22nd Annual Buzzards Bay Swim Draws A Crowd

The annual Buzzards Bay Swim across the New Bedford Harbor is a signature fundraiser held by the Buzzards Bay Coalition.

The 22nd Swim concluded on the shore of Fort Phoenix Beach in Fairhaven Saturday afternoon and raised over $100,000 that will be dedicated to protecting clean waters in communities across the Buzzards Bay region.

Nick Gracia is a member of the Apponequet High School swim team that won the Quicks Award.

The award is given to the fastest boys and girls swim team to complete the event.

Gracia says the money will go toward fixing up the school's pool. "Try to get a new timing system for [the pool] or just random maintenance around it if anything breaks so we have some extra money," he said after the award ceremony.

Coalition president Mark Rasmussen says this year's event was the largest to date, with over 300 swimmers taking part. Many of those participants were younger swimmers, which Rasmussen sees as encouraging.

"It's fantastic because they'll never know this harbor as a polluted place. They'll always think of it clean and they'll expect it to stay clean and that's really great. When people use and enjoy a resource they protect it," Rasmussen said.