Goodbye for now!

Climbing structure at Camp Harbor View, on Long Island

Hello and goodbye, friends of Save the Harbor!

I cannot believe that the summer has come to a close. I hope you are all taking advantage of this beautiful weather- keep getting to the beach, it will ease the back-to-school blues!

I wanted to start off with a photo from Camp Harbor View because it represents one of the greatest parts of working with Save the Harbor- there are always new adventures to be had. I did not work at CHV until the end of the summer, but it really made an impact- the staff is incredibly motivated, the campers are fun and engaging, and Long Island is stunning. This is the climbing structure that I was itching to get on (maybe some other time!) I am excited that CHV is making climbing a part of the camp because for me, rock climbing is stress relief, fun, and over-all upkeep. I am happier and healthier now that I rock climb, and I'm glad to see that kids in Boston are learning about this amazing sport!

Jaimie with a crab!

Sisters Jaimie and Julia with their mud-man!

I think I left a piece of me with all of the smiling friends we made at Blacks Creek this year. I'm going to hold on to these memories forever! Blacks Creek was the site I spent the most time at- thanks to our partners at Quincy Recreation, we enjoyed a great summer with the sailing center!  From finding crabs and eels to making sculptures and mudballs during our rare low-tide days, I'll have a lot to miss from this site!

Abdi at Blacks Creek with Jaimie and Jordan!

Alex and Jayda!

One of the most beautiful parts of this summer was seeing our JPAs take up leadership role. Here's Abdi with some of our kids at Blacks Creek. Abdi is the youngest in his family, but he took up leadership like a natural. From teaching the kids how to play "Taps" to taking over all of the responsibility that comes with being King of the Crab Trap, Abdi was an asset to our team this summer. He has a great time with the kids, and they are always smiling when he is teaching them.

Norah Dooley, Patty Foley,  and some of our guests at the Beach Bash! 

Ahmed, Ketchup King, at the Beach Bash!

Similarly, I found myself learning from our JPAs! Jayda, above, is one of the most organized and motivated people I have ever met. We arrived at Nautical Day at Blacks Creek and she immediately caught us an eel for the touch tank. Jayda's unbeatable and energetic smile and disposition were inspirations for me this summer. Thanks for teaching me so much,  to all of my brilliant JPAs!

As I reflect on the rest of the summer, what I remember most are smiles and sunshine. I'll always be grateful to Save the Harbor for giving me this amazing opportunity. For letting me work with Ahmed, our expert LHE, when I was nervous on my first day; for having an on-call pirate and a president who enjoys listening to sea tales with kids; for Bridget Ryan, our incredible Head Teacher.

Thanks for an amazing summer, Boston!

 Carolyn House

Wohoooooo

Hey guys!

Today was the big beach bash and splash !!! It was relaxing and a great end to this week. I face painted, which was so much fun. My favorite face painting I did was giving a girl a mustache and unibrow. It was hilarious. There were so many kids. I didn't know there would be such a great turn out. It was also the birthday of one of my friends and needless to say he got a great birthday surprise of ice cold water. We also had a huge lobster there in a touch tank. We named her lady the lobster. Aside from all of that this was the best experience I've had this summer. I can't wait to see what next week holds. Until next time!

~Jayda 

Blacks Creek for the First and Last time

Hey guys!

This week started off rough. I was home sick with food poisoning and I was worried I wouldn't have much to blog about because of it. BUT today I went to Blacks Creek for the first time and sadly it is the last time for the summer because the program has ended for the summer. However, I was able to meet an amazing kid named Nate and he was the most helpful and enthusiastic boy I've ever worked with. At one point, he even stopped me to tell me that we had to take a selfie before I left. Of course I took a selfie with him and this is the photo.

Together we caught my first baby eel. 

He stood there in the water with me looking for fishes and telling me where to go to get them. When he found a baby crab he came running to find me and show me. It was one of the best experiences I've had with a kid this summer. He was such a cool kid that I will never forget now that our selfie is the background on my phone . 

Until next time. 

~Jayda 

Yucky fun

Hey guys,

Today I was able to work at Courageous and it was their Parents Day. It sounded like a hard day but it was a really fun day. My first day at Courageous I vowed never to touch the gross crab traps, but today there was a big flounder in the trap so I had to try to get him out. He was soooo slimy that I couldn't get a grip and he was sliding everywhere. I had to bend over and reach in. It smelt so bad, but I knew we had to get the flounder out or he would eventually die. So I was elbow deep in sea squirts and sludge from other gross things in the trap. It was a very difficult thing because it was gross and challenging to pick up the flounder without getting cut by the trap. I did succeed in getting the flounder out and in the water, but I didn't escape without an arm full of cuts. As gross and painful as it was, it was also rewarding in the end. 

Also, today was challenging in the sense that we were dealing not only with kids, but their parents too. Working with the parents was difficult because they did not know our procedures for simple things such as pulling up the trap, so it was a learning experience in how to speak to someone older than ne firmly, yet respectfully. That was a skill that was very helpful and I will be able to use forever. I was also able to work with an amazing group of kids, one of which was my best friend's sister, Samira. I was so happy to have taught her how to fish.

 This has been a great week and I hope for more exciting things to come. Until next time! 

~Jayda 

CBI !!!

Hey guys,

Today was great. I was able to spend the whole day at CBI, while promoting the "go green" act. There was a raffle that you could enter only if you had a reusable water bottle. We also caught two perch. Although that all seems exciting, I caught an odd looking bug in the water.

It vaguely resembled a dragonfly. I spent the majority of the day looking at it. It was so fascinating because it was slow moving and it stuck to the side of thing even when out of water. However if taken out of water it did not fly even though it had wing like parts. 

As odd as it was, it was rather intriguing and mysterious. I also spent a lot of the day meticulously using a pipette to gather shrimp and krill for the kids to look at under the microscope. As terrible as it sounds, to find tiny sea creatures and pick them up one by one was rather satisfying to do. All in all, it was a great day and I cannot wait to see what the rest of the week brings. Until next time!

~Jayda 

End to a great week

Hey guys,

This week I have had the most amazing time at CBI and Courageous. While there I got the most amazing surprise: my best friend's brother and sister were taking sailing lessons at Courageous. What was even better was that I was able to teach them how to fish. Also, at Courageous we caught our first fish! It was a beautiful perch.

 At CBI I was able to kayak, which is something I love to do.

Lastly, to end the week, one of my coworkers from the Children's Museum took us all to breakfast at the Intercontinental. It was amazing to spend time with them outside of work. We talked and I learned things about them that I would have never learned at work. Also, it was fun because not only do I consider them coworkers, but also friends that I hope to stay in contact with for a long time. 

Until next time! 

~ Jayda 

Spending the summer in the sea and sand !

Hey guys !

I have had the best start to the week. It all started at the Rever Beach Sand Sculpting Competition, where we entered the amateur group competition and we won against some of our collegues with our marvelous alligator.

Next, I joined my All Access crew on Pedocks, where we relaxed in the sun and swam all day! On the boat ride to Pedocks, we played a ton of card games that I had never played before. I bonded with my fellow collegues in a way we never had before. 

This has to be the best start to the week I've ever had. I am so happy to have  had such an amazing few days. I can't wait for the rest of the week. Until next time !

~Jayda 

P.S. If you were wondering this is our official looking medal for the competition. 

Week two comes to a close

Hey everyone,

These last two days of the week have been full of fun and laughs. We finally had a kid catch a fish at the Children's Museum. After a full day of fishing without success a boy came and asked to learn to fish, and as soon as he casted the line he was reeling it back in because he had caught a choagie. It was amazing and showed that sometimes you try your best and you don't succeed, but some people may get it on the first chance. What was even more amazing was that after he caught the perch, everyone grabbed a rod and began fishing, even though they knew it was highly unlikely that they would catch something. They had given hope, and hope is a powerful thing. 

Also we now have coloring and chalk to draw on the pavement with.

At first it seemed like no one really wanted to use it so we began using it to encourage the kids to use it as well. Though it seemed pointless it was fun. We drew each other, the skyline and various other sceneries and animals. Though we are a team, we are often working alone or in pairs on various aspects. Some of us could be one on one fishing, while others are drawing or showing crabs. So today I decided why not have a little fun, so I ran around with a tiny paintbrush tickling everyone to make them think a bug was on them. The reactions were priceless and I think I'm now being targeted for payback , but it's okay because I got a laugh out of everyone and helped wake everyone up from feeling tired after lunch. For now that's all, until next time.

~Jayda 

Children' Museum First Week

Hey guys today at the museum our day was full of unique surprises. We came across what I believe to be a purple shore crab. However it's natural habitat is off of the coast of California. After speaking with some others they believed that it was likely that it was another species of crab that was very similar to the purple shore crab. However I am not convinced. After a while of looking and just observing him and even comparing every distinct physical feature to our field guide, he matched only one species and that was the purple shore crab. I personally believe it is highly likely that he was brought over here just like the green crabs were, on boats. Seen as we are an active dock I think it is very likely that the little guy could've hitched a ride on someone's boat or he may have even been purposely taken and then he escaped. Once I got home I googled them as much as I could, but sadly there isn't much documented about them. If seeing a Pacific crab in the Atlantic isn't odd enough for you. When we first took him out of the trap we didn't notice his different characteristics, but we noticed that he had a tumor like bubble in his pincer. After further investigation I have come to the conclusion that it is the ligament that holds the pincer together, filled with excess water that should be there. He wasn't the only crab to attract our 100 guests but he had 112 other crab friends that intrigued the crowd as well as 2 jellyfish.

 Today we broke the record for the amount of guests and crabs !!! Though today was amazing in many ways, it was also heart wrenching. We began to see some scuba divers testing the water and we learned that there had been an oil spill. At first it seemed harmless because we hadn't seen any oil in the water. However while pulling up the crab traps, we found them covered in oil. Though tragic, it was a learning experience to see how much a little bit of oil can hurt the wild life. Overall today was full of fun, excitement and tons of surprising learning experiences and I am so glad to be working with Save the Harbor Save the Bay, and I can't wait to see what the rest of the summer brings. Until next time.

~Jayda