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Debut Meeting Planned for Pink House Supporters 

9/26/2016

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This Wednesday, September 28, citizens from all parts of Northern New England who have been expressing increased interest in the Pink House will be gathering for the first of what is to become monthly meetings.

It will start at 7 PM at PITA Hall on Plum Island, within sight of the iconic Pink House whose planned demise has raised the passion of enough people to successfully postpone the intended. Thanks to the bi-partisan efforts of state and federal officials and various stakeholders stepping up to join Support The Pink House in the cause, the Pink House will now stand for another year, thanks to the cooperation of the owners, US Fish and Wildlife/Parker River Wildlife Refuge. 
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The meeting will begin with an informational presentation to tell the compelling story, which is expected to include a few words from Senators Tarr and Ives, culminating in the opportunity for all interested in pitching in to to sign on to the effort.   And they are needed, as the challenges are not over. 

It has taken a handful of people on the Support the Pink House Steering Committee a year to arrive at this turning point. Now a new  year to work on solutions lies ahead. Momentum, interest and options continue to build on a daily basis. As a result, the group will go forward to meet each month, expanding outreach and continuing their research and exploration of proposals to shepherd The Pink House into a scenario that will keep the her in the community in perpetuity.  

​An Art Show and Auction is also in the works, set for November 17th at PITA Hall.

Stay tuned!
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Volunteer Spotlight: Bill Barrett

9/19/2016

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We've mentioned in our brochure and on the FB page that in February 2016, a walk through of the Pink House by a local HIC/CSL builder, along with Rochelle Joseph from our Steering Committee, and Parker River Wildlife Manager Bill Peterson produced a report that the Pink House was structurally sound.

​ That builder was trusted Newbury resident Bill Barrett.

​Bill's company, Plum Island Construction, is well known in the area. Not a day goes by when you don't see his trucks driving by, or parked in front of one beautiful home or another that he and his crew are creating.

Back in October 2015, when the Support the Pink House movement was in it's infancy, the Parker River Wildlife Refuge held a public meeting in answer to the growing public interest in the Pink House's fate. Bill was there out of his own personal concerns.  At that time he asked if he might be able to go through the house - a request not granted to many. ​ Nothing came of it at that time, but Bill went on to become an early member of our Facebook Discussion Group based on the issue, and was one of the first to buy STPH bumper stickers - 5 in fact - to go on every vehicle he owns!
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STPH realized the first step was to learn the reality of The Pink House's condition by seeing it first hand with an experienced, reliable professional.  After the holidays, Rochelle, who had been in regular touch with the Refuge Manager, asked if Bill could get into the house on STPH's behalf.  In mid-February, Peterson allowed Barrett and she to walk through it with him. Together they looked into every nook and cranny from the basement to the cupola, as Bill Barrett opened every door,  stuck his head out of key windows, surveying it inside and out. 

After exiting the house, Bill reported that he was pleasantly surprised to find that the house was structurally sound, noting that the fireplace was well in tact - unusual due to it's size. He expected that the foundation might be cracked due to deterioration but none was visually seen. The external patio floor was slanted a bit, but Bill said that was just superficial and easily improved. 

STPH greatly appreciated that Refuge Manager Peterson arranged for this, and continued on to comb maps with Rochelle at his office for two hours after the walk through, coming up with some options for retaining the Pink House in the community. Two of the three initial solutions focused on land swaps, as Federally owned land can't just be sold.
As the Steering Committee set out immediately to pursue the vast challenge of finding swaps to fit the criteria,  Bill met with them in April,  contributing both perspective and advice, and directed some valuable web research  that made a major shift in their early efforts to understand the lay of the land.

When the time comes that the house would be refurbished, Bill has said he would head the project if called upon, and aid in getting donated materials and licensed and insured workers if needed.  We don't quite know yet which iron in the fire will come to fruition, but we continue to prepare to be able to act on what we'll need once a solution is reached.  

We get a great deal of confidence having people like Bill Barrett on board, working on behalf of his community.  That's a volunteer extraordinaire!
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Greg Earls, Councillor at Large, Took Early Interest in The Pink House

9/14/2016

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Today's thank you goes to charter Pink House Group member, Newburyport Councillor at Large Gregory Earls. Greg was one of the first people to participate in the earliest stages of the Pink House cause, and from the heart. His early advice, along with making some phone calls on behalf of the Pink House, sent us on a path that led to the great place we are at now. Just one more way we know we live in a wonderful community full of wonderful people. 
Greg is serving his sixth term as city councilor - this is his   first term as a Coucillor at Large after being a Ward 2 Councillor in the past. He also has long done amazing work at YouthBuild in Lawrence, MA, a challenging program that helps young people get a second chance in life training in  construction and completing their G.E.D's  and learning to lead others. 
We are so glad that almost a year ago, Greg approached one of our Steering Committee members, Rochelle Joseph, of his own volition, saying, " I want to talk to you about the Pink House!"

​  Thank you Greg - we find it awesome that you THINK PINK!

​
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The Pink House Makes Front Page News - Again!

9/2/2016

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Photo by Bryan Eaton/Staff Daily News
​Support The Pink House had great success further spreading the word about the cause in the 8 days we spent at Yankee Homecoming.  And on day one, Dyke Hendriksen of the The Daily News was at our booth so we could fill him in on the great strides we’ve made. The next day a wonderful Pink House article was again front page news – further evidence of how important this truly is to the community.
 
The journey to keep the Pink House as the meaningful landmark she is to the entire North Shore and all who come here to visit has been faithfully covered by the Daily News from the get go.  
In fact, it was a Daily News article announcing plans to demolish the Pink House that prompted Steering Committee member Alison Odle to start the Facebook page to discuss it within the community. And the rest is history in the making…
Read the full Daily News article HERE.
We’ve been working hard behind the scenes and as a result, there are a lot of new developments we want to share with you.  You will find it all here on the official Support the Pink House blog, so bookmark us, subscribe to us or just keep checking back for all the exciting news!
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