The Cruise Before the Storm

With the impending approach of Hurricane Sandy to the Eastern Seaboard, many people spent the end of this past week stocking up on water and batteries and making sure they were prepared for whatever the storm may bring.

Saturday, October 27, provided a brief respite from storm preparations for some, as Save the Harbor / Save the Bay ventured out to Spectacle Island for its second and final fall “Treasures of Spectacle Island” cruise of the year. More than 200 treasure hunters joined us aboard Bay State Cruise Company's Provincetown II this time, and on our quick cruise, we were even treated to a harbor seal sighting! So cool!

Visitors on the lookout for marine mammals
aboard the Provincetown II!

Just as on our last trip, grey skies cleared shortly after we docked at Spectacle. A quick thank you to DCR for opening up the island for us and this trip (it officially closed on Columbus Day!), as well as Boston EMT Felicia Mohammed for joining us to ensure everyone's safety. We also were treated to a visit from maritime historian David Coffin, who shared a little bit of his knowledge about Spectacle Island.

Before heading out to explore the island, Baywatcher Bruce Berman let the group know that the tide was falling, so it would be best to do any hiking early on, and then explore the beaches later in the day when more treasure would be exposed. Per his advice, a group of us ventured to the summit of the north drumlin, taking in sweeping vistas in rich greens and blues, as well as many a smile from the island's visitors.

Time together on the north drumlin

Groups enjoy the stunning view of Boston Harbor

Admiring the view from the top!

When we headed back down to the foot of the island, instead of hunting for treasure, we were treated to something slightly more outrageous than the beautiful sea glass and artifacts we found last time...

Several hearty explorers had brought wet suits and flippers with them, and went snorkeling, yes SNORKELING, off Treasure Beach. In October. Brrrrr! David Coffin joined them for a brief dip. All referred to the swim as “refreshing” though it was a tad bit chilly for my taste!

(L to R) Laura Fawcett, maritime historian David Coffin and
Barbara Krasinski go for a swim!

Self-described “Friends of the Harbor” and “Beach Creatures,” Laura Fawcett and Barbara Krasinski strapped on their black and neon yellow flippers in the hopes of finding some extra special treasure a little bit farther out than the edge of the exposed shoreline. They found a variety of crabs and even some jellyfish, as well as some pottery shards and sea glass. Earlier in the day, however, Barbara, a North End native, found a blue marble and was entered into our “Simply Marble-ous”contest! Congratulations, Barbara!

City of Boston EMT Felicia Mohammed
chats with Kurt Vonseekamm, Mike Nichol
and Katherine Fawcett, while Laura and
Barbara swim off Treasure Beach

Photographer/videographer extraordinaire Mike Murowchick had the chance to interview Laura and Barbara, as well as David Coffin, Bruce Berman and Linda Grenfell of Dorchester. Keep an eye out for his videos, coming soon!

It was truly a treat to be able to enjoy a day of sun and friends (and even snorkeling!) on Spectacle before Sandy headed north – thanks again to all those who made it possible and those who joined us.

For now, batten down those hatches, and stay safe!

Until next time,

Megan

Megan Rawson

Development, Communications and Operations Intern

BlueCrew Cleans Up Carson Beach!

“Blue Cross Blue Shield! Save the Harbor / Save the Bay! One Community! One Blue!”



Blue Cross Blue Shield volunteers gather in front of the
McCormack Bathhouse before getting started.

Yesterday began with a rousing chant, as about 100 Blue Cross Blue Shield employees joined Save the Harbor / Save the Bay on Carson Beach in South Boston for a day of service.  The effort was part of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts' Service Day, and this year marked the 75^th anniversary of the company's service.  DCR's Jack Kelly welcomed the group beneath sunny skies and tasked us all with a variety of beach clean-up tasks. The group was divided up into eight different teams and quickly set out to various points along the beach to get started.

I had the privilege of joining “Team D”; we started near one of the beach walkways (on the Google Maps satellite image, it appears across from G Street), pulling everything but one particular plant, called Mayberry.  Don't worry - none of us knew what this was at first either!  A little research shows that Mayberry is more commonly known as Elliott's Blueberry, and is, as it sounds, a member of the blueberry family.¹ In our work time during the morning, we cut back overgrown brush, weeded out sea grass and picked up trash among other things. I have to say, I think I was pretty lucky – my group was filled with enthusiastic, hard-working volunteers, and in their company, time flew by.

Among the many fascinating people I got to both work and talk with was Ronnie Bynoe.  Ronnie, from Weymouth and an avid beachgoer, was quick to describe her love of sharing the area with friends, suggesting that I do the same.  She touted the beaches as a great place to come and unplug (she leaves all her electronics in her car!), mentioning that “it's great place to take time for yourself.”

 

"People don't realize all the beauty we have in this state,” said Ronnie. “We don't take enough advantage of it.”


Ronnie shows off our morning's handiwork!

 

Team Leader Amy Dennett of Marshfield and Jamal Noshahi of Somerville were also among our group members. They have been with Blue Cross Blue Shield for 2 ½ years and 4 months, respectively, and work in several different capacities.  All in our group, including Julie, of Hull, who has been with Blue Cross Blue Shield in various positions for time totaling 8 years (!), approached our assigned tasks with gusto, and expressed their enjoyment of being outside and on the beach. 

 

After lunch, we pulled the last few weeds out of our initial work spot, and then worked our way along the sea wall towards the north end of the beach, joining other groups to work on clearing out the massive amounts of sea grass there.  Just before 3PM, we headed back towards the bathhouse where we'd started the day, and listened to some closing remarks from Jack Kelly and Save the Harbor / Save the Bay's Matt Wolfe. As a part of the closeout, Blue Cross Blue Shield awarded a “Spirit of Service” Award to an employee who demonstrated the work ethic and level of service that the day aspires to achieve. I'm happy to say Ronnie was the recipient!! Check out this picture of her receiving kudos from team leader Amy in front of the whole group...

Overall, today was a great way not only to get to serve directly with Save the Harbor / Save the Bay and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, but also a really fun day in which I met some extremely engaging people and did impactful work. And now, I can't wait to do it again...

Until then,

Megan

Want to visit Carson Beach? For more information, click here.

Congrats Blue Cross Blue Shield on 75 years of service! For more information on their community efforts, check out this page.

¹ “Vaccinium elliottii /Elliott's Blueberry, Mayberry” OnlinePlantGuide.com 25 Sept. 2012 <http://www.onlineplantguide.com/Plant-Details/2707/>

Megan Rawson

Development Intern

Save the Harbor / Save the Bay

On Spectacle Island, Stewardship, and Treasure!

Hi all! My name is Megan, and I'm a new Development Intern for Save the Harbor/Save the Bay.

This past Saturday, I was lucky enough to be a part of a group of about 280 people who headed to Spectacle Island aboard the Provincetown II for the Treasures of Spectacle Island. Though the day was threatened by early morning rain, the skies cleared in perfect time for us to venture around the island for several hours. We (several other interns and I) enjoyed our time exploring, including a walk to the south drumlin summit, but let me share my favorite experience of the day...

“Does anyone know what a steward is?” Park Ranger Elliott asked us. Our group was silent. About twenty Boston-area citizens, young and old, had decided to join Elliott and well-known Boston archaeologist Ellen Berkland on a Sea Glass Explorers guided tour and mosaic-making adventure. “A steward is a good citizen,” Elliott explained. “This means we'll be leaving the beach in better shape than we found it and leaving treasures for others to enjoy!” Elliott handed out plastic bags – one for trash and one for treasure – and sent us out onto the beach, challenging us to each pick up five pieces of trash as well as any treasures that caught our eye.


Let the treasure hunt begin!

With only 15 minutes to collect, the pressure was on...what would each of us find? What would be worthy enough to be deemed treasure? Within minutes, young explorers were piling their pails and bags full of blue and green sea glass, pottery fragments, and broken shells – I found myself so pleasantly distracted by their enthusiasm, I spent much of the 15 minutes simply watching them explore.

We came back together as a group to share our findings and were also treated to some archaeological history of the island and artifacts, courtesy of Ellen. Once we'd all shared our favorite treasures (all very different!), Elliott tasked us with making mosaics with our finds.

Jactyne, age 4, of Dorchester, created this heart with a castle inside.  This was her first trip to Spectacle Island with her mother and sisters. Jactyne told me that her favorite treasure was a blue mussel shell, "because it's blue!"

Elijah, of Mattapan, contributed both this treasure, a shoe sole, and a feather to our abstract mosaic - his finds completed our effort!

Katherine, of Quincy, filled her pail (to the brim!) with shells and also found a set of dentures, with which she made a sea turtle.
Merriam-Webster's online dictionary defines treasure as “something of great worth or value” - In addition to the Sea Glass Explorer Certifications our group received (see below!), we take home stories to share about the people we met, pictures of sea glass (or dentures!) that we found, and overall, the memory of enjoying being outside and on Boston Harbor. Certified Sea Glass Explorer! It's official! Thank you to all of those who made it out to Spectacle Island with us – you truly made it a treasure of a day! Until next time,  Megan

Megan Rawson

Development Intern

Save the Harbor / Save the Bay