SeniorCare’s Sunset Cruise to Support Seniors Returns

SeniorCare is pleased to announce the return of its Sunset Cruise Fundraiser, an evening cruise aboard Cape Ann Whale Watch’s Hurricane II, on Thursday, July 20, 2023. The evening includes a light dinner, dancing and entertainment with DJ Scottie Mac, and raffles. All are welcome– 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.

SFL & Backyard Growers “Story Hour in the Garden” Kicks Off this Thursday morning

Throughout the summer, everyone can get their hands dirty on Thursday mornings while sharing stories, gardening and more in the Sawyer Free Library’s raised gardens with Backyard Growers. 

Everyone is invited to join in on the fun on Thursday’s from 10-11am at the Sawyer Free Library’s garden, located alongside Middle Street, for story hour followed by time planting, watering, maintaining and harvesting and more in the garden! Open to all ages, recommended for ages 2-8. No pre-registration required.

To learn more about this fun program and to discover all that is happening at the Sawyer Free Library this summer, visit www.sawyerfreelibrary.org, call 978-325-5500, or the Library 21 Main Street in downtown Gloucester.

Seeking Vendors for G400+ August Fisheries Heritage Festival!

Photo by Nicole M Dahlmer Photography

Gloucester Fisheries Heritage Month, Honoring the Industry State Fish Pier
August 12th & 13th 10am – 5pm

VENDOR APPLICATION: https://airtable.com/shrYXtHOub87Zt5Cd

Vendor Restrictions:
Must be Fisheries Related
Items for sale must be approved by Organizing Committee
Participants to supply their own tent, tables, & chairs
Seeking Demonstrations for: Netting Fish Preparation Knot Tying Lobster Banding, and more!


Please submit any questions to: events@gloucesterma400.org

GLOUCESTER READS: All Ages Summer Community Read Kicks Off

The Sawyer Free Library is excited to be a part of Gloucester Reads, a community wide book club that has just kicked off and will run through August. 

Presented by Gloucester’s Racial Justice Team and the Gloucester Health Department, in collaboration with the Sawyer Free Library and fifteen additional co-sponsors, the citywide, intergenerational summer reading initiative aims to spark conversation and new ideas and encourage introspection about race equity in our community. 

Gloucester Reads will explore books by Black authors that reflect Black experiences in America to increase understanding of the history and current status of race in Gloucester and the United States and build a strong community to foster a feeling of belonging for everyone. 

Gloucester Reads includes books for all ages, interests, and reading levels. The summer book club’s main selection is “Such a Fun Age” by Kiley Reid. This engaging story about race and privilege is set around a young black babysitter, her well-intentioned employer, and a surprising connection that threatens to undo them both, revealing complex characters, misguided intentions, and little resolution. 

The Library will distribute free copies of “Such A Fun Age” at select community events, including the Juneteenth Celebration and Festival on Sunday, June 18, at the Cape Ann Museum. The books are also available for check-out at the Sawyer Free Library located at 21 Main Street. Downloaded Ebooks and Eaudiobooks are available instantly to anyone with a Library card and a Libby app. All Gloucester Reads books are also available for purchase at select local bookstores. 

Discussion groups on “Such a Fun Age” will be held throughout the city during the month of July. Those interested in being involved can find additional information at sawyerfreelibrary.org.

Other Gloucester Reads titles include “Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019″ by Ibram Kendi and Keisha Blain and the award-winning memoir “The Love You Save” by Goldie Taylor. And, especially for children and families, the picture book “Black is a Rainbow Color” by Angela Joy, illustrated by Ekua Holmes, will serve as the Family Book Club pick throughout the Read with the graphic novel “Ain’t Burned All the Bright” by Jason Reynolds, artwork by Jason Griffin selected for tweens and teens. 

Gloucester Reads will then culminate on the evening of August 15 with a live-stream panel discussion featuring Kiley Reid, The New York Times bestselling author and an assistant professor at the University of Michigan. “Such A Fun Age” was her debut novel and was longlisted for the 2020 Booker Prize. This exciting and engaging event will be open to the public, with more details forthcoming.

For additional details and a complete list of Gloucester Reads programs, book suggestions and learning resources on racial equity, visit SawyerFreeLibrary.org.

Virtual Workshop: Pest Management for your Veggie Gardens

Healthy soil, sanitary tools, and cooperation with other life forms are the keys to our most effective approach to pest management in your vegetable garden: prevention! In this online workshop, Backyard Growers will walk you through how to minimize human, microbiological, and plant risk by using the ecosystem as the starting point to diagnose pest issues threatening your harvest.

Backyard Growers is a Gloucester-based 501(C)3 nonprofit organization committed to cultivating healthy, connected, resilient communities by empowering people to grow their own food.

Gloucester Education Foundation recaps a great year of programs for Gloucester students

“With so many remarkable GEF powered opportunities returning to our schools this year, it has been wonderful for our community to once again experience the full impact of GEF’s support.”

~Superintendent Ben Lummis

With the 2022-23 school year wrapping up tomorrow, the Gloucester Education Foundation (GEF) has released their FY23 Impact Report. Built around the theme of “Discover, Connect, Belong”, this year’s report is full of images, stats, and stories from current GPS students and alumni; teachers and administrators; GEF supporters and champions. This was a big year for GEF, with the return of The Power of Play and Gloucester Student Arts Festival, continued growth in arts, STEM and vocational investments, and the integration of their new Student Advisory Committee. See below for lots of images from this school year and the incredible array of learning opportunities supported by GEF.

And don’t miss the remarkable (and long!) list of donors, volunteers, and in-kind gifts at the end of the report that made this work possible – GEF is so thankful for the Gloucester community’s support for our schools, educators, and students. Look for your friends’ and neighbors’ names, and join them by donating to GEF’s spring campaign!

Langsford Cemetery Tour

As part of the Gloucester 400+ celebrations, on Saturday, June 10th from 1:00-2:00PM, Melissa & Russell Hobbs’ cemetery tour, “Families of Lanesville” will be held at the Victorian Langsford Cemetery (32-34 Langsford Street, Gloucester, MA). The tour will cover the families of Munsey, Langsford, Duley, Sargent, and Haraden. There will be a reading of the Veterans names listed on the cemetery’s Civil War Monument by Veterans. The Hobbs will discuss the Lanesville Veterans of the War of 1812 and the “Battle of Gloucester 1814” which occurred at Folly Cove.  There will also be a demo on “How to Clean a Gravestone”, (https://www.gloucesterma400.org/event/cemetery-walk-series-families-of-lanesville/). The cemetery is not handicapped accessible, and the terrain is uneven.  This particular free cemetery tour does require an Eventbrite registration, https://www.gloucesterma400.org/calendar/list/page/2/

Limited parking is available on Washington Street and Langsford Street. On Saturday there is a CATA bus to Lanesville leaving the Rose Baker Senior Center (6 Manuel F. Lewis St, Gloucester, MA 01930) at 9:25AM & 11:25AM. See the CATA link for the times the CATA bus leaves Lanesville and returns to the Rose Baker Senior Center, https://canntran.com/routes/lanesville/

Lane’s Cove Fish Shacks

Lanesville is a buzz on Saturday, June 10th with 400+ Gloucester celebrations. After the free Cove Hill Cemetery tour (https://www.gloucesterma400.org/event/cemetery-walk-series-5/), visitors can grab some lunch from the Lanesville merchants and make their way to Lane’s Cove to visit the free Pocket Museum Open House at the small Fish Shack between 11:30AM – 1PM. There will be a free 30-minute presentation, History of Lane’s Cove, at the large Fish Shack at 12:00PM. These cove events are sponsored by the Lane’s Cove Historical Association (https://www.gloucesterma400.org/event/pocket-museum-open-house/).

There is limited parking on Washington Street. A Saturday CATA bus to Lanesville leaves the Rose Baker Senior Center (6 Manuel F. Lewis St, Gloucester, MA 01930) at 9:25AM & 11:25AM. See the CATA link for buses leaving Lanesville and returning to Rose Baker Senior Center. (https://canntran.com/routes/lanesville/)

Cove Hill Cemetery Tour

As part of the 400+ Gloucester celebrations, a free 10:00 -11:00 AM cemetery tour, “Cove Hill 1720” will be given on Saturday, June 10th at Cove Hill Cemetery (1052R Washington Street, Gloucester, MA) by Walter and Joyce McGrath. The cemetery tour will discuss the early settlers of Flatstone Cove and the evolution of the village of Lanesville.  The tour will cover the families of Duley, Lane, Gott, Sargent, and Young, pauper stones, different types of headstones (slate, marble, and zinc), orientation of headstones, and Veterans of the American Revolutionary and Civil Wars. There is limited parking on Washington Street. On Saturday there is a CATA Lanesville bus leaving the Rose Baker Senior Center (6 Manuel F. Lewis St, Gloucester, MA 01930) at 9:25AM with a returning Lanesville bus heading back to the Rose Baker Senior Center around Noon. For more details visit, https://www.gloucesterma400.org/event/cemetery-walk-series-5/

THIS WEEKEND: Seaside Vintage Market at Second Glance

Shop for vintage-style home décor, housewares, linen, art, furniture, jewelry, and clothing!

WHEN: Saturday June 10 and Sunday June 11 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

WHERE: Second Glance, Thrift Store of The Open Door, at 2 Pond Road Gloucester MA 01930

WHAT: Don’t miss the vintage shopping event of the season!

Revenue at Second Glance supports the hunger-relief programs of The Open Door.

In 2022, The Open Door helped stabilize the lives and health of 8,486 people (4,872 households) through the distribution of 1.78 MILLION pounds of food. Learn more at FOODPANTRY.org