Wakefield Community Boating kicked off a summer of fun with a ribbon cutting ceremony on Saturday morning.

The event marks the beginning of a summer focused on community. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Stoneham & Wakefield collaborated with the Friends of Lake Quannapowitt, Quannapowitt Yacht Club, Wakefield Center Neighborhood Association, and Wakefield Main Streets among many other local organizations to make community boating a reality.

The kickoff event provided the opportunity for everyone who helped make this new resource possible to come together and celebrate. Other than representatives from the groups mentioned previously, town officials, parents, children, and other civic leaders attended the ceremonial ribbon cutting.

Kayakers were greeted with a brochure that includes a map of downtown marking local restaurants and shops to be explored. Exclusive coupons to 14 local businesses will be included in the brochures and are redeemable this summer. Finally, for any child who signs up for summer reading or reads one book, will get an hour of free kayaking. This is in addition to the $5 kayaking passes the library has.

Referring to all these initiatives, Adam Rodgers, Boys & Girls Clubs CEO, said “this is just a small sample of what we intend to do. We plan to have water testing, science projects, veteran days, and much more. We’re just getting started.”

This new community resource will be open Monday through Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm. Rentals are offered to Wakefield Residents at a discounted rate. The Savings Bank, Holiday Travel, and Smith Drug will be selling tickets to both residents and non-residents at the resident price.

For photos from the event, click here,

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