By John Pappalardo
On a frigid December morning the Hyannis marina was quiet, buttoned up for winter, only a few pleasure boats left to be pulled, very different from the typical summer bustle.
Inside Tugboats, a restaurant with a handsome harbor view, the scene was quite different: Warm, active, full of people from across the Cape and Commonwealth, convened to celebrate the commercial fishing industry.
There was a specific reason to gather: Our Alliance was accepting a $500,000 “big check,” symbolic of support we received in the most recent state budget to buttress our work, which in turn strengthens the small-boat, independent fleet.
State Representative Kip Diggs was lead sponsor for this successful legislation and our host, joined by fellow State Reps Hadley Luddy and Thomas Moakley. Fishermen from across the Cape were on hand, as were Jared Auerbach of Red’s Best, which has a presence in Chatham, as well as Boston and New Bedford and Steve Gennodie of Rocky Neck Fish a wholesaler on the Boston Fish Pier, which has four retail locations including Chatham Pier Fish Market. Civic leaders from many walks also made an appearance; Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife’s Tom O’Shea, Cape Cod Community College’s Chris Clark, Barnstable Town Council’s Kris Clark and Matt Levesque, Blue Economy Foundation’s Katy Acheson, Brazilian Resource Center’s Michael Mecenas, Barnstable County Dredge’s Ken Cirillo, Cape Cod Commission Deputy Director Erin Perry, Barnstable District Attorney Rob Galibois – the list goes on.
This funding allows us to pursue many great good things, from recruiting and training young fishermen to partnering to improve access and resiliency for working waterfronts, stronger advocacy for better regulations, you name it. It’s an investment we take very seriously, and like any responsible business or non-profit we can quantify its returns, as we look at our community and at hard bottom-line numbers.
That was my theme, sharing brief remarks with everybody good enough to stop by. I don’t do all that much public speaking, so I tried my best to be succinct, on-point, yet also express the big picture.
Here’s my attempt:
Today we’re here to celebrate something that matters in a real, boots-on-the-dock way: strong state support for the folks who keep our working waterfronts alive. These places aren’t pretty postcards — they’re where people earn their living. They’re where kids see their parents come home tired but proud. They’re where the Cape’s backbone has always been built.
Support from the Commonwealth helps the Fishermen’s Alliance stand with fishermen in the ways that count — making sure their voices carry when rules are written, helping them stay on the water, and working with harbormasters and towns to keep docks safe, access open, and the waterfront working the way it’s supposed to.
And this support shows up in real dollars and real results. Over six years, our programs have brought more than $23 million straight back to Cape fishermen and their families. For every $100 invested in our staff, we generate $6,178 across the state. That’s not theory. That’s paychecks, fuel bills, gear repairs, and groceries on the table.
I sometimes ask people to picture a lone boat offshore. But everybody here knows a fisherman might be alone on deck, but he’s never alone in this work. And looking around — at DMF, the Blue Economy Foundation, Urban Harbors, Cape Cod Community College, Barnstable County, the Brazilian Resource Center, our processors, researchers, ARC — you all help keep this industry standing. You know what this means to the Cape: nearly $300 million brought into this peninsula every year, and a whole lot of pride.
We also know the headaches all too well — tight dock space, old infrastructure, bigger fights for every square foot of waterfront. Fishermen and processors have been shouting about these issues for years. The Port by Port study just backs up what the guys on the deck already knew.
But with continued state leadership — and champions like Rep. Diggs — we can protect the spaces fishermen rely on and make sure these ports stay working, not just for today, but for the next generation coming up.
This isn’t just an investment in infrastructure. It’s an investment in working families, in the Cape’s character, and in the future of the communities we love.
Thank you.
Those thanks extend to all of you who support us, stand by us, and make our advocacy possible. Here’s hoping you have joyful holidays, a happy New Year, and that our work and partnerships strengthen in 2026.
John Pappalardo is CEO of the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance