Anne Arundel County Parks And Recreation

Summer basketball league hits its stride

When the Anne Arundel County Recreation and Parks disbanded its summer league following the 2009 season, Pete Corriero joined the Meade Youth Basketball Association administration to keep a junior varsity league going.

Two years later, it’s better than expected. About 120 incoming freshmen and sophomores on 10 teams from nine schools in Anne Arundel County have a platform to train for the upcoming season, and things are on track to get better.

“It gives the kids a chance to compete and get better,” said Corriero, Meade’s varsity basketball coach for the last three years. “It’s all about opportunity in the summer. We’ve got 120 Anne Arundel students active. … To me, that’s the most important part of this.”

When the opportunity looked bleak due to a lack of participation, Corriero met with his junior varsity coach, Rodney Ramsey, and Meade Youth Basketball Association president Reggie Leach to bring a league to Fort Meade last season. They had 11 teams play in a seven-game season. This year, with the league moving to North County because of a conflict at Meade, the season expanded to eight games with 10 teams.

Add in two gyms three nights a week, an open playoff format, a cheaper registration fee — down to $600 from $650 — a timing tweak and competitive matchups in most games and the second-year league is well ahead of its development schedule.

“Because we’re such visionary people as an organization, our visions just took off,” Leach said. “It’s a lot closer than a lot of people imagined. I’ve been very satisfied with the staff and the personnel.”

With the exception of an Amateur Athletic Union team, every organization returned from last season. Along with St. Mary’s, eight public schools joined, including Severna Park, North County, Meade, Southern, Old Mill, Northeast, Arundel and two Broadneck teams, to ensure Anne Arundel County’s primary summer basketball league would keep growing.

Corriero just wanted a place for his junior-varsity team to play. He got way more than that.

“It gives the coaches and players a chance to get familiar with each other,” Corriero said. “It’s different than AAU. It gives these students a chance to see what high school and basketball is all about. It gives the sophomores a chance to grow into a leadership role.

'Bready Bear' Fundraiser For Recreation Deeds For Special Needs ...

Great Harvest Bread Co. of Annapolis is hosting a Bready Bear fundraising campaign for local nonprofit Recreation Deeds for Special Needs, Inc. in collaboration with Anne Arundel County Department of Recreation and Parks Adaptive Programs, Volunteer Summer Serve Leadership Challenge and the Volunteer Center For Anne Arundel County.

They will be raising money for Recreation Deeds for Special Needs by selling handcrafted Bready Bears for $13 each. $10 from each Bready Bear sold will be donated to help send kids of all abilities to camp this summer

Customers should order their Bready Bears by no later than Wednesday, June 1, 2011, by calling RecDeeds at 410-222-7313 or by picking up an order form at the Great Harvest Bread Co. (208 Ridgely Ave); bears can then be picked up at the bakery on Saturday, June 4.

“We are proud to support the wonderful services provided by Recreation Deeds for Special Needs this year,” said bakery owner Thomas Storm. “This organization collaborates with Anne Arundel Recreation and Parks to offer great summer programs for individuals of all abilities; this is our way to give something back. And, our friends and neighbors get something delicious for their support!”

Volunteers from Summer Serve Leadership Challenge and the Volunteer Center For Anne Arundel County will be in the bakery all day on June 4th, helping to make, bag and sell the Bready Bears.

Sign up with the Volunteer Center to support this Bready Bear fundraiser and help kids of all abilities to learn life skills, experience fun, develop friendships and grow through smiles and laughter.

The Bready Bears are handcrafted loaves of Honey Whole Wheat Bread (made from five simple ingredients: Wheat Flour, Water, Honey, Salt and Yeast) shaped and decorated to look like a Teddy Bear!

To try the best tasting bread around and support Recreation Deeds for Special Needs, stop by Annapolis’ whole grain headquarters at 208 Ridgely Ave or call Rec Deeds at 410-222-7313. Note that orders must be pre-paid with cash or check made payable to “Great Harvest Annapolis”. For more information email info@volunteerannearundel.

Final management plan, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in Maryland

Laws of the State of Maryland

Maryland Government

Green infrastructure, linking landscapes and communities

Fun with the Family Maryland, Hundreds of Ideas for Day Trips with the Kids