Sea Scouts actively involved in environment with Nicolette Stamos
Nicolette Stamos
Student Member
Minuteman Technical High School
Stow, Massachusetts
“Sea Scouts belong to a world that is distinct from anything on shore, and they have their own language and customs.”
~Sea Scout Manual Welcome Aboard Message
Sea Scouts, BSA is a program of the Boy Scouts of America for young men and women ages 14 to 20. Ship 5 out of Gloucester, MA (chartered by the Gloucester Elks 892) offers sailing, knots and navigation, and rowing, as well as conservation opportunities and community service, through our many partnerships. Sea Scout Ship 5 and Ship 5 explorers are made up of students aged 11-21. We are growing as a crew, but personally, I have been involved since Ship 5 became chartered by Elks 892 in 2017, learning and passing on knowledge and skills to new members.
As a crew member of BSA Sea Scout Ship 5, we are fortunate enough to meet on the pier behind Maritime Gloucester Museum. Everyone passes through the pier: sailors, scientist, divers, biology and environmental enthusiasts, as well as the curious public. Although we, Ship 5, are just starting to discover our place in understanding the environment we live in, we are enthusiastic ambassadors engaging in conversations with everyone on the pier, sharing our knowledge, listening and learning on all subjects relating to maritime skills, oyster upweller and propagation, sailing, and of course, knots!
Ship 5 partnered with the Mass Oyster Project in 2017, where we learned how to care for the baby oysters in the upweller located behind the Maritime Gloucester Museum. We were oyster ambassadors throughout the summer of 2019, educating hundreds of visitors who came to the Maritime Gloucester pier. We even started an 'adopt an oyster' program. For those unfamiliar with the Massachusetts Oyster Project (MOP), you can find more information on their website, massoyster.org: 'The Massachusetts Oyster Project is working to restore the coastal environment of Massachusetts. We're doing this by supporting the restoration of native shellfish to our beaches and coastal estuaries. Through shell recycling and oyster cultivation, we can improve water quality, increase the diversity of sea life, and mitigate the effects of climate change.'
Oyster ambassador at MOP upweller during 'Heritage Day' 2019
Explaining 'Adopt an Oyster' program to European visitors 2019
Animal Husbandry—sorting oysters by size at the oyster upweller 2019
Our ship also partnered with the Gloucester Harbormaster in 2017 and has been collecting trash from public boat landings, sorting and logging it on the Marine Debris Tracker. Ship 5 has logged over 14,000 items and is currently the number 3 tracker for Rozalia on the MDT. Just last year Ship 5 worked with a local teacher, transplanting eelgrass for the Gulf of Maine Institute and Great Marsh Partnership. It was fun helping with the field trips, harvesting, documenting and finding baby periwinkles on the eelgrass. We hope to continue the relationships!
In addition, Sea Scouts Ship 5 has partnered with other local, state and federal organizations such as SailGHS, Environmental Police, Maritime Gloucester, and others. When Ship 5 is most active, June through September, we are on the water and on the shore, being a Sea Scout!
Ship 5 presenting a poster, Why Restore Oysters?', at the NMEA UNH 2019 conference, Durham NH
Nicolette is currently a student at Minuteman Technical High School as a Freshman in Environmental Studies and is a member of Sea Scout Ship 5 out of Gloucester, MA.
In 2019 Nicolette became a member of NMEA and attended the NMEA conference in Durham NH at UNH, where she presented a poster project titled, “Why Restore Oysters?”
