Recently, 400 youths from East Boston and across the city joined Save the Harbor/ Save the Bay for a day of celebration of clean water on the beach at the Curly Community Center at M Street.
Hosted by Save the Harbor’s Youth Committee in partnership with the Boston Center for Youth and Families 42 kids from the East Boston YMCA joined Save the Harbor’s youth program partners from Eastie, South Boston, Dorchester, Jamaica Plain, Chinatown, Roxbury, and Hyde Park at the “Blue is Back” Kids Beach Bash and Splash.
The kids from Eastie spent the morning on the beach making sand castles, flying kites, fishing and learning about crabs and lobsters from Save the Harbor’s youth program staff.
At noon the Eastie kids joined hundreds of other kids for a simultaneous plunge into the cool clean water of Boston Harbor to celebrate Save the Harbor / Save the Bay’s 25th Anniversary. The splash was followed by a traditional cookout on the beach.
“It was a sea of smiles,” said Save the Harbor’s Youth Committee Co-Chair Will Clark, 19, of Boston who now attends St. John’s University. “Having some good clean fun on one of the cleanest urban beaches in America is a great way for kids to spend a summer day.”
While heavy rains earlier in the week forced numerous beach closings across the region, last week blue flags were flying on the beaches of South Boston and North Dorchester Bay though some other area beaches remained closed.
“In the past the South Boston beaches have been closed as often as one out of every five days in a typical summer” said Save the Harbor / Save the Bay’s spokesman Bruce Berman. “With the completion of the South Boston project earlier this year, there have been no combined sewer or storm water discharges on these beaches this summer, and as a result there have been nearly no beach closings. Though, there will still be red flags on these beaches from time to time, these beaches are now considered the cleanest urban beaches in the nation. That’s cause for celebration – and that’s what we intend to do.”
The weather was great – and the water was also sparkling clean as Save the Harbor / Save the Bay greeted swimmers as they completed the Boston Light Swim, followed by the first annual “Blue is Back Family Beach Bash and Splash” featuring a free blues concert and cook-out also at the Curley Community Center at M Street Beach. The Splash raised more than $2,500 to support Save the Harbor’s free youth environmental education programs.
“We want to thank our event partners at the Boston Center for Youth and Families, the Curley Community Center, the YMCA of Greater Boston, JetBlue Airways, Rhythm Room Records and the Department of Conservation and Recreation for their help and support” said Berman. “We also want to thank the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority and the region’s ratepayers for their investment in clean water on these beaches. It means a lot to Boston’s kids and families.”