Chesapeake Bay Foundation Blog

It's Official! A New Presidential Candidate* Throws His Hat Into the Fray

And you thought he was dead! Yes,it's true, the man who explored and mapped the Chesapeake Bay 400 years ago has announced his candidacy for President*.

   

   

Here's his campaign video to prove it:

He is running on a platform to clean up the Chesapeake Bay and waterways nationwide. Smith made his announcement yesterday from his campaign headquarters at the Chesapeake Bay Foundation's Phillip Merrill Center in Annapolis.

"My vision is for a clean and restored Chesapeake Bay, with abundant fish, crabs, and oysters, a region with healthy farms and a vibrant seafood economy, just like in the old days," the red-bearded explorer said.

"But I stand not just for a clean Chesapeake Bay; I stand for clean rivers and streams all across America. For if we can clean up the Chesapeake Bay—and working together we bloody well can—we can clean up every stream, river, and bay in this country. We can make the Chesapeake a model for restoration success, for the rest of the nation and for the rest of the world."

You can find out more -- and sign a petition -- at www.votethebay.org

More videos coming soon!

Now, a word from our attorneys:
* The Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) is an independent, nonpartisan 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to protecting the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers and streams. It does not endorse candidates. CBF is running a fictional candidate, Captain John Smith, to elevate the Bay and clean water in the presidential election.

Shallop Race this Weekend

Watch history in action as three boats, each a unique modern interpretation of the vessel Captain John Smith used to explore the Chesapeake Bay 400 years ago, race around Annapolis Harbor on Saturday, May 3 at high noon. Who got it right? The boat built by the Reedville Fishermen's Museum, Deltaville Maritime Museum, or Sultana Projects in Chestertown?

The race is part of the Maryland Maritime Heritage Festival and celebrates Bay sailing history and the creation of the new Capt. John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail.

Admission is free. For more information, visit the Maryland Maritime Heritage Festival website http://www.mdmhf.org/view.asp?id=526&page=32732

Photo by Raynell Smith, Deltaville Maritime Museum Director, last August when the Shallops met in Deltaville.

Teen Videos Rock (er Hop?)!

Teen Alex Elliott of NizamFilms sent us this video. Music video and educational video rolled into one. I wonder if teachers could use it in the classroom?

Chesapeake Bay Guitar Project - April 2008 Update

click on images to enlarge

Now that March has come and gone and we’re into April, there’s quite a bit of progress to report. The first three guitars are now finished, and work is well underway on the other three.

Ladies’ Night: inlayed onto the Peruvian Walnut backed guitar, depicts female crabs foraging through eelgrass.

    

Heron Sunset: inlayed onto the Brazilian Kingwood backed guitar, depicts a setting sun silhouetting a great blue heron, with a close-up on the neck of another heron among the cattails.

    

The Fisherman: inlayed onto the Quilted Sapele backed guitar, depicts an osprey coming in to capture a fish for its dinner.

   

Stars and Stripers: the fourth guitar underway, places the viewer within a school of striped bass and has a starfish sitting at the bottom. All this sits below the Francis Scott Key nun buoy on the headstock. This buoy is located in the Patapsco river mouth and commemorates the location of the British ship that held Francis Scott Key when he composed the Star Spangled Banner.

 

The Duke and Duchess:  the fifth guitar underway, shows a pair of woodland ducks in marsh grass.

I should have the artwork for the sixth guitar shortly.

The first three guitars headed to the Newport Miami Guitar Festival to be displayed with many other custom guitars from April 11 to 13. They will be coming back after the show and all six will be displayed at Appalachian Bluegrass in Catonsville as completed until the Chesapeake Bay Guitar Project Festival there on May 17. This local festival will not only have the guitars on display for sale, but there will be staff from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation present, supporting the event, as well as live music (we’re hoping for some original works that speak to the Bay) and refreshments. More information can be obtained from Emory at Appalachian Bluegrass (410-744-1144) or on his website (www.appalachianbluegrass.com).

Dave MacCubbin

Spring Break CBF Style

Over spring break a handful of students from Christopher Newport University and Virginia Wesleyan College decided to forgo Daytona Beach and spend their vacations helping CBF restore Virginia's oyster population. The Virginian-Pilot has a great story about the endeavor. One student, Travis Deale, also sent us this personal journal entry.

"Taking the time to volunteer for CBF during my spring break was very rewarding. It gave me some hands-on experience in field biology and also was a very good time. As a biology student who one day wants to work in field research, this was something that I really looked forward to and enjoyed. It was nice to do something productive over break. I fully support what the CBF is doing in trying to save the bay and I am glad i could help. The experience itself was fun, so it didn't seem too much like work to me because I was having fun and wanted to do it. I hope to work with the CBF again soon."

Travis Deale
CNU '09

Travis, we hope to work with you again soon, too!

Chesapeake Bay Guitar Project - February 2008 Update

February is well under way, and we’ve made quite a bit of progress on the Chesapeake Bay guitars. Craig has been working on the inlays for the first two necks. The first inlay, just completed, is titled “Ladies' Night” (left) and depicts several mature female crabs, or ‘sooks,’ swimming through eelgrass.  The second inlay, still under construction, (right) is titled “Heron Sunset.” This inlay shows a silhouette of a heron at sunset on the headstock and has a close-up of a heron among the cattails on the fingerboard. The guitar bodies are coming along as well. I’ve completed construction of the first two guitar bodies, and am just waiting on the completed necks to finish the guitars. The “Ladies' Night” guitar has Peruvian Walnut back and sides, and a Sitka spruce top. The guitar bindings are flamed Western maple. The “Heron Sunset” guitar has Brazilian kingwood back and sides, and a Sitka spruce top. The guitar bindings are ebony. Craig has designed the inlays for the next two guitar necks. The first is titled “The Fisherman” and depicts an osprey catching a fish. The other, titled “Future Matters,” shows a male seahorse, indigenous to the Chesapeake Bay, giving birth to baby seahorses. We should have some photos of these in the next month. We have set the date for the guitar festival for May 17, 2008. It will be held at Emory’s store, the Appalachian Bluegrass Shoppe, in Catonsville, from 12-4pm. There will be a number of guitarists featured at the festival, and we’re hoping for some original songs related to the Chesapeake Bay to be performed. More information about the event will be included in the Spring 2008 edition of CBF’s “Save the Bay” magazine. If anyone has any questions about the project or the guitars, please contact Emory at Appalachian Bluegrass. His contact information can be found on his website www.appalachianbluegrass.com. It’s back to building, but I’ll continue to post the project progress, passing on our status and any news.     David MacCubbin

Chesapeake Bay Guitar Project - January 2008 Update

Well, the Chesapeake Bay Guitar Project has been underway for a little over two months now, and we’ve made quite a bit of progress (even with the holidays).  We kicked off the project the weekend of November 4, 2007, when Craig flew up to Baltimore and he and I spent some time kayaking down at Blackwater Refuge in Cambridge, taking photos of the wildlife and wetland scenery, including the one on the left. Craig plans to use the photos as the basis for some of the inlay art on the guitar necks and fingerboards.

Since then I’ve spent a good bit of the time building the guitar necks for the first 6 guitars, preparing them for Craig to inlay with the Chesapeake Bay scenes.  I’ve also started on two guitar tops; cutting the wood to size, inlaying the rosettes, and bracing the tops. Shown below are several photos of the work in progress.

   

Craig has been busy designing and storyboarding the scenes for the first two guitars, and has completed the concept art on paper, shown below. One is a scene of a great blue heron, silhouetted in a sunset. The other is a montage of Maryland blue crabs in the water. I just shipped the first two necks to Craig, so the actual inlay work is about to commence.

Emory has been very busy beating the bushes and drumming up support for this project from his customer base. There is already significant interest in the first guitars, and we expect them to be a hot commodity, once the word is out there.

On December 10, 2007, Emory and I appeared on the Steve Rouse morning show on WLIF Lite FM 101.9 to talk about the project. A synopsis of the interview and the audio can be found on my MacCubbin Guitars website, under the Chesapeake Bay Guitar Project link.

If anyone has any questions about the project, they may contact Emory at Appalachian Bluegrass. His contact information can be found on his website.

I’ll keep posting as the project progresses, passing on our status and any news.

David MacCubbin

Chesapeake Bay Guitar Project--A Marriage of Music and Beauty for a Great Cause

The Chesapeake Bay's nautical and watermen's cultures have long been an inspiration for local musicians. Now they are inspiring a few other members of the music business. Soon, thanks to the vision of three talented men and their Chesapeake Bay Guitar Project, you won't just be able to sing about the Bay, you'll be able to make music with it.

(Photo, left to right: Craig Lavin, Emory Knode, and David MacCubbin.)

Here's their story.

David MacCubbin is a Maryland native with a lifelong love of woodworking, music, and the Chesapeake Bay. A singer and guitarist, David built his first guitar in 2001, learning the craft from renowned luthiers (guitar makers) William Cumpiano and Ervin Somogyi. Early this year he switched his career path from software engineering to building guitars full time, and has completed a number of commissioned instruments.

Born in Pennsylva, Craig Lavin's love of sea life and music took him to Florida and to a degree in marine biology and a side-job as a guitarist in a South Florida band. He and his marine biologist and musician wife Emily Schmitt, PhD (who participated in CBF's skipjack summer programs as a youngster) are both involved in marine ecology and education. When Craig wanted a coral reef inlay for the neck of his guitar he became so enthralled with the art that he started doing his own inlays. Today, he is a full-time inlay artist with a special emphasis on marine life. His inlays have been commissioned by individual art collectors, guitarists, and luthiers around the world.

Emory Knode's father opened Nelson Knode's Music Centre in Catonsville, MD when Emory was two years old. Emory assumed full control of the business in 1981. Today, the store is the Appalachian Bluegrass Shoppe, reflecting the acoustic and bluegrass music Emory enjoys most. He has also spent countless hours on the Chesapeake Bay boating, fishing, diving, and exploring wetlands.

"For a long time, I envisioned some sort of project that would showcase the natural beauty of the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed," Emory says. "It was not until I shared my vision with David and Craig that the idea of bringing the beauty of the acoustic guitar and its voice together to raise awareness of the  stewardship we all have responsibility for came together."

The three men have teamed up to form the Chesapeake Bay Guitar Project. "Our mission is to offer a very limited number of hand-made and hand-inlayed guitars that showcase the splendor of our bay and how we can help to preserve it," Emory says.

Proceeds from the sale of these unique guitars will go to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.

"I am very humbled by this opportunity to be able to share my talents in helping the Chesapeake Bay Foundation preserve the beauty and goodness of the Bay," says David.

Craig and his wife have been on the lookout for an environmental cause to support. "When Dave called me, I immediately knew supporting the Chesapeake Bay Foundation was invaluable. Saving biodiversity through high-end guitar building is wholly unique, I believe," says Craig. "There's way too much riding on this body of water for it to be ignored. I am honored to be part of a project along with Dave and Emory, two other very committed individuals who have so much passion and hope for the Bay's future."

But the story doesn't end there. David MacCubbin will be a guest blogger here on CBF's blog over the coming months and will chronicle the project as it, and its guitars, come together.

(Photo below: an example of Craig Lavin's inlay work on the neck of a guitar from a previous project.)

Cash Prizes for Inspirational Environmental Photos

What do the arts and culture have to do with environmental education?

The North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) believes there is a significant connection between the two. Now, their "Our World" photography contest is seeking amateur and professional photos that "will inspire people to achieve environmental excellence." Entries may reflect anything that connects to the environment. The winning photos will show how the visual arts can create a kinesthetic and emotional connection to the Earth. The photography contest is one element of a larger effort by NAAEE to re-invigorate the use of arts and culture in the EE field. More information about prizes, rules, and entry forms can be found on the NAAEE Web site at www.naaee.org.

Share your entries with us, too! Post your photos to Webshots, Picasa, or other online photo-sharing site and submit a comment with your link.

Commit yourself and your kids to one Green Hour each day

The driving force behind CBF's Education program is the belief that you can't care about what you don't know, and you can't know the Bay until you experience it. 

Thanks to Chine bLog I just found out about another program that encourages kids to get outdoors and get their hands dirty. The National Wildlife Federation has launched a program called Green Hour. It is dedicated to the premise that

As a society, we are raising the first generation of Americans to grow up disconnected from nature....by giving our children a "Green Hour" a day -- a bit of time for unstructured play and interaction with the natural world -- we can set them on the path toward physical, mental, and emotional well-being.

Check out their website, www.greenhour.org, for ideas about getting your kids (and yourself) back outside. 

For ideas about getting out on the Bay, check out CBF's field education and Discovery Trip programs.

introducedI just ran across a post by Tim at Chine bLog about Richard Louv's book, "The Last Child in the Woods." The premise is that kids are disconnected from nature.

Crack the DaVersity Code

Free Range Studios has done it again.

A secret held for millennia is about to be exposed at www.daversitycode.com.

Join animal symbologist Robert Penguin and the dashing agent Sophie Minnow as they race to expose the greatest lie ever told. Can they crack the Bio DaVersity Code, or will they fall victim to the lurking killer just a step behind?