The arrival of August seems to catch me by surprise every year; once again I find myself astounded that we are already counting down the last weeks of summer 2013. For all of us here at CAMP Rehoboth those weeks will be especially exciting ones as we also countdown to Sundance, our biggest event of the year. This year’s Sundance 2013: Rainbow XXVI—Circus of the Summer Sun, will again take place at the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center on the Saturday and Sunday of Labor Day weekend. Thanks to the support from our first time Presenting Sponsor BNY Mellon Wealth Management; our Gold Sponsors Ketel One Vodka, Horst Boehlendorf, The Sea Bova Associates, CIO Federal IT-Anthony Clayton, Move2Rehoboth.com-Karen Gustafson, Sign*A*Rama, Outlet Liquors, and Gayla Inc; and all our many other Sponsors, Supporters, and Hosts, we are planning a three-ring, under-the-big-top, spectacular end to the summer season. Don’t miss it! Tickets are available now on the CAMP Rehoboth website, or by calling the CAMP Rehoboth office.
For Delawareans, the defining issues of summer 2013 will always be the beginning of same-sex marriages here, and the Supreme Court’s ruling on Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act, which cleared the way for our Delaware marriages to really deliver true equality. I know I’ve written much about it this summer, but I still marvel at the success we have had here in our small state of Delaware. A few days ago, Sussex County Clerk of the Peace John Brady called to share some stats with me: since July 1, 119 Civil Unions have converted to marriage, and there have been 135 same-sex marriages in this county. Of those, 76 were women and 59 men. At the same time there were 127 opposite sex marriages. Of the total marriages, John performed 51, and his deputies performed 100.
Summer 2013 has had a few surprises beyond gay marriage—good and bad. In Russia, Vladimir Putin’s severe anti-gay laws have sparked outrage around the world, and triggered a boycott of Russian products, especially Stolichnaya Vodka. After the fiasco with Chick-fil-A, I’m not sure how effective boycotts are, but perhaps we don’t have to worry in this case that conservative Christians will flock to the liquor store to purchase vodka with the same fervor reserved for Southern fried chicken sandwiches. On the other hand, Pope Francis’ welcome of gay people was as unexpected as it was groundbreaking. “If a person is gay and seeks the Lord and has good will,” he said, ”who am I to judge that person.” Hallelujah and pass the Ketel One please!
Though the weather was threatening rain, and even spit on us a little, the 2013 CAMP Rehoboth Bachelor Auction at Aqua Grill was a big success, and raised more than $12,000 to support the work of CAMP Rehoboth. A big shout of thanks to Aqua owner Bill Shields and his staff for making the event possible, to auctioneer Lorne Crawford for exciting the crowd and raising the bids, and to Bachelor Auction chair Chris Beagle and his dedicated team of volunteers for making it all work. Though I’ve already thanked them in this column, I have to say thanks one more time to producers Bruce Pfeufer and Jeffery Kiley for the success of Abbamania. It was a terrifically fun evening that had the crowd dancing in the aisles, and in their seats, and pretty much anywhere they could find the room.
The fourth annual Sundance 5k race (now the sundance land and sea), will take place Sunday, August 25, the weekend before Labor Day. This year the event has been expanded to include a biathlon (½ mile swim, 5k run), so now participants can walk, run, or swim, or run and swim. Costumes are still encouraged, of course, because this is after all a CAMP event. To register, go to the Seashore Striders website or contact the CAMP Rehoboth office.