Author: Joey Ciaramitaro

Photos: Scottie Mac

The Manchester-Essex Rotary Club is pleased to announce the 2022 “Service Above Self” scholarships.  Scholarships are awarded to students demonstrating leadership, integrity, and academic success.  Graduating high school seniors must either attend Manchester-Essex Regional High School or have parent(s) or legal guardian(s) residing in Manchester or Essex, Massachusetts.  Students must be enrolling in a certificate or degree-granting program in the fall of 2022.

Congratulations to this years’ recipients who are both attending Suffolk University in Boston.

Jacob Brown will be studying Business and Law

Isabella Thurlow will be studying Psychology, Criminal Justice and Law

The Manchester-Essex Rotary Club is grateful to our members and community for your support of our fundraising events. The monies raised are used to support these scholarships and many other projects to benefit our community and those in need.

Link to sign up is:

Click Here

What a great weekend. Checks off all my vacation boxes- Beach community, Walking distance to a bunch of great restaurants and cafes, beautiful decor, steps to beach.

Link to book here

Videos of the views-

Link To Purchase Here

It sells out every year. Get your tickets now!

Submitted by D b

What a great day to be near the water and to take some photos before the Mermaid’s big journey to a private home in Florida.

Photos taken at Granite State Pier in Rockport

For more info, visit www.chriswilliamssculpture.com

Hi, Joey,

At the Horribles Parade, the Gloucester Racial Justice Team lost our fabric banner.  Photo attached. 

It was taped to my car – I didn’t notice it was lost until the parade was over. 

Whoever finds it, please contact me, Sally Waite, 207.210.4162?

Thank you!

BOSTON – Rep. Ann-Margaret Ferrante (D-Gloucester) joined her colleagues in the Massachusetts House of Representatives to unanimously pass a transportation and infrastructure bill authorizing $10.9 billion for projects, including $400 million for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) to address ongoing safety concerns identified by the Federal Transit Administration’s Safety Management Inspection, $250 million for the East-West passenger rail project, and $50 million to improve energy efficiency in Massachusetts’ commercial fishing industry.

“The Commonwealth’s transportation infrastructure is the lifeblood that keeps our communities and economy moving. From individuals and families, the self-employed, local small businesses and beyond, our infrastructure keeps Massachusetts moving forward. This bill makes investments for critical transportation projects throughout the state,” said Ferrante. “I am pleased that this bill also includes an amendment I filed to authorize $50 million for grants and no-interest loans to improve energy efficiency in our commercial fisheries, a crucial aspect of our local and state economy.”

Highlights of the bill include:  

• $2.812 billion for projects on the interstate and non-interstate federal highway system 
• $1.27 billion for non-federally aided roadway and bridge projects and for the nonparticipating portion of federally aided projects 
• $85 million for pavement and surface conditions on non-federally aided roadways 
• $25 million for pavement and surface conditions on municipal roadways 
• $20 million for grants to municipalities under the Complete Streets Funding Program 
• $25 million for grants to Transportation Management Associations 
• $82 million for rail improvements  
• $64.9 million for projects of regional transit networks and facilities 
• $1.375 billion for sustainable transit system modernization and rail improvements 
• $114.1 million for the Airport Improvement Program  
• $145 million for multi-modal transportation planning and programming  
• $10 million for a public realm improvement program 
• $3.5 billion for projects funded with discretionary federal grant funds  
• $25.5 million for the Mobility Assistance Program  
• $200 million for projects that reduce emissions such as public alternative fueling stations and electric vehicle charging infrastructure, programs promoting e-bikes and public transportation, replacement of high-emissions vehicles, electric vehicles for hire and carsharing, electric school buses, electric short-haul freight, and delivery trucks 

Additionally, the bill:  

• Updates safety requirements to be met prior to excavation projects  
• Authorizes vehicles or trailers used for maintenance, construction activities in highway work zones to display flashing blue lights with a permit from the registrar 
• Requires the MBTA to provide parking alternatives to commuters when it demolishes or reconstructs parking lots or garages it owns or operates 
• Requires MassDOT, in consultation with the Comptroller, to develop and operate a publicly accessible and searchable database to report on this bill’s expenditures and any project receiving federal funding from the federal Infrastructure and Investment in Jobs Act of 2021  
• Establishes a commission to review and receive testimony concerning public entities, including those that may be created by statute in the future, with the ability to design, permit, construct, operate and maintain passenger rail service that meets the standards of the Final Alternatives in the East-West Passenger Rail Study Final Report issued by MassDOT in 2021 

An Act relative to Massachusetts’s transportation resources and climate (H.4897) passed the House of Representatives 155-0. It now goes to the Senate for their consideration.

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Gloucester, MA—Cape Ann Savings Bank has made a charitable donation of $250,000 to Sawyer Free 2025 (visit sawyerfree2025.org), a philanthropic capital campaign to fund a comprehensive renovation, modernization and expansion of Gloucester’s public library building. CASB’s quarter-million-dollar gift underscores the bank’s goal of strengthening area communities, businesses and the families that live here through sponsorships and charitable giving. 

“Sawyer Free Library’s mission of being a place of learning, creativity and innovation that nurtures and develops the community is much like the long-standing, community-based mission of Cape Ann Savings Bank,” said CASB’s President Marianne Smith. “The library is one of Gloucester’s treasured gems. As such, we are pleased to be able to contribute to its renovation and modernization. We’re also excited to follow the progress of the Sawyer Free 2025 plan to equip the building with technological advancements, new methods of learning and ground-breaking ways of sharing ideas and information. In fact, Cape Ann Savings Bank’s gift will directly fund the construction of an all-ages digital makerspace inside the new library.”

The Sawyer Free 2025 project will preserve the original exterior of Cape Ann’s oldest public library, which will house a fully redesigned interior, and will also double the size of the existing library’s footprint with a 15,000-square foot addition. Cape Ann Savings Bank secured one of the 14 donor-naming opportunities available in support of the campaign. 

“This major contribution by Cape Ann Savings Bank is a shining example of its legacy as a supporter of community events, organizations and activities,” said Barry Weiner, a retired attorney and the campaign chair for Sawyer Free 2025. “The gift makes clear the bank’s commitment to help build strong cities and towns by giving back to the people who live here and supporting growth for generations to come. The donation is also a tremendous validation of our vision to fund this once-in-a-lifetime investment in a vital community resource. Once again, we believe our fellow citizens of Gloucester as well as residents across Cape Ann will respond to this show of support and rise to this occasion with donations both big and small.”

The design principles of Sawyer Free 2025 are grounded in the human experience and an ambition to put people first. The newly renovated and expanded Gloucester Lyceum and Sawyer Free Library will stand as a model for what a 21st century civic hub can and should be in terms of architecture, accessibility, sustainability, the use of natural resources and light, layouts, lines of sight, air quality and public safety. The end product will exponentially amplify the library’s ability to deliver critical services and outcomes not only for Gloucester, but for communities across Cape Ann and the North Shore as a place of equity, inclusion, connection, creation, compassion, renewal and advancement.

The Sawyer Free 2025 project’s total cost is $28 million, a sum that includes built-in inflation costs through the completion of the project in 2025. The Sawyer Library Foundation, the fundraising arm of the campaign, has already inspired more than $14.3 million in pledged donations and grant awards. The completion of the new facility—featuring a sound studio, a film studio, a digital tech lab and 110-seat community meeting space—will result in a 25-percent increase in annual visitors, a 25-percent increase in the number of public programs offered each month by the library and a 50-percent increase in the number of programs hosted at the library by partner agencies.

Cape Ann Savings Bank has been a proud philanthropic force in the region since 1846. In the bank’s 175th Anniversary year of 2021, over $800,000 was donated to more than 100 local organizations. This included special Anniversary Gifts of $1,750 given to about 100 nonprofit organizations. The Anniversary Gifts were made above and beyond any other sponsorship or contribution requests received and fulfilled.

PHOTO: Flanking Cape Ann Savings Bank’s $250,000 donation check to the Sawyer Free 2025 campaign, lifelong library users Isabella and David Robertson proudly present the bank’s contribution to the renovation and expansion of Cape Ann’s oldest public library (sawyerfree2025.org). Behind them and joining in the celebration are (l to r) Library Director Jenny Benedict, Sawyer Free 2025 Campaign Manager Sarah Oaks, Library Board of Trustees President Mern Sibley, Sawyer Free 2025 Campaign Chair Barry Weiner, CASB President Marianne Smith, library patron Gina Goulart-Robertson, Vice Chair of the Sawyer Library Foundation Campaign Steering Committee Frederica Doeringer, CASB Senior Vice President John Brennan, Helena-Rose Maniaci (being held) and library patron Lenore Maniaci. 

✓ How do I learn more or contact Sawyer Free 2025?

Visit sawyerfree2025.org

info@sawyerfree2025.org

media@sawyerfree2025.org

Call 978.225.0363 or 978.225.0915

Facebook: Sawyer Free 2025

Instagram: Sawyer Free 2025

YouTube: Sawyer Library Foundation 2025

✓ How Do I Give to Sawyer Free 2025?

• Visit sawyerfree2025.org
• Text to donate: Text “325182” to 1-855-575-7888 and select an amount
• Checks: SF2025, 2 Dale Ave., Gloucester, 01930 (Checks payable to: “Sawyer Library Foundation”)
• Volunteer! Reach out if you want to pitch in at the library or with the capital campaign, either in person or virtually. Help your neighbors, serve your community and share your expertise. No matter what kind of volunteer work you do for us, you are contributing in invaluable ways.