Facing the need to raise $53K in a week

ALTON — On a warm day in 2004, Deanna O'Shaughnessy was on her family's 300-acre property, situated on a ridge overlooking Alton Bay, as a well-drilling contractor was driving pipe after pipe into the ground, searching for an abundant source of water. Their consulting hydrologist predicted they would find all the water they needed at about 135 feet below the surface. At that depth, though, the well only produced enough water for a weak residential supply — hardly enough for the bulk water operation she and her family were hoping to launch. The drill sent down another length of pipe, then another. 200 feet, 300 feet, 500 feet, and still only a modest flow. Finally, the crew was down to its last legth of pipe and the workday was coming to a close.

O'Shaughnessy stepped away from the scene for a moment of reflection. Following her father's suggestion, she and her sister, joined by a handful of other family and friends, invested what they could to create Chamberlain Springs. The business was conceived as a way to harvest the property's aquatic bounty, and in doing so, create a sustainable revenue stream to protect and maintain the historic property, which had been a farm in Alton since the 18th Century and had been in O'Shaughnessy's family since 1937. But after 550 feet, the well was still failing to produce the volume necessary for a commercial operation.

Then the well went from a trickler to a gusher.

"At 585, we had water flying out of the ground," O'Shaughnessy recalled. She laughed at the memory of her and the well crew, giddy with shock and relief, as they scrambled to control the sudden flow. It seemed that her father's idea might work after all.

Eight years later, O'Shaughnessy and company are again at a moment of uncertainty. This time, it's a different kind of liquidity they're hoping will appear. If Chamberlain Springs and bottling company Nh2o don't get a sudden infusion of cash — $53,000, to be exact — their bank will foreclose on its business loan, seizing as collateral the very land the family was seeking to protect.

The past eight years have been full of twists and turns for O'Shaughnessy, her husband Timothy Morgan and her sister Fae Kontje-Gibbs. Their initial plan, to market their water as a bulk product, was scuttled when rapidly rising construction costs put the building of the necessary infrastructure out of reach. "So, we decided we would go ahead and bottle it ourselves — which was probably a poor decision," said O'Shaughnessy.

In 2009, after years of preparation, Profile Bank and the Belknap County Economic Development Council provided a funding package to create Nh2o, a company that put the water in 750 mililiter bottles and distributes them through restaurants, grocery stores and at outdoor markets. Profile Bank's loans included $177,000 for start-up costs and an additional line of credit. However, in a story that many entrepreneurs will find familiar, O'Shaughnessy said that getting the business off the ground took more than they had estimated. "We were seriously under-capitalized. It cost a lot more to do everything than we anticipated."

Without enough money to go around, Nh2o's marketing budget was the first item on the chopping block. O'Shaughnessy points to the lack of advertising as to why the product hasn't reached a wider clientele in the state. Meanwhile, the company has been approached by potential private-label customers from across state lines, but Nh2o currently only has the paperwork to sell within New Hampshire — getting licensed in other states would require an initial investment.

Whatever the cause, the effect has been that business has yet to come close to the volume necessary to cover its costs. O'Shaughnessy has nothing but kind words about Profile Bank — "They have been supportive to the nth degree" – and when Nh2o began to have difficulty making its payments last year, the lending agent put together a forbearance agreement, which allowed the company to skip its regular payments while it sought to sell the company.

However, a buyer didn't appear. As a result of the forbearance agreement, Nh2o is now facing a balloon payment, due on May 30, which the company can't afford to make. Profile has made the company an offer — pay off the line of credit and accrued interest, totaling $53,000, and the balance will be amortized over a period of years. Earlier this month, O'Shaughnessy sent out an e-mail to potential supporters, asking for help in paying off the line of credit. Her strategy is to break the figure down and ask supporters to consider contributing $53, or one-tenth of one percent, to keep the dream of Nh2o alive.

She is asking those inclined to make their checks out to "Chamberlain Springs" and mail them to 166 Old Wolfeboro Road, Alton, NH, 03809. Allowing for time for checks to clear, she figures she needs to receive enough gifts by Saturday in order to bring a payment to the bank on Wednesday.

Raising the money would provide "breathing space" while O'Shaughnessy and company try to make Nh2o viable, or find a buyer for the company.

"Any help getting there would be so welcome," said O'Shaughnessy. These days have been trying for her. She's been trying to fill the capital void with her own labor. Meanwhile, worry keeps her from resting at night. "I'm very tired, I'm scared, I'm emotional," she said. Yet she's also hopeful.

"The whole reason I did this was to save this farm. I haven't had enough smarts and resources to pull it off — so far. So far. I just have to do everything I can to prevent this foreclosure from happening."

Lately, O'Shaughnessy has been thinking back to that day in 2004, when it seemed the well wouldn't produce. "That was a huge lesson to me... People love this water, people love this farm. I have to wonder if God wants me to learn this lesson, perseverance."

CAPTION for DEANNA O'SHAUGHNESSY in AA:

Deanna O'Shaughnessy looks out from the yard of the house she built 28 years ago on the same 300-acre Alton lot that has been a farm since the 18th Century and has been in her family since 1937. In 2009, she and her sister founded a water bottling company to build a secure future for the farm. Now, with a bank calling in its business loan, foreclosure could jeopardize the future of the very land the family was trying to protect. (Laconia Daily Sun photo/Adam Drapcho)