Dear Friends,
Last January, winter storm Grayson delivered a fresh reminder of the realities and threats of climate change. This January, the government shutdown reminds us again of the value of our National Parks.
The government shutdown hurts us all and those of us who work closely with the United States Coast Guard, the EPA, and the National Parks of Boston, are seeing and feeling the impacts up close. Our hearts go out to the federal employees and their contractors who are not able to work and are not being paid.
Meanwhile, winter programming on the waterfront demonstrates that people love their harbor and need their parks year round. We saw tens of thousands of visitors enjoying New Year’s Eve festivities along the Harborwalk. With help from the relatively mild winter weather, Boston Harbor Now’s Ice Sculpture Stroll, the sold-out Friends of the Harborwalk history tour, and DCR’s First Day Hikes were all evidence of the waterfront’s growth as an all-season go-to destination.
In January, we’ll continue our work with our city, state, private, for-profit, and nonprofit partners to increase access to the harbor and Islands, improve the resiliency of our waterfront and Islands, and develop and implement the programs that engage hundreds of thousands of people with their harbor.
We look forward to the return of our federal partner and wish you peace in the new year.
Katherine F. Abbott
President and CEO
Boston Harbor Now
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