Gloucester History Day at O’Maley

Catherine Ryan writes ~

There were 10 adult presenters and each of us met with ½ the grade (5 classes each): Paul Goldberg Historic Photos, Joey Palmisano for NOAA, Jim Caulkett the Harbor Master, Leslie Bartlett for Granite, Catherine Ryan for the HarborWalk, Lara Lepionka for Cape Ann Gardeners, Paula Gray for UU History, Barbara Silberman for the Sargent House, Mary Ellen Lepionka for Native Americans, and Ramona Latham for the Trustees of the Reservation. Most of the other presenters were included somehow in the HarborWalk content — and the teachers mentioned that as one source! The teachers were fabulous and are committed to this project. Again this year all the 6th graders visited the HarborWalk (in the fall). The kids were engaged and enthusiastic, not exactly my doing, rather the material I had to work with, the teachers special build up to Gloucester History Day, and the dedication and uniqueness of the presentations before me! I wanted to sit in on all of them! Some of the students are working on projects and may have questions. Others wrote up a report for the whole day that they are sending into local media.

I handed out the large 11 x 17 sheet for the “hunt on the HarborWalk”. My son George had a smart twist on bingo and C7A’s map. Matt and Tom created a jazzy tear sheet announcing the movie series coming this summer (big enthusiasm for Jaws!) Virgilio’s was not only generous with offering a free Italian cookie (hopefully combined with a visit to the whale moment), but also such fun determining how we might track the $ value. He wants to split the cost with me and encouraged me to have the children write down an expiration date to encourage some urgency. He remembers fondly the school volunteering that he and his family and friends did for so many years.

The sweetest rewards may be from our youth!