ASSATEAGUE — Assateague State Park officials this week announced reduced price day-use area admission from Monday through Friday throughout the month of June.
Day-use admission at the Assateague State Park will be discounted to $2 for Maryland residents and $3 for out-of-state visitors on Monday-Friday throughout the month of June. The Maryland Park Service is encouraging visitors to take advantage of the weekday value and enjoy the great outdoors at Assateague State Park.
“In celebration of the beginning of summer and the school year coming to a close, visitors will receive a one-dollar discount off the regular day-use service charge during weekdays throughout June,” said Assateague State Park Manager Mike Riley. “Heading to the beach at Assateague is a great way to get the family outside for some fun, sun and sand now that summer is right around the corner.”
Maryland’s State Parks not only provide great outdoor recreation for Marylanders and visitors, they are also a great asset to state and local economies. In 2010, visitors directly spent more than $567 million locally — $25.56 locally for every dollar the state invests in State Parks — during their visits and almost 95 percent of visitors had their expectations met or exceeded during visits.
FOP Participates In Operation We Care Project
BERLIN — Members of the Ocean City Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 10 last Sunday joined numerous local volunteers in a “packing party” at the Powellville Volunteer Firehouse to prepare care packages to U.S. troops deployed overseas.
FOP members and volunteers gathered last Sunday at the Powellville Firehouse to assist with a local “Operation We Care” project. During the packing party, volunteers packed over 200 boxes that will be sent out to troops overseas in the near future. Operation We Care has been in existence since 2007 and has sent over 1,000 care packages to deployed U.S. troops.
Operation We Care holds two packing parties each year in May and November. The Ocean City FOP donated $600 for shipping costs as well as OC FOP T-shirts to send to the troops. Anyone interested in sending a care package to a deployed soldier should contact “Operation We Care” coordinator Jeff Merritt at 410-713-8940.
Black Sea Bass Season Open
OCEAN CITY — The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has released the 2011 black sea bass season and catch limits.
Starting this week until Oct. 11, anglers may possess up to 25 black sea bass, 12.5 inches or larger, per day. The season will reopen for two months from Nov. 1 until the end of the year.
“Maryland fisheries managers, biologists and anglers have worked conscientiously with our partner agencies to conserve and protect the black sea bass, and preserve this opportunity to catch one of our most popular species for Maryland’s coastal fishermen,” said Fisheries Service Director Tom O’Connell. “This is a good example of successful cooperative fisheries management.”
The black sea bass fishery is managed cooperatively by the Mid-Atlantic Fisheries Management Council (MAFMC) and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), which set overall conservation and harvest goals for fish populations that are shared between state and federal waters. Maryland fisheries managers, working with DNR’s Coastal Fisheries Advisory Committee (CFAC), were able to identify a preferred management strategy within the sustainable harvest limits established for the Atlantic coast. The CFAC is composed of representatives of local tackle stores, conservation organizations, sport fishing organizations and charter boat captains.
Blood Bank Marks 50 Years
SALISBURY — The Blood Bank of Delmarva next month will honor the Salisbury Lions Club for its pivotal role in founding the Blood Bank of the Eastern Shore half a century ago.
The 50th Anniversary recognition ceremony, which will include the placement of a bronze marker to commemorate the Blood Bank’s first president, Dr. I.M. Moulthroup, will be held on June 8 at 11 a.m. at the Blood Bank’s donor center on Mt. Hermon Rd.
“We want to congratulate those involved in the creation of the Blood Bank of the Eastern Shore,” said Roy Roper, President and CEO of Blood Bank of Delmarva. “Because of Dr. Moulthrop’s vision and the forward-thinking support of the Salisbury Lions Club, a plan among a handful of people has evolved into a highly-successful organization that has stabilized the blood supply on the Eastern Shore and saved countless lives.”
In May of 1961, Blood Bank of the Eastern Shore (BBES) was established due in large part to the efforts of the Salisbury Lions Club to ensure a more stable blood supply. BBES began as an organization that recruited members in Wicomico, Somerset, and Worcester counties to give blood at local hospitals.