The 3rd Annual Beef, Bonfires & Cigars to benefit Haven Ministries will be held on November 2, 2019, from 6 to 9 p.m.  Once again, the event will be held at the beautiful Wye River Conference Center, 600 Aspen Drive in Queenstown.  It is an evening filled with food tastings and from local restaurants including The Narrows, Harris Crab House, Fisherman’s Inn, Chesapeake Chef Services, Range & Reef, Capriotti’s, Smoke Rattle and Roll, Bridges and Chef/ Author Vicky Mullaney, to name a few.  Beverage samples will be provided from The Winery, Lyons Distillery, and will include a cash bar with signature drinks.  Live music from John Frase and Forrest Anderson (formally of Hot Tub Limo), a Live and Silent Auction, a Prize Wheel, cars from Maserati and Alpha Romeo, boats from Annapolis Boat Sales, cigars from Port of Call and lit fireplaces throughout the venue will enhance the evening.  Various vendors will have items for purchase to jump-start holiday shopping.  The host sponsor of this year’s event is PNC Bank.

Plan on spending the night at this stunning Four-Star Resort.  There are limited rooms available and reservations are being accepted directly at the Wye Conference Center.  You can also find a direct link to the hotel on the Haven Ministries web site under the Events tab.

Pictured left to right are Haven Ministries Executive Director Krista Pettit, with supporters Mia Cranford and Robert Gazic.

Haven Ministries Business Partners include Diamond Level Sponsors: Island Furniture Studio, Increte, and BAAR. Sapphire Level Sponsors: The Bay Times, The Wye River Conference Center, What’s Up Media, and PNC Bank. Platinum Level Sponsors: Construction Services and Supply, The Roof Center, Safe at Home Senior Care, and Prospect Bay Country Club. Gold Level Sponsors: Harris Crab House, Riley Custom Homes, Swan Cove Salon, The Narrows, Waterman Realty, Homeland Title & Escrow, Hemingway’s Restaurant, Rang & Reef, and The Shore Update. Silver Level Sponsors: Chesapeake Hearing Center, Holiday Inn Express, Island Dental Studio, Lundberg Builders, Island Flooring, McCrone, Realty Navigator, Shore United Bank, US Healthcare, Rotary Kent Island, Serr.Biz, LLC, Rodan & Fields (Ann Allen), and Shore Sign. Bronze Level Sponsors: Chesapeake Chef Services, Blue Heron Catering, Chesa Del Crier, Capriotti’s (Chester), Joseph W. McCartin Insurance, Computer Island, Island Athletic, Island Athletic, Legal Shield, Maid Healthy, Rodan & Fields (Debi Ensor), Cari Healy Hair, Linda Prochaska, Bob Gosselin Photography, Bella Rosa Medi Spa, Visiting Angels, Barbara Martin, KI Minuteman Press, Kentmorr Restaurant, First Home Mortgage, and The Winery.

Proceeds from the “Beef, Bonfires and Cigars” event will support Haven Ministries Housing Assistance Program. Haven Ministries, with the support of its executive board, church coalition, staff, business owners, community agencies, and dedicated volunteers, is currently planning a long-term housing program to be located in the Kent Island area.  This long-term program will be funded by private donations made directly to Haven Ministries and enable the organization to offer year-round services in a consistent stable environment for those experiencing housing insecurities. The program, structured similar to that of a landlord-tenant relationship, will include a process for individuals and families to apply for the program, pass a background check, and agree to work with a case manager to transition into permanent housing. The goal of the Housing Assistance Program is to offer comprehensive resources including education, job training, and employment opportunities to give individuals and families the opportunity to stabilize, build up their resources, and successfully move on to safe and affordable housing.

Tickets to the “Beef, Bonfires and Cigars” cost $60 per person and are available online at haven-ministries.org (https://whatsuptix.com/events/Beef-Bonfires-and-Cigars-11–2-2019). For further information, call 410-739-4363.

Love shapes the ministry, love transforms people, and hope prevails at Haven Ministries.  Haven Ministries operates a seasonal Homeless Shelter located at the Kent Island United Methodist Church in Stevensville, a Resource Center at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Centreville, the Haven Ministries Food Pantries at Safe Harbor Presbyterian Church in Stevensville and Centreville United Methodist Church in Centreville, Our Daily Thread Thrift Store in Stevensville and Hope Warehouse in Queenstown.

This year, Talbot County Government is honoring 41 employees with awards for years of service. The ceremony was held in the Talbot County Free Library and included the Talbot County Council, County department heads, family and friends.

Corey Pack, President of the Talbot County Council commented, “We want to thank all of the County Employees for their dedicated and tireless service to the citizens of Talbot County.  Opportunities are too few and far between to acknowledge your efforts and hard work.  We are so pleased to be able to have you step up and be recognized today. To put it simply we applaud you and your service.”

The following employees were honored:

5-Year Service Awards: Back row, L-R: Warren Edwards, Dave Tyler, and Corey Willey. Front row, L-R: Kelly Stacey, Georgia Mens, Terri Johnson and Mary LeCompte.

5 Years of Service: Kari Jo Diefenderfer – Emergency Services; Christopher Divilio – Facilities Maintenance; Ryan Ebling – Public Works; Warren Edwards – Roads; Joseph Gamble – Sheriff; Terri Johnson – Sheriff’s Office; Robert Jones – Emergency Services; Justin Leary – Emergency Medical Services; Mary LeCompte – Administrative Services; Georgia Mens – Dept. of Corrections; Robert Musterman – Sheriff’s Office; Kelly Stacey – Family Drug Court; Dave Tyler – Emergency Services; and Corey Willey – Sheriff’s Office.

10 Years of Service: Harold Adams – Public Works; David Purnell – Public Works; and Owen Sutherland – Golf Course.

15-Year Service Awards: L-R: Martin Sokolich, Danielle Diefenderfer, and Grace Davis.

15 Years of Service: Grace Davis – Permits & Inspections; Danielle Diefenderfer – Emergency Services; Brian Harris – Parks & Recreation; Robert Messix – Emergency Medical Services; Martin Sokolich – Planning & Zoning; and Mark Stevens – Parks & Recreation.

20-Year Service Awards: L-R: Jessica Morris, Christine Corkell, and Bill Thomas.

20 Years of Service: Christine Corkell – Planning & Zoning; Wylie Gray – Emergency Medical Services; Andrew Hollis – County Manager; Kelly Jones – Emergency Medical Services; Judy Micheliche – Emergency Medical Services; Jessica Morris – County Manager’s Office; and Bill Thomas – Emergency Medical Services.

25-Year Service Awards: Brian Moore and Richard Bobitka.

25 Years of Service: Richard Bobitka – Emergency Medical Services; Larry Fike – Emergency Medical Services; Brian Moore – Facilities Maintenance; and Donald Sherwood – Golf Course.

30-Year Service Awards: Back row, L-R: Henry Dove, John Bechtel, Michael Dulin, and Michael Potter. Front row, L-R: Kathryn Baker and Lesley Jo Buchanan.

30 Years of Service: Kathryn Baker – Finance Office; John Bechtel – Roads; Lesley Jo Buchanan- Sheriff’s Office; Henry Dove – State’s Attorney; Michael Dulin – Roads; and Michael Potter – Roads.

L-R: Robert Messix (15 Years), Lois MacDonald (35 Years), and Larry Fike (25 Years).

35 Years of Service: Lois MacDonald – Roads.

Talbot Community Connections recently honored longtime board member William Banks for his 17 years of service on the board. Banks, who is now an Emeritus Board Member, was involved with the years of the Board.  He was presented with a proclamation from the Maryland Senate.

“Bill Banks has been such a positive energy on our board. We wanted to honor him as an Emeritus Board Member as he played such a vital role in helping to establish our Children’s Advocacy Center and building awareness about our organization in the community,” notes Amy Steward, President, Talbot Community Connections.

L-R: Talbot Community Connections Board Members Amy Steward, President, William Banks, Emeritus Board Member, and Ruth Sullivan, Vice President.

Talbot Community Connections (TCC), an eleven-member volunteer board, was formed to raise funds to enhance the Talbot County Department of Social Services’ (TCDSS) capacity to respond directly to problems of safety and well-being of county citizens. The funds raised provide help to abused children through the Talbot County Children’s Advocacy Center (TCCAC), families in crisis, the unemployed and working poor, and disabled and frail elderly. TCC awards provided funds for respite care, prevention of evictions and utility disconnects, therapeutic activities for children with disabilities in foster care, housing fuel, transportation, and a fatherhood program. TCC funds are able to help individuals stay in the community, families stay united and families stay in their homes. In 2018, TCC donated $29,400 to support the Talbot County Department of Social Services and the Talbot County Children’s Advocacy Center.

For further information or to donate to Talbot Community Connections, visit talbotcommunityconnections.org.

On Friday, October 25, 2019, from 7 to 9 a.m., Easton’s 37th Annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast will be held at the Tidewater Inn in Easton.  This year’s breakfast will feature Frederick E. Spence, Jr., Executive Vice President and Senior Loan Officer with Provident State Bank, and Tori Brummell, Customer Service Representative, Easton Utilities. Music will be provided by Allegro Academy’s Women’s Chorus.

Frederick E. Spence, Jr., Founder, Food for Learning

Spence is currently an Executive Vice President and Senior Loan Officer with Provident State Bank.  Prior to that, he served in a number of capacities with Nations Bank and its predecessor, Maryland National Bank.  He has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Marketing from the Baltimore College of Commerce, now the University of Baltimore and is a graduate of the Shore Leadership Class of 2007.

He has served as Past President of a number of organizations, including the Denton Jaycees, Channel Marker Foundation, the Memorial Hospital Association, the United Way of Caroline County, the Denton Little League, and the Caroline County Chamber of Commerce. He also served as a board member of the Blood Bank of the Eastern Shore and the Chesapeake College Foundation. He previously was a Board of Trustees member and Investment Chairperson of the St. Luke’s United Methodist Church. Presently, he serves on the Board of the Federalsburg Economic Development Corporation and the Denton Development Corporation. His rewards have included Caroline County Chamber of Commerce Businessman of the Year (2012), Maryland Modified Softball Hall of Fame (2005), and The Mid-Shore Board of Realtors Affiliate of the Year (2017), and Caroline County Chamber Champion Hall of Fame (2019).

Spence will share how his battle to overcome prostate cancer led him to talk with men’s civic and religious groups to discuss the facts and fiction of prostate cancer, his faith and the importance of friends. Spence’s goal is to share “the difference God makes in our lives if we have faith and trust in him.” Since then, Spence organized “Food for Learning,” an organization which helps to feed 500 school children on weekends in Caroline County who are experiencing food insecurity.”

Tori Brummell, Founder, Mid-Shore Fresh Start Program Inc.

Tori Brummell is a native of Talbot County and currently has been a Customer Service Representative at Easton Utilities for 15 years. She graduated from Easton High School in 1983 and went on to further her studies in business and counseling at Chesapeake Bible College and Kee Business College. She is the mother of her late son, Korzon Brooks, who passed away in 1997 at the age of 14, and a daughter, Jhyana Brummell, who graduated from Morgan State University in 2017.

After over 30 years of drug addiction, Tori obtained sobriety in 1999. She utilized her faith and love for God to obtain a drug-free lifestyle along with the help of AA and NA programs.   She later moved on to become an ordained Evangelist in November of 2007. In March of 2008, Tori founded the Mid-Shore Fresh Start Program Inc.  It was a transitional house for males who struggle with Drug Addiction and Alcohol Abuse.  The Fresh Start Program provided shelter, recovery, guidance, counsel, and support for residents looking to obtain sobriety and independence.  The program, which closed in 2019, helped numbers of recovering addicts to transition back into the community as productive members of society.

Brummell loves God, and her heart’s desire is “To give hope to the hopeless.”  Her favorite scripture is Philippians 4:13 which says, “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.”

Tickets to the 2018 Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast may be purchased at the Easton Town Office and the Talbot County Chamber of Commerce beginning October 1.  The cost is $12 a person and seating is limited. No tickets will be sold at the door. Tickets must be purchased ahead of time. For further information, contact Kathy Ruf at 410-822-2525.

Pictured are Talbot County foster and adoptive parents who attended a recent regional crab feast at Horn Point in Cambridge. Back row, from left to right are Norwood Caldwell, Sandra Caldwell, Audrey Hansen, Chrissy Montague, Dandy Scharf, Sami Scharf, Jeanne Scharf, Linda Webb, Director of Talbot County Department of Social Services, and Cody Campbell. Pictured front row, left to right, are Glenda Dawson, Orlando Scharf, Santos Scharf, Daisy Scharf, Karen Haley, Leslie Scharf, Connor Skinner, Becky Skinner, and Zak Coulborne.

The Mid Shore Departments of Social Services recently sponsored a crab feast at Horn Point in Cambridge for foster and adoptive parents on the Mid Shore. For further information on becoming a foster or adoptive parent, call the Talbot County Department of Social Services at 410-820-7371.

Talbot County Council President Corey Pack acted as Master of Ceremonies for the Ceremony to Commemorate the Events of 9/11.

To commemorate those who served and the lives lost on 9/11, Talbot County Government and the Town of Easton hosted its 6^th annual ceremony on Wednesday, September 11, 2019, at 8:30 a.m. at the corner of West Street/Dover Street in Easton.   Representatives of law enforcement, local clergy and the community at large took part in the program.

After the Easton Middle School Advanced Band and Easton High School Band played a prelude, Corey Pack, Talbot County Council President and Master of Ceremonies, welcomed guests by drawing similarities between the 9/11 attacks and the attacks on Pearl Harbor saying, “Sixty years prior to September 11, 2001 this nation came under attack, not by terrorists at the controls of commercial airplanes, but by the trained pilots of the Japanese military. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, then U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt addressed an anxious Congress and a shocked nation and said that the attack was ‘a date which will live in infamy.’ President Roosevelt was deliberate in his remarks, to clearly note that the date, rather than the day, would have its significance in American history. (how many of you remember that date?). Just like the date December 7, 1941, was burnt into the minds of those Americans who bore witness to the horrors of that day, the brutal and senseless attacks on September 11, 2001 are no less infamous to this generation.”

Mayor Robert Willey added, “I am so pleased to see so many young people here today. They will play a large part in the future of our country.”

The Presentation of Flags was provided by the representatives of the Easton Police Department, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance led by Mayor Randy Esty of the Town of Queen Anne, and the “Star-Spangled Banner,” sung by St. Michaels Middle High School student Tori Gomez.

Following the Invocation, which was given by The Reverend Roland C. Brown of Union Baptist Church in Easton, there was a moment of silence and tolling of bells to mark the moment the Tower One of the World Trade Center was struck, as well as an acknowledgment of those who placed their lives in peril for the service of others that day.

Gene Feher, a U.S. Army Vietnam veteran, gave keynote remarks about where he was on 9/11 as a member of an Emergency Medical Services crew in Connecticut. He stated, “We were never dispatched as there was no one to save. I saw the best in us . . . It all came out of the ashes of that horrific day.” He added, “I feel that we as Americans should remember how we felt on 9/11 – pause and remember those innocent lives. To honor their memory is to act as their American family.”

The program ended with a duet by Sts. Peter and Paul’s students Blair Hudson and Katie Fitzgerald, a bagpipe version of “Amazing Grace,” by Sean Guschke of the St. Michaels Fire Department, and additional music by the Easton Middle School Advanced Band and Easton High School Band.

On Saturday, September 21, 2019, Easton Airport will host its 11^th Airport Day annual event offering the whole family an up-close opportunity to visit their local airport and see what flying is all about. The excitement begins on Friday when aircraft begin to arrive for the Saturday event and flights will continue after the event till Sunday evening.

Easton Airport Day 2019 opening ceremony begins at 10 a.m. and launches a whole new venue beginning with a presentation by the VFW honor guard. This year we focus on inspiring young people to explore aviation career options. Visit the tent and learn about the airport’s newly launched Aviation Career Education (ACE) program.  Professional pilots, Aviation Colleges and Military Recruiters will be onsite.  Activities continue with some rare Warbirds flying the pattern, two Warbird Formation Flyovers, the World-Famous Rubber Chicken Drop contest, plane rides, and introductory lessons.

Displays of unique aircraft and classic cars will be available, and Massey Air Museum will be offering F-104 fighter jet ride photos where you, your kids or grandkids get to sit in an F-104 fighter jet and have a photo taken.

Local vendors including profit and non-profit will display their goods and promote their companies or organizations.

There is no general admission fee ­­­and parking is free for the entire day.  Please arrive early to allow for parking. Food and beverages will be available for purchase from Easton Ruritan Club, Sugar Buns, and the Trappe Volunteer Fire Company.

Easton Airport Day is a component fund of the Mid-Shore Community Foundation. Proceeds from the sponsors support the cost of the event, with remaining monies being donated to good works in the community. For more information about Easton Airport Day, become a sponsor, or donate, visit www.eastonairportday.com or https://www.facebook.com/EastonAirport. EASTON AIRPORT DAY COMMITTEE Telephone:  (410) 310-6088 (Cheryl Phillips) or (410)-770-8055 (Micah Risher).

There have been certain times in history when events have unfolded both within our country and around the world which have left indelible memories for all of us. Most of us can recall what unfolded on September 11, 2001 and can give a minute by minute account of where we were and what we were doing that day. New members of the Talbot County Council, Pete Lesher and Frank Divilio, wanted to share their remembrances of September 11, 2001, as we prepare to observe the commemorative ceremony this year.

Pete Lesher recalls, “I was running a few minutes late to an all-staff meeting at Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum at 9:00 on September 11, 2001. I thought I caught a brief mention on the radio about an aircraft hitting the World Trade Center just moments before I turned off the car and ran into the meeting. Distracted by the business of the moment, the radio report did not register with me until later.”  He adds, “As the meeting was wrapping up, someone else received word of two airplanes striking the World Trade Center and speculation that it could be the work of terrorists. Stunned, a group of us retreated to a colleague’s nearby apartment for access to a television. By the time we tuned in, the South Tower had already collapsed, another aircraft had struck the Pentagon, and the North Tower fell just as we started watching. Reports and pictures of the fire at the Pentagon and later of the crash near Shanksville, Pennsylvania followed. We watched and talked as the pieces were coming together—the timing of multiple hijackings, followed by crashes must have been the work of terrorists. It would take hours, days, and weeks to put the full story together—that it was the work of a group called Al Qaida, the identities and origins of the perpetrators, that they had used common box cutters, which had not been stopped by airport security, and that the fourth flight had possibly targeted the Capitol, but was thwarted by the passengers.”

“We sensed that this was a transformative moment for America and our generation, but we did not yet understand the implications, except that America would no longer feel insulated from terrorism, which previously—domestic terrorists at Oklahoma City excepted—had largely taken place overseas. In the following days, I phoned a college friend whose office was in Tower Two. Thankfully, he answered the phone, not his wife. He had watched from his apartment in Jersey City as the plane struck his building, and he felt the heat from the fireball clear across the Hudson. More stories filtered in. One of our fellow log canoe sailors was spared because he left his office at Cantor Fitzgerald to go across the street for a cup of coffee. My Talbot County cousin was widowed when her husband didn’t make it out from his new job at the investment bank of Keefe, Bruyette & Woods; he left behind two daughters—an infant and a toddler. It seemed everyone I knew was connected to someone who was directly touched,” he reflects.

Talbot County Councilman Pete Lesher and Talbot County Councilman Frank Divilio

Lesher concludes, “Locally, we attended vigils and special services, one at St. Luke’s in St. Michaels, and we struggled to comprehend the magnitude of the loss. But it would take years for all of the consequences, the ways it changed us and American society, to fully unfold.”

Council Member Frank Divilio, who was in college at the time, comments, “I was in the packed Commons at Salisbury University, with every television tuned to the news. Everyone was silent for what seemed like an eternity. My first thought was of my father who traveled extensively at the time. He emailed me that he was safe. Then I looked to a few of my closest friends, who were attending college after having served in the Armed Forces. I felt helpless.”

He reflects, “I’m proud of how America stepped up to the plate and showed the world that we can rebuild, unify under the worst conditions, and move forward without ever forgetting. At the end of the day, I feel proud of our country. To this day, before every meeting, I get goosebumps when we say the Pledge of Allegiance, looking at our flag with pride.”

To commemorate those who served and the lives lost on 9/11, Talbot County Government and the Town of Easton will host a ceremony on Wednesday, September 11, 2019, at 8:30 a.m. at the corner of West Street/Dover Street in Easton.   Representatives of law enforcement, local clergy and the community at large will take part in the program. Music will be provided by the Easton Middle School Advanced Band and Easton High School Band. There will be a moment of silence and tolling of bells to mark the moment the Tower One fell, as well as an acknowledgment of those who placed their lives in peril for the service of others that day.

In the event of inclement weather, the ceremony will be held in the Meeting Room, Talbot County Free Library—Easton. For further information, contact Susan Moran, Talbot County Government at 410-770-8010.