Grand Prize

The big one got away again at Saturday's Maryland Fishing Challenge finale in Annapolis. For the eighth straight year since the contest was established, no anglers caught the special Diamond Jim striped bass worth a $25,000 prize. Though the $25,000 striped bass wasn't caught, it marks the second year in which the Jim Diamond prize money was split among those who caught a fish carrying the designated tag. Instead, the nine anglers who caught fish that were tagged in the popular Maryland Department of Natural Resources' contest took home nearly $2,800 each.

The plaque hangs on the wall of the doctor's office, proof of its worth to Greg Brouse, 1981 grand-prize winner of the Greater Baltimore Chapter of the National Football Foundation Scholar Athlete award. "My kids can't believe I was either a scholar or an athlete," said Brouse, who is now an oncologist in Monroe, N.C. "I think that, quietly, they make fun of me, but at the same time, they'd like to do the same for themselves. " Brouse, who starred at Centennial, turned 50 this month.

Three Howard County students captured grand prize awards at the Baltimore Science Fair last weekend, earning trips to an international high school science competition in Canada next month.Oakland Mills High School senior Seema Mishra won the grand prize in biology, and Atholton High School senior Jonathan Edwards and junior Mani Mahjouri won for their team project in physical science.The two grand prizes were among the 88 awards captured by Howard County students during the 40th annual science fair, held March 25-26 at Towson State University and sponsored by the school and the Kiwanis Clubs of Towson and Baltimore.

College basketball Towson's Benimon is CAA Player of the Week again Towson junior Jerrelle Benimon was named the Colonial Athletic Association Men's Basketball Player of the Week, the league announced Monday. It marks the fourth time this season that the forward, who transferred from Georgetown in the offseason, has won the award. Benimon averaged 18.5 points, 12 rebounds, 4.5 assists and four blocks as Towson posted road wins against UNC Wilmington and Drexel last week.

One Baltimore woman has found her urban oasis — in Chicago. Deborah Robertson, 57, is the winner of the 2011 HGTV Urban Oasis, a luxurious, furnished one-bedroom residence on the 35th floor of Trump International Hotel & Tower in Chicago. The home, designed by Vern Yip — a judge on HGTV Design Star, offers views of the city skyline and a contemporary look with eclectic furnishings. It has one and a half baths, a gourmet kitchen and floor-to-ceiling windows. Amenities for Trump residents include a spa, fitness center, indoor pool, restaurants and 24-hour concierge.

Who says drinking games can't be taken seriously? Flip cup, a game typically played in college frat houses, steps into the limelight Saturday when the Recher Theatre hosts the annual World Series of Flip Cup. Flip cup is an international sport, apparently. Now in its fifth year, the World Series of Flip Cup is a chance for aficionados to showcase their drinking- game prowess. In the game, teams of six players compete to see who can chug a cup filled with beer or water, set it on the edge of the table upside down and flip it upright with one hand.

North County High School freshman Jack Andraka stood on the auditorium stage, speaking about the invention that earned him the $75,000 grand prize at the recent Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. Behind him stood Dr. Anirban Maitra, a professor in the Johns Hopkins University's department of pathology who gave Jack use of his lab to craft his invention, a cheap and effective "dipstick-sensor" method of testing blood or urine to identify early-stage pancreatic cancer and other diseases.

Middle and high school students with singing, dancing and musical skills are encouraged to audition for "Howard County's Got Talent" at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday at the Columbia Teen Center, 5853 Robert Oliver Place in Columbia. Finalists will compete Jan. 8 for the grand prize of a one-year representation contract with Cima Talent Management Inc. Agency. To register and more information, call 410-715-5523.

Like father, like son. Or is it the other way around? For the first time in memory two people from the same family have won prizes in Sun Magazine's annual photo contest -- Baltimorean Karl G. Franz, a pre-press manager for a printing firm, and his son Max, a student at Archbishop Curley High School. But that wasn't the only surprise in this year's contest. For the first time, the grand prize went to an entrant in the 16 and Under category. That would be Max, who was pretty cool about his double good fortune.

Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter ( BARCS) is one of 108 shelters across the country  officially in the running for slots in The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) Rachael Ray $100K Challenge. The top 50 shelters will compete for a $100,000 grand prize and more than $500,000 in prize grants. The top 50 shelters will be chosen through online public voting. After the contestants are selected, the participating shelters will try to save at least 300 more cats and dogs during August, September and October 2012 than they did in the same time period in 2011.

KFC has declared itself the official sponsor of "couchgating," which KFC says is "the act of enjoying a big time sporting event from the comfort of your couch. " The company has launched a special section on the KFC Facebook page with contests, rules (e.g., "If you touch the wing, you eat the wing") and tips (e.g., "Shouting at the television usually makes your team do better"). It's kind of cute and it's all a promotion for KFC's new Gameday Bucket - eight pieces of chicken, eight hot wings and 10 Original Recipe bites, all for $19.99 at participating restaurants.

If your favorite food truck wasn't in its regular location on Tuesday, it's because it went to Hopkins. Some 22 food trucks in all were dispatched to Johns Hopkins Medicine facilities all over creation, from Bayview to Homewood to Green Spring Station. The Food Truck Frenzy was hosted by Johns Hopkins Medicine as part of its United Way campaign. The trucks were planning to make a donation to the campaign as was the Maryland Mobile Food Vendors Association. The trucks were scheduled to serve at Hopkins sites from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Baltimore's food trucks return to McHenry Row for a special Halloween Gathering . The rally will include an adult costume contest - the grand prize is a stay in the McHenry Row guest suite.

Baltimore Ravens player Torrey Smith couldn't stop smiling when he entered Linton Springs Elementary School's gymnasium on Tuesday, Oct. 2. Greeted with thundering cheers from a sea of purple, the wide receiver was there to kick off the school's Project ACES (Active Children Excel in School) initiative - a program partnered with the NFL's Play 60 Challenge - to fight childhood obesity with 60 minutes of daily exercise and healthy eating. "All that purple is nice," Smith said, greeting the crowd.

The big one got away again at Saturday's Maryland Fishing Challenge finale in Annapolis. For the eighth straight year since the contest was established, no anglers caught the special Diamond Jim striped bass worth a $25,000 prize. Though the $25,000 striped bass wasn't caught, it marks the second year in which the Jim Diamond prize money was split among those who caught a fish carrying the designated tag. Instead, the nine anglers who caught fish that were tagged in the popular Maryland Department of Natural Resources' contest took home nearly $2,800 each.

The race is on to save animal lives, one adoption at a time. The 2012 ASPCA Rachael Ray $100K Challenge kicks off Aug. 1. It's a 3-month competition among 50 animal shelters across the nation. Each shelter's goal is to increase their adoptions so they'll win some of the more than $500,000 in prize grants to be given away, including a grand prize of $100,000. Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter is one of the 50 contestants. They'll try to save at least 300 more cats and dogs during the months of August, September and October than they did during that same time period last year.

On July 14, Quinten White's aunt called him and told him about a singing competition happening in the mall next to the store she works at. The contest, which promotes Whitney Houston and Jordin Sparks' new movie, "Sparkle," has each contestant sing their own version of a song from the film. Quinten, 28, intrigued and excited to have an opportunity to show off his singing abilities, went to the tryouts and proceeded to beat 40 other Baltimore hopefuls. The West Hills resident is currently a finalist and represents Baltimore in the "Sparkle" Singing Challenge.

Harford County Restaurant Week was due to end Wednesday, but the county's Office of Tourism announced the event has been extended through June 26. County officials said participating restaurant operators asked for the extension, citing its popularity this year. "With repeated requests from restaurants to extend the promotion we decided to go for it!" Wini Roche, the county's tourism manager said in a press release. Roche also coordinates the Restaurant Week promotion. Known as "the most delicious week of the year!"

Southwest Airlines has launched a sweepstakes/giveaway with a grand prize of 3 million Rapid Rewards points. That's a lotta points. And, yeah, OK, the winner is not likely to be you or me, but there will be a winner, who will be named the "Chief Reward Officer. " And 10 lucky folks each will win 100,000 points. That's not bad either. Locally, the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront is launching a promotion to give away 1 million points to meeting planners who book an event that generates 100 consecutive room nights.

Baltimore escape artist Spencer Horsman's willingness to almost die in front of an audience is proving a smash on NBC's "America's Got Talent. " "Yeah, apparently they like the fact that I'm willing to almost kill and mangle myself every round," Horsman said with a laugh, just a day after his latest escape earned him a spot in the show's final round, being taped this month in New York. Truly, the 26-year-old, heretofore best known for performing on weekends at his Federal Hill club, Illusions, is going national.

North County High School freshman Jack Andraka stood on the auditorium stage, speaking about the invention that earned him the $75,000 grand prize at the recent Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. Behind him stood Dr. Anirban Maitra, a professor in the Johns Hopkins University's department of pathology who gave Jack use of his lab to craft his invention, a cheap and effective "dipstick-sensor" method of testing blood or urine to identify early-stage pancreatic cancer and other diseases.