Islesboro resident Ed Girvin has been chosen as Maine’s Volunteer of the Year. This award came as no surprise to the island community, which is very familiar with Ed Girvin’s willingness to lend a helping hand. He has gained great respect and admiration in the island community he and his wife, Alice, have called home for over a decade.
For 20 years the Governor’s Services Awards program has recognized the exemplary work of Maine’s volunteer community. The program celebrates commitment, leadership, innovation and active citizenship in the state of Maine. Nominations for the awards are received in October and presented at the State Capitol Building during National Volunteer Week in April.
Islesboro resident Lisa Boardman nominated Ed Girvin for his extraordinary to the Islesboro Community Center project. Boardman wanted both Ed and Alice, his wife of 52 years, to receive this award, because Alice is a true partner in Ed’s volunteering ventures. “What sets Ed and Alice Girvin apart from so many other decent, thoughtful people is that they choose action above all else,” Boardman writes. “They see a need and they address it.” The Governor’s Volunteer of the Year Service Award can only be presented to one person each year, so Lisa nominated Ed with the disclaimer that his wife, Alice, is at the very heart of his good works.
Ed and Alice have shared a lifetime of volunteer service. Both were lay missionaries for the Presbyterian Church in Pakistan where Ed set up a vocational school. Together and individually they have served in a wide variety of organizations, such as the YMCA health board, youth organizations in churches and for the Kid’s Project. Both have volunteered with Habitat for Humanity, helping to build homes in North Carolina, Pennsylvania and New Mexico before coming to settle in Maine in 1993 as residents of Islesboro.
Ed and Alice hail from the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania area. Ed met Alice while attending Drexel University in Philadelphia where he earned a degree in mechanical engineering. Ed was in the Army, has worked at the Corning glass factory, and owned and managed a 20-acre farm outside of Philadelphia. They have two children and five grandchildren and maintain strong ties with them. Their connection to Maine has to do with their love of camping and skiing. They were among the early patrons of the Sugarloaf ski resort.
In 1990 the Girvins traded an old steel trawler for land on Islesboro. Later they sold that piece of land and purchased another that included a log house. They settled into island life year-round after adding an addition to the house. As Lisa Boardman remembers it, “Ed and Alice had barely unpacked their belongings in 1993 when Ed was asked to be foreman of the Islesboro Affordable Property project. He accepted and his combined organizational and carpentry skills contributed to the building of eight houses. Word got around that Ed Girvin was a proven and capable volunteer. Soon, he was asked to fill in after one of our selectmen stepped down.”
Girvin ended up serving as selectman for five years. When the Ambulance Association needed a treasurer, Ed volunteered. When the Second Baptist Church needed a treasurer, he volunteered. He has also served at the church as a deacon, moderator, finance director and, along with church member Buddy Bethune, transformed the old scout hall building into a church office. He builds custom designed chairs and furniture for children with disabilities for the Pine Tree Agency. He was treasurer of the Islesboro Historical Society for three years, and both he and Alice are Penobscot Bay Marine volunteers.
Alice’s list of volunteer activities is just as long. According to Ed, Alice is more a “little acts of kindness” type of volunteer. She often takes people who can’t drive to their doctor’s appointments, runs errands, delivers flowers, and generally helps those in need in a quiet and caring manner. She has worked with the Red Cross blood drive for over eight years, and helped organize and run the church’s Thursday luncheon program, which feeds 40-60 people weekly. She has been a church deacon, served as a member of the Islesboro Community fund, and was an ambulance driver and their treasurer.
For several years Alice was a volunteer reader at the school, working individually with students who needed that little bit of extra help and attention.
The respect and care that the island community feels for the Girvins is mutual. Ed says that the community has made them feel at home on the island, even though they know they will always be “from away.” They like the way people care for one another. As Ed says, “If someone is sick, a spaghetti dinner turns up.” The Girvins are impressed by the integrity and friendliness of islanders, and that affairs are often settled and done on a trusting handshake. The Girvins love their community and enjoy island life.
Those in the Islesboro community who know the Girvins and have benefited from their volunteer spirit, echo the words of Lisa Boardman, “Ed and Alice are not only good people. They make good things happen.”