Category:garrett county
>Garrett coalition concerned about teens’ behavior
>Survey shows increased use of alcohol, cigarettes, drugs by students
Anonymous Cumberland Times-News The Cumberland Times-News Mon Feb 28, 2011, 07:47 AM EST
OAKLAND — Members of the Garrett County Drug Free Communities Coalition are concerned about trends in destructive behavior demonstrated by county teens.
A Youth Risk Behavior survey was administered to all county students in grades six through 12 in March 2010. The data from the 1,941 surveys has been analyzed and the results were shared with coalition members at their February meeting.
Students were asked to report at what age they first tried cigarettes, alcohol or marijuana; how often they had used one of the substances in the past 30 days; their perception of parental disapproval; and the perception of potential risk of using any of the substances.
Results indicated that more than half of all 12th-grade students have drunk alcohol; 30 percent have smoked cigarettes; and more than 22 percent admitted using marijuana or smokeless tobacco.
Survey results indicated that the use of cigarettes was introduced at a younger age than marijuana or alcohol, but that younger students are trying those substances at an earlier age. Sixth-graders indicated an average age of 9 for trying all three substances. The average age of onset reported by 12th-graders was significantly higher, ranging from 13 for cigarettes, 12 for alcohol and 13 for marijuana.
Ninety-two percent of sixth- and eighth-grade students indicated that their parents would say use of any of those substances is very wrong. However, that number decreased to 64 percent of students in 12th grade who thought their parents would find those types of behavior very wrong.
A high percentage of all students indicated a belief that smoking is harmful — 87 percent of sixth-graders and 68 percent of 12th-graders. Results were similar for marijuana use with 90 percent of sixth-grade students but just 52 percent of seniors. Alcohol use was looked down on by 60 percent of sixth-grade students and 37 percent of seniors. Students were also asked to report on their use of prescription drugs. Just 1.8 percent of sixth-grade students reported using prescription drugs to “get high,” but that number rose to 12.5 percent of seniors.
One of the more startling results of the survey revealed that very few males in grades 11 and 12, 27 percent and 20 percent, respectively, perceived having one or two drinks per day a great or moderate risk.
The coalition meets monthly to discuss and address problems relating to drug and alcohol treatment and prevention issues facing the youth of Garrett County.
In the past year, the coalition has launched a program called “Majority Rules.” Statistics have shown that seven out of 10 Northern and Southern Garrett schools students do not drink.
Coalition members plan to continue to study these statistics and modify their plan of action to address areas of great concern or where results indicate an increasing risk to the well-being of Garrett County youth. The group will continue its support for the seven Students Against Destructive Decisions that exist in the county and continue its community initiatives.
County Health Officer Rodney Glotfelty said the results of the survey will prove invaluable in future efforts of the coalition and thanked the Garrett County Board of Education for allowing and supporting the administration of this survey.
The coalition is comprised of area residents and representatives from the health department, government agencies and the school system. Kerri Margoff, a field supervisor with Garrett County Division of Parole and Probation, chairs the group.
The next meeting will be held at 11:45 a.m. on March 9 at the Garrett County Health Department.
Contact Angie Brant at abrant@times-news.com
>New design takes ‘natural’ brand to the next level
>Jay’s note: I verified with Wellshire Farms that their Garrett County brand originates from the fields of Garrett County…which I think is great!
February 9th, 2011
Written by Jim George, Marketing & Design Editor
Wellshire Farms’ Lou’s Garrett Valley Naturals goes contemporary with a simple visual hierarchy that’s easy to follow.
Well-branded natural products are good examples that represent a “higher order of benefits.” Beyond sales, they’re about people and offering healthier, better choices, as well as a profound respect for Earth.
They’re about loving craftsmanship rather than mass production, as well as heart and soul. But at some point, they mature, and a good example is Wellshire Farms’ Garrett County brand. Design Force recently contemporized the brand by updating it through graphic design on a paperboard carton. The brand was renamed Lou’s Garrett Valley Naturals for Wellshire Farms owner Louis B. Colameco III.
“Our brand is a solemn promise to our customers. We needed to fully express its values in the retail marketplace,” Colameco says.
After renaming the brand, the focus turned to presenting a fresh brand identity, and it was decided to create an identity perceived as handcrafted or artisanal rather than mass-produced. The new brand identity is framed in a cartouche with scalloped edging, and a handwritten script is used for the words “Lou’s” and “Naturals.” The words “Garrett Valley” appear in a clean, contemporary, yet approachable sans-serif font, while two green leaves convey the “natural” message on a soft, beige background.
>Maryland county caught up in fight over energy extraction method
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Todd Owen of Sandusky, Mich., maintains a natural gas drilling rig for Range Resources in 2008 on farmland in Amwell, Pa., just southwest of Pittsburgh. Heavy industry has invaded the countryside because of drilling opportunities for the Marcellus Shale to extract natural gas. (Jahi Chikwendiu)
By Darryl Fears
Monday, February 7, 2011
In their sliver of western Maryland, Garrett County residents like to boast of night skies so clear that you can see satellites lumber across the heavens, a picturesque deep creek that is the state’s largest inland body of water, and adventure tourism that Indiana Jones types love.
But land speculators who showed up in the county in 2008 with offers to lease farm acres had other interests. Their eyes were set on a valuable resource deep underground: natural gas deposits buried in thick layers of Marcellus Shale, a black, organic-rich shale found under the Appalachian region.
And just like that, Garrett County, population 29,000, became fully engaged in the nation’s debate over hydraulic drilling for natural gas and its risk of contaminating drinking water, joining another Washington-area local government, Rockingham County, Va.
The American Petroleum Institute maintains that hydraulic drilling is safe, “a tried-and-true technology that promises thousands of new jobs and vast and indispensable supplies of clean-burning energy,” said Carlton Carroll, a spokesman.
>Humane Society Participating In Spay Day USA
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Feb. 3, 2011
The Garrett County Humane Society will take part in the 17th annual Humane Society of the United States Spay Day USA, set for Tuesday, Feb. 22. Though only one day has been designated as Spay Day, activities will take place during the entire month of February at numerous locations across the United States.
“This event is to inspire people to save animals’ lives by spaying and neutering pets and feral cats,” said GC Humane Society president Lisa Baker. “To see what events are happening locally, go to www.humane-society.org/spaydayfind.”
In conjunction with Spay Day, the GCHS will distribute spay/neuter discount vouchers to local residents later in the month. These vouchers are only valid at the three area veterinary hospitals in Garrett County and cannot be used at HART’s low income spay/neuter clinic in McHenry.
“If your pet is not ‘fixed’ yet, please get a voucher and have it done,” Baker said. “The procedure not only prevents unwanted litters from being born, but also helps with various health and behavioral issues your pet may have.”
She noted that a “fun addition” to Spay Day is the HSUS Online Pet Photo Contest, which is in progress now.
“This event is a way to showcase your pet and raise money for your chosen organization,” Baker said. “Tell all your friends to go online and vote for your or their favorite pet, which costs only $1 a vote. You can locate a photo by the pet’s name or the benefiting organization’s name.”
She added that there are already hundreds of entries, and viewers can spend hours looking at the photos and reading the stories, which range from funny to heartbreaking
Baker will be entering a colorful, cheerful photo of a local miniature donkey wearing a sombrero. Interested persons may go online to www.humanesociety.org/photocontest to enter another photo or to vote for Baker’s.
Travellers urged to seek out adventures in Maryland
A little bit of love for Garrett County…from the UK 🙂
12 Jan 2011
Holidaymakers who will be visiting the state of Maryland in the US over the coming months have been encouraged to seek out some of the region’s outdoor activities.
According to the Maryland Office of Tourism, the area around Deep Creek Lake in Garrett County is a ‘focal point’ for winter recreation in the western part of the state.
One location worth visiting in the area is Wisp, a resort that boasts attractions such as the Mountain Coaster, which is described as a ‘hybrid of an Alpine slide and a rollercoaster’.
Visitors can also visit state parks such as Herrington Manor, New Germany and Swallow Falls to explore outdoor trails and take in the scenery.
Read the full article here.
Garrett County Recycling Rate Ranks Fourth
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Dec. 23, 2010
The Garrett County Solid Waste and Recycling Division announced Tuesday that the county’s recycling rate ranks fourth in the state, just behind Charles County; the MidShore Regional Recycling Program for Caroline, Kent, Queen Anne’s, and Talbot counties; and Hartford County.
Garrett County achieved its ranking by having a recycling rate of 47.7 percent, with a source reduction rate of 48.7 percent for calendar year 2009, as reported by the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) after a complete review of the county’s Maryland Recycling Act (MRA) Tonnage Report.
The MRA requires that Garrett County divert at least 15 percent of its waste to recycling programs. All counties in Maryland report their recycling tonnages to MDE for review and approval.
“It is our goal to continue to educate and encourage the residents and businesses to not only recycle, but to also reduce waste at the source,” said Kimberly Madigan, recycling coordinator for the Garrett County Solid Waste and Recycling Division.
Source reduction, she said, means the design, manufacture, purchase, or use of materials or products to reduce the amount of waste generated. It includes reuse, waste elimination, package reduction, and substitution.
GC Christmas Tree Graces Embassy
A 15-foot concolor fir grown in Garrett County graces the front of the Latvian Embassy in Washington, D.C., to help commemorate the 500th anniversary of the world’s first decorated Christmas tree, which is said to have stood in Latvia’s capital city of Riga. The cut tree was donated to the embassy on behalf of the Maryland Christmas Tree Association by Marshall and Cindy Stacy, who own and operate the 370-acre Pinetum tree farm in Swanton. The state tree association used a Maryland specialty crop grant this season for its “buy local–buy real” marketing campaign and to connect with Latvia’s special tree celebration. Pictured (left to right) at the embassy’s lighting ceremonies, held last Friday, are Latvian ambassador Andrejs Pildegovics and Marshall and Cindy Stacy. Photo by Peter Alunans.
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Grower reports robust Christmas trees despite some drought losses
By MARIE GILBERT
November 27, 2010
marieg@herald-mail.com
BOONSBORO — This time of the year, Gary Cline stands at the edge of his 24-acre property and smiles as he listens to the sounds of Christmas — the back-and-forth of a hand saw and the thud of a Fraser fir.
These are the cold, gray days he’s been waiting for, the days when there isn’t a Grinch in sight, just families walking slowly between rows of evergreens.
Cline is a Christmas tree farmer and on the first weekend after Thanksgiving, his business — South Mountain Plantation — comes alive.
Hundreds of people make their way to the Boonsboro farm each year in search of the perfect holiday tree and the experience of cutting it down and bringing it home.
But few visitors wandering through the spruces, firs and pines this year will realize the farm was on the receiving end of one of Mother Nature’s crueler tricks last summer.
Because of a serious drought, Cline said most of the seedlings he planted were lost….
…Cindy Stacy, publicist with MCTA and owner of Pinetum, a wholesale tree farm in Garrett County, said the trees especially hit hard by the drought were those that had been in the ground less than three years.
“Their root systems just weren’t deep enough,” she said.
Stacy said evergreens grow less with the lack of moisture and they harden off earlier in the fall, which shuts down growth. Some varieties of conifers also might have shed more than the normal complement of needles early to reduce stress.
While the drought was hard on plants, Stacy said it was good for insects.
“So there was more insect damage on trees,” she said. “On our farm, we couldn’t sell many Fraser fir, for example, because of loss of quality due to insect damage. This is a byproduct of the severe drought. We had to cancel a couple of tree orders due to this problem this season.”
Stacy said the drought didn’t affect wholesale prices “because those are set in July.”
Two Local Young Women Receive Highest FFA Degree At Convention
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Nov. 18, 2010
Kara Savage and Ashley Rodeheaver received the American FFA Degree at the 83rd National FFA Convention in Indianapolis last month. It is the highest degree awarded by the National FFA Organization, and recognizes leadership abilities and outstanding achievements in agricultural business, production, processing, and service programs.
Reportedly, fewer than one in 154 FFA members advance through their local chapter and state FFA degree programs to earn this national degree.
Both girls received a gold American FFA Degree key and a certificate in a blue leatherette frame.
Savage is the daughter of L. Deane and Nancy Savage. She is currently attending Garrett College, with plans to transfer to Frostburg State University in the fall of 2011.
She is a member of the North Garrett FFA Chapter under advisor Richard McCrobie.
Savage is the 2010 Garrett County Farm Queen, and was the 2008 Autumn Glory Festival Queen.
She received the State FFA Degree in June 2009.
She has shown dairy animals at numerous local, state, and national shows, and has won numerous grand champion dairy showmanship awards, the grand champion swine showmanship award, and the reserve grand champion rabbit showmanship award.
Write-ins will determine Garrett commission outcome
Megan Miller
The Cumberland Times-News Thu Nov 04, 2010, 07:49 AM EDT
— OAKLAND — Today at 10 a.m. Garrett County election officials will begin sifting through thousands of write-in votes to name the next county commissioner for District 3.
A total of 4,352 write-in votes were cast in the race, and could potentially be divided among three registered write-in candidates: Republicans Bob Gatto and Tim Thomas and Democrat George Falter.
