Cuddling cats, wrapping presents, and helping at the Maine Seacoast Mission’sfood pantry. These are just some of the things that students in the Mission’s Journey program have done during Volunteer Wednesdays. These volunteer opportunities are a part of a new initiative that offers Journey students, in grades 7 through 12, a chance to help out at local organizations.
Many students participating in Journey have enjoyed the opportunities they have had to volunteer, and many wanted to do more to give back to their community. That is when Volunteer Wednesdays started. Meghan Daly, Journey’s AmeriCorps Student Engagement Specialist, set up volunteer opportunities and help arrange transportation for students from school and back home. These steps help eliminate barriers which might otherwise keep students from taking part in these events. Journey students can also use the time spent volunteering towards their high school graduation requirements, which helps reduce stress some students experience.
When students were asked why they enjoy volunteering, a 7th grader replied, “I like the Journey program because you can meet a bunch of other people. I enjoy volunteering because you get to do a lot of cool stuff, like going to the ARK and seeing cats or helping stock up the food pantry. I enjoy the experience of helping people with what they need. This program is cool because it helps others and you.”
Since the fall, the students have volunteered both at the Mission and at other organizations. They have spent time socializing with cats at The ARK Animal Shelter, an important activity that lets the cats get used to humans. One cat was even adopted by a family after they volunteered. The students have also spent time at the Mission’s Christmas Program making cards and choosing and wrapping presents for children at local preschools and seniors at nursing homes. Another group helped out by cleaning and restocking the Mission’s Food Pantry before Thanksgiving.
The volunteer opportunities have been popular among students and will continue into the New Year. “Community engagement is an important element of the Journey program. Volunteering provides an opportunity for students to learn about and connect with community spaces, places, and people.” says Dakin Hewlett, Journey Program Manager. “Every Journey student is a valued member of their community and giving back can often create a sense of belonging, build leadership skills, and introduce students to professional pathways. It’s also a chance to share a rewarding and fun experience with their peers! Our team is always looking for new ways to give back and will continue to seek out volunteer projects for our students.”
The volunteer opportunities have been popular among students and will continue into the New Year. “Community engagement is an important element of the Journey program. Volunteering provides an opportunity for students to learn about and connect with community spaces, places, and people.” says Dakin Hewlett, Journey Program Manager. “Every Journey student is a valued member of their community and giving back can often create a sense of belonging, build leadership skills, and introduce students to professional pathways. It’s also a chance to share a rewarding and fun experience with their peers! Our team is always looking for new ways to give back and will continue to seek out volunteer projects for our students.”
If you would like to join Journey students to help out, the Journey program is seeking Adult Mentors to help Downeast students build a positive personal network, developing tools to successfully transition to high school, higher education, and careers. Find out more here.
During a whirlwind trip visiting Frenchboro, Isle au Haut, and Matinicus, Sharon Daley said goodbye to the patients she has known and cared for, for more than 20 years. This trip was her last on theSunbeam as the Director of Island Health and to mark the occasion, the Sunbeam’s crew and Sharon share their reflections as a final farewell to Sharon.
Storey King, Engineer:
Sharon is always looking for the voice that isn’t always heard. She is currently working on a housing situation that is not appropriate for the rest of the winter. To her, it doesn’t matter who, where, or what you have. If she sees a situation where help is needed, she will be right in the middle of it.
Douglas Cornman, Director of Island Outreach:
The trip was bittersweet. Each time we did something together, I kept thinking, “This will be the last time I get to do this with Sharon.” This trip solidified how much I enjoy working with her. We were a partnership, even when it was simply listening to and showing up for one another. I will miss her. So, that’s the bitter part. The sweet part is that I know I have a lifelong friend and we will continue to show up for one another, just in different ways. I am happy Sharon now has the time to focus on family, friends, and pursuits she set aside because her work with the islands took priority. I wish her joy, love, fun, and endless energy as she gets to laugh, play, and care for those dear to her. I love you, Sharon.
Jillian, Steward:
Even though Sharon was born in the Midwest, she was born to do this unique nursing work aboard the Sunbeam. Sharon figured out how to be there for each individual no matter the circumstances. When Sharon was departing the boat for the last time, she allowed me to help her get her final bags down the long dock to her car only if I promised no long goodbye, short and sweet, a “see ya later.” Neither of us wanted to cry. When Sharon and I reached the top of the slip’s ramp and stepped on to land, Captain Mike blew Sunbeam’s horn. Long and slow, it sounded like a bittersweet mournful cry from the boat herself. “Goodbye, Sharon. I love you. Be well,” I heard the Sunbeam say. Hearing this, Sharon and I, laden with bags looked to each other and we both were crying. Just then a woman walking across the Northeast Harbor lawn toward us asked, “Is that horn sounding your final trip?” Sharon replied, “How did you know?” “I read it in the paper,” the woman said as Sharon and I chuckled back the tears.
Mike Johnson, Captain:
On first impression, Sharon’s last trip was a typical island trip. We all started off the journey in standard fashion drinking coffee in the pilothouse while catching up with each other. As the trip progressed, many islanders came to say “goodbye” and I could tell Sharon began to realize her time on the Sunbeam was coming to a close. With a palpable sense of sadness creeping in, this started to affect the entire crew. For me, who has been on the boat the same twenty-one years as Sharon, I found myself remembering funny events from the “early days.” On Tuesday night, Sharon and I stayed up late laughing and reminiscing with some of these stories. As the trip came to an end, I thought of multiple ways to show my appreciation. I chose the ship’s horn. As Sharon departed the boat for her final walk up the gangway, I gave her a couple of loud blasts. She stopped, looked back at me, and then continued to her car. I am sure that was a tough commute home.
And finally, a note from Sharon:
It was a wonderful trip full of emotions. Hard goodbyes but good to feel all the love and appreciation. I received a beautiful shawl knit by Lisa on Isle au Haut and bucket of lobsters from lobstermen on Matinicus. There were lots of good laughs and memories mixed with a few tears. And I have a lot of love for the islands, islanders crew, and of course the Sunbeam.
When Covid closed businesses and kept us at home, many of us powered up our devices and started to connect on Zoom, FaceTime and in other ways. We attended work meetings from our living rooms, had virtual game nights, and talked to our health providers in our pajamas. But for people without a computer, iPad, cell phone, or stable internet, these connections were impossible. Many were left isolated without a way to reach friends and family. For people living on Maine’s unbridged islands, this separation from the outside world is not new but for those who could not connect, suddenly the gulf was much deeper. Staff aboard the Mission’s Sunbeamnoticed which islanders were being left behind and took action.
Through a grant from the Celia Lipton Farris and Victor W. Farris Foundation, Sharon Daley, RN, Director of Island Health, provided nine islanders without an internet connection with iPads and either a hotspot or another way to connect so they could attend virtual medical appointments. They then paired each recipient with another resident who would provide support tech help. While the iPads have helped bridge the connectivity gap for islanders, they are also providing each person an opportunity to do things they have never been able to do before.
Leland K. Small, who lives on Isle au Haut, calls himself tech adverse. He has never owned a cellphone or a laptop, but when Sharon approached him about an iPad he agreed. “Now that I am getting older, I see the use for an iPad,” Leland says. “I wanted to exercise my brain and it’s been a useful tool.” While he is still learning the basics, he is looking forward to the day where he can watch videos about how to make fixes to his boat.
Leland will also have a doctor’s appointment in a few weeks using the iPad. This means he no longer must worry about taking the mail boat and finding a way to get to his appointments. “Living on an island, going any distance is difficult. You take the mailboat and it has a schedule. If you miss it ‘uh-oh,’” he adds.
The iPads and the ability to set up appointments have eliminated the hurdles many islanders face when getting healthcare. And for those who want to attend AA meetings or other support groups, they can easily connect to meetings both near and far. As people learn how to use this new technology Sharon can already see their worlds slowly changing. “Access to services via iPads means more than connections to health care. It means connections to the mainland, family, and friends. It allows buying of needed supplies instead of an expensive trip off island. I am so proud of people who have rescinded to learn and profit from something new. These devices permit continued learning, access to resources like buying online, and an increased sense of autonomy and control of one’s life.”
And while the program started by giving iPads to older islanders, a few iPads were given to younger residents and Sharon is also working to provide an iPad to a clinic on Cliff Island. “The provider can then bring the iPad out with them into the community and connect patients to a doctor in Portland.”
Leland is slowly learning more about the iPad and he is getting more comfortable with it. When a tech-savvy teenage resident recently went through each app with him, he took copious notes and is excited about what he will be able to do, “I think it’s greatly beneficial. It’s going to be extremely useful for me.”
As the temperatures dip, we bundle up, turn up our thermostats, and brace ourselves for a long winter. But with the price of home heating oil almost $1.50 more a gallon than it was last year, many of us are facing sticker shock when getting our bills. For people already struggling to make ends meet, these large expenses often can mean the choice between buying food or heating their homes. Washington County already has one of the highest rates of food insecurity in the state. And faced with these choices, many more decide to skip their next meal. Because of this increased and continuing need the Mission pantry is expanding its hours to be open Tuesday through Friday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
“We have opted to expand the food pantry hours to make it more accessible to community members,” explains Interim Downeast Director Jenny Jones. “We noticed patrons needing access beyond the hours we originally had, and we have the capacity to meet those needs.” In 2022, the Mission’s food pantry served 611 unique households. On average every month the pantry serves around 450 individuals and the number of people visiting the pantry multiple times a month has increased in the past year.
This increase in patrons is due in part to an increased need in the community; however, the Mission also wants the pantry to be a more welcoming and user-friendly place. By turning it into a low-barrier, choice pantry, the grocery store-like environment lets users browse the shelves and take what they need. There are also no limits to how much a patron can put into their shopping bag. Allowing visitors to evaluate their own needs—based on their home life, family size, and meal routines—instills independence and a greater sense of autonomy. The increased hours also give pantry users more freedom to drop in their own schedule. Parents can shop after picking up their children after school and seniors do not have to worry about scheduling appointments during pantry hours.
Mission staff also chat with patrons and get to know them, sometimes setting aside food they know someone enjoys and finding out if they need other support. If Megan Smith, Food Security Program Coordinator, finds out that a family is living in an older house that needs updates, she can direct them to the Mission’s Housing Rehabilitation program; or if their child attends the Mission’s EdGE afterschool program and may need help paying a bill, she can refer them to Stephanie Moores, Community and Family Engagement Program Manager.
This holistic approach to food security has given the Mission greater insight into what is most important to the community it serves as well as identify areas for improvement in its programming
For more information on the food pantry and the Mission’s food security programs here.
Outside the picturesque wooden church, the night air is cold, and winter winds are howling. Inside, the air is warmed by candlelight and the sounds of children, young and old, waiting, with anticipation, for Christmas to arrive. One of the ways islanders know that Christmas is not so far away is the Sunbeam’s arrival on the island. The Sunbeam, and her crew, have been visiting Long Island, or Frenchboro as it is commonly known, for decades. Each year, the boat arrives just days before Christmas, and the chaplain hands out packages wrapped in white parchment paper, tied with red butcher’s string. This season’s gift giving will take place during the island’s Christmas service.
“Handing out Christmas presents is one of the many meaningful things I get to do for the Mission,” says Douglas Cornman, the Sunbeam’s current chaplain and the Mission’s Director of Island Outreach. “Not only do I get to witness the excitement on each child’s face as I hand them a gift (and often receive a huge hug in return), I have the privilege of listening to stories from parents, grandparents, and sometimes even great grandparents who also received gifts from the Mission and delivered by the Sunbeam. These gifts are the most poignant example of the Mission’s legacy on the outer islands.” The Mission has been handing out gifts to island residents and the families of lighthouse keepers since 1905. “I have watched the eyes of the saltiest of fishermen fill with tears as they tell me about the gifts they received as kids,” recounts Douglas. “Some islanders relate that the gifts from the Mission were the only gifts they received during years when fishing was poor and their families struggled.”
Douglas is the liaison between the Mission’s Christmas Program, which is housed at the Mission’s Downeast Campus in Cherryfield, Washington County, and the islands’ Christmas elves (volunteers who gather information and create lists on the islands, each year). The Mission provides gifts for nine islands who maintain year-round communities. This year, Douglas will collaborate with elves from Islesford, Great Cranberry Island, Frenchboro, Isle au Haut, Matinicus, Monhegan, Islesboro, Vinalhaven, and off the coast of Deer Isle, Eagle Island. Children under the age of eighteen and island elders, 75 years and older receive gifts. Most gifts for kids contain a handmade hat and mittens, a book, and a wooden toy or puzzle. Gifts for elders often contain a lap blanket and books to help ease the physical and emotional chill of long winter evenings in front of the woodstove.
“More frequently than not, toys are set aside when the kids open their gifts, and they go straight to the hat and mittens,” says Douglas. “It amazes me when they do this. They love their new hat and mittens and want to know how Santa knew their favorite color. Their wonder and amazement helps to keep the magic of Christmas alive.”
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