Meet Shawn Zappo: musician, writer and photographer. He lives on Asbury Avenue. Shawn practices Mantra-yoga, an ancient spiritual practice from India. He even once lived as a monk when he was a teen. Paul Goldfinger portrait. OG May 25, 2022. Click once on photos to enlarge. ©
By Paul Goldfinger, MD. Editor Blogfinger.net. By popular request:
Kevin Chambers recently commented here that nothing much ever really changes in Ocean Grove. But the truth is that a great many aspects of this historic town are undergoing evolution.
The most important and least well known change is that our population is evolving, and not in a way that many of you might realize.
We have written about our under-appreciated demographic of OG residents which are secular and include retirees, second homers, escapees from COVID and the urban mess in New York, workers at home, new year round residents, gays, singles, artists, lovers of Asbury Park, teenagers, young families, and renters.
Many of this new generation have interests and lifestyles which will change the Grove despite the efforts of the Neptune Comedy, greedy developers, and the Camp Meeting theocracy.
In 2017 Ocean Grove was named the #1 religious landmark in the country. But those pollsters missed the boat about the Grove. Once again the media gets us wrong. This is what they said:
“Methodist ministers founded Ocean Grove believing ‘religion and recreation should go hand in hand.’ Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, this quaint town is crammed with picturesque Victorian homes, antiques, a historic Auditorium, chapel, and tent community, and offers numerous tours and activities on land, sea, and air. Methodists still gather here regularly as well as other Christian groups.”
But now in 2022, there is no mistaking the fact that there is more to the Grove than an official religion.
Beneath the surface is a new force that will be unstoppable. There are young people who have moved here and who love this town. They are often single or couples living together. They bring new ideas and lifestyles. They are residents who are forming new friendships and neighborhoods with new outlooks.
Despite the efforts of the Camp Meeting to turn Ocean Grove into a “Seaside Religious Resort,” they are losing the goal of attracting new Christian believers to town as residents.
Instead there are other winds blowing this way, and COVID is only one: political, racial, secular, artistic, musical, religious, financial, and cultural.
This is Grace and her friend Rugby. Paul Goldfinger photo. Asbury Avenue in the Grove. Paul Goldfinger. Blogfinger.net 5/26/22 ©We first met Grace when she was standing on her head near Stokes statue. She moved here after being in Costa Rica for a while.
Grace teaches yoga, meditation, and energy healing. She “loves” the Grove. Despite our concerns about new young Grovers finding housing, today’s residents were able to find housing. Grace and many of the new residents have dogs, increasing the canine population.
If you are interested in her classes, contact her at gweidnerz@gmail.com.
This is Sini and her friend Barkey. We met her in Firemen’s Park. This young woman has a dazzling smile—happy in the Grove. Paul Goldfinger photo. 5/25/22 ©Barkey is a “Bernedoodle” Please let me know if I got your names wrong. Anyhow, Sini moved here 2 years ago to escape COVID and more from New York City. She says that she may be an escapee, but she “loves” it here and she plans to stay.
We will continue to meet members of the Grover Underground.
JIMMY BUFFET :
David. Thank you again for your insights into OG history. It’s ironic that dogs were popular in 19th century OG, because a few years ago, when a petition was presented to the CMA requesting a dog park, the CMA refused on the grounds that a dog park would be a violation of their “mission.” Go figure.
And, speaking of history, a Google search of “go figure” showed a Cambrige Dictionaery explanation: used when you tell someone a fact and you then want to say that the fact is surprising, strange or stupid:
It turns out that there have been over 12 million hits to define “go figure” So, go figure.
Paul Goldfinger,MD, Blogfinger.net Editor
Dogs have been a part of OG since the earliest days. Apparently, people allowed them to run at large creating problems.
In 1878, the Association required all dogs to be muzzled under threat of destruction, though this may not have been well enforced. As the 1890s approached, rabies became more of a threat and some ill-disposed persons put out poison for dogs in AP, OG, and BB.
The first leash law appeared in 1926. There was great opposition to rabies vaccinations, and a 1939 requirement failed in Trenton. However, by 1949, free rabies vaccination events were held in OG.