Program looks to catch some rays and readers

Derek McGuiness of South Boston, holding his 4-year-old daughter, Joanne, yesterday, said he was looking forward to the beach events. (Evan Richman/Globe Staff)

Against the backdrop of a setting sun, Kathy Lafferty envisions storytellers reading to crowds of attentive children on summer evenings on Carson Beach.

"We try to share with parents and children the importance of literacy at a very young age," said Lafferty, acting director of South Boston Neighborhood House, a nonprofit community services center. "We have beautiful beaches in South Boston, so we thought if we could bring programs we do to the beaches, it would bring people to these beautiful spaces and get more people involved."

The program was conceived by members of South Boston Neighborhood House, one of about a dozen community or beach organizations awarded grants yesterday to put on programs this summer at beaches from Nahant to Hull. Save the Harbor/Save the Bay, a nonprofit advocacy group, awarded the $28,000 in grants. The money was provided by The Boston Foundation with a contribution from National Grid.

Lafferty said the Carson Beach evening reading program would be a season-long series featuring books with a beach theme, including "Curious George Goes to the Beach" and "Clifford the Big Red Dog: The Missing Beach Ball." Performers will dress up as characters from the books. Children will also have an opportunity to participate in arts and crafts. Pizza, hot dogs, and ice cream will be pro vided, Lafferty said. Every family will receive a copy of the book read that evening.

The grants were part of the Metropolitan Beaches Commission's recommendation to "bring the beaches to life." In a report released last year, the commission made recommendations for the state to improve the 14 metropolitan ocean beaches. The state has spent $4 billion since the late 1980s cleaning up Boston Harbor.

"It's clear people want to use the beaches and use them more regularly," said Patty Foley, president of Save the Harbor/Save the Bay. "Implementing these programs is a first step in improving the quality of life here in Boston and around the region. What good is clean water if people get to the beach and have nothing to do?"

The grants also help fund inaugural programs at other locations, including a kite festival on Revere Beach and festivals on Savin Hill and Malibu beaches that will offer games, music, canoeing, and sailing. Established programs, such as the fourth annual Endless Summer Festival on Nantasket Beach, also received grant support.

"This programming is part of the world-class experience we want beachgoers to have," said Richard K. Sullivan Jr., commissioner of the state Department of Conservation and Recreation. The department also made $15,000 available for setup and other costs that organizations would have to pay to the DCR when putting on programs.

Although temperatures nearly reached the freezing point yesterday, the sunshine drew some parents and children to Joe Moakley Park across from Carson Beach. Derek McGuinness of South Boston said he looks forward to bringing his children to the reading series because it will combine their enthusiasm for reading and for playing on the beach.

"When I was younger [reading] was boring," said McGuinness, who was watching his son, Paul, 6, and daughter, Joanne, 4, play in the park. "It'd make it interesting. It's a great thing."

Members of Save the Harbor/Save the Bay said that if the reading program becomes a popular attraction, it could spread to other area beaches.

"It's a terrific event," said Bruce Berman, director of strategy and communication for Save the Harbor/Save the Bay. "I think we're going to be starting a tradition of reading on our beaches."