Local

Eastern Shore inn to host Jan. 1 same-sex weddings

Owners of the Black Walnut Point Inn on Tilghman Island are among those to marry on New Year’s Day.

Published

14 years ago

December 18, 2012

Tracy Staples and Bob Zuber, co-owners of the Black Walnut Point Inn in Tilghman Island, Md., are among the couples who will get married at the Eastern Shore resort on Jan. 1. (Photo courtesy of Tracy Staples and Bob Zuber)

More than a dozen same-sex couples are expected to get married at a gay-owned inn on Maryland’s Eastern Shore on the first day gays and lesbians can legally tie the knot in the state.

Bob Zuber and Tracy Staples, who have owned the Black Walnut Point Inn on Tilghman Island for two and a half years, told the Washington Blade on Monday eight couples have booked Jan. 1 weddings on the property. Zuber said there’s a “whole bunch of other couples that are thinking about it, talking about it.”

Two If By Sea Café will host a pre-wedding brunch before the couples exchange vows at the Black Walnut Point Inn. The gay-owned Tilghman Island Inn will host a post-wedding reception, dinner and cake cutting for the couples.

Zuber and Staples, who have been together for six years and had registered to get married in D.C., will tie the knot on Jan. 1. They are the second same-sex couple to obtain a marriage license in Talbot County after clerks began issuing them to gays and lesbians on Dec. 6.

“We knew we were coming out here,” Zuber said. “We wanted to wait until Maryland did it and then wanted to be the first ones to get married here.”

Zuber said two lesbian couples are scheduled to get married at the inn in March. He and Staples have received additional inquiries from across the country.

“The whole entire island community is behind this,” Staples said. “They’re not against us. No one is saying ‘No, you can’t come down here.’ or ‘No, we’re not going to participate in same-sex [marriage.]’ The entire island is like, ‘Oh great, when is this going to happen? What can we do to help?’”

Attorney General Doug Gansler wrote on Nov. 29 that same-sex couples could begin to legally marry in Maryland on Jan. 1 – several are planning to tie the knot just after midnight on New Year’s Day. These include a group of same-sex couples in Cumberland and Ellicott City residents Dale Knight and Jeff Arney who discussed their wedding plans with the Blade last week.

“We try to create a gay-friendly place on Tilghman Island,” David McCallum, owner of the Tilghman Island Inn, said. “We all cooperate on the island to create an atmosphere and to give people choices. It’s certainly something I think has been a long-time coming and I think it’s pretty exciting that Maryland actually affirmed this in referendum. I expected eventually that it was going to have to be a Supreme Court ruling, but it’s sort of nice to know that the world has changed this much.”

An Annapolis tour company earlier this month announced it will no longer take part in weddings because of the same-sex wedding law, but Staples said Tilghman Island residents and businesses continue to welcome nuptials for gays and lesbians in Maryland.

“When we got wind of that, the entire island was like wow, that’s really interesting,” he said. “Why go where you’re tolerated. Come here where you’re celebrated.”

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Baltimore

Popular Mount Vernon gay bar Leon’s to temporarily close after owner’s death

Ron Singer passed away on July 7

Published

1 day ago

July 17, 2026

Baltimore Banner

Leon’s Backroom Bar in Mount Vernon. (Photo by Jessica Gallagher for the Baltimore Banner)

By WESLEY CASE | Leon’s Backroom, Baltimore’s oldest gay bar, temporarily shut down after service on Wednesday night, according to a post on the business’s Instagram page.

The announcement comes a little more than a week after the death of the Mount Vernon bar’s owner, Ron Singer, who died at 66 on July 7.

The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.

Local

Comings & Goings

New garden center offers array of products in Rehoboth

Published

2 days ago

July 17, 2026

Peter Rosenstein

Bay Laurel Home & Garden is located just outside Rehoboth on Route 1.

The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at [email protected].

Congratulations to Stuart Ortel and Scott Marker, and Dave Lyons and Rick Hardy, on the recent opening of their garden center on Route 1 in Rehoboth Beach, in the former Farmer Girl site. It is called Bay Laurel Home and Garden and debuted earlier this year. The four owners are all well known to the denizens of Rehoboth Beach.

Stuart and Scott have been active members of the Rehoboth Beach community since 1999. Stuart is a landscape architect, and has established relationships with many local folks in the building and landscape industry. When this opportunity for Bay Laurel Home & Garden presented itself, and they had the perfect team of people in place, he and Scott were committed to making it a reality. So, when Scott and Stuart introduced this opportunity to create a new garden center to Dave and Rick, they embraced the chance to cultivate a business where beautiful plants, inspiring home and garden products, and outstanding customer service come together. Dave and Rick knew about owning a business in Rehoboth as they previously owned Coho’s Market, where they discovered firsthand the value of serving their community, and the rewards of running a locally owned business.

The garden center launched with a refreshed brand identity, updated merchandising, and expanded product lines, all designed to create an inspiring and welcoming environment for your home. Bay Laurel Home & Garden offers a beautifully appointed garden center and curated home and gift shop.

The new center features a full nursery with annuals, perennials, shrubs, trees, and seasonal selections; a garden center offering pottery, fountains, and garden ornamentation, and essential tools and garden supplies. It has a garden shop featuring unique indoor/outdoor furnishings and accessories, and a gift shop featuring botanical and coastal style items for home and entertaining.

Rehoboth Beach

Celebrate Pride in Rehoboth Beach this weekend

‘A vital space for community, healing, and connection’

Published

4 days ago

July 15, 2026

Thomas Weaverling

Rehoboth’s Pride festivities kick off Friday. (Washington Blade file photo by Daniel Truitt)

Pride in Rehoboth Beach is kicking off this week on Friday, July 17, with events happening throughout the weekend.

“Rehoboth Beach Pride is more than a festival — it is a vital space for community, healing, and connection,” said David Mariner, director of Sussex Pride, which organizes many of the events.

The weekend will begin with the Grand Opening & Community Preview from 1-4 p.m. on Friday, July 17, celebrating the opening of Novus Medical Services and the new Sussex Pride Community Center.

This will be followed by an Interfaith Pride Service at 6 p.m. at the Metropolitan Community Church Rehoboth to gather for healing and the affirmation of queer spirituality with Rev. Carla Christopher, chair of Sussex Pride Faith.

Members of the community are then invited to head over to join the Rehoboth Beach Bears at the Pines to have dinner, mingle, and give back to local initiatives.

End the first night of Pride in Rehoboth at Diego’s Bar & Nightclub with music by DJ Joey P from 9 p.m.-1 a.m.

Rehoboth Beach Pride Festival will take place on Saturday, July 18, 2026, from 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. inside the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center. A full list of events is available at rehobothbeachpride.org.

Roxy Overbrooke will host on the main stage as live performances take place throughout the day, featuring music from DJ MK and Tribe 9 Entertainment.

The festival will include educational workshops, community meetups, and a raffle dedicated to raising funds for unhoused LGBTQ+ youth across Delaware.

Feature workshops include panels discussing topics such as unhoused LGBTQ+ youth in Delaware, the needs of trans and non-binary youth, as well as the increase in HIV and syphilis diagnoses amid federal budget cuts, in a panel moderated by Blade Editor Kevin Naff.

Saturday night will also feature an evening comedy and entertainment show at the Convention Center presented by the Gay Women of Rehoboth. Performers will include comedians Suzanne Westen h oefer and Karen Mills as well as musician Kristen Merlin. Tickets are available at gaywomenofrehoboth.org.

The Rehoboth Beach Pride Ride will take place at 10 a.m. on Sunday, July 19, hosted by the Dykes on Bikes Rehoboth Beach Women’s Motorcycle Club, starting at Lefty’s.

Goolee’s Drag Brunch will also take place on Sunday from 12-2 p.m at Goolee’s Grille. This is a family-friendly event hosted by Regina Cox and Ruby, featuring Aurora Sterling, Michelle Leigh Sterling, Scarlet St. Cartier, and Joanna Blue. Tickets can be purchased online.

Pride in Rehoboth will conclude at 2 p.m. with the official Rehoboth Beach Pride Closing Party at Aqua Bar & Grill, celebrating the venue’s landmark 20th anniversary with DJ Biff until 7 p.m.

Due to an influx of visitors for the summer season, those coming from out-of-town are encouraged to use the Park & Ride.