Peighton Ridge, 19, has spent many summers lobstering with her grandfather on his boat, the Donald J. That made her especially qualified to testify at a State House hearing on July 8.
“I shared my first-hand experience lobstering,” Ridge told the Current. “I explained my day and the impact we have on our community.”
The Joint Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries is debating a bill that would support lobstermen during the months they are prohibited from working (February to mid-May) due to right whale conservation. The bill, H.110, would pay lobstermen $1 per trap per week. The fund is time limited to three years. The goal is to get more lobstermen to become incorporated (paying into unemployment) so they can then apply for benefits, according to Marblehead state Rep. Jenny Armini.
Ridge, who graduated from Marblehead High in 2023, is studying psychology and pre-law at Boston University. In the summers, though, she gets up early to help her grandfather, Jeff Flynn, on his lobster boat.
“I bait the traps and band the lobsters, pull the traps to the back of the boat… do any of the cleaning,” she said. “It’s my grandfather’s job to check the lobsters, gauge them and steer the boat.”
Ridge loves the time on the boat with her grandfather.
“Don’t get me wrong, it’s a very hard job at times,” she said. “I just love getting to spend more time with my grandfather and be out on the water. I feel like I appreciate Marblehead so much more, getting to see the sunrise and everything.”
This summer, Ridge also has an internship with Armini at the State House. Armini suggested that Ridge testify.
“Peighton’s perspective and her experience offered the committee a rare personal look at the generational importance of lobstering, as well as its vital place in our economy and our culture,” Armini said. “Her youth, intelligence and obvious passion for lobstering grabbed their attention and powerfully conveyed that this is an industry worth supporting.”
Armini added that the committee will now vote on the bill and decide whether it should go to the House Ways and Means Committee.
In her testimony, Ridge told lawmakers, “H. 110 matters because it supports working waterfronts and protects the people who have built their lives around lobstering. This industry is the reason why they are able to support their families, even amid the already low payouts. Without intentional policy like this, we risk losing generations of knowledge, stewardship and community connection.”
She added, “Lobstering is not something you can just learn from a book. It’s passed down, like it was to me.”
Ridge said she may not make lobstering her fulltime career, but she’ll always be connected to it.
“I’ll do more things that can support lobstermen,” she said. “I know that lobstering will always be part of my life.”
