Stepping into the sand of the beach of Ocean City, Maryland, is a special childhood memory. Hearing the waves pound against the shore thrilled my senses. Going into that salt water, and jumping over waves was fun.
My family rarely went on vacation. The one exception was an annual trip to the same beach every summer for about three days. We would spend all day at the beach, jumping waves or resting under the big beach umbrella my mom would always rent. Sometimes we would rent canvas rafts which were so popular in the 1970’s, and ride a nice size wave all the way to the shore. Sometimes a wave would wipe me out. This skinny boy would go right back at it facing those waves. Lunch usually involved a short walk to a boardwalk take-out grill which made the best cheese sandwiches and the best French fries in the world.
Sometimes, we would still be at the beach into the late afternoon, even after most people had left. Eventually we would head to the studio beach house where we always stayed. I felt extra fresh after showering, with all the saltwater and sand washed off. I would feel tired yet invigorated after a day of swimming. We would have dinner. Then we would walk down the boardwalk a few dozen blocks to the amusement park. We would always do a few rides, and play a few carnival games. When young, I once won a game where I popped several balloons by throwing darts. I was proud of myself. The night at the amusement park was always fun.
Ocean City was a cherished tradition for me. I loved the beach. I liked the boardwalk excitement. And it was rare family time.
Here many decades later, there is one aspect of the tradition which I cherish more than any other. On the boardwalk, only a short distance to the north of the amusement park, there was a man who did sand sculptures. The owners of an old boardwalk hotel gave him access to a hose and an electric chord, providing him with free water and electricity. He would spend all day there on the beach, twenty yards or less away from the boardwalk, sculpting sand. Wetting it down with the hose, he would work with the sand, creating with his artistic gift. The sculptures he created were scenes from the Bible. Often it was a scene of the “Last Supper.” Sometimes the sculptor was of Jesus on the cross.
The result: On summer nights the boardwalk was filled with people strolling north and south. Yet at that spot, the noisy boardwalk was usually extra quiet. Many people would walk by, yet they would lower their voice or remain quiet. A number of people would stop and admire. Before us was his sculpture of the day, with two or so portable lights shining on it. There in a sea of sand, with the backdrop of the dark ocean there at night, was beautiful art depicting a scene from the Bible. Being art with a message, below each sculpture was even a statement, such as, “This is my body, given for you.”
Sometimes compliments were quietly stated. I remember once a man with a long beard who was wearing cut-off jeans, walked over to the artist’s glass jar and put some money in. That one spot in Ocean City, night after night, was a rare place of reverence.
As a boy, and then as a teenager as the years continued, I always enjoyed seeing the sculptures of Jesus. It was a serious moment for me to admire the art, yet also serious moment for me to consider the passion which the artist had for Jesus.
There in my youth, I was not a Christian. I had never even heard the complete Gospel of Jesus. Now I did not learn much from the sculptures. Yet summer after summer I realized that there was an artist who was so passionate about Jesus that he would spend day after day working to create the sand sculptures centered on Him. His work was a unique witness to me about that man named Jesus.
I add to this piece giving some history I learned in this fall of 2014 from the Internet: Mark Altamare started sand sculpting biblical scenes in Ocean City, Maryland, in 1968! It was his blessed art I saw in my early youth. Upon retiring from his ministry in 1981, Randy Hofman, an oil painter and a friend of Mark’s, agreed to carry on with the sand sculpting ministry. Randy devoted himself to the ministry starting there in 1981, and has continued it to this very day! Thanks to such an unselfish work commitment by both, this ministry has flourished for 46 years.
Lastly I add here as I do some editing at a later date, that as of the fall of 2014, I had not seen the sculptures since the late 1980’s. Yet there in the fall of 2014, I was filled with thankfulness for the ministry dedication of Mark Altamare and Randy Hofman for all 46 of those years.
Hunter Irvine
Scripture Love Blog
(Photo copyright randyhofman.com. Used by permission.)
THANK YOU RANDY!
