Environmental education programs offered
Annapolis Recreation & Parks is offering environmental educational programs at the newly renovated, city-owned Back Creek Nature Park at 1314 Edgewood Road.
The urban ecology park offers recreation, education and a living classroom. Public programs will be offered that are geared for children ages 3 to 10 for $5 per class. Scheduled courses, 90 minutes long, include:
* "Extreme Shoreline Strategies" at 3 p.m. today: Learn how to protect the shoreline.
* "Make Way for the Osprey" at 3 p.m. Feb. 22: A hike to learn about birds found in Maryland.
Activities include a Daddy Daughter Dance from 6:45 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Friday at the recreation center at 9 St. Mary's St. Fathers and their daughters ages 3 to 10 can dance the night away for $25. Registration is required by phone at 410-263-7958 or at www.annapolis.gov/recreation.
Medical lawsuit panel
The Maryland Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse will hold a breakfast and panel discussion, "Fixing the Healthcare Crisis: Addressing the Threat of Lawsuit Abuse," at 8 a.m. Thursday at the Maryland Inn, 16 Church Circle, Annapolis.
Panelists include Dr. Ron Elfenbein, assistant director of emergency medicine at Harbor Hospital; Susan Delean-Botkin, legislative chair, Nurse Practitioner Association of Maryland; Larry Smith, executive vice president of Risk Management at Medstar; and Pam Metz Kasemeyer of Schwartz, Metz & Wise, P.A.
Topics will include the state's legal climate, growing shortage of practicing physicians, medical expert witness testimony in court, the threat of lawsuits to medical innovation and legislative issues. Reservations are required at 888-321-8480.
Black history events
The Banneker-Douglass Museum, 84 Franklin St., Annapolis, has planned a number of activities for Black History Month, including a 25th anniversary celebration.
* "Frederick Douglass and Life at Wye House Farm," 2 p.m. Saturday. Archaeologists will discuss slave life on the Eastern Shore plantation, where Douglass was born 191 years ago.
* "Building a Church Foundation," 10 a.m. to noon Feb. 21. Drop-in, $3 per person. Children 5 and older and their families can learn about church architecture through art and make a paper church.
* "Soul Sanctuary: Images of the African American Worship Experience Artist Talk," 2 p.m. Feb. 21. Photographer Jason Miccolo Johnson will discuss his exhibit of 75 black-and-white images from African-American churches across the country.
