How a beloved Maine household seaside is altering to maintain up with the instances
Joe Jenkins can’t depend what number of instances somebody has come as much as him over the many years and requested to purchase Jenkins Seashore, his household’s resort on Inexperienced Lake in Dedham that has served as a summer season escape for native households and vacationers for near a century.
Each time some wealthy man got here as much as him together with his checkbook open, Jenkins stated no. He has no curiosity by any means in turning his small lakeside resort right into a playground for the rich.
“They all the time say, ‘All people’s obtained a worth, and I’ll discover yours,’ and I simply form of snort and say, ‘good luck,’” stated Jenkins, now 81, the third era of the Jenkins household to function the resort. “One man advised me he might purchase and promote this place 100 instances over. And I stated ‘I don’t know the way you’d do this, since I’m not promoting it.’”
Lastly, although, Jenkins has discovered the fitting purchaser: his daughter, Julie, who together with her husband Duncan Dwyer took over possession of Jenkins Seashore earlier this yr. She’s now the fourth era of the Jenkins household to personal and function the property since her great-grandfather purchased it in 1930.
“Folks have been coming right here for a number of generations, whether or not they hire a cottage, or they bring about their household for the day to swim or boat,” Julie Jenkins stated. “We don’t need to change that. We don’t need to lose one thing that’s so treasured to how folks get pleasure from their summers in Maine.”
However Jenkins Seashore nonetheless wants an replace. The three rental cottages are being absolutely renovated and upgraded with warmth pumps and web, two new rental models shall be added within the coming months, and the primary constructing and snack bar shall be reworked as properly.
The seaside itself — round 2,000 sq. yards of sand trucked in over the many years to create a sandy space the place there by no means naturally was one — will see new docks and floats.
To try this, the brand new homeowners received’t be opening the seaside to the general public till the latter half of the summer season, and just for a number of weekends at that. That means, subsequent summer season, Jenkins Seashore can reopen with a recent new search for the following era.
Many longtime household companies in Maine — particularly these within the service or recreation industries — aren’t in a position to proceed as subsequent generations determine they don’t need to tackle the enterprise. Julie Jenkins is aware of that, which is why she desires to maintain it going regardless of her and her husband having their very own established careers.
“It’s positively a labor of affection,” she stated. “I simply assume it’s actually essential to verify folks nonetheless have entry to one thing like this. Not all people is fortunate sufficient to have their very own camp, so we are able to form of be that Maine camp for them.”
Folks swimming at Jenkins Seashore in 1949
Article from Jul 29, 1949 The Bangor Each day Information (Bangor, Maine)
Jenkins Seashore initially opened round 1920 as Peterson’s Seashore, named for the household from which William Partridge Jenkins, Joe Jenkins’ grandfather, purchased the property in 1930. It was standard from the get-go, with the rise of the widespread use of vehicles that means folks might simply make the trek down Route 1A from Bangor to spend a number of {dollars} for the household to have a day on the seaside or hire a ship.
By the Sixties, Jenkins Seashore would see weekends the place it was so packed you’d should park greater than a half-mile down winding Inexperienced Lake Highway. Competitors was fierce for good spots to put a blanket on the seaside, and typically issues obtained out of hand — a minimum of, till the Jenkins household banned alcohol in 1984.
“That basically helped gradual issues down and actually make this extra of a household institution. All these of us that wished to drink went over to Violette’s,” Joe Jenkins stated, referring to the now-closed Violette’s Touchdown, on the opposite facet of Inexperienced Lake.
When the seaside reopens full-time subsequent yr, Julie Jenkins stated they plan to have a brand new system in place to raised handle crowds, parking and leases, presumably involving on-line or telephone reservations, in order that the sometimes-chaotic days don’t return.
William Partridge Jenkins ran the seaside for a number of years within the Thirties earlier than Ray Jenkins and his spouse Phoebe, took it over. They ran it till the late Seventies, when Joe Jenkins took it over. Joe has been working the seaside ever since, however when he turned 80, the dialogue about his daughter taking it over obtained critical.
Julie Jenkins, who final yr completed a doctorate in nursing observe at Johns Hopkins College, is a longtime reproductive well being nurse practitioner, and is director of the Abortion Freedom Fund and a strategist and supervisor on the Nationwide Abortion Federation. Dwyer has a consulting agency providing workshops and coaching on hurt discount and lowering stigma round individuals who use medicine.
“Neither of us need to hand over the careers that we now have labored so onerous for,” Dwyer stated. “However we acknowledge that we are able to construct one thing stunning right here, and proceed this household enterprise that has been so particular for therefore lengthy.”
Dwyer has taken a brief go away of absence from his work to coordinate the renovations this yr, and each are ferrying between Dedham and their year-round house in New Hampshire virtually each week to make all of it work. Subsequent yr, they hope to rent a full-time, year-round supervisor to run the place.
Each Jenkins and Dwyer wished their son, 7-year-old Parker, to develop up on the lake, and achieve the identical bodily and emotional expertise that they did as youngsters, studying to swim and paddle and respect the pure world.
“We would like each child to have that form of expertise,” Jenkins stated. “I do know what it did for me rising up, and if we are able to proceed to supply that for extra generations, then I’m actually proud of the selection we made.”
