A dreary start to Saturday, Aug. 3 didn’t dampen the day for those attending Frenchboro’s annual lobster festival. In fact, the morning rain gave way to sun and occasional fog, which somehow suited the island setting.
My wife and I hitched a ride to the island on the Maine Seacoast Mission’s Sunbeam V, the 74-foot steel-hulled vessel with which the Northeast Harbor-based nonprofit serves islanders. The vessel was built in 1995 by East Boothbay shipbuilder Washburn & Doughty and underwent an extensive retrofit in 2019 at Belfast’s Front Street Shipyard.
Staff use the vessel to provide education programs, fellowship through coffee and pastry gatherings, and, with registered nurse/nurse practitioner Simone Babineaux, healthcare in Sunbeam’s medical suite. Islanders can sit in the private room and have a physician on the mainland review, in real time, their vitals. Babineaux explained how she can virtually “examine” islanders from her mainland home, thanks to upgrades on islands.
The vessel includes a spacious and well-appointed saloon area, a kitchen, and below decks, four bedrooms for staff, a guest bedroom, and a storage room.
On Saturday, the dozen or so aboard the vessel were welcomed by Douglas Cornman, director of island services. Cornman delivers programs on islands for children and adults.
Capt. Mike Johnson allowed us to join him in the pilot house, which offers a high-above-the-water view of the islands we passed.
On Frenchboro, more than 100 people sat on the church lawn to eat lobster, which had been donated by island fishermen, and bid on various donated goods and services. The event is a fundraiser for the church.
My wife and I enjoyed walking to the south shore of the island, which offers vistas of the open ocean.
Thanks to Kierie Piccininni, the Mission’s chief marketing officer, for inviting us aboard.
