Several other events this weekend include a special Jazz Festival Reception with all new original works by Dane Tilghman at Philip Morton Gallery, 5-8pm Friday, October 16 (www.philipmortongallery.com), the Rehoboth Beach Light the Night Walk to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society on Saturday, October 17 (www.lightthenight.org/de), and RACE: The Seashore Strider Running Club’s 4th Bayfront at Rehoboth 5K, beginning at 9am on Saturday, October 17 (www.seashorestriders.com). 

Also, mark your calendar for these upcoming events:

Annual REALTOR(R) Auction and Gala, Thursday, October 22nd, 5:30-10pm at the Independence clubhouse.  Bid on silent auction items, enjoy a delicious meal and cash bar, followed by the Main Event of the evening–the live auction of baskets provided by area real estate offices.  Last year’s high bid basket was a cruise to Alaska, donated by RE/MAX Realty Group in Rehoboth Beach.  The Sussex County Association of REALTORS(r) Community Service Committee sponsors the event.  All proceeds go to help needy families in Sussex County.  Tickets ($40 each) may be purchased at http://store.communicateplus.com/scaor/default.htm?departid=2000. 

Also, please note the 20th Annual SEAWITCH HALLOWEEN & FIDDLER’S FESTIVAL will be held NEXT WEEKEND, OCTOBER 23-25, 2009, not the weekend of Halloween.  Check it out at www.beach-fun.com.

Last week’s blog highlighted the major Fall festivals taking place this season.  Now I want to narrow in on some of the lesser-known events and activities available for your participation and enjoyment this weekend.

Wednesday-Sunday, October 7-11, the RoseColored Glasses Theater Company presents the play, Edgar’s Ghost, by Jim Liddle.  Not much is known about the death of Edgar Allen Poe. One of the greatest literary minds was found in a stupor on the side of the road in Baltimore. EDGAR’S GHOST imagines that in those final moments, while he lay dying in the hospital, he is visited by his creations. The Raven. The Tell-Tale Heart. The Black Cat. Hop-Frog. And we certainly can’t forget Virginia, his lovely cousin-bride. Was she the fabled Lenore? Or was Lenore another woman?  For more information, log onto www.rcgtheater.com.

Thursday-Sunday, October 8-11, Greyhounds Reach the Beach will keep everyone—dog owners and casual observers alike—entertained as canines are welcomed to Dewey and Rehoboth Beaches.  Come to town and join the fun!

Friday-Saturday, October 9-10, Buddy Fest!, organized to welcome Down syndrome families, friends and caregivers to the resort community of Rehoboth Beach for a weekend of fun, acceptance and inclusion.  The week-end is chock-full of opportunities for everyone to help support this great cause.  Friday night, Ovations Restaurant Celebrations Mall (20 Baltimore Ave.—formerly Epworth Methodist Church), is hosting a Buddy Up Party and Silent Auction from 5-8pm, with free appetizers, cash bar and DJ.  Celebrity bartenders will donate their tips back to the Buddy Walk.

Saturday, 9am, the Buddy Walk steps off down the Boardwalk, starting at the Bandstand.  Supporters and Buddies walk together to help fund down syndrome research, education and support programs. 

Other activities include the Buddy Blast, Buddy Hop and Buddy Fiesta.  Log onto www.boardwalkbuddywalk.com for full details.

Saturday, October 10, “Second Saturdays: Destination Art” Walk - Visit a DOZEN downtown art galleries from 2-5pm as part of the new Second Saturday Art Walks presented by Mosaic - the new gallery collective for downtown Rehoboth. Check out the galleries, the fabulous art, receptions and more. See www.mosaicrehoboth.com for details.

That’s it for Rehoboth for this weekend!  There are other events in Milton, Lewes and surrounding towns, including two 5K runs and a “Beer Wars” fundraiser to benefit the Rehoboth International Film Society.  For more details and links to all of the events, log onto www.rehoboth.com.  Hope to see you at the beach!

Thursday, Oct. 8-Sunday, Oct. 11 – Greyhounds Reach the Beach!  (http://adopt-a-greyhound.org/dewey/)   This one is simple—grab your dog and head for the beach!  Organized by the Greyhound Project, Inc., Greyhounds Reach the Beach is centered in dog-friendly Dewey Beach, Delaware. This year there will be no registration, no brunch, no formal program.  Just bring your greyhound(s), your Frisbee and a relaxed attitude.

From the Opening Party and Fund-Raiser for Beebe Medical Center at 6:30pm on Wednesday, October 14, to the finale Jazz Jam at 6:30pm on Sunday, October 18, the 20^th Annual Rehoboth Jazz Festival is sure to please the soul of every music lover.  (http://www.rehobothjazz.com/ajf/)  Tickets are available online only.  Headliners include The Spinners, Peter White, Mindi Abair, Santanamania, Pamala Stanley, Cintron, Dave Koz, Soul Summit II produced by Jason Miles, The Bobby Lyle/ Paul Jackson Jr. Project, Jazz Attack and Brian Culbertson.

Friday, October 23-Sunday, October 25 – 20^th Annual Sea Witch Halloween and Fiddlers’ Festival!  (www.beach-fun.com) This popular weekend offers Family Fun with a Costume Parade, Beach Games, Best Costumed Pet Parade, Entertainment and much more!

November 11-15 – 12^th Annual Rehoboth Beach Independent Film Festival – This award-winning event showcases approximately 100 of the best American and international films including features, documentaries, and shorts.  Check in online for tickets (http://www.rehobothfilm.com/Festival.html).  Buy early as the films often sell out!

The above is just a small sampling of events and activities available at the beach even though the lifeguards have gone back to college.  For a full listing, log onto www.rehoboth.com/events.  Of visit us at www.DebbieReed.com. See you at the beach!!

There is plenty happening in Rehoboth and Dewey Beaches this weekend!  Besides the beach fun, here are some other ideas:

The 28th Annual Skimboarding Championships, part of the Zap East Coast Pro/Am Tour, takes place this Saturday and Sunday in Dewey Beach!  Come to the beach at Swedes St. to see some of the best competitors in the world show their stuff for prizes, glory, and the sheer joy of mastering the wave.  Need more details?  Log onto www.skimusa.org.

Then in the afternoon, the Rehoboth Beach Museum is sponsoring the First Annual Watermelon Festival this Saturday, August 15, from 4-7pm at the museum and Grove Park (Rehoboth Ave. and the Canal).  There will be a Seed Spitting Contest (of course), prizes, food and crafts for sale!  Admission is a mere $2/adults; $1 kids 6 and older.  Children under 5 are free.  Go to http://www.rehobothbeachmuseum.org/j/ for further info.

If you missed it last week, you’re not too late!  The Rehoboth Art League is holding its annual Outdoor Art Show this Saturday and Sunday, August 15 & 16, from 10am-5pm each day, at the Art League campus in Henlopen Acres (12 Dodd’s Lane).  Stroll the beautiful grounds and visit 120 artists and artisans featuring painting, glass, pottery, jewelry, drawing, sculpture and more. (http://www.rehobothartleague.org/outdoor.html) There is no admission charge.  Free offsite parking with a convenient shuttle bus is available from the Little League Field on Holland Glade Rd. (adjacent to the Seaside Outlet Mall).

Several exciting offerings will be heard at the Rehoboth Bandstand this weekend as well.  All performances begin at 8pm, although I would suggest you come early or bring a lawn chair if you want a seat.  The shows August 13-16 are:

• Thursday - The Delaware Comedy Theatre providing entertaining improv suitable for the whole family
• Friday - Julian Fleischer, Singer who describes himself as “jazz dominant, pop submissive and rock-and-roll curious.”
• Saturday - US Army Field Band and Soldiers’ Chorus, premiere touring musical representative for the U.S. Army
• Sunday - Hindsight 20-20, Classic Rock, the Cape Henlopen School District’s “House Band,” made of hard-working teachers and administrators

So, come to the beach this weekend and have a ball!
With All Best Wishes,
The Debbie Reed Team

Between Rehoboth Ave. and Silver Lake, Scarborough Ave. and the Atlantic Ocean, is nestled a gem of a neighborhood known as South Rehoboth.  Here Old Rehoboth cottages blend with new homes to create a charming place to Be at the Beach.  No house in South Rehoboth is further than a 3 block walk to the Boardwalk (www.rehobothboardwalk.com), sand and surf, making it a very popular community for renters and seasonal residents as well as the year-round folks who call South Rehoboth home.  Gracious, old trees provide shade appreciated by people trying to get a bit of exercise, whether it be walking, biking, jogging or pedaling a surrey.

Housing prices in South Rehoboth reflect the convenience of its location to the beach and downtown amenities and services.  There are currently eighteen condos/townhouses for sale in South Rehoboth, ranging in list price from $259,000 for a small studio in the ocean block to $1,399,000 for a 4 bedroom/4 bath, ~2,400 sq. ft. townhouse.  Twenty-seven single family homes range from $795,000 for a 1 bedroom/1 bath log cabin, 980 square feet and built in 1929 (!!), to $4,875,000 for a 5,231 sq. ft. oceanfront home built in 2005.  As you can see, there is a wide range of housing styles from which to choose in South Rehoboth.

If you are interested in a highly rentable investment property, or a delightful place of your own at the beach, consider South Rehoboth!  To see all of the listings available in this community and all of Coastal Delaware, log onto www.debbiereed.com and click on “Real Estate Search.”  And if you’d like the help of a real estate professional who knows the Rehoboth market inside and out and is dedicated to Above the Crowd® customer service, call The Debbie Reed Team (302-227-3818), and one of our agents will be happy to help you.

Country Club Estates is a triangular-shaped neighborhood nestled between Scarborough St., State St. and Silver Lake in the seaside resort town of Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.  This clean, well-kept neighborhood has a Tot Lot playground on its south side, as well as a foot bridge leading across Silver Lake to Rehoboth Elementary School.  A favorite activity for children and grandparents alike is to stop half-way across the bridge to feed the ducks, geese and water turtles which make the lake their home.

The name, Country Club Estates, derives from the land’s previous life as a golf course.  In the early 1970’s, the country club was subdivided into 328, 50′x100′ lots and the parcel where the Scarborough Village townhouses now stand.  This newer neighborhood provides some of the best property values this close to the beach.  At 3-6 blocks from the ocean, it is still within walking distance of the award-winning Rehoboth boardwalk (http://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/beach2003/2003-10-08-best-boardwalks_x.htm),  and downtown Rehoboth Beach (http://www.rehoboth.com/).  Because of its favorable location East of Rt. 1 and more reasonable prices, Country Club Estates is experiencing a renaissance of its own as people buy the original modular or stick-built homes (often 3 bedroom/2 bath) and renovate or rebuild. 

Currently (as of July 27, 2009), there are 7 homes for sale in Country Club Estates, ranging from a 2 bedroom, 1.5 bath townhouse in Scarborough Village priced at $425,000, to a 4 bedroom, 4.5 bath Southern Plantation style home yet to be built, listed at $1,249,000.  One of the best values in this community is the Debbie Reed Team listing on Sandalwood St.–a 3 bedrom/2 bath rancher with a sunroom, split floor plan, fireplace, huge laundry room and lovely landscaping, listed at $579,000.  Just a few blocks, and you’ll be sticking your umbrella in the sand from this convenient location.

So, if you are looking for a great value within walking distance of the beach in the low-tax state of Delaware, Country Club Estates should be on your list of areas to consider.  If you are not currently working with an agent, please call The Debbie Reed Team (302-227-3818), and one of our buyers’ agents will be happy to assist you, or log onto our website (www.debbiereed.com) to see the great homes available in Country Club Estates or anywhere in Coastal Delaware.

With All Best Wishes,
Dianne

The Debbie Reed Team
302-227-3818

by

David Warick

Most people know a bit about how Rehoboth Beach came by its name and was originally associated with the religious revival camp meeting society for which the area became well known in the 1800’s.   But not everyone knows about the other Rehoboth’s – some of which have an older history - out in the big wide world.

The first Rehoboth was actually pronounced, in Hebrew, something like RAY-CHO-VOT; and it was actually situated in three different places.  One, mentioned in Genesis, was possibly a part of the town of Nineveh and may have been associated with the pagan king Nimrod.   The second, also mentioned in Genesis, and was an area by a well in the Gerar (as in Lake Gerar!) area of the Holy Land, dug by the patriarch Isaac and currently located (it is thought) at Wady er-Ruheibeh, about 20 miles south of Beersheba.  The third Biblical Rehoboth was associated with the Edomite king, Saul, as mentioned in Genesis and Chronicles, and was referred to as “Rehoboth by the river;” it may have been located southeast of the Dead Sea or it may have been closer to the Euphrates.

Chronologically, the next Rehoboth (albeit it is not called “Rehoboth Beach”) is in Massachusetts and was established in 1643, as a part of the Plymouth Colony.  It is considered one of the state’s oldest and most historic towns and is located in Southeastern Massachusetts in Bristol County.  It’s bordered by Seekonk to the west, Attleboro and Norton to the north, Taunton and Dighton to the east, and Swansea to the southeast and south. It is about nine miles from Taunton, 13 miles from Fall River, 10 miles from Providence, Rhode Island, 46 miles from Boston and 186 miles from New York City (according to the city’s official website).  The entire area is interlaced with swamps, and there are extensive tidal marshes in Swansea and southern Rehoboth.  It currently has a more than 10,000 residents and terms itself the birthplace of public education (a bittersweet irony, given our recent technology referendum results)!   

Did you know that there is even a Rehoboth in Africa?  In fact, Rehoboth is a town in central Namibia, located south of the Namibian capital, Windhoek.   Originally, it was inhabited by the Nama or Khoikhoi tribe and was named for the vapor rising from the local hot springs.  A German missionary re-named it Rehoboth in 1845, and the city was abandoned for a time until 1868, when it was resettled by a group of migrants from the Cape Colony.  It’s currently a town of over 21,000 residents! 

Our Rehoboth was settled in the mid-1600, but the town was originally a municipality called Henlopen City; it was only renamed “Rehoboth Beach,” in 1891!  So we’re actually the most recent Rehoboth.  However, we do have the all important “Beach” connected to our name.  And, situated as we are in such an incredibly beautiful and prosperous area, we might just be giving new meaning to the phrase “saving the best for last!”