Second annual Johnnie Walker Beach Celebration held in Lewes
The second annual Johnnie Walker Beach Celebration was held Sept. 9 in Lewes. Sidney and Cynthia Clay founded the event last year.
Johnnie Walker Beach is located at the end of Georgia Avenue. Mayor and council officially named the beach in 2021 to honor Walker, an African American business owner who created a welcoming atmosphere for Black families in Lewes. He operated a restaurant at the site of the beach. Prior to the naming, the site was often referred to as Beach 2.
The celebration was held near the the site of the original pavilion on the once-segregated beach. The pavilion was a place for gathering, socializing and sharing of meals.
Organizers are hoping to make the Johnnie Walker Beach celebration bigger and better each year.
Bill Shull has been covering Lewes for the Cape Gazette since 2023. He comes to the world of print journalism after 40 years in TV news. Bill has worked in his hometown of Philadelphia, as well as Atlanta and Washington, D.C. He came to Lewes in 2014 to help launch WRDE-TV. Bill served as WRDE’s news director for more than eight years, working in Lewes and Milton. He is a 1986 graduate of Penn State University. Bill is an avid aviation and wildlife photographer, and a big Penn State football, Phillies and PGA Tour golf fan. Bill, his wife Jill and their rescue cat, Lucky, live in Rehoboth Beach.
