Andrew (Andy) Goode is a junior at the University of Maine, Orono, studying marine science.

To help with the high cost of post-secondary education, Goode was awarded the Boothbay Region Student Aid Fund’s Eric Hodgdon Scholarship. He loves the ocean and hauled his first lobster trap at age 10. Ultimately, as a scientist, he hopes to merge his knowledge of the working waterfront and his aptitude for science to help the Earth’s oceans.

Goode has applied to Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences in East Boothbay for its annual summer Research Experience for Undergrads, or R.E.U. program. Last year he was not chosen as one of the mere eight students out of the 200 to 300 from all over the U.S. who applied. He hopes this year to be accepted and to work with ocean virus ecologist, Dr. Joaquin Martinez Martinez, from Spain, at the lab and or Benthic Marine Ecologist, Nichole Price.

Last summer Goode worked at the Darling Center in Walpole. His job involved analyzing data from horseshoe crabs.

“The Damariscotta River is one of the bigger breeding sites on the north end of this crab's breading grounds. They were being over harvested as bait in 2001 and the Dept. of Marine Resources put a ban on harvesting and sales. My job was to monitor their health at select sites,” Goode said.

Goode explained that horseshoe crabs have blue blood, which has bacterial indicating properties. Samples are taken from the crabs, then the crabs are released, keeping the species viable for further research. The blood samples are then used in detecting bacteria on surgical instruments, in medicines and in finding cancerous tumors.

Goode is currently working in the UMO lab under Dr. Yong Chen, with one of the doctor’s graduate students, Jocelyn Rennebaum. They are studying the cusk fish. The team is studying the effects of barotrauma, which is when a cusk is suddenly brought to the surface of the water and develops symptoms similar to the bends or decompression sickness. Many of these fish perish when they are caught in a lobster trap and brought to the surface rapidly. The hope is to possibly create an escape mechanism on the trap in order to release the fish back into the ocean, minimizing mortality.

The Boothbay Region High School graduate hopes to have a unique perspective when he finishes his education at UMO. Currently a local lobsterman, he understands how important the fishing industry is and his science classes help him to respect the ecology of the ocean as he seeks to blend both for the common good.

“Where I fish, a lot of people know me and I hope respect me. When I go into this field, I hope that I carry weight enough to make headway and to strive for better regulation benefitting both sides," Goode said.

Eric Hodgdon Memorial Scholarship

The Eric Hodgdon Memorial Annual Scholarship, honors the memory of Eric Hodgdon, a local fisherman, a well-known and respected member of the Barters Island community, and a selectman more familiarly known on the island as “The Mayor.” It was his children, Sarah and Kate and their families, who started the scholarship. The Eric Hodgdon Scholarship goes to a graduate of the Boothbay Region High School who, like Andrew, is pursuing a career in marine studies.