Author: Donna Ardizzoni

Discover Gloucester lunch, yummy food, fun people, awards and positive attitudes.

Linda Stockman welcoming the guest

Linn, Felicia, Tobin

Linn

Lenny laughing
Kay Ellis writes-

In case anyone is wondering, Discover Gloucester, the Destination Marketing Organization, held their Annual Meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011 at Guiseppe’s Restaurant. Close to 40 members of the business community were on hand to see the presentation of awards to community volunteers who do more than their share to promote this island as a destination.

Special recognition was given to Louise Palazzola and her daughter Denise Foley for taking the winning photograph (a shot of the Schooner Ernestina and the Man at the Wheel) that was on this year’s Discover Gloucester Visitor Guide.

The Good on Ya! Award was given to two volunteers who dedicate an hour each Saturday to clean litter from Downtown Gloucester. Several years ago, they saw a need and jumped in with gloved hands and yellow trash bags. They have recruited helpers, but continue to volunteer picking up trash from streets and beaches as part of the “One Hour at a Time Gang. The honorees were Donna Ardizzoni from Circle Consulting and Bob Gillis from the Cape Ann Savings Bank.

The Golden Sou’wester Award, in memory of Harriet Webster and Peter Prybot, honors someone who recognizes how fishing and tourism feed off each other to create a more desirable destination. Joey Ciaramataro, aka Joey C., of Capt. Joe and Sons, creator of the Good Morning Gloucester blog and lover of all things Gloucester, was this year’s winner. Sista Felicia Ciaramataro Mohan accepted the award for her brother Joey, who was “down the wharf” and unable to attend.

The Discover Gloucester Heritage Award, in memory of Joe Garland, was given for understanding the importance of our maritime heritage and working to spread that history to others. In 2012, the 28th Annual Gloucester Schooner Festival will take place over Labor Day weekend. The Schooner Festival Committee was recognized for its work continuing the tradition of celebrating Gloucester’s maritime history. The award was presented to Daisy Nell, one of the founders of the Schooner Festival Committee in 1984 and the current Committee Chair.

The final award was given to the Volunteer Extraordinaire. Discover Gloucester’s Board of Directors surprised the Volunteer Executive Director, Linn Parisi with a gift for all her efforts. Five years ago, she recognized that a combined marketing effort could make things happen much more than individual businesses could. She stepped up to help Gloucester market herself as a destination, by organizing the DMO. Since then, Linn has worked tirelessly to help bring more people to Gloucester.

That’s it, in a large nutshell.