Public invited to concert series featuring students
Charles County Government invites the public to the upcoming Lunch Time Concert Series on Thursday, Dec. 15, from noon-1 p.m. at the Charles County Government Building, 200 Baltimore Street, La Plata, in the commissioners’ meeting room.
The concert will showcase Maurice J. McDonough High School’s “Madrigal Lords and Ladies,” a group of 20 a cappella singers. The Lunch Time Concert Series offers county employees the opportunity to enjoy their lunch while listening to a live concert. Lunch is not provided, but you are welcome to bring your lunch to the concert.
Those who would like to perform during the Lunch Time Concert Series can contact Kim Pelczar at 301-6450563 or at PelczarK@CharlesCountyMD.gov. Citizens with special needs may contact the Maryland Relay Service at 711, or Relay Service TDD: 800-735-2258.
Donations sought for ‘Fill the Fire Truck’ food drive
The Charles County Department of Emergency Services, in partnership with the Charles County Volunteer Fire and Emergency Medical Services Associations, is now accepting donations of canned goods and other non-perishable food items on behalf of the Southern Maryland Food Bank. Donated items can be dropped off at the Charles County Department of Emergency Services, 10425 Audie Lane, La Plata, or any one of the 18 participating volunteer fire and EMS stations within the county. Go to www.CharlesCountyMD.gov/maps/volunteer-fireand-ems for the location nearest you.
The “Fill the Fire Truck” food drive will conclude on Wednesday, Dec. 21.
For more information, contact Bill Smith, Volunteer Fire/EMS Coordinator at 301-9343581, or Sandy Filer, Assistant to the Director, at 301-609-3401. Citizens with special needs may contact the Mar yland Relay Service at 711, or Relay Service TDD: 800735-2258.
CSM online giving day exceeds goals
Two hundred and seventy one donors responded to the CSM Foundation’s public launch of its $10-million “Make An Impact” campaign, celebrated at all three campuses on CSM’s fifth annual observation of Giving Tuesday. The public launch garnered $70,152 in donations, which was nearly double the $36,424 raised last year from 163 donors. The campaign, “Make An Impact: Invest Today to Transform Tomorrow,” aims to raise $10 million by 2018, when the college will celebrate its 60th anniversary. The campaign will benefit three areas — scholarships, programs/facil- ities and entrepreneur partnerships.
Traditionally, Giving Tuesday follows Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday as an opportunity to emphasize philanthropy after those days of frenzied consumerism. This year’s Giving Tuesday included celebrations held at each campus, at which CSM Foundation directors, college employees and students assisted in the Nov. 29 public launch of the campaign. Donations made during CSM’s 24-hour online Giving Tuesday event of Impact Tuesday were directed to several initiatives to inspire, influence or innovate in the community, including scholarships to help students afford degree programs and career and trades programs as well as support for the arts, athletics, the St. Charles Children’s Learning Center at CSM, the Center for Trades and Energy Training, Entrepreneur and Innovation Institute, and STEM.
More than a dozen students who have benefited from scholarships, one of the areas designated for the donated funds, attended the campus celebrations, including Bradley Bears of Waldorf, a second-year accounting student at CSM, who said he supported the campaign so as “to help the people coming [to CSM] after me.”
Beyond collecting donations, CSM Development Director Chelsea Brown explained the Giving Tuesday goal was to involve at least 200 donors in the Nov. 29 event, and it was designed to encourage even very small donations, so that every member of the community could invest in the campaign.
Linda Cox, a director with the CSM Foundation and a member of the first graduating class at the current La Plata Campus, along with her niece and CSM alumna, Lisa Case, helped staff the event and promoted the Cox Family Memorial Endowed Scholarship, one of many matching scholarship funds participating in the drive. The Cox family scholarship was started in 1991 initially in honor of Linda’s mother-in-law and later her husband, Donald; Lisa’s mother, Marilyn; and a brother-in-law, John Cox.
Through the CSM Foundation’s early efforts and with support from CSM’s closest supporters, more than $7 million toward the $10 million goal have been raised. All funds raised in the ongoing campaign will go toward three initiatives designed to help the college grow and maintain its affordable, high-quality programs for the future. The $10 million campaign will provide funding to: Inspire: Scholarships with a Purpose with a goal of $5 million; Influence: Transformative Programs, Technology and Facilities with a goal of $3 million; and Innovate: CSM Entrepreneur, Innovation and Partnerships with a goal of $2 million. Each dollar contributed during the campaign will be used to assist CSM in its goal to transform the future of Southern Maryland through higher education.
To learn more about the “Make An Impact” campaign, go to https://youtu.be/yJ0034okyQ8. To learn about the IMPACT initiatives, naming opportunities and more, go to http:// impact.csmd.edu or call the CSM Foundation at 301-934-7649.