CALAIS, Vt. (AP) – The men of Maple Corner are giving up their nude modeling careers.

“We’re pretty much done making calendars,” said J.C. Myers, chairman of the Maple Corner Community Center Board. “We’re happy to lapse back into obscurity.”

The comment came as the board announced proceeds and disbursements from the second and apparently last annual installment of the “Men of Maple Corner” calendar.

The nude pictures of local men, featuring carefully placed maple sap buckets and tool belts, were a huge hit when the first calendar was issued in 2002.

and drew national media attention.

The hope had been to raise a bit of money to help pay for renovations at a community center in Maple Corner, a hamlet in the town of Calais.

But the first edition of the $15 calendar sold 38,000 copies, enabling the effort to pay for the entire $100,000 renovation project and to leave about $300,000 in a community endowment.

A year later most of the novelty had worn off. The 2003 calendar sold about 18,000 copies, according to Chris Miller, also known as “Mr. February 2002.”

The 2003 proceeds will pay for repairs to a small dam that is failing, handicapped-accessibility improvements at the community center, three nearby volunteer fire departments and local social-service agencies.

AP-ES-01-18-04 1357EST