White brothers go from field to playground

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The three White brothers, Robbie, Chad and Jamie, were exceptional Brewer High School athletes who went on to play college baseball. The middle son, Chad, spent five years playing minor league baseball, getting as high as Double A and finishing with the Bangor Blue Ox.

The White brothers are putting their athleticism to work in a different way these days.

The White brothers and Orono native Jamie Glidden install playgrounds across the northeast.

Their company, CMJ, works for Game Time Inc., the Alabama-based company that builds the playground equipment.

CMJ stands for Chad, his wife Michelle and their daughter Jessica.

Jamie White and Jamie Glidden have been working for Chad since he started the business three years ago and Robbie just started in April.

Working with siblings can have its drawbacks but the Whites haven’t discovered any as yet.

“I love working with my brothers,” said Chad White. “You almost know what they’re going to do before they do it. I may not remember what bolt I need and they’ll say you need a two-inch bolt. They know what I’m going to say.

“We’ve gotten along ever since junior high school. We’re like best friends. We watch each other’s backs,” said Chad White.

“It’s been fun working with Chad and Jamie,” said Robbie White, who had been selling cars and bartending in New Hampshire before joining forces with his brothers. “We get along so well and we all know what we’re supposed to do.”

Jamie White said, “I love the job. It’s a lot of fun. It’s pretty laid back. You do your thing. Putting up a playground in Brewer recently was a real nice feeling.”

Chad White said each installation takes up to a week to complete “but, a lot of the time, it takes less time.

“You have to know every aspect of the job but it’s pretty simple. It’s all nuts and bolts. Once you get used to reading the instructions, it becomes second nature,” said Chad White.

“You need to be physically fit,” said Jamie White. “You have to do a lot of digging and some landscaping.”

“Using a jackhammer is hard work,” said Chad White, who was introduced to the business by high school friend Travis Armes, the sales rep for Game Time Inc.

The job begins in April and lasts until the first week of December. They all have other jobs in the off-season.

“It has been a great year. We’re booked into August,” said Chad White.

Stanley Cup mostly a bore

It was nice to see former Boston Bruins defenseman and captain Ray Bourque finally win the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche.

It was even better to see a former University of Maine winger play in the Stanley Cup finals: 11-year NHL veteran Bob Corkum of the New Jersey Devils.

But the series, itself, was a bore and did nothing to help the sport.

The small area from the top of the face-off circles in the offensive zones to the goal line were always congested because they played such thorough team defense. Good scoring opportunities were few and far between.

Colorado and New Jersey averaged 4.29 goals per game in the series and, to make matters worse, the average winning margin was 2.6 goals per game.

No team was able to rally from a two-goal deficit.

The NHL has to find a way to bring the flow, creativity and scoring back into the game.

The first step is to allow passes over two lines. That would, at the very least, open up the ice surface.

Reduce the size of the goalie equipment, including glove, as long as it doesn’t significantly increase the injury risk.

And don’t allow the team killing a penalty to ice the puck. Bring the face-off back into the defensive zone if they do.