LA LOST VALLEY SKI PATROL Page 27
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CITY OF LEWISTON, PART 2 Mill City
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Wish Kid Kinzie
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editor’s note PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOSE LEIVA
Wow – what a different vibe I have felt in these last few weeks. The weather is getting better, businesses are starting to plan for increased capacity, and people seem to be excited to start living a little more normally. We might even see some small fairs and festivals this summer... fingers crossed! And who else, besides me, is ready for live music again? COVID aside, each spring, moving to our camp signifies a new opportunity to start over, take in our surroundings, and appreciate the little things in life. I hope you are able to do the same. With an end to the pandemic in sight, I’ve spent a lot of time reflecting on this past year and how it has changed all of us. The effects of this strange time will stay with us for many years to come. One thing that I constantly come back to in my thoughts is how much people have given: their time, their money, and their support for causes bigger than themselves. Our cover story, The Lost Valley Ski Patrol, highlights a dedicated team of volunteers who give of themselves, throughout the entire ski season each year, not just during a pandemic. They spend countless hours in training to learn the skills needed to be the first responders on the mountain. They’ve even recently won a national award! We also continue our series on the City of Lewiston’s 225 year history, focusing on industrialization and the mills. And our new Health & Wellness section continues with an extremely interesting story about the Gyrotonic practice. In LA Metro Magazine’s Summer 2020 issue, we featured a story called “Finding the Good through COVID-19.” We spotlighted a business, an organization, and a person who gave of themselves to help this community. A year into this pandemic, we are continuing our recognition of creative ingenuity, highlighting some specific businesses in the bar and restaurant industry that have had to work creatively to stay afloat. This particular sector has been hit the hardest and these business owners have worked tirelessly to stay in operation, while being compliant with restrictions. I’m thrilled that LA Metro Magazine has also been able to stay in print through this tough year – a testament to how much this magazine means to our community. I love being a part of it and I’m excited to be able to work here, doing my part to join in its mission to entertain, inform, and inspire. Be kind and well, everyone.
TYLA DAVIS Editor-in-Chief editor@LAMetroMagazine.com
LA Metro Magazine is proudly printed in Lewiston, Maine at
8 Lexington Street, Lewiston 4
LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
www.penmor.com
c o n t r ib ut o rss r o t u b i r t n o c
Toby hails from the bustling New York City media world, where she promoted live events like pay-per-view boxing, and published album reviews in Creem and Audio magazines.
John Breerwood is originally from New Orleans, Louisiana, and moved to Maine with his wife in 2017. A former professional brewer, John now teaches English and coaches swimming at Lewiston High School.
In LA, she coordinates events for First Universalist Church of Auburn, hosting the monthly Pleasant Note Open Mic, and staging their annual “Vagina Monologues” benefit against domestic violence.
He has been a beer writer for over ten years and just published his first novel, Sinking Dixie.
TOBY HABER-GIASSON editorial director & writer
A proud Maine native, Jen can usually be found outdoors. She prefers the solitude of the country, drawing her life energy from the elements that make Maine home. Jen counts family, gardening, and her many rescue animals as the simple pleasures in life that keep her creativity flowing. Learning the stories that make up the chapters of other people’s lives fill any void that remains for her. Jen credits numerous English teachers from high school and college, and her late brother, with a passion for writing that has stayed with her since she was in grade school.
JEN COUSINS writer
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JOHN BREERWOOD
A native of Lewiston, Peggy began writing creatively as a child growing up in a FrenchCatholic neighborhood. A graduate of Bowdoin College, she began her career in journalism at PC Week in Boston, where she was the ghostwriter for the industry gossip columnist, Spencer the Cat.
writer
Brewster was raised in Waterford, Maine, attended Oxford Hills High School, then graduated from Colby College. He became an English teacher at Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School, where he has remained since 1988. Christmas of 2012, he received his first camera, and quickly developed a love of the lens. Brewster freelances for some Maine newspapers and local magazines. He resides in Hebron, with his wife and two children.
BREWSTER BURNS photographer
On his eighth birthday, David’s favorite aunt gave him a camera. She couldn’t have known that, from that day, photography would grow into a passion, a career, and a ticket to experiences he would otherwise only have dreamed of.
She has also worked locally as an English teacher and public relations consultant. A resident of Auburn, she recently finished her first novel.
Fifty years later, David is a successful filmmaker, photographer, and creative director working for national and local advertising agencies, businesses, and educational and government clients. It was, as things have turned out, the perfect gift.
PEGGY DEBLOIS
DAVID FULLER
LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
writer
photographer
A Maine native, Donna has dedicated much of her career to assisting families as they navigate the world of eldercare. Her philosophy is, “Create good by approaching all things with an open mind and a generous, honest heart;” it has served her well, personally and professionally. Writing is her happy place and her family is her heart.
DONNA KEENE ROUSSEAU writer
s r o t u b i r t n o ccontri butors
Michael is a freelance writer and musician from Auburn. He graduated from the University of Maine at Presque Isle in 1999 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts.
Jose started his photography career while in the Air Force during Vietnam. He moved to Maine in the late 1980s and retired from the Sun Journal a few years ago. He now works as a freelance photographer and exhibits his art locally.
He has submitted stories and articles for various publications, and performs throughout New England as a solo guitarist and bassist. Michael enjoys traveling, hiking, and spending leisure time with family and friends.
Jose lives in Lewiston, Maine, with his wife, Linda. Together they have six adult children, and four grandchildren who are a source of photographic inspiration.
MICHAEL KRAPOVICKY writer
writer
DAN MAROIS
photographer
She writes, she runs, pats all the dogs, loves beer, and plays the ukulele...badly.
Lisa is a Clio-Award winning advertising writer from New York City who moved to LA five years ago. Her work has been published in national magazines, and she is currently writing two novels set in Maine.
While he serves as editor and writer for many publications, Dan particularly enjoys crafting stories that reflect the LA Metro area.
JOSE LEIVA
Sara is a “County” transplant enjoying life on the Androscoggin River. Most days she can’t be found, hiding away in the woods or mountains, enjoying the quiet peacefulness of the outdoors. A musician and actress, she enjoys the many diverse cultural opportunities offered in the LA area.
SARA POULIN
Dan is an actor, producer, writer, and editor. As owner of Mystery for Hire, he has performed in nearly 900 mystery dinner theater shows. With Mainely Improv, Dan does improv comedy performances, as well as corporate training in using the skills of improvisation.
LISA MAYER
writer
Nicole can’t remember a time when she did not have a camera in her hands. Her passion for photography started when she was little, working with her uncle who ran his own studio. She graduated in 2015 with a degree in photography and digital workflow. Shortly afterwards, she opened her own portrait studio, Creativeones Photography. Her passion is to show the beauty that is within everyone. She is constantly learning new and inventive ways to capture moments that will last a lifetime.
NICOLE RAND photographer
Lisa is the wife of Rabbi Sruli Dresdner of Temple Shalom in Auburn, and their twins are students at the fabulous Park Avenue School.
writer
Jake is a recent transplant to Maine, all the way from Boise, Idaho. A lifelong musician, Jake studied guitar performance at Boise State University before traveling as a professional touring guitarist. Along his travels, Jake fell in love with Maine. He lives in Portland with his wife (a native Mainer) and collie-lab mix Sara, and spends his days producing marketing videos, podcasts, and written content for the Portland-based marketing firm Energy Circle.
JAKE VAN PAEPEGHEM writer
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CORE
Our
Crew
PUBLISHER & CEO
Jim Marston jim@LAMetroMagazine.com
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Tyla Davis editor@LAMetroMagazine.com
Jim Marston Publisher & CEO
Jim@LAMetroMagazine.com
ADVERTISING SALES Katie Crepeau Jim Marston Steve Simard
PRODUCTION MANAGERS Tyla Davis Jim Marston
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Toby Haber-Giasson
Tyla Davis
Editor-in-Chief/Graphic Design editor@LAMetroMagazine.com
Steve Simard Sales
Steve@LAMetroMagazine.com
WRITERS
John Breerwood Jen Cousins Peggy L. DeBlois Toby Haber-Giasson Michael Krapovicky Dan Marois Lisa Mayer Sara Poulin Donna Keene Rousseau Jake Van Paepeghem
PROOFREADERS Keith Davis Kayla Marston
PHOTOGRAPHY Brewster Burns David Fuller Jose Leiva Nicole Rand
Katie Crepeau Sales
katie@LAMetroMagazine.com
COVER
Carolyn Vail, Lost Valley Ski Patrol Photographer: Brewster Burns LA Metro Magazine is published four times each year by LA Metro Magazine, LLC Editorial and subscription info: Call 207-783-7039 email: info@LAMetroMagazine.com 9 Grove Street, Auburn, ME 04210
Stephanie Arsenault Bookkeeper
billing@LAMetroMagazine.com
Opinions expressed in articles or advertisements, unless otherwise noted, do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the publisher or staff. Every effort has been made to ensure that all information presented in this issue is accurate, and neither LA Metro Magazine nor any of its staff are responsible for omissions or information that has been misrepresented to the magazine. No establishment is ever covered in this magazine because it has advertised, and no payment ever influences our stories and reviews. Copyright ©2021 LA Metro Magazine, LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission, in writing, from the publisher. Printed in Lewiston, ME, USA.
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LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
content volume six | issue two | spring 2021
cover story
27
Lost Valley Ski Patrol
feature
57
City of Lewiston Part 2
quick reads
10 16 22 34 39 44 50
Health & Wellness: Gyrotonic
Butler Hill Beads Social Hour: Ultimate Dog Sledding Experience
Sound Check: Chris Robley
Game Changer
Maine Maple Sunday & the Shuga Shak
Lost Valley Brewpub
HEALTH and
WELLNESS
NEW MOVES IN
LA
® KNIGHT SPIRAL GYROTONIC ®
GYROTONIC
Written by Dan Marois | Photography by Nicole Rand
B
ill Knight brought a unique exercise program to the Central Maine area five years ago. Knight has a mission to share his personal success with GYROTONIC® with others seeking to become more confident and stronger in moving their bodies.
the area in 2015. His business, Knight Spiral, is currently located on Lisbon Street. His mission is to help others achieve the same success that Knight had, using this unique exercise equipment system called the GYROTONIC® Pulley Tower Combination Unit. Knight Spiral is one of only five Gyrotonic centers in Maine.
Teaching the moves In a quick description of his program, Knight says, “I teach people how to stand up straight and open their bodies by using circular motions, rather than up-and-down motions.” While people liken the program to Pilates or yoga, he likens it to swimming. “Yoga and Pilates have still positions, while Gyrotonic moves more like swimming. It is a full body movement where you do not fully stop.” He describes his work as a joining of body, breath, and mind. “I teach people how to move one way and how to breathe with it. The mind thing is about coordinating motion, where one hand moves to the left while another moves to the right.”
Bill Knight, Knight Spiral Bill Knight had a life changing experience at a Gyrotonic exercise studio in South Portland back in 2012. “When I first started, I went because I had a bad back,” recalls Knight. “And after the third visit, my back was 100% better. Enough so that I ended up throwing away all my pain pills that I had been on for 20 years.” He adds, “And that was just in three hours.” He was so inspired by the experience that he made plans to open his own Gyrotonic exercise center. Raised in Auburn, and a resident of Greene, Knight made an easy choice to open a studio in
Gyrotonic was first introduced in the early 1980s by Juliu Horvath, a Hungarian dancer who developed the system to recover from his own injuries and to expand his range of movement. According to the GYROTONIC® website, a specially designed pulley tower guides users through an original and unique movement method that addresses the entire person by opening energy pathways, stimulating the nervous system, increasing range of motion, and improving strength and movement efficiency. Each movement in the exercise program flows into the next, allowing the joints to move through a natural range of motion without jarring or compression. Users note an increase in their balance, efficiency, strength, and flexibility. Gyrotonic has now grown to encompass over 13,000 trainers in 84 countries.
Learning curve Knight consults with a wide range of clients in his compact studio. His biggest challenge is to get people to understand exactly what he does.
LA METRO MAGAZINE SPRING 2021 12 Ashley Hutchinson moves| with the Gyrotonic pulley system while Knight guides the movements
By Dan Marois | Photography by Nicole Rand | Knight Spiral Gyrotonic “I find the biggest issue for people is flexibility. I’ve had people that come to me who have gone to see chiropractors. And usually, if they keep coming with me, they stop going to the chiropractor,” says Knight. “They don’t move their body physically and I teach them how to move their own body. There’s a big difference between knowing how to sit up straight and having somebody put you in that position. I teach you how to do it so you can do it yourself.” Knight has had particularly good results with people who have torn ligaments in their shoulders and elsewhere. He explains that, because the movement in the program is so gentle, it works well in getting the shoulders to move freely in all directions.
Certified trainer While he entered the business because of his own personal success with Gyrotonic, Knight had to complete a detailed certification process before he opened his studio to the public. “In order to even consider becoming an instructor, you have to be a client at a center for at least a year. From there, you have extensive pre-training and then work with a master trainer before you are invited to become certified,” says Knight. “Certification involves an entire week where all you do is Gyrotonics.”
Kryston Lemay stretches while balancing “If you spend just an hour with me, you can learn quite a bit,” says Knight. He usually offers a package at half price ($100) that includes four one-hour visits to introduce clients to the program. “There’s a learning curve. They must learn how to breathe the right way. They must learn movements that they’ve never seen. They will experience movements that they’ve never done since they were a toddler,” says Knight. “I just had one of my clients finish her four visits and she is going to start seeing me twice a month. In time, she’ll keep getting stronger and in better shape,” says Knight. “That’s what I did when I first started. I went for four weeks and after that, I went twice a month for over a year, and it worked for me. I’m probably stronger than I’ve ever been in my life.”
Flexibility Knight’s clients are of all ages, both male and female, each coming with their own goal for exercise. Some have injuries, while others are simply looking for an alternative to busy fitness centers. Because Gyrotonic equipment is highly adjustable, it can be customized to fit each person’s unique physique and ability, adapting for things such as height, arm and leg length, and range of motion.
Knight guides Hutchinson in a proper bend/twist maneuver
Trainers expand their knowledge with continuing education courses, and they must be re-certified every two years.
Personalized and private Knight is probably his own best spokesperson as he enthusiastically touts the benefits he derives from Gyrotonic. While the first two years in business were a bit difficult, he approaches every day with a renewed spirit to help people become painfree and more confident in their fitness goals. “My studio has a great storefront window on Lisbon Street, where I can offer a private and personalized exercise experience,” says Knight, knowing that many people shy away from the larger and more crowded fitness center venues. “My challenge is simply to get people to try Gyrotonic at least once. If they do, they usually become hooked on it.” Knight Spiral 11 Lisbon Street, Lewiston • www.gyrotonic.com
The GYROTONIC® Pulley Tower Combination Unit
Relationships are Key Establishing a relationship with a primary care provider is one of the smartest things you can do to help ensure your long-term health. Through regular primary care visits, you can keep up to date on your preventive care, better manage chronic conditions, and identify potential problems before they can slow you down. Our Primary Care offices are conveniently located in Lewiston, Auburn, and Poland. WELCOMING NEW PATIENTS
Ready to get started? Call us at 207.777.8899 StMarysMaine.com/PrimaryCare
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LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
PAIN RELIEF and relaxation through massage
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A D E B Butler Hill Beads Written by Lisa Mayer | Photography by Nicole Rand
Y
ou’re driving on Minot Avenue in Auburn, past the new doughnut place, the ice cream place, the fish place. You’re almost at the steak place when you see it – a little sign outside a little shingled house. Butler Hill Beads. BEADS? SWERVE!! “It might seem small on the outside,” laughs owner Rose Campbell, “but, inside, you can discover whole worlds!” Owner Rose Campbell
Butler Hill Beads, which Campbell opened in June 2016, is a dreamy, technicolor candy store of crafts.
The wall of beads
Come in and bead inspired The walls are dripping with beads, floor-to-ceiling strings of all different kinds of beads – glass, metal, stone – grouped by every color of the rainbow. An entire wall of magnificent Swarovski crystals awaits you. A whole room is devoted to her number one seller: seed beads. These tiny beads are used for peyote stitching, an art that goes back to Ancient Egypt. Peyote is the flat, woven beadwork we associate with Native American arts and crafts. “You need so many of these tiny beads to make anything!” says Campbell of the hundreds of colorful tubes that line the walls.
Butler Hill’s seed A few samples are displayed for bead collection inspiration, but classes in peyote, as well as in jewelry making, leatherwork, and wire wrapping, are on hold for now. In the meantime, “I like to provide,” Campbell says. She stocks basics like clasps, wire, thread, and glue, as well as tools that beaders depend on: needle nose and round tip pliers, crimpers, plus all the jump rings and spacers that enthusiasts call “findings.”
It’s a color thing Rose Campbell started her career keying in mail orders for L.L. Bean, but her “good eye” helped her to develop products for the company. “I learned to gather. I looked at what everyone else was doing, what was out there. Then I brought my own sense of color to it.” 18
LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
In the process, she learned an important lesson. “You have to take yourself out of it,” she explains. “I wasn’t designing for my own home; I was developing products for the Bean customer.” And 27 years later, she was the senior product developer for home textiles. Campbell also has a “good ear.” She listens to her customers and her employees.
Get into leather! One of Rose Campbell’s employees is also her cousin, Rosie Marcoux. Rose and Rosie “grew up playing Barbies together.” Rosie is “wonderful with customers,” and when customers started asking her about leather jewelry, Rose provided spools of leather in a dozen colors. But no one was buying. Rosie’s suggestion: “Make some samples!” So Rose gathered Rosie and a few more friends, “my guinea pigs,” around the upstairs table. The sample jewelry they made went on display downstairs. And leather started selling. Now, “Leather is huge!” Campbell says. “Until COVID, we had leather classes once a month.” She offered many classes on evenings and weekends, and usually taught around a big table in a room upstairs.
Out with the bathwater Like every small-business owner, she took a hit due to the Coronavirus. Campbell wishes she could
Leather bracelet with silver charm
By Lisa Mayer | Photography by Nicole Rand | Bead Dazzle The Butler Hill catalog is gorgeous, and many of the pieces show Maine pride. There’s a “Popham” bracelet, the “Lubec,” and the “Rockport.” are all popular choices. Many pieces combine beads and leather with metallic accents, and can be worn by men or women.
Secret to success Which brings us to the secret of Rose Campbell’s success. The secret besides all the incredible hard work, flexibility, and forward, positive thinking. A supportive family. Specifically, a very supportive husband. Rose met Ron Campbell when she was 17 and working as a summer cashier/cook at the Minot Country Store. “He was 10 years older – my brother’s friend, but he started to hang around.” They married when Rose was 25, and this June will be their 37th anniversary. “After all those years working at Bean, I wanted to move on. I was 55 – too old and too expensive to be hired elsewhere. But I wasn’t too old not to DO something.”
Living the dream Assistant Manager Rosie Marcoux with Campbell “throw 2020 out with the bathwater,” and is looking foward to a better 2021.
That’s when Ron, who works next door at American Concrete, and who also makes lampwork beads from molten glass, asked the big question: “You still want to open that bead store?” “And I said, ‘Yup. But we’re gonna do it right.’” They sure did.
“You HAVE to look forward,” she insists.
Swerve on in
The first thing Campbell did when COVID struck was put together do-it-yourself (DIY) jewelry kits and sell them online. The kits were popular even among those who considered themselves “just” sewers or knitters.
Be dazzled. Look around ‘til your fingers itch with inspiration. Grab a kit that catches your fancy. Then turn off the real world for a few blissful hours and create a whole new one.
“They got me through the year,” she says. As a lifelong jewelry maker, Campbell has always accessorized her outfits with necklaces and bracelets. With these DIY kits, she says, “You can make your own accessories. Something for $20 that you’d buy for $100 in a store.”
What could bead better? Butler Hill Beads 1022 Minot Avenue, Auburn • www.butlerhillbeadshop.com
The second thing Campbell did was hire a consultant. And that led to a whole new world.
What’s my ‘next?’ “Wholesale is the wave of the future,” Campbell says. So Butler Hill Beads now has a wholesale sister: Butler Hill. Butler Hill sells ready-made jewelry to retail stores from Maine to New Jersey. Next time you’re at Lamey Wellehan Shoes in Auburn, look for their display! Campbell rents workspace in the warehouse-style building a few steps from her shop. She employs a half-dozen local crafters to bring her designs to life, although many pick up their materials and work from home. LA METRO MAGAZINE digital edition @ LAMetroMagazine.com
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PROMOTION
THE FACES OF
THE ULTIMATE PACKAGE STORE
Roopers Beverage & Redemption
6 locations in Lewiston, Auburn, & Oxford www.facebook.com/roopers Nikki Hernandez, Janice Kimball, Roddy Doustout, Cat Tardie, Jessica Dickey, Jesse St Laurent, Steve Roop, Jesse Lavoie, Megan Ouellette, Mindy Levesque, Mike Dyer, & Lynn Bouchard
Steve Roop calls Roopers the “ultimate package store,” featuring beer, wine, and spirits, plus tobacco products and lottery tickets. Roop credits his excellent team and the LA community for his success.
Retail, wholesale, redemption Over the last 29 years, Roopers has grown to six retail locations in Lewiston, Auburn, and Oxford. The newest one, at 686 Main Street in Lewiston, includes a tasting room that will feature Maine craft beers and a full range of liquors. Customers can sample a few vodkas, for example, before making a purchase. The room will also host events where customers can learn how to make popular cocktails. In addition, Roopers has created a state-of-the-art system for bottle redemption, where customers receive
FACES of
LA
Written by Peggy DeBlois Photography by Jose Leiva
a membership card and bag stickers, allowing them to just drop the bags at any retail location at their convenience. Roopers has a long reputation in town for “giving back” to countless charities through bottle redemption programs. The business remains committed to making corporate donations to several charitable organizations.
“Every one of the stores has its own unique personality, while still representing my name well,” says Roop. “The atmosphere is really positive.” He creates this work environment by paying his people well, including health benefits, a 401(k) plan, and profit-sharing. Roop also mentors the management and leadership team, who continually push him to try new ideas.
Roopers is also a wholesale liquor distributor, with food service accounts all over the state. Roop credits this three-pronged approach to keeping his business strong through economic ups and downs.
LA as a cocktail
Great place to work Roop credits the commitment of his 80-employee team to excellent customer service as the key to success.
“I love this community for its unique makeup and history, as well as its bright future” says Roop. “If I had to make a cocktail to represent LA, I’d take a variety of my best liquors and shake them up until they shine.”
SOCIAL H UR Highlighting great places to go and things to do in our communities.
ULTIMATE DOG SLEDDING EXPERIENCE Written by Jen Cousins | Photography by Brewster Burns
Trent Newton and a team of dogs take a couple on a sled ride
T
here are moments in life when one realizes they have just met an unforgettable person. A person you can learn from. Someone who teaches you something new about something you thought you understood. Alex Theriault, owner and operator of the Ultimate Dog Sledding Experience in Oxford, Maine, radiates an energy that is inspiring and downright contagious. Immediately upon meeting Theriault, one realizes that they are present for a moment in time that will be unlike anything they have experienced before. His approach to the sport of mushing is one of pure passion.
While his father has not left the sport completely, “He still comes here on weekends and runs sleds,” Theriault says. “You’ll see him around from time to time, out on the trails.”
New direction At 20 years old, he took on the family legacy and added his own vision of an overall expansion. Theriault added more dogs, a larger area to house them and, over time, more tour equipment. Theriault recalls working around the clock, logging 60-70 hours a week at his night job, followed by full-time shifts caring for his dogs. Theriault worked on his own for nearly four years before it was feasible to hire help. The cost of taking over a business proved to be a lesson in finances. “The key to this business,” Theriault laughs, “is to start with a fortune and work your way down from there.”
Alex Theriault with Dean
From generation to generation One could say that Alex Theriault was born to pursue the sport of mushing. His father, Paul Theriault, was a professional musher, or sled dog driver, and the original visionary behind Ultimate Dog Sledding Experience (UDSE). Alex Theriault was just three years old when he boarded his first sled, age seven when he participated in his first race. His love for the sport grew. As Theriault entered adulthood, he was a natural choice to inherit the family business.
Getting his dogs work-ready is a job that requires around-theclock attention to feeding, grooming, and training. Shifts at the UDSE kennel begin early. When Theriault wakes in the morning, there are over 80 dogs waiting to be fed, watered, and cleaned. Theriault takes animal care seriously, evidence of which is clear upon meeting his dogs. They are energetic, healthy, and happy. They are ready to work. Over the years, Theriault’s pack has grown to 83 dogs, which results in a cost of $45,000 annually for feeding and housing. The large number of dogs can be attributed to the fact that he keeps all his retired dogs. “By the time they retire, many of them have been running with me for 10 years or more,” he relates. “When they start to slow down, they live out the rest of their lives in the senior section of our facility. They lounge around, eat the best food, and play in the snow together. They are family to me; I could not get rid of them.” During this explanation, a UDSE staff member approaches with a question. Theriault perks up. “Which dog do you need? I know every single one of them.” With that, Theriault walks directly to the dog his staff had asked about. And as he opens the door to the dog’s cubby, it is evident that each of his dogs knows him just as well.
The pregame: training Six dogs, harnessed to sleds, bark excitedly, tails wagging. From afar, they look like they may bust their harnesses. Their focus is exclusive to one goal: to run. But as visitors approach, these working dogs transform into lovable pets like many of us keep at home. The dogs greet their admirers, immediately becoming quiet and welcoming the affection. The socialization process for Theriault’s dogs starts from the time they are puppies. They travel to tours with their older pack mates, to begin getting to know the Pilot Austin Black leads a sled team
By Jen Cousins | Photography by Brewster Burns | Ultimate Dog Sledding Experience process. From their experience in the transport truck, it will be as little as five months before they join the veterans in their pack for their first run. Each beginner pup will be paired with an experienced canine, who will show them the ropes through example. Theriault has learned that a combination of being paired with a veteran, and lots of positive reinforcement, is the ideal recipe for a sledding team dog. The pups begin learning at six to eight months of age. Theriault says they do their first run, followed by a few days break. This gives the pups time to absorb what they learned.
Experience the thrill As one approaches the trailhead, a feeling of excitement and wonder fills the air. A team of six dogs, already harnessed to the sled they are about to pull, appear as though they may take off prematurely. All six dogs face the trail they have become accustomed to running, eagerly and loudly anticipating the work they have been training for their entire lives. Theriault has special permission to access the interconnected trail system (ITS) at the trailhead located at 911 Station Road in Hebron. Though all tours take place here, the customer gets to shape their experience. The website offers several packages, ranging from a one-hour, introductory level tour, to a longer one that will take you to the top of Maine’s beloved Streaked Mountain. Who is an ideal candidate for the Ultimate Dog Sledding Experience? Sarah Garland, Theriault’s partner in business and in life, says this experience is for everyone. Garland, who describes dog sledding as “the next best thing to visiting Alaska,” has seen people from all walks of life board a sled for their first time. “This experience is for everyone,” Garland states. “We have done tours with veterans, children, entire families. We had one customer come because she wanted to use this experience to help her with her fear of dogs. The answer to ‘who this sport is for?’ Everyone. Everyone.” Ultimate Dog Sledding Experience 65 Main Street, Oxford • ultimatedogsleddingexperience.com
Lead dog Galena
YOUR ROLE WITH US! MWN ANDROSCOGGIN CHAPTER
Sarah Garland with Runts
CONNECT INSPIRE EMPOWER MAINEWOMENSNETWORK.COM/ANDROSCOGGIN-CHAPTER
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Where the locals eat! Maine’s #1Steakhouse for a reason.
Try any one of our salads, entrees, sandwiches, or burgers.
Shown here: Bleu-cheese crusted Filet Mignon 8 oz. bacon wrapped tenderloin topped with garlic butter or Bleu cheese crusted, served with two sides.
Mac’s Grill | 1052 Minot Avenue, Auburn | 207-783-6885 | www.MacsGrill.com
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LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
THE RIGHT STUFF Written by Donna Keene Rousseau | Photography by Brewster Burns
I
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
t’s an old adage, but a good philosophy to live by, especially if you are a member of the all-volunteer Lost Valley Ski Patrol. For Bill Skelton, Scott Thistle, and John Chasse, current leads for the patrol, avoiding the need to deploy the rescue team is the ultimate goal of patrolling “the hill.”
Liz Dunn, Carolyn Vail, Gillian Bavis, & Gavin Bavis prepare the Lost Valley Ski Patrol toboggan for an injured skier.
“Last year we had 44,000 skier visits with 100-150 incidents. That’s a very small percentage, compared to the number of people skiing,” says Skelton, who brings eight years’ experience as an emergency medical technician (EMT) to the patrol. “That’s why prevention is a big part of what we do.”
it light” with their guests, engaging them in a friendly manner while instilling the importance of precaution and safety.
To the rescue Many of the incidents the patrollers encounter are minor: bumps, bruises, sprains, strains, and manageable lacerations. In the event of a more serious injury, the patrol must get the patient stabilized, “packaged,” and down the mountain to a higher level of care, namely the United Ambulance Service and the Auburn Fire Department. The patrol knows what the EMTs need and the EMTs know what they can expect from the patrol. “Packaging” a patient consists of splinting fractures, controlling bleeding, packing wounds, stabilizing impaled objects, immobilizing a patient with suspected spinal injuries, and maintaining airways for unresponsive or severe respiratory distress patients. Patrollers also gather information including vital signs, medical history, and a complete patient assessment, to allow for a more rapid transfer to definitive care and hopefully a better patient outcome.
Anatomy of a patroller
Bill Skelton
Prevention Risk management and accident prevention are ongoing responsibilities which include daily trail maintenance, identifying and marking hazards, opening and closing trails, assuring adequate snow coverage, and more. Even in the offseason, there is work for the patrol in trail maintenance, repair and updates to the lodge and other buildings, equipment upkeep, and brush-cutting where the mowers cannot reach. Visitor education and instruction are also a big part of prevention for patrollers. In an atmosphere of recreation, they strive to “keep
The ski patrol team huddles before hitting the slopes
The primary prerequisite for becoming a patroller is the ability to ski well. Ski fundamentals must be solidly mastered, according to eight-year patroller John Chasse, who first learned to ski at Lost Valley in the ‘70s. Collectively, he, Skelton, and Thistle share 115+ years’ experience skiing the powder and 46 years patrolling. “Part of a candidate’s training is learning how to handle the toboggan,” says Chasse. “When you have a person on the toboggan, the focus is always on the patient. Your skis just need to know what to do.” Patrol candidates must also complete the National Ski Patrol (NSP) 100-hour Outdoor Emergency Care (OEC) course, equivalent to a college-level course and similar in content to the EMT training, with the greater focus on out-of-hospital care and winter sports pathology. Upon completion, candidates must demonstrate competency and skill in identifying shock, stopping bleed,
By Donna Keene Rousseau | Photography by Brewster Burns | Lost Valley Ski Patrol splinting a fracture, recognizing abdominal trauma, maintaining an airway, administering oxygen, and restricting spinal motion. Additional training also includes Outdoor Emergency Transport (OET), an entirely skill-based course that requires on-snow training for skiing, riding, telemark, and toboggan handling skills. “COVID-19 has dramatically changed the way we delivered programming to our candidates for the 2020-2021 ski season,” explains Thistle, who has served five different patrols in the NSP Eastern and Central Divisions and, like Skelton and Chasse, is also a certified instructor of OEC and OET. “We currently have 25 candidates from five different patrols across the Maine Region of the Eastern Division of the National Ski Patrol,” Thistle says, “taking an online hybrid course of the OEC.” Candidates are provided guidelines for study that include textbook reading, chapter knowledge checks, quizzes, and reviews. The curriculum also entails biweekly hands-on skills labs for practicing the medical skills they need to acquire. “It’s a rigorous process,” says Thistle. “It takes a lot of time and commitment to develop the skills, competence, and confidence to treat injured or ill people in an emergent setting.” Candidates must score no less than 80 out of 100 points on the written exam and cannot miss more than two Critical Performance Indicators in the practical, hands-on portion of the exam. While most candidates succeed on the first pass, the exam may be retaken.
YAPS Thistle serves as the adviser for Young Adult Patrols (or YAPS), ages 15-18, who undertake the same NSP training as their adult counterparts. As fully-fledged patrollers, YAPS can participate in emergency care, though they cannot fully receive a patient into their care until they turn 18. YAPS and new adult patrollers are kept “under the wing” of a more experienced patroller for at least a year. Liz Dunn, a 16-year-old student from Oxford Hills High School, will be a “jacketed” YAP once she completes her training and testing in the spring. She began Nordic skiing at the age of four and became interested in Alpine skiing in the seventh grade. “My mom is a big skier and her dad, Stephen Davis, was a Maine ski jump champion in 1931 and 1932,” says Dunn, smiling. “So, I guess I wanted to continue in the family tradition.” Her interest in becoming a patroller was piqued after earning a Wilderness First Responder certification, offered through the University of Maine system and her high school. “Part of the curriculum included a ski scenario,” explains Dunn, “so I had the opportunity to meet patrollers from Mt. Abram, and I became interested.” Dunn admits some of the online hybrid OEC coursework proves difficult to comprehend strictly through reading a textbook. “It was hard to understand administering of oxygen until I did the hands-on training. Then it clicked,” she says, referencing her group meetings on Sundays and Wednesdays for hands-on practice. During her training, she has attended two incidents of broken wrists, one which required Dunn to “package” and help transport by toboggan. One of her proudest moments in training was
Liz Dunn & Gavin Bavis ski a toboggan down the mountain transporting a fellow candidate down Alpine East, one of the steeper trails at Lost Valley, on her own. “The trail was daunting and I did it proficiently, which was a good feeling,” she says. “I have always looked up to patrollers and I like knowing I can do that work myself. I am a humanitarian, and helping others makes me feel fulfilled.”
Staying sharp To maintain OEC certification, all patrollers must participate in a yearly refresher, typically a full-day event with lectures and handson skills work. “The NSP constantly monitors trends and changes in pre-hospital care and will implement any needed adjustments to our skills and training at any time such changes become necessary,” says Skelton, who also serves the NSP Maine region as a legal adviser. Additional preseason training may span human resource matters, including sexual harassment and employee orientation for new or returning patrollers, to snowmobile operations and guidance on new policies and protocols. LA METRO MAGAZINE digital edition @ LAMetroMagazine.com
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Benefits The volunteer patrol is not without its benefits. Lost Valley affords season ski passes for the patrol and day passes for their families. NSP offers ski industry discounts on skis, equipment, and ski gear. Scott and April Shanaman, who took ownership of Lost Valley in 2016, have shown serious commitment to their patrol’s recruitment and training efforts by providing candidates free access to lockers, five free lift tickets for family and guests, five tubing park passes, and training space in the lodge for conducting the OEC. Additionally, they have invested in medical and preventive supplies, and equipment upgrades including new and refurbished toboggans. “Skiing is a sport with inherent risks,” says Scott Shanaman. “Our goal is to mitigate those risks and provide our guests with the safest experience possible. April and I are lucky to have a ski patrol with the level of commitment, care, and professionalism needed to accomplish that goal.”
Pride of the hill The patrol is particularly proud of their “hill,” one with a longstanding history as a teaching mountain with its own bragging rights. Otto Wallingford and Dr. Camille Gardner first opened Lost Valley for the 1961-62 season. Necessity being the mother of invention, Wallingford created the state’s first snow-making system and introduced night skiing to Maine. In 1971, when he began towing a cylindrical steel grate behind a tractor to transform hard-crusted snow into a groomed surface, the “Powder Maker” was born; the invention became essential to the ski industry throughout the world. Reed Johanson transports a toboggan on the ski lift
According to Jon Conant, mountain operations manager at Lost Valley, the original powder maker is still on the property. He
“Patrollers are also required to participate in yearly training on evacuating guests from the chair lifts,” says Skelton. CPR certification and refreshers are offered yearly at Lost Valley as well.
Volunteer bank Highly skilled and at the ready, the Lost Valley Ski Patrol ranges in experience from newly certified to 40+ years of keeping the slopes fun but safe. Considering the magnitude of the training and work, it is notable that Lost Valley’s patrol consists solely of volunteers. According to Chasse, who serves as the patrol’s scheduler, fluidity is key when working with a bank of volunteers. He currently has an active roster of 23 patrollers, and six candidates whose course training will be completed in April or May. On average, Chasse needs four patrollers on the hill. The busy days require more. “People have commitments – jobs, families,” says Chasse. “Everyone gives what they can and we have to remain flexible to keep our people. Lost Valley asks for a minimum of one night a week, 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. We have a set core of patrollers who not only put in one weeknight shift, but also patrol at least one day every weekend, for an average of 14-20 hours per week during the season.” Given the demand for volunteers, maintaining the patrol pipeline is important. Candidates come to the patrol in many ways, including independent inquiry, patrol solicitation, family tradition, and parents who join after their children become patrollers. 30
LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
Randy Fess cuts high visibility ribbon to lace into ropes
Gillian Bavis skis to the rescue described it as “all arms and joints that appear like a string of barrels constructed of wire.” Of the generations of young people who have learned to ski at Lost Valley, the mountain has produced four U.S. Olympians: Karl Anderson, Alpine skier in 1976 and 1980; Rob Parisien in the slalom (‘92); Anne-Lise Parisien in the giant slalom (‘94); and Julie Parisien, three-time Olympian (‘92,‘94, and ‘98), and silver medalist in the 1993 World Cup Championships. “Lost Valley is doing something right,” observes Thistle, who has patrolled multiple mountains throughout his career. “Little mountains can do big things.”
A cut above The ski patrol, activated in 1960, is also part of that long history and tradition. In fact, Lost Valley Ski Patrol was recently awarded the National Ski Patrol Eastern Division’s Outstanding Small Alpine Ski Patrol Award for 2020. The patrol was recognized for its involvement in the NSP, its demonstrated commitment to Lost Valley through education and certification, fundraising, and property upkeep, support for community events and programs including the Central Region Adaptive Program, Special Olympics and military veterans’ “Vets in the Valley” program, to name a few. Their efforts not only reflect dedication to their hill, notes the NSP, but have contributed to Lost Valley’s reputation for being “an anchor in the community and a true ‘family’ mountain.”
Yet recognition is not what fuels the patrol. Nor is it the free ski pass, which some members might say was their initial draw. Most patrollers would say, according to Thistle, the passion for “playing in the snow” evolves into something greater: the satisfaction that comes from doing something positive for the community and becoming part of something bigger than themselves. In their uniforms of black, white, and red, emblazoned with the white medic cross, the Lost Valley ski patrollers are easily identifiable as the helpers on the hill. Always skiers at heart, they relish those quiet moments of breaking fresh powder or taking a toboggan ride for fun. But they are always at the ready, ever watchful of their mountain and its guests. When the call for help comes, Lost Valley skiers and riders can rest assured they are in the highly-trained and trustworthy hands of the Lost Valley Ski Patrol. Lost Valley Ski Patrol 200 Lost Valley Road, Auburn • lostvalleyski.com
For more information about becoming a patroller, contact patrol@lostvalleyski.com or ask a patroller on the mountain. More information about the National Ski Patrol can be found online at nspserves.org. LA METRO MAGAZINE digital edition @ LAMetroMagazine.com
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Front: Carolyn Vail, John Chasse, & Bill Skelton Back: Gavin Bavis, Scott Thistle, Gillian Bavis, Randy Fess, & Liz Dunn Lost Valley Ski Patrol: Winners of the National Ski Patrol Eastern Division’s Outstanding Small Alpine Ski Patrol Award for 2020
Reclaiming
Lost Valley Written by Toby Haber-Giasson | Photography by Brewster Burns
LA METRO MAGAZINE digital edition @ LAMetroMagazine.com
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Photo courtesy of Lost 2018 Valley LA METRO MAGAZINE | AUTUMN
See our feature story, Reclaiming Lost Valley from our Autumn 2018 issue! Read it online at www.LAMetroMagazine.com 32
LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
Witness the St. Dom’s
DIF F E RE N CE .
Musician & Poet Written by Michael Krapovicky | Photography by Nicole Rand
A
great artist uses emotions, wisdom, and aesthetic sense to make a visceral connection with their audience. National recording artist and LA incomer Chris Robley fosters these relationships through poetry and music. His writing has garnered a Maine Literary Award as well as Boulevard Magazine’s Poetry Prize for Emerging Writers. Robley’s folk and orchestral indie-pop music has been favorably reviewed by the LA Times, NPR’s “Second Stage,” The Boston Globe and many others. Skyscraper Magazine described him as, “One of the best short-story musicians to come along in quite some time.” Robley’s new album, A Filament in the Wilderness of What Comes Next, with subject matter that spans the Visigoths’ invasion of Rome to facing mortality, is a part of his evolving statement on the experience of existence.
Inspirations Musical interest came early for Robley, sparked by listening to Paul Simon’s Concert in the Park as a pre-teen. “During the guitar solo on ‘Boy in the Bubble,’ I ran into my parents’ room and begged them to buy me a guitar,” recalls Robley. “I was obsessed with how the rhythm acted like a wave of energy that gave Simon’s erudite and abstract words actual power.” Robley learned from master finger-style guitarists Martin Simpson and Leo Kottke at a summer music camp. Robley performed jazz in his Rhode Island high school band, and later joined a funk-fusion band Sol Food while in college at the University of Richmond in Virginia. Initially lacking confidence in his own voice, he wrote original lyrics and music for others, while accompanying them on guitar. “Singing a song you wrote yourself is one of the most vulnerable things you can do, but sometimes the imperfections or limitations in your voice can be the very things that make it worth hearing; the power of intimacy,” says Robley. “Eventually I started to sing my own songs, and my confidence caught up.”
Changes Robley settled in Portland, Oregon, in 2001. Portland’s thriving music scene provided Robley with opportunities to test original music to enthralled audiences, with a rotating group of musicians that were eventually called The Fear of Heights. Robley met his future wife, Lauren Breau, then a student at the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine in Portland, and a Lewiston, Maine, native. As their relationship progressed, Breau wanted to return home, and Robley was considering moving closer to his ailing father back in Rhode Island. The couple moved to Maine in 2011, and started a family. Being a new father, with little time to start a new band in Maine, Robley discovered a new joy for writing and performing as a solo artist. “Music became more of a pursuit that was primarily about the passion rather than the rewards,” says Robley. “I basically said to myself, ‘I’m a solo singer-songwriter now.’ I got way more comfortable playing without a band, by necessity.”
Many voices Robley’s blueprint for recording has changed for each successive album since his first solo release, This is The, in 2005. “Sometimes it’s just me in the studio, playing as many of the instruments as possible, or it’s a band recording mostly live,” says Robley of his recording process. “Sometimes I lean toward
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LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
Chris Robley
By Michael Krapovicky | Photography by Nicole Rand | Chris Robley acoustic and organic sounds, sometimes more electronic or psychedelic, and sometimes more orchestral with strings and horns.” For his seventh and latest solo work, A Filament in the Wilderness of What Comes Next, Robley recorded simple demos, with just acoustic guitar and vocals, to send to former Fear of Heights band members and other collaborators in Oregon. Robley instructed them to redirect the arrangement with their particular musical stamp. “The whole point was to see, in the music, a reflection of America – not a singular vision, but the result of many voices, tensions, and solutions,” says Robley. “I was only involved enough to veto things, sprinkle in some more synths and guitars, and make little suggestions.”
Robley encourages exploration of the USA’s ability to enact positive global change on the album’s title track: America, you need not be a beacon. That’s more than any person should expect. But a light can still be, as its signal weakens, A filament in the wilderness of what comes next “People are anxious America’s power is waning in the world, and it’s making us do some weird and dangerous things as a society,” says Robley. “The last line is trying to say, ‘Let’s calm down, and show the world that our sanity and our solidarity can be enough to guide us forward.’”
Quiet sets Compared to Portland, Oregon, Maine’s music scene offers far less opportunity for original performances. Yet there have been LA performances that Robley has relished.
Robley’s studio releases
“I’ve done full sets of my own songs at Quiet City Books, The Downstage at LA Arts, and the old Baxter Brewing taproom, and they’ve all been great,” Robley attests. “I do wish there was more demand for more intimate shows, in a real listening room.” Robley lauds Downstage as a musical anchor for LA. “Downstage is a home for local acts who write their own material,” Robley expounds. “It’s a spot for touring artists on the indie-circuit, a place for music programmers to take chances, and a space where listeners take more chances, too.”
Live vs. studio Robley compares the differences between album recording and playing live.
“Live is forgiving, in a way. It’s over the moment it happens,” says Robley. “And a lot of times, precision isn’t as important as projection and energy.” Robley considers recording as nearly the opposite. With everything fixed in time, nuances become more prevalent. “A song can often sound bigger when each of the component parts are squished to fit in their place,” says Robley. “Something small can be noticed in a mix – a voice can sound closer when it’s a whisper.”
Ready for normal With touring plans on hold due to the pandemic, Robley prepares a promotional campaign for A Filament in the Wilderness of What Comes Next and hunkers down with family. “The past year at home has been full of ups and downs,” says Robley. “We find lots of moments of fun and adventure and making ridiculous videos, but… we’re ready for ‘normal’ again.” Chris Robley chrisrobley.com
Robley in his home studio
•Brewery•taproom•Café•Pinky D’s Food truck•Coffee by Design•
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/SIDEBYEACHBREWING WWW.SIDEBYEACHBREWING.COM 38
LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
•Fresh brewed coffee all day• •Lattes•Mochas•cold brew• •breakfast sandwiches•to go• •or dine in our socially distanced taproom•
1110 Minot Ave., Auburn 207.689.3030
GAME CHANGER Area restaurants playing the cards they’re dealt
Written by Sara Poulin | Photography by Jose Leiva
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or business owners in the hospitality and service industries everywhere, March 2020 was a month fraught with uncertainty. Local businesses in Maine were no exception to that. In mid-March, many were forced to close their doors for what many hoped to be a short stint to “flatten the curve” of COVID-19 and then go back to business as usual. Unfortunately for many businesses, that “stint” was not so short. Over the course of about three months, many bars and restaurants implemented safety measures, adjusted hours, and even fully changed their operating models. LA Metro Magazine sits down with four area businesses to talk about what precautions were taken to meet health and safety guidelines and to keep their businesses afloat.
Craft Brew Underground Digging deep During his three-month closure, owner Mike Williams Jr. relied on the dedication and loyalty of his patrons at Craft Brew Underground (CBU), many of whom purchased gift cards to boost his income. In order to offer curbside pickup as an option, Williams needed to serve food. He partnered with Cibo Pizza, which had shuttered its location in the Auburn Public Library, to offer curbside pickup of beer with the purchase of pizza or popcorn. In November, Williams was approached by a local burlesque troupe, asking if they could use CBU’s back room for a performance. He was impressed with their plan to make the show safe and enjoyable for patrons. A state inspection agreed CBU was compliant with the Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines and the “OK” was given for the burlesque, and future performances. Confident about meeting safety protocols, Williams was eager to add more opportunities for entertainment to the CBU schedule. Enter Mark Turcotte, who owns and operates Maine Event Comedy (MEC). Before the closure in March, MEC was putting on a biweekly Adult Spelling Bee and offering stand-up comedy performances three times a month in the back room of CBU. “The back room of CBU is the perfect room for comedy,” Turcotte says. “It’s one of the top three rooms I’ve performed in.” Turcotte and Williams met and made a plan to offer weekly shows. Since December, CBU and MEC have been presenting the “Physically Distanced and Socially Awkward COVID Comedy Series” on Saturday evenings. Because there are a limited number of tables, tickets for comedy shows must be purchased in advance. The majority of the shows have sold out and performances will continue through the spring months. Times are tough; people need to laugh. Both Turcotte and Williams believe that is why there has been such an outpouring of support, both from the patrons and the performers. It’s a chance to have a sense of normalcy, even just for an hour. Always the gracious host, Turcotte genuinely thanks the crowd before and after every show, saying, “Without the audience, we have nothing.” This sentiment is echoed by Williams, grateful to have a full back room every Saturday night. Without the loyalty of his patrons and the return of comedy, things would be no laughing matter.
CBU owner Mike Williams Jr. & Mark Turcotte of Maine Event Comedy
Facebook.com/CBUAuburn • maineeventcomedy.com
Sonder and Dram For the love of bricks If there’s one word Sonder and Dram owners Peter Flanders and Jon Mercier are tired of, it’s “pivot.” Imagine having to come to a full stop and switch directions on the turn of a dime. That’s just what Sonder and Dram had to do, in the wake of the pandemic. With the help of the City of Lewiston and, in particular, Misty Parker from the City of Lewiston’s Department of Economic Development, Sonder and Dram has made some significant changes in its day-to-day business. With the bar’s capacity cut in half, Sonder and Dram needed to find a way to bring in revenue and still keep their patrons safe. They began offering delivery and outdoor seating. The most noticeable alteration is the change from bar fare to a full menu for dine-in or takeout. By offering a full dinner, at two seating times nightly, Wednesday through Saturday, they are able to provide delicious food and tasty cocktails while still serving their guests safely. Every week, Chef Michael Gosselin brings his passion and excitement for “creating tasty things’’ to the guests of Sonder and Dram. For a reasonable fee of $39, Sonder and Dram’s patrons can experience a full three course dinner, comparable to something you might find at upscale restaurants in Portland or Boston. The menu always includes options of three appetizers, entrees, and desserts, and the options change each week. Any additional foods or beverages are not included. The kitchen at Sonder and Dram may be small, but they have done some remarkable things with the resources available to them. It’s a testament to their resilience and passion for the industry. Flanders and Gosselin both echo a quote of Anthony Bourdain: “I’m in the pleasure business.” Pleasure is evident in the creative and energetic presentation of the foods being served at Sonder and Dram, and business isn’t bad either. In the spring, Sonder and Dram will also begin offering a Sunday brunch. With limited seating, a reservation online or by phone is suggested. www.sonderdram.com
Owners Peter Flanders & Jon Mercier
Side By Each Brewing Co. Brewing up new ideas Before the shutdown occurred in March 2020, about 80% of business at Side By Each (SXE) came from draft beers and table seating. Shuttering their taproom made the first few weeks of the pandemic very difficult. Customers could still order coffee to go, as well as growler fills. Growler sales went up from 15% of total sales to a whopping 75%. In the beginning of the closure, SXE relied on curbside pickup only, but eventually moved to making deliveries of their filled growlers in Lewiston, Auburn, and surrounding towns. Taking orders online, they had scheduled delivery days and times, bringing growlers, t-shirts, and gift cards out to their customers. They also expanded their menu, partnering with other local area businesses, offering fare from homemade pop tarts to artisanal pizza. SXE offers a Community Supported Brewing program (CSB), similar to Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), or farm share. Shares are paid up front for six or 12 months’ worth of beer. Along with other great benefits, CSB members receive vouchers. There are a few different CSB voucher options which can be used throughout the year for growler fills. According to co-owner Ben Low, many CSB members declined to use their vouchers to pay for their growler fills, instead opting to pay out of pocket. This was just one of the ways the regulars at SXE made efforts to support the business. The loyalty of the SXE staff enabled the brewery to weather the difficult storm of operating during a pandemic. “There is not much more important than having a great staff,” says Low. “Everyone is still here, no one has left. Unemployment was an option that no one took. They are all very committed.” There is a palpable sense of camaraderie and spirit when you walk in the door of Side By Each. They’re serving up great pours with a smile, and you can tell that the staff is happy to be at work again. www.sidebyeachbrewing.com
Owner Ben Low
Dad’s Place A little bit of everything Dad’s Place is a busy convenience store in the heart of Mechanic Falls. Regular customers steadily roll in and out, and are welcomed in by the friendly staff. Dad’s Place offers groceries, takeout, catering, gas, beer, liquor, and bottle redemption. Last spring, the initial closure caused sales at Dad’s Place to plummet. With a limit of only five customers in the store at a time, Dad’s Place turned to offering curbside pickup. Customers could order online and pick up outside the store. As business picked up some, owner Larry Roy began offering delivery services along with a twist of humor. For a $10 minimum order, Roy would deliver your groceries, takeout food, beer, wine, or liquor, along with a complimentary roll of toilet paper and a copy of Uncle Andy’s Digest. The little restaurant inside the store had taken a hit as well. Commuters weren’t stopping in to pick up breakfast orders on their way to work. They were also eating lunch at home instead of picking up takeout. With customers reluctant to leave the house during a “shelter in place” order, Roy thought, why not offer some grocery items that were not usually available in a convenience store? He had fresh produce coming in for the restaurant that wasn’t being used, so he began offering his customers things like fresh tomatoes and potatoes. Every little bit helped. Dad’s Place was able to cater a few functions in 2020, but the overall catering business dropped by 95%. With limits being placed on the size of gatherings, most weddings were either postponed or canceled. Roy returned many nonrefundable deposits that had been placed for events. “It was the right thing to do,” says Roy. Looking ahead to this summer, weddings and company picnics are expected to resume. Dad’s Place Catering already has an event booked for every weekend in 2021. Bringing his products to his close-knit community and doing it with humor is something Larry Roy does very well. “It’s easy to get complacent,” Roy states. “You’ve got to look from the outside. Look at your business model and roll with the punches.” www.dadsplacemaine.com Owner Larry Roy
MAINE MAPLE SUNDAY Written by Jake Van Paepeghem | Photography by David Fuller
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THE SHUGA SHAK
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aple sugar production has traditionally been a staple of New England agriculture. How is this time-honored crop produced and celebrated today? We take a look at one of LA’s family-owned maple sugar operations, the Shuga Shak, to find out.
Jeff Coolidge in his maple sugarbush What started off as a game for Jeff Coolidge, to show his kids how to make something with their hands, has turned into the Shuga Shak in Mechanic Falls, which sells over 2,000 gallons of Maine-made maple syrup a year. With another Maine Maple Sunday in the books, let’s learn what makes maple syrup such a unique product, and how the Shuga Shak is teaching the value of hard work and “Yankee ingenuity” to the next generation of maple sugar producers.
Early lessons Fifteen years ago, a few of Coolidge’s children asked him how to make maple syrup. Coolidge knew how it worked. He purchased a set of 12 tree taps. A machinist for over 35 years, he showed them how to drill a tap hole at an upward angle, then lightly tap a metal spout into the tree trunk to drain the sap. They used Pepsi cans to collect it. Then, Coolidge took the sap and boiled it down over a turkey fryer in his garage. Presto! They made fresh Maine maple syrup.
Origins According to the Maine Maple Producers Association, maple syrup was first made by Indigenous tribes. They would harvest the sap, and boil it down using red-hot stones dipped into the sap. The sap evaporates from the heat of the rock, leaving a golden brown sugar. Europeans who had arrived on North America’s shores by the early 17th century quickly caught on to the maple sugar scene of Acadia and New England. Sugar products were so valuable, at that time, they were traded like currency. European settlers added some efficiencies to the production process, like using cast iron kettles, which kept their sap boiling steady and clean. Between the 16th and 19th centuries, cane sugar came through an economic supply chain predicated on slave labor. Righteous
But, as Coolidge puts it, he “just can’t leave [stuff] alone!” It takes a surprising amount of sap to make just one gallon of maple syrup: 44 gallons, in fact. So with each trip into the sugarbush to check his taps, Coolidge drilled a fresh set, steadily growing his sap gathering capacity. This led to needing bigger and better evaporator equipment to distill the sap, which Coolidge made himself using an old furnace burner. This family-owned operation, now known as the Shuga Shak, has grown to include an 1,800+ tap system, with plans to add another 500 taps. Coolidge likes how working out in the sugarbush shows the value of hard work. But he also shares his personal story of Yankee ingenuity, defined by Wikipedia as “a typically American pragmatic approach to problem-solving.” His resourcefulness has been integral to the Shuga Shak’s success. 46
LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
Coolidge tends to the boiler at the Shuga Shak
By Jake Van Paepeghem | Photography by David Fuller | Maine Maple Sunday
Coolidge’s sugarbush is laced with miles of tubing to collect sap from thousands of trees New Englanders showed their opposition to slavery through conscientious consumption of maple syrup.
Maple Maine In order to produce a sweet syrup from tree sap, maple trees (classified as Acer saccharum) need sunny days and bitter cold nights. This is what makes New England and parts of Canada prime areas for the harvest of maple sugar. Here in Maine, the maple sugar season lasts between 44-52 days from February to April. In that time, producers harvest and refine 530,000 gallons to be sold on shelves all over the world. New England maple producers bottle and sell a whopping 3.78 million gallons of maple syrup annually.
Maine Maple Sunday Every fourth Sunday in March, we celebrate maple producers with what the Maine Office of Tourism calls the “perfect activity for families.” Maple Sunday is a time for the 580 licensed maple
The original Shuga Shak started in a tool shed
producers here in Maine to show off their seasonal operations to the public. Started in 1984, this annual event is the highlight for an industry that brings $27 million into the state of Maine. Maple sugar producers like the Shuga Shak use Maine Maple Sunday to showcase the artisanal subtleties of creating a tasty batch of maple syrup, and sell other maple syrup themed treats like maple butter, maple doughnuts, candied nuts and more. A stop at a sugarhouse is likely to include a demonstration of tapping a maple tree, the boiling and bottling process, and not unlike a winery tour, maybe a product sampling or two. Maple syrup can come in many shades, quite literally. Syrup color ranges from golden brown to a deep, dark amber, and the subtle flavors can vary with the color. In general, the lighter the color, the lighter the flavor.
Sugaring during COVID Pandemic considerations kept some maple sugar producers from opening their doors to the public on Maine Maple Sunday.
The Shuga Shak today LA METRO MAGAZINE digital edition @ LAMetroMagazine.com
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Verna Coolidge at the Shuga Shak retail store However, there were still ways Mainers could support our state’s agricultural economy this past March, all while getting a sugar rush from this sweet and sticky crop. Masks and social distancing dominated this year’s Maine Maple Sunday, with producers doing their best to provide a safe, fun, delicious, and educational experience for families. There were still plenty of sweet treats to sample like maple syrup, maple cotton candy, maple lollipops, and even some savory treats for the adults like mulling spices, herb dip mixes, and flavored coffee. COVID has certainly hit the maple sugaring industry. Coolidge estimates his sales are down by 50% to 60% this year. It has been an especially hard year for smaller producers like the Shuga Shak. They don’t produce the same volume as commercial maple syrup producers, and lack the resources to diversify their sales.
Right in our backyard The Shuga Shak was created by kids, for kids. The very name of their family-owned business came from some unique spelling Coolidge’s young children painted on a wooden sign years ago. Now, Coolidge’s kids are all grown, and his six year-old grandson is taking to the farming lifestyle. “Farmer Luke,” as they call him, created a garden last summer with his grandmother, Verna Coolidge. With some “Yankee ingenuity,” he used 5-gallon buckets to grow tomatoes and peppers. Now he’s raising his own ducks and chickens. Luke is also getting an early start on securing his future in the agricultural business, touting a stack of business cards and the same passion for tinkering that seems to be a Coolidge family tradition. The Shuga Shak 450 Pigeon Hill Road, Mechanic Falls www.facebook.com/MaineShugaShak
Want to find other maple sugar shacks near LA? Royal River Orchards
201 Peacock Hill, New Gloucester
Jillson Farm Sugarhouse
143 Jordan Bridge Road, Sabattus
Maple Rush Sugar House
123 Webster Corner Road, Sabattus
The Maple Shed
143 Cobbs Bridge Road, New Gloucester
Slattery’s Sugarhouse
Junction of Route 119 and Route 124, West Minot
Mineral Springs Farm
110 Upland Road, Lisbon Falls
Infab Refractories, Inc.
431 Merrill Hill Road, Hebron
Blais Maple Syrup
44 Ledgeview Road, Greene
Maple Hill Enterprises
748 Newell Brook Road, Durham
Russell Farm Bakery & Maple Products 46 Russell Road, Poland
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Food and Beverage Manager Riley Thrasher with the King of the Mountain Burger
a path for success Written by John Breerwood | Photography by Brewster Burns
S
ince purchasing Lost Valley Ski Area in 2015, Scott and April Shanaman have been committed to delivering the best customer experience possible. However, a brewpub wasn’t among their initial intentions. At least not until Darren Finnegan, a homebrewer hungry for a chance to join Maine’s bustling brewing industry, approached the new owners. “He had tasty beer,” says Scott Shanaman, “and we thought that it would be a good fit for our year-round patrons.” And just like that, Finnegan became the brewmaster of the newly established Lost Valley Brewing Co. (LVB) in 2018.
LVB produces styles for any customer who enjoys the clean finish of a cold beer. As an added bonus for skiers, many beer names are derived from ski terminology. The Easiest Way Down, an American lager, takes its name from an old ski sign on the property. It’s a great thirst quencher on a summer day or after a long day on the slopes. The Après Ski Stout or the Bobcat Belgian Wit are top options for patrons preferring richer flavors. For hopheads, LVB offers several different IPAs. The Otterslide, a New England IPA, is the company’s most popular beer overall, and Finnegan takes the most pride in that beer. The Base Lodge Blueberry is gaining popularity, even beyond LA. LVB uses local malt from Blue Ox Malthouse in Lisbon Falls and gets most of their hops through a partnership with Baxter Brewing Co. in Lewiston. With draft accounts now ranging from Kittery to Rangeley, LVB is taking its place in Maine’s prolific brewing industry. In LA, you can find their beer at DaVinci’s Eatery, Craft Brew Underground, Fish Bones Grill, and Margaritas, just to name a few. LVB cans everything in-house with their own hand-canning machine. They literally cannot keep the beer on their own shelves – especially with a convenient “grab and go” window which allows skiers a convenient way to order food and cans on the fly.
Raising the bar Owners Scott & April Shanaman
Finnegan’s stake Originally, Finnegan set his sights on Portland until his wife suggested that he could hone his craft with a devoted community at Lost Valley. A homebrewer of 20 years, Finnegan started brewing at Lost Valley with a one-barrel system, which is equivalent to approximately 31 gallons of beer. LVB has since upgraded to a threebarrel system.
Darren Finnegan, LVB’s brewmaster
Lost Valley Brewpub’s bar and kitchen operations have grown since LA Metro Magazine’s feature story in their Autumn 2018 issue. The original bar sat only six patrons, but now it can accommodate 25 since its renovation in November 2018. However, to follow social distancing guidelines, six bar seats are currently available. The brewpub offers a spacious dining area, 12 revolving taps including beer from other breweries, a summer craft cocktail menu, and a yearly mug club. But it is not just about elbow room and butts in the seats, as Bar Manager Maggie Gellatly understands very well. It’s about the people. “Our patrons are loyal,” she says. “During every season, they come through for us. These people come to the valley multiple times a week in the winter, to spend their hard-earned money.”
By John Breerwood | Photography by Brewster Burns | Lost Valley Brewpub
Bar Manager Maggie Gellatly She says that it feels like “Cheers” sometimes, given the rapport between customers and bartenders. Gellatly knows the importance of forging relationships with patrons. At a previous job, she actually waited on April Shanaman, who was so impressed with her service that she offered Gellatly a job at Lost Valley. She took April up on her offer, later becoming bar manager during her second winter at the brewpub. A mug club membership is a badge of honor among “regulars.” For an annual fee of $60, members get a free gift, and discounts
on pours. What makes the brewpub’s mug club unique is that members keep the handcrafted mug at the end of the year, since different mugs are issued each year. Members also get “first right of refusal” for renewal, before hopefuls on the waiting list.
Recipe for success Brewpub customers also keep coming back for the high quality food. Credit belongs to Food and Beverage Manager Riley Thrasher, who happens to be Gellatly’s brother.
Gellatly serves a Traverse Run Pizza to Stephanie & Clint Staples of Bowdoin LA METRO MAGAZINE digital edition @ LAMetroMagazine.com
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“Since Riley came on board, our food’s quality has improved so much. We’re in a different bracket now,” crows Gellatly. “People remember good food.” Thrasher realized his love of cooking when attending the Lewiston Regional Technical College’s Culinary Program; however, he was originally hired at the brewpub as a barback. He would prove himself in the kitchen and, just like Gellatly, work his way up to management.
The Lost Valley Brewpub is a homey addition to the resort’s quality skiing and family-friendly outdoor opportunities. “The owners are so caring about the mountain, their employees, and their customers,” says Thrasher. “It really does feel like we’re all a family.” Lost Valley Brewpub 200 Lost Valley Road, Auburn • www.lostvalleyski.com/brewpub
Thrasher keeps the winter menu simple so that his cooks can keep up with ski season; however, he gets creative during the summer, making more specialty and gourmet options available. “We now have regular customers that don’t even ski,” he says. “I like people to be able to come here and get something different.” The most popular menu item is the King of the Mountain Burger, a bacon cheeseburger with an original “Super G” sauce and pickled onions. Flatbread pizzas are made with homemade sauce and local dough from Dough Masters. The Traverse Run, the favorite pizza, has spinach, tomato, chicken, pesto, and a balsamic glaze. Customers also love the loaded nachos and the beer cheese dip. Over the summer, the brewpub features weekly specialty pizzas and a wing night. Despite ample skiing opportunities, most entertainment options are on hiatus amid the current pandemic. “Hopefully,” says Shanaman, “we’ll get back to the ‘before times’ and bring back the things our patrons enjoyed.” He cited outdoor concerts, a reggae festival, a cornhole week, a mountain bike event, and a Father’s Day barbecue. He is hopeful about holding an Oktoberfest celebration. Gellatly hopes to bring back music trivia and karaoke nights.
On track Even with the challenges of the pandemic, the Shanamans have certainly found a solid team to unlock Lost Valley’s full potential.
Finnegan makes a toast
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LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
City of
LEWISTON
Part two in our four-part series on the city of lewiston’s
225 YEARS
MILL CITY Written by Toby Haber-Giasson | Photography by David Fuller
“Lewiston grew almost like a magic city. The... building of the mills one after another as fast as we could hustle them along attracted the attention of the country and new inhabitants poured in from everywhere.” — Albert Kelsey, Franklin Company agent Lewiston Evening Journal, 1900
While early settlers came to Lewiston for arable land, the real magic was in the water. It took 50 years for Lewiston’s agrarian economy to exploit the power of the Androscoggin River’s Twenty Mile Falls, known today as Great Falls. The breathtaking force of its 37-foot vertical drop would turn the gears and weave the textiles that would write Lewiston’s chapter in the story of America’s Industrial Revolution. A century after settlement, when Lewiston officially became a city, it had so transformed that pioneer settler Paul Hildreth would hardly recognize this “magic city.”
Run of the mill While the Industrial Revolution spread across New England, harnessing waterpower to make textiles, Lewiston’s early mills catered to the needs of its farmers: lumber, grist, and cider. Then in 1816, Thomas Stinchfield established the first local textile-related mill, carding wool for spinning. In 1819, Michael Little put three mills in the same building, for lumber, grist, and “fulling,” a process for cleaning wool. Little was the son of Pejepscot Proprietors agent Col. Josiah Little, who owned or co-owned several mills. These mills were sold in 1834 to a consortium that became the Lewiston Falls Manufacturing Company. Their looms, the town’s first, produced satinet, a smooth cloth resembling satin, and later made woolen cassimere (cashmere).
Entrepreneurs’ club When Lewiston became a town in 1795, it was run by farmers, for farmers. As industry began to grow in the 1830s and ‘40s, the focus shifted to the village by the falls. A group of prominent leaders emerged whose influence straddled business, banking, and political spheres. Such figures included merchant William Garcelon and his son Alonzo; John M. Frye, longtime manager of Little’s fulling mill, and his brother William R. Frye; and Edward Little and his son-in-law, Samuel Pickard. Later, figures such as William D. Pennell, Nathaniel W. Farwell, Josiah Coburn, Captain Daniel Holland, and Nelson Dingley Jr. of the Lewiston Journal, dominated. Readers may recognize these familiar names associated with Lewiston’s public and private institutions.
Grand design In 1836, the Little family chartered the Great Androscoggin Falls, Milldam, Lock, and Canal Company. They envisioned a “grand design” for Lewiston, replete with canals, dams, mills, and commercial power, in the mold of Lowell, Massachusetts, which gave birth to America’s Industrial Revolution 25 years earlier. They purchased properties alongside the river and invested in water-powered manufacturing. Around that same time, Ephraim Wood began manufacturing cotton warps and batting, materials used for weaving textiles. When Joseph Harding took over Wood’s operation in 1844, he added three looms, establishing the first cotton cloth manufacture in Lewiston. Seeing Harding’s success, Edward Little and some of the promBenjamin Bates (Courtesy of inent local capitalists, Androscoggin Historical Society) including John M. Frye, Alonzo Garcelon, James Lowell, and Daniel Briggs, formed the Lewiston Falls Cotton Mill Company in 1845, and began construction of the Lincoln Mill for large-scale textile production. That same year, the visionary Great Androscoggin renamed itself the Lewiston Water Power Company (LWPC) and asserted control over the river’s development. Boston engineer B.F. Perham was engaged to design the canal system. The main canal would be 62 feet wide, 14 feet deep, and 3/4 mile long, with later extensions. Cross channels connected the main canal with the river. Locks at the canal head would be made of granite laid in cement, featuring 18 gates and two fly-gates. This bold plan helped sell stock to Boston capitalists. With investor money, LWPC bought up property on both sides of the river. Though the grand design depended upon capital and technical expertise from outside, our local players shrewdly positioned Lewiston through transportation links & new technology, much like today’s investments in internet bandwidth and renewable energy. Understanding the importance of distribution to manufacturing, Pickard, Little, and William Garcelon worked to bring the Androscoggin & Kennebec Railroad (linking Danville to Waterville) to the region in 1848, as well as the link to the Atlantic & St. Lawrence Railroad (linking Portland to Montreal).
Bates’ gambit Alonzo Garcelon, John M. Frye, & Samuel Pickard (Courtesy of Androscoggin Historical Society)
As you might expect, their privileged positions allowed them to bring changes that would benefit their own business interests. But they also merit recognition for foreseeing that economic growth would require essential infrastructure to position Lewiston for future success.
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LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
These bold ventures attracted the attention of Massachusetts congressman Alexander DeWitt and rich Boston-based investors including Thomas Hill and Benjamin Bates. Upon Bates’ first visit to Lewiston in 1847, he saw signs of great potential: mills already in operation, a growing population of mill workers, and an infrastructure of small independent railroads connecting Lewiston to New England and Canada. Bates threw a banquet for his fellow Massachusetts industrialists, where he raised half a million dollars for development. However, many tried to dissuade Bates. They feared Lewiston’s success
By Toby Haber-Giasson | Photography by David Fuller | Mill City might cut into business at their mills on the Merrimac River. Undeterred, Bates invested his own money. Within a decade, Bates Manufacturing Company would help transform this rural town into a major textile center.
Company town There may be no more perfect metaphor for a town tying its destiny to industry than the 5-story brick Lincoln Mill literally built into the rock on the Androscoggin River’s eastern bank. Mill sites anchored the downtown street grid in a plan designed by the Lewiston Water Power Company. Since the company owned the land and was willing to build the roads, the town accepted the plan eagerly. Phased construction began in 1846. In an 1851 version, the Plan of Lewiston Falls Village envisioned a hotel, later realized as DeWitt House on the current Sun Journal site, and a public common, which would become Kennedy Park.
of 12 cents per pound. This gutsy gambit let him sell cloth at a lower rate, which brought him government contracts that made Lewiston’s mills the main supplier of textiles for the Union Army. As cotton prices rose over a dollar, Bates’ profits soared. He prudently plowed earnings back into construction and expansion: Androscoggin Mill #2 (1867, #3 in 1872), Bates Mill #3 (1865), and Hill Mill #2 (1864). After the Civil War ended in 1865, most of the nation’s economy had been decimated. Yet Lewiston’s eight cotton mills, 33 water wheels, and 220,000 spindles hummed as over 5,000 workers produced 30 million yards of cloth. By 1900, Lewiston’s mills produced over 50 million yards of cloth in a year.
Growing into a city In his seminal 1976 study, Historic Lewiston: A Textile City in Transition, Bates College professor James Leamon demonstrates how, for better or worse, industrial interests dictated every aspect of life. Expansion led to growing pains. Bustling Lewiston attracted immigrant workers by the thousands: the Irish in 1850s, French Canadians starting in the 1860s. Crowded shops and living quarters, traffic, and cultural differences stressed the burgeoning society. A population surpassing 7,000 drove the need for more police, firemen, and schools, plus public health and housing services for the poor.
The Lewiston Falls plan from 1851
(Courtesy of Androscoggin Historical Society
Irish laborers were brought in for heavy labor on the roads. They also dug the main canal, hastening the debut of the first Bates Mill in 1852. As digging continued, an identical Bates Mill #2 opened in 1854; two years later, Hill Manufacturing Company debuted the Hill Mill. Even a national financial crisis, the “panic of 1857,” didn’t slow down expansion. Bates’ profits dropped 95%, triggering a 60% layoff of workers. To minimize losses, LWPC simply closed and reorganized as Franklin Water Power Company. Bates bounced back; in 1860 profits exceeded $200,000, over $6 million in today’s value. Wisely, Bates plowed this windfall into the Lewiston Bleachery and Dye Works (1860), the Androscoggin Mill (1861), and expansion of the Porter Mill to become the Continental Mill, on the site of Paul Hildreth’s original claim.
Winning war bet During the Civil War, while the nation’s economy struggled, Benjamin Bates’ shrewd but risky strategy kept Lewiston in the black. At the war’s outset, Massachusetts mill owners predicted the North-South conflict would only prove a disruption of months, not years; they sold off their cotton stock when prices seemed high. But as the war dragged on, “Lowell’s blunder” forced them to buy back cotton at 90 cents per pound which they had sold at 30, and profits plunged. In contrast, at the early stirrings of conflict, Benjamin Bates purchased a large quantity of raw cotton, in order to get a low price
Yet this nascent metropolis had no mayor or full-time public officials; public matters were decided at an annual town meeting, which had grown to a two-day affair. These urban realities hastened Lewiston’s incorporation as a city. “The state Legislature authorized it in 1861,” says historian Douglas Hodgkin, “but the local people were so distracted by Civil War recruitment that they actually implemented it in 1863, as noted in the city seal.” A municipal structure would allow the city to deliver much-needed services, which industry paid for through their tax money. Paradoxically, industry functioned as both the source of – and the savior from – social ills.
Blurred lines Lines blurred further after cityhood. Business owners now filled roles in municipal government; Alonzo Garcelon, George Pillsbury of the Franklin Company, Nathaniel Farwell of the Lewiston Bleachery, and mill owner David Cowan each took their turn as mayor. Special interests led the City of Lewiston to build a railroad to aid local businesses. The train station on Lincoln Street is the result of a series of moves intended to circumvent the Maine Central Railroad’s monopoly on moving LA’s freight. Construction of the 5-mile connecting spur to Lewiston Junction, completed in 1874, was easily paid for by the line’s lease to the Grand Trunk Railroad Company. Lewiston’s capitalists sought to regulate the Androscoggin’s flow, to keep the mills running steadily. So in 1878, the city essentially sold its water rights to the Franklin Company, which in turn purchased control of the river’s headwaters. Union Water Power Company, a shell created by Bates and the other manufacturers, then gave the mills favorable leases for water power. Lewiston then paid Union to provide the city with its own river water for fire protection and household use. LA METRO MAGAZINE digital edition @ LAMetroMagazine.com
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LEWISTON’S ANDROSCOGGIN MILL
BATES MILL #3
BATES MILL #1
BARKER MILL
BATES STOREHOUSE #7
MILLS TODAY CONTINENTAL MILL
HILL MILL
BATES MILL #6
BATES STOREHOUSE #2
BATES STOREHOUSE #7
Giving back While the capitalists drew enormous wealth from the city, they did bestow benefits back to it. One of these was the Manufacturers and Mechanics Library Association (MMLA), offering literature and technical books to mill workers as a way to better themselves. This library, established in 1860 in College Block at the corner of Lisbon and Chestnut Streets, was later relocated to City Hall in 1872. This rich resource, containing over 10,000 books before it perished in the fire of 1890, served as the forerunner of the city’s public library. In 1855, Lewiston became the home of the Maine State Seminary. This Free Will Baptist school was led by Reverend Oren Cheney, a well-known anti-abolitionist. When the seminary’s trustees changed its mission from a religious to an academic one, Benjamin Bates donated $200,000, and the institution was renamed in his honor in 1864.
Change in fortune Over time, New England lost its competitive advantage for manufacturing to the South’s newer equipment, plus lower costs for labor, power, and transportation. Lewiston was no different; facing a decline in profits, the mills resolved to close. What could save Lewiston’s economy from ruin? Water power had been supplanted by hydroelectricity. Walter S. Wyman was head of Central Maine Power (CMP), which supplied power to the mills. If the mills closed, Wyman’s company would lose its biggest customers. Wyman sold control of CMP to a utilities conglomerate, and became president of New England Public Service Company (NEPSCO). To save themselves, the Androscoggin, Hill, and Bates Mills sold out to NEPSCO. This ensured favorable power rates and steady employment for workers. When the utility collapsed in 1932, Wyman managed to keep the mills operating, albeit at a loss, until WWII government contracts shored up profits. By 1945, NEPSCO was forced to sell off its five mills to a group which became Bates Manufacturing Company. New investors forced the closure of the Androscoggin Mill in 1956; Hill Mill closed 1971. Bates Mill was the last vestige left of this once-booming textile town.
Revitalization When this once-mighty textile city had to reinvent itself, Lewiston responded by attracting new industries looking for factory space and a reliable labor force. By strategic development efforts, Lewiston has diversified its economy. Its mill spaces today are home to small manufacturing, workshops, offices, shops, and restaurants.
In Part 3… We’ll look at outstanding individuals who have shaped and been shaped by Lewiston. Androscoggin Historical Society 2 Turner Street, Auburn • www.androhistory.org City of Lewiston 27 Pine Street, Lewiston • www.lewistonmaine.gov 62
LA METRO MAGAZINE | SPRING 2021
LABOR & IMMIGRATION YANKEE GIRLS When the early mills needed workers, “Yankee girls” were lured to Lewiston from nearby farms. Working conditions sounded onerous – 12-hour shifts, six days per week – but long days were not so different from farm work. At least these young women could draw a salary for mill work: $4/week on average in 1860. Most of their wages were sent back home to the family farm. Others saved for a dowry.
IRISH INFLUX Irish immigrants first came up from Boston to construct the railroad and village streets. In the early 1850s, hundreds more came to dig canals for a paltry dollar a day. Living in crowded quarters, many Irish fell prey to the cholera epidemic of 1854. The town authorities burned down one of the Irish neighborhoods to arrest the disease, and set up temporary shelters for the sick. Though the Irish presence was initially viewed as temporary, Lewiston’s Irish population grew to about 4,000 by 1880.
EMERALD CITY Though they shared a common language, the Irish practice of Catholicism aroused historic animosity with the largely Protestant populace. Suspicion and mistrust led them to embrace an anti-immigrant narrative about Irish alcohol abuse in a time when temperance was a hot political issue. Maine was the first “dry” state in America, prohibiting the sale of alcohol by law in 1846. After the 1850 influx of Irish immigrants, an 1851 law prohibited both production and sale of alcohol. Widespread bootlegging led to the law’s repeal in 1858, but prohibition was later written into the state constitution in 1885. Anti-Irish prejudice also led to public brawls and arson. Irish shanties were set afire in 1854; in 1855, a mob burned the Irish Catholic chapel on Lincoln Street. Benjamin Bates, director of the powerful Franklin Company, refused to pledge a plot of land for a Catholic church in 1864, as he had done for other denominations. Albert Kelsey, a top Franklin Company agent and an advocate for the Irish community, tricked the company’s president, Lyman Nichols, into signing a deed for the future site of St. Joseph’s Church. Over time, Irishmen gained acceptance, particularly after fighting and even dying for the Union in the Civil War. By 1886, Daniel J. McGillicuddy was elected as the first Irish mayor.
FRANCOS Beginning in the 1860s, mill agents went to French Canada to “scout” for workers. Like the farm girls and the Irish, French Canadian workers thought their stay in Lewiston would be temporary. Most settled in the Lincoln Street area near the railroad in an area dubbed “Little Canada.” Here, some 1,200 French Canadians lived in fewer than 200 tenement apartments. Gradually, many moved to other wards. While the state’s population decreased from 1860 to 1870, Lewiston’s population surpassed 19,000. By 1880, over one-third of Lewiston’s people were foreign-born. While most were French Canadian, other immigrants added to Lewiston’s diversity: Italians, Greeks, Lithuanians, and Jews.
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Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mid-Maine Highlighted in LA Metro Magazine, Autumn 2019
Highlighting the good work of nonprofit organizations in the LA community.
Big Brothers Big Sisters OF MID-MAINE
DEFENDERS of potential
Written by Peggy Faye Brown | Photography by Jose Leiva
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mid-Maine: Defenders of potential
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