The South Coast Insider - June 2023

ONSET BEACH YOGA AT SHELL POINT

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Suggested donation $10

JUNE 3

WAREHAM CELEBRATES PRIDE 5:30 pm @ Bay View Park, 184 Onset Ave

June 17

KAYAK POKER RUN

9 am @ Shell Point Beach Register at onsetbay.org

June 28-August 30

15TH ANNUAL ONSET SUMMER OF LOVE CONCERT SERIES 6:30-9:00 pm @ the Bandshell, 1 Union Ave

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June 2023 | Vol. 27 | No. 6

Published by Coastal Communications Corp.

Publisher and Editor-in-Chief

Ljiljana Vasiljevic

Editor

Sebastian Clarkin

Sales Manager

Mari Burns (508) 916-0374

Contributors

Michael J. DeCicco, Paul Kandarian, Tom Lopes, Sean McCarthy, Elizabeth Morse Read, Lynn M. Steiner

Layout & Design

Janelle Medeiros

The South Coast Insider is published monthly for visitors and residents of the South Coast area and is distributed free of charge from Mount Hope Bay to Buzzards Bay.

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Coastal Communications Corp.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, by any means, without written permission from the Publisher. All information contained herein is believed to be reliable. Coastal Communications Corp. does not assume any financial responsibility for typographical errors in advertisements, but will reprint that portion of an advertisement in which the typographical error occurs.

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THINGS TO DO

Jump

INTO JUNE!

by Elizabeth Morse Read

Celebrate Father’s Day, Pride month and the official beginning of summer! Plan your day trips, vacations, and summer camps for the kids. Then head for the beaches, take a boat ride, try some outdoor yoga, picnic at outdoor concerts, or wander through street fairs, festivals, farmers markets, and Portuguese festas!

Fun for the whole family

Take the family on an immersive adventure back to prehistoric times at “Dinosaurs Among Us!” at Roger Williams Park in Providence through August 13, walking amidst sixty life-sized animatronic and interactive dinosaurs (rwpzoo.org)!

See what life was like during the Revolutionary War! Visit the Fairhaven Village Militia’s Military Encampment at Fort Phoenix June 3-4 (fairhaventours.com)!

Take the kids to the monthly Open Farm Days at Round The Bend Farm in Dartmouth – grass-fed meats, botanicals, local veggies, honey, and family-friendly farm tours (roundthebendfarm.org)!

Make a splash at WaterWizz in Wareham (waterwizz.com)!

Check out the Newport Car Museum in Portsmouth to see more than 90 vintage cars and driving simulators (newportcarmuseum.org)!

Take the whole family to the Westport River Watershed Alliance’s free River Day 2023 with the Wampanoag Project on June 24 at 493 Old County Road in Westport (westportwatershed. org)!

Check out Cruise Nights at Shipyard Park in Mattapoisett with music by Johnny Angel on June 2 & 16, July 7 & 21, August 4 & 18 and September 1 & 15 (mattapoisett.net/calendar)!

Find out what’s happening at the Audubon Nature Center and Aquarium in Bristol (asri.org)!

Treat the kids to the Rockwell Carnival at Bristol’s Town Common June 20 to July 4 (july4thbristolri.com)!

Take a walk through the past at the New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park (nps.gov/nebe)!

On rainy Wednesdays-Sundays, take the little ones to the Children’s Museum of Greater Fall River (cmgfr.org)!

Enjoy free family fun and entertainment on the second Thursday of the month at New Bedford’s AHA Nights – PRIDE is the June 8 theme (ahanewbedford.org)!

Food and festivals

Take the family to the Rhode Island Caribbean-American Heritage Festival on June 24 at the WaterFire Arts Center in Providence – live music, food, and fun (caribbeanamericanheritagefest.com)!

Don’t miss the 34th Annual Strawberry Festival in Assonet on June 18 (tuesdayclubofassonet.org)!

Come hang out with Ziggy and enjoy fun with all family at BPZOO!

Taste your way through the historic district with New Bedford Food Tours on a 3-hour guided walking tour to sample local foods at five signature restaurants (nbfoodtours.com)!

Sign up early for events and workshops at Blithewold Mansion and Gardens in Bristol – like the Red Wine Tasting with Lynda Gaines June 18 (blithewold.org)!

Show up at Capron Park in Attleboro on June 17 for the Juneteenth Festival – music, games, food, pop-up market, dancing (attleborojuneteenth.com)!

Sign up for a Newport Foodie Stroll on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays through October 14, a walking food tour through the restaurants of Lower Thames Street in Newport (visitrhodeisland.com)!

Celebrate Juneteenth in Taunton on June 18 at Church Green of First Parish Church (facebook.com/ tauntonjuneteenthcommittee)!

Don’t miss the 5th Annual “Smoke on the Water” Full Boar BBQ on June 24 at Columban Fathers in Bristol – BBQ, cigars, whiskey, live music, auction, 21+ only (facebook.com/ smokeonthewaterevent)!

Bring the whole family to Fairhaven’s annual Homecoming Day Fair on June 24 (fairhaventours.com)!

Don’t miss Coastal Wine Trail’s 10th Annual Wine, Cheese and Chocolate Festival on June 17 at the Westport Fairgrounds (coastalwinetrail.com)!

Special events, exhibits, and lectures

Calling all artists! Sign up now for the annual Cuttyhunk Plein Air Festival on June 17, departing from Pier 3 in New Bedford and sponsored by the Marion Art Center (marionartcenter.org/ cuttyhunk)!

Buy your tickets early for the annual fundraiser “Garden Party: Nothing But Trouble,” a speakeasy event in the gardens of the Rotch-Jones-Duff Manson in New Bedford on June 9 –cocktails, period music, hors d’oeuvres, open bar (rjdmuseum.org)!

Bring your binoculars on the free Spring Birding Walk on June 10 through Munn Preserve in Mattapoisett (mattlandtrust.org).

CONTINUED ON PAGE 8

“Discover Buzzards Bay” offers an online portal with information about 100+ public places to walk, bird-watch, kayak/canoe, fish, snowshoe or cross-country ski (savebuzzardsbay.org/discover). You can find other outdoor recreation spots along the South Coast at thetrustees.org, exploreri. org, massaudubon.org, asri.org, riparks.com, or stateparks.com/ rhode_island.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7

Get ready for the Battleship Boogie fundraiser swing dance on June 3 at Battleship Cove in Fall River (battleshipcove.org)!

Enjoy the outdoors at the Lloyd Center for the Environment in Dartmouth –sign up for the Women’s Canoe Trip on the Slocum River June 3 or the Summer Solstice Plover Stroll on June 21 (lloydcenter.org)!

Be a witness to history at the opening of Abolition Row Park and the unveiling of the monument to Frederick Douglass on June 24 in the historic district of downtown New Bedford (nbhistoricalsociety.org).

Sign up for the Nature Drawing classes through June 29 at Blithewold Mansion and Gardens in Bristol (blithewold.org)!

Step into the region’s maritime past at the exhibit “From the Hold: The Port in Photos 1880-1980” at the Fishing Heritage Center on New Bedford’s waterfront through June 30 (fishingheritagecenter.org).

Check out “Art in Bloom” June 23-25 at the Marion Art Center – learn about edible flowers and herbs, floral

watercolors, flower pressing, biophilic design (marionartcenter.org)!

Enjoy free walking tours on AHA! Nights in New Bedford through September, led by the New Bedford Preservation Society – “Walkways: Exploring the People and Places of Historical New Bedford” (nbpreservationsociety.org).

Learn more about the free virtual classes and video library in meditation, laughter yoga, tai chi, yoga, nutrition, and smoking-cessation hypnosis offered by the New Bedford Wellness Initiative (facebook.com/ newbedfordwellnessinitiative)!

Be amazed by WaterFire in Providence on June 3, June 18, June 24, July 14, August 19, September 2, September 9, and November 4 (waterfire.org)!

Explore the free public art and programs presented by the Massachusetts Design Art and Technology Institute (DATMA) entitled “Shelter 2023” in New Bedford starting June 22: “Threshold” at Custom House Square; “Our Woven Story” at the intersection of Union Street and Route 18; and the “Community Tides” mural on Fish Island (DATMA.org).

Quench your thirst for learning at the

free monthly New Bedford Science Café lectures and discussions at The Last Round Bar & Grille (nbsciencecafe. com)!

To market, to market

Celebrate Juneteenth! – don’t miss the BuyBlackNB Pop-Up Vendor Market on June 17 at the Rotch-Jones-Duff Mansion in New Bedford – music, community-building, curated selection of local Black-owned businesses (rjdmuseum.org).

Don’t miss the June opening of Fall River’s open-air Farmers and Artisan Market on the corner of Columbia and Canal Streets (vivafallriver.com)!

Support all the small businesses –restaurants, boutiques, services – in downtown New Bedford on “Shop Small Crawl” day June 3 (downtownnb.org)!

Mark your calendar for the Greyhound Pets of America Crafts Fair on June 4 on Middleborough’s Town Hall Lawn – free admission and parking (discovermiddleborough.com).

Don’t miss the NESBS Summer Sip & Shop at Buzzards Bay Brewing in Westport on June 10 – 30+ local artisans and crafters on the lawn (buzzardsbrew. com/events).

The Fairhaven Farmers Market on Alden Road opens for the season on June 18; the Huttleston Marketplace opened last month (fairhaventours. com).

Head for the Mayflower Brewing’s summer Shop Local Marketplace in Plymouth on June 25 (mayflowerbrewing.com/connect/ events)!

Make a trip to Somerset on Saturdays to stroll through the South Coast Open Air Market to purchase all things local, handmade, and fresh (southcoastopenairmarket.com)!

New Bedford’s Outdoor Farmers Markets open this month through October: Mondays at Brooklawn Park, Thursdays at Buttonwood Park, Fridays at Clasky Common Park and Saturdays at Serenity Gardens (coastalfoodshed.org).

There’s music in the air Groovy! The free Summer of Love Concerts at the Onset Bandshell start June 28 (onsetbay.org)!

Reggae on West Beach is back! Take the family to hear live music and DJs on the New Bedford waterfront on June 25, July 30 and August 27 (facebook. com/reggaeonwestbeach)!

Head for Buzzards Bay Brewing in Westport for Foodtruck Farm Fest: Livin’ Local – free live concerts all summer on Friday/Saturdays starting June 16 (buzzardsbrew.com/events)

There’ll be dancing in the streets of downtown New Bedford during the free Summer Sound Series concerts every other Friday from June 9 to September 15 (destinationnewbedford.org)!

Shop small, shop local!

Why risk your health (and sanity) at crowded malls on Black Friday? Take advantage of incredible offerings in your own neighborhood on Small Business Saturday, November 28, throughout the South Coast. Check out sbsshopri. com for shop-and-stroll events in Rhode Island. For that special gift, support local craftsmen and artists by heading over to the Waterfire Arts Center in Providence to visit the safe outdoor pop-up markets (waterfire.org/art-mart). And on First Thursdays (November 5) you can “shop and dine local” in Barrington, Bristol, and Warren (discovernewport.org).

Kick-off the holiday season at Frerichs Farm in Warren with “Girls Night Out” on November 6, 7 and 8 – buy your holiday trees, greenery, and gifts there, too (frerichsfarm.com). Then mark your calendar for the Newport Block Party & Holiday Stroll at Bowen’s Wharf on November 27 – you can watch the Illuminated Boat Parade while you shop and enjoy Caribbean music (bowenswharf.com).

The AARP Massachusetts Auto Insurance Program from Plymouth Rock offers AARP members in Massachusetts special savings in addition to the everyday benefits that set Plymouth Rock apart from its competition. With Plymouth Rock, lower rates are just the beginning. More Than Just

It’s the thoughtful gifts that count

And if you can’t find gifts for all the special people in your life, consider buying gift cards to restaurants, shops, vineyards, special event venues, local farms, e-commerce websites, or grocery stores. Use mail-order services to deliver flowers, sweets, and specialty foods yearround to someone you want to thank or to express your appreciation.

167

Saturday,

Don’t miss the Second Annual Country Music Festa on June 3 at Madeira Field in New Bedford! Live music, line dancing, food trucks and pig roast, local beer and wine, 21+ only (facebook.com/countrymusicfesta)!

Mark your calendar for the free Food Truck Sunsets at Safe Harbor New England Boatworks in Portsmouth – stunning sunsets, food trucks, local beers/wines, live bands on June 24, July 5 and August 19 (foodtrucksin.com)!

Don’t miss the free Sunday Picnics in

For those who are always hard to buy a gift for, consider signing them up for an annual subscription to a streaming service, app, podcast, premier sports/ movies/cultural channel, magazine, or newspaper. Or make a donation in their name to their favorite charity, educational institution, or cultural organization. Consider how much it would be appreciated if you upgraded an older relative’s digital capabilities with an easy-to-use smartphone, tablet, or notebook – and then helped to set up Zoom or Skype.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9

the Park at Capron Park in Attleboro –food trucks, live music on June 25, July 23, and August 20 (ediblesema.com/ event)!

Don’t miss the free Pierce Beach Concert Series in Somerset June 28-August 9 (townofsomerset.org/ playground-recreation)!

Buy your tickets early for the Wednesday evening Concerts at Apponagansett Park in Dartmouth June 14 through August 30 (town.dartmouth. ma.us/recreation-division)!

Don’t miss the Buzzards Bay Brewing Bluegrass Festival June 18, under the tent in Westport! Local bands, craft beer, cider, wine and food trucks (buzzardsbrew.com)!

There’s always something going on at the Norman Bird Sanctuary in Middletown! Don’t miss the seaside Beach Bash at Third Beach on June 22 with live music and picnics (normanbirdsanctuary.org)!

Buy your ticket-per-carload now for the Westport Rivers Sunset Music Series , which starts June 9 – Tickets

Viva Portugal!

Head for the City Gates of Fall River June 8-11 for the Day of Portugal Weekend (facebook. com/DOPFR2023)!

Mark your calendar for the 46th Annual Day of Portugal celebrations in Providence on June 10-11 (ridayofportugal.org)!

Enjoy a night of fado “With Love From Portugal” on June 3, with Helder Moutinho and Maria Emilia, at the Zeiterion in New Bedford (zeiterion.org).

It’s festa time! The 2023 Day of Portugal in New Bedford will take place on June 4 next to the Senhor de Pedra Club on Tinkham Street (nb-dayofportugal.com)!

must be purchased online in advance (westportrivers.com)!

Bring a blanket or chair to the Summer Concert Series at Ragged Island Brewing Company in Portsmouth, part of an event-packed schedule of events (raggedislandbrewing.com/summer2023-events)!

Bring a picnic or enjoy the food trucks when you head for Soule Homestead in Middleborough for their Summer Concerts June 10, July 8, August 5, September 23, or the Folk Festival on June 24 at the outdoor pavilion (soulehomestead.org)!

Support the New Bedford Symphony Orchestra’s educational programs and concert series by attending the elegant “Symphony Seaside Swing” on June 2 with dinner and dancing at Kilburn Mill in New Bedford (nbsymphony.org).

Bring your picnic basket to Running Brook Vineyard in Dartmouth for free live music every Saturday and Sunday year-round (runningbrookwine.com)!

Buy your tickets early for the TriCounty Symphonic Band’s 20th Annual Pops Concert “ Shall We Dance?” on June 11 under the tent at Tabor Academy

in Marion (tricountysymphonicband. org).

Pack a picnic to enjoy the free ProjectArts summer concerts on the Plymouth waterfront starting this month (projectarts.com)!

Bring a blanket to the Summer Concerts at Independence Park in Bristol June 20 to July 4 (july4thbristolri. com)!

Classical acts

Don’t miss the Rhode Island Philharmonic’s 2023 Annual Gala with Renee Fleming on June 3 at The VETS in Providence (riphil.org).

Newport Classical will present violinist Stella Chen and pianist Henry Kramer on June 9 at the recital hall of Emmanuel Church in Newport (newportclassical. org/events)!

Don’t miss the Pilgrim Festival Chorus’ performance of “American Voices” on June 24-25 at St. Bonaventure Parish in Plymouth (pilgrimfestivalchorus.org).

Enjoy the A Morning of Classical Piano with Daniel Adam Meltz on June 25 at Blithewold Mansion and Gardens in Bristol (blithewold.org)!

South Coast sounds

Head for Plymouth’s Pilgrim Memorial Hall to hear Celebrating Billy Joel at The District Center for the Arts in Taunton (thedistrictcenterforarts.com)!

Don’t miss A Jazzy Pop-Up Concert with Acute Inflections at The Music Mansion in Providence on June 1 (musicmansion.org)!

Show up at The VETS in Providence

to hear Natalie Merchant June 28 (thevetsri.com)!

Check out who’s performing in The Vault at the Greasy Luck Brew Pub in downtown New Bedford (vaultnb.com)!

Head to the Narrows Center in Fall River to hear Bill Frisell Trio June 1, Jadice Venson June 15, Jorma Kaukonen June 22, Eilen Jewell June 30 (narrowscenter.com)!

Gardens galore!

The network started as AHA! Fall River through the Community Foundation of Southeastern MA in 2014 with a focus on highlighting the multitude of art, music, theater, charity, historical, and cultural events throughout greater Fall River. Since April 2017, it has been a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization with a target audience that includes not only residents but also visitors from towns on both sides of the Taunton River and Mount Hope Bay, and from Boston to Providence.

Go on a self-guided walking tour of the Secret Gardens of Marion on June 23 – eight public and private gardens, some with plein air artists. Boxed lunches available. Buy your tickets online (mariongardengroup. org).

Mark your calendar for the 2023 Newport Flower Show “The Grand Tour” June 23-25 at Marble House (newportmansions.org).

Pack a picnic and stroll through the flowers at the whimsical Green Animals Topiary Gardens in Portsmouth (newportmansions. org)!

“After three years working under the AHA label,” Dave Dennis said, “we realized this model wasn’t compatible with the needs of Fall River, not to mention the difficulty connecting with the AHA name. Our financial stability since then has allowed us to make the decision to move in a new direction to position ourselves to better meet the needs and demands of a gateway city. In 2017, through research, focus groups, and marketing specialists, we formed Creative Arts Network Inc. (CAN), along with a branding logo, then formed a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.”

Don’t miss “June in Bloom,” the fund-raising garden tour on June 24 in the quaint seaside village of Mattapoisett (mattapoisettwomansclub.org)!

Sign up early for events and workshops at Blithewold Mansion and Gardens in Bristol – Flower

With Covid restrictions this past year, Dennis said, CAN has pivoted from live events to virtual events through its Facebook page and website. Some of the creative events started with ArtWeek at Home in May where it offered a week-long virtual event from art lessons, cooking

Arranging with Terry Converse June 8, Shrubs for the Garden June 11 (blithewold.org)!

Take a stroll through the urban greenspace of the Allen G. Haskell Public Gardens in New Bedford (thetrustees.org).

Reserve your spot early for the Providence Preservation Society’s Festival of Historical Homes on June 10, a self-guided tour of homes and gardens in the historic E lmwood neighborhood (providencehousetour.com).

Stroll through the free, 45-minute Rose Garden Tour at the RotchJones-Duff Mansion in New Bedford on June 8, part of AHA! Night (rjdmuseum.org)!

Register early for the Sakonnet Gardens Open Garden Tour June 17, sponsored by the Little Compton Garden Club (littlecomptongardenclub.org).

lessons, dance lessons, concerts, and crafts for kids. For Valentine’s Day it offered dance lessons, art lessons, instructions on how to set a perfect table, how to make that special drink, and how to make chocolate-covered strawberries. It has also sponsored two groups of local students from a local Community College for their class projects. The most recent class put together tours for National Tourism Week, May 2-8. CAN’s other most recent event was a collaboration with the Fall River Public Library for an Earth Day event. CAN has also taken on a role in working to have more public policy implemented around art and culture. Over the past year we have seen the newly formed Fall River Waterfront Cultural District, June 25 has been proclaimed Hydrangea Day, the City Council voted the hydrangea the official ornamental flower of the city, and CAN’s current proposal is for a formal Public Art Policy with the formation of a Public Art Commission. This summer, Dennis said, CAN hopes to return to small-scale live events such as an open-air art exhibit, a mural wayfinding project, the continuation of the group’s hydrangea beautification program, and a festival to highlight a variety of art and culture activities with a focus on the city’s restaurants and shops.

For more information on how to get involved go to creativeartsnetwork.org.

Viva Fall River! Created by Portuguese-based lettering designers Mariana Branco and Emanuel Barreira of Halfstudio, and executed by local artist Gregory Pennisten, a new 40’ by 60’ mural called “Viva Fall River” was unveiled at Fall River’s Kay Building, owned by Anthony F. Cordeiro and family, a short walk from the Quequechan River Rail Trail. The mural celebrates Fall Riverites of Portuguese descent.

Photo curtesy of Marion Garden Group

guarantee A clear

by Sean McCarthy

With the priority of complete customer satisfaction, Mario’s Roofing, Siding & Windows of Stoughton, Middleboro and Wareham offers top-notch products, excellent service and warranties on all of the work they provide. Since 2005, this familyowned and operated business has expanded throughout southern Massachusetts and into Cape Cod by providing superior workmanship at competitive prices. Whether it’s windows, roofing, siding, or skylights, this experienced company will treat your home as if it is their own, keeping you warm, dry, and secure year-round.

“We won’t leave our customers behind after we finish a project,” says Max Goulston, Mario’s Director of Operations. “Our pride and dedication

to our work sets us apart from other contractors. We offer year-round service, which most other businesses don’t. We don’t close for the winter

and lay off workers. We won’t pressure customers into decisions, and our prices are fair and honest. Our dedication to our customers is a huge point of pride for us.”

The facts speak for themselves: last year Mario’s was recognized as the top contractor in New England for its warranties for homeowner protection. Mario’s staff of more than 50 includes a call back team which responds to repairs of projects they have completed which are still under warranty.

But the service starts from the beginning.

“We pull permits for every project we do, with no exceptions, unlike many of the larger corporate companies,” Goulston says. “Inspectors will come out to approve of our progress on

When you’re making improvements on your home, you want quality service that is matched with the confidence and peace of mind that the project was done right.

Whether it’s windows, roofing, siding, or skylights, this experienced company will treat your home as if it is their own, keeping you warm, dry, and secure year-round.

Our

options

perfect for the client who wants to reach the largest local audience and drive direct traffic from our website to theirs. We can place targeted links and/banner ads with your message on our various web pages.

Board of Directors to keep the customer appraised of the progress of the construction being done. For all of their condo projects, Mario’s offers a Five-Star Warranty, which is the highest and strongest level of industry standards.

McGovern’s Family Restaurant

310 Shove Street, Fall River

508-679-5010

mcgovernsonthewater.com

a project to make sure everything is going right. When the project is finished, the town’s Building Department will come out and inspect the work to make sure it meets code and that the work is well done. It’s another layer of protection for the homeowner.

“If something goes sideways on a job or there’s an issue after the fact, we’ll be there to fix it immediately.”

This well-known restaurant and banquet facility overlooking Laurel Lake usually packs them in for a large buf fet on Thanksgiving Day. The menu typically includes traditional turkey dinner with Paul’s butternut squash, prime rib, ham, and much more The restaurant has been of fering dine-in and takeout, including its locally famous corned beef and cabbage, for 50 years Here’s a protip: if you can’t wait until Thanksgiving for a roast turkey dinner, you don’t have to –it ’s on the regular menu

Merrills on the Waterfront

36 Homers Wharf, New Bedford

508-997-7010

merrillswaterfront.com

Mario’s Roofing, Siding & Windows offers free estimates on all projects and financing is available. The company currently has its eye on expanding into the solar energy market.

This favorite restaurant and function facility sits on the waterfront overlooking the busy port. But if isn’t your thing on traditional turkey day, be sure to keep watch for their holiday of ferings

One highlight of the Mario’s Roofing, Siding & Windows experience is their condominium work. Their dedicated Operations Staff ensure a smooth construction process by providing communications with the condo’s

Last year, Merrill’s served up turkey and prime rib, all the sides like apple sage and sweet corn and polenta ravioli, plus pies galore

Mario’s Roofing, Siding & Windows is also an industry leader in window installations for both condo and single-family homes, featuring top-of-the-line products. They are the only contractor in their service area to be an Elite Window Dealer.

1955 on the historic wharf that dates to the 1700s, isn’t all about summer

Last year they served up a feast of turkey, roast prime rib, sausage and more. The restaurant currently of fers dine-in and takeout, including some oven-ready dishes like seafood casserole and stuf fed lobster.

White’s of Westport

66 State Road, Westport

508-675 -7185 shop lafrancehospitality com

Max Goulston and his brother Paul joined forces with their father, Stephen, in the last two years, due to the significant amount of new business that Mario’s Roofing, Siding & Windows was experiencing. Previously, Max was a Mechanical Engineer and Paul was a Civil Engineer. Stephen Goulston started Mario’s Roofing, Siding & Windows after the disappointments he personally experienced in the industry, and sought to provide top-notch service for others.

“We were raised to be respectable and treat customers how they deserve to be treated,” Max says. “We offer reasonable prices with a premium product and premium service.”

For more information call 781-3442420 or visit mariosroofing.com.

White’s has been of fering family-style takeout and curbside meals pickup for months, so when Turkey Day comes around, it ’s a good bet they’ll have a handle (or rather a drumstick) on that too. Currently, the restaurant is of fering meal packages and platters like its “ Taste of New England” that comes with chowder, quahogs and clam cakes or its Italian package of salad, lasagna, meatballs and breadsticks Both meals serve six Also available are dinner-for-two meal packs like and chips, lobster rolls, bourbon beef tips, and even kid-sized pasta and meatballs for two With more than 60 years in the hospitality industry, White’s is accustomed to cooking for a crowd

Pictured L to R Max, Paul and Steve Goulston

LESSONS FROM THE PAST

by Sean McCarthy

With its formal opening on June xx, Abolition Row Park will provide visitors with the opportunity to be educated in the enthralling and important stories of the city’s 19th-century heyday – a critical period in America’s legacy of freedom.

Located at 20 and 22 Seventh Street, Abolition Row Park is situated in a historically rich district known for its role in the city’s support and advancement of Black people who were escaping the oppression of southern slavery. The park is one part of the Abolition Row District – a five-block area that stretches across Seventh Street, from Union Street to Walnut Street. The district was officially established by New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell in April.

Abolition Row Park will include a

waterwall, a large gazebo, photos and documents, depictions of paths on the Underground Railroad, a children’s library and, most notably, a seven-foot statue of the iconic Frederick Douglass. Visitors will be able to enjoy a virtual self-guided tour thanks to a phone app which will be available for free. The park is located across the street from the Nathan and Polly Johnson House, which is the site for the New Bedford Historical Society, the organization that preserves and chronicles the contributions of African Americans and Cape Verdean immigrants in the city.

“Abolition Row Park will tell the stories of people in New Bedford who stood up for what was right at a very important time in history,” says Lee Blake, President of the New Bedford Historical

Society. “One of the things New Bedford is known for is the involvement of the citizenry to fight for democracy for everybody.”

Funded by state and federal grants along with private donations, Abolition Row Park is being built on a pair of empty renovated lots. The site will be used for a variety of public programming including poetry and spoken word presentations, lectures and music performances.

The opening ceremonies for Abolition Row Park will take place Friday, June 23rd at 1 p.m. The day will include speeches from Mayor Mitchell, local elected representatives and poet Everett Hoagland, with an unveiling of the Douglass memorial statue. There will also be a descendant of Douglass,

New Bedford has a more vital historical footprint than many people may realize. So with the creation of Abolition Row Park in the city’s downtown, the untold stories of New Bedford’s role in the nation’s anti-slavery movement will be documented and celebrated for tourists, youth, and community members alike.

Kenneth Morris, who will be attending and speaking.

“Besides being an opportunity to transform a lot that was full of garbage into a green space – a city park – it tells a story of the city’s support of the Underground Railroad and the Abolition movement,” Blake says. “It creates an opportunity to have programming in that neighborhood for the people who live there and a new destination in New Bedford for people who are coming for historic preservation and tourism. It will be a great opportunity for the young people of the city to hear of how Black and White people stood up against slavery in the 1800s. It will provide a dialogue about the importance of ordinary citizens coming together around saving and assisting people in distress, and in this case it was enslaved people in distress.”

Lessons for the future

One important role of Abolition Row Park will be its ability to inspire young people to believe that their future is full of possibilities.

“The stories at Abolition Row Park are being told in the most dynamic way: public art,” says Margo Saulnier, Director of Creative Strategies for the New Bedford Economic Development Council. “It’s adding to the legacy of the Historical Society and it’s inspiring. I know that it will inspire youth and visitors and residents of New Bedford to look at our past in a new light. When I was growing up we were not taught about this rich history that New Bedford has. There are a lot of esteemed individuals who contributed to the culture of the city and their stories would have been forgotten if not for the Historical Society. For young people growing up here now, it’s important that they know that history and that there’s really so many possibilities for their futures and their careers.”

“Bringing the Abolition movement from the past to the present and helping people understand how we can still be involved in insuring racial equity and diversity and social justice is forefront in our minds,” says Mary S. Rapoza, Director of the Dept. of Parks, Recreation, and Beaches for the City of New Bedford. “One of the great things about Abolition Row Park is that it has been a collaboration with multiple community groups right from the start.”

In addition to the Historical Society, organizations involved in the establishment of Abolition Row Park include the UMass Dartmouth, New Bedford Office of Parks, Recreation, and Beaches, and the New Bedford National Park Service.

The statue of Frederick Douglass was crafted by Richard Blake of Pennsylvania, a sculptor recognized nationally for his creation of statues of Douglass and other historic African American figures, and a former President of the National Sculpture Society. Abolition Row Park was designed by Cultural Outreach Design of Boston and its construction was done by JAMS Construction of Worcester.

“New Bedford is a destination,” Saulnier says. “We want to build on our tourism and to welcome visitors to the city and Abolition Row Park will contribute to that. This park and what it represents, the stories that it tells and the permanent statue of Frederick Douglass by an artist of color, of itself is one of the reasons that it will be a big draw for tourists.”

“The Historical Society has worked with all of the school districts about the importance of Frederick Douglass and his vision,” Blake says. “But also Douglass learns the opportunities of democracy from the city of New Bedford. These are lessons we can still benefit from today.”

The statue of Frederick Douglass was crafted by Richard Blake of Pennsylvania, a sculptor recognized nationally for his creation of statues of Douglass and other historic African American figures, and a former President of the National Sculpture Society

A SUMMERto remember

The Lloyd Center for the Environment, at 430 Potomska Road in South Dartmouth, offers two popular summer outdoor education programs for the youths every year, divided by age groups. The Young Naturalist Programs for ages 6-9 starts June 26 and covers outdoor exploration lessons in Under the Sea, In the Sky, Forest Frenzy, and Ponds and Streams programs. The Coastal Studies Programs for ages 9-12 start on July 10 and covers the themes of Animal Investigators, Forest and Wetlands, Coastal Ecology, and Marine Biology (and “STEAM Fridays” focusing on science, technology, art, and mathematics lessons).

Unfortunately, only limited space is available; they have waiting lists for each program. The larger point, however, is why parents should take note to book their youngsters early for next year. These programs have benefited many young people around the South Coast for over 30 years.

According to Elizabeth A. Moniz, Education and Outreach Director, the mission of the programs is "to encourage students to get excited about science and the natural world around them. We

live in a very pristine part of Dartmouth. We use our site to educate kids about science. We make sure they are safe and learning and having fun."

She noted there’s solid proof these are inspiring programs. She recently heard from a former student who is now pursuing her PHD in Marine Science at UMD because she was once a student in the Lloyd Center summer programs.

“She credits her career to attending our program, as the thing that directed her to her current career path,” Moniz said. Then there’s Bruce Rastaban, 27, a former student at the summer program who is now a fellow instructor alongside Moniz. Rastaban said it all started with a field trip to the Center in the third grade, and his later attendance in one of their summer programs.

He eventually became a Dartmouth Natural Resources Trust (DNRT) staff member, taking care of trails and then

by Michael J. DeCicco

leading walks as part of his Americas service year. He started as a Lloyd Center instructor in November 2022 as a result of those positions, and that's when he was able to conduct walks of the Trust trails and see how inspired the young people on those walks would get.

“Seeing their faces light up on those trails reminded me how I felt in my first educational outdoor experiences at the Lloyd center,” Traban explained. “I wanted to bring that to other young people across the area.”

He elaborated by describing the time he had brought a live crab to a local classroom as an example of what happens when young people first meet nature. “At first they'll be scared of it,” he said. “‘Don't let it out of its container!’ In the end, they'll go right up to it. It's nature and doesn't have to be scary at all. I want

CONTINUED ON PAGE 18

Young people don’t need public school to learn a very important lesson over the summer: the value of the natural world that's all around them.

The Coastal Studies Programs for ages 9-12 start on July 10 and covers the themes of Animal Investigators, Forest and Wetlands, Coastal Ecology, and Marine Biology

to keep that feeling going in other kids and inspire them.”

As described on the Lloyd Center's website, the center's 82-acres of estuary and maritime forest in South Dartmouth was donated to the DNRT in 1978 by Karen Lloyd as a living memorial to her mother, Katharine Nordell Lloyd. Originally a residence, its main building, now under renovation, is a four-story modern structure which overlooks Buzzards Bay and the Slocums River estuary. Because of its unparalleled beauty, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs has identified the Lloyd Center’s property as one of the state’s 15 Special Places.”

For more information on the Lloyd Center, go to its website, lloydcenter.org.

Great agrarians

Similarly, the Soule Homestead Educational Center, at 46 Soule Street in Middleboro, offers a variety of low-cost nature education programs to young students as well as adults over the summer.

Soule’s Summer Camps, like those of the Lloyd Center, are so popular that they are full or half-full this year. But the center’s Executive Director Jim Lough noted young registrants can go on waiting lists and get into a program when someone drops out, as often happens. The other encouraging factor, he added, is that he is looking to expand staff to allow in more registrants next year.

Lough is proud to note many campers return year after year and many parents ask the center to expand the programing to include teens. “Many families have sent all of their children through our Soule system,” he said.

“Itty-Ditty Buds” for ages for 3-6 will be from June 27-29, fitting 12 students per day. “Camp Soule” half-day sessions for ages 4-6 start July 17 and end August 18. “Camp Soule” full-day sessions are for ages 7-10 and are from July 10-August 11. Lough describes these camps as an opportunity for young students to play on an actual farm and learn all about farm life. “Free play and fun, farm and naturebased education,” he elaborates. But the Soule Center also serves its educational goals via school field trips

booked every day of the week with three programs: Meet the Animals, Simple (farming) Machinery, and Get to the Root, focusing on gardening and farming techniques. It also hosts the Soule Kids 4-H Club once a month and other nature programs for adults.

It all ties to the goals the center has set out to achieve since it opened 31 years ago. “The purpose of our farm-based education program,” Lough said, “is to instill future generations with an appreciation and understanding of traditional agriculture and the natural world.”

To be added to the waitlist or for other information on its programs, visit Soule Homestead Educational Center at soulehomestead.org.

Coastal homes

Beyond Massachusetts, Audubon RI offers public workshops, walks, and activities for adults, families, and kids, from pre-schoolers to home-schoolers at the Audubon Society of Rhode Island Claire D. McIntosh Wildlife Refuge at 1401 Hope Street in Bristol.

The refuge offers a wide variety of natural habitats and trails for visitors of all ages to enjoy in easy walks that start in the upland meadow and winds its way to a quarter-mile boardwalk through fresh and saltwater marshes to Narragansett Bay.

“Kids really enjoy being outside and searching for birds and wildlife on our trails,” said Lauren Parmelee, Audubon Senior Director of Education. “In the summer months butterflies, dragonflies, painted turtles, frogs, osprey, red-tailed hawks, and other birds are frequently spotted. And we have engaging signage along the trails that explains the changing habitats and what visitors might look for.”

She noted the property is also home to the award-winning Audubon Nature Center and Aquarium, offering interactive exhibits that explore local habitats and marine life found in the Ocean State. The Curiosity Corner offers natural specimens that may be examined under a microscope. And just outside the Center, visitors can enjoy the abundance of summer blooms in Audubon’s Palmieri Pollinator Garden.

“The pollinator garden has become a hub for the community,” said Parmelee. “It brings together our garden volunteers, hosts pollinator programs, and provides visitors the opportunity to sit, enjoy the abundance of flowers, and learn about our native pollinators.”

For information on Audobon Society of Rhode Island’s programs, contact Hope Foley at hfoley@asri.org.

The Soule Homestead Educational Center offers a variety of low-cost nature education programs to young students as well as adults over the summer.

Local garden clubs in action

by Lynn M. Steiner

This comes in the form of scholarships, funds for environmental projects, educational programs, community beautification projects, and more, all of which make a real difference in the lives of residents.

Most garden clubs have community beautification projects. The Tiverton Garden Club maintains gardens at Pardon Gray Preserve, Tiverton Town Farm, Exit 4, and Grinnell Beach. The Little Compton Garden Club maintains a memorial garden behind the school, the historical herb

garden at the Little Compton Historical Society, and a newly installed pollinator garden. The Sogkonate Garden Club maintains gardens at the school, Brownell House, Burchard Triangle, and the Demonstration Meadow at the Recreation Field, all in Little Compton. The Bristol Garden Club tends gardens in Thomas Park and at the library, and they are in their fifth year of a project to plant thousands of daffodils throughout the town. Offering educational programs to the public is a high priority for garden clubs. The Newport Garden Club holds an annual conservation meeting in October each year. This year, they are collaborating with The Norman Bird Sanctuary on October 11. Sogkonate Garden Club in Little Compton hosts monthly speaker programs open to the public, as well as field trips and workshops. In August, the Bristol Garden Club (bristolgardenclub.org) will offer demonstrations in Kokedama and Ichibana at the annual Black Ships

Festival in Independence Park, which celebrates the unique partnership between the U.S. and Japan. Providing scholarships and grants to local organizations is high on the list for some clubs. Garden Club of Buzzards Bay has given thousands of dollars to community projects along the South Coast region to schools (public, private, and charter) land trusts, museums, libraries, the zoological society, the YMCA, and others. The Little Compton Garden Club funds helps fund many community projects and provides an annual donation to a local scholarship funds as well as to the Garden Club of America. The Buzzards Bay Garden Club has a partnership with Our Sisters School, a school for girls with an outdoor classroom, garden, and a greenhouse. The Sogkonate Garden Club partners with the local school on several projects, including starting seeds with first graders and making graduation centerpieces for eighth graders.

The South Coast is fortunate to be home to several garden clubs that do a lot to enhance the quality of life in their communities

On the Little Compton Garden Club tour on June 17, you will have the chance to visit seven private gardens in picturesque Little Compton, including gardens that overlook a salt marsh, the ocean, and the Sakonnet River.

and emotional welfare of children is at stake, especially in children from high-risk homes. The socioeconomic divide will only become wider, and who is protecting the kids who need it right now? I stress about how I will find a high school during this time for my daughter next year. I can’t imagine being a mother of a child who is being abused, starving, freezing… School is safety, shelter, and home for many kids. It’s sad to think most will continue to be at home not getting the help they need.”

Did I hear any really reassuring advice? Not really. The takeaway, then, is that navigating unchartered territory is all of these: unsettling, vacillating, unnerving, terrifying, hopeful, necessary, and inevitable. We are writing this story, together, as we go along. The best we can do then is to trust that others are arming themselves with as much information as possible and will live in such a way as to do no intentional harm.

While Coronavirus has woken us up in terms of helping us appreciate our prior freedoms (to travel, to go to school, to mingle with friends, to attend concerts), that loss of innocence has hopefully helped us grow. School districts, judging by the amount of work that goes into reopening under state guidelines, have been working tirelessly to create a plan of action. Parents are proactive and creative in imagining a new routine. Through the loss of hundreds of thousands of lives around the globe, the best we can hope for is that we have gained insight about our interdependency: we are all truly in this together.

Creating and sharing holiday decorations is a popular project for garden clubs, including the Little Compton (littlecomptongardenclub. org), Tiverton (lindamjenkins@cox. net), Sogkonate (sogkonate.org), and Buzzards Bay Garden Clubs (gardenclubbuzzardsbay.org). The Newport Garden Club is very busy during the holidays, making and decorating wreaths to be donated to Lucy’s Hearth, which holds a sale open to the public to raise funds for this women and children’s shelter. They also decorate the Edward King Senior Center for the holidays and decorate wreaths with traditional colonial flair to donate to the Newport Historical Society, who puts them on the doors of the Old Colony House downtown as part of the Christmas in Newport celebration. Local gardens clubs have many ways to raise the funds they need for these projects. Plant sales are popular and provide a real service to the community. The Garden Club of Buzzards Bay holds a plant sale each May at the Rotch-JonesDuff House and Garden Museum in New Bedford. The Sogkonate Garden Club hosts their annual Blossoms and Sweets Plant sale Memorial Day weekend in Little Compton.

Garden tours are another way for clubs to earn funds. Club and community members willing to share their gardens on tours provide a delightful way for community members to enjoy private gardens while helping support the great work of local clubs. The Little Compton Garden Club will be holding its self-guided Coastal Gardens of Little Compton tour on June 17, rain or shine, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. For more information and to buy discounted tickets in advance, go to littlecomptongardenclub.org.

Some of us, though, want to go back to that innocent time, when we could get excited about backpacks and sneakers and lacrosse games. Maybe not return to “normal” but get as close to it as possible in the midst of a pandemic as we can. Kellie, a healthcare professional from Florida, has daily interaction with the Coronavirus and she is hoping her kids can go back to school soon. “This virus isn’t going away,” she says pragmatically. “We all need to get back to some sense of normalcy. Practicing safe reintegration is essential. We are all going to be okay. I know I’m biased because two of mine [tested positive] and were essentially fine. I treat [COVID] patients every day – and I’m fine.”

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Offering educational programs, garden tours to the public, scholarships and grants to local organizations, in addition to other community initiatives, are high priorities for garden clubs

ON MY MIND

Stream of consciousness

by Paul Kandarian

Okay, reality check: my youth technically passed a little while ago. Maybe at 65. Okay, reality check, continued: maybe it was sooner than that.

But trust me, I’ve not turned into a curmudgeon who sits on the porch frowning at those noisy kids skateboarding down the street and snapping “Don’t you have any other place to do that, dammit?”

I’m young inside where it counts – inside being the soul, not inside the body

which has creaked way ahead of the soul in the aging race. But as I stand knee-deep in that chilly stream on a trail I’ve walked many times before, my 70th birthday approaching like a laser, whereas the teen years crawled like a snail going uphill through molasses, I realize the best part of youth – things that don’t hurt and the confidence to do stupid stuff – have sailed into the mist.

I had gotten off the trail when I encountered the stream just because I’ve

always done that. I like taking the non-trail less traveled. But all these fallen trees and thick brush that populate the woods that I used to duck under and crash through with confidence now loomed large and scary and Tolkienesque in their gothic horror that to my eyes appeared a vegetative obstacle course. Decades ago, I would’ve sailed through as easily as walking down the street.

I hike frequently with friends, one of whom is 81 and still ambulatory, albeit

far more slowly than he once was. We will be walking and see a rickety old stone wall in the forest by the trail and recall how as kids growing up in our respective hometowns, we’d run long stretches atop those rocky roads barely touching the stones as we skimmed fluidly from one to the next and leaping across gaps that presented no more of a problem than stepping over a small puddle. It was our version of parkour.

Now, common sense, side by side with arthritic joints

In the blink of an eye, the slip of a foot, and a splash into two feet of chilly forest stream, I realize with sock-soggy certainty that the sweet folly of youth has passed.

and sketchy balance, makes us walk by those walls, not flitting atop, our parkour days a dim memory.

But this day, I’m alone on my hike and that fact alone gives me pause recently. Should I hike with others… just in case? Should I tell people where I’ll be hiking… just in case? Should I stay home and safely do chair yoga… just in case?

The latter is not an option, nor will I ever let it be. So says I, at this moment in time, which stubbornly refuses to slow down. Time marches on, but I will not go gentle into that good night – which today translates into standing by a cold stream judging the best way to get across it.

And that appears to be a thick log bridging the roughly three-foot gap. I could jump it of course, done that a million times… awhile back. But I’m not where I want to be – 10 or 20 years younger –so common sense prevails. Okay, reality check: if common sense truly had a hold on me, I’d have walked back the way I came to get back on the trail and avoid risking disaster.

So I climbed up somewhat unsteadily onto this thick tree trunk, ancient and rotting and yet seemingly sturdier than the old guy wobbling on top of it. In days of old, I’d have sprinted across this thing, or just leapt across the damn stream, but now I slowly shuffled on using my walking sticks for balance and creeped along figuring I’d be fine.

And I was. Until I wasn’t. And that was when I pushed off with my back foot, a part of the rotting log sloughing off, me slipping and plunging feet first into the cold water, the nanosecond it took to

go from dry to wet giving me ample time to consider what was happening and fill the otherwise quiet forest air with self-deprecating invectives and finally coming to rest standing in cold, soaking wet hiking boots and pants.

“Oh screw it,” I also thought, “I need new hiking boots anyway.”

I sat back onto the log, the feet that failed me soaking in the fast-moving stream, and sighed, mumbling a phrase that I would often jokingly use when pushing too hard athletically at anything from about my 40s on up: “I’m getting too old for this shit.”

Okay, reality check: now it’s true.

Well, that’s not entirely accurate. I mean, it’s not true as in stay-home-androt true. But it is true as in slow down, you can’t move too fast, gotta make the rest of this trip through life last. And there I go paraphrasing a song from 57 years ago. Fitting.

So I’ll keep moving and doing and enjoying and realizing there are limitations that aging imposes that we wish it didn’t. So I won’t crawl through tight spaces with my grandson anymore, but will watch and advise him on how he can do it. I won’t go skipping over the rocky uncertainty of a stone wall anymore, but will walk beside it and admire its lasting beauty. And I won’t try to traverse a cold stream on a rotting log with wonky balance, I’ll just remember when I could.

Okay, reality check: I probably will still do that last one because hell, I can always use new hiking boots.

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