Save the Harbor 2013 Better Beaches Awards

DCR Commissioner Jack Murray, State Senator John Keenan, Daphne Griffin, Boston 's Chief of Human Services, Save the Harbor Board Chair Joe Newman of National Grid and Save the Harbor President Patricia Foley with this year’s Better Beaches Awards winners. 

On Saturday, June 15, 2013 Save the Harbor / Save the Bay awarded $30,000 in Better Beaches grants to 15 groups to support dozens of free public events in nine beachfront communities from Nahant to Nantasket this summer.

This year’s “Better Beaches” events include sand sculpting competitions, beachfront concerts, environmental education programs, family fun nights, reading nights art festivals and beach programs in Lynn, Nahant, Revere, Winthrop, East Boston, South Boston, Dorchester, Quincy and Hull.

“The Boston Harbor region's public beaches are important assets to the region's residents and visitors alike,” said Patricia A. Foley, President of Save the Harbor/Save the Bay. “We are proud to support our partners in the city's waterfront neighborhoods and beachfront communities as they work to share their beaches and the harbor with the region’s kids and families.”

Save the Harbor / Save the Bay launched the Better Beaches grants program in 2008 to help local communities and formal and informal beaches Friends Groups jump-start free events and activities on public beaches from Nahant to Nantasket with the support of The Boston Foundation.

Today the funds to sustain this program come from the annual “Harpoon Helps Cupid Splash” pledge fundraiser, and Save the Harbor’s Better Beaches Program funding partners at Harpoon Brewery, JetBlue Airways, National Grid, Comcast Massachusetts, the Harold Whitworth Pierce Charitable Trust, Tasty Burger and Russo Marine.

“This year the “Harpoon Helps Cupid Splash” raised more than $30,000 from nearly 500 splashers and supporters to fund this year’s Better Beaches program grants, as participants competed for JetBlue Airways tickets and great gifts from Harpoon Brewery. Thanks to all of you, and to our partners at the BCYF Curley Community Center and the Department of Conservation & Recreation for their support as well” said Foley.

This summer Save the Harbor will once again host two Better Beaches events at the BCYF Curley Community Center at M Street Beach in South Boston. These include the Youth Beach Bash and Splash, which will bring 500 kids to the beach to celebrate clean water, and the Swim for Boston Harbor, a one mile, chip-timed competitive swim on one of the cleanest urban beaches in America.

Over the past five years, Save the Harbor’s community partners in Nahant, Lynn, Revere, Winthrop, East Boston, South Boston, Dorchester, Quincy and Hull have leveraged $143,500 in small grants received from Save the Harbor with $503,500 in cash and in-kind donations from local government and small businesses for a total investment of $647,000 in more than 150 free events and programs for the region’s residents and visitors alike.

In addition to the grants, Save the Harbor/Save the Bay also gave each group 22 one-inch diameter blue and white marbles to scatter on their respective beaches as part of the “Simply Marble-ous” Treasure Hunt sponsored by JetBlue Airways. Anyone who finds one of these marbles between July 4th and the end of the summer will be entered into a drawing to win round trip airline tickets from JetBlue Airways. “Like” Save the Harbor on Facebook or follow them on Twitter to learn more about this "Simply Marble-ous" summer treasure hunt.

This year’s “Better Beaches” grant recipients include:

• Revere:  The Revere Beach Partnership, which was awarded $6,000 to support the National Sand Sculpting Competition on Revere Beach.
• Lynn & Nahant: The Friends of Lynn & Nahant Beach was awarded $2,500 to support the Red Rock Summer Concert Series and The Friends of Heritage Park was awarded $1,000 to support the World Folk Festival.
• Winthrop: The Friends of Winthrop Beach was awarded $1,000 to support family activities on the beach and the Friends of Belle Isle Marsh was awarded $1,000 to support educational activities on the beach.
• East Boston: The East Boston YMCA was awarded $3,500 to support the Summer Food Service Program and Campfire, and Harbor Arts, Inc. was awarded $1,000 to support the HarborArts Festival.  
• South Boston: The BCYF Curley Community Center was awarded $3,500 to support Summer Youth Programs, South Boston Neighborhood House was awarded $3,500 to support Family Fun Night on the Beach, and The City Point Neighborhood Association was awarded $1,000 to support Beat the Summer Sizzle at Pleasure Bay.
• Dorchester: The Friends of Savin Hill Shores, which was awarded $2,000 to support the Beach Festival Family Movie Night.   
• Quincy: The Friends of Wollaston Beach was awarded $1,000 to support Kids Fest and the Quincy Beaches and the Quincy Beaches and Coastal Commission was awarded $1,000 to support the Pumpkin Fest. 
• Hull: The Friends of the Paragon Carousel was awarded $1,000 to support Museum Projects and their Reading Program, and the Hull Nantasket Chamber of Commerce was awarded $1,000 to support the Endless Summer Waterfront Festival.

About Save the Harbor / Save the Bay
Founded in 1986, Save the Harbor / Save the Bay is the region’s leading voice for clean water and the restoration and protection of Boston Harbor, the waterfront, our region's public beaches, the Boston Harbor Islands and the marine environment.

To find out more about Save the Harbor / Save the Bay’s Better Beaches Programs, visit their website at /www.savetheharbor.org, or their Boston Harbor blog "Sea, Sand & Sky" at www.blog.savetheharbor.org