Wow! How about this? The Reservoir volleyball team was named Volleyball Team of the Year by ESPN's Rise magazine. Coach Carole Ferrante told school Principal Addie Kaufman the good news last week. In the article, Alex Kuper, Jamie Huffman, Nicole Lanham and Julie Poston were mentioned for their achievements and rumor has it that Tiffany Jacobson will be on the October cover and be featured in that issue.

Congratulations to all the young ladies, their families and to coach Ferrante. Well done!

Also, boys varsity lacrosse coach Bryan Cole, was named Coach of the Year by the Sun. In Cole's first year, the freshmen who are now his seniors didn't win a game. In his second year, they won five games and only two games in his third year. But this year, the Gators went 12-5 and they advanced to the Class 2A/3A South Regional finals. Congratulations to coach Cole and the team. You guys did great!

You still have a chance to register for the fifth annual Reservoir Gator Golf Classic Friday, June 20 at Patuxent Greens Golf Course. Registration begins at 7 a.m. with a shotgun start at 8 a.m. The fee is $120 per person and includes breakfast, lunch, door prizes and golf shirt. Hole sponsorship is also available for $100 per hole.

Prizes will be awarded to the tournament winners. Registration forms and/or hole sponsorship forms can be found on the baseball Web site at www.reservoirbaseball.com. E-mail Adam Leader at aleader@hcpss.org with any questions.

Fulton Elementary School was recently awarded the Distinguished School Award from the Howard County branch of the NAACP. A plaque was presented at the Board of Education meeting in May. Congratulations to the students and staff.

Also, the science fair that was held during Fulton Finery on May 22 was a huge success. Twenty-two students presented their projects. Congratulations to the students (and supportive families). Representing first grade: Devin Hill, Meah Konstanzer, Evan May, Mirabella Meoni and Sammy Spiegel; representing second grade: Hana Askari, Griffen Cinotti, Shea Collins, Funmi Erinle, Abera Hussain, Patrick Joyce, Siddarth Karunakaran, Celina Konigstein, Max Reed and Sophia Valentino; representing third grade: Heather Ailinger, Harrison Chappel, Chris Magnani, Harsh Patel and Andrew Wollack; and, representing fourth grade: Mark Smith and Jake Thayer. Great job, everyone!

Did you know jumping rope is a great way to exercise? Did you know that we have one of the premier jump rope competition groups in this area in the Kangaroo Kids?

These kids have won many awards and have been featured on Fox News, WTOP and Voice of America (among others). Now you can learn how they do it.

They group is presenting jump rope workshops July 2 and 3, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., at Columbia Presbyterian Church, 10001 Route 108, Columbia, MD 21044. The minimum age for participation is 6 years.

Participants should wear comfortable shorts (no jeans), a shirt and aerobic type shoes (no sandals). Jump ropes will be available for purchase. To register, e-mail kangarookids1@gmail.com with your child's name, age, telephone number and day you would like to attend. You will only be notified if space is not available.

Registration will be completed the day of the workshop. Cost is $40, payable by cash or check. Check out the group's Web site at www.kangarookids.org

When I started writing today's column, I was reflecting on anniversaries. Some that came to mind were the 19th birthday of my son, Charlie, the 14th anniversary of my 40th birthday and this September, my wife, Jennie, and I will celebrate our 21st wedding anniversary.

On June 4, the world celebrated the 44th anniversary of D-Day, the Allied invasion of Europe. I could go on and on about this. Where I'm going with this is simple: on June 28, you have a chance to be part of history -- the 130th annual Clarksville Picnic sponsored by parish of St. Louis the King Catholic Church, in Clarksville.

The picnic started in 1878 and was a celebration of the bounty of the land. It was originally held on a Wednesday in August for several reasons. First, this time fell between planting and harvesting. Also, Wednesday was a good day for the farmers and their helpers as it kept the weekend free for church and family.

As time progressed and the area became less rural, Wednesdays became less convenient for the other working folk so it was moved to the "more convenient" Saturday time.

There's lots to do at the picnic. There's a midway with its carnival-like atmosphere, games of skill and chance, food booths, a fancy stand, a bake stand, a plant stand and others. And, of course, there's the all-you-can-eat, country-style fried chicken and ham dinner. As always, the Thompson clan, which I married into, prepares the sliced cucumbers that can only be gotten the day of the picnic. The grounds usually open around 10-ish with dinner being served from noon until around 7 p.m.

A few other highlights: the silent auction where you can place your bid on some excellent items; the white elephant sale where you can find all sorts of good, used items; and, my favorite- the book sale.

One thing that we as a family like to do is to play Bingo. After we've finished up our work, we stop by the ice cream tent for a scoop and then mosey on over to Bishop Hall where we place a few games of Bingo. Then it is out to the midway for the final drawing for the grand prize of $20,000 and lastly, the first worker's Mass of the evening, usually around 9 p.m.

The picnic is the only real fundraiser that St. Louis has and it's a great time. Invite your friends. Admission is free and so is parking. I hope to see you there.

Don't forget to check out the new neighborhood blogs that the Howard County Times has put up. They can be found at www.explorehoward.com under the Neighborhood menu. Let me know what you think.

Well, that's all for this week. I hope the kids and you all have a great and safe summer. Look after your neighbors. Remember our troops who are serving in harm's way. And their families. Commit a random act of kindness.

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