Change is in the air in Washington—and on the campuses of America’s colleges and universities. As President Trump implements his campaign to reduce ... [Continue Story]
Spy Highlights
From and Fuller: The Real Impact of DOGE
Every Thursday, the Spy hosts a conversation with Al From and Craig Fuller on the most topical political news of the moment. This week, From and ... [Continue Story]
- From and Fuller: Trump Gazaland and the Muse DOGE Peeks into Federal Payment Systems
- From and Fuller: Trump chaos and RFK Jr. confusion
- Have another? By Roger Vaughan
- From and Fuller: The Trump executive order blitzkrieg
- Equal and opposite, summer-winter, and poor man’s fertilizer by Dennis Forney
- From and Fuller: A Middle East Cease Fire and the Legacy of the Biden Years
Public Affairs
Spy Music Review: An Ascendent Interlude Concert by Steve Parks
“The Lark” not only ascended but soared to the top of the program of Chesapeake Music’s Interlude matinee concert at the Ebenezer Theater Sunday, ... [Continue Story]
- Exclusive wedding open house event at 12pm on February 23 at historic Brampton Inn
- A new president and immigration policies changes: A chat with ChesMRC’s Matthew Peters
- Maryland deploys icebreaker to clear channels for watermen
- Sheila Austrian wins Ward 1 council seat
- Rebuilding Together: A bold new chapter as Rebuilding Together Eastern Shore
- Ward 1 Special Election Candidates Forum
The Arts
Spy Concert Review: Ellis Paul at the Stoltz
There was a moment near the end of veteran singer-songwriter Ellis Paul’s performance at the Avalon Theatre’s Stoltz Listening Room on Sunday night ... [Continue Story]
- Latest sculptures from the Peter and Hanna Woicke Collection arrive
- Emmanuel Church to host organ recital February 21
- A Work of Heart: How Museums Can Strengthen Your Relationship by Daedelus Hoffman
- Resonance welcomes back acclaimed vocal artist Meagan Sill Feb. 16
- TAP Takes on Neil Simon’s Plaza Suite: A Chat with Maureen Curtin and Brian McGunigle
- Elizabethan and chamber music virtuosity by Steve Parks
Chesapeake Ecosystem
Bay Journal: Nonprofits, states scramble as Trump administration pauses funding for many Chesapeake restoration programs
Efforts in recent years to accelerate the Chesapeake Bay restoration have run into a wall of Trump administration executive orders that halted payments for huge swaths of ... [Continue Story]
- Invasive catfish, west coast oyster shells fueling Chesapeake renaissance
- Intense Maryland Energy Debates in Annapolis Fill a Single Afternoon
- ShoreRivers now accepting summer internship applications
- Turn your Christmas tree into a home for local wildlife
- ShoreRivers welcomes new board members, executive committee
- Maryland Levies Fines on Perdue, Valley Proteins for Environmental Violations
On the Hill at Washington College
Drafting Dissent: The Use of Drawings in Cuba’s Recent Activist Scene; now at Washington College Kohl Gallery
Washington College’s Kohl Gallery will launch "Drafting Dissent: The Use of Drawings in Cuba’s Recent Activist Scene" with an opening reception on ... [Continue Story]
- Art, activism, and history events open to public at Washington College this February
- Washington College hosts Maryland Corps for Day of Civic Engagement
- Educators Invited to Apply for Innovation Plant Curriculum Fellowships
- Acclaimed poet James Allen Hall awarded 2025 NEA Literature Fellowship
- Robert Blackson Takes Helm at Washington College’s Kohl Gallery
- African American History Project Gets Federal Boost
- Middle East talks & author readings top Washington College’s fresh January events
- Bluegrass, War in the Middle East, Gut Health, and Women Serial Killers Top WC-ALL’s List of Courses Offered in Spring
Health
Let’s Talk About It: A Different kind of Valentine with For All Seasons CEO Beth Anne Dorman
For All Seasons is bringing love and generosity with its annual Valentine’s Day Silent Auction, running online from February 8 to February ... [Continue Story]
- Mid-Shore Health: The role of forensic nursing with survivors of sexual and physical assault
- Qlarant Foundation takes a big step forward with first executive director Amanda Neal
- Mid-Shore Health: The war against lung cancer with Drs. Rashmi Benda and David Oliver
- UM Shore Medical Center at Shore Community Outreach Team Wins Statewide Rural Health Award
- Health advocates: Maryland needs to improve screening efforts for lung cancer
- Shore Community Outreach Team Helps Local Man Transition from Homelessness to Healing
Education
Wood Foundation awards $100K grant to Radcliffe Creek School
Radcliffe Creek School (RCS) was recently awarded a generous grant from the Kathy and Jerry Wood Foundation to support needs-based scholarships for deserving students. The ... [Continue Story]
Maryland News
How did we get here?: Analysts, officials unsure how disability agency overspent
Gov. Wes Moore’s proposal to slash $200 million in funding for a state administration that supports residents with developmental disabilities sent ... [Continue Story]
- Moore delivers State of the State address that lays out ‘tough choices’ for lawmakers
- Hundreds of developmental disability advocates rally against DDA budget cuts
- O’Malley’s bid for DNC chair falls well short; Ken Martin new chair
- No survivors found in crash between military helicopter and jet over Potomac
- State leaders scramble to understand impact of Trump’s surprise funding freeze
- Get ready for a dizzying debate on energy policy
Brevities
Home by Katherine Emery
Grandmacore is a recent trend embracing knitting, crochet, and baking to unplug, de-stress, and enjoy slow living. Homes are often cozy, nostalgic, and whimsical in their ... [Continue Story]
Food Friday
Food Friday: Valentine’s Day
It's Friday, the fourteenth of February, and you are reading this at your desk after a nice turkey sandwich, smugly looking forward to the weekend stretching before you. I ... [Continue Story]
Looking at the Masters with Beverly Smith
Looking at the Masters: Utagawa Hiroshige
Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858) was one of the most prolific and popular Ukiyo-e artists in Japan. The word Ukiyo-e means pictures of the floating ... [Continue Story]
Design with Jenn Martella
Design with Jenn Martella: Victorian Transformation
It is always gratifying for me to see an older house in need of renovation to be given a new life through renovation/restoration. This house’s ... [Continue Story]
Food and Garden
Adkins Arboretum Mystery Monday: Guess the picture
Happy Mystery Monday! Can you guess what is pictured below? The answer to last week's mystery is partridge berry, Mitchella repens, ... [Continue Story]
- Wine of the Week: PutzenHof Bodzer Leiten
- Adkins Arboretum Mystery Monday: guess the photo
- Wine of the Week: Terrazze Toscana IGT
- Do tea and herbs mix? CBHS hosts discussion with owner of the Doehrn Tea Company
- Wine of the Week: Vernaccia di San Gimignano
- Sale begins for Talbot County Garden Club’s “Hot Ticket” Spring Symposium
Delmarva Review
- Delmarva Review: The “Best of” Anthology
- Delmarva Review: Leitmotif by Rita Plush
- Delmarva Review: Arrogance by Katherine J. Williams
- Delmarva Review: A System of Seeing by Colin Jeffrey Morris
- Delmarva Review: The End of the Story by Patty Somlo
- Delmarva Review: Something More Than Winter Weighs (Upon Me) by John Muro
Chesapeake Lens
Chesapeake Lens” The Zen of Winter” by Deidra Lyngard
Winter minimizes sound and color but retains their beauty. ... [Continue Story]
Commerce
Kent County’s first cannabis dispensary opening soon with social equity license
Kent County is on the cusp of a new chapter in wellness with the impending opening of Kent Reserve, the area’s first cannabis dispensary. Set in the ... [Continue Story]
- Three Cheers: Moo Productions Celebrates 20 Years of Creativity in Worton
- The Chestertown Spy Agrees to Stop Bugging Readers by Wednesday at Midnight
- Silver Linings Jewelry Launches New Business on High Street
- What you Need to Know about Maryland’s Low-Income Household Water Assistance Program
- Discovering Discover Easton’s Plans for 2023: A Chat with Director Holly DeKarske
- Mediation Room 8: Benefits of Using Mediation in Divorce
Community Notes
Rock Hall Candidates’ Meet and Greet February 26
The League of Women Voters of Kent County and the Greater Rock Hall Business Association will co-sponsor a Meet and Greet for the two candidates for ... [Continue Story]
- Public Hearing Scheduled for Proposed Millington Solar Project February 19
- Advocates ‘frustrated,’ confused after meeting on proposed cut to DDA agency
- Shelter Alliance to meet Thursday, January 23rd
- Tax cuts, increases part of Moore’s ‘growth agenda’ – Maryland Matters
- Chestertown advances traffic safety with major improvements
- Remembering Yvonne W. Arrowood
Arts Notes
Summer position available at Church Hill Theatre
Church Hill Theatre is accepting applications for a paid staff position for the 2025 Green Room Gang program. The theatre is in need of a Director ... [Continue Story]
- Mainstay First Friday: Joe Holt and Paula Johns pay tribute to Nancy Wilson
- Rachel Franklin Celebrates Gershwin’s Extraordinary Creative Output During the 1920s
- Auditions February 25th, 27th and March 1st for “A Rock Sails By”
- Latest sculptures from the Peter and Hanna Woicke Collection arrive
- The traditional bluegrass sounds of Danny Paisley and Southern Grass
- Mid-Atlantic Symphony Orchestra welcomes Kathleen Wise to Board of Directors
Education Notes
Receski receives Golden Anchor Award
Bill Receski of Rock Hall Elementary School was honored with this month's Golden Anchor Award for his hard work and dedication. Receski received ... [Continue Story]
- Kent County Public Schools final survey: 2025-26 calendar
- Underground Railroad’s maritime history highlights 2/24 program in St. Michaels
- High Priority: KCPS seeking community support for HB0736
- Moore, Pelto receive Golden Anchors
- Governor’s education bill slows growth of per pupil funding, worrying advocates
- Gunston welcomes Mike Hardesty as Director of Facilities
Health Notes
Choptank Health recognizes February as National School-Based Health Care Awareness Month
Choptank Community Health System is joining the National School-Based Health Care Awareness Month celebration this February to highlight how ... [Continue Story]
- For All Seasons Provides Tips on Healthy Teen Relationships
- Catherine Halen, SPHR, joins University of Maryland Shore Regional Health
- New laboratory equipment purchase for University of Maryland Shore Medical Center at Chestertown funded by Chester River Health Foundations
- Kent SCOT wins award from Chamber of Commerce
- Choptank Health welcomes medical provider in Easton
- 12th Annual Spring Classic Bike Tour: Cycle for a Cause and enjoy great food
Opinion
Op-Ed: Making American Great Again?
The President and his henchmen, full of themselves, began implementing their agenda at breakneck speed on a freezing January afternoon to install, ... [Continue Story]
- The Political is Personal: Reflections on DEI by Margaret Andersen
- New report reveals value of resource conservation for Shore businesses by John Horner
- History of US Territorial Acquisitions By Tom Timberman
- Presidential pasts and an impending future by Steve Parks
- Maryland’s fiscal apocalypse by Clayton A. Mitchell, Sr.
- Analysis: Moore’s delicate balance as the session gets under way
Letters to the Editor
Letter to the Editor: Maryland’s Legislature is failing rural communities By Janet Christensen-Lewis
Maryland’s Legislature is dominated by Senators and Delegates from urban centers—lawmakers who wield an overwhelming majority to pass legislation that ... [Continue Story]
- Letter to Talbot County Council: Keep employee handbook DEI statement
- Letter to Editor: Representative Harris snubs the ‘Beagle Brigade’
- Letter to the Editor: A Cowardly Senate Capitulates to Trump
- Letter to the Editor: Root Cause By Bob Scofield
- Letter to the Editor: Maryland’s fiscal apocalypse By Clayton A. Mitchell, Sr.
- Letter to the Editor: Trump not out of the woods yet
Columnist J.E. Dean
How to Destroy American Higher Education by J.E. Dean
Change is in the air in Washington—and on the campuses of America’s colleges and universities. As President Trump implements his campaign to reduce ... [Continue Story]
- Trump 2.0: The good, the bad, the ugly and the insane by J.E. Dean
- Trump’s dangerous tariff game is making the world a more dangerous place by J.E. Dean
- In praise of Inspectors General by J.E. Dean
- President Biden should have walked out by J.E. Dean
- Trump asks Congress to abdicate its constitutional responsibility by J.E. Dean
- Remembering Jimmy Carter by J. E. Dean
Columnist Craig Fuller
Midair collision over the Potomac: Week two update by Craig Fuller
There is news in every direction these days, but I still follow the press conferences by the National Traffic Safety Board (NTSB) concerning the ... [Continue Story]
- A midair tragedy last night in Washington by Craig Fuller
- The Classic Motor Museum starts a new trip in St. Michaels: Craig Fuller talks to Mike Iandolo
- MPT, the Chesapeake Bay and Viewers Like You: A Chat with Station Manager Steven Schupak
- So Much Money, So Little Time by Craig Fuller
- One Amazing Story by One Amazing Individual by Craig Fuller
- A Presidential Debate: No Commission / No Audience / Perhaps, No Gloves by Craig Fuller
Columnist Howard Freedlander
Out and About (Sort of): Stars in Different Realms by Howard Freedlander
What did Willie Mays and Donald Sutherland have in common? Nothing. Except an overriding desire to excel in each’s craft. Mays was a true wonder ... [Continue Story]
- Out and About (Sort of): Slavery of Thought by Howard Freedlander
- Out and About (Sort of): Higher Education on Edge by Howard Freedlander
- Strike for Democracy by Howard Freedlander
- Out and About (Sort of): American Voter by Howard Freedlander
- Out and About (Sort of): Hospice Heroes by Howard Freedlander
- Out and About (Sort of): An Apolitical Document Fails by Howard Freedlander
Columnist Laura Oliver
Rescue Them By Laura J. Oliver
A quick review before we get to why I am telling you this story. I worked for five years as a volunteer dog walker at the SPCA before I met ... [Continue Story]
Columnist Al Sikes
Where Is the 21st Century Democratic Party? By Al Sikes
Today’s Democratic party is no longer shaped by realities. In a broad sense, today’s Party is still attuned to President Lyndon Johnson’s Great ... [Continue Story]
Columnist Angela Rieck
Butterflies are not just pretty by Angela Rieck
Butterflies and moths, with their vibrant colors and intricate patterns, are more than just enchanting creatures flitting through our world. They play ... [Continue Story]
Senior Life
It’s American Heart Month by Susan Covey
Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men and women in the United States. Every year, one in four deaths are caused by heart disease. The ... [Continue Story]
- Enjoy the health benefits of Thanksgiving Day by Susan Covey
- Upper Shore Aging Hosts the Re-Dedication of the Amy Lynn Ferris Adult Activity Center
- Herb Cain Appointed Executive Director of Upper Shore Aging
- Water, Water Everywhere…For Drinking, Playing And Exercising!
- Upper Shore Aging Honors Volunteers
- Talbot County Commission on Aging to host a Senior Resource Fair
