History & Mission
ElderCare Network of Lincoln County

ElderCare Network of Lincoln County was established in the mid–1990s to help make more and better housing options available to frail elders in this rural mid-coast Maine county. While private assisted living developments abound along Maine‘s coastline, Lincoln County totally lacked options for residents unable to afford private assisted living until ElderCare Network opened its first residential care facility in 1998.

Over the decade since that first residence, Hodgdon Green, opened in Damariscotta, our organization has created a network of supportive living situations in small homes that it calls “Greens” in six additional Lincoln County villages– Boothbay, Wiscasset, Waldoboro, Jefferson, Round Pond and Edgecomb. All homes are state licensed and regulated.

Our mission has been to improve the way services are organized and provided to frail elders, whatever their income, by creating non–institutional homes that function like a regular household. Caregiving staff, some of whom live in, provide high–quality service around the clock, a homelike atmosphere and quality of life for elders.

ElderCare Network has received generous development and operational funding support from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston, MaineHousing, USDA Rural Development, MaineCare and United Way of Mid Coast Maine.

Our Philosophy
Older people should stay in their own home

Older people should stay in their own home as they want to do so and can do so with the aid and support of family members, home health care personnel and other community services.
Eventually the needs of the elderly may go beyond the ability of home care to serve them and the family’s capacity to provide support. At that point, they should be able to move to a non–institutional living arrangement within their own familiar community.

The new setting should offer attentive and personalized care and emotional support, while fostering social engagement, intellectual stimulation and as much independence as possible. Our goal is to help residents maintain existing abilities–perhaps even restore lost abilities–and to promote their self–esteem.

ElderCare Network is committed to heart–of–the–village settings, where residents have many opportunities to be part of the community and to enjoy sociability with neighbors and friends. Our small care facilities or homes are appropriate in size and scale to the villages in which they are located. 

Hard work and foresight have led to the creation of a caregiving system that offers choices, dignity and privacy (individual bedrooms or apartments) to its elderly residents, together with time for caregivers to get to know residents’ stories as well as their medical needs. We are responsive to the changing needs of older people, their families and their communities. 

Board of Directors

Allan S. Teel, M.D., President, Full Circle Family Medicine, Damariscotta

Robert Hardina, Vice President, Mid–Coast Energy, Damariscotta

Beth McPherson, Secretary & Treasurer, Community volunteer, Damariscotta

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Thomas Boudin, Chief Financial Officer, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay
Samuel Kaymen, Community volunteer, Walpole
Martha Masters, Community volunteer, Round Pond
David Morse, Vice President, Maine Public Broadcasting Network, Newcastle
Ruth Vietze, RNC, Community volunteer, Alna
Kent Whitaker, Principal, First Advisors, Damariscotta

Staff

Harry Lowd, Executive Director
Harry M. Lowd, known as Terry, assumed the position of Executive Director in December 2009. Having grown up part time in the New Harbor area, Terry moved back five years ago and became owner of Pemaquid Marine, which was recently sold. Terry has had a 35-year career in health care management; managing primarily rural hospitals in Maine, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Terry also worked as a lobbyist for a national hospital association in Washington, DC, and served as a trustee of the American Hospital Association. He chairs the Bristol Planning Board and is a member of the Bristol Budget Committee. Terry and his wife Judy have four grown children and live in New Harbor.

Sandra Guibord, Financial Manager
Sandra Guibord joined the ElderCare Network management team at the beginning of 2001. She is responsible for all business operations including financial planning, purchasing, billing, bookkeeping and compliance. Previously Sandy was executive director of Weymouth House, a nonprofit organization operating group homes for teenagers in Lincoln County. She and her husband Russ have lived in Bristol Mills since 1987.

Gayle Yost, LPN, Resident Care Manager
Gayle Yost has been Resident Care Director at Hodgdon Green for 6 years. Earlier nursing positions included Mercy Hospital, D’Youville Pavilion in Lewiston and Miles Home Health and Hospice. Gayle also has an Associate degree in business/marketing from Andover College. She has capably assembled and manages a team of Hodgdon Green caregivers and sets high care standards for residents, their families and volunteers. She lives in Damariscotta with her two daughters.