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Untold Story of 1960s Women’s Olympic Glory Featured at Sawyer Free Library Author Talk

~ Sawyer Free Library

The Sawyer Free Library is pleased to host local author Aime Alley Card on Thursday, March 7 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. She will be discussing her book The Tigerbelles: Olympic Legends from Tennessee State. Joining her in the conversation will be fellow author, Jean Duffy, author of Soccer Grannies: The South African Women Who Inspire the World. 

The Tigerbelles: Olympic Legends from Tennessee State chronicles the 1960 Tennessee State University all-Black women’s track team, which found Olympic glory at the 1960 games in Rome. It is an epic story of desire, success, and failure—of beating the odds—against the backdrop of a changing America. 

Published this month to coincide with Women’s History Month in March,  the author, who lives in Wenham, will speak as part of the Sawyer Free Library’s author event series from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 7, at the library, 21 Main Street (upstairs) in Gloucester. There will be books available for to sign. No registration required.

Tigerbelles is a multi-layered inspirational tale of triumph over adversity.  The elite group of talent includes Wilma Rudolph, Barbara Jones, Lucinda Williams, Martha Hudson, Willye B. White, and Shirley Crowder.  These are women who once were and should still be known worldwide.  Ultimately, the team’s drive is for more than medals.  Their coach, Edward Temple, and the Tigerbelles offer a challenge to the world’s perception of what a group of young Black women in the Jim Crow South are capable of.

For the past several years, Aime Alley Card has been researching, interviewing, and writing about the Tennessee State Tigerbelles and those who supported them along their path. She conducted and reviewed hundreds of hours of interviews and read just as many books and articles, ranging from concurrent to retrospective. She is a nonfiction editor for Pangyrus literary magazine and a board member for the Women’s National Book Association, Boston Chapter, and serves on her town’s cultural council supporting educational programs.

Please join us for this special event. For more information visit: sawyerfreelibrary.org or 978-325-5500.

Open House @ Gloucester Biotechnology Academy

~ Gloucester Marine Genomics Institute

Curious about Gloucester Biotechnology Academy? Stop by Wednesday, February 28th from 3p to 5p and learn more about this innovative, hands-on program!

Tour our state-of-the-art laboratories, speak with Academy instructors, learn about the 2-semester curriculum, and hear about the application process. Interested community members, prospective students, and curious family members…all are welcome!

Where: 55 Blackburn Center, Gloucester
When: 2/28 from 3p to 5p

The Academy is a 10-month certificate program that trains high school graduates for careers in biotech and the life sciences. And even better…applications are currently being accepted for the Class of 2025!

For more information, please reach out to Laura Richane at laura.richane@gmgi.org

Participate in Leap of Kindness Day – February 29

~ Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce

As part of a 2024 nationwide promotion, the Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce has joined the ranks of over 200 communities representing Chambers in 43 of 50 states to use the “extra” day of Leap Year to do something kind for someone else.

Originally conceived by the Saratoga Chamber of Commerce, the first Leap of Kindness Day saw hundreds of local organizations helping thousands of local people on February 29, 2016. Four years later in 2020, Leap of Kindness Day was even bigger and better as chambers throughout the US, Canada, and Ireland joined in for the spread of a lot of kindness.

For our part of #LeapofKindnessDay this year, the Chamber is promoting non-monetary donation requests from our non-profit members. As of this posting, 19 non-profit members have sent in their requests, which are posted on the Chamber website at https://bit.ly/LeapofKindnessDay. Requests were also sent out individually on our Facebook and Instagram feeds over the past few weeks.

If you have a minute, please check out the list of requests, which are summarized below. They range from small item donations to volunteer time to more substantial needs (but it never hurts to ask!). Full request details and contact information for each non-profit participating are available at https://bit.ly/LeapofKindnessDay. If you are able to help fulfill one request, remember to let us know

Leap of Kindness Day Donation Requests from Member Non-Profits

Share Your Plans for Leap of Kindness Day 2024

Please help us keep track of all the wonderful acts of kindness happening in communities across the region on Leap of Kindness Day – February 29, 2024. Is your organization, company, or family doing something to help? Please fill out this form and let us know so we can share it on our website!

Please contact Cindy Rodzen, Director of Marketing & Communications, at cindy@capeannchamber.com if you have any questions.

Don’t miss GMGI’s final Science Hour of the season!

~ Gloucester Marine Genomics Institute
photo credit: Andy Mann

Don’t miss our final Science Hour of the season!

To wrap up this winter season of talks, GMGI welcomes our neighbor (in Boston), Dr. Jeff Kneebone, Senior Scientist at the Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life at the New England Aquarium. His work sheds light on the mysterious underwater life of some of New England’s resident fish through the use of two very different, but complimentary, techniques – electronic tagging and DNA analysis.

Join us on Thursday, February 29th at 7p for Dr. Kneebone’s talk, Magic Markers – How Electronic Tags and DNA Help Us Understand the Life of Marine Fishes and the Impact Humans Have on Them. Click here to register! 

As always, the GMGI Science Hour is free and available to all who are interested!

Questions? Please reach out to Maggie Costello at maggie.costello@gmgi.org

Seed-Starting Workshop & Free Seed Giveaway

~ backyardgrowersgloucester

🌱🌿🍅 Join Backyard Growers for an ONLINE WORKSHOP and FREE SEED GIVEAWAY to jumpstart your growing season. We’ll be sharing tips and tricks, plus offering a live Q&A, on how to successfully start seeds indoors this winter, followed by a drop-in free seed giveaway at our offices at 103R Maplewood Ave in Gloucester.

Online Workshop: How to start seeds indoors
February 27, 6-7pm
FREE for Backyard Growers Program participants / $15 general admission

Reserve your spot

Free Seed Giveaway
February 29, 3:30-5:30pm
Backyard Growers HQ @ 103R Maplewood Ave, Gloucester
FREE vegetable seeds for all!

~ todtheopendoor

THIS SATURDAY:

Free Bowl Painting at the Gloucester Elks!

Paint a bowl this weekend for The Open Door Empty Bowl fundraiser this spring!

WHEN: Saturday February 17 at 10 am to 12 pm

WHERE: Gloucester Elks Lodge |101 Atlantic Rd Gloucester MA

Please register today to reserve a bowl to paint with us– there are limited spots available! CLICK HERE TO RESERVE YOUR SPOT!

A bowl will be provided AT NO COST for each person to paint, along with all the materials needed! Your bowl will be fired and distributed through The Open Door Empty Bowl flagship fundraiser on April 24, which supports summer programs of The Open Door including Summer Meals for Kids and Mobile Market programs.

Grow your own food with Backyard Growers in 2024 🌿

~ backyardgrowersgloucester

🌿 APPLY NOW: Applications are now open for Backyard Growers’ 2024 Community Programs, with a mission to empower more Cape Ann residents to grow their own food and connect people to veggie gardening resources. Learn more & apply here: www.backyardgrowers.org/community-programs

Programs include:

🍅 Community Garden Program: Join one of six community gardens in Gloucester to connect with neighbors and grow your own food, including Burnham’s Field Community Garden and gardens in Gloucester Housing Authority and Caleb Group communities.

🥬 Backyard Garden Program: Backyard Growers builds raised garden beds for Gloucester residents each spring, enabling them to grow their own food at their homes. Your backyard could be next!

🥕 GrowBag Garden Program: Cape Ann residents receive a container garden (3 GrowBags) with resources to grow fresh food at home, without needing to install a garden bed. This is a great option for renters or people without traditional outdoor growing space.

All program participants receive access to growing space with nutrient-rich soil, gardening & cooking workshops, vegetable seeds & seedlings, and an optional gardening mentor.

Questions? Reach out to Backyard Growers at community@backyardgrowers.org or call 978-281-0480.

Elementary Band Concert on Monday 1/29!

~ gloucestereducationfoundation

The Gloucester Education Foundation is looking forward to this elementary band concert on Monday! We are proud to fund band for grades 4-8 to the tune (see what we did there?) of $98,100 this year, and have already begun to secure funding for next year’s programming. Look for an article in the Gloucester Daily Times next week about the generosity of our community – especially the JMR Barker Foundation and the Byrnes family – in its support for our schools and the arts.

Don’t Miss Out on Cape Ann Big Band and BrassFed Nation Youth Swing Orchestra this Friday at Shalin Liu Performance Center

~ Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce

All are invited to join the Greater Cape Ann Chamber’s 102nd Annual Celebration at Shalin Liu Performance Center on Friday, January 26 from 5 to 9 PM as we welcome incoming 2024 Board President Karen Ristuben and thank 2023 Board President Loran Caputo. Tickets may be purchased online at bit.ly/AnnualCelebration2024 or by calling the Chamber at 978-283-1601. Ticket options include Program and Cocktail Reception plus Live Performances for $100; or Live Performances Only at $45 for adults and $20 for youth under 18. See below for a list of the talented performers (there will also be a surprise guest performer!)

With the 2024 theme of Creativity, Culture & Commerce: Stronger Together, our goal this year is to inspire new synergies between greater Cape Ann’s arts, culture, and business communities. This unique Annual Celebration represents the visual and performing arts – music, painting, drama, poetry, and dance – from all five of our communities. 

The Program and Cocktail Reception will be held from 5 to 7 PM (heavy appetizers). The Live Performances begin at 7:30 PM.

LIVE PERFORMANCES

  • Cape Ann Big Band with featured vocalists: Alexandra Grace, Emily Grace, Rhiannon Hurst, Scott Parisi, John Rockwell, and Nathan Seavey
  • BrassFed Nation Youth Swing Orchestra with featured vocalists: Scarlett Berge, Jessica Cote, Alexis Geary, and Alessandro Schoc 
  • Spoken Word: Luce Wren Brandt and Kaley Fantasia
  • Dancer Performance: Sarah Slifer Swift and Carey McKinley, Movement Arts Gloucester MA (MAGMA)
  • Lanes Coven Theater Co: Lily Narbonne and Justin Genna
  • Live Art: Loren Doucette, Seven Suns Gallery. Pastel Artwork*

ADDITIONAL ARTISTS

  • Wood Carving Demonstration by Harold Burnham*
  • Live Painting Demonstration by Joli Ayn Wood*
  • Centerpieces: Chubby Clay Bodies by Miranda Aisling, filled with beautiful floral arrangements by Betsy Morris Quinn (Dirt Floral Works). (Flat-fee purchase price of $40 each – first-come, first-served)
  • Life-sized Portrait of “Captain Kyle Nelson, Pigeon Cove Lobsterman” by Leslie Heffron, in the Lobby. (Available for purchase from the artist.)
  • Photography Display by Melissa Cox. (Available for purchase from the photographer.)

* Finished artwork to be sold via Silent Auction. Silent Auction bidding sheets are available in the Lobby.
Additional art pieces by Loren Doucette will be on display and available for retail purchase.

Thank you to our sponsors:

PRODUCER LEVEL

DESIGNER LEVEL

Gloucester 400+

Johnson O’Connor