Members of the board of Friends of Sengekontacket, led by Island resident Ed O’Melia, put up 51 signs along State Beach and at several locations along Sengekontacket Pond.
The posters were designed by students in 3rd through 6th grades at the Edgartown and Oak Bluffs Schools.
The annual Carry In/Carry Home project is meant to discourage pollution and raise awareness among the student population about the dangers of marine waste and climate change.
Helped by a grant from the Edey Foundation, winners were chosen from each class at both schools. The winning posters were laminated and will be displayed at Island beaches, in the town libraries, on the Steamship Authority ferries, and at Friends of Sengekontacket (FOS) events throughout the summer. Each winner received their original poster laminated and $20.
Every student who made a poster, whether they were selected as a winner or not, received a coupon for one free hour of kayaking or paddle boarding from Island Spirit Kayaking, donated by FOS board member Chick Stapleton.
This year, the Edey Foundation suggested extending the program to include all of the Island schools and to have signs posted on all the Island town beaches.
The extended Carry In/Carry Home project has been received by the Tisbury School, Chilmark School, West Tisbury School and the Martha’s Vineyard Charter School.
Also included in the project, FOS board member Betsy Dripps taught a science lesson about Island beaches and ponds at the schools. Dripps said they discussed their favorite things to do at the beach, the importance of respecting the power of the ocean when they go swimming, fishing, clamming, oystering, and scalloping. Dripps said they also discussed climate change, beach erosion, and why our message of Carry In/ Carry Home is so important for all the creatures that live in our oceans and ponds.
