Literacy Works

County Executive Robert R. Neall has appointed a former chief aide of his two predecessors to fill the job of criminal justice coordinator.Assistant Central Services Officer Walter Chitwood, who served as county comptroller for three years under Democrat O. James Lighthizer, was also an assistant to Republican Robert Pascal from 1974 to 1982.Chitwood will take control of the criminal justice office as Neall's public safety liaison and assume other duties Feb. 1 as the executive's assistant.

New positions Malinda B. Small promoted at BGE Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. has appointed Malinda B. Small, a graduate of Hood College and Johns Hopkins University and a 13-year employee of BGE, as director of corporate contributions and community relations. She is active with several civic organizations and serves on several boards, including the Baltimore Center for the Performing Arts, Hood College and Literacy Works. Rothschild, Millman, Miller join executive recruiter Millman Search Group appointed Tom Rothschild as vice president of business development, Amy Miller as office administrator and Jennifer Millman as executive recruiter for the Baltimore-based international executive recruiting firm.

New accounts* Crosby Communications of Annapolis has been chosen to design and produce the annual fund direct-mail campaign for the University of Maryland College Park.* Stanton Communications will provide public and media relations for the Maryland Preakness Celebration.* Ecological Restoration and Management, based in Towson, was awarded a contract to restore more than 50 acres of wetlands and terrestrial habitat in the Altoona, Pa., area.Name change* Bormel, Grice, Huyett, Maresca & Mooty, P.A., formerly Pear, Fagan & Bormel, P.A., will celebrate 25 years as a full-service Baltimore-Washington accounting firm, and will now be known as Bormel, Grice & Associates.

In Baltimore County 24 tenants flee early morning fire in Owings Mills OWINGS MILLS -- Baltimore County Fire Department officials are trying to determine the cause of a fire early yesterday morning that severely damaged the apartments of 24 people in Owings Mills. No one was injured in the three-alarm blaze. The fire at the Richmar apartment complex in the first block of Phlox Circle began about 5 a.m. on the top floor of the garden-style apartments. The 24 residents had fled the 12 apartments by the time firefighters arrived.

The owners and players who make millions off the game of baseball are starting to sweat. Attendance during the first two weeks of the strike-shortened season is down -- way down at some ballparks. Teams are cutting ticket prices and using giveaways to lure fans back.But the geniuses who run baseball don't get it. The national pastime is past its prime, and the only way to save it is to create a new generation of fans among the kids who have learned to prefer basketball, football and even hockey.

It seems like we're still playing catch-up this winter. This start-and-stop game has left everyone a little disorganized, so don't feel that you're all alone.Barring another outbreak of weather, there's a lot scheduled in ,, our neighborhood these next few weeks.*The final registration session for Lake Shore Athletic Association softball teams will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. tomorrow at Lake Shore Elementary.Intramural teams are available for girls ages 5 to 16.The registration fee is $40 for one child, $50 per family.

In its 19 years, Hunt Valley Mall has become a community gathering place -- a spot where the local fire department could sell Christmas ornaments and where Girl Scout troops could hold sleep-overs. Now, the pending sale of the struggling northern Baltimore County landmark brings uncertainty not only for the merchants who work there, but also for community groups and residents who go there to meet, play and learn. At dawn each day, the mall walkers begin their workouts, chalking up a quarter-mile a lap. In the afternoons, new immigrants meet to learn English, and a Weight Watchers group gathers nearby.

If the Ravens' rookies need a little advice on how to handle training camp, they can turn to veteran running back Earnest Byner, who certainly can speak by experience."

Book Bash 2003 at Borders Booksellers in Towson will offer participants a chance to talk with more than 60 authors, taste savory foods and delicious desserts from area restaurants, enjoy live music, acquire signed copies of best-selling books and bid in a silent auction - all while fighting one of the most rampant social epidemics of the Baltimore region: illiteracy. Book Bash 2003, which takes place Sunday, will feature appearances by several literary celebrities, including Laura Lippman, author of Every Secret; Arthur Magida, author of The Rabbi and the Hitman: A True Tale of Murder, Passion and the Shattered Faith of a Congregation; award-winning short-story writer Ron Tanner; and Doug Wead, author of the best-selling All The President's Children: Triumph and Tragedy in the Lives of the First Families.

BROOKLANDVILLE -- Demi, an award-winning children's author and illustrator, will demonstrate how she has created more than 100 books Tuesday at Park School, 2425 Old Court Road.Demi's work is based on folk tales from China, India and Russia, and she has learned to use authentic Chinese materials for her illustrations. Doors open at 6: 30 p.m. Magician Tom Lilly will put on a show during an autograph session after Demi's "Magic Paintbrush" presentation.Free tickets are available at branches of the Baltimore County public library, which is sponsoring the event.