“It’s fantastic. This is five years growing,” said Ken Carlson, co-chair of the Friends of the Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration (FOMA) as he looked around Bluff Point June 21. Each table of T-shirts and raffles was surrounded by visitors and supporters as FOMA held its fifth annual Animal Rescue Kayak (ARK) event in the sun.
“ARK is the event itself,” he explained. “It’s a benefit pedal and paddle to raise money to help the Mystic Aquarium with marine animals, marine mammals, and the sea turtle program.”
FOMA is an all-volunteer group that raises funds to benefit the Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Stranding program at Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration.
“We had the idea of making some type of event that ties the water directly to the fund raising so we figured kayaking is a natural choice,” Carlson said. “It’s been growing every year. There are a lot of people out in the water right now because all courses are out.”
Kayakers chose among four courses and were able to reserve free kayak rentals ahead of time.
“Another big thing is that we have a lot of people from the kayak community involved,” Carlson said. “There are certified instructors on each one of the courses…This year, we added two components: online sponsoring and the bike event.”
Cyclists were able to pick between two routes and non-paddlers had the option this year to Virtual Kayak through FOMA’s Web site.
Carlson said ARK event is one of the organization’s major fund-raisers of the year and since its inception, it has just about doubled its profits each year.
“The potential for this to grow is tremendous,” he added. When asked how much FOMA would like to raise, Carlson said as much as possible.
“It’s expensive to care for the seals, whales, dolphins, and sea turtles,” he said. “This year we hope to break $10,000 and that number can definitely grow in the future.”
Major sponsors were The New London Day, Zip06.com, Coca-Cola, Sunbeam Fleet, The Kayak Centre of Rhode Island, Eastern Mountain Sports, King Cove Outfitters-Marina, Kayak Waveology, and Mystic Cycle Center.
Paddlers and pedalers who brought in the most sponsors were awarded prizes and participants were given long-sleeved T-shirts with a picnic-style lunch. Carlson said participants still have the chance to win an invitation to an exclusive seal watch cruise on the Sunbeam Fleet if they raise more than $200.
For additional information, visit www.mysticaquarium.org.
Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration is a division of Sea Research Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit institution. The foundation’s mission is to inspire people to care for and protect our ocean planet through education, research, and exploration.