Keynote Speaker

WHO WOULD HAVE thought that Rudy's such a cheap date?New York Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani is coming to Baltimore next month to help raise money for city Republicans.But instead of pulling down the big GOP dollars, as one would expect, Giuliani is scheduled to be the keynote speaker at the Baltimore Republican Central Committee's annual $25-a-head fund-raiser June 15.By today's standards -- where even small-fry incumbents in the House of Delegates are getting $250 for a night of elbow-rubbing and gubernatorial candidates are picking $4,000 a pop -- this one's a steal.

Calling upon the memory of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., the retired executive director of the NAACP yesterday urged blacks not to forget the progress they have made since King's death while continuing their fight to make his dreams become reality."

Maryland first lady Frances Hughes Glendening will be the keynote speaker at the annual membership meeting of the Carroll County Arts Council at 1 p.m. Saturday in the Wakefield Valley Golf Club ballroom, 1000 Fenby Farm Road, Westminster.Glendening, who embarked in January on a two-year celebration of the arts in Maryland, will discuss "Maryland: A State of the Arts."The meeting, open by reservation to members, will start with a mixer at 1 p.m. that will include a ballot for board of directors elections.

NEW YORK -- Susan Molinari, tonight's keynote speaker at the Republican convention, is the first to admit she doesn't exactly come from the wing of the Grand Old Party known for great oratory."

Seven people, including the recently re-elected president of the county NAACP, will be honored next month for outstanding community service at the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Awards banquet.Chief Judge Robert M. Bell of the Maryland Court of Appeals will be the keynote speaker at this year's dinner on Jan. 15 at Buddy's Late Night in Annapolis. Bell is the first African-American to lead Maryland's highest court.The seven honorees and their awards are:Gerald Stansbury, president of the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People; Angela Graham Haste, a community activist in Annapolis' 3rd Ward; Sheryl Banks, former chair of the Black Political Forum; and Willie Nixon, president of the Nixon Bus Co., will receive the Drum Major Award for Community Service.

Friends School students received a lesson on life after politics yesterday from former Gov. William Donald Schaefer, and one of them even got a little homework.Mr. Schaefer was the keynote speaker at Friends' annual upper school convocation, a something-for-everyone day of topics not covered in the regular curriculum -- from making pottery to surviving the Holocaust.In a rambling talk titled "Baltimore's Future and Other Observations," Mr. Schaefer dropped old-fashioned advice amid bits of Baltimore history and tales from his 40 years in public office and return to private life 13 months ago."

Yesterday's Business section listed the wrong date for the Eastern Baltimore Area Chamber of Commerce's 49th annual dinner.The event will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Monday, May 1, at Martin's Eastwind. Gov. Parris N. Glendening will be the keynote speaker. Tickets are $40 for members and $55 for nonmembers. Call 631-9090 for information.The Sun regrets the error.

The Carroll County Women's Fair could draw its largest crowd yet with a well-known keynote speaker and a variety of workshops that appeal to teen-agers, organizers said.The third annual daylong fair will be April 2 at Carroll Community College.The keynote speaker will be Diane Rehm, host and executive producer of a talk radio show from 10 a.m. to noon weekdays on WAMU-FM (88.5). Ms. Rehm has been doing the show for 15 years and announced this month that it would be broadcast nationally beginning in May.Guests on her show have included Vice President Al Gore, former President Jimmy Carter, choreographer Twyla Tharp, journalist Bill Moyers and poet Maya Angelou.

Two keynote speakers, two student groups, two Maryland state troopers, 600 teen-agers and guests will participate in South Carroll High School's fourth annual Substance Abuse Prevention Symposium on Wednesday.Juniors and seniors will make up the audience for the daylong drug abuse awareness event that has been designed to fulfill the six-hour annual curriculum requirement for these grade levels.The symposium will reflect program changes suggested by students in evaluations of past events, explained symposium planning committee member Margi Petrella.

Luck did not shine on Millie Steckman last Sunday -- mostly because the sun did not shine on the tennis courts here early in the morning.A two-hour rain delay on the third day of tennis competition at the U.S. National Senior Sports Classic kept the Bel Air resident on the court until nearly 7 p.m., about three hours longer than expected.She and her husband, Bud Steckman, had plans to attend a 1920s-stylefair at 6 p.m."Well, I guess, at least we'll get there," she said. And they did-- after she finished two sets of doubles.

Just like old times: Woods wins in return golf Eight months later, Tiger Woods looked as if he had never been away. Woods made a triumphant return to golf yesterday in the Accenture Match Play Championship in Marana, Ariz., with a start that showed golf what it had been missing in the 253 days since he limped his way to an epic U.S. Open title. Just past high noon in the desert, Woods fired an 8-iron 5 feet from the pin for birdie. Then came a gentle fist pump when his approach to the par-5 second settled 4 feet from the cup for eagle.

Despite Sen. Hillary Clinton's solid victory in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, her chances of winning the nomination must still be considered remote. The Democratic primary campaign is thus moving into a final and potentially dicey stage that will require the full range of skills possessed by Sen. Barack Obama and his campaign. The task at hand for Mr. Obama is as simple to define as it will be tough to execute: He must deftly manage Mrs. Clinton's departure from the race. To borrow a line from Joe Klein's Bill Clinton-inspired fictional presidential candidate in Primary Colors, it has to be handled just right.

Cardinal William H. Keeler told Loyola College of Maryland yesterday that he will not attend its commencement ceremony tomorrow because he disagrees with the keynote speaker, former New York Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, who supports abortion rights. The decision comes amid planned protests, led in part by a conservative Catholic group, outside tomorrow's ceremony at the 1st Mariner Arena in downtown Baltimore. Loyola's interim president, David Haddad, received a strongly worded letter from the cardinal yesterday, saying Keeler would not attend - nor would any auxiliary bishops or any other representative of the archdiocese, college and archdiocese officials said.

In 1989, about 300 people crowded into Buddy's Crabs and Ribs in downtown Annapolis for the county's first Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Awards Dinner. The annual event quickly outgrew the crab house, and within a few years it was too large for any Annapolis hotel. Today, more than 1,200 people are expected to gather at La Fontaine Bleu in Glen Burnie for what organizers say is the largest regional celebration on King's actual birthday, today. And this year's keynote speaker will be Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., the first time a sitting governor has addressed the dinner.

Relocation of cranes to force lane closings The relocation of construction cranes will force the closing of traffic lanes on roads around Baltimore-Washington International Airport. Two lanes will be open in each direction on Elm Road between the Sheraton International Hotel and the service road traffic light. A portion of the road between the service road intersection and the terminal loop road will also be restricted to one lane in each direction. Airport firefighters raise $4,018 for MD Association The BWI Fire and Rescue unit raised $4,018 in its annual fund-raising drive to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

It was his big break. A former congressman gave Michael S. Steele, then a law student, a free ticket to the 1988 Prince George's County Republican Party Lincoln Day dinner. Steele, who had just moved from Washington to Largo, wanted to plunge into local partisan politics. "I got to the event, and I was all psyched to be there," said Steele, who was already a low-level volunteer for the national Republican Party. "I was thinking, `Wow. Maryland, they've got a state party, they have a county party.

Add visiting another hot new restaurant to the to-do list for Baltimore's eating-out crowd. Roy's- Baltimore opened about a week ago near the Marriott Waterfront. But many of the town's trendsetters have already tried out the place. The eatery -- the chain's 25th -- held a slew of soft openings to introduce local folks to the unique "Hawaiian Fusion" cuisine, with wines and sakes to match. The biggest celebrity there, however, wasn't a Charm City-ite, but owner / chef Roy Yamaguchi, who came from Honolulu just to make sure this place opened smoothly.

County agency to help recruit participants for Alzheimer's study The county Department of Aging will help Johns Hopkins Hospital researchers recruit participants for a study in prevention of Alzheimer's disease at two events this month. Both events will be held at Anne Arundel Community College in Arnold. They are: A conference for family and professional caregivers of those with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia, scheduled for 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. May 11 in the Florestano Building, sponsored by the Department of Aging, the Alzheimer's Association's Central Maryland chapter and the college.

Award-winning author and motivational speaker Judith Briles will be the keynote speaker Saturday at the annual Carroll County Women's Fair, a daylong event that will include workshops on topics ranging from relieving arthritic pain to applying the Bible to money management. The fair, begun by a South Carroll businesswoman nine years ago, is expected to draw about 800 people this year, said Phillis Menschner, chair for the 2001 fair. Last year's event drew about 1,000 people who heard keynote speaker Joyce Brothers.

Events celebrate the struggle for civil rights On Jan. 13 and Jan. 15, two events - an annual dinner and a breakfast - will celebrate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Held in our county for 13 and 20 years, respectively, these events highlight the progress the nation has made since Dr. King's 1968 assassination. Those of us who were fortunate enough to have lived while Dr. King walked this earth know America lost a voice that will not soon be replaced. I have two sons who were born after Dr. King died.