Bernie Fowler

Clyde Bernard Fowler (March 30, 1924 – December 12, 2021) was an American politician from Maryland. He was a Calvert County Commissioner from 1970 to 1982, and served in the Maryland Senate between 1983 and 1994. Fowler is best known for his advocacy for the cleanup of the Patuxent River, the largest river to be found entirely within the State of Maryland.

Personal life As a child, Fowler grew up in Broomes Island, Maryland, where he enjoyed running and soft-crabbing. Fowler enlisted in the U.S. Navy during the Second World War. Following the war, Fowler married and established a rowboat business on Broomes Island using a $4,000 G.I. Bill loan. Fowler had four children.

Each June at Jefferson Patterson Park & Museum, Fowler held a "wade-in" into the Patuxent River at Jefferson Patterson Park & Museum, where he and others would walk into the waters of the Patuxent River until their feet were no longer visible. The event was previously held at Broomes Island, but was institutionalized at JPPM in 2010. Fowler did the annual tradition in order to bring awareness to the water clarity levels of the Patuxent River. In recent years, the "wade-in" has become a noteworthy public event, with numerous public officials joining Fowler in the walk, including Maryland Governors Martin O'Malley and Robert Ehrlich, Democratic Party congressman Steny Hoyer and U.S Senator Barbara Mikulski. The "wade-in" has been an annual tradition since 1988.

In 1994, Fowler was named as the candidate for Maryland lieutenant governor under State Senator American Joe Miedusiewski during the 1994 Democratic primary gubernatorial election. (However, the party's nomination and eventually the governor's seat would go to Parris Glendening that year.)

Death Fowler lived in the community of Dares Beach, Maryland near Prince Frederick, Maryland. He died on December 12, 2021, at the age of 97.

Legacy

In 1997, U.S. EPA Administrator Carol Browner declared "Bernie Fowler Day" in recognition of Fowler's lifelong efforts to clean up the Patuxent River.

In 1998, a laboratory building at Chesapeake Biological Laboratory in Solomons, Maryland was dedicated in Bernie Fowler's honor.

Fowler's "wade-in" has been an annual tradition since 1988.