County Clerk

Shawn D. Reese has been promoted from office manager for the County Commissioners to Carroll County clerk.Mrs. Reese was sworn in to the office Wednesday by Carroll Circuit Court Clerk Larry W. Shipley.The commissioners had expressed their intent to give Mrs. Reese the job last year, but it could not be official until she moved to Carroll County, she said.The former Frederick County resident now lives in Middleburg.She replaced Robert A. "Max" Bair in the clerk's job. He is the commissioners' executive assistant and director of administrative services.

Suzanne K. Mensh, who served Baltimore County for nearly five decades as an Orphans' Court judge and then as clerk of the county Circuit Court, died Wednesday at Northwest Hospital. Her family said no cause of death was given. She was 82. "She was a sincere lady," said a son, Spencer Mensh of Reisterstown. "The first word that comes to mind with her is 'integrity.'" Judge Mensh was encouraged to run for office by members of a local Democratic club who worked with her at polling locations, her son said.

A former chief administrative officer for Garrett County pleaded guilty to state income tax charges in Carroll County Circuit Court yesterday.Robert J. Fousek Sr., 49, now lives in Berlin on the Eastern Shore. He will be sentenced Jan. 22 after facing criminal charges of felony theft and misconduct in office, State Prosecutor Stephen Montanarelli, who oversees Maryland's prosecution of income tax evasion cases, said yesterday.Montanarelli said a review of Fousek's tax payments for the 1993 tax year by the state comptroller's office showed that Fousek understated his income by about $30,000 and did not file a tax return or pay income taxes for the 1994 tax year.

In a recent Sun column, Theo Lippman Jr., a retired Sun editorial writer and author, wrote that if Sen. John McCain is elected, "he will take the oath of office when he is 72 years and five months old. That would be the oldest ever at the first day of a presidency." Ronald Reagan was the oldest man when he was elected to the presidency and was 69 years and 11 months old when he arrived at the front door of the White House. Reagan's seniority bumped William Henry Harrison, who was born in 1773, to second place, but he still holds the record for presidential brevity.

VALENTINE, TEXAS--For 19 miles, most of it bumpy enough to shake your bones, Route 2017 runs down to the Rio Grande and the Mexican border. Drug smugglers and illegal immigrants pass through here. So do the Border Patrol agents that pursue them, and cowboys heading to a nearby ranch. The land is sandy and bleak, full of gullies and rattlesnakes. Yet this parched ground is increasing in value faster than any Manhattan duplex or Malibu villa. In February, a California entrepreneur bought 7,408 acres for $65 an acre.

Name: Shawn D. ReeseHonored by The Carroll County Sun for: Her promotion to county clerk, effective April 2; she will be responsible for preparing official minutes of commissioner meetings, maintaining documents and managing commissioners' officesAge: 32Residence; hometown: Middleburg; LadiesburgEducation: Graduate of Francis Scott Key High SchoolFamily: Husband: Michael, project manager for P & P Contractors in Rockville; son: David,3Place of worship: St....

Government offices are planning to close for Christmas holiday Carroll County Government offices will be closed tomorrow in observance of Christmas. Offices will reopen at 8 a.m. Tuesday. Northern Landfill and the Recycling Center will be closed tomorrow and reopen Tuesday. Carroll County public libraries and senior centers also will be closed tomorrow. Carroll County public schools will be closed through Jan. 1 and reopen Jan. 2. County plans hearing, meeting on zoning law Carroll County commissioners will hold a public hearing at 10 a.m. Jan. 3 in Room 300A of the County Office Building, 225 N. Center St., Westminster, to hear comments on a proposed zoning ordinance about distance requirements.

In a recent Sun column, Theo Lippman Jr., a retired Sun editorial writer and author, wrote that if Sen. John McCain is elected, "he will take the oath of office when he is 72 years and five months old. That would be the oldest ever at the first day of a presidency." Ronald Reagan was the oldest man when he was elected to the presidency and was 69 years and 11 months old when he arrived at the front door of the White House. Reagan's seniority bumped William Henry Harrison, who was born in 1773, to second place, but he still holds the record for presidential brevity.

Carroll County government staff will hold a meeting to hear comments on two proposed ordinances at 3 p.m. Thursday in Room 300A of the County Office Building in Westminster.One ordinance concerns illegal discharges into storm sewers, and the other addresses county personnel policies. Comments will be taken at Thursday's meeting in preparation for public hearings on the ordinances at 10 a.m. and 10: 30 a.m. Nov. 19.The Storm Water Management Ordinance would prohibit illegal discharges into the storm sewer system.

It all began in elementary schoolin ribboned braids lovingly fixedA birth certificate in my tiny handproving I was truly 6At 12 I gladly paid full fareat the movies every timeOnce I noticed behind methere were older boys in lineNo children here, these worldly menof 13, 15 or soCertainly I was old enoughto be walked home from the showAt 16 I had to prove my ageto be licensed to drive a carCouldn't they just look and seeI was nearly grown, by far?At 19, presenting that certificate againfor permission to be a brideThe county clerk nodded -- the pastor smiledTime was on my sideAt 21 to be served a drinkwith foam or fruit or fluffI proudly pulled my I.D. outshowing I was old enoughThen for what seemed an eternityno one mentioned it againUntil last week -- a simple thingluncheon with a friend"Your senior discount," whispered the waiterNow this could start a trendI slowly handed him that cardproving I was old enough -- again.

C. Merritt Pumphrey, a retired Howard County clerk of the Circuit Court and volunteer fire department official, died of cancer Friday at Howard County General Hospital. The Ellicott City resident was 83. Born in Ferndale in Anne Arundel County, he moved to Howard County at age 13. He worked with his father and brother to establish and operate Dalton Farms, in what is now Columbia. He was a 1941 Howard County High School graduate. As a young man he belonged to the Howard County 4-H Club.

The Anne Arundel County clerk of the court is facing his first primary challenger since being elected in 1994, and the race for register of wills is wide open following the retirement of 20-year officeholder George M. Nutwell Jr., in two of this month's quieter political contests. With no Democrat seeking to become clerk of the court, the race will end Sept. 12 with the Republican primary. Seeking a fourth term, Robert P. Duckworth, 66, of Crofton is facing Howard Neugebauer III, 23, of Pasadena.

Mabel B. Guertler, a former Baltimore County Police Department clerk and accomplished seamstress, died of heart failure Sunday at Good Samaritan Hospital. She was 82. She was born Mabel Estella Blackburn in Keyser, W.Va. After graduating from high school in 1941, she moved to Baltimore and went to work in the office at the old Glenn L. Martin Co. plant in Middle River. After her marriage to Charles F.E. Guertler ended in divorce, she returned to school and took accounting courses at what is now Towson University.

VALENTINE, TEXAS--For 19 miles, most of it bumpy enough to shake your bones, Route 2017 runs down to the Rio Grande and the Mexican border. Drug smugglers and illegal immigrants pass through here. So do the Border Patrol agents that pursue them, and cowboys heading to a nearby ranch. The land is sandy and bleak, full of gullies and rattlesnakes. Yet this parched ground is increasing in value faster than any Manhattan duplex or Malibu villa. In February, a California entrepreneur bought 7,408 acres for $65 an acre.

Maryland Court bars officials in gay marriage case A group of elected officials opposed to same-sex marriage cannot become defendants in the hot-button lawsuit filed by nine couples who want the state's ban on gay marriage erased, Maryland's highest court ruled yesterday. The decision, issued by the Maryland Court of Appeals a day after it heard arguments and with no opinion detailing its reasoning, returns the lawsuit to Baltimore City Circuit Court, where the same-sex couples sued five court clerks last July who refused them marriage licenses.

A scientist's report has confirmed what a mold-detecting dog sniffed out two weeks ago: There are mold growths on the carpeting, ceiling tiles and books in the Howard County circuit clerk's office. A laboratory analysis of five samples collected by the dog's handlers, David and Rondra Marcelli of Westminster, found various types of fungi on four, most prominently on a piece of ceiling tile, according to a report from Oregon-based Mould- Works. The mold found in the tile, Chaetomium globosum, can produce toxins and was the "most prevalent" fungus found in the samples, according to the report.

American Vietnam vets, New Zealanders reuniteRick Will Sr., secretary of the Carroll County chapter of Vietnam Veterans of America and Maryland State Council treasurer, participated in a reunion Tuesday at the Vietnam Veterans Wall in Washington with veterans from New Zealand.The Vietnam Veterans of America welcomed 76 New Zealand veterans to the memorial. The visitors laid a wreath and presented a list of 246 New Zealanders who died in Vietnam.Will noted that many New Zealanders, like the American Vietnam veterans, were not readily accepted upon returning home after the war. Many also suffer from debilitating effects of the war, including Agent Orange symptoms.

Hearing set to discuss county's use of loan The Carroll County commissioners will hold a public hearing at 2: 30 p.m. Wednesday to hear comments on a proposed resolution concerning a loan authorized by the Maryland Industrial and Commercial Redevelopment Act. The act authorizes local governments to provide private entities loans that are not to exceed 10 percent of the eligible project costs. The county's loan, up to $28,000, will be used to make improvements to commercial property at 633 Stone Chapel Road, and to purchase a laser projection system to be used in the production of floor and roof trusses by Shelter Systems Ltd. in Carroll County.

Taxpayers association meeting to feature financial speaker The Carroll County Taxpayers Association will meet at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow at Westminster Senior Center. The speaker will be Harvey Tegeler, president of Interstate Financial Services. The Carroll County Taxpayers Association is an affiliate of the Maryland Taxpayers Association, a group of citizens who monitor tax legislation at the local level. All property owners and interested citizens are welcome. The senior center is at 125 Stoner Ave. Information: 410-840-9699 or 410-857-1213.

Government offices are planning to close for Christmas holiday Carroll County Government offices will be closed tomorrow in observance of Christmas. Offices will reopen at 8 a.m. Tuesday. Northern Landfill and the Recycling Center will be closed tomorrow and reopen Tuesday. Carroll County public libraries and senior centers also will be closed tomorrow. Carroll County public schools will be closed through Jan. 1 and reopen Jan. 2. County plans hearing, meeting on zoning law Carroll County commissioners will hold a public hearing at 10 a.m. Jan. 3 in Room 300A of the County Office Building, 225 N. Center St., Westminster, to hear comments on a proposed zoning ordinance about distance requirements.