CELEBRATING THE ESTUARY: Nearly 200 people gathered Saturday evening at the North Carolina Estuarium to celebrate its 26^th anniversary of advocacy and education about one of the greatest resources of North Carolina: the Albemarle-Pamlico estuarine system, an eco-system that provides everything from a nursery for many salt-water species to employment through the centuries to food for the table. Joined by North Carolina’s First Lady Kristin Cooper, as well as the architect of the building Frank Harmon, guests were treated to dinner and a riverside concert by Tony-nominated musician and author Bland Simpson. (Vail Stewart Rumley/Daily News)