03/07/2025
Reporter William Tracy wrote a wonderful article about the current state of the friars. It is featured in this week’s Ellsworth American …
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Friars seek fresh start, plan to list their home in Bucksport
By William Tracy Mar 5, 2025
A stained glass mural depicting St. Elizabeth of Hungary inside the chapel at Franciscan Brothers of St. Elizabeth of Hungary’s facility in Bucksport Feb. 28. She is clasping a loaf of bread as she is the designated patron saint of bakers. The friars, who are avid bakers, named their organization after her for this reason as well as for her work helping the poor.
Sitting on more than 30 acres of land, the main building is flanked by a wide field with prayer walks and a well and a smaller building used as the original brewing area for Brother Donald Paul Martel.
Two years after their popular brewery, The Friars’ Brewhouse Tap Room, closed after the sudden death of Brother Donald Paul Martel, the Franciscan Brothers of St. Elizabeth of Hungary are planning to put their Bucksport home up for sale this April.
“We have been stringing ourselves along with outside support, but it’s been downhill since his passing,” said Brother Kenneth Soucy. “It has been traumatic. No one saw his passing coming, and dealing with the fallout has made some bad memories. One day I was doing communion, and when I left my seat to go stand up, all of a sudden it came over me, and I felt like I was going to start crying. Then I looked up at the cross, and I heard in my heart the words ‘trust in me.’ I knew it was time to move.”
The sprawling 4,224 sq. ft. building sitting on more than 30 acres on Orcutt Mountain Road was designed by Brother Kenneth and features landscape views, modernized electric and heating equipment, an industrial-sized kitchen and three floors with connected plumbing. The current estimated market value is $500,130 for the building and land, though Brother Kenneth said he will sit with the board of directors to evaluate the listing price.
The listing will be the final chapter of the Franciscan order’s Bucksport story. The organization was founded in 1998 by Brother Donald and Brother Kenneth, two friends who met in Massachusetts and moved to Maine after a fateful visit from a Franciscan priest at their camp.
“We had a friend who was a priest, and one day he turned to us and asked, ‘have you ever thought about becoming Franciscans?’” Brother Kenneth said. “He planted the seed. We began looking into it and observing church services.”
Brother Donald, who Brother Kenneth said was not a man known for half measures, immediately embraced the Franciscan way of life, establishing the order with Brother Kenneth and pairing it with the duo’s love for baking. They adopted St. Elizabeth of Hungary, patron saint of bakers, as their chosen saint.
Saint Francis of Assisi was known for rebuilding the church around him with pious work and helping the needy. The brothers immediately sought to follow his example.
Brother Donald suggested opening a bakery to feed the public while helping fund their mission.
The result was the Friar’s Bakehouse, a downtown Bangor staple that operated for nearly two decades. It was around this time the friars moved into the Bucksport property.
“It really took off,” Brother Kenneth said of the bakehouse.
However, it wasn’t long until Brother Donald found a new passion. Following the long history of brewing in monastic orders, he began experimenting with brewing different beverages and sharing them with his friends, whose input encouraged him to engage in his next widescale operation, brewing for the masses.
“He originally said to me brewing was just a side hobby, but I knew with Brother Donald it was never just a ‘hobby,’ it was an obsession, and he would absorb himself with it,” Brother Kenneth laughed.
Opening in 2018 in the heart of Bucksport, The Friar’s Brewhouse Tap Room became an immediate success with locals, introducing them to a unique array of homebrewed beers as well as unusual food items such as “The Lobster Roll to end all Lobster Rolls” and “Baguette Banh Mi,” the friars’ take on a Vietnamese-style sandwich made with gently roasted lime-and-ginger-marinated pork.
The brewery’s Whoopie Pie Chocolate Porter was always on tap and became a local favorite.
To focus their efforts on the brewery, the friars closed their Bangor bakery around the time of the brewery’s opening. For the next few years, the brewery quenched the thirsts of locals and tourists alike as Brother Donald made the rounds at various media outlets to promote the business.
“Everybody knew Brother Donald, and everybody loved him,” Brother Kenneth said. “He was a larger-than-life character. He really made us stand out.”
But Brother Donald’s sudden death in 2023 halted business operations for good.
Now, said Brother Kenneth, it’s time to move on. Just as St. Francis traveled the Italian countryside as a penitent helping restore ruined chapels and reach out to the poor, Brother Kenneth said it’s time for the organization’s own pilgrimage.
Brother Kenneth said the organization, which currently has one other brother, is considering moving to a religious community in Gray, Maine, or possibly a house in Bangor. Whatever the case, he said he will never forget the hospitality of the Bucksport community and is grateful for the years he and Brother Donald got to spend in the town.
“I feel like we’ve made a lot of positive impact,” he said. “Our time here couldn’t have been any better. Everyone has been hospitable to us, and we’ve gotten to know so many people. However, the change will be liberating; it is good to start.
