LUNCH Takes the Chowdah Fest Crown
NORTHEAST HARBOR—The chowder lovers waited outside the Neighborhood House in the drizzle, Monday, a straight line heading toward the door. People huddled under the building’s eaves to get out of the rain, making room for each other.
“Come closer, come closer,” one woman urged others with a friendly smile as she inched toward an exterior wall. “It will just take a minute.”
It might have taken less than that as the line moved forward, closer to the ultimate destination: the third annual Chowder Festival to benefit the Mount Desert Nursing Association.
Inside, restaurant representatives with warming trays and crockpots, ladles in hand, dished out the sublime, the chunky, and the glorious chowders into white bowls. Live music played on the stage, setting a jazzy tone as people tasted the chowder and voted for their favorites. The jazz quartet featured Matt Harkins (saxophone), Matt Grant (drums), Greg Snakard (piano), & Rodrigo Castro (bass).
The people’s choice award was determined by voters. Eliza Bishop, Tasha Higgins, and Chris Popper combined their taste buds for a judge’s favorite. In the end, the people and the judges agreed: LUNCH, out of Bar Harbor, won both awards.
“Our stomachs are full from all the delicious chowders & our hearts are full from the community spirit. To top it all off, nearly $5,000 was raised for home health care on MDI and beyond. Thank you!” the association wrote.
The association began in the 1920s when Mount Desert Island residents brought an American Red Cross chapter to the island.
“In those early days, they provided a wide range of nursing care in the home and trained other citizens to provide home care services,” the website reads. “In 1931, funds were raised, land donated, specifications and design done, and the house at 12 Summit Road was built! With its new headquarters, the Red Cross was able to provide more consistent nursing care and act as the ‘town nurse’ through WWI and WWII, until 1948, when the Red Cross changed its mission to a focus on responding to disasters, and swimming/life-saving instruction.”
In September 1948, the Mount Desert Public Health Nursing Association was created. It continued the Red Cross’ services at the location, which was donated by the Red Cross.
“The new board stipulated that the new organization would provide nursing care to both year-round and summer residents of the Town of Mount Desert, that it would be financially supported by donations, and that no Mount Desert resident would be denied services based on ability to pay,” the website reads.
Eventually, the organization became the Registered Nurses of Mount Desert Public Health Nursing Association and now it is the Mount Desert Nursing Association (MDNA).
It provides home health care, school health exams, and community health programs and, once a year, some amazing chowder.
Bangor Savings Bank, The Nor‘Easter, Bar Harbor (MDI) Rotary Club, and Comfort Keepers sponsored the event.
Aloha, Clark Point Cafe, Cottage Street Ramen, Dog and Pony, Finback Alehouse, Leary’s Landing, LUNCH, Mother’s Kitchen, Next Level Sports Lounge, Pat’s Pizza, Peekytoe Provisions, Salsa Verde, and Silver Service Catering participated.
Artwork for the silent auction was provided by: Marian Baker, Steve Bart, Emily Bracale, Robert Coppage, Tyson Guthrie, Lindsay Hopkins-Weld, Rocky Mann, Gabriela Niejadlik, Rick Osann, Linda Perrin, J.K. Putnam, Smart-Studio, Mary Anne Starbird, Tom Cat Tide, Shannon Westphal, and Anne Woodman.
LINKS TO LEARN MORE
Mount Desert Island Nursing Association
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