City of Water Day 2023

On July 15, with our first open house of the season, Sebago once again joined with the Waterfront Alliance, the Jamaica Bay Rockaway Parks Conservancy, and other regional clubs and advocacy groups in celebrating City of Water Day, now in its 16th year. COW Day aims to expand public access to the waterfront we all share, as well as to increase awareness of recreational and educational opportunities.

Attendance far exceeded our expectations! Depending on weather, we typically get between 70 and 90 people on the water. This year, more than 200 waivers were completed, including 90 for kids/teens. Our volunteers rose to the challenge!

Each and every one of our volunteers went beyond what was expected and helped make the day a rousing success. Much appreciation and huge thanks to all — from those who helped with event planning to those who stayed to the last for clean-up, and everyone in between! It takes a lot of effort to get that many people safely on the water in a four-hour window. Congratulations on doing the job extraordinarily well!

And I am sure all the volunteers want to extend a special thanks to the grill/hospitality team who put together a much-appreciated post-event BBQ!

I personally appreciated everyone’s graciousness and good cheer in dealing with the unexpectedly hot day!

I’d also like to acknowledge the substantial contributions of our community partners: the Billion Oyster Project, whose knowledgeable and enthusiastic staff offered our visitors the chance to learn about the ecology of Jamaica Bay; and Senator Persaud and her staff, whose outreach efforts brought many area youth groups to our event. They also had staff on hand all day to assist. Thank you all!

—Beth Eller