Eliah Thanhauser is co-founder and chief executive officer of North Spore, a Westbrook-based company focused on growing mushrooms for the retail and wholesale markets, cultivating mushroom spawn, and manufacturing a variety of mushroom-related products. A native Mainer, Thanhauser is an expert in greenhouse and organic farm management and ran a small organic farm in Downeast Maine before founding North Spore. These days he oversees operations and business development.
A graduate of the College of the Atlantic, Thanhauser is an avid sailor and musician and always enjoys a good business pitch competition. North Spore holds the distinction of winning both the Gorham Savings LaunchPad competition and the 3d season of the Greenlight Maine venture contests for a total of $150,000, which the team invested in the business.
Bits and Pieces | byErik Jorgensen
President Ellen Niewoehner called the April 30 meeting to order with 44 in attendance. Paul Tully opened our Friday meeting with an invocation featuring Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s “The Lighthouse”, a poem that any Portlander with a stitch of pride would swear was written about Portland Head Light. And why not? The geography checks out, the description of the place checks out, and the fact that Portland Head Light is just a few miles from downtown Portland makes it an entirely plausible destination for a man who used to think nothing of walking to Bridgton or Brunswick.
Speaking of the Head Light, mark your calendars for our June 18th picnic at Fort Williams, where you can judge for yourself whether Longfellow was writing about that place. Lunch will be followed by a public service project in the form of an invasive plant harvest.
We were all delighted to meet Ruby Lynch, who was awarded a Youth Services Scholarship. A senior at Waynflete, she was introduced by her history teacher, Nikki Dresser, who described her as a leader in many school activities, including “Glitter”, the girls’ leadership club. Ruby was nearing her goal of 100 volunteer hours when the pandemic hit. While it changed her activity mix, it did not slow her down. Ruby will be matriculating at Boston University in the fall, and she designated Girls on the Run as her charity.
Charlie Frair caused as much of a sensation as is possible on Zoom, when he and President Ellen, broadcasting from the summit of Munjoy Hill, chose the winners of the spring Rotary Raffle. The raffle took the place of weeks and weeks of foregone cans on the tables and foregone card draws. The effort raised $6,240, awarded $1,000 in prizes, leaving a tidy sum for the International Services Committee. A total of 300 tickets were sold leaving the odds of winning a prize a crisp 1 in 100. After a big build-up, Liz Fagan grabbed the first $250; Patty Erickson took second, and the Grand Winner, taking home $500, was Jennifer Sledge. Congratulations, Jennifer!
Mark your calendars for the 2021 District Conference – June 4th from 6:30-8 in the evening, and June 5th from 9-11:30 AM on Zoom.
May 19th will be our next day at the Boyd Street Urban Farm gardens – join us on that Wednesday from 2-4 for a little bit of gardening at this most unusual agricultural landmark located in the shadow of Franklin Arterial.
Have you heard? Our administrator of 15 years, Elise Hodgkin, is retiring. There is a job description available from Ellen, and if there’s a member willing to take this part-time job on, it’s an opportunity. Alternatively, if you know a person who might be interested in applying for the position, do let Ellen know.
Finally – consider coming early next week to attend the meeting of the Overdose and Recovery task force. Use the normal RotaryZoom link and tune in at 11:30 for a discussion of this important work.
Jack Carr Honored With Hall of Fame Award
Congratulations to past-president Jack Carr who was recently presented with the Community Associations Institute New England Chapter's 2021 Hall of Fame Award. Jack was recognized for his nearly 20-year career with Criterium Engineers, where he was regarded as a trusted resource for its clients. The award also cited his volunteer work in the community, something we know quite well.
Roux Institute Creates Roots | by Dick Hall
Austin Williams, Partnership Development Officer for the Roux Institute shared the story of the creation and implementation of this Northeastern University initiative during our April 30, 2021 meeting. In early November 2020, the Roux Institute opened its campus in the city's Old Port district at 100 Fore Street, sharing some of the new headquarters of corporate partner WEX, Inc. Very few Portland Rotarians knew much about Roux until we listened to Austin today.
David and Barbara Roux envisioned an institution designed to educate generations of talent for the digital and life sciences sectors, and drive sustained economic growth in Portland, the state of Maine, and northern New England. After investigating several educational institutions, they partnered with Northeastern.
The Roux Institute is very open to the community. Because Northeastern was experienced in global expansion, they already had the playbook ready. With a long history of working with the business community with co-op programs, Northeastern was already positioned to develop the partners needed. The Institute has already scaled from its initial ten partners to now with 50-plus partners from industry, business, and the community. They have also partnered with every major Maine educational institution.
A focus is to have graduates stay in Maine, because there are opportunities and an excellent life style. Today there are 200 traditional learners, and 300 corporate learners supported by the partners. Northeastern created special courses and programs specifically designed for the needs of the partners, supported by teaching staff in Portland, as well as from the Boston campus. For the January – June term, Roux has 40 co-op students who came from Boston to Maine. For the fall, they are planning on hosting 75 co-ops.
For Roux, partner development is based on sophisticated technical talent, collaborating on research for business needs, accelerating high-growth ventures, and enabling new forms of partnerships. Roux is currently providing scholarships for 80% of its students.
Students are generally mid-career professionals, with proven track record in their field, and the desire to expand their knowledge and capability. Roux covers many areas of science, but its focus is on data analytics and artificial intelligence to help partners analyze their information to make decisions about the future.
Lewis summarized the Roux Institute’s Key Performance Indicators:
May 4 marks the 60th anniversary of the Freedom Riders' bus trip, a group of civil rights activists who began their ride in Washington DC and moved through the South to challenge local laws and customs that enforced segregation in bus seating.
Speaker Schedule
May 7 | Eliah Thanhauser, North Spore Mushrooms
May 14 | Glenn Cummings, University of Southern Maine
May 21 | Ian Dorsey, Mast Landing Brewery
May 28 | NO MEETING
June 4 | Tony Cameron, CEO, Maine Tourism Association
June 11 | Wade Merritt, Maine International Trade Center
June 18 | Picnic, Fort Williams Park, Cape Elizabeth
June 25 | Dory Waxman, Executive Director, Common Threads
a Westbrook-based company focused on growing mushrooms for the retail and wholesale markets, cultivating mushroom spawn, and manufacturing a variety of mushroom-related products. A native Mainer, Thanhauser is an expert in greenhouse and organic farm management and ran a small organic farm in Downeast Maine before founding North Spore. These days he oversees operations and business development.
