Tl; dr – we are accepting donations for barn restoration. Scroll down to see how you can contribute 

I took a photo with the menacing sky to show the scale of the project before us. You can see how small the farmhouse is in the background. (And it’s not a small house!)

When Toby and I purchased Grasshopper Hill Farm in 2020, we arrived with the intention to bring this Oquossoc landmark back to its original purpose and beauty.

It took six years, but the house is now structurally sound and functional for daily family living. When we arrived and immediately put on a new roof and windows in the upstairs, local folks might have thought we were wealthy city slickers.

Those immediate and necessary repairs (raining and windy on the inside!) were financed by us working our W-2 jobs while we were getting the farm up and running. Slowly, we have ensured this 100-year-old farmhouse remains a viable home for others 100 years from now.

The barn project loomed. We knew it was the next thing we had to tackle, and soon. 

Somehow, the barn must have known that the house was complete — not long after the last piece of siding was nailed on the house, one foundation wall of the barn collapsed.

A dear friend and member of our community came to the rescue to stabilize the structure — his generosity saved this landmark when we didn’t have the funds available at the moment when it was necessary to leap into action.

He is continuing to work as our GC as we move into the restoration phase. We have poured one new foundation wall and will complete another that is compromised as soon as we have the funds.

I will paint the plywood and we will install new windows to keep the weather out.

Next steps include residing the entire barn, painting and repairing the roof, and repairing the second floor from decades of leaking.

We know that this farmstead has special meaning to folks who have been here much longer than we.  If you can’t make it to Sunday’s community pig roast, we welcome donations of any amount for this major undertaking.

Checks can be mailed to: Grasshopper Hill Farm, PO Box 24, Oquossoc, ME 04964

Venmo @Doris-Santoro

FYI-We don’t own the USA field or the cabin