IN BRIEF

Thursday, March 6, 2008

Girls' Hockey Clinic

The Calvert High School Field Hockey team, in conjunction with the Calvert County Parks and Recreation Department, will offer a four-week field hockey clinic for girls in grades three through eight during April.

The clinic will meet from 2 to 5 p.m. on Sundays at Calvert High School. Instruction will be provided by coaching staff and players from the school, along with current college players from the area.

Participants will be shown the basic skills of the game, including ball handling, hits and stops, game strategy and rules, strength and conditioning, and offensive and defensive techniques. No experience is necessary.

The 12-hour clinic costs $65 per player and each player will need a mouth guard, shin guards and a water bottle. Field hockey sticks will be available to borrow for the clinic.

If interested, contact the Parks and Recreation office at 410-535-1600 or 301-855-1243, Ext. 2227 or 2229, or visit the Web site for online registration at https://webtrac.co.cal.md.us. The clinic's activity number for registration is 441820A.

Smoke-Free Primer

As the state implements the Clean Indoor Air Act of 2007, the St. Mary's County Health Department is offering help and information for businesses and citizens who have questions or concerns about the smoke-free legislation took effect last month.

The new law prohibits smoking in indoor areas open to the public, such as bars and restaurants. A tool kit on compliance is available from the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene on the Web site http://www.mdcleanair.org. There also is a state Help Line, 1-866-703-3266. Tool kits will also be available at the health department.

Reports of smoking violations will be investigated within 72 hours of receiving the call, the St. Mary's Health Department said in a statement. The experience of other jurisdictions that have gone smoke-free have shown that most businesses are able to comply with little difficulty, the department said.

Information about how business owners may apply for a waiver to the law, and the waiver application also are available on the Web site and at the health department. For more information, call the department at 301-475-4330.

For Archaeology Buffs

The Charles County Archaeological Society will hold its first meeting at the train station in La Plata on Tuesday from 7:30 to 9 p.m.

After a brief business session, cemetery researcher and restoration expert Scott Lawrence will discuss his work on several historic graveyards in the region.

The society is a newly formed chapter of the statewide Archaeological Society of Maryland. It is open to all and will offer members and guests monthly illustrated presentations and opportunities to work with professional archaeologists at Port Tobacco and other sites in the county.

Auditions for Theater

The Newtowne Players have scheduled auditions for "Red Dog Dirt," an original one-act play written by Russ Barnes and directed by Wendy Heidrich.

Auditions will be held at the new Room with a Brew Monday through Wednesday. For additional information or to schedule an audition, contact Wendy Heidrich at 301-481-2617, call Room With a Brew coffee house in Leonardtown at 301-475-8811, or send e-mail to heidrichwndy@aol.com.

The play is about growing up in a small town in the 1950s. There are two main adult characters, and two main child characters, one male and one female in each age group. Excerpts from the script will be used for auditions.

The show will be performed onstage April 10-13 at the Three-Notch Theatre in Lexington Park. The "Red Dog Dirt" production then will tour six locations within the mid-Atlantic states. The tour is being organized through an alliance with Good Measure Productions in Rockville.

Summer Camp Sign-Up

Registration for St. Mary's County summer camps begins March 19 and will remain open as long as space is available.

This year's camping categories include sports camps, day camps, pre-teen camps and new horizon camps. New this year are specialty camps in arts and crafts, outdoor camps and dodgeball camp.

Camps begin the week of June 16 and run in one-week sessions through the summer, ending Aug. 8.

For additional information, visit the Department of Recreation, Parks and Community Services' Web site at http://www.stmarysmd.com/recreate or call 301-475-4200, Ext. 1800.

Bluegrass Concert

The last bluegrass concert of the season at the American Legion Post 238 in Hughesville is scheduled March 30.

The event also offers a spaghetti dinner, served at noon, with the show starting at 2 p.m.

Scheduled to perform:

¿ Travers Chandler & Avery County, a new touring band of seasoned professional musicians described by show organizers as playing in the style of pioneers of the Baltimore/D.C. bluegrass scene of the 1960s.

¿ Tom Mindte and the Patuxent Partners, a traditional group featuring the high lonesome bluegrass sound.

Tickets will be sold at the door, separately for the show and the dinner. For the music, tickets are $12. Children under 12 will be admitted free with a paid adult. Tickets for the dinner are $6 per person. The Legion hall is at the intersection of Routes 231 and 381.

Health Fair

The 32nd Calvert County Health Fair is scheduled at the Calvert Pines Senior Center on March 28 and 29, from 8:30 a.m. to noon.

Area health professionals will provide screenings and educational exhibits for adults 18 and older. Demonstrations will offer information on yoga, chiropractic and sleep disorders. Experts will answer questions on diabetes, general health and drugs.

Appointments are being accepted for free screenings for skin cancer, vascular disease and prostate cancer. An appointment is also needed for cholesterol testing with a metabolic screen, which costs $30 for a study of 13 substances found in the blood in addition to HDL, LDL, total cholesterol, triglycerides and a glucose test. A blood type test and complete blood count cost $5 each.

For appointments for any of the above, call the KeepWell Center at Calvert Memorial Hospital at 410-535-8233 or 301-855-1012, Ext. 8233.

-- Compiled by TOM LANSWORTH