One Awesome Staff

Hello all! I had a great second week in South Boston, Dorchester, and the Boston Children's Museum. I would definitely stay at these sites for the rest of the summer if I could, but I'm also SO excited to move forward and see what Quincy and Camp Harbor View are all about. I know they'll bring their own amazing memories to what is already an unforgettable summer.

While there are so many aspects of my job this summer that get better and better with each passing week, there's one aspect I'm growing particularly fond of--- and that's getting to build great relationships with my co-workers and to see how much they are growing as individuals this summer. We have a great set of seasoned college assistants, and a talented, bright group of junior assistants, including many MLK Summer Scholars. We span a decade in our ages (pictured, you can see our youngest staffer, Timmy "The Kid" Grogan, holding our biggest catch of the summer so far), we live in various Boston neighborhoods, and, besides the Harbor, we have our own interests and hobbies. Regardless of our different backgrounds, however, I really felt us come together in the last two weeks. Now that we've finished up Week 4 and are heading into Week 5, almost everyone has gotten to work together at the different sites, and we've all comfortably settled in to working with one another. And now that we've all had several chances to see what works at the different sites, we're learning from each other's best practices. It's also great to see the younger staffers take on so much responsibility with such ease and confidence, so much so that I am completely comfortable with taking a step back and letting them steer the day in their own personal direction. I am proud to work alongside such a great group.

I was especially impressed with Mark Rose this week, who took on the responsibility of setting up and using our new underwater camera in South Boston. As the kids gathered around to monitor a submerged crab trap for signs of an unsuspecting victim, Mark ran the show; and if the camera started to act up, Mark diagnosed and remedied the problem like a pro. I'm blessed to be surrounded by talented people like Mark, passionate people like LaToya, hilarious people like Conor and Tom, and many other staffers with strengths of their own, all summer. Everyone brings something different to the table. Dare I say it? I know I'm learning more from them than they are learning from me this summer.

Harbor Love,

Michelle