Last March the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic and Gorham, along with the rest of the country, shut down. Daily life changed for everyone. Looking back, some Gorham residents spoke about challenges, temporary and longer lasting. Although COVID made this past year stressful, sometimes challenges led to creative responses and even new ways of thinking about work and relationships.

Peggy Marchand spent much of the year caring for a very ill older sibling who lost her job due to COVID restrictions. “We tried to muddle through and have some fun too,” she said. They ate Easter eggs out of the back of her car, grilled lobster rolls in the back yard, and walked often talking from opposite sides of back roads. She was thrilled to get six rolls of toilet paper for her June birthday! “After all these months of pandemic, we are all grateful, more aware of the little things that matter and love figuring out ways to be good neighbors and connected family despite distancing,” she said.

By the end of this February, 733 Gorham residents had been diagnosed with COVID. One of the first was Judy Ringo who attended a meeting last March where no one was sick; afterward twelve people came down with COVID. Ringo only spent a few days in the hospital, but a year later still has fatigue.

Lee Pratt spoke about how his work as Town Council Chair has changed. “Our meetings have gone from in-person to virtual,” he said. “Its good because there is less driving and more meeting time available over the internet. But with in-person meetings you can see when someone in the crowd wants to speak. Although with virtual you can address a population that might not have been going to meetings before.” The Council has reappointed the Board of Health which Pratt said will give guidance for future planning. “I have watched our town do everything possible to stop the spread, he said. “I have lived in Gorham my whole life and could not be more proud of how our community has come together.”

“Not being able to hug my grandchildren has been heartbreaking at times,” Jackie Francis said. She quarantined before meeting and holding her three-month-old granddaughter, kissing her on the head while wearing a mask. However, one positive effect of the changes in her social life has been hiking Gorham’s trails and preserves with her husband, some for the first time, something they will continue to do.

Cecely Conrad is the English for Speakers of Other Languages specialist for Gorham’s elementary schools. Communicating online has been difficult for many families with whom she works who, she said, “have the additional challenge of navigating a changed world in a language that is not their first.” Over 20 languages are spoken by Gorham students and their families. Conrad added, “I was surprised to find some great positives like seeing whole families on English Zoom classes and getting a window into the often-private lives of multicultural and multilingual families.”

Although he closed Village Physical Therapy in mid-March, Michael Smith opened his two-person practice in a new office on April first. In May, they hired a person to clean and watch what patients touched. They cut back some on their schedules. “Most patients were comfortable coming for treatment because they felt it was a safe place,” Smith said, “and our practice is almost back to normal.”

 

Wendy Couch, co-director of the Gorham Food Pantry, said they have added new clients every month, including a 5% increase this past February. “We are now a drive-through with touchless pick-up.” They now have an electronic check-in process and will continue to use it to provide “a more sophisticated order process for our clients.”

Michelle Carlson, a volunteer at Great Falls School and in the community, said hers was “a family that was constantly on the go.” Since last March they have become more appreciative of the outdoors and connected more through conversation and playing games together. Although her two sons in 2nd and 5th grade like the smaller classes, they say recess isn’t as much fun because they are assigned stations to limit exposure to other “pods.” Zack is anxious about middle school next year when he will move from a small group to a school with 6th graders from the three elementary schools. Carlson’s son Luke is in the regular ed/autism program and his mother is grateful that he has been able to attend school four days a week. As a family, “we appreciate the slower cadence to our lives,” she said, “and I think we will guard it more from getting too over-committed in the future.”