Neighbors headed off-island stop and greet Boucher and ask if he's working today. "That's the good thing about it." He had come from a school committee meeting, community work he's been doing for almost 10 years. "There is no 'day in the life,'" Boucher explained when meeting a reporter at the ferry in late April. The couple was able to live on the estate, and in fact, married there. He worked for the Rothchild family as a groundskeeper and his wife was the family's chef. Selling that enterprise allowed him to move to the island in 1986. After graduating from the University of Maine, he worked for a time as director of Camp Roosevelt in Eddington, then purchased an acoustical ceiling tile business in Brewer. Part of the price he pays is that he doesn't get to visit his own camp very often.Ī native of Van Buren in Aroostook County, Boucher visited the island in summer with his family as a child. It's a demanding job, but one Boucher, 48, likes, in part because it lets him and his family live on Islesboro. They expect the island car to be inspected, registered and fueled. They expect food and beverages in the refrigerator and pantry. Tom Groening is editor of The Working Waterfront, published by the Island Institute.Īnd when the owners visit, often on short notice, they expect the kitchen and living room and bedroom to look just as they did when they last walked out of them months ago. That means coordinating tens of thousands of dollars of work by painters, landscapers and carpenters. The mansions, both old and new, that have loomed large over the life and economy of this Penobscot Bay island since the late 19th century require year-round maintenance. That's where Boucher, who operates a caretaking business on the island, comes in. And they are willing to pay to ensure that their grand "cottages" are ready for their visit. They treasure the time they can step out of their busy, typically urban lives for the serenity and beauty of a Maine island, Boucher said. Mary of the Isles Church, located on Pendleton Point Road, will reopen on July 3 for Masses on Saturdays at 9 a.m.ISLESBORO - The feeling of escape Mike Boucher enjoys when he retreats to his hunting camp near Moosehead Lake is not very different from what the owners of the island's many mansions feel when they arrive here in the summer. The work was done by DICON, the restoration and construction company of the Diocese of Portland which maintains and enhances over 400 structures in Maine. The cross was still in good condition but received a re-framing. The work was extensive as the steeple needed reconstruction from the belfry up. “The balance of the cost of repairs was underwritten by private donations.” Mary received a $28,000 grant,” said Skoby. The Maine Steeples Fund matches funds raised by the applicant. The group then worked with an assessor to determine the scope and estimated cost of the restoration. Mary of the Isles, which hosted its first Mass in 1901. With the help of Karol and Art Govoni, the caretaker and project coordinator, congregants Lila White and Lee and Diane Fentress applied for a grant from the Maine Steeples Fund, submitting a description of the work to be done and a history of St. “As long as you are a nonprofit entity or municipality, you can apply for funds.” “The fund offers assessment grants and restoration grants,” said Ruth Demers of Maine Steeples Fund. In 2007, the Maine Steeples Fund was established to support local efforts to restore church steeples of historic, cultural, and community significance in small cities and towns in Maine.
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