Crowds dressed in their Water Fest best open annual festival

As the commodore of the 60th Beaufort Water Festival prepared to open the week's festivities Friday night, most kids had their eyes on the bay.

"Look at that boat!" one yelled, pointing to a local shrimp trawler gliding past the stage at Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park. A few hours later, children ducked under ropes and clambered onto the boat's roof, using the Gracie Belle as a jungle gym while the Parris Island Marine Band played.

As most speakers said Friday evening, Beaufortonians are drawn to the water for a reason. It's a city built on its love and use of the bay, and that love is what has allowed the festival to endure for six decades, even attracting visitors and volunteers who moved away years ago.

"It's like a family reunion," Beaufort Mayor Billy Keyserling said before the opening ceremony began. "It's almost like Christmas comes to Beaufort in July."

Neat rows of lawn chairs covered the park by 6 p.m., filled with people waiting for the opening ceremony.

Sitting in one, a man wore a Water Fest-perfect fishing shirt covered in swordfish.

"My wife dressed me," he said, sipping a beer.

And he's not alone.

Many people are dressed for the first night of the "summer bash," from men in Hawaiian shirts swirling with starfish and palm trees to the matching, anchor-covered outfits of Melanie Tanner's four grandchildren.

"They have a very sick grandmother," joked the 1989 34th Water Festival First Lady. I have a fetish."

Along the wall of the park, a 9-month-old boy seemed unfazed that he was sitting in the razor-toothed mouth of an Orca -- a black, white and red stroller complete with a dorsal fin.

The boy, Kayden Ortega, clapped along as four Boy Scouts recited the Pledge of Allegiance.

"He loves the water," his mother said.

About 7 p.m., the crowd quieted for a moment of silence for the four Marines killed in a shooting in Chattanooga, Tenn., on Thursday.

Later, Commodore Bill Damude thanked the more than 400 volunteers who will help make the week-long festival possible.

"It's a Beaufort community event, and that's why it's lasted 60 years," he said. "It's amazing."

State Rep. Shannon Erickson noted Damude's own 11 years volunteering for the festival.

She presented him with a flag that was flown over the Statehouse in his honor in July 2014, the week after he was tapped as the next commodore to lead the festival.

"Thank you for the ripples you have put into the water over many years," Erickson said.

Follow reporter Rebecca Lurye at twitter.com/IPBG_Rebecca.

This story was originally published July 17, 2015 at 9:31 PM with the headline "Crowds dressed in their Water Fest best open annual festival."