The Superior Service Heating & Cooling van arrived at The Lily Cat the morning of June 19 to install a heat pump funded in part by a Monson Collaborative grant. (2023)

Martin Landry prepares the wall inside The Lily Cat, where the interior portion of the heat pump will go. (2023)

Kelly and Martin Landry work outside to install the heat pump at The Lily Cat June 19. (2023)

The combination of a leaky roof and no heat left an ice slick on the stairs inside The Lily Cat Antiques building during the winter of 2021. (2023)

Photo credit: J. Billings

Lily Cat Antiques - 2023 Recipient

Lily Cat Antiques is first to complete grant project.

The heat is on!

That phrase isn’t just a line from a well-known and catchy tune by Glenn Frey. It also represents the completion of a project funded in part by a $3,000 grant from the Monson Collaborative. The Lily Cat: North Woods Antiques & Buttons was one of five organizations to be awarded a grant by popular vote at an Entrepreneur Expo May 6, 2023. 

On June 19 of the same year, contractors Martin and Kelly Landry of Superior Service Heating & Cooling in Hudson installed a heat pump at The Lily Cat, making this the first completed grant project. They were assisted by electricians Antony Lancisi and Josh Blanchard of Levesque Energy in Guilford.

The total cost of the heat pump, which provides both heating and cooling, was $6,000, said Johanna S. Billings, who co-owns the antique shop with her husband, Sean. A $1,500 rebate from Efficiency Maine also helped. The couple covered the remainder of the cost themselves. The new heating system is just big enough to cover the first floor. The second floor, however, needs to be insulated and, eventually, will need its own unit. Still, a heat source for the first floor is a boost to The Lily Cat. The building previously had no heating system whatsoever, Johanna said.

“There’s an old furnace in the crawl space,” she said, “but a sticker says it was last inspected in 1989. We saw that and said, ‘Nope. We’re not going to try turning that thing on.’” Besides, Sean said, all the ductwork had been ripped out.

This is The Lily Cat’s third season. The Billingses, who are lifelong collectors and dealers, bought the shuttered Moosehead Trail Antiques in December 2020 after they saw a “for sale” sign in front of it. “Sean turned to me and said, ‘So, do you want to run an antique shop?’" Johanna said. "I thought he was kidding.” After the purchase, Johanna spent the winter cleaning out and wholesaling off the contents, most of which was furniture and hardware. Sean, who works full time as an engineer, found time to replace all the interior lighting and added more. He also installed railings on both sides of the stairs, repaired the front window and painted trim, among other things. The new owners also had the leaking roof replaced.

“At one point, we had water running down the stairs and freezing,” Johanna said.

Because there was no heat, the couple dressed in layers and relied on space heaters to warm their hands every so often. 

“I bought boots in a size too big so that I could wear them with three pairs of socks,” Johanna said.

Having no heat forced The Lily Cat to operate on a seasonal basis. Because of the grant, it may be possible for them to open earlier in the year and stay open later. If nothing else, now the owners can stay warm when bringing in new merchandise and setting up displays off season.

Both Sean and Johanna thanked the Monson Collaborative and the people who voted for their project.

“We couldn’t have done it without that money,” Sean said.