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Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) Featured Speaker at Legislative Luncheon

January 22, 2019 by Leave a Comment

The Legislative Luncheon will take place on January 25, 2019, noon to 2 p.m at Miller Senate Building, Presidents Conference Center West, 11 Bladen Street, Annapolis.

The guest speaker is U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD). Also present are the Rural Maryland Council, rural leaders, legislators and government officials.

Maryland is currently experiencing a short-term budget surplus for Fiscal Year 2020. However, budget deficits are projected for Fiscal Year 2021, which are anticipated to grow to almost $1.4 billion by Fiscal Year 2024. With this looming deficit on the horizon and the fact that according to the Maryland Department of Legislative Services, Maryland economic growth has underperformed with employment growth of 0.8% in the first half of 2018, the Rural Maryland Council has established 2019 legislative priorities including:

• Advocating for continued funding for Rural Maryland Prosperity Investment Fund (RMPIF) to address disparities in unemployment and poverty rates in Maryland’s rural communities;
• Encouraging rural economic development in the form of tax credits;
• Supporting the recommendations offered by the Task Force on Rural Internet, Broadband, Wireless and Cellular Service;
• Creating viable Agriculture, Aquaculture, Forestry & Rural Communities by supporting programs and policies that will sustain and enhance agricultural production and agritourism; and
• Addressing the shortage of health care professionals by supporting efforts to enable and expand telehealth to provide access to preventative and critical care services in rural areas.

Founded in 1994, the Rural Maryland Council (RMC) is an independent state agency that brings together rural leaders, government officials at all levels, and the representatives of the non-profit and for-profit sectors to develop public policy solutions to the challenges unique to rural Maryland. RMC operates under the direction of a 40-member executive board in a nonpartisan and nondiscriminatory manner. It serves as the state’s federally designated rural development council and functions as a voice for rural Maryland, advocating for and helping rural communities and businesses across the state to flourish and to gain equity to its suburban and urban counterparts.  To learn more, call (410) 841-5774, email rmc.mda@maryland.gov or connect with RMC at facebook.com/RuralMaryland or on Twitter @RuralMaryland.

Filed Under: Maryland Politics & Policy

Bible Talks at St. Michaels Family YMCA to Start February 3

January 20, 2019 by Leave a Comment

Bible Talks will be held at St. Michaels Family YMCA (1013 S. Talbot Street, St. Michaels, MD 21663) on Sundays at 3:30pm Feb 3, 10 & 17.

The purpose of these services is to encourage genuine interest in the Scriptures and to point from them a way of life that never fails and has not changed with time and circumstance. The speakers, Deborah Wentz, Margaret Long and Audrey Fuller, are without denominational affiliation, but they are in fellowship with a world wide body of Christians, who believe in following the instructions of the New Testament for their ministry and worship. They take no collections, tithes or salaries and distribute no literature. All are welcome to attend these services, which are quiet, reverent and upholding Jesus Christ as the example for all. For more information or questions, please call (717) 513-6027.

Please note that use of the YMCA facilities does not imply endorsement or sponsorship of the event or the group by the YMCA.

Filed Under: Homepage Notes, Portal Notes

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan Releases FY 2020 Budget

January 19, 2019 by Leave a Comment

Gov. Larry Hogan, R, this week released a $44.6 billion state budget for the upcoming 2020 fiscal year, fortifying his objectives for the 2019 General Assembly session — education, economic growth, health, state employees, transportation and the environment — into writing.

The budget grew 4 percent over last year, and includes $19.6 billion for operating expenses.

At a press conference on Thursday, Hogan said he made a record investment of $6.9 billion for Maryland’s K-12 education, and has set aside $438 million in a “Building Opportunity Fund,” a $3.5 billion five-year school construction program.

Maryland senators and delegates said based on the budget highlights, many of the priorities of the legislature were funded as they liked.

Senate President Mike Miller, D-Prince George’s, Charles and Calvert, said a proposed salary increase for state employees and correctional officers, money for retirement relief, and provisions for much-needed facilities in some areas of the state were all good things.

“Obviously there’s going to be changes (to the budget),” Miller said Friday. “But the initial reflections … is that it’s a very positive budget.”

Hogan said he ignored formulaic recommendations to decrease some school funding and instead raised money for all jurisdictions in Maryland.

“Every single penny that every single jurisdiction anticipates from the state for education (will) be funded at 100 percent,” Hogan said Thursday.

The budget sets aside $56.5 million for a tax credit to be given to businesses that expand in “Opportunity Zones,” or low-income areas.

“More businesses are open and more people are working than ever before,” Hogan said.

In addition, he said that Marylanders should be allowed to deduct 100 percent of interest paid on student loans for income tax returns.

Hogan said no new taxes were implemented for the fifth year in a row, and all state employees will receive at least a 3 percent raise, including members of the AFSCME trade union who Hogan said refused to negotiate.

He said these proposals were made with the goal of easing tax burdens on hardworking families and individuals.

Transportation expenditures rose 4 percent, with a total of $3.3 billion funding the state’s transportation network.

$1.7 billion of support went to state highways, $221 million to the Purple Line, and $167 million to improvements for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.

Hogan said Program Open Space, a initiative that works to restore the Chesapeake Bay, would return to full funding of $62.6 million.

However, total expenditures for natural resources and the environment fell 5 percent since last year, to about $1.03 billion.

Hogan said “fiscal discipline” and “belt-tightening” have been and will be the priority for his budgets, and warned against reckless spending.

$1.3 billion were put in reserves in the case that the state faces an economic downturn.

“We want to remain vigilant about maintaining savings,” said Hogan. “That is what our budget has once again accomplished.”

Funding for health remained the same at $14.6 billion, with $1.3 billion for the developmentally disabled and about $250 million for those with substance use disorders.

In the budget, revenues across the board are expected to rise an average of 2 percent, though lottery and other special funds are expected to bring in $172 million less.

However, Miller said there was not enough money set aside for the city of Baltimore.

He said the city has a major crime problem, with a lack of funding for police officers and an “embarrassing” response time of 15 minutes.

“People need respect, they need their properties to be protected,” said Miller. “They need their personal lives to be protected, and we’re not doing that in Baltimore City.”

House Majority Leader Kathleen Dumais, D-Montgomery, said she was happy to see the increase in salary for state employees, but said she hopes more correctional officers will be hired.

She said the budget funded many legislative priorities, but that “the devil would be in the details,” after she had read more than just the highlights.

Delegate Maggie McIntosh, D-Baltimore, said the Kirwan Commission — a panel nicknamed for its chairman and charged with developing educational improvements — had asked for $325 million, but only received $200 million.

House Minority Whip Kathy Szeliga, R-Baltimore and Harford counties, had no criticisms of the proposal, and said Hogan presented a balanced budget that fully funds education and other priorities.

“It should diminish partisan rancor over the budget, that is our only constitutionally mandated duty,” said Szeliga.

Here is a look at some additional highlights:
–$1.45 billion was provided to the University System of Maryland, with a focus on S.T.E.M. programs.
–$11.5 billion for Maryland’s Medicaid program
–Correctional officers receive a 4 percent raise.
–Doubles funds available as tax credit for zero-emissions vehicles from $3 million to $6 million.

Filed Under: Maryland Politics & Policy

Compass Welcomes Medical Director, Readies for Palliative Care Program Launch

January 19, 2019 by Leave a Comment

Dr. Thomas Walsh

Compass Regional Hospice welcomed its full-time chief medical director, Dr. Thomas Walsh, on Jan. 1, and is preparing to launch its new Compass Palliative Care Program at the beginning of February.

“It is with great pride that we have hired Dr. Tom Walsh as our full-time chief medical director,” said Compass Regional Hospice Executive Director Heather Guerieri. “In addition to now taking on a full-time role with us, he will be leading our newest program, Compass Palliative Care. We will be taking our first referrals for this program on Feb. 4.”

Dr. Thomas Walsh of Queenstown recently retired from his practice with Maryland Primary Care Physicians at the end of 2018 to take on the role of full-time chief medical director with Compass Regional Hospice, effective Jan. 1, 2019. Walsh has been the chief medical director for Compass Regional Hospice since March 2017, working contractually.

Walsh received his Bachelor of Science, magna cum laude, from Benedictine University in Illinois in 1974. He is a 1978 graduate of Rush University’s Rush Medical College in Chicago and completed his residency in family medicine at the University of Maryland Hospital in Baltimore from 1978 to 1981. He has practiced medicine since 1981, first in Anne Arundel County, and has been practicing in Queen Anne’s County since 1988. He was a founding partner and former board member of Maryland Primary Care Physicians and, prior to his retirement, served as the clinical director for its Queenstown site.

“As a family physician, I had the opportunity to be involved in the lives of patients and their families from birth until death,” Walsh said. “My nearly 40 years of medical practice has given me the privilege of caring for thousands of people. End-of-life care has always been an especially important part of my work.”

Walsh also is a Queen Anne’s County Orphan’s Court judge and he is a former member of the Maryland Board of Physicians’ licensing, disciplinary and regulatory board.

“My involvement with Compass Regional Hospice as its chief medical director has given me the chance to be front and center with patients and families when it comes to end-of-life care. I am looking forward to this new role, and I know this partnership will continue to make me a better doctor and a better person,” Walsh said.

Walsh said he and the Compass Regional Hospice team look forward to the Feb. 4 launch of the Compass Palliative Care Program, which will be offered as a home care service to anyone who is dealing with a serious illness and has received a terminal diagnosis or life-expectancy of one year or less.

“I am looking forward to the launch of Compass Regional Hospice’s community palliative care program because it will give our team the opportunity to help more people who are living with and dealing with a serious illness, but are not yet ready for hospice services,” Walsh said. “The services we will be providing will help ensure that no one has to deal with the challenges of living with a serious illness alone.”

Compass Regional Hospice’s Director of Clinical Services, Dr. Holly Hayman, said palliative care is defined by Compass Regional Hospice as “the comprehensive care and management of the physical, psychological, emotional and spiritual needs of patients (of all ages) and their families with a serious and/or life-threatening illness. Palliative Care may be complimentary to curative or life-prolonging therapies that are being used to meet patient-defined goals of care.”

“We are very excited to offer the community-based Compass Palliative Care Program to provide additional medical care for individuals in the community with a life-limiting illness who do not qualify for hospice services,” Hayman said. “The program will provide patients with an additional level of coordinated care to better manage the challenges they face while living with a serious illness. Home visits will be provided by our palliative care physician and a social worker, which will assist the patient’s current medical team with symptom management related to the life-limiting illness.”

To learn more about hospice and palliative care services, or grief support services, available through Compass Regional Hospice, please contact Haymanat 443-262-4104 or hhayman@compassregionalhospice.org.

Compass Regional Hospice – Care on your terms

Compass Regional Hospice is a fully licensed, independent, community-based nonprofit organization certified by Medicare and the state of Maryland and accredited by the Joint Commission. Since 1985, Compass Regional Hospice has been dedicated to supporting people of all ages through the challenge of living with a serious illness and learning to live following the death of a loved one. Today, the organization is a regional provider of hospice care and grief support in Queen Anne’s, Kent and Caroline counties. “Care on your terms” is the promise that guides staff and volunteers as they care for patients in private residences, nursing homes, assisted living facilities and the residential hospice centers in Centreville and Chestertown. Grief support services are offered to children, adults and families of patients who died under hospice care, as well as members of the community who are grieving the loss of a loved one. For more information about Compass Regional Hospice, visit compassregionalhospice.org.

Filed Under: Homepage Notes, Portal Notes

Diners and Bowls Needed for Talbot County Empty Bowls Community Dinner

January 18, 2019 by Leave a Comment

Kiln Born bowl painting

Tickets for the 11th annual Talbot County Empty Bowls community dinner, scheduled for Sunday, February 24, 2019, are now on sale. The first seating at 5:00 pm sold out quickly. Tickets are still available for the second seating at 6:30pm. The dinner will be held at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Easton.

A ticket to the Talbot County Empty Bowls dinner is $20, which includes soup made by local restaurants and volunteer “soupers.” Bread and cookies round out the menu. Diners take home the hand-painted bowl in which their soup is served as a reminder that someone else’s bowl is often empty.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.talbotcountyemptybowls.org (a credit card processing fee is charged) or by sending a check to Mid-Shore Community Foundation, 102 E. Dover Street, Easton, MD 21601.  Make checks payable to “MSCF – Empty Bowls” and include your phone number and email address.

Thanks to the generosity of volunteers and sponsors, every penny raised from dinner ticket sales and donations is given to food pantries and other organizations committed to serving the hungry in Talbot County. The beneficiaries of the 2019 Talbot County Empty Bowls fundraising initiatives are: Asbury Methodist Church, Easton; Care Packs, Easton; Christ Church St. Michaels Food Pantry; Harvest of Hope Food Pantry, Easton; Neighborhood Service Center, Easton; Presbyterian Church, Easton; St. Vincent de Paul Society, Easton; Scotts United Methodist Church, Trappe; Tilghman Island Food Pantry; and Union United Methodist Church, St. Michaels.

A collection of bowls in which soup is served at the community dinner are made by local potters and high school art students. The majority of the bowls are painted by Empty Bowls supporters at Kiln Born Creations located at 1 S. Washington Street in Easton. The studio fee for bowls painted for Empty Bowls is $15 plus tax. For no additional charge Kiln Born also provides “To Go” boxes filled with unpainted bowls and a selection of paint colors for groups that want to host a bowl painting party at another location.

Bowls painted through Kiln Born are donated for the Empty Bowls dinner along with a portion of the studio fee. The last day to paint bowls for the 2019 Talbot County Empty Bowls dinner is February 14. Call Kiln Born at 410-770-9091 or visit kilnborncreations.com for more information.

“Many of the Empty Bowls community dinner guests have been attending this event for years,” says Anna Harding, the founder of Talbot County Empty Bowls. “Anyone who has an abundance of bowls from past Empty Bowls dinners can bring their surplus bowls to the dinner on February 24. We will recycle these bowls by giving them to people who attend the Community Resource Fair hosted by the Talbot County Hunger Coalition in April.”

Donations to Talbot County Empty Bowls are accepted year round through the Mid-Shore Community Foundation. Make credit card payments atwww.mscf.org. (Specify Talbot County Empty Bowls as the fund under “Additional Information.”) Mail checks payable to Talbot County Empty Bowls to Mid-Shore Community Foundation, 102 E. Dover Street, Easton, MD 21601.

Visit www.TalbotCountyEmptyBowls.org and like Talbot County Empty Bowls on Facebook to learn more about how to participate in ending hunger in Talbot County.

Filed Under: Homepage Notes, Portal Notes

Aerial Fabric Workshop Coming to the Oxford Community Center

January 18, 2019 by Leave a Comment

Kerianne Hinerman

The New Year brings new commitments to health and wellness. The Oxford Community Center’s quest to enrich lives led them to try the latest trend in exercise, Aerial fabrics. Aerial fabric exercise is also referred to as aerial contortion, aerial ribbons, aerial silks, aerial ribbon and is an exercise when the fabric is used to wrap, spiral, swing, fall or suspend their bodies in and out of a variety of positions. The main tricks in aerial silks are climbs, wraps and drops which have become all the rage in exercise classes.

Aerial fabric classes are not just a great way to have fun and learn new skills, but they also provide a range of unexpected health benefits. Your figure, your health and your mood can be improved through regular participation in aerial activities. The top three benefits are listed below.

1. Strengthened Muscles. Aerial exercises make your body work more intensively because gravity is working harder on your body than usual. Aerial activities look very graceful and effortless but they allow significant energy expenditure. Aerial silks are especially great for improving upper body strength – it’s one of the best ab workouts around. Great news is that aerial silk workouts count as cardio too while providing strength-building benefits. This makes aerial silks a great form of exercise to improve upper body strength and to aid weight loss.

2. Greater Flexibility with Zero-impact. Aerial classes are the perfect way to increase the range of movements possible although being easy on the joints. As your body weight is taken off the ground, injury to the joints are less likely than weight bearing exercise such as running. So, if you have knee or back problems adding such a low-impact workout will work great for you. When you have freedom of movement, you can move your body into new positions to provide stretching that goes beyond the muscles to tendons and ligaments, helping to prevent injuries. This can result in a deeper and more fulfilling stretch than traditional gym workouts offer.

3. Better Focus and Stress Relief. Aerial silks put you in some challenging situations, so you are likely to concentrate harder. The joy of knowing that you did something new and amazing makes you feel good about yourself, increase your self-confidence and self-esteem. Aerial silk classes are one of the best mind-body activities that reduce stress – after a class you’ll walk away feeling Zen. Aerial silks instill a sense of freedom as you sail through the air and at the same time you receive an adrenaline rush from this.

You will be excited to find a form of exercise that is so playful! Aerial silk classes will make you feel free and creative while increasing your strength, improving your body and boosting your self-esteem.

Kerianne Hinerman is an aerial artist with years of experience teaching.  She will be offering a six week Beginner Aerial Fabric Workshop on Tuesdays at 10:00 am starting January 29th.  This one hour beginning aerial fabric workshop is designed to introduce you to movement with, in, and around the fabric.  Aerial fabric is soft and suspends you in a very gentle, forgiving way. The class will focus on stretching, strengthening, and full body awareness.  Each session will begin with a warm up including stretching and upper body/abdominal strengthening followed by basic aerial work that includes knot work, swinging, floating, and learning various poses, all assisted and performed low to the ground. The beginning aerial fabric class will accommodate people that have the desire to get a gentle full-body workout and stretch.

Try something new!  This class is designed to include all ages, abilities, body types, and lifestyles.  Anyone can do it!  You won’t believe that getting some exercise could be so much fun!

Workshop runs for six weeks on Tuesdays (1/29 – 3/5) from 10:00-11:00 am.  Cost is $120 per participant with a maximum of six participants.

OCC invites the public to come to a free open house with Kerianne to see her demonstrate and answer any questions you may have about the aerial fabric exercise. The free open house is Friday, January 25th at 10:00 AM.

OCC offers free and low cost programs throughout the year thanks to the generous annual fund donors and events. 63% of all events are offered for free. The money raised by the health programs goes directly towards serving our greater community with new educational programs, after school activities for kids, national speakers, concerts and more. To reserve your spot, visit oxfordcc.org or call 410-226-5904. The OCC is a non-profit organization focused on education and enrichment.

Filed Under: Homepage Notes, Portal Notes

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan Inaugurated for Second Term

January 18, 2019 by Leave a Comment

Beating non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma into remission and being the first Maryland Republican governor elected for a second term since 1954 is no small feat.

But Gov. Larry Hogan will continue to work against the odds this legislative season, with Democrats maintaining a supermajority in the Maryland House and Senate.

Regardless, Hogan has previously touted his bipartisanship, and Wednesday’s inauguration was no different.

Cold reporters huddled together on the State House steps for a press conference with Hogan in the morning.

An excited governor said then he was excited, humbled and ready for the challenges ahead.

Hogan said after his swearing in that in this term, he plans to continue the harder work of putting the people’s priorities before partisan interests.

“Do the right thing, and the politics will work itself out,” said Hogan.

Much of Hogan’s speech took jabs at the federal government’s inability to compromise.

“Heat, finger-pointing and rancor suffocates the light,” said Hogan. “That’s not politics, that’s political theater.”

Hogan said instead of putting on a show, over the next four years he will strive to be moderate, find compromise, and encourage a government that will work together to find bipartisan solutions.

“I still believe that what unites us is stronger than what divides us,” Hogan said.

Maryland Lt. Gov Boyd Rutherford addressed that divide after being sworn in.

He said four years ago, he and Hogan had pledged they would be different from past administrations; they would serve as one executive power with the same agenda.

Hogan signaled his willingness to reach across the aisle by having Isiah “Ike” Leggett, former Montgomery County executive, make the opening statement.

“This inauguration is not an ordinary event,” Leggett said. “It is the official recognition and acceptance of the people of Maryland.”

Leggett was the first black Montgomery County executive and served for 12 years, until 2018.
Jeb Bush, 2016 GOP candidate and former governor of Florida, said Hogan’s governance contrasted the gridlock and dysfunction in Washington.

“There’s not a lot of people I would leave paradise for,” said Bush, referencing warm weather in Florida, “but Larry Hogan is at the top of that list.”

In standing by one of President Donald Trump’s former Republican rivals, Hogan further distances himself from the conflict between parties on Capitol Hill.

During his last term, Hogan said he worked with Democrats to pass legislation on health care, transportation, the Chesapeake Bay and fracking.

Now for his second term, Hogan said he is focusing on four areas: Education, economic opportunity, crime and redistricting.

Hogan wants to relieve student debt, reduce taxes on small businesses, raise sentences for firearm offenders and drunken drivers as well as create a nonpartisan redistricting process, according to his 2019 legislative proposals.

But he may face significant opposition in the state House and Senate, especially after eight House Republicans were ousted for Democrats in the 2018 elections.

Maryland Delegate Anne Kaiser, D-Montgomery, said Hogan often talks up his bipartisanship but does not always work with Democrats.

Kaiser told Capital News Service that over the last four years, Hogan “advanced our agenda or signed off on it at the end, and claimed it as his own.”

Kaiser said she is curious to see what Hogan’s vision for the next four years will be, but said the House will provide for the working class no matter his plans.

Even with a House and Senate with the power to veto his decisions, Hogan still holds a 67.3 percent favorable opinion among Marylanders, according to an October 2018 Gonzales poll (https://www.realclearpolitics.com/docs/Gonzales_Maryland_Poll_-_October_2018.pdf).

Queenstown, Maryland, resident Michael Parsons, 49, a Republican, said Hogan is “one of the most likable politicians you’ll ever meet.”

Parsons said Hogan found ways to pass good economic policy and improve business, even with a Republican minority in the House and Senate.

Jay Walton, 37, a Republican from Dundalk, Maryland, said he was particularly impressed by Hogan’s steps toward improving education.

“He’s trying to hold education officials more accountable,” said Walton.

Walton was just appointed to Hogan’s P-20 Leadership Council of Maryland, a schools-business partnership that aims to prepare students entering the workforce.

Melinda Craig, 68, a Republican from Havre de Grace, Maryland, said Hogan is well-liked and well-loved in all counties, and that he truly cares about the people and the state.

“You can’t get anything done if you’re not for everyone,” said Craig.

Michele Cordle, 58, a Republican from Annapolis, Maryland, said it is Hogan’s ability to put aside partisanism that makes both Republicans and Democrats love him.

“He has some challenges, but like anything that Larry faces, he’s going to take on the challenge,” said Cordle.

Filed Under: Maryland Politics & Policy

Upcoming Programming at the Library January 28 to February 2

January 16, 2019 by Leave a Comment

Read with Latte, a Certified Therapy Dog, at the Easton Library

On Monday, January 28, at 4:00 p.m., the Easton branch of the Talbot County Free Library invites children 5 and older to bring a book or choose one from the library’s shelves to read with Janet Dickey and her dog, Latte.  All library programs are free and open to the public.  Patrons do not need to pre-register to attend this program.  For more information, please call the library at 410-822-1626, or visit www.tcfl.org.

Contact:  Laura Powell, telephone: 410-822-1626

Easton Library Book Group to Discuss “And the Mountains Echoed” by Khaled Hosseini

On Monday, January 28, at 6:00 p.m., in the Easton branch of the Talbot County Free Library, the Easton Book Group will discuss “And the Mountains Echoed” by acclaimed New York Times best-selling author Khaled Hosseini.  All library programs are free and open to the public.  Patrons do not need to pre-register to attend this program.  For more information, please call the library at 410-822-1626, or visit www.tcfl.org.

Contact: Bill Peak, telephone: 410-822-1626

Easton Library to Host Cabin Fever Film Festival on Winter Saturdays at One O’clock

On Saturday, February 2, at 1:00 p.m., the Easton branch of the Talbot County Free Library, as part of its Winter Cabin Fever Film Festival, will show an award-winning Sci-Fi film on the library’s big, professional screen.  The movie, which was released in 2018, is rated PG-13.  All library programs are free and open to the public.  Patrons do not need to pre-register to attend this film.  For more information (including the title of this film which, due to licensing requirements, we cannot publicize here), please call the library at 410-822-1626, or visit www.tcfl.org.

Contact: Scotti Oliver, telephone: 410-822-1626

Filed Under: Homepage Notes, Portal Notes

Talbot Arts Council Invites Grant Requests for Arts Programs

January 15, 2019 by Leave a Comment

The Talbot County Arts Council invites applications for Community Arts Development Grants to support arts projects and programs during July 2019 to June 2020.  The cutoff date for grant applications is March 31, and organizations selected will be notified by April 30.

Applications are judged on the basis of the artistic merit of the proposed arts activities, the perceived ability of the applying organization to carry them out, and how well the program will serve the residents and guests of Talbot County.  Because the Arts Council receives more grant requests than can be accommodated by available resources, it retains the right to accept or reject applications, suggest changes, and support grant requests in full, in part, or not at all.

As required by the Maryland State Arts Council, local grant awards must be matched on at least a one-for-one basis in cash by the requesting organization. Applicants must be organized as Maryland non-profit corporations with IRS tax-exempt status, or be government-related entities such as libraries or parks and recreation departments.  Organizations that would like additional information about CAD Grants, or assistance with the application procedure, are welcome to contact the Arts Council by phone or email.

The Arts Council is offering a workshop on CAD Grant preparation to which the public is invited.  The workshop will be held at 7 pm, Tuesday, January 29, at the Arts Council office in the county complex at 215 Bay Street in Easton.  Anyone interested in attending should advise the Arts Council in advance.

Grants to public and private schools in Talbot County under the Arts-in-Education Program are handled separately.  That announcement will be made in mid-August for programs during the next school year.  Mini-grants up to $500 for new arts organizations or initiatives may be requested at any time, with grants considered in the month following their submission.

CAD Grant information is being sent directly to organizations that received grants during the past two years.  Packets are also available for downloading from the Arts Council=s website: www.talbotarts.org. For further information, contact the Talbot County Arts Council by phone 410-310-9812 or email gearly@talbotarts.org.

Filed Under: Homepage Notes, Portal Notes

Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum selected to build Maryland Dove

January 11, 2019 by Leave a Comment

The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum has officially been selected to build a new Maryland Dove, a representation of the late 17th-century trading ship that accompanied the first European settlers to what is now Maryland. Maryland Dove is owned by the state of Maryland and operated and maintained by the Historic St. Mary’s City Commission.

“HSMC and CBMM are natural partners in this project,” said Regina Faden, Executive Director at Historic St. Mary’s City. “It fulfills both our missions and delivers a new Dove to tell the story of (early) Maryland.”

Maryland Dove is Historic St. Mary’s City’s floating ambassador and one of its most popular exhibits. The goal of the new ship design is to be as close to the 1634 original as possible, including features that were not known when Maryland Dove was built in 1978.

Ship design work will commence in January 2019, and construction is anticipated to begin at CBMM by mid-year. The launch of the new Maryland Dove is targeted for 2021. All work will be done in full public view, allowing the public to experience every stage of the project.

“We are thrilled and honored to have been selected to build a new Maryland Dove,” said CBMM President Kristen Greenaway. “Over the course of the next few years, our shipwrights and apprentices will build a historically accurate replacement to the existing ship, and we welcome guests to be a part of the construction and education experience.”

Filed Under: Homepage Highlights, Portal Highlights
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