Pro Portsmouth seeks First Night logo design: Community news update
Pro Portsmouth holding First Night logo design contest
PORTSMOUTH — On Saturday, Dec. 31, the Seacoast will say farewell to 2022 and greet 2023 with the celebration of First Night Portsmouth. As has become the tradition with all Pro Portsmouth events, the artists of the Seacoast are invited to submit their work for consideration to become the logo for First Night Portsmouth 2023.
This event marks the beginning of Pro Portsmouth’s 46th year of producing events on the Seacoast and their commitment to honor the city’s 400th anniversary with event logos throughout 2023.
Deadline for entries is Friday, Oct. 21. Send entries to Barbara Massar, Pro Portsmouth, Inc., P.O. Box 967, Portsmouth, NH 03802 or email entries in jpeg format to info@proportsmouth.org.
Medium and size: Graphic design, painting (watercolor, oils, etc.) mixed are fine. The key factor: can we successfully scan your work in order to create the button, merchandise, website, etc. Scannable-sized pieces (8.5-inch by 11-inch).Bold colors (maximum six) work well.
Possible ideas/ themes for the image: Portsmouth’s 400th Anniversary - refer to: https://www.portsmouthnh400.org/400-years-of-history; Celebration; Holidays/Winter; The Seacoast of New Hampshire; Pro Portsmouth standard of “Arts, Culture, History, Community."
Previous FNP logos can be viewed at https://proportsmouth.org/first-night-logo-contest/
Prizes: The top artist will receive $300..
The artwork is used on all First Night® Portsmouth 2023 merchandise, the FNP Button, social media and collateral that Pro Portsmouth produces for the event.
For more information on the group, including volunteer and sponsorship opportunities, visit www.proportsmouth.org or contact Barbara Massar at 603-433-4398.
Dover Middle School hosts Pumpkin Dash 5K fundraiser
DOVER — Dover Middle School Parent Teacher Association announce the return of its annual fundraiser, the DMS Pumpkin Dash 5K, on Sunday, Oct. 23, at Dover Middle School, 16 Daley Drive, Dover.
The race begins at 8:30 a.m. and winds through an official USAT&F Certified Course. Part of the Dover Race Series, the DMS Pumpkin Dash 5k will award prizes to the overall top male and female, as well as the first and second place male and female finishers in the nine age categories.
Registration is $20 for adults; $10 for ages 14 and under; and a special $5 registration fee is available for all Dover Middle School students. The first 200 registered participants will receive a complimentary event T-shirt. Register at https://raceroster.com/events/2022/63990/dover-middle-school-pumpkin-dash-5k.
Sponsor and volunteer opportunities are available. For more information, contact Race Director, Kimberly Alexander at kimberlyp.alexander13@gmail.com or 603-320-0332
COAST bus system to resume limited Saturday service
DOVER — The region’s public transit system resumed limited Saturday service beginning on Sept. 17. COAST has not operated any Saturday service since late-May because of a shortage of bus operators.
“At this point we have enough operators who are willing to work extra shifts on a regular and ongoing basis to announce the return of limited Saturday services, starting on Sept. 17,” said Rad Nichols, COAST Executive Director. “Unexpected staffing challenges can of course affect these plans,” he added.
Saturday services will be limited to the following bus routes and service hours, for now.
Route 1 (Dover/Somersworth/Berwick): 9:30 a.m. to 3:25 p.m., with a service gap between 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.
Route 12 (Rochester/Somersworth/Dover): 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Route 13 (Dover/Portsmouth): 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Route 14 (Rochester): 9 a.m. to 1:55 p.m.
Route 41 (Lafayette Trolley): 9 a.m. to 3:50 p.m., with a service gap between 12 and 1 p.m.
COAST, like many public transit systems across the country, has struggled to hire enough staff to maintain their full bus schedules.
As the COAST board of directors considers the upcoming FY23 operating budget, increases in operator pay and other potential enhancements to retain current and attract new staff are being considered. “One of our primary goals is to address the issues we are having with bus operator staffing, and to consider what we can do to address that as we develop the upcoming operating budget,” stated David Sandmann, COAST’s Chair of the Board.
For the most up-to-date information on COAST services, please visit COAST’s website at www.coastbus.org, Facebook page at www.facebook.com/COASTbus, and twitter account @COASTbus.
Behind-the-scenes tour of textile exhibit and collection
SOUTH BERWICK, Maine — Old Berwick Historical Society guest curators, Nancy and Peter Cook look forward to welcoming guests to a behind-the-scenes introduction to the exhibition, “Material Culture: Domestic Cloth-Making in 18th-Century New England” at The Counting House Museum. The two-part tour will take place on Saturday, Sept. 24 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Curator Ruth Greene-McNally will also contribute insights into the selection of objects and exhibition installation process at the museum. Tour guests will then travel in their own vehicles to nearby Tare Shirt Farm, a working 18th-century farmstead with heirloom orchards, heritage breeds of domestic livestock, and a restored 18th-century vernacular home complete with period furnishings.
The excursion, titled “Collectors, Curators, Cooks,” continues with a signature lunch and an in-depth tour of the Cooks’ extensive textile, decorative, and fine arts collection in the couple’s historic period home and the spinning barn, along with a walking tour of the pastoral landscape.
This is a fundraiser for the society, and tickets are limited to 30. For ticket prices and the full itinerary please visit www.oldberwick.org.
Local Lions Club Corn Hole for a Cure raises funds for childhood cancer research
DOVER — The Lions Club of Dover, Rollinsford and South Berwick bagged a winner in their first Cornhole for a Cure fundraiser on Aug. 20 at the Hilltop Fun Center in Somersworth. Almost $7,800 was raised with $3,400 going directly to childhood cancer research, in partnership with Dartmouth Health. Additional funds raised will further the activities of the Lions Club locally, particularly in the areas of conservation, vision, hunger, and childhood cancer.
Lions Club Vice President Brandon Gove spearheaded this event, which was officiated by Sports Hub of New England and MC’d by Matty Pace. The weather was perfect as 40 to 50 teams, including players of all levels, participated in the friendly competition. Raffles, prizes, tee shirts, a barbecue and music rounded out the day bringing smiles to all involved.
The local business community rallied to support this event with sponsors including SC Digital/Loud Canvas Media, Jennifer Halteman Insurance, New England Prospect, Dean Brothers Landscaping, Souther’s Construction, Bank of NH, Cornhole by the Ackley’s, Insurrcomm, Envoy Mortgage, Ortho Lazer, Loan Depot, Aztec Financial, First Seacoast Bank, Silver Fountain Inn and Servpro.
The Lions Club of Dover, Rollinsford and South Berwick is a member of the Lions Club International, which began in 1917. Their motto is “We Serve.” The club gathers on the first and third Wednesdays of each month at Cara Irish Pub in Dover to find ways to improve their community. All are welcome to join. For more information about the Dover, Rollinsford, South Berwick Lions Club, visit www.facebook.com/DRSBLionsClub.
Surfmen of the Seacoast
RYE — Before the formation of the U. S. Coast Guard, there was the U.S. Life Saving Service, made up of fishermen, lobstermen, and other sea-goers who risked their lives to save their brethren from the perils of the sea. D. Allan Kerr will discuss these hardy surfmen at the Rye Historical Society meeting on Thursday, Sept. 29 at 7 p.m., at the Rye Congregational Church, 580 Washington Road. His illustrated presentation, Surfmen of the Seacoast, is free and open to the public.
Rye had two lifesaving stations, at Wallis Sands and at Jenness Beach, rescuing vessels that ran aground or were damaged or destroyed close to shore. They also searched for fishermen who had not returned to port. The stations were staffed by locals who knew the area and what could be dangerous coastal waters, and it was not uncommon for generation after generation of families to sign up as surfmen. These hardy souls were not there for the money, but because they believed in what they did, saving their local community members and the local maritime economy.
The stations had marine railways to launch their 1,000 pound rowboats into the water to aid mariners in distress, usually in powerful seas. The surfmen knew the dangers, as their motto was “You have to go out, but you don’t have to come back.” More than 186,000 lives, men and women, were saved by the U.S. Life Saving Service before it was combined by President Wilson with the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service, which assisted vessels further out to sea, to form the U.S. Coast Guard in 1915.
On a local note, the U.S. Life Saving Service was founded in the 1870s by Sumner Increase Kimball from nearby Lebanon/Sanford, Maine, and he was the superintendent until the 1915 merger.
D. Allan Kerr is an ex-dockworker, local historian and U.S. Navy veteran living in Kittery, Maine, who writes a column for the Portsmouth Herald on both historical and current issues. He is also the author of Silent Strength: Remembering the Men of Genius and Adventure Slot in the World’s Worst Submarine Disaster.
Hampton United Methodist Church hosts curb-side pickup turkey dinner
HAMPTON — Hampton United Methodist Church, 525 Lafayette Rd. (Rt. 1) cordially invites the Seacoast Community to the curb side pickup turkey dinner “with all the fixings”, on Saturday, Oct. 8, from 4:30 to 6 p.m. To enjoy this delicious turkey dinner, which includes roasted turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, squash, peas, rolls, cranberry sauce, and dessert reservations are required.
Sign up can be done either through the church website at HamptonnhUMC.org or contact the church office directly at 603-926-2702. Last day to place your order is Thursday, Oct. 6. Pick-up times are 4:30 to 5 p.m., 5 to5:30 p.m. and 5:30 to 6 p.m. Meals can be picked up in the church parking lot located at the back of the church. Cost: Adults $15; seniors $12; and children 12 and under $6. Contact the church office at 603-926-2702 or email at hamptonumc@myfairpoint.com if you require additional information.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Pro Portsmouth seeks First Night logo design: Community news update
