ROCKPORT — A sense of continuity and trust has marked a successful ownership transition of the longtime Rockport company Smith and May, Inc., to Midcoast Chimney & Masonry LLC. The business officially changed hands from Sam and Judy Smith to Taylor and Lauren Benzie April 25.

The four already enjoy a strong professional relationship, and they carefully worked out the details of the transfer over the past year. The deal was finalized on a Friday morning in a Rockland attorney's office, and by Monday morning, the Benzies were at the shop on Route 90, ensuring no interruption of services or sales.

The two couples could not be more pleased with the outcome.

After 46 years of running the company, the Smiths were proud, "to pass the torch to Taylor and Lauren Benzie, who share a deep commitment to professionalism and customer care," they told their clients, in an April 29 letter announcing the business sale. "We’re confident they will carry forward the legacy of quality service that customers from Belfast to Boothbay and the islands of Penobscot Bay have come to trust. We thank you for your continued support and look forward to this exciting future."

Meanwhile, Lauren and Taylor Benzie are excited about the prospect of owning and operating the venture that represents a merger of two companies, each with their own niche. 

The name of the business is now Midcoast Chimney & Masonry at Smith and May. 

"This acuisition will make us the Midcoast region’s only truly integrated full-service provider offering complete chimney, masonry, and wood and gas heat solutions under one roof," said Benzie. Having the ability to provide everything from initial chimney inspections and full masonry construction to retail stove sales, installation, and ongoing annual service follow-ups will help ensure our customers receive expert advice, quality products, and reliable installation and maintenance with one easy phone call."

A generational shift also accompanies the transition. Taylor and Lauren are young, and bring to the business their combined professional firefighting skills and familiarity with safety protocols and technology. They will provide chimney inspections and apply inspection standards. They know well the science of fuels and combustion, and will focus on heating and venting systems, as well as cleaning fireplaces, wood stoves, heaters, inserts, pellet stoves and masonry stoves. That also includes the cleaning of chimneys for oil/gas boilers and furnace systems as well as problems with the performance of chimneys and vents.  

And like the founders of Smith and May, they have been learning a lot on the job and doing the hard labor.

Sam Smith started the business in 1979 with Sam May, inaugurating a partnership of two skilled masons. Smith had graduated Camden-Rockport High School in 1972, and learned the fundamentals of masonry in the industrial arts class taught by Dan Richards and Mort Strom.

"They were instrumental in teaching and mentoring me to pursue a trade, like masonry, which I had never known before," said Smith.

Sam May was cooking at Peter Ott's Restaurant, then owned by his brother, Keith May.

"He and I started doing masonry work and it took off," said Smith. "We learned as we did."

Smith had gone to school to become a carpenter, but, "when I finished up, everyone was looking for someone to do mason work."

That was during the height of the Arab oil embargo of 1973, and Mainers were burning more wood as oil prices climbed. Hearths and chimneys were in demand, as were contractors who could build with brick. Smith and May filled the niche.

"We started out, learned on the job, and grew the business," said Smith. "Dan Richards would work with Dick Sorensen and build chimneys all summer. If I had a question I could go find whatever job they were on and pick their brains."

Smith's first major job was in Lincolnville where he worked with architect and builder Jack Silverio. For a new home there, Smith built his first field stone foundation, as well as a chimney made from waterstruck brick (manufactured in Danville over the last 100 years using a wet mold process with clay left behind by receding glaciers).

In the 1980s, Smith and May built brick and mortar chimneys in all the condominiums at the Samoset, Jameson Point, and Eastward, in both Rockland and Rockport. 

In 1990, Sam May went back to school to earn a graduate degree in international business, and sold his company share to Smith. They have remained close friends through the years. At the same time, demand for big ticket fireplaces diminished as homeowners increasingly installed gas stoves and hybrid fireplaces, and the focus turned to component systems, "so we started to diversify into that, providing retail sales," said Smith. 

For a time, Smith and May concentrated on constructing large brick buildings — 87 Elm Street, in Camden, and the Union and Rockport town offices — but then it shifted to retail at the Rockport shop, with renewed public interest in more modern wood stoves and gas fireplaces.

"Eventually, the retail grew beyond masonry, and we had fewer masons and more technicians," said Smith.

Fast forward to the early 2020s, and a long list of clients includes contractors, as well homeowners throughout the Midcoast. Smith and May began to source work to subcontractors, one of them being Midcoast Chimney & Masonry. Smith recognized that Taylor  Benzie had the skills and capacity to move Smith and May forward. At the same time, Lauren and Taylor Benzie were considering how to advance their own business. Their interests and professional collaboration dovetailed, resulting in a business deal.

"Taylor is bringing back masonry with a new workforce, and filling a need in the area," said Smith. "His focus is chimney-related masonry, brick and stone, construction and repair. There is a huge need for repair. Chimneys do not last forever. He has also become a a specialist in chimney and chimney lining with a firefighting background, which is genuine and needed."

A professional firefighter, Taylor Benzie had been working at the Bangor Fire Department in 2019. He was also a Select Board member in Camden, when he chose to expand his skillset further, this time into cleaning chimneys with fellow firefighter Keith Morin, in Bangor.

"I quickly realized the Midcoast was in desperate need of a reliable chimney service," he said.

He had a pickup truck, sweep gear, and he held certification as a Chimney Professional and Certified Chimney Re-liner. That was a launch pad for Midcoast Chimney and Masonry. He and Keith began cultivating clients in the Midcoast, while still working as firefighters.

In 2021, Taylor met Lauren while he was studying for his paramedic license. Lauren had retired from the U.S. Army after eight years, service that included a duty in Somalia, and returned home to Maine. She joined the Bangor Fire Department as a professional firefighter and likewise was in paramedic training.

They fell in love, settled in Lincolnville, and Lauren began to help Midcoast Chimney & Masonry with customer support. 

In 2023, they attended the National Chimney Sweep Guild Conference in Chicago, where established professionals took them under their wing. The Benzies spent four days, "with the heavy hitters," said Taylor, picking up the latest insights.

"When we returned, we said, 'hey, we should think about growing this business more,'" said Lauren.

But that meant scaling back from firefighting. Taylor changed course first, putting full energy into Midcoast Chimney and Masonry.  A few months later, Lauren left Bangor Fire Department (she still works per diem at the Camden Fire Department).

"It was a business decision to leave the fire service and put 100 percent into Midcoast Chimney," they both agreed.

In January 2024, they traveled to Puerto Rico for another chimney services conference, and in June 2024, they hired a fulltime service technician. As business took off, they were simultaneously building a client base for masonry projects that expanded beyond chimneys and hearths.

The growth was organic, as was the conversation they first had with Sam Smith about the future of Smith and May. But a seed was planted, and one year later (which included the marriage of Taylor and Lauren on a beach in Costa Rica in late 2024), the deal was sealed.

For clients, it means all existing customer commitments are honored, and business operations are to continue without interruption in Rockport. That includes retail sales, installation, and service of wood, gas, and pellet stoves and fireplaces. Midcoast Chimney & Masonry will be expanding services to include chimney inspections and sweeping, full-service masonry repair and construction, chimney relining, and waterproofing.

"This transition marks a new chapter and a unique opportunity to provide a comprehensive, start-to-finish experience for both homeowners and contractors—all under one roof," the new owners pledged.

In the transition, names and faces will remain familar. Midcoast Chimney & Masonry's Erik Aasen will continue in the masonry division. Aasen is a second-generation mason with over 20 years of experience. He learned the craft from his father, who was a Norwegian trained master mason or "Murermester." 

Smith's brother and leading service technician, Nick, will continue with Taylor and Lauren, as well as his assistant, Brian, and David Peabody, the company's mason. Elizabeth Pooler, who has been sales manager, will be going to help her church with administrative work, but will remain in the circle.

 "It is a big deal for all of us. We feel a deep sense of commitment to the business," said Smith. "Everybody needs to heat their house and they need to do it right."

Smith thinks Taylor Benzie is the one to carry the business forward.

"We had a pretty good idea of who he was and what his abilities were," said Smith. "I think they both are rare in their level of integrity."

As the Benzies get busy, Sam and Judy Smith look forward to easing off the throttle. They have grandchildren and lots of family in the area to enjoy.

"I don’t think I have been south of Wiscasset in six years, so we might just take a vacation," said Smith.