After a nasty northeaster, spring returned to the Cranberry Isles in the last week of April. Neighbors came together under beautiful skies to perform community service in observation of Earth Day. On Islesford, Island Institute fellow Eric Dyer organized a beach cleanup, followed by a community supper and a showing of the movie, “An Inconvenient Truth.” Plenty of people showed up to work and we enjoyed some fantastic chili made by Eric. On Great Cranberry, community member Robin Richman organized a roadside clean up with nine hardy souls who collected ten large construction bags full of trash. They, too, followed up their efforts with fellowship and food.
Eric Dyer, Bill McGuinness, Dan Lief and Bruce Komusin have been studying broadband service options for our islands for the past eight months. After comparing three companies for reliability, speed and capacity, low infrastructure cost, low business risk, and cost effectiveness for the town, they chose Red Zone Wireless, based in Rockland, as the business best suited to our current needs. On May 2, a total of 47 people attended public hearings on two islands to learn and ask questions of the research committee and of Jim McKenna, head of Red Zone. At a special Town Meeting held on May 7, a large majority of the 38 voters passed three articles needed to move ahead with the plan to bring high-speed Internet service to the town. Just a few days later, the town of Mount Desert voted in favor of a similar plan with Red Zone. High-speed Internet service will provide expanded opportunities for working at home; an important piece in maintaining the viability of our year-round island communities.
Finding a job on the islands at this time of year is not hard, it simply requires creativity and willingness to provide a service. There are more than enough house-opening and cleaning jobs to go around, especially in May and June. Lawn mowing, house painting and garden work readily come to mind. Anyone with a vegetable garden has no trouble selling their fresh produce in July and August. On any given summer day, children with road side tables sell lemonade, cookies, sand dollars and painted rocks to a steady stream of customers, thanks to the daily visits from tour boats. Sixteen years ago, before Dan and Cynthia Lief bought the Islesford Dock Restaurant, Karen Fernald and Amy Philbrook ran a bustling lunch stand near the dock, known locally as the Yellow Umbrella. Between islanders and visitors they had more than enough daily customers for their steamed hot dogs, sandwiches, and home baked goodies. Most people don’t want to spend beautiful summer days in the kitchen, so there is a ready market for home
cooking. In the 1950s and 60s, Earl Spurling ran the Island Kitchen from his home across the street from the Islesford Neighborhood House. Pies, chowders and baked beans were just a few of his specialties. Sadie Fernald passed her doughnut making skills and recipe to her daughter Hildegarde and Emerson Ham who fried dozens and dozens of doughnuts for island and mainland customers. When Karen Fernald was 11 years old, “Auntie Garde” directed her to get a social security number and then hired her to help mix up the doughnut batter. In the summer of 1978, Ann Starling and Barb Shirey baked bread, English muffins, cakes, pies, and anything else to order during their time off from working at the Islesford Dock snack bar. They called their business the “Night Kitchen” because most of their baking was done in the wee hours of the morning. Erin and Aaron Gray baked plenty of goodies when they ran the Islesford Market last summer. They also picked crab meat to sell, following in the footsteps of her grandparents, Anna and Warren Fernald, who picked crab meat for many years. When Anna got her driver’s license at age 47, she used crab money to pay for her first car. As boys, Mark Fernald and Chris Speakman used to catch mackerel and then sell them door to door. They always had buyers for the fresh fish.
Three of the more unusual businesses in the recent past were David Axelrod’s window washing service, Henry Grandgent’s North American Pile Drivers, and Sarah Mills’ horse-drawn carriage rides. They all enjoyed busy summer employment. If anyone is willing to take in laundry, customers are easy to find. The discontinuation of curbside pick up for trash and recyclables gave Camden Fernald and Simon McNamee an idea for a job. For a very reasonable fee they would take your items to the recycling center and return with the empty containers. There is always a need for taxi service by boat or car. John and Jim Dwelley are just two of the people who currently serve those needs. If you are looking for work in areas other than lobster fishing, boatbuilding or summer employment at the store or restaurant, just look around and start thinking. Determine a need, meet it, and your job is established. Ingenuity is the key to opportunity.
Whether it comes in the form of volunteerism, high-speed Internet access, or a way to create employment, service is an important component in the success of our island communities. q
Islesford, May 16, 2007