Nineteen-year-old Caitlyn Lamb had only minutes to get in touch by phone for this blog, as she is currently aboard a boat operated by her school, the Maine Maritime Academy, where she is studying Marine Engineering Operations.

Formerly a student at Oceanside Academy when she applied to be a Maine Lobster Festival Delegate, Caitlyn grew up in Cushing, Maine, and had an uncle who was a lobsterman.

“I grew up on the water, and just being around it makes me happy,” she said. “I went lobstering with my uncle for a couple of summers and got my foot in the industry. I absolutely fell in love with the water out there and knew my career had to do something with the ocean.”

In high school, Caitlyn was a three-sport varsity athlete, playing soccer, basketball, and lacrosse where she was captain for all three. However, she said she struggled sometimes with academics. “It wasn’t always easy for me, and I was always behind, but I worked hard and put in the dedication to get where I needed to be,” she said. “And right now, it shows because I’m on a ship coming out of New York.”

Caitlyn also previously volunteered for the Maine Lobster Festival in the food tent, which was an impressive note for the judges.

“I loved serving the chowder,” she said. “I thought it was a cool experience and met people from around the world, so I came back the second day and did it again. It was a great experience of meeting new people and seeing [festival goers] try Maine seafood for the first time.”

As a Delegate, part of Caitlyn’s duties were to take part in a variety of community-driven activities, including organizing service projects, leading workshops on public speaking and social media, engaging local youth, writing advocacy letters in support of Maine’s lobster industry, and assisting with setup efforts ahead of the Festival’s opening.

Helping her were Chelsea Gaiero, the Second Delegate, and Jillian Barnard, who was named Most Congenial.

“I got a lot of support from the community. Some people I didn’t know came up to me and said, ‘Congratulations,’ and that felt super awesome that the community had my back. I grew up in Maine my whole life, so being able to represent an industry I love was so important to me.”

The role stretched her abilities more than she knew.

“I got to go to the Big E Festival in Massachusetts and had a wonderful experience representing Maine,” she said. “The leadership aspect of being a Delegate brought me out of my comfort zone tremendously. I had never done public speaking other than in front of a small classroom but going out and having to speak in front of people terrified me. I told myself, ‘I have to do it;’ it’s important, and it’s a good cause, so being able to go from something I was so scared of to public speaking made me feel it helped my personal growth.”

Caitlyn will pass the crown to the 2025 Maine Lobster Festival Delegate when the Festival kicks off from July 30 to August 3 this year.

Maine is the place to be in the summer! And as always, it’s free! For event information and accommodation suggestions, visit: www.mainelobsterfestival.com.

About the Maine Lobster Festival

Five days of fun and feasting on the fabulous coast of Maine, the Maine Lobster Festival attracts thousands of people to the Midcoast region and has a long tradition of giving back to the local community. The 2025 Festival will be held July 30-Aug. 3 and will celebrate its 78th anniversary. Once again, admission will be free. For more information about the Maine Lobster Festival, visit the website at www.mainelobsterfestival.com, “like” it on Facebook, follow it on X (formerly Twitter) at @MELobsterFest, and on Instagram at @mainelobsterfest.