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As students at Walt Whitman High School, Anirudh "Rudi" Sarna and Melissa Kallas didn't consider themselves the types to be named homecoming king and queen. But the 2006 graduates from the Bethesda high school were recently awarded with the University of Maryland, College Park's equivalent of those titles, the Spirit of Maryland Awards.

The awards are given to one man and one woman in the senior class who personify the "spirit of Maryland" through their involvement in various aspects of campus life. Students are nominated for the awards by staff, faculty and other students and following an application process, five men and five women are chosen as finalists. The winners were announced on Oct. 17 during the Terrapins' homecoming football game.

"I think I speak for both of us when I say we were shocked," said Sarna, who is pursuing a double degree in finance and economics.

Kallas and Sarna were chosen by a campus-wide committee for their combination of academic skills, community service, involvement on campus and interview, said Joe Calizo, assistant director for engagement at the Adele H. Stamp Student Union-Center for Campus Life.

"I never thought it would happen," Kallas said. "At least in high school, every girl wants to be homecoming queen, but I wasn't that girl. [Winning] is a shock and an honor and makes me really happy, but also I hope it makes others feel like they can go for it because it's not just about an award, it's about all the experiences."

She is pursuing a dual degree in Marketing and Supply Chain Management.

Both students said they came to the university looking to find themselves and to make a positive impact on campus. They each dove into leadership roles around campus, starting their freshman year. Kallas is president of Student Entertainment Events, the event programming board at the University, and the vice president of Omicron Delta Kappa. Sarna is finishing up his fourth year as a resident assistant, and is also serving as Chief Justice on the Student Government Association's Governance Board.

Sarna and Kallas said the supportive teachers at Whitman gave them a strong foundation to build on for their achievements.

"We're both proud Vikings," Sarna said.

Scares for young

and old this Halloween

Get ready for ghosts, goblins and ghouls at the Clara Barton Community Center this Halloween. The third annual Haunted House is slated for 3 to 5 p.m., Saturday, at the center, located at 7425 MacArthur Blvd. in Cabin John. The event is free and hosted by the Friends of the Clara Barton Community Center and the Montgomery County Department of Recreation. All are welcome, but the spooky afternoon is most appropriate for children age 12 and over. Young children should be accompanied by adults.

Refreshments will be available for all, and a separate section for adults will feature frightening attractions. For more information about the event, call the Clara Barton Community Center at 301-299-0010. To help out with set-up or refreshments, or to act as a costumed host, contact Burr Gray at 703-607-2740 or burrgray@aol.com.

Be a runner this Halloween

School has been in session for a couple of months now, but the community is just gearing up for the annual Somerset Elementary Back-to-School Classic race.

The 8K and 2K road races and a kids' fun run will be held at 9 a.m., Saturday. The starting point is near the corner of Dorset and Warwick, just north of Friendship Heights, off of Wisconsin Avenue.

Costumes are encouraged for the Halloween event, which will include cash prizes for the top finishers as well as other prizes including an iPod Nano, a bicycle, a diamond necklace and gift certificates. The entry fee is $25 for adults and $15 for children 18 and under. Register online, or get more information at www.run

washington.com/news/342.

Proceeds from the race go toward scholarships for after-school programs for Somerset Elementary students, building the school's library collection and classroom resources.

Science fiction

double feature

The time warp is again being done at Kensington's Town Hall, which has transformed into the lair of Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the Kensington Arts Theatre's production of "The Rocky Horror Show."

Devotees of the movie version know the vampy side show musical about an innocent couple that seeks help for a vehicle breakdown at the home of a mad transvestite is highly participatory, with audience members frequently adding lines and props in what becomes a sort of mutual performance.

Such behavior will be encouraged too at the KAT production, but for cleanup and safety reasons the cast asks that would-be toilet-paper hurlers and rain makers to leave their own bag of tricks at home, and spring instead for "goodie bags" at the show. Kids should also be left at home, folks. "The Rocky Horror Show," unlike Janet Weiss and Brad Majors, is not wholesome.

The show will run Friday, Saturday and Sunday, including a midnight showing on Halloween, and then into November on Nov. 6, 7, 8 and 12, 13 and 14. Tickets are $20, or $13 for Kensington residents and $17 for seniors and students. To buy tickets and for show times, visit www.katonline.org.

Haunted stories

Local storyteller Ellouise Schoettler will give listeners the chills at the 10th Annual Haunts and Stuff special, where Schoettler will tell her collection of creepy stories.

The free event for adults is at 7:30 tonight at the Friendship Heights Village Community Center, 4433 S. Park Drive, Chevy Chase.

Give unused bikes a new life

Need to clear some space in the garage? Donate no-longer-wanted bicycles for shipment to community development programs overseas through a Bikes for the World collection taking place from 10 to 11:30 a.m., Sunday, at Temple Shalom, 8401 Grubb Road, Chevy Chase.

Volunteers from Temple Shalom will collect the bikes and prepare them for shipping to development projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America, where they will be refurbished and given to low-income workers and students in need of affordable transportation.

Bikes for the World, a project of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association, sponsors community bike drives to rescue used bicycles. Since 1995 the Bikes for the World network has collected more than 60,000 bicycles in the Washington-Baltimore area. Bikes for the World is on target to match last's year's record of more than 10,000 bikes collected.

A tax-deductible $10 per bike donation is requested to defray a portion of costs. Adult and children's bikes will be accepted, as well as sewing machines and bicycle parts, accessories and tools. Mountain and hybrid bikes are especially needed.

For further information on Bikes for the World, visit www.bikesforthe

world.org, or call Keith Oberg at 703-525-0931.

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For Bethesda and Chevy Chase items, contact Stephanie Siegel via e-mail at ssiegel@gazette.net or phone at 301-280-3006. For Kensington and Garrett Park items, contact Jen Beasley via e-mail at jbeasley@gazette.net or phone at 301-280-3005. You can also send information by fax at 301-670-7183, or snail mail at 9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, MD 20877.