ASPIRE Recognizes Community Leaders And Heritage Award Winners

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The Association for Severna Park Improvement, Renewal & Enhancement Inc. was unable to hold its annual community leadership awards dinner in 2020 or 2021, but the organization still wanted to recognize those who have helped make the greater Severna Park community a better place. Here are the honorees.

ASPIRE HERITAGE AWARDS – 2020

The ASPIRE Heritage Awards recognize individuals and small groups of individuals for playing a significant role in contributing to the character of Severna Park. While the recipients of these awards often demonstrate leadership and a dedication to community service, what sets these honorees apart is that their efforts have noticeably improved the quality of life in Severna Park. The awards may be awarded to living residents (or former residents who have moved away) as well as posthumously. The selection of awardees is made by the ASPIRE board of trustees.

Tom Caraker

Tom Caraker III was known as “the mayor” of the B&A Trail. Caraker was a prominent member of the Trailblazers, the yellow-vested, safety-advising and information-providing volunteers on the Anne Arundel County trail system. He consistently racked up the most volunteer miles per year and was the ambassador known to regular users and visitors on the B&A Trail.

Caraker was also the top promoter of the Anne Arundel County Lifeline 100 bicycle event offering rides for all ages and abilities, starting and ending at Kinder Farm Park each October. He rode in the October 2018 Lifeline 100 at age 84 before succumbing to cancer later that year.

A project in Caraker’s memory is planned at Severna Park’s central gathering place behind The Big Bean on the trail. Planners envision an enlarged flagstone plaza area with new bike racks, appropriate landscaping, and pathways leading to the three stairways accessing the adjoining businesses. Support the project by contributing through Friends of Anne Arundel County Trails at www.friendsofaatrails.org or Bicycle Advocates for Annapolis and Anne Arundel County at www.bikeaaa.org.

Hammond “Skip” Carr

Skip Carr was known to many as “the mayor of Severna Park.” The first home he lived in was the Old Stone House, built around 1709, near what is now Berrywood. His father died when he was young, and his mother raised her two sons alone. During World War II, Carr joined the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and later served in the U.S. Naval Reserve. He married Beverly Scott and they raised three sons. In 1981, she died, and he married Janey Cloud in 1983. They lived in the community of Round Bay by the Severn River.

Carr began a successful career in real estate. His office was at Riggs Road and B&A Boulevard in what is now the Carr building. He was fortunate to have a good friend and real estate partner – Lew Heck – and also to have his son, Chip, as part of his firm. Carr served on the board of the Anne Arundel County Association of Realtors and also the Maryland Association of Realtors, becoming its president in 1986. He also served nine years on the board of the National Association of Realtors. He was Realtor of the Year for both the Maryland and Anne Arundel County associations.

Severn School was fortunate to have his time and efforts toward many improvements. For years, he gave time and money to save the local YMCA and its pool, which is now a part of the Severna Park Community Center. He was also a church leader and an important part of the Severna Park Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Severna Park Council. He helped get the county to acquire the Hatton-Regester Green property, which includes a small park and the chamber office.

He died in 1996, leaving a legacy of accomplishments that are still enjoyed and appreciated by the community of Severna Park.

Carl Rogge

Carl Rogge was a longtime resident of Severna Park, not only by the people who knew him but also by many pets who received his care at his veterinary hospitals. His career spanned 45 years and the pets he saw included not only local dogs and cats but also horses at the Hanover Shoe Farm and the Virginia Equine Center in Charlottesville. He provided care for sled dogs in 10 Iditarod races in Alaska along the 938 miles of arctic wilderness trail. Later, he shared these adventures with many people through his popular lectures.

Rogge also dressed as Santa to help organizations like the Oncology Foundation of Maryland and Washington, D.C. raise funds for their public service. He would let the pets pose with him for photos, which their proud owners could put on holiday cards or use as gifts. He participated in another special event, which was accompanying the reigning world-champion frisbee-catching dog by helicopter, taking off from the center of Pimlico Race Course and landing on Ethel Kennedy’s lawn.

Rogge and his wife, Brenda, had three sons: Chad (deceased), Jeff and Kyle. Many organizations benefited from Rogge’s service including the Severn River Commission, Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church (including the Noah’s Ark Ministry), a cancer research group in Anne Arundel County and the Greater Severna Park and Arnold Chamber of Commerce.

Rogge died in September 2019, but he will long be remembered by many in Severna Park.

ASPIRE COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP AWARDS – 2020-2021

ASPIRE honors community leaders who have been selected by a local organization for sustained, positive and visionary leadership with the organization, with the goal of serving the greater Severna Park community.

ACAN (Asbury Church Assistance Network) – Clinton Wallace

ACAN began in 1990 under Reverend Roland Ward, who approved a food ministry program that was led by Clinton Wallace and Linwood Jackson. They went to Food Lion, Giant and other stores and asked them to join in this project. Wallace was strategic in making connections with Food Link, the Anne Arundel County Food Bank, United States Naval Academy, BWI Airport and others that donated food, which was given by ACAN to needy families, individuals and senior citizens.

Wallace is a humble man with a heart for service and care. He has helped ACAN become the compassionate and important organization that it is today.

Anne Arundel County Police – Detective Michael Moorhouse

Detective Michael Moorhouse has been a member of the Anne Arundel County Police Department since October 2011. He has been assigned to patrol, the detective unit and the heroin fatal overdose unit in the Eastern District. Moorhouse is a member of the conflict negotiation team and civil disturbance unit. He also volunteers for other activities such as Badges for Baseball and the annual Blue Angels detail.

While assigned to the heroin fatal overdose unit, he investigated the first death in which a heroin/fentanyl drug dealer was charged criminally. He put together a case that resulted in a guilty verdict. This case set the precedent in Anne Arundel County and Maryland for heroin fatal overdoses.

Berrywood Community Association – Molly LaChapelle

Molly LaChapelle took a leadership role in the restoration of Cattail Creek. Since 1971, LaChapelle has raised her family on Cattail Creek and witnessed its steady degradation. She completed training as a Master Watershed Steward and planned this restoration as her capstone project in 2015. With excellent skills and persistence, she gained community support and obtained grants of more than $1 million from the Department of Natural Resources and the Chesapeake Bay Trust, and almost $400,000 from Berrywood. The restoration project is nearing a successful completion.

Greater Severna Park Council – Bill Lippincott

Bill Lippincott has been a resident of Severna Park since 1999, living in Kensington. He has served as a board member of that association and heads its architectural committee. Lippincott has been Kensington’s delegate to GSPC for over 10 years and has served on the GSPC board of directors.

He volunteers with Boy Scout Troop 993, with which his son, Aaron, made Eagle Scout. Lippincott was a firefighter in Montgomery County and retired as a captain with 34 years of service. He is now a school bus driver. He and his wife of 40 years have two grown children, Courtney and Aaron.

Greater Severna Park & Arnold Chamber of Commerce – Michael Hall

Michael Hall and his family have owned and operated Severna Park Lanes, Annapolis Bowl and Greenway Bowl in Odenton for over 20 years. They have partnered with Anne Arundel County Public Schools for in-school bowling, which serves 30,000 kids per year. Through the allied sports program, students with disabilities can now participate in these activities.

Hall has donated thousands of dollars worth of bowling packages to local charitable events. He and Larry Sells of The Voice Media created a colorectal cancer fundraiser called Strike Out Cancer, which has raised tens of thousands of dollars.

Magothy River Association – Lise Crafton

Lise Crafton, who lives on the Magothy River, has focused on the floating garden project and, along with Anne Arundel Community College and the Providence Center, the organization has obtained trays of plants for this project. Crafton is also the Magothy River Association representative to the environmental program at Broadneck High School, where she works with students to develop new tray designs. She is also the editor of the floating garden newsletter, which updates people on the kinds of plants to use in these gardens.

MRA is grateful that Crafton brings her expertise, leadership and her love of nature to all that she does for the organization.

Olde Severna Park Improvement Association – Newth Morris

Newth Morris was active in the community for many years. He served as president of the Severna Park Jaycees and later as Maryland Jaycees president. He was key in the development of the B&A Trail in Anne Arundel County and was chair of the B&A committee. At the time of his death in 2018, he was serving as president of the Olde Severna Park Improvement Association and had previously served two terms as president.

He was also a man of action, and during his three terms as president, the community saw major improvements in the beach and community property.

Orphan Grain Train – Norm Giguere

Orphan Grain Train, an all-volunteer Christian charity, enables people who have more than they need to share their abundance with those in need, both domestically and around the world. To do so, the charity needed a warehouse to store many items. This demands a person with the ability to store items but also the know-how to repair anything from a hospital bed to a bicycle.

Norm Giguere, a volunteer for 12 years, is a former school principal who showed incredible dedication, earning him the moniker of Quasimodo without the hump.

Partners In Care – Dick Kemezis

Dick Kemezis has been a member of Partners In Care since 1999. He started as a driver, taking members to appointments and for supplies. He also interviews potential members and trains new interviewers. With experience doing taxes for AARP members who could not afford help, he now helps PIC members with this service.

During his membership with PIC, he has completed over 2,000 hours and logged thousands of miles. He is also involved with Kiwanis of Crofton. He is a great advocate for older adults and for Partners In Care.

Severna Park Community Center – David Orso

As chairman of the board for SPCC, David Orso has served the center and his community with thoughtful guidance and genuine care for those around him. His vision and leadership for the center have helped to propel this local community asset forward through its 25th anniversary year.

Orso lives in Anne Arundel County with his wife, Dawn; his son, Max; and two daughters, Olivia and Amelia. He has been active with the SPCC, the board of Chartwell, the Greater Severna Park and Arnold Chamber of Commerce, and Building Traditions Society of Anne Arundel Medical Center. He works full-time as a real estate broker.

Severna Park Elks Lodge 2482 – John Stokes

John Stokes has made a significant impact on the lodge’s community service outreach. He won three grants from the Grand Lodge to do the following projects: a brunch for Severna Park teachers and also donating school supplies; providing 121 fully stocked backpacks for needy children; and supplying drawstring bags filled with essential toiletries for over 100 veterans. He also distributed holiday food baskets to needy families.

John and his wife, Susan, have five children between them and 11 grandchildren who live nearby.

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