WHITEHEAD — Several deckhands aboard the iconic Bluenose II schooner tried oysters for the first time on Aug. 8, courtesy of local business Bill & Stanley Oysters. The team at the oyster company presented a special gift pack of their new brand, called Bluenose Oysters, to Bluenose II Captain Phil Watson and his crew.
The Bluenose II arrived in Whitehead for a weekend stay just offshore as one of the attractions of the Whitehead Days summer festival. Earlier in the week, Marg Harpell, company operations manager, pitched the idea of making the presentation on board the Bluenose during its Whitehead stay, and started putting together a plan to make it happen.
The company, with processing and farming facilities in Whitehead and a farming operation in Wine Harbour, cut the workday short for its Whitehead staff on Aug. 8 and took them out on a couple of their boats to rendezvous with the Bluenose II. The schooner lowered a ladder to welcome the visitors on board.
It was a unique opportunity for the crew and company staff to try oyster shucking and sample the company’s new brand of Bluenose Oysters.
Bill & Stanley Oysters owner Brian Fortune and his harvesters took their staff and the Bluenose II crew to see where they harvest oysters from cages in Whitehead.
“I was super pleased,” Harpell said of the event. “I think everybody came back with a smile on their face. It was a nice team building [opportunity] for the staff and the Bluenose [II] crew were very engaging.”
Bill & Stanley Oysters has 50 staff between its operations in N.S. and P.E.I. In Whitehead it has 20 staff year-round in processing and three on the water for farming and harvesting. Its Wine Harbour location is a farm, with four employees working from April to early December.
