Good Morning Gloucester

Sent from my Galaxy S®III

CALVO WOODCARVING STUDIO is looking for an Apprentice.  Applicant must have good aptitude, dexterity, and hopefully some woodworking skills.  This is an interviewed position. For more information you can check the website at www.calvostudio.com  or call at 978-283-0231
warm regards,
David
Calvo Studio
235 East Main St
Gloucester, MA  01930

---

Cape Ann Art Haven’s new class for kids ages 3 – 5: Little Hands BIG Art

register at www.arthaven.org

---

Get Out & Explore!

The Trustees of Reservations Launches a

New Crane Outdoor Adventures Program

Photo courtesy B. Handelman.

Ipswich, MA – February 27, 2014 – The Trustees of Reservations is excited to announce the launch of the new year-round Crane Outdoor Adventures Program at The Crane Estate, located at 290 Argilla Road, Ipswich, MA. With more than 2,000 acres and miles of trails weaving through beaches, dunes, woodlands, and marshes, The Crane Estate offers the ideal outdoor playground. Each month, the program will feature two or three different “adventures” on the grounds of The Crane Estate, the Crane Wildlife Refuge, Choate Island, and the nearby Hamlin Reservation.

“With the increased use of technology in our lives, more and more children and adults are not spending enough time outside,” says Barbara Erickson, Trustees President and CEO, outdoor enthusiast and mother of two young children. “It’s our mission at The Trustees to inspire more Massachusetts residents of all ages to get out, be active and experience our many wonderful outdoor places located across the state. The new Crane Outdoor Adventures Program is just one of the many ways we are trying to support this.”

The program kicks off this March with a Stop, Look and Listen Tour – an outdoor adventure for the whole family that includes hiking, investigating, and swapping stories over hot chocolate at the bonfire. March also marks the first of the monthly Full Moon and Folklore Hikes. Additional springtime family adventures include Spying on Spring Peepers, a Scavenger Hunt at the Hamlin Reservation, and Snakes Alive! – a snake hunt on the property at the Crane Estate followed by Rick Roth’s “Snakes of New England and the World” show.

The adult line-up for Crane Outdoor Adventures for adults include a kayak paddle through Fox Creek, a viewing of the Harvest Moon Rise from the Grand Allée with wine & hors d‘oeuvres, and a kayak paddle to Choate Island for a tour followed by a picnic supper. Visit the website, www.thetrurstees.org/castlehill or call 978.356.4351 x4052 for the complete Crane Outdoor Adventures schedule and information.

MARCH PROGRAM DETAILS

Full Moon and Folklore Hike

Sunday, March16  | 7-10pm

Join us as we celebrate the Algonquin Worm Moon with a night hike through the dunes of the Crane Wildlife Refuge! Transformed and illuminated by the glow of the full moon, the dunes are an eerily beautiful landscape – and on this late winter evening we may be lucky enough to hear the howls of coyotes as they search for a mate. At the end of our walk we’ll warm ourselves with hot cider around a bonfire.

Trustees Members: $15 Nonmembers: $20; suggested ages 13 and older.

Stop, Look and Listen Tour

Saturday, March 22 | 1-3pm

An outdoor adventure for the whole family! We’ll walk the Cedar Point loop, investigating the trail for tracks and telltales, piecing together evidence that will help us see the story in the landscape. Bring your sharp senses and your skills of observation! We’ll end the hike in the Pine Grove with a bonfire and hot chocolate.

Trustees Members: Adult FREE; Child $5. Nonmembers: Adult FREE; Child $8.

APRIL SAVE THE DATES…

Spying on Spring Peepers

Saturday, April 12 |  7-9pm

In the early evening darkness we’ll quietly make our way through the dunes to the bogs and puddles that serve as breeding pools for these tiny frogs, and hope to catch a glimpse of them as they call to find a mate. The cacophonous chorus of Spring Peepers means winter is finally coming to an end; they are among the very first to call and breed in the spring.

Trustees Members: Adult $8; Child $4. Nonmembers: Adult $10; Child $5.

Full Moon and Folklore Hike

Tuesday, April 15 |  8-10pm

According to The Farmer’s Almanac, April’s Full Pink Moon heralds the appearance of the moss pink, or wild ground phlox—one of the first spring flowers. It is also known as the Sprouting Grass Moon, the Egg Moon, and the Fish Moon. Bring your own fun facts and folklore to share around the bonfire at the end of our hike!

Trustees Members: $15 Nonmembers: $20; suggested ages 13 and older.

Scavenger Hunt at Hamlin Reservation

Thursday, April 24 | 1-2:30pm

Looking for something fun to do with the kids during school vacation? Join us at the Hamlin Reservation, where we’ll search for nature’s treasures (and some man-made as well!) as we walk through the gently rolling fields of this former farmland, then over a dike path that leads to a loop trail around Eagle Island. Bring your sharpest skills of observation, and a bag to collect your treasures!

Trustees Members: Adult FREE; Child $5. Nonmembers: Adult FREE; Child $8.

---

 

Finally – progress in the fight for healthy kids
Sarah Bartley, NSUW
“We now have a vegetable with dinner every day—whether it be from our garden or not,” says a mom and participant in the Backyard Growers Program.  This program helps low- and moderate-income families plant and harvest from raised-bed gardens in their backyards. 
This is just one of several innovative local responses to the childhood obesity epidemic in the US.  But the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finally have good news.  This week it was reported that obesity rates have dropped 43 percent among 2- to 5-year-old children over the past decade nationwide.  MA is one of just 19 states seeing a decrease in rates.
Part of the Cape Ann Farmers Market, Backyard Growers is one of 10 programs that have been funded by the North Shore United Way’s Women in Action initiative.  Women in Action is the North Shore’s first focused response to the issue that engages people in both philanthropy and volunteerism for local programs that increase access to healthy food, sound nutrition, and physical activity for children and families. In its report, the CDC sites citizens groups like Women in Action and innovative local programs like Backyard Growers for nudging the childhood obesity rate down and offering a solution that improves the health and wellbeing to America’s youth.
In addition to supporting philanthropic efforts like Women in Action, there are many people can get involved in the effort to increase access to healthy food and physical activity.
    Like to garden?  Become a mentor for the Backyard Growers program and share your experience with someone who is starting out.  Or maybe you have a truck?  If so, you have a great resource to this growing program.  MORE
    Enjoy preparing healthy food and have a heart for those who struggle to put enough of it on the table?  Consider helping prepare community meals with The Open Door, a Gloucester based pantry that has led the way in the nutrition movement. MORE
    Have experience swimming or in other sports?  Become a swim instructor or volunteer assistant coach for one of the North Shore Y’s leagues.  You do not need to be a professional athlete, but have a love of sports and a concern for instilling Caring, Honesty, Respect and Responsibility in children of all ages. MORE
    Enjoy volunteering with young children? Beverly Children’s Learning Center runs a Happy Healthy Fit Kids program that introduces their children to being active and eating healthy foods both inside and outside of the classroom. They seek classroom helpers. MORE
These are just four of many ways to become engaged in building a stronger, healthier community listed on the North Shore Volunteer Hub, a new website from the North Shore United Way helping residents find meaningful, local volunteer opportunities.
Volunteer opportunities are meaningful when you know you are meeting a real community need. But it will only last if it is also a good fit for your skills, availability, and interests.  Found at nsuw.org, the Volunteer Hub allows you to search by issue or need until you find the right volunteer match. 
—
The North Shore United Way invests almost $1M each year in projects that transform lives and improve communities now and for future generations.  NSUW is all about local impact by rigorously vetting and supporting 25 causes that serve children, families, and seniors in eight North Shore communities, including Beverly, Hamilton, Wenham, Ipswich, Essex, Manchester, Gloucester and Rockport.  For more information about the projects funded by NSUW donors and how to get involved, visit nsuw.org.