The 1925 Eagle Foundation of Rehoboth Beach Country Club continued its support of the community this year, awarding more than $15,000 in grants to the Milton Fire Department, Meals on Wheels Lewes-Rehoboth and the Rehoboth Beach Boys & Girls Club.

The foundation also provided scholarships and emergency assistance to members of the Talon Tribe, the employees of Rehoboth Beach Country Club.

The foundation, launched by the club in 2025, focuses its giving on organizations that strengthen the health, safety and well-being of the communities its members call home.

“We are proud to support three organizations that do so much for our community,” said Scott Talbott, 1925 Eagle Foundation president. “The work they do is essential, and we are grateful for the opportunity to help them continue serving our neighbors.”

For the Milton Fire Department, the foundation’s $5,000 grant will help pay down the debt on a new ladder truck. The department’s current truck is 30 years old, costly to maintain and increasingly difficult to repair.

Once fully equipped, the new truck represents an investment of roughly $2 million.

“It’s a huge undertaking for a piece of machinery that is so important to the safety of our community,” said Brian Reynolds Jr., Milton Fire Department president. “Every bit helps. This gets us that much closer to a truck our crews can count on.”

The foundation also awarded $5,000 to Meals on Wheels Lewes-Rehoboth. The nonprofit will use the funding to help offset rising meal delivery costs. Through the dedication of more than 200 volunteers, the organization delivers about 90,000 meals each year to more than 300 homebound neighbors in Rehoboth Beach, Lewes and Milton. The visits also provide an important connection for people who might otherwise go days without seeing anyone.

“It will help us maintain these essential services,” said Aileen Mateo, director of Meals on Wheels Lewes-Rehoboth. “It was such a pleasant surprise and honor to be the recipient of such a generous grant.”

The third $5,000 grant went to the Rehoboth Beach Boys & Girls Club. The funding will support summer field trips, the club’s Book Nook literacy program and childcare scholarships for working families.

“We’re so appreciative of the support,” said Sarah Driscoll, vice president of resource development for Boys & Girls Clubs of Delaware. “It helps us provide opportunities to families who need them most.”

While the foundation’s community grants address broader needs, its support also reaches the people who help make the country club community possible. “We started this because we wanted to take care of the people who take care of us,” said Riko Metzroth, an Eagle Foundation board trustee and chair of the investment committee.

This year, the foundation awarded eight Talon Tribe scholarships of $2,500 each. Recipients will use the scholarships for local and national educational programs, colleges and universities.

The foundation also provides emergency assistance when Talon Tribe members and their families face unexpected hardship.

That support made a significant difference for one employee who asked to remain nameless, an international H-2B seasonal employee who works in the club’s dining room. The young woman suffered an AC shoulder separation in a bicycle accident while riding home from work in June.

Without health insurance, the hospital bill was going to consume most of her savings, money she sent home to support her family. The foundation helped cover her medical expenses while also offering emotional support during her recovery.

“They never made me feel like I was any less of a person because they were helping me,” she said. “They were really genuinely so kind and nice, and wanted to help.” 

She said the experience showed her something she had never encountered at another workplace: assistance available to all employees, including seasonal staff. “It was amazing to see how the people that I take care of were taking care of me,” she said.