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September, 2007
Profiles by Paula: Penobscot River Keepers
By Paula Jean Lunt
Paddling is something I love to do. I am lucky enough to paddle on a weekly basis and living on the ocean, I can paddle year round without the problem of ice cover. Ok, it's pretty cold, but I can still get out and support my addiction!
Living in Maine just seems like the perfect place to enjoy the outdoors, and what better way than paddling a Maine water body, but not everyone who lives in Maine has been blessed with such an experience. Luckily, the Penobscot River Keepers are introducing Maine youth to the paddling experience. Educating them about the waterways they are touring on while learning to paddle is a win win situation. For the last few years, I have watched this unfold while being part of the adventure on a few occasions. I start emailing B.J. Maybury in early spring to see what the schedule looks like and volunteer to captain the beautiful war canoes her husband Mike built when they are in need. The enthusiasm of the students is so great; I wish I could be part of every excursion. For those of you not familiar with the Penobscot River Keepers read on
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Q: B. J. in your own words, can you tell everyone who the Penobscot River Keepers are, when they started and how?
A: The Penobscot River and Bay Institute (aka the Penobscot Riverkeepers) is a group of volunteers interested in taking students out in voyageur canoes (28' long) to teach them about canoeing, water safety, environment, history of the river and experience an "outdoor classroom." It started in 1992 with the idea of traveling from the source of the Penobscot to the sea.
Q: Who is in the group? Do you join as a member, do you just volunteer, how does it work?
A: We are in the process of producing a brochure (thanks to a great deal of help from Fawn Wentworth of Eaton, Peabody), which will explain our program and there will be a section for people to join as members at different levels to support our educational program. Basically, it has been a group of volunteers making the program go.
Q: How is the Penobscot River Keepers funded?
A: We request donations from the school and we have received donations from individuals, corporations and schools and some grant funds (grant writer needed).
Q: The canoes that are used are beautiful, is it true your husband Mike built them? Tell us a little about them if you could.
A: Yes, Mike built the canoes. About 25 years ago, as scoutmaster of Troop 15 he repaired Neil Phillips' (a Penobscot Indian) canoe and he asked if he could take a mold off it to build a fiberglass canoe for the scouts. Two canoes were built for Troop 15. Since that time 3 others have been constructed. Mike maintains and cares for the canoes. We are hoping to get another voyageur canoe built this fall with help from some employees from Morris Yachts. Mike will do the woodwork to finish them off.
Q: The programs the PRK are doing with the kids are great, what grades attend the sessions?
A: Grades 5 - 12 attend our sessions.
Q: How many sessions do you do a year? From what schools do they come?
A: Between mid May through mid June, we take about 8 schools for an "outdoor classroom." There is a possibility of expanding to 10 - 12 schools provided we can get more volunteer paddlers. We have taken Advanced Placement students from Brewer High School and John Bapst High School. We have taken students from Dexter High School (new to our program this past spring). Brewer 6th graders, Bucksport 5th and 6th graders, Lincoln 7th and 8th graders and Glenburn 7th graders have all been involved with PRK for a number of years. We will be taking 7th graders from the Holbrook School for the first time this fall.
Q: How are the schools selected? Are the students in a certain class in school that makes them eligible or is it just a field trip?
A: Most of the schools we take are those that we have been involved with for a number of years. It may be part of the high school AP class criteria to tour the wastewater treatment facility. However, some classes consider it a field trip.
Q: When I paddled with the students, we toured the Penobscot River and some of the Kenduskeag, are there other areas that the students paddle on and learn about?
A: If the teacher chooses, a different location may be selected. We are quite flexible. However, we typically paddle in the Penobscot River Watershed and tributaries. Many of our trips are right in the Bangor/Brewer area, but we do paddle on the Penobscot River in Lincoln and have paddled in the Frankfort Marsh/Verona Island area. We have also paddled Birch Stream in Alton and Cold Stream in Enfield.
Q: The Penobscot Riverkeepers Trip I was part of was a unique trip. Not only does it involve paddling, education of the river but the students are given an intense tour of the Brewer Waste water facility followed by a pizza party. I was a little surprised that such a tour would be of interest to the kids, but they were full of questions, why do you think that is? Do you think that people are finally realizing that "we", as a population, really need to take care of our water sources for the future?
A: Yes, I believe the students are very aware of the need to take care of our water sources. It is interesting, as you stated, how many questions they ask at the wastewater treatment facility. We explain to the students how the river has cleaned up over the years and that it is up to them to continue to preserve their water source. Senator Edmund Muskie (now deceased) and Senator George Mitchell were influential in the Clean Water and Clean Air Acts in the 1970's, to make citizens aware of pollution and were a huge factor in cleaning up the water and air in the United States.
Q: Is there anything else you would like the readers to know about the Penobscot River Keepers? Are there any key volunteers that really make it happen? Businesses who have come forward to help or donated items? What do you see for the future of the Penobscot River Keepers? How can our readers help?
A: It is a team effort among volunteers who see the value of moving a classroom outside and basically showing the students the resource that is in their back yard. The Salmon Clubs have donated monies through the years and have provided a location where we have been able to launch the canoes for many of our trips down the river and have used them for land stations and presenters. Lincoln Pulp and Paper built and donated the canoe trailer we are using. Robbins Lumber from Searsmont has donated monies in the past. We have received a grant from the Atlantic Salmon Federation and a number of years ago we received a grant from the Stephen King Foundation. The Penobscot Paddle and Chowder Society (canoe club) donated some monies back along and they have again voted to donate monies this fall. Old Town Canoe donated some life jackets, which the River keepers "raffled off" to the schools. When I say "raffled off", I'm talking about each day that we took a school out on the river, all the students had a ticket and we pulled a ticket out of a PRK hat, and that student was given his own life jacket to wear that day and take it home with him/her at the end of the day. Look forward to the Penobscot Riverkeepers continuing on as I feel it is a very worthwhile educational program. It is interesting when Mike and I are out and about and someone will say they know us from going with the Riverkeepers. Readers can help by volunteering to paddle with us or be a presenter at one of the land stations, which include such topics as map/compass, water safety, paddle instruction, tree and plant identification, water quality, logging history, marine biology just to mention a few.
Contact B.J. Marbury at 989-3878 or via email at bjnmike4@cs.com
Email nick [at] noumbrella [dot] com with your questions, comments and concerns.
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