With the summer season on the wane and Labor Day weekend rapidly approaching, the 38th annual Gloucester Schooner Festival and fall and winter events were the main topics of conversation at the August 19 meeting of the Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce Tourism Council.
The focus on these upcoming activities carried over to our usual meeting discussions around Council member plans for the days, weeks and months ahead. Mike DeKoster reported on planning for the Labor Day weekend Schooner Festival. Mike also talked about the cannon dedication ceremony and the final Culture Splash event of the season, both on August 25. And we looked ahead to early fall activities such as the new Blackburn Brew Fest (September 17), and Cape Ann Plein Air (October 1-9). Mike also shared the news that the replica of the Nao Victoria, Magellan’s ship that circumnavigated the globe 700 years ago, will visit Gloucester for four days from October 6 to 9, and “Docktoberfest” is set for October 15.
Tess McColgan and Jeanne Hennessey invited Council to Discover Gloucester’s September 14 Mug-Up featuring Discover New England Executive Directory Michele Cota, and the October 27 Summer Season in Review, being planned in collaboration with the Tourism Council. Tess also reported that Winter Lights is once again being planned for the holiday season.
The Council discussed compiling a comprehensive calendar to tie together all the holiday season activities and special events happening across the greater Cape Ann region. A working group of Mike, Jeanne, Kimberly Voltero and Amanda Pollock was formed to work on this idea and report back to the full Tourism Council at our September meeting. Amanda shared information about planned fall events and exhibits at Cape Ann Museum, including Indigenous Heritage Day at CAM Green on September 24 and the T.S. Eliot Installation September 24-25. Jeanne shared the news that Cruiseport will be hosting their “Exotic Car Show” on October 23.
We will continue our discussion of these and other tourism-related happenings in upcoming monthly meetings. If you’d like to join us for these Tourism Council meetings – held the third Friday of each month at the Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce offices – please email me at tsapienza@gmail.com
Tony Sapienza
Co-owner, Blue Shutters Beachside Inn
Chair, Tourism Council
