For my father, home means a 45-foot sailboat with no heat, air conditioning or electric refrigeration. I snuggle into blankets in the bow and savor the unmistakable scent of a mudflat at low tide. Dad and I trail behind her, taking a more circuitous route by boat. He wants to anchor behind the building and fly the banner from the forestay. On shore, everything buzzes with commotion.
Guests move among tables laden with salmon tarts, baked brie and vegetable dip.
Fornes moves easily through the crowd, shaking hands and smiling. Fornes beams when I ask how it feels to have seen the project through to completion. After the speeches and the ribbon cutting, we're all eager to get inside. To the left are administrative offices, the NC State Seafood Laboratory and extension offices for N.C. Sea Grant, a coastal research, outreach and education organization. In the two months since the facility's completion, he's worked to furnish offices, hook up telephones, test new computers and install lab equipment.