Spring/Summer 2014 Newsletter

How I Came to Mason's Island                     

by Sarah Moore Hallberg

Here are some interesting and fun facts from Sarah Hallberg, regarding life as it was in the early days of Mason's Island. She was kind enough to share this information with me.-  Patty Copp

Sarah Moore Hallberg (or Sary as many know her) came to Mason's Island with her parents (Leonard and Patricia Brown Moore) in 1939, and her brother Leonard Brown Moore (now deceased), Dion Williams Moore (residing on Stanton Lane in Mystic), and her sister, Margot Moore Greener (an Associate member of MIYC) who also lives in Mystic. 

Sary Moor was kind enough to let me be her scribe so we could put her many memories of "Those Good Old Days" on paper for posterity. (FYI - My brother, Peter Goffe Briggs, and I are first cousins to the Moore Clan as our mothers were sisters, and Dear Readers, if you recall, Peter wrote that this is how we found this spectacular place...)

The Moore Family became associate members of the MIYC in 1939.   They bought their summer house on Stanton Lane in Mystic in 1930.   Hugh and Emma Cole, who built and lived at "Crosstrees" in 1938, at the top of Money Point Road, were close friends who introduced them to the yacht club.   The Coles found MI from sailing these waters in previous years.   The hurricane left huge trees across the road, making it necessary to saw the trees in order to reach their house - hence, "Crosstrees".

Sarah came forward with a host of interesting history.  

Money Point Road was home to many artists back then.  In fact, it was often referred to as an "artist's colony."   Here are some names many of you will remember:   Herb Stoops, Hal Ryan, Garret Price, Marney Horn and Y.E. Soderberg.

The original yacht club was built in 1928 and destroyed in the 1938 hurricane.   The yacht club was then rebuilt - singlehandedly - by Bill Herman, known affectionately as "Herm the Worm".   The yacht club was again destroyed in 1954 during Hurricane Carol.  

Included with this article is a picture of the flag in its holder. Sarah pointed out that it is a part of the original that will always be there.  (Plus ca change, Plus la meme chose".)   

The first Lobster Roast - September 6, 1947 - was put on by Jack Horn.  225 lobsters cooked in three galvanized garbage cans in seaweed and salt water.   About 180 people came, Sarah recalls. Jack was our first live-in counselor after the '38 hurricane during the summers of 1947-49 while he was at Princeton.   Sleeping quarters were approx where the commodore's room is today.  Jack Horn's uncle, Schuyler Horn, was one of the founding members of MIYC.

The main sailing focus was the "kitten" class, suggested by Y.E. Soderberg whose friend was the designer.  (Sailing and swimming were the main activities back then.)

The first "counselors" were Sarah Moore (Hallberg) and Josie Cole (Wright) in 1942, 43, and 44.   They raised and lowered the flag, mowed the lawn and cleaned the locker rooms.   They also had a small "nursery school" held on the beach, which they loved.   Only a handful of little ones - very simple, but it filled young mother's needs.

Fresh vegetables were on the schedule every Friday.  "Mr Lamb" from Mystic, would bring a truckload on Fridays and engaged a few young people on the island to take orders and deliver.   It was part of the weekly routine.  

Fewer people in number, there were not many 'rules' at the club in those days.   Everyone knew when 'Aunt Mary' or 'Granny' or 'Uncle someone' was expected.   Certain relatives would visit at the exact same time every year; you could set your calendar by them.   Picnic tables and Mrs. Montini's grinders (no one can equal them) were the order of the day on Thursday, Family Nights.   The beige paper wrapping of the grinders served as placemats.  The young drank coca cola.  The adults might precede supper with a martini or gin and tonic - and the young adults would have a "montini and a beer".   Oh, and some potato chips, of course!

Life was simpler then - but the beauty, comaraderie and the love for this island remain.  

Dear Readers:

We want to receive as much "history" as we can, showing as many connections as possible for readers now and those readers of the future. And we would love to hear your "history" too! This Scribe stands ready to listen, read and assist. You have but to call (860-572-8877) or email (Patrishb99@gmail.com).  Thank you!

MEET THE NEW MEMBERS OF THE MIPOA BOARD

  

 

Bob Martin, Vice President and member of Roads Committee

The Martin family was introduced to Mason's Island by Martin & Nancy Lyons in 1990.  It has been a special summer place to share with our three children, Jamie, Tim & Lissa.   In the last decade, my wife Cindy and I have come to enjoy the year round pleasures of Mason's Island.  We continue to divide our time between Mystic and our home in Summit, NJ.  I am now largely retired from Citigroup and able to spend more time on MI where I enjoy biking, gardening, water sports, golf, the Seaport and visits from our expanding family. 

  

Address:  4 Catbrier Lane    Email:  robertcmartin2@gmail.com     mobile (908) 578-6465

 

 

Jillian Oakes, Director and member of Roads Committee
Jillian has been residing happily on Masons Island since October of 2012, with her husband Bruce and four children, Sasha age 11, Bennett age 10 and twins Maeve and William, who are 6 years old.  She grew up dividing her time between Woodbury, Connecticut and spending summers in Old Lyme, and is a graduate of Salve Regina University in Newport, Rhode Island with a degree jn Business. Prior to starting her family, Jillian worked in Advertising as an Account Executive managing client accounts on the sales side, as well as contributing to the creative team for her clients. In addition to being a full-time mother, she has been active in the shoreline community in supporting its residents by teaching yoga and offering life coaching services at various studios. 

Address:    10 Black Duck Rd.           Email: jillian@7oakes.com    Phone:  (860) 245-4264   (home)    

  

 

Jeff Walker, Director 

Mary Riley, Secretary

Mary Riley moved to Mason's Island from Santa Barbara, California in the fall of 2012 with her husband Van, who serves as superintendent of Stonington Public Schools.  Van and Mary have two children, Sahara and Matthew.  Sahara resides in Ithaca, New York with her husband Christopher and children, Isabella and Charlotte.  Matthew lives with his wife Andrea and little daughter Stella in Santa Barbara, California.  Mary has served on many boards over the past 30 years.   She has been a business consultant in the area of employee work/life balance for the past nine years and prior to that work, served as a career counselor/placement manager at the university level.  Mary is making some progress on her book on work/life balance solutions that address the growing eldercare and childcare stress found among today's employees.  She enjoys the quiet life on Mason's Island and getting to know her wonderful neighbors.

Address:  10 Chippechaug Trail    Email:  vanmaryriley@msn.com   Phone:  (860)415-9808 (home)

If you grow up on the coast, the maritime existence and its shapes, sounds and smells become part of your bones.  At least that is true with me.   And if you come from a family tradition of community service and voluntarism, it is only natural to jump right in and be part of the efforts to make the area in which you live as wonderful as possible.   So when I moved to Masons Island about 4 years ago and had time and energy in abundance, opportunities that fed my interests and helped me feel part of the community opened up quickly.   My career in redevelopment, planning and environmental impacts and my love of the water shaped what drew my attention.

First was my appointment to Stonington's Planning and Zoning Commission.  It was an opportunity to keep touch with my profession, to appreciate the form and function of Stonington, and to contribute whatever I could.  It has been a fantastic and demanding experience.

And next, a modest request from a new friend had me going through industrial records in state offices for a CUSH (Clean Up Sound and Harbors) project, and before I knew it, I was sampling Pequotsepos Cove for water quality and became a member of the board of directors.  As fortune would have it, the founder and president of CUSH stepped down and with trepidation, I accepted the reins. What an amazing ride! 

Fran Hoffman with Chip Osborne of Osborne Organics

CUSH came into existence as a non-profit environmental organization in 2007, due to concern over threats to water quality in the harbors in Stonington.  The target area of CUSH now extends from Westerly to Groton, basically the mainland coastline of Fishers Island Sound.  The organization's mission of "keeping water healthy" is addressed through a four-pronged program:  water quality monitoring, coastal debris cleanups, Sound-Friendly Boating and Sound-Friendly Gardening education and training projects. 

The big drive now is to help people and governmental entities adopt organic or natural lawn, garden and landscaping practices on their property.  We have discovered that some of our coves and inlets are in danger of failing.  This is due to high loads of nitrogen that feed algae, which in turn smothers healthy marine life, leaving some areas unfit for varied marine life and recreational uses and harming our tourist and fishing industries as well as our own quality of life.  Just look at Wequetequok Cove!  

It is broadly recognized that what we put on our land ends up in the water, and that how we manage run-off has a huge impact on water quality.   So CUSH is bringing in national experts to train all of us who manage and design parks, athletic fields, public and private properties in how to get good and healthy results at less cost.   These natural methods avoid using synthetic fertilizers and pesticides that do harm to the water and marine life and expose children, pets and beneficial insects to significant health risks.  In addition, managing run-off from the roof-top down by employing soft engineering methods is more effective, more attractive and less costly than channeling all runoff into concrete drainage structures and culverts.

The main CUSH message is that we all need to learn how to be better stewards of our land and water if we want to keep our breathtakingly beautiful surroundings healthy and thriving.

If you'd like to help out with demonstration projects, educational events, coastal cleanups, promoting use of pumpout services and environmentally safe boat maintenance practices, or want to switch to organic land management, or donate to the organization, please join us! 

to view more about CUSH, click here to go to their website.  

Greetings Stargazers and Welcome to the Spring Summer season!

The longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, and the beginning of summer, is at the solstice at 6:51am EDT on June 21.  I know many Islanders never thought this day would arrive after this winter, so it truly a time of celebration.  

I thought I would talk a little bit about Meteor showers as we have several coming up this summer. Seeing as they don't change much year to year, I posted below a schedule for you to have to refer to in the future.  Note that the best opportunity to witness one of these wondrous events is August 11-13, during the Perseid Shower.

You can see these showers from anywhere in the sky, provided it's clear and dark, and you are away from any sort of bright lighting . Bright moonlight, within a few days of a full Moon, will also reduce the number of meteors that you will see.

You don't need any special equipment. In fact, binoculars do not work for meteor showers. The naked eye is best.

Spread a blanket on the ground and look up in the dark night sky.

• Predawn" means an hour or so before sunrise. It's the best time to view most major showers.
• "Late evening" means between approximately 10 p.m. and midnight.

In general, most major meteor showers are best seen after midnight; many do not even appear until after then. A better time to see them is after 2 a.m., and the best time is about an hour or so just before the sun rises. Geminids, however, can be seen starting earlier, around 9 or 10 p.m. until sunrise. And sometimes Draconids may be visible at nightfall through early evening.

Now, onto the last in the series of the monthly FULL MOON.

Full Moon names date back to the Native Americans living in what is now the northern and eastern United States. The tribes kept track of the seasons by giving distinctive names to each recurring full Moon. Their names were applied to the entire month in which each occurred. There was some variation in the Moon names, but in general, the same ones were used throughout the Algonquin tribes from New England to Lake Superior. European settlers followed that custom and created some of their own names. Since the lunar month is generally only 29 days long, the full Moon dates shift from year to year. Here is a list from the Farmer's Almanac:

Full Strawberry Moon - June.  This name was universal to every Algonquin tribe as the relatively short season for harvesting strawberries comes each year during the month of June. Other cultures named it the Hot Moon for the beginning of the summer heat. However, in Europe (where strawberries aren't native) it was often known as the Full Rose Moon. This year's Strawberry Moon will be on June 13^th at 12:11 am.

The Full Buck Moon - July.  July is normally the month when the new antlers of buck deer push out of their foreheads in coatings of velvety fur. July's moon was also often called the Full Thunder Moon, as thunderstorms are most frequent during this time. Another name was the Full Hay Moon.  The Full Buck Moon will be on July 12^th at 7:25 am.

Full Sturgeon Moon - August.  The fishing tribes are given credit for the naming of this Moon, since sturgeon, a large fish of the Great Lakes and other major bodies of water, were most readily caught during this month. A few tribes knew it as the Full Red Moon because, as the Moon rises, it appears reddish through any sultry haze. It was also called the Green Corn Moon or Grain Moon.  This years Full Sturgeon Moon will be on August 10th at 2:09pm.

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Dear Fellow Stargazers,

This will be the last Stargazer's Column.  Over the last 7 years I believe I have covered everything you might want to know about the stars above, so I thought this would be a good time to retire the column.  I have very much enjoyed sharing my love of the night sky with all of you. 

Keep your eyes open, your outdoor lights down, and enjoy the wonders above.  They are always there to be discovered anew!

Karin Whittemore