thursday,may 2, 2013 - County Times - Southern Maryland Online

CommunityThe County TimesThursday, May 2, 2013 36LIBRARY ITEMSCharlotte Hall Library will close forstaffing trainingCharlotte Hall library will be closedthis Friday, May 3, until 1 p.m. for stafftraining. The other two branches will beopen.Hands-on fun planned for parents andkidsMaking books fun will be the focusof the hands-on activities planned forparents and their children at the Read.Learn. Grow. programs scheduled onMay 6 at 10:30 a.m. at Lexington Parkbranch, on May 14 at 5 p.m. at Leonardtownbranch, and on May 16 at 10:30a.m. at Charlotte Hall branch.Adults can sharpen computer and jobskillsAdults can learn the basics of gettingdigital photos off their cameras plusbasic photo editing techniques at a classon May 7 at 5:30 p.m. at Lexington Parkbranch. Registration is required.A Job Seekers Workshop will be heldat Leonardtown branch on May 6 from2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and at Lexington Parkbranch on May 13 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30p.m. for job seekers to get assistancewith job search related issues such asresumes and online applications.Talents and skills to be sharedLexington Park library will offerMayker Mondays each Monday inMay for community members to gettogether to learn new skills and sharetheir skills. On May 6 from 2 p.m. to 4p.m. anyone interested in making a quiltcan attend to learn or share their quiltingskills. Later at 5 p.m. Making RecycledCrafts will be offered for those interestedin making something new out ofrecycled materials. Other sessions beingoffered include Making Jewelry on May13 at 10 a.m.; Making a Move (Chess) onMay 13 at 4 p.m.; Making a Stitch (knittingand crocheting) on May 20 at 10a.m. and Making Music on May 20 at 4p.m.Poets invited to share poetryPoets of all ages can share either theiroriginal or favorite poems at the PoetryOpen Mic at Leonardtown library onMay 8 at 6:30 p.m.Basic genealogy offeredAn introductory course to genealogywill be offered at Charlotte Hall libraryon May 15 and at Leonardtown Libraryon May 30 with both sessions starting at5:30 p.m. The class will cover the basicsof where to look for information, fillingout charts, organizing information,using the library databases, and exploringuseful websites. Basic computerskills and an email account are necessary.Registration is required.RoboBees Win Excellence In EngineeringFIRST robotics Team 836, TheRoboBees, from the Dr. James A. ForrestCareer & Technology Center inLeonardtown, Md. competed in theregional Washington, D.C. roboticscompetition, finishing in 7th place andwinning the Excellence in EngineeringAward for the design and climbingability of their robot. Fifty-nine teamscompeted in the tournament, featuringteams from throughout the country aswell as international participation byteams from Israel and Brazil. The RoboBeeshad a rough start, having a fewdifficulties with their shooting mechanism.But after troubleshooting, theteam rose in the ranks and was amongthe top eight in the field. “It was incredible,”said Kyle Schmidt, a freshmanat Great Mills High School.In addition to the tournament,members from the team paid a rarevisit to the Pentagon, visiting the DeputyAssistant Secretary of the Navyfor Air Programs, Mr. Richard Gilpinand his staff. The visit was set up byCDR Mark Lucas, a mentor with theteam who works at the Pentagon. TheRoboBee visitors were led by seniormentor, Mr. Dave Buddenbohn andwere accompanied by mentor Mr. ErikWood and parent Mr. Jonathan Wilkinsalong with team president Mike Byers,and members Jazmin Brown, SabrinaPaz, Jocelyn Wilkins, Jared Wilkins,and Phillip Scassero. They were introducedto Mr. Gilpin along with membersfrom his staff, Mr. Ed Jackanowski,Ms. Angie Knappenberger, andMs. Sondra Even. The team conversedabout the robotics tournament seasonand the STEM fields in general. Theyhad an enjoyable visit, learning muchabout engineering and technical careerpaths and gained valuable insight andadvice from engineering professionalsand leaders at the Pentagon.“Ms. Angie Knappenberger gavea valuable piece of advice that stoodout to me,” said Jared Wilkins. “Shereminded us to make sure that wecommunicate effectively as scientistsand engineers so that our knowledge can beshared.”Jocelyn Wilkins mentioned that she“appreciated the advice that Ms. SondraEven gave to us about college and careerchoices. She said that no skill is unimportantwhen it comes to a career in engineering.She also reminded us not to be afraidto change our minds about our majors, whileMr. Ed Jackanowski showed us that there aremultiple avenues to get a job at the Pentagonand that many of the Pentagon’s employeesThe Leonardtown Lions Club hosteda Red Cross Blood Drive on Friday, April19, at the Episcopal Church on St. AndrewsRoad. Lions Frank Nuhfer (left) andJohn Brown are seen assisting one of theblood donors,.Kathleen Kirby, wife of thePresident (King Lion) of the Club, GeorgeKirby. Not pictured, but also very activethat day, was Lion Joe Dunn, the Chairmanof the group. The Lions contributed25 hours of volunteer work.Lion Joe Dunn reported that the RedSubmitted photoJazmin Brown, left, Phillip Scassero, Sabrina Paz, Jarod Wilkins, Jocelyn Wilkins and Michael Byers.don’t necessarily have a STEM degree.”Mr. Gilpin’s advice was to “follow ourpassion, whatever that may be, to enjoy life,and enjoy coming to work each day.”After the visit, the team went on a shorttour of the Pentagon.“I enjoyed seeing the numerous paintingsand model displays in the corridors ofthe pentagon,” said Jared. “We visited thePentagon Memorial Chapel and I was impressedby the elaborate memorial that helpsto remind us of that awful day when ourcountry was attacked.”Cross collected a total of 34 productiveunits of blood. It was an excellent day’swork for everyone involved. The BloodDrive filled all the time slots and the RedCross blood collection team was full-timebusy keeping up with the donors!“Another very successful communitysupport event for the Leonardtown LionsClub. It shows how important our annualdonation to the Red Cross is, in makingblood drawings like this possible and sosuccessful,” said Lion Joe.“After visiting The Pentagon, I realizedthat I would love to use my engineering degreeto serve my country by working at ThePentagon. I am so grateful for this rare opportunityto visit and speak with Mr. Gilpinand his staff,” said Jocelyn.The RoboBees would like to thanktheir newest sponsor, Systems Made Simple,along with current sponsors: BAE Systems,Boeing, Booz Allen Hamilton, The PatuxentPartnership, AUVSI, SAIC, Triton Metals,and NAVAIR for their support and contributionsto the team.Lions Helping Out With The Red CrossSubmitted photo