Keeping Our Focus On Fishing

Events like Fishermen's Festival this past weekend bolster our spirits that we are still a fishing community, albeit a diminished version of our past stature. It is a constant battle to remain a viable fishing port, with working waterfront fast disappearing, fish stocks still not back up to healthy levels for most species, federal and state fishing regulations driving many boat captains ashore or to the poorhouse, and dealers trying to hang on for dear life.

Communities such as ours, once with numerous commercial fishing docks and dealers as well as vessels engaged in a wide variety of fishing endeavors, find themselves in a different world entirely. It's not only hard to understand, it's hard to accept. Jobs in the fishing industry were once plentiful here, but not any more. Our harbor was once filled with many types of fishing vessels, but no longer. In many cases, commercial fishing docks not only in the Boothbay Harbor Region but all along the Maine coast, share their space with other more lucrative enterprises.

That's why Fishermen's Festival is so near and dear to our heart. It brings our commercial fishermen and their families together, and helps show the visitor that we're still a fishing community and proud of it. It takes a lot of work on the part of a dedicated few to help organize the various festival events, and we hope they know their efforts are appreciated. The fishermen themselves, and their families, cooperate in helping make it a fun weekend, and we were impressed to see that 53 fishing boats made the effort to participate in the annual boat parade and blessing of the fleet, despite the rain. Boating in that kind of weather is what you call commitment, not enjoyment, but they did it anyway, and are to be congratulated.

Events such as this are important for a lot of reasons, but most of all, they bolster our own determination to remain a fishing community despite all the pressures coming at us on all fronts. Let's hope the day never comes when we have to relinquish the distinction of being a Maine fishing port.