By Terri Ogan, Globe Correspondent

The 101st Airborne Division Association in Massachusetts, together with local businesses and private donors, is hosting a fishing trip out of Newburyport for area veterans and wounded soldiers of the North Shore.

The trip is being held Tuesday July 9 around 9 a.m. The boat is set to depart from Bridge Lane in Salisbury, and is expected to stay out until 3 p.m. The rain date will be Wednesday July 10 at the same time and location.

This is the second year the 101st Airborne Division Association is hosting the event.

About 35 veterans and soldiers from the area are expected to attend.

In addition, the organization is planning a whale watch out of Gloucester in August for families of those deployed over seas and families of deceased veterans.

The date and time of the Gloucester whale watch has yet to be announced.

Terri Ogan can be reached at oganglobe@gmail.com, or follow her on Twitter.

By Terri Ogan, Globe Correspondent

First grader Nicholas Blanchette from the Francis T. Bresnahan school in Newburyport was one of 12 regional winners of the Massachusetts School Building Authority’s (MSBA) annual “My Ideal School” contest.

The contest, which was sponsored by Sovereign Bank, asks first graders to draw their ideal school and write a short essay describing three things they love about their school.  Over 2,500 first grade students from across the Commonwealth participated.
 
"I have a telescope. I have stained glass windows. I have porches,” Nicholas wrote in his essay. “My school will have a science dome so we will do a lot of experiments."

“We are proud to work with the State Treasurer’s Office and the School Building Authority to be the primary sponsor and supporter of such a positive event over the past seven years,” said Pat Packard, Sovereign/Santander director of government banking in a recent announcement. “Our combined efforts have helped to make for many happy first graders, parents and family members.”
 
Winners were awarded checks from Sovereign Bank, which has sponsored the event for the past seven years.

Jack McCarthy, executive director of the MSBA, said "the primary goal of the ‘My Ideal School’ contest is to promote discussion among students and teachers as to how thoughtful design and construction of schools in Massachusetts supports student learning."

The 12 winners also received awards at a State House ceremony attended by State Treasurer Steven Grossman, chair of the board of directors of the MSBA. 

“We were delighted to receive thousands of submissions for the My Ideal School contest and were deeply impressed by the creativity and enthusiasm of students from across the Commonwealth,” Grossman said in a recent statement. “This contest is a great opportunity for us to engage schoolchildren because it offers them the chance to demonstrate their ideas and imagination in a thoughtful and artistic way."

Terri Ogan can be reached at oganglobe@gmail.com, or follow her on
.

We're obsessed with coffee over at Boston.com, so wanted to put together Coffee Week to celebrate all things java!

New interactives, maps, and galleries for the caffeine-obsessed will be unveiled each day this week. On Sunday, we wrote and mapped out how Dunkin' Donuts and Starbucks are battling for coffee supremacy in Massachusetts. Today, we took a look at the national trend.

We wanted to find a way to feature local independent shops that have also developed a passionate following. Sadly, we still couldn't fit everyone in (but we've got something Wednesday that might go toward fixing that). We didn't want to leave anyone out.

By Matt Rocheleau, Town Correspondent

The MBTA launched a pilot program this month that allows passengers to bring bikes aboard commuter rail trains between certain stations on the Newburyport-Rockport line during morning and afternoon rush hour travel times.

The T’s general policy has been to ban bikes aboard its commuter rail trains during weekday “peak commute periods,” a policy that remains in effect for all other commuter rail lines.

Times when bikes are allowed are designated by a bike symbol on train schedules.

The pilot program on the Newburyport-Rockport lines began on May 13 and is scheduled to run through Friday, October 25.

On the Rockport line, bikes will be allowed to travel on trains between Rockport, Gloucester, West Gloucester, Manchester, Beverly Farms, Prides Crossing, and Montserrat stations on the following inbound peak service trains: 104, 106, 108, and 110; and on the following outbound peak service trains: 127, 129, 131, and 133.

No bikes will be allowed to go beyond Montserrat Station.

On the Newburyport line, bikes will be allowed to travel on trains between Newburyport, Rowley, Ipswich, Hamilton/Wenham, and North Beverly stations on the following inbound peak service trains: 152, 154, 156, 158, and 162; and on the following outbound peak service trains: 177, 181, 183, and 185.

No bikes will be allowed to go beyond North Beverly Station.

Passengers with bikes are required to board at the mini-high platform, entering one of the last two coaches closes to the engine and place their bike in the designated area indicated by the conductor.

Passengers with bikes should get off the train first or as directed by a train crew member, though preference will always be given to wheelchair passengers. If there is not enough room for wheelchair passengers and passengers with bikes, the passengers with bikes will not be permitted to board the train with their bikes.

The North Shore Transportation Management Association asked the MBTA to try the revised bike policy on a trial basis, and the MBTA agreed, said T spokesman Joe Pesaturo.

When asked if the program might be tested on other commuter rail lines, Pesaturo said: “Right now, the MBTA’s primary focus is to see how the pilot program fares on the Newburyport/Rockport Line.”

The association said in a statement it worked with the T for several months to develop the program.

Steve Roberge, a member of the association’s board of directors who works as a health and safety manager at Axcelis Technologies in Beverly, praised the initiative.

“As a bike/train commuter from Cambridge to Beverly, the current policy allows me to take advantage of the commuter rail for the majority of my commute from Cambridge to Axcelis, then bike the approximately 3 miles from the Beverly Depot to Axcelis,” he said in a statement. “The new pilot program will allow our employees from the North Shore to take similar advantage of this bike/train commute mode allowing them to reduce their car use, lighten their carbon footprint, and improve their fitness level by including biking for part of their commute.”

The T also started a new policy on May 1 requiring cyclists to register either a CharlieCard or a Bike CharlieCard to access any of the T’s Pedal & Park facilities. Registration is free and is designed to further enhance security at the bike parking locations. To register, click here.

For more details about the Newburyport-Rockport pilot bike program, click here.

For more information about the T’s general bike policies, click here.

E-mail Matt Rocheleau at mjrochele@gmail.com.
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For more news and stories about the MBTA, follow @LifeontheMBTA on Twitter, here.
For the latest updates about your community, follow some of our local neighborhood, city and town Twitter accounts, here.

By Laura Gomez, Globe Correspondent

Young Massachusetts artists and writers were honored with national medals— 57 for art and 35 for writing— in the 90th Annual National Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, according to a press release.

All the Massachusetts students qualified for this national competition by winning Gold Keys from the Boston Globe Scholastic Art & Writing Awards contest.

With 92 local students honored, Massachusetts was the country’s fourth largest medal winner. These winning students, grades 7-12, represented 58 schools, and 44 cities and towns in the state.

With 10 awards, Buckingham Browne & Nichols in Cambridge ranked first among Massachusetts schools.

Of the Gold Medal winners:

• Victoria White, a junior at Milton Academy, won “Best in Grade” for her poetry


• Lim Chungha from the Walnut Hill School in Natick won an American Vision Award for painting


• Imogene Robinson, from the Governor’s Academy in Byfield, won an American Voices Award for a short story


• Anna Xie, from the O’Bryant School Math/Science in Boston, won a $10,000 scholarship for her writing portfolio. Only five such writing scholarships were awarded nationally.

Winning students from around the country will be honored at a ceremony in Carnegie Hall in New York on May 31, 2013.

Winning artwork will remains on exhibit in the State Transportation Building, 10 Park Plaza, Boston, through April 19. It will be open to the public for free weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; closed Saturdays; and open Sunday from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Here is a complete list of the Massachusetts winners:

Acton-Boxborough Regional High School, Acton

Amanda Davies, 12th grade, "Lost" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Oakmont Regional High School, Ashburnham

Meghan Garven, 12th grade, (Category- Art Portfolio)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Tanner Gauvin ,11th grade, "Think" (Category- Art, Painting)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Avon Middle High School, Avon

Ivanna Depina, 10th grade, "Pink" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Quabbin Regional High School, Barre

Rachel Perry, 10th grade, "The Piggy Bank" (Category- Art, Ceramics & Glass) Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Allyson St. Pierre, 10th grade, "Take Out" (Category- Art, Ceramics & Glass)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Belmont High School, Belmont

Kimberly Paquette,10th grade, "Reaching" (Category- Art, Painting)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Talin Tahajian, 11th grade, "Chrysanthemums," "Of Blood and Butter," "The time is ticking," "A Beautiful Commotion," "Carrion" (Category- Writing, Poetry)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Amy Wang, 10th grade, "Wang In A Blanket" (Category- Art, Painting)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Samantha Xu, 10th grade, "Royal Flush" (Category- Art, Painting)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Winthrop L Chenery Middle School, Belmont

Hayoung Jo, 8th grade, "Untitled" (Category- Art, Drawing)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Paul Roche, 8th grade, "Six Eye Portrait" (Category- Art, Drawing)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Julia Siegel, 8th grade, "Indigo with Flower Pot" (Category- Art, Drawing)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Boston College High School, Boston

Alexander Bailey, 12th grade, "The Happiness Salesman" (Category- Writing, Short Story)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Boston Latin, Boston

Dara Lin, 8th grade, "Confictura Bella" (Category- Writing, Science Fiction/Fantasy) Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Cole Wennerholm, 7th grade, "Poverty" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Commonwealth School, Boston

Melanie Abrams, 12th grade, "What She Learned" (Category- Writing, Flash Fiction) Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Francesco Drake, 10th grade, "Green Bottle" (Category- Art, Ceramics & Glass)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

International School of Boston, Boston

Louis Block, 12th grade, (Category- Writing Portfolio, Writing Portfolio)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

O'Bryant School Math/Science, Boston

Anna Xie, 12th grade, (Category- Writing Portfolio, Writing Portfolio)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Brockton High School, Brockton

Kevin Francois, 12th grade, "Shock And Awe" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Kate Cutlip, 12th grade, "untitled" (Category- Art, Printmaking)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Southfield School, Brookline

Ji Hyun Yeo, 8th grade, "Reflections Of Twisted Time Phase" (Category- Art, Drawing) Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Home School, Burlington

Jinsung Kim, 8th grade, "My House" (Category- Art, Drawing)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Burlington High School, Burlington

Christopher Coe, 12th grade, (Category- Art Portfolio, Art Portfolio)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal with Distinction

Marshall Simonds Middle School, Burlington

Alyssa Healey, 8th grade, "2 Of A Kind" (Category- Art, Drawing)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

The Governor's Academy, Byfield

Myles Badger, 12th grade, "The Cotton Gin Curse" (Category- Writing, Personal Essay/Memoir)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Imogene Robinson, 12th grade, "The Cookbook" (Category- Writing, Short Story)
Awards: Gold Key American Voices Medal, Gold Medal

Helen Shi, 10th grade, "Clinging On Death" (Category- Art, Ceramics & Glass)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Buckingham Browne & Nichols School, Cambridge

Alberto Ancona, 11th grade, "True Happiness" (Category- Writing, Science Fiction/Fantasy)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Wenli Bao, 12th grade, "Soundproof" (Category- Writing, Personal Essay/Memoir)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Wenli Bao, 12th grade (Category- Writing Portfolio, Writing Portfolio)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal with Distinction

Harry Bator, 10th grade, "Dimmer;" "How It Was Done;" "Scorn;" "Monument" (Category- Writing, Poetry)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Ami Clifford, 12th grade, "Joy Division" (Category- Writing, Short Story)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Sarah Dahl, 10th grade, "Bus" (Category- Writing, Short Story)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Jake Kuhn, 12th grade, "Holy Cow! A Profile of Dairy Farmer and Cow Caretaker Edgar Pless" (Catergory- Writing, Journalism)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Caitlin McCarey, 12th grade, "The Doctor Of Delight: A Profile Of Jay Stewart" (Catergory- Writing, Journalism)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Margery Tong, 12th grade, (Category- Writing Portfolio, Writing Portfolio)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal with Distinction

Margery Tong, 12th grade, "Mori, The Lefty" (Category- Writing, Journalism)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Carlisle School, Carlisle

Daria Pietropaolo, 8th grade, "Hole In The Blanket," "Leaf," "Fence," "Monster Mud," "Yola's Little Italian Dictionary" (Category- Writing, Poetry)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Concord-Carlisle High School, Concord

Emilie Carr, 12th grade, (Category- Art Portfolio, Art Portfolio)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Hannah Ryde, 12th grade, (Category- Art Portfolio, Art Portfolio)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal with Distinction

Alexandra Mackenzie, 12th grade, "Hydrant" (Category- Art, Painting)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Home School, Concord

Miranda Cashman, 12th grade, (Category- Writing Portfolio, Writing Portfolio)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

St. John's Preparatory School, Danvers

Liam Viles ,11th grade, "Untitled" (Category- Art, Printmaking)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Noble and Greenough School, Dedham

Akshan Dealwis, 11th grade, "When The Gods Leave" (Category- Writing, Personal Essay/Memoir)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Irena Maria Maier11th grade, "Karamazov Shock: My Non-epiphanic Epiphany" (Category- Writing, Personal Essay/Memoir)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Everett High School, Everett

Kevin Angulo, 12th grade, "Boylston Puddle Reflection" (Category- Art, Painting)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Paul Vu, 11th grade, "Racing At The Speed Of Light" (Category- Art, Photography) Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

John F Kennedy Middle School, Florence

Mairead Blatner, 8th grade, "Pro Bono" (Category- Writing, Science Fiction/Fantasy)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Luke Haas, 8th grade, "Stock Of The Season" (Category- Writing, Humor)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Hunakai Studio of Fine Art, Foxborough

Elizabeth Civetti, 9th grade, "Apples" (Category- Art, Drawing)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Georgetown Middle/High School, Georgetown

Hannah Olbash, 12th grade, "Dark Walk" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School, Hamilton

Justin Finkenaur, 12th grade, "Elephant" (Category- Art, Sculpture)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Notre Dame Academy School, Hingham

Anya Petit, 12th grade, (Category- Art Portfolio, Art Portfolio)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Alaina Taylor, 10th grade, "Untitled" (Category, Writing, Flash Fiction)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Performing and Fine Arts High School, Lawrence

Elissa Salas, 11th grade, "Self Portrait" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Jonas Clarke Middle School, Lexington

Eva Kjelsberg, 8th grade, "Alone" (Category: Art, Digital Art)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Lexington Montessori School, Lexington

Alexander Lehr, 8th grade, "The Empty Men" (Category- Writing, Science Fiction/Fantasy)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

William Diamond Middle School, Lexington

Catherine Wang, 8th grade, "Chiesa Farm" (Category- Art, Drawing)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Longmeadow High School, Longmeadow

Kathryn Higham, 12th grade, "Sharpie Dress" (Category- Art, Fashion?
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Brookwood School, Manchester

Elizabeth Irvin, 8th grade, "Permanent" (Category- Writing, Flash Fiction)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Sebastian Carpenter, 8th grade, "Insect I" (Category- Art, Sculpture)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Manchester Essex Regional High School, Manchester

Julia Paccone, 11th grade, "Organic Glamour" (Category- Art, Fashion)
Awards: Gold Key, American Visions Nominee | Silver Medal

Marshfield High School, Marshfield

Lily Celino, 10th grade, "Shoes" (Category- Art, Drawing)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Melrose Middle School, Melrose

Gerard Frasca, 8th grade, "Landscape, Portugal" (Category: Art, Drawing)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Milton Academy, Milton

Olivia Atwood, 12th grade, "The Conservative Synagogue At 11 East 11th Street," "Burglary at 88 Allerton," "Senior Year in Five Haikus," "La Guerra Sucia." (Category- Writing, Poetry)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Jessica Blau, 12th grade, "Tectonics," "The Things I'll Never Tell My Mother," "Mermaids" (Category- Writing, Poetry)
Awards: Gold Key, AVN | Gold Medal

Jonathan Esty, 12th grade, "On the Removal of the Bald Eagle" (Category- Writing, Poetry)
Awards: Gold Key/Silver Medal

Sarah Hombach, 12th grade, "An Agriculture Major" (Category- Writing, Poetry)
Awards: Gold Key/Gold Medal

Victoria White, 11th grade, "Oncology," "Blackberry Winter," "Hardening," "Past Tense" (Category- Writing, Poetry)
Awards: Gold Key | Best in Grade, Gold Medal

Walnut Hill School, Natick

Emily Kessler, 11th grade, "Monopoly" (Category- Writing, Personal Essay/Memoir)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Chungha Lim, 11th grade, "Portrait Of Conveyance" (Category- Art, Painting)
Awards: Gold Key, AVN | American Visions Medal, Silver Medal

Needham High School, Needham

Noah Baker, 12th grade, "Uncle John #11" (Category: Art, Mixed Media)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Newburyport High School, Newburyport

Jillian Conway, 11th grade, "Untitled" (Category: Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Newton North High School, Newton

Audrey Derobert, 12th grade, "1 In 8 Teenagers Have Self Harmed" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Xiang Ding, 12th grade, "Beach" (Category: Art, Painting)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Newton South High School, Newton

Olivia Hamilton, 11th grade, "Tractor" (Category: Art, Sculpture)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Algonquin Regional High School, Northborough

Jessica Sheldon, 12th grade, "Moonlit Adventure" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Landmark School, Pride's Crossing, Beverly

Phoebe Britton, 12th grade, "Self-portrait In White" (Category- Art, Drawing)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Corey Kramer 11th grade, "Red Riding Hood" (Category- Art, Printmaking)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Berkshire School, Sheffield

Kevin Xu, 9th grade, "Self-Portrait" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: GoldKey/Gold Medal

Fay School, Southborough

Soo Hyun Hong, 8th grade, "Three Apples" (Category- Art, Painting)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Coyle & Cassidy High School, Taunton

Mercedes Lamb, 11th grade, "Cuppa Dolphin" (Category- Art, Digital Art)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Masconomet Regional High School, Topsfield

Allin Skiba, 11th grade, "Baseball" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Innovation Academy Charter School, Tyngsborough

Spencer Royston, 8th grade, "The Storm" (Category- Writing, Personal Essay/Memoir)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Wayland High School, Wayland

Jameson Hunt, 10th grade, "Ashen" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Wellesley High School, Wellesley

Anya Pineau, 10th grade, "Dressing Up" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Gold Medal

Wellesley Middle School, Wellesley

Sam Baltrus, 8th grade, "Scream" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Westborough High School, Westborough

Benjamin Li, 10th grade, "Uncertainty" (Category- Art, Painting)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Minnechaug Regional High School, Wilbrham

Emily Zheng, 11th grade, "White Days" (Category- Writing, Personal Essay/Memoir)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

Wilmington High School, Wilmington

Ryan Clark, 11th grade, "Cranes" (Category- Art, Photography)
Awards: Gold Key | Silver Medal

By Stephanie Francis, Globe Correspondent

Scott Santino, 36, remembers how loud it was last March when he led a group of hikers through the wetlands.

“The peepers were so loud you could barely hear anything else,” said Santino. “But we were lucky enough to hear a faint hoot from an owl in the background.” 

Santino works for Mass Audubon’s Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary as a Sanctuary Naturalist. Last year the sanctuary hosted a Full Moon Hike once a month. The next two-hour hike, “Vernal Pools Under the Full Worm Moon” will take place, Wednesday, March 27 at 6:30 pm and is located in the Sanctuary. Cost is $14 for members and $16 for those who aren’t. 

Santino started the program after being inspired by similar events at other sanctuaries he’s come into contact with. The name of each hike is the Native American name for each month’s full moon. Santino says that he tries to incorporate a theme with each hike. A few of the participants have been “regulars” so Santino tries to make sure that each walk includes a variety of new elements. 

“We get both male and female hikers,” said Santino. “A lot of people are from Essex, and we even get a couple of people from the metro Boston area.” 

The one thing that all of Santino’s participants have in common, though, is that they are active adults interested in the natural terrain of the region. And that’s just as he likes it; when he started working full time for Mass Audubon in 2001, one of his first responsibilities was to bring in an adult audience. 

But there are also opportunities for children to experience nature as well. Andrew Prazar, 34, is the education coordinator at the Sanctuary. He started in September of 2010, and works with family programs, after school groups and develops curriculum for homeschool programs. Prazar started full moon hikes for children and their families last winter. 

“The purpose of the family program is to help connect people with nature,” said Prazar. 

Prazar’s hikes usually have 35 to 40 participants who average from five to ten years old and are accompanied by an adult. The 2,000 acre sanctuary has a variety of habitats, and though most times he covers about half a mile, Prazar tries to incorporate all the habitats into his hikes. 

Santino finds that the number of programs drop in the winter due to the weather conditions, and Prazar had to cancel a hike in January because of freezing temperatures and harsh winds. Still, neither Prazar nor Santino say they’ve face any dangers on these hikes. In fact, Prazar claimed that the most dangerous thing could be walking around without a light. 

Both, of course, encourage hikers to do just that. Santino carries a lantern in his backpack in case of emergencies, and both allow artificial lights on their hikes, but they feel the experience—and the moonlight—is more pure without the help of a flashlight. 

“When there’s snow outside and there’s a full moon, the whole world sort of glows,” said Prazar. 

For more information, Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary <https://www.massaudubon.org/Nature_Connection/Sanctuaries/Ipswich_River/index.php> , 87 Perkins Row, Topsfield, MA 01983

ipswichriver@massaudubon.org 978-887-9264 or visit 

https://www.massaudubon.org/catalog/listing.php?program_code=1482-IP13WI1

This article is being published under an arrangement between the Boston Globe and the Gordon College News Service.

By Terri Ogan, Town Correspondent

The US Army Corps of Engineers has secured the remaining federal funds needed to complete the repairs on the south jetty along Plum Island. The funds are a result of the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013, and are expected to total $5.5 million.

This additional aid is coupled with $3.5 million, which was given to the repair project in February 2012 bringing the total aid to $9 million. Congressman John F. Tierney, who spearheaded the effort to secure the funds, announced the funding acquisition this week.

“For years, I have been working with the Army Corps and seizing every opportunity to advocate for funds to repair the jetties,” Tierney said in a recent announcement. “The recent winter storms have only reinforced how urgent this matter is for homeowners and the surrounding communities. With these funds, the Corps advises that the south jetty project will be completed.”

Jetties are structures, such as piers, that project into the ocean to influence the current and protect the shoreline from storms or erosion.

The south jetty on Plum Island runs about 1,400 feet from the mouth of the Merrimack River into the ocean. It was damaged during Hurricane Sandy and previous inclement weather as well. As a result of the detrimental storms destroying the jetties, Plum Island has experienced erosion for several years.

Despite a long wait for aid, repairs are now underway.

“This money is a major step forward and will help preserve critical waterway infrastructure,” said State Representative Michael A. Costello. “The completion of the south jetty will ensure safe navigation of the Merrimack River channel for years to come.”

Terri Ogan can be reached at oganglobe@gmail.com, or follow her on Twitter.