By Greg Ellison

(May 27, 2021) Rockville-based Boy Scout Christian Martin and his mother Lybbi, who relocated to Ocean Pines at the onset of covid-19, are planning a Memorial Day Weekend remembrance outside the Atlantic Hotel in Berlin for those who perished during the pandemic.

Lybbi Martin, who serves as Troop #763 assistant scoutmaster, moved to the Pines last year to assist her mother during the health crisis.

Echoing a similar effort by Troop #763, the Martins are looking to place luminaria to honor victims of coronavirus.

“We’re doing it simultaneously with what they’re doing back home,” she said.

The endeavor expands the traditional focus of Memorial Day in light of extraordinary times.

“Usually, we honor our veterans but this time we decided to go a different avenue,” she said. “It’s not that we don’t honor our vets, but we remember everybody who’s lost.”

In Rockville, because of its greater population, the remembrance will honor close to 200 individuals lost to covid-19.

“They are doing it for the zip code,” she said.

Looking for a comparable sample size, the Martins keyed on Worcester County, which through Saturday had recorded 98 pandemic-related fatalities.

The undertaking came about after the scouts’ usual Memorial Day activities were sidelined.

Martin said Troop #763 stages an annual Memorial Day event at Gates of Heaven Cemetery in Montgomery County.

“We put flowers on veterans’ gravesites,” she said.

“This year the cemetery said we couldn’t do anything.”

Honoring the memory of loved ones lost to covid-19 was coordinated after being restricted from holding the traditional cemetery gathering.

After researching potential locations, Lybbi Martin struck pay dirt when she contacted the Atlantic Hotel.

“I thought it would be beautiful to have luminaria lit up around the site,” she said.

Martin said Atlantic Hotel General Manager Laura Stearns was instantly receptive.

“She said, ‘Of course, what do you need?” Martin said.

Once a site was secured, Lybbi Martin said area restaurateur John Fager provided funds to back the effort.

“He’s going to finance everything,” she said. “He’s sponsoring and Christian and I are coordinating.”

Martin said the lights would be placed around the perimeter of the Atlantic Hotel beginning on Saturday afternoon.

“We got a sign that will say this is a Memorial Day remembrance for those in Worcester County who lost their lives from covid-19,” she said.

The luminaria will employ LED candles that the Martins will monitor and replace if needed, although the LEDs burn on average from 70-100 hours.

“We bought extra batteries,” she said.

Martin said the illuminating display would be removed on June 1.

The intent is to mark an especially challenging moment in modern history.

“This is just another level of remembrance,” she said. “It’s been a hundred years since the last pandemic.”

Martin, who noted her family has long-standing military ties, said a clear distinction could be drawn between those lost in warfare versus the pandemic.

“People that were lost were just living their lives,” she said. “I’m third generation Air Force, trust me, I respect the military.”

The larger goal is for the community to honor the memory of loved ones who died from covid-19.

“It’s just to pay our respects,” she said. “That’s part of the Boy Scouts, we serve our community and our people.”