Hancock Rotary Club

05/03/2026

In keeping with the recent program concerning the changes to the English language following the American Revolution in order to make it less “English” and more “American”, Steph May, a Hancock Rotary member and former Foreign Languages teacher retired from Baltimore County, decided to do a presentation tracing the early origins of the English language prior to Merriam’s interpretations.

Steph described the Anglo-Saxon language, or Old English, as originating from West Germanic dialects as spoken by Angles, Saxons, and Jutes who migrated from modern-day Denmark and northern Germany to Britain in the 5th century. These Germanic dialects replaced the local Celtic languages on much of the island, becoming the foundation of English. From the 8th and 9th centuries Vikings invaded and settled adding their language, Norse, into the mix.

In 1066 the Normans invaded, who were themselves of Viking descent. Old English was then replaced for a time by Anglo-Norman spoken by the upper class. This developed into Middle English, in which all the letters in a word were pronounced and eventually evolved into Modern English.

Modern English, then, had quite a strong Old Norse influence. Shakespeare is an example of Modern English. It’s notable that it contained lots of loanwords from Latin, Greek, and other European languages. Ultimately around 1400-1700 the Great Vowel Shift occurred which meant significant changes in pronunciation which affected long vowels. Modern English was then firmly in place by 1700.

Thank you, Stephanie, for sharing your passion for languages with us.

04/24/2026

04/21/2026

Tracy Salvagno, current President of Hancock Rotary, shared a unique item with us at her recent program. Her program highlighted the publication of the first revision of the Merriam-Webster dictionary on April 14, 1847, as well as the history of the primary dictionary composed by Noah Webster in 1806 called “A Compendious Dictionary of the English Language,” as initially published by Dr. Noah and William Webster.

George and Charles Merriam acquired the rights to Noah Webster’s 1828 American dictionary following his death in 1843, and published their first Merriam-Webster dictionary in 1847, with the distinct purpose of Americanizing the “olde English” words while focusing on specific changes such as removing the “ou” in words such as “colour” for color and “gould” for gold. It was Noah Webster’s aim following the American Revolution to create a dictionary creating a distinctly American English for a distinctly American country.

Tracy brought with her a copy of the 1847 revised edition of the original 1843 offering, which includes many references with the express purpose of creating a single definition of American English. Webster felt that by capturing language not as it was written in England but as it was spoken in the United States, he hoped to lay the foundation of American speech that would supersede European linguistic traditions.

We applaud Tracy for bringing a most interesting book to share and discuss with our club, which is very appropriate for 2026 and the celebration of America’s 250th birthday! Thank you, Tracy!

04/14/2026

Autumn Williamson, President-Elect of Hancock Rotary, recently gave a program describing the history and inception of Mardi Gras. Mardi Gras is a popular festival that is celebrated in most Catholic-practicing countries in Europe and the Americas.

In order to make Catholicism acceptable for the pagans of the Middle Ages, the leaders of the Catholic church took certain spring, winter and fertility festivals and adapted them for their use. Mardi Gras was one they adopted as the final celebration of food and merriment culminating on the Tuesday immediately preceding Ash Wednesday.

Mardi Gras can be traced back to medieval Europe, passing through Rome and Venice in the 17th and 18th centuries to the French House of Bourbons. From here, the celebration of “Boeuf Gras” (fatted calf) came to the colonies.

On March 12, 1699, French-Canadian Jean Baptiste Le Moyne Sieur de Bienville arrived 60 miles south of New Orleans and named it “Pointe du Mardi Gras,” and in 1703 celebrated America’s first Mardi Gras in French-settled Lousiana.

Carnivale became much beloved and evolved over time to include fancy balls for the elites, and costumes, masks, and floats sponsored by secretive, private-membership social organizations called “Krewes”, representing differing localized social constructs. The parades and masks were originally designed to encourage the elimination of societal class for the night of the festival.

In 1872, the King of the Carnival, or Rex, was created to preside over the first daytime parade. To honor visiting Russian Grand Duke Alexis Romanoff, the Rex adopted Romanoff’s family colors of green (faith), purple (justice), and gold (power) as the official Mardi Gras colors.

In 1875, Louisiana Governor Henry Warmoth signed the Mardi Gras Act, which made Fat Tuesday a legal holiday in Louisiana and it still is today. Since the parades are free, New Orleans calls Mardi Gras the “Greatest Free Show on Earth.” Even today, traditions such as masks, king’s cake, floats, and beads are used to celebrate in New Orleans. Mardi Gras has become so popular that it is celebrated in many countries worldwide.

04/11/2026

“Service Above Self” Rotarians are happy to lend a hand and volunteer where needed. Today, we had several members represent our club, giving their time to work in the concession stand for Hancock Little League Opening Day. 🍔 🌭 🍩

04/11/2026

Huge shout out to the Rotary Club for the new sign at Geber Field.

Even bigger shout out to Katie Weber, Danielle Norris and Andy Norris for the curb appeal!!!

04/07/2026

Build 40 beds for kids who don't have beds. Check in starts at 8 am. Actual build starts at 8:30 am.

04/07/2026

Carolyn Clingerman, longtime secretary/treasurer of the Rotary Club of Hancock, gave a program at our last meeting highlighting a “Quilt of Valor” presentation that she attended at the American Legion in Berkeley Springs, WV.

The Quilts of Valor Foundation and the Mountain Mama Quilters of Berkeley Springs, WV, have been awarding Quilts of Valor for the stated objective “to cover service members and veterans touched by war with comforting and healing Quilts of Valor.” The handmade quilt is the Foundation’s way of saying thank you to nominated service members for all they have done for us, as well as thanking them for stepping up to answer the call of duty, knowing not only that they could, but that they would put themselves in harm’s way for others.

The award presented is a handmade three-layered patriotic colored and themed quilt. The top of the quilt with its many colors, shapes, and fabrics, represents the communities and the many individuals within them. The batting (or filler) is the center of the quilt, its warmth. It represents the hope that this quilt will bring warmth, comfort, peace, and healing to the individual who receives it. The backing is the strength that supports the other layers. It represents the strength of the recipient, the support of his or her family, our local communities, and our nation. Each stitch that holds the layers together represents love, gratitude and sometimes the tears of the maker.

Quilts of Valor was founded in 2003 and features over 600 volunteer quiltmakers over the 50 states. As of April of last year, 410,759 had been awarded. For more details, the Facebook group of our local branch is called Quilts of Valor – West Virginia.

We are grateful to Carolyn for informing us about this touching tribute that is available for our devoted American servicemen and servicewomen.

03/24/2026

Hancock Rotary was pleased to have James Dorsey, from “Story Cannabis,” come to our latest meeting and inform us about the new manufacturing facility that replaced the Antique Mall on Pennsylvania Avenue. This facility produces gummies, rolled joints, and dried flower products using cannabis exclusively grown in Southern Maryland. The facility also does research for medical ma*****na uses, such as seed splicing and creating crossbreeds in order to explore the enhancements of benefits for medical users. This location presently employs 50 people and could employ up to 100 in the future due to shift expansion.

The company has a strong presence in Arizona, Louisiana, Ohio and Maryland, and has three dispensaries located in Maryland in more populated areas. The company strongly believes that everyone has a story that is worth sharing, and Mr. Dorsey says that they are ready to listen.