Sitting on a fifteen-acre green hill, just outside Presque Isle, is a dream house built with generosity and love. This story is the tale of how many people with various talents, much work and dedication, and sometimes miraculous timing, built this house over nine long years.

It began in May of 2009. Maxine Duncan was dying of cancer, and her family was no longer able to care for her or control her pain at home. She needed to go to the hospital. To try to comfort her, the family took turns sleeping in chairs beside her bed for twenty-eight long days as Maxine traveled her end-of-life journey. Those near her knew there had to be a more compassionate way to die without so much suffering.

During Maxine’s hospital stay, nurse Janet Durgin visited and expressed her passion for the philosophy of hospice care - "to enhance the value of life by controlling pain and other physical symptoms, maintaining patients' dignity, respecting their wishes, and providing emotional and spiritual support." Only two such hospice homes existed in Maine at the time, and both were in the southern part of the state.

After Maxine’s death, her son, Rick, held a meeting of people interested in establishing a hospice home for Aroostook. Citizens, doctors, hospitals, and church communities stepped up to lend support. A dream of offering compassionate patient and family care was born.

Many building sites were considered and abandoned for various reasons. The McCrum Family, Robert K. Irving of Cavendish Farms Operations, and Dr. Oglebeni all offered land, but none could be accepted due to environmental or location issues. Then, in late 2014, realtor and philanthropist Michael Scarks purchased the MBNA building in Presque Isle. In February of 2015, Mr. Scarks called Rick Duncan, saying he wanted to meet regarding the Aroostook Hospice Foundation's purchase of the property. But just before the meeting was to occur, Scarks suddenly died. A few weeks later, Rick Duncan and Mike MacPherson were invited to Portland to meet with Scark’s realty company. Rick and Mike politely explained that the building was out of their price range; that $500,000 toward a land or building purchase was all that was available. The representative quickly responded, "That's good enough". The deal was struck for the Aroostook House of Comfort.

Funding came in from every possible source: families in memory of loved ones, clubs, service organizations, businesses, and the NMCC Nurses’ Association among others. The 2013 Presque Isle Rotary Auction broke an all-time record by raising more than $407,000 for its special project—the AHOC, a testament of the community’s support. Mary Hunter organized volunteers who, to this day, are raising money through the sale of jewelry and other handmade crafts. The Davis Family Foundation of Falmouth awarded a $100,000 grant to the project. In 2012, Bob and Lynn Graves turned their annual Logan Graves golf tournament over to the Aroostook Hospice Foundation to be its fundraiser, in five years raising more than $152,000. Visiting Nurses of Aroostook signed a lease for space in the new building making care for patients very convenient and providing a steady stream of income for the AHOC.

Another important gift, which answered the vision of providing spiritual support, came from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland. Sue Bernard, a member of the advisory board, reached out to the Bishop’s office, asking if any stained-glass windows were available from closing parishes. St. Patrick’s church in Portland had closed in 2013, and one set of windows was still available two years later. The windows were graciously donated to become the focal point in the soon-to-be-built chapel.

The Aroostook County Federal Savings and Loan provided more than $1.2 million in loans to purchase the property and to refurbish the VNA office space. Machias Savings Bank funded the project to its completion, and in October 2017, the USDA provided the final financial piece with a $2.8 million loan, repaying the previous loans and funding the remaining construction costs. All the threads of time, services, connections, gifts, and dedication provided by hundreds of caring people over nine years could now be woven into the beautiful, intricate tapestry that is the Aroostook House of Comfort.

Much appreciation goes to Mark Carter of North Peak Architecture, who turned an office building into a home. Rick Nadeau of A & L Construction went beyond what was expected of a contractor, and Myrtle Tree Garden Center and Caron's Landscaping did an outstanding job installing walkways, trees, shrubs, and flowers. After nine years of dreaming and planning, the Aroostook House of Comfort celebrated its open house in April 2018.