PortSide NewYork is again excitedly participating in Red Hook’s Barnacle Parade. Begun to celebrate resilience after Hurricane Sandy, the parade is held each year on the anniversary of the storm, October 29, rain or shine. The parade musters in Coffey Park and travels through Red Hook. An after-party with music food and fundraising will be held back on Pioneer Street.

Start time: 4pm, Coffey Park
After-party: 6pm, Pioneer Street, between Van Brunt & Imlay streets

Chiclet@PortSideNewYork.org or (917) 414-0565.

Due to rain this event originally scheduled for October 20, was been moved to October 27,

Fireside chat about 19th century news: It’s the 200th anniversary of the Erie Canal, so come toast marshmallows over the firepit and learn how that canal led to a boom in Red Hook, and how that Red Hook boom changed Brooklyn.

Note: ending time allows for a generous amount of TankerTime after the conversation.

TankerTours as part of Open House NY weekend (OHNY).  Come visit one of NYC’s special places. Our flagship MARY A. WHALEN was built in 1938 and is the last of her kind in the USA. As a coastal oil tanker, she is a great platform for discussing American fuel consumption. Visitors also learn about her role in a major Supreme Court decision and engine restoration project, fall in love with the galley, the bell boat system, wheelhouse and ship cat Chiclet. A photo exhibit will be present.  Since PortSide’s offices are aboard, most tours are by appointment, and OHNY is a rare chances for public tours of the interior.

Sun, 10/22, 11am – 6pm.

Join us at the Pioneer Street Block party! We will be off the boat and down the block, between Richards and Van Brunt. Sat, 10/21/23, 11am to 5pm, rain or shine

WE CAN RESUME PROGRAMS! Please show your support and show up! We're part of Red Hook Open Studios (RHOS) this weekend, Sat + Sun, 1-6pm.

Inside the ship, see a photo exhibit of porthole views from the tanker Mary Whalen. Photo sales benefit our Sandy recovery project: MakeMaryRunAgain capital campaign   

Come for TankerTours, enjoy our free ArtTable and BookTent on deck, play string with our  ship cat Chiclet.

WE CAN RESUME PROGRAMS! Please show your support and show up! We're part of Red Hook Open Studios (RHOS) this weekend, Sat + Sun, 1-6pm.

Inside the ship, see a photo exhibit of porthole views from the tanker Mary Whalen. Photo sales benefit our Sandy recovery project: MakeMaryRunAgain capital campaign   

Come for TankerTours, enjoy our free ArtTable and BookTent on deck, play string with our  ship cat Chiclet.

Permission for PortSide’s remaining June events was revoked by the EDC last Friday, 6/16 as we all were waiting for paperwork from another party. PortSide tried to resolve things this week and could not by the weekend.  Very sorry if this affects your plans.  We’ll share an update when we have news.

An annual favorite returns, the Red Hook community 4th of July potluck. We welomce our neighbors to come celebrate the 4th and watch the fireworks. BYOB n food. FYI, we do not have an up-close view of the fireworks; people love this for the community vibe, sharing and talk. Kid friendly. We have a kiddie pool, kids books and toys.

Deck opens at 7pm. We appreciate volunteers who come at 5pm to help set up the furniture, coolers, etc.

POSTPONED

Permission for PortSide’s remaining June events was revoked by the EDC last Friday, 6/16 as we all were waiting for paperwork from another party. PortSide tried to resolve things this week and could not by the weekend.  Very sorry if this affects your plans.  We’ll share an update when we have news.

TankerFlicks is back with a series of films about strivers.  Bridge Brothers is a colorful documentary about the bridge painters of Philadelphia.  Their NYC union brothers train on Mary Whalen. As you sit outside on her deck preparing to watch the movie, take a moment to appreciate the Union’s handiwork, PortSide sure does.

Bridge Brothers (2017) “Risk and danger define their 12-hour days as they sandblast through layers of hazardous coatings and damaging corrosion to repaint these massive structures. These guys, members of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, are filled with grit and a wild sense of humor. ​As they preserve America’s bridges they also battle Mother Nature – and each other – racing against the clock to get work done under the exacting eye of their foreman and company bosses. They are also forced to confront the personal toll of this work on their family life back home – whether home is New Jersey or Florida; Brazil or Greece. They may not be related by blood but they are brothers nonetheless. Bridge Brothers” See the trailer.

Permission for PortSide’s remaining June events was revoked by the EDC Friday, 6/16 as we all were waiting for paperwork from another party. PortSide tried to resolve things this week and could not by the weekend.  Very sorry if this affects your plans.  We’ll share an update when we have news.

PortSide offers a new way to ease into the weekend - Friday sunsets by the firepit! There will be a book reading for kids - if families with kids show up - in the free library in our new BookTent on deck.

There’s toasting marshmallows for all ages (we provide marshmallow), BYOB.

FREE. Donations appreciated.

Dogs must be kept on leash to keep our ship cat Chiclet safe and happy.

POSTPONED

Permission for PortSide’s remaining June events was revoked by the EDC Friday, 6/16 as we all were waiting for paperwork from another party. PortSide tried to resolve things this week and could not by the weekend.  Very sorry if this affects your plans.  We’ll share an update when we have news.

TankerFlicks is back with a series of films about strivers.  There may be no more perfect place to see Secret of the Grain (2007) than on the deck of the Mary Whalen. A perfect ending to the day’s Tanker Tours of the Mary Whalen, part of her 85th berthday celebration.

The Secret of the Grain is a feature film that tells a “touching and resoundingly humanistic story set in the rustic port of Sete in southeastern France. Slimane has worked in the same shipyard job for over 35 years, when his growing dissatisfaction prompts him to try to open his own restaurant aboard a retired oil tanker. His dream seems unbelievable, but his contagious conviction and persistence work their way into the hearts of his loyal but dispersed family.  Film is in French and Arabic with English subtitles.

POSTPONED

Permission for PortSide’s remaining June events was revoked by the EDC last Friday, 6/16 as we all were waiting for paperwork from another party. PortSide tried to resolve things this week and could not by the weekend.  Very sorry if this affects your plans.  We’ll share an update when we have news.

From 11:30am to 5pm, come tour the flagship of PortSide NewYork, the tanker MARY A. WHALEN. Tours are open-style with docents stationed around the ship so you can move at your own pace. Family-friendly. Lots of things for kids to touch.

The MARY is the last of her kind in the USA and on the National Register of Historic Places. She has a long Red Hook pedigree. If you’re the type to do some research beforehand, see info here.

Make a day of it, and get some dinner in Red Hook or bring take-out the ship, and then join us at 9 pm for the screening of “Secret of the Grain” about a Tunisian man in France trying to open a restaurant on an oil tanker and his struggles against preposterous bureaucracy. Yes, we relate to this film.

Permission for PortSide’s remaining June events was revoked by the EDC last Friday, 6/16 as we all were waiting for paperwork from another party. PortSide tried to resolve things this week and could not by the weekend.  Very sorry if this affects your plans.  We’ll share an update when we have news.

PortSide offers a new way to ease into the weekend - Friday sunsets by the firepit. If families with kids show up, we’ll have a kids’ book reading in our new BookTent full of free books. There’s toasting marshmallows for all ages (we provide marshmallow), BYOB.

Postponed

Due to potential rain and smoke conditions The Weekend Sailor has been postponed. New date to be announced soon.

TankerFlicks is back with a series of films about strivers.   The Weekend Sailor (2016) is an inspiring documentary about Ramon Carlín, a middle-aged Mexican man who raced in the first Whitbread (now Volvo) around the world race with an unpretensious sailboat and friends and family for crew, and they beat deeply-funded professional sailors. Ramon Carlín faced laughter and scorn from the maritime press and the sailing world.

Enjoy this water-themed movie outside on the deck of the Mary Whalen. Here is the trailer.

The licensing fee for this is $500, so donations are appreciated.

“In 1973, the United Kingdom organized the first head to head sailing race around the world, inviting expert crews from Europe and other countries against each other. The Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race, today the prestigious Volvo Ocean Race took the sport to its limits. The British Royal Navy purchased six yachts to train 800 man and chose the best four 10-man crews for each of the four legs of the race, yet, an inexperienced Mexican man also signed up. In his fifties, with a crew that included his wife, son, family and friends. His name, Ramon Carlín. A weekend sailor. And he beat every competing nation. In Mexico, Ramon lived the working man’s dream, turning a door to door sales job into a million-dollar company through flawless work ethic and a sheer effort. He married the love of his life Paquita and formed a family. His rebellious teenage son, Enrique, wanted to marry to his 14 year-old girlfriend, so Ramon sent him to school in Ireland to keep them apart. It only made things more extreme on their life. While visiting Enrique in the United Kingdom, Ramon noticed an ad on a magazine for a sailing race around the world. He’d been sailing casually for two years in Acapulco and saw this race as an opportunity to teach his son some discipline and a real life experience.”

PortSide offers a new way to ease into the weekend - Friday sunsets by the firepit! There will be a book reading for kids - if families with kids show up - in the free library in our new BookTent on deck.

There’s toasting marshmallows for all ages (we provide marshmallow), BYOB.

FREE. Donations appreciated.

Dogs must be kept on leash to keep our ship cat Chiclet safe and happy.

Featuring students from PS15 in Red Hook!

PortSide TankerFlicks return on the deck of our retired oil tanker MARY A. WHALEN with a series of films about strivers.

Microplastic Madness is the story of 56 fifth graders from PS15 in Red Hook, Brooklyn - living on the frontline of the climate crisis - whose actions on plastic pollution morph into extraordinary leadership and scalable victories.  This engaging and award winning film is a Cafeteria Culture production. See the trailer

With stop-motion animation, heartfelt kid commentary, and interviews of experts and renowned scientists who are engaged in the most cutting-edge research on the harmful effects of microplastics, this alarming, yet charming narrative, conveys an urgent message in user-friendly terms.

These eleven-year olds dive deep into the root causes of plastic pollution.  Taking on the roles of citizen scientists and community advocates, they collect local data, lead community outreach, and use their own local data to inform policy by testifying and rallying at City Hall. Then they turned their focus back to school, taking action in their cafeteria to eliminate all single-use plastic!

Created to inspire kids, teachers and policy makers alike, this is the spark needed to grow a youth-led Plastic Free Future movement in schools across the world!

The film includes shots of the MARY A. WHALEN and remarks by our ED Carolina Salguero.

Tickets are FREE but we ask for RSVPs so we don’t over book the event, and we ask for a $10 donation to prevent people from reserving seats they then don't use. We return the $10 when you get here, or you can turn that into a donation. Get your TICKETS!

PortSide offers a new way to ease into the weekend - Friday sunsets by the firepit! There will be a book reading for kids - if families with kids show up - in the free library in our new BookTent on deck.

There’s toasting marshmallows for all ages (we provide marshmallow), BYOB.

FREE. Donations appreciated.

Dogs must be kept on leash to keep our ship cat Chiclet safe and happy.

The Red Hook Community Garage Sale is the weekend of June 2-3. See the map of sites in the QR code link below. PortSide is participating on the Mary Whalen JUST Saturday from 10am to 2pm. We have lots of free book (mostly kids books, 70% Spanish, 30% English), free outdoor plastic tables and chairs, and some random other free things. Red Hook community members who have not space to sell can do so on deck, but you need to take away anything you do not sell.

Join us at our Red Hook Holiday Party “Taste History” on PortSide NewYork’s ship, the MARY A. WHALEN.

Bring your fave holiday baking and recipe to share. We are making Joe Froggers cookies, part of maritime and Black history.

Enjoy Penguin Park décor, hot cider, firepit, toasting marshmallows, and Christmas Carols. Tour our nationally historic ship.

The Brooklyyn Maqam is coming back to PortSide NewYork!

On the deck of the MARY WHALEN, Come listen to a jam of Middle Eastern music with Brooklyn Maqam, an organization dedicated to presenting Middle Eastern (in particular, Arabic) music, with the goals of expanding its audience, preserving it as an art form, and building community centered around the music.

Jammers bring your instruments and come hang on the historic oil tanker Mary Whalen. Please bring your instruments, beverages or snacks to share. This will be an informal and casual get-together for musicians to play and shmooze in an exquisite outdoor setting on the deck of a historic boat. Mark your calendars!!

Friday, 8/26, 7:30pm - 11pm.

6/20/22 update: Tracy Edwards, the skipper of the MAIDEN during the 1989 Whitbread Race, will not be here on 6/22.

Meet the all-female boat crew fighting sexism and inspiring girls around the world. 

The racing yacht MAIDEN is coming to PortSide Wednesday 6/22/22 from 9am to 1pm.

We ask that groups RSVP to chiclet@portsidenewyork.org.with the number of people and approximate time of your visit so that we can make plans to accommodate all smoothly and not over book. Note that schools have been invited to attend. If you have flexibility in your schedule as to what time you can be here, pleaes give us the details as we may ask you to adjust your schedule if you are coming at a projected peak visitor time.

MAIDEN is famous for competing in the Whitbread Round the World race in 1989/1990 skippered by Tracy Edwards MBE. Tracy was expelled from school at 16; and at 26, she organized and skippered the first all-female crew in the Whitbread race after having sailed that race one time as a cook. Tracy and her crew faced rampant sexism (many men thought they would never survive, forget win two legs of the race); and a few years ago, Tracy started the nonprofit Maiden Factor Foundation to use the boat to empower girls via education by sailing around the world, inspiring girls where ever they stop. The boat is in NYS during June as part of their round-the-world tour.

About facing the sexism in sailing back in the 1980s Tracy said, "if the world doesn’t exist as I want it to exist, then I need to change it.” 

Come meet the women who sail MAIDEN now.  The experiences being offered:

• The 58' MAIDEN will tie up next to PortSide's flagship ship MARY A. WHALEN in Red Hook. Students will be able to see MAIDEN from the deck of our ship.

• Talk to the women crew of MAIDEN who will explain their maritime jobs and skills (a lot of STEM), why they do this, what it's like to sail the open ocean where waves can be as high as the boat is long and answer questions.  

• Students can ask the crew about the experience of girls and women in the countries they are from and the countries MAIDEN has visited with them aboard. Plus, ask whatever you want!

• STEM activities. Maritime skills (knot tying, handling rope, etc.) will be demonstrated.

• We will screen MAIDEN videos inside the MARY A. WHALEN as an immersion experience (visiting for a short stint to get a taste of MAIDEN not sitting down to see it all.)

• Maritime twofer! First-time visitors to our ship MARY A. WHALEN will be able to have a look around. We will not give tours of our ship at this time, but our crew will be on hand to answer some questions.

More about Tracy Edwards, MAIDEN and their foundation at links below:

MAIDEN Factor Foundation website 
Trailer for 2019 movie about MAIDEN
TEDtalk by Captain Tracy Edwards
Review of that movie by New York Times 6/6/19
Royal Yachting Association video
New Yorker article 7/9/19

Please share this and RSVP asap to chiclet@portsidenewyork.org.
Open to all genders. 
If you want to volunteer to help run the event, please let us know. 
Directions to PortSide here.

Hope to see you aboard!