Quarry Hill Honors Its Founding Director
CAMDEN, September 29, 2022 – An enclosed garden on the grounds of the Anderson Inn at Quarry Hill in Camden was the setting for an afternoon reception held September 16 in honor of the senior-care community’s first executive director, Robert McKeown.
The fete included the official unveiling of a five-foot-long garden bench donated to Quarry Hill by the McKeown family in Bob’s honor. Dozens of Quarry Hill residents, staff, family members and friends turned out for the chance to “hobnob with Bob,” enjoy refreshments and bear tribute to the leader many of them remember from his tenure at Quarry Hill, from the community’s opening in 2002 until his retirement in 2014. Speakers included current executive director Loriman Looke and his immediate predecessor Mary Sargent (now executive director at Penobscot Shores in Belfast), as well as the McKeowns’ son, Ryan.
Noting the convergence of the event with Quarry Hill’s ongoing celebration of its 20th anniversary, Looke praised Bob’s “foresight, skill, energy and perseverance” in helping to create a values-driven community that has stood the test of time.
Addressing McKeown directly, Sargent thanked him for his “tremendous contribution to the Midcoast community by bringing Quarry Hill from a concept to reality….[Quarry Hill] remains a shining example of the very best in senior living, and that is because of the strong foundation you set in tireless work and dedication.”
Designed as a surprise party for the honoree, the event caught McKeown off-guard, and he became emotional when asked to speak. He thanked those in attendance but insisted that many others share the credit for Quarry Hill’s success.
“Quarry Hill is a wonderful place, unique in the state,” he said. “It’s focused on residents, and that’s how it should always be.”
McKeown began his 36-year career with Pen Bay Healthcare, a consortium that linked Pen Bay Medical Center (PBMC) and other local healthcare organizations and would eventually include Quarry Hill, as PBMC’s manager of material services. He served as nursing home administrator at the Knox Center for Long Term Care in Rockland beginning in 1993, becoming executive director for both the Knox Center and Quarry Hill in 2001. He played a central role in the planning process that led to the creation of Quarry Hill and in the construction and development of the community itself.
