Get fit for Children’s Aid

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Trinity Fitness seeks to lead people to a higher level of health through exercise and improved nutrition so that they may better pursue God’s purpose for them. The ministry offers fitness classes and educational seminars. Trinity Fitness provides the instructors for all of the ministry’s fitness classes.

Dave Scott, a member of New Life, started Trinity Fitness as a private one-on-one trainer-client operation. But it has grown to a bigger operation.

Children’s Aid, which was founded in 1931 in response to the Great Depression, helps more than 10,000 children and families in the county who are in need of food, clothing and other necessities.

For more information, call 240-423-5917 or go to www.trinityfitnessinc.com or stop by 9690 Shepherd’s Creek Place in La Plata.

To learn more about Children’s Aid and how to help, call 301-645-1561 or go to www.childrens-aid-society.org.

Freshman 20

Several local students were among those honored at a Monday tea at the Library of Congress.

During U.S. Rep Steny H. Hoyer’s ceremony, a record 20 students from Hoyer’s (D-Md., 5th) district were offered U.S. service academy appointments.

Among those, two are from Charles County.

Meghan Prinkey, a Bishop McNamara student, was accepted into the Air Force Academy, while La Plata High School student William Bingham is going to the U.S. Naval Academy.

Each year, Hoyer nominates candidates from his district for admission into one of four U.S. service academies.

Living history

As the county celebrates its 350th, St. Ignatius Church is going another 25 years back Sunday with an event commemorating Father Andrew White’s experiences among the Piscataway and Potobac peoples of Charles County.

Learn about the rigors of Colonial life from Wes Stone, a living historian portraying White. Stone’s hour-long presentation will begin at 3 p.m.

Tours of the historic church and St. Thomas Manor and Cemetery will be held from 1:30 to 2:45 p.m. and 4:15 to 5:30 p.m. with Mass offered at 6 p.m. by Father Edward O’Connell.

The event is free but donations are accepted.

St. Ignatius Church at Chapel Point is at 8855 Chapel Point Road in Port Tobacco. For more information, call 301-934-8245.

Capt. Jack, Capt. Kirk

Slap on the kohl eyeliner and slug down some rum, the College of Southern Maryland is holding a course on pirates of the Chesapeake Bay next month.

‘‘Pirates, Scalawags and Scoundrels of the Chesapeake Bay” will be held from 10 a.m. to noon on three consecutive Saturdays, July 12, 19 and 26, at its Waldorf campus.

The classes cover the 1608 exploration of the bay by John Smith; acts of piracy on Kent Island in 1635 by William Claiborne; the role of privateering in the bay during the Revolutionary War; and the little-known oyster wars between Maryland and Virginia watermen that took place in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The cost is $45 per person or $35 for those 60 and older.

Exploration on the sea not your scene? CSM has that covered with a look into the ‘‘vasty nothingness” of space when it delves into ‘‘‘Star Trek’: It’s History, Ethics and Relevance” in October.

Held from 10 a.m. to noon on three consecutive Saturdays, Oct. 11, 18 and 25, discover the background, history and cultural impact Star Trek has had on generations worldwide.

The class will also discuss the upcoming J.J. Abrams ‘‘Star Trek” movie that is set for a summer 2009 release.

For more information, call Vickie Grow at 301-934-7652 or e-mail vickieg@csmd.edu.

High-tech heroines

Nominations are being accepted for Heroines in Technology, an award program recognizing women in the technology industry who have used their knowledge, experience and skills to benefit the community.

The March of Dimes and Women in Technology are calling for the nominations by July 18. The awards dinner Nov. 14 in Reston, Va., will also honor woman-owned or woman-operated companies that have a commitment to local service and philanthropy.

‘‘This event guarantees to be exciting and rewarding as we celebrate women who balance a demanding career in technology while working hard to make a difference in our community,” said the president of WIT Charlotte Pelliccia in a press release.

Get an online nomination form at www.marchofdimes. com⁄metrodc.

Kelly to chairCamp Merrick Idol

Community leader and former Charles County commissioner Candice Quinn Kelly has been named the honorary chairwoman for Camp Merrick Idol.

The annual fundraiser Sept. 19 will feature performances by locals competing in a singing competition.

Funds raised during the event go toward sending kids who are deaf, blind and⁄or have diabetes to camp.

‘‘We’re thrilled Candice Quinn Kelly has agreed to be our honorary chairperson,” said the camp’s development and executive director Gregory Floberg in a press release. ‘‘Candice is very familiar with our cause and has been very generous with her support, so naturally, we invited her to join our team. We’re so glad she said, yes.”

Kelly was a natural choice to be this year’s chairperson after sharing the story of her sister, Nancy Lee Clark, during last year’s gala.

Clark, Kelly said, was 10 when she was diagnosed with diabetes. For 36 years, Clark battled the disease, but died from complications of it in 2004.

Being involved in the gala is a way Kelly is making a difference in the lives of kids who deserve the opportunity to experience camp and learn how to live a happier, healthier life, according to Floberg.

For more information, call 301-645-5616 or e-mailcmpmerrick@aol.com.