NEWS AND NOTES
Blue Water Sailing
June 29, 2009
Chef onboard schooner AJ Meerwald, killed in car wreck
Tanya Orme, daughter of Mary Orme Elllis, with Affinity Marketing & Communications, died last night in a tragic auto wreck.
Gardner H. Stubee, 32, of Millville, NJ lost control of his 1995 Porsche Carrera after passing another vehicle about 11:16 p.m., police said. Stubee was driving 24-year-old Tanya Kimberly Orme to Port Norris. Orme, a resident of Palm Harbor in West Florida, in March joined the crew of the historic schooner A.J. Meerwald in Port Norris as its cook. The schooner belongs to the Bayshore Discovery Project.
Project Executive Director Meghan Wren said the organization learned about the wreck when the schooner's captain called Orme's cell phone to see where she was. A police officer answered instead.
Wren said Orme designed the T-shirt for the recent Bay Days festival. She also led the Meerwald crew's band to a Best Vocal Award at the festival. "She threw herself into this," Wren said. "She told me she wanted to have a boat of her own and do this kind of program."
Tanya Orme
Wren went on to describe Orme as the ship's cook, "morale officer," band leader and resident artist. Although she had been with the Meerwald crew for less than a year, Wren characterized her service as "truly remarkable.
"Her strength and personal beauty were immediately accessible," said Wren. "She had amazing self confidence and poise - especially for her age and, combined with her 6-foot statuesque presence, she made a powerful first impression.
Her mother, Mary Orme Ellis, the PR force behind her husbands' company, creates marketing plans for some of the top companies in the Marine Industry including Catalina Yachts, Offshore Sailing School, Massey, Yacht Registry and Cruising Guide Publications.
All of us at BWS and The Cruising Compass send our prayers and our thoughts are with the Orme Ellis Family during this difficult time.
MORE: The NJ.com - http://www.nj.com/bridgeton/index.ssf?/base/news-5/1245818416316260.xml&coll=10
