by Sarah Craighead Dedmon

When Patti Sansing opened Whole Life Natural Market in 2003 it checked two boxes for her: it allowed Sansing and her family to move closer to their extended family, and it allowed her to share her knowledge of natural healing through the store’s products.

“I was studying to be a holistic nutritionist, but my family is from here so we used to come here all the time for vacations,” said Sansing. When the previous owner put the store up for sale, Sansing and her husband purchased it and moved to Machias.