SPRING VOLUNTEER ROUND-UP!!

Spring is coming!  And that means the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center is on the lookout for volunteers!!  Summer is almost here and that means a busy 25th ANNIVERSARY YEAR!  They have much to share about the celebration and would like for anyone interested in volunteering to join them on Monday, April 3 for their SPRING VOLUNTEER ROUND-UP!

Volunteers provide a huge investment in the work of the Core Sound Museum.  Volunteers keep the doors open, the lights on, the yard clean, the visitors happy, the mailings stuffed, the light bulbs changed, the students learning, the dishes washed, the tables cleaned, the desserts delicious, the porches cleared, the events successful and the Museum growing every day!  They cannot do it without you - the volunteers!

The museum group hopes you will join them on April 3! Supper at 6:00 pm (their treat) and a meeting at 6:30 to go over the spring/summer/fall plans). 

Please call (252-728-1500) and RSVP by Saturday, April 1.

VOLUNTEERING IS FUN AND REWARDING!

 

PRESS RELEASE - Carteret County GOP

Tuesday, March 21, 2017

A "Make America Great Again" Rally will be held Saturday March 25th from 12 to 3 PM at the Carteret County GOP Headquarters at 5370 K, Highway 70 W, in the Brandywine Shopping Center in Morehead City, NC 28557

The focus of our rally is to honor the military, law enforcement, fire fighters and our first responders.

We are having a hotdog cookout with all proceeds going to disabled veterans. The entry fee to receive a FREE hotdog is to bring a canned good or other household item that a vet and his family can use.

Kids will enjoy a fire truck, great music and a tasty hotdog with all of the fixin's.

The notable lineup includes: Walter B. Jones US Congressman from NC; Norman Sanderson NC State Senator; Ray Clark, author of The Never Ending War; Gary Dean, Radio Personality; Pauline Smith, Country, Blues and Pop singer; and Bob Cavanaugh County Commissioner.

The Eastern Shore Carteret County is a bastion of Republican support and to our knowledge, our MAGA event is the only one in the state of North Carolina.

CONTACT(S)
Michael Bauguess
Janie Wine Burkett
Kent Jackson

GOP Headquarters
5370-K US Hwy 70 W
Morehead City, NC 28557

252-648-8164

King Mackerel & The Blues Are Running!

DON'T FORGET - - THIS SATURDAY AND SUNDAY!!!!!

The award-winning musical "King Mackerel & the Blues are Running ~ Stories of the Carolina Coast" will be presented at Jocelyn Hall located at Carteret Community College April 8 at 7:30 PM and April 9th at 3:00 PM by the Coastal Cohorts: Bland Simpson, Jim Wann & Don Dixon. This event is sponsored by the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center and the North Carolina Coastal Federation. For ticket information and purchase, call 252-728-1500 x21. 

Tickets can also be purchased at NCCOAST

Podcasts Capture Fisheries Voices

A new podcast series featuring the voices of fishermen, scientists, environmental advocates, and resource managers instrumental in shaping the most significant fisheries legislation in NC history is available online.

The 1997 NC Fisheries Reform Act series consists of three episodes capturing the environmental and social conditions that served as impetus for reform, the political path to legislative approval, and perspectives on the act twenty years after it became law.

The story is told using excerpts from oral history interviews conducted last year.  The interviews and a discussion guide suitable for use in classrooms and public forums are also online. 

The podcasts, the discussion guide, and links to the oral history recordings and transcripts can be found on the project page - https://www.raisingthestory.com/nc-fisheries-reform-act-an-oral-history-perspective/ .

 

 

Core Sound Run

Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center will be hosting their Third Annual Core Sound Run, April 1 at "The End of the Road"!  There will be 10K and 5K runs along with Family Fun Walk - so any and everyone can participate.

The event begins at the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center at 9:00 am

Prizes include hand-crafted decoys, hand-painted seashells and sports collectibles.

Register now at this link.

Down East Council meeting

Down East Council is a group organized for the purpose of being a voice for the Down East communities.  Membership consists of residents from each of the thirteen communities and is voluntary.  The group encourages anyone interested to attend the monthly meetings.  

A meeting will be held Tuesday, March 7 at 7:00 pm at the Williston United Methodist Church.  One topic of discussion is the Mountain to Sea Trail which could be beneficial to our communities.

 

Mountain to Sea Trail

Down East Council's next meeting will be Tuesday, March 7 at the Williston UMC beginning at 7 pm.  The program for this meeting will be the Mountain to Sea Trail which will be explained by Smith Raynor who is with the National Park Service.

This trail could be very positive for Down East.  The council encourages Down East residents to attend this meeting.

All Down East residents are encouraged to attend.  The Council represents all Down East communities.  We need residents from all communities to be part of this council.  Presently several communities are not represented.  Please consider attending our monthly meetings for your community! 

 

A Tribute to Commercial Fishermen and Women

Our tribute page to commercial fishermen and women is up!  We wanted to get the page published - and add more photos as they become available!

Commercial fishing is constantly facing many obstacles, so this opportunity to pay tribute to them, as well as, to let them know we are behind them 100%, is extremely important.

Show your support by sharing our website with others!

The page can be found from the menu bar "Commercial Fishing" or by going to this link.

Check by often for updates!

 

Honoring the People of The Commercial Fishing Industry

The commercial fishing industry is facing yet another attack on their ability to bring fresh, local seafood to our tables.  The most recent attack is focusing on shrimping. 

Down East Community News wants to highlight and focus on the many men and women that work daily to provide our seafood.  

We will be creating a special page dedicated to getting to know who the commercial fishing men and women are.  We also want to highlight the beautiful fishing fleet that these folks go to each day - their workplace!

We would like for you to send us pictures of each fisherman and woman.  We also want photos of the boats.  Our goal is to, not just honor these folks for their hard work, but to put faces to commercial fishing industry. 

We will also be out taking pictures too of the fisherman - we want everyone included!

Use the upload links below to submit your photos.  You will be credited for each photo you submit. 

Upload your photos here!
If you have trouble uploading pics at this link, email your photos to lmiller@ec.rr.com

If you have questions, you may contact us from the "Contact" page on our site or call  252-728-4566.

 

PUBLIC HEARING: Harkers Island Bridge Replacement

NCDOT will hold a public meeting on Thursday, March 2, 2017 between the hours of 4 and 7 pm at the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center.  The purpose of the meeting will be to provide a project update and listen to the community's issues, concerns, ideas, and comments regarding the project.  The meeting will be an informal open house and citizens may drop in any time during the meeting hours.  If you are unable to attend in person, information can be found online at http://www.ncdot.gov/projects/harkersislandbridges/

 

 

Taste of Core Sound Celebrates Winter Traditions, Local Seafood and Wild Game

The Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center’s annual winter feast brings to the table generations of Down East culture, talent and cooking expertise with a menu that brings together the rich hunting and fishing traditions of Core Sound.

This year’s winter Taste will honor the founders of the Core Sound Decoy Carvers Guild and the men and women who laid the foundation for what is now the Core Sound Decoy Festival and the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center.

“The 25-year mark for the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center is more than a timeline of events, dollars and buildings, numbers of people and miles t...raveled,” explained Karen Amspacher, Director of the Core Sound Museum. “This anniversary is the recognition of a “revival” of heritage, traditions and community that have resulted in the wonderful facility we have “at the end of the road” on Harkers Island.”

With a menu of old time Down East cooking -- stewed oysters, scallop fritters, stewed duck and rutabaga, seafood casserole, stewed beef with potatoes and carrots, collards, sweet potatoes, light rolls and fig cake – the table is set for an evening of Core Sound history lived and loved.

Core Sound’s waterfowling heritage is always the theme for this February event, and this year will keep that story alive with a focus on the Carvers Guild history and how that organization and the Core Sound Decoy Festival set the course for the past 25 years and the future. Today, Core Sound decoy carving is at the forefront of Down East’s economy, mixing the old traditions with new collectors, carving competitions and events that provides a year round cottage industry for the region.

The evening’s program will feature the last three members of the “Original Seven” founding board members of the Carvers Guild, Wayne Davis, Carl Huff and James Salter, with each of them sharing their memories of those first years when a decoy festival and museum on Harkers Island was just a dream.

A highlight of this event will be the 25th Anniversary exhibition, “Core Sound: Building a Place for the People,” documenting 25 years of programs, events and community work that has created not just a beautiful facility on Harkers Island but also an institution that has carried Core Sound’s story across the state and beyond, including the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, DC.

Pam Morris, curator of this exhibition described it as, “This exhibition is just a glimpse of all the people and places that have been part of this museum’s history, but it will capture the spirit of community that has guided all that we have accomplished and all that we envision for the future.”

The night will conclude with a silent auction of decoys from members of the Decoy Carvers Guild donated in honor of the anniversary that are signed, dated and branded as part of the anniversary celebration. These will be true collectors’ items for those who recognize the talent and traditions Core Sound decoy carvings represent. Special thanks to Corey Lawrence, Brother Gaskill, Ken Humphries, Monty Willis, Lionel Gilgo, Jerry Talton, Jack Gardner, Joe Burney, Robbie Roberson, John Hodge, Bill Boudreaus, Casey Arthur and others for sharing their carvings with us for this special event.

Tickets for this event are available by calling 252.728.1500 or emailing museum@coresound.com. Tickets are $100/couple for members or $125/couple for non-members and that will include an annual membership.

The Daraja Children's Choir Hosted by Atlantic UMC

Atlantic United Methodist Church will be hosting a great and unique event - -  The Daraja African Children's Choir will perform on March 31, as a community event, at 7 pm at the Atlantic Elementary auditorium.  They invite everyone to join them!

If you are on Facebook, check out their page promoting this event here

To learn more about the Daraja Afrian Children's Choir, visit their website.

BINGO - Hosted by Down East Pubic Library

Bingo Night Fundraiser

THE FRIENDS OF THE DOWN EAST LIBRARY

Friday, February 17, 2017

Core Sound Waterfowl Museum

Doors open at 5:30 pm

Bingo Starts at 6 pm Sharp

Early Bird followed by regular Bingo

Tickets $15

$100 Jackpot Tickets Extra

We are a family oriented association, not to be confused with a professional bingo hall, and welcome all for a fun evening.

Proceeds benefit the future growth of the Down East Public Library

Hot dogs, chips, beverage & dessert will be available for purchase

 

Preserving a Way Of Life ~ Coastal Heritage Association

Coastal Heritage Association
Preserving a Way of Life

When we stop and consider the many talents that Down East folks utilized throughout their lives in order to make a living for their families, it is truly remarkable.  Just considering the skills involved to work on the water; in order to thrive as a family, men needed to know how to make and mend nets, build a boat to haul those nets and to bring home the seafood.  There’s also the duck hunters who needed their decoys to attract the ducks.  Such skill was a way of life; but those skills are slowing being lost to future generations as innovations continue to take over and make our lives easier.  But though innovations have helped in so many ways, it has helped to almost relegate to the past the skills that so many learned as kids and took with them throughout their whole lives.

Through the efforts of Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center, the preservation of these skills are being documented through displays, oral histories, and videos of those “old timers” working their nets or building a boat.  The missing link has been trying to find the opportunity to teach young kids these skills.  Time is limited in kids’ lives today – what with school, athletics, and some recreational time on their own.  But hope prevails in the hearts of many to do whatever can be done to help preserve this heritage; there are some folks that understand and have a strong desire to help our young folks learn skills that they will not learn in a classroom.  In fact, teaching these skills enhances what does go on in the classroom.  The NC Coastal Heritage Association is taking on the project of helping to preserve this great heritage. 

The NC Coastal Heritage Association was born out of his desire to maintain the skills of the not-to-distant past through the original efforts of Benjamin Casey.  Ben has been a photojournalist for many years.  His current project is a book titled, Sound People, a book documenting the people of Down East and Core Sound.  Quoting from Mr. Casey’s website, helps to clearly define his purpose for Coastal Heritage Association and his new book:

     "Sound People is a look at the people of one specific region of our coast, Core Sound.
     Folklore has spawned volumes about Core Sounders, their flat-bottomed skiffs and Harkers     
     Island boatbuilders.  

     But what ….
     * defines their character, sustains faith in tomorrow’s catch
     * fuels perseverance wrestling bone-chilling icy winds & oppressive heat
     * instills skills to master the winds?
 
     As small farms on terra firma become extinct, Core Sound heritage clings to
    the nets of fiercely independent farmers harvesting from the sea, but withno
    federal crop subsidies.  Their future is as cloudy as the skies over the sound during a Nor’easter.
 
    When a culture fades away, limited historical documentation of the individuals who    
    defined that culture obscures the future.       
  
    Confucis:  “Study the past if you want to define the future.”

Mr. Casey’s book and the development of Coastal Heritage Association has great implications for Down East and its youth.  The association website, www.coastalheritage.org, highlights their current project.  Heber Guthrie, a Gloucester resident, has been building a boat that will be used as a traveling educational exhibit, both in the water and on a trailer.  Heber has utilized some of the oldest techniques he could identify in the construction with the exception of modern resins, glues and fiberglass.  A powerpoint presentation and video will be developed to use in schools and festivals along with having the boat on display.  Plans are also underway for the boat to be used in local parades to promote coastal culture.  Heber hopes to have the boat complete by February 2017.

Ben explains that he, his wife Carolyn and some neighbors and good friends, together sought a way to support, on a long term basis the work he started with his book Sound People.  Subsequently, 11 people from 3 counties, Craven, Carteret, and Pamlico, came together and formed the NC Coastal Heritage Association, a 501C-3, to support documentation and preservation of the heritage and culture of small coastal communities, which will eventually extend from Corolla to Calabash.  Carteret County is the prime example of the need to have an umbrella for such cultural preservation.

Ben and his wife, Carolyn, would love to move to the Down East area - it's a dream of theirs.   In submitting his book, Sound People, to a publisher, the publisher commented that “It is obvious you love these people.”   Ben’s responded that this observation made him proud and happy. It is evidence that he would fit in just right living Down East!

This is the first part of a series of articles on NC Coastal Heritage Association and their work.  Part 2 will highlight Heber Guthrie and his work on the boat and his continued efforts to promote boat building skills.

Please visit the association’s website where you can subscribe to their newsletter, become a member or simply make a donation. 

LillieChadwick Miller

 
  

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Repairs Are Being Made on the Straits Fishing Pier

Looks like the Straits Fishing Pier is getting the needed repairs as a crew was seen working today.   The pier sustained damage during Hurricane Matthew which put the use of the pier out of commission.   The fishing pier is located across from the Straits Landing Boat Ramp. 

The fishing pier has been a very positive recreational fishing area.  Throughout the year, fishermen, young and old, male and female, have enjoyed hours of fishing on the pier.  Down East Kayaks and TackleCo. has been fielding phone calls recently as people havebeen inquiring into whether the pier was open! 

Thanks to the Carteret County Parks & Recreational Department for maintaining the facility.  It is greatest appreciated and used by many. 

A guard light was installed last summer to provide lighting during evening hours.  Down East Council was instrumental in helping to coordinate efforts with Carteret-Craven EMC and the county to get the light installed.

 

 

Community Nights at Core Sound Museum

Community Nights are back at Core Sound Museum!  The first community night was held January 23 featuring Davis Shore led by historian, Rodney Kemp.  The next community night will be held Monday, February 27 featuring Salter Path!

A covered-dish meal will begin at 6:00 pm following by the community discussion at 7:00 pm

Please spread the word!  These community nights have been well attended and enjoyed by all. 

The calendar for the remainder of 2017 is as follows:

March 27:  Williston - Smyrna - Marshallberg
April 24:  Portsmouth
May 22:  Stacy - Sea Level
June 26: Otway - Bettie
July 24:  Straits - Gloucester
August 28: Diamond City
September 25:  Atlantic - Cedar Island
October 23:  Promise Land
November 27:  Harkers Island


 

Atlantic Fifth Grade Learn Boat Building from Mr. Heber

“To be ready for tomorrow, remember today and yesterday.”  ~Stevie Wonder

Fifth graders from Atlantic Elementary School make field trip to Little Skiff Boat Boatworks in Marshallberg.

One part of the class assembled parts of a Core Sound workboat as others shaped and formed a traditional oar used on workboats.  Heber Guthrie, veteran boat builder from Gloucester, had pre-cut the boat parts for the students to assemble.  He provided hands-on instruction for the two-hour session.  Guthrie, a member of the NC Coastal Heritage Association, will be conducting a series of summer camps for both young and old to learn boat building skills presented within a framework of lessons on coastal heritage.

Editorially speaking, having been involved in photojournalism since 1967, a half century of experience, like Farmers Insurance, I know a thing or two because I’ve seen a thing or two. 

Over the last 50 years, I have either photographed events like today or actually been the person facilitating such an event.  I have never seen better behaved 5th graders in my entire career, no noise, no rambling around, and this workshop provided more opportunity for rambling than one could imagine.  Students remained together in a group and stayed focused on the instruction offered about the task at hand.  Questions were sensible, no wisecracks.

I have conducted this, in part, to be the consequence of Heber’s charisma, knowledge about the subject matter, and wisdom in his use of effective ways to communicate with the students, not just on the object parts of the field trip, but also on the subjective references to heritage and Down East history.  Credit has to also be given to the teacher and parents of these children. 

Why I plead for support for the NC Coastal Heritage Association. ...
I hope you will see a personal benefit in joining this organization and supporting its projects. Visit nccoastalheritage.org. You'll be glad you did

This article and accompanying photos were contributed by Benjamin Casey of Arapahoe, NC

 
 
 

 

 

Core Sound Waterfowl Museum and Heritage Center Launches Port Light

Core Sound Waterfowl Museum and Heritage Center Launches Port Light

A project about the Saltwater Highways of the Outer and Inner Banks

"My grandmother said the most lonesome thing she ever heard was a rooster crowing on a freight boat early in the morning." — Al Schmitt, Great-Grandson of a Freight Boat Captain

The Core Sound Waterfowl Museum and Heritage Center announces the launch of Port Light, an engaging and interactive multimedia online exhibition that explores the life of historic boats on North Carolina’s Outer and Inner Banks. The project captures the rich history of the trade, civic, and kin connections that extended across the sounds of North Carolina from the Outer Banks to mainland ports. From the first tenuous Colonial settlements to the viable fishing villages of the early to mid-twentieth century, boats were the primary mode of transportation and key to the development of early America. Port Light brings to life the forgotten stories of 12 individual boats through written historical summary, oral history audio, and archival photography. The digital exhibition features an interactive map that details the routes of the boats.

Port Light is suitable for all audiences, especially those with local connections or visitors seeking historical perspectives, but was also specifically designed as an educational resource for classroom use. Curriculum guides tailored towards the NC Standard course of study — written specific for the 8th grade social studies curriculum — can be used can be used comprehensively as a unit or abbreviated by selecting preferred components.

"Core Sound’s commitment to collecting and sharing the voices of our coastal communities with visitors, long-time residents, natives and even folks who have never experienced this part of the world, is at the heart of this collective effort, " Karen Amspacher, Director of the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center. "We are especially determined to make sure the next generation learns to appreciate these wonderful accounts of a different way of life along this coast and that is why the curriculum component of this project is so important. We sincerely hope that teachers across the state will incorporate these primary sources in their classroom."

8th grade Manteo Middle School teacher, Mary Ann Hodges, observed that her students "had fun finding out lesser known history about this area" while using the Port Light resources and lesson plans in her classroom. "Several students were inspired to go beyond the assigned project and created community stories that reflected their own family histories. The link between home and school is becoming stronger, and that's always a good thing."

Port Light was funded by the National Park Service Maritime Heritage Program. Principal researchers were Susan West, a fisheries specialist and journalist from Buxton, North Carolina, Barbara Garrity-Blake, a cultural anthropologist from Gloucester, North Carolina, and Karen Amspacher, Director of the Core Sound Museum. Project partners include the Bit & Grain creative project team that designed the digital exhibit and Dare County, North Carolina, School Media Specialist Mollee Holloman, who developed the Port Light curricula for North Carolina 8th graders.