The Story Behind a Logo That Was Not to Be

As one may already know, finding a symbol that truly represents a company, a product, or a place is a difficult task. The Senior Ripper logo was no exception. There were several iterations and quite a few friends weighed in on the final selection. Sadly, my pick for a logo

was dismissed as being too old fashioned.

The one chosen, with my endorsement, is sharp and resembles the view from our home in Park City, Utah.

Call me nostalgic, but I feel the need to share the reason behind my preference for the other logo. Simply put, it harkens back to the writing on the fleet of bakery delivery trucks that my great grandfather, N.A. Cushman, put on the roads from Maine to Rhode Island from 1930-1964. His Portland based business was started as a retirement project and soon grew to be the largest bakery in New England.

An early riser, N.A. often said, according to my Uncle Dick, that if robbed, he’d prefer his money be taken rather than his time. He could always replace the money taken, but he could never recapture time lost. He was convinced that rising with the sun was an integral part of nature’s plan. He personally designed a building for early risers at the summer resort, Sebasco Harbor Resort, he built in the 1930s. The Early Bird House would shelter early risers and for a reduced rate, have early sittings in the dining room. The building’s opening was celebrated with a legendary bird house contest with cash prizes awarded for the best designs. Unfortunately, it was never as popular as he had hoped.

Sebasco was quite literally N.A.’s retirement playground. He surrounded himself with challenging obstacles to overcome. A memoir written about N.A. recounts the following story. “A neighbor gave N. A. a set of golf clubs, which intrigued him after a bit of practice. He expressed surprise that they were not for old men only. Since there was no course nearby, he had to build his own. Certainly N.A. enjoyed his golf course all the more because he helped design it, drained the marsh, planted the grass on the greens and fairway, build tees, cut paths – and all the other necessary tasks of transforming a wilderness into a playable course. He carried his own clubs without the aid of a caddie, for his light sailcloth bag had no more than the five basic clubs he had been given. He contended that “a fancy leather bag and a lot of clubs with mittens never improved any man’s game.” He trotted rather than walked around the course. On the greens, after putting, he hovered over the ball as it rolled, ordering it into the cup. The ball usually obeyed!”

Sebasco Harbor Resort continues to be a playground for visitors to Maine from far and wide. Many of the challenges that N.A. designed for the resort are still there for all ages to enjoy. For this effort, I bequeath the title of Senior Ripper on my esteemed great grandfather, Nathan Augustus Cushman and urge you all to visit and grab a round of golf, some lobster and some awesome sunsets!