Joy Sprague awaits the mail boat that transports outbound mail to the mainland from Islesford. Sprague, the island’s longtime postmaster, has lived on Islesford since she was five days old. Photo by Katherine Emery
Joy Sprague became the youngest postmaster in the U.S. Postal Service’s history in 1977, just weeks shy of her 21st birthday. Now, at 68, she has spent more than half her life as Islesford’s postmaster, a position she doesn’t plan to give up anytime soon.
Sprague was raised in Islesford, the village on Little Cranberry Island off the coast of Mount Desert Island. As a child, she loved going to the post office, which remains one of the island’s hubs.
“Mostly it’s the people,” she said of what she loves about her job. “I love taking care of my customers.”
Long walks around her beloved island and swims in the salty sea are how she fills her days when not on duty. She is among a group of friends in a “dip of the month” club: One day each month, the group swims in the ocean from the island’s rocky shore.
Sprague, whose first name matches her personality, doesn’t think about getting older.
“What keeps me young and what brings me happiness is doing random of acts of kindness,” she said. “It’s the little things you do in a day when the opportunities come, like meeting a stranger on the street and giving a smile.”
There are also the grander acts she concocts, such as when she dressed up as an astronaut at work – helmet and all – to celebrate a new stamp commemorating the 50th anniversary of the American moon landing.
“It’s like the island is my stage,” she said, “I’m having a really great time.”
With 46 years as postmaster under her belt, Sprague has a long way to go before she catches up to the longest-serving postmaster, who held the title for 74 years.
Said Sprague: “Compared to him, I’m still wet behind the ears.”
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