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Milford Winter Sports Update

Ryan Colasanti February 3, 2026Sports

This photo was generated using AI

This photo was generated using AI

Despite the snow, Milford winter sports were able to play a couple of games and matches last week. Here’s a recap of what happened in the final week of January.

Boys Basketball:

Milford defeated Caesar Rodney, 70-42, last Friday in its only game of the week. The Buccaneers started the season winning eight straight games before suffering their first loss on January 10, against St. Mark’s. Since then, they’ve gone 3-2 bringing their season record to 11-3. The team will play three games this week starting Tuesday night against Sussex Tech, followed by a home game against Lake Forest and a Saturday matinee against Smyrna.

Girls Basketball:

The Buccaneers lost their only game of the week against Caesar Rodney last Friday. Senior Tristen Showell and junior Isabella Watson played well despite the result, combining for 25 points. Milford will play three games this week starting with a home game against Sussex Tech on Tuesday. The Buccaneers will travel to Lake Forest and Red Lion for their last two games of the week.

Swimming:

Both the boys and girls swim teams lost their final match of the regular season against Lake Forest, Friday afternoon. The boys team finished the regular season 4-7 and the girls team finished with a 2-8 record. Both teams will swim again on February 7 at Sussex Academy at the Henlopen Conference Championship meet.

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Milford Wellness Village expands primary care access with addition of new nurse practitioner
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The Balancing Act: How Milford Caregivers Juggle Work, Family, and Caring for a Loved One
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Christen Linke Young, Cabinet Secretary for the Delaware Health and Human Services reported that Delaware ranks last for access to primary care services, especially in Sussex County. Against that backdrop, Betsy Wheeler, Executive Director of the Delaware Rural Health Care Initiative, recognized that Meir Gelley and this team have taken action that has made Milford Wellness Village a model for how rural communities. Built on the former Milford Memorial Hospital site, the 264,000-square-foot campus at 21 W. Clarke Avenue now houses more than 25 healthcare and social service providers. The site is anchored by Polaris Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center, a 150-bed skilled nursing facility offering post-acute care and therapies. Rather than simply replacing the hospital with a single nursing home, Gelley led the effort to create a multi-use wellness campus that brings together primary care, rehabilitation, behavioral health, adult and child day programs, pharmacy services, transportation, and social supports under one roof. The site has created over 750 jobs and provides services to 200 patients living at one of the providers every day. Gelley, CEO of Nationwide Healthcare Services, has described the approach as breaking down barriers between providers and patients. “This facility has walls, but imagine that it has no walls,” he has said. “Following a patient after they leave the home is what we found to be successful.” For seniors, the campus offers a practical path to aging in place by coordinating medical care, rehab, pharmacy and social programs in one location. Adult day services, transportation and the WeCare support program help families who are juggling work while caring for aging loved ones. The Village is also home to innovative programs such as PACE Your Life, launched in 2022 to help seniors remain in their homes while receiving comprehensive medical and social services. Mayor F. Todd Culotta points to the project’s economic impact as another reason for Gelley’s recognition. Transforming the former hospital into a wellness village preserved a key community asset, created more than 220 jobs, and continues to attract providers, nonprofits, and businesses to Milford’s downtown corridor. Culotta believes that Milford will soon become the Heart of Health Care in Sussex and Kent Counties. He concluded by saying, “It’s our industry now!” For Kent and Sussex counties, where hospitals and clinics are clustered in a few areas and rural residents often travel long distances for care, the Village offers what advocates call a “one-stop” hub. 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The National Rural Health Day event is open to guests and community partners. Organizers say it is intended not only to honor Gelley but also to spotlight the continuing needs of rural residents and the role community-based hubs like Milford Wellness Village can play in closing care gaps.
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