Community Corner

Sandy Won't Stop Annual Blessing Of The Fleet On Barnegat Bay This Weekend

Berkeley Shores Homeowners Civic Association event gets underway at noon today, followed by a 2 p.m. picnic on Amherst Beach in Bayville

In the first few bleak months after Superstorm Sandy, Berkeley Shores Homeowners Civic Association President Fred Bekiarian doubted the group could hold its annual Blessing of the Fleet on Memorial Day weekend.

"I had so much on my plate with the storm," he said. "I said to the board 'Let's not do it this year.' "

But he changed his mind later, at the urging of Township Council President James J. Byrnes, who lost his own home during the storm.

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"Especially this year, we need to have it," Bekiarian said today. "We need to have it for the people to come together."

So the tent will go up on Amherst Beach on Friday morning. Township employees from the Parks and Recreation Department will help heft heavy picnic benches and tables onto the sand, in preparation for the traditional picnic held after the blessing.

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"That's a big item for people who have to get it ready for Sunday morning," he said.

Anyone with a boat is welcome to join the fleet, which will pass the narrow Amherst Beach Inlet out into Barnegat Bay for the blessing. The boat parade will begin around noon.

"The inlet is passable, about five feet," Bekiarian said. "It's narrow. You can only do one boat at a time."

"Whether as many boats show up as in previous years doesn't really matter. What matters is that the annual event takes place, Bekiarian said.

"We'll just wait and see who shows up," he said. "We've had as many as 85 boats."

Volunteers will be manning the grills on the beach and prepping food for the picnic after the blessing. There will also be a D.J.

The picnic will run from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., or as Bekiarian puts it, "or when the food runs out."

Last year so many people were still in line when the food ran out, volunteers had to make a quick trip to ShopRite for more, he said.

"We'll stock up on hamburgers," Bekiarian said.

There is no admission fee for the picnic, which is paid for with BSHCA funds. But donations are welcome, he said.


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