On North Gorham Road, ten miles from the Village, it looks like a normal day in early spring. Sap buckets are hanging off Maple trees, people raking their yards wave to their neighbors, a retired couple takes a daily morning walk, a single jogger runs purposely down the street. An occasional truck or SUV drives by or pulls into a long driveway. There are no empty sidewalks or stores because there are no sidewalk or stores.
But for North Gorham life is very different from what it was a month ago, as it is for everyone. The “center” of the neighborhood on the street’s corner at Standish Neck Road is empty save for the firemen on call. Neither the church nor the library are open except by phone or email. Jenn Plummer, who runs the North Gorham Library with the help of volunteers, is offering to deliver books to patrons who leave a message requesting them. The library’s book club is discussing “Washington Black” this month by email. The Writers Group is also “sharing themselves and their work” by email. Our two neighbors, the Merrifield and Lockman families, who boiled sap into maple syrup and are selling their products to drive-up and online customers after Maine Maple Sunday was postponed.
Betty, who delivers our mail, told a woman who lives alone to put a note in her mailbox if she needed something. But North Gorham’s housebound seniors are used to stocking up and, as this is Maine, many have adult children nearby to help out. Emma Gilman has a full freezer. She calls herself a “Soupaholic” with lots of cottage cheese cartons full of frozen homemade soup.
John Labrecque remembers only two other times when the neighborhood felt so isolated: once during the ’98 ice storm, and earlier in 1952, when the snow was so deep the road was blocked and a neighbor with a Jeep brought in supplies from Windham. Although John and his wife Betty are in their 80s and have a full freezer, they are still helping out at the Gorham Food Pantry.
One neighbor in her nineties, Jan Bell, always says if you are bored, “do some handwork,” so we are knitting, crocheting, quilting, and rug-hooking.
Pricilla Hopkins is also starting seeds for her garden. Cynthia and John Houlihan are cleaning house, cupboards, and closets, but making time to play board games and watch Netflix.
Grace Flynn, a GHS student, and also a Gorham Times intern, who is home with her parents and younger brother, is keeping in touch with teachers and friends online. “Some of my teachers have whiteboards at home and are teaching via Zoom and I am ‘hanging out’ with friends on Zoom too,” she said.
Photo credit Kathy CorbettPet owners are enjoying the additional time together with their pets. Grace Flynn has more time to walk her dogs now that she is home from GHS. She and her father, Patrick, walk down North Gorham Road with Gilly, one of their two lively Labradoodles.
Many people are limiting their screen time unless they are students or working from home. Hopkins said, however, she is following updates from Dr. Shah of the Maine CDC, sharing, “He’s a breath of fresh air in that he is factual and does not place blame.”
The fresh air outside the house and away from media is particularly rewarding as well for those of us with land in this rural area. David Alexander wrote of a ramble around his eleven acres.
“Spotted many dead leaners and poplars that will make next winter’s firewood, leaving a few for the woodpeckers. Through the jungle of brown saw Lennie’s tree stands, reminded me to tell him about the four yearlings hanging around. Circling down to the pond, two ducks burst out; they’ll be back to nest. The acre of milkweed Matt left from bush hogging stands ready for the monarchs when they arrive back from wintering in Brazil. The big spruce tree that fell, away from the house, last fall is ready for sawing up or maybe a flag pole?”
Barry Atwood believes that the pandemic “has the potential to bring out the best in people.” He reminds us that our ancestors spent a good part of their lives working just to survive over a harsh winter, and that “in an emergency there was no hospital to be whisked away to. They relied on their own resourcefulness with help from their neighbors.” In that spirit, George Lawson of Middle Jam Road is collecting personal protection equipment (PPE) such as carpenter’s masks to deliver to Maine Medical Center. Atwood also said, “We need to find something to laugh about.” One woman of a certain age agreed with that when she said the only silver lining in the whole mess was that she had not worn a bra for a week!
Only a few residents of North Gorham were interviewed for this article. If you have some stories you would like to share, please contact Kathy Corbett at ktcorbett@aol.com for inclusion in a possible second edition.