Holiday Spirit in High Gear for Christmas in July

OCEAN CITY, Md. – There was plenty of Christmas cheer in Ocean City on Thursday, because Fish Tales “is the one place where you don’t have to wait until December for Christmas time.

“In 1999, we were going to have a Y2K party and we said, ‘what the heck we might as well have Christmas in July,'” Fish Tales owner Shawn Harman said.

And now, 20 years later, the holiday cheer is still going strong.

“It’s become a big event, we do Christmas dinner as a special all day, and you’d be surprised at how many people want ham, turkey, gravy, and stuffing in the middle of the summer,” Harman said.

A day for kids to check in with Santa to make sure they’re still on the nice list.

“He asked me if I was being good, so I said yeah,” one kid, Chase Alt, said.

And it’s become an annual tradition for some families and friends.

“[We come] every year, this is our 11th year,” Jackie Baker of Millsboro said. “Me and my friend Barb, we ride a motorcycle, and come here every year.”

“This is when we make our vacation, around Christmas in July, so that we can come for it,” Stacy Alt, of West Virginia, said.

And for some families, it’s their only Christmas.

“There’s people that have come here year after year, that can’t get together for Chrisrmas time, and they have their Christmas in the summer, and they exchange gifts and come here and enjoy it with us,” Harman said.

But it’s more than just reindeer and Santa hats – it’s a way for the community to give back.

“It’s an opportunity for us to collect toys for Toys for Tots, which we give to the Marine Corps,” Harman said.

A day for everyone to come together and remember what the Christmas spirit is all about.