The year 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, guaranteeing and protecting the constitutional right of women to vote. Twenty-twenty also marks the 200th birthday of the state of Maine. Looking ahead to 2020 last October, newly elected St. Andrews Auxiliary president, Laura Zajdel, decided to choose the theme “2020 The Year of Women in Maine” to highlight the accomplishments of local women leaders and celebrate the women who, since 1952, have promoted and carried on the work of the Auxiliary even during trying times. But no one could have anticipated the challenges we would all face in the year 2020 where plans and projects were all to be shelved in the interest of the health and safety of the community.

Despite the hardships of the past eight months, Zajdel remained optimistic and on Wednesday, Oct. 21 gathered together at least 30 masked and socially distanced members and guests of the Auxiliary to take a look back at what, collectively, the organization has achieved over the past year. The group met in the historic 1847 Boothbay Old Town Hall at the Railway Village for the annual meeting and fall luncheon. The bright and open space was cozied up by draped and hanging quilts, all handmade and donated by community members for display. Adding to the festive atmosphere was fall inspired table décor and posters harkening back to moments in the history of the Auxiliary. The program also included a retrospective look at the life and contributions of our “Dear Heart,” the Reverend Dr. Mary Jo Zimmerli, a former Auxiliary president and beloved and influential member of the Boothbay community.

Zajdel brought the meeting to order and talked about organizational priorities. Keeping members and the community engaged has been key. Visitor to Volunteer outreach, E-newsletters, a photo slideshow on the Harbor theater screen, a new Facebook page, and the Thrift Store, got the year, 2020, off to a good start. As COVID entered the scene, however, activities and programs had to be scaled back and reimagined to fit within safety protocols.

Early spring saw the initiation of a phone tree to stay in touch with auxiliary members and the curtailment of volunteer activities within St. Andrews Village lead to a greeting card project to lift the spirits of those suddenly cut off from visits with family and friends. One hundred and twenty-five masks were made and distributed to St. Andrews Village and Schooner Cove for resident and staff use to help keep everyone safe. Leading up to Easter, baskets filled with baked goods and candies were delivered to personnel at the Village, St. Andrews campus and Miles Hospital in appreciation of their work, especially in the absence of facility volunteers.
The Thrift Shop, which closed on March 17, was refurbished and reopened on May 11 in accordance with Maine state guidelines. Under the management of Carole McCarthy and with the help of dedicated volunteers, the shop is rapidly recovering losses enabling the Auxiliary to continue its support of LincolnHealth and other related healthcare entities.

Zajdel, herself a volunteer at the shop, took time to talk about a few members of the voluntary workforce that represents for her the “the heart” of the Auxiliary. One of these volunteers gets a ride to and from her four-hour shift as a back-room sorter and runner. “She may tell you her age but you have to earn her smile.” Before the shutdown, much of her time was spent in the Gregory Wing visiting her 50+ year old daughter who, herself, had been a dedicated Village volunteer until a debilitating illness overtook her life. Another volunteer, new to the Auxiliary and not comfortable being inside the building, sorts donations from the trunk of her car. A third long standing volunteer noticed a customer one day sorting through lamps to furnish study areas for students in needy home circumstances. She personally paid the tab for six lamps and helped the customer carry them out the door.

Zajdel also singled out a summer volunteer who is still in town due to COVID. She and five others saw the need and jumped in to form a sewing group that provides masks to the Family Care Center for their “back to school” visits. The group is now working on a project to provide Christmas stockings filled with edible goodies to St. Andrews employees in lieu of the annual Christmas luncheon and will also prepare 50 stockings to be filled with small gifts for the residents of the Gregory Wing.

As always, Treasurer Judy Boyes gave the annual report of finances before presenting a check in the amount of $50,100 to LincolnHealth’s VP for Patient Care Services, Chief Nursing Officer Christine Anderson. The amount included $20,000 for COVID PPE supplies, $14,000 for the Tufts program which brings medical students to LH, $9,000 for the LH Nursing Program, $6,000 for community paramedicine and $1,100 for a Hoverjack patient lift needed by the Gregory Wing.

Zajdel reported that $11,766.40 has been given in scholarships in 2020 with an additional $4,350 pending distribution. Community donations amounting to $1,700 were also distributed this year among New Hope for Women, the Boothbay Region Ambulance Service, BCTV and the Gregory Wing.

While not quite the wonderful luncheons previously hosted by St. Andrews Village for the St Andrews Auxiliary Annual Meeting, the prepared brown bag snack assortment of cheese and crackers, fruit and chocolate and gourmet cookie was tasty and satisfying and a very clear reminder of the times in which we currently live. A time when the amount of heart we put into our actions will be remembered beyond all else.

If you are interested in the work of the St. Andrews Auxiliary and would like to be a part of it, please consider volunteering at the Thrift Shop, or contacting Irene Gerny, Volunteer Coordinator, for other ways you can contribute your time and energy as a volunteer. Applications for Auxiliary membership and contact information is available at the St. Andrews Thrift Shop.