Always a blessing to be back on the Harbor

Hi everyone,

 My name is Andrea Lopes. I am 19 years old and a rising junior at Bridgewater State University. I was born in Cape Verde (country on the West Coast of Africa) and moved to the United States 10 years ago. Ever since then, I have been living in Dorchester. This is my third summer with Save the Harbor / Save the Bay and the first summer as a Lead Harbor Explorer. As you all can see, I love this non-profit organization more and more as I keep returning. Being with this organization has helped me develop as a leader and it has also made me realize the type of individual that I am as I have served thousandths of kids now ever since since my first summer. Whenever I am with all of the wonderful Save the Harbor staffs, they never fail to make me feel like I'm not at home. This is a place that I call home away from home in the summer because it is where I spend most of my time. I have been truly blessed to be a part of this organization because not too many teenagers get to experience what I have experienced and continue to experience with the opportunity I have been given. When I first started working here, I did not know anything about the Harbor or the sea creatures. I remember being scared to hold a crab or not knowing how to cast/work with a fishing rod. After the first few days, I can tell you for sure that I became a "fisherman expert" (something Ms. Ryan would call me). Being able to serve all of these thousandths of kids for 3 summers now from different communities and teaching them about the harbor only makes me feel much better.

First week  last summer out on Spectacle Island with All Access Boston Harbor

I had a spectacular week during orientation because this was actually the first time that I was able to attend all 4 days. Being at Georges Island on Wednesday was amazing with a lot of the new summer staffs this year. Being able to teach the other staffs fishing techniques and how to cast a rod as soon as we got off the boat was great because they all learned really quick. Afterwards, David Coffin had a couple of us racing up a stair flight at the Fort to touch a wall but I don't quite remember who was the first person that went. All that I can remember was being the winner and making it up the stairs and touching the wall in 2 seconds beating Sedny as she was leading with 3 seconds. I was shocked because I did not know I would have made it up the stair flight in 2 seconds. The whole day out on Georges on Wednesday was really fun.

Save the Harbor / Save the Bay Summer Staff Orientation 2016

Thursday was another fun day at Carson beach (one of my favorite sites after All Access Boston Harbor). Kayaking with a group of some of the old and new Junior Program Assistants was great and probably the best part of my day at Carson that day. There was about 5 kayaks racing and once we were further out, we all tied our kayaks together and most of us jumped into the water. The water was so cold but once I was in, it felt so good because it was really hot out that day. Overall, orientation was a great way to start off the summer. I can't wait to be back out on the Harbor exploring and serving all of these kids and teaching them new things. 

Until next time,

- Andrea Lopes :)

Ivaniel Diaz

Hi, my name is Ivaniel Diaz and this is my second year working for Save the Harbor / Save the Bay. I was born in Boston and currently reside in Roslindale, which is not too close to the Save the Harbor, but I believe it is worth the trip. I am an avid sports fan and my favorite sports are baseball, which I love to play, and football which I enjoy watching. I am going into my second year of college at Salem State University. I had a blast last year with Save the Harbor and want to repeat the fun this year as well.

There are many new faces that have joined us for the Summer of 2015, and a few people from last year who were unable to come back. But, even though the familiar faces are no longer here, I believe that I can still have just as much or even more fun than I did last summer. This summer's orientation was two days long instead of one day long like last year. The additional day was a good addition because it gave us another morning to get to know more people. The next day was easier because I was already familiar with my new coworkers, so conversation were easier to be made and there were less awkward moments.

I am looking forward to making more memories with everyone again. I'm excited to see new sites that are coming in like Carson Beach and a full day at Camp Harbor View.

Sincerely,
Ivan

Who Am I?

Macqueripe Beach 

Hello everybody! It's been a while! My name is Ruth Scott and I'm a rising junior at Boston Trinity Academy.This is my second exciting year at Save the Harbor/Save the Bay and it's off to a great start! I am 16 years old and live in Dorchester with my siblings and parents. I am a competitive swimmer for Dolphin Swim Club and the Flaherty Dolphins and I also dabble in varsity soccer. Marine biology has always been an interest of mine with all of the contact I have with water and such so it's great to be back out on the harbor this year gaining more knowledge about my home, Boston. I also got the chance during February break to see some marine animals in the Caribbean. Since my mother is from Trinidad we traveled down to enjoy some sun and get away from Boston's brutal winter. I had a great time hanging out with the animals of the sea and enjoying the warm water. (It is really unbelievable how warm the water is in Trinidad, it's bathing temperature!) If anyone wants to take a trip to the Caribbean, I recommend Trinidad and Tobago. It's a beautiful island paradise with so many cultures mixing together.

Squantum, Quincy (2015)

            We started off the summer with an orientation trip to George's Island (one of my favorites!) It was great to return and see some of my old haunts. Including the infamous David Coffin, I did not go flying at this meeting although it did cross his mind. The parade ground was completely goose free which was mind blowing, that field ALWAYS has geese. We also saw some new passages that I wasn't able to explore last year. Orientation went so well that there are no doubts in how this summer will turn out: FANTASTIC!
           I cannot wait to get to my site and start all the fun. The kids of Boston and the surrounding areas will not know what hit them! Save the Harbor/Save the Bay 2k15 will be AMAZING!
Super excited,
Ruth Scott

the Parade Ground at George's Island, FREE of goose poop!

Story Time!

Hello, all!

I am new to Save the Harbor / Save the Bay, and I could not be more excited for the adventures that this summer holds for our team. Amongst all of the stories, songs, bits of advice, and challenges from this week, one call-to-action stands out to me: try something new every day! Today, I am formally blogging for the first time!

My name is Carolyn House and I am one of the 2015 Senior Harbor Educators. I studied for a year in Chile where I expanded my smile by several centimeters, and my Spanish by various chilenísmos (Chilean slang-words.) I love spending time with others, I love the ocean, and I am rock climbing and learning Portuguese in my spare time.

While in Chile, I started to connect to some of my academic interests at a more personal level. I did research on climate change and water policy, and saw how fragile many of our world's water resources are. In this photo, I had just had my first cup of water right from the stream. Glacial melt is delicious, by the way, and refreshing too!

In Parque Nacional Torres del Paine in the Patagonia (Chile).

 People need water- they need it to be clean, they need to have access to it, and they need to be able to enjoy it. I believe that this is true everywhere, from Chile to Boston. I am thrilled to be working with an incredible group of people dedicated to connecting Boston's coastline to its surrounding communities in new and engaging ways! Below is a photo from this week. I went on my very first trip to George's Island. Can you believe there was a thunderstorm just three hours before this was taken? We had a great day of orientation despite the stormy morning, of course. Just look at that beautiful beach!

At George's Island for the first time!

 The folks at Save the Harbor/ Save the Bay have shown me how organized and effective they are. They exceed their goals because they care deeply about their work. As a new staff member, I  feel warmly welcomed. Patricia Foley, our president, has met with us several times, and made sure to shake the hand of every summer staff member, from the Senior Educators to our teenage JPAs. She knows that great leadership is personal and inclusive, and has made her support and gratitude for the staff clear. She greets us with a smile and works hard to keep up with how we are doing, and I am impressed with her genuine appreciation of all of the staff.

Patricia Foley is not alone in finding a personal touch- our entire staff is learning how to tell our stories so that we can connect with the kids we serve. Thursday, July 2nd, we met local storyteller and author, Norah Dooley. Soon, she had turned into Mary the Pirate- what a captivating performance! Within minutes, our tent was filled with chatter and giggles, as we all practiced our new story-telling techniques. Norah's message is unforgettable: stories matter to people. The stories that are important to us are meaningful to others, and we should share them! Norah believes that stories help us form and construct our communities, and swept us away with her instruction. Here's a picture of Norah helping us through a memory exercise where we focus on our senses, and another of her incredible performance!

Norah Dooley (left) teaching us to remember what we could see, hear, smell and feel at the time of our stories.

Mary the Pirate

The summer is upon us and ripe with stories waiting to be told! Thank you to Save the Harbor/Save the Bay for letting me be a part of this team, and for an upbeat and energizing first week! I can't wait to harvest a beach tale, or even a sea chantey or two!

Happy adventuring to you!
Carolyn House

Excited to be back!

Hi everyone! My name is Kelly Randall and I am a full time staffer with Save the Harbor/ Save the Bay. I started working for STH last summer as a Senior Harbor Educator, I then came on board as a communications intern for the fall and was hired full time at the start of 2015 to assist with fundraising, communications, and outreach! This summer, I will be working as a Senior Harbor Educator once again- and I could not be more excited to get back out onto Boston Harbor! 

We just wrapped up our summer staff orientation where we were able to meet all of the amazing educators, college students, and high school students who will be working with us this summer. I can already tell it is going to be a fantastic year- everyone is so enthusiastic about working on the harbor with the region's youth and teens! Our orientation consisted of program site visits, getting-to-know-you games, a trip out to the Boston Harbor Islands National Park, and a storytelling workshop with Norah Dooley (also known as Mary Read the Pirate). We all had a ton of fun and I'm sure I can speak for everyone when I say that this summer will be incredible! 

2015 Youth Environmental Education Program Summer Staff

-Kelly Randall-