Today, my story is your story — Market ME is all about YOU! Phew, that’s how I prefer it. But for the folks who often ask me about my own story, it goes like this:
In 1994, I started my 20-year career in print journalism in the Boston suburbs, first as a reporter, then editor, photographer and designer — often all at the same time, as it was in a small weekly newsroom in Needham. Seeking more, I moved on to a daily publication, the Portsmouth Herald, first as a copy editor in 1998 and then features editor; in 2005, I transferred to its sister paper, the York County Coast Star, so I could work in Kennebunk and serve my hometown.
“Those were the days” … and those were the days that shaped me into a curious but sensitive, multi-dimensional journalist who had to write, edit, photograph and paginate, then share it on our website and social media, plus volunteer in the community to promote the paper.
When my job was downsized and outsourced in 2014 (read my farewell article here), I found a job to serve my community in a new way. As Events & Marketing Manager at the Kennebunk-Kennebunkport-Arundel Chamber of Commerce, I worked on a new small but mighty team, promoting small businesses and nonprofits while coordinating events, and at the same time marketing the Kennebunks as the acclaimed tourist destination it was becoming. In new ways, with emerging media trends and technology, I continued “telling stories” of my hard-working friends and neighbors growing their small businesses and nonprofits. While every one of them was different, they shared a common theme: they needed help!
In 2021, in the midst of a pandemic while paddling reverently to help keep our local community afloat in turbulent waters, I decided to take the plunge myself (read my supervisor’s farewell column here). Folks needed more than advice from someone who knew the market, they needed hands-on help … and knew I was someone who could do the work well (their words!)
Here I stand today, still serving a community I love, still keeping it local, and ready to help you tell your story!
OK, so a little bit more to my story! I love this community, I hope you sense that in all I do. But why do I feel so strongly about “community” in my life and work? Growing up, my family moved every few years because of my dad’s job; we lived in places long enough to appreciate a sense of community, but never long enough to become part of it. I was born was in Niagara Falls, then moved on to Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Vermont, Maine and New Hampshire, graduating from Londonderry High School in 1990 (later visiting my parents in Ohio, Indiana and Virginia!)
After graduating from the University of New Hampshire in 1994, I intentionally chose where I wanted to live, work and serve. It took us three years living and working in the Boston area to realize we prefer the small-town way of life, and Maine in particular, so my husband and I settled in Kennebunk in 1998, by luck. Kennebunk was halfway between Portsmouth and Portland, where Lindsay was working at the time. We instantly fell in love with the hometown charm and an overwhelming sense of community here. That inclusive community — sharing that sense of belonging — has always been a dominant theme in my work, and I am proud to say “community” still drives me today.
In addition to my newer role on the board at the Kennebunk-Kennebunkport-Arundel Chamber of Commerce, I am a longtime member of Kennebunk Police Department’s Volunteers in Policing program, a youth leader at Curtis Lake Church, and a volunteer usher at Vinegar Hill Music Theater. I’ve outgrown all the coach-leader-teacher-driver roles in my kids’ lives now that they’re young adults, so these roles keep me active, busy and engaged. I am so grateful to call Kennebunk the hometown I never had!