Friends

El Capitan is an intimidating granite formation in California's Yosemite National Park, popular with climbers because its 7,573-foot vertical face presents such a challenge. Pete Davis has done the four-night, five-day ascent twice, which is an accomplishment in itself. And he did it with one hand. The native of Phoenix in Baltimore County was born without an arm below the elbow, but as he shows in the short climbing film "The Gimp Monkeys," he'd rather have "one hand and a good attitude" than two hands and a bad outlook.

The flowers left in condolence are a kind but painful reminder that De'ontae Smith is gone, as is the funeral program his mother carries around to remember the boy stabbed to death downtown just hours after the Baltimore Ravens' Super Bowl victory parade. Chevita Bumbrey and her husband, Donae Wright, have struggled with De'ontae's conspicuous absence. He could usually be found slouching on the couch playing video games or dancing the "mump" to rap music - shuffling wide-legged on the wood floor.

Fanya O'Donoghue had just learned she was pregnant when she happened to meet a group of nurses at a social gathering. She was looking for an obstetrician, and asked them whom they would recommend. "All six of them said, 'Dr. [Nikita] Levy,'" she recalled. Even now, after allegations that Levy photographed patients during exams, followed by the doctor's apparent suicide last Monday, O'Donoghue can't bring herself to believe those nurses steered her wrong. For her, Levy is still the kind, dryly funny doctor who drove through the "snowmageddon" of February 2010 when she went into labor with her firstborn - who shepherded her through her next pregnancy with twins and celebrated their happy deliveries.

Joan A. Parr, a homemaker and peace activist, died Tuesday from heart failure at her Lauraville home. She was 84. The former Joan Atkins was born in Springfield, Mass., and moved to Baltimore in 1945, when her father joined the upper school math faculty at Park School. After graduating from Park in 1946, she earned a bachelor's degree in history in 1950 from Goucher College. During the early 1950s, she worked as an administrative assistant at the Baltimore Broom Machine Co. In 1951, she married Albert Gilmore Kinsey, who was a food service company personnel director.

Faced with the challenge of keeping a historic mansion warm for elderly residents while reining in costs, the nonprofit organization that operates the 18th-century Chase-Lloyd House in Annapolis is turning to 21st-century techniques to save the day. Chase Home Inc., an organization that runs the historic building as both housing for elderly women and a tourist attraction, recently contracted for an energy audit to determine if technology can help...

Emma Gorray of Dundalk turns 100 years old on February 23. Emma will celebrate with her children, Dot and Dick Randall of Edgewood, Carol Reuter of Dundalk and Bob Gorray of Dundalk; grandchildren, David Randall of Aberdeen, Natalie and Doug Johnson of Bel Air, Jeff and Kelly Randall of Bel Air, Scott and Debbie Randall of White Marsh, Cherie and Jay Cunningham of Perry Hall and Jamie and Tim Pasko of Dundalk. Also celebrating will be great-grandchildren Jason Randall of Perry Hall, Lindsay and Adam Randall of Nottingham, Katelyn Randall of Aberdeen, Stephanie and Zack Johnson of Bel Air, Heather and Sean Randall of Bel Air, Tyler and Jacob Cunningham of Perry Hall and Emma Pasko of Dundalk; and great-great granddaughter, Addison Walker of Bel Air.

Raymond "Chip" Mason first met Joseph A. Sullivan over dinner at a Chicago restaurant, where the founder of Legg Mason Inc. interviewed the young bond trading manager for a job with the Baltimore company. A lot of the conversation, Mason recalled, was about whether Sullivan and his family were prepared to uproot themselves and move to the Charm City. Mason had seen such moves not work out before. "He admitted it would not be simple," said Mason, who retired after nearly 40 years at Legg's helm and now spends much of his time in Naples, Fla. But "he thought he could do more with us than anyone else.

Contrary to Barry Levinson's assertion that former Ravens owner Art Modell made Baltimore's Super Bowl victory possible, Modell was the reason we didn't get an expansion team (" Art Modell 's great gift," Feb. 7). According to former Sun s portswriter John Steadman, Mr. Modell was such a poor business man that he was close to losing the then Cleveland Browns and took our deal to bail himself out. He moved his money-losing team here and wound up selling it for about $800 million.

I've seen many brides become so overwhelmed with wedding anxiety, especially related to planning, that they don't get to fully enjoy their day. It's sad to think that you could spend so much time worrying and stressing over what should be an extremely special moment in your life. As soon as I got engaged, I decided to make a list of truths to remember throughout our engagement. This list has and continues to keep me grounded and grateful for this phase in my life. While I'll be excited to finally be married, I'll also be sad to see the door close on my time as a fiancé.

R. Gayle Layfield, a retired Friends School official who worked in fundraising, died of cancer Feb. 1 at her North Baltimore home. She was 64. Born Ruth Gayle Layfield in Richmond, Va., she was a 1966 graduate of the Collegiate School, where she was class president and played sports. She earned a bachelor of arts degree at Hollins College, where she was active on the trustee and alumnae boards. She also received a master's degree from the Johns Hopkins University. After moving to Baltimore in the mid-1970s, she was an English teacher at Roland Park Country School, where she was also director of admissions and worked in development.