It tells you all about this years Gosport Regatta happening on Star Island Corporation in partnership with Piscataqua Sailing Association.

Spring 2012

Volume XXXVIII, Issue 1

Inside this Issue:

• Meet Joe Watts, the next CEO of Star Island
• Letter from Vicky Hardy
• Saying Thank You: List of donors
• Passages
• Gosport Regatta
• Top-selling books
• Literary Festival
• Shining the Star
• Your survey results
• Star Island online
• 40 under 40
• Star Bridge conference

The confidential program is available to individuals and families that are registered for a conference and have not received a conference scholarship. Please note awards are always partial, and depend on the number of applications received.

Learn more and apply today!

Learn more!

The Historic Star Conference will help you determine the truth behind stories of pirates, treasure, ghosts and murder just 10 miles off the coast of Maine and New Hampshire. Surround yourself with the cottages and structures used by fishing families in the 17th and 18th centuries while learning about the isolated village of Gosport. Uncover the seemingly peculiar behavior of Gosport’s residents while residing in what remains of this community.

Join author and NHPTV host Rebecca Rule for strange tales of New England, learn of the 18th century hanging of Portsmouth resident Ruth Blay from Carolyn Marvin of the Portsmouth Athenaeum and attend atmospheric digital photographs and art workshops.

Play the role of a famous Shoals character or a detective at an evening “Star Island Mystery Soiree.” With scandals as big as murder and stories as intriguing as pirates, witches and ghosts, the Historic Star Conference allows you to learn about our region’s history and separate from the mainland for a week.

Conference Organizer Ann Beattie said, “The Isles of Shoals have been the home to so much history. From explorer John Smith to oil tycoon Aristotle Onassis, Star Island has stories to tell and the Historic Star Conference is the perfect way to learn about the mystery and mayhem.”

Star Island CEO Vicky Hardy said, “We hear ghost stories all the time out on Star Island, and now there is an opportunity to experience more than ghosts. The Historic Star Conference provides a relaxing way to learn about New England’s isolated gem of history.”

For more information about the conference and to register, please visit StarIsland.org/HistoricStar.

The Star Island Corporation was established as a nonprofit corporation in 1916 to hold and administer Star Island and its historic properties for religious, educational, and kindred purposes. The Laighton family owned and operated hotels on the Isles of Shoals that attracted some of the most prominent artists and writers of their day. Some of the cottages on Star Island date back to the 1700s.

This special event is both a fund-raiser to benefit Star and a promotional to introduce Star’s many exciting conference and retreat offerings to both Shoalers and non-Shoalers.

Fine art of mixed mediums will celebrate the beauty of Star Island and the Isles of Shoals. The exhibition will feature the works of Patty Boynton, Jill Brody, Robert Eddy, William Mitchell, Bruce Parsons, Peter Randall, Meg Schoene, Alexandra de Steiguer, and others. 20% of the sale of artwork will go to benefit Star, 1/2 to SIC’s Annual Fund and 1/2 to SIUCC’s Scholarship Fund.

Eventide Gallery (www.EventideArtGallery.com) is an intimate art studio located in historic Essex, MA at 63 Main Street. Owner and Shoaler Teri Eramo has taught oil painting in the Art Barn for the last two years at the Star Gathering 2 Family Conference. Teri and her family immediately fell in love with Star and wanted to use her Gallery in a way to promote and support the island. Teri & the other Shoalers planning this event hope to see you in Essex. See the gallery’s website for gallery hours other than the opening event.

Click here for the gallery. Remember to ‘Like’ us on Facebook as well!

Working on Star Island can be extremely rewarding. Indeed, many lives have been positively influenced, and careers determined, by spending a summer working on Star Island. But being a Pelican is more than just getting a job on Star Island – it is about joining a community of interesting, talented, and hard-working individuals.

Apply today!

I have to share with you how strange it was to shut down the last generator and walk down to the boat on that cold November afternoon when the season was finally over. Alex took over on November 4. She reports daily owl sightings, Canada geese returning to the front lawn, a couple of generator problems, and a rat population that really does seem to be a little lower than last year.

You can all relate to how odd it felt for me to be back home after such a long spell on the Island. The first few weeks back in America were consumed by our close call with reality television, which has now been put off until maybe next year. We brought six enthusiastic Hollywood producers out there right after Thanksgiving, but the network decided it was too late in the season to put it all together. The income would have been important in these tight budget times, but I have to admit to being somewhat relieved.

I went to a great alternative energy conference at the Island Institute in November where I met island managers from all up and down the Maine Coast. I think we’re starting to get some momentum back into our solar power plan, too.

I’ve already gotten some skiing in, hauled the boat into the shed for the winter, organized all the files that were piling up around my desk, started planning for next season, and stacked most of my firewood. And now it’s almost Christmas.

So, on the day after the Solstice and my last work day of the year, I have a chance to reflect on the whirlwind that started last April, and I want to share some of my thoughts with you who made it so interesting and rewarding.

This was an incredible, enriching year for me, full of growth and challenge, and I want to thank all of you who were a part of making my first season at Star so enjoyable and valuable. You guys rallied around to help me right from the start and I am very grateful. I could start naming names, but I would inevitably leave somebody out, so let me just say thank you to everybody at once. I truly appreciate the help and cooperation and respect you gave me. What makes Star so incredible is the combination of that beautiful isolated, sometimes scary setting, with a group of such amazing people. I feel really fortunate to be part of it. So the word of the day is gratitude. Thank you.

My hopes for next season? More progress on sustainability, more music, more sailing, more laughing, more great work, more conversation, more moderation. I really hope we can all work together to avoid the lapses in judgment and the indiscretions which lead to injuries, terminations, sadness. I hope no one has to leave the Island because they get hurt or depressed or because they broke a basic rule. I hope we can continue to build a stronger and stronger atmosphere of open communication, respect for each other and the place, cooperation, compassion. I believe that a whole community working together presents the best chance to keep everyone safe and happy and sober and growing. What better community than this to prove it?

We will all be challenged once again by a scarcity of resources. I really believe that this challenge is also an opportunity for the Island and us, one which is right in line with important principles that we all share, and part of the long tradition of the Shoals themselves. Sustainability (for the Island and for the world) implies creativity, innovation, resourcefulness, a community working together with common goals, some hard work, and yes, even some sacrifices. The test is worth the taking, and the rewards can be deep and long lasting. I think it is part of the reason we are drawn here.

OK, down off the soap box. I basically just wish everyone the best new year ever.

Jack Farrell
Facilities Superintendent