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Baldacci has embraced tradition, moving to the governor's residence in Augusta, hosting high teas, and, in her words, being the "constant" in the life of the couple's only child, Jack, 14. An avid gardener, Baldacci grows vegetables on the grounds and cans them. But she also embraces the new role of first lady, throwing her energies into, and putting her name behind programs in her areas of expertise: children, education, and dietary health
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"You grow into what you think the position ought to be, because you define it," Baldacci says. "John always says that you get out of it what you put into it. I see being first lady as a great opportunity, working on issues that I think are important, affecting the lives of Mainers."
Karen Weston was born in Kittery, the third of four children. Her family moved around a lot, owing to her father's Air Force career, and they spent time in Maine during the summers. When her father retired, the family moved back in time for Karen's seventh grade year, living for a year on a farm in Abbot before moving to Dexter.
A graduate of Dexter High School and the University of Maine, she married a young Bangor city councilor named John Baldacci in 1983, and settled in his hometown. A registered dietician, Karen Baldacci spent six years after college working with patients at St. Joseph Hospital, then 12 years at Maine WIC, the state's food and nutrition program for women, infants, and children. There, she screened nutritionally at-risk children and pregnant women, providing education and nutritional food packages.
When John became a congressman, Karen stayed in Bangor. In 2000, she completed UMaine's Masters of Teaching program, an accelerated track to an M.A. and teaching certificate, and started teaching kindergarten. She enjoyed working with five- and six-year-olds, building foundations, creating a learning environment, and starting the educational process.
"Children that age are wonderful to work with," she says. "They want to learn. They have such wonder about life. Curiosity. Interest. There's just a love about them." As first lady, Baldacci combines her passions into a slew of "initiatives." She heads the governor's task forces on early childhood and sustainable local agriculture, leads efforts to increase literacy, and runs a program to develop young artists by displaying children's artwork throughout the state capitol complex.
"There are some issues and causes that I believe in and I think that lending my name or putting my efforts behind them can help," Baldacci says. "It's fun, engaging, and time-consuming, but John and I both live in the moment and we realize our time is limited. I love sharing. I love raising visibility."
Baldacci refers to herself, half-jokingly, as an unpaid volunteer. "You come into this, and you have no job description," Baldacci says. "You have no staff. You have no budget. You have no office. You're kind of an unrecognized entity out there. What I have here, I've carved out."
She's carved it to fit her vision of what the first lady can do, and what a mother needs to do. For the most part, Baldacci keeps her work to an 8-to-5, Monday-through-Friday schedule, making sure she has time to eat breakfast and dinner with Jack, and to attend as many of his baseball and basketball games as possible.Her time is in demand, but Baldacci keeps her life balanced by limiting her nighttime and weekend appearances, and by keeping her activities focused within her expertise.
Baldacci may be most proud of Maine Reads Community Literacy Project (www.mainereads.org), in part because it was her creation. The program helps Maine libraries increase literacy through events and grants.
In the shadow of the statehouse and the governor, Baldacci has found fulfillment. The journey is, she admits, a constant learning process, always striking a balance between work and motherhood, and playing an effective role without being too public or too political.
"A lot of people say, 'You're not the elected one,'" Baldacci says. "I don't overstep that bound. Believe me, I know the boundaries. I don't get involved in a lot of policy. I don't get involved in politicking across the street, but I'm very supportive."
Maybe that's what made the transition to first lady work. Baldacci admits that she misses earning a paycheck, working with children on a daily basis, and Bangor. She also doesn't much like the attention that being first lady brings, in terms of people wondering what she's wearing and what she's doing. When her car was rear-ended in 2002, it was a local news story. But she feels welcome in Augusta, enjoys initiative work, and understands that her visibility gives her causes a boost.
"Taking this job was an opportunity for John to do a lot of the things he's always wanted to accomplish," she says. "It's an opportunity for me, too. I thoroughly believe in the judgment of my husband. His competency. His ability. He's done wonderful things."
After the election, many wondered whether the Baldaccis would move to the Blaine House after 24 years in Bangor. Angus King and his wife didn't. For the first six months or so, Karen commuted to work, and Jack to school. She couldn't leave her students in the middle of the school year.
"My original thought was that I'd commute, run two houses," Baldacci says. "I'd keep teaching. But you just can't. We were up at 5 a.m., out the door at six and home at five at night."
Still, Bangor is home. John remains part-owner of the family restaurant, Momma Baldacci's. Karen loves Bangor's school system, calling it "the best in the state" for its focus on children. (She notes it is also home to Maine's only U.S. Department of Education "Blue Ribbon" high school.) Whether or not John gets reelected in 2006-he's already announced he's running-the Baldaccis will eventually head north on I-95, for good. Though the family still owns a home on Plum Street in Bangor, they will probably move when they return.
"I need more space," she says. "There's no space for a garden. I've dug up everything that's there and planted something. John jokes that he doesn't need a lawnmower. Someplace on the perimeter would make me happy. Someplace to garden and let the dogs run. But it will be in the Bangor area."
Baldacci loves gardening. She's added a Victorian greenhouse just behind the Blaine House, and filled it this spring with tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, and flowering plants. This time of year, much of Baldacci's downtime is spent in the garden behind the guesthouse on the grounds, which she calls the "back 40."
"When I first moved in, I wanted to plant a garden," Baldacci says. "So they plowed me out this plot and it was huge. That's why I call it the back 40. It's a nice place to grow vegetables, private, behind a fence. John goes to the golf course, and I go to the garden or the greenhouse."
Going forward, she's hoping to do a lot more work outside the mansion. Frederick Law Olmstead, the landscape architect and designer of Boston's emerald necklace of parks, including Boston Common and the Fenway, also did some work for the Blaine House in the late 1800s. There's a string of five gardens and some landscaping that never came to fruition, due to lack of funds, and Baldacci wants to renovate the grounds to reflect the old plans.
That's far from the only new initiative in the works. John, she says, wants her to take a more active role in the campaign, and after working on John Kerry's failed presidential bid and enjoying the experience, she's ready to help.
Baldacci is also planning to coauthor a children's book with the first lady of Aomori, the Japanese prefecture that shares a sister-state relationship with Maine. Baldacci is hoping to travel to Japan this fall, and plans to collaborate with Aomori's first lady, exploring the similarities and differences between the two states. The story will be told in Japanese and English, with an illustrator from Japan working on the English version and Peaks Island-based Scott Nash illustrating the Japanese version.
"I'll either go back to teaching in two years or six years, depending on John," Baldacci says. "Time is flying by very quickly. We try to live in the day, live in the moment, and do what we can do. I've got plenty to do."
SIDEBAR: TAKING THE INITIATIVE
A sampling of Karen Baldacci's efforts as first lady
COORDINATED SCHOOL HEALTH PROGRAMS
Baldacci cochairs this collaborative effort between the Maine Department of Education and the Department of Human Services, aimed at connecting education and health to benefit Maine students. www.mainechsp.com
GOVERNOR'S TASK FORCE ON EARLY CHILDHOOD
Baldacci chairs this group, dedicated to providing young children and their parents the resources, services, and assistance needed to ensure that the state's children have a safe, nurturing, and healthy environment.
www.state.me.us/cabinet/taskforce.htm
GOVERNOR'S TASK FORCE ON SUSTAINABLE LOCAL AGRICULTURE
Baldacci cochaired Maine's Local Agriculture Development Task Force, a group charged with identifying barriers and making recommendations for achieving sustainable local agriculture.
GOVERNOR'S CHILDREN'S CABINET
Baldacci chairs this group, which brings together six commissioners responsible for child and family services, forming a team dedicated to solving problems and sharing strengths through cooperation and collaboration. www.state.me.us/cabinet
MAINE COMMUNITY LITERACY PROJECT
Baldacci established this group, designed to bring together schools, libraries, and other groups to create strong communities through literacy and lifelong learning.
www.mainereads.org
MAINE YOUTH EXCELLENCE IN ART
Baldacci started this program, which invites schools to submit artwork for display in the statehouse, the Blaine House. and other buildings in the capitol complex. It's a joint effort of the Maine Arts Commission, the Maine Alliance for Arts Education, and the Maine Art Education Association. www.mainearts.com
