AddYourVoice

Domenic Venuto said...: After visiting the Mary Whalen 2 years ago this month, I was hooked on PortSide...literally! That drizzly day touring the boat connected me, an Aussie transplant in NY, to a community that cared about what NY was doing (or not) with it's "Bluespace". Before that day, I hadn't thought that much about NY's access to water and what more could be done to enjoy it. I love the cause and because of the passion that's there, I bring my passions to help in small ways - cooking in the Mary Whalen's galley for a supper club.or using my advertising background to develop branding and marketing materials. It's all fun and worthwhile, especially when I squat in the captain's cabin and convert it into a mobile office!

cheers
+domenic
Christine Van Lenten said...: The repurposing of a venerable oil tanker into a platform for a broad range of initiatives that serve the local community and wider city is an improbable marvel. Bold vision, imagination, resourcefulness, and perseverance have shaped and sustained this unique venture.

So has a sophisticated command of public policy issues that makes PortSide NewYork an uncommonly valuable voice in NYC's policy arena.

PortSide's web site and blog are marvels, too. Their content is rich. The writing is top-drawer. The photography is superb! PortSide's online presence is a worthy destination in its own right.

But that's no substitute for the permanent, physical, accessible home that The Mary A. Whalen & PortSide deserve. May 2012 bring them that home, for the benefit of us all.
Craig Hammerman said...: PortSide is a beacon on our shoreline, summoning landlubbers and salty dogs alike, to rediscover the wonders of our BlueSpace as one of our greatest untapped resources right here under our noses. As for the Mary A. Whalen, well, there's no better place in the harbor for swinging the lamp!
December 20, 2011 10:39 AM
ifitfloats (Amy Bucciferro) said...: I love you @portsidenewyork for unceasing insight and a loud&clear voice on the WATERfront (via Twitter)
Lee Gruzen said...: PortSide NY is the real deal — a creative, authentic interface to the working port of New York. Its resourceful, dedicated director, aboard a charismatic ship with an inventive crew, has stirred the maritime imaginations of thousands of New Yorkers.

I’m one of them! I’ll never forget the opera, book readings, convocation of Dutch boats, kids’ sailing program and everyday living stories from the Brooklyn shore. PortSide NY is an essential, rare heartbeat. Let’s help it thrive!
John Burkard said...: When I first met Carolina, it was by way of introduction just outside of Greg O'Connell’s pier 41 office. And the person who introduced was Debbie Romano, Mr O'Connell's then, secretary.....After hearing of her ambition's and dreams, I must confess I was not at all impressed. In fact, as the local historian in Red Hook officially for the last 15 years or so, even the name Portside New York turned me off. I was researching Red Hooks role in the Battle of Brooklyn, The first real battle of the Revolutionary War....Her dream entitled Portside NEW YORK?.... I thought, why not Portside Brooklyn? or even Portside Red Hook? I'm afraid I wasn't very impressed with Carolina Salguero. or her future ambitions for reclaiming our waterfront at that time, which was about seven years ago.....

Hardly a day went by since, that I wasn't made aware of some form of activity occurring headed up buy Carolina Salguero.... One of her biggest accomplishments was when Portside aquired the former tanker "Mary Whalen. This antiquated vessel was still afloat ( though God only knows why!) and little by little , with lots of hard work, she began to demonstrate to the neighborhood, Hey!! this gal really means what she says. Next thing I knew she was living on the TANKER??

This adventure is not for the faint of heart. To begin, heating a steel boat floating in ice filled seas is a challenging job. Carolina relied on a wood burning stove, which meant stocking up on firewood to last through the winter. Since no oil was available. And lots and lots of sweaters, thermals, heavy socks, so that when your abed, and you hear the wakeup call for 5am, You begin to wonder, "Am I crazy or what?".....All through a winter night, as the wind makes it way around all the nooks and crannies of a seemingly deserted pier, and every shadow jutting out from behind the vacant walkways stirs your imagination to the point you want to call 911....But wait! My cell phone is dead? I'll put it on the charger? but wait! There's no electricity on board,,,,,,Mommy!! Why did you allow me to get mixed up in this??? Calm down Carolina,,, it's almost morning, just two more hours to go.....

Of course I am inserting imaginary happenings to jive up the story just a bit....But I can honestly say the picture I am painting would have me high tail it off the Mary Whalen and home to the comfort of a nice warm bed in no time at all.....

Carolina has the ability to drum up support from just about anywhere she searches. Take the worn out diesel engine that had not been cranked over in ages. She let out a battle cry, let's see if we can make this baby propel the Mary Whalen like it used to!! The next thing I heard it was being dismantled, parts strewn all over the engine room, and now She has located scarce parts from a tanker in Seattle Washington and a few from an old crew member, which are in storage awaiting the final pieces to complete the painstaking job of putting it all back together so we can listen to the quaint old engine purring like it once did, as it moved the Mary Whalen from port to port....

Ms Salguero belongs to that special breed of person, more than a doer for sure. A dreamer, absolutely, but a gal that has the imagination, the heart, the spunk, and the courage to knock down anything standing in her way towards success. She is special because her desire for success is not bottled up inside her own ego for personal reasons.... No, when Carolina dreams, they are every Red Hooker's dream, to open up the waterfront. To make it available for the people to be utilized, enjoyed, cherished, safely and sensibly, and at as minimum cost as possible to all.., Her dreams run from kyacking, to fishing, to just strolling in the sunshine, to picnicking, to waterside storage designed by professional artists to house the accessories and gear required for these activities. what She refers to as opening up the deep blue sea to all....Throw in the adventerous boat rides, various sporting events and what ever Carolinas imagination will come up with next....And you really have a rare person indeed. One who is writing the history of present day Red Hook, that will be told in the future of our Village for years to come. Not just handed down from family to family, But to be present and seen, and enjoyed for decades on end....Portside New York is growing with the village of Red Hook every passing day....

What they need now is to get out from behind the restrictive fencing that monitors each and every person desiring to board the Mary Whalen, or attend a festivity or picnic, or some other activity created by Portside, through Carolina Salguero... Surely in the entire Red Hook waterfront, someone will be able to offer mooring space for the Historic MARY WHALEN, the Flagship of Portside New York, and the never ending brainstorm of Carolina Saugaro, which does also have a historically interesting story of it's own to be revealed one day... And it makes no difference if She calls it Portside New York, Portside Brooklyn, or even Portside Red Hook, Carolina assures me, She loves Red Hook with a passion, and this love affair of hers has earned a special warm spot in every residents heart includng my own.....JjB..... (Red Hook Star Review History Specialist)

Deborah Romano said...: ....And she can feed a Container Port kitten from a bottle!

Ann Gaffney said...

Portside New York is a major player in the campaign to support New York's primary natural resource and the world's greatest harbor: The Blue Highways of the vast Port of New York.

Bill Gonzalez said...

Portside is important to the community because it serves a purpose in educating the community of Red Hook and all of Brooklyn the importance and history of Brooklyn’s waterfront.

Where else can summer camps and teachers take the students to visit a 150’tanker. Most important it is a wonderful recreation center for everyone during the summer months where
the community can go and bring their children and loved ones and enjoy entertainment and the sunset.
VERY SPECIAL PLACE
Thanks,Bill Gonzalez

Will Van Dorp, tugster said...

Portside is a great project of documenting a critical pivotal time in the history of NYC harbor. Mary Whalen is a fitting ambassador delivering a profound message.

Rich Naruszewicz said...

As a former crew member on the tanker Mary Whalen, the tanker is a piece of nautical history. The tanker was used to transport fuel oil along the east coast, and to all the fuel terminals in New York Harbor. Many New Yorkers do not know that this tanker transported the fuel that heated their homes. This was not her only role, she refueled the convoys in the harbor before crossing the Atlantic during WWII , refueled many of the great ocean liners that once sailed from New York, was the entry level first job in the maritime field for many captains and harbor pilots such as myself who are still working today. It also teaches the the people young and old about how great New York harbor is and how important it is. It must be preserved for the people to be educated and preserved as a piece of nautical history.