On Wednesday, July 12, as heat and humidity soared, 500 kids beat the heat at Save the Harbor/Save the Bay’s annual Youth Beach Bash on DCR’s Constitution Beach in East Boston, including 68 people from Maverick Landing Community Service and the Boston Scores groups in East Boston.
While JetBlue volunteers served sandwiches and drinks, the kids played soccer, made sand art, got fishing lessons from Save the Harbor’s youth staff, kayak rides with Piers Park Sailing Center, and heard tales of the high seas from drag performer Big Ohh as the infamous pirate Mary Read. Shirley Fabbo from the East Boston Chamber of Commerce was on the beach sharing games and activities with the kids as well.
The event culminated at noon with Grooversity Boston’s Drumline, aNova Brazil, leading a 400-kid strong parade along the shore to the lifeguarded swimming area, where they cooled off with a big splash into the waters of Constitution Beach.
“This event was designed and voted on by East Boston kids as part of our participatory budgeting process in this year’s Better Beaches Program” said Save the Harbor Better Beaches Director, Maya Smith. “This program is a democratic process where community members decide how part of a budget is spent, allowing them to vote on and pitch their own events.”
“Any opportunity to shift power into the hands of the people of Boston makes a positive impact among our constituents,” said Senator Lydia Edwards, Vice Chair of the Metropolitan Beaches Commision. “Our community members share ownership of so many incredible beaches, so it is exciting to create programming that empowers people to harness that ownership and directly select events that reflect them.”
“This fantastic annual event directly addresses the feedback we heard on how we can make these spectacular public places more equitable and welcoming to everyone,” said Representative Adrian Madaro, Co-Chair of the Metropolitan Beaches Commission “Plus it’s so fun to see all the kids out on the beach after all our work towards more accessible, clean, and safe beaches.”
“We couldn’t do events and programs like this without the sustained and generous support of our partners and funders, especially the Healey/Driscoll Administration and the Department of Conservation and Recreation.” said Save The Harbor/Save The Bay’s Executive Director Chris Mancini. We’re so grateful, too for our incredible donors at Liberty Mutual Foundation, Coca-Cola Company, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Eastern Salt Company, Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, JetBlue, John Hancock Financial Services, Massport, the Mass Cultural Council, the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, and the National Grid Foundation, and of course the hundreds of individual donors who support us every year.”
Mancini went on to acknowledge donors Alexandria, Amazon, Bay State Cruise Company, BXP – Atlantic Wharf, City of Boston Department of Youth Engagement and Employment, the Comcast Foundation, Constellation Generation, the Cronin Group, Hood Park, HYM Investment Group, Income Research and Management Charitable Trust, Leader Bank Pavilion/Live Nation, Massachusetts Bay Lines, Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, National Development, Nutter, P & G Gillette, Pembroke Real Estate, Lawrence J. and Anne Rubenstein Charitable Foundation, RWE Clean Energy, William E. Schrafft & Bertha E. Schrafft Charitable Trust, Clinton H. & Wilma T. Shattuck Charitable Trust, and the Vertex Foundation.
The group also thanked the Boston Consulting Group, Copeland Family Foundation, Equinor, Lovett Woodsum Foundation, Mass Marine Trades Education Trust, Pabis Foundation, Rockland Trust, Ms. Wallace M. Leonard Foundation, and Vertex.
To learn more about Save the Harbor/Save the Bay and the great work they do to restore, protect and Share Boston Harbor, the waterfront, islands, and the region’s public beaches with all Bostonians and the region’s residents, visit their website at www.savetheharbor.org and follow @savetheharbor on social media.