Press Releases

The Watershed Ride to be held Sunday, October 3

Southeastern Ma., September 3, 2010: In four weeks, The Coalition for Buzzards Bay will hold its fourth annual Watershed Ride. It's not only one of our most important fundraising events of the year, but it's also one of the best cycling events of its kind in the region and we'd love for you to join us.

Known for its bucolic scenery, the 75-mile Watershed Ride and the NEW 35-mile option are timed to coincide with the beautiful foliage and quiet roads of early fall. The 75-mile route begins at Horseneck Beach in Westport and the 35-mile route begins in Rochester. Both routes end with a festive barbeque party at Quissett Harbor in beautiful Woods Hole.

Cyclists are fully supported with snacks and refreshments at rest stops and lunch at Rochester's Eastover Farm. Bike mechanics provide on-the-road support and first aid is available when necessary. At the finish line, a celebration awaits, with an abundance of food, drinks, and best of all - cheering fans. Return transportation via the Green Shuttle is also available.

Don't miss out on this one-of-a-kind event - it's a fun and easy way to help save Buzzards Bay. REDUCED REGISTRATION FEE We want everyone to be able to participate, so we've cut the registration fee in half to only $30 in addition to a $300 fundraising minimum. Tell all your friends. Registration closes Thursday, September 30th at 5 p.m.

We've posted an interactive route map and a bunch of other helpful resources to make your Ride as fun and successful as possible. You can also set up your own fundraising page, post photos and send personal messages to your fans. Register and learn more at: their website.

Coastsweep 2010 : Help keep our beaches clean!

Westport, Ma., September 2, 2010: Volunteers with trash collected from Gooseberry.

For the past twenty years, Massachusetts volunteers have scoured beaches, river banks, marshes, and the seafloor to pick up trash and record information about the types of trash being collected. These volunteers are part of COASTSWEEP, the Commonwealth’s annual coastal cleanup program, organized by the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management and the Urban Harbors Institute of the University of Massachusetts Boston.

Last year, over 2,200 COASTSWEEP volunteers collected over 22,000 pounds of trash from beaches, marshes, rivers, ponds, and the seafloor. This year, volunteers in Westport will be participating in a COASTSWEEP cleanup at Gooseberry Island, East Beach, and Cherry & Webb Beach. On Saturday, September 19th from 10 A.M. to noon the Westport River.

Watershed Alliance and volunteers will be at these locations removing trash and from the beaches. Please help us clean up our beautiful Westport beaches. Refreshments, trash bags, trash pickers, and rubber gloves will be provided. Contact Charlie Gerrior at (508) 636-3016 or by e-mail. You can learn more about the COASTSWEEP program by visiting the COASTSWEEP website.

Book Signing and Discussion Hosted by Partners Village Store and the Fall River Public Library

Fall River, August 25, 2010: Fall River Public Library in conjunction with Partners Village Store welcome as their next guest Rebecca Chace, author of Leaving Rock Harbor for a book signing and discussion on Thursday, September 9th at 6:30 pm at the Fall River Public Library, Main Branch Meeting Room, 104 North Main Street, Fall River, MA.

An unforgettable coming-of-age story and a luminous portrayal of a dramatic era of American history. Leaving Rock Harbor takes readers into the heart of New England mill town in the early twentieth century.

Inspired in part by Chace’s family history, Frankie’s journey to adulthood takes us through the First World War and into the Jazz Age, followed by the Great Depression—from rags to riches and back again. Her life parallels the evolution of the mill town itself, and the lost promise of a boomtown that everyone thought would last forever. Leaving Rock Harbor is a New York Times Book Review Editor’s Choice.

Rebecca Chace is the author of Chautauqua Summer, a New York Times Notable Book, and the novel Capture the Flag, which was recently adapted into a short film. Chace is also the author of several plays, has contributed to The New York Times Magazine and The New York Times Book Review, among other publications, and teaches at Bard College and the MFA Creative Writing Program at City College. She lives in New York City.

The audience will have an opportunity after the talk to ask questions, share comments, purchase a copy of her signed books, and have refreshments! For more information call Partners at 508-636-2572.

Frank and McGovern Announce Critical Step To Blocking LNG Facility

Massachusetts, August 19, 2010: Congressmen Barney Frank and Jim McGovern today announced that they have made a very significant and perhaps decisive step forward in efforts to block the construction of a Liquified Natural Gas terminal on the Taunton River in Fall River. McGovern and Frank, along with Senators John Kerry and Scott Brown, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, Rhode Island Governor Donald Carcieri, Fall River Mayor Michael Flanagan, and virtually all state and local government officials representing the Fall River area, have strongly opposed the LNG proposal and have fought it since it was first introduced eight years ago.

The mechanism by which Frank and McGovern in the House, working with Senators Kerry and Brown in the Senate, will help definitively end consideration of the LNG project is through a provision Frank and McGovern have written for the Energy and Water Appropriations bill in the House. The provision would ban any federal funds from being used to further the LNG project in any way, including a prohibition on using funds even to advance the permitting process. If the bill is signed into law, the long fight to stop the LNG terminal will effectively be over.

The House subcommittee with jurisdiction over this part of the Energy and Water bill has given strong assurances to Frank and McGovern that a close version of the language will be included in the larger bill. It would be highly unusual for this bill, which governs energy and water spending across the country, to fail to pass the House.

Congressmen Frank and McGovern are working with Senators Kerry and Brown to see that the provision is included in the Senate version of the bill. The language submitted by McGovern and Frank follows below. The final language will not be released by the committee immediately, but it will be made available as soon as it is public.

“No funds made available by this Act may be used to take any action to authorize the construction of any liquefied natural gas terminal or its infrastructure to be located within 5 miles of the City of Fall River, Massachusetts, or to authorize vessels carrying liquefied natural gas to serve such terminal.”

Today’s announcement was made at a press conference at the beginning of a walking tour of the economic development area in Fall River.

A brief summary of efforts to block construction of the LNG terminal in Fall River: Over 8 years ago Weavers Cove LNG proposed constructing a Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) facility in Fall River, Massachusetts, a city represented by Congressman Barney Frank and Congressman Jim McGovern.

This facility has been opposed at every level of local, state, and federal government. The proposed facility would be located in a densely populated urban area and would receive LNG in large vessels after those ships make their way through over 17 nautical miles of navigationally challenging inland waterways, including the Narragansett Bay, Mount Hope Bay, and the Taunton River. This route will require several complex navigational maneuvers in order to pass under the bridges in the area.

In fact, the Coast Guard already had concluded that “extraordinary maneuvers” would be required to navigate the river, leaving no margin for navigational error, and it in fact denied the company's first two transit plans. In response to Coast Guard rejections, the company modified its proposal with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and proposed a 4 mile cryogenic pipeline culminating in a large LNG platform berth in the middle of Mt. Hope Bay, which straddles the Rhode Island border.

The project has had strong bipartisan opposition including former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, current Governor Deval Patrick, and Rhode Island Governor Donald Carcieri, as well as the Attorneys General and the entire Congressional delegations of both states.

What Are You Reading?

Westport, Ma. August 18, 2010: Partners Village Store & Kitchen is hosting "What Are You Reading" on Monday, August 13th from 3:00 to 4:30 pm. Join your friends, neighbors and the Partners staff in lively conversation and information exchange. What are the books you love…and love to hate?? Partners staff will start off the discussion with some of the titles they have read and enjoyed. We hope to hear your ideas about what should be added to our “must read” lists. Pick a complimentary copy our of our Advanced Reader selections to take home.

Event is free of charge, and coffee and tea will be available. For more information call 508-636-2572

Children’s Reading Circle on hiatus until September

Westport, Ma. August 12, 2010: Partners Village Store’s Children's Summer Reading Circle will hold it's LAST session on Thursday, August 19th. The weekly children's reading and activity hour, geared toward preschoolers, will resume on Thursday, September 16th. This is a free event and all are welcome!

For more information contact Partners at 508-636-2572.

“Walk, Rock & Roll at The Royal” to benefit Community Nurse & Hospice Care

Southeastern Ma. August 3, 2010: Community Nurse & Hospice Care (CNHC) and The Royal of Fairhaven have partnered together for a new annual family-oriented fundraiser called “Walk, Rock & Roll at The Royal” on Sunday, September 19, 2010 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. This is a rain or shine event.

The 3-mile walk will start at The Royal of Fairhaven, located at 184 Main Street, and will weave through historic Poverty Point in Fairhaven, highlighting colonial points of interest along the way. It will end back at The Royal of Fairhaven, where everyone will gather under the tent to enjoy live entertainment by Blu Lobsta, refreshments and foot massages by Julie Rose on the grounds of their newly renovated facility. In addition, youth activities will include face painting and animal balloons.

All registered walkers raising $50 or more will receive an Official 2010 Walk, Rock & Roll at The Royal t-shirt. The team with the most spirit and the individual and team who have the highest pledge totals will receive prizes.

Thank you to the generosity of our sponsors, which will allow 100% of the proceeds to benefit the hospice program at Community Nurse & Hospice Care. Our sponsors include: Community Nurse Private Care, Fairhaven Neighborhood News, The Standard-Times, Barley Family Healthcare & Rehabilitation, Enos Home Oxygen & Medical Supply, Inc., Geriatric Medical, Home Instead Senior Care, Sanders & Associates LLC, St. Anne’s Credit Union, Tender Hearts Home Health Care, Westport Chiropractic.

For pledge forms or more information, please call or visit the following locations: Linda Quinn, CNHC, 62 Center St, Fairhaven, 508-992-6278, www.communitynurse.com or Judy Brown, The Royal of Fairhaven, 184 Main St., Fairhaven, 508-685-6425 or Delia Braz, CNHC, 400 Slocum Rd., Dartmouth, 508-999-0730.