LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth |
The Way I See It |
by Steve Elkins, Editor |
Welcome back! As this issue comes off the press it is officially Memorial Day Weekend and the summer of 1998 is underway. I had a little taste of what is to come last weekend when faces that I hadnt seen since last Labor Day began popping up all over town like summer wild flowers. Its always good to see old friends returning as well as the fresh young faces of those who will be the Rehoboth movers and shakers in the 21st century. Now if I could only put a name to all these new faces. Sometimes I think it would be so much easier if we would just all wear nametagsremember the ones we used to wear at summer camp, the ones made out of wood and gimp? I guess that in this case they would have to be made of rhinestones and black leather! Anyway, as our cover proclaims, "here comes the sun!" That doesnt mean that we promise a season without rain, but we do promise that it will be fun. Speaking of fun, if this is Memorial Day then the Fourth of July Weekend is just around the corner, and with it comes the first of the big beach fundraisers, LOVE98. In its fourth year, LOVE is a great dance event at the Rehoboth Convention Center that benefits AIDS organizations in four citiesRehoboth, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington. Its not too late to become a sponsor of LOVE98, so if youre interested, call or come by the CAMP Rehoboth office. This Memorial Day I will again be working with Police Chief Doyle to conduct sensitivity training for the Rehoboth summer police. Over the years Chief Doyle has worked hard to see that all people in Rehoboth are treated equally and fairly. Long before sexual orientation was added to the Delaware Hate Crimes legislation, Doyle was working to make this a safe and friendly place for us all. If you have any problems (except for traffic violationsI cant help you there!) give me a call. Just a reminder, while the police will be watching to see that we are all safe, they will also be watching for lawbreakers, so be careful and remember that while "sex on the beach" is a festive name for a drink, it will also get you time in the local jailhouse. Even worse, under the new "Megans Law," if youre arrested for public sex you will be registered as a sex offender and the information will be made available wherever you go. Amid the festivities and celebration of a holiday weekend its easy to party a little too much, so be careful and plan to walkits good for you, and besides you wont have to fight the traffic or look for one of the coveted parking places downtown. Enough of warnings, like our new CAMPsafe motto, "have fun, play smart, CAMPsafe." A moment ago, Sue Phillips stuck her head in the office to ask us if we had noticed that there was a house in the middle of Baltimore Avenue. Not liking to miss anything that happens on Baltimore Avenue, we dutifully trekked out to the sidewalk to take a look. From our vantage point there was something so jarringly familiar about it I expected with great certainty to see striped stockings and ruby slippers poking out from underneath. What better place could we find to be "over the rainbow" than on Baltimore Avenueand its most definitely not Kansas, or even the rest of Sussex County for that matter! As we head into what we all hope will be a fabulous summer season, there are just a few more things to keep in mind. To have your beach house listed in Beach Book 98, we need your name by Sunday, May 31. Look for Tom Minnuto with forms on the beach or use the one in this issue. And dont forget the Washington Gay Mens Chorus concert to benefit SCAC at the Rehoboth Convention Center, June 27, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 and may be purchased at SCAC, CAMP Rehoboth or Lambda Rising. |
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 8, No. 5, May 22, 1998. |