rain because there's been so much that at least it is dry a couple of days and that messes up the morning commute. we have a relatively lit commute this morning. carroll county marriottsville road closed in both directions because of a downed pole. police are on the scene there. that between driver and henryton roads. causing problems. we will keep you up to date on when that clears up. middle river we have police activity at ebenezer road and earls beach road. you can see things are moving smoothly on the major roads. a live look at the beltway at baltimore national pike and things are moving smoothly both inner and out are loops there. a live shot at the north side. there is baltimore national pike there. you can see it moving fine. harford road moving ok. we will watch that for delays.

95 is looking good as well. that is the latest on "traffic pulse 11." >> our big story, a baltimore county high school is closing its doors after 87 years. towson catholic was one of the most affordable catholic high schools in the baltimore area. but the archdiocese says decreasing enrollment and unpaid tuition are forcing them to shut down. jennifer franciotti has more on how the decision has parents and students scrambling. >> alumni gathered at towson catholic to digest the news that their alma mater is shutting down. >> there's got to be more to it. we have had hard times before but it has been her how many years? >> it is the oldest co-ed catholic school in the archdiocese of baltimore. it is also one of the post diverse drawing nearly half of the students from baltimore city with a student body that is 40% minority. sean kane says the recession undermined the bottom line.

>> when you lose 81 students and your sole source of income is tuition and you have $160,000 that you didn't collect from last year in tuition, those things conspired into a perfect storm and they feel like this is an unprecedented situation. they have never experienced this kind of decline. >> i feel so lossed. >> carla would have been president of her senior class. >> i'm just so hurt that the archdiocese has taken all of my parents' money and i can't finish up. >> her frustration is compounded by the way she and others found out about the closure. >> i received an e-mail from some of my friends saying towson catholic is closed, then i turned on the news and saw the story that it is closing and i was in tears. >> kane says the archdiocese will help students enroll in new schools but many catholic schools face the same challenges that closed towson catholic. a rally at the school is planned this morning. tim tooten will be there and we will bring you the latest at

5:00. >> in 24 hours baltimore could lose another historic site to auction. the ambassador theatre on liberty heights avenue is expected to be auctioned off. it last operated in 1968 as a theatre. it has housed self businesses. it is now empty. it is sort of a sister theatre to senator which is set to be auctioned off july 22. one we can after fire destroyed a steeple. the leaders of bethel a.m.e. church will have a press conference. they plan to discuss details regarding future plans on how to better the baltimore region. it will begin at 10:00. >> some 20,000 people gathered to honor the king of pop michael jackson. a collection of hollywood's biggest stars shared their personal stories, condolences and heart-warming musical performances. near the conclusion his daughter

paris took the stage speaking publicly for the first time. >> ever since i was born, daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine, and i just want to say i love him so much. >> if that didn't move you, you don't have a heart. it was the defining moment of the memorial. a reminder that even with all the controversy that has followed michael jackson a family is aching from the loss of a son, a brother and father. that brings us to the water cooler question of the day. what was your most memorable moment from the michael jackson memorial service? e-mail us at watercooler@wbaltv.com. president obama continues his overseas travel this morning in italy where the summit of the eight most powerful economies gets under way as world leaders talk about the global economy. there are rumblings in washington about a possible

second economic stimulus. brooke hart has a report from washington. >> arriving in rome president obama meets with italy's president before the summit's open. the host town is under tight security. roads in to it shut down. g-8 leaders will take up a range of issues. president obama will say proposed emission caps show u.s. resolve. europe wants more. on the global economy leaders will compare progress on stimulus measures. there is talk of needing a second u.s. economic jolt. democrats say lawmakers should be open to it. >> i think it is a worse idea than the first, which has been demonstrably proven to have failed. >> with unemployment edging toward 10%, president obama defended his read on the economy early on. >> what we always knew was that even when the economy pulls out

of recession that you are going to see jobs emerging only at the end of that process rather than the beginning. >> is the global romance with obama over? he got scant attention in russia. >> i think he will have a bit of that rock star status going into this summit but i think the question down the road is, is that perception going to be back with concrete actions and successes? >> bound to limit g-8 progress china's president withdrew from the summit to deal with ethic clashes at home. the stimulus is getting a mixed grade here. a government audit reports for instance the measure is keeping many teachers employed but just a sliver of funds for highway work has been paid out. >> back in early may donna hamilton was anchoring the 5:00 p.m. news but not feeling herself of she didn't mow then

but she had lyme disease, one that can be debilitating if not caught early. >> ticks that cause lyme disease are as small as a period on a printed page so you may not realize you have been bitten. that is what happened to our colleague donna hamilton. donna was getting ready for her son's wedding. >> i had stuff to do and people to see and places to go and promises to keep. >> when she started feeling achy and tired she chalked it up to a busy schedule and prewedding stress. she didn't realize those were symptoms of something very serio serious. her dermatologist made the diagnosis. >> she took one look and said lyme disease. wow! >> you said? >> i was like really? >> looifrm disease is up more than 100% in maryland. tonight at 11:00 how donna discovered she had it, what she is doing about it and what you can try to do to prevent it.

debra weiner, wbal tv 11 news. >> she's a medical reporter and it is shocking to be diagnosed with something that you have covered. >> i'm a medical reporter. she is feeling much better. it is now 5:38, coming up does mounting stress have you pulling your hair out literally? which clinical supplement is believed to help you gain a grip on your life. >> down pole causing problems on marriottsville road in carroll county. update on some police activit

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almost unheard of for july. this is actually one of the cooler starts to july we have had. we haven't been this cool since 2001. we are looking at a water vapor imagery over the mid-atlantic. high pressure will build in over new england and extend south stabilizing things more. mainly we will have low humidity. 79 to 83, plenty of sun. more coming up. >> in our medical alert past studies have shown african-americans are more likely to die from certain cancers and how word biological factors may be to the blame. researchers followed more than 19,000 cancer patients enrolled in 35 clinical trials. they all had the same access to healthcare and they found african-americans were significantly more likely to die from breast, ovarian and prostate cancer than the other participants because these cancers are all gender related and experts believe there is a

complex interaction of genetic and hormonal factors that make them more deadly for african-americans. health is on wait for those who suffer from chronic hair pulling. an amino acid may treat people who pull their hair. the supplement showed the majority of people who took it saw significant improvement in symptoms. researchers say it took about nine weeks to work and there were no bad side effects. it is now 5:42. 60 degrees on tv hill. the loss of a child can be painful for my mother but a missouri mother provides much needed comfort. >> you are looking at a live picture of the downtown area from our sky camp. -- sky cam. you are watching "11 n

>> kim dacey for sarah caldwell for that check of the traffic.

>> things are not bad. the biggest thing is in carroll county at marriottsville road closed in both directions between driver and henryton, a downed pole there. police are on the scene. we will keep you up to date. middle river we have police activity at ebenezer and earls beach road. you see that things are moving ok around those major roads. we will give you a live look at 95 at the beltway there in the southwest corner. you can see that things are moving ok but further north on 95 between caton avenue and beltway we have the report of a vehicle fire. 83 just north of the beltway looking pretty good on the harrisburg expressway down toward baltimore. checking out ok. that is the latest on "traffic pulse 11." now for a look at the buses and trains we go to kurt kroncke. >> looking very good so far. we have a couple of bus diversions including the 22 at university and 41st.

1 bus at nursery and winterston both due to construction. light rail on time from hunt valley to cromwell station glen burnie and metro on schedule. marc trains or all looking good right now. for the m.t.a. i'm kurt kroncke. back to sandra shaw. organic, sandra. >> good morning, kurt. absolutely spectacular day with plenty of sun, low humidity and comfortable temperatures. more comfortable than yesterday when we hit 88. today only about 80 for a high. really a lot of nothing going on as far as the radar and satellite over our state. clear start to things and will remain clear. there are showers and storms around new england, a cold front passed through last night making its way over southern maryland but didn't generate precipitation. high pressure will build in to the north extending to the south. that will stabilize things further for us. more from where this came. right now 56 in york, one of the coolest locations, to 70 downtown metropolitan area.

63 at the airport and split being the difference on the eastern shore, mid 60's to about 70. dew points are awesome. usually this time of year we are at least at 65 dew point. a lot of moisture. 47 in baltimore. so, incredibly dry out there. very low humidity expected not only today but the next three days. as far as the forecast statewide, if you are heading to the mountains of western maryland, more sun, only about 79 degrees. in central maryland 80 degrees for the high. looks beautiful. winds out of the northwest five to 10 miles an hour. over to the eastern shore and ocean city looks like 84 for the high, wonderful beach day again. make sure you laughtouisian lat. >> waves one to two feet on the bay, water temperature continues in the mid 70's. the record for this date 100 in

1993. on july 8, 2000, 53 was the low. we are not going to be far from the 53-degree reading for the record low. tonight we have the potential at the airport to go down to about 55. incredible. cool and refreshing. partly cloudy to begin and mostly clear overnight after midnight. high pressure building north. front will continue to move off to the atlantic today. so, surface features that will be the high pressure that dominates. even cooler tomorrow with a high of 78 degrees, maybe a few more clouds. shouldn't be bad. partly cloudy for friday. saturday back into the upper 80's, then another front saturday night generates maybe some showers and storms that will linger through sunday. then we cool down again, 85 sunday and 83 monday. >> the hopes and dreams of expected mothers are dashed by

miscarriage each day. several years ago a woman in missouri decided a simple gift for grieving mothers would help some of them heal. how the heaven born project is making that happen. >> you are not watching a professional seamstress. the stitch may be out of place, but the line might not be straight. what you are seeing is a woman sewing up comfort for others, comfort in the form of a soft pillow. >> that way you have something tangible that you can hug, cry on, keep. >> comfort is something maureen could have used about seven years ago. she had a miscarriage 12 weeks in her pregnancy. >> it was very clinical. i went to a surgery center. i vividly remember the words scraping. i was just really amazed how deep the pain was and the sense of loss. >> maureen is an artist. if you buy one of these balloons she may have had a hand in

designing it. one day her son saw her crying and he pushed her to cope with her loss through her love of art. >> mom, you know why i think this happened? i said no, why. he said i think it happened so you could help other people. and i got to tell you, i got the goose bumps. i felt like god had spoken directly to me through my son. >> the pillow and booklet launched in one hospital and maybe a divine helped it spread to springfield. >> it is so nice to meet you. >> they wanted something, anything to give parents a consoling memory. >> they don't want to forget this little baby . and this gives them something to say i won't forget. >> it is also soothing to those who volunteer to stitch up pillows like beverly. she sews in honor of her

sister's baby lost to miscarriage. >> this is something to help you get through your grief. >> in total heaven born pill les are handed out now in eight hospitals thread connecting maureen's katie to hundreds of others. >> i think my katie has a lot of friends now. >> what a neat idea. each comes with a booklet and gives insight on how a woman might feel after the loss, how to talk to a spouse about the pain and suggestions on how to honor the baby. >> very nice. >> 5:51, 61 degrees. there is still much more ahead on "11 news today." enginee >> we will look at one of your answers to the water cooler question of the day. >> here is a look at the maryland lottery numbers. good luck. what are you doing for lunch?

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>> millions watched the tell vased tribute of michael jackson, some on the internet, theatres, even in subways. here at home several mourners found various spots to observe it. kate amara has minister. >> michael jackson's memorial service took over the main hall of the enoch pratt free library on a 10-foot tv screen. >> he was just so natural and so creative and inspiring. sorry. >> we love michael. >> we love you, michael. >> in baltimore folks made time to remember the king of pop.

gathered in front of tv's at lexington market. watched on screens at work and cell phones streaming live video. >> he is so much part of my life. since i was young until now he has been part of my life. >> it is a blessing to be here to share this moment with billions of fans. >> this was a moment people wanted to experience together. >> this is a child's record player fully functioning. >> pop culture expert explains why. >> celebrities are people that become friends in your home. they are people that you emotionally imprint on and whoever that may be, when they die it is a way for people to both safely and in a focused way express that kind of emotion that death becomes important and that it unites people. >> people love mike and we know mike because we grew up with mike. mike has been singing to us for 40 years.

so, we know mike and we love him. >> kate amara, wbal tv 11 news. >> that brings us to your answers to our water cooler question of the day. we asked what was your most memorable moment from the michael jackson memorial service. >> laurie writes definitely his daughter. that tore me up. >> i have to agree. barbara writes my most member reliable moment will be the respect the people who couldn't get in the staples center showed by not rioting because they couldn't get in. keep e-mailing responses to watercooler@wbaltv.com. we will read more in the next hour and post all of them on the front page of wbaltv.com. >> a baltimore county teen remains missing this morning. the picture police are hoping will help bring him home. that is 6:08. >> one of the stars from laverne and shirley lands in legal hot water. an elderly woman strikes it big in a minnesota casino. that is 6:41. >> a clear scan on h.d. doppler.

it looks like cooler temperatures are going to greet us as we make our way through the second half of the week. >> a pretty light ride this wednesday morning, just a couple of things to mention. we will give you a live look outside straight ahead.

to >> ever since i was born, daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine. and i just want to say i love him so much. >> a child's heartfelt and moving tribute punk waits the ceremony celebrating the life and career of the king of pop, michael jackson. we will ask what you thought of the events. >> less than two months before the start of the new skl year a towson high school announces it is closing for good.