SACO — The pioneering founder of Maine’s Eastern Trail Alliance has passed away.

Lifelong outdoor enthusiast and trail advocate John Andrews passed away Monday at the age of 79.

Andrews founded the Eastern Trail Alliance in 1997. In the 20 years since, he had been fundraising and advocating for the completion of the Eastern Trail, a 65-mile network of trail ways stretching from South Portland to Kittery along the Eastern Railroad Corridor.

The trail is part of the East Coast Greenway, which when completed will provide trails that connect Calais, Maine, to Key West, Florida.

His work saw the successful completion of the trail’s sections through Kennebunk and Kennebunkport, Old Orchard Beach, Saco and the Scarborough Marsh. In 2012, a bridge carrying a portion of the trail over U.S. Route 1 in Saco was named the “John R. Andrews Bridge” in his honor.

Andrews also established the Eastern Trail Management District, the trail’s fiscal wing, for which he served as a board member through January of this year. He was also instrumental in the establishment of Saco Bay Trails.

Andrews was an avid cyclist and biked from Washington, D.C.., to Pittsburgh at the age of 77. He’ll be remembered for his can-do attitude and motto: “Losers quit when they get tired; Winners quit when they win.”

Friends and colleagues remember Andrews as kind-hearted, friendly and deeply passionate about his work with the Eastern Trail.

Scott Marcoux, former communications coordinator for the Eastern Trail, said Friday he had only fond memories of Andrews.

“John had this credo that he conducted himself by: patience, persistence, politeness,” Marcoux said. “He demonstrated that credo every day and in all of his work to get the Eastern Trail realized.”

Marcoux said Andrews was so dedicated to his work, in fact, that awards weren’t enough to satisfy him. Marcoux’s favorite memory of Andrews, he said, was Andrews’ acceptance of a leadership award by a local Rotary Club a few years back. 

“John got up to the podium and graciously accepted — very humbly accepted — the award and then immediately launched into a pitch for Biddeford and Saco to put together a bond package to connect the two communities with the Eastern Trail,” he said.

“Everyone in that room got it. They were laughing with him and they started clapping and cheering,” Marcoux said. “It’s something I’ll probably never see the likes of again. He was really an incredible human being.”

John Gold, who took over as president of Saco Bay Trails following Andrews’ tenure, said Andrews was instrumental in taking the organization from a municipal subcommittee into the nonprofit that it is today.

“He was very determined. He had an incredible amount of energy, and you got that sense,” Gold said, recalling his first meeting with Andrews.

“I remember that first meeting as being incredibly impressed with his enthusiasm and optimism, and his vision about what this group could become,” he said. “He’s just an incredibly impressive person and accomplished so much in the time he had … he leaves behind an amazing legacy.”

Carole Brush, executive director of the Eastern Trail Alliance agreed, saying Andrews could “work miracles.”

“Without John’s unbelievable energy, enthusiasm, there simply would not be an Eastern Trail today,” she said in an email Friday. “His enthusiasm was contagious — he would talk to anyone and everyone sharing his mission, engaging and convincing them to participate.” 

She went on to say it was Andrews’ goal to make the world a better place, and that he would be missed by all whose lives he touched.

“It is with heavy hearts and many, many fond memories that we celebrate his life and mourn his passing,” she said. “Our hearts go out to his family and friends to the incredible human being who truly did make our world a better place.”

According to his obituary, Andrews was a Registered Maine Guide and served as chairman of the Maine Chapter of the Appalachian Mountain Club. 

As an outdoorsman, he led white water canoe and cross country ski trips, including ski ventures up Cadillac Mountain’s Auto Road. He also conducted full moon outings, many of which were held on the water.

Andrews is preceded in death by his wife of 51 years, Marietta, and is survived by his sons John, of San Leandro, California, and Michael and his wife, Livia, of Croton-on-Hudson, New York. He is also survived by two grandchildren. 

Memorial services for Andrews will be held 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday at Hobbs Funeral Home, 671 U.S. Route 1, Scarborough. In lieu of flowers, those who want to honor Andrews are asked to make donations to the Boothbay Region Land Trust, Eastern Trail Alliance or Maine Coast Heritage Trust.

— Staff Writer Alan Bennett can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 329 or abennett@journaltribune.com.