On Sunday, March 20^th the Ocean City Community Association in cooperation with the City’s Environmental Commission and New Jersey Clean Communities held volunteer clean-ups at the Crook Horn Creek Nature Area and the Stainton Wildlife Refuge. Refreshments were available and donuts were provided by Ward’s Bakery. Thirty eight volunteers picked up approximately thirty bags of trash and recyclables and filled three pick-up trucks with debris from inside the wetlands. Among those participating in the clean-ups were seven High School students who put in hours toward their service commitment, Girl Scout troops Number 42548 and 42422, parents who brought their children, residents from all parts of Ocean City and several off the island volunteers.

All the people involved in this endeavor deserve a thank-you from the citizens of Ocean City for a job well done and one sorely needed to protect and preserve our nature areas as well as sustaining the wildlife living among us. Also thanks to the City’s Public Works department who supplied the various tools needed and also picked up the trash on Monday morning.

These clean-ups, held on a chilly Sunday afternoon, not only made an environmental difference, but also provided education about the fragile eco-system found in the island’s wetlands and preserves. All too frequently we forget that theses places need our respect and commitment. A clean-up that unites neighbors and reminds us all that careless littering should not be tolerated is a worthy event. The hope is that more people will get involved in the task, whether it is a beach sweep, bay clean-up or in your own neighborhood. Ocean city is a much better place when we as a community take on stewardship of the island’s natural areas and dedicate ourselves to beautifying our surroundings.

Teresa Cogshall, Environmental Committee

OCCA wants to bring to our members attention two present fund raising programs vital to the future welfare of our community, which you might wish to contribute. 

Shore Memorial Hospital, in Somers Point, is the leading provider of emergency and major medical care for the Ocean City area with more than 7,500 inpatient and same day procedures performed annually.  They now require an expansion to house new medical technology and have embarked on a comprehensive facility expansion of a new Surgical Pavilion, along with a spacious atrium lobby, and a glass-enclosed pedestrian bridge to a new five-story, 1,000-car parking facility.  Please see their website for further information. https://www.shorememorialfoundation.org/shore-tomorrow.cfm

The Ocean City Community Center Association is an independent community service organization, dedicated to encouraging community-wide participation and philanthropy in order to enhance and expand enrichment opportunities in the Ocean City Community Center.  Please see their website for further information. http://ocnjcca.org/Home_Page.html

Please check out the attempt to save the historic Fourth Street Life-Saving Station website at www.fourthstreetlifesavingstation.org

      BIKE ADVOCACY and ROUTE INFORMATION and UPDATES: 
 Our Bicycle Advocacy Committee is striving to promote bicycle use and safety island-wide. Where there is consensus we seek action from the City. Where there is controversy our goal is to consider all the facts and elevate the debate above suspicion and fear.