North Shore Kid Stories, Events, Activities, Camps and Recipes

As part of a week-long residency, members of the Jupiter String Quartet offer a behind-the-scenes look at how they interact, communicate, and express a range of emotions when playing together.  The members will demonstrate different types of musical conversations from “passing” the melody from instrument to instrument and performing a fugue “like a game of musical hot potato.”

The Trustees of Reservations are looking for a few good fishermen to donate their time to inspire the next generation of surfcasters to take up a rod and reel at Crane Beach. To volunteer, or for more information, please contact Garry Dow.

The annual Friends of the Library book & bake sale to benefit the Sawyer Free Library will be held on Friday, June 3rd, and Saturday, June 4th, 2011 from 9am - 4pm. Children's fun and craft activities on Saturday with Balloon Animals with Brian J. Christie from 10am-12pm.

The library funding has been drastically cut the past few years and the Sawyer Free would benefit from our support. Be sure to get over to the library early in the day for the best selection of books and baked goods. 

"Catch the Reading Bug" fair at St. Ann's School of Cape Ann will feature a book fair, story hours, face painting, bounce house, music, food, craft tables, and an art contest. Local students will display art created to demonstrate heir love of reading. Bring the kids for a wonderful summer morning filled with book-inspired activities!

Newburyport's Riverfront Music Festival has all the right ingredients: four musical acts, including some that have gone national and international; a beautiful location along the Newburyport waterfront, and vendors serving up an assortment of food, not to mention a beer garden with cold drinks on tap. And — best of all — admission is free. It's an outdoor show. Bring blankets and lawn chairs. Free and paid parking lots available around the downtown. Street parking allowed in legal spots only.

It's time for a BioBlitz family style! Join us to take an outdoor inventory of every living thing from loosestrife to ladybugs! The Parker River Clean Water Assocation joins Joppa Flats once again to honor the incredible variety of plants and animals in our area. This full-day family event will feature an exciting mixture of indoor and outdoor activities that encourage participants to learn more about biodiversity.

At the Stone Zoo on Saturday, June 4th, lions, tigers and bears won't be the only animals getting care. Kids can bring a favorite teddy bear to Stone Zoo for a day of cuddly fun! Zoo staff will be on hand to give your bear a check up and a clean bill of health. It's a great program that teaches children that doctors are safe and helps them get comfortable with health care. 

Later, the kids will march through the Zoo in the annual Teddy Bear Parade. Along the way, they can say hello to Smoky and Bubba, Stone Zoo’s resident black bears, and meet Yukon, Stone Zoo’s costumed black bear mascot!

Teddy Bear Check-up Day is sponsored by Friendly’s Restaurants. Friendly’s will be offering a Free Kids Meal certificate to every child who brings their teddy bear to the event for a check-up. In addition, the Friendly’s team will be on hand to provide complimentary ice cream samples, coupons and other fun surprises!

In Rockport, the Memorial Day parade will start at 10 a.m. from Legion Hall, proceed down Beach Street to Main Street and then to School Street, Pleasant Street and into Beech Grove Cemetery.

Memorial services will be held at the Veterans of Foreign Wars lot in the cemetery. Commander Brian Sullivan will lead the ceremonies.

Grand Marshal will be Ernest Parsons, a native of Rockport and a member of high school class of 1941 who served in the Navy from 1942-1945.

He was a motor machinist first class on the USS Cooner, which escorted merchant ships and allied convoys in the Atlantic and Pacific theaters. After his discharge he worked at the United Shoe Machine Co. for 39 years.

Guest speaker will be Daniel Tusinski, a resident of Rockport since 1978 and, for the past 30 years, the director of Deployed Forces Support for the Northeast Navy region. He served in the U.S. Coast Guard during the 1970s, and was awarded the Coast Guard Achievement Medal along with the National Defense and Good Conduct medals.

After the ceremony, the parade will re-form and proceed down Pleasant Street to Mount Pleasant Street and Harvey Park, where there will be a ceremonial laying of a wreath.

Participants will then proceed to the waterfront, where a ceremony will take place to honor those lost at sea.

The parade will return to Legion Hall via Main Street and Beach Street.

Refreshments will be served to children who participated in the parade at Spiran Hall, while adults will gather at the Legion Hall.

All participants except the flower girls and flag boys are urged to be at the Legion Hall at 9:30 a.m. Youngsters planning to march will meet on the corner of Broadway and School Street at 9:45 a.m. Organizers invite all veterans to march in the parade.

The Memorial Day parade in Essex will begin at 9 a.m. with the Essex veterans in front of Town Hall. The veterans will march with units from the Essex Police and Fire departments to Town Cemetery for a military rifle salute to our country's war veterans and then up Main Street to the Causeway Bridge to honor those lost at sea. All veterans are invited to join the march; a uniform is not required. Town officials lead the parade followed by members of the school band and various athletic organizations. Norman Rockwell couldn’t have painted a better picture than our parade coming down Main Street.

Sunday:

1:00 p.m., Veterans service at Star of the Sea Cemetery on Lafayette Street.

Monday

8:00 a.m., Veterans leave from the Old Town House on Washington Street and go to the State Street Wharf and then Clark Landing, where a service will be held for Navy, Coast Guard and Merchant Marine veterans.
9:00 a.m., Main parade begins on Washington Street, continues on to Memorial Park for ceremonies, ends at Waterside Cemetery.

The parade will take place Memorial Day, Monday May 30th at 10am. The parade will proceed down Main Street and turn into Landry Stadium where the ceremony will be held. Spectators will be in the stands which are handicap accessible. This year's keynote speaker will Navy Commander Glen Bourque. Commander Bourque, a native of Amesbury, graduated from Amesbury High School in 1980, and has devoted 31 years of honorable service to the United States Navy. The memory of Ronald Koontz, Vietnam veteran and former Amesbury Veterans' Service Officer, will also be honored at the ceremony.

Please take a few hours out of your day to pay respect to all military-past, present and future; especially on this ten year anniversary of 9-11. In the event of inclement weather the parade will be held in the Town Hall Auditorium.

For more information please contact VFW 2016 Commander Bob Smith at 978-463-7879 or Kristen LaRue at 978-388-8136.

Veterans of all ages are encouraged to march in the parade, with or without uniform.

All those marching in the parade should muster in front of the fire station at 9:30am.

In honor of the first American woman in space, Sally Ride, the Manchester Public Library will hold a paper airplane contest. In honor of her great flight, kids will learn two or more fun designs, and can share any tips and tricks!