Goldstein leads the Gaspee pack

Former councilman Gerald S. Goldstein will don his white suit and return to Narragansett Parkway to once again carry the mace to lead the 44th Annual Gaspee Days Parade this Saturday. The Rhode Island Mace was first carried at the head of the Gaspee Days Parade in June of 1968 by then-Ward 1 Councilman Fred Connell. It was then passed on in 1972 to Goldstein when he was elected. Goldstein led the parade from 1972 to 1992, after which the honor was given to "Mr. Gaspee,” Milton Wrath, Gaspee Days Committee Past President. In 2007, Wrath passed that honor on to Past President of the Gaspee Days, Mark Russell. When Brigadier General Hunter C. White Sr. was High Sheriff of Providence County over a century ago, he commissioned the creation of the staff. The High Sheriff of Providence County has used the mace in the Inaugural Ceremonies for Rhode Island Governors since Governor Charles D. Kimball was sworn in on Jan. 7, 1902. The only exception has been during World War I when its owner at the time, General White, was with the American Expeditionary Forces in Europe. The mace, made of historic fragments of wood, is closely associated with the historical backgrounds of the state and the nation. The eagle on the top of the mace was carried through the Civil War on top of a staff that wore a Union battle flag. Part of the wood was once taken from the much-hated British revenue schooner H.M.S. Gaspee, which was burned after being caught on a sand bar off Gaspee Point on the evening of June 9, 1772. Another portion of the wood came from colonial Governor Arthur Fenner's homestead in Cranston, which was built in 1680 and demolished in 1895.

Cady's benefit breakfast set for June 28

Last week Meg Fraser reported the story of Cadence Smith and her parents' determination to raise money for the little girl to go to Duke University and receive a cord blood transplant. Cady, as she is known, was born with brain damage and cerebral palsy. She is scheduled to go to North Carolina in July where Dr. Joanne Kurtzberg will re-infuse the child with her own umbilical cord blood in the hopes that the stem cells in the blood will regenerate brain cells and reverse the damage. Dr. Kurtzberg has performed this procedure more than 100 times and according to Mary Schneider, whose son Ryan was cured from his CP after having the procedure, of the roughly 50 or so families she's in contact, all have shown some improvements and several have had dramatic results. Born with Meconium Aspiration Syndrome, Cady spent her first 12 days of life on oxygen and nearly six weeks in the NICU at Women and Infants' Hospital in Providence. While recovering from the MAS, nurses began to notice things weren't right with the baby and an MRI confirmed doctors' suspicions: the knot found in her umbilical cord at birth had been tugged, brain damage resulting. Cady, who turns 2 while in North Carolina, cannot walk, talk, sit up or even eat. “It might not be much of a birthday for her,” said mom Kelly, “but as far as we're concerned there's no better gift.” Certain the procedure will help their daughter in at least some way (if not giving her a full recovery), Kelly and her husband Corey, were excited to get Cady into the trial and after learning it will cost roughly $12,000 (not covered by insurance), set out to host several fundraising events to send her there. The first of theses events will be held Sunday, June 28 from 8 to 10:30 a.m. at Dave's Bar & Grille here in Warwick. Tickets to the breakfast buffet (which includes, but is not limited to, coffee, juice, cereal, eggs, toast, sausage and bacon) are $15 and can be purchased by e-mailing ksmith1027@gmail.com or calling 615-1986. (Tickets are not available at the door.) There will be a raffle at the event with some great prizes given away. For more information on Cady, visit her blog at www.cadyscause.blogspot.com.

Local business helps Amos House

Amos House raised over $80,000 at its 11th Annual Charity Golf Tournament on June 2 at picturesque Sakonnet Golf Club in Little Compton. Over 90 golfers from 24 businesses joined together to support the social service agency that serves and empowers the poor and homeless in Rhode Island. Among the leading supporters was Salvadore Auctions & Appraisals, Inc. of Warwick. The day featured 18 holes of golf, contests and prizes, a silent auction, barbecue lunch and a dinner catered by More Than a Meal, Amos House’s micro-business. Proceeds from the event will support the agency’s programs and services. For more than 30 years, Amos House has provided direct support to people who are hungry, homeless and in crisis. From a small soup kitchen operated out of a south Providence tenement house, Amos House has grown into a thriving social service agency with 12 buildings, a revenue generating business and a 48-person staff that provides numerous services to over 15,000 people each year. The agency’s holistic approach to helping people change their lives includes providing free breakfast and lunch meals, transitional and permanent supportive housing, job and literacy training, substance abuse counseling and emergency assistance. Amos House's motto is "Helping people help themselves."

A walk through history

And more on Gaspee Days…Did you ever wonder how the colonists lived? The Gaspee Days Committee, in cooperation with the Pawtuxet Rangers, RIM, offers you a chance to take a peek. The annual Gaspee Days celebration includes a Colonial Encampment where families have the opportunity to walk through an example of colonial/military life. As you walk through you can observe cooking demonstrations, firearms demonstrations or singing. The re-enactment groups camp out in Pawtuxet Park here in Warwick this weekend. The best time to walk through and observe is during daylight hours. There is no cost for the event. The re-enactment groups scheduled to participate are: Lebanon Town Militia from Connecticut, the Free Men of the Sea from Connecticut, the Rhode Island Pirate Players from Rhode Island, Bristol Ready Volunteers from Rhode Island and Smith Castle from Rhode Island. The Gaspee Days Committee is a civic-minded nonprofit organization that operates many community events in and around Pawtuxet Village, including the Gaspee Days Parade each June. These events are all designed to commemorate the burning of the British revenue schooner, HMS Gaspee, by Rhode Island patriots in 1772 as America's 'First Blow for Freedom.’