More News

It's been said that it takes a village to raise a child. Members of the community were honored last Friday for their contributions to the community's children at the Olney Boys and Girls Community Sports Association's Ball of Fame.

The program was held at The Inn at Brookeville Farms in Brookeville.

"Without volunteers, OBGC could not run our sports programs," Executive Director Elisabeth Deal said. "They are the keystone of our success and the Ball of Fame is a way to take some time out to thank them and recognize their efforts".

Devon Balicki and Chris O'Brien were awarded $1,000 scholarships for the Set A Good Example (SAGE) program.

Endowed three years ago with a pledge of $50,000 from the family of Dan Dionisio, longtime OBGC chairman, the SAGE Scholarship recognizes children and young adults for their outstanding volunteer contributions to other children.

Other SAGE finalists were Elizabeth Elgin, Kaylene Lyons, Kaitlyn Berry, Rachel Deal, Jessica Porter, Jacob Pleasure, Robert O'Neill and Patrick Koontz.

Coach of the Year Awards are determined by the OBGC membership to recognize coaches that focus on building self esteem and teamwork. This year's winners are Tom VanCott, baseball; David Bullit, basketball; Jane Grenaldo and Nicole Pontious, field hockey; Sam Silverman and Sal Gorgone, football; Matt Logan, lacrosse; Atillio Toscano, soccer; Bob Boyd, softball; and Pat Ewing, wrestling.

OBGC recognized Tracy Wahler, Ken Wilhelm, Chuck Wight, Montgomery General Hospital, Stephanie Sebeck and Steve Warren as its Citizens of the Year, awarded to volunteers who have gone above and beyond to help the organization in a variety of ways throughout the year.

Dionisio presented Kim Blackwell, Doug Datt, Angie Ryder, Ralph Smith, Kathy Lyons, Al Bidwick and Karen Rollings with the Chairman's Awards in recognition of long-term consistent contributions to OBGC.

OBGC Treasurer Harvey Metro received the Dan Dionisio Leadership Award for his years of dedication as a volunteer in numerous capacities, which has helped to ensure the success of OBGC, organization officials said.

Each year more than 800 volunteers help to provide sports programs to 7,000 children.

From concept to showtime

in just 24 hours

The Olney Theatre will join five other professional local theater companies to write, direct, rehearse and perform original plays based on similar themes in only 24 hours at the sixth annual Play In A Day, an event produced by the Bethesda Urban Partnership and Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District.

The plays will be performed at 8 p.m. March 20 at Imagination Stage's Lerner Theater in Bethesda.

The event will begin on the evening of March 19 when playwrights and directors will come together to receive their assigned themes and props. Playwrights then work through the night creating their 10-minute masterpieces.

"This is kind of a fabulous thing where a group of artists get together and collectively forge a plot, casting, rehearsal and performance, all in 24 hours," said Olney Theatre Center Artistic Director Jim Petosa. "It involves the entire creative process — they start with nothing but an idea and end up with a fully-rendered performance. It's really getting the artistic process right into the heart of the community."

Judges will award $1,000 in total cash prizes for best direction, best writing, best ensemble/acting, best overall play and audience favorite.

Other participants include Adventure Theatre, Ganymede Arts, Imagination Stage, Round House Theatre and The Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company.

General admission tickets are $15 and can be purchased online at www.bethesda.org. Remaining tickets will be sold at the door beginning at 7 p.m. Imagination Stage is located at 4908 Auburn Ave. in Bethesda. For more information, call 301-215-6660.

GOCA seeks help

spreading the news

The Greater Olney Civic Association (GOCA) is looking for someone to oversee the banners that often hang at the corner at Georgia Avenue and Route 108.

The banner program dates back 30 years and is based on an agreement with the State Highway Administration. In exchange for allowing the banners to be displayed, GOCA collects a small administrative fee that is used for lighting, landscaping and maintaining the corner.

Only banners from non-profit organizations are allowed and they typically promote community events, concerts, health fairs and open houses.

"This really only requires about an average of one hour each month," said GOCA President Matt Zaborsky. "This time of year it's pretty slow, but it should pick up soon."

If interested, contact Zaborsky through the GOCA Web site at www.goca.org.

Individuals, organizations

to be feted for serving youths

The Montgomery County Commission on Children and Youth will honor five people and organizations, including one based in Olney, for roles they play in the lives of the county's youth.

The commission, in conjunction with The Gazette and Adventure Theatre, will host the 23rd annual Nancy Dworkin Outstanding Service to Youth Award Ceremony on March 24. The program will begin at 7 p.m. at Adventure Theatre in Glen Echo Park.

The 2010 award recipients are: Judge Katherine D. Savage, child advocate; Manna Food Center, organization; Officer Joseph Lowery, service provider; Robyn Holstein-Glass, director of Project Change of Olney, volunteer; and Carla Romero, youth.

The Nancy Dworkin Outstanding Service to Youth Awards recognize individuals and organizations whose dedication, vision and service to children and youth have made a difference in the lives of others.

The award is named in memory of the past chair of the commission, who passed away in 1987. She was the director of the Center for Unique Learners, a Rockville school for children with learning disabilities. The program was established to encourage the community to emulate Dworkin's teaching philosophy of encouraging all students to develop skills and reach their own potential, the organization reported.

Richard Montgomery student

is Poetry Out Loud champ

Nora Sandler, a senior at Richard Montgomery High School in Rockville, took home first prize in the state championship of the Poetry out Loud competition on Feb. 27.

She defeated eight other Maryland high school students and earned a $200 prize.

The competition, which was held at the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, is part of the national Poetry out Loud contest. Competitors recite poems and are judged on presence, articulation, understanding of the poem and the difficulty of their selections.

Sandler will move on to compete at the national championships, which will be held at the George Washington University Lisner Auditorium in Washington, D.C., April 26 and April 27. Admission is free and open to the public.

Discussion of disability awareness set for March 20

In honor of Jewish Disabilities Awareness Month, Shaare Tefila Congregation will present a talk by Kim Musheno, director of legislative affairs for the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD).

The talk will take place on March 20 during religious services, which begin at 9 a.m. Services are held at the Olney Theatre, 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road.

As legislative director for AUCD, Musheno designs and implements the association's public policy agenda and works to improve federal laws that help people with developmental and other disabilities live independently in their own community.

She recently traveled around the world, visiting with community leaders, government leaders, families and individuals with disabilities in such places as Ghana, Dubai, Nepal and Thailand. She will offer an understanding of the state of individuals with disabilities in other countries.

For further information, call Donna Meltzer at 301-593-8549.

If you have an interesting note about the people and the events of our community, send it to Terri Hogan, Staff Writer, The Olney Gazette, 9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, Md. 20877, or e-mail it to thogan@gazette.net. Our fax numbers are 301-670-7182 or 301-670-7183. Deadline is 5 p.m. Thursday for consideration for the following week. All items are subject to space availability.