O’Maley Academy Summer Science Grad Program – FREE for Gloucester Students

 Weeks of July 25 and August 1, Monday through Thursday 9am-1pm

There are still a few spaces in a fantastic two week program this summer at O’Maley Academy. Joining this program is a great way to meet with experts, learn about 21st century careers and skills in science, and add to your summer activities.

In the Summer Science Grad Program we will Investigate careers in science and engineering by meeting people who work in these exciting fields. We will think about what it takes to become a scientist by visiting UMass Lowell and Northeastern University. Last, but never least, there will be many exciting hands-on activities and discussions with experts in the field:

– We will take a trip to the MIT Museum to complete the “Make a Move” workshop

– We will take a trip to the Museum of Science and explore a variety of exhibits

– We will hone our skills by collecting water samples and use microscopes to find organisms in them

– We will try our hand at building a bridge from cement

For more information and to register, please email csumner@gloucesterschools.com

Dear Residents:

The Mayor’s office and administration is aware of the ongoing staffing shortages at our beaches, especially seen at Niles and Plum Cove. I can assure you that we are actively working on this issue, which is affecting all of the Commonwealth and especially here in Essex County. This staffing shortage is due to the fact that there is a high demand for lifeguards with a limited pool of qualified candidates currently available. Our DPW wisely suggested that we start our lifeguard hiring earlier in the season, which our team started conducting earlier than any past year.

Thankfully, we hired new lifeguards this past week with more interviews, training and outreach being conducted through next week.  Additionally, I authorized a pay rate increase for lifeguard candidates to better compete in this tough job market.

As always, our larger beaches remain staffed, but the fact remains that young, certified and available lifeguards are a difficult commodity. Even though we opened up our hiring process earlier, we hope that this pay increase and additional networking will help attract the candidates we need to better patrol our beaches.

Please remain patient and thank you for the understanding.

Mayor Sefatia Romeo-Theken

Ryan, Fernando, and Sarah stand proudly in front of their garden.

Fernando, his wife Raquel, and their two children Ryan and Sarah are participants in the 2016 Backyard Garden Program. Raquel and Fernando are originally from Brazil, and they heard about our program when they volunteered to translate our program application into Portuguese.

When asked about his experience with their garden, Fernando said that “it’s getting the kids to eat healthier and showing them where their food comes from”. His daughter Sarah, when asked what her favorite thing to do in the garden was, said she “likes watering, because it makes the plants grow”.

Fernando said that there isn’t one day where the whole family doesn’t go out to the garden to see what had changed from the day before. Often when Fernando is in the garden his young son Ryan comes to help out. Fernando noted that both Sarah and Ryan “are impressed that they’re growing things they can eat” and laughed when he recalled all the times Sarah would ask, “Dad what is this, can you eat this!?”.

Not only does their immediate family love this garden, but Raquel’s mother, a McPherson Park resident, plants in the BYG managed McPherson Park Community Garden. Often Sarah’s grandmother and her can be found out in the garden watering and harvesting, and Fernando said that the garden is therapeutic for his mother-in-law. As a chef Fernando has loved having the fresh produce and herbs for his cooking, and mentioned that he has had the chance to explain to Sarah and Ryan that sometimes they make salads with multiple types of lettuce. Not only that, but because they have their own garden they have had the opportunity to plant some things from Brazil that they can’t find in stores in the area, and Fernando’s mother-in-law has been able to use that produce in cooking traditional dishes that they missed.

When asked what this garden means to him and his family, Fernando said “it’s another chance for us to do things together, and it’s strengthening our family”.

For more information on how to support our Backyard Garden Program see our donate page, and for information on how to apply see our program page.

North Shore Arts Association: American writer, artist and philosopher E. Hubbard said “Art is not a thing, it is a way.” The historic North Shore Arts Association of Gloucester celebrating its 94th year, reflects this philosophy with its “Art in Action – Connecting Communities” focus this season, by hosting a groundbreaking collaboration with Gloucester’s marine conservation/research group Ocean Alliance, now headquartered in Gloucester’s iconic Paint Factory, and historic Rocky Neck Art Colony. Supporting the Ocean Alliance mission to protect and preserve our oceans and marine life and North Shore Arts Association and Rocky Neck Art Colony’s mission of supporting the arts, an “Art Exhibition of the Sea and Science” will be on display June 17 through July 30 in the galleries of NSAA. Although works of all genres will be on display, the main focus will be works depicting the sea and Cape Ann. A very unique component of the exhibition will be a show and silent auction of works painted on old roofing slates removed from the historic Paint Factory building. These historic slates donated to NSAA by non-profit Ocean Alliance provide the substrate used by NSAA Artist Members to create original paintings, each approximately 12″x24″ depicting a myriad images. Bids for the silent auction may be placed June 17 through July 30 by visiting or contacting NSAA. One hundred per cent of silent auction proceeds will go to fund the ongoing restoration of the NSAA’s gallery building and Ocean Alliance’s Paint Factory headquarters. The collaboration also offers an extraordinary series of Ocean Alliance and Rocky Neck Art Colony lectures and performances. This special programing was made possible through partial funding by the Massachusetts Cultural Council. The first of the series will be marine conservation/research group Ocean Alliance presenting a lecture “Why Whales?” by CEO Dr. Iain Kerr on Sunday, June 26th, 12:30-1:30pm followed by a reception, open free to the public 2-4pm. A dynamic performance/poetry reading, “Sea Change: Reversing the Tide” will be presented by President of Ocean Alliance Dr. Roger Payne – whose profound discovery of whale songs has been a major force in their protection – and his wife, noted British actress Lisa Harrow on Thursday, July 7th at 7pm. Rocky Neck Art Colony President and arts and marine conservation advocate Karen Ristuben will present a lecture “Intersection of Marine Science, Conservation, Activism and Art on Saturday, July 23rd 3pm. All lectures and performances are free with a suggested donation of $5. To learn more about these three iconic non-profits visit http://www.nsarts.org, http://www.whale.org and rockyneckartcolony.org.

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