SoDel Cares wins Mae Hall McCabe Award

The late Matt Haley, founder of SoDel Concepts restaurant group, displayed an active interest in helping those in need.

Haley died in 2014 after a motorcycle accident while on a humanitarian aid trip in Nepal, and while he’s gone, SoDel Concepts has continued the work Haley championed.

SoDel Cares Foundation, the organization’s charity arm, was honored Feb. 8 by the Rehoboth Beach-Dewey Beach Chamber of Commerce with the Mae Hall McCabe Award, which honors community service in the Rehoboth-Dewey area.

SoDel Cares Foundation was founded by Haley’s successor, Scott Kammerer, as a philanthropic outreach to the community, said presenter Mike Meoli.

“The concept was simple: he wanted to create a support network that would help fund the hundreds of local charities that exist in our community,” Meoli said.

He said SoDel Cares gave donations to 37 charities in 2017 alone, and in three years, the organization has given $250,000 in donations to 150 charities and nonprofit organizations.

“We are fortunate to have people and organizations in our community that recognize that helping others is more satisfying than helping themselves,” Meoli said. “SoDel Cares is proof that Matt Haley’s legacy of making a dollar to give a dollar away lives on in our community.”

Accepting the award on behalf of SoDel Cares Foundation was President Lindsay Berry.

“We’re fortunate because there are a lot of people in our area who are doing big things and really putting in the effort to make a difference and make this a great place for all of us,” she said. “It’s heartwarming, and it means a lot.”

The Mae Hall McCabe Award is named after Mae Hall McCabe, a Rehoboth realtor and city activist who helped organize the Rehoboth-Dewey chamber and served as its president.