Our Big Shop Local Delmarva Scholarship Winner!

I want to thank everyone who entered our first Shop Local Delmarva Scholarship Award. Reading what so many young adults have to say about our local businesses and how much they mean to the community was amazing. You are all winners and all of our local businesses on Delmarva greatly appreciate your support. We will have another Shop Local Delmarva Scholarship and we may even do this twice a year. This is a perfect way to have our future business owners, politicians, teachers, doctors, lawyers, plumbers, contractors, etc. share how important our local businesses are to our community. It is also great way to let our business owners know how they directly impact the lives of so many people they may or may not know they have touched. Reading Ryan's essay surely shows how many have influenced him already. And reading the many others I can tell you that local businesses make a huge difference to our community. But you already knew that!

I need to say Thank You once again to all the businesses you see listed that are part of our supporters, partners, and sponsors of Shop Local Delmarva. I also want to say a quick thank you again to the panel that voted for a winner. This really was difficult and it is always hard when there are so many wonderful and deserving people. So thank you again to Laurelei Swinehart, Joe Stonell, Angie James, Michelle Nelson, and Michael Alford for your help once again.

Enjoy reading Ryan Williams essay below. I added hyperlinks to all of the local businesses Ryan mentioned so you can check them out too.

David

Shop Local Delmarva

We often don’t realize the role that small businesses play in our lives. Big box stores and chain restaurants may be more convenient, but they lack the personal attention and caring that makes a community. We have so many great small businesses in our area and my family tries to support as many as we can. A few examples: the staff at Williams Market will personally help you pick the sweetest watermelon; the ladies at Uniforms Unlimited know my Dad by name; and Hebron Pizza is always ready with dinner when Mom’s too tired to cook. Supporting these small businesses is an important way to strengthen our community. In return, these businesses are help tie our community together and give back in ways that larger businesses just aren’t able to.

I have always loved sports, especially baseball. I’ve learned some of my most important life lessons and made many lifelong friendships on the baseball field. Without the support of small businesses, our local Little Leagues would not exist. There are too many to mention here, but you only need to take a quick look around the field fences to know who they are. I do have a few favorites from my time playing at West Salisbury Little League. First is Dr. Vickers at Seaside Smiles. She has always been one of our strongest supporters, from sponsoring our homerun board to throwing out the first pitch on Opening Day. It’s obvious that she cares as much about her community as she does her patients. After seeing her on the field, it made me more comfortable having her as my doctor and trusting her through my many years of braces. Another is The Deli at Pecan Square. I first met the Agha family when I played on the same team as their son Zane. The Deli was our team sponsor and throughout the season, they invited the players to join them for special treats at the restaurant. Since then, I have watched them continue to support WSLL as well as the entire community. Their creativity during COVID was impressive, selling grocery items to local residents and always taking care of their own employees. Dr. Vickers and the Agha family are great examples of small business owners who are truly invested in their community.

Over the years, I have had several injuries while participating in sports and other physical activities. My first was a broken collar bone in the second grade . . . from a fall while playing tag! Since then, I have had trouble with my back, a broken wrist, shoulder issues, elbow pain, and this summer, a bone bruise in my knee. Of course, I’ve become very familiar with the doctors and physician assistants at Peninsula Orthopedic Associates but there are other local businesses who have helped me recover from my different injuries. My favorite experience has been at The Athlete Academy. Most people think it’s just a gym but it’s so much more. The Athlete Academy is actually a performance training center. The program specializes in sports specific training, injury prevention and recovery from physical injuries of all kinds. After a thorough evaluation, owner Cody Revel and his staff put together a personal training program for me. They were able to provide a variety of exercises to address my past injuries. They also educated me on how to prevent future injuries, especially while playing baseball. Outside of their day to day routine, they offer additional support including on-site physical therapy consults, special community seminars, and fundraisers for members in need. During COVID, Cody even arranged for outside sessions so we could continue to train! They often refer to their members as their fAm and strive to make everyone feel like part of that family. They taught me how to not only better myself as an athlete, but also as a person. During my time at the Athlete Academy, I was inspired by my trainers to pursue a degree in Excise Science at Salisbury University. Becoming an athletic trainer will allow me to combine my love of sports with my desire to help people. My goal is to eventually open my own center specializing in training young athletes and helping community members improve their health.

Without the Athlete Academy and other local businesses, I wouldn’t be where I am today! I am especially grateful to all of the small businesses that support young athletes in our community. I hope that people like Dr. Vickers, Cody and the Agha family know how much their businesses are appreciated. I look forward to the day when I become a small business owner and can do my part to give back to my community.

Thank you for your consideration!

Ryan N. Williams

And don't forget our Supporters, Partners, and Sponsors.

And a special thank you to each and everyone of the local businesses you see below who support Shop Local Delmarva and these community give backs. Getting these essays sure shows how much businesses like these do for our community and they greatly appreciate you supporting them.

A&B Powerwashing
Above & Beyond HVAC - www.abovenbeyondservices.com
Abbi Custis
Barefoot Baby Boutique
Bathing Bee
David Clayton Barone - Barone Built
Baywater Farms
Jccp Vinyl & Graphics 2019
Coastal Comfort Heating and Air Conditioning
Cawood Construction Company
parker place
Copier/Printer RejuvenatorS
Delmarva Auto Glass & Accessories - Joe Stonnell (Mod)
Delmarva Quality Pressure Washing
East Park Integrative Chiropractic
Catering By Chef Stewart of Flannery's
FLC Energy
Gary K. Marshall Insurance Agency - David Galeone (Admin)
Hebron Savings Bank www.hebronsavingsbank.com
Hopper's tap house
Lilac Clothing Company, LLC
Mister Softee Eastern Shore MD
MoJo's
Kellyn's Kafe
Kuhn's Jewelers
Kylan Barn
Funny Farm Petting Zoo
SouthBound Alley
Tyler Accounting & Tax Services, LLC
Market Street Inn Restaurant & Pub
Muddy Paws, LLC
Mike Alford - Realtor with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
Salisbury Pizza
Simpson's Towing Svc Inc
The Corner Grill
The Village Lactation, LLC
The Hair Show
The Tiki Hut Shaved Ice
Two Scoops Ice Cream & Waffles
Underground Grooming Pet Spa, LLC
Williams Market

You may notice certain businesses are highlighted and standout not only in the directory but we highlight them on our Facebook Page as well as our group. This ever growing list of businesses help us promote  a lot of great things in our community. Many of our blogs which you can find right here are focused on our community and our local businesses.

Many of these businesses are helping us promote other local businesses. Which really is what Delmarva is all about. I am asked quite often how a business can be part of Shop Local Delmarva. If you are part of our group you are part of Shop Local Delmarva. If you like the group and like the concept of a digital type of media that we share blogs, videos, highlights and features and want to be part of it we would love to have your support. You can find out more information here. All of our supporters, partners, and sponsors are on the rotating banners on most of our blogs just like this one.

If any of our supporters, partners, or sponsors have upcoming events we encourage them to let us know so we can help them promote them as well.

The whole idea of Shop Local Delmarva is all about our local community supporting local businesses, and our local businesses supporting our local community. It goes round and round.