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December 2018 | Heritage & Tourism News
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Tourism directors, including Amanda Fenstermaker from Dorchester County (seated immediately to the left of the podium), present their pitch to the judges.
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'Chase the Blue Crab' wins tourism contest
Dorchester County Tourism joined with six partners to win $50,000 in promotional exposure from the Maryland Office of Tourism in the first-ever Crabtank on the Choptank competition.
Their “Chase the Blue Crab” pitch was among 10 tourism marketing campaign ideas presented to the “Crab Tank” during the 38th annual Maryland Tourism & Travel Summit in November at the Hyatt in Cambridge. The competition was based loosely on the hit television show Shark Tank and was held live. Teams created programs and promotions to convince the crabs (judges) to invest in their marketing campaign to increase visitation to Maryland.
The Chase the Blue Crab campaign is an opportunity to expand group travel tour itineraries across the Eastern Shore. By focusing on celebrating, learning about and savoring the blue crab, travelers will enjoy authentic experiences as they cross through Eastern Shore Counties, including Dorchester. Included in the prize is a full-page ad in Destination Maryland, web banner ads, coverage on VisitMaryland.org and in Maryland tourism newsletters.
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Heritage Area Mini-Grants
The Heart of Chesapeake Country Heritage Area is accepting applications for its second round of mini-grants to help fund projects that enrich heritage resources and/or events in Dorchester County. The deadline to apply is Jan. 2, 2019.
Mini-Grants support the efforts of local museums, organizations, and municipalities that advance the mission and goals of the Heritage Area. Projects must be heritage-tourism related. Only non-capital projects are eligible for funding. The matching grant awards are for $500-$5,000.
Additional information about the mini-grants is available on the Heritage Partners page of the Visit Dorchester website. Look for the tab about halfway down that is labeled "HCCHA Mini-Grants."
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MHAA Grant Opportunities and Deadlines
The Intent to Apply deadline for Maryland Heritage Areas Authority grants is January 31, 2019. Final grant applications from non-profits and governmental organizations in the Heart of Chesapeake Country Heritage Area (HCCHA) are due March 1, 2019.
All grant materials are expected to be live by December 14 and accessible through the MHAA website. For more information about applying for MHAA grants, plan to attend one of their webinars. Click here for information about the Dec. 20 webinar. Click here for information about the Jan. 28 webinar. You must register online in advance.
Eleven HCCHA projects and programs received more than $400,000 in matching grants from the MHAA for FY19. The grant funds support heritage tourism projects and activities that draw visitors and increase economic development and tourism-related job creation throughout Maryland.
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Packing House receives preservation support
Preservation Maryland has named the last remaining building from the once-sprawling Phillips Packing Company complex as one of its "Six-to-Fix" projects. The organization will identify funding to support the critical repair of the packing plant’s iconic smokestacks.
Being a Six-to-Fix property will give the Packing House better exposure in historic circles across the state.This will help the plans that are under way to transform the 60,000-square-foot building into The Packing House - a place for tech and creative entrepreneurs, food production and food-related retail/eateries.
Eastern Shore Land Conservancy and Baltimore’s Cross Street Partners are taking on a $20 million project to rehabilitate and reuse the packing plant. Read more.
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 Suggest a Heritage Business Spotlight
The Heart of Chesapeake Country Heritage Area (HCCHA) Spotlight is on hiatus for the month of December but still is accepting nominations for future months.
To be eligible for the “Heritage Business” designation, a business must be consistent with the HCCHA mission and goals and have been established for at least 25 years or have family ties to Dorchester County that go back at least 25 years.
Learn more about the heritage businesses that have been spotlighted this past year. They include, shops, restaurants and recreation-focused businesses.
Are you a heritage business? Do you want to recommend a heritage business? We want to hear from you! Click here for the application and guidelines. |
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Workshop focuses on local exhibit planning
Nineteen Heritage Area partners and supporters came together on Nov. 27 for a Water/Ways Local Exhibit Visioning Workshop with Rob Forloney, a consultant with Maryland Humanities who has extensive experience in museum and exhibit planning.
The workshop provided an opportunity to discuss interpretive concepts and themes and the best way to convey them through local stories, artifacts, images and interactive elements. The Smithsonian Water/Ways exhibit is national and includes archetypal stories so that people are able to identify with them wherever the exhibit goes. The local, companion exhibit will provide an opportunity to tell a variety of stories unique to Dorchester County and will focus on three themes: economic, environmental and social/cultural.
In addition, local partners will be planning their own programming and events in connection with the exhibit, which will be at the Dorchester Center for the Arts from Oct. 19 - Nov. 30, 2019. For more information, visit the Water/Ways web page. It will be updated as meetings and events are scheduled and programming is finalized.
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Looking for more information about upcoming events and activities in Dorchester County?
Click here to read our monthly events newsletter.
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