More News

The doors of a longtime downtown Frederick business closed on Saturday, as Jon Thames, owner of Thames Fine Arts and Framing retires to Roanoke, Va.

Thames owned the shop at 30 E. Patrick St., for 20 years, though he started his business selling fine art and framing in 1983. The store closed its doors on Saturday.

"It just seemed the right thing at the right time," Thames said, "but, I love Frederick; I love the downtown and all of the progress it's made in 20 years."

While the sign on the shop's window reads, "Retiring, Gone fishing," Thames said that he will still stay in the business by joining another art and framing shop in Virginia. And yes, he will do some fishing, too.

He said he has been considering closing the shop since about November, and the job offer plus an interested renter in the shop's location sealed the deal. He said he will miss Frederick's First Saturday events and watching the downtown flourish in the future.

To his customers, Thames said that he can offer his deepest appreciation: "Thanks. It was a great ride."

Charity concert helps rescue mission

"Gimme Shelter," a charity rock concert held May 30 at The Banner School, raised $682 for The Frederick Rescue Mission.

The concert was the brainchild of rising eighth-graders Philip Book, Luke Caso, Brendan Crowley and Austin Rose, who attend The Banner School in Frederick.

The boys are also members of the rock band Anonymous, which performed May 30 with musicians from The Frederick Rescue Mission and Stif from Catoctin High School. A band of faculty members from The Banner School also performed.

The Frederick Rescue Mission is a nonprofit that runs a Christian faith-based drug and substance abuse recovery program, provides hot meals for the homeless and operates a food bank for families in need.

Junior Fire Company receives fire prevention grant

The Junior Fire Company No. 2, at 535 N. Market St., received a fire safety grant from a global insurance company to bring fire prevention education to Frederick residents.

The fire company received $2,000 from FMGlobal, a commercial and industrial property insurance company based in Rhode Island. FMGlobal identified fires as the leading cause of property destruction worldwide and runs a grant program that assists fire companies to educate their communities.

Bertie Abrecht, fundraiser chair for Junior Fire Company No. 2, applied for the grant in November, and was awarded the check this week.

The company will use the funds to educate children up to third grade level about fire safety. They will purchase a number of school-aged appropriate resources, such as activity books to distribute to children.

"We are finding that younger children lack the knowledge of fire prevention," Abrecht said. "It's not that parents don't care. It's just that everyone's so busy all the time, people don't think. "They're at the age now where they can pick up this information pretty quickly. If we can reach everyone, imagine how many lives we can save."

Nine graduate Frederick Police Department academy

The Frederick Police Department graduated nine new officers during its 51st Police Academy graduation ceremony on June 19. The ceremony at the Weinberg Center for the Arts honored the following officers:

Sean N. Carpenter, Deborah S. Constantine, Ryan W. Hoy, Kyle E. Jones, Paul J. Malatesta, Gregory W. Morton, TiAnna N. Peterson, Thomas G. Walker and Benjamin E. Whitmore.

Local students graduate

Congratulations to the following residents of the City of Frederick who recently earned bachelor's degrees:

- Alexander Hadshi graduated with a bachelor's degree in theatre from Boston University.

- Grace Kim graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in biochemistry from Boston University.

- Lisa Berthiaume graduated from the York College of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Science degree in behavioral science.

Send City Beat items to Erica L. Green at egreen@gazette.net or call 301-846-2134 for more information.