Founder of Pegasus Coffee, David Dessinger lives simply and among friends at the Islander Mobile Home Park. So, you might be surprised to learn that he is a major donor to HRB.
About fifty years ago, David Dessinger and his girlfriend at the time bought some acreage on a hillside next to a small pond and built a 12’ by 16’ shed-roof cabin with a loft, woodstove, outdoor shower, and outhouse. In those days one could find a summer home with water views for $20,000. When they decided to part ways and sell, David began searching for his next place, but with prices increasing rapidly, he got creative. “I always wanted to live on a boat. The next thing you know, I bought a sailboat and moved into Winslow Wharf.” After befriending a 10-year-old boy, who used to hang around the docks and fish, David met the boy’s mother who later became his wife. The new family eventually purchased a home near Battle Point, where they lived for 25 years before divorcing. His wife got the house, and he got Pegasus Coffee and the trailer in the Islander Mobile Home Park, his in-law’s onetime summer home, where he lives today.
It’s certainly bigger than the boat, but not too much bigger than the cabin. David is content. His decades-old houseplants thrive in the abundance of sunlight, the front porch makes an expressive canvas for his political convictions with flags calling for protest, peace, and the protection of democracy, and David appreciates the community, especially with his closest neighbors on First Street who look out for one another and enjoy Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners together.
“One of the things I loved about living on the boat was that people come down to the marina to celebrate life. You know, they’re not down there to be on a downer or to be mad or whatever. They’re there to be happy. It’s the same kind of community that I wanted to propagate [at the trailer park],” where he helped mobilize residents to form a cooperative and purchase the land beneath their homes.
David gets by on social security these days, and yet he is a major donor to HRB. Six months ago, he enrolled in our legacy giving program, which allows him to retain his full income, living as he always has, and bequeath his home to HRB. Purchased for $17,000 but worth many times that today, it will be a tremendous gift to HRB and far more than he could afford to give during his lifetime.
David became acquainted with HRB through our Independent Living at Home program, which provides health and safety modifications free of charge so that older adults and people with disabilities can continue to live safely at home. It’s been a yearslong relationship, which in more recent times involved a remodel of his shower and later replacement of peeling kitchen tile. “It made sense for me to give back for what I’ve received.”
But David’s connection to HRB’s mission extends beyond his immediate interests to the value he places on inclusive community and the vital role played by affordable housing. “[Housing costs are] why we’re getting so much older here on the island. Even youngsters who went to school here, once they leave home, they can’t buy back in because it just takes too much money. It’s like if you don’t have a million dollars here, you can’t buy in, which is sad.”
This kind of exclusiveness runs counter to David’s love of community, perhaps best expressed in his former business. In 1980 David started Pegasus Coffee from his boat, eventually importing a pre-WWII Danish roaster and moving operations ashore, starting off in a garage he rented for $100/month, and then, when opening day brought a line out the door, moving it to its present location. He modeled Pegasus after the Dutch coffeehouses of the 1800s, which were warm and vibrant places for culture and conversation. “I made it as universal as I could. I brought in international newspapers. We had artwork by local artists on the walls that rotated once a month. It was just a place to be communal. I mean, there was no rush. If you bought one cup of coffee, refills were free.” He sold Pegasus about twenty years ago, but the business still carries on with much the same vibe. Coffee and community will be just one of David’s legacies, the other being permanently affordable housing. Thank you, David.