A candle for Maddie

Wed, 11/15/2017 - 8:00am

    Seawicks Candle Company in Boothbay Harbor is making and selling some new, pretty, blue candles.

    But they’re not just any candles. They are “Maddie” candles, named for Edgecomb Eddy School student Maddie Lorrain, who was recently diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. The 9-year-old spent much of this past summer undergoing treatment, including chemotherapy.

    “MaddieLorrain is in my youngest son’s class at Edgecomb Eddy,” Seawicks Candle Company owner Michael Gaffney said. “When we heard Maddie was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma and was spending the summer undergoing chemotherapy it broke our hearts. She's an amazing little girl. We've always said (about our candles), ‘It's so much more than wax,’ and it is.”

    Gaffney said he and his wife Cara, the business’s co-owner, knew they wanted to do something to help. “We wanted to do something good, to give back to Maddie and her family during this hard time.”

    Now the company has launched the "Maddie" candle, made with 100 percent soy wax, as are all their candles. The Maddie candle is encased in screen-printed blue glass. “I heard blue is Maddie's favorite color,” Gaffney said.

    The screen-printed design on the glass – an anchor embellished with hearts and the word ‘love’ – was designed and donated by Trosko Design in Yarmouth.

    Each candle is $28, with $20 of that being donated to the Lorrain family. The Gaffneys hope the money raised will help with medical bills and whatever else it is needed for. “I heard Maddie wants to go to Disneyland. I'm sure they could all use a vacation.”

    Gaffney said over 200 candles have been made, and he hopes to raise around $4,000. The candle has already raised $1,200 toward the cause.

    “We are so blessed to have such amazing people in our lives,” said Maddie’s mother, Kristin, in a message to the newspaper. “Words can't describe how grateful we are for Seawicks and our friends, Cara and Michael. Such an amazing thing that they have done, something we will never forget. It is things like this that make us realize how lucky we really are.”

    The business will be open for the Early Bird sale on Saturday, Nov. 18, beginning at 5:30 a.m. Candles may be purchased at the store at 8 Wharf St. or online at Seawicks.com. Check the shop’s Facebook page for hours of operation.

    “It feels good, to do good, and we appreciate the communities support,” Gaffney said. “We have two young boys and I can't fathom what they (the Lorrain family) are going through.”