By All Hands
A Gloucester group's effort to provide fresh fish to Greater Boston families and get local fishermen better prices for their catch has made a Top 100 list compiled by a national magazine.
"We asked for your ideas, your inspirations, your favorite food finds," Saveur magazine said of its list in its January-Febuary issue. "And you answered, from every corner of the world, on every imaginable culinary subject, from family recipes to treasured cookbooks to time-honored tips."
Cape Ann Fresh Catch logged in at No. 13; Massachusetts' first community-supported fishery was organized in 2009 by the Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance and the Gloucester Fishermen's Wives Association. The experiment was inspired by the Community Supported Agriculture program which has been a success here.
About 1,000 people paid a fixed sum for 12 weeks of fresh fish to be delivered from boat to them without going through a series of middlemen this summer. Another 600 paid for shares this winter.
Their investment assured them fresh fish for about $3 a pound, a bargain when measured against commercial market prices. And the suppliers were assured $2 a pound, which was well above the commercial dockside average price.
Members picked up locally caught whole but cleaned cod, haddock, shrimp or other fish at one of a number of locations around the North Shore.
"For a home cook like me, having a ready supply of seafood that's been caught practically outside my front door has been a huge inspiration in the kitchen. One day it'll be meaty cod, which I like to roast with garlic, parsley, and butter; another day it might be flaky pollock. The fish from CAFC comes whole, so I've had to learn how to filet and debone. I've also become a fan of cooking the fish on the bone, which keeps the flesh so moist and flavorful," Michele DiPalo of Waltham wrote in the magazine.
Cape Ann Fresh Catch has sold all shares for this season. The next season starts in May. For more information, visit http://namanet.org/csf/cape-ann-fresh-catch, call 978-283-2504, or e-mail CapeAnnFreshCatch@gmail.com.
High Times on Kilimanjaro
The Gloucester Daily Times has reached new heights — literally — thanks to a couple of local mountain climbers.
Oliver Horovitz, the 24-year-old son of playwright and Gloucester Stage Co. founder Israel Horovitz, has just returned after he and three friends scaled Africa's 19,340-foot Mount Kilimanjaro with three friends, including fellow Gloucesterite Charlie Choate — and they carried copies of the Times to the summit.
In an e-mail to actor and Gloucester Stage publicity chief Heidi Dallin, Horovitz described the climb and journey to Tanzania as a "three-week trip of a lifetime," but "the hardest thing I've ever done in my life."
"We all got altitude sickness, plus took the hardest summit route possible, the Western Breach," he wrote, noting that route was temporarily closed in 2006 after three climbers died in their ascent.
Horovitz, a filmmaker who directed the 2009 Gloucester-based piece, "Eddie & Paul," said the climb was "something I'd always wanted to do." But while he spent four months organizing the trip, the idea for the journey had simple beginnings.
"Actually, Charlie and I decided to do it while having breakfast in ... Zeke's (at) the bottom of our hill in Gloucester," Horovitz related. "Charlie and I thought it would be hilarious to take a picture on the top of 'Killy' with a picture of the Gloucester Daily Times."
Changing sides
Brendan McGonigle, who was an aide to Republican state Sen. Bruce Tarr, has a new job.
The Byfield resident recently joined the 2nd Essex District team of state Rep. Harriett L. Stanley, D-West Newbury.
Between his two legislative jobs, McGonigle took a leave of absence from his job as Tarr's aide to bike across country to raise money for the National Center on Family Homelessness.
He rode solo, towing a cart with 50 to 60 pounds of gear. His route took him south to Richmond, Va., then west to San Francisco, and then south again to Los Angeles.
Honored veteran
The flag at the Veterans' Center will fly this week in honor of Civil War veteran Augustus M. Howe. Born March 26, 1843, he was the son of Augustus and Mary (Boynton) Howe. He entered the U.S. Army on April 15, 1861. The private served with Company G 8th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry.
He was discharged Aug. 1, 1861 and died Feb. 1, 1871. He is buried in the family lot at Oak Grove Cemetery, Lot 143, Section 3, Linden Avenue.
The flag was requested to fly in his honor by the Office of Veterans' Services.
Anyone wishing to fly a flag in honor of a deceased veteran can call the Office of Veterans' Services at 978-281-9740.
