Profile: Missy Hatch

Missy (right) with her husband and former apprentice Vern Spinoza, "the most enduring gift from my Ashop days," in her words.

by Nina Noah

Like any organization that’s been in existence for a long time, The Apprenticeshop is ripe with its own lore. You hear stories from the “old days”, tales of yurt living, of taking turns on docent duty, of sailing in the capricious winds of the Kennebec.

Over the last seven years, one of the names I’ve heard mentioned over and over again is Missy Hatch’s, which is why it was so nice to finally put a face to the name when she strolled into the office a little over a month ago. I had reached out to her over email with a request to look over a timeline of people and projects we had been putting together as one of the many re-connection projects spurred by our 50th anniversary. After several correspondences back and forth, I asked if she would be willing to come in for an interview, which she was.

Missy in the bow on one of the oars of a Pete Culler Surf boat.

Missy, who grew up on Islesboro, came to the 'Shop in 1979. She had inherited her grandfather's wooden catboat and wanted to learn the skills to be able to fix it. After hearing about the ‘Shop from a friend, she signed up for an internship. Usually, this involved a 3 week stint working on a communal Susan Skiff. However, Missy ended up staying for 8 weeks. One of the first projects she was assigned to involved going up to Roque Island with apprentices Vern Spinoza and Kevin Carney to find spar material for a pinky schooner the ‘Shop was building. “We worked in the woods, rode horses, hung out on this amazing saltwater farm…what a way to start off at the ‘Shop!” she remembered fondly.

Missy discussing the breasthook on a Susan Skiff with primary instructor Dave Foster.

After returning home from her internship, Lance called to tell her that her father had purchased the Susan Skiff she worked on (which she still has!) and then offered her a job for the winter. At first, it involved cleaning up after Lance, who she describes as a "horizontal filer," asking questions, sorting papers, and gathering stories. She was working with Steve McAllister and Betty Hadden at the time - “we got along famously,” she recalls. She also loved being a part of the community of apprentices. “I felt like I had a bunch of brothers.”

From left to right: An unidentified volunteer, Sam Johnson, John Beltman, Eric Hass, Steve McAllister, Jim Withers, Missy Hatch, Rob Stevens. Photo taken from “The Once and Future Apprenticeshop.”

Missy started her full time position at the ‘Shop in 1981. “I had cleaned off enough space in the office to have a desk of my own.” In her new role, she was paid to learn graphic design with Mike de Lesseps, a Madison Avenue Executive who had taken an interest in the ‘Shop. She was then tasked with designing and creating brochures and publications for the 'Shop, as well as representing the organization at boat shows.

In 1982, as things fell apart in the Bath Apprenticeshop, Missy migrated with the organization to Rockport, commuting with Betty each day via unheated van until Betty retired and Missy made the move north to be closer to the new shop. In Rockport, she began work on The Apprentice, writing and taking pictures for each journal that came out. “That job suited me,” she reflected, “It wouldn’t have been a good fit to be an apprentice, but I loved working here.”

Issues of The Apprentice from winter of 1985 and fall of 1990.

Missy was a fixture of the 'Shop for the rest of the decade. “The ‘Shop continued to be my world. Vern and I got married. He was off for a while after his apprenticeship and then Lance called him back to take Dave Foster’s place as an instructor for 4-5 years.” She recalls memories of the once a week coffee breaks of that era, “I would make a big pot of coffee, get donuts, and sometimes cut hair for the apprentices.” She also chuckled as she remembered how Vern would work late into the night on a project and then sleep in the boats. “There was a shop cat who would jump in and sleep with him!”

Missy taking lines with David Dillion, who did many of the lines drawings of ‘Shop-built boats, and apprentice Mike Geer.

Missy left the ‘Shop in the '90s, along with many of the other staff members who had been with the organization through the previous decade. Though she left for health reasons, she also recalls that “some things were shifting at that time. It was getting harder to maintain the ‘labor for learning’ model. The ‘Shop was transitioning to paid programs and was running as the Artisans College.”

When I asked Missy how her time at the 'Shop impacted the course of her life afterward, she quipped, "You mean besides getting my husband out of it?” Considering the question more seriously, she said, “Good friends who I’m happy to see even if I don’t see them all the time, the 'just do it' attitude, an ethos of living more simply, appreciating the basics, not necessarily looking for the easy way out, and working with your hands...The 'Shop wasn't just a job for me. It was a lifestyle, a doorway into myself. Once you've found that doorway, you carry it with you wherever you go."