enlarge Press Herald 2007 file

Phippsburg rescue chief Susan Jones displays an oil painting of Jane F. McLanathan. McLanathan bequeathed about $800,000 to the fire and rescue departments, whose members assisted her numerous times over the years.

CALLING ALL VOTERS

WHAT: Special town meeting to decide whether to accept a bequest of about $800,000 intended to benefit the volunteer fire and rescue departments

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday

WHERE: Phippsburg Elementary School

Residents of Phippsburg will be offered an extraordinary gift Wednesday night.

Voters at a special town meeting at the Phippsburg Elementary School will be asked to accept a bequest of about $800,000 -- funds intended to benefit the town's volunteer fire and rescue departments.

Former resident Jane F. McLanathan, who died in 2004, bequeathed her estate to fire and rescue workers, who took care of her as she grew old.

If voters approve the gift at the 7:30 p.m. meeting, the funds will be transferred from the town to the McLanathan-Phippsburg Fire and Rescue Fund.

Members of the fund's board of directors have said they would like to use the money to provide scholarships to students seeking further education in firefighting or a rescue-related field and for firefighter training.

"They (Jane and her deceased husband) wanted to make sure that future generations of Phippsburg residents received some of the same benefits they did," said Elena VanDervoort of Bath, an executor of McLanathan's estate.

VanDervoort said the McLanathans purchased the old stone schoolhouse on Parker Head in 1945. McLanathan, a fashion designer, and her husband, Richard, an art historian and museum director, restored the home. Richard McLanathan died in 1998.

As they grew older, the couple relied more heavily on town services. Friends say fire and rescue workers took Jane McLanathan to medical appointments, mowed her lawn and shoveled her driveway.

Earlier this year, the McLanathan-Phippsburg Fire and Rescue Fund was formed. It is governed by a board of 11 directors. Roger Therriault serves as the board's legal adviser.

Therriault said it took several years to sell McLanathan's home, settle her estate and set up a nonprofit corporation to oversee the fund.

If voters accept the gift, all that remains is for a probate judge to approve the transfer of funds.

"The fire and rescue people of Phippsburg worked very hard for her. She wanted those people to benefit," Therriault said. "The magnitude of this gift is extremely significant."

Everett Perkins, chairman of the Board of Selectmen, hopes voters will accept the money. He said McLanathan's generosity was sparked by the high caliber of fire and rescue workers employed by the town.

They "went above and beyond the call of duty for Jane," he said.

Staff Writer Dennis Hoey can be reached at 725-8795 or:

dhoey@pressherald.com