Good Morning Gloucester

What’s your guess as to which joint makes sandwiches A & B.

Water and stone…

I think the Greenbelt properties are a true jewel in our area and I was intrigued to see they had recently released an app to assist potential visitors. It has long been my intention to visit some of the lesser known properties. I decided to download the app and start a series of Good Morning Gloucester posts from several different properties while using the app.

My first venture was to Goose Cove Reservation on a warm humid day. It’s rated “easy” (and it was) which I was hoping mostly meant short…..My first suggestion would be to NOT do what I did and visit when you only have a limited amount of time to enjoy the property. Take the time to enjoy the scenery and the walk out to Goose Cove. It’s fairly buggy and still damp in places at this time of the year, but the leftover poop was at a minimum. There’s a small parking area and a well marked trail to follow. I did get a little turned around but the map on the app was super helpful. Kudos to the app developers (link here for more info). You’ll be hearing more about this!

As you probably noted, the memorial honoring the Gloucestermen who where killed in Vietnam was recently re-located to a newly designed area at Stage Fort Park. In response to my earlier post about the memorial relocation (link here) , FOB David Collins sent a question regarding the number of names listed. Some online sources note 12 Gloucestermen killed in Vietnam and the memorial lists 11 names, as noted below. He wondered if there was an explanation for the discrepancy so I did a little research.

The 12th name is US Airman William K. Hinkley Jr. I reached out to Cape Ann Veterans Services and Vee Chipperini did some digging for me. She discovered that William K. Hinkley Jr. was originally from Manchester so he would be listed on their rolls. With an assist from our good friend Pauline Bresnahan, I also heard from Lucia Amero who informed me of the same and that William is buried at Pleasant Grove Cemetery in Manchester. Thank you all for pitching in to clarify this issue as we wouldn’t want any service member unrecognized.

The newly relocated memorial looked great on Memorial Day for its informal unveiling.

Weather improved during the week.

Gloucester, MA—BankGloucester has made a charitable donation of $250,000 to Sawyer Free 2025 (visit sawyerfree2025.org), a newly launched philanthropic capital campaign to fund a comprehensive renovation, modernization and expansion of Gloucester’s public library building. A powerful demonstration of the institution’s longtime corporate citizenship and social-mindedness, BankGloucester’s gift underscores the company’s goal of raising standards of living and advancing quality of life in the communities it serves.

“The Sawyer Free Library has been an important part of this community for many generations,” said BankGloucester President & CEO Patrick Thorpe. “We at BankGloucester are pleased to make this contribution and to be a part of this project. As a source of educational and reference materials as well as programming for both students and adults, Sawyer promotes enrichment and enjoyment for all ages. Additionally, it’s always been an ideal location for community gatherings and meetings. This renovation and expansion will enable our library to continue to be a significant resource for the people of Gloucester, both now and in the future.”

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.

“BankGloucester’s generous contribution represents a high-octane injection of momentum into a campaign that’s poised to hit overdrive,” said Barry Weiner, a retired attorney and the campaign chair for Sawyer Free 2025. “Not only does this gift show the kind of impact BankGloucester is having on all aspects of the communities it serves, including economic, social and environmental, but this is a tremendous validation of our vision to fund this once-in-a-lifetime investment in a vital community resource. 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 an exemplar of 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 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.

BankGloucester provides financial support on a year-round basis to area charities, community events and projects. Since 2008, the bank has engaged customers and the broader community in choosing the beneficiaries of its annual Banking for the Community program. BankGloucester also annually supports civic-minded students who exemplify community servant-leadership, awarding $12,500 in scholarships to five high school graduates every year.

For more information on BankGloucester’s involvement in the community, visit: bankgloucester.com/about/community/

✓ 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.

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Sawyer Library Foundation is a tax-exempt, 501(c)(3) organization. Our Determination Letter issued by the IRS can be viewed at sawyerfree2025.org. SFL2025’s EIN is: 84-2837206.

BankGloucester, with assets of $350 million, is a state-chartered mutual bank serving Gloucester and its neighboring communities since 1887. BankGloucester is headquartered at 160 Main Street in Gloucester and has branches at 15 Martin Street in Essex and 143 High Street in Ipswich. It is a member of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and a member of the Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF). At BankGloucester, all deposits are insured in full.

BankGloucesterBigCheck: Current and former Gloucester High students, all passionate library patrons, gather at the Sawyer Free Library to celebrate BankGloucester’s powerfully impactful donation of $250,000 to the Sawyer Free 2025 campaign to renovate and expand Cape Ann’s oldest public library (sawyerfree2025.org). (front row, l to r) GHS graduate Tori Carini, now a rising senior at UNH, GHS junior Trinity O’Leary, GHS senior Yahir Collado, bound for UMass Amherst, GHS senior Darcy Muller, who will attend college at UC Santa Clara, and GHS graduate Alexander Oaks, a rising senior at Trinity College (Conn.); (back row, l to r) Sawyer Free 2025 Campaign Manager Sarah Oaks, BankGloucester President & CEO Patrick Thorpe, Sawyer Free 2025 Campaign Chair Barry Weiner, Library Director Jenny Benedict and Library Board of Trustees President Mern Sibley.

Tranquility…