Courtesy of Full Measure Oyster Company
Inform - Engage - Empower
An independent Shore-grown organization, CBES has been working for our rural community since 1988.
Whether we are helping to inform citizens through ShoreLine and seminars, enable a more informed electorate with “Meet the Candidates” Forums or building “bridges” through Community Unity Day – CBES puts our mission into action.
ShoreLine News Journal
Since 1988, CBES has published a monthly ShoreLine. It provides reliable information and in-depth analysis on a broad range of issues that impact our community.
ShoreFacts: Special SL issues that concentrate on topical topics such as Solar Energy, the Shore’s Industrial Poultry Industry, Recycling Guides and more.
Email Blasts: Sent to members regarding time-sensitive opportunities for public engagement, such as an upcoming Board of Supervisors’ meeting or a deadline for Public Comment on an important issue.
Impact
Help empower citizens to get involved in chartering the Shore’s future, act as a watchdog to promote local government transparency, and equip local officials to construct sound public policy.
Meet the Candidates Forums
For decades CBES has led the way in providing a civil, unbiased platform for a series of Candidate Forums across the Shore. Held for all contested local elections in Accomack & Northampton Counties including Board of Supervisors, Constitutional Officers, and State Senator and Delegate seats. We have partnered with civic organizations and Shore Daily News radio to expand the reach of the forums. Additional Forums held have included:
Community Impacts of Industrial Poultry
Northampton County Zoning Forum
School Board Candidates Workshop
Forum on Racism
Community Health Fair
Impact
These forums are rare opportunities for citizens to hear and evaluate candidates who could make the crucial decisions that affect our quality of life.
Annual Community Unity Day
A partnership with the Northampton Branch of the NAACP, CBES Community Unity Day goes back to our roots and founding President, the late Suzanne Wescoat and NAACP President Jane Cabarrus – who is still a leading force.
Held each year on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, it began as a program of speakers and community service awards and concluded with a commemorative march honoring MLK’s legacy. At its center, hundreds of citizens gathered at Northampton High School for breakfast – to break bread, a fitting gesture of peace and friendship.
Since COVID, Community Unity Day has evolved into S.O.U.P. – Serving Our Unified People. A diverse group of volunteers including local sororities and students, get together at Gidden’s Do-Drop Inn. It’s all hands-on deck to prepare soups for delivery to 500+ low wealth seniors letting them know their contributions to our community have not been forgotten.
Also, sponsor WESR/Shore Daily News provides an hour of radio time to host our Shore tribute to MLK Day.
Impact
Celebrating the strength of the Shore’s diversity, building “bridges” and partnerships, all vital in these divisive times. A reminder to put into action MLK’s words:
“When I am commanded to love, I am commanded to restore community, to resist injustice, and to meet the needs of my brothers.”
Clean the Bay Day
The statewide Chesapeake Bay Foundation initiative is held the first Saturday in June. CBES joins lead partner, The Nature Conservancy, to pick up litter around Oyster Harbor. We encourage citizens to participate in this or other cleanup sites around the Shore.
Impact
Builds awareness of the importance of environmental stewardship of the waters that surround and sustain us.
CBES Annual Meeting and Picnic@theBarn
A laidback afternoon held in early June in a quintessence Shore setting, a century-old barn on the Wescoat Family farm. Members and Shore folks are invited to chat, dance, and chow down aside Cherrystone Creek. [There is a brief update on CBES activities and the election of Board Members.] Not a fundraiser, we keep the ticket price as low as possible to make it available to all. When appropriate the Suzanne Wescoat Award, named after our founding president, honors a member of the public who portrayed a rarified and long-standing commitment to the betterment of the Eastern Shore.
Impact
Provides a relaxed atmosphere to connect with the CBES Board, local leaders, and neighbors in fellowship and fun to celebrate our Shore Community.
Assist Shore Organizations
CBES has been instrumental in the creation of several organizations that were founded by CBES board members and spun off from CBES to become autonomous. These include Virginia Eastern Shorekeeper, Northampton Economic Forum, Northampton Housing Trust, and Waste Watchers.
We have assisted a number of fledgling organizations that have since taken off such as the Virginia Eastern Shore Land Trust, Friends of Onancock School, and Bayview Citizens for Social Justice, along with two programs designed to provide educational opportunities for preschool age children – Northampton’s PRIDE program and the SPARK program in Accomack
Impact
In a rural community with many needs, neither local government nor any solitary group can do it all. By helping to create, jump start, and mentor other organizations more can be done in service to the Shore’s people.
Between the Waters Bike Tour
With over 30 years of producing quality bike tours, CBES has become a standard bearer for the cycling experience in Coastal Virginia. As the largest ecotourism event on the Shore, BTW Bike Tour purpose is two-fold; raise much needed funds to implement CBES mission and be an economic shot in the arm to local business, towns, and county coffers.
Held the 4th Saturday in October, it consistently sells out with 1,200 participants. The tour’s location switches between the Shore’s 2 counties with four routes that highlight the Shore’s natural beauty and culture as cyclists discover our historic towns and villages and enjoy seaside and bay vistas.
Impact
A great marketing tool for the Shore’s You’ll Love Our Nature brand. Held in the tourism off-season, more than 90% of participants come from other areas. Based on surveys, over the 3-day weekend cyclists bring an estimated $300,000+ in visitor spending and report that their bike tour experience makes it highly likely they will return to the Shore.