The Mattapoisett Friends Meeting House fundraising efforts for the restoration of the antique building are underway and, although it got off to a wet start this week, the yard sale planned for August 2 went ahead anyway despite the rainy weather.

“We had known it was going to rain,” said Deena Kinsky, a member of the Mattapoisett Friends Meeting House, so she said they knew they would need to have the yard sale indoors, even utilizing the old carriage shed on the property where, many years ago, people would store their horse drawn carriages.

“A lot of people came out,” said Kinsky, despite the rain. “We don’t know if we would have had more people or if it was just a great activity for a rainy day.”

According to Kinsky, the cost of the first phase of the renovation is estimated at about $75,000, and the entire project is estimated at about $245,000. The yard sale raised about $600, and a few of the items donated, said Kinsky, have been placed on eBay to see if they will sell for a higher price.

The friends also hosted a donation-only family meat pie supper with a silent auction on Sunday, August 3.

Many people in the community have made donations of items to sell as well as money, and Kinsky says the friends are also seeking grant funding to help with the restoration costs.

There are other events planned for the remainder of the Mattapoisett Friends Meeting House “Quaker Week.” On Saturday, August 9, the friends will be at the meetinghouse for another donation day, collecting more items for another yard sale to be held in October.

For Sunday, August 10, the friends invite members of the community to an abbreviated half-hour silent worship at 9:30 am, followed by an informational lecture about the history of Quakerism. Later that evening, two visiting Quakers from Cuba will speak about the growing Quaker movement within their country at 7:00 pm.

As for the renovations, slated to being either late August or early September, Phase I of the project is to repair the rotted first floor framing, which Kinsky said needs to be totally replaced. She said Meeting House member Brad Hathaway has spearheaded the project because the building, built in 1827, has high sentimental value for the Mattapoisett Quakers.

“We love our meeting house,” said Kinsky. “It’s like a spiritual home and it’s important to us. We feel like we’re stewards of this building after the people who came before us. It has so much historical value. It’s got a lot of rich heritage and we want to fix it up.”

By Jean Perry

It is clear that Marion, Massachusetts and the surrounding towns breed excellent sailors. With a combination of top-notch programs and local seaside schools, Buzzards Bay draws skilled athletes from all over the south shore to participate in local programs. Organizations such as the United States Sailing Team return to the area each year to host competitions and teach sailing classes.

From a young age, children in the area are encouraged to embrace their sea legs and learn to be comfortable on the water. Seaside schools such as Tabor Academy and the Buzzards Sailing School make it possible for students to learn sailing and practice skills on a daily basis.

William Ricketson, Olympic communications manager for the U.S. Sailing Team, said,“For beginners and casual cruisers, Buzzards Bay can provide a lifetime of enjoyment.” He continued, “No matter which way the wind is blowing, you can sail to an engaging destination in almost any direction.”

However, sailing is not the only way to become educated about our beloved waters.

“The history of the United States is also reflected in these waters, as the great seaport of New Bedford provided unsurpassed wealth and trade to the new nation from Revolutionary times until well after the Civil War,” said Ricketson. “Sailors today still look for the same landmarks as those enterprising sea captains of 300 years ago, and in this way, Buzzards Bay connects us to our past in a profound, tangible way.”

Additionally, the Buzzards Bay Yacht Club has been known to host a variety of regattas for local sailors and visiting champions. Several annual competitions are held in the summer months, when Sippican Harbor is filled with young sailors learning the sport and seasoned professionals preparing for a busy season. In order to succeed in these competitive environments, it is important that athletes participate in frequent tournaments to enhance their skills. Luckily for us, Buzzards Bay is home to a handful of world-renowned sailing regattas.

“Buzzards Bay is in many ways the ultimate playground for the American sailor,” said Ricketson. “For the competitive racer, the bay’s unique geography allows the prevailing southwest breeze to strongly blow almost every day of the year, providing consistently exciting conditions.”

Local upcoming events for the U.S. Sailing Team include the 2014 Dick Fontaine Memorial Distance Race, the 2014 Buzzards Bay Regatta, the Beverly Junior Regatta, the Tower Race Night, and the Hurricane Cup Pursuit Race toward the end of the month.

“From the remote haven of Cuttyhunk, to the secluded beaches of the Elizabeth Islands, and to the tranquil harbors of Marion and Padanaram,” said Ricketson, about all that our beloved bay has to offer. “This is a patch of water like no other.”

By Jacqueline Hatch

Did you know that our very own Route 6 is the longest American highway ever created, spanning the entire United States mainland from Provincetown to Long Beach, California?

Author Joe Hurley could tell you all about it, and he will on August 13 at the Mattapoisett Free Library during “Behind the Scenes of Ten Million Steps.” Hurley spent nearly ten months of his life getting to know the people and places along the way on an intimate voyage across America that spanned about 3,600 miles from coast to coast.

Hurley, a retired newspaper reporter living in New Milford, Connecticut, never knew that Route 6, which runs through Connecticut as well, was the longest highway in the country. He discovered that fact during a “shorter” walk across Connecticut, discovering all the little towns he had never been to and writing a series about his journey. On a map, Hurley noticed Route 6 began in Provincetown and thought, “Wow. That’s a long way from Connecticut.”

“And then I looked to the west,” said Hurley during a July 29 phone interview. “And I thought, wouldn’t it be amazing to walk the entire way from east to west?”

Hurley started his voyage in Provincetown, which is where the book begins – along with the realization that this would be no stroll in the park. The first few hundred of his ten million steps were already causing his feet pain. In just the fourth paragraph of the book, Hurley admits, “Sore legs and the fear of failure would be my constant companions on the journey, one telling me to stop and the other urging me forward.”

During Hurley’s author’s talk, he will describe what it was like to move alone through the country, town by town, mile by mile, day by day, and answer all those questions that, once you take a look at the book, you will find yourself asking, like, was he ever afraid for his life along the way, or worried that he might not finish the journey?

“There was a snow storm in Nevada, and it was one of the few times on the trip that I didn’t know if I was going to survive,” said Hurley. “I was a walking snowman. And for a 150-mile stretch, there were no cars, no town.”

Once the snow let up a bit and people started to move about, Hurley said every single car that passed him stopped to make sure he was all right, which is consistent with Hurley’s report that, all across the country, he encountered such friendliness and hospitality that he never thought he would find when he took his first steps.

“It certainly gave me a different sense of the people of America, especially in the Midwest,” said Hurley, describing his most significant discovery along the way. “They’re much more likely to come up to you and talk to you.”

Hurley said people are prone to ask him more about his personal journey walking Route 6 across the country than they are to ask about the places he saw and the people he encountered, which surprises him somewhat.

“It’s a people and places book in my mind,” said Hurley. During the book design process, Hurley said he had a different idea for the front cover of the book, which is a photo of Hurley walking, of course, with a long, stretch of hilly highway behind him.

“I wanted the cover to be something else,” he said. But his publisher said no. The photo Hurley wanted on the front cover became the back cover of the book, the majestic landscape of the White Mountains above Owens Valley in eastern California.

“They said, ‘The book is about you walking across the country,’” said Hurley. “But I think it’s more about the people and places. It’s strange that people don’t ask me more about the places and the people I talked to.”

The people of Mattapoisett left a lasting impression on Hurley, saying on page 17 of the book that it was the people that made his stop at the diner formerly known as “The Nest” most memorable. He describes in the book how one Mattapoisett resident helped find Hurley a hotel room for free because he had no place to stay that night.

“Apparently that’s the way things are in Mattapoisett,” Hurley writes.

If you attend the author’s talk on August 13, don’t expect the standard slideshow and prepared talk that Hurley gives to everyone at each stop along his book tour.

“When I started out it was a slide show… and that was okay, but it’s kind of restrictive,” said Hurley. He now passes out a copy of the book to each person in attendance so they can have the book in their own hands, free to follow along and flip through the book. “So, instead of slides,” said Hurley, “We go for a journey together through the book.”

The August 13 event begins at 6:30 pm and Hurley will have copies of his book available for sale. Preregister for the event with the library so that there will be enough books for the event and to purchase. Contact the Mattapoisett Free Library at 508-758-4171 and, for more information about Hurley’s book, visit www.route6walk.com.

By Jean Perry

There is going to be a very special dedication on Ned’s Point on Friday, August 8 to unveil a bronze plaque and a sitting bench in honor of Mattapoisett’s late Milton Silveira – a project in the making by one of Silveira’s young friends and fans, Alex Craig, a sixth-grader at Old Hammondtown Elementary School.

Alex’s mother, Julie Craig, said Alex has been busy collecting donations and consulting with Silveira’s family for months, and he is excited to present the bronze plaque before the people of Mattapoisett and to Silveira’s surviving relatives.

When in the third grade, Alex chose to represent Silveira in a presentation about famous people from Massachusetts. Alex reached out to Silveira, who was in his nineties when the correspondence between the two began, to learn more about the local National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) chief engineer.

“They struck up a friendship,” said Ms. Craig. “And after Milton died last year, Alex wanted to do something for him.” And because Milton loved Ned’s Point, Craig said, it was decided that a bronze plaque honoring Silveira should be placed at the site beside the sea, along with a bench dedicated to Silveira.

Alex said he never got to meet Silveira in person, but their phone conversations made a lasting impression on the boy.

“I think he was a really great man and that’s why I’ve been doing this whole project,” said Alex. He said Silveira’s sister helped design the plaque. “It’s a pretty big plaque … and it’s just a great little biography about him and it has a little picture of a shuttle on it,” said Alex. During the dedication ceremony on Friday, Alex said he is going to tell the Town about who Silveira was and why they should remember him.

“It was so nice to hear Alex and Milton have these conversations over the phone,” said Craig. She added that it was a great experience for Alex, and she is pleased that Alex has chosen to pursue this gesture of respect toward Silveira.

Silveira oversaw the development of the Little Joe II, an unmanned space launch vehicle. He also contributed to other programs, including the Apollo mission.

“We just think Mattapoisett should know about [Milton],” said Craig.

Silveira was born in Mattapoisett in 1929 and graduated from Fairhaven High School. He died July 11, 2013 after 36 years of service for NASA.

“I’m very proud of Alex,” said Craig. “And it’s really unbelievable how much support the community has given.”

The dedication ceremony on Friday, August 8 at Ned’s Point is scheduled for 11:00 am. Alex, his family, Silveira’s family, town officials, and members of the community will all gather to honor Silveira’s legacy.

By Jean Perry