North End Gallery is accepting applications for its new Emerging Artists’ Internship Program at the cooperative art gallery in Leonardtown.

“The goal is [for the intern] to get professional experience and exposure without the responsibilities of a full gallery membership,” said Lani Clark, a gallery member who helped write up the proposal for the new program that would give young artists some experience in the business side of the vocation. “It would give them a chance to understand what it takes to be an artist helping to run the gallery, interacting with customers, learning how to display.”

The Emerging Artists Internship Program will accept up to two interns between the ages of 18 and 30 beginning in January.

“There are not many opportunities for developing artists to learn these skills in our Southern Maryland community,” Christina Allen, a member of the gallery who spearheaded the new program, said in a statement. “The interns will be able to display and sell their work and will participate in running our co-operative gallery, thus learning valuable professional skills.”

In addition to displaying their work, interns will be expected to help hang new shows, serve customers and help maintain the gallery. They will also have opportunities to improve their artistic presentation and to learn about the financial aspects of a career in the fine arts. An internship may last one or two years, depending on interest and whether or not there is a waiting list.

The internships will be unpaid. But the program is structured to allow the selected interns to work around a current job and/or school. “It’s not a big-time responsibility,” Clark said.

The gallery membership approved the new program during the November membership meeting.

“We are aiming to encourage the next generation of local artists, with this program,” said gallery president Rose Beitzell.

“It’s a way to grow the art community,” Clark said. “We’re looking for someone who is serious about their art and enthusiastic.”

In addition to completing a short application form, the selection process involves providing a portfolio and an interview with current members. Additional information and internship application forms are available online on the gallery’s website www.northendgallery.org (look under “Become a Member”), or at the desk in the gallery.

Founded in 1987, the North End Gallery is a cooperative art gallery with a limit of 35 juried artists who reside in Calvert, St. Mary’s and Charles counties.

Holiday memories sought

Christmas is a time for memories, and The Enterprise would like to help you share some of yours with our community. We are preparing a feature article for the Friday, Dec. 21, issue in which our readers share tales of their most memorable holidays. They can be funny, they can be heartwarming, they can be poignant. Just tell us your story (in 200 words or less), and feel free to include a photo. Send your submissions by email to Donnie Morgan at dmorgan@somdnews.com, by mail to Holiday Memories, The Enterprise, P.O. Box 700, Lexington Park, MD 20653, or drop them off at our offices at 23125 Camden Way in the First Colony Commercial Park in California. Be sure to include a telephone number in case we need to contact you. Our deadline is at the end of business Monday, Dec. 17, so start rekindling those holiday memories. Call 301-866-6446 for more information.

Have a cookie

The 13th Annual Home-Baked Christmas Cookie Sale will be held by Hollywood United Methodist Church at 24422 Mervell Dean Road in Hollywood on Saturday, Dec. 15, at the church hall. Doors will open at 9 a.m. and the event will be held until sold out. Cost will be $10 per container. Visitors can choose their favorite cookies, and make a sweet start to the holiday season.

For more information, call the church at 301-373-2500.

Volunteers needed

Bay Community Support Services Inc. is seeking volunteers who want to help support people with disabilities in the community. The organization is seeking help ranging from assistance with yard care and upkeep at local area residential group homes to helping to organize the organization’s canister fundraising program.

No previous experience is necessary. For more information or to volunteer, contact Brandy Blackstone, BAY-CSS communications administrator, at 443-336-7588 or blackstoneb@baycss.org.

Music festival to feature Molsky

The Celtic Society of Southern Maryland is presenting musician Bruce Molsky at this year’s Winter Celtic Music Festival. The eighth annual festival will be hosted by the students of St. Mary’s Ryken High School, Student Organization for Improving the Arts, on Saturday, Jan. 12.

In addition to a prolific solo career, performing on fiddle, guitar and banjo, Molsky frequently joins genre-busting groups, like the Grammy-nominated Fiddlers Four and Mozaik with Hungarian Nikola Parov and Celtic giant Donal Lunny. He was on Nickel Creek’s farewell tour and performs in a trio with Scottish fiddler Aly Bain and Sweden’s Ale Moller.

The music festival will include an afternoon workshop that will be primarily focused toward fiddlers, but guitar and banjo players are also welcome, as Molsky is a master of all three instruments. Students of all ages are encouraged to bring a recording device, as tunes will be taught by ear. This workshop will focus on intermediate to advanced skill levels, but beginners are welcome to join in for the experience of listening, watching and learning.

The workshop will be held from 2 to 4 p.m., followed by an evening concert at 8 p.m. at St. Mary’s Ryken High School, Romauld Hall Auditorium, in Leonardtown.

For more information, email fiddling@cssm.org, or call 301-375-0534. Seating will be limited for the workshops, so participants are encouraged to register early. Contact the organizer for more information regarding the limited scholarships available for workshop participation.

Cruise to benefit rescue squad

The Hollywood Volunteer Rescue Squad is sponsoring a six -night cruise aboard the Grandeur of the Seas from Baltimore to Bermuda from Sept. 27 to Oct. 3, 2013. The ship will dock in Kings Wharf, Bermuda, on Sept. 29 and depart on Oct. 1, giving participants time to sightsee visiting Bermuda’s pastel-colored homes and pink-sand beaches and swim in blue waters and around barrier reefs.

Cruise rates are based on double occupancy -- inside cabin is $891 per person, ocean view cabin is $971 per person and a balcony cabin is $1,371 per person. A deposit of $250 per person reserves a cabin. A second payment of $200 per person is due April 3, 2013. Final payment is due June 22. Roundtrip motor-coach from St. Mary’s County, port charges, taxes, fees, prepaid gratuities and a donation to the Hollywood rescue squad are included in the rates.

Valid passports are required for this cruise.

For more information, contact Marcie at Cole Travel at 301-472-4552 or email Marcie@coletravel.biz.

Solomons to host Christmas Walk

The 28th annual Solomons Christmas Walk will be presented by the Solomons Business Association on Dec. 7 and 8 and will feature candlelit streets with festive storefronts and homes, decorations, a lighted boat parade and breakfast with Santa. The weekend of activities will begin at 6 p.m. on Dec. 7, with the traditional tree-lighting ceremony, complete with Santa at the Solomons Riverwalk Pavilion.

The opening ceremony will be followed by children’s activities of boat building at Southern Maryland Sailing Association and Christmas crafts at Calvert Marine Museum from 6 to 9 p.m. A free puppet show, “Rufus the Rednosed Raindog,” presented by the Blue Sky Puppet Theatre and sponsored by Community Bank of Tri-County, will begin at 7 p.m. at Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church.

Dec. 8 events begin with Breakfast with Santa at Isaac’s Restaurant from 8 to 11 a.m. Cost is $7 for adults and $5 for children ages 10 and younger. Children must be accompanied by an adult and reservations are required by calling 410-326-6311.

Saturday’s evening activities begin at 6 p.m. and will include Santa’s Coffee House at Calvert Marine Museum through 9 p.m. Weather permitting, the lighted boat parade will begin at 6:15 p.m. at the Solomons Yachting Center and end along the boardwalk at approximately 7:15 p.m. The parade can be viewed from many of the restaurants and establishments on Back Creek or the Patuxent River boardwalk.

Offered both evenings, in addition to the holiday shopping atmosphere at Solomons’ businesses, will be PAWS pet adoptions at Carmen’s Gallery, a live nativity scene (weather permitting) at Our Lady Star of the Sea and the “GLITZ: Art that Sparkles” exhibit at Annmarie Sculpture Garden and Arts Center from 6 to 9 p.m.

Concluding the weekend will be the SBA-sponsored holiday party at the Back Creek Bistro, from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., on Dec. 9. The event is open to the public and reservations are required. Cost is $30 per person. For reservations, call 410-326-9900 or email reservations@backcreekbistro.com. For a complete map and schedule of events, visit www.solomonschristmaswalk.com.

Winter farm guide offers fresh ideas for the holidays

Celebrate the season with farm-fresh ideas from the “Farms for the Holidays,” the 2012/2013 Southern Maryland Winter Farm Guide. The free guide showcases more than 60 family farms and agriculture-related businesses in Anne Arundel, Calvert, Charles, Prince George’s and St. Mary’s counties, offering farm products for the holiday season and through the winter months.

The guide’s extensive listings include where to find locally-grown Christmas trees and holiday decor, farm-made gifts and crafts, produce, meats, fresh local seafood, award-winning wines and yarns and apparel made from local wool and alpaca fiber. Many agritourism farms are also hosting a variety of events for the holidays, including Nativity scenes, petting zoos, candlelit caroling walks, visits with Santa, hayrides and more.

Published by the Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission, the “Farms for the Holidays” guide is available in print at participating sites, regional public libraries and welcome centers. To view or download the guide and for a list of pick-up sites, visit www.smadc.com.

Online credit card payments now available for library users

Public library users in Southern Maryland now have the ability to pay their library bills online using a new service provided by the Southern Maryland Regional Library Association. Library bills can be paid securely online using any major credit card through PayPal.

Public libraries in Charles and St. Mary’s counties are already accepting credit card payments in their branches. However, this new service is expected simplify bill paying for many in the community.

To pay a library bill online, users go to the “Fines” tab under “My Account” through their library website. Fines must be paid in full — no partial payments will be accepted. There is a $5 minimum payment to use the system.

For more information about online credit card payments, contact your library or visit www.stmalib.org.

County libraries now equipped with defibrillators

All three St. Mary’s County Library branches are now equipped with an Automated External Defibrillator unit.

Over the past summer, the county library system teamed up with the Department of Emergency Services and Technology to purchase and install the equipment at the library’s three locations in Charlotte Hall, Leonardtown and Lexington Park. The county’s Human Resources Department also supported the project by providing the training. 23 library staff members volunteered to take the required five-hour American Red Cross CPR and AED training and certification course.

Get creative over Christmas

The artLAB at Annmarie Garden will be open during the school break, Dec. 26 to Jan. 1, from 1 to 4 p.m. daily. The artLAB is free with general admission. For more information, visit www.annmariegarden.org or call 410-326-4640.

scraton@somdnews.com