2009 Small Business Person of the Year

The Elkton Chamber and Alliance is proud to announce Mr. Rob Massimiano of Tidewater Tattoo Studio as the 2009 Small Business Person of the Year.

Rob Massimiano moved to Cecil County with his family in 1976 from the Suburbs of Philadelphia to the Banks of the Elk River at Locust Point. Although this was a culture shock for his family, it felt like coming home to Rob since he is a real nature lover. After graduating from Bo Manor High School, Mr. Massimiano went into the service for 5 years, serving as a Navy Seabee and earning a Combat Action Ribbon, and a Marine Expeditionary Medal for service in Beirut, Lebanon.

After returning to Cecil County, he worked at Perelli Cable before his brother, Ed Massimiano, opened Elkton’s first Tattoo Studio on Main Street in 1986. His brother was aware of Rob’s artistic abilities so he offered to teach him how to tattoo. According to Rob, “If he had not offered it to me I probably would never have considered being a Tattoo Artist.”

He worked for his brother for nine years, running the Main Street shop while his brother opened a second studio in Edgewood, MD. In 1995, his brother moved to Florida so Rob purchased the business. And now, 23 years later he continues to make a living as an artist. After learning of his selection as Small Business Person of the Year, Mr. Massimiano stated, “I am grateful each and every day for the incredible gift I have been given. I have received numerous awards for various art competitions and everyone is special to me, but I can honestly say that none of them could mean more to me than this recognition from my hometown. I love Elkton, and its people, I’ve finally found something that fits.”

Mr. Massimiano serves on the Board of Directors for the Cecil County Arts Council and the Alliance of Professional Tattooists. He has been very beneficial in helping create the Arts & Entertainment District. His artistic abilities are shown in the new street banners that align Main Street.

The Small Business Person of the Year Reception will be held Thursday, November 12. The Social Hour begins at 5:30 PM with the dinner following at 6:30 PM. Those wishing to attend will need to RSVP by November 6th with their choice of either chicken marsala or prime rib.

2009 Elkton Fall Fest/Firefighter Challenge

The time is fast approaching when Elkton gears up for our Annual Fall Fest. This year, we will celebrate the theme "Blast from the Past." The Friday Night Kick-Off Party will feature an old fashioned Sock-Hop featuring DJ Mac with games such as a hula hoop contest, limbo, and best 50's costume. The festivities will be from 5 PM - 9 PM.

On Saturday, the event begins at 8 AM with Cecil College's 5K Run. All day event's include: children's games, pony rides, Firefighter Combat Challenge, Kid's Challenge,& Contests (Pretty Baby, Miss Fall Fest, & Elkton Idol). The evening's live entertainment begins at 3:30 PM with the Doo-Wop band RB Express. The final act of the night will be a local favorite, the Larry Tucker Band. Come hear the sounds of Mo-town starting at 6 PM. For more information on the 2009 Fall Fest please visit www.elktonfallfest.com or call 410-398-5076.

Unity Garden

On Earth Day, the Juvenile Advocacy Volunteer Auxiliary invited the public to attend the ground breaking of the new Unity Garden. The Unity Garden is a project that JAVA and other passionate volunteers has been working on with a grant from the TKF Foundation. The TKF Foundation is a private grant-making foundation founded in 1996 by Tom and Kitty Stoner whose purpose is to create "Open Spaces, Sacred Places". It partners with organizations to create sacred places which increase a sense of community and contribute to a deepening of human connections. The project was chosen out of 25 sites in the State of Maryland.

High Street Senior Apartments

The Elkton Chamber and Alliance would like to congratulate Mr. David Holden of the Ingerman Group on being selected as 1 of only 5 projects to be selected for the December 2008 Competitive Funding Round Winners for Rental Housing Funds (RHF). The Economic Restructuring Committee of the Elkton Chamber & Alliance worked closely with Mr. Holden to support this project. Twenty nine applications were received by the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development.

The Elkton Senior Housing Project will have 60 units housing 90 residents with one and two bedroom apartments available. At least one resident in each apartment must be 62 years old. The rent in the new complex will range from about $448 - $763.

The new unit will still need to go through the Elkton Planning Commission and will start construction within twelve months once everything is approved. This new unit will definitely help to revitalize the downtown with more residential units. Another added benefit to the Elkton community is that the Ingerman Group has stated they would like to use local services to complete the construction.

There has already been a lot of interest in the new project with people calling wanting more information on the apartments and how to get on a waiting list. The Ingerman Group will be creating a website that will soon be available to answer all your questions.

2008 Citizen of the Year Award Banquet

Last night was our 2008 Citizen of the Year Banquet honoring Mr. Harry C. Brown of American Home and Hardware. We had a fantastic crowd of about 160 friends and well wishers there to congratulate Mr. Brown on his success. The highlight of the evening was Mr. Tom Brown presenting the award to his brother. He also told an interesting story of when they were younger and Harry told his siblings that if they planted a cheerio, the next day a donut would sprout.

Mr. Brown was definitely deserving of this great honor for everything he has done for the community over the years. Harry is a past coach and umpire for the Elkton Little League, past member of the Founding Board of Directors of the Cecil Heating Assistance Program, past member of the Board of Directors of the Elkton Chamber of Commerce, serving for 3 years as chairman of the Elkton Halloween parade, past Sunday school teacher, past member and chairman of the Board of Trustees of Leeds United Methodist Church, past member of the Board of Directors for Mount Aviat Academy, past president of the Sunset Point Open Space Maintenance Corporation, past vice-president/c0-owner of American Home Fuels, Inc., and was awarded the Boy Scouts of America Cecil District Distinguished Citizen of the Year award in 1997.

The Elkton Chamber & Alliance is proud to add Mr. Brown to the distinguished list of Citizens of the Year.