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Time for EverythingBy Laurie LaMountain The cycle of seasons is nothing new, but this winter seems particularly poignant. I can’t imagine any one who hasn’t discussed or read about or simply felt the shift and struggle that has marked this year. Whether on the superficial level of economics, or on a deeper, more personal level, so many people are caught up in a scenario of loss or being lost. My coping mechanism for dealing with this climate of uncertainty, is to step back from it—out of myself on some level—and become the curious observer who sees nothing as accidental or random. So when I was running along the East River in Manhattan one day in October, the everyday stuff of life revealed a more significant subtext. Two fishermen engaged in conversation were interrupted by the tug on one of their lines. I was close enough to see this and the automatic reflex of reeling and pulling, reeling and pulling, until a perfect, silversided bass seemingly flew to the top of one man’s fishing pole. And just as he reached out to grab it, the fish somehow writhed free and returned to its watery home below. The two men looked at one another and laughed. It made me smile. And it made me think that there is almost always something gained when something’s lost. There certainly was for the fish, and on some level for the fishermen as well. When I look back on this year, other events that stand out are quietly significant. They include twice hearing “A Time for Everything” from Ecclesiastes 3:1-8; once at the end of a yoga class and the other at the end of a life. Both times I was charged by the message concerning the duality of life. “A time to get, and a time to lose . . .” It’s not always easy to see the opportunity in loss, but it is there. I would even go one step further by saying that sometimes it takes the experience of loss to bring an awareness of gain. As Joni Mitchell put it, “you don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone.” The thing is, we’re a resilient bunch. And once we’ve suffered the initial grief inherent in loss, we often find something we couldn’t have had without it. So despite all the talk of what we’ve lost, here are some examples of people and organizations who have turned their losses into gains. “Even before the recession we were poor,” says Mary Elizabeth Sullivan, executive director of Landmark Human Resources serving Cumberland and Oxford Counties. Incorporated in 1975, Landmark Human Resources is a small, community-based provider of services to adults with physical and developmental disabilities. Mary Beth has served as their executive director for the past fourteen years. Her statement is not made as a complaint; there is humor and a even a point of pride in it. After all, if you are fiscally challenged as a matter of course, you find creative ways to improvise and fill in the gaps. The lion’s share of Landmark’s funding comes from MaineCare and federal coffers. For every two dollars kicked in by the state, the federal government puts in one. Unfortunately, the total dollar amount allocated by the state has gone down in recent years and along with it federal funds, resulting in cuts in the number of hours allowed for both staff and clients. Donations account for a small portion of the overall budget, but Mary Beth points out that the communities Landmark serves are not wealthy. Additionally, many of the formerly free programs and activities Landmark clients participate in are now forced to charge a nominal fee to cover their rising costs. Some of these increases have to be passed on to parents and guardians; some of them have to be absorbed. That’s where creativity and improvisation come into play. Mary Beth is a great believer in pooling efforts with other non-profits, especially those engaged in simi lar endeavors. The Bridgton Community Center is one such organization, and Mary Beth works with their executive director, Carmen Lone, on a number of events; the Annual Landmark Fine Art Show, Community Gardens, Halloween Party, and Children’s Hands-On Arts Festival among them. “It makes sense to work together and split the proceeds proportionately. It also eases administrative and organization efforts,” notes Mary Beth. Perhaps the most creative means of addressing tight budgets, though, lies within Landmark’s intention toward its 30+ clients. No one is marginalized and it’s assumed everyone has something valuable to offer their culture and community. With that philosophy, one of the things they have done as an organization is to find opportunities for the clients to volunteer. This creates a win-win situation in which clients are actively engaged in activities that give them a sense of value and purpose as well as benefit the greater community. “When the clients volunteered to sing at an annual Veteran’s dinner this year, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house,” says Mary Beth. Thanks to her political activism, Landmark clients are also active
in Rock the Vote efforts. She chose 2008 as the year to participate
as a charter member of the Maine Association of Nonprofit’s “Nonprofit Voter Engagement Project” because of the excitement
generated by the presidential election. Since then, Landmark staff
and clients have run several voter registration drives, registering staff, clients and community members. They have also arranged field
trips for clients to visit municipal officials to educate them about
the rights of the disabled to vote in Maine prior to Election Day, as
well as hosted debate viewing parties. On Election Day, Landmark Landmark clients also volunteer their time to deliver meals to Meals on Wheels recipients. Mary Beth explains that it’s a wonderful way for community members to experience people with disabilities in another light. In one instance clients actually saved a woman’s life simply by showing up. When federal funding for community services is cut, it’s heartening to see how communities step up in support of their members in need. It seems there’s a different level of caring when it’s close to home. Sue Ellen Richardson, Development Officer at Western Maine Community Action (WMCA), doesn’t sugarcoat the effect that federal funding cuts have had on the 10 community action agencies across Maine, but she points out that neighbor-to-neighbor community response has helped ease the pain of those cuts. Community Action Agencies (CAAs) are non-profit private and public organizations dedicated to the principle that poverty should not be a permanent condition of people’s lives. Providing health, nutrition, heating, housing and education assistance to low-to-moderate income recipients has become even more challenging as the number of households grows and federal funding shrinks, and Richardson notes that non-profit organizations are responding creatively and cooperatively to lessen the gap. Harvest for Hunger, a University of Maine Cooperative Extension Service program, is one example of this cooperative spirit. Launched in 2000 as a volunteer opportunity for University of Maine Cooperative Extension Master Gardener Volunteers, the program is now active in 15 counties. This past year nearly 500 volunteer gardeners in about a dozen counties donated close to 90 tons of vegetables and fruit to 114 food pantries, shelters or charitable organizations around the state, according to Extension educator Barbara Murphy in the Oxford County office. The number of participants more than doubled from 200 in 2010 and the number of organizations benefiting from the gardeners’ generosity more than tripled. Murphy calculated that farmers and gardeners collectively logged 5,890 hours in this year’s Harvest for Hunger effort. At the Bridgton Hospital Guild’s Annual Meeting and Luncheon this past October, Guild President Sandra Weygandt presented a Guild gift of $42,000 to Bridgton Hospital. “We also provide annual scholarships to local high school students and Bridgton Hospital staff who are pursuing education in the field of healthcare,” says Sandra. The Guild is a not-for-profit organization that relies almost exclusively on volunteer staff and donations. Funds raised this year will be used to purchase new equipment for the expanded and renovated rehabilitation space for Swing Bed patients on the hospital inpatient unit. Even though our region and the entire country continues to struggle with a lagging economy, this was the largestever annual gift from the Guild. Despite or perhaps due to the fact that it currently stands at 45th in the nation for GDP, Maine ranked 16th for volunteer rate. According to the Corporation for National & Community Excellence, Maine has an average annual volunteer rate of 32.8%, with 350,000 volunteers servicing 49.9 million total hours per year. Way to go Maine! Landmark Human Resources and Bridgton Hospital Guild are
just two of thousands of organizations across Maine that rely on
the largesse of volunteers, and VolunteerMaine.Org is a statewide
virtual volunteer center that links volunteers with agencies or organizations
in need of them. The Maine Commission for Community “When one door closes, another door opens” is a saying that pertains to so many things—years, lives, and even loss. So as 2011 comes to a close, instead of bidding it good riddance, you might want to reflect on what it has given you. You may have to review your losses to realize your gains, but you will hopefully close the books with a positive yield. Volunteers are vital to these organizations through augmenting their many events and serving on the board of directors. To learn more about Landmark Human Resources and perhaps volunteering your time or donating money, you can reach Mary Beth at 207-647-8396 or at landmark1@lhrmaine.com. Ross Graham would be delighted to tell you about the intrinsic benefits of volunteering with the Shawnee Peak Adaptive Ski Program, including free lift tickets. You can reach Ross Graham at coastie1@fairpoint.net. If you are interested in enrolling in the Harvest for Hunger program, go to: http://umaine.edu/harvest-for-hunger/get-involved/ If you are interested in volunteering your time to the Bridgton Hospital Guild, you can reach them at 207-647-6212. Donations of good, used clothing can be made at the thrift shop located at 173 Main Street in Bridgton.
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Shawnee Peak’s Adaptive
Ski Program, directed by Ross
Graham and Assistant Director
Charlie Scribner, has provided
yet another way for Landmark
clients to give back to the community.
Most Tuesday mornings
from January through March,
Landmark clients go to Shawnee
Peak where volunteers give them
ski, snowboard and snowshoe
instruction. In return, Landmark
clients volunteer as ambassadors
for the Camp Sunshine adaptive
ski program.
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