DORSEY'S SEARCH resident Joan Burkart likes her volunteer job so much, she works two days a week.
Delores Yancich delayed the start of her vacation so she wouldn't miss her shift.
Both women volunteer at Rave Reviews, a consignment shop operated by the Howard County General Hospital Volunteer Auxiliary.
Rave Reviews, in the Hickory Ridge Village Center, is open Tuesday through Saturday.
The shop sells consignments of used women's and children's clothing, and splits the proceeds with the sellers. The profits help support pediatric services at the hospital.
Christa Pence, the only paid employee, took over as manager last December after 30 years in the retail business.
Since then, she has weeded out less desirable stock and created a niche for the store, featuring upscale women's fashions.
She also provides free, on-the-spot image-consulting for customers.
"Business is great," she says.
So great, in fact, that she would like to nearly double her roster of about 25 volunteers.
Retail experience is not required, but stamina is, she says.
"We never sit down in here," says Pence. "It's very physical. We have to do everything ourselves, including washing the windows and cleaning the floors."
She adds, "It's very rewarding, too. We have fun in here."
Burkart started volunteering earlier this year after she retired from the county Board of Education. She also works with Meals on Wheels and volunteers for her church and the county library.
But working at Rave Reviews "is something I really enjoy," she says. "I like the customers. We get to know them and what they like."
Does she like getting first crack at the new consignments?
She notes that the shop is too busy for that, but adds, "I come in on my day off to shop."
To volunteer at Rave Reviews, call the hospital's volunteer services office at 740-7980.
Chorus joins Czech fete
Columbia Pro Cantare, a classical choral group directed by Longfellow resident Frances Dawson, will present a concert of Czech music at 3 p.m. Sunday at National City Christian Church, 5 Thomas Circle, Washington.
Featured will be the U.S. premiere of the Mass in E-flat major by Antonin Vranicky in the late 18th century.
The only known copy of this music was recently found in the archives of Supraphon, a music publishing and recording company in Prague. Through contacts in New York and Prague, Dawson was able to get a photocopy of the manuscript.
"It's a very upbeat, wonderful piece," Dawson says. "It deserves to be heard."
Dawson's interest in Czech music goes back to her student days and stems from her own Czech ancestry.
When she founded the Columbia Pro Cantare nearly 20 years ago, she says, she decided to include choral works that had not been performed in this country, as well as more familiar pieces.
The concert is part of an annual celebration of the 1918 founding of the Republic of Czechoslovakia. It is sponsored by the Czech Embassy and Washington-area Czech cultural groups.
Tickets are $16 for adults, $11 for seniors and students when purchased in advance.
At the door, they are $18 for adults, $13 for seniors and students.
For information, call 465-5744.
Route 32 noise update
State Highway Administration representatives will speak at the next meeting of the River Hill Village Board, scheduled at 8 p.m. Monday at the village meeting room.
The meeting is open to the public.
Charles Adams, director of SHA's Office of Environmental Design, will discuss the results of recent noise studies in the Pointers Run area.
Robert Sanders, project manager for SHA's Project Planning Division, will present an update on the proposed expansion of Route 32 from Route 108 to Interstate 70.
River Hill board member Josh Heltzer says the meeting will be "a forum for folks in the community to ask questions and hopefully get some answers."
He adds that the board wants to know traffic volume projections and whether the area qualifies for state-funded noise mitigation.
The board has asked the state to include the area in the environmental impact statement for the expansion of Route 32, he says.
Jewish scholar to speak
Reuven Hammer will be scholar-in-residence for the Gillian Cohen Memorial Lecture at Beth Shalom Congregation.
Hammer will speak on "Entering Jewish Prayer" at Shabbat services at 8 p.m. Friday and 9: 30 a.m. Saturday at the synagogue, 8070 Harriet Tubman Lane. Hammer is dean of the Jerusalem campus of the Jewish Theological Seminary. For information and reservations, call the synagogue office at 531-5115.
Pub Date: 10/23/96
