12/09/09

Coast Guard, Town officials to unveil holiday wreath at Portland Head Light

Town and Coast Guard officials will meet at Portland Head Light at 1 p.m. Friday, Dec. 11, for the unveiling of a donated holiday wreath that will adorn the famed lighthouse all to enjoy.

Coast Guard Sector Northern New England’s Commander Capt. James McPherson will join members of the Town Council for the event, the first of its kind for Portland Head Light. The ceremony stems from a widespread tradition where Coast Guard units around the country join with their local communities to decorate lighthouses with wreaths and other holiday decorations.

The wreath at Portland Head Light will be lit with energy efficient LED lights and will be hung from the lighthouse for the public to enjoy.

“On behalf of the town of Cape Elizabeth, I want to thank the Coast Guard and the Portland Head Light Museum for the opportunity to display the wreath for the community to enjoy during the holidays,” said Town Council Chairman Jim Rowe.

McPherson and members of the council will recount other memorable events in the Coast Guard’s long relationship with the community, starting when the Coast Guard first operated the light in 1791. These will surely include Christmas Eve in 1886, when watch standers from the light helped rescue 13 people from the clipper Annie McGuire after the vessel ran aground at the foot of Portland Head Light.

“Coast Guard and our predecessors have a tradition of service in Maine dating back to 1791. Every year Coast Guard men and women stand watch on Christmas to serve those who may be in peril,” said McPherson. “This year, there will be approximately 73 men and women in Sector Northern New England ready to respond to those in distress,” he said.

In addition to the wreath ceremony, the Coast Guard will announce the date for next year’s Open Lighthouse Day event which will be September 18, 2010. Open Lighthouse Day is an annual event in which the Maine Office of Tourism and the Coast Guard jointly work together to open nearly 30 of Maine’s iconic lighthouse structures in one day for the public to visit. At this year's event, an estimated 15,500 people visited 28 lighthouses around the state.