SADC on The Go

“Who is SADC?”
    Editor’s Note: Everyone knows that SADC is a local organization and many know that its main charge is to market the region to businesses from away that are looking to expand their operations and/or to relocate.  An organization is made up of people. Many don’t know, however, the players that make up SADC.
    This is the fourth in a series of articles in which we will be featuring the board members that make up SADC and who are so crucial to its success.
    John Fitzpatrick has been on the SADC Board of Directors for several years. In his capacity as a Houlton Town Councilor, he has given the board an important liaison between the town and SADC, keeping both parties informed and educated as to the important issues of the day.
    Fitzpatrick, a life-long resident of Houlton, is a graduate of Houlton High School and the former Northern Maine Technical College in Presque Isle where he took several courses in business management.  Married to his wife, Nancy, for 48 years, they have three children, Patty Hersey of Houlton, John Fitzpatrick of Tucson, Ariz., and Mike Fitzpatrick of Houlton. In addition, they are the proud grandparents of seven grandchildren, Nick and Ian Crane of Houlton, Mariah Crane of Orono, Jordan and Rachael Fitzpatrick of Tucson, Ariz. and McKenna and Mikey Fitzpatrick of Houlton.
    Fitzpatrick retired from Coca-Cola in Presque Isle as general manager in 2000, where he was responsible for the day-to-day operations of the bottling plant and attaining sales and profit goals. He was responsible for the annual operating budget and managed 23 full-time and four part-time employees.
    Always a civic-minded citizen, with past associations with organizations like the Presque Isle Rotary and boards at UMPI, MMTC, Presque Isle Chamber of Commerce and the Northern Maine Fair, Fitzpatrick remains just as active today with the Houlton Town Council and SADC.
    His hobbies are as extensive as his committee work and include snowmobiling, riding ATVs, grooming the snowmobile trails, woodworking and going to his beloved camp.
    When asked why he became a director of SADC he stated: “I accepted the directorship on the SADC board while on the Houlton Town Council. Economic development was one of my goals when I ran for council and SADC is the premier organization in Houlton making the town move forward. ‘On the Go’ is their slogan and we are ‘On the Go!’”
       SADC continues to push forward with its mission to attract and guide new business to southern Aroostook for the betterment of our area. SADC is a private/public-funded partnership and if interested in contributing to our efforts or attending one of our board meetings as a guest please contact the office at (207) 521-0157.