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September 24, 2023

Talbot Spy

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The Waiting is Almost Over: New Queen Anne’s County YMCA Set to Open Doors October 9

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On October 9, 2023, the new Queen Anne’s County YMCA and Active Aging Center in Centreville will officially open to the public. A members-only soft opening of the new facility will be hosted on October 7th & 8th.

“They say nothing good ever comes easy, and a lot of folks have been working for this moment for nearly 15 years,” said Robbie Gill, YMCA of the Chesapeake CEO. “I’m so proud to be a part of a team of staff, volunteers, donors and community leaders that saw an opportunity to bring people together through the work of the Y and made this moment happen. This is truly a transformational moment for Queen Anne’s County.” 

Due to forecasted inclement weather, the opening was pushed back one week to allow for laying pavement on the parking lot and other outdoor spaces.
The new 70,000 square foot YMCA/Active Aging Center is located across Route 304 (Ruthsburg Road) from Queen Anne’s County High School and next to the new Queen Anne’s County Government complex. It includes a six-lane indoor pool, wellness center, full-size gymnasium, indoor gymnasium and six indoor pickleball courts, multi-purpose spaces for programs and group-exercise classes, Stay and Play, kitchen, Active Aging Center offices, and a Career Development / Resource Center. 

“We’re excited to partner with Queen Anne’s County as the facility will also serve as an Active Aging Center. This, combined with its central location near the high school and county services, creates unique and exciting programming opportunities to make a positive impact for years to come,” continued Gill. 

A community open house will be held on Saturday, October 14th, and an official ribbon cutting is scheduled for Wednesday, October 18th. 

The facility currently in use on Coursevall Drive will close on September 29th to facilitate the move to the new location. Members are encouraged to visit other YMCA of the Chesapeake branches during that week, which is a benefit of their Y Membership.  

The Queen Anne’s County Family YMCA and Active Aging Center is welcoming new members and will be open Mondays through Thursdays from 5:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., Fridays from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Saturdays from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and Sundays from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. More information, including membership rates and activity schedules, is available at www.ymcachesapeake.org or by calling 443-262-9994. As a not for profit 501(c)(3), the YMCA turns no one away due to the inability to pay providing financial assistance to any that substantiates a need. 

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Easton Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast to Be Held October 26

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On Thursday, October 26, 2023, from 7 to 9 a.m., Easton’s 40 Annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast will be held at the Tidewater Inn in Easton.  This year’s breakfast will feature Claudia Reyes, Occupational Therapist COTA, ACTS Bayleigh Chase, and Linda Brown, Culinary Arts Lead Teacher l, Talbot County Public Schools. Music will be provided by Katherine Tooley, Immanuel Lutheran Church in Easton.

Claudia Reyes was born in Guatemala City in Central America and immigrated to the United States at age seven. Having always walked the path of life by faith, she has trusted in God’s provision and faithfulness since personally knowing Christ as her personal Savior at the age of 15.  She devoted herself to a Christian youth ministry as a teenager and attended Mount Saint Mary’s University in Los Angeles, California. Married for 29 years with four children, she and her husband Eliud Reyes have had a passion for serving Hispanic youth ministries. The family moved to Maryland’s Eastern Shore and Claudia has currently been serving as a pastor’s wife at the First Hispanic Baptist Church in Easton. Since 2003, she and her husband have continued to help youth navigate through the most challenging times of their life by presenting the gospel of Jesus Christ and helping youth grow in their walk with Christ. She currently serves as the Volunteer Coordinator for extended young adult ministry at the Talbot County Detention Center and is involved in many outreach/community events across Talbot County to help bring cultures together.

Claudia shares, “God has called me to service HIM to the unprivileged and poor, through local and global mission trips, including New York, Mexico, El Salvador, and Indonesia. Through this spiritual work, I am reaching out to those in desperate spiritual need and making God known as the only Savior, healer, and waymaker in transforming lives.”

Linda Saathoff Brown, a lifetime active member of Immanuel Lutheran Church, serves the Lord in the church, family, and community.  Faithfully attending worship, studying the Word in Sunday School, confirmation and Bible classes, singing in the church choirs, engaging in church and community service outreach missions, and building fellowship are among the ways the family helped to build and support the church over these many years.  Throughout her career of 47 years of leading students on their educational journey with the Talbot County Public Schools, Linda impacts the lives of hundreds of students, living her faith in the everyday school setting. She also serves as a volunteer leader in the 4-H program and in many community and state organizations. Last fall, her active life was suddenly altered after a major life-threatening fall that left her likely paralyzed. Through the tragic injury, she received glimmers of hope, medical talent, and amazing grace, filled with the power of Prayer, the power of Faith,  the love of friends, and the relentless dedication and love of her family.

She shares, “From the waters of baptism as an infant, Jesus has been walking with me and I with Him. My statement of faith is as large and old as the Apostles and Nicene Creeds and as personal as Christ Jesus died for me. I confess Jesus as my Lord and Savior. Indeed, He is the author and finisher of my saving faith, a gift given to me by the Holy Spirit who called me out of darkness into His marvelous light.”

Tickets to the 2023 Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast may be purchased at the Easton Town Office and the Dairy Queen beginning October 1.  The cost is $20 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.

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Ashley Watkins and Veronica Tomanek to Offer Musical Journey at Trinity in Oxford on September 24

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Ashley Watkins

Two exceptionally gifted local musicians come together to share the music of America. Our original music: spirituals and jazz and the cultures from which they originate. You will recognize many of the spirituals that were arranged for flute and piano by William Grant Still, Marietta Simpson, Evelyn Simpson-Curenton, and Coleridge Taylor-Perkinson. Claude Bolling’s Suite for Flute and Jazz Piano is an exciting piece that brings joy and happiness to our souls through the interplay of classical and jazz elements.

A native of Cambridge, Maryland, Ashley Watkins began her musical journey at ten years of age playing in the fourth grade band. As she grew older, music began to be more purposeful and important in her life. She received an undergraduate degree in music performance (James Madison University) studying under Dr. Beth Chandler and a graduate degree in music performance (The University of Akron) under the tutelage of George Pope. In June 2023 Ashley received an Artist Diploma from The OAcademy, an international music school studying with premier musicians of our day.

Veronica Tomanek is a vocal coach and staff pianist with Salisbury University. She serves as the music director at St. Alban’s Episcopal Church (Salisbury) and is the founder and director of the newly formed choral group, Vox Concordia. Veronica frequently performs through the Mid-Atlantic and New England as a chamber musician, piano and organ soloist, choral director, and music director for musical theater productions. She has degrees and diplomas from the University of Connecticut, Boston University, and the Rouen Conservatory, Rouen, France.

A concert not to be missed!

Church of the Holy Trinity (Oxford)
Sunday, September 24, 2023 4 p.m.
A freewill donation will be taken to defray artists expenses.

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Sweet! Black Water Bakery is Expanding

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Black Water Bakery is launching plans to expand its restaurant space in downtown Cambridge. With newly installed window graphics announcing the news, construction is slated to begin this fall. Known for its friendly, welcoming feel, Black Water has been a downtown staple for coffee, locally sourced breakfast and lunch, and made-in-house baked goods since it opened its doors in 2017. 

The expansion will double the indoor seating area from about 40 to 80 and allow more space for Black Water’s pastry chef to create pastries, artisan breads, custom wedding cakes, and more. The main entrance and existing area will remain largely as they are now, but will open into a 2,200-square-foot space next door that can be used for general seating or private events.

“We’re thrilled that we’ll be able to accommodate more people,” said Jamie Summers, who owns the bakery with her husband Brett Summers. “Now we end up turning people away because we don’t have enough space.”  

With Christine Dayton Architects as the architect and Hill-Kimmel Contracting as the contractor, the expanded space should be ready to welcome customers by mid-2024, Jamie said. “We’ll still have the same eclectic, cool vibe where people love to gather and hang out,” she added.  One fun feature will be a refurbished, classic phone booth that once stood at the original High Spot, a much beloved eatery for generations located a few blocks from Black Water. 

The expansion project is being partially funded by a Project Restore grant through ​the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development. Project Restore is a program developed during the Hogan Administration to provide financial support to existing or new businesses to incentivize commercial investment in vacant retail and commercial properties. 

“We ask the community to be patient with us as we activate another vacant retail space in downtown Cambridge,” said Jamie, referring to the six buildings the couple has transformed with thoughtful, historically accurate restorations. “We’re continuing to improve Cambridge one space, one building at a time. As 23-year ‘locals,’ we’re very passionate about Cambridge. It’s such a great place.” 

Black Water Bakery is located at 429 Race St., Cambridge, MD. Find out more at black-water-bakery.com. 

 

 

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Washington Post Profiles Eastern Shore Artist Jason Patterson on State Flags

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The Washington Post this morning released an extensive profile of Eastern Shore artist Jason Patteson and his longtime interest in state flags and their confederate roots. Serving now as interim deputy director of Washington College’s Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience, Paterson critiques flags that still show the legacy of slavery, including the beloved Maryland flag.

Read the full story here (a paywall may exist for some readers):

 

 

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MDA Reminds Marylanders to Expect Increase in Low-Flying Planes Due to Cover Crop Planting

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The Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA) is reminding citizens in rural areas to expect an increase in low-flying airplanes or helicopters through Oct. 10, 2022 due to aerial seeding of small grains. Farmers enrolled in Maryland’s Cover Crop Program use this method of seeding in their fields to help protect water quality in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. 

“Maryland’s Cover Crop Program is our most popular conservation practice,” said Maryland Agriculture Secretary Joe Bartenfelder. “In the fall, participating farmers plant wheat, rye, and other small grains on newly harvested fields to recover any leftover nutrients from summer crops. This helps protect water quality in local waterways and the Chesapeake Bay while building and maintaining soil health. People living in rural Maryland should expect an increase in low-flying aircraft over the next several weeks while seeding occurs.”

Farmers enrolled in the Cover Crop Program may plant small grains and other qualifying species by incorporating seeds into newly harvested fields or aerially seeding them into standing corn, soybeans, or sorghum. Once established, cover crops work all winter long to provide a living, protective cover against erosion and nutrient runoff while building the soil’s organic matter for the next year’s crop. No pesticides or fertilizers are applied to cover crops. For aerial seeding, small planes will take off from local airports serving the county or region.

Maryland’s Cover Crop Program is funded by the Bay Restoration Fund and the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Trust Fund. The program is administered by MDA and the state’s 24 soil conservation districts through the Conservation Grants Program. For more information, please contact your local soil conservation district. 

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Community Children’s Chorus Now Enrolling 

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Allegro Children’s Chorus, a program of Allegro Academy located in downtown Easton, is now enrolling new members for its fall season. 

Singers ages eight and up are invited to join the chorus’ first session beginning September 13, 5:30-6:30pm.  Over the course of the five-week session students will learn melody, harmony, and musicianship through songs and activities and participate in exciting community performances with local artists.  The cost per session is $50 and need-based scholarships are available.

Allegro Academy is located at 114 N. Washington St. and is also home to a variety of choral groups and a vibrant private lesson program. 

For more information about the Allegro Children’s Chorus and other programs please visit allegroacademyeaston.com or call 410-603-8361. The mission of Allegro Academy is to offer exceptional music education and performance experiences to the greater Talbot County Area and to make these offerings affordable to all. Its programs are partially funded by generous contributions from the community, Talbot Arts, and the Maryland State Arts Council.

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5th Annual Day of Resilience Sculpture Dedication at Courthouse, Blessing Ceremony at Mural

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The Fifth Annual Day of Resilience on Sept. 9 will feature a procession down High Street to Long Wharf, followed by a ceremony at the Dorchester Courthouse where the Harriet Tubman Beacon of Hope sculpture will be formally dedicated to the Dorchester County Commissioners. The day’s events will continue in the afternoon the Harriet Tubman Take My Hand mural at Cannery Way.

“The fact that it has been five years since our first Day of Resilience is monumental,” said Adrian Holmes, director of Alpha Genesis Community Development Corporation. “It is a tradition that many people in the community look forward to every year.”

In preparation for the event, the public is invited to join Sculptor Wesley Wofford and his wife, Odyssey Wofford, at 9 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 4, for the first official cleaning of the Harriet Tubman sculpture. The Woffords will supervise the process and teach participants the proper way to clean the sculpture so that the community can take responsibility for it in the future.

The public also is invited to participate in the Day of Resilience commemoration and related events on Sept. 9:

Drum Processional and Waterside Libations, which will begin with Nana Malaya Rucker-Oparabea leading a walk at 10:30 a.m. from the Dorchester County Courthouse, continuing down historic High Street to Long Wharf Marina, where ships bearing enslaved persons once docked. Participants are asked to dress in white and meet at the Courthouse, 206 High Street, at 10:15 a.m.

Ceremony at noon at the Courthouse, which will include a decree from Alpha Genesis formally dedicating the sculpture to Dorchester County. The program also will honor Melving Foote and Jeannine Scott, from the Constituency for Africa, who have been involved with the Day of Resilience since the beginning by coordinating discussion forums and the attendance of African ambassadors each year.

Vendor Market at Cannery Way, with food, crafts and other items, will be set up from 12:15 p.m. – 8 p.m. There also will be music outside throughout the afternoon and inside the Art Bar 2.0 in the evening.

Blessing ceremony at the “Take My Hand” mural, which also is celebrating five years since its installation on the side of the Harriet Tubman Museum, 424 Race Street. The ceremony will take place at 2 p.m. and will include Lovie, who at age 3 was featured in the iconic photo showing her reaching out to take Harriet Tubman’s hand. The program also will include an overview of the public projects planned for the Cannery Way area and neighboring buildings.

Quilt display of approximately 100 handmade quilts at the Art Bar, 420B Race Street. with an evening wine and cheese reception for the Nubian Quilters.

On Sunday, Sept. 10, the Art Bar also will host a Gospel Brunch from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.

For more information about the schedule for the Day of Resilience and the weekend events and for tickets, visit the Alpha Genesis website at alphagenesiscdc.org/a-day-of-resilience-2023.

The Day of Resilience was first held in 2019 in Cambridge to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the Transatlantic Slave Trade. That event received gubernatorial, senatorial and congressional citations and received the Outstanding Heritage Project Award from the Heart of Chesapeake Country Heritage Area. The event has grown every year since then, and in 2020, the observance was highlighted by the unveiling of a traveling sculpture of Harriet Tubman.

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Put Your Mind to Work With These Classes at the Chesapeake Forum

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Would you like to build your game skills, polish your historical and literary bonafides, or learn more about climate change? There are many chances to sharpen your mind the week of September 12th with Chesapeake Forum.  

The week kicks off on Tuesday, September 12th with Buckets of Warm Spit, Vice Presidents during the Civil War.  Raymond Vergne, MD is back with a continuation of his popular look at the office of the vice presidency. The constitution sees the vice presidency as largely a ceremonial role.  What’s the reality? What did vice presidents do during the tumultuous period during the Civil War and Reconstruction?  Did they stay loyal to the President they served or serve their own interests? Find out in this surprising class.  Buckets of Warm Spit, Vice Presidents During the Civil War is three sessions, Tuesday, September 12th, 19th, and 26th from 10 – 11:30 AM.  HYBRID (in-person at the Easton Family YMCA, ZOOM or recording). $40.00

On Wednesday, join Bev Williams for The Great Gatsby, one of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s greatest novels depicting narrator Nick Carraway‘s interactions with mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby and Gatsby’s obsession to reunite with his former lover, Daisy Buchanan. Participants will mine the work for insights into our time and his using selected readings and class discussion.  The Great Gatsby is three sessions, September 13, 20 and 27 from 1-2:30 PM.  HYBRID (in-person at the Easton Family YMCA, ZOOM or recording). $40.00

Start Thursday morning, September 14th with Mahjongg and end it with a discussion about climate change.  Sharpen Your Mind with Mahlongg is a brand new eight-week course, starting September 14th and running through November 2nd.  Instruction is hands-on and class size is very limited.  At the end of the course, you’ll be able to hold your own with others in casual Mahjongg play.  Sharpen Your Mind with Mahlongg is eight weeks starting Thursday, September 14th – November 2nd from 9:30-11 AM.  In-person at the Easton Family YMCA.  $70.00

And finally, but certainly not last on anyone’s list, is climate change.  In Global Warming:  A Crisis Like No Other, Robert De Saro leads a lively discussion to define exactly what constitutes climate change and what steps can be taken to mitigate it. How are you responding to climate concerns? One day it’s hot, one day it’s raining buckets or worse – in many places, it’s not raining at all.  Global Warming:  A Crisis Like No Other is two session, Thursday September 14, and 21st from 1-2:30 PM.  HYBRID (in-person at the Easton Family YMCA, ZOOM or recording)

 

To register for any of these Chesapeake Forum classes, please visit https://chesapeakeforum.org.  

 

Chesapeake Forum is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing lifelong learning opportunities for residents of the Eastern Shore. To receive Chesapeake Forum’s newsletter, please send your contact information, including mailing address, to [email protected]

 

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Institute for Adult Learning (IAL) Fall 2023 Semester Registration is Open

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Although the first classes begin in early September, many classes have start dates in October, November and December.  With more than 40 class offerings and three day trips to choose from, individuals can sign up for as many classes as desired by becoming members of IAL at any time during the semester.  The membership cost is $90 per semester. 

Courses are in the areas of:  Brain, Body and Soul; History and Current Events; Culinary Arts; Local Environment and Science; and Literature, Arts and Crafts.  Courses range from one to six sessions and classes are held Monday through Friday between 10:30am and 4:30pm.  The location for most classes is the Kennard Cultural Center (410 Little Kidwell Ave) in Centreville.  The focus is on personal enrichment and fun.  IAL also offers monthly happy hour gatherings throughout the Mid-Shore area and has several day trips planned for this semester.

For details on course offerings, trips, and how to become an IAL member, please visit the IAL website:  InstituteforAdultLearning.org


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