Do ya know where 'Down Neck' is?

Charlie Simpson has seen the world from the air, water and land. Much of his sightseeing lately has been done behind the wheel of McCready’s courtesy Care-A-Van, driving patients to health care appointments at the Crisfield hospital.

NASCAR and tractor-trailer drivers have nothing on Simpson. He’ll log up to 250 miles a day -- always within the speed limit we might add -- fetching folks from across Somerset County, including Smith Islanders he meets at City Dock.

“You gotta be strong,”says Charlie, who stands 5-feet 4-inches and weighs in at 115 pounds "soaking wet ... with a good breakfast."
 
“Some patients on walkers or with babies in carriers need help boarding,” he says.

Charlie is among McCready's most loyal and enthusiastic volunteers. He served two terms on an advisory panel to the hospital's 10-member governing board and receives no compensation to drive the courtesy van, which he has done for the past eight years.

"I just like being out and about," the Philadelphia native says.

Look up the cliché "people person" in the dictionary and don't be surprised to find Charlie Simpson's picture. In his travels for McCready, he's met retired educators, ministers, world-travelers -- even a guy who claimed to have played guitar for the legendary Chubby Checker.

When Charlie meets someone for the first time, it's not uncommon for the conversation to swerve into pop culture. It typically goes like this: "Do you know you resemble Barney Fife?," the loveable deputy in the Andy Griffith Show played by Don Knotts.

To which Charlie good-naturedly replies: "No, I'm his brother, Ty."

Charlie insists he’s found “places with houses no one knew were there” in his journeys. Distinguishing between Shelltown Road and its cousins, "Old Shelltown Road” and “New Shelltown Road” can be confusing, but he’s never been lost.

He and his wife, Early, settled in Crisfield about 10 years ago because both like the slower pace of life that a waterside community like Crisfield offers. Both came to appreciate life on the Chesapeake Bay while they were undergraduates at Washington College in Chestertown.

Uncertain what to do with a liberal arts degree after graduation, Charlie took a job teaching summer classes at a private, all-male military prep school.

He went on to earn a master's degree from Temple University -- about the time a fellow by the name of Cosby was starting his comedy career in Philly-area night clubs. He finished his studies with a doctorate in education from Rutgers, the state university of New Jersey.

After thirty-eight years as a teacher and administrator, he likes to joke he amassed a résumé spanning "kindergarten to college, public and private, foreign and domestic."

Even a stint teaching non-English-speaking kids in American Samoa didn’t dim his “relish for being able to help, to lead.”

So assisting McCready patients as a chauffeur comes naturally to this retired educator.

Charlie and Early love traveling, especially aboard the Molitch, a motor yacht named for their children Molly and Mitch. He's frequently seen in attire that includes a matching baseball cap and golf shirt featuring his boat's name custom-embroidered by his wife.

The couple also enjoys spending time with their grandkids and tending a garden full of tomatoes, squash, beans and beets. Fish and crabs caught from their boat are “magnificently prepared” by Early to compliment the homegrown produce.

Rock, flounder and croakers are among his favorites. Trout? Not so much.

Exploring and photographing bay-area scenes are other favorite activities.  His favorite, most exotic photo is one is an American egret flying up out of the marsh. He dreams of being able to capture a close-up shot of a hummingbird.

And he never worries about boat maintenance. “I married my mechanic -- she never lets me near the engine room!”

Photos by Patty Hancock