East Bay Newspapers
Friday, July 14, 2006

Sandtastic success

Saturday, July 8, turned out to be a good day for the Swansea Beach Committee and the Friends of the Bluffs Ocean Grove Neighborhood Association (FOBOGNA).It was also a good day for any Swansea area residents looking for some fun in the sun. That day, FOBOGNA, in conjunction with the beach committee, held its first ever Family Fun Day. On that day, beach-goers could enjoy a variety of activities, including kite flying, face painting, a scavenger hunt for children and a sand sculpture building contest. Additionally, professional sand sculpting group Sandtasia were on hand to show others how it was done, erecting a large sand castle with a sculpted "Swansea Family Fun Day" sign at its base.
All of the above were aided by warm, sunny weather throughout the event. Additionally, organizers said the event drew several prominent folks currently running for political office, eager to schmooze in the sun with the hundreds of people who reportedly showed up throughout the day. Among those eager office seekers were District Attorney Paul Walsh, county commissioner hopeful Greg DeMello and state representative candidates Nick Bernier (D-Swansea) and Steven Howitt (R-Seekonk). However, a former Swansea selectman was happy to sit back and enjoy the event alongside the organizers.
"Nice, big crowd," said Donald "Butch" Hyland.
"You couldn't ask for a better day."
That sentiment was echoed both by beach-goers and organizers. One of those beachgoers was Jenn Howard, who was found by the water helping her niece, Jordyn Quental sculpt a giant crab out of wet sand.
Nothing crabby here
"It's been beautiful all day," Ms. Howard said.
"Really nice and a lot of fun."
At that point, the two of them were putting the finishing touches on the crab, having already gone kayaking and visited the face-painting table. So what was the most fun thing they did that day?
"Making the crab," Jordyn responded with little hesitation.
Other residents shared in the positive sentiments. Brenda Rogers looked on happily as her son David and his cousin, Tyler Patterson, worked on a mermaid sculpture in the sand. The boys explained that their mermaid came about by happy accident, as a result of bad luck with the sand.
"At first we were trying to make a castle," Tyler said.
"But it collapsed," David chimed it, concisely finishing the story.
As a result, the boys decided that it would be more feasible to make a mermaid out of the remains. David's mother, for her part, said the family had a good day at the beach.
"It was a beautiful day," Ms. Rogers said.


vsaksena@eastbaynewspapers.com