All posts by admin

Patriot Point

Patriot Point Open House

It was a beautiful afternoon as 100 guests enjoyed Patriot Point’s Open House.
The day was designed to show off improvements that the Military Bowl Foundation has made since purchasing the property 2 ½ years ago. During that time, a new Barn with Caretaker’s Residence and Welcome Center have been constructed, while the Guest House exterior has been renovated and accessibility improvements have been made.

The visitors included State Delegate Christopher Adams, Maryland Department of Veterans Affairs Deputy Secretary Robert Finn and Melissa Kelly, Eastern Shore Director for Senator Chris Van Hollen.

Finn joined Military Bowl Foundation President & Executive Steve Beck and Patriot Point Founding Partner Stuart Plank in speaking to the crowd.

“What a great turnout and an awesome day,” Beck said. “It was wonderful to be able to share what we are doing at Patriot Point.”

Uncategorized

The Mission Continues

Patriot Point recently welcomed the 13-person Program Strategy Team from The Mission Continues, a national nonprofit that provides veterans with opportunities to connect and grow through community impact in under-resourced communities. The Program Strategy Team designs and evaluates the organization’s programs. This week’s retreat focused on the organization’s future growth and plans.

“This was the perfect space for us to have a true team retreat- something we’ve never done before,” said Mary Beth Bruggeman, vice president, program strategy. “We were able to connect to each other in such an authentic way, have fun, and get a ton of work done over the few days that we were there.”

“We spent time talking about some difficult topics on our team — things that could’ve been uncomfortable. But honestly, when you’re looking at the water and seeing an eagle fly overhead, even those conversations become easy and comfortable.”

Bruggeman said that she and her team members were very relaxed and that the retreat enabled The Mission Continues team to come together and set their goals for the next year. The group enjoyed Patriot Point’s beauty and hospitality and team members had a great time crabbing.

“I hope we’ll be able to come back in the near future,” Bruggeman said. “Our team has already said they’d like this to be an annual thing for us, and I couldn’t agree more.”

Military Warriors Support Foundation

Dawsons and the Enfingers

Military Warriors Support Foundation brought two Gold Star Families to Patriot Point this past week, the Dawsons and the Enfingers.

While the weather was rainy, the two mothers and six boys were able to enjoy some Eastern Shore hospitality, including some time on the beach and plenty of crabbing. On one morning, the group hauled in a bushel of crabs that Patriot Point property manager Tim Mitchell steamed for a dinner on the Main House’s lovely screened porch.

The boys also fished from the dock and went on the water, pulling in five striped bass.

“Thank you for a relaxing weekend. God bless you and your family,” Jennifer Enfinger wrote in our guest book.

From the Dawsons: “Thank you for an amazing time! We felt right at home from the time we arrived until the time we left. I wish I could tell you my favorite thing, but we enjoyed everything. This may have been the most relaxing days I’ve ever had on a trip. Can’t thank you enough.”

Military Warriors Support Foundation

Sgt. Reid Erickson US Army Retired

Here is a first person account from Sgt Reid Erickson, U.S. Army retired, who recently was part of a Military Warriors Support Foundation visit to Patriot Point

As my family and I rolled into Patriot Point we were greeted by Tim who is the property manager and operator. He was full of smiles, as was my family. He showed us around the property and to the Guest House where we would be staying. The Guest House has six bedrooms and five bathrooms; each room has either two queen or full size beds. Plenty of room for all five of us and my service dog Melton. As we settled in James, Laura and Shae pulled in ready for a week of fun and relaxation.

The next day we woke up to James cooking and Tim was ready for the boys to get out to the five-stand and shoot clays. The boys had a blast and did really well hitting their targets. Around 12:30 Tim, James, my boys and myself went out fishing looking for dinner.

Since Tim is a local with a wealth of knowledge it took us no time to put some fish in the boat. Tim knew all the spots for seabass and in four hours we must have caught 60 to 70 fish. We ended up keeping 10 of the big guys for dinner on Thursday.

After we got back we all met up for dinner on the first floor, where there are two bedrooms, a full-size kitchen with a table that seats 10 and a living room with TV and Xbox for the kids. James cooked up dinner and we all went to the beach to relax and watch the beautiful sunset.

The next day we woke up to James cooking breakfast — which was delicious! — and then took a small road trip (about 90 minutes) to Assateague Island. where the surf was big and wild horses walked around freely. It was an absolutely perfect day with new friends and our families. Everyone enjoyed the beach while collecting shells and riding the waves on boogie boards. I managed to lose my sunglasses when I was hit by a wave. Totally worth it lol!

When we got back to Patriot Point, the boys cruised around on the golf cart while everyone got ready for dinner. Now full and sun-soaked we jumped into the water again and watched another beautiful sunset fall on Patriot Point.

On our last day at Patriot Point all the boys woke up and went crabbing right off the shore. Blue crab was our target and once again Tim and his knowledge put us on the crab right away. It was the first time many of us have seen a hookless trout line used to catch crab and man did it work. Tim educated us on how to place the line and then run the line catching crab. There was a science to how to catch them without messing up the trout line and Tim was very patient with all of us as we learned how to get them in the boat. After about eight passes we has a full basket of crab for that evening’s seafood dinner. The day remained easy and relaxing as we cleaned, did laundry and got ready for the next day’s departure. The boys went out to the five-stand again with Tim to get some more trigger time in and the rest of us started to prepare the food for dinner. Pretty sure there was a nap somewhere in between.We walked dinner up to the main lodge where they have pool tables and all sorts of cool stuffed animals to look at. Don and Mamma Shipley came over for dinner and we all sat down to an amazing feast thanks to Tim and James. James made an amazing crawfish etouffee and Tim steamed up the crabs with precision. Everything was so delicious I needed to be rolled back to my bunk. It was a fitting way to end an amazing trip to Patriot Point.

Uncategorized

Kenny Hawthorne

Patriot Point welcomed U.S. Army veteran Kenny Hawthorne for a visit this past weekend. Hawthorne, who served in the Gulf War and is 100 percent disabled, was joined by one of his daughters and her friend.

“We had the time of our lives,” Hawthorne said. “Patriot Point is the best. It helped me with my war-related PTSD, as I was able to relax and focus on fishing and shooting.”

Led by Patriot Point property manager Tim Mitchell, the group caught 60 fish and enjoyed skeet shooting. They also took a trip to visit the Harriet Tubman Museum in Cambridge.

“We were so excited about fishing on the water,” Hawthorne said. “It is an experience that will stay for us forever. It was the first time shooting for the girls. They are still talking about skeet shooting and now have the respect of shooting a rifle.