The Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce recognizes March as Women's History Month. This year the GCACC is led by Caitlin Pszenny the owner of Cape Ann Lanes/Laneside Pub & Brew, the youngest Board President in the 100-year history of the Chamber. The Businesswomen's Committee remains the Chamber's most popular group. Organized in 1986, the group is committed to the growth of greater Cape Ann business and the professional development of the Chamber’s female members. They provide a forum for the region’s businesswomen to network and raise funds for scholarships that aid women with continuing education. In recognition of Women's History Month, consider participating in Women's History-focused programming happening around greater Cape Ann such as Beauport Hotel's Fireside Chat featuring Katherine Sherbrook and Cape Ann Museum's Women Artists of Cape Ann tour.

In 1942 the U.S. Government restricted artists from painting maritime scenes featuring lighthouses, areas set aside for defense use, naval craft or structure. This was an obvious issue for Cape Ann as its many harbors and coastline were immensely popular with artists from around the world. With temporary restrictions on painting these popular maritime scenes, the Gloucester Chamber of Commerce President at the time, Fredrick Bundy, stood up for local artists and spoke extensively on how restricting artists would damage the local economy throughout WWII.

Please click on the button below for our weekly snapshot of national, state, county and city/town data.

For additional information related to the COVID-19 pandemic, please see the "COVID-19 Updates" section below.

Welcome to March - the winter holidays are behind us, and while it’s been a bit of a roller coaster in February, spring is on the way and the days are brightening. Speaking of which, COVID cases are down drastically, and mask mandates are now removed in all our communities, giving us great expectations for a fantastic 2022!

There were times this past month when we were reminded it was winter, with drifts of snow and blustery storms, and there were days when it felt more like summer. The diversity of seasons was also top of mind for the Greater Cape Ann Tourism Council, which reviewed wintertime events and looked ahead to the issues and activities shaping our expectations for the summer.

The Chamber’s Government Affairs Council held its regular monthly meeting on February 8,

with members attending in person and via Zoom. At their meeting, the Council continued their

conversations about expanding the inventory and availability of affordable housing as a key to

future economic prosperity for our region. This will be the topic for the annual Economic

Outlook Breakfast set for March 1 with Cynthia Nina-Soto as keynote speaker. In other business,

the Council confirmed Friday, March 25 as the date for the Spring Greater Cape Ann Caucus.

The Chamber’s health & wellness committee has come together in their monthly newsletter to share fun and informative resources on Nutrition, in recognition of March being National Nutrition Month.

GCACC CEO Ken Riehl is joined by Chamber Board President Caitlyn Pszenny and Kerrie Bates, the Director of ReCreation and Culture for the town of Ipswich. Tune in as they discuss the upcoming events for the Chamber and the Town of Ipswich.

Did you know that there are many savings “perks” included in your Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce membership? As a GCACC member, you receive exclusive access to numerous savings programs and services. Many of these savings perks are available to you and ALL your employees. For more information, please visit our Member Savings Program page on our website, capeannchamber.com.

Occurring on the first Thursday of the month at 9am, the Greater Cape Ann Chamber hosts Coffee & Connections, a virtual networking event! We will continue holding these via zoom so that anyone may join us from anywhere. Meet new people, expand your business connections and stay in touch with friends and colleagues.

Celebrate our 100th year with us! We’re safely gathering with Greater Cape Ann’s business leaders and local, city, and state officials at the beautiful Beauport Hotel to enjoy delicious food, great company, and dance the night away on Thursday, March 10. Tickets are now available and going fast. See the registration page for COVID protocols.

POSTPONED

On Thursday, March 17, the community of greater Cape Ann will come together once more to try their luck in our Irish Sweepstakes. 12 lucky leprechauns will win a "pot of gold", ranging from $500 - $10,000! Contact the Chamber today to purchase your lucky ticket!

Thank you to our sponsors: SeniorCare Inc., Seashore Comfort Solutions, McWalter Volunteer Insurance Agency

This February the Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon cutting for FreshPrep360 Grab & Go Meals to celebrate their grand opening on Duncan Street in Gloucester. Whether it be a new business, a new location, or a grand reopening, we want to help you celebrate! Email Sam at sam@capeannchamber.com to schedule your ribbon cutting today.

Members gathered at the Cultural Center at Rocky Neck for the Chamber’s first Business After Hours of 2022. Members enjoyed the current exhibit, ROCKY NECK NOW 2022, and the opportunity to reconnect in person while enjoying bites from The Last Stop.

It was terrific to be back in person for our annual Economic Outlook Breakfast at Cake Ann. This year's featured speaker was Cynthia Nina-Soto, 2020 Board President at North Shore Realtors and a board member for Harborlight Community Partners. The topic of this year's breakfast was affordable housing and how it is affecting our workforce, stabilized neighborhoods and overall economic prosperity. Thank you to our sponsors: Cape Ann Savings Bank, The Law Office of Merideth Fine, Harborlight Community Partners, Onto Mortgage. Thanks again to Cake Ann for hosting this year's Economic Outlook Breakfast.

(978) 704-0345

3 Duncan St. | Gloucester

(978) 522-6445

47 Bearskin Neck | Rockport

(978) 546-1364

9 Tuna Wharf Unit 8 | Rockport

(978) 574-5050

(978) 509-3432

120 Washington St. | Salem

(413) 537-4124

52 Clarendon St. #3 | Boston

(617) 221-9069

Ebenezer Tax Services conducts their business in a professional manner, making sure that they are in compliance with all federal and state laws. Having some of the best tax accountants and consultants in the industry allows them to provide their clients with the best possible services. Their tax preparers will work with you to ensure that you get the best income tax refund with complete satisfaction guaranteed. Contact them at 978-879-4264 or visit their website below.

Wellspring could use your help to fill the Awesome Closet with gently worn career wear for our students' upcoming interviews and job placements. Please call or drop Mary Hardwick a line at 978-281-3558 ext. 300 or mhardwick@wellspringhouse.org and let her know how you can help!

The Kay Ellis Memorial Scholarship is looking for applicants to award scholarships in 2022. Over $34,000 in scholarships has been given to students pursuing secondary education in travel and tourism. Applications are being accepted now through April 30. Visit the website below to apply.

In addition to making her own pottery, Cynthia offers pottery classes and is grateful for the over 1,400 students of all skill levels that have found their way to share the warm and bright pottery studio. Students work at their own pace with an instructor available for guidance as needed. Classes are held in a fun, relaxed environment. Laughing and breathing encouraged!

Select your favorite places on the North Shore of Boston to dine, renew, shop, and play. Vote in one subcategory or all 140+!

Join Beauport Hotel in celebrating Women's History Month with local Author Katherine Sherbrook of the New York Times 2021 Summer Reading Pick, Leaving Coy's Hill. How did Susan B. Anthony’s mentor get written out of history? Come hear Katherine Sherbrooke discuss her extraordinary new novel, inspired by the life of abolitionist, pioneering feminist, and Massachusetts native, Lucy Stone. Leaving Coy’s Hill has been called “propulsive,” and “deeply relevant,” as it “beautifully imagines” the life of “the heroine we all need right now.”

Join the Cape Ann Museum's Teen Arts Council to learn about a variety of creative career paths, including careers at cultural institutions like the Cape Ann Museum, artistic careers represented by artists in CAM’s collection, and careers in the trades that build the world we live in.

Join Appleton Farms on weekends in March for a special menu of breakfast items made with or accompanied by their own maple syrup from the maple trees at Appleton Farms. Their Culinary Programs Team, led by Jess Wagoner, will create a delicious assortment of items which will incorporate our delicious maple syrup. It doesn’t get any more local or any more delicious than this.

Working in the sweet spot between folk, jazz and pop since the late 70’s with hits like “Chuck E.’s in Love,” Rickie Lee Jones remains an artist of boundless curiosity with a sophisticated cool sensibility. Ever since her debut, Jones has created music that consistently defies easy categorization, an aesthetic she writes about in her brand new memoir, Last Chance Texaco: Chronicles of an American Troubadour.

In this online workshop, Backyard Growers will guide you through the process of starting your own vegetable seeds indoors, including a materials list, dos and don’ts, and a live Q&A.

This workshop is FREE for Backyard Growers Program participants (e.g. Community Garden, Backyard Garden, GrowBag Garden Programs)

$15 general admission

Sawyer Free Library to host Dr. Andrew Budson as a part of its educational series Of Sound Mind: A Series on Dementia. Based on his award-winning book, Dr. Andrew Budson will explain how individuals can distinguish changes in memory due to Alzheimer's versus normal aging, what medications, diets, and exercise regimes can help, and the best habits, strategies, and memory aids to use, in seven simple steps. He will also discuss his newest book, including how caregivers can manage issues with memory, language, vision, behavior, driving, incontinence, sleep, and more.

Castle Hill Productions presents Arcadia by Tom Stoppard. Arcadia is set both in 1809 and the present at the elegant estate owned by the Coverly family. Stoppard’s comedic masterpiece moves smoothly between the centuries and explores the nature of truth and time, the difference between classical and romantic temperaments, and the disruptive influence of sex on our life orbits- the attraction Newton left out.

Contemporary artist and Montserrat College of Art Alumni, Sarah Dineen has amassed an army of painted helmets, shields, tubes, and microphone-trees lining the Great Hall of Hammond Castle Museum. Working in multiples to magnify the uncanny human and industrial presence of each form, she uses abstraction to suggest familiarity while leaving open to the viewer the possibilities of their own imagination.

Join National Heritage Fellow Harold Burnham, and his Apprentice KD Montgomery (Dench) for an update on their progress for the Massachusetts Cultural Council's Traditional Arts Apprenticeship. After a hiatus for the summer sailing season, Harold & KD are back working on the rehabilitation of Sylvina W. Beal, the return home of Schooner Isabella, and all manner of shipyard nonsense.

Starting in the Cape Ann Gallery, join CAM Educators on an exploration of the lives and art of three women artists located in the Museum galleries: Susannah Paine (1792-1862), Mary Blood Mellen (1819-1886), and Barbara Swan (1922-2009). This tour is appropriate for families with young children. These tours are free and open to the public, registration is recommended.

Considering a career in Health Care or the Trades? Explore the in-demand fields of Health Care and the TRades and get your questions answered.

Posting an event on our community calendar is a great way to gain exposure and promote your business's upcoming events. Take advantage of this FREE member benefit and post yours today by logging into your account!

*Contact Sam at sam@capeannchamber.com if you need assistance

Are you a boutique, an art gallery, an event venue or are you just looking to take your business's virtual accessibility to the next level? Virtual Tours aren't just for real estate! As a Greater Cape Ann Chamber member, book a virtual tour with VRtical Media and get an hour of post-production ($100 value) towards your first virtual tour.

Little Red Rooster is offering a 20% discount to all Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce members! Little Red Rooster has an amazing

customizable signature fried chicken sandwich, specialty sandwiches, buckets of chicken, creative sides & more!

Sign your contract between March 1 and May 31 and receive special rates on entertainment, photography, and photo booths for your next corporate outing. Misselwood has reached out to two of our vendors and they have agreed to give our clients special rates on a variety of services to enhance your event. PLUS all corporate outings that book a hosted open bar will receive the option to have a featured cocktail for one hour during the event at no additional charge.

Residential households in the U.S. can order one set of 4 free at-home tests from USPS.com. Here’s what you need to know about your order:

Limit of one order per residential address

One order includes 4 individual rapid antigen COVID-19 tests.

Orders will ship free starting in late January

Click the link below, and complete the form to place your order. No credit card information is required.

PCR testing site has opened in the Stage Fort Park parking lot. Testing is no longer by appointment only, and walk ins are accepted 8:30 AM - 4:30 PM Monday – Saturday. If you would like to make an appointment, click the link below.

Conley's Drug Store is no longer offering in-store vaccinations. Please go to their new clinic located at 79 Turnpike Road in Ipswich. Hours of operation are Monday through Friday 10 AM - 5 PM.

Conley's also sells at home antigen tests, KN95 masks, and other protective equipment.

Identification and health insurance are not required. Walk-ins will be accepted while supplies last at each clinic.

Essex | Thursdays from 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Town Hall Annex

Rockport | Saturdays from 10 AM-Noon

Community House

Located at 40 Beach Street in Manchester, Allen's Pharmacy has RT-PCR test appointments available this week. Their RT-PCR test device offers a runtime of 30 minutes which allows them to provide you with same day results. RT-PCR tests are considered the "gold-standard" of COVID-19 testing. This molecular test is administered using an anterior nasal swab to detect the presence of SARS-CoV-2 genetic material or RNA.

As a small or medium sized business owner, it is challenging enough to meet the day-to-day requirements for running your business. Increasingly it is becoming more difficult to achieve your business goals, keep up with ever changing technology and stay ahead of the hiring curve.

Please join the Enterprise Center and Stephen Webster of Wellfleet Enterprises, Inc. for this one-hour interactive workshop webinar. The workshop webinar will include a question-and-answer segment.

The City of Gloucester is now accepting applications for the 2022 Community Preservation Act (CPA) round of funding. Eligibility forms must be submitted by March 8, with full applications due May 3. CPA funds can be used for:

·Acquire, create, and preserve open space; and rehabilitate and restore open space if acquired or created with CPA funds

·Acquire, preserve, rehabilitate, and restore historic resources

·Acquire, create, and preserve land for recreation use; and rehabilitate and restore land for recreational use

·Acquire, create, preserve, and support community housing; and rehabilitate and restore community housing acquired or created with CPA funds

LEAP is now recruiting employers and

community members! Be a “Career Mentor” and virtually advise a youth/young adult summer intern in a six-week project-based remote learning experience.

If you are interested in promoting with the Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce and sponsoring this newsletter, please contact Ken Riehl at ken@capeannchamber.com