Fort Sill

Army National Guard Pvt. Delvin Hicks graduated from basic combat training at Fort Sill, in Lawton, Okla. He is the son of Mattie Hicks, of Burtonsville, and Michael Hicks, of Ellicott City.

Army National Guard Spec. Irina Shields graduated from basic combat training at Fort Sill, in Lawton, Okla., as an honor graduate and received a letter of commendation. She is the daughter of Konstantin Stepanov, of Laurel. Her husband, Mark Shields, is the son of Eugene and JoAnn Shields, of Laurel.

Army Pvt. Emanuel Lay Jr. graduated from basic combat training at Fort Sill, Lawton, Okla. A 2010 graduate of Laurel High School, he is the stepson of Marion Lay, of Laurel.

Army Pvt. Emanuel Lay Jr. graduated from basic combat training at Fort Sill, Lawton, Okla. A 2010 graduate of Laurel High School, he is the stepson of Marion Lay, of Laurel.

Army National Guard Spec. Irina Shields graduated from basic combat training at Fort Sill, in Lawton, Okla., as an honor graduate and received a letter of commendation. She is the daughter of Konstantin Stepanov, of Laurel. Her husband, Mark Shields, is the son of Eugene and JoAnn Shields, of Laurel.

Stu Grantham, Century SPORT WRESTLING BOYS STATS -- Wrestling in the 171-pound weight class, Grantham (29-9 prior to regionals) finished third at the recent Carroll County tournament and entered last weekend's regional meet as a No. 6 seed. SIDELINES -- A private in the Maryland Army National Guard, the senior is scheduled to depart for boot camp in Fort Sill, Okla., in July. He hopes to eventually make a career as an officer in the Army. Another goal is to someday become an educator.

Army Pvt. Michael P. Carney graduated from Basic Combat Training at Fort Sill, Lawton, Okla. Carney is the son of Joe Volpini of Glen Arm, and Kathryn Volpini-Holland of Strasburg, Va. Carney graduated in 2004 from Loch Raven High School. Navy Seaman Apprentice Joshua J. Powers , grandson of Karen and Bob Almony of White Hall recently graduated from Operations Specialist School with honors. Powers is a 2009 graduate of Hereford High School of Parkton and joined the Navy in March 2011.

Prosecutors dropped attempted-murder charges yesterday against an 18-year-old Baltimore soldier who had been arrested in Oklahoma, saying authorities lacked enough evidence to hold him responsible for a shooting that left five people wounded in the city last month. Jerrell Hill, 18, who had been detained at Fort Sill and later moved to the Comanche County Detention Center, was expected to be released last night, officials said. An assistant state's attorney appeared in District Court in Baltimore yesterday to formally drop the case and withdraw an extradition warrant.

In the end, it won't be the news correspondents or the politicians who are the truest chroniclers of the Persian Gulf war. It will be the soldiers.In dispatches to the home front, U.S. troops are writing to those closest to them of their fears, loneliness, hopes, anger. In their hands, the ordinary can become extraordinary.*Feb. 12Dear Mom, I've been gone almost two months now. Has it become any quieter or have you noticed? I'm real tired right now but I can't sleep. Whoever said it was hot in the desert lied.

Savannah G. "Penny" Vernarelli, a registered nurse who served in the Army in World War II and Korea, died of lung cancer Tuesday at Gilchrist Center for Hospice Care. The longtime Hamilton resident was 85. She was born Savannah Georgia Swaim and raised in Ironto, Va., and graduated from high school in Roanoke, Va. "People think she was named for Savannah, Georgia, but she wasn't. Her father, a Norfolk and Western Railway conductor, gave her the nickname of Penny because she was so small," said a son, Mark A. Vernarelli of Baldwin, a spokesman for the state Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services and former television news reporter.

Army Pvt. Michael P. Carney graduated from Basic Combat Training at Fort Sill, Lawton, Okla. Carney is the son of Joe Volpini of Glen Arm, and Kathryn Volpini-Holland of Strasburg, Va. Carney graduated in 2004 from Loch Raven High School. Navy Seaman Apprentice Joshua J. Powers , grandson of Karen and Bob Almony of White Hall recently graduated from Operations Specialist School with honors. Powers is a 2009 graduate of Hereford High School of Parkton and joined the Navy in March 2011.

Army National Guard Pvt. Delvin Hicks graduated from basic combat training at Fort Sill, in Lawton, Okla. He is the son of Mattie Hicks, of Burtonsville, and Michael Hicks, of Ellicott City.

Prosecutors dropped attempted-murder charges yesterday against an 18-year-old Baltimore soldier who had been arrested in Oklahoma, saying authorities lacked enough evidence to hold him responsible for a shooting that left five people wounded in the city last month. Jerrell Hill, 18, who had been detained at Fort Sill and later moved to the Comanche County Detention Center, was expected to be released last night, officials said. An assistant state's attorney appeared in District Court in Baltimore yesterday to formally drop the case and withdraw an extradition warrant.

Savannah G. "Penny" Vernarelli, a registered nurse who served in the Army in World War II and Korea, died of lung cancer Tuesday at Gilchrist Center for Hospice Care. The longtime Hamilton resident was 85. She was born Savannah Georgia Swaim and raised in Ironto, Va., and graduated from high school in Roanoke, Va. "People think she was named for Savannah, Georgia, but she wasn't. Her father, a Norfolk and Western Railway conductor, gave her the nickname of Penny because she was so small," said a son, Mark A. Vernarelli of Baldwin, a spokesman for the state Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services and former television news reporter.

Stu Grantham, Century SPORT WRESTLING BOYS STATS -- Wrestling in the 171-pound weight class, Grantham (29-9 prior to regionals) finished third at the recent Carroll County tournament and entered last weekend's regional meet as a No. 6 seed. SIDELINES -- A private in the Maryland Army National Guard, the senior is scheduled to depart for boot camp in Fort Sill, Okla., in July. He hopes to eventually make a career as an officer in the Army. Another goal is to someday become an educator.

He was a 19-year-old private from Baltimore, stationed in Hawaii at the Army Air Corps' Hickam Field. Now, he is 80 and a retired officer living in Columbia, hearing noises he hasn't heard in 60 years. When pundits compare yesterday's attacks on the United States to the Dec. 7, 1941, bombing of Pearl Harbor, survivor Hugh Roper says they are right in more ways than one. The weather "was unbelieveably gorgeous" that December morning in Hawaii, he says. Much like yesterday's blue skies and light breeze.

The following editorial appeared last Saturday in th Philadelphia Daily News:About a hundred years ago, Mrs. Patrick Campbell uttered the wise words that we Americans have had trouble hearing ever since."

He was a 19-year-old private from Baltimore, stationed in Hawaii at the Army Air Corps' Hickam Field. Now, he is 80 and a retired officer living in Columbia, hearing noises he hasn't heard in 60 years. When pundits compare yesterday's attacks on the United States to the Dec. 7, 1941, bombing of Pearl Harbor, survivor Hugh Roper says they are right in more ways than one. The weather "was unbelieveably gorgeous" that December morning in Hawaii, he says. Much like yesterday's blue skies and light breeze.

The following editorial appeared last Saturday in th Philadelphia Daily News:About a hundred years ago, Mrs. Patrick Campbell uttered the wise words that we Americans have had trouble hearing ever since."

In the end, it won't be the news correspondents or the politicians who are the truest chroniclers of the Persian Gulf war. It will be the soldiers.In dispatches to the home front, U.S. troops are writing to those closest to them of their fears, loneliness, hopes, anger. In their hands, the ordinary can become extraordinary.*Feb. 12Dear Mom, I've been gone almost two months now. Has it become any quieter or have you noticed? I'm real tired right now but I can't sleep. Whoever said it was hot in the desert lied.