Last December, I wrote about the eighth-graders at Gouldsboro Grammar School who were “working hard to fund their class trip and graduation,” and I want you to know they are still at it!

A note from Susan Soper of Prospect Harbor, who co-chaired December’s Chinese Auction fund-raiser, informed me the Gouldsboro eighth-graders will be “working” as waiters and waitresses beginning at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 20, at the Red Barn Restaurant in Milbridge.

In exchange for what I know will be excellent service, the pupils hope you will be as generous as possible with your tips.

“All the eighth-graders are participating,” said school principal Joann Dunphy of the 17 class members.

With parental supervision, the youngsters will be assigned individual tables and will work diligently to make as much as they can for the class fund-raising effort.

“It’s a very rewarding evening for the kids and their parents,” Dunphy added.

The Boston trip, which is an annual event for eighth-graders who attend this Hancock County school, is quite an experience for all who attend.

The trip is as educational as it is fun.

“They’ll be going to the Museum of Science,” Dunphy said, and going to see “the Boston Red Sox, of course,” she added with a laugh, indicating that particular part of the trip is one of the highlights for all who attend.

And, that’s as it should be, considering the history that is contained within the confines of Fenway Park!

The trip also includes such opportunities as visiting Faneuil Hall, taking the Duck Tour and the historic Freedom Trail, which begins at Boston Commons and ends at the USS Constitution in Charlestown.

Also working hard to make this wonderful experience a reality for these eighth-graders are their teachers Warren Polk and Anne Hopper, and many parent volunteers, including Soper and Lucille Null of Gouldsboro.

Dunphy said the pupils’ efforts have been supplemented by other fund-raisers, and they have been assisted by the efforts of all those individuals who registered with and are participating in the Shaw’s Supermarkets Schoolpop program, in which a percentage of each purchase benefits the school.

If you are in the area, and are thinking of eating out Wednesday, drop by the Red Barn and help the kids from Gouldsboro get to Boston.

People who find themselves in the role of a caregiver might like to learn what assistance is available to help them by attending a discussion sponsored by the Northeast Geriatric Mental Health Providers Council.

“New Programs to Assist Caregivers” will be presented from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Wednesday, March 20, in the New Auditorium at Bangor Mental Health Institute in Bangor.

The presenters will be Deb Chapman, representing Eastern Agency on Aging family caregiver programs in collaboration with the UM Center for Aging, and Val Sauda, representing the Demonstration Project of the Maine Alzheimer’s Project for Caregivers.

Everyone is welcome to attend, and certificates of attendance will be provided.

In honor of Women’s History Month, the Ellsworth Public Library and the American Association of University Women invite you to hear author Julia Hunter of the Maine State Museum discuss her book “Fly Rod Crosby: The Woman who Marketed Maine.”

Hunter’s presentation is scheduled from 7 to 9:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 20, in the Riverview Room of the library at 20 State St. in Ellsworth.

This program will be of special interest to those who want to learn more about Maine’s outdoor heritage and the women who made history within it.

Cornelia “Fly Rod” Crosby was our state’s first registered Maine Guide more than 100 years ago, and was an active promoter of wilderness tourism.

Refreshments will be served, and all are welcome.

For information about this event and others at the Ellsworth Public Library, call 667-6363.

Students home from college on spring break might like to consider this invitation from the Winterport Woman’s Club.

Through the General Federation of Women’s Clubs-Maine Federation of Women’s Clubs, WWC invites you to apply for interest-free educational loans.

The loans, which will be no more than $500 each, are available to any resident of Maine who needs financial aid to continue studies at an institution of higher education, including vocational schools and colleges.

Requests for information or applications may be obtained by calling WWC member Julie Logan at 223-4693.

Applications must be returned to WWC no later than Monday, April 15.

The Maine State Society of Washington, D.C., has announced that Margo Sullivan of Cape Elizabeth and Portland has been selected as Maine’s Cherry Blossom Princess for the 2002 National Cherry Blossom Festival, which will be held in our nation’s capital from Sunday, March 31, to Saturday, April 6.

The first Maine princess from Cape Elizabeth, Sullivan is a graduate of Catherine McCauley High School in Portland and is a freshman at McGill University in Montreal where she is studying physics.

The Maine State Society was established in 1894 in Washington, D.C., by a group of “displaced” Mainers hoping to bring a “little touch of Maine and a little taste of home” to Mainers living in or near our nation’s capital.

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