Individuals

Six individuals, institutions and companies were honored yesterday for their contributions to the city by the Downtown Partnership of Baltimore, the business organization seeking to improve and market the city's downtown. Laurie Schwartz, the group's founder, was given a Lifetime Achievement Award. Schwartz left the group in June to serve as deputy mayor for economic and neighborhood development. "We are thrilled to honor the dedicated and innovative minds that are working to make Baltimore a better place to live, work and play," said Michele Whelley, the new president of the partnership.

THE AVERAGE cost of a year's stay in a nursing home is $25,000. At that price, even the most well-planned retirement savings soon give out.The "Secure Choice" legislation that Sen. Bob Packwood, R-Ore., and Sen. Bob Dole, R-Kan., plan to introduce this month tackles the issue head-on, but requires caution: Congress should not offer more than it can afford -- and in the area of long-term care, estimates of cost and demands are sketchy.One portion of the Packwood-Dole legislation is squarely on the mark.

State Comptroller Louis L. Goldstein announced that he has eliminated some tax forms previously required of Maryland's individual and business taxpayers. He is allowing an additional 1.9 million tax forms to be processed by private agencies.Some of the eliminated tax forms involve federal Schedule A and child-care expense forms that Maryland taxpayers were required return to the comptroller's office with their state tax returns.Mr. Goldstein said he moved last week to reduce demands on taxpayers and to reduce the workload of his office, which he said was hampered by budget cuts in hiring temporary employees.

What has America come to when traitors get public support? What narrow-minded, self-centered individuals would solicit support for someone who commits treason against his country? What Pfc. Bradley Manning did was not heroic. In fact, it was cowardly and for personal gain. Private Manning's actions put not only military personnel but all Americans in jeopardy around the world. Who knows how many lives were lost as a result of the information leaked? A lot of hardworking, dedicated individuals from various government agencies do what they have to do to keep us safe, and as the saying goes, "the end justifies the means.

Want an easy 30 to 60 bucks? Then don't miss asking for it when you do your taxes, and don't just rely on a tax preparer to get it for you. About 30 percent of taxpayers are missing out on the simple $30 to $60 refund, according to the Internal Revenue Service. Yet it's available to virtually every American who has paid for telephone service over a three-year period. In response to a tax case, the IRS is returning telephone excise taxes that people should not have been charged on phone bills.

SUMMER IS FOR the backstroke, and it's anyone's guess whether that's best done while afloat in water or on one's back on a lounge while pleasantly being basted with cocoa butter. For either version, it's time to visit a local pool.The largest North Carroll pool facility is in Manchester, where the Lineboro-Manchester Lions Club swimming pool committee opens two pools next to Christmas Tree Park every day.In line with the "break-even" philosophy -- and providing swimming as a community service -- season passes for individuals and families will be reduced starting Monday to $60 for individuals, $100 for families of two and $120 for families of three or more.

We were pleased to see that The Sun chose to cover the decision of the Federal Hill Neighborhood Association (FHNA) to remove three members from its board ("One man has control of neighborhood association," Dec. 21). However, we feel that the content, title, and tone of the article does not accurately capture what transpired during the meeting nor the events that lead to this decision. The article by Luke Broadwater and Steve Kilar suggests that the decision to remove three members from the FHNA board was the result of a power grab from one individual, Ryan Hada.

WASHINGTON -- Congressional Republicans and Democrats, vying to take credit for revamping the nation's health insurance system, are hailing the bill sent to President Clinton as one of their "most remarkable" creations.But in fact, they've had the blueprint for the measure in hand for four years: It is almost an exact duplicate of the proposal former President George Bush offered on the 1992 campaign trail.During his unsuccessful re-election campaign against Bill Clinton, Bush proposed a health care program to "guarantee access to health insurance to all families" and in doing so offered TC what he called "job lock protection" for millions of Americans who "are afraid to change jobs for fear of losing their health insurance."

NEW YORK -- In further broadening of its business, Legg Mason Inc. has opened a trust company for wealthy individuals and institutional funds.The final approval for the Baltimore-based firm, known as Legg Mason Trust Co., came yesterday when Maryland Banking Commissioner Margie H. Muller gave the company its certificate of authority. "Their financing was sound and they met all our requirements," Ms. Muller said.Art Sims, who heads the new unit, said Legg Mason had known for several years that it wanted to open a trust company but was unsure exactly how to enter the trust business.

Suddenly that old diner gang of ours is back in the news as one of the crowd's most illustrious alumni, Leonard "Boogie" Weinglass, explores the possibility of purchasing the Orioles.The diner guys have achieved the status of a Baltimore institution, catapulted to national prominence by Barry Levinson's 1982 movie "Diner." Academy Award-winning writer and director Mr. Levinson, of course, is another of the young men who went on to achieve fame and/or fortune after hanging out at the Hilltop Diner in Northwest Baltimore in the late '50s and early '60s.