Resort draws major crowd to town for festivities, as lodging industry reports shorter stays. — Page 3
Airport support
County, resort governments chip in to help Salisbury airport’s quest for another direct flight service.
— Pages 76 and 78
MON.-THURS. 3-6PM
7.12 Lime Green 1-4pm True Country 6-9pm
7.13 Rymac 1-4pm
7.14 Jason Lee 1-4pm Jack & T Lutz 6-9pm
7.15 Steve Bowers 1-4pm
7.16 Wes Davis 2-5pm Troy Mawyer 6-9pm
7.17 Bryan Dorsey 1-4pm Jack Bannon 6-9pm
7.18 Naked Nation 6-9pm
Solid holiday weekend seen in resort with strong crowds
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(July 12, 2024) Despite two notable police-related incidents, Ocean City officials are reporting a successful Fourth of July weekend.
While the summer season has had a slow start by most accounts, officials say last week’s holiday festivities brought more people to the resort.
The July 4 celebration reached a crescendo on Thursday night with music and fireworks throughout Ocean City.
“The weekend was great,” said Tom Perlozzo, director of tourism and business development for the Town of Ocean City. “Traffic, etc. was strong for the weekend. Our fireworks had extremely large crowds at both Northside Park and downtown.”
Ocean City hosted two fireworks shows on July 4, one at Northside Park uptown and another at the Caroline Street Stage downtown. However, just hours before the displays were to be set off, officials announced an unexpected high tide had delayed the downtown show.
“We did have a scare when the abnormally high tide got into the fireworks downtown,” City Manager Terry McGean said this week, “but it wound up only delaying the show for less than a half hour.”
Despite the minor setback, officials say both shows were a success. McGean added that the town did see
an expected traffic backup in town following the conclusion of both fireworks displays.
“We have received numerous emails complimenting us on the quality of the fireworks at both locations,” he said. “All in all, city staff did a great job hosting a fun and safe 4th of July holiday weekend.”
Officials say more visitors were in town for July 4 and the days that followed, based on preliminary statistics. The hospitality sector reported increased business and sales. According to demoflush records, a system that uses wastewater output to calculate visitation, the estimated crowd count for Independence Day reached 321,865. That number increased to 344,034 on Friday and 338,878 on Saturday.
“All in all, a very strong holiday,” McGean said. “Preliminary numbers (parking, wastewater flows) are up from last year.”
Susan Jones, executive director of the Ocean City Hotel-Motel-Restaurant Association, noted the steady stream of visitors in town last week. However, she said that hotels were reporting abbreviated stays.
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“I spoke to a few prior to the 4th and they mentioned that travel patterns were arrival Wednesday, out Friday and some were arrival Thursday, out Saturday,” she said. “Overall, we
PHOTO COURTESY EXPLORE OC
The Ocean City Boardwalk is pictured on July 4 minutes before the fireworks show began.
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By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(July 12, 2024) Bids for a kitchen remodel at Eagle’s Landing Golf Course will be reviewed after officials this week received prices well above the $700,000 budget.
On Tuesday, the Mayor and Council opened the six bids it had received for a proposed kitchen renovation at the golf course. While the town has budgeted $700,000 for the project, bids ranged from nearly $900,000 to $1.2 million.
“I make a motion to acknowledge the bids and remand them to staff for review,” Councilman Peter Buas said.
Earlier this spring, the council voted to advance a request for proposals for the first phase of renovations at the golf course clubhouse, and to prepare a resolution to forward fund up to $1.2 million for the completion of both the first and second phases of the project.
As proposed, the first phase of the project will include an addition to the east side of the building, which will allow for additional kitchen and storage space, an eight-seat bar, new restrooms and new flooring, among other things. The second phase of the project would involve an addition to the west side of the clubhouse for a larger pro shop, an office area and more storage.
During Tuesday’s meeting, staff opened six bids for the kitchen remodel. Harvey Construction submitted a bid of $899,566; Gillis Gilkerson submitted a bid of
Holiday brings crowds, ‘busiest week so far’
ings and shorter stays – and when there is plenty of vacancies/inventory, there is no urgency to book.”
Emergency Services, Public Works Kept Busy
On the public safety front, several departments reported a busy July 4 holiday, filled with water rescues, EMS calls and police deployments. Ocean City Police Department Deputy Communications Manager Ashley Miller noted that throughout the week, the agency received several calls for young adults congregating on the beach.
“We would see groups of 50 to a couple hundred meet on the beach to hang out or party,” she said this week. “In addition to our normal patrol units, we deployed additional officers on ATV’s to address any noise, disor-
derly, trespassing, or underage drinking within those crowds. Our officers reported seeing these groups traveling between 118th Street and the Delaware line.”
Miller said that on July 4, the police department handled 48 disorderly conduct calls for service during the evening shift, which runs from 5 p.m. to 3 a.m. She noted that 17 of those calls were for large congregations in the area of 118th and 136th streets on the beach.
“We made 12 arrests within those areas for various offenses such as weapons offenses, alcohol violations, theft, and disorderly conduct,” she said.
That same night, the police department also responded to a large fight at an underage nightclub on Worcester Street. Miller said the altercation
spilled onto the street, where nightclub employees were assaulted while attempting to break up the fight. She noted that additional and immediate police assistance, called a Signal 13, was requested at the scene.
“A public safety aide who was in the area called for assistance,” she said. “Several officers arrived on the scene. While trying to place multiple suspects under arrest for the still-active fight, a Public Safety Aide was assaulted by a friend of the suspects. Due to the large, disorderly crowd, a Signal 13 was called. Three juvenile arrests were made in this incident.”
Despite the two reported incidents on both ends of the town, Miller said the holiday was largely uneventful. Overall, the Ocean City Police Department recorded fewer service calls and traffic stops when compared to two years ago. And from July 1 through July 7, the agency issued 249 traffic citations, 28 traffic collisions, and 113 total arrests.
“The weekend went pretty well besides the Signal 13 call downtown and the large groups of young adults on the northern beaches,” she added. “We saw the usual traffic delays, particularly after the fireworks displays.”
Traffic delays were also reported in the evening of July 3, when crews with Ocean City Public Works, the Ocean City Fire Department and the Maryland State Highway Administration responded to the Route 90 bridge for a reported sinkhole. However, McGean said the repairs were quickly made.
“Traffic got backed up on Route 90 during the sinkhole repair Wednesday night but that was quickly addressed between our public works department and the State Highway,” he explained.
Public Works Director Hal Adkins said his department remained busy throughout the Fourth of July. He reported that the inlet parking lot was at capacity by roughly 10:30 a.m. and stayed full through the conclusion of the downtown fireworks display. He also highlighted that Boardwalk bathrooms operated beyond capacity
throughout the day, with lines out the door for both men and women.
“The July 4th holiday was extremely busy for public works,” he said.
The Ocean City Fire Department also assisted the public works department with trash can fires throughout the day. Adkins said three plastic trash cans had melted from people depositing spent fireworks.
“Our crews performed phenomenally, rapidly extinguishing trash can fires on the beach and preventing them from spreading to the dunes,” Ocean City Fire Department Community Engagement Officer Ryan Whittington added. “Their quick and effective actions ensured the safety of our community and preserved our natural resources.”
In addition to handling numerous trash can fires, the fire department also assisted with Thursday’s fireworks displays, Whittington said.
“Additionally, our fire marshal's office, including our deputies and inspectors, did an excellent job conducting pre-inspections of the fireworks, confirming safety perimeters, and providing public education,” he said. “We are proud to report zero reported injuries as a result of fireworks on July 4th.”
In total, firefighters and EMS personnel with the Ocean City Fire Department responded to 70 calls for service on July 4. He said multiple patients were also airlifted to Shock Trauma in Baltimore. Notable incidents included a balcony fall on July 6 and a severe leg laceration from a surfboard fin on July 7. A pediatric near-drowning victim who was resuscitated was also transported to TidalHealth on July 6.
On the beach, the Ocean City Beach Patrol recorded its busiest weekend of the season. On July 4, the agency recorded 122 rescues, seven EMS calls and 24 lost and found individuals. The following day, the Beach Patrol recorded 101 rescues, one EMS call and six lost and found individuals.
“These are preliminary stats, but I believe the number of [lost and found] individuals will be much higher,” Capt. Butch Arbin said this week. “This was our busiest week so far.”
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New playground officially open on 94th Street in OC
By Mallory Panuska Ames Digital Editor
(July 12, 2024) After a slight delay due to some safety concerns, the new playground at Little Salisbury Park on 94th Street is officially open.
“We do have a couple of things that need to be addressed, but we’ve remedied the safety concerns which allowed us to open the playground last week,” Ocean City Recreation and Parks Director Susan Petito said in an email Monday.
The new modular play structure, named the Aventus Tower, replaced the existing 20-year-old equipment at the play site behind the 94th Street Shopping Center in the Little Salisbury neighborhood. The color palate of the bright new equipment consists of light green and blues to provide a seascape feel, Petito said.
The tower provides what she called “inclusive play elements” and “challenging elements,” including a 12-foot slide and internal climbing wall. There are also three new swing bays and one Expression Swing, which Petito explained is a multi-generational swing that allows an adult and small child to interact faceto-face while swinging together.
City officials were able to snag the new equipment for a discounted price — $114,398 compared to $177,208 — from playground-building company GameTime. City Council members approved the purchase in November, and installation work began earlier this year. Overall, with the added costs of surfacing, delivery, installation and other details, the total cost of the new playground came out to about $215,500, which was below the $216,000 the rec and parks department had budgeted for it.
The playground at Little Salisbury Park is one of several in town. Others are the Northside Park Playground on 125th Street, the North Surf Park off 142nd Street, Gorman Park off 136th Street, Robin Park on Robin Drive, the newly named and renovated Bayside Park at 3rd Street downtown, and the Boardwalk playground. All playgrounds have equipment for 5-to-12-year-olds, while Northside Park and the recreation complex have equipment for 2-to-5-year-olds.
Staff will review bids for savings
Continued from Page 6
$940,051; Delmarva Veteran Builders submitted a bid of $945,560; Oak Contracting submitted a bid of $1,097,741; Tricon submitted a bid of $1.21 million; and Henley Construction submitted a bid of $1.23 million. City Manager Terry McGean also acknowledged the town had received a seventh bid that was received late and did not meet the scope of work requirements set forth by staff.
With no further discussion, the council voted unanimously to support Buas’ motion.
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MALLORY PANUSKA AMES/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
The new Aventus Tower and accompanying equipment at the Little Salisbury Park playground on 94th Street is pictured. The equipment was officially installed and opened for use last week.
Multiple methods offered to residential, commercial landowners for payments
(July 12, 2024) Worcester County property owners’ latest tax bills are officially in the mail and should be received by now.
“Tax bills for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2024 have been sent via United States Postal Service,” Finance Officer Phil Thompson said last week in a news release.
He added that owners can pay their bills by in person or online at co.worcester.md.us.
To pay online, on the home page, click the icon entitled $ Taxes Online to access the Citizen Self Service page. Once there, click Real Estate Taxes or visit the site directly selfservice.co.worcester.md.us/css/citizens/RealEstate/Default.aspx?mode =new
Customers can use their names,
addresses, or property account identifier numbers — assigned by the State Department of Assessments and Taxation — to find their accounts. The website also allows taxpayers to make payments on their accounts, subject to a processing fee. A link is also provided on the website that allows taxpayers to access the state’s website to view their properties and related assessment information.
Payments may also be made in person at two locations: the Isle of Wight Center at 13070 St. Martins Neck Road in Bishopville, and the Worcester County Government Center at 1 West Market Street, Room 1105 in Snow Hill.
Taxpayers with questions can contact the Worcester County Treasurer’s Office directly at 410632-0686, ext. 3, or email askthetreasurer@co.worcester.md.us during business hours for assistance with their current bills.
Developer defers Sunset Park fire lane use request
Presentation to be made to council at future meeting
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(July 12, 2024) Citing concerns from downtown residents and city staff, the connections of a proposed bayside hotel are deferring a request to use Sunset Park as a project’s permanent fire lane.
Several downtown residents came before the Mayor and Council on Tuesday to voice their objections to a request from the developer of the Kyma Hotel to modify and use Sunset Park as a dedicated fire lane. Following public comments, the developer’s attorney, Hugh Cropper, told officials this week that his client would return to the council at a future meeting.
“We’d like to defer our presentation to the next meeting, considering what we’ve heard today and staff comments,” he said.
Last year, the Ocean City Planning Commission voted to approve the site plan for a luxury, boutique hotel at 700 S. Philadelphia Ave. The developer, Sarantis Properties Inc., has plans to construct a 60-plus unit facility named Kyma Luxury Resort Hotel on the site just south of Sunset Park.
Now that the project is in the permitting phase of development, the developer is seeking the council’s approval to remove a portion of the park’s southerly trellis, install a driveway-style curb cut, and make the park a dedicated fire lane for the hotel.
“The southerly part of Sunset Park is built on South Division Street,” Cropper said in an interview following
BETHANY HOOPER/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
Downtown property owners are pictured in attendance at Tuesday’s Mayor and Council meeting to object the use of Sunset Park as a permanent fire lane for the proposed Kyma Hotel.
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Downtown property owners voice objections
Tuesday’s meeting. “My client would like the ability to drive emergency vehicles on the southerly half of South Division Street for access to his property, only in the case of an emergency. It requires virtually no improvements other than trimming a portion of a trellis and installing a curb cut.”
In a report to the Mayor and Council, staff noted that designating Sunset Park as a project’s fire lane would impose certain restrictions on the current use, as the fire lane must be clear of all fixed objects – including tents and food trucks. They also reported that a proposed fire lane would also permanently restrict any future development of the park. Staff ultimately presented two options –to deny the request entirely, or to allow Sunset Park to be used as a fire
lane, provided that the developer allows public access to the hotel’s bayside boardwalk.
During Tuesday’s work session, several nearby property owners came before the Mayor and Council to voice their objections to the developer’s request. Resident Scott Chismar argued that the proposed fire lane failed to have the support of several city departments and would detract from the park.
“It’s taking away the part that so many people enjoy and love down there, and it’s just an unconscionable request that’s being made there,” he said.
Downtown resident Geri Stoll also questioned why the Cambria Hotel was required to have public access to its boardwalk, but not the Kyma Hotel. Resident Joe Wilson added that
public access to a bayside boardwalk was critical for Ocean City’s future.
“There’s a lot to like about the Kyma Hotel. Honestly, it’s a historically underutilized site,” he told the council. “They didn’t max out density and it’s going to be a beautiful boutique hotel. But I agree, if you’re going to limit a public amenity – the only one that we have that’s south of the bridge – then maybe there would be something that’s given back to the public as well in the form of the bayside boardwalk. We’ve got a threat to our viewshed to the east. I think we really need to focus on protecting what we have to the west.”
Ocean City Development Corporation (OCDC) Executive Director Zach Bankert noted his organization had been instrumental in the development of Sunset Park decades prior. He said
the park is a major asset for downtown Ocean City, as it serves as a venue for concerts, festivals and weddings.
“As someone who manages many of those events, I’m weary of putting any limitations on the park that would hamper our ability to reasonably host an event at the park,” Bankert said. “Representing the organization that helped raise money to design the park. I’m also wary of modifying a well-established public park for the benefit of a private developer.”
Bankert added that the developer had not shared any plans to use or modify the park when OCDC’s downtown design committee had reviewed the project last year.
“We were supportive of the Kyma, despite a lot of concessions that were given to the project. But we always understood that that boardwalk would be a public use, that it would be an extension of the bayside boardwalk as outlined in the city’s comp plan, and that it would serve to be a benefit and an improvement to Sunset Park,” he said. “The Cambria Hotel provided this benefit to the public, and we always expected the Kyma to do the same thing. In short, I feel that if the Kyma is asking to take from a public space, that they should be expected to give something in return to benefit the public. If any modifications to the park are approved by council, I would also ask that OCDC be involved in the design of that.”
Following Tuesday’s meeting, Cropper said the bayside boardwalk issue was complicated, as there were issues such as insurance and liquor licenses that needed to be considered.
“This is a much more complex issue than the Cambria …,” he said, “and the planning commission saw fit to grant site plan approval without public access.”
Cropper ultimately contended that his client’s request was reasonable. He said approving the request will allow the project to move forward.
“This should virtually have no impact on Sunset Park and isn’t intended to have any impact on Sunset Park,” he said.
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Police activity for June shows uptick in smoking, noise
Chief reports other service calls remain consistent
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(July 12, 2024) Ocean City’s police chief reported an uptick in parking violations, Boardwalk noise complaints and smoking citations during the month of June.
On Monday, Ocean City Police Chief Ross Buzzuro presented members of the resort’s police commission with a report on June activity. He noted that officer calls for service increased 3% from 4,727 in June 2023 to 4,882 in June 2024, while citizen calls for service decreased 14% from 3,085 to 2,654.
“Citizen calls for service were down considerably, 431 less than in 2023 and slightly below where 2022 was,” he said. “So the last two years, we’ve had lower citizen calls for service.”
While noting that most service calls remained consistent in June, Buzzuro said that the department did record an uptick in a few categories, including citizen assists, fire/EMS assists and parking complaints and violations, which increased 25% from 551 to 687. He added that the latter was a result of Ocean City’s new parking enforcement division.
Service calls that decreased, Buzzuro pointed out, include animal complaints, collisions and 911 hangups, which dropped from 1,089 last June to 520 this June. He also noted that CDS violations were down considerably.
“We all know the explanation for that,” he said.
Under June enforcement, custodial arrests increased from 487 to 491, criminal citations increased 287% from 15 to 58, drug arrests decreased from 28 to 14, and weapons arrests decreased from 59 to 50.
Buzzuro also pointed out other metrics, including smoking citations – which increased from 65 to 80 –and noise complaints. During the month of June, the police department recorded 18 noise warnings, one citation and nine arrests in town. On the Boardwalk, noise complaints increased from 24 to 30.
BETHANY HOOPER/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
Town staff and members of the Ocean City Police Commission are pictured at a monthly meeting held on Monday.
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‘Stop the Bleed’ kit saved surfer’s life, captain says
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(July 12, 2024) Officials are crediting the quick response of beach patrol staff, as well as a “Stop the Bleed” kit, for saving the life of a surfer on the beach.
On Sunday afternoon, a surfer was airlifted from Ocean City to Shock Trauma in Baltimore for severe blood loss. Capt. Butch Arbin said if it weren’t for the immediate actions of beach patrol staff, and the use of a Stop the Bleed kit, the man would not have survived.
“We’ve never, in the history of the beach patrol, had a severe bleed like this,” he said, “not ever.”
Arbin said Ocean City Beach Patrol’s surf beach facilitator crew chief, Katie Gresier, responded to a young man who had cut his leg on the skeg of his surfboard while surfing at the beach near 38th Street on Sunday. He noted that the fin had cut through the man’s wetsuit and into an artery in his leg.
“Our crew chief for the surf beach facilitator went over right away and put direct pressure on it to control the bleed,” he explained.
Arbin noted that additional beach patrol personnel soon responded to the scene and used a Stop the Bleed kit – outfitted with a tourniquet, clotting gauze and other medical supplies – until EMS arrived.
“When they got there and saw the severity and loss of blood, they decided to fly him to Shock Trauma,” he said.
Shock Trauma reported this week that the beach patrol’s actions and
use of the Stop the Bleed kit saved the surfer’s life. Arbin also highlighted the timing of the incident, as just a day prior beach patrol staff had practiced bleeding control.
“We had just gone through our [first aid] recertification,” he said.
In July of 2019, Ocean City property owner Deborah Dopkin approached the beach patrol with a request to incorporate “Stop the Bleed” protocols in the agency’s first aid training. Dopkin’s inquiry was the result of her own traumatic experience. While visiting New Jersey, she was run over by a transit bus and lost
BETHANY HOOPER/OC TODAY-DISPATCH Ocean City Beach Patrol Capt. Butch Arbin said a Stop the Bleed kit, like the one pictured above, helped save the life of a young surfer this week.
both legs. Her life was saved by a police officer, who had the necessary training and supplies.
To that end, the Ocean City Beach Patrol began training its staff on Stop the Bleed practices. And the following year, the local chapter of the Hogs and Heroes Foundation donated several Stop the Bleed kits, which Arbin said are now found in all of the agency’s vehicles.
Today, Stop the Bleed training is included in the beach patrol’s surf rescue academy, attended by all new lifeguards, and is part of the annual recertification process for all returning personnel.
Arbin said before the victim had even landed at Shock Trauma on Sunday, he had reached out to Dopkin to inform her that a person’s life had been saved with Stop the Bleed training and equipment.
“Had [Gresier] not been there and done the immediate thing, he would have died,” he said.
County approves alcohol for Worcester Fair
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(July 12, 2024) Officials say planning continues for this year’s Worcester County Fair.
The Worcester County Commissioners last month voted 6-0, with Commissioner Eric Fiori abstaining, to approve a request from Recreation and Parks Director Kelly Rados to have alcohol sales at John Walter Smith Park during the Worcester County Fair. Rados said her department is looking to include breweries in the annual event.
“We’ve finalized most of our vendors, locked in the food vendors, but now we’re working on incorporating some local breweries,” she told the commissioners on July 2. “We would like to offer alcohol on Friday and Saturday of the times of the fair. So
we just need commissioners’ approval to allow alcohol at John Walter Smith on the dates of August 9 and 10 of the fair.”
Earlier this year it was announced that Worcester County Recreation and Parks would take charge of hosting the 2024 Worcester County Fair, ending a years-long run at Byrd Park in Snow Hill. This year’s event will take place Aug. 9-11 at John Walter Smith Park.
In a memo sent to the county commissioners last week, Rados provided officials with an update on planning of the revamped county fair. She noted that the event would kick off on Friday with a ribbon cutting ceremony at 4:30 p.m. and a performance by Jimmy Charles from 6-8 p.m.
“To date have 36 vendors regis-
tered with 40 or more expected once everything is finalized,” she wrote. “We are working with 10- 12 food vendors to get them approved for the Fair and are currently working on the alcohol vendors. All alcohol vendors will meet all State regulations and will therefore not need county permitting, as long as Commissioners would approve alcohol at John Walter Smith Park during the Worcester County Fair dates.”
In addition to alcohol sales on Friday and Saturday, other offerings include live entertainment, inflatables, carnival games and a catch-and-release fish tank. Displays and demonstrations from 4-H will be held inside the recreation center, while a livestock tent will feature different shows and demos.
“Other attractions include a Car
Show, Jeep Show, Cornhole Tournament, Pipeline eating contest, Drone demonstration and a Petting Zoo,” Rados wrote.
The Worcester County Fair will cap off Agricultural Week, to be held Aug. 3-11. The week will include various offerings from local event managers, towns, farms and agricultural businesses in Worcester County.
For more information on the Worcester County Fair, visit WorcesterCountyFair.org or the Worcester County Fair Facebook page. For more information on Agricultural Week, visit VisitMarylandsCoast.org.
“It’s just wonderful, and I know it’s been a long time coming,” Fiori told staff last week. “And I just want to thank you guys for all your hard work.”
FUNDA
County to buy $44K scoreboard for complex
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(July 12, 2024) County officials last week approved a request from the recreation and parks department to purchase a scoreboard for the Northern Worcester Athletic Complex.
On July 2, the Worcester County Commissioners voted unanimously to approve the department’s request to buy and install a new scoreboard at the complex. The project will be fully funded through the Local Parks and Playground Infrastructure (LPPI) program.
“These services have been quoted by Daktronics Inc. through their cooperative contract with Sourcewell,” Procurement Officer Nicholas Rice wrote in an email to the commissioners. “Local Parks and Playground Infrastructure (LPPI) funding has been approved for this project. LPPI grant funds is 100% reimbursable. The total cost for the scoreboard and installation is $43,855.”
Last August, representatives with Pop Warner Football asked the commissioners to donate a 30-year-old scoreboard previously used on Stephen Decatur’s football field. Connections
with the organization said they wanted the old scoreboard to be used at the Northern Worcester Athletic Complex, where Pop Warner games are played.
Citing concerns about the cost of installation and the unknowns of accepting an old scoreboard, the commissioners at that time directed staff to research the purchase of a new board. And in September, the commissioners agreed to pursue the project.
With the scoreboard back on the consent agenda this week, Commissioner Ted Elder asked where and how high the scoreboard would be
placed. Staff noted that it would be placed 10 feet above the ground.
“It will be in the back far corner of the field facing out,” Parks Superintendent Jacob Stephens added.
With no further discussion, the commissioners vote 7-0 to approve the purchase and installation of a new scoreboard.
While the board will cost $16,605, installation and shipping bring the total to $43,855. Daktronics Inc. will provide services through its contract with Sourcewell, a cooperative purchasing organization.
fixtures, and lots of EnergySaving Features. Granite Countertops, 42" Maple Cabinets with soft-close doors, and a large island in the Kitchen. The Owner's Suite has double walk-in closets, Venetian Bath & ceramic tiled shower. Relax on the sunny Screened
home offers 2 Bedrooms, 1.5 Baths, a beautiful stone fireplace, washer/dryer, & 2x6 construction. Relax on the large concrete patio, adjacent to the storage shed and parking for 4 vehicles! Enjoy all of the amenities of White Horse Park, where you own the land,
Short moratorium passed until head hired for planning
By Tara Fischer Staff Writer
(July 12, 2024) At their Monday, July 8 meeting, the Berlin Mayor and Council unanimously approved a temporary moratorium on specific actions of the planning commission until the vacant planning director position is filled.
The pause comes after former planning director Dave Engelhart's passing in April. Since then, Rick Baldwin has acted as a consultant for the group. Town Administrator Mary Bohlen said that the initial resolution will be valid until September 15. It is intended that it be reviewed at the first August meeting of the Mayor and Council, where it may be extended to October.
The planning commission's reaction to the moratorium at their Wednesday, June 12 meeting was unfavorable. However, Bohlen recommended the motion, which was passed by the Mayor and Council.
“The purpose is because we are down a planning director,” Bohlen said. “This is intended to be temporary … This is to give staff a bit of relief from having to approve what are very complex matters … Rick’s assis-
Monthly review by officials planned to monitor status
tance has been invaluable, but he is not the planning director. He cannot sign off on things. He gives me solid advice, but he is not the authority.”
According to Bohlen, the town interviewed five candidates for the planning director role and elected two for in-person discussions to be had on Thursday, July 11. The goal is to have a new planning director in place within a month. The moratorium will allow the hire to complete the onboarding process and settle into the position.
The pause will apply to applicants for site plan approval, rezoning and property annexation. The planning commission will be permitted to meet publicly to discuss conceptual issues. If the Mayor and Council elect to extend the moratorium, it will be reviewed at the first meeting of each month until it is officially terminated.
“The objective is to be able to handle the complexities of these types of requests against the limited staff time that we have to be able to apply diligence to those requests,” Mayor Zack Tyndall said. “Rick does not work 40 hours a week, so we do not have full capacity in the planning office. We do not have what we need to handle complexity.”
Council member Steve Green emphasized that the moratorium does not mean Berlin is not “open for business.”
“We do not want to send a message that building permits and things like that are not still going to be allowed to move in a direction,” he said.
On Wednesday, July 10, the proposed Microtel Inn and Suites, intended to be placed off Route 113 in Berlin, went before the planning commission as a concept plan. The temporary pause did not impact the ability to have the discussion. The outcome of the meeting will be reported next week. However, Tyndall maintained that if the moratorium stalls the project, it would be an initial priority for the new director.
In addition to the halt, a filing deadline of 30 days prior to any regularly scheduled meeting of a board or commission was implemented as of June 17. The goal is to provide staff with ample time to discuss and consider submittals. The new policy will remain permanent.
The council also unanimously passed the motion to approve an additional $5,000 for Baldwin’s consulting contract to continue working for the town into the new fiscal year.
LICENSE
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GRACE MAS HOUSE • NORTH OC D IN MD & DE ER/OWNER
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One of the best unobstructed views of the bay, wetlands and sunsets in north OC.
Local tech school students travel to Ga. for nationals
By Tara Fischer Staff Writer
previous school year.
(July 12, 2024) Students from Worcester Technical High School completed a successful run at the 2024 SkillsUSA national competition in Atlanta, Georgia, last month.
The contests were held from June 24 to June 28 at the Georgia World Congress Center. Worcester County students demonstrated their skills in various career and technical categories.
SkillsUSA is a nonprofit organization that serves students across the United States enrolled in training programs for trade, technical, and skilled service occupations through their school’s chapter. The group is dedicated to developing employability and creating an education that meets the workforce’s needs.
Each June, SkillsUSA hosts a national competition where students can demonstrate the abilities they have learned and expanded on in the
“The event gets the kids out among their peers and connects them with possible future employers,” Worcester Tech Welding Instructor and SkillsUSA Advisor Rick Stephens said. “The industry is out there sponsoring these contests. Toyota and Honda are there for the automotive category. They get to meet people across the country and show their skills.”
Students Maddison French, Catherine Miller, and Julia Knerr received
Students attend skills contest
fourth place in the American Spirit contest. According to Worcester Tech Special Education Assistant Tammy Hearne, the group is responsible for highlighting what the chapter has done throughout the year to demonstrate community service, citizenship, patriotism, and career and technology education.
Hearne said that to showcase these priorities, the Worcester team underscored the creation of Valentine’s Day cards for Gull Creek nursing home residents as part of an anti-loneliness initiative. They also emphasized a presentation on human trafficking and safety created by the criminal justice interns.
“It’s a year-long project,” Hearne said. “They demonstrate and promote their chapter’s events while showing off their communication, job, and personal skills.”
Lillian Jones, Kyleigh Powell, and Alayna Spagnola, who completed the human trafficking presentation to their peers, placed sixth in the career pathways human services category.
Keith Savage got fifth in Automotive Maintenance and Light Repair, and Christofer Villarreal was eighth in computer programming.
Skyler Nottingham received sixth place in the advertising design competition, which tests students’ technical skills and creative aptitude in a professional advertising agency setting.
The category requires competitors to complete a written test and recreate a provided advertisement on a computer. The students are judged on their accuracy, proficiency with industry software, and ability to meet deadlines.
Mandy Chau placed eighth in the medical math competition. Contestants demonstrated their proficiency in mathematical concepts within the healthcare lens. They performed a written test that was likely to include ratio and proportion, dosage calculation, metric and household equivalents, Roman numerals, abbreviations, and other medical math-related problems.
Worcester County middle school students also competed in Georgia.
Cecilia Diehlman and Catrina Donmmoyer placed second in mobile robotics. At the same time, Asher Nichols and Nodish Gupta received third in Robotics Urban Search and Rescue, which requires teams to build a robot and arm mechanism before the competition. The machine must be capable of “locating, grabbing, and moving simulated ordnances on the challenge course.”
Worcester Tech students first competed at the local and state levels to qualify for nationals. In the Maryland-wide contest, Stephens said 65% of Worcester Tech participants placed in the top three of their respective categories.
Heron Park sale proposed again with bids sought
By Tara Fischer Staff Writer
(July 12, 2024) The Berlin Mayor and Council will hear presentations from potential buyers of the former poultry processing plant grounds later this month.
The part of the park for sale is parcel 57, the old processing plant that is undergoing demolition.
Berlin Mayor Zack Tyndall said the proposed sale would only pertain to parcel 57 for at least $1.2 million and include 15 EDUs (equivalent dwelling units) attached to the property.
Most of the discussion at the meeting surrounded what businesses would be acceptable to place in the building. Initially, the thought was that the new venture should not compete with downtown Berlin. This would disqualify restaurants and retail. Healthcare, gyms, general office space, housing and entertainment venues were acceptable. Councilmembers struggled to accept the restrictions.
“If I had my way, there would be no limit on uses,” Councilmember Steve Green said. “Let’s see what comes out. I have felt that way all along. I am a capitalist and disagree with interfering with private business.”
Echoing Green’s statement, Tyndall said, “I want something that we are excited about. I want something that is going to fit Berlin, that has some energy around it, it fits our needs…”
The council agreed to widen the scope of possibilities. While processing plants and storage facilities are a “hard no,” everything else is fair game with an emphasis on mixed-use concept plans, which would see different ventures on different levels of the building. Housing is also a high priority with many references to retail or restaurant space on the ground floor with apartments above.
Presentations from interested buyers will be capped at 15 minutes and will take place in public at the next council meeting on July 22.
“The presentations will be at the next meeting, and it is safe to say that it is not binding,” Tyndall said. “It is a presentation that will hopefully lead somebody into…a negotiation period. We will be looking to revisit this in August. We do not want a long delay.”
The council discussed the sale in an early June meeting. After Councilman Jack Orris implored his colleagues to discuss the park property and its sale, Green and Councilman Jay Knerr maintained they wanted to sell the parcel but wanted to avoid the RFP (request for proposal process) again. The town had gone through an extensive process last summer and opted to hold onto the space. The body intends to expedite the negotiation this time by forgoing the lengthy RFP process.
The cut-off date for submissions is July 16, so the proposals may be included in the July 22 public meeting packet.
Flower Street speed limit reduced near Seahawk Rd.
By Tara Fischer Staff Writer
(July 12, 2024) A motion to reduce the speed limit from 30 to 25 mph on the stretch of Flower Street from the intersection of Seahawk Road to the municipal town limit unanimously passed.
“We are coming before the council to have … the only part of Flower Street that is not 25 to be switched from 30 to 25,” Berlin Chief of Police Arnold Downing said. “That area consists of the stop sign from Seahawk Road to the town limits, which is at the end of the back of Stephen Decatur Middle School.”
The council also agreed to write to the Worcester County Commissioners asking that the speed limit on the portion of Flower Street that remains outside Berlin’s jurisdiction be reduced from 25 to 30 mph.
“I think this is phenomenal, changing the speed limit to 25 mph,” councilmember Shaneka Nichols said. “I will say this, and I know it is outside of our jurisdiction, but I would like the entire length of Flower Street to be in that 25 zone…For consistency and safety for all of Flower Street, I would also love to see that county portion be 25 mph.”
Nichols argued that the goal is to train drivers to slow down.
“I advocate for a 25 mph speed limit
and speed cameras because I can tell you to slow down all day long, but until it hits you where it hurts, your pocketbook, you are not going to slow down,” she continued. “As I sit on my front porch, you can hear engines rev back up once cars pass the speed camera.”
Berlin resident Jayden Johnstone proposed that the town reduce the speed limit in the determined area and add a sidewalk to increase safety.
“I like the idea of having a whole walkable community, and right now, it is too dangerous,” he said.
Mayor Zack Tyndall said that Berlin did receive a federal grant to evaluate pedestrian and bicycle traffic. While the funds have yet to be acquired, there are plans to survey where sidewalks are needed.
The body voted unanimously to reduce the limit from Seahawk Road to the town line from 30 to 25 mph and send a letter to the commissioners requesting the county-owned stretch be decreased.
“I don’t want anyone to think that this is a ploy by the Town of Berlin to fatten our pockets,” Nichols said. “That is not what this is about. What this is about is point-blank safety. There is no reason for anybody to drive on a 25 mph two-lane street where the houses are kissing the street to be driving 55 and 60 mph, which happens down Flower Street every day.”
Ceremony starts Ocean City police substation project
(July 12, 2024) Ocean City held a groundbreaking ceremony to mark the start of construction for the Ocean City Police Department’s downtown substation.
Mayor Rick Meehan, council members, representatives from the police department, representatives from the Ocean City Development Corporation (OCDC) and other officials gathered for the event. Officials dug their shovels into the dirt to represent the beginning of the new project, accompanied by many smiles and applause. The new substation will be located at the southwest corner of Baltimore Avenue and Somerset Street, an ideal spot downtown for public safety.
The $4 million project is a public-private partnership between the city and the OCDC, which funded the design phase and 50% of the construction costs. The city went to the bond market for the remaining project funds.
“This town is going in the exact direction it should be going,” said Mayor Rick Meehan. “This vacant parking lot will soon have a deeper purpose for the town of Ocean City. This project is a true example of how progress can be made when we’re all on the same page.”
The new substation will incorporate state-of-the art offices, meeting spaces, interview rooms, a bicycle repair garage, a welcoming public lobby, and housing for employees and seasonal workers. Meehan noted the inclusion of employee housing makes the substation an excellent addition to downtown Ocean City.
Chief Ross C. Buzzuro emphasized the substation’s accessibility during his remarks. Its proximity to the Boardwalk ensures prompt response and support for residents and visitors. Buzzuro also stressed its role in enhancing public safety along the boardwalk and surrounding areas.
Construction
year.
ANNA WILLIAMS/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
Representatives from the Town of Ocean City, Ocean City Police Department, contractor Gillis Gilkerson and Ocean City Development Corporation held a ceremonial ground breaking Monday.
Ocean Pines locks up Viola as GM with 4-year contract
By Tara Fischer Staff Writer
(July 12, 2024) Ocean Pines Association General Manager John Viola has signed a four-year contract extension with an option for a fifth year. The Board of Directors unanimously approved the decision on Monday, July 8.
Viola has served as the community’s general manager since April 2019. He was initially meant to temporarily fill the position following John Bailey’s resignation. In June 2019, Viola signed a sixmonth agreement, which has been extended several times.
“We believe that under the leadership of Mr. Viola, Ocean Pines has achieved significant milestones in keeping Ocean Pines financially strong and continuing to keep all our amenities top-notch,” OPA Board President Rick Farr said in a press release issued by Public Relations and Marketing Director Josh Davis. “The new contract reflects the Board’s commitment to providing stability and continuity in leadership and also underscores our confidence in the General Manager’s vision, strategic direction, and ability to navigate the challenges and opportunities facing Ocean Pines.”
In a statement released by Viola, who is expected to have an annual salary of $210,000, he emphasizes this monetary
success, claiming that the “updated flash estimate for the fiscal year 2023-2024 is a nearly $1.2 million favorable variance to budget.”
“To get good results, an organization and management has to realize what your KPIs are -- what’s driving your organization, what’s driving your results, where to put your assets, and where to put your money and invest your time,” the general manager said. “That has been our focus for the last five years and will continue to be our focus.”
Amenities are helping to create this financial positivity. According to Viola, golf is among the highest contributing factors, with $220,000 in favorability and an $87,000 improvement over the last year.
Amenity membership has also increased 17% since the prior year. Golf and racquet sports have seen the most significant rise.
The association has prioritized course maintenance, as golf has proven to be a money-maker for the community. The new golf club irrigation system project is underway, and materials for phase one have arrived. The first part of the proposal will include replacing pump stations at the first and ninth holes and the driving range. The total cost for this stage is $934,000.
See OPA Page 42
by Steve Green
TThe Adventures of Fatherhood
his column has provided me with a unique lens into parenting. While I ramble in this space about my household’s adventures with our two teenage sons, the column’s 15-year existence routinely provides me with glimpses into other lives as I am often approached by strangers to share their experiences and thoughts.
During a recent early morning trip to the grocery store, a grandfather of four and father of two sons asked for a word. Though he shared a compliment, which was kind, it was his words about his own family that moved me and stayed with me throughout the rest of the day.
The man shared how his father was not around when he was growing up due to work and alcoholism then divorce. The man had to be in his mid-80s based on the ages of his kids and grandkids he shared, but it was clear not having a father had a lifetime impact on him. His emotions overcame him when he remarked about what he was most proud of in his life, however. He said he promised himself when his wife got pregnant, he would never be like his father. He remarked how his most important life goal was to be a good dad to his kids.
Throughout the long story, the man detailed how he broke the cycle by being present for his children. By no means was he the perfect parent and he said he made a lot of mistakes, sharing the story of when he yelled from the bleachers at his 10-year-old son on the pitching mound for not throwing strikes. Though he bemoaned his antics, he said he was there for his kids through it all, and they knew they could count on him for anything, good or bad.
Despite the hiccups from time to time, he said his kids always took for granted that mom and dad were there for them. It’s not until later in life did his children
come to realize not everyone had what they had at home. He said he recalls the first time one of his kids realized some kids come from single-parent homes and disadvantaged situations. Two-parent households are not a given, the kid realized. Some fathers – some parents for that matter -- are not engaged in their kids lives and choose to focus on other things in life. He recalled it as an awakening for his son. There were some moments of gratitude as a result.
In recent years, according to my new friend, what brought him even more joy than raising his own kids has been observing his grown sons actively engaged in their kids’ lives. He said they are doing what they should be doing instinctively. He said his sons make parenting mistakes, too, but they are there for everything and share close relationships with their kids. He got especially choked up telling the story about one of his sons saying at the man’s milestone birthday party how they “learned from the best” about how to be a father.
The guy parted ways by saying, “keep doing what you are doing. The work and money will always be there but remember your kids will not.”
It’s tremendous advice, which I have gotten dozens of times from some outstanding fathers who I admire. I try to pass the message on. The best words of encouragement I now share with new fathers is to just be there, soak it all in and experience it. Be available, be present and be aware. Change diapers, do the middle of the night feedings, crawl on the floor, clean up spit, do baths, feed them as many times as you can, attend games, be available even if they don’t want to talk and simply show you care.
Do it for your kids so they feel what it means to be loved and learn how to love, but most importantly do it for yourself. There should be no regrets. The goal should be no guilt years from now. Don’t miss anything unless there’s no choice. Chaperone the field trip to the
pumpkin patch even if means working after the kids go to bed. These are memories. The work deadline will not be remembered but the photo of your 4year-old kid on your shoulders picking apples will be with you forever.
I see active and engaged fathers throughout my community. It’s not always the case though. People who work in schools are aware of this and it hurts to hear some of the sad stories of poverty, grandparents raising grandkids due to addiction issues and children in the foster care system because there are no other options. These are sad realities difficult to accept.
In this space, the positive is the focus, however. During a bathroom visit while out to dinner with my family in Ocean City, I ran into a father with two young kids in the bathroom. He was changing them out of wet, sandy bathing suits into dinner clothes. I offered to tend to one while he focused on the other in the stall. He was so grateful for the help. I told him I had been there, and they had a man up advantage on you. He asked, “does it get easier?” I said it does in many ways, but rest assured you are doing everything right. I could tell he was an involved father.
As I left, I ran into his wife who was seated nearby on her phone. It’s how it should be. The dad was stepping up and doing what he should be. This is what it’s about. The mom was getting a breather after a long beach day. When the dad and two boys came out, they were a bit disheveled. The father had his shirt on backwards, leading the mom to say, “go ahead, take a couple minutes.” He needed a break. This is team parenting. This is setting an example for our next generation.
(The writer is the executive editor of OC Today-Dispatch. He and his wife, Pamela, are proud parents of two boys. This weekly column examines their transition into parenthood and all that goes along with it. E-mail any thoughts to editor@mdcoastdispatch.com.)
OPA signs deal with Viola as GM
Continued from Page 41
Viola maintained that the construction would have little impact on daily operations at the course.
Davis said that Viola has been an Ocean Pines homeowner for 15 years. Originally from New York, the general manager is a certified accountant with an MBA from Pace University, specializing in management and tax management. He also received his undergraduate degree from Manhattan College.
Viola has been a Certified Public Accountant in the private sector. He spent 28 years with Avon, finishing as the assistant global controller, Davis said.
Once in Ocean Pines, the general manager dedicated his time to the Budget and Finance Committee as the chair for four years. Before accepting his current role in 2019, Viola volunteered as OPA’s treasurer and chief financial officer.
“In six years as general manager, Viola has overseen six consecutive fiscal years with a positive variance to budget and four-straight years with a favorability greater than $1 million,” Davis said. “During that span, OPA also lowered the assessment, and increased spending on public safety, maintenance, and drainage, among other areas.”
Upkeeping the community has been a priority for Viola. In his statement, he claims that maintenance efforts at the Beach Club have included parking lot cleaning and shower repairs.
Brainbridge Park and Bridgewater Park playground equipment was power washed, the community pools were cleaned and inspected before Memorial Day, and the Pine’eer Craft Club received a new storage shed.
“I have enjoyed working with a professional Board, and I’m very hopeful that we will continue to produce for Ocean Pines,” Viola said. “Our achievements over the past six years reflect the hard work and dedication of the entire Ocean Pines team. I look forward to continuing our efforts to enhance the quality of life for all our homeowners and to ensure that Ocean Pines remains a thriving and vibrant community.”
Cannabis code adjustments approved by OC commission
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(July 12, 2024) Resort planners last week agreed to advance code changes relating to cannabis.
On July 2, the Ocean City Planning Commission voted unanimously to support several code amendments to the Mayor and Council with a favorable recommendation. Planning and Community Development Director George Bendler said the changes address cannabis and cannabis dispensaries within municipal limits.
“Basically, this is verbatim from what the state of Maryland has adopted,” he said.
Bendler told planners last week that the state recently adopted House Bill 805, which sets distance restrictions for cannabis dispensaries. He said the proposed code amendments were in response to that legislation.
“I also want to mention this is not in response to any application for a cannabis dispensary,” he said. “No one has come before us to apply for a cannabis dispensary. We are just acting in accordance with the state of Maryland’s new guidelines and adopting them. Also, we’re doing some cleanup where the mention of cannabis is illegal. So we just want to clean that up.”
Bendler said the changes include new
definitions for cannabis, which were taken from state guidelines for cannabis and cannabis dispensaries, as well as new language within the town’s supplemental regulations.
“This was in regards to outdoor display …,” he told the commission. “What it originally stated was illegal drugs were prohibited from being displayed. Well, marijuana is not an illegal drug anymore. So we added cannabis to that definition, so it says alcohol and cannabis now and that is not allowed to be displayed on the Boardwalk.”
Bendler added that the code change also includes new distance restrictions for cannabis dispensaries. He said the language was taken from House Bill 805.
Officials also pointed out changes to the operation of cannabis dispensaries. While hours of operation were initially restricted from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., it is now 8 a.m. to 11 p.m., per state code.
“Can we go stricter?” Chair Joe Wilson asked the staff. “... Or do we have to be lined up with the state?”
Attorney Spencer Cropper said the town should align with state regulations.
A motion was made to advance a favorable recommendation to the Mayor and Council, but with an amendment to include new hours of operation for cannabis dispensaries. The motion passed in a unanimous vote.
Things I Like...
By Steve Green
People watching on the beach
Drama-free days
A lab’s love of the ocean
Cold fruit on the beach
Hearing giggles from my kid’s room
Freshly mulched flower beds
Squirrel-resistant bird feeders
Computer-free weekends
A cold beer from the bottom of a cooler
Night pool dips
Poke tuna nachos
vanishing vanishing OCEAN CITY
WITH BUNK MANN
Baltimore Avenue was Ocean City’s “Main Street” when this postcard was printed circa 1920. This view looks north from Wicomico Street and includes some of the town’s most historic structures.
The building in the left foreground is the Seaside Hotel (built in 1876) and beyond it with the tall brick smokestack is the electric power plant. In the right foreground is the original Atlantic Hotel. This was the first hotel built in Ocean City and its opening on July 4, 1875, is considered by many as the resort’s official birthday.
All of these buildings along with two blocks of the Boardwalk were destroyed in a huge fire that began in the early morning of Dec. 29, 1925.
To purchase one of Bunk Mann’s books, click over to www.vanishingoc.com. Postcard from Bunk Mann’s collection
For Rhode, fire service been passed down to two sons
By Steve Price Contributing Writer
(July 12, 2024) The Ocean City Volunteer Fire Company is proud to recognize Associate Member Robert “Bob” Rhode.
Bob resides in the Berlin area with his wife Connie. The entire family is actively involved in the fire service in Worcester County. Their sons both currently serve in the Berlin Fire Company, Robert J. “RJ” currently serves as fire chief and Anthony serves as fire captain.
a member of the Worcester County Fire Police.
Additionally, Firefighter Rhode has been involved in several major incidents during his career and deployed to assist communities across the country in their efforts to recover from natural disasters and other emergencies.
After 40 years of service to the Town of Ocean City, Rhode retired on May 1, 2023. He had served the past 16 years in the Office of Emergency Services as the emergency management coordinator/planner. Since retirement, Bob enjoys spending time at the fire house, traveling, camping with his family, and volunteering at Assateague State Park.
Firefighter Rhode began his fire service career in Worcester County with the Berlin Fire Company in 1983. He was later a member of the Showell Volunteer Fire Department before joining the Ocean City Volunteer Fire Company in 2003. Bob worked part-time for the OCVFC from 1985-94, serving as an EMT/firefighter and emergency dispatcher.
He became a fire and rescue instructor for the Maryland Fire and Rescue Institute in 1992. He enjoyed his role instructing new personnel entering the fire service and is proud to see these young men and women continue serving today.
Rhode has served in numerous positions during his 21 years of service with the OCVFC, including safety officer, crew leader and fire apparatus driver operator. He has served on numerous committees and is currently
When asked to recall the most significant event during his time with the OCVFC, Rhode shared the following: “While dining with my family for Veteran’s Day (both my sons are veterans) at the Outback Steakhouse in West Ocean City on November 11, 2014, an elderly lady choked on her meal with a total airway obstruction. My entire family went into action –dislodging the obstruction, restoring her breathing, summoning assist from OC Fire/EMS and rendering aid until EMS arrived. The lady made a complete recovery and later reached out to thank our family for our efforts. It was truly a very rewarding moment.”
Firefighter Rhode believes the greatest benefits of being a member of the fire service are the occasions to establish friendships and learning and working with your fellow firefighters.
Given the opportunity to pass on advice to members of our cadet program or other young men and women with an interest in the fire service, Rhode responded: “Safety is always the number one priority for the fire service. Understand your equipment and always work as a team. In the words of a fellow OCVFC memberALWAYS be combat ready!”
We thank Firefighter Rhode and his entire family for their many years of dedicated service in protecting the lives and properties of our neighbors and visitors to our Ocean City and Worcester County communities.
For membership information or to learn more about your volunteer fire company, visit ocvfc.com.
Bob Rhode
COMMUNITY/SCHOOLS
COUNTY RECOGNITION
During their July 2 meeting in Snow Hill, the Worcester County Commissioners recognized July as Park and Recreation Month. Last year alone, 57,812 residents and visitors participated in Worcester County Parks and Recreation activities. The commissioners are pictured with department officials, front row from left, Kyle Jarmon, Darcy Billletdeaux, Kelly Rados, Nick Tolbert and Lauren Ahlers; and second row from left, Kelly Buchanan, Jacob Stephens and Hunter Nelson.
CONCESSIONS FUNDRAISER
Members of the Kiwanis Club’s Dawg Team are pictured selling hot dogs, burgers and other concessions during Ocean Pines’ Fourth of July celebration on July 4. Funds raised benefit the youth and community programs of the club.
BOARD MEETING
The Executive Board of Germantown School Community Heritage Center met recently to plan summer activities and discuss exterior maintenance of the building. Members of the board pictured are Germantown School President Barbara Purnell, Clara Smith, Carol Rose, Karen Prengaman, Gabe Purnell, Ella Blake, Tom Pitts and Geraldine Bell.
newest
Lynne
PHOTO COURTESY KIM MOSES
PHOTO COURTESY DAVID J. LANDIS SR.
SUBMITTED PHOTO/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
PHOTO COURTESY WORCESTER COUNTY GARDEN CLUB
Worcester County Garden Club member Glenda Clarke recently hosted a pop-up tour of her home garden in Snow Hill for members of District
1 Federated Garden Clubs of Maryland, including President Susie Middleton, who are pictured.
PHOTO COURTESY DAVID J. LANDIS SR. NEW MEMBER
The Kiwanis Club of Greater Ocean Pines-Ocean City recently welcomed its
member,
Waugh. Pictured, from left, are Kiwanis Club President Bob Wolfing, Waugh, and her sponsor, Jim Ulman.
PHOTO COURTESY DAVID J. LANDIS SR. GUEST SPEAKER
Tim McMullen of the Mary Mac Foundation was the guest speaker at the June 26 meeting of the Kiwanis Club of Greater Ocean Pines-Ocean City. Pictured, from left, are Kiwanis Club President Bob Wolfing and McMullen at the meeting. Mary Mac Foundation is named for McMullen’s deceased wife and aids lowincome and homeless children and families.
DOWNTOWN OCEAN CITY FIREWORKS
Though the Northside Park display went off as planned on the Fourth of July, the downtown Ocean City fireworks show was delayed by 30 minutes due to abnormally high tides. Shortly after 10 p.m., the display began and impressed the thousands who gathered on the beach, Boardwalk and buildings to observe the patriotic show.
PHOTOS COURTESY EXPLORE
BANNER
FOURTH IN OCEAN PINES
Mother Nature delivered dry and warm weather for local Independence Day activities, including in Ocean Pines where a daylong celebration was held. Festivities and fireworks were hosted at the veterans memorial grounds.
PHOTOS COURTESY OPA
Who’s Where When
BUXY’S SALTY DOG & DRY DOCK 28
410-289-BUXY
28th Street Coastal Hwy.
Friday, July 12:
Aaron Howell Duo
Saturday, July 13:
Matt Tichon
Every Sunday Locals Party w/ DJ Deogee
CAPTAIN’S TABLE
410-289-7192
15th & Boardwalk
In The Courtyard Marriott
Fridays & Saturdays: Phil Perdue on Piano
COCONUTS BEACH BAR
410-289-6846
Oceanfront At Castle
In The Sand Hotel
37th & 38th Streets
Friday, July 12:
Darin Engh & The Chest Pains
Saturday, July 13:
Kevin Poole & Joe Mama & The Everafter
Sunday, July 14:
Top Shelf Duo & Lauren Glick Band
Monday, July 15:
Nate Clendenen & Endless Summer
Tuesday, July 16:
Keri Filasky Solo & Whiskty Train
Wednesday, July 17:
Ben Davis & Aaron Howell Trio
Thursday, July 18:
Kevin Poole & On The Edge
COINS PUB
410-289-3100
28th Street Plaza
On Coastal Hwy.
Friday, July 12:
Park Avenue
Saturday, July 13:
Jim Long & Park Avenue
Thursdays: DJ Giddy Up
Every Sunday: DJ Wax
CRABCAKE FACTORY BAYSIDE
302-988-5000
37314 Lighthouse Rd., Rte. 54, Selbyville, DE
Sunday, July 14:
Brian Bishop
Wednesday, July 17: Hurricane Kevin
CRAWL STREET TAVERN
443-373-2756
Wicomico St., Downtown O.C.
Friday, July 12:
Dust N Bones
Saturday, July 13: Risky Business
FAGER’S ISLAND
410-524-5500
60th St., In The Bay
Friday, July 12:
No Go Romeo, DJ Groove & Under The Covers
Saturday, July 13:
The Biscotti Boys, DJ RobCee & Under The Covers
Sunday, July 14:
DJ Mary Jane
Monday, July 15:
Great Train Robbery, DJ RobCee & The Pineapple Band
Tuesday, July 16:
DJ RobCee & Latin Night
Wednesday, July 17:
DJ Wax & DJ Hector
Thursday, July 11:
DJ Groove, Melody Trucks & Fitzkee Brothers Band
Best Beats On The Beach
THUNDERBALL
JAH WORKS
MELODY TRUCKS & THE FITZKEE BROTHERS Fager s Island: Thursday, July 18
JACK & T LUTZ
The Wedge: Sunday, July 14
LJN SESSIONS
Purple Moose: Thursday, July 18
ROGUE
CITIZENS
Pickles Pub: Saturday, July 13
OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS
Harborside: Sunday, July 14
Seacrets: Tuesday, July 16
AARON HOWELL DUO
Buxy s Salty Dog: Friday, July 12
Coconuts Beach Bar: Wednesday, July 17
PARK AVENUE
Coins Pub: Friday & Saturday, July 12 & 13
DUNEHOUNDS
Harborside: Saturday, July 13
KEVIN POOLE & JOE MAMA
Coconuts Beach Bar: Saturday, July 13
Crawl Street Tavern: Saturday, July 13
Who’s Where When
GREENE TURTLE WEST
410-213-1500
Route 611, West OC
Saturday, July 13: TBA
HARBORSIDE
410-213-1846
South Harbor Rd., West End O.C.
Friday, July 12: DJ Billy T
Saturday, July 13:
Dunehounds & DJ Bigler
Sunday, July 14:
Opposite Directions & Wayne Blake
Wednesdays: DJ Billy T
Thursdays: Dust N Bones Duo
PICKLES PUB
410-289-4891
8th St. & Philadelphia Ave.
Fridays: Beats By DeoGee
Saturday, July 13: Rogue Citizens
Sundays: Beats By Styler
Mondays: Karaoke w/ Wood
Tuesdays: Beats By Wood
Wednesdays: Beats By Styler
Thursdays: Beats By DeoGee
PURPLE MOOSE
SALOON
410-289-6953
Between Caroline & Talbot Sts. On The Boards
Friday & Saturday, July 12 & 13:
Thunderball
Sunday & Monday, July 14 & 15:
More More More
Thursdays, July 18: LNJ Sessions
SEACRETS
410-524-4900
49th St. & Coastal Hwy.
Friday, July 12:
Full Circle, DJ Connair, DJ C-Miller, DJ Bobby O, Jah Works & The Gab Cinque Band
Saturday, July 13: DJ Cruz, DJ Connair, DJ Bobby O, DJ Davie, The Gab Cinque Band, Jah Works, Lights Out By 8 & Uncle Jesse
Sunday, July 14:
Triple Rail Turn, DJ Mary Jane, DJ Davie, DJ Flight, Yawd Lynk & Amish Outlaws
Monday, July 15:
Blake Haley, DJ Christauff, DJ C-Miller, DJ Wax & My Hero Zero
Tuesday, July 16:
DJ Wax, Opposite Directions, DJ C-Miller, DJ E-State & Turning The Tide
Wednesday, July 17:
DJ E-State, Full Circle Duo, DJ Cruz, The Benderz & G. Love & Special Sauce (Ticket Event)
Thursday, July 18:
John McNutt Duo, DJ Cruz, DJ Connair, Go Go Gadget, DJ C-Miller & The Burnsiders
THE WEDGE
410-289-5121
806 S. Atlantic Ave.
Friday, July 12:
Lime Green & True Country
Saturday, July 13: Rymac
Sunday, July 14: Jason Lee & Jack & T Lutz
Monday, July 15: Steve Bowers
Tuesday, July 16:
Troy Mawyer & Wes Davis
Wedenesday, July 17:
Brian Dorsey & Jack Bannon
Thursday, July 18: Naked Nation
VISTA ROOFTOP
410-390-7905
13801 Coastal Hwy.
Friday, July 12: Steve Kuhn
Local residents will host event to inspire students
(July 12, 2024) Marylanders Shawn Harris and Al “Hondo” Handy, alumni of Stephen Decatur High School, are on a mission to uplift student-athletes from the Delmarva Peninsula by forging pathways from grassroots parks and recreation to collegiate and professional arenas.
Highlighting their efforts, Harris and Handy will host the “Driven over Given Athletics Mixer” from 5:30-7:30 p.m., Aug. 3, at the Hilton Garden Hotel in Ocean City. The event will connect community leaders, families, and aspiring athletes, offering insights into scholarship opportunities and educational pathways at Westcliff University in Irvine, California.
The event will feature UCLA basketball commit Dominick Harris, who will sign autographs and share his own journey from youth sports to high school and Division 1 college athletics. Harris, renowned for his noteworthy 2023-24 NCAA season performance, ranked third nationally in 3-point shooting at 44.8%. His career accolades include selection to the 2020 Iverson Classic, nomination to the 2020 McDonald’s All-American Game, as well numerous prestigious camps, tournaments and awards.
Certified NBA agent and NIL specialist Deshaun Harris will also attend, providing advice on maximizing NIL earning potential. Deshaun Harris, the CEO of Intrusive Sports Agency and an adjunct professor at Westcliff University, brings knowledge from his extensive credentials and academic background.
In the summer of 2025, Shawn Harris and Handy will distribute 100 free basketballs at Dr. William Edward Henry Park in Berlin, where they will also promote good sportsmanship in youth athletics through the 5Cs initiative, which prioritizes Character, Culture, Community and Commitment in the pursuit of Championships. The initiative instills an “If You Think You Can, You Can” mentality through its curriculum and success in shaping young hearts and minds, and is supported by critical local organizations and corporate partners.
Shawn Harris, dean of athletics at Westcliff University, is a decorated military veteran and Ph.D. candidate. He has transformed Westcliff’s athletics program into a powerhouse, achieving 26 championships in three years. His initiatives include the Erudition Leadership Academy (ELA) and Harris is the cofounder of Intrusive Sports Agency.
Al “Hondo” Handy, author of “Defying Expectations: Family, Sports & Recreation,” has dedicated over 39 years to the Ocean City Parks and Recreation Department. A two-time Citizen of the Year, Handy has promoted sportsmanship and youth sports certification nationwide, leaving a lasting legacy in the community.
For more information, contact athleticstalentconnect@westcliff.edu.
Eastern Shore
Rules to remember when digging sand holes
By Kristin Joson Contributing Writer
(July 12, 2024) One of the most asked questions that I get on the beach tends to be about sharks. While I would agree that sharks are an interesting topic, statistically speaking they are not among the most dangerous things at the beach. Rip currents, lighting and sand hole collapses have all caused more deaths. Out of those three, the public is the most naive about the dangers of sand hole collapses. When the digging is occurring they are simply not thinking about the possibility that the hole could collapse quickly and without warning. The collapse of a sand hole is the most underrecognized danger that kills and injures several children a year in the United States.
Here in Ocean City the Beach Patrol enforces an ordinance in which a hole’s maximum depth should be no greater than knee deep for the person standing in the hole or the smallest person in the group. That means if I dig a hole for my children to stand in, it must be less than knee deep for him or her, not me. We also want to warn about the
dangers of tunneling. Sand holes and tunnels are very unstable and ay collapse at any time with no warning.
With large populations in the water and on the beach, it is sometimes difficult for the lifeguards to spot a hole being dug behind the umbrellas on the beach. If you notice someone digging a large hole, please notify the lifeguard immediately so we can address the issue. My hope is that the people that read this will have enough courage to say something to those they see digging the holes and who may not be educated about how dangerous this activity really is. If we see a hole that is knee deep we are going to ask that you stop digging. If a guard spots a deep hole, they are trained to fill it in right away. You can also help us prevent sand hole accidents by leaving the excavation equipment at home.
The most surprising thing about the sand hole collapses is how long it takes to dig out a “target.” Even if we know exactly where the hole was it takes many rescuers working diligently and cooperatively to make sure the hole does not collapse again as the rescue is taking place. The clock is against you which means time is of the essence. The amount of time we have to execute a successful extrication is so short that any assistants by specialized
equipment that would need to be brought to the scene is useless except in the case of a body recovery.
Already this year a 7-year-old Indiana girl died when she and her brother were digging a hole in Florida before it collapsed trapping both. The brother was covered to his chest, but his sister was fully covered following the collapse. Video of the incident shows close to 20 adults trying to dig them out, but the sand kept re-filling the hole. In May 2023, there were two sand hole collapse
deaths on the east coast, a17-year-old in NC and an 18-year-old in NJ. In recent years this serious danger has been widely documented throughout the world and was even featured in the New England Journal of Medicine. The study found that about three to five children die in the United States each year when a sand hole they are digging at the beach, collapses on top of them. Others are seriously injured and require CPR to survive. "The risk of this event is enormously deceptive because of its as-
ARIES – Mar 21/Apr 20
Aries, you may be full of more energy than you have had in a while, helping you to sail through all of your tasks this week at a record pace. Enjoy this wave while you ride it.
TAURUS – Apr 21/May 21
Taurus, heed your body’s messages that it needs some rest right now; otherwise, you may not be up for social engagements that are on the horizon. Pisces comes into your life this week.
GEMINI – May 22/Jun 21
You cannot hang out with every person who is trying to get a piece of your time right now, Gemini. It’s likely you will need to space out socializing over a few weeks to meet with them all.
CANCER – Jun 22/Jul 22
Cancer, you have been working hard to make professional progress, and it might be time to think about your next step. It could be time to take your talents elsewhere.
LEO – Jul 23/Aug 23
Leo, you are often drawn to unfamiliar experiences that can teach you something new. This week could provide a host of opportunities to try something new.
VIRGO – Aug 24/Sept 22
It is time to get off the fence and commit to one decision or another, Virgo. Your professional life hinges on your ability to take a path and then stick with it.
LIBRA – Sept 23/Oct 23
Libra, you might be tempted to accept every invitation that comes your way. However, it is better to be smart about the people with whom you associate. Use every opportunity to network.
SCORPIO – Oct 24/Nov 22
Scorpio, take a look at how things should operate before you hit the floor running. You want to be strategic in how you expend your energy; otherwise, you may experience burnout.
SAGITTARIUS – Nov 23/Dec 21
You lean toward being one of the more passionate signs in the zodiac, Sagittarius,. That passion will be on full display this week. You’ll wear your heart on your sleeve.
CAPRICORN – Dec 22/Jan 20
Domestic issues come to the forefront, Capricorn. You’re inclined to spend time at home with loved ones. Take this time to work around the house and yard.
AQUARIUS – Jan 21/Feb 18
Aquarius, your popularity is growing and it’s time to get out there and hang with the movers and shakers. Soon even more people will learn who you are.
PISCES – Feb 19/Mar 20
Strengthen your ideas with a concrete foundation, Pisces. Only then will your plan come to fruition in the right manner, leading to better success.
sociation with relaxed recreational settings not generally regarded as hazardous," the New England Journal of Medicine study concluded. Victims typically become completely buried in the sand when the walls of the hole unexpectedly collapse, leaving virtually no evidence of the hole or the location of the victim. Although our last near fatal sand collapse was in a shallow tunnel and the boy’s legs were exposed, it still took a dozen people and several long minutes to dig him out. With this in mind, never attempt to tunnel under the sand or dig into the side of a sand mound. One of the most frustrating experiences SRTs have is when they are explaining a safety concern and the parents have an attitude that they can handle the situation if something were to occur. This couldn’t be more wrong. Even witnessing a sand collapse you may not be able to extricate the person in time.
Unfortunately, one of the sand hole fatalities that occurred in Ocean City, Maryland (yes it has happened here) occurred after 7 p.m. when we were off duty for the day and a child was digging a deep hole that suddenly collapsed. Please help us prevent this type of tragedy and call 911 if you see an unsafe situation when we are off duty.
Because of the hole collapse tragedies that have occurred in the past each SRT is trained and practices the technique to locate and extricate a trapped individual, additionally the SRT is on constant surveillance and will get down from a stand to educate and monitor the people digging holes. The basic problem is that the sand is both heavy and unstable and when a collapse occurs, rescue attempts are hindered because as sand is being removed to free the victim the hole will continue to collapse in on itself, making a successful rescue very difficult. That is why the lifeguards remain vigilant and continue to be proactive about digging holes, preventing accidents before they happen. Besides the potential for suffocation, holes create a potential danger for those people responsible to maintain and patrol the beach throughout the night. Remember, if you dig it, fill it. We are glad you are here and we want you to remain safe.
SUBMITTED PHOTO/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
Rookie SRTs are pictured practicing a technique developed by the OCBP to save a victim of a sand hole collapse as the instructors watch.
Dining Guide
■ PRICE RANGE: $, $$, $$$
■ RESERVATIONS: Reservations accepted
DOWNTOWN
South end to 28th Street
■ BUXY’S SALTY DOG SALOON
DRY DOCK 28
28th Street, Ocean City, 410-289-0973, buxys.com, drydockoc.com
Destiny has a new home in Ocean City. From the ‘burgh to the beach, Buxy’s is your home away from Pittsburgh. Come see what all the locals already know and have known – Buxy’s is the place to come to meet friends, relax and be social with no attitudes. House specialties include “The” Cheesesteak Sub, Primanti-styled sandwiches, pierogis, egg-rolls and homemade crab dip. Dry Dock also features a full menu with soups, salads, kick starters, pierogis and craft pizza.
■ CAPTAIN’S TABLE
15th Street and Baltimore Avenue, in The Courtyard by Marriott, Ocean City, 410-289-7192, captainstableoc.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
A local tradition for over 60 years featuring hand cut steaks, premium lobster and perfectly prepared regional seafood. Breakfast daily 7:30-11 a.m. Open daily for dinner: Sunday through Thursday, 4-9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 4-10 p.m. Happy Hour, seven days a week, 4-6 p.m.
■ COINS PUB & RESTAURANT
28th Street Plaza and Coastal Highway, Ocean City 410-289-3100, www.coinspuboc.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
American style local restaurant serving seafood, steaks and chefs specials. Check out the off season weekday specials. Early bird; daily, 2-5:30 p.m. Sunday’s early bird specials, all day and all night. Happy Hour; daily, 2-5:30 p.m. with food and drink specials. Closed Monday. Open Tuesday through Friday, 2 p.m. and Saturday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m. Dine-in, carry out.
■ CORAL REEF RESTAURANT & BAR
17th Street in the Holiday Inn & Suites, Ocean City 410-289-2612, coralreefrestaurant.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
Enjoy traditional Eastern Shore cuisine and local favorites that are sure to please your entire party! Choose from a selection of house specialty entrees such as sharables, handhelds and seafood. Serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. Featuring specialty rums. Open daily, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
■ CRAWL STREET
19 Wicomico St., Ocean City, 443-373-2756, crawlstreet.com
Established in 2020 just a short walk from the legendary Cork Bar. Don’t leave without trying the famous wings, but everything on the menu is solid, including flatbreads, tacos, salads, sandwiches and seafood platters. Be sure to check out the live music offerings as the nightlife is top of the line.
■ DISTRICT 24
BLU CRABHOUSE & RAW BAR, JAY’S CAFÉ & ICE CREAM, THE EMBERS
2305 Philadelphia Ave., Ocean City, 410-2893322, district24oc.com
Come visit all your culinary options at this block of fun, including the landmark Embers Restaurant with a new, innovative vision as well as Blu where fresh seafood is king. Be sure to stop in Jay’s for a tasty treat as well as an ocean of caffeinated offerings. There’s fun activities for kids of all ages here as well with a miniature golf course and an arcade.
■ FISH TALES
2107 Herring Way, Ocean City, 410-289-0990, ocfishtales.com
Bayfront marina dining offered here with a huge menu to satisfy guests of all ages. Enjoy a drink from a hanging chair or fish tacos at your table while the kids play in a playground build in the sand. Food and drink menus offer enough of a variety to meet all needs.
■ HARBOR WATCH
806 S. Atlantic Ave., Ocean City, 410-289-5121, www.harborwatchrestaurant.com
$$-$$$ | Reservations | Kids’ Menu | Full bar
Celebrating our 40th anniversary with fresh seafood, an award-winning raw bar, mouthwatering steaks and the best view of the Ocean City Inlet and Assateague Island. Open everyday 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Call for banquet and large-party details.
■ PICKLES PUB
706 Philadelphia Ave., Ocean City, 410-2894891, picklesoc.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
Easy to find with plenty of free parking, serving lunch, dinner and entire diverse menu until 1 a.m. Also nightly entertainment year-round and a great
place to watch all the sports on an ocean of televisions including a giant high-def screen. Also four pool tables on site. Lunch and dinner and entire menu until 1 a.m. Open all year from 11:30 a.m.-2 a.m., seven days a week.
■ PIT & PUB
2706 Philadelphia Ave. and 12701 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, pitandpub.com
Ocean City’s home of Pulled Pork and the finest barbecue, the legendary 28th Street Pit & Pub and the Northside Pit & Pub are known for serving up delicious smokehouse specialties. Grab a brew and enjoy the live sports action on one of the big screen TVs. Happy hour daily. Family-friendly atmospheres at both locations. Weekend entertainment.
■ THE WEDGE BAR
806 S. Atlantic Ave, Ocean City, www.thewedgeoc.com
$-$$ | Full bar
Panoramic views of the Atlantic Ocean, bay and Assateague Island. Enjoy small plates, sandwiches and grilled burgers. Happy Hour, Sunday through Thursday, 3-6 p.m. Open Sunday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
MIDTOWN
29th to 90th streets
■ 32 PALM
32nd Street in The Hilton, Ocean City 410-2892525, 32palm.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
Elevated cuisine, locally sourced ingredients and allocated spirits are prominently featured in our lounge and dining room. Open year-round for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Routinely updated menus with the highest quality local ingredients for fresh seafood any time of the year!
■ THE BONFIRE
71st Street, Coastal Hwy., Ocean City, 410-5247171, thebonfirerestaurant.com
Celebrating 50 years as the best seafood and prime rib buffet in Ocean City. It’s all here – the service, the atmosphere and finest, freshest seafood available and quality meats. Save room for the decadent desserts available as well including homemade donuts.
■ COCONUTS BEACH BAR & GRILL
3701 Atlantic Ave., Ocean City, 410-289-6846, castleinthesand.com
A tropical open-air patio steps from the beach. A unique place for lunch or dinner with a menu featuring all the customary items and a few Ocean City-based surprises. Guests can also enjoy beach service for lunch and cocktails. Be sure to check out the daily entertainment schedule.
■ FAGERS ISLAND
201 60th St., Ocean City, 410-524-5500, fagers.com
$$ | Full bar
Dine on the island with an award-winning bayfront restaurant featuring American & Regional dining with a global influence and popular destination featuring impeccably prepared American and Pacific Rim cuisine. Also enjoy our outdoor decks and bar with live entertainment and 32 wines by the glass. A place where the joy of food & the presence of the table are of utmost importance. Dine on fresh seafood and our famous Prime Rib. Enjoy beautiful sunsets over the water. Open 11 a.m. daily. Fine dine at 4:30 p.m.
■ HOOKED
8003 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 410-7234665, hookedoc.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
A Common Ground Hospitality concept, a passion driven restaurant group servicing the coastal community. The goal is honor creativity and innovation by design. With passion at the heart of everything, unique dining concepts are paired with honest hospitality and well-made food sourced with fresh local ingredients and seasonal harvests. Craft and full bar available. Open daily 11:30 a.m.
■ LONGBOARD’S CAFÉ
6701 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 443-6645693, longboardcafe.com
$$-$$$ | Full bar
Casual Dining … Refined. Open for lunch and dinner. A wide range of gourmet burgers, innovative tacos, salads and sandwiches to full dinner entrees featuring fresh local fish prepared in a variety of styles, beef, shellfish and pasta. All our sauces, salsas, dressings, etc. are meticulously house made. We use fresh local sources wherever possible and premium ingredients such as our chuck, brisket and short rib custom blended burgers. Closed Tuesday. Call for reservations.
■ MARLIN MOON RESTAURANT
3301 Atlantic Ave., in the Double Tree Hotel, Ocean City 410-289-1201, marlinmoonocmd.com
$$ | Full bar Winner of the Maryland People's choice award,
Marlin Moon continues to offer its famous, locally loved dishes and famous happy hour. Enjoy creatively crafted cocktails, fresh selections from the raw bar and luscious desserts. Happy Hour, every day, 3-6 p.m., featuring drink specials. Breakfast, 7:30-11:30 a.m.; Lite Fare, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Dinner, 4-10 p.m.; and Bar open noon to 11 p.m.
■ SEACRETS 49th Street, Ocean City 410-524-4900, www.seacrets.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
CLOSED JAN. 21 AND REOPENING FEB. 1.
Open Sunday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Friday through Saturday, 10 a.m. through midnight with island atmosphere. Jamaican jerk chicken, appetizers, sandwiches, paninis, pizza and fresh seafood.
UPTOWN
91st to 146th streets
■ ALBERTINO'S BRICK OVEN & EATERY
13117 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 410-2502000, albertinosoc.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
Featuring the best brick oven pizza, always handmade with fresh ingredients, Italian-American mouth-watering seafood specialties, traditional Italian pasta dishes, apps, soups and salads. Full bar with large local craft beer selection.
■ CAROUSEL OCEANFRONT HOTEL & CONDOS 118th Street, Ocean City 800-641-0011, www.carouselhotel.com
Enjoy one of the restaurants at the Carousel. Fine Ocean Front dining with a beautiful view. The Reef 118 is open 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., Friday through Sunday serving breakfast, lunch and dinner and 49 p.m. Monday through Thursday serving dinner. The Bamboo Lounge is open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Sunday and 4-9 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Nightly Ice Shows starting June 24.
■ THE CRAB BAG
13005 Coastal Highway Ocean City, 410-2503337, thecrabbag.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
Featuring consistent hot steamed crabs, eat in or carryout. The Crab Bag is also an Eastern Shore style seafood house specializing in preparing and serving the biggest and the best blue crabs available. The extensive menu promises something for everyone. Winter hours, Friday-Sunday, open 11 a.m.
■ CRABCAKE FACTORY USA
120th Street, oceanside, Ocean City, 410-2504900, crabcakefactoryusa.com
Full-service family restaurant, carry-out and sports bar. Outside seating available. Menu selections include prime rib, chicken Chesapeake, steamed shrimp, beer battered fish, real Philly cheesesteaks, burgers, and a kids menu. Casual attire, full liquor bar, no reservations. Open Year Round. World-Famous Crabcakes are served all day starting at 8 a.m. and can be packed on ice for you while you are eating breakfast.
■ TAILCHASERS RESTAURANT & DOCK BAR
12203 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 443-6647075, tailchasersoc.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
A coastal casual farm to table restaurant with a fun dockside family friendly atmosphere. Menu changes with the seasons and cocktails are handcrafted with care. Bring the whole family for lunch or dinner along the canal. Kids playground available to keep the littles entertained.
■ VISTA ROOFTOP RESTAURANT
13801 Coastal Highway, located in the Fenwick Inn, Ocean City, 410-390-7905, vistarooftopoc.com
$$-$$$ | Full bar
Enjoy a wonderful meal overlooking the ocean and bay. Some of the most unique views in Ocean City. Steaks, seafood, burgers, soups, salads and lite fare. Happy hour, 3-6 p.m. New this year is a boozy brunch Saturdays and Sundays, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Live music.
FENWICK ISLAND
■ CRABCAKE FACTORY BAYSIDE
Route 54, Fenwick Island, DE, 302-988-5000, CCFBayside.com
Same award-winning crab cakes and bloody marys. Enjoy waterfront dining. Full-service family restaurant, carry-out & sports bar. Outside seating available. Open daily year-round. Menu selections include crab cakes, prime rib, Philly-style cheese steaks, various seafood, kids menu plus full breakfast menu.
■ DIRTY HARRY’S
100 Coastal Highway, Fenwick Island, DE, 302539-3020, Beach-net.com/dirtyharrys
$ | Kids’ Menu | Full bar
Don’t let the name fool you, the food is home cooking at its finest. Owned and operated by Ginny Swann and family for 19 years. Popular for the breakfast but getting rave reviews for lunch and dinner, too.
■ NANTUCKETS Route 1, Fenwick Island, DE, 302-539-2607, nan-
tucketsrestaurant.com
Serving the beach great food and spirits for over 30 years. David and Janet Twining will wow you with the finest foods and drinks in the area. You’ll be pleasantly surprised by what one of the coast’s finest dining establishments has in store for guests. Everything here is a house specialty.
■ TWINING’S LOBSTER SHANTY
Rte. 54, Fenwick Island, Del., 302-436-2305, twiningshanty.com
Reservations | Kids’ Menu
“A funky little place at the edge of town.” Classic New England fare, lobsters, steaks and burgers. Bird watching and magical sunsets await. Open for lunch and dinner. Reservations are suggested.
Indoor and outdoor dining with sweeping views of the 18th green and pond, the Clubhouse Bar and Grille serves freshly prepared breakfast and lunch items with a full bar menu. Thursday through Sunday, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Ocean Pines Yacht Club offers casual coastal cuisine for lunch and dinner in a beautiful bayfront setting. Fresh seafood, signature drinks, live music and more. Open Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
WEST OCEAN CITY
■ BREAKFAST CAFE
12736 Ocean Gateway, Route 50 east, West Ocean City, 410-213-1804, breakfastcafeofoc.com
All the traditional breakfast options available here in a casual, diner setting. Open daily closing at 2 p.m.
■ CANTINA LOS AGAVES MEXICAN GRILL
12720 Ocean Gateway #7, West Ocean City 410390-3914, cantinalosagaves.com
$$ | Kid’s menu | Full bar Ocean City’s newest Mexican restaurant and bar. Offering delicious and generous portions of the tastiest traditional and not so traditional #MexicanEats you have ever tried. Open daily at 11 a.m. Serving food until 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Bar open til 11 p.m.
■ DUMSER’S DAIRYLAND
West Ocean City: Route 50 east; Boardwalk locations: 501 S. Philadelphia Ave., 49th Street, 123rd Street, Ocean City, dumsersdairyland.com This classic ice cream shop is a tradition for many families. Voted O.C.’s “Best Ice Cream” for the past 20 years, Dumser’s is celebrating decades of serving the shore, and the ‘40s-style décor takes you back in time. With locations throughout Ocean City, treating your tastebuds to this signature homemade ice cream is easy. The 49th and 124th streets locations offer vast lunch and dinner menus (breakfast too at 124th) in addition to a wide variety of ice cream treats.
■ GREENE TURTLE WEST
Route 611, West Ocean City, 410-213-1500 Proudly serving West Ocean City since January 1999, The Greene Turtle features a beautiful 80seat dining room, large bar area with 54 TVs with stereo sound and game room with pool tables. With an exciting menu, The Greene Turtle is sure to please with delicious sizzling steaks, jumbo lump crab cakes, raw bar, homemade salads and more. Live entertainment, Keno, Turtle apparel, kids menu, carry-out.
■ HARBORSIDE BAR & GRILL
12841 Harbor Rd., West Ocean City, 410-2131846, weocharborside.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
Home of the original Orange Crush drink with an extensive menu offers a wide variety of appetizers, fresh seafood, steak & pasta entrees, as well as juicy burgers and sandwiches. Whether seeking a full dining experience or just a crush or two, the team will be sure to take excellent care of you and yours. Monday-Wednesday: 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; Thursday: 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; Friday-Saturday: 11 a.m.-11 p.m.; Sunday: 11 a.m.-9 p.m.
■ OC DINER
12744 Ocean Gateway, Rt 50 east, West Ocean City, 410-390-5112
Kids’ Menu
Best homemade breakfast and lunch. Local’s favorite breakfast served all day. Dine-in and carryout. Open 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
■ SHRIMP BOAT
9724 Stephen Decatur Hwy., West Ocean City, 410-213-0448, shrimpboatoc.com
Since 1989, a spot for locals and visitors to enjoy fresh local seafood straight off the boats. Dine-in seating also available. It’s all sourced local and fresh and a free shrimp sample available.
Wish Y Wish Y YW ou
Oysters and pickled watermelon mignonette
By Deborah Lee Walker Contributing Writer
(July 12, 2024) There is a preconceived notion among chefs that complexity outshines simplicity.
This perception is reiterated by the fact that cooks are constantly deconstructing and putting their own spin on particular dishes.
Every recipe has a past, present, and future aspect; and it is this culmination of stages that highlight one’s roots and creativity.
Hot weather is here and watermelon graces the pages of antiquity. As a young child, I was mesmerized by the size and sweetness of this berry. Yes, that is correct, believe it or not but watermelons are considered berries.
I remember Aunt Jenny pickling watermelon rinds. The sweet, tangy condiment was unique indeed and represented an era of homemade goodness. However, one would be hard pressed to find it today. No worries, following is a basic recipe for pickled watermelon rind.
Pickled watermelon rind: Combine 4 to 5 cups of cubed watermelon rind, (remove dark green rind with a vegetable peeler), 1½ cups of water, 1 cup rice vinegar, ¾ cup sugar, 4 teaspoons salt, eight cloves, 2/3 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, and ½ to 1 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes.
Combine the ingredients in a medium pot over high heat until mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 6 to 8 minutes. Watermelon should be tender but not too soft. Fill Mason jars and refrigerate for three days.
If one wants to upscale pickled watermelon rind, consider a sweet and hot watermelon rind pepper relish. The relish is similar to chow chow, and is great on grilled meats, tacos, salads, eggs, greens, and even potato salad.
The addition of a few ingredients turns the humble pickled watermelon rinds into a seasonal, innovative relish. Simplicity can be complexity in its infantile state.
Pickled watermelon rind relish: Combine 4 cups chopped watermelon rind, dark green skin removed, 1½ cups finely chopped red onion, one large red bell pepper, seeded and diced, one jalapeno pepper chopped, 2 teaspoons salt, 1½ cups granulated sugar, 1½ cups rice vinegar, 1½ teaspoons ground turmeric, 2 teaspoons mustard seeds, and 2 teaspoons pickling spice wrapped in cheesecloth.
Combine watermelon rind, onions, bell peppers, and salt in a large bowl. Stir well and chill overnight. Rinse well and drain in a colander.
Transfer all of the ingredients to a large pot over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10
minutes.
Company is coming and time is of the essence; consider a pickled watermelon rind mignonette. A mignonette sauce is a vinegar sauce that consists of a good quality vinegar or pickled liquid along with some type of aromatics.
A mignonette sauce is usually spooned onto a raw shucked oyster presented in its natural shell. One must remember that the oyster is the star and the mignonette sauce is meant to compliment the oyster.
Pickled watermelon rind mignonette is unpretentious, imaginative and unique. For those who adore the art of entertaining, pickled watermelon rind mignonette is a keeper.
Trust me, this appetizer will be the talk of the party. Enjoy!
Rind Mignonette
Ingredients
½ cup pickled watermelon rind
1/8 cup red onions, finely chopped ¼ cup champagne vinegar
1/8 teaspoon sugar 1/8 teaspoon salt coarsely ground assorted peppercorns 18 fresh oysters in their shell
1. Finely chop the pickled watermelon rind, set aside.
2. Peel and finely chopped the red onion, set aside.
3. Combine vinegars, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl.
4. Add pickled watermelon rind and onions to the vinegar mixture, cover with plastic and chill for 4 hours.
5. Place ice cream salt on the serving
plate to secure the oysters.
6. Position bottom oyster shell with the raw oyster on top of the shell. Then place it on the salt. Carefully spoon pickled watermelon rind with the juices over the raw oyster.
7. Garnish with a small slice of watermelon or coarsely ground pepper.
Secret Ingredient – Deliciousness
“Good food is often, even the most often, simple food.” - Anthony Bourdain
Calendar
Submit calendar items to: editor@oceancitytoday.net. Submission deadline is 5 p.m. Monday, the week of publication. Local submissions have priority. Area event listings are subject to space availability.
Fri., July 12
37TH ANNUAL OC TUNA TOURNAMENT
Ocean City Fishing Center, 12940 Inlet Isle Lane, 4-8 p.m. Weigh-ins also at Sunset Marina. Both establishments offer top notch accommodations. Local vendors at the OC Fishing Center. https://octunatournament.com, 410213-1121
SUMMER KICKOFF SKATE BASH
Ocean City Town Skate Park, Third Street, Ocean City, 3:30-7:30 p.m. Kick off the opening of the new expansion and renovations at Ocean Bowl Skate Park. Featuring free skating, live music, refreshments, best trick contests and prize drawings. 410-250-0125
40TH ANNUAL OCEAN PINES • TAYLOR BANK GOLF SCRAMBLE’S PLAYERS AND SPONSORS DEADLINE
Takes place July 17 with a shotgun start
at 9 a.m. Public entry fee is $120. Tee sponsorships available. Pick up sponsorship forms at the Ocean Pines Golf Club or download forms at oceanpinesgolf.org. 571-239-8469
SEWING SEEDS OF LOVE
Buckingham Presbyterian Church, 20 S. Main St., Berlin, 10 a.m.-noon. Summer sewing workshop for ages 8 years and older. The group will be working on beginner pillowcases. Cost is $20. Register: Debbie, 443-430-4948.
BABY TIME
Worcester County Library - Berlin Branch, 13 Harrison Ave., 10:30 a.m. Stories, rhymes and finger plays. For ages 0-2 years. 410-641-0650, www.worcesterlibrary.org
STEAM SOCIAL
Worcester County Library - Snow Hill Branch, 307 N. Washington St., 11 a.m. Join in for an hour of open-ended
STEAM activities. Build, experiment and create with a variety of materials. For ages 5 years and older. 410-632-3495, www.worcesterlibrary.org
ARTISTIC ARENA: BUILD A BOAT
Worcester County Library - Ocean Pines Branch, 11107 Cathell Road, 1 p.m. Design and build a boat to adventure on the seven seas. All materials provided. For ages 6-11 years and 12-18 years. 410208-4014, www.worcesterlibrary.org
MARYLAND CRAB CAKE DINNER
Stevenson United Methodist Church, 123 N. Main St., Berlin, 4-6 p.m. Single crab cake sandwich platter cost is $14, two crab cake sandwich platter is $24 and a crab cake sandwich is $10. Bake sale available. Eat in or carry out. Platters: green beans, potato, Cole slaw.
KIGHTS OF COLUMBUS BINGO
Fridays - Knights of Columbus, 9901 Coastal Highway, behind St. Luke’s Church. Doors open at 5 p.m., bingo starts at 6:30 p.m. Light snacks available before bingo and at intermission. 410524-7994
Sat., July 13
37TH ANNUAL OC TUNA TOURNAMENT
Ocean City Fishing Center, 12940 Inlet Isle Lane, 4-8 p.m. Weigh-ins also at Sunset Marina. Both establishments offer top notch accommodations. Local vendors at the OC Fishing Center. https://octunatournament.com, 410213-1121
SPORTS CARDS AND MEMORABILIA SHOW
Hooper’s Crab House & Sneaky Pete’s, rear deck, 12913 Ocean Gateway, Ocean City, 8 a.m.-1 p.m. Featuring an appearance by former Major League Baseball pitcher Dwight “Doc” Gooden from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Autographs for $30, photo op for $30 or both for $50. Admission cost is $5.
FURNACE TOWN SUMMER MUSIC SERIES
Furnace Town Historic Site (Nassawango Iron Furnace), 3816 Old Furnace Road, Snow Hill, 5-8 p.m. Music by The Folk Villains. Beer, wine, burgers and dogs available. Admission cost is $10 for adults and $5 for kids 5-15 years. www.furnacetown.org/events
REGGAE AT THE GERMANTOWN SCHOOL
Germantown School Community Heritage Center, 10223 Trappe Road, Berlin, 6-9 p.m. Featuring “Island Sounds.” Hot dog, chips and soda for $5. Bring your cooler, chairs and picnic bas-
CALENDAR
ket. Tickets cost $10. Tickets: 410-6410638.
THE DELMARVA CHORUS PRESENTS ‘COFFEE, TEA & JUKEBOX HARMONY’
Ocean Pines Community Center, 235 Ocean Parkway, 7 p.m. Complimentary coffee, tea and homemade desserts; door prizes; 50/50 raffle; raffle baskets; and more. Tickets cost $15. Elaine, 410-7031262; Candy, 610-506-7714
INDOOR AND OUTDOOR FLEA MARKET & BREAKFAST
Bethany United Methodist Church, 8648 Stephen Decatur Highway, Berlin, 8 a.m.-noon. Breakfast sandwiches, baked goods, yard sale and vendors. Reservations: 443-614-2261, fcbumc21811@gmail.com.
BELIEVE IN TOMORROW PICKLEBALL TOURNAMENT
Ocean Pines Racquet Center, 11443 Manklin Creek Road, 8 a.m. For skill levels 2.5-4.0. Cost is $45 plus $25 per bracket and includes breakfast, snacks, lunch, beverages and prizes. BelieveInTomorrow.org/Pickleball
KIWANIS SUMMER PANCAKE BREAKFAST
Ocean Pines Community Center - Assateague Room, 235 Ocean Parkway, 811 a.m. Menu includes pancakes, scrambled eggs, sausages, coffee, tea and orange juice. Cost is $9, but children 11 years and younger, eat free. Take out available. www.kiwanisofopoc.org
OCEAN PINES ANGLERS CLUB MEETING
Worcester County Library - Ocean Pines Branch, 11107 Cathell Road, 9:30 a.m. The speaker will cover bow fishing for the elusive snakehead. Also other topics for local fishing, charter trips and regulation updates. All welcome. Jack Barnes, 410-641-7662
CRAFTY SATURDAY: BE KIND TO YOUR MIND
Worcester County Library - Ocean Pines Branch, 11107 Cathell Road, 10 a.m. Create some calming crafts at the library. For all ages. 410-208-4014, www.worcesterlibrary.org
ASSATEAGUE ADVENTURES
Worcester County Library - Berlin Branch, 13 Harrison Ave., 10:30 a.m. A ranger-led adventure featuring crafts, puppets, stories and cool props from Assateague Island National Seashore. A different adventure each week. For all ages. 410-641-0650, www.worcesterlibrary.org
SOUND BATH EXPERIENCE
Worcester County Library - Pocomoke Branch, 301 Market St., 11 a.m. Join Kacey Martin, certified Sound Bath Practitioner, on an immersive journey of meditative escape for the mind, body and spirit. Registration required: 410957-0878. www.worcesterlibrary.org
FREE KIDS CRAFT
Art League of Ocean City, 502 94th St., 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Bring the kids and do
something creative with them and for them. Projects change each week. No reservations needed. Free and open to all. www.artleagueofoceancity.org, 410524-9433
CRABCAKE SANDWICH FUNDRAISER
St. Paul’s by-the Sea Episcopal Church, 302 Baltimore Ave., Ocean City, 12-7 p.m. Crabcake sandwich with lettuce, tomato, sauce and chips for $12. Carryout. Walk-in via Third Street entrance or drive-thru pick-up in the church alley (north side). Orders: office@stpaulsbythesea.org.
FELT SEA CREATURES
Worcester County Library - Berlin Branch, 13 Harrison Ave., 1 p.m. Create cute felt sea creatures. Patterns will be available, or you can create your own. It’s a great activity for budding sexists and plushie fans. For ages 6-11 years. 410-641-0650
FARMERS & ARTISANS MARKET
Saturdays - White Horse Park, 239 Ocean Parkway, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Shop for everything from fresh local produce to unique handmade artisan goods. Open to the public.
Sun., July 14
37TH ANNUAL OC TUNA TOURNAMENT
Ocean City Fishing Center, 12940 Inlet Isle Lane, 4-7 p.m. Featuring weigh-ins, top notch accommodations and local vendors at the OC Fishing Center. https://octunatournament.com, 410213-1121
SUNDAES IN THE PARK WITH FIREWORKS
Northside Park, 200 125th St., Ocean City, 7-9 p.m. Live music by “Making Waves” (upbeat dance), kid-friendly entertainment, ice cream and fireworks. https://www.ococean.com/things-todo/free-family-fun/sundaes-in-thepark/
WRITERS GROUP
Art League of Ocean City, 502 94th St., 1-3 p.m. Monthly meetup with fellow writers. Share your writing (poetry or short prose) and receive feedback from your peers. Writers of all levels are welcome. 410-524-9433, www.artleagueofoceancity.org
BERLIN FARMERS MARKET
Sundays through Sept. 8 - Pitts Street, Commerce Street and Main Street, Berlin, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Featuring more than 35 farmers, food cultivators, bakers, distillers, seafood, meat, eggs and more. https://berlinmainstreet.com/farmersmarket/
JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES MEETING
Sundays - Berlin Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 212 West St., Berlin, 10 a.m. www.jw.org
SEWING FOR A CAUSE
Sundays - Buckingham Presbyterian
Church, 20 S. Main St., Berlin, 10:30 a.m. to noon. Learn how to sew while making a difference. 410-641-0234
Mon., July 15
OC BEACH DANCE PARTY WITH FIREWORKS
Caroline St. Stage, 2 N. Atlantic Ave., Ocean City, 7:30-9:30 p.m. Beachside dance party featuring “BK & Chrissy” (from Radio Ocean City). Free fireworks show starts at 9 p.m. All ages welcome. https://www.ococean.com/things-todo/free-family-fun/oc-beach-danceparty
MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE FOR TEENS
Worcester County Library - Pocomoke Branch, 301 Market St., 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Create a real message in a bottle. Take it with you as a keepsake or leave it at the library to be released into the ocean. For ages 12-18 years. 410-957-0878, www.worcesterlibrary.org
STORY TIME: SHARKS
Worcester County Library - Ocean City Branch, 10003 Coastal Highway, 10:30 a.m. Summer story time about sharks to celebrate shark week. Stories, songs and activities. For ages 0-5 years. 410-5241818, www.worcesterlibrary.org
FIBER ARTS GROUP
Worcester County Library - Pocomoke Branch, 301 Market St., 11 a.m. Bring your own fiber art project (crochet, knitting, etc.) and join in for a casual meet up to work on projects. 410-957-0878, www.worcesterlibrary.org
JEWELRY MAKING
Worcester County Library - Snow Hill Branch, 307 N. Washington St., 5 p.m. All supplies provided. Use beads and charms to create earrings. 410-6323495, www.worcesterlibrary.org
T.O.P.S. OF BERLIN - GROUP #169
Atlantic General Hospital, Conference Room 1, 9733 Healthway Drive, Berlin, 56:30 p.m. Take Off Pounds Sensibly is a weekly support and educational group promoting weight loss and living a healthy lifestyle. Rose Campion, 410-641-0157
BRIDGE
Mondays - Ocean City 50plus Center, 104 41st Street, Ocean City, 12:30-3:30 p.m. Reserve a spot: Tish, 410-8043971. www.Worcoa.org/oceancity
DELMARVA WOMEN’S A CAPELLA CHORUS
Mondays - Ocean Pines Community Center, 239 Ocean Parkway, 6:00-8:00 p.m. All ladies who love to sing invited. Mary, 410-629-9383 or Carol, 302-242-7062.
OVEREATER’S ANONYMOUS
Mondays - Worcester County LibraryOcean Pines Branch, 11107 Cathell Road, 7-8 p.m. No dues or fees. 410-459-9100
Tues., July 16
MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE FOR TEENS
Worcester County Library - Pocomoke Branch, 301 Market St., 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Create a real message in a bottle. Take it with you as a keepsake or leave it at the library to be released into the ocean. For ages 12-18 years. 410-957-0878, www.worcesterlibrary.org
GENEALOGY WORKSHOP
Worcester County Library - Ocean Pines Branch, 11107 Cathell Road, 10 a.m. The workshop starts with a 20-minute lesson on genealogy research, followed by Q&A. Bring a laptop, tablet or papers containing family information. Registration requested: 410-208-4014.
UNDERWATER ADVENTURES
Worcester County Library - Snow Hill Branch, 307 N. Washington St., 10:30 a.m. Learn how marine animals move around underwater during a hands-on program with the Maryland Coastal Bays Program. For ages 6-11 years. 410632-3495, www.worcesterlibrary.org
STORY TIME: ‘UNDER THE SEA’ Worcester County Library - Berlin Branch, 13 Harrison Ave., 10:30 a.m. Stories, songs and finger plays. For ages 2-5 years. 410-641-0650, www.worcesterlibrary.org
PLAY TIME
Worcester County Library - Pocomoke Branch, 301 Market St., 10:30 a.m. Join in for a variety of activities and toys. Play and socialize with other families. For ages 2-5 years. 410-957-0878, www.worcesterlibrary.org
UNDERWATER ADVENTURES
Worcester County Library - Ocean Pines Branch, 11107 Cathell Road, 2 p.m. Learn how marine animals move around underwater during a hands-on program with the Maryland Coastal Bays Program. For ages 6-11 years. 410-2084014, www.worcesterlibrary.org
JR. LIFEGUARD CAMP
Ocean Pines Sports Core Pool, 11144 Cathell Road, 5:30-7 p.m., July 16-18. Must be a strong swimmer. For ages 7 years and older. Cost is $75 for residents, $80 for non-residents. Jr. Lifeguards receive T-shirt and whistle. Register: 410-641-5255, oceanpines.org.
BEACH HEROES-OC
Tuesdays - Volunteer beach clean-up group meets from 9-10 a.m., year-round. Trash bags, grippers and gloves provided. Check the Facebook page “Beach Heroes-OC” for weekly meeting locations. All are welcome.
JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES MEETING
Tuesdays - Berlin Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 212 West St., Berlin, 7 p.m. www.jw.org
TAKE OFF POUNDS SENSIBLY
Tuesdays - Worcester County Health Department, 9730 Healthway Drive, Berlin, 3:30-4:30 p.m. TOPS is a weekly support Continued on Page 64
CALENDAR
and education group promoting weight loss and a healthy lifestyle. 410-289-4725
OC KNITTING CLUB
Tuesdays - Worcester County LibraryOcean City Branch, 10003 Coastal Highway, 10:30 a.m.
ARGENTINE TANGO PRACTICE
Tuesdays - Experienced dancers and others interested in watching or learning more are welcome, 7-9:30 p.m. No partner required. Info: TangobytheBeach.com.
ZUMBA TONING TUESDAYS
Tuesdays - Northside Park, 200 125th St., Ocean City, 5:30 p.m. Zumba with optional light weights. zumbajoyceoc@gmail.com
WEIGHT MANAGEMENT AND WELLNESS GROUP
Tuesdays - Holy Trinity Cathedral, 11021 Worcester Highway, 2-2:45 p.m. Use the weight loss program/app/plan of your choice. Free and open to everyone. 410-641-4882, www.htcanglican.org/activities.
Wed., July 17
STRANDED AT SEA: OC BAY HOPPER PROGRAM
OC Bay Hopper, 11703 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 6:15-7:45 p.m. Professionals share true accounts of shipwrecks and rescues dating back to 1880. Cost is $50 with half of proceeds benefit OCLSSM. 410-289-4991, https://book.ocbayhopper.com/Experience
MOVIES ON THE BEACH
Carousel Oceanfront Hotel & Condos, 11700 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 8:30 p.m.,Featuring “Migration.” Enjoy free movies on the beach every Wednesday through the summer. Movie lineup: https://www.ococean.com/things-todo/free-family-fun/
BARIATRIC SUPPORT GROUP
Online Zoom call on the third and fourth Wednesday of each month. For surgical patients. Atlantic General Bariatric Center, 410-641-9568
FANDOM WEDNESDAY: FAIRIES/FAE
Worcester County Library - Ocean City Branch, 10003 Coastal Highway, 9 a.m.6 p.m. Drop in any time for crafts, quizzes and discussions about the monthly topic. For ages 12-18 years. 410-524-1818, www.worcesterlibrary.org
PLAY TIME
Worcester County Library - Ocean Pines Branch, 11107 Cathell Road, 10 a.m. Join in for imaginative play and social interaction. For ages 0-5 years. 410-2084014, www.worcesterlibrary.org
EASTERN SHORE SEWISTS
Worcester County Library - Berlin Branch, 13 Harrison Ave., 10 a.m. Pro-
moting the needle arts through sewing education, activities and textile crafts. For artisans of all skill levels. 410-6410650, www.worcesterlibrary.org
UNDERWATER ADVENTURES
Worcester County Library - Ocean City Branch, 10003 Coastal Highway, 10:30 a.m. Learn how marine animals move around underwater during a hands-on program with the Maryland Coastal Bays Program. For ages 6-11 years. 410524-1818, www.worcesterlibrary.org
BACKGAMMON CLUB
Worcester County Library - Ocean Pines Branch, 11107 Cathell Road, 10:30 a.m. Drop in for a game of Backgammon. All skill levels welcome. 410-208-4014, www.worcesterlibrary.org
FOAM MARBLING PAPER
Snow Hill 50plus Center, 4767 Snow Hill Road, 11 a.m. All supplies provided. 410-632-3495, www.worcesterlibrary.org
BREAST CANCER SUPPORT GROUP
John H. “Jack” Burbage, Jr. Regional Cancer Care Center, 9707 Healthway Drive, Berlin, 1-2 p.m. For survivors and current patients battling breast cancer. Women Supporting Women, 410-548-7880
COOKS-N-BOOKS: ADVENTURES AROUND THE WORLD
Worcester County Library - Pocomoke Branch, 301 Market St., 2 p.m. Choose a book from the display and make a dish to share. Registration necessary: 410957-0878. www.worcesterlibrary.org
STROKE SUPPORT GROUP
Atlantic General Neurology, 314 Franklin Ave., Berlin, 3-4 p.m. For stroke survivors, family and friends. 410-641-4765, bglime@atlanticgeneral.org
FAMILY FUN NIGHT
Ocean Pines Yacht Club Pool, 1 Mumfords Landing Road, 6-8 p.m. Featuring swimming, DJ, games and prizes. Cost is $3 for swim members; $5 for residents and $7 for non-resident. No cost if not swimming. Food available. Wednesdays through Aug. 21. 410-641-7052
KIWANIS CLUB MEETING
Wednesdays through Aug. 26 - Worcester County Library - Ocean Pines Branch, 11107 Cathell Road, 8 a.m. Doors open at 7:30 a.m. Third Wednesday meetings are offsite and information can be found on www.kiwanisofopoc.org.
Create a real message in a bottle. Take it with you as a keepsake or leave it at the library to be released into the ocean. For ages 12-18 years. 410-957-0878, www.worcesterlibrary.org
July 18
SUNSET PARK PARTY NIGHT
Sunset Park, 700 S. Philadelphia Ave., Ocean City, 7-9 p.m. Enjoy a free concert and sunset views over the Isle of Wight Bay. Featuring “Lauren Glick” (blues and soul).
http://www.ococean.com/things-to-do/
CONCERT IN THE PARK
White Horse Park Pavilion, 235 Ocean Parkway, Ocean Pines, 7-9 p.m. Featuring “Club Phred.” Free family-friendly entertainment. Bring chairs and blankets. BYOB permitted, concessions for sale. Held Thursdays through Aug. 22. 410-641-7052
CPAP MASK FITTING
Atlantic General Hospital’s Sleep Disorders Diagnostic Center, 9733 Healthway Drive, Berlin. Free mask fitting clinic for patients who are having trouble adjusting to their CPAP equipment. Appointment required: Robin Rohlfing, 410-641-9726.
UNDERWATER ADVENTURES
Worcester County Library - Berlin Branch, 13 Harrison Ave., 10:30 a.m. Learn how marine animals move around underwater during a hands-on program with the Maryland Coastal Bays Program. For ages 6-11 years. 410-6410650, www.worcesterlibrary.org
Join in for a story about friendship. Songs, stories and crafts. For ages 2-5 years. 410-208-4014, www.worcesterlibrary.org
SHARKAPALOOZA
Worcester County Library - Ocean City Branch, 10003 Coastal Highway, 10:30 a.m. Featuring some jaw-some shark activities, a craft and loads of shark facts presented by students from University of Delaware’s School of Marine Science. For ages 6-11 years. 410-524-1818
PLAY TIME
Worcester County Library - Snow Hill Branch, 307 N. Washington St., 10:30 a.m. Join in for a variety of activities and toys. Play and socialize with other families. For ages 2-5 years. 410-632-3495, www.worcesterlibrary.org
LEGO MASTERS CHALLENGE
Worcester County Library - Ocean Pines Branch, 11107 Cathell Road, 10:30 a.m. Join in for a LEGO challenge event. All materials provided. For ages 6-12 years. 410-208-4014, www.worcesterlibrary.org
UNDERWATER ADVENTURES
Worcester County Library - Pocomoke Branch, 301 Market St., 2 p.m. Learn how marine animals move around underwater during a hands-on program with the Maryland Coastal Bays Program. For ages 6-11 years. 410-9570878, www.worcesterlibrary.org
SPOOKY SUMMER BOOK CLUB
Worcester County Library - Snow Hill Branch, 307 N. Washington St., 4:30 p.m. Select your favorite paranormal fiction of any genre (horror, romance, scifi) and bring it for discussion. Refreshments served. 410-632-3495, www.worcesterlibrary.org
BEACH SINGLE 55 PLUS MEET AND GREET
Thursdays - Nick’s Kitchen + Bar, 14410 Coastal Hwy., Ocean City, 4-6 p.m. 215385-4993, BeachSingles.org
ONGOING EVENTS
NAO TRINIDAD IN OCEAN CITY
Chicago Avenue and 3rd Street, bayside, Ocean City, June 28 through Sept. 1, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. The Nao Trinidad was the flagship of the Magellan-Elcano expedition, leading the first sailing around the world between 1519 and 1522. Tickets: https://tickets.naotrinidad.org/content
ARTISAN DAYS
Furnace Town, 3816 Old Furnace Road, Snow Hill, on the first Saturdays from April to September. There will be volunteers showcasing their unique historical talents.
OCEAN PINES VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT RAFFLE
Win a 2024 F-150 4X4 Supercrew 5.0L V8. Tickets cost $100. All registration, sale, etc. expenses covered by O.P.V.F.D. Drawing will take place when all of the tickets have been sold. For more information: www.opvfd.com/f-150.
QUEEN OF HEARTS
Weekly virtual drawings on Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m. Winner receives 60 percent of jackpot. www.opvfd.com/queen-ofhearts. Sponsored by the Ocean Pines Volunteer Fire Department.
2025 KIWANIS LOTTERY TICKETS ON SALE On sale every Saturday morning at the Ocean Pines Farmers Market from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. One $20 ticket is good for all 365 drawings in 2025. Benefits the youth of the community.
OCEAN CITY - BERLIN ROTARY CLUB
Don’s Seafood and Chop House, South Gate, Ocean Pines, 6 p.m., on the first and third Wednesday of each month. ocberlinrotary@gmail.com
Crossword answers from page 54
Ocean Aviation Flight Academy seeks Office Assistant
Growing Flight Academy with campuses in Berlin, Maryland and Georgetown, Delaware seeks Exceptional Candidate to join our team. Professional Friendly office environment. F/T Weekend availability is a plus. Year Around Position. Responsible for student interaction, dispatch and check in of flights, filing, retail sales and keeping our offices neat and clean. Must be customer oriented and be proficient in data entry and have good computer skills. Previous office or educational experience necessary.
Please forward resume to mfreed@flyoceanaviation.com
We prefer initial contact be through e-mail only. Qualified applicants will be contacted for in person interviews.
o Experience preferred.
o Tools, transportation & valid driver’s license are a plus.
o Excellent pay and a competitive benefits package available.
Please Apply Online: https://www.allstatesconst.com/delmarva-renovations-careers Or Contact Our Office at 410-352-9800
Cleaners Wanted for Ocean City, MD
If you are a conscientious individual or team looking for great pay and minimal hours on summer Saturdays in OC, then we are the cleaning company for you. Exp. Preferred. Cell phone and vehicle required.
443-880-0525
Pool -
General Maintenance. Outdoor work, lifting heavy objects. Mechanical, basic pool pump & motors, CPO a plus / not required. Able to pass CPO test. Summer includes weekends & long hours; working alone or with others 410-289-4902 ask for Suzanne.
CONTRACTOR
Seeking qualified contractor bid on a new project opportunity for the demolition and construction of staircases and decking structures for a three-story condominium building in North Ocean City, MD. For more information please email Justin at jredding@jwse.com along with contact info and company details.
Small Engine Mechanic Year-round. Competitive Wages. 443-754-1047
Year Round Rental - West Ocean City. Two Bedroom, One Bathroom Cottage. $2000 per month plus utilities. 410-430-9797
YR Ocean Pines Two story, 3BR, 2.5BA, screened porch, open decks, fireplace, large garage. No smoking, no pets. Good credit. $2,400 per month, plus all utilities. 301-509-6515
Waterfront Bayside - Newly remodeled 2BR, 2BA Condo in North OC. 4 steps to ground level off your private balcony. Full kitchen, LR, DR, W/D, balcony w/tables + seating for 6. Seasonal/ monthly Dec.-April, $2,000. Contact Julie 443-223-4623
Seeking YR & Seasonal Rentals! Call Howard Martin Realty 410-352-5555.
Industrial Warehouse. Space: 1500 sq. ft. Masonry construction, 18’ high ceiling, large garage door, bathroom, yard and storage shed. Approx. 10x25+/Route 90/Bishopville. Call 443-497-4200. 1 Office/Retail Space available in West Ocean City. Approximately 1656 sq. ft. Call 443-497-4200
DONATIONS
Do you have an old bicycle not being used? It could mean a world of difference to a hard-working international student. We are looking to get as many bikes as possible. Your donation will be taxdeductible. Contact Gary at 443-975-3065.
TO BUY WANTED TO BUY: Vintage signs, old advertising items, military memorabilia, antique toys, decoys, and
www.dental50plus.com/ MDDC #6258 FOR SALE
Prepare for power outages today with a GENERAC Home Standby Generator. Act now to receive a FREE 5-Year warranty with qualifying purchase. Call 1-855-993-0969 today to schedule a free quote. It’s not just a generator. It’s a power move.
MISC. FOR SALE
Get Boost Infinite! Unlimited Talk, Text and Data For Just $25/mo! The Power Of 3 5G Networks, One Low Price! Call Today and Get The Latest iPhone Every Year On Us! 855-977-5719
MISC./OTHER
Did you know me, Lord, In the very beginning, Even before stars? Please settle my dust, The Hem of Your Robe!
Movies,
Limited Time Up To $600 In Gift Cards. Call Today! 1-855407-6870
VEHICLES WANTED
DONATE YOUR CAR/TRUCK/ RV - Lutheran Mission Society of MD Compassion Place ministries help local families with food, clothing, counseling. Tax deductible. MVA licensed #W1044. 410-228-8437 www.CompassionPlace.org
Huesman, Jones and Miles, LLC
11350 McCormick Road
Executive Plaza I, Suite 407
Hunt Valley, MD 21031 (443) 541-8507
SUBSTITUTE TRUSTEE’S
SALE
OF REAL PROPERTY
KNOWN AS 9235 WHALEYVILLE RD., WHALEYVILLE, MD 21872
Under and by virtue of the power of sale contained in a Deed of Trust from Magdalene Mavrakis, recorded among the Land Records of Worcester County in Liber 7147, Folio 198, and Substitution of Trustees recorded among the aforementioned Land Records substituting Gerard F. Miles, Jr as Substitute Trustee, the Substitute Trustee will offer for sale at public auction, at the Circuit Court for Worcester County, at the Courthouse Door, Circuit Court for Worcester County, One West Market Street, Snow Hill, MD 21863 on July 29, 2024, at 11:00 AM:
All that lot of ground and the improvements thereon situate in Worcester County, State of Maryland, as described in the Deed of Trust recorded among the Land Records of Baltimore City, in Liber 7147 Folio 198. The property being known as 9235 Whaleyville Rd., Whaleyville, MD 21872. The improvements thereon consist of a dwelling
The property will be sold in “AS IS” condition, subject to any existing building violations, restrictions and agreements of record. The purchaser assumes all risks of loss for the property as of the date of sale. Neither the Substitute Trustee nor its respective agents, successors or assigns make any representations or warranties, either expressed or implied with respect to the property. The Substitute Trustee shall convey insurable title.
The property is being sold fee simple.
TERMS OF THE SALE: A deposit in a form acceptable to the Substitute Trustee in the amount of $10,000 will be required of the purchaser, other than the Holder of the Note or its assigns, at the time and place of sale. Any amount tendered at sale in excess of the required deposit will be refunded and not applied to the purchase price. Unless the purchaser is the Holder of the Note or its assigns, the balance of the purchase price shall be paid immediately with available funds within ten (10) days of the final ratification of the sale by the Circuit Court for Baltimore City. Time is of the essence. The purchaser, other than the Holder of the Note or its assigns, shall pay interest at the rate of 4% per annum on the unpaid portion of the purchase price from the date of sale to date of settlement. Real property taxes and assessments shall be
LEGAL ADVERTISING
Call: 410-723-6397
Fax: 410-723-6511
or E-mail: legals@oceancitytoday.net
adjusted to the date of sale and assumed thereafter by the purchaser. Ground rent, water, condominium dues, HOA dues, and/or sewer charges public or private, if any, shall be adjusted to the date of sale and assumed thereafter by the purchaser. Cost of all documentary stamps and transfer taxes shall be paid by the purchaser. Purchaser shall have the responsibility of obtaining possession of the property.
In the event settlement is delayed for any reason , there shall be no abatement of interest. If the purchaser defaults, the entire deposit is forfeited. The Substituted Trustees shall resell the property at the risk and expense of the defaulting purchaser. The defaulting purchaser shall be liable for the payment of any deficiency in the purchase price, all costs and expenses of both sales, attorney fees, all other charges due, and incidental and consequential damages.
In the event the Substituted Trustees do not convey title for any reason, purchaser’s sole remedy is return of the deposit. The Purchaser shall have no further recourse against the Mortgagor, the Deed of Trust or the Deed of Trust's attorney. The Substituted Trustees shall have the right to terminate this contract in the event the Holder has entered into any agreement with, or accepted funds from, the mortgagor. Upon termination of the contract, Purchaser’s sole remedy shall be return of the deposit.
Law Offices of Jeffrey Nadel 4041 Powder Mill Road, Suite 200 Calverton, Maryland 20705 240-473-5000
SUBSTITUTE
TRUSTEES' SALE OF REAL PROPERTY
12212 Cygnet Lane Bishopville, MD 21813
Under a power of sale contained in a certain Deed of Trust from Kathleen J. Tamalavicz, dated October 31, 2013, and recorded in Liber 6275, Folio 098, and re-recorded in Liber 7333, Folio 413, and rerecorded in Liber 8424, Folio 300 among the Land Records of Worcester County, MD, default having occurred under the terms thereof, the Substitute Trustee will sell at public auction at Circuit Court for Worcester County, Courthouse Door for Worcester County, Snow Hill, MD on July 15, 2024 at 11:00 AM
ALL THAT FEE SIMPLE LOT OF GROUND KNOWN AS Lots 5, 6 and 7, Subdivision of a portion of lands of Frank L. Savage, St. Martin’s District, situated in Worcester County, MD and more fully described in the aforesaid Deed of Trust, carrying Tax ID No. 05-
009812.
The property will be sold in an “as is” condition and subject to conditions, restrictions, agreements, easements, covenants and rights of way of record affecting the same, if any, and with no warranty of any kind.
Terms of Sale: A deposit of $22,000.00 will be required at the time of sale in the form of cash, certified check, or other form as the Substitute Trustees determine acceptable. No deposit shall be required of the noteholder where the noteholder bids in the property at auction. Balance of the purchase price to be paid in cash within ten days of final ratification of sale by the Circuit Court for Worcester County, time being of the essence for purchaser. In the event that settlement does not occur within the said ten days, the purchaser shall be in default. Upon such default the Trustees may file a Motion and Order to Resell the property at the risk and expense of the defaulting purchaser, and purchaser(s) hereby consent to entry of such resale order without further notice, in which case the deposit shall be forfeited and all expenses of this sale (including attorney’s fees and the full commission on the gross sale price of this sale) shall be charged against and paid out of the forfeited deposit. The Trustees may then readvertise and resell the property at the risk and cost of the defaulting purchaser; or, without reselling the property, the Trustees may avail themselves of any legal or equitable remedies against the defaulting purchaser. In the event of a resale, the defaulting purchaser shall not be entitled to receive the surplus, if any, even if such surplus results from improvements to the property by said defaulting purchaser. Interest to be paid on the purchase money less the stated deposit called for herein, at the rate pursuant to the Deed of Trust Note from the date of auction to the date funds are received in the office of the Substitute Trustee. There shall be no abatement of interest due from the purchaser in the event additional funds are tendered before settlement or if settlement is delayed for any reason, including but not limited to exceptions to sale, bankruptcy filings by interested parties, Court administration of the foreclosure or unknown title defects. All taxes, ground rent, water rent, condominium fees and/or homeowner association dues, all public charges/assessments payable on an annual basis, including sanitary and/or metropolitan district charges, if applicable, are to be adjusted to the date of auction and thereafter are to be assumed by the purchaser. Cost of all documentary stamps, transfer taxes, agricultural transfer tax, if any and settlement expenses shall be borne by the purchaser. Purchaser shall be responsible for obtaining physical possession of the property. Purchaser assumes the risk of damage to the property from the date of auction forward. If the Substitute Trustee does not convey title for any reason, including but not limited to the Secured Party executing a forbearance agreement with the borrower(s) described in the
above-mentioned Deed of Trust, or allowing the borrower(s) to execute their right to reinstate or payoff the subject loan, prior to the sale, with or without the Substitute Trustee’s prior knowledge, or if the sale is not ratified for any reason including errors made by the Substitute Trustees, the foreclosure sale shall be null and void and of no effect, and the Purchaser’s sole remedy in law or in equity shall be the return of the deposit without interest. Further terms and particulars may be announced at time of sale, and purchaser may be required to execute a Memorandum of Sale at the time of auction. (Matter #301081) Jeffrey Nadel, Scott Nadel and Daniel Menchel, Substitute Trustees Tidewater Auctions, LLC 305 West Chesapeake Avenue, Suite 105, Towson, Maryland 21204 410-825-2900
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ROBERT A EATON ESQ
ROBERT A EATON, PA 121 E MARKET ST SALISBURY, MD 21801-4926
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
To all persons interested in the estate of CHARLES R DERRICKSON JR Estate No. 20240 Notice is given that PAUL R DERRICKSON whose address is 21585 AVENS CT BROADLANDS, VA 20148-5019 was on JUNE 14, 2024 appointed Personal Representative of the estate of CHARLES R DERRICKSON JR who died on JUNE 6, 2024 with a will.
Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment (or to the probate of the decedent's will) shall file their objections with the Register of Wills on or before the 14th day of DECEMBER, 2024
Any person having a claim against the decedent must present the claim to the undersigned personal representative or file it with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent's death; or
(2) Two months after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claims within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. A claim not presented or filed on or before that date, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter. Claim forms may be obtained from the Register of Wills.
TERRI WESTCOTT, Register of Wills for WORCESTER COUNTY ONE W MARKET STREET ROOM
102 - COURT HOUSE SNOW HILL, MD 21863-1074 OCD-6/27/3t
NOTICE
OF PASSAGE OF BILL 24-03
WORCESTER COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
Take Notice that Bill 24-03 (Zoning – Farm-based slaughterhouses) was passed by Commissioners Abbott, Bertino, Bunting, Elder, Fiori, and Purnell on June 18, 2024.
A fair summary of the bill is as follows:
§ ZS 1-201(c)(34). (Adds a special exception use for the use of a structure for the slaughtering and processing of livestock raised or maintained on the farm, excluding rendering plants or facilities, not to exceed six hundred square feet in gross floor area.)
This is only a fair summary of the bill. A full copy of the bill is posted on the Legislative Bulletin Board in the main hall of the Worcester County Government Center outside Room 1103, is available for public inspection in Room 1103 of the Worcester County Government Center once County Government Offices are opened to the public. In the interim, a full copy of the bill is available on the County Website at www.co.worcester.md.us.
THE WORCESTER COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
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B. RANDALL COATES ESQ COATES, COATES, & COATES
204 WEST GREEN STREET
P O BOX 293
SNOW HILL, MD 21863
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
To all persons interested in the estate of ROBERTA MAE WEBB Estate No. 20209 Notice is given that DWIGHT D CHERRIX whose address is 17546 S CRATER RD S PRINCE GEO, VA 23805-8519 was on JUNE 20, 2024 appointed Personal Representative of the estate of ROBERTA MAE WEBB who died on SEPTEMBER 16, 2023 with a will.
Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment (or to the probate of the decedent's will) shall file their objections with the Register of Wills on or before the 20th day of DECEMBER, 2024
Any person having a claim against the decedent must present the claim to the undersigned personal representative or file it with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent's death; or
(2) Two months after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claims within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. A claim not pre-
sented or filed on or before that date, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter. Claim forms may be obtained from the Register of Wills.
TERRI WESTCOTT, Register of Wills for WORCESTER COUNTY
ONE W MARKET STREET
ROOM 102 - COURT HOUSE
SNOW HILL, MD 21863-1074
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PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION
NOTICE
OF PUBLIC HEARING
Pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 110, Zoning, of the Code of the Town of Ocean City, Maryland, notice is hereby given that a public hearing will be conducted by the Planning and Zoning Commission in the Council Chambers of City Hall located at 301 Baltimore Avenue in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland on:
TUESDAY, JULY 16, 2024
At 7:00 pm
Pursuant to the provisions of Article II, Section 5, Conditional Uses, a request has been filed under the provisions of Section 110-604(9), Uses permitted by Conditional Use in the B-1, Boardwalk Commercial Zoning District to permit employee housing, accessory and non-accessory housing greater than 60 residents per building or property, subject to the provisions of Code Section 110-886. The site of the proposed use is described as Lots 2, 3, 10, 11 and 12 and part of Lots 1, 4 and 9, Block 2N of the Sinepuxent Beach Company Plat; further described as located in the existing hotel situated on the east side of Baltimore Avenue, the south side of 2nd Street, and the west side of Atlantic Avenue (boardwalk), and locally known as the Plim Plaza Hotel, 109 North Atlantic Avenue, in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland.
APPLICANT: PLIM PLAZA, LLC (FILE #24-12100001)
No oral or written testimony will be accepted after the close of the public hearing.
Public hearings that are not completed at one meeting may be continued without additional advertised notice provided the Commission Chairperson announces that the hearing will be continued and gives persons in attendance an opportunity to sign up for written notice of the additional hearing dates.
For further information concerning this public hearing, please contact the Department of Planning and Community Development, Room 242, City Hall, 301 Baltimore Avenue, Ocean City, MD 21842. Phone 410-289-8855.
PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION
JOSEPH P. WILSON, CHAIRPERSON
MAUREEN HOWARTH, ESQ.,
ATTORNEY OCD-6/27/3t
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
Estate No. 20244
TO ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE ESTATE OF JEAN CHARLES
AKA: JEAN CARLYN CHARLES, JEAN C. CHARLES
Notice is given that Deborah Sanders, 8137 Windmill Ct., Severn, MD 21144-2309, was on June 20, 2024 appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Jean Charles who died on May 29, 2024, with a will.
Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment (or to the probate of the decedent’s will) shall file their objections with the Register of Wills on or before the 20th day of December, 2024.
Any person having a claim against the decedent must present the claim to the undersigned personal representative or file it with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent’s death; or
(2) Two months after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claims within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. A claim not presented or filed on or before that date, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter. Claim forms may be obtained from the Register of Wills.
Deborah Sanders Personal Representative True Test Copy Terri Westcott Register of Wills for Worcester County One W. Market Street Room 102 - Court House Snow Hill, MD 21863-1074
Name of newspaper designated by personal representative: Ocean City Digest
Date of publication: June 27, 2024
OCD-6/27/3t _________________________________
RAYMOND D. COATES JR., ESQ. COATES, COATES, & COATES, P.A. 6200 COASTAL HIGHWAY, SUITE 300 OCEAN CITY, MD 21842
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Estate No. 20252
TO ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE ESTATE OF EVA LOUISE ELLIOTT HALL Notice is given that Gary Alvin
McCabe, 11014 W. Line Rd., Bishopville, MD 21813-1168, was on June 25, 2024 appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Eva Louise Elliott Hall who died on June 09, 2024, with a will.
Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment (or to the probate of the decedent’s will) shall file their objections with the Register of Wills on or before the 25th day of December, 2024.
Any person having a claim against the decedent must present the claim to the undersigned personal representative or file it with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent’s death; or
(2) Two months after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claims within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. A claim not presented or filed on or before that date, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter. Claim forms may be obtained from the Register of Wills.
Gary Alvin McCabe Personal Representative True Test Copy Terri Westcott Register of Wills for Worcester County One W. Market Street Room 102 - Court House Snow Hill, MD 21863-1074
Name of newspaper designated by personal representative:
Ocean City Digest
Date of publication: July 4, 2024
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ELIZABETH A. GREEN ESQ. BREZA & ASSOCIATES, LLC 11019 MCCORMICK RD STE 400 HUNT VALLEY, MD 21031-1407
NOTICE
OF APPOINTMENT
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
To all persons interested in the estate of ROBERT PATRICK RIORDAN Estate No. 20250 Notice is given that CHRISTOPHER RIORDAN whose address is 2234 LOUIS KOSSUTH AVE RONKONKOMA, NY 11779-6323 was on JUNE 25, 2024 appointed Personal Representative of the estate of ROBERT PATRICK RIORDAN who died on APRIL 17, 2024 with a will. Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment (or to the probate of the decedent's will) shall file their objections with the Register of Wills on or before the 25th day of DECEMBER, 2024.
Any person having a claim against the decedent must present the claim to the undersigned personal representative or file it with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent's death; or
(2) Two months after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claims within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. A claim not presented or filed on or before that date, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter. Claim forms may be obtained from the Register of Wills.
TERRI WESTCOTT, Register of Wills for WORCESTER COUNTY ONE W MARKET STREET ROOM 102 - COURT HOUSE SNOW HILL, MD 21863-1074 OCD-7/4/3t
PROPOSAL SOLICITATION
TRANSPORTATION
ENGINEERING CONSULTING SERVICES – STRATEGIC HIGHWAY SAFETY PLAN
Worcester County is seeking proposals from qualified Vendors to contract for transportation engineering consultant services to assist with developing the process and drafting a Strategic Highway Safety Plan (SHSP) consistent with Maryland State and Federal guidelines in conformity with the requirements contained herein Proposal Documents. Proposal Documents for the above referenced project may be obtained from the Worcester County Commissioner’s Office by either e-mailing the Procurement Officer, Nicholas Rice, at nrice@co.worcester.md.us or by calling 410-632-1194 during normal business hours, or via the County’s Bids page on the County’s website. Vendors are responsible for checking this website for addenda prior to submitting their bids. Worcester County is not responsible for the content of any Proposal Document received through any third party bid service. It is the sole responsibility of the vendor to ensure the completeness and accuracy of their Completed Proposal Documents.
The last day for questions will be noon on Wednesday, July 17, 2024. Sealed Proposal Documents are due no later than 2:30pm on Thursday, July 25, 2024, and will be opened and only vendor names will be read aloud in the Office of the County Commissioners, Worcester County Government Center – Room 1103, One West Market Street, Snow Hill, Maryland 21863.
Late Proposal Documents will not be accepted.
Envelopes shall be marked " Proposal Solicitation – Transportation Engineering Consulting ServicesStrategic Highway Safety Plan”, in the lower left-hand corner.
Minority vendors are encouraged to compete for the award of the solicitation.
Nicholas W. Rice, CPPO, CPPB, NIGP-CPP Procurement Officer Worcester County, Maryland OCD-7/11/1t
BID SOLICITATION
WEST OCEAN CITY HARBOR DREDGING
Worcester County is seeking Bids from qualified Vendors to contract for dredging services in West Ocean City Harbor in conformity with the requirements contained herein Bid Documents.
Bid Documents for the above referenced project may be obtained from the Worcester County Commissioner’s Office by either e-mailing the Procurement Officer, Nicholas Rice, at nrice@co.worcester.md.us or by calling 410-632-1194 during normal business hours, or via the County’s Bids page on the County’s website. Vendors are responsible for checking this website for addenda prior to submitting their bids. Worcester County is not responsible for the content of any Bid Document received through any third party bid service. It is the sole responsibility of the vendor to ensure the completeness and accuracy of their Completed Bid Documents.
A pre-bid meeting is scheduled on Wednesday, July 17, 2024, at 2:30pm and will be held at the West Ocean City boat ramp, located off Golf Course Road on Sunset Avenue in West Ocean City. The last day for questions will be noon on Tuesday, July 23, 2024. Sealed Bid Documents are due no later than 2:30pm on Thursday, August 01, 2024, and will be opened and read aloud in the Office of the County Commissioners, Worcester County Government Center – Room 1103, One West Market Street, Snow Hill, Maryland 21863.
Late Bid Documents will not be accepted.
Envelopes shall be marked "Bid Solicitation – West Ocean City Harbor Dredging”, in the lower left-hand corner.
Minority vendors are encouraged to compete for the award of the solicitation.
Nicholas W. Rice, CPPO, CPPB, NIGP-CPP Procurement Officer Worcester County, Maryland OCD-7/11/1t
B. RANDALL COATES ESQ
COATES, COATES, & COATES
204 WEST GREEN STREET P.O. BOX 293
SNOW HILL, D 21863
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Estate No. 20256 TO ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE ESTATE OF ANN V. BRUNING
Notice is given that David W. Bruning Sr., 8513 Cedartown Rd., Snow Hill, MD 21863-2637, was on July 02, 2024 appointed Personal
Representative of the estate of Ann V. Bruning who died on May 11, 2024, with a will.
Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment (or to the probate of the decedent’s will) shall file their objections with the Register of Wills on or before the 2nd day of January, 2025.
Any person having a claim against the decedent must present the claim to the undersigned personal representative or file it with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent’s death; or
(2) Two months after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claims within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. A claim not presented or filed on or before that date, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter. Claim forms may be obtained from the Register of Wills.
David W. Bruning Sr. Personal Representative True Test Copy Terri Westcott Register of Wills for Worcester County One W. Market Street Room 102 - Court House Snow Hill, MD 21863-1074
Name of newspaper designated by personal representative: Ocean City Digest Date of publication: July 11, 2024
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SMALL ESTATE
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
To all persons interested in the estate of GARY L. KING Estate No. 20254 Notice is given that KATHERINE MORGAN KING whose address is 1605 CEDAR ST., POCOMOKE CITY, MD 21851-9536 was on JULY 02, 2024 appointed personal representative(s) of the small estate of GARY L. KING who died on MAY 26, 2022 with a will.
Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment shall file their objections with the Register of Wills within 30 days after the date of publication of this Notice. All persons having an objection to the probate of the will shall file their objections with the Register of Wills within six months after the date of publication of this Notice.
All persons having claims against the decedent must serve their claims on the undersigned personal repre-
sentative or file them with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent’s death; or
(2) Thirty days after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claim within thirty days from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. Any claim not served or filed within that time, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter.
TERRI WESTCOTT, Register of Wills for Worcester County ONE W MARKET STREET ROOM 102 - COURT HOUSE SNOW HILL, MD 21863-1074
OCD-7/11/1t
NOTICE
OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS TOWN OF OCEAN CITY, MARYLAND
Pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 110 of the Code of Ocean City, Maryland, hereinafter referred to as the Code, same being the Zoning Ordinance for Ocean City, Maryland, notice is hereby given that public hearings will be conducted by the Board of Zoning Appeals for Ocean City, Maryland in the Council Chambers of City Hall located on Baltimore Avenue and Third Street, in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland on:
Thursday, July 25, 2024 AT 6:00 PM
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 110-93(2), Powers of the Code, an appeal of Section 110-94(5) has been filed to request a special outdoor display of merchandise exception for merchandise to be located on the exterior of the business that is locally known as The Beach Place Outlet. The site of the appeal is described as Revised Parcel A of the Revised Subdivision Plat entitled “Lands of Braniff Family Limited Partnership.” It is further described as being located on the southwest corner of Coastal Highway and 77th Street and is locally known as 7605 Coastal Highway in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 110-93(2), Powers of the Code, an appeal of Sections 110-94(1) & 110-94(5) has been filed to request (1) a special use exception for a temporary sales tent event; and (2) a special outdoor display of merchandise exception for outdoor furniture to be located on the exterior of the business known as Donaway Furniture. The site of the appeal is de-
scribed as Lots 1, 2, 3, 11, 12, 13 & 14, Block 89, of the Fenwick Plat. It is further described as being located on the northwest corner of Coastal Highway and 130th Street and is locally known as Donaway Furniture located at 13001 Coastal Highway, in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland.
Further information concerning the public hearings may be examined in the office of the Department of Planning and Community Development in City Hall. Christopher Rudolf, Chairman Maureen Howarth, Attorney OCD-7/11/2t
BETH B. MILLER ESQ. FOX ROTHSCHILD, LLP 1201 N. MARKET ST., STE. 1200 WILMINGTON, DE 19801-1163
NOTICE
TO CREDITORS OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVES ESTATE NO. 20258
NOTICE IS GIVEN that the CHANCERY court of N NEW CASTLE COUNTY, DELAWARE appointed KLAUS PERCHINIAK whose address is 2400 DORVAL RD., WILMINGTON, DE 19810-3529 as the PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE of the Estate of M MONICA T. BAEUERLE PETERKA who died on APRIL 25, 2024 domiciled in DELAWARE, NEW CASTLE COUNTY
The Maryland resident agent for service of process is D DAVID ROBERTS whose address is R REGISTERED AGENTS, INC., 5000 THAYER CENTER, SUITE C, OAKLAND, MD 21550 At the time of death, the decedent owned real or leasehold property in the following Maryland counties: W WORCESTER
All persons having claims against the decedent must file their claims with the Register of Wills for WORCESTER COUNTY with a copy to the foreign personal representative on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent’s death; or
(2) Two months after the foreign personal representative mails or delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claim within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. Claims filed after that date or after a date extended by law will be barred.
TERRI WESTCOTT, Register of Wills for Worcester County ONE W MARKET STREET ROOM 102 - COURT HOUSE SNOW HILL, MD 21863-1074 OCD-7/11/3t
Changes to follow suit settlement
By Lauren Bunting Contributing Writer
(July 12, 2024) The real estate industry is preparing for some “practice changes” in mid-August following the National Association of Realtors settlement agreement in the Burnett/Spitzer class action lawsuit.
One of the main changes the 100-plus page agreement calls for is the use of written buyer agency agreements to be used throughout the country, whereas previously only about a quarter of states were using the practice in state mandates. However, Maryland was one of those states and has been requiring the use of written buyer agency agreements since Oct. 1, 2016.
This key provision of the settlement agreement requires that all Realtors representing buyers enter into a written brokerage agreement before touring a home, but agents in Maryland should already be very comfortable with this practice.
The Maryland Real Estate Commission advises the following as to the timing of when the buyer agency agreement should be in effect: “Before you provide
any real estate brokerage services you must have a written and signed brokerage agreement in place.”
The real estate commission’s guidance is consistent with the Maryland Real Estate Brokers Act, which defines “provide real estate brokerage services” as engaging in any of the following activities:
• For consideration, providing for selling, buying, exchanging, or leasing any real estate; or collecting rent for the use of any real estate
• For consideration, assisting another person to locate or obtain for purchase or lease any residential real estate.
Maryland law allows a licensed agent to show a property to an unrepresented
buyer, but they are required to use the “Understanding Whom Real Estate Agents Represent” form in that situation. This document clearly establishes that you do not represent the buyer, and it shows the buyer you are either working as a seller’s agent or a sub agent.
Also important to note, using the Understanding Whom Real Estate Agents Represent form does not provide the buyer with the benefit of representation or create a fiduciary relationship, nor does it set forth any agreement as to if and in what amount the real estate agent will be paid.
Lauren Bunting is the Broker of Record with Keller Williams Realty of Delmarva in Ocean City.
Atlantic General Hospital Board appoints new chair
(July 12, 2024) At the Atlantic General Hospital Corporation’s annual meeting in June, members of the board of trustees elected Doug Cook as the new chairman.
Cook, who most recently served as the vice chair for the AGH Board of Trustees, has also served on the finance committee for Atlantic General Hospital and the board for Atlantic ImmediCare. He is also a trustee member for the Life Crisis Center and serves on the Board of Directors of
See AGH Page 74
AGH appoints Cook to serve as board chair after Cathell
Continued from Page 73
the Ocean City Golf Club.
Cook is the chief lending officer and executive vice president at Calvin B. Taylor Banking Company. He served in the United States Army for six years and holds a master of business administration degree from Salisbury University and a bachelor of science degree in finance from Regis University.
Cook and his wife, Lisa, have two sons, Garrett and Austin.
“Doug has dedicated his time and energy to Atlantic General Hospital and Health System for many years. We’re thrilled to welcome him as chair of the Board of Trustees,” Don Owrey, the president and CEO of Atlantic General Hospital, said in a news release. “We’re also tremendously grateful for the two years Charlotte Cathell served as our board chair and the contributions she has made.”
Charlotte Kerbin Cathell, the outgoing board chair, served in the position from June 2022 to this June, after joining the Board of Trustees in
DAAYY/TIME
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2017. Cathell retired as register of wills for Worcester County after having served for 20 years. A lifelong resident of Worcester County, she is married to Judge Dale R. Cathell (retired). She is member of the Atlantic General Hospital Corporation and the AGH Foundation and was a founder and president of Worcester County G.O.L.D. (Giving Other Lives Dignity). She is a former long-time member and president of the Worcester County Commission for Women and is on the board of directors of Taylor Bank.
Cathell has resided in Ocean Pines for more than 40 years and was the first countywide-elected official from Ocean Pines. She was named the Citizen of the Year by the Ocean Pines Chamber of Commerce in 2019.
The Board of Trustees also welcomed a slate of new members to the AGH corporation: Hilari AshtonAuxer; Cory Carpenter, M.D.; Ed Castaneda, M.D.; Bill Corey; Caitlin Evans; Maureen Howarth; Max Hutsell; Ryan Kirby; Shawn Kotwica; Matt Kraeuter; Jill Leiner; Gigi Lekites; Christine Neto, M.D.; Oswaldo Nicastro, M.D.; Michael Pennington; Melanie Pursel; GW Smith, PA-C; Dave Stallings; Rich Toth; Emily Tunis; and Chris Williams.
Art League of
Ocean City opens new exhibits for July
Featured artists displaying diverse pieces throughout month at 94th St. gallery
By Alex Grier Contributing Writer
(July 12, 2024) The Art League of Ocean City introduced new and familiar talent to the public last Friday at its 94th Street gallery during its
July 11 - 18
First Friday opening reception. Exhibiting and offering their work for sale throughout the month are Randy Hofman, Mason D’Aleo and Dee Dobson. No stranger to Ocean City onlookers, Randy Hofman has been captivating audiences for decades with his religious-themed sand sculptures along Ocean City’s Boardwalk as well
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Doug Cook ALEX GRIER/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
Among the featured artists in July are Dee Shannon-Dobson, Mason D’Aleo and Randy Hofman, who is pictured in front of one of his works with an admirer.
New exhibits at
as his beach-inspired paintings on the walls of the convention center.
His artwork reflects the beauty of coastal life through beach scenes and seascapes. Hofman is the Art Leagues “featured artist” showcasing his display, “Tides of Life in OCMD” in the Thaler Gallery. When describing his work, Hofman would put a story to some of his subjects, which made his art come to life.
Twenty-year-old Mason D’Aleo was born and raised in Ocean City. A student of art at Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia, she gets her inspiration from growing up in the resort.
Her use of acrylics brings tropical landscapes to life.
“Once I get something in my head, I can’t get the image out until I paint it,” she said.
D’Aleo had a bittersweet goodbye to one of her favorite paintings, with the sale of “Miles” a painting of a pelican who got the name “for the distance he has traveled.”
Her tropical landscape series on display this month at the Art League, features life highlighted by water and sky.
Shimmering in the Art League’s “Artisan Showcase,” is the handcrafted silver work of Dee Dobson.
She began started her journey as a metalsmith in 1973, and still wears the first piece she made, a turquoise and silver bracelet on her wrist. “I get my inspiration from nature, particularly from my time in the Arizona desert,” she said.
Dobson also repurposes discarded and broken jewelry to create new pieces. One of her most elegant is a necklace made with silver, gold, titanium and sapphires.
She uses traditional gold and silversmith methods that include hammering, fabricating, soldering and limited-edition casting. The stones she selects for her jewelry tend to em-
ulate the warm colors of the southwest desert.
These are just a sampling of the talent within the walls of the Art League of Ocean City at 502 94th Street Bayside. The gallery is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m.4 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Admission is always free.
Visitors will receive a signed and numbered, limited edition print from Randy Hofman when they renew their membership or become a new member of Art League of Ocean City member. For more information, go to OCart.org/belong.
ALEX GRIER/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
One of the featured artists displaying new pieces throughout July is Dee Dobson, right, who specializes in handmade gold and silversmith creations.
Salisbury airport seeks help with fed grant
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(July 12, 2024) Officials in Worcester County last week pledged to provide some matching funds to a federal grant that will be used to attract a low-fare, nonstop airline service to the Salisbury Regional Airport.
Salisbury Regional Airport Director Tony Rudy told the Worcester County Commissioners on July 2 that his facility will be seeking grant funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Small Community Air Service Development Program this year to recruit a low-fare, nonstop airline service from the Salisbury airport to a major Florida destination. To make the application more attractive, he said he was seeking monetary matches from various jurisdictions and private-sector partners.
“We’re looking for a total local support of about $200,000, which will add to our $800,000 request to the DOT for the grant,” he explained, “So $1 million total.”
Officials noted that the $1 million would be used to incentivize the airline to provide nonstop trips to and from Florida, two or three times a week. The money, Rudy said, would be used to provide start-up and marketing support in its first years of operation.
“This is for a revenue guarantee that will basically help guarantee that the airline can get off to a successful start …,” he said. “All things being equal, you know airlines are looking at other service around the country, and airports are competing for the same service, so they’re often looking at the best support they can get from a community, including the revenue guarantee, which
is kind of the last piece of the puzzle for the airport.”
Rudy said the airport was seeking $200,000, or a 20% match, from the community. As of Tuesday, the airport has received $60,000 in pledges.
“If we do fall short, we’re still going to apply for the grant,” he told the commissioners. “But we feel that that 20% is a good percentage for the DOT to consider … They look at that and see that the community has some skin in the game. And really successful grants that are awarded often do have that community support.”
Rudy added that the airport was simply seeking pledges. He noted that any money not used at the end of the agreement with the airline carrier would be returned.
When asked if Wicomico County had pledged any money, Rudy said he would be seeking $50,000 from the Wicomico County Council that evening. For his part, Commissioner Joe Mitrecic said he saw the service as a benefit to the residents of Worcester County. He then made a motion to match Wicomico County’s contribution.
“I think this would be, depending on where the actual final destination would be down there, it could be really huge for all the people of Worcester County,” he said.
Rudy noted that the Salisbury air-
port continued to lose passengers to other regional airports such as Baltimore-Washington International, where nonstop flights to Florida can be booked. He said bringing a nonstop service to the facility could bring some of those passengers back.
“Right now, we’re losing 80% of our passengers in the area to other airports,” he said. “Most people are going to BWI and flying on Southwest, and there are reasons for that. But we feel this is a great opportunity to capture some of that back … The Orlando area is our absolute top market, and we lose 64,000 passengers a year.”
Melanie Pursel, Worcester County’s director of tourism and economic development, spoke in support of the county match. She said she had spoken to several businesses, including Hardwire LLC and NASA Wallops Flight Facility, and that everyone had talked of the benefits it could bring to the area.
“This is not just a one-way benefit for the folks that are leaving our region to go to Florida. It’s actually reciprocal …,” she said. “To them, we can also look at this as a possibility to recruit additional contractor businesses to our business park, our industrial park in Pocomoke because we have this service available. So we look at it as a, you know, economic development tool, recruitment tool for new business and ex-
Revenue from slots, table games down slightly in Md.
(July 12, 2024) Maryland’s six casinos combined to generate nearly $163 million in revenue from slot machines and table games last month, an overall decrease of $802,798 (0.5%) compared to last year, with Ocean Downs reporting a decrease of 6.3%.
The local casino did experience the biggest drop, though, with Hollywood Casino Perryville in Cecil County, Horseshoe Casino Baltimore in Baltimore City and Rocky Gap Casino Resort in Allegany County all reporting larger downtrends from June of
2023.
But even with the slight overall decrease statewide, total casino gaming contributions Maryland during the month of June this year totaled more than $69.8 million, an increase of $412,462 (0.6%). In turn, contributions to the Education Trust Fund were over $50.3 million, a decrease of $63,342 (0.1%).
Owens Downs is among a total six privately owned casinos in Maryland that offer both slot machines and table games.
County eyes $50K contribution
Continued from Page 76
pansion.”
Greater Ocean City Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Amy Thompson agreed. She added that private-sector businesses have already pledged $25,000 to support the grant application.
“If other small regional airports around the country are kind of paying to attract these services, we’re kind of trying to play in the same sandbox,” she said.
Rudy noted that if the grant is awarded, and the airline chooses to op-
erate from Salisbury, it would likely do so in January or February at the earliest. He said nonstop flights would be offered on Airbus A220 jets.
After further discussion, the commission voted 6-1 to approve up to $50,000 in funding, contingent upon Wicomico County’s contribution. Commissioner Jim Bunting opposed the motion, citing concerns about the airline’s lack of commitment to Salisbury Regional Airport.
“I’m not willing to commit to a dollar amount if they’re not willing to commit anything,” he said.
access to the
OC commits $25K to expand airport flights
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(July 12, 2024) Ocean City joins a growing list of jurisdictions and private sector companies pledging financial support to attract a new airline to the Salisbury Airport.
The Mayor and Council this week voted unanimously to contribute up
to $25,000 from advertising and sponsorship funds to support a Small Community Air Service Development Program (SCASDP) grant application the Salisbury Airport intends to submit through the U.S. Department of Transportation. Officials say the federal grant would be used to attract a new airline that can provide nonstop, low-fare service to and from Florida.
“Essentially, they have an opportunity to bring in a second airline service,” City Manager Terry McGean told the council on Tuesday. “It
would run a direct flight from Salisbury to Florida. In order to do that, to put in a bid in for that, they are looking for $200,000 in matching grant funds.”
Currently, the airport is seeking a SCASDP grant for $800,000 and is in the process of obtaining $200,000 in financial commitments from community partners before the end of the week. The matching component, officials say, will be used to strengthen the airport’s application and demonstrate the community’s support for a new airline service.
In recent weeks, airport officials have sought, and received, support from local jurisdictions and private sector partners in their pursuit of grant funding. Just last week, for example, the airport received $50,000 in pledges from both Worcester and Wicomico counties, in addition to tens of thousands of dollars in pledges from private sector companies such as TidalHealth, Delmarva Power and Ocean Downs Casino, to name a few.
“We are looking at over $170,000 in pledges now,” Rudy told the council this week.
He noted that at this point, the airport was only seeking pledges, and that actual funding would only be provided if the grant was awarded and an agreement with the airline was
completed. He said the funds would be used to cover any losses the airline could incur in its first years of operation and provide marketing support.
“We're also providing up to $100,000 a year to market this service,” he said, “so we can really promote it, get people excited, and get people on aircraft.”
Rudy added that any local funds that are not used at the end of the agreement period would then be returned to the jurisdictions and businesses, based on the percentage they had contributed.
“If there are shortfalls, we will make that up. If they are making a profit or breaking even, we don’t spend a dime,” he explained. “So we aren’t giving them a blank check.”
Mayor Rick Meehan said he supported the project and suggested that the council make its contribution contingent on the airport receiving a pledge from the city of Salisbury. He noted that the Worcester County Commissioners had passed a similar motion the week prior, with funds contingent upon support from the Wicomico County Council.
When asked if the city of Salisbury had committed any funding, Rudy said it had not. Councilman Will Savage then made a motion to contribute
BETHANY HOOPER/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
City Manager Terry McGean, seated right, is pictured addressing the Ocean City Mayor and Council Tuesday afternoon at City Hall.
tol
Community Players of Salisbury/Century 21 New
DeVanna Young, Long & Foster Real Estate Salisbury; Tonya Agostino, Unstoppable Joy; Susan Lloyd, Mid-Atlantic Settl ement Services; Tanja Giles, Unstoppable Joy; Vicki
committee member/Coldwell Banker Realty.123; and Patti Stevens, Back Street Bikes.
Coastal Foundation awards
$4,750 to local
(July 12, 2024) The Coastal Association of REALTORS® (Coastal) has announced it has awarded $4,750 in grants to local charities through the Coastal REALTORS® Foundation during its latest round of funding.
Since 2019 Coastal REALTORS® Foundation has given over $90,500 to local charities in Wicomico, Worcester, and Somerset counties.
Receiving grants in the Coastal REALTORS® Foundation’s latest round of funding were AM Foundation, Inc., Community Players of Salisbury, Humane Society of Somerset County, TEAM 360 Inc., Back Street Bikes, Seaside Christian Academy, Smith Island United and Unstoppable Joy Co.
The Coastal REALTORS® Foundation is a charitable fund held by the Community Foundation of the East-
nonprofits
ern Shore. The association raises money for the fund through an annual charity golf tournament as well as other efforts throughout the year. The fund is accessible to members of Coastal through an application process administered by the association and reviewed by a committee of members. Grant recipients must be 501(c)3 organizations and must be located in Somerset, Wicomico, or Worcester counties.
"Coastal REALTORS® members, with their deep-rooted commitment to community, are not just selling homes;” said Coastal President Brigit Taylor “they're building foundations of support for our neighbors by granting hope and resources to local charities they champion."
Grants are awarded three times a year, and the next deadline is Oct. 15.
Meehan challenges Salisbury
Continued from Page 78
up to $25,000 – to be paid for with advertising and sponsorship funds –provided that the City of Salisbury does the same.
“I certainly do support it, but I agree with the mayor’s comments … ,” he said.
Councilman Peter Buas, however, disagreed. He said he wanted to see the town provide $25,000 in unrestricted financial support.
“I don’t think we should tie our investment, at all, with Salisbury,” he said. “I don’t want Salisbury to give nothing, and then all of a sudden we give nothing. That’s not in line with our strategic planning and what we’ve been talking about for a while.”
Officials this week noted that the airport was collecting pledges through Friday, and that the city had yet to be approached. Buas also pointed out that Salisbury’s last council meeting had already been held earlier in the week.
After some back-and-forth debate, Savage withdrew his motion and made a new motion to pledge up to $25,000. Meehan, however, challenged the City of Salisbury to do the same.
“We’d like Salisbury to be our partners as well,” he said.
The motion passed in a 7-0 vote, but not before some jesting from council members on changing the airport’s lettering from SBY to OCM, or Ocean City Municipal, should the city not commit.
SUBMITTED PHOTO/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
Pictured, from left, are Carol Mills, Humane Society of Somerset County; Kara Waggoner and her daughter, Kaila Waggoner, Seaside Christian Academy; Josephine Davis, daughter of Pastor Sean Davis; Davis, Seaside Christian Academy; Jack Mills, Humane Society of Somerset County; Robbin Wells, TEAM 360; Terry Moreno, TEAM 360; Billy Apostolou, AM Foundation Inc./direct mortgage loans; Grace Masten, foundation committee chair/Sea Grace at North Beach Realtors; Matt Bogdan,
Horizon; Pilar Burton, foundation committee member/Capi-
Title;
Harman, foundation
County school board hears mandate update
By Tara Fischer Staff Writer
(July 12, 2024) The Worcester County Board of Education provided updates on the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, approved school developments, reappointed their attorney and welcomed public comments at their July 9 meeting.
The Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, passed in 2021, includes “comprehensive changes to nearly every aspect of Maryland’s public education system. Increasing annual education funding by over $3.8 billion over the next 10 years, the Blueprint will enrich student experiences, accelerate improvements to student outcomes, and improve the quality of education in Maryland.”
Per the plan’s timeline, local school systems should have begun implementing a new “career ladder system” aligned with the state’s requirements by July 2024.
Worcester County Public Schools Chief Academic Officer Denise Shorts said that the board submitted the second piece of their implementation plan to the MSDE (Maryland State Department of Education) in early May and received feedback on July 1. The document, which can be found on the system’s website, hits the five pillars that Maryland schools must aim to en-
hance at their facilities. These include early childhood education, high-quality and diverse teachers and leaders, college and career readiness, resources to ensure all students are successful, and governance and accountability.
For example, in their submitted plan, WCPS noted the challenges and strategies for encouraging students to enroll in non-traditional gender CTE (career and technical education) programs to foster college and career readiness.
To address the obstacle, the school system’s career coaches worked with students to explore and consider nontraditional careers through the Schoolinks platform and facilitated field trips to non-traditional genderowned businesses.
“These efforts aimed to broaden students’ perspectives and encourage greater diversity in CTE program enrollment,” the outlined plan reads.
Shorts said the updated proposal addressing MSDE’s feedback is due by July 18. The board hopes to receive the final “check off,” which guarantees the system gets state funding, by the end of the summer.
The school system’s facilities planner, Joe Price, attended the July 9 meeting to present the Maryland Mesonet Project and seek board approval for the weather station at
Stephen Decatur Middle School.
The Maryland Department of Emergency Management and the University of Maryland partnered to create a weather station network throughout the state. According to Price, the venture will result in 70 total stations in Maryland that will provide data to improve forecasts and severe weather warnings to the public. The Maryland Mesonet team has determined that SDMS meets the criteria as a site.
The Berlin facility was chosen because the area planned for the installation, the middle of the field at the far-left side of the Stephen Decatur property line, lacks outside forces that may impose bias or inaccurate data. The space was also determined to be a sufficient representation of the location. The board unanimously approved the project.
The Worcester County Board of Education approved the reappointment of the school system’s attorney, Heather Stansbury, of the law firm Ayres, Jenkins, Gordy, and Almand for the 2024-2025 academic year. Stansbury has served in the position since 2017.
“I have the opportunity to work with her as a board representative, and I have never been affiliated with more of a professional, a well-thought-out when it comes to responses person,” WCPS Superintendent Lou Taylor said of the reappointment. “… I want this community to know that we have one of the best board attorneys I have worked with over my many years here in Worcester County.”
writing, and theater programs have enriched the lives of thousands of Worcester County students and given them a place to feel safe and valued.”
“These programs have led to careers in academia and the arts and entertainment industries,” she continued.
“From sound technicians, theater teachers, actors, DJs, scriptwriters, location scouts, production assistants, producers, opera singers, band directors, studio musicians, college professors, and sword smiths, students graduating from Worcester County Public Schools have used their arts education to launch and secure careers in multiple fields of the entertainment and performance industries as well as in the field of education. Too often, tough choices must be made. I hope you will continue to see the academic value and personal benefits of arts education in the lives of our students.”
At the previous board of education meeting, member Katie Addis asked the body to consider extending two additional night meetings to next year’s schedule. The group still discussed the matter while Addis was absent at the July 9 gathering.
Board president Todd Ferrante said that he and his colleagues have compared attendance at evening and afternoon meetings and have found no difference.
“If there is a need or we see a push, we will certainly review it as a board,” he said. “We are inclusive, and we want to ensure everyone can contact us. We want to hear from everyone.”
The board also heard public comments. Former Stephen Decatur High School teacher Gwen Lehman went before the body to advocate for arts education. The request comes as issues over county funding plague WCPS.
The president also emphasized that meetings are live-streamed and uploaded to YouTube for individuals to view at their leisure. The board can also be contacted through email or on their website’s contact form.
“As the board of education central office and each faculty and staff of our 14 schools face the challenge of working with the current county government over issues of adequate funding, I ask that the board continue to support the arts and arts-related programs in Worcester County Public Schools,” Lehman said. “Our music, art, creative
“There are many ways to reach us without coming before us,” Ferrante said. “… We have many avenues to contact us. Even if you were to call the central office asking for a board member to call you, we would be happy to get back to you at any time.”
The Worcester County Board of Education meets in open session again on Tuesday, Aug. 20, at 12:30 p.m.
Worcester arts council awards ’24 scholarships
Six students to use funds to further arts education
(July 12, 2024) The Worcester County Arts Council has awarded its 2024 arts scholarships, totaling $10,500 to six deserving Worcester County students who will be majoring in the arts in college.
The recipients are:
Aiden Clayton (Pocomoke High School) - performing arts/ music
Kathryn Gordon (Stephen Decatur High School) - visual arts/painting
Magnolia Harris-Blackburn (Snow Hill High School) - visual arts/drawing-painting
Bella Resto (Stephen Decatur High School) - visual arts/illustration-painting
Jonah Ridgely (Stephen Decatur High School) - performing arts/ music-commercial
Chandler Smith (Stephen Decatur High School) - performing arts/music-industry/performance and production
The Worcester County Arts Council’s scholarship program is designed to identify, recognize, and encourage talented students who demonstrate
excellence in dance, music, theater, visual arts, creative writing, and culinary arts.
In the last ten years, the Worcester County Arts Council has awarded close to $100,000 through the program to qualified Worcester County students.
Scholarship awards are made possible by a donation from John Sisson’s family, and contributions by many patrons of the arts council.
PHOTO COURTESY WORCESTER COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL
Pictured, from left, are the Worcester County Arts Council’s 2024 scholarship recipients, Chandler Smith, Jonah Ridgely, Aiden Clayton, Katie Gordon, Bella Resto, and Magnolia Harris-Blackburn.
Necklace find ‘turned out to be a good day for everybody’
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(July 12, 2024) A local man is now $5,000 richer after finding a gold chain necklace on the beach at 1st Street.
On Sunday, Delaware resident Gary Genovese logged onto a Maryland metal detecting Facebook group to find a rather unique social media post – a Virginia family’s plea to help find a 16-ounce gold chain that had been lost in the water off Ocean City on July 4. With it, he said, was a $5,000 reward for anyone who located and returned the family heirloom.
“They claimed it was a heavy necklace and no one has found it yet, and that they were also offering a $5,000 reward if recovered and returned,” he recalled in an interview this week. “So I figured, you know, it was Sunday afternoon, we
weren’t doing anything.”
With his metal detector in hand, Genovese and his wife traveled to the 1st Street beach, where a member of the family had lost the necklace in the ocean. Within a matter of minutes, he struck gold – literally.
“There were already three other people out there detecting, and they said they also had some other people that detected the night before with no luck,” he said. “I walked out into the water and within 15 minutes, it was the first target I started to dig up.”
Genovese, however, said unearthing the treasure was no easy feat, as he was standing in knee-deep water. But with a few digs, the search was over.
“I finally lifted it up, and it was just
See LOCAL Page 83
SUBMITTED PHOTO/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
Delaware resident Gary Genovese is pictured with a gold chain necklace he found on the 1st Street beach last Sunday.
Hundreds of international students served
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(July 12, 2024) A local church reports it is seeing a resurgence of interest in its international ministries in a post-pandemic world.
At the beginning of June, Ocean City Baptist Church launched its weekly international dinners for the summer season. There, hundreds of J-1 students gather for a free meal, fellowship and resources.
And while participation in such ministries lagged during the COVID pandemic, Pastor Sean Davis said international students are coming back in full force this summer. Last week, for example, the church served nearly 400 students and 500 meals within a twohour span.
“I see it, as the pastor, as an opportunity to really just make a difference in the world, because the world comes to us and that’s what we do,” he said. “We’ve got a great church that really strives to do that, that just shows love and hospitality to every student who comes in.”
Since the early 2000s, Ocean City Baptist has offered weekly dinners to international students during the summer months. Every Monday night, from early June to Labor Day, volunteers take time out of their week to serve hot meals, minister to students and offer a space for conversation.
“Lives are changed because of a free meal …,” Davis said. “They were angry at something that happened at work and then they come and see a nice face and a nice person, and then their whole perspective of the world changes, the whole perspective of Ocean City and America changes, because someone was nice, because we gave them a free meal out of the church.”
Local man scores $5K for discovery
Continued from Page 82
this massive gold chain hanging out of my scoop,” he explained. “I just couldn’t believe it.”
Genovese, 61, said this was the first significant object he has found since taking up the metal detecting hobby in his youth. He noted that he has found several small rings, as well as coins from a late-1700s shipwreck off the coast of Delaware.
“They’re worth maybe 20, 30, 50 bucks …,” he said. “Nothing close to this.”
Genovese said a member of the family traveled back to Ocean City on Monday to retrieve the necklace and provide the $5,000 reward, in cash. While acknowledging that the find was not unexpected, he said it was still just as special.
“I’ve got a little chunk of cash, and the owners got their goodies back,” he said. “It turned out to be a good day for everybody.”
Davis said the weekly dinners would not be possible without the support of other churches throughout the state. He noted that each week, a different church will travel to Ocean City to serve a meal. He said partnering churches also provide toiletry kits to every new student that steps through the door.
“This little bag of toiletries is something to get them started,” he explained. “It’s done by different churches all over Maryland and Delaware that send them to us because they know what we are doing.”
To date, Davis said the church has fed students from nearly 30 countries this season. But he said the church’s efforts do not end there. He pointed out that Ocean City Baptist also provides game nights, English classes, free Walmart runs, and free surf lessons throughout the summer.
“Every week we’ll have 60 to 80 surfers from about 12-15 different countries that come because we invite them,” he said.
“We gave out about 125 bikes this year, maybe 150 now,” he said.
Ocean City Baptist Church will continue to serve weekly dinners to international students through Sept. 2. Davis noted that other churches in the area also offer free meals to international students and those in need.
“It’s all Christians in town, really working together to just show love,” he said. “It’s a cool thing to be a part of.”
Ocean City Baptist also gives away free bikes to international students, beginning the first week in June.
SUBMITTED PHOTO/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
Students and volunteers are pictured during an international student dinner at Ocean City Baptist Church.
Hastings recognized by club as June crafter of the month
(July 12, 2024) The Pine’eer Craft Club recently announce club member Mary Jane Hastings as the June crafter of the month.
Hastings is one of the vendors in the club’s shop and a talented artist painting with acrylics on multiple surfaces. Hastings and her husband moved to Ocean Pines from Selbyville in 1992, she originally hails from Baltimore.
A member for around a decade, Hastings was originally brought into the group by artist Jim Adcock.
“He was a dear friend,” Hastings said in a news release of the late artist known for his Ocean City scenes and icons. “I’m glad to have art as a hobby, because you can do it so much longer than anything else. I do not play golf or tennis now, but I can still paint.”
Having started her painting many years ago under the tutelage of a local artist, Hastings said, “there has always been art in my life,” and even remembers a favorite Christmas gift as a girl was an art set. Hastings also said, “It’s important to “be persistent in your artistic endeavors” and keep trying to stretch and expand your skills.
Hastings has also been a member of the Daughters of the American Rev-
olution. She has children living close by and a great-granddaughter, who has just started to dabble in paints.
“Who knows if she will carry on the tradition?” Hastings said.
Family is obviously important to the artist, her daughter is featured in many of her larger works. But the items in the shop mostly focus on landscapes and birds. Hastings offers prints, canvases, cards and more—she even created a puzzle from her work. The inventory in the shop is everchanging.
To see Hastings’ creations, stop in at the Artisan Gift Shop across White Horse Park from the Ocean Pines Community Center. The shop will be open Saturdays and Sundays featuring handcrafted treasures, such as seasonal items and home décor favorites.
The Pine’eer Craft Club always welcomes new members. Crafters who would like to join the club can email sherwaskey@gmail.com for more information. Club members do not have to be Ocean Pines residents. Since its inception, the craft club has donated more than $185,000 back to the Ocean Pines community and has been hand crafting in Ocean Pines for 50 years.
SUBMITTED PHOTO/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
An acrylic piece by Mary Jane Hastings is pictured on a black background.
Arts council exhibiting ‘Vacation Memories’
Works from local artists to be displayed at Berlin gallery through Sept. 1
(July 12, 2024) During July and August, the Worcester County Arts Council will host “Vacation Memories,” a juried art competition and exhibit featuring 31 entries submitted by 20 emerging and established artists with work in all media.
The subject was open to the artists’ expression and interpretation.
Entries in the competition were reviewed and judged by local artist and former art educator Clytie W. Taylor.
Monetary prizes will be awarded for first, second, and third place at 5 p.m. during an open-to-the-public reception set from 4-6 p.m., July 12, at the gallery on Jefferson Street in Berlin. Light refreshments will be offered.
The exhibit opened July 2 and will be on display through Sept. 1.
Along with the featured exhibit, works created by 30 local artists and gallery members will be on display and available for purchase.
Gallery hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday.
PHOTO COURTESY WORCESTER COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL
A selection of artwork from the “Vacation Memories” exhibit at the Worcester County Arts Council gallery in Berlin is pictured. The exhibit opened July 2 and closes Sept. 1.
Opinions
Patrol’s training proves its value
When Mark Twain wrote that “Training is everything” he wasn’t talking about the Ocean City Beach Patrol. He meant that people behave the way they do because they are conditioned by various influences to think and act a certain way. “Training,” as in drills and repetitive instruction, is a wholly different thing, and it proved its value Sunday when members of the Ocean City Beach Patrol saved the life of a man in danger of bleeding to death.
It was just a day earlier that Beach Patrol personnel reviewed their “Stop the Bleed” emergency procedures, even though they might never have to put this knowledge to use. After all, the main function of the patrol’s lifeguards is to prevent swimmers and waders from getting into trouble in the ocean, and to rescue them when things do go wrong. Although medical emergencies do occur on the beach, they generally don’t involve potentially fatal wounds. That’s what makes patrol members’ life-saving response to an injured surfer a testament to the organization’s constant preparation for all manner of emergencies, no matter how unlikely.
When the skeg, or fin, on the surfer’s board severed a major artery in his leg, Crew Chief Katie Greiser knew exactly how to proceed and did it immediately. Other patrol members using a Stop the Bleed kit provided vital assistance until EMS personnel arrived and arranged for the victim to be flown to Shock Trauma in Baltimore.
He survived, Shock Trauma later reported, because of the Beach Patrol’s quick — and correct — action.
All members of the Beach Patrol receive Stop the Bleed instruction every year, from new recruits to long-time veterans, just to be certain they know what to do in the unlikely event that an extreme circumstance such as this one occurs.
It is part of the patrol’s educational protocol, and it proves there are times when training isn’t just invaluable, it’s everything.
Body parts and taxes
Of all the new state laws that went into effect on July 1, the one that really got my attention is legislation that more or less declares that the state is no longer satisfied with simply taking my money.
NEWS
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No, now it also wants an arm and a leg ... along with anything else I’m willing to give up, from glands to hands.
This particular law requires the state comptroller (really the comptroller’s office, since the actual comptroller is usually tied up wrapping coins in the back room) to notify all tax e-filers (people who know that real mail exists but don’t want to risk having their tax payments ending up in Indiana or some equally fascinating place) that they can register to donate some part of their anatomy to the state.
I don’t know about anyone else, but it does seem excessive to me. I mean, it’s one thing for the state tax department to hand my rearend to me once a year, by now it apparently has the gall to suggest that I give it back.
Obviously, the state doesn’t actually take gifts of rear-ends, since government rearends have to be elected before the state will accept them.
In addition, the market for rear-ends is flat, so to speak.
I should admit that I’ve only read a summary of the law and not the entire statute, which may stipulate which parts of the
anatomy may be donated.
For all I know, the law could say, “Ears, Specifications For: Donations must be perfectly formed, shell-like ears, sizes four to eight only. Pointy ears, ears with hangy-down lobes or ears like cab doors will not be accepted.”
I suspect that by anatomical gifts they are talking about organs, which I would happily donate ... when the time comes and not one minute before.
I know I wouldn’t want to receive my tax bill along with a notice that says my donation is overdue.
“Dear Sir, You owe us one spleen. Please remit at your earliest convenience.”
As I said before, I haven’t read the law, so I may be exaggerating, especially considering the strong possibility that specific regulations and requirements are contained elsewhere in the statutes.
This would include, I would think, that each thing (if you have a better term to employ here feel free to substitute) donated must be accompanied by a “Best if used by ...” label.
I’m just kidding. I know this is serious business and that lives will be saved by making anatomical gift-giving easier and more efficient. But you would think the writers of this summary would make it clearer to the average reader.
After all, in an era when so many people are prone to believing just about anything no matter how crazy, it pays to keep your head on straight. And that’s no matter how or where you got it.
PUBLIC EYE
Between the Lines
By Steve Green
A comment on a Facebook post this week by Worcester County Commissioner Ted Elder was disturbing and revealing. The original post from another individual contained a graphic that read, “Project 2025 free school meals and the Head Start program would be eliminated.” For those that don’t know, Project 2025 is a $22 million effort organized by The Heritage Foundation as a way to transition the government if Trump is re-elected in November. The movement’s website reads, “The project is the effort of a broad coalition of conservative organizations that have come together to ensure a successful administration begins in January 2025. With the right conservative policy recommendations and properly vetted and trained personnel to implement them, we will take back our government.” Included in the Project 2025 “Mandate for Leadership” are calls to eliminate Head Start as well as school meals including those provided free of charge to students who live in homes at or below the poverty level.
In a comment to the social media graphic, Elder wrote, “Education seemed better before we had those programs. Maybe it’s time that we got back to basics when small children were raised by parents rather than the State.” The comment was negatively received by dozens of locals including Tom Simon, cofounder of the Worcester United Facebook group formed amid public education funding squabbles. Simon wrote, “This is a stunning statement, especially considering the county’s largest Title I school is in your district.” Simon was referring to Buckingham Elementary School. Parent Erin Bilenki chimed in as well, saying, “times have changed. Most households rely on both parent’s income, in case you weren’t aware. Many families depend on these programs to make ends meet. A very small percentage of Americans are privileged enough to make comments like yours.”
Elder’s comment is clearly out of touch and off base. Head Start provides a valuable resource and service to families struggling for a variety of reasons including economics. It’s not simply day care and farming out parenting responsibilities as Elder seems to suggest. Additionally, meals in schools provide sustenance and nutrition for many youngsters coming from difficult home situations. It’s disheartening to hear the suggestion the education system has suffered as a result of these efforts. Young teens are taught to be careful what they post on social media because digital footprints can follow them for many years. This is an unfortunate comment Elder will not be able to shake either.
It was Mr. Rogers who famously said, “Life is for service.” The folks at the Ocean City Baptist Church are applying this in a huge way through work with the international students here to work in local businesses through the summer.
Along with providing more than 125 free bikes for transportation, the church and its congregation open their facility to provide weekly free dinners for hundreds of international student workers. As far as how many are served, it’s estimated about 400 individuals are fed each week within a two-hour span. Throughout the summer, while the church hosts the dinners because of its downtown Ocean City location, Ocean City Baptist Church Pastor Sean Davis said each week a different church in the area comes to serve the meals as well as provide toiletry kits as needed.
Appreciation goes to all the churches who make this happen for these student workers, who are essential to meeting the employment needs of Ocean City area businesses. Davis has it right when he says, “I see it, as the pastor, as an opportunity to really just make a difference in the world, because the world comes to us and that’s what we do. We’ve got a great church that really strives to do that, that just shows love and hospitality to every student who comes in.”
Growing and diversifying the flights available at the Salisbury Regional Airport has long been a goal, but there appears to be some serious commitment now if a federal grant is secured.
Back in 2011, the airport, through Allegiant Air, began offering direct flights from Salisbury to Orlando for a reasonable fee. A marketing campaign surrounded the new service until the reality was accepted it was a losing venture a year or so into the agreement.
Back in the news now is a Small Community Air Service Development Program grant application the Salisbury Regional Airport is seeking through the federal government. The grant, if awarded, would help recruit a new airline to provide service to and from Florida. Ocean City has agreed to provide $25,000 and Worcester and Wicomico counties will provide up to $50,000 each. Private-sector companies have also committed funds to make up the remainder of the $200,000 the airport needs.
The challenging obstacle to this effort is volume. The ticket sales have simply not been there in the past. Every effort in the past began with solid intentions but fizzled amid inconsistent sales. The number of passengers has not been consistent enough to justify the commitment from the airline. Whether the economics are different now is a big unknown, but using a grant to find out is a good option.
Legalized dope a disaster predicted back in 2012
Editor,
After reading the one-sided article concerning the legalization of marijuana ... lauding the “positive” aspects, I found it imperative to respond.
First, we have a Maryland legislative body that sold out the mental and physical health of its constituents for mere tax revenue. Maryland, along with 23 other states, has legalized a dangerous substance that is not marijuana, but rather a highly laboratory engineered substance. THC levels of marijuana currently being sold across the nation are 2700% (plus) stronger than pot was in 1980.
Vehicle accidents have spiked dramatically in states where legalization
is the norm. Admittance to emergency rooms due to THC intoxication or psychotic episodes have augmented to unheard of levels. What I find befuddling is in the case of a binge drinker or someone struggling with alcohol, we as humans tend to feel empathy. So if we feel sympathetic to someone who is intoxicated much of their life, why do we wink and grin at people who purposely get stoned? It’s ridiculous. These people have real mental issues.
I predicted to friends in 2012 when Colorado and Washington legalized dope that this was a recipe for disaster. Well to quote the late Malcom X ... I believe... “The chickens have come home to roost.”
Mark
Pfaff Ocean City
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Saint-Lô in France became known as capital of ruins
By Peter Ayers Wimbrow III
Contributing Writer
(July 12, 2024) This week 80 years ago, soldiers of the 29th Division captured the 1,400-year-old French Town of Saint-Lô in Normandy. It had been occupied by Germans since June 17, 1940, was an important crossroads, and currently has a population of 20,000.
It had been an objective of the 29th Division, commanded by Charles H. Gerhardt, since the division landed on Omaha Beach, on June 6, 1944. However, the supply situation forced the division to halt its attempts to capture the town on June 18, two miles from its northern outskirts.
The town was defended by the remnants of the 352nd Infantry Division and the 3rd Parachute Division, commanded by Dietrich Kraiß and Richard Schimpf. The 352nd, which had met the 29th Division at Omaha Beach on D-Day, was composed of boys from Hannover and was rated, before the invasion, by the Wehrmacht, as a first-class unit.
One American officer described the soldiers of Gen. Schimpf’s 3rd
Parachute Division as, “...the best soldiers I ever saw. They’re smart and don’t know what the word ‘fear’ means. They come in and keep coming until they get their job done or you kill ‘em all.”
In the lull before the advance, the Americans had attempted to shell the Germans out of the town but that didn’t work. They then attempted to bomb the Germans out of the town.
For 20 hours the bombers roared
overhead. One of the soldiers, the late James Edward (“Snooks”) Lynch, from Berlin, who served in an antiaircraft unit attached to Gen. Gerhardt’s 29th Division, said that when the planes flew over, there were so many that the sky was darkened and the earth shook just from their passing — not the bombing. Although the town was destroyed, the Germans were still not dislodged. So, on July 3, the offensive was renewed.
Dominating the surrounding countryside, and allowing the Germans to observe movements of the 29th Division, was Hill 192. It got its name from its height in meters. On July 11, the 2nd Infantry Division, commanded by Walter M. Robertson, finally captured Hill 192, after an intense artillery barrage.
By July 15, the Second Battalion of the 116th Regiment, from the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia, had been surrounded and was running low on food and ammunition. The 116th Regiment traced its lineage to Colonial times, and was nicknamed “The Stonewall Brigade,” from its ancestor the Stonewall Brigade of Civil War fame. Company “B” of the First Battalion, from Lynchburg, was ordered to Berlin after the attack on Pearl Harbor to guard the beach.
Gen. Gerhardt ordered the Third Battalion, commanded by Major Thomas D. Howie, to the rescue. Major Howie, a 1929 graduate of The Citadel, had held that command for two days. His battalion rescued the Second on July 16. The next morning, the major, who before the war taught English and coached football at Staunton Military Academy, in Staunton, Virginia, telephoned Gen. Gerhardt, told him the Second Battalion was “too cut up,” and that he was proceeding to Saint-Lô with his battalion. He ended the conversation by saying, “See you in Saint-Lô!” Shortly thereafter, he was killed by mortar fire.
The next day his battalion entered
the town with, on Gen. Gerhardt’s order, the major’s body on the hood of the lead jeep, so that he would be the first American in Saint-Lô. His flag-draped body was placed on the rubble of St. Croix Cathedral.
That photograph was widely circulated in the American Press. Because of wartime censorship it was identified only as “The Major of Saint-Lô.” Andy Rooney, then a reporter for Stars and Stripes, recounted that it was, “...one of the truly heartwarming and emotional scenes of a gruesome and frightful war.”
The major was awarded a Silver Star posthumously. He was 36, and left a wife and six year old daughter. In the Sept. 18 issue of Life Magazine, appeared the following poem, by Joseph Auslander:
“They rode him in, propped straight and proud and tall Through St. Lô's gates...He told the lads he led
That they would be the first at St. Lô's fall --
But that was yesterday -- and he was dead:
Some sniper put a bullet through his head,
And he slumped in a meadow near a wall
And there was nothing further to be said; Nothing to say -- nothing to say at all.
Ride soldier in your dusty jeep, Grander than Caesar's chariot! O ride
Into the town they took for you to keep,
Dead captain of their glory and their pride!
Ride through our hearts forever, through our tears
More splendid than the hero hedged with spears!”
A granite monument stands in the
Saint-Lo upon liberation.
town center of his hometown of Abbeville, South Carolina, bearing the inscription, “Dead in France, Deathless in Fame.” Saint-Lô remembers him with its own monument, with the inscription, in English and French, “He fell at the head of his troops as he was liberating our city. His last words were, ‘To Saint-Lô’.”
On July 20, at 7 p.m., Gearhart informed his corps commander, Gen. Charles Corlett, that, “I have the honor to announce to the Corps Commander, that Task Force C of 29th Division, secured the City of Saint-Lô, after 43 days of continual combat from the beaches to Saint-Lô.”
The 29th Division was supported on its flanks by the other two divisions of General Corlett’s XIX Corps, 30th and 35th Divisions, commanded by Leland Stanford Hobbes and Paul W. Baade. All three divisions were National Guard units.
The 29th Division was composed of the 116th regiment, from Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, the 175th from Baltimore, and the 115th from the rest of Maryland. Two of the 35th’s three regiments were composed of men from Kansas and Nebraska, while the third was filled with draftees. Saint-Lô was their first combat experience.
The 30th Division contained two regiments from Tennessee and one
from North Carolina and carried the nickname “Old Hickory.” A week after Major Howie entered Saint-Lô, the Eighth Air Force was still bombing the surrounding area, and inadvertently found the “Old Hickory.”
One of the casualties was Lt. Gen. Lesley J. McNair, who was there to observe. He is the highest ranking casualty of “friendly fire” in U.S. history.
The defense of Saint-Lô, combined with the losses sustained in the defense of the beaches resulted in the destruction of the 352nd Division. Gen. Kraiß died on August 6, from wounds he had sustained two days earlier.
Because of the destruction visited upon the town — 95% — it earned the sobriquet “The Capital of the Ruins.”
As one G.I. noted, “We sure liberated the hell out of this place!”
Killed or wounded in the liberation offensive was: 29th Division, 3,706; 30th Division, 3,934; 35th Division, 2,437; French civilians, 352; German, unknown.
Next week: Majdanek Mr. Wimbrow writes from Ocean City, Maryland, where he practices law representing those persons accused of criminal and traffic offenses, and those persons who have suffered a personal injury through no fault of their own. He can be contacted at wimbrowlaw@gmail.com.
OBITUARIES
NANCY DIRINDA MILLER
Ocean City
Nancy Dirinda Miller, 64, of Ocean City, passed away at her home on June 30, 2024.
Born in Hyattsville, she was the beloved daughter of the late William Dewitt Ernest and Ann Nowell Ernest, and was also preceded in death by her stepmother, Barbara Ann Ernest.
Nancy is survived by her husband, Robert “Bobby” Jester; and her cherished daughters, Amy Miller Fox (husband, James Fox III) and Mindy Miller Bounds (husband, Shaun Bounds). She is also remembered by her stepdaughter, Jessica Leigh Lynch; and daughterin-law, Pamela Grammes Piquette.
Nancy was a devoted sister to Stacy Alicia Burney, Deanna Thoren (wife, Heather), and Vernon Thoren (wife, Tracey).
She was preceded in death by her husband, Thomas Brian Miller; her son, Jesse Daniel Piquette; and her sister, Taffy Marie Hurt.
Her legacy lives on through her adoring grandchildren: Brayden Thomas Bounds, Nash Miller Bounds, Lennon Frankie Fox, Haley Alexis Lynch, Senna Brooklyn Baker,
and Noah Michael Baker. Nancy’s career was marked by a steadfast commitment to caring for others. She began as a secretary to Richard A. Henson at the Richard A. Henson Foundation and later served as a secretary to the president of Mountaire Farms, where she met her late husband, Thomas.
At the age of 40, she became a registered nurse, and at 60, she achieved the status of certified registered nurse practitioner, serving most recently at the 10th Street Medical Center, an affiliate of Atlantic General Hospital. Her dedication and passion for her work earned her deep respect from both her colleagues and patients. As a life-long learner, Nancy was also in the process of obtaining her Integrative Health Practitioner License and starting her own business.
Nancy will be remembered as a woman of immense compassion and dedication. Her selflessness and passion for life left a lasting impact on everyone who knew her. She was full of love, beautiful inside and out, and deeply cherished by her family. Nancy’s unwavering faith in God and her nurturing spirit were the cornerstones of her life, guiding her actions and relationships with others. She loved Jesus like none other.
She was known for her strong and firm hope, a servants’ spirit, and vi-
See OBITUARIES Page 90
Nancy Miller
Continued from Page 89
brant personality. Nancy’s zest for life made her fun to be around, and she always brought joy to those in her presence. She cared deeply and was forever giving toward her loved ones; often worrying about them, praying with and for them, and guiding them on the right path. Her ability to make everyone feel loved and special was truly her hallmark.
Nancy had a multitude of hobbies that brought her immense joy and fulfillment. She was known for baking her famous apple pies, a secret recipe loved by all. She cherished spending time with her grandkids and often enjoyed sitting on the deck,
watching the sunset with Bobby. Nancy adored River and loved spending time on the beach with her pups. She was passionate about swimming and had a deep love for music, especially live performances, frequently attending concerts. She always enjoyed traveling to new places with family and was up for any adventure.
Nancy was also a dedicated member of the Big Brothers Big Sisters Program, where she created a lasting and beautiful relationship with Chloe Wright. Additionally, she ran the children’s ministry at Bay Shore Community Church for many years, reflecting her commitment to nurturing and guiding the younger generation.
Obituary Notices
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Nancy was the glue that held her family together, teaching important life lessons and praising God in both good and bad times. Her hard work and dedication to her dreams were evident in everything she did. Nancy’s legacy of love, strength, and nurturing will forever be remembered and celebrated by her family and friends.
A viewing was set from 6-8 p.m., Wednesday, July 10, at Bay Shore Community Church, 36759 Millsboro Hwy., in Millsboro, Delaware. A celebration of Nancy’s life was set for 11 a.m., Thursday, July 11, at Bay Shore Community Church, with a viewing from 9:30-11a.m. Interment was set to follow in the Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Dagsboro, Delaware.
Online condolences may be sent to the family by visiting hsdfuneralhome.com. Arrangements are in the care of the Hannigan, Short, Disha-
roon Funeral Home in Laurel, Delaware.
Nancy, you will be deeply missed and forever cherished. Happy birthday in heaven. We will celebrate you always.
SAMUEL A. WATERS JR. Ocean Pines
Samuel A. Waters Jr. of Ocean Pines, passed away peacefully on June 27, 2024, at the age of 85. Sam was born on April 18, 1940, to Samuel A. Waters Sr. and Evelyn Hahn Waters in Chicago, Illinois. After graduating from Camden High School in 1957, he attended Rutgers University for two years until enlisting in the Army in 1961. He served three years in the Army before being recruited by the National Security Agency. During his 39-plus years with NSA he traveled all over the world supporting the mission of the agency. One week after retiring in March 2001, he went back to work as a contractor in the same office for another 5-plus years. He was blessed to love what he did for a living saying he never worked a day in his life. His loyalty and commitment were unwavering as he patriotically served our country.
Hespenthislastdaysdoingwhat He spent his last days doing what made him happiest. He lived life to the complete fullest and always with the biggest smile on his face, never room for half empty thoughts. During his last few moments, he was right where he belonged, walking along the side of the bay on the bridge, taking in his last sunset with peace. Life is too short to not realize another second could not be guaranteed. Granted all we can do is hope. His words we can no longer hear, but his wisdom and beauty reside in the aura at sunrise and sunset. The love for Danny will live on in so many lives whom he has touched. Danny, keep watching us from the lens of your soul. Keep us safe and keep those Big Fish Flying! Much love to you and you are so missed. Mom, Dad, J Jeen & Sam
S. Waters Jr.
In Loving Memory of
OBITUARIES
On April 8, 1961, he married the love of his life, Dorothy Robinson. They welcomed their oldest, Carl, in 1962, while Samual was deployed in Turkey. Three years later, their daughter Michele was born, then three years after that they welcomed Craig into the world.
Sam was a wonderful husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather. He was also a true and loyal friend to many. When he wasn’t traveling the world, he was a dedicated, caring father. Always there for his kids’ and grandkids’ activities and sports, sometimes as a coach but always as a proud father.
After his children grew up, he began participating in many activities. Running over eight marathons, golfing, and playing tennis and platform tennis. He was very involved in the Ocean Pines platform tennis group, making many lasting friends. He was an avid Washington Capitals fan as well as a fan of the Redskins and the Orioles.
Sam was predeceased by his parents, Samuel and Evelyn; and his brother, Carl.
He is survived by his loving wife of over 63 years, Dorothy; his son Carl (Heather) Waters; his daughter Michele Waters; his son Craig Waters; his four granddaughters, Danielle Akins, Courtney Shipp, Caitlyn Waters and Marley Waters; his step-grandsons Ryan and Dylan Caldwell; as well as five great-grandchildren.
In lieu of a service or memorial, my dad would want everyone to pay it forward, spread love and kindness. He wished to be remembered as a hardworking, loving father, loyal, unselfish friend, and respected colleague.
A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date to be announced. In lieu of flowers the family asks that memorial contributions be made to Coastal Hospice.
Arrangements are in the care of Eastern Shore Cremation and Funeral Service, 504 Franklin Ave. in Berlin.
To send condolences to the family, visit easternshorecremation.com.
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Sports & Recreation
YOGA FOR FOOTBALL PLAYERS OFFERED
During the summer months as well as during the season, weekly yoga sessions are available to Stephen Decatur High School’s football team. Yoga instructor Sarah Vargo Kellner of The Yoga Army works with on average about 50 players each week. During the season Kellner said she also trains the players when Coach Jake Coleman requests her availability. Kellner said the sessions have grown each year with the players listening and embracing the mobility and stretches associated with yoga, Players are pictured taking part in exercises during a recent session at the stadium.
Loring, who recently graduated from Stephen Decatur High School, was chosen to play on the Maryland Brooks Robinson baseball team at Camden Yards. Loring, a fouryear starter on the Seahawks baseball team, was chosen as the starting pitcher for the Maryland South All Star Team. Loring pitched two innings of no-hit baseball, helping the south team win the game, 8-4. Loring, pictured above with Orioles legend Al Bumbry, was named MVP pitcher for the game. Loring is spending this summer playing on the Ocean City Marlin Post #166 in the American Legion league.
Region brings many blessings for surf lovers
By Dave Dalkiewicz Contributing Writer
(July 12, 2024) With the recent passage of Fourth of July weekend, I thought it would be a good idea to reflect on the blessings and freedoms we enjoy as surfers and citizens of the United States.
Surfing has been described as a “fringe sport,” meaning that it can’t be done just anywhere. It’s certainly not mainstream, such as baseball, football, or basketball, and other
sports. In areas where waves break we have the freedom to participate just as we would in mainstream sports.
Here on the Delmarva Peninsula we are free to partake in surfing. In Ocean City, surfing can be done anywhere before 10 a.m. and after 5:30 p.m., as well as at all hours at selected beaches.
To the south, the Assateague Island State and National Parks are mostly wide open for surfing. Granted, fees have to be paid, but there are literally miles of beach open to surfing. This is a great example of the benefits that we enjoy in our country. There are even
showers, toilet facilities, and changing areas available.
As a small point to counter the above I’ve experienced some locales where a fee would have to be paid just to get on the beach, though once paid that freedom to surf would then be available. In reconsideration of this notion it could be regarded as similar to the fees that are necessary at and on Assateague Island Parks.
Getting back to this description of surfing as a “fringe sport,” I’ve heard surfers described as “fringe dwellers,” as in their activity would be conducted on the fringe of a land mass. This is
possible in the great lakes region, as well as up and down the East and West coasts, and the Gulf Coast of the continental USA. Let us also not forget the islands of Hawaii where surfing is really held in high regard. At any rate, let’s all be thankful that we live in a free country such as the USA, especially on its birthday. Sure there are differences of opinion and political unrest but all of us should be thankful for our blessings and to live in such freedom.
— Dave Dalkiewicz is the owner of Ocean Atlantic
Surf Shop in Ocean City
SUBMITTED PHOTOS/OC TODAY-DISPATCH ALL STAR MVP
Lukas
PHOTOS COURTESY OF SARAH KELLNER
FISH IN OC WITH SCOTT LENOX
PHOTOS COURTESY OF FISH IN OC
Captain Anthony Matarese of the Reel Chaos put this group on a beautiful 200-pound bigeye tuna, above left, among other catches. At right, this nice sheepshead ended up in the net of On the Run with Captain Dave Caffrey.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF FISH IN OC
Above left, this young man caught a nice rockfish on board Lucky Break Charters with Captain Jason Mumford. Above middle, this crew had an awesome day aboard the Pumpin’ Hard with Captain Mike Burt putting some nice yellowfin and a bigeye tuna in the box. Above right, Dennis caught his limit of flounder up to 6 pounds on board the Angler with Captain Chris Mizurak.
Below left, Captain Willie Zimmerman put this crew of the RoShamBo on four yellowfin tuna and a white marlin release. Below middle, Caspian Twilley caught flounder of 3 and 5.5 pounds on board the Fish Bound with Captain Kane Bounds. Below right, Captain Brian Porter of the Boss Hogg put this group on three yellowfin tuna and a couple of big mahi.
