Bangor

Jewish history

A traveling exhibit, “Builders of America – The Jewish Heritage,” which illustrates the 350-year history of Jewish people in America, will be on display in the Stairwell Gallery Extension at Bangor Public Library. The exhibit opened Nov. 22.

The Jews who landed in 1654 in New Amsterdam, which later became New York City, were exiles from Brazil. They were trying to reach The Netherlands when a storm blew their ship off course, and they landed in North America.

In December, another Jewish history exhibit, “Women of Valor,” will be shown in the Stairwell Gallery Extension.

A three-part video documentary, “Jews in America,” will be shown at 7 p.m. Thursdays, Jan. 20, Feb. 17 and Mar. 17, at the library.

Holiday contributions

Regional Salvation Army holiday programs will get a fund-raising boost from Hannaford supermarkets in November and December, when Hannaford stores will offer donation coupons at its cash registers. The proceeds will be used to buy food, clothing and toys for those in need in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont.

Over the past few years, Hannaford has raised more than $300,000 for Salvation Army programs. The Salvation Army expects to serve 70,000-80,000 people in the three states during the next few months.

To learn about the Salvation Army and its work, visit www.netkettle.com.

Mineral and Lapidary Club

The Penobscot Mineral and Lapidary Club is sponsoring an exhibit of Maine minerals in the display case in the third floor rotunda at the Bangor Public Library. The display includes tourmaline, beryl, aquamarine, amethyst, citrine, agate and jasper. Jewelry made by local artisans is part of the display.

The Penobscot Mineral and Lapidary Club was organized in March to foster in the Bangor area an interest in rocks, minerals, fossils and lapidaries. The club meets at 2 p.m. the second Saturday of each month at LadySmith studio, 19 Bomarc Road, Bangor. Those interested in joining the club should call Donna Tumosa at 947-6200.

During the summer, the club sponsors collecting trips to various sites in Maine. Past field trips have been to agate beaches in Perry, the Callahan mine in Brooksville, intergalactic amethyst quarry in Stow, Mt. Apatite Mineral Park in Auburn, a tourmaline quarry in Georgetown and a rose quartz quarry in Auburn.

The club will present a lecture series on Maine minerals at the library in the coming year.

Piano concert

After 40 years of teaching and training young musicians, Orono teacher Barbara Waterhouse Smith retired, only to take up another career – that of composer. She will perform at 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 6, at the Bangor Public Library. The concert is free.

Smith draws on her country childhood and the inspiration of nature in her compositions, which has resulted in several CDs of Smith performing her own works on the piano. She has followed her first CD, “A Sense of Acadia, Volumes I and II,” with “A Sense of Roots,” which contains her latest compositions. Smith’s CDs will be available for purchase at the concert.

World AIDS Day

The Unitarian Universalist Society of Bangor, 120 Park St., observed World AIDS Day Dec. 1. The sanctuary was open all day so that people could light a candle, say a prayer and remember those who are living with AIDS or those who have died from AIDS.

Donations of money and food were collected to help make the holidays brighter for the more than 70 clients served by the Eastern Maine AIDS Network.

Black liberation

The Peace and Justice Center of Eastern Maine will sponsor a talk by Bob Brown from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11, at the organization’s headquarters, 170 Park St. Brown’s topic will be “Black Liberation Struggles: Lessons from History and for the Future.”

Brown is an activist with 41 years of organizational experience and expertise. He is a former member of the Chicago Chapter of the Congress of Racial Equality, former director of the Midwest Office of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, co-founder and former member of the Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party, and an organizer for the All-African People’s Revolutionary Party. He was coordinator of Third World Outreach for the million-person disarmament demonstration at the United Nations in 1983 and the national coordinator of logistics and operations, and national field director of the 1995 Million Man March and Stay-at-Home Campaign. Currently, he is the co-director of Pan-African Roots and the Kwame Ture Work-Study Institute and Library.

Pottery sale

The members of the pottery department at the Hammond Street Senior Center, 2 Hammond St., will hold a pottery sale 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday, Dec. 2-10, at the center. Items for sale include bowls, candleholders, vases and trivets. Proceeds from the sale will go toward the purchase of a new kiln and ventilation system for the center’s pottery department. To obtain information, call 262-5532.

Holiday house tours

Four area homes will be decorated for the Christmas holiday and open for public viewing noon-4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11, as part of an annual fund-raising event for St. John’s Episcopal Church of Bangor.

The event provides an opportunity for participants to acquire some home decorating ideas.

The house tour will include the renovated and restored Leighton Building at 455 Harlow St. Bangor; the home of Lynda and John Rohman, 198 Broadway, Bangor; the home of Bruce and Ellen Flagg, 1338 State St., Veazie; and the home of Leigh and Donna Wadleigh, 1299 Chase Road, Veazie.

Members of St. John’s choirs will be at all four locations.

Tickets are $10 each for tours of two locations, $20 for all four. Tickets are available at the church office, 234 French St., Bangor; Rebecca’s, Main Street, Bangor; Patrick’s Hallmark at the Broadway Shopping Center, Bangor; and Hampden Floral, Main Road, Hampden. Tickets also will be available at each home the day of the tour. To obtain information, call 947-0156.

Book talk

Author Lea Wait will talk about her book for young people, “Wintering Well,” at 11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 4, in the Story Room of the children’s department at Bangor Public Library. The book tells the tale of a boy’s life in a Maine farm in 1820.

At 2 p.m., also on Dec. 4, in the library’s Lecture Hall, Wait will introduce the newest mystery novel in her Antique Print mystery series, “Shadows on the Ivy.”

Wait’s books will be available for purchase. To obtain information, call the library at 947-8336.

Brewer

Comedy show

The Titans of Comedy will present a show at 8 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 16, at Jeff’s Catering in Brewer. The show will feature comedians Steve Caouette, Quinn Collins and Max Pelkey. Proceeds from the show will finance production of the upcoming produced in Maine film, “Boogie Board Beach,” which will premiere June 2005.

The cost of the event is $13. Tickets are available at Frank’s Bakery in Bangor and The Winterport Boot Shop in Brewer.

Dixmont

Art open house and exhibit

Brenda Ferguson will host an open house and exhibition of her original pastel paintings 1-4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 4, at her studio home in Dixmont.

An original work, “Red Berries,” will be given away as a door prize at 3 p.m. The preholiday show will feature at least 50 of the artist’s latest works.

Ferguson is a graduate of the University of Maine at Farmington, a former teacher of hearing-impaired students and a speech-language clinician. She also holds a master’s degree from Gallaudet University. She worked for 14 years as a speech therapist at Etna-Dixmont School.

In 2002 Ferguson decided to pursue art full time. She has had solo exhibitions at Bangor Public Library, CancerCare of Maine Gallery and the Artist’s Cafe in Machias. Several of her pieces have appeared in the Bangor Art Society’s juried shows, and her art was featured in a six-page spread in the July issue of American Artist magazine.

For information about the Dec. 4 event, visit www.brendaferguson.com.

Etna

Eighth-grade auction

The Etna-Dixmont eighth-grade pupils will hold their annual auction at 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 3, at the Etna-Dixmont School, Route 143. The auction will help fund a class trip to Boston in May. An auction preview will begin at 5:30 p.m. Auction items include an autographed Stephen King book, furniture, tools and business supplies.

Hampden

Working with fleece

Sue Hein of the Bangor Area Chapter of the American Sewing Guild will teach a class on working with polar fleece at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 4, at the Hampden United Methodist Church, 44 Kennebec Road.

Hein will demonstrate the many different types of fleece currently on the market, zipper insertion and sewing techniques appropriate for fleece. She will focus on zippered cardigans, but participants may make the garment of their choice. Fleece and zippers will be available for purchase the day of the class, or bring your own.

The cost of the class $10 for guild members, $15 for others.

Holden

Pug Christmas party

Pug owners and their pugs are invited to a pug Christmas party 1:30-3:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 4, at Eastern Maine Snowmobile Club. Party events will include a raffle, potluck finger foods and fun. To obtain information, call Stefanie at 942-5459.

Newburgh

Oldest citizen

Elsie Kimball Brough was presented a golden cane to mark her new status as Newburgh’s oldest citizen. She was honored at a ceremony on Nov. 23 at the Philips-Strickland home where she now resides.

Mrs. Brough lived in Newburgh most of her life in a home she shared with her husband, the Rev. A. Allan Brough, who died last year. She is the co-founder of Hospital Chaplaincy Services Inc., a missionary organization that has more than 2,000 volunteers in Maine, who make comfort and cheer items and visit nursing and boarding home residents throughout the state. She and her husband were honored by state and congressional leaders for their more than 50 years of service to the elderly of Maine.

Mrs. Brough helped set up the bookkeeping system for the University of Maine in the 1940s. She was one of the few eyewitnesses to the shooting of the Brady Gang in downtown Bangor in the 1930s. Her home in Newburgh was the first in town to get electricity and the first to have a radio.

Orland

New book

Colon MacDonald, 83, has written and published “Uncle Elmer’s Maine Humor,” a collection of humorous writings billed as “true happenings about his family and boyhood friends.” The book also contains poems and recipes.

MacDonald, who grew up in Gouldsboro, told jokes and funny stories in classrooms and assemblies while he was attending high school in the 1930s. He also worked as a comedian and storyteller with country and western bands.

MacDonald still uses his humor to entertain at clubs, nursing homes and senior citizen groups.

“Uncle Elmer’s Humor” is available at bookstores in Bangor, Bucksport and Ellsworth. To obtain information, call MacDonald at 469-6794.

Orono

Toys for Tots

Members of the United States Marine Corps Reserve, 1st Battalion, 25th Marines, Alpha Company, based in Topsham, will hold a toy drive from 5-9 p.m. Friday, Dec. 3, at the University of Maine men’s hockey game at Alfond Arena.

Reserve members will collect new, unwrapped toys. The toy drive will benefit the Toys for Tots program, which distributes toys to needy children throughout the United States. To obtain information, visit www.toysfortots.org.

Winterport

Children’s Christmas party

The Winterport Lion’s Club will sponsor a children’s Christmas party 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 4, at the Leroy Smith School, where snacks, gifts and drinks will be enjoyed. Santa Claus will arrive at 10 a.m. Each child will receive a gift.