David Marujo was born in New Bedford in 1968 and has lived in Acushnet since age 18.  He began working at Crystal Ice 31 years ago and has worked his way up to his current job as supervisor.  He describes the process of making different kinds of ice, how the technology has changed in the last 30 years, reflects on the changing waterfront and the trickle down effects on shore-side businesses as quotas restrict fishing days and demand for services, and the next generations are/are not coming into the business.  “The waterfront is nothing like it used to be,” he concludes.

On September 26, 2004, Millie Rahn interviewed Deb and Ron Schrader as part of the Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project. Ron was raised in a fishing family, and knew he wanted to be a fisherman from an early age, and made his way along the coast from North Carolina to New Bedford, MA, where he achieved his goal of becoming a captain. Deb grew up in New Bedford, but it wasn’t until she met Ron that she became involved in the local fishing industry.

Debra Kelsey of New Bedford, Massachusetts. Growing up, she attended Catholic school and had no interaction with the fishing industry. She initially worked as a commercial printer until she was laid off. She then enrolled as a full-time student at Salter School for 10 months, then began to work as a medical assistant, but didn’t like it. Shortly afterwards she was offered position as a navigator at Fishing Partnership Support Services where she works today.

This is a loving portrait of a single mother who worked extremely hard to provide for her children.  In this interview, Debra Soares describes her mother’s resilient, hardworking nature in the face of long, cold hours working as a fish processor.  She extolls the importance of extended kinship networks, the power of being raised by a village, and the sacrifices that the women in her mother’s generation and the first-generation immigrants from Cape Verde made working in the fish houses.

On September 23, 2007, Janice Gadaire Fleuriel interviewed Diane Flynn as part of the Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project. Diane shares details from her 27 years of working in the fishing industry as an inshore fisher of soft shell clams. Her partner, Skip, came from generations of fishermen, and taught her the trade, and she describes their work harvesting clams, along with scalloping, quahoging and oystering.

On September 25, 2011 Madeleine Hall-Arber interviewed Dick Grachek as part of the Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project. Dick shares memories from his childhood which nurtured his attachment to the water. Despite not coming from a professional fishing family, his love for the ocean was instilled in him by his grandfather, who owned a fish store in Brooklyn, and father, who took him fishing frequently. Growing up on the south shore of Long Island, Dick was exposed to the cycles of fish and the intricacies of marine life from a young age.

Mr. Ficek has been a fisherman for ten years and talks about life at sea.

Donald F. Clattenburg, born on September 5, 1925, in Port Midway, Nova Scotia, is a retired commercial fisherman with a rich history in the industry. His father, also a fisherman, moved to the United States before Donald was born, visiting his family in Nova Scotia annually . Donald moved to the United States in August 1941, just before World War II, and settled in New Bedford. He began his career in commercial fishing shortly after returning from the war, following in his father's footsteps.

On September 29, 2012 Markham Starr interviewed Donald Spooner as part of the Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project. Donald describes his upbringing and childhood in Fairhaven, MA. As a Boy Scout, he used to visit Guilmette's machine shop on Main Street in Fairhaven, learning to use different tools and eventually started working, making wooden doors for draggers. After high school, he joined the Navy in 1950 and served for four years.

On September 23, 2006, Janice Gadaire Fleuriel interviewed Donna Cunio as part of the Working Waterfront Festival Community Documentation Project. Donna discusses her life with her husband, a merchant marine captain, including details of his work transporting cargo for Texaco and the struggles involved in maintaining the homefront, and managing a difficult pregnancy. While he was at sea, Donna worked full-time and helped care for her family.