CRYOR INTRODUCES HATE CRIMES BILL
Del. Jean Cryor (R-15) testified March 21 at a Maryland House Judiciary Committee hearing on a bill she introduced in response to racist graffiti and other hate crimes in Montgomery County in the last several months.
The bill would allow victims of property damage due to a hate or bias crime to be eligible for a-one time compensation through the use of a special fund established by the bill. The bill would be funded in fiscal year 2007 by the Unclaimed Property fund under the Comptroller’s office. In subsequent years, it will be funded from the general fund and administered by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board.
POTOMAC THEATRE COMPANY 'CINDERELLA'
The Potomac Theatre Company presents “Cinderella, or A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Ball” by Marilyn Shockey March 25 and 26 and April 1 and 2 with performances at 1:30 and 3:30 p.m. each day at the Blair Family Center for the Arts at the Bullis School, 10601 Falls Road.
The play is a funny and irreverent musical take on the ‘Cinderella’ story and is appropriate for all ages. All tickets $10 with a 20 percent discount available for groups of 10 or more. Call 301-299-8571 or visit www.potomactheatreco.org.
RACE FOR HOPE
The ninth annual Cassidy and Pinkard Race for Hope 5K run and walk takes place Sunday, May 7 at Freedom Plaza in Washington, beginning at 8:30 a.m. The race raises money for the non-profit Brain Tumor Society, a research and education organization.
Several Potomac families are major organizers and fund-raisers for the Society and the annual race. Seven Locks Elementary School parents Chris and Lisa Peabody raised more than $20,000 last year. They have participated annually since their nine-month-old daughter Caroline died from a brain tumor.
To learn more, register, or contribute visit www.curebraintumors.org. An Almanac story about the Peabodys and the Race for Hope—published a year ago—can be found at http://www.potomacalmanac.com/article.asp?archive=true&article=46047&paper=70&cat=104.
ST. PATRICK'S DAY ALCOHOL ENFORCEMENT
Members of the Montgomery County Police Department’s Alcohol Initiatives Unit conducted special saturation patrols throughout the county during St. Patrick’s Day festivities. The enforcement effort, conducted between 8 p.m. on Friday, March 17 and 3 a.m. Saturday, March 18, yielded 22 DUI/DWI arrests, 47 alcohol citations, 190 traffic citations and 11 criminal arrests, including two for assaults on officers.
There were no alcohol-related fatalities during the celebrations.
'BEACH WEEK' MEETING
Walt Whitman High School parents have organized an informational meeting for parents on planning for a safe "Beach Week," also known as "Senior Week," when many graduating seniors head to the Delaware and Maryland beaches.
The meeting will be Wednesday, March 29 at 7:30 p.m. in the Walt Whitman High School cafeteria.
Beach Week is not a school endorsed activity and many students select alternative activities for that week, but the meeting organizers wish to make information available to those parents and students who do plan to attend.
Corporal Cliff Dempsey of the Dewey Beach Police Department and Donald Robinson of the Delaware Alcohol Beverage Commission will speak at the meeting.
For more information, contact Whitman parent Rebecca Byers at rbcadc@aol.com.
FORUM ON UNDERAGE DRINKING
There will be a Montgomery County Community Forum on Underage Drinking, entitled "Start Talking Before they Start Drinking" on Thursday, March 30, 7- 9 p.m. at the Carver Auditorium, 850 Hungerford Drive, Rockville. The forum will be appropriate for parents and children ages 8 and up. Light refreshments will be served, and attendance is free.
For more information or to reserve a space contact Kathie Durbin at 240-777-1917 or Emily DeTitta at 240-777-1904.
FORUMS ON M.S. IMPROVEMENTS
Parents and students are invited to attend a series of public forums to discuss ways to strengthen Montgomery County Public Schools’ middle school programs. Feedback and from the public will help guide the school system's middle school reform initiative.
The forums will be Thursday, March 23, at Herbert Hoover Middle School in Potomac,
Wednesday, March 29 at Montgomery Village Middle School and Monday, April 3 at Francis Scott Key Middle School. All there forums are from 7-9 p.m. Interpreters for Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, and French will be available.
For directions to the schools or more information, visit www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org.