By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
Jim McLaughlin Jr. didn’t hesitate when he was asked to sum up the 2020 summer season.
“Weird,” he said, frowning.
The obvious reason, of course, is the coronavirus pandemic, McLaughlin pointed out as he lounged on the Sea Isle City beach on Labor Day with his daughters, Maura, 3, and Molly, 2, and his parents, Jim Sr. and Mary Ann McLaughlin.
McLaughlin, of Springfield, Pa., was among tens of thousands of Sea Isle visitors enjoying the last day of the Labor Day weekend and the unofficial last day of the summer season during a spectacularly sunny afternoon with temperatures hovering near 80 degrees.
Despite the big holiday turnout, vacationer Jennifer Parker, of Gilbertsville, Pa., said she has noticed that the summer crowds were smaller overall than in previous years – something she blamed on the pandemic. However, she spent more time on Sea Isle’s beaches this summer because they weren’t nearly as congested.
“I feel like this was the best summer ever,” Parker said. “We don’t have the big crowds like before. I was able to enjoy the beaches more than before.”
Her 8-year-old son, Chase, who spent Labor Day riding the waves, also had a great summer.
“It was fun. I got to play with my friends,” Chase said, after emerging from the surf soaking wet.
Parker and her son were part of a family group that included Melissa Harper, of Delaware County, Pa., and her daughter, Maddie, 7.
Harper said she spent a lot of time hanging out with friends while enjoying her summer retreat at a neighboring campground. At the same time, the pandemic changed the dynamic of her summer vacation, she said.
“COVID definitely put a spin on things,” Harper said.
Memorable in many of the wrong ways, the pandemic forced the cancellation of countless family-friendly events, forced people to social distance and forced them to wear masks. Restaurants and many other businesses were closed early in the summer season before they were gradually allowed to reopen with capacity limits and other restrictions.
McLaughlin said even the playgrounds were closed for a large part of the summer. After they reopened, he wouldn’t take his daughters to the playgrounds when they were crowded because he was worried about the virus spreading.
“The pandemic did not allow us to do the normal things,” McLaughlin said.
His mother, though, took a somewhat optimistic view while looking forward to the summer of 2021.
“Hopefully, next year is better,” Mary Ann McLaughlin said.
Sea Isle and other beach communities are hopeful that visitors will stay longer at the Jersey Shore this year because of people wanting to escape the pandemic in the big cities. A busier fall would give local businesses a boost after enduring so much difficulty early in the summer.
Already, the shore is proving to be a haven for adults who are working from home and students who are studying online instead of heading back to the classroom for the start of school.
Shane Hostetter, an accountant from Lafayette Hill, Pa., said he plans to stay in Sea Isle to work remotely. Although the pandemic has caused a dramatic change in his workplace, Hostetter noted that he was able to spend more time with his daughter, Aubrey, 7, and his son, Mitchell, 4, and the rest of his family at the beach this summer.
“It was different, but we definitely made the most of what we had,” he said.
Shawn Brewer, a vacationer from Whittier, Calif., said she will always remember her vacation to the East Coast this summer – in an odd way.
She explained that much of her trip was spent sightseeing, instead of hitting the restaurants and other popular stops because of the coronavirus closures and restrictions.
Brewer and members of her family all wore masks while walking around downtown Sea Isle on Labor Day.
“I never thought that we would do so much traveling with masks on,” Brewer said.
