Determined Oaklander Joins Ranks Of Maryland's Blind Business Owners
Jan. 13, 2011
by Peggy Santamaria
Before charting a course for the New Year that stretches ahead, people often reflect on the year that has just ended and review accomplishments, losses, lessons learned, and moments treasured.
Robin Fife may look back on 2010 as a time of incalculable loss and joyful gain. Both led her to triumph over challenge. During the previous year, she achieved a lifetime dream of operating her own business but also faced the death of her mother, following a long illness. These events are magnified by the fact that Robin Fife is blind.
Following her education at the Maryland School for the Blind, Fife returned home to her mother’s house in Oakland and began a career in the sheltered workshop at Appalachian Crossroads, where she was employed as a mailroom clerk. With the assistance of aides, she tended to the tasks of affixing labels to envelopes using a guide and weighing each piece of mail on an audio scale.
“I always enjoyed my work in the mail room, but I wanted to do something more,” Fife said. Her bubbly personality and sense of independence afforded her the confidence to research other job opportunities. Assisted by Appalachian Crossroads, Fife interviewed with several employers, but did not succeed in finding a position that matched her strengths in the workplace.
Scott Hollingsworth, director of Day Programs at Appalachian Crossroads, was aware of Fife’s desire to expand her career.
“Robin has a lot of initiative. She wanted to create her own future,” Hollings-worth said. “So she set about finding an opportunity to control her own schedule, to set her own goals, and to do something that would allow her to measure her success based on her individual effort.”
When former Appalachian Crossroads trainee Roger Uber moved to Virginia, the business he started, Sunshine Vending Service, became available for acquisition.
“The vending machine business seemed like a good fit for Robin,” said Hollings-worth. “She would need assistance from a job coach, someone to be her ‘eyes,’ but with that, she thought she could be successful.”
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First time buyer? 5 tips on how to avoid a money pit
It’s seems like the perfect home – you’ve been wooed by a savvy, yet informative, real estate agent and the fresh-baked cookies at the open house were a nice touch.
“For many people right now who have the money and who qualify [for a mortgage] it’s a great time to purchase a home. The inventory is high, prices are low and mortgage rates are low,” says Elizabeth Mendenhall, 2011 vice president and liaison to committees for the National Association of Realtors.
But don’t be fooled by a fresh coat of paint and updated countertops. Throwing copious amounts of cash at a series of unfortunate events is hilarious when it’s Tom Hanks and Shelley Long, but going broke on unexpected home repairs isn’t funny when it happens to you.
It’s time to put down the cookies and check for cracks. Here are some tips on how to avoid purchasing a money pit:
"Buy American" Bill Introduced By Delegate Beitzel
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Jan. 13, 2011
Del. Wendell R. Beitzel (R-Dist. 1A) introduced his first bill for consideration by the Maryland General Assembly yesterday, the first day of the 2011 session.
House Bill 12, dubbed by Beitzel as the “Buy American” bill, would require state agencies to purchase American-made uniforms, as well as safety equipment and protective accessories. The measure, which was introduced late into the 2010 legislative session, will once again be assigned to the House Health and Government Operations Committee.
“This is a jobs bill, plain and simple,” said Beitzel. “We as Maryland’s legislators need to do anything and everything we can to foster jobs.”
There are at least 20 states that have some form of “Buy American” purchasing preferences. Beitzel’s introduction of the bill stemmed from a request from Fechheimer Manufacturing, located in Grantsville. Fechheimer employs 150 workers who make uniforms for state employees in states around the country that have Buy American requirements.
According to Beitzel, the primary reason Fechheimer is manufacturing uniforms and other items in Grantsville is because other states have the Buy American requirements.
“With Maryland’s unemployment rate hovering around 8%, we must keep Maryland’s jobs in Maryland,” Beitzel said.
What mortgage brokers don’t tell you: Hidden penalties abound
There’s a host of information a mortgage broker or banker won’t tell you up front that may increase the cost of your financing.
You could pay much more on a mortgage than your initial quote rate based on a rating system used by government mortgage insurers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Brokers and bankers rarely tell you this coming in the door. They want to lock you in to a loan as soon as possible. With rates rising, this is really important to know.
In the wake of the biggest real estate meltdown in American history, the devil’s in the details when you apply for a loan. This hidden rating system will penalize you with a higher rate if your credit score is low or you apply for certain types of loans. It’s being employed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government’s captive mortgage entities, which account for about 80 percent of new loans now.
As of January 1, mortgage brokers and bankers have to tell you that you may not get the best rate if your credit report is flawed, although they may not give you essential details up front on what else could bump up your finance rate.
You need to ask about how you will fare in the Fannie/Freddie “risk-based pricing” regime, which is basically a computer-run scoring matrix run by your banker. Here are some factors that could raise your cost of credit:
•Credit scores (based on the FICO system) below 740.
•High loan-to-value ratios (the percentage of the property’s value that’s mortgaged). The more equity you have or the more money you put down, the lower your rate.
•Adjustable-rate, Interest-only or 40-year loans.
•Cash-out refinancings.
•Investment properties.
•Condominiums and cooperatives.
•Manufactured homes.
•Multiple-unit properties.
The risk-based pricing program evaluates the type of loan, your credit score and loan-to-value ratio and determine what “add-ons” will boost your quoted rate, if any.
href=”http://www.ilovegarrettcounty.com/”>buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350
Real Estate for Sale - 125 B St - GA7475537
NEAT AS A PIN… LOCATED ON B STREET IN MT LAKE PARK THIS 2 BEDROOM/2 BATH HOME WAS BUILT IN 2004. SITUATED ON A NICE LOT WITH A BACKYARD FULL OF PINE TREES. HOME ALSO HAS ONE CAR GARAGE, PAVED DRIVEWAY AND GREAT LAUNDRY ROOM.
Listing # GA7475537
$125,000
More details.
Real Estate Fractional for Sale - 327 North Shore
My wife Jessica and I attended an open house event at the Lodge at North Shore yesterday evening. What an amazing property! It’s fractional ownership, and instead of buying the ‘whole house’, you pay for a fraction, or in this case, 7 weeks of ownership…and then you split the taxes, utilities & bills in 1/7th’s, too. Pam Scott, the owner of 2nd Homes at Deep Creek Lake, explains it all here. It was catered by the Deer Park Inn, and the food was excellent! They used the gourmet kitchen & the on-site brick pizza oven to prepare the food. It was a great chance to preview the home & chit-chat with other familiar folks in the area about the beauty & the innovative concepts incorporated into the design & functionality of the house. I particularly enjoyed watching the Jets whip-up on the Patriots from the HUGE game room. More details (.pdf)
The photo gallery is a must-see! Below, find the listing information about the 2nd fraction available:
The best of everything is offered in this 5 BR lakefront fractional ownership home.The home offers three master suites with large, spa-type baths as well as two additional bedrooms and baths and two powder rooms.Built with green in mind, appliances are Energy Star-rated and a high efficiency, hybrid heating system offers both comfort and energy conservation.Floors are hardwood, brick and flagstone
Commissioners Slate Public Mtg. For Next Thurs.
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Jan. 13, 2011
The Board of Garrett County Commissioners will hold its next public meeting on Thursday, Jan. 20, beginning at 4 p.m. in the St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Church parish hall, located at the corner of Oak and Fourth streets in Oakland.
The event will start with a natural gas extraction presentation by the Maryland Department of the Environment and the Garrett County Department of Planning and Land Development.
Members of the local Marcellus Shale Advisory Committee will also be in attendance for this session.
“Interested persons are encouraged to attend to utilize this time to address questions to state and county officials, and public commentary will be welcome,” said county administrator Monty Pagenhardt.
Speaking with Dave Scott - Savageman Reference
Ironman legend to be inducted into USA Triathlon Hall of Fame
By Jon Ackerman Posted: Jan 14, 9:38a ET Updated: Jan 14, 9:38a ET
Spotlight: Ironman legend Dave Scott
American Dave Scott won six Ironman world championships in the 1980s, a mark matched by only one other person. He’s a member of the Ironman, Triathlon and USA Triathlon Halls of Fame.
Since the gun sounded the start of the first Ironman World Championship in Hawaii in 1978, no human has won more world titles than American Dave Scott’s six (though compatriot Mark Allen later matched the feat). In 1993, Scott became the first member of the Ironman Hall of Fame, which he celebrated by coming out of retirement to compete in Kona at age 40. He finished second and felt so good that he entered again two years later, placing fifth…
…Are you still competing these days?
I still train like a demon, but I got clobbered in May ’09. I was thinking about doing an Ironman; I silently told a few people. By the end of May I was going to make a decision and I really felt quite strong. And I was three-quarters of a mile from my house after riding about 56 miles and this woman did a U-turn in front of me in her SUV, and I was coming down this little grade. I screamed and hollered, locked up my brakes and skidded, and I slammed right into the side of her door. So I shattered my scapula and fractured my hand, wrist, and fingers. Ended up having three surgeries and got a blood clot in my lung. So that kind of curtailed things for quite a while.
But I still have a passion for health/fitness. So I’ll do mostly promotional events. I’ve got a couple this year — one grueling half-Ironman called Savageman (in Deep Creek Lake, Maryland) that has this most-wicked climb. I don’t even know how they pave the hill but it’s about 30 percent grade. I don’t have visions of beating too many of the young stallions but I still like to scare them.
Cold? This isn't cold. Forty-below is cold
…But we’re a long way from the record-cold days our parents and grandparents experienced. Thursday was the 99th anniversary of the day in 1912 when thermometers in Oakland, out in Garrett County, registered 40 degrees below zero. That was, and still is, the record-cold reading for the state.
The high reading in Baltimore that day (Jan. 13, 1912) was 11 degrees, still a record low maximum for the date. The next morning, the low in Baltimore was minus-2 degrees, also still a record for a Jan. 14.
Thirteen years later, on Jan. 28, 1925, the low reading in Oakland was minus-31 degrees. Twice in the following 30 years the temperatures in that far Western Maryland burgh reached a negative 25 degrees. And on Jan. 28, 1955 they reached minus-26 degrees, according to our clips from the time.
If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350
North Branch of Potomac becomes recreational center
(Source: The Charleston Gazette)By Paul J. Nyden, The Charleston Gazette, W.Va.
Jan. 17–Read the full report here
MORGANTOWN — After decades of pollution, Maryland state agencies have turned the North Branch of the Potomac River into a major recreational area and boon to local economic development.
The North Branch runs along the border between the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia and western Maryland.
Downstream Strategies, a Morgantown environmental consulting firm, released a report last month documenting local economic benefits from improving water quality in the river.
During the past 25 years, the North Branch changed from a river “you wouldn’t even want to wade in” to a high quality fishery hosting naturally reproducing trout and bass, the report states.
Improvements came after eight “dosers” were installed in 1992. These facilities add alkaline chemicals to the North Branch and its tributaries to counteract acid mine drainage from abandoned coal mines.
But ongoing remediation projects, initiated by Maryland state agencies, could be threatened within a few years if funding sources evaporate.
