Children can learn coordination, team sports, water skills, and more this winter.  

Don’t wait for cabin fever to set in—sign your kids up for winter activities at Mylan Park that will keep them moving all season long. 

• Little Bodies in Balance helps children walking age through 5 years old build coordination, body awareness, and social skills through fun, guided movement. 
• The Tot Sports program at Mylan Park gives young children experience with motor skills and sportsmanship. Tot Multi-Sport and Tot Flag Football, both on Saturdays January 10–February 14, work with kids ages 3 to 5 or 6 to develop coordination, balance, and teamwork. Tot Kickball, Saturdays February 21–March 28, covers kicking a large ball and running bases in a positive, play-based environment. 
• Winter is a great time to get kids ready for the summer water fun to come. The Learn to Swim program at the Aquatic Center at Mylan Park includes Pre-Swim for ages 3 to 6 and Youth for ages 6 to 12, with multiple skill levels in each group. Classes are taught by certified water safety instructors, and the winter session runs on Saturdays and Sundays from January 11 through March 7. Not ready to sign up? K-2 students with a Mon County report card can get one free swimming lesson—register here.

The beginning of the year is a great time to consider a monthly or yearlong family membership for perks like Sports Complex access, free small equipment rentals, and discounts on classes—visit the website for details. 

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A longtime Maryland Stadium Authority official updated the board in early December on upcoming sports tourism events, just as he had dozens of times over the years. There were bowl games and conferences to discuss.

But it would be Terry Hasseltine’s final report. The 17-year veteran of the state’s sports tourism arm is no longer employed by the authority as of late December, said executive director Michael Frenz.

Hasseltine was the face of Maryland’s efforts to attract world cups, matches between European soccer clubs and other top-flight international sporting events, and his departure was abrupt. In that final December meeting held at the authority’s offices within the B&O Warehouse, he discussed plans to review grant applications in January.

The reason for his exit is opaque. Hasseltine directed requests for comment to the authority, as did Gov. Wes Moore’s office. Both Frenz and authority chair Craig Thompson declined to share what prompted it.

“It’s a personnel matter,” each said.

Public documents filed to the Internal Revenue Service show that events Hasseltine helped host operated at a significant financial loss. That does not explain what led to his departure, but could offer clues.

Hasseltine became the executive director of the Maryland Sports Commission in 2008 after holding a similar role in Kentucky. For nearly two decades, he spearheaded efforts to recruit college basketball tournaments and football games to Maryland, as well as award grants for youth sports. The commission even organizes a spelling bee.

He also served as the head of the commission’s nonprofit arm, the Sport and Entertainment Corporation of Maryland, since its creation in 2019. The nonprofit has helped host multiday annual events such as the Maryland Cycling Classic in the Baltimore area and the Maryland 5 Star equestrian competition in Cecil County.

The future of that nonprofit, however, is unclear. Since the authority is separate from the nonprofit, Frenz was hesitant to provide specific information, but said the nonprofit, which formerly had six employees, now has zero.

Employees did not receive their final paychecks in late December, around Christmas.

“We’re doing what we can, within the limits of our authority, to see that they get paid,” Frenz said.

The futures of the cycling and equestrian competitions are murky. A fiscal snapshot of each event shows they struggled financially.

The 5 Star has attracted Olympic equestrian athletes to the Fair Hill venue in Cecil County each October since 2021. It is one of only seven major events in the world that features the highest level of eventing, a type of equestrian competition.

In 2023, the five-day event generated about $1.4 million in revenue — but had $7.5 million in expenses for a roughly $6 million loss, according to a Form 990 filed to the IRS and available via ProPublica.

“It’s an expensive event to put on and it was always a concern if the revenues generated were enough to cover the expenses,” said Ross Peddicord, the former executive director of the Maryland Horse Industry Board.

That same year, the Cycling Classic had $2.6 million in expenses and only $37,000 in revenue, the document shows, but the nonprofit overall broke even due to significant grants and gifts.

The Form 990 does not appear to include key revenue streams, such as corporate sponsorships, for each event. For example, the Cycling Classic received well over $1 million in sponsorships in 2023, said Steve Brunner, one of its organizers.

The most recent Form 990 for the Sport and Entertainment Corporation of Maryland is not available on the IRS website, but in 2022, the nonprofit lost about $3 million.

It was scheduled to receive $550,000 a year from Cecil County to continue hosting the 5 Star — and thoroughbred races at the same Fair Hill facility — through 2029.

But the future of the county’s annual investment could be in jeopardy.

Cecil County Executive Adam Streight said Tuesday that recent developments “have raised serious questions” and that it would be “irresponsible to commit to any course of action” until the county meets with the commission.

Streight was “taken by surprise by the sudden departures” of Hasseltine as well as Jeff Newman, the former head of the 5 Star, after learning about it via social media.

“My administration is committed to working with future leadership to ensure both events remain in Cecil County, where they belong,” Streight said in a statement.

The 5 Star received about $3 million a year from a state fund created by the General Assembly in 2022. That fund allots $10 million annually in state lottery money for sports and entertainment events.

The Banner requested a list of such events from Hasseltine in Dec. 2024, which showed that the 5 Star had received $8.7 million over the prior three years, more than any other event. That fund, controlled by the commission, also awarded money to college football and soccer games at M&T Bank Stadium, music festivals, PGA tournaments and last year’s Preakness Festival, among others.

A legislative analyst last January proposed slashing that $10 million annual fund during meetings with members of the General Assembly, as Annapolis faced a budget shortage, but Hasseltine emphasized the economic impact that such events create.

Instead, he argued, the state should “double down” on sports tourism.

The future of the Cycling Classic is unclear. Its chair, John Kelly, said Tuesday that his company, Kelly Benefits, “has been a proud supporter of the Maryland Cycling Classic and hope to be again in the future.”

Frenz said there is interest in continuing the 5 Star.

Will Phipps, an equine consultant based in southern Pennsylvania, is among those who wants to make sure the event has a future. He raised funds for the 5 Star during its early days, a half-decade ago, but worried about its financial model.

Emulating the Preakness Stakes with high-end catering and “grandiose infrastructure,” Phipps said, was not a recipe for sustainability.

In recent days, he sent a letter to the stadium authority, he said, and hopes to pitch them on a viable plan. For one, the event could be run on a budget one-half or one-third the size, he said.

“We have put together a model of success that shows how this could run in the black and not be a burden on the taxpayer and contribute heavily to the local economy,” he said.

Reporter Lee Sanderlin contributed to this article.

Craig Butler was known for far more than the bass heard in the words he spoke. He also helped many Lawrence youths find their own voices.

Thomas Afful remembers Butler substituting in several classes when he was in middle school.

Afful, a Lawrence High Class of 2014 graduate, said other teachers would call on Butler to “kind of get some of us in order.” He described Butler as a disciplinarian but said his calm and assertive approach was effective, and he made learning fun.

“He commanded his respect indeed with his deep voice,” Afful said. “But he always brought some type of a lesson to be learned in those circumstances.”

Butler, 79, died the evening of Jan. 1 at the University of Kansas hospital. The longtime Lawrence resident had battled with a brief illness related to heart issues and diabetes, according to his daughter, Julia Butler.

His final request was fried catfish, barbecue and a Bud Light. Second to the sound of Butler’s voice – and of the TV inside his home blaring MSNBC – Julia said she’ll most miss her dad’s love for food.

“When he would eat something good, you would know it,” she said, laughing.

The bulk of Butler’s career was in social work, Julia said, as he previously worked for the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services. He then pivoted to substitute teaching for Lawrence Public Schools in the early 2000s before retiring around a decade ago.

Butler launched “Can We Talk?” in 2007 with a group of fellow Black men in Lawrence, including Willie Amison, Ed Brunt and Bud Stallworth.

Initially designed as mentorship for Black boys attending Lawrence and Free State high schools, the after-school club quickly expanded its reach to more students.

Afful said when he attended “Can We Talk?” meetings, the room was often packed with both students and staff, some standing in the doorway. Participants would discuss race and culture and work through their school and home life struggles. They’d mull over their futures.

“He brought unity amongst the students, especially minority students,” Afful said.

The club remains active today, largely focused on social justice, according to a Free State Free Press article. Free State security officer Dee Kemp took over for the former staff adviser, Charles Thomas, who died in 2021.

‘That way of connecting with people’

“Can We Talk?” served as a safe space as much as Butler himself did.

Jermaine Jackson, who graduated from Lawrence High in 1991, was an eighth grader at West Middle School when he met Butler. He played on Butler’s AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) basketball team and said Butler provided the representation he needed as a kid.

“He just always took me under his wing like a son,” Jackson said. “I grew up in the South and I came up here, and, you know, he gave me the confidence. That’s the guy that looked like me, dark skin like me, and he’s doing his big thing.”

Eventually, Butler became a client of Jackson’s. A barber who operates mostly out of Watson’s Barbershop inside the South Lawrence Walmart, Jackson pivoted to in-home cuts for Butler seven or eight years ago when it started to get harder for Butler to get around.

“He talked to me about life, or if he saw I needed some direction or something, he would always give me advice,” Jackson said.

Kim Moore, Lawrence High Class of ‘94, said Butler was her first basketball coach. She played under his instruction through a Lawrence Parks and Recreation program when she was in fifth and sixth grades.

Moore said Butler’s coaching style influenced her now 18-year coaching career in youth baseball. Butler coached youth basketball for more than 25 years, up until around 2006.

“I don’t remember him being harsh, but very positive, very encouraging, and pushed me, but not in a harsh way,” Moore said. “It made me want to just keep trying, keep trying. Even when I messed up, he was never discouraging.”

Growing up, Julia said she felt like her dad knew everyone everywhere they went. He cheered at his own children’s activities and supported other kids at theirs, helped students with their financial aid applications, connected folks with employment, and simply conversed.

Julia said she’s not sure how he was able to maintain so many relationships, but he appeared to do it with ease, as if it was second nature.

“He just had that way of connecting with people,” Julia said. “If you wanted to better yourself, he was going to find a way to help you do that.”

Butler was born in 1946 and grew up in Chicago. He obtained his undergraduate degree in history from Bethel College in 1972 and his graduate degree in education from the University of Kansas in 1990.

Lawrence Public Schools presented the “Can We Talk?” founders with its annual Outstanding Citizen Award for 2010-11. Free State recognized Butler and Amison in 2013 with the Friends of Education Award, another annual award thanking community volunteers in the district.

No formal service is scheduled for him at this time, but his family plans to hold a celebration of his life sometime in the near future. His obituary is online at this link.

Maya Hodison (she/her), equity reporter, can be reached at mhodison@lawrencekstimes.com. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.

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Fifteen-year-old Ruby Valenceuela sits next to her friend Annie Markuson, a Coldwell Banking real estate agent based in Frisco, at Summit Spa and Nails one dry December day for a pedicure. Their conversation is easy and constant. Valenceuela is a bubbly teenager full of smiles. Markuson is kind and straightforward with her thoughts, which all seem bent on encouraging her young friend. They’re headed to an optometry office afterwards so Markuson can help negotiate getting the girl’s frames fixed. “I told her, ‘you don’t have to walk around with tape on your glasses for six weeks,’” said Markuson.

Valenceuela and Markuson have been meeting almost weekly for years thanks to Summit County’s Mountain Mentors program. This branch of the public health department has worked for 38 years to match local youth between the ages of 8 and 16 with an adult in the community for at least one year of one-on-one mentorship. The pairs are encouraged to connect regularly and participate in either group activities arranged through the program or pursue interests in the county that suit them. For Valenceuela and Markuson, hitting the trails occupied most of their summer.

“She’s the one who got me into hiking,” says Valenceuela, who admits she hated doing it, or any sport, for years. Her family is “not the most active,” she said, so all those outdoor activities felt intimidating. She often skipped the outdoor adventure days at Silverthorne Elementary School when she was younger. 

That’s all changing thanks to her mentor who, Valenceuela said, showed her how to have fun outside. When Markuson took her to Oro Grande trail in May 2025, it “sparked a hiking bug,” said Markuson. Valenceuela enjoyed the outing so much, she started asking to go on longer and harder hikes. “[It] helped that I wasn’t too embarrassed any more,” said Valenceuela. By the end of the summer, the teen pushed herself, with Markuson’s help and encouragement, to hike 1,500 feet up the Gore Range trail to Wheeler Lake. Valenceuela described feeling “so accomplished,” when she made it to the top, and Markuson added that her mentee ran almost all the way back down the trail from excitement. 

Now Valenceuela says she wants to try all the outdoor activities she skipped or disliked in elementary school like ice skating, snowshoeing and maybe Nordic skiing.

Bringing this positive outlook to new experiences is the biggest sign of growth Markuson has seen in her young friend since they were paired six years ago when Valenzuela was in fourth grade.

Markuson taught Valenceuela how to ride her bike, how to swim. They’ve gone kayaking together. They love doing crafts and cooking projects. They remember going to Arapahoe Basin Ski Area’s aerial adventure park one summer where Valenceuela was too terrified to try climbing up the ropes and ladders for the first 30 minutes. The teen was convinced she’d hate it. Once she began, however, Markuson said it was only a short time before she’d transitioned from the low-lying, beginner course to the most advanced course where she flew down the zip line. 

It’s the generous community partners that make the program invaluable for local families, said Markuson. It opens up the world to them. “Everyone who lives here deserves to experience all Summit has to offer,” she said. “Half the places we’ve gone to, I didn’t even know existed,” added Valenceuela.

There’s a lengthy list of discounts and free passes for participants in the Mountain Mentors program thanks to its community partners, said Helen Thompson, the director of the program. Partners include Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center, Rotary Club, 4H, The Summit Foundation, Vail Resorts, Breckenridge History, Friends of the Dillon Rangers District, and both the Breckenridge and Silverthorne Recreation Centers.

Mountain Mentors also organizes monthly group events in which members can participate. These include activities, like bowling and tubing, craft and science projects, like making slime or painting aprons with The Frosted Flamingo, and volunteering, for example serving at the Elk’s Lodge community dinners. 

“It’s a really good way to connect with the community and the people in it,” said Thompson.

Thompson says there’s a great deal of research that’s been done that shows the benefits of mentoring youth. According to Mountain Mentor’s website, “Youth in a consistent mentoring relationship do better in school and are less likely to begin using drugs or alcohol. They are also more likely to have a higher self-esteem.” MENTOR, a national nonprofit that advocates for mentorship, has published a study with data showing youth with mentors are 92% more likely to volunteer regularly in their communities and 75% more likely to have held a leadership position in a club or sports team. According to a study by Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, mentorship can have significant economic impacts seeing youth with mentors are 20% more likely to attend college and earn 15% more over their lifetimes.

Summit County’s Mountain Mentors currently has 45 one-on-one pairs of youth and adults like Valenceuela and Markuson, plus 35 youth who are involved in the programming without a current mentor. There are 30 youth currently on the waitlist. The program is so popular that it cannot accept any more applications from youth until they have more mentors. Thompson says she is also working with a consultant from National Mentoring Resource Center to help figure out ways the program can support waitlisted youth.

Markuson remembers Valenceuela’s younger sister wanted to have a mentor relationship just like her big sister, Ruby, had with Markuson, but she had to wait a few years before she got off the waitlist. It was hard for the girl to wait seeing how much fun Valenceuela and Markuson were having together.

Adult volunteers go through a lengthy vetting process that aligns with best practices from the National Quality Mentoring System, says Thompson. The process includes a background check, an in-home interview, five references, a driving record check and training. Volunteers include people from many different walks of life: young and old, retirees and local business owners. For both the mentors and mentees, Thompson says the hope is an increased community connection, a feeling that you belong here. You’ll see the pairs almost anywhere in the county, says Thompson: skiing down the slopes, attending a cooking class, meeting at the library, walking along the recreation path, crocheting together. 

Markuson encourages any adults interested to, at the very least, investigate the program. “What do you have to lose?” she asks. “You don’t have to be perfect.” Mountain Mentors does a great job assessing kids to match them with the right adult, added Markuson. 

Six years after being paired, Valenceuela sends Markuson her work schedule every week to get on her calendar. “She’s a really bright, conscientious young woman,” says Markuson, “fabulous to hang out with.” When asked what her favorite thing to do with her mentor is, Valenceuela says, “Honestly, everything.”

Thompson wants people to know the program aligns itself with best practices from the National Quality Mentoring System and that they’re established in the community. “We’re on year 38,” said Thompson.  

January is National Mentoring Month. To become a Mountain Mentor, visit the program’s website: SummitCountyCo.gov/services/health_human_services/youth_family/mountain_mentors/index.php, read the Mentor Position Description, and fill out an application. If interested readers wish to support the program in another way, donations go a long way, said Thompson, since all the activities organized for the youth are funded by grants and donations.