Amidst all the bad news of the economy and the war, greed and violence, in this Easter week edition we have some good news. Southporter, Lynn Schafer has recently returned from her third medical mission trip to Bolivia. The humanitarian project that Lynn evaluated, now in its third year, provides help to the poorest of the people who are otherwise unable to obtain any medical care. Funding is solely through donations from Lynn's church in Whitefield; St. Denis. In addition to the medical aid, the congregation donated three hundred pair of children's sandals that Lynn delivered during her visit. For these simple gifts and for the medical aid, all recipients expressed warm gratitude. With temperatures over a hundred in Bolivia, and humidity, Lynn believes, also over a hundred, Lynn welcomed the snow storm that greeted her return.

A Southporter through her mother's long residence here, Stevie Colburn has just returned from her third trip to Guatemala, where she volunteers to help care for the children living on the Guatemala City dump. If you have not heard Stevie's explanation of her work there with the organization, Safe Passages, watch for the next opportunity and go. Her pictures of the children and tales of their lives and the lives of their parents are inspiring.

Another inspiring scene occurred on Henrick's Head beach on Monday, March 17, St. Patrick's Day. When the Pope declared that no one should celebrate St. Patrick's Day because it occurred this year during Holy Week, I think he might have given dispensation to this activity. Fifteen people signed up and secured donations for their Leprechaun Leap into the icy Sheepscot River. A mother and daughter pair leapt on Sunday, while the remaining volunteers arrived about 3:15 p.m. on Monday, a total of seven youngsters and six adults. Over 30 less hearty citizens arrived to cheer them on. Although the sun shone brightly, the northwest wind kicked up white caps and lowered the air temperature to thirty four degrees with the water about the same. Low tide exposed a wide stretch of beach on which the volunteer leprechauns lined up, with Valerie Childs, at age seven, the youngest. When Tom Witt blew the horn, the group ran toward the water, splashed in, ducked under, and hastily retreated to blankets and warm cars. Although I do not know the total raised to support the Special Olympics, I do know that one volunteer raised over $200. This activity used to be the Passion Plunge, occurring on Valentine's Day, but after two years of bitter weather on February 14, the organizers decided to move the event to the warmth of March 17.

Other gestures of kindness on the island were visible, as usual, at the library on Tuesday. Ella Beauregard brought her live bunny to share with the other children at Kathy Barter's weekly pre-school program. Kathy filled Easter baskets with marshmallow bunnies while the live bunny in Frannie Johnson's arms received strokes from young and old alike.

Our Church on the Hill, the Southport United Methodist Church, will host a noon prayer call on Maundy Thursday, March 20 and also a Holy Communion Service in the evening at 7 p.m. On Good Friday, March 21 the prayer call will begin at 3 p.m. after the noon ecumenical service at the Methodist Church in Boothbay Harbor. Saturday, March 22, the final Holy Week prayer call will be at noon. The Easter Sunday sunrise service will begin at 6:30 a.m. either at Town Landing if the weather is fine or in the church if the weather is wet or too cold, followed by a hearty breakfast at the church. A second Easter Service convenes at the usual time of 9:30 a.m. at the church.

Looking ahead we hope to see you at the Southport Island Association (SIA) Ice Breaker party at the Southport Town Hall on Saturday, March 22 from 5 to 7 p.m. If you feel inspired to bring a plate of hors d'oeuvres, please do. Tuesday, March 25, the Library Aides will meet at 1:30 p.m. at the Southport Memorial Library. Further ahead on April 27 from noon until 2 p.m. the SIA and Southport Selectmen will feed and organize volunteers to cleanup the roadside around the island. Perhaps we should impress a chain gang to resurface our roads, which have heaved and subsided more than usual this year. With the State of Maine's budget cuts, if we want improvement, we may have to do it ourselves.

A final bit of good cheer: we have crossed the line into more moments of daylight than of darkness. Spring is here!