On May 1st our annual letter went out to paid up members for 06/01/24 to 05/31/25 and to a small group of lapsed members who had not renewed in the last few years.  Printing, stuffing, mailing, collecting funds, checking and recording the information is quite cumbersome so a decision was made that paid up members would be considered renewed for the 06/01/25 to 05/31/26 membership year.  Seven families that had lapsed recently renewed as well as three new memberships.  The following is the letter that was emailed to all.  We appreciate you and your support throughout the years.

May 2025

Hello Neighbor and Greetings from the Old Stone Dock Association

We hope that this letter finds you well. It is being sent via email (no mailing this year) to the 220 paid-up members from June 1, 2024 to May 31, 2025.  We will not be collecting dues from present members this year.  You will automatically be renewed for June 1, 2025 to May 31, 2026.  We are doing this for two reasons (1) to reduce the workload of the membership committee in printing and mailing to several hundred members and then processing and checking their information against present lists which takes place over several months and (2) to spend down funds in our present treasury.

The last two years we have attempted to bring new and possibly younger people to the board by reaching out to those we thought that might be interested and requesting help via a survey last year.  This led to a few additions but not enough.  We didn’t have a President in 2024 and haven’t had a Vice President (to move up) in many years.  We can’t seem to find current members who want to be on the board, an officer or to lead or be on a committee to run our activities and events.  During the coming months we will be assessing what programs we will be able to continue and which will be eliminated.  The present board, may have to make the difficult decision to spend down funds and dissolve the association at some point.

The Association strives to promote a sense of community for residents in the neighborhood of Main Street to Surf Drive between Shore Street and Mill Road and all the streets and residents within those boundaries.  We perform a variety of services and social activities focused primarily on our neighborhood.  We want to thank all the members of the Old Stone Dock Association whose dues have been used to support these programs.

The following is a list of the accomplishments and activities for 2024. 

  • 05/22/24 Flower Boxes – The flower boxes at the Ellen T. Mitchell bathhouse were purchased from Soares Nursery and were installed in time for the Memorial Day weekend. Funds towards the flowers were also provided by OSDA members in memory of family members.
  • 06/08/24 Beach Cleanup – Twenty members and friends participated in the Annual Surf Drive Beach cleanup. Barb Schneider and Nancy Quigg of the Beach Committee and Brooke McMillan Asst Beach Superintendent were also there.  There was also a membership promotion table with OSDA logo wear.
  • 07/06/24 Gift to Beach Department & Beach Workers – The OSDA purchased 3 new cross walk signs for Surf Drive Beach and provided 125 metal water bottles to distribute to all beach workers.
  • 07/29/24 Annual Beach Worker Appreciation Breakfast – A breakfast of bagels, pastries and beverages was provided by 10 OSD committee members to 80+ Falmouth Beach employees to start their day. Select Board Member / Beach Committee Liaison Heather Goldstone, Beach Committee Chair Barb Schneider as well as DPW Director Peter McConarty and DPW Highway Superintendent Jim Grady were on hand to thank the workers for their valuable service to our community.
  • 07/23/24 Tuition Assistance Program – Five deserving students each received $500 from the OSDA for tuition assistance for their freshman year at college at the annual meeting.
  • 08/11/24 Annual Meeting and Summer Social – Our annual meeting was held at the Flying Bridge with 99 members signed up to enjoy an afternoon social. Guest speakers included Police Chief Jeff Lourie, Deputy Chief Brian Loewen, Beach Committee Chair Barb Schneider and Planning Board Member Jim Fox. Terry Saunders spoke about the accomplishments of the OSDA.
  • 10/26/24 Halloween on Main – This was the first year that 3 members set up a table on Main Street and distributed over 300 candies to children who took part in the Halloween Stroll.
  • 11/11/24 Veterans Day at Morse Pond School – Member Rich Sherman participated.
  • 12/08/24 ‘After the Parade’ Holiday Party – Thanks to our hosts Dorrie and Greg Ketterer at ShoreWay Acres. We had 32 door prizes generously provided by area businesses.
  • 01/16/25 Business After Hours – The OSDA was asked to be the featured community organization at the January event held at the Main Street Gallery. We had a poster board and spoke about the 2024 accomplishments of the association.
  • Meetings Attended – Various board and committee members have attended local meetings held by the Selectboard, Beach Committee, Woods Hole Group (Fresh River and Coastal Resiliency), Traffic Advisory Committee and others.

For 2025 we’ve scheduled the following.  Watch for updates via email on upcoming events.

  • 05/31/25 Beach Cleanup: 10 am to noon~.  Tentative date to be confirmed soon.
  • 07/21/25 Beach Worker Appreciation Breakfast: Tentative date to be confirmed soon (prep 07/20)
  • 08/10/25 Annual Meeting & Summer Social: Lunch buffet at the Flying Bridge.
  • 10/25/25 Halloween Stroll: Disburse candy.  Will be confirmed once Village Association sets the date.
  • Ongoing attendance at various town committee meetings and informational meetings on beach erosion.

Logo wear – We will be selling off stock of at the Beach Cleanup at a substantial discount.

OSDA Website & Email – Information and photographs about past and future events that are mentioned above and the neighborhood can be found on the OSDA website at www.oldstonedock.com. You can also reach us by e-mail at info@oldstonedock.com and your e-mail will be forwarded to the appropriate party.

Tuition Assistance – Members who have children or grandchildren entering their freshman year at an accredited college in September 2025 may have the student complete an application for consideration of tuition assistance.  It can be found with instructions on the website or by email request to info@oldstonedock.com.  Completed applications must be postmarked by June 30, 2025.

2025-2026 Dues – We will not be collecting dues this year as noted above.

IT’S UP TO ALL OF YOU IF YOU WANT TO SEE THE OSDA CARRY ON!  The current board and officers have served for many years.  We need 6-10 new active board members and officers now.  We encourage all members to put their name forth for a position on the board of directors or an officer or to take charge of a committee.  The commitment is to attend 8 board meetings, presently the first Wednesday of each month at 6:30 pm, from April to November and head up or liaison with an event or activity.  Please write back to info@oldstonedock.com if you and/or your spouse, friends and neighbors will take on this challenge.

The present officers and board members are listed at the bottom of this letter.  Please do not hesitate to reach out to any of us with comments and concerns about the neighborhood.  Thank you,

Sincerely,

The Board of Directors of the Old Stone Dock Association