What a thrill it is to be able to tell you that the Home and Garden Television series, “If Walls Could Talk,” is coming to Bangor, and it is an even bigger thrill to inform you the producers are seeking private owners of historic homes and stories to share!

I had a delightful conversation with Sarah Wormald, a researcher for “If Walls Could Talk,” which is produced by High Noon Productions-HGTV.

From her office in Denver, Wormald told me the producers are looking for New England stories, and that the show had covered different states.

And while “If Walls Could Talk” visited and filmed in the Portland area a few years ago, “we wanted more Maine stories, and chose the Bangor area, because it’s in the midrange of the state and hadn’t been hit before,” she said. “So we’re eager to see what kinds of stories, and what kind of history, is there.”

This is a show I enjoy and, naturally, I told Wormald we had plenty of wonderful homes with great stories to tell. I did stick my neck out a bit when I told her she’d have no problem finding people ready and willing to open their homes and let their “walls talk!”

Wormald forwarded me a copy of a letter she sends to those who might be able to help her find a home for the show.

“We are currently planning a trip to Bangor and surrounding areas during the week of August 12,” she wrote, “and are looking for private homeowners with historic homes and stories to share.”

She emphasized that the homeowners have to live in the house, because the “show is about current homeowners who have bought an old house and, in the process of restoring it, discovered something that inspired them to learn more about their home’s history.”

Wormald said of particular interest would be “physical artifacts; objects found in the home,” and gave, as examples, books, paintings, letters, diaries, clothing, vintage photographs, chests and furniture.

“Objects may have been just an old thing with no meaning,” she added, “but after a little research, it now tells a story and may have more personal meaning for the homeowner.”

She did indicate that “ghosts are OK as long as there are actual physical things found in the home, and they all tie in with the history of the house/region,” although, she added, “ghosts are not what we’re ultimately after.”

Wormald told me that she is seeking homes right in Bangor or homes within an hour’s drive of the city.

With the long and fascinating history that abounds in this area of Maine, I hope she is overwhelmed with offers from area residents to open their homes and tell their stories on “If Walls Could Talk.”

Wormald wants readers to know that “we’re excited to come to Bangor” and the surrounding area, “and look forward to featuring some of the homes in your area!”

If you have a house with

“talking walls,” you are asked to call Sarah Wormald at 303-712-3321 or e-mail her at swormald@broadband.att.com.

The annual Children’s Fair, featuring everything for infants and kids, is 9 a.m.-noon Saturday, May 18, at Hampden Academy.

The event benefits the Jubilation Bell Ringers of Hampden Highlands United Methodist Church.

Directed by Sandra Blanchette and accompanied by Catherine Souza, The New Renaissance Singers perform a range of music from madrigals to chanteys, classical works to pop and jazz.

The New Renaissance Singers invite you to attend “A Salute to Great Britain” at 3 p.m. Sunday, May 19, at the First United Methodist Church, 703 Essex St., Bangor. Admission is by donation.

Open to everyone, male or female, The New Renaissance Singers welcome anyone who likes to sing choral music to join them.

They practice 6:30-8:30 p.m. Mondays at Essex Street Methodist Church.

If you would like more information about the group, or upcoming events, call Carol Higgins at 942-3808.

On behalf of the Bangor Chapter of the American Guild of Organists, its subdean, Alice Mumme of Orono, invites the public to attend a free organ concert at 4 p.m. Sunday, May 19, at St. John’s Episcopal Church, French Street, Bangor.

Other instruments, as well as voice, will be featured in the concert.

With more than 500 booster seats already given away in the Greater Bangor area by United Way of Eastern Maine, “we are well on our way to distributing 1,000 seats to low-income families” in this area, reports Nancy Roberts of UWEM.

A new state law, effective in January 2003, requires that all children, age 4 to 8, use a booster seat while traveling in a car.

To enable low income families in the Waldo County area to comply with this law, UWEM, the Waldo County Preschool and Family Services and Waldo County Head Start will give away booster seats to qualifying families from 5 to 8 p.m. Monday, May 20, at the Head Start offices on High Street in Belfast.

In partnership with Ford Motor Co. and Darling’s Ford of Bangor, UWEM is participating in “Boost America!” This is a nationwide booster seat giveaway and education program aimed at keeping children safer when their parents are driving.

To be eligible for this program, your family must receive some form of assistance, such as food stamps or Medicaid.

You need to bring your child, and the car that the booster seat will be used in, to the fitting event to ensure it is the correct seat for the child and the car.

To obtain a booster seat, call WCHS at 338-3827 or WCPFS at 338-2200, Ext. 101.

More information can be obtained by visiting either www.unitedwayem.org or www.boostamerica.org.

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