Working Waters: An Official City of Water Day
Working Waters was our biggest event yet, and we're still coming down off the high.
Co-hosted with the Staten Island Industrial Alliance (SIIA), Working Waters opened the gates of Mariners Harbor's working waterfront for a free, full day of maritime discovery, public art, live music, and community celebration, as an official City of Water Day event. Kids climbed aboard the historic Kraken tugboat, learned about the industries and skilled trades that keep this harbor moving, made art, danced to live music, and got to see their neighborhood for what it really is: a place with deep history and even deeper pride.
None of this would have been possible without our Harbor Sponsors: Ankora Marine, Orenda, and the Sandy Hook Pilots Foundation, who believed in this vision from the start.
A Permanent Piece of Mariners Harbor
The centerpiece of the day was something that will outlast the day itself: a permanent public art installation honoring the history, resilience, and identity of Mariners Harbor. Shagara artist Anastasia "Stas" Kuznetsova, alongside fabricator Ali Fayed, transformed reclaimed ship steel into handcrafted planters, each one telling a piece of the waterfront's story.
Read Stas's bio and full mural descriptions here
Sound, Stage, and Staten Island
This is what Shagara does best: bringing arts, music, and culture into spaces that don't always get them. Local bands Gary's Brother and Jimmy Mack took the stage throughout the day, turning an industrial waterfront into a place where families danced, lingered, and discovered new favorite artists right in their own borough. Alongside them, our partners and local DJs at MakerPark Radio kept the energy going and the music flowing from open to close, proving once again that some of the best talent in this city is homegrown, right here on Staten Island.
Moments like this matter because they bring together communities that don't often share the same space: maritime workers and touring musicians, lifelong Islanders and first-time visitors, kids on a school-day field trip and city officials cutting ribbons. Working Waters didn't just showcase the harbor, it showcased what happens when art, industry, and community are given the same stage.
Community, Front and Center
The day was full of incredible community partners: Art Lab, the Noble Maritime Collection, La Colmena, the Virginia Maitland Sachs Foundation, Youth WINS, the Staten Island NAACP, Non Profit Staten Island, Dunkin, and more, all showing up to connect residents to the waterfront through education, culture, and hands-on experience.
We were also honored to be part of some meaningful recognition moments. New York State Senator Jessica Scarcella-Spanton presented SIIA's Industry Partnership Award to Glenn Vickers II, and SIIA presented its Maritime Excellence Leadership Award to Yousry Ghanem, both honoring real leadership in Staten Island's maritime industry. Representatives from Assemblymember Charles D. Fall's office also presented official New York State citations to Stas and Ali for their artistic contributions to the neighborhood.
Why This One Mattered
"Public art has the power to tell a community that its story matters, and Mariners Harbor's story is one worth celebrating," said our founder, Carrie Ann Trubenstein. "Working Waters brought together artists, industrial workers, local businesses, community organizations, and families in a way that's truly unique. We're proud to help create something lasting that honors the neighborhood's heritage while inviting the public to experience the waterfront through art, culture, and community."
As Nadia Adam, Executive Director of SIIA, put it: "We hope every child left inspired by what they saw and with a greater appreciation for the community that surrounds them."
That's really what this was about, for one day, a working industrial waterfront became a place for families to gather, learn, and celebrate together. We can't wait to see what's next.
