March 28, 2024

St. Mary’s Event Updates; Gift Card Program; #GivingTuesdayNow

Event Updates

Due to COVID-19 precautions and the existing stay-at-home order from Gov. Larry Hogan, St. Mary’s County government announces the following changes to previously scheduled events.

Identity Protection Day, scheduled for Saturday, May 2, at the Department of Aging & Human Services, has been canceled.

The ninth annual Community Document Shredding Event, scheduled for Saturday, May 2, at the Garvey Senior Activity Center, has been canceled.

Men’s Health Day, originally planned for June 6, at the Garvey Senior Activity Center, has been postponed. The new event date is to be determined.

For more information regarding these events, contact Sarah Miller, community programs and outreach manager, at 301-475-4200, ext. 71073, or at [email protected].

For information on St. Mary’s County government COVID-19 resources and updates, go to the county’s website.

 

DED, Visit St. Mary’s Launch Restaurant BOOST Gift Card Program

St. Mary’s County Department of Economic Development, in partnership Visit St. Mary’s MD, have launched a program to support local restaurants in St. Mary’s County facing economic hardships during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Restaurant BOOST Gift Card Program, a gift card investment and value-added program, will support locally owned, locally operated restaurants throughout the County.  This program is designed to bring much needed revenue directly to its restaurant partners.

The program is simple — customers purchase a $25 gift card that will be valued at $35 for participating restaurants in St. Mary’s County. This is a great value for current or new customers, provides immediate cash to the restaurant, keeps local restaurants on the minds of county citizens, and provides an easy way for local residents to give back to the small local business community.

“The service industry is at the heart of who we are,” said Jason Aul, executive director for Visit St. Mary’s MD. “Our hope is to provide much needed support to the restaurants that make St. Mary’s County an amazing and unique place to visit and to live.”

The first round of funding was generated through the county’s Department of Economic Development, with additional funding currently being secured by Visit St. Mary’s MD and the community at large.

“The goal is to give local restaurants a much-needed boost during this challenging time,” said Chris Kaselemis, director of the county’s Department of Economic Development. “Our restaurants – and our broader hospitality industry – support thousands of jobs throughout the county. We are excited to provide additional resources to not only prop up restaurants, but to give our residents an opportunity to support them as well.”

Interested restaurants are encouraged to apply through an online form. Customers can purchase gift cards directly through each restaurant. An updated list of all participating restaurants can be found at www.BoostStMarys.com.

Visit St. Mary’s MD and St. Mary’s County Department of Economic Development will run this program for as long as there is funding to support it. There is also a GoFundMe campaign for the program to encourage broader community support. Every dollar given through the GoFundMe campaign will go to support the program and the broader community.

Restaurants currently planning on participating in the program include:

  • Ruddy Duck Seafood and Alehouse
  • Linda’s Café
  • Social
  • Olde Town Pub
  • Stoney’s at Clarkes Landing
  • El Pollon Chicken
  • WJ Dent & Sons / Chief’s Bar
  • Morris Point
  • The Cow and the Fish
  • The Front Porch
  • Bollywood Masala
  • Salsas Mexican Café
  • Kevin’s Corner Kafe

For any questions, contact Jason Aul at [email protected].

 

Updated Statistics Wednesday, April 29

The Maryland Department of Health website, as of 10:30 am Wednesday, April 29, reports the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Maryland is at 20,849, a 736 increase over Tuesday’s cases.

All data provided by the state health department is preliminary and is subject to change based on additional reporting. Information for cases by ZIP code and cases and deaths by race represent data that is available to MDH. Data for ZIP codes with 7 or fewer cases is suppressed. MDH is continuously evaluating its data and reporting systems and will make updates as more data becomes available. Click here.

Reported cases in Southern Maryland: 148 in St. Mary’s County, 142 in Calvert County, and 551 in Charles County.

The St. Mary’s County Health Department offered this information as of Tuesday, April 28:

Confirmed Cases in St. Mary’s County Residents: 148
Deaths: 7

Male: 73
Female: 75

Case Breakdown by Race:
African-American/Black: 56
Caucasian/White: 65
Other or Not Identified: 27

**Additional laboratories now reporting results electronically through the National Electronic Data Surveillance System – Data from January 1, 2020 – present.

**Number of St. Mary’s County residents who have been hospitalized at any hospital in Maryland due to COVID-19. Data is not reflective of current patient status.

St. Mary’s data will be updated at least daily by noon at the county health department’s website linked to above.

 

The Maryland Department of Health offered this statewide information as of 10:30 am Wednesday, April 29:

Confirmed Cases in Maryland: 20,849
Negative Test Results: 90,080
Number of Deaths: 985
Number of Probable Deaths: 93
Current Hospitalized: 1,645
Acute Care: 1,060
Intensive Care: 585
Ever Hospitalized: 4,402
Released from Isolation: 1,361
Male: 9,719
Female: 11,130

Maryland residents can now see the number of cases by ZIP code. Click on the state’s website linked to above.

 

Museums Joining #GivingTuesdayNow in Global Day of Giving and Unity

The Friends of St. Clement’s Island & Piney Point Museums is responding to meet the needs of the St. Mary’s County Museum Division during this difficult time by hosting “A Day of History” on social media platforms May 5, 2020.

#GivingTuesdayNow is a global day of giving and unity, set to take place May 5, 2020, as an emergency response to the unprecedented need of nonprofits caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The day is designed to drive an influx of generosity, citizen engagement, business and philanthropy activation, and support for communities and nonprofits around the world.

At a time when we are all experiencing the effects of the pandemic, generosity is what brings people of all races, faiths, and political views together across the globe. Generosity gives everyone the power to make a positive change in the lives of others and is a fundamental value anyone can act on. It’s a day for everyone around the world to stand together and give back in all ways, no matter who or where we are.

As part of this initiative, the Friends will be celebrating “A Day of History” and will be hosting a post-a-thon on the Friends social media accounts about the history of our museum sites in St. Mary’s County. The Friends will celebrate their mission to preserve the history of the county where Maryland began and share links and information on how the public can support that mission as well.

Amber Puschinsky, fundraising coordinator for the Friends, says: “This is a critical point in the year for fundraising for our museums. We hope by sharing our important mission with the community that we can create awareness of the work our historic sites are doing. Whether it is by donating $10 or even simply sharing one of our social media posts, any action taken will help the museums be successful with sharing these stories of the past through exhibitions, family events, and community programming when we reopen.”

People can show their generosity in a variety of ways during #GivingTuesdayNow, whether it’s helping a neighbor, advocating for an issue, sharing a skill or giving to causes (like the Museums) – every act of generosity counts. The global movement will emphasize opportunities to give back to communities and causes in safe ways that allow for social connection even while practicing physical distancing.

“As a global community, we can mourn this moment of extreme crisis while also finding the opportunity to support one another. We each have the power to make an impact with acts of generosity, no matter how small, and to ensure the sustainability of organizations and services that are crucial to the care and support of our communities,” said Asha Curran, CEO of GivingTuesday. “#GivingTuesdayNow is a chance for us to stand united and use grassroots generosity to show that we are all in this together, beginning to end. Even as many face financial uncertainty, generosity is not about size. From calling an elderly neighbor to chat to offering translation help; from showing gratitude to our health care workers to donating to your local food bank, every act of kindness is a beacon of hope in this crisis. We all have something to give, and every act of human consideration and kindness matters.”

Those interested in joining the Friends of St. Clement’s Island & Piney Point Museum’s #GivingTuesdayNow efforts can visit Facebook.com/FriendsSCI and Facebook.com/FriendsOfPineyPoint each hour during the day May 5, 2020, to learn more about the important things the organization does to preserve local St. Mary’s County history.

For more details about the GivingTuesday movement, visit the GivingTuesday website, Facebook page Facebook.com/GivingTuesday, or follow @GivingTuesday and #GivingTuesdayNow on Twitter. For youth interested in joining the movement, visit GivingTuesdayKids.org for inspiration and project ideas.

 

Food Programs Continue

St. Mary’s County Public Schools will provide a drive-up lunch service Monday-Friday from April 27 to May 15, 2020, at the locations listed below from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm daily.

Meals will be offered to all children 18 and younger free of charge. Parents and children can drive up to these locations and receive meals that they can take home during current school closures.

Leonardtown Elementary School
22885 Duke Street
Leonardtown, MD

Greenview Knolls Elementary School
45711 Military Lane
Great Mills, MD

Margaret Brent Middle School
29675 Point Lookout Road
Mechanicsville, MD

Lexington Park Elementary School
46763 Shangri-La Drive
Lexington Park, MD

For questions regarding the lunch service program, email [email protected].

St. Mary’s Caring Soup Kitchen at 20850 Langley Road in Lexington Park is distributing take-and-go meals between 10:30 am and 1 pm Monday-Saturday. One meal per person will be given out.

The soup kitchen also has bagged lunch distribution sites on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, with a Pop-Up Pantry on Wednesdays between 11 am and 12:30 pm in the parking lot at the following locations:

  • Ridge — Dollar General, 13270 Point Lookout Road
  • Piney Point — Chief’s Restaurant, 44584 Tall Timbers Road
  • Charlotte Hall — April’s Pools, corner of routes 5 and 6
  • Bushwood — Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 23080 Maddox Road

For more information on the St. Mary’s Caring program, call 301-863-5700.

The St. Mary’s Department of Social Services has launched a local food hotline for residents needing assistance with food supply. Call 240-895-7000.

For additional community resources, go to the St. Mary’s County Government Community Resource map.

 

Here are some answers to frequently asked questions about the Maryland stay-at-home order. (Updated April 21)

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