Maryland Community Newspapers Online
Kick off the December holidays with a warm cup of cocoa, cookies and wrap up in song during the annual Holiday Tree Lighting on Sunday at the Waters House History Center in Germantown.
The family-friendly event is 4:30 to 6 p.m. at the Waters House, 12535 Milestone Manor Lane.
Santa will arrive via a horse-drawn wagon and the Seneca Valley High School Chamber Singers and musical group At This Point will perform. Maybe you'll get some holiday decorating tips as the historic house is always decorated for the season.
Donate a new, unwrapped toy for the Germantown Boys & Girls Club.
For more information, call 301-515-2887.
Fundraiser to help Montgomery Village girl
Nicole Miller, 10, of Montgomery Village has spent a month for two summers strengthening her balance and walking.
Nicole, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when she was a toddler, spends the time at two Florida treatment centers. The Judith Resnick Elementary School fifth-grader is "our little miracle girl," said her mother, Joy Miller.
On Dec. 6, there will be a Little Angel Holiday Benefit Shop featuring crafts, raffles, silent auction and more 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Seneca Valley High School, 19401 Crystal Rock Drive, Germantown. There is no admission fee.
Proceeds from the silent auction and raffles help pay for Nicole's therapy. The 2007 fundraiser raised $3,200, "more than I ever imagined," Joy Miller said. She wants to raise $5,000 this year.
"Our goal is to be able to be independent in her walker. Right now, she is mostly in her wheelchair," she said. "As she gets older, she does very well cognitively and academically, we want her to be able to be independent."
While in Florida, Nicole undergoes intensive suit therapy for four hours a day, five days a week, for 3 weeks. The suit helps align her body and focus on strengthening muscle groups, according to her mother.
During Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, Nicole breathes 100 percent oxygen in a pressurized chamber twice a day for four weeks. This forces oxygen into all of her bodily fluids and maximizes healing in her brain where she had a brain injury at birth, according to her mother.
For more information, call Joy Miller at 240-683-1435.
Annual holiday open house
Learn more about the history of Germantown during a free holiday open house hosted by the Germantown Historical Society at the Historic Germantown Bank 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday.
The bank building was constructed in 1922 for the workers at the Liberty Mill and houses a walk-in vault. The timed lock mechanism of the vault was made in Baltimore in the 1930s, according to the society.
The building will be decorated for the holidays and refreshments will be served. There will also be exhibits on local history and culture.
The bank is located across from the Germantown MARC station, 19320 Mateny Hill Road. For more information, call Susan Soderberg at 301-814-5048.
Donate in memory
The Knights of Columbus, Our Lady of Fatima Council No. 6901, will host a blood drive at St. Mary's Catholic Church on Saturday in memory of a former pastor.
The Rev. Walter Lawrence, who served at the Barnesville church for seven years, died of leukemia in November. Lawrence died several days before a church blood drive that was organized to support his recovery.
The Red Cross blood drive will run from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at St. Mary's Pavilion, 18230 Barnesville Road.
To schedule an appointment, call the Red Cross at 1-800-GIVE-LIFE (1-800-448-3543). Donors may also walk in the day of the drive. For more information, contact Tom McCartin at tmccartn@
erols.com or 301-758-7557.
Be a mentor
Interages, a nonprofit program designed to link adults 50 and over with elementary, middle and high schoolers in tutoring and mentoring programs, is urging residents to make an early New Year's resolution to volunteer.
"We have basically four different ways people can volunteer with us," said Sara Cartmill, a volunteer coordinator, citing an after-school program for immigrants learning English, an after-school academic program for students learning geography, a second grade reading tutoring program and a mentoring program designed to help at-risk high school students.
Adults ages 50 and older interested in learning more are invited to drop in to an open house 2 to 5 p.m. Dec. 10 at the Gaithersburg Library, 18330 Montgomery Village Ave., Gaithersburg. Volunteers typically spend one to two hours per week working with children, Cartmill said. Training, materials and on-site staff support provided.
For more information, call Cartmill at 301-949-3551, ext. 19 or e-mail her at Cartmill@interagesmd.org.
Shine on
Light up the night at Poolesville's third annual Holiday Lighting Ceremony at Whalen Commons, 19701 Fisher Ave.
The free event begins at 6:30 p.m. Friday with a visit from Santa and continues as the town flips the switch on its festive lights. There will be caroling, music and refreshments for sale.
Visitors may drop off new, unwrapped toys to be distributed by the nonprofit WUMCO Help.
For more information, visit www.poolesville.com.
Homemade gifts
Talk with artists during the 15th annual Countryside Artisans Holiday Studio Tour in the upcounty Friday through Saturday and again Dec. 12-14.
The free, self-guided tour takes visitors to studios from Barnesville to Woodbine where visitors can learn about where the artists live and work.
Items for sale include hand blown glass, prints, paintings, yarn, jewelry, textiles, furniture, sculpture, wines and ironware.
Most studios are open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. For more information, visit www.
countrysideartisans.com.
Santa, with a side of treats
Warm your tummy and the child inside during the annual Santa Breakfast at the Western Upper Montgomery Volunteer Fire Department in Beallsville.
The breakfast is 8 to 11 a.m. Dec. 13 at the station, 19801 Beallsville Road.
Get ready for an all-you-can-eat feast boys and girls: scrambled eggs, pancakes, bacon, sausage, juice, fruit salad and coffee will be served.
The move, "Santa is Coming to Town" will be shown. And of course, Santa himself will be there to hear holiday wishes.
Cost is $5 for those 12 years and older; $4 for ages 3-11 and free for those younger than age 3.
For more information, call Volunteer Firefighter/EMT
Jeffery Eck at 240-529-3438.
Submissions for People and Places must be received by 10 a.m. Thursday. Send submissions to Melissa A. Chadwick via e-mail at mchadwick@gazette.net, fax at 301-670-7183 or mail to The Gazette, 9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, MD 20877. Photos will also be considered.