Yard sales, baseball and outdoor events: Howard County notables share their favorite parts of spring

Howard Magazine asked three Howard County leaders about their favorite parts of spring.

Here’s what they look forward to as the seasons change:

Bessie Bordenave

Harriet Tubman Foundation president

Bessie Bordenave loves getting up early on Saturday mornings in fair weather to explore yard sales in search of little treasures. She enjoys shedding her winter clothing and the way the change in season pleases her senses.

“When I think of spring in Howard County, I think of waking up in the morning to hear the birds chirping; I don’t know what music they’re making, but it sounds really good to my ears,” she says.

Shawn Gladden

Howard County Historical Society executive director

“I am a big-time baseball guy, and baseball is the best thing about spring in Howard County -- and everywhere for me,” Shawn Gladden says.

Gladden coached the Raiders, a Howard County Youth Program travel team, when his now-16-year-old son, Grant, played in elementary school. He still loves to see the fields open.

Cheering for Grant’s high school games as he watches young athletes that he coached is a source of pride. And, he says, hearing the “ting” of the ball on metal bats and enjoying the “hopefully wonderful weather” with their families in the stands is a “great way to spend a spring day.”

Faith Wachter

Business Women’s Network of Howard County president

“I love strolling down Main Street in old Ellicott City in the spring,” says Faith Wachter.

She also loves hiking with her family at Patapsco State Park, dining alfresco at local restaurants with her husband, attending the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival and farmers’ markets, and especially shopping and networking at Scholarship with a Twist — a spring Business Women’s Network event at Savage Mill that raises funds for the organization’s scholarship foundation.