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Community Corner

🌱 Foundation Adopts Families + Recovery Initiative Helps Economy

The quickest way to get caught up on the most important things happening today in Laurel.

Alexis Goring, Neighbor
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(Patch Media)

Good morning, Laurel! Let's get you started this Tuesday with everything you need to know going on around town today.

First, today's weather:

Partly sunny. High: 45 Low: 29.

Here are the top three stories today in Laurel:

  1. Hillside Equestrian Meadows' Laki, unraced since finishing sixth in defense of last fall's Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash (G3) victory, is set to return for his 39th career start in the $100,000 Dave's Friend Dec. 26 at Laurel Park. Laki was not able to get into contention in the six-furlong De Francis Sept. 18 at Laurel, winding up well behind first-place finisher Wondrwherecraigis. (laurelpark.com)
  2. LaTasha Ward comes from a family of givers and now she is giving back to the community as the founder and executive director of The Solid Foundation, Inc. based in Upper Marlboro. The foundation works with people who are incarcerated and their families. During the holidays, it adopts families to make sure children know their absent loved ones are thinking about them. (WTOP)
  3. Governor Larry Hogan recently announced the first round of awardees for Project Restore, a $25 million economic recovery initiative that provides financial incentives for small businesses and commercial developers to revitalize vacant retail and commercial space. A total of 144 businesses in 23 jurisdictions will receive $3.6 million in rental subsidies and $7.2 million in business operations grants over the next two years, totaling $10.8 million in support. Project Restore was launched by the governor earlier this year, and is administered by the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). (Maryland.gov)

Today's Laurel Daily is brought to you in part by our friends at Ring, the home security company. Ring does a lot more than doorbells: check out their full suite of smart home products at Ring.com. And thank you Ring for helping to make local news happen in Laurel!

Today in Laurel:

  • Public Food Distribution — Join Prayer Tower Bible Way Apostolic Faith in serving the community by giving away fruits and vegetables, bread, meats, and dairy products that are donated for distribution to the needy. Boxes and bags filled with groceries to grab and go. Volunteers are welcomed to call (240)583-0996 to get involved. (10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.)
  • Photos with Santa at Arundel Mills — Santa is waiting at Arundel Mills to take photos with your children! (11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.)
  • Open Mic Night — Attend this event at the 5 Sisters Restaurant (5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.)
  • Girls Varsity Basketball @ CMIT South (5:30 p.m.)
  • Red Cross FA/CPR/AED Class — Knights of Pythias Lodge will host this event. (6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.)
  • White Christmas at Toby's Dinner Theatre in Columbia (6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.)
  • Boys Varsity Basketball v. Croom — CMIT Academy North - High Public Charter (7:00 p.m.)

From my notebook:

  • Laurel Volunteer Fire Department: Keep your pets safe this holiday season! (Facebook)
  • Laurel Volunteer Fire Department: This is your friendly reminder to water your Christmas tree! (Facebook)
  • Nextdoor Neighbor, Cherry Ln: *FOUND* Car keys with a Nissan fob as well as a hard drive. Send a message if it's yours and let me know what kind of key chain it is. (Nextdoor)
  • Nextdoor Neighbor, Brewers Ct: I want to get my mom a new kitten for Christmas because her cat passed away recently. If you know anyone adopting a kitten, please tag me or let me know via direct message. (Nextdoor)
  • Nextdoor Neighbor, Montpelier: *Lost Dog* Our husky got out of the fence sometime during the night. Please be on the lookout for her and call/text 240-593-7299 with any information. Please do not try to approach her because she might run. (Nextdoor)
  • Nextdoor Neighbor, Russett: Does anyone know if a women's a shelter in the Laurel area that's in need of clothes and gift cards? (Nextdoor)

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You're all caught up for today! See you tomorrow for another update.

— Alexis Goring

About me: My name is Alexis A. Goring. I'm a Bowie area resident with a pulse for people, news and feature stories! I've worked as a freelance writer/editor/proofreader in the media industry for 15 years. I'm also a published author, experienced blogger, and founder of Writer at Heart Editorial Services. Visit my website for more details about me and my work. Here's the link: https://alexisagoring.jimdofree.com.

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

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