs room $500 util inc for both, nr bus Call: 240-848-4483

GAITHERSBURG:

GAITH: 2bd,2ba

GAITHER:

Lrg Rm in SFH, Pool, full privlgs, Vegetarian, NS. $600 + 1/4 elec Call: 301-482-1425

GAIT H: Penthouse

Male, master BR w BA $399. Nr Metro/Shops NP/NS. Avail Now. Call 301-219-1066

BOWIE:

$1700, 3BR/3.5 BA, firepl, fin base w/WD. AVAIL NOW 301-661-1717 renovated,patio, near costco,bus,mall,I270 $1300/mo + utils CALL(301)678-9182 3 Bedroom + den, 2 Bathroom, renovated, Sec 8 welcome, Pls Call: 410-800-5005

LG condo 1bd/1ba wood floor, 24hr security, all util incl HOC OK 240-383-1000

GERM: 2Br, 2Ba new

crpt/paint, h/d flr, W/D, fitness center, near shops & restaurants $1295 + SD Mike Remax Pro. Please Call: 301-674-2371

SILVER

N.POTOMAC ROCKVILLE: 1 BR

GAITH: 2 Rooms in

Lrg bsmt room w/priv BA & Entr. Close to shops, bus & metro. $700 incl utils & int. N/P, N/S. Se habla espanol. Email David davidvaliente01@ hotmail.com

GER MA NT OWN:

TH, 4BR, 3.5BA w/fin bsmt. $2200/month HOC OK. Call 301916-9045

(301) 460-1647 3004 Bel Pre Rd., Apt. 204, Silver Spring, MD 20906

G E R M A N : 1 BR in

SILVER

GERMANTOWN

SS: NEW 1BR Apt 1st

uppr lvl of Sfh $600 uti/Inet inc. ns/np nr Walmart 301-7062722 301-978-1542

2 BR in TH, $485 & $525 both incl utils. N/S, N/P. Avail immed CALL: 240-361-3391

GAITHERSBURG: GERMANTOWN:

Welcome 3 lvl TH, 3br, 2.5ba nr 270/shops $1699/mo avail now Call: 301-906-0870

SPRING:

kBalcony Patio

or pricing and ad deadlines.

Half Month Free Large 1 or 2 BR Apts Short/long term leases GERM :2Br/2FBa,Grt Utilities Included ROCKVILLE, SFH View,frnt Shoppers.Np Great Prices 5Br, 2Ba, walk/out Balcony,Cathedral Ceil bsmt, nr Ride On #48 301-830-0046 w/d, Pool/tennis $1445 & schools, $2500 + + utils. 240-350-8644 util 240-472-0607

GERMAN: HOC

kSmall Pets Welcome

Rice (301) 670-2667

SFH 4 BR/3 BA Updated,Light-Filled, SS: 3br/2ba rambler. Quiet St. near Park. cac/wd/dw,fin rec rm, $2550 301-538 -4638 hrwd flrs,, fncd yrd MONT VILLAGE: $2200 +utils, wlk to Metro. Move now and 3Br, 2.5Ba TH, fin free November rent. bsmt, nr bus/shops, 202-210-5530 NP/NS $1750 HOC Call: 240-643-0932 SS: 4BR,2.5BA,SFH MONT VILLAGE: Fin Bsmnt, two car 3Br, 2.5Ba TH, fin garage, deck, hot tub, bsmt, nr bus/shops, FP $2500 near metro NP/NS $1700 HOC & shops 301-330-1177 Call: 240-643-0932

1600+ sq foot patio $1500/ 2BR $1250 home 2BR + Den with +util NS/NP, W/D New Large 2 car garage + Carpet, Paint, Deck & attic. New kitchen Patio, 301-250-8385 appliances/counters. OLNEY/DERWD: New carpet and paint. GAITH/AMBERFLD Landscaper/Mechanic’ Lux 3lvl EU/TH, Gar s home w/ garage, Buyer brokers are welcome. $365,000. 2MBR, 2.5BA, LR DR, barn, & field storage FR, FP,EIK, Deck Call: 301-977-0635 202-262-6652 $1800. 301-792-9538 SILVER SPRING: OLNEY: End unit. 3Br, 2Ba, SFH w/ 3BD, 2.5BA. New carGAITHERSBURG: porch, house compet, paint & fixtures. End unit TH condo pletely renovated w/ FP. Gorgeous, must 2BR, 2BA, open flr all NEW everything! see! NS/NP. $1800. plan, updated, conCall: 410-435-5626 or 301-343-9711 venient location $1650 410-599-3971 + utils 301-908-0883 POOLESVILLE: TH 3BR 1.5BA, W/D fncd GAITH: EU TH, 4BR bkyd, Pets Ok. $1450 CHEVY CHASE: Sat 2.5 BA fenced yard, + utils, avail immed December 7th, 9-3 wood deck, garage. Call: 301-407-0763 pm. Beautiful dining Convenient location. POTOMAC: lrg 3 br, room set, bedroom set $2,250. 301-675-8507 2.5 ba, SFH, finished and other furniture, Freshly basement, living rm, china, rugs and GAITH/MV: painted EU TWH 3 housewares. 3714 bed, 2 1/2 bath , cen- dining rm, den w/fp, Thornapple Street, tral heat/AC , all appli- deck, carport, comances, wood floors as- pletely remodeled, Chevy Chase, MD. signed parking fenced patio call Nick 301- clse to 270, $2800/ mnth, One wk free. 412-4522 240-372-8050

kSpacious Floor Plans

SS/GLENMONT :

LRG 5 BD/2.5 BA EU TWH WLK TO SHOPS & METRO, W/D HOC OK 240-383-1000

GAITHERSBURG:

Male/Female Rm with pvt ba & INT $600 util inc+1mo Sec Dep Aval Immed. 301-916-6163

GERM: Male only 2 BRs $400 each + utils in TH NS/ND. Near bus & shops. Sec Dep Req. 240-476-6224 GERM: TH 1 room

w/pvt BA $400/mo w/utils & int. Nr Walmart & 270/355 CALL: 240-744-2421

OLNEY: 1 Rm in bsmt in SFH share kitchen $500 utils included, NS/NP Avail Now. 301-257-5712

OLNEY:

GREAT DEAL!! 1 Br, shr Ba, beautiful EU TH, female only $675/per month w/util, int, cable TV, NP/NS Call 301-774-4654

TH Bsmt Apt pvt entr $750/mo util incl.Near Shops/Metro 240-388- ROCKVILLE/OLNEY 7552 or 240-370-0272 Lrg Single Fam Home Small effi apt, own bath & kit all utils, GAITH: Male. 2 BR cbl & int incl $745 in TH. $450 & $500. No pets, no smoking NP, NS, near Bus, Available Now! shops. Call 240-418301-924-1818 9237 or 240-912-5284

GAITH:M BRs $435+

440+475+555+ Maid Ns/Np, nr 270/370/Bus shops, quiet, conv.Sec Dep 301-983-3210

GAITH/MUDDY BRANCH: EU TH

M/F only updated Mbr w/ba $660 + util Avail 12/08 NS 3016747928

SIL SPG: SFH, 1MBr Bsmt, priv Ba, kit w/d, int/cable. $850/i n c l utils plus $400 SD Avl Jan 1st 240-602-5533

SILVER

SPRING:

Room for Rent $415 shared kitchen, bathroom and utilities W/D 301-404-2681

kFamily Room kFull Size W/D in every unit kSwimming Pool

G560379

Riverfront Park, Boat Launch! 8+AC $39,777 Pristine hardLow Taxes! Gated wood setting on top of Community,amazing the world for your amenities, equestrian use/enjoyment. River facility, Olympic Pool. - just 3 miles to boat New Homes mid launch! Perc, warranty $40’s. Brochures avail- deed minerals with able 1-866-629-0770 property. Low down or financing. Call Owner www.coolbranch.com 1-800-888-1262.

GERM:

kNewly Updated Units

Contact Ashby

www.ambercommons.com

MOUNTAINTOP LAND STEAL!

STRATHMORE HOUSE APARTMENTS

and reach over 206,000 homes!

Call today: 301-355-7111

DISCOVER DELAWARE’S RESORT LIVING WITHOUT RESORT PRICING!

301-762-5224

Office Hours: M-F 9:00am - 6:00pm, Saturday 11:00am - 3:00pm

STREAMSIDE S T R E A M S I D E APARTMENTS A PA R T M E N T S

The Trusted Name in Senior Living

Visit us at www.homeproperties.com

14431 Traville Garden Circle Rockville, Maryland 20850

GAITHERSBURG

GERMANTOWN

1-888-812-9616

•New Appliances, Kitchens & Baths* •Large Kitchens & Walk-In Closets* •1, 2 & 3 Bedroom Apartments •Free Free Electric Included •Pet Friendly •Short-Term Leases •Free Parking •Minutes to I-270 & Metro Bus & Rail •Housing Choice Vouchers Welcome •Se aceptan vales de eleccio'n de *Select Apartments vivienda

ROCKVILLE

GAITHERSBURG

SPRING:

Rooms avail in SFH, nr Metro/Shops, rent incl utilties 202-7041768 or 301-942-2161

floor private ENT, KIT, BA, PARKING. $1200 quiet and Sunny! call 301-879-2868 WHEATON:1 Room w/pvt BA $700/mo incl. utils, Cable & WIFI. Near Metro & Bus Call 240-286-7142

DEEP CREEK LAKE water front, across frm WISP Resort,3br/3ba Th,deck,dock,fp,Jacz wd, cbl. 301-916-3077

It’s FREE! Buy It, Sell It, Find It GazetteBuyandSell.com It’s FREE!

Buy It, Sell It, Find It GazetteBuyandSell.com

Page B-14

Wednesday, December 4, 2013 g

PATEK PHILIPPE WATCHES WANTED!** Dayto-

na, Sub Mariner, etc. TOP CASH PAID! 1800-401-0440

WANTED TO PURCHASE Antiques & Fine Art, 1 item Or Entire Estate Or Collection, Gold, Silver, Coins, Jewelry, Toys, Oriental Glass, China, Lamps, Books, Textiles, Paintings, Prints almost anything old Evergreen Auctions 973-818-1100. Email evergreenauction@hot mail.com

HOLIDAY CRAFT MART: De ce m b e r

ORIENTAL RUG AUCTION: Fri. Dec

13th 10:00am. 7621 Rickenbacker Dr. Ste 200, Gaithersburg Md. 20879. Go to auctionzip.com. enter 3455 Get details & photos DNAuctioneers 410-783-1846

OLNEY:

17336 Lafayette Drive, FriSun 12/6-12/8, 8-5, antiques, mid-century, LR,DR, BR furn, art, rugs, primitives, silver, vtg clths, lrg military coll, china, glass, Xmas, books pottery, jewelry, linens, tools, and household items

7th 2013 promoting "handmande". This fourth annual event to advertise is being held Realtors & Agents at the First Baptist call Church of 301.670.2641 Gaithersburg from 9-3 p.m. features juried artisans, crafters and farm raised to advertise goods. Food and Rentals & for sale Sweet Mart open all by owner day! COME PET THE 301.670.7100 ALPACAS!! 200 or email W. Diamond Ave., Gaithersburg. Free class@gazette.net Admission!

Join 400+ families consigning at our HOLIDAY SALE !! Montgomery Fairgrounds 16 Chestnut St Gaithersburg, MD 20877

(use Chestnut or Dalmar entrances) Fri. 12/13 9a-7p, Sat 12/14 9a-5p Sun 12/15 10a-4p Many Items 50% Off, Mon 12/16 9a-10a (Dollar Dash) Additional sales floor space has been added! More room = more items!

FREE ADMISSION!

solid wood dining set, 13pcs, table, 6 chairs, 3 leaves, buffet with hutch and dry sink. $1500. Cash Only! 301-253-2667

FIREWOOD FOR SALE 100% Oak $150 half cord $225 per cord Call Adrian 301-309-0062 240-506-4326

FIREWOOD FOR SALE

$250/cord $150 per 1/2 cord µ Includes Delivery µ Stacking Extra Charge Ask for Jose 301-417-0753 301-370-7008

PREMIUM ALL SEASONED HARDWOODS Mostly Oak $175 a Cord Split & Delivered 240-315-1871

GP2375

ber 10th, 9 am, RichGuild, Mosrite, mond, VA. Excavators, Rickenbacker, Prairie Dozers, Dumps & State, D’Angelico, More. Accepting Stromberg, and Gibson Mandolins/Banjos. Items Daily thru 12/6. Motley’s Auction & 1920’s thru 1980’s. Realty Group, TOP CASH PAID! 1804-232-3300, 800-401-0440. www.motleys.com, ***OLD ROLEX & VAAL #16.

FURNITURE FOR SALE: Ethan Allen

HAVANESE PUPPIES Home raised, AKC, best health guarantee noahslittleark.com Call: 262-993-0460

LOST DOG

Lab/ Rotweiler Mix, M, 4 yr, black w/ tan paws, muzzle & spots above eyes; long, fluffy tail, fifty (50) pounds Lost on Saturday November 9th 2013 from Little Falls Bike Trail, near the MD/DC line. Please Contact 248-755-7594

to advertise call 301.670.7100 or email class@gazette.net

MAKE UP TO

ing alternative to unplanned pregnancy. You choose the family for your child. Receive pictures/info of waiting/approved couples. Living expense assistance. 1-866236-7638

NOW HIRING!!! $28/HOUR. Under-

cover Shoppers Needed \\ $300/DAY Typing Companies Advertising Online. We provide the training & the jobs to perform. Genuine Opportunity. PT/FT. Experience Unnecessary. www.HiringLocalHelp. com

DISH TV RETAILER . Starting at

$19.99/month (for 12 mos.) & High Speed Internet starting at $14.95/month (where available) SAVE! Ask About SAME DAY Installation! CALL Now! 1-877-992-1237

Holiday Bazaar! Rockville Senior Center Sat, Dec 7, 2013, 9am-2pm

Handmade Arts & Craft Sale

Raffle – Grand Prize $300

Gift Shop Bargains & Plant Sale X-Large Thrift Shop-Household items for sale Book Sale-Hard cover Paperbacks Food & Baked Goods Available All Proceeds Support Rockville Senior Ctr 1150 Carnation Dr, Rockville, MD Call 240-314-5019 for directions GP2358