Hampton Bays, NY - September 4, 2015 - The Committee to Explore the Incorporation of Hampton Bays will hold their inaugural Hall of Fame dinner honoring those of the Hampton Bays community who have consistently contributed to making Hampton Bays a better, richer place to live with family and friends.

The inaugural class of the Hall-of-Fame is:

George Skidmore, a lifelong Hampton Bays resident, has spent his life serving the community. His family has lived in Hampton Bays since the 1870’s. George’s roots are not just planted in the sandy loam of this town, they run deep in the fabric of Hampton Bay's history.  A team player in high school, the year George graduated the high school athletic director asked him to create and manage a summer baseball team. That was 1953, it appears to have been his calling for George has supported the Hampton Bays Little League ever since. George Skidmore Sports was a natural for this team player and today is inseparable from George Skidmore: as he has served the needs of the community so has his sporting goods store.  Originally a family run blacksmith shop, George Skidmore integrated his sporting goods shop into the life of Hampton Bays, as his wall of plaques’ and commendations will attest. Today George Skidmore's life and values remain committed to the well being of Hampton Bays and this community’s youth. He serves as a member of many boards that are integral in Hampton Bays continued successes. Hampton Bay's is pleased to induct George Skidmore as an inaugural member of the Hampton Bay's Hall of Fame.

Douglas Oakland first came to Hampton Bays in the 1990's to help his father build and work the restaurant. He came for the fishing, but he stayed for the Hampton Bays way-of-life.  Along the way he married, created Oakland's restaurant on the Shinnecock Inlet, raised a family, served on the school board, and fished.  Oakland’s stands in testimony that Douglas Oakland liked to do things correctly. He believed such reasoning was true for a community as well. For Doug the most important of those community workings was the school board, establishing the benchmarks for the pleasure and reward of doing things correctly for future generations of Hampton Bays. Doug knew what was important ... he was a great dad and husband to Stephanie, he supported all in the community, he was on the school board and he had Oakland's ... he did a great job balancing all ... unless it was a good fishing day ...fishing was always his passion. We lost Doug this year. We all lost a friend, and in a too casual world, we lost a champion of correctness and detail, and a fellow fisherman.  Hampton Bays lost a pathfinder to the future, a man who lit the way with values not easy to find in our fast-paced modern world. His open, warm support, friendship, and practical wisdom will be missed. We of Hampton Bays honor his memory by making Douglas Oakland an inaugural member of the Hampton Bay's Hall of Fame.

The honors dinner will be at Oakland’s down on Dune Road near the Shinnecock inlet, Thursday, September 10th, 6:00 to 9:00 p.m.

The cost for dinner and cocktails is $65.00 per person. Be a part of this inaugural major event in the history of Hampton Bays.

Proceeds will benefit the Committee to Explore the Incorporation of Hampton Bays 501.c4.