Hampstead

Michael Oles, of Hampstead, is passionate about the sport of fencing. He says that while each of the three disciplines - foil, saber and epee - has its loyal followers, all are in agreement about one thing: Fencing is a life-long passion. "It's physical chess," he said, "using your body and brain just as much. " Oles, a 1974 Junior Olympic under-16 men's epee national champion, is all smiles when he and others talk about fencing. And while he lives in Carroll County, he can often be found in Catonsville - where he welcomes everyone, young and old alike - to learn the sport at a studio off Route 40 operated by the Baltimore area's Tri-Weapon Club, a club founded in 1961 by his late uncle and fencing legend, Richard Oles.

The Board of County Commissioners on May 24 unanimously approved a $1.066 million bid for construction of the first phase of the planned Leister Regional Park in Hampstead. Commissioner Haven Shoemaker reminisced on the late Bub Leister, for whom the park is named. Leister sold the land to the county more than 10 years ago before his death in 2006. "He sold it to the county for about half of what those guys were offering because he wanted it to be preserved as a green space for his community," Shoemaker said.

MANCHESTER - State Sen. Joe Getty this week asked the Carroll County Board of Education to adopt a north county zone for implementation of school delays - similar to the "Hereford Zone" that currently operates in Baltimore County. In a letter sent on Jan. 24 to Board President Jennifer Seidel, Getty cited hazardous road conditions that confronted students, parents and school bus drivers on Jan. 23 in the Taneytown, Manchester and Hampstead communities as an example that demonstrates the need for such a zone.

Mary H. Coleman, a Medfield day care provider who cared for several generations of children, died Saturday of a stroke at Johns Hopkins Hospital. She was 78. Mary Hilda Grothe was born in Hampstead and spent her early years in Manchester and Millers before moving to Fawcett Street in Remington with her family. She attended city public schools until leaving to go to work. After her 1955 marriage to John C. Coleman Sr., the couple moved to Medfield, where they had lived for more than 50 years.

A Hampstead woman was sentenced on Friday, Oct. 28, to eight-and-half-years in prison for her role in the September 2009 robbery of a Finksburg pharmacy. Victoria Jean Reid, 26, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz to the 102-month term, to be followed by three years of supervised release for conspiracy to commit an armed robbery and using a gun during the robbery. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John Sippel. Officials said Joseph Wagner, 26, of Baltimore, has also pleaded guilty to the same charges and was sentenced in June to also serve 102 months in prison.

HAMPSTEAD — St. George's Episcopal Church will host a 5K charity run and walk on Cape Horn Road, between Route 30 and Boog Road, in the Hampstead and Manchester area on Saturday, Oct. 22, between 8 and 9 a.m. The following roadways will be closed to all traffic: Cape Horn Road between Route 30 and Harvey Gummel Road, including Boog Road, Opie Drive, Laverne Circle, Darlene Drive, St. George's Court, Cape Hill Court, the intersection of Sussanan...

As much of the region continues to recover from closed roads, downed power lines and other remnants of Hurricane Irene, Carroll County Public Schools officials said Monday that the school system will open tomorrow, Tuesday, August 30, on time and as scheduled - with two exceptions. Hampstead Elementary School and Century High School will not open on Tuesday due to power outages at those two schools, according to school system officials. There was no immediate word on when they would open.

FINKSBURG — County Commissioner Haven Shoemaker, who represents District 2 in the Hampstead and Finksburg areas, will hold a question-and-answer meeting on Wednesday, June 15, 7-8:30 p.m., at the Finksburg Library, 2265 Old Westminster Pike. The session will take place in the library's large meeting room. Residents of District 2 are invited to attend to discuss issues of interest.

An elderly couple was found dead Saturday night in their Carroll County home that emergency personnel discovered to contain 80 times the normal level of carbon monoxide. Lewis Keyser, 81 and his 84-year-old wife, Betty, were found in the basement of the house. Relatives told Maryland State police that they found the house in the 1900 block of Lang Road in Hampstead filled with soot and haze Police said Sunday that no foul play is suspected and that the couple was last seen on Thursday.

A Carroll County woman was fatally shot by a Maryland state trooper after she pointed a gun at him during a confrontation at a Hampstead home, state police said late Monday. State police were called about 5:40 p.m. to a home in the 4600 block of Upper Beckleysville Road for a domestic dispute. A second emergency call reported that the 40-year-old woman had a gun and was threatening to kill herself, state police said in a news release. The woman's sister said she and a teenage daughter had locked themselves in a bedroom for protection, police said.