Last Tuesday on Matinicus, I retired to my cabin for the night. I checked the marine forecast a final time: Wednesday – north winds 20-25 knots, freezing spray in the early morning, four-to-six-foot seas. All normal for winter. Assured that we could depart as scheduled, I drifted off to sleep. The following morning, I was walking to the coffeepot and saw the unexpected glimmer of a wave in the harbor. I turned to Storey, the ship’s first mate, asking, “what direction is the wind?” He gave me an annoyed glance and stated “northeast.” 

The solution is as old as sailing itself – a spring line and a heap of coordination with the mate. We attach a strong rope to the opposite side of the pier and as we back out, we have both protection from slipping westward into the private dock, and a rotational component that turns the Sunbeam in a vector swing. Once the stern is headed into the pesky northeast wind her wind exposure is below the threshold that impacts our ability to maneuver. A burst of the throttle, hard port rudder and the bow thruster will now turn the bow into the wind and allow us to head out the channel. 

Another important aspect is the teamwork between captain and mate. Even before I had emerged from my cabin, Storey had already sensed the situation and put the spring line in place for the procedure. Our goal is to make complicated docking situations look easy when in fact there are many moving parts and years of experience going into each decision. Matinicus is among our more difficult harbors, but all the islands have idiosyncrasies that can entail adjustments at the last minute. Monhegan is another particularly challenging docking situation that may be the subject of a future article! 

The Sunbeam is a magical ship, and I don’t think twice about any frustrations with winter weather. Arriving on Matinicus with its low seasonal population and having over eighty percent of them come aboard for social or medical needs is the essence of our commitment. I will do anything possible to make winter a bit more tolerable. What I value about the Maine Seacoast Mission is that these folks are not “constituents” or “clients,” but true friends that we cherish. 

Every year, the Mission works to quantify the work that we do by counting our impact. The number of students receiving Mission Scholarships. How many neighbors visit the pantry. The count of vaccines given on or via the Sunbeam. Our 2024 Impact Statement provides these output figures and more than 60 other figures. These numbers illustrate just a few of the many ways the Mission works with Downeast and coastal communities. 

There are also the numbers we cannot easily gauge. The number of smiles and cheers during a game at EdGE afterschool. The amount of students who succeed in school because of the one-on-one mentoring by Davis Maine Scholarship and Journey staff. The number of seniors who can age-in-place because of the work of the Mission and the Island Eldercare network.  

“At the end of the day, what matters is the difference the Mission and its supporters make in some of the most isolated communities in Maine,” says President John Zavodny. “These numbers—how many nautical miles, how many kids on the ropes course, how many meals served—represent the very real compassion and effort of people working in community. The numbers matter because the work matters. Because people matter.” 

All these numbers show that the Mission’s programs are hard-working and participating community members are invested. The Mission is proud to have continually served Maine’s coastal and island communities for 120 years. Each year, the impact statement puts this work into context and highlights the unseen effect here in Maine.   

When the newest group of Davis Maine Scholars started their post-secondary careers last fall, they had heard about the college experience from their friends, mentors, and others. However, for these Scholars they were going into the complete unknown as first-generation college students. While the Mission and the Davis Maine Scholarship program had prepared them for the transition, they were now starting college.  

Most of the Scholars shared that the transition to college was tough, especially with classes and studying. “I didn’t have to study a lot in high school, so learning how to study along with studying habits was definitely a challenge at first,” Riley explained. MacKenzie added, “I was not expecting the difficulty of the classes, even though they were just freshman intro classes for psychology and biology. They were a struggle at times.”  She felt the support from UNE, which offers programming for first-generation students through the First-Gen Bridge Program, as well as Davis Maine Scholarship helped her through her initial struggles with studying in classes.  

Cadence also struggled with something many college students are familiar with feelings of homesickness, accentuated by a five-hour drive away from home for her. Though she said, “Once I got into the swing of things, it kind of worked itself out.” MacKenzie expressed worry about not making friends, as she did not know anyone attending UNE from high school. However, she made friends with other students right away and they helped make the transition easier. Brisa and Riley also felt that new friends helped them succeed.  

Each of the Scholars also joined clubs their first semester, giving structure to their downtime. Riley made the UNE Cheer Team and joined the Red Cross Club. MacKenzie joined Bolt, the student newspaper where she writes, does photography, and is their social media coordinator. Brisa joined the Pre-Dental Club, the UNE Hunger Initiative, the Breakfast Club, and the Skiing Club. and Cadence joined the Red Cross Club and the Preoccupational Therapy Club.  

And while they were happy to come home for winter break and see their families, they are still thinking about college. Brisa said, “I am excited to talk with my family and friends and share my experiences with them.” 

Every year, the Mission partners with organizations across Maine and beyond to provide services, education, and more to communities Downeast and on Maine Islands. Jaclyn Janis, a nurse with Northern Light Home Care & Hospice, who joined the Sunbeam crew on a trip to provide Covid and flu vaccines to four islands. 

What program or project are you collaborating on with the Mission? 

I am working with Island Health, Sunbeam Nurse Simone Babineaux, and the Sunbeam to provide both flu and Covid vaccines on Islesford, Great Cranberry, Isle au Haut, Matinicus, Monhegan, and Frenchboro. During this trip, we visited Isle au Haut, Matinicus, Monhegan, and Frenchboro. 

Tell me about the people who will benefit? 

I have been thanked profusely by residents on each island that I’ve visited. Having someone bring out vaccines saves people from having to take trips on and off the island. I think it just makes so much sense to bring the vaccines to where people are. I know that by bringing the vaccines to areas where travel might be a barrier, means people are getting the vaccine who may otherwise not due to the trip. 

What do you hope to accomplish? 

I want to make things easier for people. I worked in the ICU previously and I’ve seen people die from the flu. It is something that we can vaccinate against. Even if someone gets the flu, maybe they’re not going to be in the ICU or maybe their symptoms aren’t quite as bad as they could be. From a public health standpoint, it is super important for these services to be easy to access in a community setting.  

How does working with the Mission benefit the people your organization serves? 

Northern Light Health is passionate about bringing healthcare into the community and into people’s homes as much as possible. Access to great healthcare is vital. They’ve had the islands on their radar for quite some time now. The partnership with the Mission is mutually beneficial because we accomplish the same goal of bringing care to people who need it and to make that as easy as possible. 

What’s your favorite region of Maine? 

That’s such a good question because I am so enamored with all of Maine. Honestly, I think coastal Maine. Generally, I love where I live, but also going to Lubec, Roque Bluffs, coming around here to MDI, and the islands. It’s all really beautiful. 

What has been a memorable moment of the trip? 

I’ve worked in different medical settings at different healthcare organizations. Labor and delivery and ICU are among the strictest medicalized settings. Sometimes humanity is just lost in that setting for both patients and for caregivers. On the boat, you have people coming in to get their vaccines, but they’re also coming to hang out, eat mac & cheese, grab a cookie, and share in the latest news from the island. That was a striking moment for me. These patients are coming to see me for healthcare that they want – healthcare that allows them to be proactive rather than in a setting where they must be, like the ICU, and are fighting for their lives reactively. I have found myself in a healthcare delivery setting which is very satisfying to me, and it’s what I want to be doing. 

What would people be surprised to learn about islands? 

I feel like I’m still getting to know the islands myself. Since this is my first year doing the vaccine clinics on the islands, I feel like I still have much to see. I’ve been to about half of the 15 islands that have a year-round population in the last couple of months. No island is the same as the next. There is a lot of uniqueness to the communities on each of the islands. They are very different from one  another while still possessing some of those common threads which I find really interesting. I’ve been learning how the people living on islands with smaller populations really do shape what life looks like. 

Students in Hancock and Washington Counties and their parents are invited to join representatives from three organizations to learn more about available scholarships for 2024-2025 high school graduates during a virtual open house on Wednesday, February 5 at 6:00 p.m. on Zoom.  

The scholarships highlighted at the open house offer support that goes beyond just financial aid: all provide some type of mentoring, advising, and support to students as they navigate the transition to college and their time at school. The Mission’s Scholarships as well as its Davis Maine Scholarship, and the Mitchell Institute also provide incidental support to students for unexpected financial challenges. 

The Mission offers two scholarship programs for students. In 2023, its Scholarships provided $224,500 to 92 college students from Hancock and Washington Counties. These scholarships are renewable and for students entering trade, technical, two and four-year colleges. While many scholarships disperse a one-time award payment, the Mission’s Scholarships program offers a renewable or recurring scholarship that distributes funds to a student over several years. This could be the length of time expected to complete a degree or certificate, or for a specific period dictated by the scholarship. 

The Mission has also partnered with the Shelby Cullom Davis Charitable Fund to offer the Davis Maine Scholarship. The Davis Maine Scholarship offers first-generation college students in Washington and eastern Hancock counties a full, renewable scholarship to one of three partner colleges to pursue a four-year degree.