My View of Life on the Dock
Hpapy Independence Day! The Manchester by the Sea 2019 parade featured sports cars, vintage bikes, team floats, music floats, and militia and minutemen companies. Following the parade, parachute jumpers aimed for the X on the turf field.
Hpapy Independence Day! Another beautiful day for parades on Cape Ann: Manchester by the Sea featured sports cars, vintage bikes, team floats, music floats, and militia and minutemen companies. Following the parade, parachute jumpers aim for the X back on the turf field.
The best ones! Here congratulating state champs. Thanks Kate for awesome brownies
Announcement from Rocky Neck
Dear Rocky Neck Community,
The Board of Trustees is very excited to announce that art colony artist member, Loren Doucette, joined the organization as RNAC Operations Manager. In this newly formed position, Loren will co-ordinate and implement the various programs of the Art Colony, schedule and supervise the Cultural Center space, provide administrative support, and communicate with both members and the public.
Loren brings positivity, warmth and a fresh new energy to the Art Colony. She is passionate about being a creative catalyst and looks forward to promoting the artists and galleries of the Rocky Neck Art Colony, collaborating with local arts and business organizations, and helping to generate a new youthful vibrancy to the art colony.
A life-long artist who focuses on painting, drawing and collage, Loren has been an exhibiting artist and teacher on Cape Ann since 2000 and a member of the Rocky Neck Art Colony for over ten years. During this time she became widely known for her appealing style and was featured in several popular shows including those at Flatrocks Gallery and Gallery 53 in Gloucester and the Tusinski Gallery in Rockport. She was recently awarded the People’s Choice Award from the show Rocky Neck Now 2019, Looking All Around.
With a BFA in Drawing and Painting from Montserrat College of Art in Beverly, Loren was recently Interim Director of Continuing Education at Montserrat where she also taught classes in pastel, drawing and painting.
She loves living by the ocean and being a part of the Cape Ann art community. In Loren’s words: “I continually fall in love with this amazing place—the people, the culture, the diversity, the natural beauty—all truly magical. I feel honored to have this position of leadership at the Rocky Neck Cultural Center and look forward to helping bring together many talented and inspired people to exhibit, perform, and tell their stories. In addition to honoring the rich artistic history that Rocky Neck holds, I am excited to be part of the next wave of artistic innovation!”
Loren may be reached during her office hours on Thursday and Friday by email: rnac.operationsmanager@gmail.com and by phone at the Cultural Center: 978-515-7004.
and read more from Massachusetts Youth Soccer tournament summary here: https://spark.adobe.com/page/L3pta2ujd6KK9/
Cape Ann’s Head Coach, Kyle Hurd (GHS 2011): “Composure, bringing a sense of urgency and being able to play with controlled aggression were key for us. Being able to keep your head and your wits about you to open up space, and not just to sprint forward, was key. There’s a lot of preparation, some yelling and some headaches. We struggled in the middle of the season, but after that we turned it around immediately and hit the ground running.”
and from Essex County Youth Soccer Assoc (ECYSA):
Dear Players, Families and Friends of ECYSA,
We began the season in April with 502 teams across five age groups and four divisions. We battled a tough weather season but we managed to get most of the games played and as a result of all of the work of each of our 32 organizations and hundreds of coaches and volunteers we provided an excellent soccer experience to over 8000 players.
This last weekend we closed out our 2019 Spring season with the MA Tournament of Champions(MTOC). ECYSA had 14 divisional champions and 5 wild cards representing our league at MTOC. Eleven of those teams advanced out of pool play and into the semi-finals. Five teams advanced to the final and one team won a State Championship. (G10 B MTOC 2 – Cape Ann United Longshoremen) ECYSA also had a team recognized with the Sportsmanship Award (G8 G MTOC 2 – Woburn Warriors). It was a great weekend and ECYSA was represented well.
Below I have listed all of the 2019 ECYSA Champions and wildcard winners. Congratulations to all!
On behalf of the entire ECYSA Board, thanks for a great season. Looking forward to seeing everyone back on the fields in the fall.
Dean Sidell
ECYSA President
2019 Essex County Youth Soccer Champions
| North Reading Scorpions – G6 B MTOC 1 (MTOC semi-finalist) |
| Rockport Loose Cannons – G6 B MTOC 2 (MTOC semi-finalist)
Revere Eagles – G6 B County 1 Lawrence Rebels – G6 B County 2 |
| Revere Nacional – G8 B MTOC 1 (MTOC Finalist) |
| Lynn Tornados – G8 B MTOC 2 (MTOC Semi-Finalist)
Woburn Aztecs – G8 B County 1 Triton Arsenal – G8 B County 2 |
| North Andover Knighthawks – G10 B MTOC1 (MTOC semi-finalist) |
| North Andover Redstorm – G10 B MTOC 2 -Wildcard (MTOC Finalist) |
| Cape Ann United Longshoremen -G10 B MTOC 2 (MTOC State Champion)
Marblehead Flotilla – G10 B County 1 |
| Woburn Sporting CP – G12 B – MTOC 1 – Wildcard |
| North Andover United FC – G12 B MTOC 1 (MTOC Finalist)
Cape Ann United Lumpers – G12 B County 1 |
| Lynnfield Breakers – G6 G MTOC 1 |
| Saugus Liberty – G6 G MTOC 2 (MTOC Finalist)
Ipswich Pride – G6 G County 1 Hamilton Wenham Surge – G6 G County 2 |
| Andover Defenders – G8 G MTOC 1 (MTOC Finalist) |
| Woburn Warriors – G8 G MTOC 1 – Wildcard (MTOC semi-finalist and Sportsmanship winner) |
| Marblehead Thunder G8 G MTOC 2
Danvers Sky Blue – G8 G County 1 Cape Ann Unite Fathoms – G8 G County 2 |
| North Andover Strikers – G10 G MTOC 1 |
| North Andover Banshees FC – G10 G MTOC 2 |
| Peabody Lady Tanners – G10 G MTOC 2 – Wildcard |
| Pentuckett Lady Sachems – G12 G MTOC 1 |
| Haverhill Lady Hillies – G12 MTOC 1 – Wildcard |
photo of Hammond Castle by Rebeccah Pearson Museum Shop Manager
Rebeccah Pearson, Museum Shop manager submits:
Artist reception at Hammond Castle Museum Monday July 8th 6pm – 8pm
“On the Right Track” artist meet and greet is a wonderful way to meet some of our most talented artists on Cape Ann that are being featured in Hammond Castle’s Museum Shop. Join us Monday July 8th at 6pm ending at 8pm. Refreshments will be served as you talk with the artists and enjoy their paintings. Please RSVP by going to the website at www.hammondcastle.org.
The featured artists for the month of July include:
Rosemary Ryding was born in London and is greatly influenced, by the art old and new in Europe. Her main interest is in the study of new mediums and methods. Her present pursuit is the study of ENCAUSTIC which is a medium used by the Greeks in the fourth century BC. It is now used in a multitude of ways and combines the old and the new.
Patty Boynton is a painter whose art is inspired by the beauty of the Northeast, in particular the marshes of Cape Ann and the Isles of Shoals . She works in oils in a representational style with a goal of simplifying and abstracting her subjects. When she isn’t painting, she enjoys walking, working in her garden, singing in her church choir, reading and traveling. You can reach her at p.boynton@comcast.net.
Linda Harvey has been painting as hobby for the past 20 years. Her work includes seascapes, landscapes, children and European streetscapes. Oil on canvas is her medium of choice. She has had many painting adventures in France, Spain, Majorca and Italy . She paints with joy in the beautiful color.
Therese Melden lives in Manchester, MA and began painting 14 years ago. She has explored acrylic and oil paint and currently works in pastel. “I have always loved making art. I enjoy trying new techniques and have been fortunate to work with gifted teachers and talented peers. I paint plein air and mostly from photographs. I choose subjects that I have an emotional reaction to.”
Camille Skilton has been painting as a hobby for around 15 years. She started in watercolors but now does mostly oils. She paints in the tonalist style which George Inness started in the 1800s.
Carmela Martin a native of New England, Carmela Martin finds that these are the landscapes and people that most attract her as an artist. Whether working representationally or in a more expressionistic style, her art is informed by her experiences living in this unique part of the country. Martin has studied at Montserrat College of Art and with many gifted and renowned artists from the North Shore and beyond. She works in pastels, acrylic and oils, often incorporating cold wax and marble dust. Martin is an artist member of the North Shore Arts Association, Rockport Art Association, Newburyport Art Association and the National Association of Women Artists (NAWA). Her paintings are in private and corporate collections in the U.S., Canada and Scotland.
Katie Bull has lived in Beverly MA most of her life. Though her travels inspire her art, she thrives on her sense of place in her own back yard. Her primary medium is pastels, and recently she has been exploring and enjoying painting in oils.
Every month through out our season Hammond Castle Museums Shop will be featuring local artists upon its walls. A portion of the proceeds will go towards restoration efforts. To view this months local artist please click here! Hammond Castle Museum, 80 Hesperus Ave, Gloucester MA 01930 www.hammondcastle.org
Hammond castle open daily! Enjoy guided or self-guided tours.
Cape Ann United U16 Longshoremen are MTOC state champs, June 30, 2019
team photo MTOC Champs 2019 – Great team & effort along with kind and dedicated coaching! Thanks to Coach Kyle Hurd (GHS class )back row far right; plus Jim Sperry back row 2nd to right; Luciano Sappia far left; and Gary Schmidt not pictured 😦 here but see below in group shot from earlier game. It was crazy hot in Lancaster.
June 30 CAU vs. North Andover 3:2 (games delayed due to wild weather)
June 30 CAU vs. Douglas (came down to penalty kicks shootout)
June 29 CAU vs. Harvard 0:2
June 28 CAU vs. Springfield 5:0
June 28 CAU vs. Worcester 6:2 (hat tricks Robert & Jerome)
Cape Ann United U16 Longshoremen are MTOC state champs, June 30, 2019
team photo MTOC Champs 2019 – Great team & effort along with kind and dedicated coaching! Thanks to Coach Kyle Hurd (GHS class )back row far right; plus Jim Sperry back row 2nd to right; Luciano Sappia far left; and Gary Schmidt not pictured 😦 here but see below in group shot from earlier game. It was crazy hot in Lancaster.
June 30 CAU vs. North Andover 3:2 (games delayed due to wild weather)
June 30 CAU vs. Douglas (came down to penalty kicks shootout)
June 29 CAU vs. Harvard 0:2
June 28 CAU vs. Springfield 5:0
June 28 CAU vs. Worcester 6:2 (hat tricks Robert & Jerome)
Thanks to area businesses– like Pop Gallery, Shaws, Vista Motel– for helping kids, and adjusting their work schedules so they could compete!
First game 1:1 first half vs. Worcester
Update– At half 3:1
Won ! 6:2 on to next game
Mark your calendars! Cape Ann Museum announces super special exhibition and ancillary programs:
Homer at the Beach: A Marine Painter’s Journey, 1869-1880
An Exploration of the Earliest Marine Works of Winslow Homer
On view: August 3 to December 1, 2019
GLOUCESTER, MASS. (June 2019) – This summer, the Cape Ann Museum will exhibit 51 original works by renowned American artist Winslow Homer. The exhibition, Homer at the Beach: A Marine Painter’s Journey, 1869-1880, will be the first close examination of the formation of this great artist as a marine painter. The exhibition will include loans from more than 50 public and private collections and will be on view from August 3 to December 1, 2019. The Cape Ann Museum will be its sole venue.
In 1869, Winslow Homer (1836–1910) exhibited his first picture of the sea. He was an ambitious New York illustrator—not yet recognized as an artist—and freshly back from France. Over the next 11 years, Homer’s journey would take him to a variety of marine destinations, from New Jersey to Maine, but especially—and repeatedly—to Gloucester and other parts of Cape Ann.
It was on Cape Ann that Homer made his first watercolors and where he first developed an identity as a marine artist. And it was in Gloucester in 1880, at the end of these 11 years, where he enjoyed the most productive season of his life, composing more than 100 watercolors of astonishing beauty. Homer’s journey forever changed his life and the art of America.
This exhibition will include a remarkable variety of works by Homer and a broad range of period objects to reveal new aspects of the artist’s oeuvre, for the first time placing these paintings, drawings and even ceramic work in their rich geographic, cultural and historical settings, on the 150th anniversary of Homer’s first paintings of the sea. Period clothing, ship models, and historic photographs and prints will add context to the work. The exhibition will be accompanied by a catalogue with 150 full color images and essays by prominent scholar John Wilmerding and by William R. Cross, curator of the exhibition.
As a companion to Homer at the Beach, the Cape Ann Museum will also display an exhibition by nationally renowned photographer Steve Rosenthal. Rosenthal has spent the last year walking in Winslow Homer’s footsteps, exploring the sites that inspired Homer and capturing them through the lens of his camera. Rosenthal’s exhibition will allow visitors to explore changes in the local landscape over the past 150 years and how it has stayed the same. Rosenthal will present a gallery talk on Saturday, October 19 at 9:30 a.m. A full schedule of related programming for Homer at the Beach appears below and will include a lecture series beginning on August 17 and a scholarly symposium to be held during the weekend of October 5, 2019. Companion walking tours and sailing experiences are also planned to add to the understanding of Homer’s work.
Homer at the Beach is curated by William R. Cross, a consultant to art and history museums and Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Yale Center for Faith and Culture. He has many years of leadership experience serving clients and managing teams in the investment management industry and serving museums and other non-profits. He has authored more than 200 articles and lectures, generally related to art, architecture and local history, and has a special passion for placing art in context, unveiling beauty and narrative meaning embedded – and often hidden – in objects. A graduate of Yale (B.A.) and Harvard (M.B.A.), Cross lives in Manchester, Mass.
Homer at the Beach: A Marine Painter’s Journey, 1869-1880 at the Cape Ann Museum will run concurrently with Winslow Homer: Eyewitness at the Harvard University Art Museums, a complementary exhibition opening August 31st.
This exhibition has been supported by The Mr. and Mrs. Raymond J. Horowitz Foundation for the Arts, Inc., as well as by four leadership gifts from generous individuals, and by 50 additional sponsors at varying levels who have collectively made this initiative possible.
Cape Ann has long been recognized as one of this country’s oldest and most important art colonies and the collection of the Cape Ann Museum contains examples of works by many of the artists who came to Cape Ann, including Marsden Hartley, Cecilia Beaux, Edward Hopper and John Sloan. At the heart of the Museum’s holdings is the single largest collection of works by early 19th century artist Fitz Henry Lane (1804-1865). A native of Gloucester, Lane worked as a lithographer and a painter and his works on display at the Cape Ann Museum capture the town’s busy seaport in its heyday. The Cape Ann Museum is dedicated to illuminating the diversity of life on Cape Ann by collecting, preserving and presenting the interconnected stories of art and industry during the past 400 years. As such, the Homer at the Beach: A Marine Painter’s Journey, 1869-1880 exhibition represents an important moment for the Museum as it seeks to build greater audiences and awareness of the institution regionally, nationally and internationally in anticipation of the Museum’s 150th anniversary in 2023.
Visit capeannmuseum.org for ticket information
LECTURE SERIES
Saturday, August 17, 10:30 a.m.
Elizabeth Block, Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Cape Ann Museum and Historic New England invite you to take a fresh look at Winslow Homer’s seaside paintings. Elizabeth Block, Senior Editor at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, presents Homer’s paintings within the context of women’s bathing, dress, and hair practices of the early 1870s and as an extension of the artist’s early magazine illustrations. (This program will be held at Coolidge Point: The Thomas Jefferson Memorial, 9 Coolidge Point, Manchester-by-the-Sea, Mass.)
Winslow Homer: Picturing the Tropics
Thursday, August 29 at 7:00 p.m.
Dana Byrd, Bowdoin College
The artist Winslow Homer (1836-1910) is beloved for his moody representations of crashing surf against the rocky Maine coastline. The artist, however, was no recluse. He enjoyed traveling for pleasure and painting new subjects. During the last decades of his life, with box camera and painting kit in hand, Homer visited a number of tourist locales, among them the Bahamas, Cuba and Florida. This talk will explore Homer‘s varied depictions of the tropics, to revisit this important yet little addressed aspect of his oeuvre.
Homer’s Wine-Dark Seas
Saturday, September 14 at 2:00 p.m.
Marc Simpson, Independent Scholar
From 1873 to at least 1905, Winslow Homer made watercolors that figure among the most glorious of his achievements. “You will see,” he said, “in the future I will live by my watercolors”—and this has proven to be the case. But even in the context of these remarkable accomplishments, his views of sunsets and fireworks done in Gloucester in the summer of 1880 stand out. Consideration of them, and of a small cluster of later works, prompts reflections on both Homer’s spirituality and his heroism. These in turn, especially in the context of comparisons that have been made between Homer and his colleague James McNeill Whistler, raise questions about how we write art history.
Winslow Homer and the North Sea
Saturday, November 16 at 2:00 p.m.
Elizabeth Athens, University of Connecticut
This talk examines the influence of Homer’s time in Cullercoats, England, on his portrayal of the sea. While his earlier works cast the coast more benignly as a place for leisure or industry, his later canvases present the sea as a site of struggle between humanity and the natural world.
SYMPOSIUM
Winslow Homer: New Insights
Saturday, October 5
This full-day symposium will include presentation of scholarly papers, lunch and a closing panel discussion followed by a reception. Participants will include: Henry Adams (Ruth Coulter Heede Professor of Art History, Case Western Reserve University); Kathleen Foster (Robert L. McNeil, Jr. Curator of American Art and Director, Center for American Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art); Ethan Lasser (incoming John Moors Cabot Chair, Art of the Americas, MFA Boston); Martha Tedeschi (Elizabeth and John Moors Cabot Director, Harvard Art Museums); and Sylvia Yount (Lawrence A. Fleischman Curator In Charge, The American Wing, The Metropolitan Museum of Art). Papers will be presented by: Adam Greenhalgh (National Gallery of Art); Diana Greenwold (Portland Museum of Art); Judith Walsh (Buffalo State College); Asma Naeem (Baltimore Museum of Art); Ross Barrett (Boston University); Melissa Trafton (University of New Hampshire).
SAILS
Homer Sunset Sail
Wednesday, August 7 at 6:00 p.m.
All aboard the Schooner Ardelle for a sunset cruise in Gloucester Harbor. Enjoy tales of Winslow Homer’s time on Ten Pound Island and beyond. Wine, beer and snacks included. $60 CAM Members; $75 nonmembers. Advanced tickets required.
Homer Sunset Sail
Sunday, August 25 at 6:00 p.m.
All aboard the Schooner Thomas E. Lannon for a sunset cruise in Gloucester Harbor. Enjoy tales of Winslow Homer’s time on Ten Pound Islnad and beyond. Wine, beer and snacks included. $60 CAM Members; $75 nonmembers. Advanced tickets required.
WALKING TOURS
Homer in the City
Discover the geographical, cultural and historical setting where Winslow Homer lived and painted in the late 19th century. Offered on August 11, 18 & 24; also throughout the fall, dates TBD. $10 for CAM members; $20 non-members (includes Museum admission). Registration required.
e Cape Ann Museum has been in existence since the 1870s, working to preserve and celebrate the history and culture of the area and to keep it relevant to today’s audiences. Spanning 44,000 square feet, the Museum is one of the major cultural institutions on Boston’s North Shore welcoming more than 25,000 local, national and international visitors each year to its exhibitions and programs. In addition to fine art, the Museum’s collections include decorative art, textiles, artifacts from the maritime and granite industries, three historic homes, a Library & Archives and a sculpture park in the heart of downtown Gloucester. Visit capeannmuseum.org for details.
The Museum is located at 27 Pleasant Street in Gloucester. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and Sundays from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Admission is $12.00 adults, $10.00 Cape Ann residents, seniors and students. Youth (under 18) and Museum members are free. For more information please call: (978)283-0455 x10. Additional information can be found online at www.capeannmuseum.org.
photo caption: Winslow Homer (1836–1910), Children on the Beach, 1873. Oil on canvas, 12 3/4” x 16 3/4”. Private collection.
Yella on the Water joins a fantastic line up of seasonal plein air dining options in Gloucester. The inviting new outdoor space and decor of Danielle and Carlo Berdahn’s Mediterranean bistro, Yella on the Water, in the former Morning Glory space on Western Avenue (Stacy Boulevard), beckons on any given sun day. The interior is equally alluring. Owner Danielle Berdahn enlisted some design help from Taniya Nayak and the snappy casual vibe is perfect.
Woburn native, Berdahn has a personal connection to Gloucester. She grew up spending magical summers on Wingaersheek at her family’s beach house. After hearing that fun fact, it’s easy to order the “Wingaersheek” cocktail. We had one brief hour between work and appointments to sample hand crafted appetizers (Hummus Awarma) and spirits. Were we on vacation? A day-cation for sure, thanks to impeccable service and yummy local fare on a hot new deck with a view of Gloucester Harbor.
On Thursday, June 20, 2019, the school building committee voted to pursue 9 school options at 3 sites recommended by Dore & Whittier (whittled down from 14 presented on June 13), and the timeline. The School Committee is meeting on the 26th to present this slate.
courtesy photos- “green” indicates the options pushing ahead
Historical District Commission meeting, Tuesday June 25, 2019 at 7pm
First informational review meeting to HDC: Sawyer Free Library, review of proposed renovation/addition and exterior concept design
Thank you Dean Sidell and staff!
And Cape Ann United Longshoreman coaching Kyle, Jim Sperry, Alex, and Luciano–All super coaches, long time devoted volunteers!
update: Cape Ann United Longshoreman U16 2019 ECYSA Champs! Now it will be on to MTOC (Mass Tournament of Champions) games will be between 6/28-6/30/19
Cape Ann United U18 are also 2019 ECYSA champs
amateur video from the pedestrian bridge: Look down! Snowy egret moved into place for maximum minnow opportunity. My husband thought it averaged spearing about one every 15 seconds. Anyone know what the minnows are there?
Tonight’s meeting about East Gloucester/Veterans’ Memorial proposed elementary school building(s), will be held at the Gloucester Public Schools District Office Conference Room, 2 Blackburn Drive, Thursday June 20, 2019 5PM Find the agenda here
Below are a few scenes from Gloucester’s school committee presentation by MSBA assigned designers, Dore & Whittier, and audience statements. The meeting was held at City Hall on June 17 and hosted by Ward 1 City Councilor Scott Memhard.The current status of proposed elementary school plans were reviewed. They discussed 14 options on 3 sites.
Audience members (approximately 125) were overwhelmingly opposed to the plans. People were vocal about green space, Mattos Field and memorial, women and sports, traffic, parking, transparency, consolidation, limited site options, narrow scope (what about the other schools), impact on each neighborhood, evaluation of West Parish, slow timeline, and future plans for any surplus property. Few in favor of consolidation were inclined with those proposed. One woman encouraged checking back in with the MSBA about completing multiple schools at once in lieu of consolidation and costs based on the firm’s belief that most of these options were ill suited.
“Mattos field, East Gloucester school area, and Green Street all have the same thing in common: They are all open space and should be protected and preserved for future generations.
Our Community Plan 2000 remind us over and over again the importance of our open spaces and the places we hold dear. The plan was “citizen-driven” and reached out to residents from all corners of our city.
Since that plan, we are again reminded of our need and love for open space with our Open Space and Recreation Plan, a plan I was fortunate to be able to be a part of. This plan listed and inventoried all of our open spaces– from our beautiful beaches to our ball fields and parks, to our cemeteries and even our boat landings. Birds. Plants. All find a place in this plan. We talk about how we can protect these places and how we can improve them, but never did we talk about taking them away.
Preserve, Maintain and Protect. These are the three words we should be using when it comes to our open spaces. Because once it’s gone we can’t get it back. Thank you!”- Patti Amaral
“I’ve been to my share of School Committee meetings over the past several years and I’m learning more and more about what the future holds for the children of our city. There are three sites that the Building Committee has in mind for the “East Gloucester Elementary School” project. Two of those sites will take East Gloucester Elementary School out of East Gloucester. One of those sites would eliminate the current Mattos Field and another would put the school up on Green Street, 500 yards from the old Fuller School.
The fate of East Gloucester Elementary needs your support.
I stood in front of our School Committee many years ago and asked, “Our schools are beginning to deteriorate. What are we going to do to maintain them? School Committee member, Ab Khambaty (president of the School Committee at the time) said, “Mary Ann, we do not need glorious buildings to educate children. We can teach them in a tent. What children need are teachers who have a strong desire to bring the best out in our children. We need parents who are involved with their PTO’s and staff who care.” I left that meeting very upset, because I was a young mother who wanted it all for my daughter and her fellow students, but as the years have passed I understand his message loud and clear. Our schools do not need brand new facades, grand entrances or hallways that have no educational purpose.
They do, however, need safe, clean and well maintained environments for both students and teachers (staff) alike to thrive in. It’s not the GRAND building that makes a school. It’s the PEOPLE within that structure that make a school GRAND. Can’t we provide safe, learning environments that meet the needs of today’s students, staff and neighborhoods (yes, neighborhoods) without disrupting our green spaces, without disrupting neighborhoods? Can’t we renovate our two schools for less than the cost of a new, consolidated school?
Green Street Playground and field remain green, East Gloucester Elementary remains, as well as it’s green space, Veterans’ and Mattos Field are saved and remain green. ALL dedicated green spaces that are used daily throughout the entire year, not just for school purposes, but for the purpose of enjoying the beauty of what they are and the benefits they each create. The benefits of being outside, socializing with friends, meeting new neighbors, enjoying wildlife. Are we willing to lose teachers and staff that invest in our city’s youth? If we lose a school we will lose more than just a building. We lose the most important parts of what children truly need, the people and their open fields. Take a look throughout our city and others and you will see magnificent renovations to so many of the brick structures, structures that have survived for hundreds of years, structures that have been renovated with the latest technology. We teach our children every day to recycle, repurpose and to save our earth. Let’s show them that it can be done. Can’t we provide clean, safe, learning environments while maintaining and protecting our city assets that residents of all neighborhoods and all ages love?– Mary Ann Boucher, advocate for kids, schools, green spaces and neighborhoods
The conditions pursued by the school committee are variable so it’s difficult to build or defend any consensus. In 2016, the Pines in East Gloucester was a front runner or placeholder. Opinions about consolidating multiple schools at Beeman or O’Maley were voiced but not fleshed out. In February of 2017, the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA), a state agency, moved the Gloucester school consolidation proposal further along in its funding process. In January 2019 at the school committee-city council-board of health joint meeting, Chairman Pope mentioned exploratory conversations with Rockport about merging districts. Could the elementary and middle schools be situated on Rockport’s campus and O’Maley and GHS accomodate the middle and high school populations? If so why would large school consolodiation buildings be underway? At the June 17th presentation, questions about other potential sites whether O’Maley, or any of the city’s school properties, or land elsewhere, or merging with Rockport, went unanswered. Representatives from Dore & Whittier said this phase kicked off in December 2018 and was full spead ahead as of January; in truth, the process began years ago with Dore &Whittier. And new schools were a topic when my kids, now in high school, were in preschool (fantastic!) at the High School. Indeed, a generation of students has grown up and teachers retired since an “urgent” need was expressed. Conditions are urgent. Why is this process so costly and cumbersome? Why is constuction so expensive we can’t remedy in real time?
although they warn that in order for this process to stay on track for a new school ETA occupancy September 2023/24 they need to move forward with these options. Changes will increase cost.
See prior post with more slides of the presentation, mostly unchanged from the week before.
release from St. John’s Episcopal Church:
Exciting news! The 2019 Cape Ann Music & More Camp is open for enrollment.
Cape Ann Arts Alive! Music & More
A Day Camp designed to foster pride in the rich cultural heritage of Cape Ann through music, dance, literature, drama, and art. Now in its fourth season, and in anticipation of Gloucester’s 400th anniversary in 2023, CAAA participants will learn about, visit, and perform at points of interest in the area.
For children age 5 – 15 ~ $75 per child (Scholarships are available! Mentoring opportunities for students over 13)
We will feature our accomplishments at a public performance at 11:15 am on our last day. Based at St. John’s Episcopal Church ~ 48 Middle Street, Gloucester
For information/registration contact: Mark Nelson, mark@stjohnsgloucester.org or 978-283-1708 ext. 2
Good Morning Gloucester 