Gloucester’s weekly farmers market The Backyard Growcery is BACK for a pop-up holiday market hosted at The Cut in downtown Gloucester on Saturday, December 6, 12-3pm. Brought to you by Backyard Growers, stop by to celebrate the season in community, shop farm-fresh and locally-made foods, enjoy live music, and more, all in a great location. SNAP accepted. Plus, the Growcery is offering a $20 SNAP match per SNAP customer, through Backyard Growers’ Market Mint program.

Featuring:

Farm-Fresh & Locally-Made Food

Community Seed Swap

Eco-friendly Gifts for the Gardener

Family Holiday Craft Corner

2026 Backyard Growers Garden Applications

Live Music

And More!

Backyard Growers is a 501(C)3 nonprofit organization committed to creating equitable access to the resources, space & knowledge people need to grow their own food in our community and 100% of Gloucester Public Schools.  Learn more about Backyard Growers at backyardgrowers.org.

Join Backyard Growers for an evening of festive fun for a cause at our FUNdraiser: Holiday Door Swag Workshop! Learn to make your own holiday swag for your door using seasonal foraged materials found on Cape Ann. We’ll provide drinks, nibbles, and all the materials.

Proceeds support Backyard Growers’ work creating equitable access to the resources people need to grow their own food in our community and at 100% of Gloucester Public Schools.

Tickets are selling very quickly. Don’t miss your chance to step back in time without going up the line.

Rain or Shine!

Step into the world of medieval and Renaissance culture at Hammond Castle Museum, where the castle itself provides a uniquely dramatic backdrop for a magical day steeped in history and fantasy in a stunning setting.

Experience the excitement of The Brotherhood of the Arrow and Sword as they return with their high-energy armored combat demonstrations, bringing the medieval battlefield vividly to life. Enjoy captivating performances from the L.I.A.R.s, who will fill the air with sea shanties, alongside a hulahoop artist, a storyteller, a wandering harpist, a bubble faery, and other enchanting entertainers. New this season, our kids’ tent offers little princes and princesses a craft for hands-on fun. With more vendors and food trucks than before, this year’s Faire is bigger, better, and more magical.

We are thrilled to host James B. Jones and Shelley Wolfe of Netflix’s Emmy Award-winning Love on the Spectrum (LOTS) will be joining us as our Honorary King and Queen!  (You may remember that James was featured on a date at the Museum in Season Two, Episode 5  of LOTS! You can read more about that date here!) James and Shelley will be strolling the Museum grounds in full Renaissance spirit, and guests will have the opportunity to meet them and take photos with them from  11:00 am – 2:00 pm.

Your admission includes access to explore parts of the interior of the Museum and free access to all scheduled entertainment. *Vendor services are not included, and cash is recommended due to limited wi-fi. Cosplay is encouraged, but weapons of any kind are not permitted. Little ones ages 4 and under are free but do require a reserved ticket, and kids ages 5 – 12 are only $10! Hammond Castle Museum Member savings apply.

Don’t miss this extraordinary day of music, pageantry, and living history at Hammond Castle Museum, where the past comes alive in spectacular fashion!

Off-Site Parking is Required & Free Shuttles will run all day:
Free parking will be available at Stage Fort Park (24 Hough Ave, Gloucester, MA 01930), with complimentary white Beauport shuttles, generously sponsored by Townsend Energy, running between the park and the Museum from 8:45 AM to 5:15 PM. On-street parking on Hesperus Avenue is prohibited. On-site parking is reserved exclusively for guests with mobility needs and is not guaranteed.

Reserve your tickets before they’re gone at: https://bit.ly/RenFaireHCM

The Gloucester Rotary has published a 12-month Cape Ann photo calendar for 2026, featuring the photography of several local photographers. In addition to the beautiful photography, each calendar includes a raffle ticket for a $50 weekly raffle drawing throughout the year.  The calendars are $25 each and proceeds from sales will be used for the Gloucester Rotary’s many community and international activities. Calendars may be purchased online at BankGloucester (160 Main St, Gloucester), the Weathervane (153 Main St, Gloucester), and at the Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce (24 Harbor Loop, Gloucester) or from any Gloucester Rotarian. 

Purchase 2026 calendar online.

It’s game day for the red-hot Pats! 🏈 🔥 Get in on the action with amazing GEF online auction items for every sports fan, from Patriots–Giants tickets (with parking!) to a signed Red Sox baseball, a women’s college hockey experience, and a 2026 season pass to North Shore Adventures. Don’t sit on the sidelines: place your bids today here. Every bid benefits the students and staff of the Gloucester Public Schools!

This Sunday afternoon Nov. 2, we are proud to present the Charlie Chaplin silent movie masterpiece, The Gold Rush, accompanied by sonic artist extraordinaire Peter Krasinski on the grand 1893 Hutchings/Fisk pipe organ.

The Gold Rush (1925) is tragicomedy about the search for gold, in which the leading character faces hunger, cold, and even the possibility that he may be attacked by a grizzly.  It’s hilarious and sad at the same time, providing delightful entertainment for the whole family!

Peter Krasinski, an international star of improvised silent movie accompaniment, will employ all the tone colors and power of the Meetinghouse pipe organ to add mystery, intrigue and excitement to this classic Charlie Chaplin film.

Tickets are available at the door or in advance (recommended) on our website.

Admission: $20 General, $5 Students, Under 12 free

Parking is available on the Green in front of the Meetinghouse, home of the Gloucester Unitarian Universalist Church, at 50 Middle Street and at other locations around the Historic District. The side entrance at 10 Church Street provides elevator access. 

Join us this Sunday afternoon for an incredible entertainment treat!

The second cohort of the Class of 2026 begins in January, with spaces still available. Don’t miss out on this opportunity!

This innovative, hands-on training program prepares young adults for professional careers as life sciences laboratory technicians. Students spend six months of hands-on learning in a state-of-the-art teaching facility in Gloucester’s Blackburn Center, followed by a three-month paid co-op at a North Shore or Greater Boston biotech company.

The program is open to students ages 18-30 with a high school diploma or the equivalent. No math or science experience is needed to apply.

Once again, tuition and fees will be waived — in their entirety — for the Academy’s class of 2026. In addition, qualifying students can receive a stipend of $1,000 per month to help support their living expenses while training. GMGI is committed to providing STEM education opportunities to all, regardless of financial background.

Please visit the Apply page on the GMGI website for more information on the program, and to submit your application. Space is limited so don’t miss this amazing opportunity! Reach out to Laura Richane — laura.richane@gmgi.org — Director of Enrollment & Partnerships, with any questions or to request a tour.

The Gloucester Education Foundation’s 20th Anniversary Gala on 11/6/25 is sold out – but you don’t need a gala ticket to bid on items in our online silent auction! Bidding opens today and closes at 7:30pm on 11/6/25. Click here to visit the auction!

Thanks to the incredible generosity of the Gloucester community – and the tenacity of our auction committee, led by Rachel Refalo, Kristin Michel, and Val Gilman – we have a wonderful array of items and packages to chose from. Your participation fuels programs that make learning come alive — in classrooms, on stages, and in labs across the Gloucester Public Schools. So browse, bid, share, and help us keep the sparks flying for another 20 years!

Thank you to our silent auction donors: Kathy Johnson, Mariposa, Manship Artists Residency; Topsfield Fair, Talbot Rink, Sugar Magnolias, Cove Cafe, Downeast Yacht Tours, Avis Murray, Oak to Ember, Omni Mount Washington, Loren Doucette, Steve Abell and the GHS Carpentry Shop, Tim Rose and the GHS Cabinet Design Program, Val Gilman, Kristin Michel, Sushi Sang Lee, Common Crow, Sought Interiors, Cape Ann Lanes, Melissa Cox, North Shore Music Theater, Garden City Pub, Bass Rocks Golf Club, Gorton’s, Ann Ziergebel, Surfari, North Shore Adventures, Jenn Klopotoski, Kathy Clancy, Rob and Kristen Parsons, Boston Red Sox, James Fiahlo, Winning Moves Games, Alan Refalo, and Title Research Group.

WE’RE SO THANKFUL FOR YOUR GENEROUS SUPPORT!