Showing posts with label Westminster Mayor 2001-05 Dayhoff. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Westminster Mayor 2001-05 Dayhoff. Show all posts

Saturday, August 12, 2017

Celebrate Local Heroes Festival at Dutterer's Family Park on August 17th, 2003




Celebrate Local Heroes Festival at Dutterer's Family Park on August 17th, 2003

Westminster police officer Robert Bollinger runs his dog, Rex, through a series of demonstrations at the inaugural Celebrate Local Heroes Festival at Dutterer's Family Park on August 17th, 2003.

Westminster police officer Robert Bollinger runs his dog, Rex, through a series of demonstrations from biting at Benfer's arm while it was inside a protective sleeve, to hopping in and out of the car before it was smashed by a city work crew; at the inaugural Celebrate Local Heroes Festival at Dutterer's Family Park on August 17th, 2003.

In the background, volunteers from the Westminster Fire Department were waiting in the wings for the opportunity to demonstrate lifesaving techniques by dismantling a car.

According to an article about the event by Carroll County Times writer, Jonathan D. Jones, bringing the fire, police, and other city departments together for recognition is important, Westminster Mayor Kevin Dayhoff said. “I always say public safety is the beginning of community," Dayhoff said. "I think it's an appropriate time to recognize the fire department, the police department, and the street department.”

“The festival was also an opportunity to showcase Dutterer's Family Park, said Lori Graham, who helped organize the event.


“‘There's never been a festival here before, and we thought [the first one] should be fun and community oriented,’ Graham said.”
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Baltimore Sun Carroll Eagle: 
Tumblr: Kevin Dayhoff Banana Stems www.kevindayhoff.tumblr.com/
Kevin Dayhoff is an artist - and a columnist for:
Baltimore Sun - Carroll County Times - The Carroll Eagle: www.explorecarroll.com: http://www.explorecarroll.com/search/?s=Dayhoff&action=GO

Smurfs: http://babylonfluckjudd.blogspot.com/
Google profile: https://profiles.google.com/kevindayhoff/

E-mail: kevindayhoff(at)gmail.com

My http://www.explorecarroll.com/ columns appear in the copy of the Baltimore Sunday Sun that is distributed in Carroll County: https://subscribe.baltsun.com/Circulation/


See also - Kevin Earl Dayhoff Art www.kevindayhoff.com: Travel, art, artists, authors, books, newspapers, media, writers and writing, journalists and journalism, reporters and reporting, music, culture, opera... Ad maiorem Dei gloriam inque hominum salutem. “Deadline U.S.A.” 1952. Ed Hutcheson: “That's the press, baby. The press! And there's nothing you can do about it. Nothing!” - See more at: http://kevindayhoffart.blogspot.com/#sthash.4HNLwtfd.dpuf
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Sunday, February 7, 2016

Carroll Co. Md. Times: “Training Day Citizens Police Academy,” By Jamie Kelly, Nov. 17, 2002




Residents get hands-on experience at Westminster Citizen Police Academy

Lori Graham didn't go to jail after she beat a police officer with a baton.
Instead, she graduated with flying colors. Graham was part of the first class to go through the Westminster City Police Department's Citizen Police Academy. She and five others spent nine weeks learning what police officers do. From the first class on Oct. 1, she learned things she never knew about the police department.

But there's no contest for her favorite part of the class. She liked the trip to the shooting range the best, she said. The class had a chance to visit the police training facility in Sykesville and fired a police service pistol.

For many in the class, it was the first chance to fire a pistol. Graham had shot a pistol before, but that was a revolver, not a semi-automatic pistol like police carry. The firing range also had a computer training program called Range 2000. Class members carried a pistol that fired a laser beam. A computer projected different training scenarios on a large screen, similar to a video game, and an officer in the back of the room controlled how those scenarios turned out.

[…]

Update – editor’s note: February 7, 2016 - Someone asked me about the Westminster Citizen Police Academy that we had in Westminster when I was in the mayor’s office. It was a great program. I guess ran it course. I do not know why it was discontinued and I am not aware of when it discontinued. If I recall, we started it shortly after I got into office in May 2001 and if I remember correctly, it stopped shortly after I lost my election in May 2005.

There were some great folks involved. Folks like Randy Barnes, Lori Graham, Tony Ott, Pat Bassler, Jim Pullen, Tom Kowalczyk, Wayne Mann, Mike Bible, and the like. Jamie Kelly wrote one of several great articles and Ken Koons took one of my favorite pictures taken when I was in office.

As for the cops, courts, and crime beat, the Carroll County Times continues its great coverage. Today’s stories are written, in part by Heather Mongilio

I always said that if you can avoid getting totally creeped-out, cops, courts, and crime was a great beat for writing stories. I loved it years ago when it was my assignment. Go here for more stores: http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/news/crime/

Cops, courts, and crime was especially a good beat for those of us who grew-up reading detective stories or “In Cold Blood,” by Truman Capote, or “To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee… and southern gothic literature.

Other examples of authors of the southern gothic genre of writing include William Faulkner, Carson McCullers, Eudora Welty, Truman Capote, and Harper Lee. Tennessee Williams is said to have described the genre as stories that reflect “an intuition of an underlying dreadfulness in modern experience.”

I found this article on my website, but sadly, the link to continue reading the rest of the article by Jamie Kelly no longer works. So I restored the rest of the article here. If I have erred, and someone knows of a link for the rest of the story, simply be in touch and I will take care of it.

[…]

Students had to make spilt-second decisions about whether to shoot. Usually, they were right, but some decisions were tougher than others.

One scenario involved a domestic dispute where the husband refused to put his baby down.

He pulled out a gun, and the students had to decide whether to shoot him.

Graham called the scenarios a revelation. She didn't realize how quickly an officer's job could go from routine to dangerous. Nor did she realize how adrenaline would affect reaction times or shot accuracy.

It also made her senses feel sharper, but she thinks she was quicker to make a decision than she normally would be. When she felt like her life was in danger, even in a simulation, she wanted to protect herself. And, she said, she may have overreacted sometimes, especially by shooting too much.

During the simulations all of the students shot what seemed like a lot of rounds, but Capt. Randy Barnes said they weren't that much higher than average.

He said the average shoot-out involving police only lasts a few seconds, but five to seven rounds are fired.

Most of the shots fired - a lot in some cases - happened within hundredths of a second of each other. But, she said, she could hear each and every one distinctly.

Graham was invited to apply to the Citizen Police Academy, partially because she was active with the Lower Pennsylvania Avenue Committee. The committee was formed to help stop crime and drug traffic on Pennsylvania Avenue.

As executive secretary of Dutterer's Flower Shop and the daughter of the owner - the shop has been in her family since 1919 - she grew up on the avenue, and now she lives there.

She got to see that up close when, as a part of the program, she spent a Saturday evening riding and walking with a Westminster police officer.

The night she spent with the officer was McDaniel College's Homecoming. She had a chance to see officers break up a few scuffles and look for public drunkenness and underage drinking while riding with Cpl. Thomas Kowalczyk.

"He would explain the 10-codes to me - the codes officers use to convey information, 10-4 for example - so I knew what was happening," she said.

On the way back to the station, he spotted a car that looked suspicious. The car was alone in a parking lot at nearly 2 a.m.

He found two juveniles who had snuck out of their houses.

Graham said she was fascinated by the differences between real-life policing and television cop shows, where every case takes exactly one hour. Really, she said, officers jump from call to call and each call can be different.

"One second, you have to be the nice, kind police officer talking to people on the street, and the next you have to be the tough law enforcement guy dealing with people who shouldn't be on the street," she said.

That's where training comes in. Officers are taught the ladder of force. It starts with verbal commands - officers call it verbal judo - and progresses to physical force, pepper spray, use of the baton and finally deadly force.

Students in the Citizen Police Academy had the chance to experience several different rungs on the ladder of force.

In one class, Barnes dressed in a red, padded suit and mimicked attacking the cadets. They used a padded baton to fend him off.

His head, neck, spine, and chest were off-limits for the baton because hitting those areas could cause lethal damage.

But students did hit those areas, usually accidentally.

Barnes said that was an example of how skilled police have to be with the baton. He also said police have to know when the fight is over.

"It's like going from 10 mph to 100 mph in a second," Barnes said, "but then having to slow down from 100 mph to 10 mph just as quickly."

Graham said that during the entire fight with Barnes, which lasted a little longer than a minute, she had no idea what was happening, other than that he was attacking her and she was defending herself.

"If that had been a real attack, I don't think I could have described him to police," she said. "All I could focus on were his hands."

And she was sore the next day from all the hits she gave and received.

But the entire class wasn't about hitting police officers and shooting their guns.

Much of the time was spent in the classroom, but the training was hands-on.

Students learned how to conduct field sobriety tests. Officer Jim Pullen showed the class how to judge if someone is intoxicated through the tests officers use all the time.

Graham said she had no concept of what went into a DUI stop.

"All I knew is what I'd read in the paper - that someone was charged," she said. One night students got to see real drunkards and try out the field sobriety tests.

Off-duty Westminster police officers drank beer and Pullen drove them to the new District Courthouse to take field sobriety tests.

The tests measure balance and motor skills, and officers use the results in court.

A drunken person will react in very specific ways, as Pullen told the class, and the students saw for themselves.

The tests fascinated Graham because she said she was naive about how the body would react to alcohol and what someone who was drinking could and couldn't control.

And she was interested by something else people can't control - fingerprints.

Lt. Wayne Mann of the Criminal Investigation Division taught students how to dust for fingerprints at a crime scene. Then the students fingerprinted each other.

Graham said the process was much easier than she'd imagined, but it was occurring in a classroom, so that helped.

That same evening, Detective Laurin Askew spoke to the class about drugs.

He showed the students pipes, syringes, and bags people use to take and package illegal drugs. All the items he showed the class had been seized in various raids in Westminster. He also showed them samples of different types of drugs.

The sheer amount of drugs seized amazed Graham.

She recognized some of the packaging, though.

She said she used to find the tiny, resealable bags used to package crack cocaine in the alley by her shop. That's been happening less and less, though, she said.

She credits the increased patrols on Pennsylvania Avenue.

Sgt. Mike Bible, community education officer for Westminster police, was so pleased with the way the class came together, he decided to offer the academy again.

He said six people who didn't know each other started to function as a team, and that was part of the intent.

"It was kind of like the real police academy," he said.

And if nothing else, it made Graham more aware of her surroundings.

Not long ago, she was out on her porch, talking to neighbors. She saw a car she didn't recognize drive past twice.

Before, she said, she probably wouldn't have even noticed it.

But since the academy, she has become more observant. She looked inside the car as it drove by and made a mental note of its license plate.

She thinks her new found powers of observation will be helpful to her neighborhood and to the police.

"I won't call the police and say, 'There's a guy walking down the street and he looks strange.'"

But no matter how hands-on classroom training is, it's no substitute for on-the-job training.

Chief Roger Joneckis told the class about a commercial he saw years ago where, after a civilian had spent time riding along with police, the officers turn to the man and say, "Now it's your turn."

And on Nov. 16, it was their turn.

For their last class, students went through real training scenarios.

They handled a domestic dispute, possible drug activity on a playground and a traffic stop.

Beyond their training, Bible only offered one piece of advice.

"Expect the unexpected," he told them.


©Carroll County Online 2002 
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Baltimore Sun Carroll Eagle: 
Tumblr: Kevin Dayhoff Banana Stems www.kevindayhoff.tumblr.com/
Kevin Dayhoff is an artist - and a columnist for:
Smurfs: http://babylonfluckjudd.blogspot.com/
Google profile: https://profiles.google.com/kevindayhoff/

E-mail: kevindayhoff(at)gmail.com

My http://www.explorecarroll.com/ columns appear in the copy of the Baltimore Sunday Sun that is distributed in Carroll County: https://subscribe.baltsun.com/Circulation/


See also - Kevin Earl Dayhoff Art www.kevindayhoff.com: Travel, art, artists, authors, books, newspapers, media, writers and writing, journalists and journalism, reporters and reporting, music, culture, opera... Ad maiorem Dei gloriam inque hominum salutem. “Deadline U.S.A.” 1952. Ed Hutcheson: “That's the press, baby. The press! And there's nothing you can do about it. Nothing!” - See more at: http://kevindayhoffart.blogspot.com/#sthash.4HNLwtfd.dpuf
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Tuesday, June 21, 2005

20050620 Carroll County Times: New mayor eager to work with employees

By Robert Brodsky, Times Staff Writer

Monday, June 20, 2005

Q&A

Name: Thomas Ferguson

Residence: Westminster

Age: 63

Job: Mayor of Westminster

Reason for becoming involved in city government: Was involved for many years in civic and community groups, but, following his retirement, he wanted to provide a greater contribution to the city.

On May 9, Thomas Ferguson was elected mayor of Westminster, besting former Mayor Kevin Dayhoff by more than 120 votes. Ferguson, a retired bank executive, served nearly four years on the Westminster City Council before taking over as mayor.

Q: How has life changed since becoming mayor of Westminster?

A: I still take the garbage out and still have to walk the dog. Obviously, it hasn't been a dramatic change for me. I've only been retired for about a year. I was used to keeping a regular schedule, and I intend to maintain regular hours here. I've been spending a lot of hours here in the initial days and weeks just to get up to speed about what's going on. But not a lot has changed. I guess the only difference now is that I get to sign things.

Q: What changes have you put in place since taking office and what other changes are on the immediate horizon?

A: I started a regular staff meeting with the folks that report directly to me. We had our first staff meeting last week, and we're going to do that on a monthly basis. It's something that's important and needed, and it's new. Most of the first month has been spent figuring out how this place operates and getting a better understanding of the decision-making process.

Longer term, I want to start a formal strategic planning process. We are going to do a citywide employee opinion survey to get an understanding of how they feel about their jobs. That's the basis for another part of the strategic plan. What is it that employees need and want and what improvements do we need to make as an employer? It's a 360-degree look at ourselves. My experience in all the years that I have been doing this kind of stuff is that the best place to get information is from employees. They'll tell you the truth as long as their opinions and comments are protected and confidential. Sometime - I suspect this summer - we are going to do a citywide analysis of how our jobs are ranked; how we evaluate our jobs and whether or not our job categories are properly structured.

Q: Keeping with the subject of employee relations, you expressed concern during your campaign about the morale of city workers. Do you believe that your concerns were accurate and, if so, what can be done to improve the situation?

A: Part of the purpose of the opinion survey is to get to that question. Is morale an issue and, if so, what are the factors causing concerns among morale? I think my instincts are going to be true and that employees are looking forward to getting their opinions out. ... We are going to get the answer to that in the next few months.

Q: How will your administration be different than that of your predecessor, Kevin Dayhoff?

A: I am going to be here on a regular basis and be accessible for citizens and employees. I tend to be involved with what's going on in city government. Not to the degree of doing any micromanaging. That's what we hire experts to do. But to understand how we operate and ask questions about why we are doing what we are doing and is there a better way to do it? I am very interested in finding ways to make this place more efficient and more cost-effective. I am confident the employees will help us identify areas where we can find some productivity improvements and cost savings. So, I am going to be very much interested in getting employees involved in their day-to-day work life here and telling me and the council and the supervisory management staff what they think can be improved.

Q: What are some of the biggest issues facing the city of Westminster?

A: We have a flood of lots outside the city limits of Westminster that have an awful lot of potential development. I think the pressure the city will be facing is the question of annexation. How big do we want the city boundaries to become? Because the number of available building lots is going to be stunning. I think that's a big issue and one we have to get our arms around pretty quickly. That's why we need to have a full-blown strategic plan that talks about where the future city boundaries should be. We have this thing on a map now. There's this hypothetical line - and literally it's a line on the map - that says "future city boundary." And we have the city water and sewer service area and then we have the actual boundary. We need to ask ourselves a question: Where did that come from and is that what we want? Do we want the boundaries of the city of Westminster to be as big as that? And what are the implications for services and taxpayers? And along with that comes growth and questions about water and where it is going to come from.

Q: How does the city balance continued residential and commercial growth while also remaining a small Main Street town?

A: First of all, we need to make a decision on size and what we are going to look like. Get that down in the form of a document that everybody has bought into and then stick to it. How much more annexation do we want to do? And where do we want that to occur? The whole question of planning for growth and where we want that to occur has to be part of our overall plan. And what kind of growth? Do we want all our neighborhoods to look alike? I live in a neighborhood that is mixed. Different-style houses. Different architectural features. Multifamily, single-family, small houses and big houses. That's the kind of neighborhood that used to be typical. Mixed use has sort of gotten a bad name somewhere along the line. But that's kind of how we all grew up in small-town America. We can't turn the clock back, but I think there's something we can be doing better in our planning process to make the neighborhoods look less homogeneous.

Q: What do you envision Westminster will look like 20 to 25 years from now?

A: Well, growth is inevitable. We're blessed in many ways. We are in a beautiful part of the state, geographically convenient to places like Baltimore, [Washington] D.C., Philadelphia, Gettysburg and, for that matter, even New York. It's three hours to the ocean and four hours to the far western part of the state. Geographically, we are in a wonderful situation. We still have an awful lot of open farmland that is very attractive to people, so we are going to be a magnet for growth. And we're not going to be able to avoid that. I am hoping what we can do is deal with that in a way that doesn't turn this community into something that looks like everything else.

We have beautiful architecture in these older neighborhoods. You see some of that late 19th-century, early 20th-century architecture that's still very visible, particularly in some of these older neighborhoods on Main Street. These are things worth preserving. I would like to see more and more opportunities for people to live here and to work here. Not much in that regard the city can do by itself. But we need the help and cooperation of the county. I am hoping we can find ways to make it affordable.


Reach staff writer Robert Brodsky at 410-857-7865 or RBrodsky@lcniofmd.com.

Saturday, May 14, 2005

20050513 The Maryland Unemployed Mayor’s Association MMLUMA

The Maryland Unemployed Mayor’s Association MMLUMA
Main Street
Anywhere Everywhere, MD 21158-1245

Exulted Ruler elect: Presently Unemployed
Westminster Mayor Kevin Dayhoff

Exchequer of the Treasury elect: Presently Unemployed
Berlin Mayor Rex Hailey

Exceptional Secretary elect: Presently Unemployed
Forest Heights Mayor Paula Noble

May 13th, 2005

MML President Barrie Tilghman
Maryland Municipal League
1212 West Street
Annapolis, MD 21401-3635

Dear Maryland Municipal League President Barrie Tilghman,

Unemployed Berlin Mayor Rex Hailey, Unemployed Forest Heights Mayor Paula Noble and myself would like to take this opportunity to petition the MML for the formulation of a new Maryland Municipal League Department to be so entitled “The Maryland Unemployed Mayor’s Association” (MMLUMA).

The MMLUMA could be of invaluable service to elected and appointed Maryland public officials, although, we would agree to not ever give anyone, any election advice. We anxiously await your decision, please advise.

Meanwhile, as I am sure you are aware, Tom Ferguson was elected Mayor of the City of Westminster on May 9th, 2005. Mayor Ferguson will do a fine job for our community. Please join me in welcoming and wishing Mayor Ferguson, Godspeed and the best of luck. Please take every opportunity to speak with Westminster Mayor Ferguson about the benefits and value of the MML.

It is with deepest regret that I resign my position as Member at Large of the Maryland Municipal League Board of Directors.

I was first elected to Maryland Municipal League’s Board of Directors, Member-at-Large on June 13th, 2000. I have had the honor to serve on the Board of Directors for the past five years.

It has been a great pleasure working with you, the other Board members, MML Executive Director Scott Hancock and the wonderful, capable and competent MML Staff, elected and appointed public officials throughout the State of Maryland.

It has been an enormous joy to have witnessed the MML continue to grow, prosper, and make an invaluable contribution to all the citizens of Maryland, for whom we have the honor to serve.

If the Board should decide to appoint a replacement for my vacated Member at Large seat, I highly recommend Mt. Airy Council President John Medve.

As I look forward to taking some time off to spend with my family and look forward to whatever opportunities await in the future. I will greatly miss working the MML.

Again, it has been my pleasure to work with you and I wish everyone associated with the MML the very best future. Thank you for all your work.

With best regard, I am

Very truly yours,

/s/

Kevin Dayhoff

Kevin Dayhoff, P. O. Box 1245, Westminster, MD 21158-1245

Wednesday, April 6, 2005

20050330 A Tribute to Richard N. 'Dick' Gehr


A Tribute to Richard N. 'Dick' GehrFirefighter, Veteran, Husband, Father and Friend

On March 30, 2005, the greater Westminster community suffered a great loss with the passing of Richard N. "Dick" Gehr.

Dick Gehr was born in Westminster on June 25, 1917, and lived here for 87 years. Uncle Dick was the son of the late Denton and Anna A. Whitmore Gehr. He was the husband of Charlotte L. Marker Gehr, to whom he was married for 25 years and the late Dorothy V. Starner Gehr, who predeceased him in 1977.

Dick Gehr graduated from Westminster High School in 1934 and attended Western Maryland College. He served in the Navy during World War II.

He was retired from the state of Maryland, where he worked as a project engineer. Following his retirement, he worked for Wadel Kitchens and for auctioneers, Russell Kerr and David Redding.

Dick Gehr was an active life member of Westminster Fire Engine and Hose Company No. 1, having served since August 2nd, 1939, and was one of the last members with over 50 years of service. He served as president, secretary and chaplain of the fire department. He later served on the Fire Police Auxiliary.

Dick Gehr was a member of the American Legion Carroll Post No. 31, the MD Retreads and Maryland Gold Wings and was an avid antique collector.

Surviving, in addition to his wife, are son Terrence N. Gehr of Westminster; stepdaughters Tamara Teaff of Lexington, Va. and the Rev. Sue Shorb-Sterling of Lusby; sister-in-law Juanita Senseney of Westminster; grandsons and spouses Anthony and Deborah Gehr of Manassas, Va. and Timothy and Juliana Gehr of Westminster; step-grandchildren Elizabeth and Robert Teaff, Margaret Sterling Brubaker and George and Christopher Sterling; great-grandchildren Kelsey, Dylan Richard, Zachary, Madison and Emily Gehr; nephews and spouses Thomas and Barbara Senseney, Jeffrey and Jill Senseney and Christopher Senseney and Darlene Rae Breining.

Our thoughts and prayers are with his wonderful family as they adjust to life without him. Our community will miss Uncle Dick very much.
This memorial tribute was signed in Westminster City Hall,
this April first, in the year Two Thousand and Five.

Westminster Mayor Kevin E. Dayhoff

Thursday, December 9, 2004

Westminster Eagle: 4th Annual National Inclusive Schools Week

Westminster Eagle: 4th Annual National Inclusive Schools Week

Students at Robert Moton Elementary participated by having several guest readers, including Westminster Mayor Kevin Dayhoff and Superintendent Charles Ecker

Education Notes 12/08/04 Heidi Schroeder  

Carroll County Public Schools is celebrating its fourth annual National Inclusive Schools Week through Dec. 10, promoting the capacity of schools to provide education to an increasingly diverse student population - and in particular to those who have disabilities.

Among the schools participating in events during the week are Robert Moton Elementary School and Westminster High School.

This is the first year that Westminster High is celebrating the event.

Special education teacher Donna Dougherty said students have designed a brochure highlighting ways that Westminster High is an inclusive school. The brochure will be distributed in advisory sessions on Dec. 18, and will also be included in the parent newsletter.

In addition, students and teachers have designed an interactive bulletin board with information about Braille, American Sign Language and employment opportunities.

Dougherty said that although this is Westminster High's first year celebrating Inclusive Schools Week, the school has hosted Special Olympics events each spring for many years, and the school encourages students to volunteer for those events.

David Riley is the director of networking for the National Institute for Urban School Improvement, the sponsor of National Inclusive Schools Week. He said the institute has received positive feedback from communities that have been involved with the program.

"Our message is that this week should not be the only time where schools and communities consider this, but take a pause and celebrate what has been achieved, and do some deliberate thinking about what next steps need to be taken," he said.

>Students and teachers from Westminster High were among those who presented a session at the 84th Annual National Council for the Social Studies Fall Conference in Baltimore on Nov. 20. The session was entitled "Effective Strategies to Engage All Learners in Social Studies."

Participants learned how every student's voice can be heard in a classroom that provides for diverse needs. Christina Dougherty, teacher at Westminster High School, and her students presented a strategy called "Visual Discovery."

The following Westminster High School 11th grade students presented with Mrs. Dougherty: James Mangle, Samuel Porter, Becky Middleton, Ryan Coons, Megan Lynch, Erin Morgan, Kim Flanagan, and Celia Kelly.

>Manchester Elementary School has received national recognition for the efforts of students, parents, and staff to raise funds for the treatment and cure of diabetes.

The school was one of more than 1,145 schools nationwide to participate in the School Walk for Diabetes, and raised more than $33,000 for the American Diabetes Association. The fund-raiser was held April 6 with the theme, "Run with B.B. Wolf to Huff and Puff and Blow Away Diabetes!"

The school was awarded the National Championship banner and trophy, and Manchester was featured at the American Diabetes Association National Volunteer Leadership Conference, Nov. 19-21, in Chicago.

>East Middle School recently collected 1,250 cans of food for the month of November as part of the Character Education initiatives for kindness. The food items will be delivered to Carroll County Food Sunday and will benefit needy families in Westminster.

East Middle's SHOUT Committee started an initiative to collect spare change at lunch for grocery vouchers. Some students emptied the lunch change from their pockets and some brought in change from home. Students collected $360 and provided vouchers for three families for the holidays.

>The Maryland Department of Education has honored the following local schools with certificates for top performance on the 2004 Maryland School Assessments: North Carroll High, Sandymount Elementary, Spring Garden Elementary, Westminster High, West Middle and Winters Mill High.

Title I schools will receive financial awards, in addition to their certificates, as provided under the No Child Left Behind Act. Locally, these schools are Robert Moton Elementary and Runnymede Elementary.

>Students from Robert Moton Elementary School participated in Scholastic Read for 2005, the sixth annual children's read-a-thon, on Dec. 3. On this day in countries around the world, classrooms took time to read a book together for 2,005 seconds (approximately 33 1/3 minutes).

Students at Robert Moton Elementary participated by having several guest readers, including Westminster Mayor Kevin Dayhoff and Superintendent Charles Ecker, in addition to characters Clifford and Miss Spider. For information on Scholastic Read for 2005, visit www.scholastic.com/readfor2005.

>The Board of Education of Carroll County will hold its regular monthly meeting tonight, Dec. 8, at 5 p.m. in Room 007 of the Board of Education offices, 125 N. Court St., Westminster. The public is invited. The agenda is posted on the Web site, www.carrollk12.org.

>The North Carroll High School National Honor Society will sponsor a silent auction tonight, Dec. 8, 5 to 9 p.m. in the cafeteria.

The auction will feature baked goods, crafts and sports memorabilia. All are invited.

What's happening at your school? Send items to Heidi Schroeder, education correspondent at The Westminster Eagle, at 121 East Main Street, Westminster, MD 21157. Items may also be faxed to 410-549-4274, or e-mailed to hschroeder@patuxent.com. 
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Newspapers Westminster Eagle, Westminster Mayor 2001-05 Dayhoff, Carroll Co Schools, Diversity, People Schroeder-Heidi Schroeder, 


20041208

Carroll County Times: www.tinyurl.com/KED-CCT
Baltimore Sun Carroll Eagle: http://tinyurl.com/KED-Sun
Westminster Fire Dept. and MTA Lodge #20 Chaplain and PIO
Kevin Dayhoff Art: http://www.kevindayhoff.com/
Tumblr: Kevin Dayhoff Banana Stems www.kevindayhoff.tumblr.com/
Kevin Dayhoff Time Flies: https://kevindayhoff.wordpress.com/

Wednesday, September 22, 2004

Kevin Dayhoff in group photo in the Riigikogu chambers

Kevin Dayhoff in group photo in the Riigikogu chambers

September 21, 2004

Kevin Dayhoff (back row - center left) with the Maryland Army National Guard - Maryland partner city mayors visit to Estonia. This group picture was taken in the Estonian Parliament chambers, the Riigikogu, on September 21, 2004.
(20040921 Parliament 3 KED)
KED EE Visit 2004 Sept 17-23
Kevin Dayhoff www.kevindayhoff.net http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/

Kevin Dayhoff: www.westgov.net Westminster Maryland Online www.westminstermarylandonline.net http://kevindayhoffwestgov-net.blogspot.com/

Wednesday, August 11, 2004

"Voce Viaggio" The Power of Partnership By Diane Jones

The Power of Partnership

By Diane Jones, Other Voices
Carroll County Times

Monday, August 09, 2004

"Voce Viaggio" of the Children's Chorus of Carroll County is back from a highly successful first trip abroad.

Undoubtedly there will be those who say, "Oh no, not the Chorus again," and that would be understandable since we have recently gotten such great press coverage. Please bear with me briefly so I can report a few of the benefits of our trip and extend a partial thank-you for the ground-swell of support we received.

We traveled to Finland, Sweden and Estonia and enjoyed the sights, the sounds, the foods and all of the sensory experiences of European travel.

However, the heart of our endeavor was the day we spent in a rather small town in Estonia named Paide, Westminster's Partner City. We had been in Helsinki with its Rock Church and Scandinavian intrigues; we had been in Tallinn with its medieval charm; we were in Stockholm with its cultural and architectural sophistication, but Paide captured our hearts and imaginations.

This is where we sang and danced with children who had awaited our visit as much as we looked forward to seeing them. This is where both the Estonian hymn and the Star Spangled Banner were sung and citizens from opposite sides of the world were moved to tears. This is where children from both countries sang in Estonian and English and even incorporated sign language into their presentation.

This is where our children learned Estonian folk dances and the Estonians learned the macarina in an impromptu gathering on the street in front of the town church. This is where e-mail addresses and gifts were exchanged with promises of seeing one another again. This is where friendships and the beginnings of international relations began. And this is where international peace was reinforced through learning to delight in the differences and commonalties of others.

Voce Viaggio has been the beneficiary of a successful series of partnerships that enabled us to make our dream a reality. The Westminster - Paide Partner City Program captured our imagination and provided our goal. Thomas Beyard, Kevin Dayhoff, Audrey Cimino and other Westminster - Paide Committee members supported us by networking within the community to raise funds and give our trip visibility.

Many organizations and individuals partnered with us, sharing our vision and helping make our trip possible. And of course, there are our Estonian friends, our new partners, with whom we have begun friendships with the promise of more personal and cultural exchanges.

This was more than just a trip to Europe with performance opportunities. In Estonia, the struggle between tyranny and freedom is very immediate and tangible; not one of us will be the same after experiencing this post-Soviet culture.

For example, our sense of materialism is put into perspective after being in a place where the standard of living is much simpler, but happiness comes from more fundamental sources, such as friendship and nature. The blessings of the United States are highlighted as we hear first-hand accounts of women and children being deported to Siberia just because they weren't Russian. Our own national anthem takes on greater significance as we meet Estonians who were forbidden to enjoy their national hymn or cultural heritage for 50 years.

The 24 students and the adults who traveled will be forever changed, their knowledge base and sensitivities having been greatly expanded. Sincere thanks to those of you who helped make this possible. It will be exciting to see where our partnerships take us next.

Diane Jones, of Westminster, is director of the Children's Chorus of Carroll County.


20040809 The Power of Partnership Jones
Kevin Dayhoff www.kevindayhoff.net http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/
Kevin Dayhoff: www.westgov.net Westminster Maryland Online www.westminstermarylandonline.net http://kevindayhoffwestgov-net.blogspot.com/

Friday, December 5, 2003

20030904 September 4th, 2003 Carroll County MML Quarterly Chapter Meeting Minutes

20030904 September 4th, 2003 Carroll County MML Quarterly Chapter Meeting Minutes - Dutch Corner Restaurant, 3154 Main Street, Manchester, Md.

CARROLL COUNTY CHAPTER
Maryland Municipal League, Inc.



*Hampstead Mayor Haven Shoemaker President CC Chapter MML
1034 S. Carroll Street, Hampstead, Md. 21074 Telephone: (410) 239-7408
*New Windsor Mayor Sam Pierce Vice President CC Chapter MML
P. O. Box 609, New Windsor, Md. 21776 Telephone: (410) 635-6575
*Westminster Mayor Kevin Dayhoff Secretary - Treasurer CC Chapter MML
P. O. Box 1245, Westminster, Md. 21158-1245 Telephone: (410) 857-4208

September 4th, 2003
Quarterly Chapter Meeting Minutes
Dutch Corner Restaurant, 3154 Main Street, Manchester, Md.
6:30 pm Social hour
7:00 pm Welcome – Manchester Mayor Chris D’Amario
Invocation - Manchester Councilmember Mary Minderlein
Introductions - MML Chapter President Haven Shoemaker
7:10-7:45 pm Dinner
7:45 pm Business Meeting

Attendance:
There were 24 in attendance:
Manchester: Mayor Chris D'Amario, Councilmembers Steve Bankert, Mary Minderlein and Dan Riley
Mt. Airy: Mayor James S. Holt, Councilmembers Peter Helt and David Pyatt.
New Windsor: Mayor Sam Pierce, Councilmembers Ed Palsgrove and Charlotte Hollenbeck.
Sykesville: Mayor Jonathan Herman, Councilmembers Jeannie Nichols and Debby Ellis and Town Manager Matt Candland
Taneytown: No representatives in attendance
Union Bridge: Mayor Bret Grossnickle
Westminster: Mayor Kevin Dayhoff, Councilman Robert Wack.
Hampstead: Mayor Haven Shoemaker, Councilmembers Wayne H. Thomas and Chris Nevin.

Carroll County: Carroll County Emergency Management Coordinator William Martin, Administrator of the Carroll County Office of Public Safety Buddy Redman.
Carroll County Municipal Liaison Frank Johnson
Maryland Municipal League Executive Director Scott Hancock and Liaison Candice Donoho
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1. Treasurer's Report - Westminster Mayor Kevin Dayhoff

The Treasurer’s report was given by Westminster Mayor Kevin Dayhoff and accepted. The MML CC Chapter Treasury has a total of $3,062.07 in it at present – however, the balance, after the $2,000.00 in outstanding checks recently written for the MML CC Chapter Scholarship are cashed, will be $1,062.07 in the account.

2. Discussion of the future of the Annual MML Scholarship.

MML Executive Director Scott Hancock and MML Liaison Candice Donoho gave a presentation on the 12-year old MML Chapter Scholarship Program. The MML Board of Directors has recently re-directed funds that had helped to support the Chapter Scholarship Program, in order to support a new academic fellowship/intern scholarship program initiative, which will create a partnership with the University of Maryland School of Public Affairs and the MML.

The MML Board of Directors is encouraging individual MML Chapters to continue self-funded scholarship programs and to develop scholarship program criteria that best fit the needs and desires of our respective chapters.

In the past, the Carroll County MML Chapter has assessed the Carroll County member municipalities a total of $1,500 to add to the $1,000 annual contribution from the MML. We then distributed five scholarships of $500 each at the annual June joint Carroll County/Frederick County Chapter meeting in Mt. Airy.

After thoughtful discussion, it was agreed to continue our own self-funded scholarship program within the Carroll County Chapter.

It was moved by Sykesville Councilwoman Jeannie Nichols and seconded by Hampstead Councilman Chris Nevin to sponsor two $1,000 scholarships for Carroll County students who reside within the corporate boundaries of a Carroll County Municipality and to bill the eight municipalities for the $2,000. The motion passed unanimously.

The purpose of the scholarship is to increase public awareness of municipal government in Carroll County and to foster interest and research in municipal government, to recognize students who have demonstrated a commitment to public service, and to provide needed financial support for students pursuing studies leading to a career in government or public service.

Particulars as to how the MML Carroll County Chapter will adapt and implement the Scholarship Program will be discussed after the first of the year. Meanwhile, the Treasurer was directed to assess the eight municipalities pro-rata for the $2,000 for the scholarships.

Sykesville Councilwoman Jeannie Nichols will continue as Chair of the Carroll County MML Scholarship Committee. Anyone who would like to work on the Scholarship Committee should contact Councilwoman Nichols.

2. Presentation by Carroll County Emergency Management Coordinator William Martin and Administrator of the Carroll County Office of Public Safety Buddy Redman

Bill Martin and Buddy Redman gave a general overview of the Carroll County Emergency Operations Plan. They also discussed the GIS Enhanced Base Mapping Project and other issues involving our current 911 system. Bill Martin discussed his background in the fire service and emergency response and shared some insights as to his plans in his new position with the Carroll County Office of Public Safety. The report was followed by questions and answers.

3. COG Report

Sykesville Councilwoman Jeannie Nichols discussed that Emergency Services issues in Carroll County were comprehensively discussed and reviewed in the May 29, 2003 COG meeting. The meeting was well attended and everyone seemed to get a great deal of value out of the meeting. The next COG meeting will be held on September 18, 2003 at 7 PM.

4. Carroll County Commissioner Report - Frank Johnson, Municipal Liaison

Frank Johnson discussed various issues and gave a thorough overview of the many initiatives presently being undertaken by the Board of Commissioners. They included but were not limited to: State Roads and county transportation issues; billboards; the Commissioners upcoming Legislative Package which will include a Transfer Tax (growth paying for growth); the deferral process; adequacy standards; the growth task force - which will next meet on September 17, 2003. A question and answer period followed which included discussions of impact fees; schools and parks; senior citizen developments; fire and EMS service and roads and libraries.

5. MML Remarks - MML staff member Candace Donoho, MML Executive Director Scott Hancock

Scott Hancock extended regrets from MML President Mark Frazer who could not attend due to an unexpected commitment. This year's MML Theme under the leadership of President Frazer is Information Technology. The MML has hired a full time Information Technology expert. Every municipality now has a page available on the MML website for announcements.

Candace Donoho was recently given a significant and prestigious promotion to Carroll County MML Liaison. Candace Donoho discussed the recent municipal budget survey and the impacts of state budget cuts on municipalities state-wide. She also discussed the work of the MML Legislative Committee and the upcoming MML Fall Conference. This year's fall conference includes many more workshops and seminars than past fall conferences and attendance is expected to be the best ever. Washington DC Mayor Anthony Williams is the scheduled luncheon speaker.

6. Open discussion and Other Business

Buddy Redman asked that each municipality establish an emergency contact person.

Adjournment

The next meeting is in New Windsor on December 4th, 2003 at 6:30 p.m. for Social time; Dinner at 7:00 p.m.; Meeting at 7:30 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Westminster Mayor Kevin Dayhoff,
MML CC Chapter Secretary/Treasurer

20030904 September 4th, 2003 Carroll County MML Quarterly Chapter Meeting Minutes
MD Municipal League Carroll Co. Chap. Meeting Minutes

Monday, November 18, 2002

Carroll Co. Md. Times: “Training Day Citizens Police Academy,” By Jamie Kelly, Nov. 17, 2002




Residents get hands-on experience at Westminster Citizen Police Academy

Lori Graham didn't go to jail after she beat a police officer with a baton.
Instead, she graduated with flying colors. Graham was part of the first class to go through the Westminster City Police Department's Citizen Police Academy. She and five others spent nine weeks learning what police officers do. From the first class on Oct. 1, she learned things she never knew about the police department.

But there's no contest for her favorite part of the class. She liked the trip to the shooting range the best, she said. The class had a chance to visit the police training facility in Sykesville and fired a police service pistol.

For many in the class, it was the first chance to fire a pistol. Graham had shot a pistol before, but that was a revolver, not a semi-automatic pistol like police carry. The firing range also had a computer training program called Range 2000. Class members carried a pistol that fired a laser beam. A computer projected different training scenarios on a large screen, similar to a video game, and an officer in the back of the room controlled how those scenarios turned out.

[…]

Update – editor’s note: February 7, 2016 - Someone asked me about the Westminster Citizen Police Academy that we had in Westminster when I was in the mayor’s office. It was a great program. I guess ran it course. I do not know why it was discontinued and I am not aware of when it discontinued. If I recall, we started it shortly after I got into office in May 2001 and if I remember correctly, it stopped shortly after I lost my election in May 2005.

There were some great folks involved. Folks like Randy Barnes, Lori Graham, Tony Ott, Pat Bassler, Jim Pullen, Tom Kowalczyk, Wayne Mann, Mike Bible, and the like. Jamie Kelly wrote one of several great articles and Ken Koons took one of my favorite pictures taken when I was in office.

As for the cops, courts, and crime beat, the Carroll County Times continues its great coverage. Today’s stories are written, in part by Heather Mongilio

I always said that if you can avoid getting totally creeped-out, cops, courts, and crime was a great beat for writing stories. I loved it years ago when it was my assignment. Go here for more stores: http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/news/crime/

Cops, courts, and crime was especially a good beat for those of us who grew-up reading detective stories or “In Cold Blood,” by Truman Capote, or “To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee… and southern gothic literature.

Other examples of authors of the southern gothic genre of writing include William Faulkner, Carson McCullers, Eudora Welty, Truman Capote, and Harper Lee. Tennessee Williams is said to have described the genre as stories that reflect “an intuition of an underlying dreadfulness in modern experience.”

I found this article on my website, but sadly, the link to continue reading the rest of the article by Jamie Kelly no longer works. So I restored the rest of the article here. If I have erred, and someone knows of a link for the rest of the story, simply be in touch and I will take care of it.

[…]

Students had to make spilt-second decisions about whether to shoot. Usually, they were right, but some decisions were tougher than others.

One scenario involved a domestic dispute where the husband refused to put his baby down.

He pulled out a gun, and the students had to decide whether to shoot him.

Graham called the scenarios a revelation. She didn't realize how quickly an officer's job could go from routine to dangerous. Nor did she realize how adrenaline would affect reaction times or shot accuracy.

It also made her senses feel sharper, but she thinks she was quicker to make a decision than she normally would be. When she felt like her life was in danger, even in a simulation, she wanted to protect herself. And, she said, she may have overreacted sometimes, especially by shooting too much.

During the simulations all of the students shot what seemed like a lot of rounds, but Capt. Randy Barnes said they weren't that much higher than average.

He said the average shoot-out involving police only lasts a few seconds, but five to seven rounds are fired.

Most of the shots fired - a lot in some cases - happened within hundredths of a second of each other. But, she said, she could hear each and every one distinctly.

Graham was invited to apply to the Citizen Police Academy, partially because she was active with the Lower Pennsylvania Avenue Committee. The committee was formed to help stop crime and drug traffic on Pennsylvania Avenue.

As executive secretary of Dutterer's Flower Shop and the daughter of the owner - the shop has been in her family since 1919 - she grew up on the avenue, and now she lives there.

She got to see that up close when, as a part of the program, she spent a Saturday evening riding and walking with a Westminster police officer.

The night she spent with the officer was McDaniel College's Homecoming. She had a chance to see officers break up a few scuffles and look for public drunkenness and underage drinking while riding with Cpl. Thomas Kowalczyk.

"He would explain the 10-codes to me - the codes officers use to convey information, 10-4 for example - so I knew what was happening," she said.

On the way back to the station, he spotted a car that looked suspicious. The car was alone in a parking lot at nearly 2 a.m.

He found two juveniles who had snuck out of their houses.

Graham said she was fascinated by the differences between real-life policing and television cop shows, where every case takes exactly one hour. Really, she said, officers jump from call to call and each call can be different.

"One second, you have to be the nice, kind police officer talking to people on the street, and the next you have to be the tough law enforcement guy dealing with people who shouldn't be on the street," she said.

That's where training comes in. Officers are taught the ladder of force. It starts with verbal commands - officers call it verbal judo - and progresses to physical force, pepper spray, use of the baton and finally deadly force.

Students in the Citizen Police Academy had the chance to experience several different rungs on the ladder of force.

In one class, Barnes dressed in a red, padded suit and mimicked attacking the cadets. They used a padded baton to fend him off.

His head, neck, spine, and chest were off-limits for the baton because hitting those areas could cause lethal damage.

But students did hit those areas, usually accidentally.

Barnes said that was an example of how skilled police have to be with the baton. He also said police have to know when the fight is over.

"It's like going from 10 mph to 100 mph in a second," Barnes said, "but then having to slow down from 100 mph to 10 mph just as quickly."

Graham said that during the entire fight with Barnes, which lasted a little longer than a minute, she had no idea what was happening, other than that he was attacking her and she was defending herself.

"If that had been a real attack, I don't think I could have described him to police," she said. "All I could focus on were his hands."

And she was sore the next day from all the hits she gave and received.

But the entire class wasn't about hitting police officers and shooting their guns.

Much of the time was spent in the classroom, but the training was hands-on.

Students learned how to conduct field sobriety tests. Officer Jim Pullen showed the class how to judge if someone is intoxicated through the tests officers use all the time.

Graham said she had no concept of what went into a DUI stop.

"All I knew is what I'd read in the paper - that someone was charged," she said. One night students got to see real drunkards and try out the field sobriety tests.

Off-duty Westminster police officers drank beer and Pullen drove them to the new District Courthouse to take field sobriety tests.

The tests measure balance and motor skills, and officers use the results in court.

A drunken person will react in very specific ways, as Pullen told the class, and the students saw for themselves.

The tests fascinated Graham because she said she was naive about how the body would react to alcohol and what someone who was drinking could and couldn't control.

And she was interested by something else people can't control - fingerprints.

Lt. Wayne Mann of the Criminal Investigation Division taught students how to dust for fingerprints at a crime scene. Then the students fingerprinted each other.

Graham said the process was much easier than she'd imagined, but it was occurring in a classroom, so that helped.

That same evening, Detective Laurin Askew spoke to the class about drugs.

He showed the students pipes, syringes, and bags people use to take and package illegal drugs. All the items he showed the class had been seized in various raids in Westminster. He also showed them samples of different types of drugs.

The sheer amount of drugs seized amazed Graham.

She recognized some of the packaging, though.

She said she used to find the tiny, resealable bags used to package crack cocaine in the alley by her shop. That's been happening less and less, though, she said.

She credits the increased patrols on Pennsylvania Avenue.

Sgt. Mike Bible, community education officer for Westminster police, was so pleased with the way the class came together, he decided to offer the academy again.

He said six people who didn't know each other started to function as a team, and that was part of the intent.

"It was kind of like the real police academy," he said.

And if nothing else, it made Graham more aware of her surroundings.

Not long ago, she was out on her porch, talking to neighbors. She saw a car she didn't recognize drive past twice.

Before, she said, she probably wouldn't have even noticed it.

But since the academy, she has become more observant. She looked inside the car as it drove by and made a mental note of its license plate.

She thinks her new found powers of observation will be helpful to her neighborhood and to the police.

"I won't call the police and say, 'There's a guy walking down the street and he looks strange.'"

But no matter how hands-on classroom training is, it's no substitute for on-the-job training.

Chief Roger Joneckis told the class about a commercial he saw years ago where, after a civilian had spent time riding along with police, the officers turn to the man and say, "Now it's your turn."

And on Nov. 16, it was their turn.

For their last class, students went through real training scenarios.

They handled a domestic dispute, possible drug activity on a playground and a traffic stop.

Beyond their training, Bible only offered one piece of advice.

"Expect the unexpected," he told them.


©Carroll County Online 2002 
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Baltimore Sun Carroll Eagle: 
Tumblr: Kevin Dayhoff Banana Stems www.kevindayhoff.tumblr.com/
Kevin Dayhoff is an artist - and a columnist for:
Smurfs: http://babylonfluckjudd.blogspot.com/
Google profile: https://profiles.google.com/kevindayhoff/

E-mail: kevindayhoff(at)gmail.com

My http://www.explorecarroll.com/ columns appear in the copy of the Baltimore Sunday Sun that is distributed in Carroll County: https://subscribe.baltsun.com/Circulation/


See also - Kevin Earl Dayhoff Art www.kevindayhoff.com: Travel, art, artists, authors, books, newspapers, media, writers and writing, journalists and journalism, reporters and reporting, music, culture, opera... Ad maiorem Dei gloriam inque hominum salutem. “Deadline U.S.A.” 1952. Ed Hutcheson: “That's the press, baby. The press! And there's nothing you can do about it. Nothing!” - See more at: http://kevindayhoffart.blogspot.com/#sthash.4HNLwtfd.dpuf
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