Skipjacks: A fading Fleet The Answer is "Yes" A Compliant Free World Everthing Old is Cool Again How Caroline County Won the War

 

Skipjacks: A Fading Fleet

For information on skipjack sails visit www.skipjack.org .

The Chesapeake Bay skipjack fleet has recently been recognized as a national treasure in danger of extinction. The skipjack, Maryland 's official state boat (designated so in 1985), originated in the late 1800s on Maryland 's Eastern Shore and was developed specifically for oyster dredging on the Chesapeake Bay . In those days, the boats were smaller and were widely known as a two-sail bateau. With a streamlined V-shaped hull and simplified sails, they quickly replaced the bugeye (which was made of timber with a log hull) as the primary oystering boats on the Bay. While dredging, the speedy sailboat makes continuous passes over the oyster beds. This lunging action reminded watermen of leaping skipjack fish, and the name was adopted—variations of its name origin do exist, but this theory is the most popular.

The boats soon developed into the larger vessels we recognize today, which range from 25 to 50 feet in length—the largest working boats under sail in the country! The popular use of skipjacks continued until 1965, when a new law allowed the use of motor power (for dredging) in the Bay twice a week. Since then, commercial use of the boats has declined drastically. Of the approximately 2000 skipjacks built since the nineteenth century, only about 30 remain today—and all but four can be found in Maryland . In 2003, the 121-year-old skipjack Rebecca T. Ruark was designated as a national historical landmark. Today, she is docked at Dogwood Harbor in Tilghman Island (one of the few places where folks can see the remaining soldiers of this fading fleet) and sails passengers around the Bay 7 days a week.

 

How Caroline County Won the Second World War

A button-polishing machine is on display in front of the old Button Factory at 317 Carter Ave.

During the Great Depression, the town of Denton approached a Czechoslovakian button manufacturer, B. Schwanda & Sons, and offered to donate a parcel of land if the company would build a plant in Denton . The offer was accepted and in 1936, the Button Factory opened on Carter Avenue in South Denton . With forty to fifty full-time employees, the Button Factory was the town's largest year-round employer. Prior to the Second World War, buttons were made from oyster shells. Having stockpiled these shells in advance, the company was able to continue operations throughout WWII and, along with two other button manufacturing plants in Caroline County, provided over 2 billion buttons for use on soldiers' and nurses' uniforms. J.O.K. Walsh, President of the Caroline County Historical Society and Executive Director of Caroline Economic Development Corporation, cleverly points out that without those buttons, soldiers would have needed to use one hand to hold their pants up, leaving only one hand for shooting! If not for the dedicated employees of Caroline County 's button factories, the war might very well have had a different outcome.

In the late ?90s, B. Schwanda & Sons ceased operations at the Denton Button Factory and donated the land and the building back to the town. The building was renovated and today, houses several offices.

The Answer is “Yes”

Like a fine wine, a blending of just the right ingredients can deliver the result you most desire. Dan Stonehouse carefully planned his ingredients for weeks. He blended romance, the art of surprise, and a memorable setting to get to “yes.”

On April 28, during the annual St. Michaels Food and Wine Festival, Dan and his girlfriend of 5 years, Renae Barndt, climbed to the top of historic Hooper's Strait Lighthouse at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum . The picturesque setting on the water's edge was everything Dan had imagined. As if reaching for his camera, he lifted a diamond ring from his case, got down on his knees, and looking up at Renae, he asked, “Will you marry me?”

Surprised and elated, Renae responded with an enthusiastic “yes!” The proposal confirmed a rumor in a local publication that announced an unnamed man was planning to pop the question to his girlfriend during the festival. Dan showed Renae the article after she said “yes.” It brought tears to her eyes. “I'm a romantic,” he said. “I wanted to ask her on a special occasion we'd both remember. The food and wine festival was perfect.” Dan arranged for a lunch basket from a local venue, Gourmet by the Bay, and the couple had a leisurely picnic on the water's edge, away from the crowds, and enjoyed an unforgettable weekend.

At the time of print, the engaged couple, from Emmaus , Pennsylvania , hadn't set a wedding date. Will it be at a future Food and Wine Festival in St. Michaels? Stay tuned.

 

Everything Old Is Cool Again

August 17 is National Thrift Store Day, a prime day for you bargain hunters to get out there and rummage. Although fashions come and go, the mission of your neighborhood nonprofit shop remains unchanged: generating funds for worthy, local charity organizations. Thrift stores encouraged recycling before recycling was cool. Anybody who has items that are no longer needed can spare precious landfill space by donating them to a local thrift store. And shoppers benefit by getting deals on gently used clothing, housewares, books, and furniture.

A shining example of a local effort (that supports a great cause) is the Auxiliary of Dorchester General Hospital's Robin Hood Shop. The Cambridge thrift shop, which recently celebrated its 50 th birthday, has generated over $920,000 in donations for Dorchester General's programs and services over the years. Happy birthday, and kudos to the loyal volunteers, donors, and customers who have led to the shop's success!

A Complaint-Free World

To get your own complaint-free reminder bracelet visit www.unityeasternshore.net .

You are probably guilty of it too: A complaint here; some whining there; a sprinkle of sarcasm, criticism, or gossip to top it all off. Generating, unleashing, and spreading negative energy is certainly not good for any of us, yet it's a nasty habit we all seem to have adopted (and become quite comfortable with). Well, Unity Eastern Shore suggests that we snap out of it!

The church, an expansion ministry of the Association of Unity Churches in Lee Summit, Missouri, promotes a “Complaint-Free” movement that supports a “personal no-whine zone.” Because scientists believe that it takes 21 days to create new neuron pathways (form new habits) in our brain , the goal of the movement is to go that long without complaining—and thus to come out of the process with a brain trained with a fresh focus on life's positive qualities.

Unity Eastern Shore is offering free reminder bracelets to people interested in ditching their negative ways. “[It] is a powerful tool to remind you of how you are creating your life with positive intention,” explains the note that comes with the bracelet. There are rules: Whenever you find yourself feeding into your negative mindset, move your bracelet to the other wrist, and begin counting days again. If you hear a bracelet-wearing comrade complain, “You may point out their need to switch the bracelet to the other arm; but if you are going to do this, you must move your bracelet first !” When (and if) you complete your 21 negative-free days, you will receive a “Certificate of Happiness” from the church. Better yet, they promise that your life will be “happier…more positive and more abundant.”