For John S. “Pat” Neild Jr., deep roots are in his blood and his soil. A lifelong Taylors Islander, the chairman of the board of Grace Foundation, which caretakes the area’s history and its church cemeteries, he’s been growing grapes and making wine at Ridgeton Vineyard since 1973, adjacent to historic Ridgeton Hall. 

But the ties binding his family to the land the vineyard sits on go back considerably farther.

“Originally owned by an ancestor, it is one of the oldest family properties on the island. The Keene, Travers, and Spicer families owned most of Taylors Island in the past, and my family claims most of them as ancestors,” he recalled. The properties making up Ridgeton’s current estate consists of about 850 acres, according to Neild.

In 2000 Neild undertook his own research of recorded deeds and related information, finding sources suggesting settlement as early as 1669, through the revolutionary period, spanning the 19th century, clear through to the 20th.

The celebrated home still standing there and listed on the National Historic Register, came a bit later. 

Ridgeton Hall

“Ridgeton was the home farm and residence of Judge Levi Dove Travers, Jr., born Nov. 21, 1828, died May 26, 1907. The large section of the Ridgeton house was built in 1859, but the smaller sections are older,” Neild wrote.

Documents accompanying the home’s nomination for the National Historic Register describe it as “one of the best-preserved Italianate style dwellings on the Eastern Shore,” built with timber from the surrounding farm along with materials shipped down the Chesapeake from Baltimore.

Ridgeton Hall Today

Neild himself grew up on the north end of Taylors Island, on Hooper’s Neck Road, until joining the Air Force in 1951, never having lived at Ridgeton himself.

 “That property was out of our family from about 1918, until my father bought it back in 1956. My parents, J. Stapleforte and Mable, lived there until they passed away. In 1999, my wife Ann and I inherited the Ridgeton house with 23 acres of land, replacing the roof, adding HVAC, and doing as much maintenance as required by the age of the house,” Neild added. But they did all they could to preserve its unique features, including the large kitchen fireplace and the rooftop “Widows Walk’, featuring a panoramic aerial view of much of central Taylors Island as well as the Chesapeake Bay.

During his parents’ later years, Neild took over the land’s farming responsibilities, improving equipment and outbuildings. He also began to help his mother, a DAR member, gather and organize notes she’d compiled about the family’s history. His dad had helped create the Dorchester County Historical Society Neild Museum dedicated to preserving Dorchester County’s agricultural history which opened in 1981. (Neild himself served as president of the Historical Society and South Dorchester Folk Museum. He has also presided over numerous other land and sea organizations, including the Tidewater Farm Club, the Rotary Squadron of the Chesapeake Bay and the Cambridge Yacht Club). 

Most of the remaining farmland was titled to the corporation Neild formed, Ridgeton Farms, Inc., jointly owned by the couple’s three sons. Since 2014, son Tom, president and majority owner of the corporation, has resided at Ridgeton Hall with wife Lisa.

John S. “Pat” Neild Jr.,

Neild’s interest in growing grapes and making wine was sparked when Baltimore’s Boordy winery owner Philip Wagner, retired Sunpapers editor, spoke at the Tidewater Farm Club in the early 1970s. With an ag degree from the University of Maryland, Neild became intrigued. Accompanied by long-time friend Ron Wade, the enterprise got underway, starting out with a few cuttings “begged and borrowed” from Western Shore growers, including Boordy, Neild recalled. 

After the initial year Wade moved on but Neild kept Ridgeton Vineyard going. Since then, he’s continued to enjoy the process of planting, growing, crushing, fermenting, and then sharing, maintaining steadfast notes detailing each season’s progress. 

The not-for-profit enterprise, the fruits of which he has enjoyed sharing with family and friends, has also offered local wine lovers an opportunity to pick an array of grapes he’s experimented with growing, from fig to muscadine, even aronia berry. Over the years, he’s winnowed out varieties which didn’t perform as well in the local soil. Salt-water erosion has also contributed to the loss of about half of the original two-acre vineyard. (Photos posted on the Taylors Island Facebook Page following Friday’s King Tide and storm showed the vineyard area covered with water).

At 91, Neild recently considered winding down the operation, especially after several pick your own regulars stopped drinking wine. But he’s still enjoying the adventure, and nearby Layton’s Chance winery is remains a steady customer. 

“We usually buy Chambourcin and Vidal, and this year got about two tons of these and Norton grapes, one of my favorites,” commented winemaker William Layton. “Usually, his grapes go into our Farm Red, our dry red blend. We’re proud to be able to buy truly local grapes grown right here in Dorchester County,” Layton added.

Son Tom, until recently too busy with his full-time occupation, has recently begun to try his hand at the winemaking process, finding it to his liking. And in years to come, Neild’s numerous grandchildren and great grandchildren may discover its joys, as well, he noted.

For more information call 410-228-6175 or email [email protected].

Debra Messick is a retired Dorchester County Public Library associate and lifelong freelance writer. A transplanted native Philadelphian, she has enjoyed residing in Cambridge MD since 1995.

Depending on the season, Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge hosts a myriad of natural treasures to view, from soaring and nesting eagles to a variety of migrating waterfowl.

From mid-September through early October, among the main attractions are embattled monarch butterflies. The monarchs flutter across our region in the midst of making their remarkable fall trek south to Mexico. Fortunately for the legendary golden winged travelers who need nectar to sip, and their legion of admirers who savor seeing them, however fleetingly, Blackwater provides a superb garden spot tucked behind the Visitors Center.

The Butterfly and Beneficial Insect Garden was brought to life through a collaborative effort between the Dorchester Garden Club, Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, and the Friends of Blackwater NWR.

The Garden Club raised the initial $90 K which went towards construction of the design by George Corey, owner of Wye Tree Landscapers, Inc., and a striking bronze monarch butterfly sculpture titled Monarchs (Dannaus plexippus), crafted by twin brothers, Steven and Stewart Wegner, at their Fredericksburg, Virginia foundry, Wegner Metal Arts Inc., specializing in artistic wildlife renderings.

Ground was broken for the garden in 2001 and in May 2002 it was dedicated, with special tribute to long standing garden club member Kathryne (Kit) Carlon Holdt, lauded as “Miss Butterfly” during ensuing Blackwater Spring Fling celebrations, according to Rick Abend, Friends Board President.

In 1997 Holdt stepped up to serve as the National Garden Club’s Maryland Chairperson for the Butterfly Garden at the National Botanic Garden in Washington, DC. Through these efforts, she is credited with raising local awareness of the need for butterfly and beneficial insect conservation, according to a Butterflies at Blackwater brochure.

DGC President Chris Wilke added:

“The Dorchester Garden Club has created this garden, at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, to express its appreciation of Kit and to serve as a lasting centerpiece to our commitment to the art of gardening and our awareness of environmental concerns. For many, there are few pleasures in life that rival those found in the time spent in a garden. The butterfly garden in particular fosters an awareness of the interdependences between plants, animals and humanity. As a profound symbol of transformation and restoration, the butterfly offers hope that affirmative change is possible and is at work in our own lives. It is our hope that this endeavor will encourage visitors to establish small butterfly habitats in their gardens and understand that we can effect positive ecological change with remedial action taken in our own backyards.”

This idea resonated with Rhonda Franz-Floyd, a relative newcomer among the garden’s many dedicated volunteers, now with over a year of service there. She finds aesthetic enjoyment in the native plant landscape and gets satisfaction from giving back. But she’s especially gratified to gain recurring hands-on experience, learning to apply best practices to the home pollinator garden she’s creating in Trappe. She’s also glad to pay what she learns forward to others, in essence, helping grow the next generation of conservation minded gardeners.

Recently retired and relocating here from Severna Park with her husband, also a Blackwater volunteer, it’s a labor of love for Franz-Floyd who carefully weeds, selectively moves plants, and gathers seeds in mesh sachets. She’s been getting to learn which plants are the best and worst performers. Though eager to do it all, Franz-Floyd has heeded guidance to focus on becoming familiar with the growing stages of one or two types of weeds and plants at a time.

She’s grateful to experienced volunteers who have answered her questions and served as mentors, among them Jane Sebring, who has been a major force in maintaining the garden week in and week out from March through October since 2013, according to Michele Whitbeck, Volunteer Coordinator for Chesapeake Marshlands NWR Complex.

Whitbeck can’t say enough about the group’s “arduous work, dedication, and commitment,” calling the volunteers “the heart of the butterfly garden.” Their work was especially vital last March following the long Covid closure and safety protocols which paused not only visitors but volunteers from gathering on the grounds. Once back, the resumed tending brought about a relatively quick return to glory, according to Franz-Floyd, an encouraging sign for visitors struggling to get their own grounds back on track.

When asked about monarchs visiting the garden, Whitbeck recommended checking this site, noting that Cambridge falls roughly within the 38th latitude. (More information on the monarch migration can be found here.)

Whitbeck explained that the Butterfly and Beneficial Insect Garden is so named because it include pollinators like bees, butterflies, flies and moths, which pollinate flowers, and also predatory insects, which help control pests like aphids. While monarchs might get most of the attention, addition butterflies commonly observed there include black swallowtail, eastern tiger swallowtail, red admiral, common buckeye, pearl crescent, eastern tailed blue, red-spotted purple, and clouded sulphur. Refuge website and social media guru Lisa Mayo added the reminder to be on the lookout for toads, dragonflies, hummingbirds and a host of other critters.

(The refuge also hosts a separate Pollinator Sanctuary area.)

In 2015, while surveying bee species at Blackwater, USGS biologist Sam Droege of Patuxent Wildlife Research Center recorded the discovery of a new Maryland species, Triepeolus concavus, known to be a nest parasite of another bee species observed in the garden, Svastra obliqua. According to Droege, Svastra obliqua is associated with high-quality habitat.

Certified Bay Wise by the Master Gardeners program in 2006, the garden was revamped in 2014 after a three-year Visitor Center construction project. Most recently, The Friends of Blackwater received a $9250 in 2016 through the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) to expand the garden with a walkway to the new West Wing of the VC, new native species plants, signage and rain barrels, along with improved drainage. Since the initial construction, the Friends of Blackwater has been providing funds for the annual maintenance of the garden by Refuge volunteers, according to Amend.

For additional information, visit here.

The Short Stop food and convenience mart, also known as Foxwell’s, is a busy neighborhood hub where Washington Street meets Greenwood Avenue in Cambridge. Countless kids on bikes make their way there daily, and folks on foot take the well- worn path across the grassy lot. There’s a seemingly constant coming and going in and out of the parking spaces out front, with a steady stream of greetings to friends and family ringing out. 

But this summer there was an uptick in the usual hustle and bustle, one that few were expecting, but many have welcomed. Beside the blank walls on either side of the building, paint cans, brushes, and scaffolding began to appear. Several weeks apart, two local artists began an al fresco endeavor to transform plain cinder block into eye catching street frescos. 

Frank Azam, owner of Short Stop (Foxwell’s), who has been in the community for over 25 years, explained his reason behind bringing the barren walls to vivid life.

“Foxwell’s is a place of meet and greet for many. The inspirational message we are trying to give is if, if a young kid from Cambridge, who walk the same paths every day with Believing in themselves, they can become like Mr. Emory Jones. Many others can see it on the wall of Foxwell’s to remind them every day about Believing in themselves, saying to themselves I CAN DO IT, just like Mr. Jones did it,” he stated. “Seeing such a positive message in our community can help many young kids to grow up to be an inspiration, like Mr. Jones,” Azam added.

Jones is the Head of Lifestyle at Roc Nation, Jay-Z’s mega successful entertainment agency, and also co-founder of the company’s iconic streetwear legacy fashion line, Paper Planes. In a HuffPost article from 2017, Jones explained that the Paper Plane represents much more than a materialistic status symbol. Instead, it instructs people of all ages to imagine, dream, be persistent, and get in the right frame of mind in order to physically achieve their ultimate destination, whatever that may be. Jones also coined the fashion logo phrase “Bet On Yourself,” drawing on his and Jay-Z’s respective childhood communities, where “everyone bets on all the wrong things instead of betting on themselves.” A special Puma collection also featured Jones’ Groove City apparel. (Jones has donated funding to the Cambridge Empowerment Center as part of his own belief in remembering his roots and giving back.}

Such messages of transcending situations and surroundings with manifested self-belief resonated strongly with Bobbie Jo-Elle Ennels and Miriam Moran. Both are self-taught artists with no formal training, whose young lives have helped inspire and inform their craft.

Ennels, creator of the “Believe” wall and Miriam Moran, who designed “A Kid From Cambridge,” feel it’s a privilege to be able to share their hopeful visions with the surrounding community, especially youngsters. 

Ennels lived on the nearby street which became Gloria Richardson Circle while growing up. While struggling with challenges throughout her early years and teens, she found solace and support through crafts and music. When her son Alyx was born 3 ½ years ago, she turned to art as a therapeutic outlet while navigating single motherhood. 

On a whim, Ennels decided to try painting portraits from photographs. Beyond being personally rewarding, her realistic portraiture work began generating praise and paying commissions.

As the pandemic proceeded and Ennels’ “day” job ended, she became determined to take a chance and pursue her dream of working as an artist. Little did she imagine the outsized opportunity that would emerge—creating her first street mural, gracing space in the neighborhood she knew well. 

“I grew up walking this path to the Short Stop, and my grandfather working down the street, at Housing Authority headquarters,” Ennels recalled.

Among three designs submitted to Azam, her 3-D chromatic aberration of the word Believe was the decisive winner. Ennels’ next step was a digital rendering to fully display the array of shades. “By using all these colors, I wanted to create something which would reach all ages, genders, and races. Everybody seeing it could find their favorite color there,” Ennels noted.

Excited by the project, she woke Alyx at sunrise every morning and brought him with her to the project site. Her mom and cousin came out to paint, as did Jeannie Elliot, whose 26- year-old son Roderick Russ murdered in October 2020. So, too, did Cambridge Commission President Lajan Cephas. Marco Antonio Garcia of DORiS Media came out the first day to help tape up the exterior, Ennels recalled. Charles Scrimshaw, a chef at the Robert Morris Inn, brought paintbrushes and pitched in with paint strokes. To the many kids who asked if they could help, Ennels always answered ‘okay’, feeling like their contributions would create a sense of integrity, pride, and ownership.

Bobbi Jo Ennels

She’s excited to already be working on designs for additional street murals appearing within Cambridge. But mostly, she feels fortunate to be able to inspire others in such a powerful way to overcome obstacles in their own lives, with too many problems and not enough talent or resources.  “People here know me, they know where I’ve been in my life,” Ennels added. “This shows them that they can do it too, if they believe they can.”

Shortly after Believe was completed, Artist Miriam Moran, designer of the groundbreaking Black Lives Matter mural on Race Street, began bringing to life her vision for A Kid From Cambridge. Building on Jones’ inspiring journey from small town Cambridge to an executive office in a downtown Manhattan sky-scraper, the images convey the connection between surmounting today’s surroundings and believing in one’s own abilities to reach for tomorrow’s sky high possibilities.

On her Facebook page, Moran describes herself in these words: “GOD GIFTED! Self-taught Taino,  Visual Creator. Paint for a Purpose. “ THE COMMUNITY ART VOICE” (Taino refers to the part of her heritage rooted in the indigenous Puerto Rican community.) 

With six children of her own ranging in ages from 2 to 15, Moran is also inspired by the youngsters she works with at the recently opened Boys and Girls Club of Cambridge at Leonards Lane. The Club is located just down the street from yet another inspirational street mural at Mount Moriah New Life Ministries at 1024 Cosby Avenue featuring a portrait of Coretta Scott King and her quote: “The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.” (The mural was partially funded by Cambridge Commission President Cephas, Dorchester Center for the Arts, and the Maryland State Arts Council.)

She’s contributed a commissioned wall mural in memory of a victim of gun violence, and will be painting faces for the free Unity Festival on the Pine Street community on July 31.

Working alongside her at the “Kid in Cambridge” mural each afternoon following her BGC day is husband Emmanuel Batson, delighted to join yet another of Moran’s many efforts, including Black Lives Matter as well as another memorial tribute at Dorchester County Public Library’s “Cora’s Corner” in the Children’s Section. “By working together, we model how we empower and support each other,” Moran stated.

Like Ennels, Moran has always been strongly influenced by the power of art and music in her own life.  Artist Frieda Kahlo, who surmounted physical disability, and singer/songwriter Selena Quintanilla, who celebrated her unique individual style, are among her heroes. But her late grandfather, Horiberto Moran, she considers her creative angel above, for exposing her to beauty and teaching her to live life to the fullest, she noted. 

Both her father and grandfather were artistic. While she aspired to follow them as a youngster, her own creative journey started in earnest following a car accident which left her severely injured and her young daughter, Miracle, paralyzed. Art became her personal therapeutic pathway to heal physically and spiritually, in sometimes surprising ways. Moran began creating stunning portraits using salt as her only medium. She also took up portrait painting, sometimes in unconventional ways. A tribute she created to honor Gloria Richardson which was displayed at the Liv Again Gallery on High Street several years ago drew Richardson herself, and foreshadowed the impact her work would bring.  Moran remembered “just being in awe, unable to believe that SHE wanted to meet Me!” 

She feels honored to and hopes to use her skills to help mentor youth in the community, who are having to deal with the ongoing trauma of gun violence, and other issues. And while she feels blessed to commemorate inspirational historical figures, Moran also hopes to provide outreach via contemporaries recognized by today’s kids. The mural, with the young boy and girl at one end, and Emory Jones and Jay Z at the other end, she feels, fulfills this mission. “Emory Jones was, after all, another kid from Cambridge, just like them,” she added.

For additional information, visit here. 

Debra Messick is a retired Dorchester County Public Library associate and lifelong freelance writer. A transplanted native Philadelphian, she has enjoyed residing in Cambridge MD since 1995.

Last February, Adrian Green Holmes commemorated Black History Month at the Library of Congress’ American Folklife Center. As creator of I am my sister dolls, she was selected to participate in the organization’s African American Doll Making and Puppetry event. She’s also been well received as a vendor at numerous other D.C. shows.

Holmes’ iconic one-of-a-kind folk-art creations were celebrated in her adopted hometown of Cambridge, with a September 2020 show at the Dorchester County Center for the Arts front gallery, an event both rewarding and inspiring.

“Seeing the sister dolls together in the gallery brought this incredible energy,” Holmes noted. “They represented women of all colors, not just Black women, bearing the essence of this feminine beauty we bring, denoting this strength that can be soft and hard but also direct, where you don’t challenge it,” Holmes added. With a warm laugh, she recalled the cherished memory of both her indomitable grandmothers in church, always digging in their purses for gloves, handkerchiefs, and, of course, peppermints they’d supply while giving you “the eye”, silently sending the ironclad message to sit back and be on your best behavior.

A Renee crafting doll wearing Tubman sweatshirt

This pioneering self-proclaimed “artivist” has contributed to enriching the local cultural landscape in other meaningful ways.

As founder and program director of nonprofit community cultural arts organization, Alpha Genesis Community Development Corporation (www.alphagenesisdc.org), Holmes played a pivotal role partnering with the Arts Center to lay the groundwork for local artist Michael Rosato’s Harriet Tubman Mural in downtown Cambridge.

The Philadelphia native’s 15-year Air Force career afforded Holmes two tours of duty in Italy, which profoundly inspired her concept of art as a vital form of living history, a driving force throughout her life. Unlike the dry textbooks she dreaded during college art history classes, viewing masterful works in person made a powerful impact.

Originally, her décor business A. Renee Designs LLC offered novel flourishes to architectural accents and finishes. At Liv Again Gallery, whose Art Bar became an intellectual and artistic salon of sorts, Holmes, along with co-owner Jermaine Anderson, showcased and sold chic refurbished home furnishings. The two also led workshops helping others master the craft of repurposing personal pieces.

In what she regards as a “natural creative progression” from her A. Renee Design work, Holmes describes her distinctive doll line as embodying “the spirit of our mothers and grandmothers, sisters and aunts, daughters and goddaughters. They “let us know we do not walk this journey alone…each doll reflects a life well-traveled and well-lived, is handmade and individually ‘dressed’, no two are alike,” Holmes noted.

The story behind the dolls’ evolution is rooted in Holmes’ own formative years.

Since sewing her first apron in junior high home economics class, using fabric as a visible, tactile means of telling a story has been a revelation for Holmes.

A. Renee at Library of Congress

Growing up in Philadelphia, in a pastor’s family of limited means (but unlimited love), Holmes’ rose above her yearning for pricey designer label jeans by successfully stitching her own distinctive wardrobe. As a middle child bookended by two standout siblings, sewing her own clothing also helped her weave a distinctive identity within the family tapestry. Fashioning with fabric helped her find a “voice”; discovering an artistic haven within helped provide emotional sanctuary as well as creative outlet.

Holmes had a front row seat to style personified thanks to her mother, Mary, aka “the first lady” of the Baptist church where her dad preached each Sunday. With a closet stocked full of 40 to 50 hats, her mom never wore an outfit more than two or three times, she affectionately recalled.

Holmes’ Aunt Daisy, Mary’s sister, kept in touch with young Adrian throughout her 30-year career as a missionary in Africa’s Ivory Coast, sending eagerly awaited airmail letters adorned with exotic stamps, and packages containing swatches of fabric, bringing that distant land of service enticingly within reach of her niece’s fertile imagination.

At each stage of life, her creative gifts found a rewarding outlet. Seeking meaningful and affordable Christmas presents, she fashioned angel dolls out of raffia, which became cherished holiday décor for recipients. Holmes’ sister, a social worker remaining in Philly, enjoyed drumming up sales for Holmes’ heavenly creations on the side, prodding her to keep fulfilling the demand.

Eventually her supply of raffia and remaining angels dwindled, but requests for the figurines continued. Over the years she pondered how to resume production, without success. Then, in 2011, her beloved mother passed away at the age of 72 (“a very young 72,” according to Holmes), a life changing event which would inspire a second act of sorts.

Adamant that her mom’s funeral be a celebration of her life and spirit, rather than a sorrow filled ceremony dominated by “doom and gloom,” Holmes lovingly built a display of Mary Green’s many hats, modeled by nieces and other family members during an impromptu processional, vividly capturing her essence in ways words alone could not express, paying it forward for the next generation.

Holmes poignantly remembered admiring her mother’s fashionable wardrobe all her life. Sharing the same size, she envisioned wearing the clothing one day. But after inheriting and trying several pieces on, she realized that it wasn’t the attire she been drawn to, but the way it had showcased her mom’s proud, elegant persona.

Grieving while dutifully sorting through the boxes of clothing, jewelry, and accessories in the wake of her mom’s passing, Holmes heard within herself a calling to creatively transform the inert pieces into a doll honoring her mother’s spirit. Of course, she fashioned a hat, and added other adornments. Most of all, she worked tirelessly to perfect the definitively regal self-assured stance emblazoned into her memory.

After commemorating her mom, Holmes later created a doll inspired by her late Aunt Daisy, the Ivory Coast missionary, a breast cancer victim.

Aside from these two role models, she also had two “original sister dolls” to hone her fashion creation skills on–daughters Chaniece and Misha, born 18 months apart.

“I made everything for them, and had so much fun dressing them, until they got to kindergarten or first grade.” Holmes recalled. At that point, the girls voiced opposition to wearing the charming but more vintage fashioned costumes. “There was this one Easter dress—with pinafores, and pearls, and it was all poofy– I loved it! But, when we got to church, they wouldn’t even take their coats off!” Holmes recalled with a laugh.

Respecting their wishes, Holmes instead channeled her creative flair into each custom ordered doll, imparting to every mini masterpiece not only the highest standard of workmanship but the greatest reverence.

“I did one order for a young lady, who brought me a bag full of her mom’s stuff, telling me that she was glam, she was glitzy.” Inspired, Holmes added a tiny silvery purse into the doll’s hand to complete her outfit. “Oh, my gosh, I cannot believe it, you got my mom to a T!” the grateful client cried.

Currently on her plate is a project honoring her cousin’s ex-husband who passed suddenly at the age of 51, leaving 7 children behind. Her cousin’s special request: that a beautiful African garment he wore for ceremonial occasions be incorporated into a doll for each youngster.

“Getting those memories out of the attic and the closet, to where you can see them every day, and they can make you smile, I think that brings me the most joy,” she stated. Translating inspirational lives into works of art, for Holmes, provides a meaningful intersection where history is brought to life, on a highly personal level, reaching out to posterity.

“While there are many negative narratives in history, the essence of who you are, made up of so many threads, can change it. In my own life, I had the opportunity to be mentored and loved by Mary Green, Daisy Whaley, and Chaniece and Misha Holmes, culminating, too, in all the amazing women in my church that wore hats, and jewelry, and purses, and gloves. They all deposited something so beautiful in my life, and I get to honor that,” Holmes stated.

For more information, call 410-220-6010 or visit https://Iammysisterdolls.com, A.Renee Designs LLC@IAMMYSISTERDOLLS on Facebook and Iammysisterdolls on Instagram.

Debra Messick is a retired Dorchester County Public Library associate and lifelong freelance writer. A transplanted native Philadelphian, she has enjoyed residing in Cambridge MD since 1995.