Spat Shells Out For Higher Education

Wellfleet Shellfish Promotion and Tasting (SPAT) has awarded its first annual Nauset Regional High School (NRHS) Scholarship to Jacob Puffer, a Wellfleet native, who sees higher education as the way to keep the town's famous shellfishing traditions alive. The $10,000 prize will be given to Puffer over the course of his four years at Emmanuel College, where he will focus on business courses to help him run his family's aquaculture business. SPAT will continue to award a $10,000 scholarship each year to a graduating NRHS student pursuing four years of higher learning in aquaculture or a related field.

With a passionate knowledge of the industry stemming from his family's Wellfleet Oyster and Clam Co., Puffer caught the judges' eye with an essay on his commitment to sustaining the town's historic shellfisheries. "My family has been growing and harvesting shellfish in Wellfleet since the 1970's," says Puffer. "From playing on the flats as a kid, to working summers with my dad, aquaculture has always been a part of my life, and I look forward to using my studies to expand the aquaculture projects we've started together."

In addition to sponsoring the NRHS Scholarship, SPAT annually sets aside proceeds from its Wellfleet OysterFest for an educational awards program, providing grants to those whose creative or didactic contributions increase awareness of the community's shellfishing practices. Past SPAT grants, totaling $10,000, have been awarded to seven local individuals and non-profit organizations. SPAT encourages participation in this program, and grant proposals can now be submitted at any time throughout the year. For more information on past winners and how to submit a proposal, visit www.wellfleetoysterfest.org/scholarships.

"We are so happy to be able to offer diverse means to sustain our shellfish industry," says SPAT president Lisa Brown. "The NRHS Scholarship allows us to reach out to young people with big dreams and let them know that they have a financial support system. At the same time, we continue to enjoy giving back to our community by offering grant awards to individuals that inspire an appreciation of Wellfleet's aquaculture."

As part of its continuous educational mission, SPAT has lined up three can't-miss events at this year's OysterFest in celebration of Wellfleet's historic shellfishing roots:

- On Saturday and Sunday, October 14 and 15, from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., enthusiasts will have the chance to explore an exhibit, titled Shellfishing in Wellfleet, an insider's look at the 19th and 20th centuries, on display at the Wellfleet Historical Society.

- At 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, October 14, the Oyster Grant Tour promises plenty of sand in your shoes and the chance to observe oysters in their natural habitat. The up close and personal tour allows visitors to see how Wellfleet's shellfishermen and women spend their days on the flats in Wellfleet Harbor.

- From 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. on Sunday, October 15, a Taste-the-Terroir Seminar challenges oyster-lovers to sample bivalves from six different sections of Wellfleet Harbor to see if they can taste the clear differences that Wellfleet's shellfishermen and women swear by.

For a complete schedule of events, and more information on SPAT and the Wellfleet OysterFest, please visit www.wellfleetoysterfest.org.

SPAT has received major support for the Wellfleet OysterFest from "Pearl-of-a-Sponsor" Mid-Cape Home Centers and from Cape Cod Five Cents Saving Bank, Claire Carroll Properties, The Lighthouse Restaurant, Seaman's Bank and TD Banknorth. For photos and press inquiries, contact Nancy Civetta at 617-577-8098 or nancy@civettacom.com.

About SPAT
Wellfleet Shellfish Promotion and Tasting is SPAT, a name that honors the oyster, which begins life as a free-swim