With enrollment up 17 percent this year, it’s easy to understand why members of the Eastern Maine Technical College Foundation and the EMTC Advisory Council are looking forward to their Scholarship Dinner & Auction Fund-raiser.

The fifth annual event begins at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 10, at Rangeley Hall on the EMTC campus in Bangor.

The evening includes a live and silent auction.

Rita Bragdon, assistant to EMTC president Joyce Hedlund, said that among the items up for bid in the live auction will be a one-week stay at a lakeside home that sleeps eight to 10 people, on Long Lake in Aroostook County.

And you can also bid on a Sony TIVO recorder.

“It is a 30-hour recorder, it can pause live TV, create its own replays, and you can create wishes for your favorite actor,” among other activities, Bragdon said.

Additional live auction items include an Old Town kayak and paddle, a Fisher snowplow, and furniture from Chez Renee in Bangor.

Mike Lufkin of Lakeview Auctions will wield the gavel for the live auction and, I can promise you, the food will be fabulous.

Mike Janicki is department chairman of the EMTC Culinary Arts program, and those students will be preparing an elegant, multicourse Maine dinner.

Some tables and individual tickets are still available for $300 per table or $40 per person.

Tickets and information can be obtained by calling Bragdon at 941-4801 or Debbie Tara at 941-4691.

You can also e-mail rbragdon@emtc.org or dtara@emtc.org.

EMTC is an accredited college and, this year, is enjoying the largest enrollment in its 35-year history, educating approximately 1,500 students.

With scholarships being one of the keys to an affordable college education, many among this record number of students will benefit from the funds raised at this annual event.

Since 1997, the auction and dinner have raised $104,000 in endowments, annual scholarships and named scholarships.

For an enjoyable evening out, for a terrific cause, with lots of great items to bid on and lots of good food to eat, you should make plans to attend.

“Memory, Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease” is the title of a free workshop being offered from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 10, at the Health-Link Classroom located in the Mill Mall, 248 State St. in Ellsworth.

This free workshop includes light refreshments, will help provide strategies for improving your memory, and explain the differences between normal memory lapses and Alzheimer’s disease.

Lucie Arbuthnot, who is an education and training specialist with the Maine Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association, will conduct the workshops.

The event is sponsored by Health-Link, The Wellness Center of Maine Coast Memorial Hospital, and the Maine Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association.

For more information, call 667-2474.

Nancy Bond of East Corinth has announced that a meeting of Bangor International Airport “Troop Greeters” will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 11, in the third-floor conference room of the International Arrivals Building at BIA.

The purpose of the meeting, she said, “is to see if we can generate enough interest among the Troop Greeters to have a float in the Bangor Veterans Day parade.”

Further information about this project is available from Bond at 285-7382.

Two more events focusing on October as Breast Cancer Awareness Month are taking place in our circulation area.

The American Cancer Society’s third annual Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Fun Walks begin at 12:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 14, at the Town Hall in Sangerville, and at the Masonic Temple in Greenville.

Individuals will walk to raise funds for cancer research, education and support services.

Many local area businesses, schools and other organizations form teams to participate in the 3- to 5-mile events.

Organizers of the Maine walks hope to raise $250,000 not only to aid in research efforts, but also to help support programs such as Reach to Recovery and Look Good Feel Better.

If you have questions about participating in these events, call 373-3700 or (800) 464-3102.

Writing on behalf of the Bangor Area Sewing Guild, Norma Binan extends “a big thank-you” to members of the Redeemer Lutheran Church on Essex Street in Bangor.

“Again, this year, they opened their doors to the Bangor Area Sewing Guild” for its annual meeting, she wrote.

Guild members also thank Kathy Forti-Gallant, “who spoke about orthopedic-related sewing injuries,” and Susan Patten-Geel and all who “participated in the fashion show” that was part of the meeting.

Binan also expressed appreciation for the efforts of individual Guild members who take part “in the Care Bear Program for the local police and fire departments.

“More than 120 bears and bunnies will go out to children in trauma, because of your efforts,” she wrote.

Binan added that the Guild is “always looking for folks to help with the Care Bear Program.”

She believes there are “many older folks who like to do this,” but they may not be aware this program is available in our area.

If you are interested in helping with the Care Bear Program, or learning more about the activities of the Bangor Area Sewing Guild, call Binan at 862-4367.

Joni Averill, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402; 990-8288.