Hall Of Fame

THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY of Mount Airy is again accepting names of people to be nominated to the Mount Airy Hall of Fame. Initiated last year as an addition to the Mount Airy Museum, the Hall of Fame inducted the first 20 charter members March 21, the same day the town celebrated its 106th anniversary of incorporation. The Historical Society will accept nominations until Dec. 1 for induction of 10 new members March 20. Travis Norwood, Historical Society president, said the intent of the Hall of Fame is to honor truly deserving people, living or deceased, who by work, service, voluntarism, word or deed, made Mount Airy a better place.

CLEVELAND -- Jeff Manto, who didn't have a position or even a major-league job when the season opened, is headed for the Hall of Fame.Or at least the bat that he used to hit five homers in three days last weekend is going to Cooperstown, N.Y. A representative from the Hall of Fame called Orioles media relations director John Maroon yesterday to ask that Manto's bat be sent to the Hall for enshrinement.Manto actually cracked the bat fouling a ball off against the Cleveland Indians' Charles Nagy on Monday night, but that's still good enough for the Hall of Fame.

The Harford County Women's Bowling Association and the Cecil-Harford Counties Bowling Association have announced their Hall of Fame inductees for this year.The two associations joined to have a Hall of Fame dinner/dance on Feb. 29 at the Bayou in Havre De Grace.The first woman inducted into the Harford County Women's Hall of Fame for superior performance is Kathryn B. Scott (everybody calls her Kay).The late Mary Morris Plott was the first lady inducted for meritorious service.Larry Hubble Sr. and the late John Piper entered the Hall of Fame for superior performance.

SEEN ON THE SCENE: Lacrosse, America's oldest sport, is finally getting some respect. Next Thursday, the Lacrosse Foundation, led by executive director Steve Stenersen, will open its new headquarters and Hall of Fame Museum at 113 W. University Parkway.The $1.5-million center will feature hundreds of photos, artifacts and other memorabilia chronicling more than three centuries of this game, which originated with Native Americans.The sport has also come a long way in the 41 years since Naval Academy lacrosse coach William H. (Dinty)

There's only one route leading into the village of Cooperstown, N.Y., so it doesn't take much to create a traffic jam. And at the current pace, it won't take long to start one with those who came close but failed to gain election into the Baseball Hall of Fame.This year's close call for Orlando Cepeda, who missed by seven votes in his 15th and final year on the Baseball Writers' Association of America ballot, again emphasized just how difficult it is to enter the Hall of Fame. And the near-misses by the other leading candidates -- Phil Niekro (69 votes short)

YOU COULD SAY THAT THE CHIMES School's "2007 Hall of Fame" celebration was a family affair this year because it wasn't just former Maryland state senator Frank Kelly being honored, but also his wife, Janet, their four sons, daughters-in-law and grandchildren. And 22 -- almost all of them -- turned out at Meyerhoff Symphony Hall for the shindig. "We're celebrating generations...and we have three generations here with us," said Janet Kelly. "The whole theme of this evening is the generations of the Kellys supporting generations of people with disabilities, just as Chimes has for the last six decades," said Chimes president / CEO Terry Allen Perl.

When legendary running back Jim Brown stunned the Cleveland Browns in 1966 by retiring to pursue a movie career, he wrote a letter to head coach Blanton Collier."

Linking citizenship, integrity and morality to athletic ability shouldn't be a prerequisite for election to a sports hall of fame. It's the ideal way but, unfortunately, it's not realistic.The Pro Football Hall of Fame judges a man exclusively on game performances and forgets how he chooses to lead his life. The College Football Hall of Fame does the same thing -- except there's an important clause that deals with character.So what does this do to O. J. Simpson, who is to be arraigned on a double murder charge and is already enshrined in the two halls of fame?

Turning a celebration into a forum dealing with social, political or religious issues doesn't befit a Hall of Fame induction 'N ceremony.To subject an audience to personal views on such matters, at any kind of sports function but especially on the occasion of Hall of Fame enshrinement, seems to this listener to be taking advantage of an opportunity, a form of grandstanding and capitalizing on a situation.In such cases, the locked-in listeners seated in the audience have every reason to feel they have been taken advantage of by the speechmaker.

R. Delaine Hobbs, president of Mount Airy Town Council and a member for 31 years, was one of 26 elected officials inducted into the Maryland Municipal League Hall of Fame.The honor goes to city and town government leaders who have served 20 years or longer.Hobbs, 62, said his first run for office came after he nominated a friend for the council and the friend returned the favor.Hobbs said the reward of elected office is "just seeing Mount Airy a better place for my kids and everyone else."