by Ardeana Hamlin
of The Weekly Staff
An afternoon of food, fun and fabulous kitchens promises to be a highlight of fall as the Eastern Maine Medical Center Auxiliary presents its 10th annual Kitchen Tour noon-4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 27. The tour will include a mix of seven unique kitchens, one in Brewer, five in Bangor and one in Orono.
One of those kitchens, belonging to Dan Moellentin, is decorated in an Early American style with French overtones using period antiques where possible, Moellentin said.
“I wanted to donate my time and effort to the charity,” he said of his decision to include his kitchen on the tour. He worked for many years at EMMC, but how is an associate professor of pharmacy at Husson University.
Moellentin’s house, built in 1818, once belonged to Joshua Chamberlain, and those who go on the kitchen tour will have access to parts of the downstairs rooms in the original part of the house where Chamberlain was born. Moellentin has owned the house for six years.
“It’s important for people to understand that when you have an older home it takes a lot of thought to decorate and make an older house work with modern appliances. The kitchen has an 1850s French buffet. All the decorations belong an earlier period, including old-fashioned iceboxes. The kitchen cabinets were made to match the iceboxes,” Moellentin said.
Teacher Sally Benner and husband Daniel Benner, whose kitchen is also in the tour, said highlights of her kitchen include green granite with flecks of rust counter tops, cherry cupboards, stainless steel appliances and wood floors. The walls are painted a shade of pale rust to complement the cherry cupboards.
The Benner home, a condominium in a brick building with views of the Penobscot River, has an open concept. “At first, we thought we’d bought a bowling alley,” Sally Benner laughed, “because it’s long — with the kitchen, dining and living areas all in one open space.”
The Benner’s have lived in the condo for two years. “It’s bright and sunny, and people are always surprised at how large it is,” Benner said. The Benner home has 2,100 square feet of space, which is heated by natural gas, and has a contemporary feel. Some of the appliances also are powered by natural gas.
The kitchen, and other rooms, are furnished with natural cherry furniture from Chilton’s in Freeport.
“We wanted to downsize and were looking for simple living, coming home and relaxing, watching the boats on the river, no lawns to mow,” Benner said. “We also have a deck that overlooks the river where we eat meals in summer. It’s everything we need.”
The kitchen in Susan Carlisle’s home, built in 2006, features glass front cabinets displaying an art glass collection, artwork by Maine artists, granite countertops and wood floors made bright with Oriental runners.
“Basically, it’s a very close replica of the kitchen I designed in my previous home. I knew what I wanted to go where, and chose all the same things — a bay window, a sink back to back with the stove, and the island — everything that works for me,” Carlisle said. “This house has what I like to call a lot of ‘jewelry’ — crown molding, a lovely banister, a kind of Craftsman-cottagey feel, a lot of [special] touches. It makes me feel good to come home to.”
Other homes on the tour belong to John and Linda Rohman, Martha Fogler, Dr. Barbara Sorondo and Andrea Oldenburg.
Tour participants will enjoy samples from these Maine companies including food, drink and other products that will be available at each home:
• The Whoopie Pie Cafe.
• Savage and Sons Coffee.
• Logging Camp Comfort Food.
• Brayer Ridge Soap.
• Savour Chocolatier.
• Tea Maineia.
• The Purple Pear.
• Oats Any Time.
• EMMC Auxiliary Cookbook treats.
Proceeds will benefit the Pediatric Oncology and Hematology Services and EMMC’s Raish Peavey Haskell Children’s Cancer and Treatment Center in the Lafayette Family CancerCare Center in Brewer.
Tickets are $25 and will be available are available at emmcauxiliary.org and at the EMMC Gift Shop, Patrick’s Hallmark, Rebecca’s Gift Shop, Huckleberries, Anthony John’s, the Cianchette Building and Miller Drug Westgate.
The auxiliary was established in 1893. Since its inception the Auxiliary has contributed more than $3.3 million dollars to the hospital and its programs, ‘doing good work’, and directly supporting the community. Some of the auxiliary’s most recent donations benefiting the community include a $500,000 pledge to the Champion the Cure capital campaign for the Lafayette Cancer Center in Brewer, $4,000 for nursing scholarships yearly and $13,500 to Children’s Miracle Network last year to benefit children in eastern and northern Maine.
Kitchen Tour committee members are Lauren Applebee and Paula Ballesteros, co-chairs; Eileen Hernandez, president; Ginger Ward-Green, past president; Cindy Curran, vendors and signage; Sarah Quirk, hostess and homeowner social; Valerie Patch, tickets; Helen Genco, publicity; Suzette Vernon, publicity; Mary Brooks, Jamie Cronin, Susan Nasberg, Betsy Simpson, Chelsea Sullivan, Suzette Vernon and Martha Wildman, Auxiliary liaison.
Visit emmcauxiliary.org to purchase tickets and to see photos of the kitchens on the 10th annual Kitchen Tour.