This year marked the 6th Annual Dine & Stay United program, where restaurants, hotels and – new this year – entertainment venues in Ocean City helped raise funds for the United Way of the Lower Eastern Shore (UWLES). Participating businesses chose a promotional menu item, room rate, or ticket price to track from Memorial Day through Labor Day of the 2021 summer and allocated a percentage of sales to go towards UWLES’ impact in Dorchester, Somerset, Wicomico, and Worcester counties. In addition to local businesses, regional vendor Tito’s Vodka also contributed to the campaign with matching gifts.
This year seventeen restaurants, two hotels and six entertainment venues helped to raise $36,000, bringing the six-year total to over $261,000 with support from community partners, the OCHMRA, iHeartMedia Delmarva, the Greater Ocean City Chamber of Commerce, The Taustin Group and Delmarva Public Media. Hotel divisions are grouped based on the number of rooms they have, the entertainment venue division by the number of employees and restaurant divisions are based on their seating capacity.
On February 17, the Ocean City Hotel Motel Restaurant Association (OCHMRA) hosted their February Dinner where UWLES presented awards to this season’s winners by category, who are: Restaurants: 0-100, The View at Cropper’s Landing; 101-200, Waves at Ocean Downs Casino; 201-300, Happy Jack Pancake House; and 301-600, Harrison’s Harbor Watch Restaurant & Rawbar. Hotels: 101-200, Commander Hotel & Suites. Entertainment venues: 0-50, Nick’s Mini Golf; 50+, Jolly Roger Amusements.
“We continued to be amazed by the generosity of our members and their willingness to participate in this great program,” said Susan Jones, Executive Director of the Ocean City Hotel-Motel-Restaurant-Association and UWLES Board member. “The added exposure is a real benefit, and it helps their customers realize they support the community effort.”
For more information on how you can get involved or become a participating business in the 2022 Dine Stay & Play United Program contact Amanda Hailey amanda@uwles.org or Ryan Jackson ryan@uwles.org or call 410-742-5143.
About United Way of the Lower Eastern Shore:
United Way of the Lower Eastern Shore (UWLES), now in its 77th year of local service, harnesses the power of our community to advance health, education, and financial stability for all neighbors in Dorchester, Somerset, Wicomico, and Worcester counties. UWLES helps empower Lower Shore residents to achieve better health by addressing barriers to care, educational success by reducing the achievement gap between low- and middle-income students, and financial stability by advancing the economic security of families and individuals. UWLES provides direct services, collaborates with local stakeholders, and supports 40 local nonprofits to strengthen the entire community, impacting 1 in every 3 individuals on the Lower Shore annually. For more information visit uwles.org.
