{"id":16915,"date":"2019-10-30T17:00:10","date_gmt":"2019-10-30T21:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/?p=16915"},"modified":"2020-05-01T11:06:27","modified_gmt":"2020-05-01T15:06:27","slug":"the-10-most-intriguing-people-in-maine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/the-10-most-intriguing-people-in-maine\/","title":{"rendered":"The 10 Most Intriguing People in Maine"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"border: none; width: 100%; height: 500px;\" src=\"\/\/e.issuu.com\/embed.html?backgroundColor=%23d2d2d2&amp;backgroundColorFullscreen=%23d2d2d2&amp;d=nov19_flipbook_final&amp;hideIssuuLogo=true&amp;pageNumber=34&amp;u=portlandmagazine\" width=\"300\" height=\"150\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\">Get to know them. They\u2019re changing the way we live.<\/h2>\n<p>November 2019<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #333333;\"><b>1. <\/b><\/span><span class=\"s1\"><b>First of all, tell me\u2014what <\/b><i>is<\/i><b> a<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<h1 class=\"p1\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Forest Bather?<\/b><\/span><\/h1>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cThe person leading the walk is the guide. The forest is the therapist.\u201d<br \/>\n<strong>\u2014Jeanne Christie<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><em><span class=\"s1\">By Laurie Gallardo<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-16867\" src=\"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_1-Jeanne-247x300.jpg\" alt=\"nov19_10Most _1 Jeanne\" width=\"247\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_1-Jeanne-247x300.jpg 247w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_1-Jeanne-200x243.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_1-Jeanne-288x350.jpg 288w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_1-Jeanne.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 247px) 100vw, 247px\" \/>A<\/span><span class=\"s1\">s a young sports reporter working for <em>The Ellsworth American<\/em> in the late 1970s, <strong>Jeanne Christie<\/strong> never imagined she\u2019d get lost in the forest\u2014and love it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cI moved to Maine during my second year at Indiana University Bloomington,\u201d she says. \u201cI came back to spend the summer with my grandmother. I\u2019d planned to return to school in the fall, but she was diagnosed with terminal cancer.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">\u201cWhen I got the job with <em>The Ellsworth American<\/em>, I had to cover the Ellsworth High School boys basketball, which was the premier event of the winter season,\u201d she says. \u201cI didn\u2019t know anything about sports when I took it.\u201d In time, she became the weekly sports editor and chief photographer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Fast forward nearly 40 years. Christie has become an award-winning wetland preservationist\u2014and certified <strong>forest therapy guide<\/strong>\u2014with assignments from the <strong>United States Environmental Protection Agency<\/strong> to the <strong>U.S. Department of Agriculture<\/strong> to the <strong>Association of State Wetland Managers<\/strong>, where she worked as executive director for nearly two decades.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">How do you switch from sports to sensitively covering nature? \u201cI asked my editor what I should focus on. He said environmental journalism.\u201d So she transferred to the <strong>University of Maine<\/strong> at Presque Isle and graduated with a degree in environmental science and political science.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">C<\/span><span class=\"s1\">hristie landed a job in 1985 as a program and planning analyst at the <strong>Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources<\/strong>. After three years, she got married, moved to Washington D.C., and began working for the EPA. The laws granting wetlands protection were minimal, but soon enough, things began to evolve. Christie was at the forefront.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cThe whole national arena changed. Suddenly, there were all kinds of new regulations that were embedded in the law to protect wetlands.\u201d Her career kicked off. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Christie became a driving force in the development of state and national strategies for wetland protection, conservation, and restoration, including state and federal implementation of the <strong>Clean Water Act<\/strong>, particularly Section 404, which deals with dredge and fill permits. \u201cOur success was possible only because of the contributions of many individuals, agencies, and organizations working together,\u201d she says. \u201cChanging environmental programs and policies is a big lift and always a group effort. That\u2019s what makes natural resources so fascinating\u2014you can never rest on your laurels.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Though Christie continues to work as a consultant at <strong>Christie Consulting Services<\/strong><b>,<\/b> just over a year ago she started <strong>Connect to Wilderness<\/strong>, where she takes individuals on nature walks as a certified forest therapy guide.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cWe have a relationship with nature that goes back millennia, but there\u2019s been a separation,\u201d Christie says. \u201cA couple of years ago, during my daily run in the woods with my dog, I stopped and heard what sounded like a shout\u2014with no sound\u2014making me pause and look at the forest around me. All of a sudden, I was just heavily falling into the natural world surrounding me. I couldn\u2019t figure out the context. Then I saw a newspaper article on guided forest therapy training.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">As a guide, Christie does just that\u2014leads those who are searching for oneness with nature.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cThe guide is not a teacher or a leader, and I certainly don\u2019t know how to be a therapist,\u201d she says. \u201cThe person leading the walk is the guide, and the forest is the therapist. It\u2019s between you and the natural world. It\u2019s not my job to deliver the experience\u2014I just provide the invitation.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h1 class=\"p3\"><span style=\"color: #333333;\">2.<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"s1\"><b>Dreamscaper<\/b><\/span><\/h1>\n<h4 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Painting our city\u2019s soul.<\/span><\/h4>\n<p class=\"p1\"><em>By Colin W. Sargent<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-16868\" src=\"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_2-Michael-239x300.jpg\" alt=\"nov19_10Most _2 Michael\" width=\"239\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_2-Michael-239x300.jpg 239w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_2-Michael-200x251.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_2-Michael-279x350.jpg 279w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_2-Michael.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 239px) 100vw, 239px\" \/>I<\/span><span class=\"s1\">f you\u2019re looking for the essential Portland artist, one who walks the walk like the artists in <i>La Boh\u00e8me<\/i>,<br \/>\n<strong>Michael Waterman<\/strong> is that guy. He\u2019s an urban legend. He paints this city like it\u2019s his personal mythology. When\u00a0<strong>Natalie Merchant<\/strong>, the Grammy-winning singer\/composer (\u201cCarnival,\u201d \u201cWonder,\u201d and lead singer for 10,000 Maniacs) was rehearsing in Maine, she fell in love with his work. She <\/span><span class=\"s2\">snapped up his <em>Woman With a Fish<\/em> for $2,400 from the legendary Aucocisco Gallery. Then another. She, like all of us, was hooked. She wanted to meet Michael Waterman. Yeah, right. Waterman said no to the meeting. Why give up valuable painting time? He\u2019s a painter, not a public relations dude. Just try and get an audience. Well, okay.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><em><strong><span class=\"s1\">Where is your studio right now?<br \/>\n<\/span><\/strong><\/em><span class=\"s1\">I paint in my apartment on the third floor of Forest Avenue and Congress Street. It\u2019s [barely] across the street from where I used to paint at the top of the <strong>Schwartz Building.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><em><strong><span class=\"s1\">What can you see from your windows?<br \/>\n<\/span><\/strong><\/em><span class=\"s1\">I see the <strong>Portland Museum of Art<\/strong> facade and some rooftops.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><em><strong><span class=\"s1\">Has this new view worked its way into one of your paintings?<br \/>\n<\/span><\/strong><\/em><span class=\"s1\">No. Not yet.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><em><strong><span class=\"s1\">Does Natalie Merchant still keep up with you?<br \/>\n<\/span><\/strong><\/em><span class=\"s1\">I don\u2019t know, but my gallery director <strong>Tom O\u2019Donovan<\/strong> says she\u2019s bought a few more things.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><em><strong><span class=\"s1\">So she\u2019s still keeping up with you!<br \/>\n<\/span><\/strong><\/em><span class=\"s1\">Tom and I have an agreement. He doesn\u2019t have to tell me what\u2019s going on at the gallery, and I don\u2019t have to tell him what I\u2019m doing in the studio.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><em><strong><span class=\"s1\">What are you doing in your studio?<br \/>\n<\/span><\/strong><\/em><span class=\"s1\">I\u2019m painting 90 percent terrible and 10 percent acceptable.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><em><strong><span class=\"s1\">Tell me about the terrible.<br \/>\n<\/span><\/strong><\/em><span class=\"s1\">The terrible look great in my head. But they don\u2019t make it to my hand.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><em><strong><span class=\"s1\">How old are you? I\u2019m 65.<br \/>\n<\/span><\/strong><\/em><span class=\"s1\">I\u2019m 32.<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h1 class=\"p4\"><span style=\"color: #333333;\">3.<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"s1\"><b>Brain Storm<\/b><\/span><\/h1>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cI want to inspire young girls like myself.\u201d<strong>\u2014Amara Ifeji<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><em><span class=\"s1\">By Rebecca Garibaldi<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><strong><span class=\"s1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-16948\" src=\"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_3-Amara-273x300.jpg\" alt=\"nov19_10Most _3 Amara\" width=\"273\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_3-Amara-273x300.jpg 273w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_3-Amara-200x220.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_3-Amara-319x350.jpg 319w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_3-Amara.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 273px) 100vw, 273px\" \/>A<\/span><\/strong><span class=\"s1\"><strong>mara Ifeji<\/strong>, 17, has shown through consistent hard work and passion you can accomplish quite a bit. From her victory at the <strong>International Science and Engineering Fair<\/strong> (ISEF), to multiple awards for her research projects on methods of water purification in the <strong>STEM <\/strong>(Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) 4-year academy program at Bangor High School, to starting a diversity union within her school, Amara is just beginning to make the world a better place. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">What sparked this motivation at such a young age? Her family. In 1996 her grandparents immigrated from Nigeria to Maryland. Her grandfather worked as a security guard and her grandmother as a CNA. \u201cThey held these minimum-paying jobs for over 20 years while trying to support their household, which consisted of nearly fifteen people at one point. They took care of my cousins and me while our parents went to school. I want to show my grandparents that everything they went through was not in vain. I want to make them proud.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Amara is paying it forward to those most in need. \u201cDiversification and tackling current environmental issues are important to me. I want to inspire young girls like myself to make a difference by educating and motivating them.\u201d Upon moving to Bangor in 2011 for her mother\u2019s pharmaceutical career, Amara began to realize the limited diversity in both the town and schools. \u201cI started a minority student union at Bangor High School. This is not just a safe haven for minorities but also for Caucasians. I created this union for all to become more educated on racial diversity. I want to create a safer space.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Her award-winning project in the category of plant sciences at the 2019 ISEF is on water purification through the use of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. \u201c[According to the World Health Organization] there are 785 million people worldwide who don\u2019t have access to clean drinking water, and that\u2019s not just third-world countries. Bangor High School had three water fountains shut down while I was attending because of contaminated drinking water.\u201d Amara\u2019s goal is for all to have access to clean and safe drinking water. \u201cI hope for the preservation of the environment so future generations can enjoy and experience the same things I did growing up, such as seeing Cadillac Mountain for the first time.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">So what\u2019s next? \u201cI\u2019m currently in the process of applying to colleges.\u201d At the top of her list is <strong>Brown University<\/strong>. \u201cI plan on majoring in chemical or environmental engineering with a minor or double major in environmental sustainability or equity. I want to include social justice, racial groups, and different ethnicities in my education as well.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h1 class=\"p3\"><span style=\"color: #333333;\">4.<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"s1\"><b>Thinkin\u2019 Lincoln<\/b><\/span><\/h1>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cMy brain remembers things that aren\u2019t important.\u201d <strong>\u2014Lincoln Peirce<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><em><span class=\"s1\">By Brian Daly<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-16869\" src=\"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_4-Lincoln1-300x290.jpg\" alt=\"nov19_10Most _4 Lincoln1\" width=\"300\" height=\"290\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_4-Lincoln1-300x290.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_4-Lincoln1-36x36.jpg 36w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_4-Lincoln1-200x194.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_4-Lincoln1-362x350.jpg 362w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_4-Lincoln1.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>W<\/span><span class=\"s1\">hen <strong>Lincoln Peirce <\/strong>(pronounced \u201cpurse\u201d) lived in Brooklyn from 1985 to 1992, he listened to old-timey country music on WKCR, the Columbia University radio station. One day he heard a song he liked called \u201cDon\u2019t Fix Up the Doghouse,\u201d but, to his disappointment, he didn\u2019t hear who sang it. Ten years later\u2014but still before the Internet made solving this kind of mystery easy\u2014he heard that voice a second time singing another song, and he had his answer. George McCormick.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Who?<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">He\u2019s a singer familiar to listeners of \u201cSouth By Southwest,\u201d a radio program devoted to honky-tonk, western swing, and straight-ahead country music recorded prior to 1975. Lincoln has hosted the show for twenty years every Monday morning on WMPG 90.9, the University of Southern Maine\u2019s community radio station.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Wait. Did he recognize the voice after <i>ten years?<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cI have a good memory for music,\u201d says Lincoln, 56. \u201cMy brain remembers things that aren\u2019t important.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">But this <strong>Colby College<\/strong> grad remembers things that <i>are <\/i>important, too, including what it was like to be a kid growing up in Durham, New Hampshire. Those memories serve him well in his career as the creator of <i>Big Nate<\/i>, the popular comic strip about the misadventures of Nate Wright, a sixth-grader who\u2019s a record-setter\u2014for getting the most detentions. \u201cPeople ask me all the time how I get my ideas, and my answer is boring: I sit down and think them up.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Lincoln also drew the eight popular <em>Big Nate<\/em> books, aimed at middle-grade readers. These hybrids of text and pictures held down a top ten slot on the <em>New York Times<\/em> bestseller list for over <strong>140 weeks<\/strong>. Sales of the series plus compilations have topped <strong>18 million books.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Now, Lincoln is working on book two of a three-book series featuring the funny adventures of Max and the Midknights. Max is an apprentice troubadour in medieval times who wants to grow up to be a knight. These books are hybrids, too. As always, Lincoln does the design and layout by hand. When his editor at Crown Books for Young Readers calls for changes, Lincoln makes them the old-fashioned way. \u201cI enjoy trying to fit the words and pictures together. It appeals to the puzzle solver in me.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">With the thousand-plus pictures he has to draw for each <em>Max and the Midknights<\/em> book\u2014not to mention the 25,000 words he has to write\u2014Lincoln is a prime candidate for a digital device that would allow him to alter the size and placement of pictures and text simultaneously.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>He hasn\u2019t found one, though, so he continues to work the old-fashioned way. Actually, he hasn\u2019t looked very hard. \u201cMy system is inefficient,\u201d he says, \u201cbut I work on deadline, and I worry about the time spent learning how to use technology. It isn\u2019t at all intuitive for me. I haven\u2019t been able to make the jump. If I did, though, I wouldn\u2019t have to stay up until one in the morning.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">The room where he does this painstaking work is on the first floor of the colonial home he shares with his wife <strong>Jessica Gandolf<\/strong>, an acclaimed painter, in the Deering Highlands neighborhood of Portland. It\u2019s filled with about 1,200 CDs shelved alphabetically, sports memorabilia, and pictures of their son Elias and daughter Dana. Tucked behind some books over in the corner is the blue ribbon Lincoln won for his apple pie at the <strong>Cumberland Fair<\/strong> in 2004. It was the only time he ever entered. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cI retired undefeated.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h1 class=\"p2\"><span style=\"color: #333333;\">5.\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"s1\"><b>Go Ahead &amp; Jump<\/b><\/span><\/h1>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cI know I\u2019ll be ready for some <strong>big jumps<\/strong> in the near future.\u201d<strong>\u2014Kate Hall<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><em>By Sofia Voltin<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><strong><span class=\"s1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-16871\" src=\"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_5-kate-216x300.jpg\" alt=\"nov19_10Most _5 kate\" width=\"216\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_5-kate-216x300.jpg 216w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_5-kate-200x278.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_5-kate-251x350.jpg 251w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_5-kate.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 216px) 100vw, 216px\" \/>K<\/span><\/strong><span class=\"s1\"><strong>ate Hall<\/strong> is unstoppable. At ten, she enjoyed soccer, basketball, and track\u2014on target for an athletic career\u2014when she was diagnosed with <strong>Type 1 diabetes<\/strong>. \u201cI was forced to take control of it.\u201d She insisted on giving herself that first insulin shot. Now 22, Hall still leaps over any obstacles in her way. \u201cI broke the [39-year] national high school long-jump record and American Junior record with a jump of <strong>22 feet, five inches<\/strong>. This qualified me for the 2016 Olympic Trials\u201d\u2014where she placed tenth. According to the IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations), Hall currently ranks No. 6 in the U.S. outdoor long jump.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">She won All-America honors 8 times in high school, along with over 30 state and New England championships. \u201cI home-schooled and planned my days to my benefit. This flexibility was a game-changer in my career because I could train any time. It prepared me for college as well.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Hall studied exercise science during her one year at Iowa State and then two years at University of Georgia. At the end of her junior year, her gaze turned to the <strong>2019 World Championships<\/strong> and the <strong>2020 Olympics in Tokyo<\/strong>, but her jumps had not improved within the college system. She returned to Maine to train with her high-school coach. \u201cTraining is far more individualized with <strong>Chris Pribish<\/strong>. In college programs, I didn\u2019t always feel fully recovered between workouts. They emphasized a lot of heavy lifting, which isn\u2019t best for me.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cWith diabetes, people sometimes need more recovery,\u201d Pribish says. \u201cWe are flexible and adjust workouts if sugar levels are too high or low. Our scientific approach tends to buck some of the common trends used in schools.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">In February, Hall wrapped up her first season as a professional athlete with a national title. \u201cA lot of my competition is surprised I\u2019m from Maine. It isn\u2019t a typical place for a track athlete to train because of the cold.\u201d At the Toyota USATF Indoor Championships in New York, she won the long jump with a leap of 21 feet, 4<sup>1\/4<\/sup> inches and came in second in the 60-meter dash. Her winnings totaled $10,000.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">But a crushing summer waited ahead. \u201cI didn\u2019t make the 2019 World Championships.\u201d She placed 10th in the qualifying meet with a best jump of 21 feet, 6 inches\u2014missing the final round by one and a half inches. \u201cI was in the best shape of my life. My approach was a little off, so I didn\u2019t hit the takeoff board. If I had, I\u2019d have easily qualified for the World Championships. My goal for over a year was to make it. It was very hard to come up short. But I learned from this. I wasn\u2019t able to pull it together that day, but my body was in the best condition it\u2019s ever been. I know I\u2019ll be ready for some big jumps in the near future. I\u2019m taking this mindset and preparing for the <strong>2020 Olympic Trials<\/strong>.\u201d She\u2019ll be competing on <strong>June 19 and 20, 2020<\/strong> at the University of Oregon. \u201cI\u2019ve jumped there several times, and I\u2019m excited to go back.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Hall currently lives in Gray. She works as an assistant coach at St. Joseph\u2019s College and trains with Pribish at <strong>Momentum Performance &amp; Wellness Center<\/strong> in South Portland. \u201cShe works extremely hard,\u201d Pribish says. \u201cShe ignores outside distractions and focuses on achieving her goals. She holds herself to high standards and refuses to fail. Kate will continue to succeed on and off the track. She\u2019ll win more titles and make Olympic and World teams for years to come.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h1 class=\"p3\"><span style=\"color: #333333;\">6 &amp; 7.<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"s1\"><b>The Power of Love<\/b><\/span><\/h1>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201c\u2026Yes might mean no. The brain is unbelievable.\u201d<strong>\u2014Annemarie Albiston<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><em><span class=\"s1\">By Laurie Gallardo<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><i><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-16872\" src=\"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_6-Bruce-7-Annemarie-300x247.jpg\" alt=\"nov19_10Most _6 Bruce + 7 Annemarie\" width=\"300\" height=\"247\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_6-Bruce-7-Annemarie-300x247.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_6-Bruce-7-Annemarie-200x164.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_6-Bruce-7-Annemarie-426x350.jpg 426w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_6-Bruce-7-Annemarie.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>O<\/i><\/span><span class=\"s1\"><i>ne day you wake up and no one can understand you. <\/i>In 2005, <strong>Annemarie Albiston\u2019s<\/strong> father suffered a massive stroke, leaving him diagnosed with <strong>aphasia<\/strong>. \u201cIt\u2019s a loss of language\u2014<i>not<\/i> intellect,\u201d Annemarie says. \u201cIt robs you of your communication. \u201cIt can affect not only your verbal speech but your ability to read and write. My father lost all three. He knew what he wanted to say but couldn\u2019t get it out. Sometimes aphasia can affect comprehension, too, so yes might mean no. The brain is unbelievable.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h5 class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Beginnings<\/b><\/span><\/h5>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">Annemarie and her husband, <strong>Bruce Albiston<\/strong>, opened <strong>Aphasia Center of Maine<\/strong> in 2012 and <strong>Adaptive Outdoor\u00a0<\/strong><strong>Education Center<\/strong> in 2015. The Andre R. Hemond Aphasia Retreat\u2014named in honor of Annemarie\u2019s father\u2014is held every fall. It\u2019s a social gathering to support people living with aphasia; both those diagnosed and their loved ones.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p5\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cDuring one of our first retreats,\u201d Annemarie says, \u201cI had breakfast with a couple. The wife had aphasia and spoke zero words. Her husband stepped out for coffee, so I sat and chatted with her. \u2018Do you have children?\u2019 She nodded. \u2018How many?\u2019 She held up her fingers. When her husband returned, I casually mentioned she told me they had children. He was shocked. \u2018Nobody ever has a conversation with her. How did you do that?\u2019 I\u2019d learned the secret from my father. You love them for the people they are.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p7\"><strong><span class=\"s1\">A<\/span><span class=\"s2\">phasia Connections <\/span><\/strong><span class=\"s1\">hosts cafe get-togethers and fun group activities. \u201c<strong>Weekend Craftcations<\/strong> are for making crafts.\u201d Annemarie\u2019s sincere, encouraging smile conveys a warming candor. \u201cBut some people don\u2019t give a hoot about doing that. They just want to be together. The whole point is to give people the best quality of life. Everyone we meet has the same story\u2014friends and family desert them. They think aphasia means they\u2019re not the same person anymore, but they are. There\u2019s life after stroke.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p5\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cTo do something inclusive for all ages and disabilities, we built the lodge at <strong>Sugarloaf<\/strong>,\u201d Bruce says. Enter the Adaptive Outdoor Education Center in Carrabassett Valley. Activities range from rock climbing to skiing. \u201cThe folks we work with have had so much therapy in their lives. Instead, we give them experiences they\u2019re going to remember.\u201d Bruce says. \u201cWe don\u2019t just go for a sail\u2014we teach people how to sail.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p5\"><span class=\"s1\">The Albistons are adding more housing to the lodge. Next stop is an event space in Greater Portland. \u201cWe\u2019re trying to grow the number of people we serve,\u201d Bruce says.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p5\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cOur youngest [attendee] had a stroke when she was 9. She\u2019s 15 now,\u201d Annemarie says. \u201cWe met Emma a few months after her stroke. The first time she came to our retreat, her father had tears in his eyes watching his little girl relax and have fun. Now they\u2019re a huge part of our community. The people here are my heart and soul. Sometimes it\u2019s like being with my dad again. He passed eight and a half years ago. These folks are our family.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h1 class=\"p5\"><span style=\"color: #333333;\">8.<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"s1\"><b>From the Maine Woods to the D.C. Swamp<\/b><\/span><\/h1>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cThis is my last hope to really bring the integrity back into our office.\u201d <\/span><span class=\"s1\"><strong>\u2014Tricia Newbold<\/strong> to the House Oversight Committee<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><em><span class=\"s1\">By Colin W. Sargent<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-16873\" src=\"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_8-Tricia-253x300.jpg\" alt=\"nov19_10Most _8 Tricia\" width=\"253\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_8-Tricia-253x300.jpg 253w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_8-Tricia-200x237.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_8-Tricia-295x350.jpg 295w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_8-Tricia.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 253px) 100vw, 253px\" \/>The first miracle is, how does a girl from Madawaska rise to become a senior security specialist in the <strong>Executive Office of the President<\/strong>? Young women and men across the state will appreciate knowing how to chart those stars! The next miracle is, when your moment of truth comes, will you be equal to it?<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">So often a person from Maine is called upon to be the conscience of our country. On 23 March 2019, <strong>Tricia P. Newbold<\/strong>, \u201cat great personal risk,\u201d came before the <strong>House Committee on Oversight and Reform<\/strong> \u201cto expose grave and continuing failures of the White House security clearance system,\u201d according to a memorandum from the late Elijah Cummings (D-MD), chair of the committee. Twenty-five Trump Administration officials were first denied security clearances; Newbold was one of the specialists who issued the security denials. But a wand was waved, and suddenly they received overrides. According to the <i>Washington Post<\/i>, Newbold began to keep a list of Trump staffers receiving security overrides \u201cin 2018.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cIn an administration in which too many have chosen the path of least resistance\u2014silence\u2014Tricia Newbold decided to put principle first and speak out,\u201d says <strong>Ned Price<\/strong>, former National Security Council spokesman under President Obama, who has worked with Newbold. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cAs a native of Madawaska, Tricia\u2019s integrity and willingness to stand up for what she believes is right are a testament to her Aroostook County values,\u201d <strong>Senator Susan Collins<\/strong> says. \u201cWhistleblowers have played a vital role over the decades in bringing to the attention of Congress wrongdoing, fraud, and abuse.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>By speaking up, Tricia hopes to ensure that Americans can have confidence that decisions to grant, deny, or revoke security clearances are based solely on established guidelines.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Since her appearance, Newbold has disappeared from the public eye. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Global Intel reports Newbold \u201cearns around $120,000 a year and began with the government earning less than $30,000.\u201d She started her career with the Clinton Administration in 2000, then continued during the George W. Bush Administration, the Barack Obama Administration, and now the Trump Administration. She\u2019s 40 and lives in Severn, Maryland. Her parents still live in Madawaska.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cShe was a very smart and determined student who did not want special privileges or special treatment. Her friends were helpful, lifting her up when necessary, so she could do \u2018things\u2019 by herself and not have someone do it for her,\u201d says Gis\u00e8le Dionne, Superintendent of Schools, Madawaska. \u201cI taught the physical sciences. I\u2019m thrilled that you\u2019re naming Tricia. She\u2019s very deserving.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h1 class=\"p3\"><span style=\"color: #333333;\">9.<\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"s1\"><b>Meet the First Woman Ever to Vote in Maine<\/b><\/span><\/h1>\n<h4 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Augusta Merrill Barstow Hunt<\/b><\/span><\/h4>\n<p class=\"p1\"><em><span class=\"s1\">By Anne B. Gass<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cLearning about the life and\u00a0<strong>devotion to freedom<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0<strong>equality<\/strong>\u00a0that Augusta had has filled me with a sort of\u00a0<strong>pride<\/strong>\u00a0I have no right to, and\u00a0<strong>inspiration<\/strong>\u00a0to keep her work and dreams alive. Even,\u00a0<i>especially<\/i>, in these troubled times.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><strong><span class=\"s1\">\u2014Helen Hunt<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-16874\" src=\"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_9-Augusta-291x300.jpg\" alt=\"nov19_10Most _9 Augusta\" width=\"291\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_9-Augusta-291x300.jpg 291w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_9-Augusta-36x36.jpg 36w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_9-Augusta-200x206.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_9-Augusta-340x350.jpg 340w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_9-Augusta.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 291px) 100vw, 291px\" \/>\u201cA\u00a0<\/span>great humanitarian\u201d\u2014that\u2019s how the <em>Portland Sunday Telegram<\/em> described <strong>Augusta Hunt<\/strong> on her 90th birthday. Throughout her long life, she championed many causes, using her wealth and privilege to improve the lives of those less fortunate.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Augusta Merrill Barstow was born in Portland on 6 June 1842. At the age of 21, she married <strong>George S. Hunt<\/strong>, a prosperous merchant with West Indies shipping interests, including sugar importing. They set up housekeeping in the stately brick townhouse at <strong>165 State Street<\/strong> (now the home of <em>Portland Monthly Magazine<\/em>) and raised two sons. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">With a lively mind, a keen interest in history, and her husband\u2019s support, Hunt soon found ways to be active in the community. She had a particular interest in improving the lives of women and children. Once, she heard a story of a husband who sent his young children to live with relatives in Canada. His wife objected but had no legal way to stop him. Hunt went to work, and in 1895, the Maine legislature passed an equal guardianship law. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">In 1876 Hunt helped found the Maine branch of the <strong>Woman\u2019s Christian Temperance Union<\/strong> (WCTU) and served for many years as its president. This sparked her interest in voting rights for women, which the WCTU saw as vital for protecting the home and children. For decades, Hunt and others campaigned for full voting rights through the Maine legislature. When the all-male legislature turned them down (repeatedly), they tried for the right to vote in municipal elections or simply for the U.S. President. All of these efforts failed.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h5 class=\"p1\"><strong>Oil &amp; Water<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cI\u2019ve always been struck by the great success of both my great-grandparents. The\u00a0<strong>George S. Hunt &amp; Company<\/strong>\u00a0was composed of 21 ships and two sugar refining companies. The ships sailed to Cuba and returned with sugar cane which was refined and used in the distilling of rum.<br \/>\n<\/span><span class=\"s1\">Augusta, on the other hand, was a leader in the local\u00a0<strong>Christian Temperance Union<\/strong>, advocating sobriety. One can only imagine the heated conversations between them! George only lived to the age of 67. Augusta was left financially well-off. She had the time and means to pursue her other interest\u2014achieving equal rights for women to vote. She was quite a force and lived into her nineties\u2014also an achievement in those times.\u201d <strong>\u2014George S. Hunt III<\/strong> (great-grandson, age 93)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h5 class=\"p5\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Maine Woman Suffrage Association<\/b><\/span><\/h5>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">In 1916, Maine suffragists finally had sufficient votes in the legislature to send the suffrage question to voters in a referendum. Now 75 and retired, Hunt agreed to serve as interim president of the MWSA during a short-term leadership crisis. In October 1916, she hosted MWSA\u2019s annual meeting at her State Street home to choose a new president and decide whether to pursue the referendum. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Opposing the idea was none other than Carrie Chapman Catt, the president of the <strong>National American Woman Suffrage Association<\/strong> (NAWSA). This was odd because, for decades, NAWSA had been all about state campaigns. But Maine wasn\u2019t ready, she counseled. MWSA had only $160 in its bank account, a tiny fraction of the war chest it would need\u2014especially because it lacked experienced suffrage organizers. A campaign would require outside help. Catt wanted to use NAWSA\u2019s scarce resources to support campaigns in states where success was more likely.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">Hunt served coffee rather than the customary tea, and perhaps the extra infusion of caffeine emboldened the almost 100 women gathered there. Insisting that the \u201cgood old state of Maine\u201d wouldn\u2019t let them down, they voted to pursue a suffrage referendum.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">While no longer its president, Hunt worked hard on MWSA\u2019s campaign. She went door-to-door collecting signatures from women on a voting rights petition. She found office space for the <strong>Suffrage Referendum League of Maine<\/strong> at 662 Congress Street, in the storefront of the Queen Anne style building her husband built in 1886. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">Working for rights denied by society requires sacrifice, courage, and the ability to take the long view. Hunt demonstrated these in abundance throughout her career. So, when the referendum met with resounding defeat, she just looked ahead to the next campaign. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">The 19th Amendment that gave most women the right to vote was ratified in August of 1920. In recognition of her many contributions, Hunt was given the distinction of being the <strong>first woman to cast a ballot<\/strong>. \u201cIt was indeed fitting that&#8230;when woman suffrage was at last granted the first woman\u2019s ballot to be passed was that of Augusta Hunt,\u201d said Maude Wood Park, Ex-President, National League of Women Voters, to the <em>Portland Sunday Telegram<\/em> on 5 June 1932, in \u201cMrs. George S. Hunt About to Pass her 90th Milestone.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">For 50 years, Augusta Hunt supported or led every movement in Maine to improve the lives of women and children. Highlights include equal guardianship, free kindergartens and day nurseries, Portland\u2019s first-ever police matron, a women\u2019s reformatory, a rest home for aging women, and, of course, voting rights. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">This Spring, 2020, a roadside marker that recognizes Hunt\u2019s suffrage work, donated by the William G. Pomeroy Foundation, will be installed outside 165 State Street. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">As her 90th news article concluded, \u201cHer name will live long and her work will live always.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h5 class=\"p2\"><strong>Book Worm<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Augusta Hunt had two hobbies\u2014bridge and\u00a0<strong>Charles Dickens<\/strong>. She devoted a corner of her suite at the\u00a0<strong>Eastland\u00a0<\/strong>to prints of Dickens characters and held a Dickens Club meeting twice a month from November through May. One morning while Dickens was in Portland, George Hunt spotted the author leaving the\u00a0<strong>Preble House<\/strong>. When he started to walk up Cumberland Avenue, George hurried home to tell his wife the news that Dickens was likely to walk past the Hunt mansion. Before long, Augusta spotted him passing their home. \u201cI would have liked to shake his hand and tell him what his books meant to me,\u201d Augusta said, \u201cbut I recalled what he had said about ladies gushing, and I made up my mind I was not going to gush.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p6\"><span class=\"s1\">\u2014Anne B. Gass is the author of <em>Voting Down the Rose: Florence Brooks Whitehouse and Maine\u2019s Fight for Woman Suffrage<\/em><i>, <\/i>a book about her great-grandmother. She serves on the steering committee for the Maine Suffrage Centennial Collaborative and speaks frequently on suffrage history.<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h1 class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #333333;\">10.<\/span>\u00a0<b>Dream Leader<\/b><\/h1>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cThat\u2019s not how you do it, but that\u2019s how I do it.\u201d <strong>\u2014Gabriel Frey<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><em>By Diane Hudson<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-16875\" src=\"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_10-Gabriel-300x231.jpg\" alt=\"nov19_10Most _10 Gabriel\" width=\"300\" height=\"231\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_10-Gabriel-300x231.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_10-Gabriel-200x154.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_10-Gabriel-455x350.jpg 455w, https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/nov19_10Most-_10-Gabriel.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>\u201cI<\/span><span class=\"s1\">sn\u2019t there an easier way?\u201d It\u2019s a question <strong>Gabriel Frey<\/strong>, twelfth generation Passamaquoddy artist, is frequently asked. \u201cThey are well-meaning, but there are no shortcuts to doing what I do. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cI use <strong>black ash<\/strong> for my baskets. I cut down a basket-quality tree\u2014straight, with little-to-no branches\u2014and carry the log on my shoulder out of the woods. To get the raw material, I pound the log to fracture the fiber within the growth ring. I have to strike every square inch of the tree, all by hand. Once they\u2019ve been removed from the tree, I further refine the individual growth rings by splitting and gauging them to the desired thickness and width.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cWhat I do has been done for thousands of years.\u201d Black ash is so closely tied to Frey\u2019s culture, it features centrally in the creation story of the <strong>Wabanaki<\/strong> people. \u201c<strong>Glooskap<\/strong> is a mythical figure, kind of a trickster guy. Legend has it he shot his arrows into the heart of the ash tree. When it split open, our people were created.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">Frey\u2019s talents stretch beyond basketry. \u201cI\u2019ve done a lot of oil paintings and a few charcoal sketches. I\u2019m inspired to use my artistic voice to raise the profile of Maine\u2019s indigenous population, which has been marginalized for so long. I hope to add to our story and, in doing so, enrich Maine culture.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">In early 2019, Frey, 39, won the prestigious <strong>United States Artists Award<\/strong>, a $50,000 unrestricted fellowship. He\u2019s come a long way from when he made his first basket at the age of 18. \u201cI told my mom I wanted to go and make a basket when the <strong>Maine Indian Basketmakers Alliance<\/strong> (MIBA) offered a workshop in our community. She was like, \u2018Yeah, sure.\u2019 When I started working, it was as if I were remembering something I\u2019d done before\u2014a cellular memory.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">His first creation, a traditional \u201cpotato basket,\u201d was originally designed for farmers\u2019 use in Penobscot county. \u201cI was always drawn to making work-related baskets. My grandfather was a strict utilitarian. His baskets were tools and meant to be used. Very few basket makers my age were working in this tradition. They were making \u2018fancy\u2019 baskets, smaller and more decorative.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cWhen my grandfather developed emphysema, suddenly there was a time limit on how much I could learn. I went to live and study with him.\u201d Frey remembers vividly the day his grandfather said, <i>I can teach you how to make baskets, but you must learn yourself how <\/i><strong><i>you<\/i><\/strong><i> make baskets.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cFor the longest time, I followed in my grandfather\u2019s footsteps. Strictly utility. Then I was making a basket for a friend and decided instead of just carving the handle, I\u2019d sand it down. It became a polished handle. You could see the sheen in the wood\u2014so satisfying! I began putting more time into each piece. I worked on the details and finished the edges. Each little thing led to more. A couple of elders said, \u2018That\u2019s not how you do it.\u2019 Remembering my grandfather I thought, \u2018That\u2019s not how <i>you<\/i> do it, but that\u2019s how <i>I<\/i> do it.\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cFor us, form has always followed function\u2014the pack basket, for example. Prior to European contact in the U.S., roads were rivers and every family had a canoe. The design of the basket was flat on one side to fit your back and rounded on the other to fit into the hull of the canoe. The form is the function. The purses I make, for which I\u2019m now well-known, are shaped like the pack basket. I\u2019m still doing the same thing, but today, the function is different. They are wearable works of art built within the same tradition that connects people to my homeland in a physical way. This is all part of keeping the cultural history alive and maintaining awareness of what our society looked like prior to European influence.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\">Thanks to the $50,000 prize, Frey expects to be able to devote more time to developing newer and more refined forms for current functions. He works another job part-time to support his family. \u201cI also have a small integrative massage practice in the Bangor area. I\u2019m primarily in clinical massage modalities\u2014myofascial release, trigger point, deep tissue massage, and sports massage.\u201d His wife, Suzanne Greenlaw, is a Maliseet doctoral candidate in ethnobiology at the University of Maine. They have two children, Musquon, 6, and Alamosit, 2. \u201cThe typical artist demands that you go down into your creative cave and come up after 3 days for food,\u201d Frey says. \u201cI could do that, but I\u2019m content. The children are amazing. You choose your struggles.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">There are many spelling variations of Glooskap: Gluskabe, Gluscabi, Koluscap, Klouscap.<br \/>\n<\/span><span class=\"s1\">Know more? Share them with us at <strong>staff@portlandmonthly.com<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ten people making the world turn in Maine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16876,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[525,541,542,543,531,544,433,539,549,535,536,534,528,540,527,552,550,526,538,533,127,537,529,547,530,553,532,551,548,545,554,546],"class_list":["post-16915","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","tag-10-most","tag-2019-world-championships","tag-2020-olympics","tag-albiston","tag-amara-ifeji","tag-aphasia","tag-artist","tag-athlete","tag-augusta-hunt","tag-big-nate","tag-books","tag-colby-college","tag-connect-to-wilderness","tag-diabetes","tag-forest-therapy","tag-gabriel-frey","tag-helen-hunt","tag-jeanne-christie","tag-kate-hall","tag-lincoln-peirce","tag-maine","tag-max-and-the-midknights","tag-michael-waterman","tag-ned-price","tag-painter","tag-passamaquoddy","tag-stem","tag-suffrage","tag-susan-collins","tag-tricia-newbold","tag-wabanaki","tag-whistleblower"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16915","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16915"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16915\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18565,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16915\/revisions\/18565"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16876"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16915"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16915"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16915"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}