NORTHEAST HARBOR, ME — From Jillian today – “Here’s a photo I took of unpacking and restocking the galley after the refit. Feels so good to settle-in aboard the Sunbeam.”
Such heartwarming news. Thank you, Jillian.
P.S. Love the portable radio by the porthole.
Sharon Daley, in light gray sweatshirt, administering flu shots in October 2020. (Photo not part of Ellsworth American story.)
ellsworthamerican.com
How will Maine roll out a vaccine?
December 2, 2020 by Kate Cough on News
ELLSWORTH — Certain health-care workers and emergency responders could be given the first doses of a COVID-19 vaccine sometime in December as long as the authorization process goes smoothly, said Dr. James Jarvis, medical specialist for Northern Light Health’s incident command, in a press conference on Nov. 25.
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Sharon Daley, a nurse and Island Health Services director at Maine Seacoast Mission, said she recently finished doing flu shot clinics on six islands and is waiting to hear from the state about plans for COVID-19 vaccines.
“I don’t know how far down on the list the islands will be,” said Daley. “I just want to make sure they are on the list.”
Island Health Services Director Sharon Daley, RN and Island Outreach Director & Chaplain Douglas Cornman enroute to an island from the Sunbeam.
NORTHEAST HARBOR, ME — With the Sunbeam reactivated, Director of Island Health Services Sharon Daley, RN is figuring out how best to do her work, providing medical services among island communities. Working under Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Covid-19 restrictions and guidelines means reinventing how Sharon performs her Sunbeam work.
“It feels great being back on the water,” Sharon says, “But it’s hard. We can’t let anybody on the boat and everybody wants to come see. People tell us it’s hopeful just seeing the boat there. And that feels good. Everybody wants it to be normal.” For now, normal includes a self-isolating Sunbeam crew always wearing masks, eating their meals at separate tables.
“If there is a medical problem and I need to use the Sunbeam‘s telemedicine equipment, then the person does come on the boat. There’s a whole protocol everybody has to follow. Everybody has to have masks. They walk onto the boat directly back to my telemedicine room. That’s where I see them. When they’re done they leave directly out the door,” Sharon explains.
Most of Sharon’s work is off the Sunbeam. Either home visits or by phone and videoconferencing. As much as possible, home visits happen outdoors. Indoor visits require masks, well-ventilated areas, and brevity.
“I do a lot by phone — checking in with people — and Zoom,” Sharon said. She initiates calls to people, or “people contact me if they have a problem.” One silver lining to Covid-19? Amended government regulations make it easier for more medical professionals to use telemedicine. “Pretty much everybody’s doing telemedicine now,” said Sharon. “If someone calls and needs help setting up a telemedicine visit, somebody who doesn’t really have a doctor — I try to find somebody who can see them.”
Since the early months of Covid-19, March and April, the existing weekly Zoom conference among island eldercare administrators took on new importance. The Zoom calls “are helpful for the administrators in figuring things out. They share ideas,” said Sharon. “It has been really, really important because the administrators are under a lot of stress and have a lot to deal with. So they’re able to support each other. They need the support because it’s a really hard time for them financially, with staffing issues, and supplies and regulations changing frequently,” Sharon explains.
“It’s very hard for the morale of the [island eldercare home] residents,” she continues. “They’re not getting to see people. They’re not getting to go out. It’s a really lonely time for everybody. We have residents that like to do things. They like to go to the mainland and they like to do things like that. They can’t.” An activity director took part in a recent island eldercare Zoom conference, offering activities the homes could use to engage and entertain residents,” she said.
News of the creation of new Covid vaccines brings hope. As of this writing Sharon doesn’t know when the vaccine(s) will be available to her. But, she said, if she can get it and transport it, she will administer the vaccine on the islands.
Learn more about Sharon Daley’s work.
Island boy and Douglas Cornman, excited by Christmas 2019.
NORTHEAST HARBOR, ME — Island Outreach Director and Chaplain Douglas Cornman is extra busy these days working as liaison between the Mission Christmas Program and island communities. The Christmas program provides white paper packages tied up with red string to the islands’ children and teens, as well as to island elders.
Douglas hopes to remind island communities of something else. “The Mission’s Christmas Program is meant to be more than just handing out gifts – mittens and toys for the kids, and puzzle books and lap blankets to the elders. It’s also about carrying on a century old Christmas tradition. Mission gifts symbolize our care for the folks who are really the essence of the islands,” Douglas added.
While telecommunications and modes of transportation for the islands are better than ever, Douglas points out Maine island communities “in many ways are still very isolated.” That, he says, “is why we’re doing what we’re doing.”
NORTHEAST HARBOR, ME — Maine Seacoast Mission President John Zavodny has announced the two honorees for the next summer’s Sunbeam Award Gala: Sigma Kappa and Acadia Senior College. The Mission’s Sunbeam Award Gala is its centerpiece fundraising event, built around recognizing those who embody the ideals of community.
President Zavodny said the values and accomplishments of these two inspiring organizations are clear examples of actions and spirit that make communities strong. Maine Seacoast Mission is honored to celebrate these two organizations’ contributions.
Sigma Kappa, a national sorority was founded in 1874 at Colby College in Waterville, ME, and has been the Mission’s friend and partner for over a century. Valuing personal growth, friendship, service and loyalty, the sorority has initiated over 176,000 women nationwide. The purpose of Sigma Kappa is to “provide lifelong opportunities and support for social, intellectual, and spiritual development by bringing women together to positively impact our communities.” Sigma Kappa Foundation is the organization’s philanthropic arm, and its mission is to create and fund leadership, scholarship and philanthropic initiatives that reflect the values and spirit of Sigma Kappa Sorority. Sigma Kappa’s philanthropic priorities include the Maine Seacoast Mission and gerontology studies with an emphasis on Alzheimer’s disease research.
Sigma Kappa, through its Foundation, provides Maine Seacoast Mission with support for several programs including Housing Rehabilitation, Christmas gift program, and Island Services.
“As we approach our 150th anniversary in 2024, we often look to the constants in our membership experience and the Maine Seacoast Mission is among them. It connects us to our roots at Colby College and our founders,” shared Dawn O’Connor, Sigma Kappa Foundation president. “To be honored with a Sunbeam Award is humbling and very much appreciated.”
Acadia Senior College, located on Mount Desert Island, began as a community project to provide “intellectual stimulation, practical knowledge, social interaction, and fun” for older persons. In 2020, Acadia Senior College is honoring its 20th Anniversary. Acadia Senior College is a place where the knowledge and talents of community members work in service to the region’s senior population.
Acadia Senior College offers programming that informs, challenges, entertains, and strengthens community through courses in areas such as economics, ecology, health, opera, and literature. Acadia Senior College also provides fascinating keynote lectures, with coffees and lunches encouraging dialogue on current challenges and issues.
“The Maine Seacoast Mission has been fostering and supporting communities in Maine for many years. On behalf of Acadia Senior College, I am thrilled to be the recipient of this great honor. To be selected for this award acknowledges the vision of our founders to enrich the lives of seniors on MDI and in the surrounding areas”, Linda Dunn, President, said.
The Maine Seacoast Mission looks forward to celebrating these two honorees throughout the year. Sigma Kappa and Acadia Senior College join a wonderful list of Sunbeam honorees going back 16 years:
Past Sunbeam Award Gala Recipients
2019 – Bryan Colket and the Sunbeam “All Hands on Deck” Committee & Dr. Diehl Snyder and the MDI Hospital Behavioral Health Center
2018 – Marjorie Withers & and Maine Community Foundation, Hancock and Washington County Funds; Stephen Rowe, President
2017- Robin Alden & The Mount Desert Islander (Earl Brechlin and Alan Baker)
2016 – Edward R. Flanagan & Cookie Horner and Jack Russell (Co-Chairs, Acadia Centennial Task Force)
2015 – Joseph M. Murphy & Todd West
2014 – Senator George J. Mitchell
2013 – Charlie Harrington
2012 – Ashley Bryan
2011 – Edith R. Dixon & Ralph W. Stanley
2010 – Emily A. Sabah-Maren & Gary DeLong
2009 – Curtis L. Blake & Marianne Barnicle
2008 – Charlotte Bordeaux & Dr. Richard Dimond
2007 – James Gower & Henry Harris
2006 – Cornelia Greaves Bates & Alf Wakeman
2005 – Ruth and Tristram Colket & Myron Sprague
2004 – Jill Goldthwait & Fritz Dixon
For more information about the event, scheduled for August 12, 2021, please contact Anna Silver at 207.801.6011 or asilver@seacoastmission.org.
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NORTHEAST HARBOR, ME — With the Sunbeam back in service, it’s good to see photos and read notes from the boat’s crew at work among unbridged Maine islands.
Jillian, the Sunbeam Steward, sent this photo, saying, “[Sunbeam Engineer] Storey giving Douglas and Sharon — with more flu shots — a ride onto Monhegan in the skiff last Wednesday.
“While we crew waited off shore, I made granola and cookies,” said Jillian.
Learn more about Sharon’s and Douglas’s work.