EMBDEN — A longtime community benefactor, philanthropist and business owner will be honored July 4 with the dedication of a granite bench on the spillway dam at the Embden Pond boat landing.
The dedication of the bench in the name of the late Henry Hinman is set for 11:30 a.m., to be followed by the annual Independence Day boat parade.
The bench was donated by the Embden Pond Association and will be presented to the Hinman family by Jane and Paul Roullard, longtime family friends, according to an event notice from Maureen Mikal.
Henry J. Hinman Jr., 73, died July 8, 2016, at his home in Embden, according to his obituary. He is survived by his wife, Ellen, of Sarasota, Florida.
Henry Hinman was born July 4, 1943, in Sarasota, Fla., the son of Henry J. Hinman Sr. and Yvonne (Willis) Hinman.
He graduated from Maine Central Institute in Pittsfield in the class of 1962. Henry then attended the University of Maine at Orono. While there, he met his future wife of 52 years, Ellen Gouley, originally of Milo. They were married in North Anson on Aug. 20, 1964.
Henry was the owner and president of North Anson Reel Co. and Forest Products Supply for many years. He was the founding member of the Seaplane Pilots Association in Florida.
“He loved to fly and considered himself a bush pilot.” the obituary reads. “He loved to go fast no matter what he was driving. An avid automobile enthusiast, he was definitely a motor head, first and foremost.”
Mikal said Hinman and his wife lived during the summer on Embden Pond for 50 years. They were responsible for getting a new spillway for the pond and paid for most of the construction of it.
The couple also donated funding for a new freshman dormitory — Hinman Residential Hall — at Thomas College in Waterville. The hall opened in August 2014. Hinman Hall’s residents live in “pods” or wings with 27 students each. The rooms are a mix of single and double rooms with shared bathrooms and common lounge areas. Each pod has a resident adviser, and rooms are air-conditioned.
Every student has access to cable TV in rooms and in the lounges, computer workstations, and a full kitchen. The second and third floors have quiet study rooms, and the computer laboratory is open 24 hours a day.
In 2001, The K & C Quint Memorial Health Center in North Anson, then a department of Inland Hospital, received a substantial donation from Henry and Ellen Hinman for state-of-the-art X-ray equipment.
“We just wanted to enhance the health care capabilities of this clinic,” Henry Hinman said after a dedication ceremony that year. The Hinmans made the donation in their daughter’s name. Natalie Kay Hinman died at age 38.
“We just thought it would be a good thing to do, so her name would be remembered as well,” Henry Hinman said at the time.
Doug Harlow — 612-2367
Twitter:@Doug_Harlow
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