HOLDEN, Maine — The Rotary Club of Bangor on Tuesday presented the final payment on its $100,000 pledge to Sarah’s House, a hospitality dwelling in Holden for adult cancer patients and their loved ones.
The presentation was made during the club’s noon meeting at Wellman Commons on Union Street. The product of a 2012 pledge, the gift is the largest single contribution the club has made in the community. The funds were raised through the club’s annual Music Off Broadway shows as well as donations from members.
Sarah’s House was the dream of Sarah Robinson, a young wife, mother and Old Town Rotarian who was diagnosed with cancer in 2010.
Sarah and her husband, Ben, had to travel from Old Town to Boston for treatment. Through that experience, they learned about places where cancer patients could stay for little or no cost during their treatment, according to Sarah’s House of Maine’s website.
When Sarah returned to the Lafayette Family Cancer Center in Brewer, she met patients who, like her, had traveled hundreds of miles and spent hours in the car, driving from Maine’s most rural areas for treatment.
“Sarah’s House was a dream of fellow Rotarians to provide a home away from home for patients receiving cancer treatment in the area,” club President Deb Sanford said. “The Bangor club was committed to assist in making this house a reality for Sarah.”
Jennifer Wilson, who was the club’s president when the promise was made, noted that the pledge was a five-year commitment fulfilled in three years.
Sarah’s House is the region’s first and only cancer hospitality house for adults, serving patients and their families from northern and eastern Maine who must travel for treatment. Two guest bedrooms in the house have been named in honor of Rotary Club of Bangor’s $100,000 gift. For more information about the house and its mission or to make a donation, visit sarahshouseofmaine.org.