My View of Life on the Dock
With funny Leggomen time lapse sequences!
Congratulations to Jack Russ, the 2014 Saturday Greasy Pole Champion. This was his first win and first walk. Jack was home on from leave from the United States Air Force.
Music by the Black Keys. “Fever” was the first single released from their latest album Turn Blue (2014).
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Congratulations to Mark Allen, the 2014 Sunday Greasy Pole Champion! This was Mark’s first win, after 16 previous years of walking! Allen was walking for his cousin Peter “Black” Frontiero who has the second most wins of all time, with a total of nine.
Each year I look forward to filming and photographing the greasy pole events. The determination on the men’s faces, the camaraderie, the ecstasy and pride in winning, the anguish of defeat, the hilarious costumes, and the Felliniesque antics combine to create a fabulous fiesta of stories and images.
The film opens at the childhood home of the Giambanco Family, with Sefatia leading the Greasy Pole Walkers and guests in the rallying “Viva San Pietro,” the cheer that is heard throughout the city of Gloucester during Saint Peter’s Fiesta. Giambanco sisters Marianne, Grace, Rosaria, and Sefatia continue with their mother Rosalia’s, “Lia’s” custom of feeding the Greasy Pole Walkers dinner before the walk. The tradition began years ago when their brother, Anthony “Matza” Giambanco, began walking. Sefatia explains that Lia had always held a huge family feast with relatives from all around the country attending. The first year her brother walked he told his mom he couldn’t eat because he was meeting everyone. She said I don’t care; you have to eat, and told him to bring everyone back to their home. That was in 1978!
Next the Walkers head over to rally at the Gloucester House, where they greet Lenny shouting his name over and over, to a packed restaurant full of guests. Several more stops are made along the way before the next rally at the Saint Peter’s Club. The Walkers make one last stop to say a prayer to Saint Peter, and perhaps pin a gold charm or coin to the statue, before departing for the greased pole platform at Pavilion Beach
* * *
With special thanks and appreciation to Nicky Avelis and all the Greasy Pole Walkers for allowing me to ride on the boat. It went by way too fast! And thank you to the skipper for giving me a ride back to shore.
With thanks and appreciation to Rosaria, Sefatia, Marianne, and Grace for inviting me to come film the Walker’s rally at your welcoming Fiesta Sunday Feast!
The song “Love Runs Out,” is by OneRepublic for the reissue of their third album, Native.
The song “The Walker” is by Fitz and The Tantrums from the album More Than Just a Dream.
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The first clip is especially Felliniesque but then again, the entire time I am shooting the greasy pole I feel as though I am in the midst of a Fellini film. Friday’s and Sunday’s films are coming in the next few days, with some Very Fun Footage.
I Loved this song when first I heard it and thought it perfect for Greasy Pole Walkers. Written and performed by Fitz and The Tantrums, “The Walker,” (that is really the title of the song!) is from their second album, More Than Just a Dream.
Previous GMG Posts about Kyle Barry: Kyle Barry for the Win! 
Additional music note ~ Fitz and The Tantrums will be performing at the House of Blues in Boston on November 15th.
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This will be the third summer that a French family and I exchange our houses, our cars and our friends. Four years ago Magali and Thierry and their two children Ariane and Thibaud arrived in Gloucester to spend a whole summer. They stayed in one room at the Captain’s Lodge. They fell in love with Gloucester and I fell in love with them. Thibaud spends his summers sailing at Eastern Point Yacht Club and Ariane spent hers drawing with the Rockport Art Association and learning English at a school in Boston. Now, during the summers, I live in their house and they live in mine. We exchange our cultures, our passions, our gardens, our town’s festivities. Magali and I would like to tell our story as it unfolds in this ‘Good Morning Gloucester’ blog.
Ariane, Magali, Thierry and Thibaud when they first arrived in Gloucester
Magali is introducing herself and her experience in french to friends she has made here in Gloucester and to friends home in Mallemort. If you wish to be in touch with her you can reach her best by email at…magali-excoffier@orange.fr
She would be so happy to meet more people who are in love with Gloucester.
Nous nous sommes rencontrées il y a 4 ans par amis interposés un matin lors d’un breakfast aux” 3 sisters” . Depuis, nous ne nous sommes plus quittées . Fan de Provence et nous amoureux de la New England nous avons décidé avec Saira Austin d’échanger nos maisons l’été suivant. L’aventure dure depuis 4 ans et n’est pas prête de s’arrêter car nous échangeons bien plus que nos simples maisons ! Nos cultures, nos habitudes, nos coups de coeur, nos festivités, nos amis, notre voisinage, nos jardins, nos passions…Au fil des ans Saira est chez elle à Mallemort , nous arrivons chez nous à Annisquam ! Bien au delà de nos progres linguistiques c’est un autre monde que chacun apprend à comprendre et à aimer chaque jour . C’est une histoire de famille et de belles amitiés au des frontières et de nos différences , cet échange est une belle histoire d’humanité.
De la Méditerranée à l’océan, Mon fils Thibaud sera cet été aide instructeur à l’école de voile d’Eastern Point.Ma fille Ariane nous rejoindra en aout pour profiter des plages de light house, good harbor et des couchers de soleil sur Halibut Point !
A chacun son été ! Le notre sera à Cape Ann !
Si vous souhaitez nous rencontrer , parler français, échanger sur la Provence …magali-excoffier@orange.fr
Nous arrivons le 1er juillet !
Sunday walkers getting ready to attack the pole!
Junior and Senior race champs “Bad Intentions” and “Wharf Rats” win on Sunday
Mark Allen gets the flag to become the champ!
For anyone who has grown up in or around Gloucester, the St. Peter’s Fiesta has clearly served as the true kick-off to summer. But, it is much more than that. The funny thing is that the importance and significance of Fiesta has probably also changed throughout each individual’s life time depending on their age. At times the religious celebrations have been of upmost importance… and later the rides. At times maybe the five day celebration was all about family… and later it was all about hanging out with friends. At times it was about hoping to get a glimpse of that certain “crush” under the ferris wheel and years later it was all about air guitar at Old Timers or trying to cut in line at The Gloucester House. Still later, possibly you’ve come full circle, and celebrating with loved ones makes the Fiesta a time to truly be treasured. At times the parade reigned supreme….and later, maybe the fireworks. For many years playing on the beach during the seine boat races was more fun than actually watching them….and later cheering for a certain crew was equivalent to the Kentucky Derby. The Greasy Pole has always been….well, the Greasy Pole. Whether you love it for the tradition or the insanity, the sport or the absurdity….whether you watch it from Pavilion Beach or by boat in the harbor…there is nothing quite like it.
I’ve been there for all of them. I have fond memories of the Fiesta that range from being a very young child, to a preteen, to a teenager, to a college student, to a bar-crawling 20 something year-old, to a “grown-up”, and now as a parent….who feels blessed to be sharing the experience with my own children. I have Fiesta memories that involve holding my grandfather’s hand as he guided me through the crowd and later memories of holding his hand as I supported him. I have Fiesta memories of holding the hand of long ago boyfriends and later Fiesta memories of holding the hand of my now husband. Maybe the best memories are the newest….as just today, I held the hands of both of my sons while jumping from ride to ride.
So, as the mother of a 5 and 7 year-old, St. Peter’s Fiesta to me so far this year has been all about the rides, the games, and the food. It is all about the color, the sounds, the smells…and the way they all seem to blur together. While I may have desired to capture other aspects of this year’s Fiesta and I would love to get that “perfect shot”…..I have found myself enjoying it through my children’s eyes.
And this is how they see it.
Oar’Dacious & Xtra”oar”dinary the winners
Jack Russ on leave from U.S. military takes the pole for Friday win.
Kathleen Erickson writes ~
Hi Kim,
If you can, you may want to post these photos I took yesterday off Tilly’s Bank – 24 miles due east of Gloucester Harbor. Everybody wants to see the whales after a down year last year. But, here they are, playful, engaged, and very lively – back again!
Hey Joey,
What a spectacular time a group of us Gloucester chicks – and a few select men – had last Saturday celebrating the birthday of our dear friend and GHS alum, Christine Buckley. It was one of those “significant” birthdays that deserves more than just a dinner get together.
Why not celebrate on the ocean, we thought? How many of us grew up here and proclaim our love of the ocean, yet never actually get out on the water? Too many, certainly.
For the mere sum of $10 per person for the Best Party idea ever ( it was my idea so I could be a tad prejudice), we made arrangements to meet friends on the M/V Lady Jillian aka the Gloucester Harbor Water Shuttle.
Our illusory plan was that Chris would be meeting Diana Davis and myself at the Studio Restaurant for lunch. When the two of them arrived, I was stationed at the top of the shuttle ramp, dressed as a Mermaid with a sign proclaiming Ocean Wisdom. We told Chris that she was going for an ocean ride – and what a ride it turned out to be!
Besides the Studio, the shuttle stops at Harbor Loop. GHS Cheerleaders, Kathy (Johnson) Keefe and Holly Davis, in original outfits from many moons ago, greeted us at the dock with a lively cheer.
The third stop is St. Peter’s Landing and a smiling couple adorned in Sou’-wester fishing hats met us there – they were Chris’ daughter and son-in-law, Lars and Heather Muelle.
Now – Chris assumed this was it since we opened some bubbly (only paper cups – no glass onboard) and dove in to delicious snacks.
Chris had no idea we had ONE more Special Guest back at the Studio. It was Whoopi! The place was hysterically laughing, from the restaurant patrons to the surprised tourists sharing this wonderful day with us. Whoopi turned out to be a friend that Chris had not seen for far too long – our own beloved recently retired Director of the Sawyer Free Library – none other than Carol Gray!
I think that Captain Peter Favazza as well as the other guests had as much fun as we did! Stevie Douglas even came on board and recited from Longfellow’s “The Wreck of the Hesperus”; a nice touch from a star GHS hockey player from yonder years.
The Party Train kept moving and ended up at Mile Marker One. The surprises were not over. Who else but Cape Ann’s finest singer-songwriter, Chelsea Berry, would ride her bike over just to sing “Happy Birthday” to our Special friend? Chelsea also presented a gift to Chris from us; VIP tickets to her summer concert at Mile Marker One on July 25th.
The motley crew moved from here to a Buckley family party before we called it a day.
A Perfect Day for a Perfectly Wonderful Lady.
Cindy Hendrickson
Thank you to our most awesome crew today. We had friends from as far away as Spain (the Ryan’s cousins), Rosemary Banks from Boca Raton, and Kim from Medford, all lending a hand with the gardens today and it was a joy to meet you all. And special thanks to our Gloucesterites Maggie Rosa, Ed, Catherine, George, Charles, Lisa Smtih, April,and Sam.
Everywhere I traveled today, it was hard not to notice Rosa rugosa dazzling in bloom, not only becasue it is so pretty, but because of its welcome fragrance. That sublime combination of salty sea air and sweet roses beckons us to live everyday of our fleeting New England summer to the fullest.
Niles Beach Rosa rugosa
Cat Ryan submits-
Reimagining Railroad and Maplewood and … MEETING #2
Gloucester Community Development / Metropolitan Planning Area Council
Hey Joey,
Back in March, the City of Gloucester’s Community Development partnered with the Metropolitan Planning Area Council (MAPC) to host the first in a series of 3 discussions about Gloucester’s railroad station and the surrounding area. As a reminder, these interactive meetings have an extra special focus on the Railroad and Maplewood Avenue and train station area. Our input will inform the process, and there’s funding lined up.
Residents, commuters, bikers, pedestrian walking—what do you think?
Please come for some preliminary findings and recommendations at the second meeting THIS COMING MONDAY June 23, 2014, from 6PM-8PM at Kyrouz Auditorium in City Hall.
For the Railroad discussions, send in ideas and comments and/or sign up for updates on any future meetings with:
Eric Halvorsen ehalvorsen@mapc.org
Gregg Cademartori gcademartori@gloucester-ma.gov
Good Morning Gloucester 