BY TED SHOCKLEY, Eastern Shore Post —
Robert Jude Vandornick Jr. left a gathering of friends on the evening of Saturday, Sept. 14, in his golf cart and headed home the back way.
It was a way he’d traveled frequently, through the back of his property in Trails End Campground — a massive community near Horntown that is home to many year-round residents like Vandornick.
“The way he goes home all the time,” is how his ex-wife, Deanna Shanahan, of Ocean City, Md., described it.
But the day before he was having some mechanical issues with the golf cart. And there is a hill — an embankment, the state police called it — in the back yard.
Early the next afternoon, a neighbor found Vandornick’s body under the golf cart. He was 54.
The death shocked the tightly knit waterfront community, where Vandornick was known as a personable and giving neighbor.
“He was so sweet,” said Megan Browne, manager of the general store in Trails End. “He was a fantastic human being.”
The death also shone a light on the dangers of golf carts, which on the Eastern Shore have become ubiquitous in towns and communities — including Trails End.
In several instances, officials reported golf carts from Cape Charles driving on U.S. Route 13 or involved in alcohol-related crashes.
Sgt. Michelle Anaya, a state police spokeswoman, said Vandornick was going up a hill when “he took a curve too short and drove over the embankment.”
The golf cart overturned and landed on top of Vandornick, killing him, she said.
The incident happened in the 3500 block of Robin Lane. His body was found at 12:07 p.m.
He is survived by his parents and three adult children, said Shanahan, who said she and Vandornick remained close after their divorce.
“He was part of our family,” she said. “We remained friends. We included him in everything.”
Born in Salisbury, Md., Vandornick was a native of Maryland’s Eastern Shore and moved to Trails End several years ago.
She described him as “a waterman, an artist, a musician, an amazing cook, and most importantly, he was a great dad to our kids.”
Brown said Vandornick was a frequent customer at the Trails End store, sometimes showing up with seafood to share.
“He just gave you anything,” she said. “He would fill up a bag for you of rockfish.”
She said his many friends remain stunned at Vandornick’s death.
“He was really well-loved here,” she said.
