Rafford Springs sets sights
on statewide market
By Kathy McCarty
Staff Writer
GARFIELD — Land once owned by the Rafford family in Garfield Plantation, and later used as a water-processing center, is now back in the hands of Deane Rafford, who’s putting two natural springs on the property to use as Rafford Springs Natural Spring Water.
Located at 35 Rafford Spring Road, the property once belonged to his father — also named Deane. But as often happens, acreage was sold over the years to help cover family expenses.
Staff photo/Kathy McCarty
RAFFORD SPRINGS NATURAL SPRING WATER will begin operations after the first of the year, providing delivery throughout Aroostook County to both commercial and residential customers. Pictured with the company sign at the company’s Garfield headquarters is owner Deane Rafford.
Rafford said the land had been in the family for many years, so when the opportunity came up, he bought it back.
“The land was my grandparents’. I lived here with my father when I was in high school. Then when I went to NMCC in 1994, I moved to Mapleton to live with my mother. Dad passed away in 1995. By 1999, my wife, Kim, and I decided to put our house here (referring to property his father had left him),” he said.
He said several acres had been sold off over the years, reducing the homestead from over 500 acres to around 70.
“Dad asked me when I was 10-11 if I was interested in the land. But at that age, I didn’t know anything about land or its value. Originally there was about 500 acres. Over 480 acres were sold in the mid-80s, leaving Dad about 70. In ‘99 I put my house in and kicked myself for letting the family selling the land back there,” said Rafford referring to property Greg Cyr had purchased and operated Loon Country, a water bottling facility, for a couple of years.
Staff photo/Kathy McCarty
EASY TO CLEAN — Gary Guerrette, route manager for Rafford Springs Natural Spring Water of Garfield, demonstrates how easy the water coolers are to dismantle and clean. The five-gallon jugs the company plans to use with the coolers have handles, making them easier to handle and thus reducing spills. For more information, call 435-3100.
Rafford said the business faded away and the building and land was eventually put up for auction.
“I was interested in the building but never dreamed I’d get into bottling water. As it turned out, I was the only one who showed up to bid on the building. The auctioneer asked me if I’d be interested in bidding on the whole thing — building, land and machinery. Given the value of the machinery and wanting to have the five acres of land back in the family, I made the decision to bid on it,” he said.
A call was placed to officials in the know in Augusta, who subsequently hooked Rafford up with Charlie Beck.
“Charlie has a background in bottling water and told me he thought there’d be a need out there — that there was a need for good service,” said Rafford.
Rafford’s bid (he did not specify the amount) was accepted and the rest, as is said, is history. Now it’s a matter of getting the business off the ground.
“I have three guys working for me, with a combined 28 years’ work experience. Gary Guerrette is my route manager; Charlie is CEO; and Carl Allen, he’s my line supervisor,” Rafford said.
A logger by trade, Rafford is hoping the business will grow with his family.
“I’m involved in the family logging business. This will hopefully be my kids’ future,” he said.
Starting out, the facility will produce five-gallon containers, with plans to eventually process 16.9 ounce and gallon-size jugs.
“We’re starting with the five-gallon size suitable for water coolers and will work our way into products of varying sizes. We’re hoping to start taking orders and making deliveries after the first of the year,” said Rafford.
The facility, according to Rafford, is capable of processing 2,000 to 3,000 gallons a day or more. He’s looking to market his product to commercial and residential customers.
“We’ll service any account, be it offices or residential — anyone who wants it,” he said.
His route manager is enthusiastic about the cooler systems they’re carrying.
“The coolers have dual taps — one for hot, one for cold. Our five-gallon jugs have handles, making it easier to put on the cooler. The cooler’s water guard helps prevent contamination. The units are easy to clean, just take off and use a baby bottle brush, and the parts can be cleaned by hand,” said Guerrette.
Coolers are constructed of stainless steel and plastic, making cleanup quick and simple, according to Guerrette.
Rafford said all he’s waiting on now is final approval from Augusta.
“I’ve had to resubmit samples several times, due to the Augusta lab having problems. I’d submit a sample but by the time they got their equipment functioning, the sample was too old to test. I’ve been going through this since mid-November, with several samples submitted,” said Rafford, noting he was told by officials in Augusta it shouldn’t be much longer.
“We can’t wait to get started. I’ve already got a lot of interest, businesses wanting to set up an account. We have order forms on our website, maineh2o.com. Or folks can e-mail us at maineh2o@atimaine.net. Our business hours are Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and our phone numbers are 435-6294 and 227-0245,” said Rafford.
Rafford said while he’s currently focusing on serving customers throughout Aroostook County, he’s also interested in expanding to other markets.
“We plan to have a truck delivering throughout Aroostook County, with the intention to expand toward the Bangor area at some point in the future. We’ve been told there aren’t many companies offering natural spring water down that way. We’d love to offer our product there too eventually,” said Rafford.
