John Gormley

Seth Richards, tuna buyer, is back where he got his start, at Holbrook's Wharf in Cundy's Harbor. More than three decades ago, as a teenager, he got a job buying sea urchins for Maguro America.

Harpswell's dramatic rocky shores are a big part of what makes the town such an attractive place to live. They also make it a precarious place to call home. The great majority of the residences here depend on drilled wells for their water.

Meredith White began her education as a marine biologist while a child exploring the tidal pools around Potts Point in Harpswell. White was recently named supervisor of the state's Nearshore Marine Resources Program.

At 7:30 a.m. on Labor Day, Greg Barmore and Bill Mangum were dispensing food for guests attending the Holbrook Community Foundation's annual breakfast.

As they hunt for fish, common terns are a delight to behold. These smallish gray-and-white birds with black caps and orange beaks swoop low over the water.

A great oyster is like a fine wine. It is a creation of the place where it was cultivated. With this in mind, a group of small, independent oyster farms decided two years ago to band together and promote their oysters as the manifestation of a special kind of place: the New Meadows River.