Community

Maryland Minimum Wage Increases to $15 on Jan. 1, 2024

Maryland Minimum Wage Increases to $15 on Jan. 1, 2024

All Maryland employers will have to pay their hourly employees a minimum wage of $15 per hour starting Jan. 1, 2024. This requirement stems from the enactment of Maryland Senate Bill 555 (SB555), also known as the Fair Wage Act of 2023, which was signed into law by Maryland Governor Wes Moore on April...
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Be The Driver – Who Saves Lives

Be The Driver – Who Saves Lives

For the first time ever, the Maryland Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Administration’s (MDOT MVA) Highway Safety Office is launching an all-encompassing highway safety campaign focused on safe driving behaviors, aptly named Be the Driver. The animated campaign depicts common situations that drivers, riders, and pedestrians often face and illustrates each road users’ personal...
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St. Mary’s County Community Mourns Loss of Tyrone Harris, A Longtime Parks and Recreation Employee

St. Mary’s County Community Mourns Loss of Tyrone Harris, A Longtime Parks and Recreation Employee

Sadly, on Wednesday, December 27, 2023, First Responders were alerted to a motor vehicle crash near the intersection of Willows Road and South Shangri La Drive in Lexington Park. Firefighters arrived on the scene to find a pickup truck off the roadway and into a wooded area. The operator and sole occupant, Marcus Tyrone...
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Identical Quadruplets on Distinct Career Paths, Find their Own Way at the College of Southern Maryland

Identical Quadruplets on Distinct Career Paths, Find their Own Way at the College of Southern Maryland

The faculty and staff at the College of Southern Maryland (CSM) know well that each student who attends CSM is rare and unique unto themselves. But when the Breedlove identical quadruplets arrived on campus at the beginning of the fall 2023 semester, rare took on a whole new meaning. “We have been told several...
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Patuxent Tidewater Land Trust Ends 2023 with Protecting 94 Acres of St. Mary’s County Land

Patuxent Tidewater Land Trust Ends 2023 with Protecting 94 Acres of St. Mary’s County Land

As 2023 comes to a close, we thank you for your invaluable support and the many good things you have made possible. We wish you and your loved ones a Very Happy and Healthy New Year! To cap off this year, On Dec. 21st, 2023, the Patuxent Tidewater Land Trust (PTLT) completed the acquisition...
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Winter is Coming – Have you Checked Your Preparedness List?

Winter is Coming – Have you Checked Your Preparedness List?

St. Mary’s County Government’s Department of Emergency Services encourages all residents to double check their emergency preparedness checklist to ensure they are ready for winter. Prolonged cold conditions and winter storms raise the risk of freezing home plumbing, community water main breaks, automobile failures, transportation interruptions, automobile accidents, power outages, home heating system failures,...
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Cold-Stunning Threatens Aquatic Wildlife – Marylanders Asked to Help

Cold-Stunning Threatens Aquatic Wildlife – Marylanders Asked to Help

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources asks those visiting the Chesapeake Bay or Atlantic Coast to be vigilant of sea turtles who exhibit signs of cold-stunning, a condition that causes animals to become debilitated and experience hypothermia-like symptoms due to prolonged exposure to cold temperatures. Cold-stunning typically occurs in late autumn and early winter...
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Maryland Delegation Announces Nearly $13 Million for Coastal Restoration and Resilience Projects

Maryland Delegation Announces Nearly $13 Million for Coastal Restoration and Resilience Projects

U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer, John Sarbanes and Kweisi Mfume (all D-Md.) announced $12,901,800 in National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) funding for restoration and resiliency projects to improve coastal communities and their fish and wildlife habitats. The funding...
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Police Recover Loaded Handgun from 17-Year-Old Henry Wise High School Student

Police Recover Loaded Handgun from 17-Year-Old Henry Wise High School Student

The Prince George’s County Police Department is investigating after a student at Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr. High School in Upper Marlboro brought a loaded gun onto school property today. The suspect is a 17-year-old male. On Friday, December 22, 2023, at approximately 9:30 a.m., the PGPD was notified that Prince George’s County Schools...
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Maryland State Police Visiting Businesses During Holiday Season to Discuss Crime Prevention

Maryland State Police Visiting Businesses During Holiday Season to Discuss Crime Prevention

Troopers from the Maryland State Police Leonardtown Barrack Prevention methods and considerations for keeping your property/business safer by removing or minimizing the opportunity for a crime to be committed: Always lock all doors and windows when the business is closed Make sure your surveillance system is functioning properly and there is someone who can...
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EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: State Police Conduct Stationary Traffic Safety Operation Followed by Roving Traffic Enforcement

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: State Police Conduct Stationary Traffic Safety Operation Followed by Roving Traffic Enforcement

On December 21, 2023, troopers from the Maryland State Police Leonardtown Barrack, Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division, K-9 Unit, and the State Highway Administration conducted a stationary traffic safety operation in the Great Mills area followed by roving traffic enforcement throughout the county with an emphasis focused on areas with increased rates of collisions and...
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La Plata High School Student Facing Charges for Disorderly Conduct and Disruption of School Activities

La Plata High School Student Facing Charges for Disorderly Conduct and Disruption of School Activities

On Wednesday, December 20, 2023, at 11:20 a.m., a student at La Plata High School became disorderly and refused directions from school administrators and staff. Multiple attempts were made to de-escalate the situation, but the student refused to leave the classroom and continued to scream. The classroom was evacuated, and the school was placed...
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VIDEO: Santa Claus is Coming to Leonardtown

VIDEO: Santa Claus is Coming to Leonardtown

Featuring: Robbie Boothe, Donovan Farrell, Phillip Michael Parsons, Donald Quade, Tara Rae, Wes Ryce, LaKeisha Smith, and Brandi Sydnor.  Filmed by: Ed Winson Delmoro from Winson Media https://winson.media/ Vincent Chapman from Sargas Media https://www.sargasmedia.com/ Donovan Farrell  https://www.donovanfarrell.com/ Drone footage by: Ed Winson Delmoro from Winson Media Matthew Stearns of Stearns Aerial Imagery, LLC (410)...
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St. Mary’s County Commission on the Environment Seeking Nominations for 2023 Sustainability Awards

St. Mary’s County Commission on the Environment Seeking Nominations for 2023 Sustainability Awards

The Commission on the Environment (CoE) invites you to participate in the 2023 Sustainability Awards Program. The goal of these awards is to recognize outstanding St Mary’s County students/schools, restaurants, businesses, non-profits, farms/Ag, individual/household for their environmental stewardship, resource conservation, innovative best practices and pollution prevention. Click here for the full PDF  ELIGIBILITY: Open...
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Chesapeake Life Center Grief Support Groups Available This Winter

Chesapeake Life Center Grief Support Groups Available This Winter

Chesapeake Life Center will offer a variety of grief support groups for adults that will be meeting this fall. Groups will meet in person at locations in Anne Arundel, Calvert and Prince George’s counties as well as virtually. The following grief support groups will meet in person: Drop-In Grief Support Groups are open to...
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Kids Countdown to Noon: A New Year’s Eve Family Event Debuts at Piney Point Lighthouse Museum

Kids Countdown to Noon: A New Year’s Eve Family Event Debuts at Piney Point Lighthouse Museum

St. Mary’s County Government’s Museum Division is excited to present “Kids Countdown to Noon at Piney Point: A New Year’s Eve Family Event” on Sunday, December 31, 2023, from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. at Piney Point Lighthouse Museum & Historic Park. Bring your kids to Piney Point on December 31 so they can...
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Community Organizations Join at CSM to Raise Awareness, Address Crisis of Suicide Amongst Black Youth

Community Organizations Join at CSM to Raise Awareness, Address Crisis of Suicide Amongst Black Youth

Ivy and Pearls of Southern Maryland Community Charities, Inc., and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Nu Zeta Omega Chapter, held an important event titled Give Hope: Addressing the Crisis of Suicide Amongst Black Youth at the College of Southern Maryland’s (CSM) La Plata Campus last week to raise awareness and address the alarming suicide...
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Community Survey Invites Continued Resident Feedback to Improve Calvert County Services

Community Survey Invites Continued Resident Feedback to Improve Calvert County Services

Calvert County residents have a unique opportunity to shape their county government services by participating in the latest community survey. This survey continues the county’s commitment to understanding residents’ priorities and concerns regarding county services and overall quality of life. The current survey, available at www.CalvertCountyMd.gov/Survey, asks residents to rate their experience with different...
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Ribbon Cutting Announced for the St. Mary’s County Mobile Library on Tuesday, January 9, 2024

Ribbon Cutting Announced for the St. Mary’s County Mobile Library on Tuesday, January 9, 2024

St. Mary’s County Library and the Commissioners of St. Mary’s County are excited to announce the upcoming ribbon cutting ceremony for the Mobile Library. Community members are welcome to attend the ribbon cutting ceremony on Tuesday, January 9, 2024, at 1 p.m. at the Leonardtown Library & Garvey Senior Activity Center, located at 23630...
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Governor Moore Attends Event Commemorating St. Mary’s County School-Based Health Centers

Governor Moore Attends Event Commemorating St. Mary’s County School-Based Health Centers

The St. Mary’s County Public Schools (SMCPS) and St. Mary’s County Health Department (SMCHD) welcomed Governor Wes Moore at an event recognizing the Margaret Brent and Spring Ridge Middle School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs) on Monday, December 11, 2023. Sponsored by the Commissioners of St. Mary’s County, the event featured a presentation of colors by...
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Student Found in Possession of Vape, Taser, and Pepper Spray at Thomas Stone High School

Student Found in Possession of Vape, Taser, and Pepper Spray at Thomas Stone High School

On December 18, 2023, at 9:50 a.m., students were observed vaping in a school bathroom at Thomas Stone High School. Administrators found a small group of students in possession of a vape. One of the students also had a Taser and pepper spray. The contraband was recovered by the school resource officer from the...
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Lexington Park Ford and Chevrolet Dealership Hosting Holiday Extravaganza This Tuesday! December 19th, 2023

Lexington Park Ford and Chevrolet Dealership Hosting Holiday Extravaganza This Tuesday! December 19th, 2023

Lexington Park Ford Lincoln is bringing you some holiday cheer for our first ever HOLIDAY EXTRAVAGANZA!! Hours of festive fun, Tuesday, December 19, 2023, from 4:00 p.m., 7:00 p.m.! Get your pictures with Santa and/or the Grinch, take a wagon ride with Suttler Post Clydesdales, check out STAR 98.3 T-Bone & Heather and maybe...
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St. Mary’s County Public Schools and Offices Closed to the Public During Winter Break

St. Mary’s County Public Schools and Offices Closed to the Public During Winter Break

All St. Mary’s County Public Schools and Offices will be closed to the public from Monday, December 18, 2023, through Monday, January 1, 2024. All schools and offices will reopen on Tuesday, January 2, 2024.
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School Resource Officer Recovers Knife from Student After Altercation at Thomas Stone High School

School Resource Officer Recovers Knife from Student After Altercation at Thomas Stone High School

On Wednesday, December 12, 2023, at 12:17 p.m., two students at Thomas Stone High School were involved in a verbal altercation. The school resource officer and school staff were able to keep the students separated; however, one student pushed through and ran toward the other student. A third student got involved in the altercation...
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Teachers, Students, Parents, and Executives Discuss the State of Southern Maryland Education

Teachers, Students, Parents, and Executives Discuss the State of Southern Maryland Education

Southern Maryland teachers, students, and parents met this month with the Leadership Southern Maryland (LSM) Executive Program to discuss implementation of the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future Act, legislation passed in 2021 to enhance Maryland’s public school system. The meeting was held at the College of Southern Maryland (CSM) Center for Health Sciences in Hughesville, Md....
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