The photos say it all: our 2023 Chesapeake Bay Club trip was a wonder. First boat ride. First island. First marsh muck. First crab. First pelican. First suckerfish and seahorse. For 24 seventh graders and six adults, the 3-day, 2-night stay on Smith Island in early September was a revelation.
Thanks to grants and donations, the opportunity was open to all youth from Maury River Middle School and Parry McCluer Middle School, with schools selecting the applicants. Was there a future marine biologist among them? It’s happened before! For two decades this capstone project has connected more than 500 Rockbridge youth from all economic backgrounds to the Bay and care. This year we discovered two “second generation” kids among us: their own parents had first traveled to the Bay as middle schoolers almost twenty years ago. Now that’s wild.
CLICK TO ENLARGE AN IMAGE
