Sending out ripples of good cheer

By DEIRDRE FLEMING, Staff Writer

Copyright © 2005 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.

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	Staff photo by John Patriquin Kristin Wilson, left, and Ted Regan paddle toward Peaks Island last Sunday on Rippleffect's Casco Bay caroling expedition.
	Staff photo by John Patriquin Rippleffect carolers, from left, Aaron Frederick, Ted Regan, Oliver Dominick and Tay Veitch, sing from their kayaks last Sunday.
	Staff photo by John Patriquin The "carol-akers" link up to serenade Casco Bay Lines ferry riders at the Peaks Island dock.
	Staff photo by John Patriquin Kayakers paddle into position for their singing performance at Peaks Island. This is the fourth year that a group from Rippleffect has serenaded islanders at Christmastime.

COW ISLAND — Somewhere in Casco Bay, a buoy, a seagull and two dogs in a motorboat were serenaded last Sunday.

It was an accident, this dress rehearsal at sea, but this is what a slightly haphazard holiday sing-a-long and four-year maritime tradition gets you.

"Joy to the World." "O Come All Ye Faithful." "Deck the Halls." And, what else? "I Saw Three Ships."

A half-dozen kayaks strung together elbow-to-elbow floated as six carolers searched for harmony, fished for rhythm and came up with nothing but laughter (and a lovely baritone or two).

Moments earlier, they had raced from Cow Island — where a pit stop evolved into too much buffoonery — to try to sing for people aboard the Casco Bay Lines ferry at Long Island.

The six determined paddlers from Rippleffect came out the week before Christmas to warm the ferrygoers at a lonely island time of year.

They carried in their watercraft carol books and melodious song — or spirit, anyway.

But their first stop never materialized.

They were a good 10 minutes late getting to Long Island and the ferry was already pulling away, leaving behind paddlers adorned with Santa hats trying to pull together a verse.

This, in many ways, is typical Rippleffect: Big dreams, big efforts, but a tiny staff that falls a step or two short at times.

However, as the co-founders of the outdoor program for at-risk youths have seen: Sometimes, you need only believe.

Sometimes, as the six Rippleffect paddlers learned by the end of the day, even the most haphazard, ill-planned endeavors can turn to magic — in a New York minute.

"OK. I understand where that came from. But you need to wear one of these," said Betsy Parker of Falmouth, a Rippleffect board member.

And with that, she handed an outsider and native New Yorker a red polyester Santa hat to replace her nice, heavy (read: warm) "I Love NY" hat.

This get-it-done attitude is exactly the kind of lesson Rippleffect seeks to pass on to young people at its summer camps on Cow Island.

Be in the spirit. Be one with the group. Tell about yourself. Break some bread. And, above all else, sing out loud.

The truth is, these mad paddlers have it right.

With all due respect to journalism ethics: You can't just be an observer of carol-aking at the holidays.

So the six became seven, and, as dusk approached, the festive flotilla sent at least one ferry away full of song.

The 52-degree waves merely became the path for the pilgrimage. The Casco Bay swells were only a stage for the sing-a-long.

And on a sunny Sunday in December, the wake of the Machigonne II ferry made seven multicolored kayaks dance.

Certainly, precautions such as wet suits, windbreakers and hot liquids were paramount to this journey.

But boating traffic, icy docks and frozen fingers aside, challenges were nothing new for this breed of Christmas caroler.

Everyone knows: It ain't easy being an elf.

OPPORTUNITY AHEAD

The idea of making it to the 2:30 p.m. Peaks Island ferry rejuvenated the group's fallen spirits after missing their chance at Long Island. That, and several minutes of chorus practice.

"We're ready for a record label," said Rippleffect co-founder Aaron Frederick.

"I can be the face of the new boy band," said Tay Veitch, a Rippleffect board member, dressed in a purple elf hat and pair of Boys to Men-looking shades.

So the kayaks, dressed up in poinsettias and red satin ribbons, moved toward Peaks Island.

This united kayak adventure was just one of many paddle trips that symbolized the Rippleffect mission.

"That's what we do every summer on Cow Island: build common ground," Frederick said.

Rippleffect was formed five years ago, after Ted Regan and Frederick paddled from Maine to Key West, Fla., in an effort to educate youth about the dangers of AIDS. They used kayaking — a risky activity — as a metaphor.

When they returned, inspired by the 2,300 youths they reached, they formed Portland's own outdoor adventure school, where self-esteem is built through adventure and wilderness programs.

The two men bought Cow Island, built the full-time staff and worked to bring awareness to this tiny organization housed at the back of Portland Yacht Services.

With its three-person full-time staff about to grow by one, Regan thinks Rippleffect is at the point of going national. He may be right.

Rippleffect is working with L.L. Bean to make the paddle-sport outdoor school one of just three nonprofits that the giant retailer has featured in its summer catalog and Freeport store, and the only one based in Maine.

The Nature Conservancy and the Appalachian Mountain Club are the other two.

"(2006) will be a watershed year for us," Regan said.

'HEAVEN AND NATURE SING'

After making it to Peaks with plenty of time to spare, the kayakers had a bit of a buffet on the shore.

Then, just before the party erupted into a real show stopper, Veitch gathered the troops.

"What time is it, Ted? Because, it would be a wicked (shame) if the ferry was coming in," he said pointedly.

So, with 10 minutes to spare, the carolers jumped in their kayaks and pushed off.

"Wouldn't it be a great if there was actually someone on this ferry?" Oliver Dominick asked.

"Does it matter?" Frederick mused. "We've already set an amazing precedent for singing carols to no one at all."

That almost happened again.

Just as all seven kayaks were nearly in the water, Regan's chocolate lab decided to join the group, which sent several kayakers into a state of mayhem.

A good five minutes of practice was lost trying to block Reach's path and turn the hearty swimmer to shore.

Then, just as the ferry docked, the seven kayaks linked together in time, exclaiming as they did that, "Heaven and nature sing," and "Shepherds quake at the sight."

Veitch looked up with some dismay at the confused passengers walking away, promising the disinterested:

"The 5 o'clock show is completely different."

The rest of the carol-akers were not discouraged.

They sang for themselves, they sang for the gulls and the hope of any melody.

They moved from song to song, flipping pages, having no idea what song was next, who should decide, or basically, what they were doing.

As songs were quickly dropped and changed, Frederick tried to help a lost carol-aker:

"Dashing through the snow. In a one horse open sleigh. That's the wrong page you jerk. Laughing all the way."

Fortunately, the four male kayakers, singing like a barbershop quartet, didn't miss a beat . . .

Until one of the others commented on the passing pigeons, with: "Look! Doves!"

That's when Frederick, a nice tenor, buckled over laughing.

All the while, passengers heading to Portland began boarding the ferry.

And, as they did, an amazing thing happened (at least in the mind of a carol-aker).

Some walked out to the deck, a group of three came out to sing and a few teenage girls waved.

A small, vocal audience gathered, and even shouted requests.

Finally, as the Machigonne II pulled away, the journey's reward came in a brief, unexpected winter moment.

It lasted only seconds. But it was well beyond the paddlers' hopes.

The ferrygoers clapped. The day of movement, sweat and cold was not for naught.

"That was the best carol-aking moment ever," Frederick said.

Staff Writer Deirdre Fleming can be contacted at 791-6452 or at:

dfleming@pressherald.com

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