Kelso

Situated in the westernmost part of Columbia, River Hill Village is a picturesque community with hundreds of acres of wooded areas, beautifully landscaped homes and retail and shopping centers offering convenience for busy families. It also is one of the priciest spots in the Baltimore metropolitan area - average sales prices were more than $355,000 during the past 12 months in part because of the Howard County school system's reputation. And the village is working to change its image as an exclusive area for the rich that offers little diversity in terms of housing and cultures.

JAMES CITY, Va. -- When Capt. Bartholomew Gosnold died at Jamestown in August 1607, the faltering English settlement lost one of its most able and respected commanders. Council President Edward Maria Wingfield picked out the death for special mention, describing the 36-year-old adventurer as "the worthy and religious gentleman upon whose life stood a great part of the good success and fortune of our colony." Another settler recorded how the dispirited colonists, despite being racked by hunger and disease, gathered their strength to bury Gosnold with a military salute in which they fired all of the fort's guns "with many volleys of small shot."

Some readers want to know their legal rights when tree branches or roots encroach on neighboring property. Dorothy J. Kelso, of Timonium, has a tree on her property, located 2 to 3 feet from a street that was widened some years ago. The branch of Kelso's tree extends across her property line over the next-door neighbor's driveway as well as the street. Recently, a branch from the tree fell on the roof of a new car owned by Kelso's neighbor. The neighbor contacted her insurance company and it paid for repairs.

CO-PLAYERS OF THE YEAR Megan Buescher River Hill It was a fitting end to a standout four-year career for the North Carolina State-bound Buescher, who had six goals and 16 assists and made an imprint in nearly every game. She was strong winning balls and a reliable one-on-one defender on a team that went almost a month without giving up a goal. The 6-foot senior was also always a threat to convert crosses and corner kicks and, of course, there was her trademark throw-ins. With them, she set up many scores, including overtime goals over Glenelg and John Carroll.

PORT DEPOSIT -- The deer in this tiny Cecil County town are becoming a bear of a problem for town leaders. The resident deer population is said by some to number more than 2,000, which means the people here -- about 680 of them -- are heavily outnumbered. The animals run freely around the abandoned Bainbridge Naval Training Center, an area of about 1,200 acres spread among steep hills framing the eastern edge of Port Deposit, and often wander downtown. The presence of the herd has piqued the interest of local hunters, who say the abandoned buildings and the brush at Bainbridge, which closed in 1976, make for challenging hunting.

Colonel Hill ran 55 races, and every time he stepped into the paddock he raised an eyebrow. He was one good-looking horse. Retired at 9 with 32 top-three finishes and earnings of $234,120, the striking bay gelding eased into a second career. His trainers and owners, Tammy and Howard Wolfendale, saw to that. "We had always planned on just giving him to Maggie," Tammy said of their daughter. "Even when she was 3 or 4, she could walk up to Colonel's stall, and he'd hang his head and let her play with him."

Michael D. Kelso Jr. expected to have to sacrifice his place on the wrestling team and in the marching band to keep up with the challenges of his schoolwork at City College. But at times he still felt overwhelmed by the demands of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme at his high school. He would come home from school, take a nap and then stay up until 2 a.m. doing homework, his father said. "I went to counselors several times talking about getting out, but they talked me through it," Kelso said.

The couple who abandoned their severely disabled son at a Delaware hospital in December have agreed to a year's probation instead of a trial in Delaware, and to limit contact with their son to supervised visits. Richard and Dawn Kelso of Exton, Pa., a Philadelphia suburb, had been charged with child abandonment and conspiracy. The Kelsos dropped off their 10-year-old son, Steven, in his wheelchair at the Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, Del., on Dec. 26 and left. Their actions drew national attention from parents and advocates for children with disabilities, and the Kelsos later told state prosecutors they had been facing a reduction in the visiting nursing care in January and did not know what else to do. Thursday, the couple apologized in a statement issued by their Wilmington lawyers.

ELMONT, N.Y. -- Allen Jerkens began earning his nickname, "Giant Killer," in 1962 when his horse, Beau Purple, twice upset the incomparable Kelso.The wily Hall of Fame trainer will try again tomorrow in the 131st Belmont Stakes to slay another giant, Charismatic, as he attempts to win the Triple Crown. But this time, instead of trying to defeat a horse of Allaire duPont's -- she owned Kelso -- Jerkens will attempt to spring the upset with a horse duPont owns, Best of Luck.DuPont bred Best of Luck -- and Kelso and other stakes winners -- at her Woodstock Farm in Cecil County.

Arthur Kopit's "Wings" might not seem like musical theater material. But then, this story of a stroke victim, told from her point of view, probably didn't sound like it would make much of a play, either.Fell's Point Corner Theatre's production, however, under the stage direction of Bill Kamberger and musical direction of Steven Zumbrun, ranks among the very finest community theater productions.Much of the credit belongs to Nancy Kelso, in the lead role of Emily Stilson, a former aviator and wing-walker felled by a stroke.