EAC community members were devastated to hear this week of the passing of longtime volunteer, teacher and warm, friendly spirit, Sally DeCicco. An Eastport summer resident, Sally delighted many by upcycling materials and thrift shop clothing to create affordable Pirate Festival costumes, aprons and other kitchen items, tote bags (from discarded grain sacks), and most recently, hundreds upon hundreds of face masks to protect against the Covid-19 virus.

Sally is shown onstage with Frank Dudish at the 2014 Moose Island Follies, and in a still from her Studio Visit video, made by EAC in 2020.
In a screen shot from a winter 2020 EAC Zoom Workshop, Sally holds up an ornament she’s made for online classmates to see. At right are an array of handcrafts Sally taught for students at a 2017 upcycling workshop at EAC.

At EAC, Sally applied her considerable costuming skills, plus a ready hand for major fundraising events like the Moose Island Follies, at which she memorably made some appearances on stage. In 2017, she led a workshop on upcycling knit material in various ways, including tarn, or t-shirt yarn. Sally was also a frequent attendee of others’ workshops, including EAC’s pandemic-born Zoom workshops.

In summer 2020, EAC Video interviewed Sally and visited her studio to talk about her mask-making, sewing and her creative work in general. The video, and additional information, may be viewed here, or by scrolling to the end of this post.
In addition, after reviewing the footage taken last summer, EAC Video has created an additional short video with a few more thoughts from Sally that hadn’t fit in the previous edit.


We fondly remember Sally, her infectious laugh, and the many ways she gave of herself to her two communities: Montpelier, Vermont and Eastport, Maine. Sally’s obituary may be viewed here.

Those who’d care to share a remembrance of Sally are encouraged to email chris@eastportartscenter.org; the notes will be added to this page.

Sally, with friend Lane Willey (above), followed Steve Grannis’ bread recipe at a 2019 Summer Workshop. At Lane’s 2018 workshop (below), on Quilts of the Underground Railroad, Sally assisted students. Photos above by Robin Farrin, below by Brandy Argir.
Sally and friends, in several spoof commercials for Eastport-area organizations, got a lot of laughs at the 2017 Moose Island Follies. Photos by Robin Farrin.