Stephanie McSherry has a vision for the Merry barn in Edgecomb. And after receiving approval from the town’s planning board Dec. 6, what once was a local dance hall will now be a literacy center for the area’s writers, educators and schoolchildren.

McSherry, a Newcastle resident and an educator for 20 years, is a literacy coach at Bowdoin Central School and provides graduate-level literacy courses for teachers. She said her passion is children's reading and writing.

“It should be a joyful experience,” she told the Boothbay Register. “Reading and writing is where we find ourselves and children need a space where they can be free to express themselves.”

While keeping its basic structure, the Merry barn will have an open space meeting room on the first floor with one enclosed classroom area. The kitchen, bathrooms and stairways will be Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant. McSherry wants to keep the space as flexible as possible so different groups can use it.

She sees three uses for the literacy center. First, it will be a place for schoolchildren. Starting in late June, she will offer four weeks of “writing adventures.” The first two weeks will be for children ages 7-9 and the following two will be for ages 10-13. McSherry intends to use the property as an outdoor classroom space to incorporate the natural world into the children’s programs.

Other uses for the literacy center will be as a professional development collaborative for teachers and as a creative space for local writers’ groups and book clubs. McSherry said the literacy center has been a dream of hers for the past 12-13 years and she hopes to continue working with local schools during the school year. Construction will be done by the end of May. For more information, contact McSherry at stephaniemcsherry@merrybarn.com