Grandfather

The incident seems right off of today's headlines: An American president decides to land troops in the Middle East in part because an adviser warns that Iraq has designs on "reclaiming" land considered its own, Kuwait.The year, however, was 1958 and the president was Dwight D. Eisenhower.His bold and prescient move, which sought to prevent what Iraq finally got around to doing last month, may seem surprising to those whose image of him is as the president who golfed his way through the politically pale 1950s.

GAMBER -- A taller, tanned and seemingly more mature D. Gregory Putman is finishing another full summer before preparing to enter his fifth-grade year at Mechanicsville Elementary school next month.Sporting a bronze medal he won swimming in the Central Maryland Division III meet earlier this summer, the 10-year-old Gamber resident is quick to talk about the highlight of his vacation from school.Greg, who swims for the Freedom Swim Club said, "When I got this medal, I was real happy. I won this medal for the 50-meter freestyle relay.

If it hadn't been for his grandfather, a young 19-year-old who served in the 1st Battery Massachusetts Field Artillery and fought in both battles of Bull Run and at Antietam, and a mother who talked of her father's Civil War exploits, young George Kenney might never have developed an interest in the war that became a lifelong passion."

With under three minutes to play in the third quarter and his team managing a slim lead against No. 1 Mount St. Joseph, Archbishop Spalding boys basketball coach Derrick Lewis saw something he didn't like and promptly called timeout. In the huddle, he challenged his players with a simple question: "Are you guys scared to win this game?" he asked. The No. 8 Cavaliers' response was an impressive one. Along with diving for loose balls and grabbing tough rebounds — the little things Lewis wanted to see — Spalding got an inspiring second-half shooting performance from guard Jourdan Grant to pull off a stunning 81-71 home win Tuesday night in Severn.

Dione "Big Man" Fauntleroy Sr., a 48-year-old Baltimore man, who conspired to sell crack cocaine in the Gilmor Homes public housing complex with his son, his son's grandfather and 19 others, was sentenced to 160 months in prison Thursday, according to the Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office. His son, Dione "Dummy" Fauntleroy Jr., 28, was sentenced to 156 months in prison last week. And the younger man's maternal grandfather, William Herring, 67, is set to be sentenced early next month.

The death last week of Daniel J. Loden, 86, the legendary Baltimore advertising executive and creator of the Charm City promotional campaign nearly 30 years ago, brought back to mind the paternal grandfather for whom he was named. The elder Loden was a well-liked and colorful Democratic leader who cavorted on the Baltimore political stage in the early days of the last century. Loden was a protege of I. Freeman Rasin, chief henchman for Maryland Sen. Arthur Pue Gorman. He was also a member of what was called Baltimore's Royal Family, which included Democratic bosses Frank Kelly, Sonny Mahon and "Paving" Bob Padgett.

In a drug-sick haze last year, 22-year-old Jason H. Gorge killed and robbed his grandfather in Dundalk, ingested more heroin and drove in the dead man's van to Pennsylvania, where he slit his throat in a suicide attempt. Those are the facts everyone acknowledges. What jurors in Gorge's murder trial in Baltimore County Circuit Court must determine is whether the killing of 80-year- old Harry R. Gorge was "willful, deliberate and premeditated" - murder in the first degree. In her opening statement yesterday, public defender Gayle Robinson assured the jury that it was not. "You will hear more than you want to about a young life destroyed by drugs, the destruction of a family," she told jurors.

During his six-year quest to become a professional bowler, Doyle Irons has drawn strength from many sources.From George Branham III, the most prominent African-American bowler on the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour, to Irons' nearly miraculous recovery from a car accident in 1995 that left him with a broken right wrist and ankle, the 21-year-old from Columbia is driven to succeed.But perhaps the biggest inspiration has been his grandfather, George Jackson, a man who drove his grandson to local bowling tournaments when no one else could.

Lacrosse runs in Drew Bracken's family. Not only was his father, Michael Bracken, an All-American at Salisbury, but his grandfather is Bob Scott, who coached Johns Hopkins to seven national titles and wrote the bible of the men's game, Lacrosse: Technique and Tradition. Bracken, 18, leads the No. 11 Generals in ground balls and clears and has also scored 17 goals and 15 assists, including two goals in Saturday's 10-7 loss to Hereford in the Baltimore County championship. He played soccer for the Generals, but he will play lacrosse next year at Roanoke.

Derrick Johnson loved sitting and talking about football with his grandfather. Clifton Johnson knew the game well and explained its intricacies to Derrick when he was about 5, talks the Joppatowne junior remembers well. When Derrick Johnson began playing recreation league football for the Edgewood-Joppatowne Steelers, Clifton Johnson often would be there to root him on. That's why the Mariners linebacker dedicated this season to his grandfather, who died last year. Despite being only 5 feet 8, 185 pounds, Johnson has grown into a force in his first season starting at linebacker, helping the Mariners shut down most opponents en route to a 5-1 start as they try for a third straight trip to a state title game.