Construction on the new home is exepected to begin next year.
NEW GLOUCESTER – Opportunity Farm will name its newest girls’ home in honor of one of the most prominent political leaders in the nation: Maine Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe.
“She’s perfect. She’s the perfect role model for our girls,” said Julie Poulin, director of community relations for Opportunity Farm.
Founded in 1910 as an orphanage for boys, the farm has evolved into a residential, family-style group home for troubled children. In 2002, the first of three planned girls’ homes was built.
It was named the Barbara G. Welch House for a physical therapist and longtime trustee who died last year.
When looking for a name for the second house, which will be built in 2004-05, the Board of Trustees wanted another role model, Poulin said. They wanted someone in which the girls could find inspiration.
They considered only Snowe.
Born in Augusta and raised in Auburn, Snowe has dealt with many of the challenges that Opportunity Farm’s girls are facing. Orphaned as a child, Snowe was raised by her aunt and uncle. In the early 1970s, she had to overcome another loss when her husband, Peter Snowe, died in an automobile accident.
“But yet she rose above all that and has just accomplished more than a lot of people probably thought she could,” Poulin said.
Snowe accepted the Opportunity Farm honor earlier this year. The farm announced the new home’s name last week.
A spokesman for Snowe’s office said she was touched by the tribute.
“It’s certainly an honor for the senator,” Ted McEnroe said.
When it’s completed, the Sen. Olympia Snowe House will be home to three staff members and six to eight girls. It is expected to open in one to two years.
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