The Schooners return to Gloucester on September 1, 2, and 3, to celebrate the thirty-third Gloucester Schooner Festival. Maritime Gloucester will welcome twenty-three schooners to its recently rebuilt Harriet Webster Pier.

This year’s fleet includes the beautifully maintained Essex-built schooners Lettie G. Howard, launched in 1893, sailing from South Street Seaport in New York City, Gloucester’s flagship Schooner Adventure, built in 1926, joined by her sister Schooner Roseway, from 1925, owned by World Ocean School. Other large schooners include Rockland, Maine’s Schooner American Eagle, originally a Gloucester dragger, and Liberty Clipper, part of the Liberty fleet from Boston. The Schooner Columbia, a 2014 steel replica of the 1923 Essex Schooner Columbia, and based in Panama City, Florida, will return to Gloucester for a third year. She is a stunning example of the link between the schooners of old and the sustainable design of the iconic fishing schooner rig, the emblem of Gloucester. The original Columbia was a Starling Burgess design, built at the historic A.D. Story shipyard of Essex, Massachusetts in 1923, as a fishing schooner, as well as a swift competitor against Nova Scotia’s Bluenose.

Twenty-three schooners are expected, ranging in size from the Lewis H. Story at 30 feet on deck to the majestic Columbia at 175’ sparred length. Of the seven Essex schooners, three were built before 1927, and four were built by 11^th generation shipbuilder Harold Burnham since 1997.

The weekend offers a wide range of sights and sounds. On Saturday, September 2, Maritime Heritage Day takes place from 10:00 am to 3:30 pm on Harbor Loop and under the First Ipswich Tent located in front of Maritime Gloucester, and on down to the waterfront. There will be vendors, food, music, and activities for the entire family. Area environmental groups and maritime heritage organizations will be set up with interactive exhibits alongside of local crafters demonstrating their art. Several of the historic Essex Schooners at the pier will be offering sailing trips, and others may be offering deck tours. Admission to Maritime Gloucester’s galleries and Sea Pocket Aquarium will be free this day. Toe tapping tunes from Old Cold Tater and Down-Home Swing will soar over the scene all afternoon. In the evening folks can enjoy a Lobster Bake at the Gloucester House, a lighted boat parade in the Harbor, and Fireworks over Stage Fort Park to end the day. Sunday morning offers the spectacular Parade of Schooners at Stacy Boulevard, starting at 10:00 AM with small boat demonstrations. The 1 PM race on Sunday features the Mayor’s Race for the Esperanto Cup and the Columbia Trophy, for the large schooners, and the Ned Cameron and Betty Ramsey Trophies for the medium and small schooners.

This year the Gloucester Schooner Festival was pleased to award a scholarship of $1000 to Corryn Ulrich, a 2017 Gloucester High School graduate, to assist with her tuition at Mass Maritime Academy. The goal of helping the future leaders of Cape Ann pursue a career in maritime-related endeavors was realized through the generosity of the Gerondelis Foundation, made possible by festival committee member Russ Smith.

The Gloucester Schooner Festival is possible due to the generosity of our sponsors, including our lead sponsors First Ipswich Bank, the City of Gloucester, and Market Basket. For a full list of sponsors, schedule of weekend events, and more, go to www.gloucesterschoonerfestival.net or like us on Facebook. The Festival raises much needed funds from the community by offering a Schooner Festival raffle in addition to corporate support. Raffle tickets are available at Maritime Gloucester or from committee members. These funds directly support our efforts to put kids on the water.

About Maritime Gloucester

Maritime Gloucester is a 501(c) (3) non-profit institution whose mission is to inspire students and visitors to value marine science, maritime heritage and environmental stewardship through hands-on education and experiences. Its one-acre campus is located on Gloucester Harbor at 23 Harbor Loop, adjacent to the Coast Guard Station. For more information, go to www.maritimegloucester.org or like us on Facebook.

 

Cuba swim endurance mavericks Diana Nyad and Bonnie Stoll are committed to leading Americans away from sedentary lifestyles into the great outdoors. Their goal is to turn American into an EverWalk nation of walkers. This vision is being realized through epic EverWalk events around the country. The first Ever Walk was held in 2016, with walkers traveling from Los Angeles to San Diego in one week!

The second EverWalk will take place in New England, departing from Boston’s Copley Square on Sunday, September 10, walking up the beautiful north of Boston coastline, arriving at Cape Elizabeth, Maine, on Saturday, September 16, 2017.

Hundreds of volunteers will be needed along the EverWalk route throughout the week. Volunteers will be asked to register walkers, provide assistance along the walking route, call emergency services if needed, and a variety of other services. Monetary stipends are available for volunteers.

For more information on this exciting EverWalk through New England or to learn more about volunteering for one day or the entire week, contact event Coordinator Kelly Knox at kayknox@live.com or 860-301-6205. To learn about the EverWalk vision and future events, visit www.everwalk.com.

Come for the Pancakes, Stay for the Waterfront Festival!

The Rotary Club of Gloucester MA will hold its annual Pancake Breakfast Fundraiser on Saturday, August 19, 2017, from 7:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. in Stage Fort Park, located on Hough Avenue in Gloucester, MA. This popular event takes place concurrently with the Gloucester Waterfront Festival, which is sponsored by the Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce and is held in Stage Fort Park on Saturday-Sunday, August 19-20, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. both days. A special FREE parking area is available for Pancake Breakfast attendees.

Tickets for the Pancake Breakfast are $8 per person and are available from any Gloucester Rotarian or at the following Gloucester locations:

• North Shore Health Project, 5 Center Street, Gloucester, MA
• Rose Baker Senior Center, 6 Manuel F Lewis Street, Gloucester, MA
• Bank Gloucester, 160 Main Street, Gloucester, MA
• Cape Ann Savings Bank, 109 Main Street, Gloucester, MA
• Institution for Savings, 4 Parker Street, Gloucester, MA

Tickets will also be available on the morning of the breakfast.

Proceeds from the Pancake Breakfast will benefit the Rose Baker Senior Center, North Shore Health Project, the Cape Ann YMCA Teen Leaders and projects of the Gloucester Rotary Club. More information about this event and the Rotary Club of Gloucester is available online at www.gloucesterrotary.org or www.facebook.com/RotaryGloucesterMA.

The mission of Rotary International is to provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through its fellowship of business, professional, and community leaders.

Beginning Friday, June 30, 2017, the Executive Office of Elder Affairs will centralize the Elder Protective Services abuse reporting system (Elder Abuse Hotline) to a single phone number. The 24/7 single phone number will simplify the process for elder abuse reporting.

All calls (day or night, 7 days a week) will go directly to the Massachusetts-based call center at 1-800-922-2275, regardless of the location of the reporter or the elder. While the initial report intake will be centralized, all reports will continue to be referred to and handled by local Protective Services Agencies for screening, investigation, and service planning.

Beginning June 30, 2017, to report suspected elder abuse, please call the statewide 24-hour hotline at 1-800-922-2275.

More information about Protective Services can be found at www.seniorcareinc.org/services/protective-services.

SeniorCare Inc. will host its Eighth Annual Sunset Cruise Fundraiser, an evening cruise aboard Cape Ann Whale Watch’s Hurricane II, on Thursday, July 13, 2017. The evening, which is presented by Connected Home Care, includes a light dinner, dancing and entertainment by DJ Scottie Mac, raffle and door prizes. Tickets are $30 each and can be purchased by contacting SeniorCare at 978-281-1750 or online at www.seniorcareinc.org. Sponsor opportunities are available.

For more information about the Sunset Cruise and SeniorCare’s programs, contact Paula Curley at 978-281-1750 or paula.curley@seniorcareinc.org.

About SeniorCare

SeniorCare Inc. serves an area that represents more than 27,000 residents aged 60 and over.  We provide services to adults with disabilities and elders in nine communities. Established in 1972, SeniorCare has approximately 100 employees and nearly 400 volunteers. The volunteers and staff work to fulfill its mission as a consumer-centered organization which provides and coordinates services to elders and others. This allows them to live independently at home or in a setting of their choice, while remaining part of their community.

Rose Baker Senior Center
Wednesday, June 21, 9:30-11:30am

Governor Charles D. Baker’s Council to Address Aging in Massachusetts will hold listening sessions to hear ideas about how to make the Commonwealth the most livable state for people of all ages.

June is World Elder Abuse Awareness Month and June 15, 2017, is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. The Gloucester Police Department, SeniorCare Inc. and the Gloucester Council on Aging are holding a rally on Wednesday, June 14, to increase awareness of this growing issue in our society.

10,000 people turn 65 in the US every day.  That trend is going to continue for the next 20 years.  Our demographics are shifting, and we will soon have more elder people in the US than ever before.  At the same time that the population is growing, we know that a startling number of elders face abusive situations.  Every year an estimated 5 million, or 1 in 10, older Americans are victims of elder abuse, neglect, or exploitation. And that’s only part of the picture: Experts believe that for every case of elder abuse or neglect reported, as many as 23.5 cases go unreported.

Elder abuse and neglect and take on various forms. It can be physical, emotional/verbal, sexual, financial, neglect by a caregiver, or self-neglect. Elder abuse can occur anywhere – in the home, in nursing homes, or other institutions. It affects seniors across all socioeconomic groups, cultures, and races. In Massachusetts, an elder is anyone 60 or older.

If you suspect abuse or self-neglect, don’t assume that someone has already reported it. In cases of immediate danger call 911. Otherwise, you can call SeniorCare at 978-281-1750 during business hours or the elder abuse hotline at 800-922-2275 after hours.

Concerned citizens are invited to participate. Join SeniorCare and our local safety agencies in bringing light to the horrendous crime of elder abuse. Please stop by to show your support!

SeniorCare is committed to identifying and stopping Elder Abuse!

About SeniorCare

SeniorCare Inc. serves an area that represents more than 27,000 residents aged 60 and over.  We provide services to adults with disabilities and elders in nine communities. Established in 1972, SeniorCare has approximately 100 employees and nearly 400 volunteers. The volunteers and staff work to fulfill its mission as a consumer-centered organization which provides and coordinates services to elders and others. This allows them to live independently at home or in a setting of their choice, while remaining part of their community.

The Gloucester Rotary Club has named Joseph Ciolino and Mara Destino as Paul Harris Fellows, the prestigious award named after the Chicago lawyer who founded the Rotary movement in 1905. Ciolino was selected by a club committee of previous recipients of the award, while Destino was chosen by members of the Interact Club, the very active group of Gloucester High School Junior Rotarians. Ciolino and Destino will be honored at a special dinner on Wednesday, June 14, at Cruiseport Gloucester, located at 6 Rowe Square in downtown Gloucester. The social hour will begin at 5:30 p.m., followed by dinner at 6:30 p.m.

Joseph Ciolino was born in Gloucester and graduated from Gloucester High School before attending Wentworth Institute in Boston and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. After college, Joe began his career in 1970 at the Building Center in Gloucester, where he spent 21 years, rising in the company to become Store Manager and Vice President. He later managed Three Lanterns Ship Supply for three years, but the highlight of his work’s life came in 1991 when he opened The Weathervane Gift Shop on Main Street in downtown Gloucester.

Joe is heavily involved in the political life of the community, serving as Ward One City Councilor (2002-2006), City Councilor at Large (2008-present), and as City Council President since January 2016. Ciolino has been a member of the Gloucester Rotary Club since 1992 and was its President in 2004/2005. He was a founding member and is currently a Director of the Gloucester Downtown Association. Ciolino is Vice President of the Board of Directors of the North Shore Health Project and a Corporator of the Sawyer Free Library. Former affiliations include Addison Gilbert Hospital and North Shore Red Cross. Joe and his wife Joan have been married for almost 30 years and reside in Gloucester.

Mara Destino was born in Seekonk and moved to Gloucester in the mid-1990s. Mara has an undergraduate degree in Elementary Education from the University of Rhode Island and a graduate degree in Early Childhood Special Needs from Wheelock College, and has put her training to great use in her professional life over the past 25 years. She has taught a variety of preschool classrooms in Brookline school system, at Sandy Bay Preschool, at St. Ann’s School, and currently at Cape Ann Preschool.

Mara’s resume includes the quote “working with children is my passion.” She has exhibited that passion not just in her career, but also as a volunteer for several community groups, including Our Lady of Good Voyage and the Cape Ann YMCA. Mara is especially proud of her role as Founder and Co-chair of the Adaptive Lacrosse Program, designed to provide girls and boys with physical, learning, and/or cognitive disabilities the chance to learn the game of lacrosse in an appropriate environment. Established in 2012, the Program now numbers 30 adaptive players and over 75 mentors who assist in skills development.

Mara and husband Alex have been married for almost 22 years and reside in Gloucester. They are the proud parents of Tess (20), Maggie (18), and Tucker (14).

Tickets to the Paul Harris Distinguished Service Award Dinner are $47 per person and may be reserved by contacting event Chair Steve Kaity at 978-879-1051. The Dinner is open to the general public, and friends and colleagues of Ciolino and Destino are encouraged to attend.

The mission of Rotary International is to provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through its fellowship of business, professional, and community leaders.

June is World Elder Abuse Awareness Month and June 15, 2017, is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. The Gloucester Police Department, SeniorCare Inc. and the Gloucester Council on Aging are holding a rally on Wednesday, June 14, to increase awareness of this growing issue in our society.

10,000 people turn 65 in the US every day.  That trend is going to continue for the next 20 years.  Our demographics are shifting, and we will soon have more elder people in the US than ever before.  At the same time that the population is growing, we know that a startling number of elders face abusive situations.  Every year an estimated 5 million, or 1 in 10, older Americans are victims of elder abuse, neglect, or exploitation. And that’s only part of the picture: Experts believe that for every case of elder abuse or neglect reported, as many as 23.5 cases go unreported.

Elder abuse and neglect and take on various forms. It can be physical, emotional/verbal, sexual, financial, neglect by a caregiver, or self-neglect. Elder abuse can occur anywhere – in the home, in nursing homes, or other institutions. It affects seniors across all socioeconomic groups, cultures, and races. In Massachusetts, an elder is anyone 60 or older.

If you suspect abuse or self-neglect, don’t assume that someone has already reported it. In cases of immediate danger call 911. Otherwise, you can call SeniorCare at 978-281-1750 during business hours or the elder abuse hotline at 800-922-2275 after hours.

Concerned citizens are invited to participate. Join SeniorCare and our local safety agencies in bringing light to the horrendous crime of elder abuse. Please stop by to show your support!

SeniorCare is committed to identifying and stopping Elder Abuse!

About SeniorCare

SeniorCare Inc. serves an area that represents more than 27,000 residents aged 60 and over.  We provide services to adults with disabilities and elders in nine communities. Established in 1972, SeniorCare has approximately 100 employees and nearly 400 volunteers. The volunteers and staff work to fulfill its mission as a consumer-centered organization which provides and coordinates services to elders and others. This allows them to live independently at home or in a setting of their choice, while remaining part of their community.

SeniorCare Inc. will hold a fundraiser at Jalapenos Authentic Mexican Restaurant, located at 86 Main Street in downtown Gloucester, on Wednesday, May 24, 2017, from 4:30 p.m. to closing. Jalapenos will donate a portion of all orders placed—both dine-in and take-out. Reservations are recommended. Call 978-281-3680. Please let them know that you are participating in SeniorCare’s Dine Out Fundraiser.

For more information on SeniorCare Inc., go to www.seniorcareinc.org or call 978-281-1750. Jalapenos Restaurant’s menu can be found at www.jalapenosgloucester.com.

About SeniorCare
SeniorCare Inc. serves an area that represents more than 27,000 residents aged 60 and over. We provide services to adults with disabilities and elders in nine communities. Established in 1972, SeniorCare has approximately 100 employees and nearly 400 volunteers. The volunteers and staff work to fulfill its mission as a consumer-centered organization which provides and coordinates services to elders and others. This allows them to live independently at home or in a setting of their choice, while remaining part of their community.