Here’s the thing I learned today: You can’t be sad standing in a field of sunflowers. No, seriously. There must be some sort of karmic law that makes you smile when surrounded by these happy plants. I experienced it when I went to visit the sunflower farm on Oxford Rd in Oxford. For our interview, owner Bill Eason, aka Mr. Sunflower, had set up a table outside his home where a vase of sunflowers and zinnias took center stage. How could you not smile?

86-year-old Eason has been a lifetime Eastern Shore resident living in the house on Oxford Road since 1959. With farming in his blood (his dad and brother were farmers), he and his wife, Rose, started a produce stand at the site, first selling corn and then including tomatoes, beets, and other vegetables. They were so successful that they expanded to a new building and stand also on the property. Besides the produce, the Easons had also been growing sunflowers because they seemed to attract people to the stand. That, too, expanded when Rose got him interested in zinnias.

And then, in 2012, Rose passed away, and Eason stopped growing vegetables and closed the stand. He didn’t want to do it without her, he said. 

Bill Eason

But he continued to cultivate sunflowers because he loved watching them grow. So much so that they began to encompass most of his 3.5-acre property as years went by. The zinnias also began to take on a life of their own and took up some space on his field. They became a way to honor Rose’s memory. “I’m really proud of them,” he said. “I’m sorry my wife is not here to see them, but maybe she’s looking down on them because they’re doing great this year.”

Anyone traveling to and from Oxford is used to seeing Eason’s sunflowers in various stages of bloom throughout the entire summer and deep into fall. That’s because he has a staggered planting strategy that takes him past what most people think is too late to sow. “It’s about 65 days for the shoots to come up, and I plant them about the middle of September,” he said. “And they’ll come up in late November or early December if the weather doesn’t get too cold because they can even handle a frost. But I’ll take a chance on the late ones every year.”

That’s not to say there aren’t challenges, including hungry deer, which have sometimes ruined a plot or two. But not all wildlife is destructive, and watching his sunflowers sustain the bumble, honeybees, and birds brings him enormous joy. He also never tires of taking pictures, estimating he’s amassed around 5,000 on his phone, he told me, flipping through photos of customers holding his sunflowers, bees with their legs heavy with pollen, and birds landing on the flower head picking out seeds.

There’s no typical day for Eason, who, for obvious reasons, is enormously proud of his plants. As we spoke, he walked among them, pulling up a weed, cutting off dead bent-over flower heads, or selecting blooms for his stand. Today, like many others, he’s trailed by his calico cat Ava. It’s all in preparation for the steady stream of customers who usually drive through his lot.

At the self-serve stand, you can buy either a $5 or a $10 vase of flowers (vase included, which you can bring back or keep) and the dead flower heads, which he called ‘nature’s bird feeders.’ Eason enjoys being able to provide this service, and the only complaint he ever gets, he said, is the mess made by the pollen released from the massive sunflower heads, although he’s heard there may be a solution—hairspray.

I asked if there was a secret on why his fields were so prolific, especially since I learned he doesn’t use fertilizers. Does he sell his super seeds so we can recreate these beauties? Actually, Eason buys his seeds yearly from Talbot AG Supply in Queen Anne. “It’s a hybrid small seed that grows well and is treated so insects don’t eat them.” Probably the best secret is hiring Eason to plant them for you, something he does as a side business. 

Despite everything I was learning, I was anxious to share what I thought I knew about the flowers. He set me straight: Sunflowers don’t follow the sun. No matter how you plant them, they always face east. And if, like me, you’ve aww-ed over how sunflowers turn toward each other when it’s cloudy, prepare to be disappointed, “I’ve never seen that happening,” he said.

The one thing I was right about is that his flowers bring others joy. Said Eason, “I take sunflowers around and donate to the hospital, doctor’s offices, restaurants, churches, and homebound folks,” he said. He reminisced about bringing sunflowers to a friend’s wife battling cancer. It deeply touched him how his simple gift brightened her final days. Recently he brought a couple of dozen flowers to a church and told people to take them home. “That was my pay–to see happy faces. I probably donate as many or more than I sell.” 

Beyond bouquets, Eason extends his generosity and community spirit through parades, festivals, fundraisers, and more. His decorated trailer is a familiar sight, whether for Waterfowl Festival, strawberry festival, Christmas parade, or a cancer benefit. On October 21, he’ll help Oxford Community Center’s (OCC) Harvest Moon Dance fall gala. OCC’s Director, Liza Ledford, said, “Bill has a smile like no other. His generous nature can be seen in all of his flourishing sunflowers! We are so lucky he shares his flowers to support many Oxford organizations, including this fundraiser where his beautiful flowers and tractors will be the main decorations.” 

Before I left, Mr. Sunflower handed me an armful of sunshine and zinnias. Pollen or not, many days later, they still make me smile.

Bill Eason’s Sunflower Farm is on Oxford Rd, approximately 4 miles from the town of Oxford. 410-924-3486

Val Cavalheri is a writer and photographer. She has written for various publications, including The Washington Post.  Previously she served as the editor of several magazines, including Bliss and Virginia Woman. Although her camera is never far from her reach, Val retired her photography studio when she moved from Northern Virginia to the Eastern Shore a few years ago.. She and her husband, Wayne Gaiteri, have two children and one grandchild.

Construction of Mr. Dickie

Step back in time at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum (CBMM) this summer, where history is coming to life through the construction of Mr. Dickie a remake of a traditional Chesapeake Bay “buyboat.” In the early 20th century, buyboats like Mr. Dickie, were a common sight in the waters of the Chesapeake as they transported oysters, crabs, and fish from local independent watermen to market. During the offseason, these versatile boats could be found hauling freight, lumber, livestock, etc. Today, fewer than 40 original buyboats remain. 

The project, started in October last year, draws considerable interest from visitors who have watched CBMM shipwrights employ traditional techniques to construct the 36-foot wooden boat. Reclaimed timbers repurposed from commercial buildings and powerline poles provide the boat’s bottom and side planking. Leftover white oak from previous museum projects adds a touch of Chesapeake shipyard tradition.

Honoring the bay’s maritime past is a huge part of why Mr. Dickie is being built, and it’s all thanks to the vision of Grigg Mullen, a retired engineering professor currently living in Lexington, VA. The inspiration for the boat goes back to time spent on the Chesapeake’s Eastern Shore in the late 1950s and fond memories that include neighbors Sue and Dickie Whaley and their two children. Mullen recalls Mr. Dickie taking him crabbing and fishing during what he describes as “the best two years of my childhood.”

Mullen in Mr. Dickie

Within a few short years, the Mullen family moved from the area. Grigg became interested in woodworking, raised his own children, and pursued a career as a college professor. Yet nostalgia for the Chesapeake stayed with him. “Eventually,” he said, “I reached the point where I thought I had the time, skills, and resources to build a boat.” In 2012, he successfully completed his first vessel, a 25-foot Draketail—Miss Sue—named after former neighbor Sue Whaley.

Having caught the boat-building bug, Mullen considered building a large enough boat to sleep on. After research Mullen acquired plans for a 60-foot buyboat. He scaled it down to a more manageable 36 feet, sought advice from experts, and began the process of building the boat named Mr. Dickie at his home in Lexington, VA. 

It was around that time that Mullen was teaching a workshop on timber framing at CBMM, something he had done over the years. CBMM happened to be promoting the opportunity for individuals to have their boats built by the museum. Recognizing the educational value of the project, Mullen knew what to do. He explains, “I taught engineering for 20 years. I’m a retired educator, and the idea that we could make the project educational for apprentices, shipwrights, and the public was perfect.”

Christian Cabral, VP of Shipyard Operations, couldn’t agree more. CBMM offers a range of programs that focus on education and skill development, including formal apprenticeships, apprentice-for-a-day experiences, skill demonstrations, and project participation. “If it’s built here, it serves a greater purpose. The vessels we work on might be historical artifacts, but the shipwrights themselves are not, and building a new vessel with traditional means is contributing to something that is not dead nor declining.” 

By bringing this project to CBMM, Cabral believes Mullen provides invaluable experience to the shipwrights involved, shaping their careers and ensuring the continuation of the time-honored craft. “We’ve been given the opportunity to produce something that is the continuation of a very long lineage,” he says, “and that is quite meaningful both for an operation like ours and for the industry as a whole.”

It helps that Mullen is entirely on board with perspective. For example, he intervened when a launch date was set for the end of June. “The conversation was either we divert all the experienced boatwrights to the boat and finish at some scheduled time,” said Mullen, “or we keep going like we were and use that time to educate. There was no question to me which way we should go.” He takes great satisfaction in witnessing the apprentices learn—as he has—from the experience, knowing that the educational goals he set out to accomplish are being achieved.

Now that the construction is being handled at CBMM, the day-to-day operations are in the hands of Jeff Reid, shipyard foreman. “We’re building it like they would have in the 1940s,” says Reid. For him, the most intriguing aspect of the project lies in the engineering and custom-building process. “Each piece,” he says, “must be meticulously shaped and crafted, including the custom-built engine.” But the best thing, he says, is that “this whole thing is a story about Grigg, and we get to be part of the story.”

As the production of Mr. Dickie progresses, Mullen frequently visits the Eastern Shore, sourcing material, taking part in the building process, and ensuring not to miss any milestones. So far, they have completed the bottom planking, flipped the boat right side up (a nod to traditional boat-building), and built the hull and deck. The installation of the engine and the addition of the full-length plank are the eagerly anticipated upcoming milestones. Reid explains that boatbuilders often have a tradition called the “whiskey plank,” which refers to the last plank installed on the boat. Reid adds, “So we might have a round of whiskey to celebrate.”

Grigg Mullen and Jeff Reid

Included in that celebration, most probably, will be the Whaley family. Although both boat namesakes, Miss Sue and Mr. Dickie, have passed away, their daughters, Susan and Anne, continue to visit the museum, observe the progress, and join the 5-6 people involved in the construction. There is agreement that things are coming together. “In the last month of work, Mullen said, “it’s been kind of like magic happened. The boat’s starting to take shape, it looks like a boat, and it’s going to be a very pretty boat.” 

By the end of October, plans are to have Mr. Dickie gliding on the water, heading to the Sultana Downrigging  Festival in Chestertown. After that, Mr. Dickie will probably return to CBMM, and Mullen imagines he’ll come back to ‘play occasionally.’ 

But everyone associated with this project knows that the purpose of Mr. Dickie will extend beyond recreational use. It will also be significant to CBMM’s goals for the community. Cabral believes that offering historically contextualized tools, such as Mr. Dickie, not only allows for pleasure and recreation but also opens up avenues for education and various other experiences. He describes it as a “home run.”

In the meantime, don’t miss the opportunity to visit CBMM, explore the construction site, witness the boat’s transformation, and speak to Mullen, Reid, and all involved in the craftsmanship of Mr. Dickie. You may even want to pick up a hammer, some nails, or a drill and lend a hand. Whatever the reason for being there, take a moment to appreciate that you are stepping back in time and experiencing the legacy of a bygone era while engaging with a living testament to Chesapeake Bay’s rich maritime heritage. 

For more information about CBMM, visit: https://cbmm.org

Easton recently witnessed a prolific collaboration between two acclaimed street artists: George F. Baker III (aka GFB3) and Easton’s Shelton Hawkins. Commissioned by Building African American Minds (BAAM), the duo teamed up to create a vibrant street art mural on the on-site shipping containers at the BAAM campus on Jewitt St. 

BAAM, the non-profit organization that provides educational and enrichment programs for African American youth in Easton, is about to tear down its existing facility to build a new three-story, 25,000-square-foot academic center. Said board president Bill Ryan, “When we realized that storage would be a problem, we were able to get two containers onto the property, but since they are going to be there for more than a year, we figured we had to make them more attractive.” 

That’s where street art came in.

Street art is an artistic expression that challenges traditional spaces, such as galleries and museums. Instead, it uses public areas (buildings, sidewalks, walls, etc.) as a canvas to convey messages, express creativity, or engage with the community. Little by little, what once was an act of rebellion, has gained recognition and has been embraced as a way to enhance the aesthetic of urban areas. The idea of utilizing street art to beautify the unsightly containers made a lot of sense.

And this is where the two artists come in. 

Hawkins, an Easton native, is known for having found inspiration at the unused Easton Idlewild basketball courts. He teamed up with local officials to create a public art project, Play in Color, using the court surface as canvas. The project earned him local awards and national recognition. Hawkins also became part of Project Backboard, renovating other public basketball courts. The group, which describes its mission as: ‘strengthening communities, improving park safety, encouraging multi-generational play, and inspiring people to think more critically and creatively about their environment,’ uses street artists and underutilized courts worldwide.

Ryan, who had followed Hawkins’ career for several years, figured that the metal storage boxes would be a perfect background for the street artist. “When BAAM asked me to paint the shipping container, I reached out to [GFB3],” said Hawkins, “I knew his style would translate really well to the playfulness and the color. He was the first person I thought of.”

For a good reason–GFB3, who describes himself as a ‘Nebraska-born, Detroit grown, and Atlanta-raised creator,’ is internationally known with an impressive list of clients, including everyone from Adidas to the NFL to Verizon. Besides murals, he is also a graphic designer and illustrator. But like most street artists, he puts community engagement at the top of his list of why he does what he does. Both artists had previously worked together on one of the Project Backboard courts and knew each other’s style. “I’m a traveling muralist and was invited to come up by the legend Shelton Hawkins,” said GFB2. “He wanted to do a nice little mural for BAAM, and we came up with designs that would celebrate soccer and basketball.”

Despite both artists being involved with other work, they found time to dedicate a few days to this project. And so, at the end of June, on a dreary and rainy weekend, without much fanfare and without the crowds they usually attract, the duo created magic.

But watching them work was in itself magical. “It needs stars,” said GFB3 at one point, stepping back, inspecting the canvas, then adding them throughout the piece. And suddenly, an already colorful and bold mural took on a new dimension. It was the perfect addition to the primarily spray-painted mural, which features whimsical cartoon-like characters of children playing futebol (soccer) and basketball.

The impact of the artists’ work on Easton’s community will be interesting to see. For the moment, the mural not only enhances the area but also serves as a testament to the importance of sports in the lives of the residents, beyond just the young girls and boys of BAAM. But in the future, will it encourage aspiring artists to explore their own artistic abilities? Can it play a part in storytelling and expression, enabling both athletes and art enthusiasts to engage with it on a personal level? Then there is also this: by going beyond aesthetics, can street art serve as a platform for encouraging community dialogue? 

Whatever the outcome, one of the positive things is you don’t have to plan to visit a gallery or a museum to admire a remarkable piece of art. Stop by BAAM and experience the celebration of art, sports, and community that began as a beautification project created by two street art giants.

For more about Shelton Hawkins: https://www.playincolor.org For more about GFB3: https://www.gfbthree.com For more about BAAM: https://www.baaminc.org