Dear Friends,
It was great to see so many people pay tribute to Tom Oves on Thursday.
The Oves family has meant a lot to Ocean City over the years, and even after a life so well-lived, the passing of this Ocean City icon is a loss for our community.
Almost everybody who visits Ocean City is familiar with Oves Restaurant and Bicycle Rentals on the Boardwalk at Fourth Street.
Tom started the family business 53 years ago and worked there every day of the season.
Many know Tom as an icon of the Ocean City Beach Patrol, who was a championship rower and original member of the OCBP Lifeguard Hall of Fame.
Tom was a 1951 graduate of Ocean City High School, an Army veteran and a long-time educator and coach at Wildwood High School.
Above all, Tom was a family man, and multiple generations of the Oves family remain an important part of our community.
I want to share a link to Tom’s full obituary, so you all can read about a remarkable life.
We lost another of Ocean City’s finest gentlemen this week with the passing of Roy Wagner. As a City Councilman representing the Fourth Ward, Roy became legendary for his “no” votes on municipal budgets.
I always take pride in delivering no-frills budgets, but Roy’s opposition was not about politics.
He believed he was elected to represent the taxpayers, and that’s what he did – always as a true gentleman.
For his eighth and final budget after two terms on council, Roy finally voted “yes” on a budget.
He always liked to remind me of that. Roy lived to age 94. He was a Navy veteran of World War II and had a distinguished business career before retiring to Ocean City in 1995.
In addition to serving City Council, Roy was an active member of St. Damien Parish, the Ocean City Ecumenical Council and many other community groups.
In later years, he could be spotted walking (often backwards) near his home or going for his daily swim at 28th Street Beach. He and his wife, Winnie, were married for 69 years before she passed in 2020. Roy’s full obituary is here.
Michele and I would like to extend deepest condolences to the families and many friends of Tom and Roy. These two gentlemen represented a generation of exceptional community leaders that we will miss greatly.
Our Environmental Commission is putting on a Nature and Environmental Fun Day 10:30 a.m. to noon tomorrow at the Ocean City Music Pier. The event should be both fun and educational, and more information is available here.
Warm regards,
Mayor Jay A. Gillian
