Bangor

Young political leaders

Sara Stevens, congressional staff member for U.S. Rep. Michael Michaud, was selected to join eight other rising political figures from across the nation as delegates to Romania and Hungary for a 14-day political study program.

Sponsored by the American Council of Young Political Leaders, a bipartisan, nonprofit organization located in Washington, the program took place April 22-May 6.

The delegates began the program in Washington with a day of briefings given by U.S. State Department officials and representatives from the Romanian and Hungarian Embassies.

The group spent the first week in Romania, then a week in Hungary.

Founded in 1966, ACYPL has conducted bilateral exchanges in order to promote awareness and understanding of the common problems, opportunities, and challenges that face the international community. ACYPL received a grant from the U.S. State Department to conduct this exchange.

ACYPL delegates are chosen from a competitive, bipartisan field of candidates ages 25-40 who have exhibited strong leadership during their careers in public or private service. Former ACYPL participants include many current members of Congress, state governors, ambassadors, cabinet secretaries, and foreign members of Parliament and prime ministers.

Local ACYPL alumni include Gov. John Baldacci, Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap and several others. ACYPL programs have been endorsed as an important source of education on key foreign policy issues for rising Americans and foreign political leaders.

Penquis CAP

The Penquis Community Action Program Resource Development Center will offer 18 hours of training in “Infant Mental Health: Issues and Practice” for child care professionals, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Friday, June 10; Saturday, June 11; and Saturday, June 25, at Penquis CAP, 262 Harlow St.

The training provides specific information on attachments, temperament, relationship building, use of self, principles of infant mental health practice, assessment, identification and support of family strengths.

Registration fee is $15. Current childcare providers may apply to the Resource Development Center’s scholarship fund for reimbursement. To register or to obtain information, call 973-3533.

Pine Tree Legal

In early May, Pine Tree Legal Assistance had more than 1,900 open cases of low-income Mainers allocated among 20.6 full-time equivalent staff attorneys statewide. In order to provide high quality work to those clients whose cases have already been accepted and to complete the necessary administrative work for funders, Pine Tree Legal Assistance will be closed to new client intake May 31-June 3.

This administrative week affects local field offices in Bangor, Portland, Lewiston, Augusta, Machias and Presque Isle, as well as statewide units serving migrant farm workers, American Indians and Kids Legal Aid of Maine.

All currently allocated cases are supported by more than 24 different funding programs, each with its own reporting requirements. Pine Tree staff attorneys are expected to perform all clerical work associated with these cases.

The administrative week is modeled on those being scheduled twice a year by the Maine Judicial Department and reflects similar staffing constraints within Pine Tree Legal Assistance, Maine’s largest statewide legal aid provider to low-income Mainers.

For further information, call Pine Tree Legal Assistance at 942-8241.

Bangor Public Library

The Bangor Public Library will celebrate Doll’s Day, held every year on the first Saturday in June. This year’s will be at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 4, at the library. Young ladies and gentlemen are invited to tea accompanied by their favorite doll or stuffed animal. Clare Winchester of Mainely Dolls Club will be the special guest and will show dolls from her collection. Muffins will be served with the tea, and the finale will be a doll parade through the library.

The library also will have a planting party at 4 p.m. Tuesday, June 7, in the Story Room. The program will be hosted by Bangor Garden Club. Rain date is 4 p.m. Wednesday, June 8, in the Story Room.

As part of the library summer music program, there will be a special children’s concert at 4 p.m. Tuesday, June 21, at the library. Musicians from Blue Hill’s Kneisel Hall will perform. Summer concert schedules may be obtained in the lobby at the library.

Benefit yard sale

The Warren Center for Communications and Learning will hold a yard sale to benefit its Voices to be Heard program 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 28, in the Warren Center parking lot, 175 Union St., Bangor.

Call 941-2850 to obtain more information.

Mason zone

City councilors have approved the Masonic Temple Association’s request for a contract zone change. The change from industry and service district, which doesn’t allow for private clubs or lodges, to contract urban service district, which does, was one of the first steps in the group’s effort to rebuild after losing its historic downtown headquarters to a fire in January 2004.

The Masons have chosen the 3.25-acre lot at 300 Perry Road for their new home. Proposed is a one- or two-story building, possibly with a full basement, some 14,000 to 20,000 square feet in area, according to Guy Chapman, a Mason and Shriner. The new lodge will house two local Masonic Temples, the York Rite and Scottish Rite chapters, and the Masonic Learning Center for Children.

Heavy vessel dock

The city has received word that $750,000 in federal funds will be made available for the construction of a heavy vessel dock for Bangor Waterfront. City councilors voted to appropriate the Federal Highway Administration funds, being distributed through the state Department of Transportation’s Ferry Boat Discretionary Program.

The heavy vessel dock, slated to be completed in time for the 2006 boating season, will be designed to accommodate larger passenger vessels plying the Penobscot River, including the American Cruise Line ships that have been using Bangor Waterfront as a home port for the last two years. The new dock also will be handicapped-accessible. The project will go out to bid as soon as the funding is in hand, according to the council order to that end.

Biodiesel fuel

Bangor has switched to B-20 biodiesel fuel for all its maintenance vehicles and BAT Community Connector buses, a move designed to reduce emissions, the city announced recently.

B-20 is fuel made from 20-percent soy-based vegetable oil and 80 percent petroleum. The cost per gallon is about 40 cents higher than what the city previously had been paying, primarily because B-20 is shipped from out of state.

As more communities consider using biodiesel fuel, however, the increased market could attract a distribution center closer to the area. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency inspected the city’s facilities in 2001, resulting in an enforcement action.

The city instead negotiated a supplemental environmental project and began looking at changing to biodiesel fuel. With the switch, hydrocarbon emissions will be lowered by 21 percent, particulate emissions by 5 to 10 percent and carbon monoxide by 11 percent. The city uses some 250,000 gallons of diesel fuel a year.

Quality of life

Bangor is the only metropolitan statistical area in Maine to earn a Five Star Quality of Life distinction in 2005 from Expansion Management magazine, according to a statement released recently by the city.

The magazine compared 363 MSAs on nearly 50 statistical criteria and ranked topics such as crime, affordable housing, public schools, adult education level and standard of living. MSAs in the top 20 percent of all categories combined were honored with Five Star status.

For a copy of the Quality of Life Quotient 2005 article, visit www.expansionmanagement.com.

Adoption information

Maine Adoption Placement Service will hold an informational meeting 6-7:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 7, at the MAPS office, 181 State St. For those contemplating adoption, the meeting will offer an overview of current trends in MAPS domestic networking and international adoption programs. RSVP by calling 941-9500.

For more information, visit wwwmapsadopt.org.

Driving dynamics

A Maine driving dynamics course is scheduled for Bangor High School, 6 to 8:30 p.m. Thursdays June 23 and 30, and July 21 and 28. The instructor is Claudia Garland. For information, call 941-6310.

Brewer

Kiwanis news

At a recent meeting of the Brewer Kiwanis Club, President Bill Newberry presented perfect attendance pins to Carlton King, 32 years; Herbert Hopkins, 27 years; Jane Newberry, 14 years; Bill Newberry, five years; and Art Monk, one year. Wes Archer received a 55-year perfect attendance pin at the club’s recent anniversary dinner.

The club sponsored a casino at the Bangor Veteran’s Home. Wheeling and dealing were Wes Archer, Kemp Humphrey, Bill Newberry, Jane Newberry, Deanna Gagner, Carlton King and Art Monk.

Bill Newberry and Bob Dion helped judge the Brewer Middle School Science Fair recently.

Bill Newberry and Art Monk worked on the hot dog project for Clear Channel Radio.

Wanda Thomas, Bobbi Fowler, June Paul and Deanna Wade attended an inter-club meeting with the Orono-Old Town Kiwanis.

Brewer Kiwanis meets the second and fourth Wednesday of each month. Call Bill Newberry at 945-0746 for more information.

Glenburn

Dogs to be licensed

The town wants to remind residents that if they have unlicensed dogs, they may register them at the town office. Dog owners should have an up-to-date rabies certificate and a certificate of spaying or neutering. Cost is $15.

Hermon

Nomination papers

Seven residents have turned in qualified nomination papers for three local offices that will be filled during municipal elections Tuesday, June 14, according to town clerk Carol Davis.

Candidates were sought for two seats on the town council and one seat on the school committee. All are for three-year terms.

On the town council side of the ballot, voters will fill the expiring seats of chairman Stanley Chapman and councilor Donald Shepley.

Both men have submitted qualified nomination papers, Davis said. Also running are Luc Dionne, Jeremiah Rancourt and Louis “Buzzy” LaChance, the town’s snowplowing contractor, the town clerk said.

On the school committee, voters will fill the seat now held by chairman Ralph Carr, who is not running for re-election. Wendy Berglund and Dawn Dixon have submitted qualified nomination papers for that seat, Davis said.

Levant

Maine-ly Harmony

Maine-ly Harmony, a women’s a cappella chorus, elected officers in April for the 2005-2006 season. They are: Lea Davis of Augusta, president; Lynn Rogers of Levant, vice president; Anne Danforth of Chelsea, secretary; Gerry Dostie of Augusta, treasurer; and Debbie Greim of Auburn and Betsy Easton of Buckfield, at large members.

The chorus, which sings in various venues throughout Maine, is open to new members and invites women and girls to join and learn a cappella singing. The chorus, under the direction of Kathy Grearson, meets at 6:30 p.m. Wednesdays at Gardiner Junior High School. To obtain more information, call Lea Davis, 622-1273.

Old Town

Missing classmates

Organizers are making plans for the Old Town High School Class of 1975 Reunion, to be held Saturday, July 2, at the Muddy Rudder Restaurant in Brewer.

Addresses are needed for these class members: Kathleen Nelson, Christine Ellis, Sharon Ewer, Jo-Ellen Brawn Carter, Sherry Chaisson, Jean Barnes, Kathleen Long, Donna Woods, David St. Louis, Richard Martin, Crystal Shaffer, Debra Gallant, Amy Lenfest, Theodore Buchanan, Jeff Emerson, Cheryl Lynch, Terry Kennedy, Byron Wilkins, Wendy Taylor, Delores LaGasse, Richard Haverlock, Thomas Leavitt, Wendy Falloon, Bryan Pelletier, Doug McCourt, Terry Sullivan, James O’Connor, John LeClair, Annette Nicholas, Steven Bailey, Blaine Fields, Stephen Ouellette, John Rossignol, Keith Trask, Benson Gray, Doreen Drinkwater, James Carson, Bruce Boyington, Margaret Chavaree, Kim Labree Coulter, Carol Rose, Larry Adams, Janice Dufour, Kim Fifer, Denise King,Nancy McCullen, Larry Farrar, Curtis Jack, Bill Morrison, Belinda Legasse, Joan Wickett, Vicki Hesseltine, Mark Noyes, Glenn Mannisto, Joe Horvers, Stanley Madden, Mike Richards, Ava Spruce, Mike Dow, Robert Rogers, Rosemary Richards and Debbie Marcoux.

Call Karen Grant Fogerty at 827-8233, or e-mail Debbie Grant at RRICH498@aol.com to share information or to learn more about the reunion.

Orland

Annual River Day

ORLAND – The 30th annual Orland River Day will be held Saturday, June 18. The event, said organizers, encourages families to get out and enjoy local waterways and spend a pleasant day with friends and neighbors.

The schedule of activities is:

. Alewife run: Canoe and kayak eco-tour from Craig Brook Hatchery to Orland Village, 8 a.m.

. Parade, 10 a.m.

. Traditional raft race, 1 p.m.

. 5K foot race.

. BYOB – bring your old boat – exhibit and demo.

. Canoe, kayak and rowing shell demo.

. Craft exhibits.

. Food.

. Watershed educational information.

. Music, 9 a.m.-5:30p.m.

. Children’s activities.

The Orland River Day planning committee is seeking donations to help defray costs of the event. Mail checks, made out to the Town of Orland, to Orland River Day, Orland Town Hall, P.O. Box 67, Orland ME 04472.

For information about the event, call Alvion Kimball, 469-1144, or John Larabee, 469-2670.

Fish hatchery tours

Two sites crucial to the restoration of Atlantic salmon in Maine rivers – the Craig Brook National Fish Hatchery in East Orland and the Green Lake National Fish Hatchery in Ellsworth – will offer public tours throughout the summer.

Craig Brook is open 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekends. Group tours may be arranged by calling 469-6701, ext. 215. The hatchery is located on Hatchery Road, just off Route 1, in East Orland, six miles north of Bucksport.

Green Lake is open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. seven days a week. Group tours may be arranged by calling 667-9531. The hatchery is located on Hatchery Way, off Route 180, seven miles north of Ellsworth.

Friends of Craig Brook have founded an Atlantic salmon museum in East Orland, which volunteers will staff from noon to 3 p.m. Tuesdays, Thursdays and weekends, June 19-Aug. 31. For more information, call Friends President Bob Mushrall at 469-2400.

Orono

Talk by organic herbalists

ORONO – The University of Maine Page Farm and Home Museum brown bag lunch lecture on June 1 will feature organic herbalists Nancy Lowry and Roseanna Rich from Indian Meadows Herbals LLC, a small Down East company that produces home-grown salves, balms and creams.

The one-hour program, which begins at noon, is free and open to the public.

Lowry and Rich founded Indian Meadow Herbals at their 102-acre farm in Eastport in 1994 and grow 90 percent of the organic herbs used in their skin-softening or medicinal products. They use no preservatives, isopropyl parabens or synthetics, they said.

“We engage in no practices that harm the environment,” the women say in their promotional materials. “We actively cultivate endangered plant species for use in our products, and to replenish the supply in the wild.”

In addition to producing commercially available skin-care products, five of which are designed to address symptoms of menopause and PMS, Lowry and Rich also offer public education about the nutritive value and proper use of herbs. They explain the herbal lore of more than a dozen herbs and berries, ranging from Echinacea, yarrow and golden rod to garlic, raspberries, blueberries and roses.

Information and directions to the Page Farm and Home Museum on the Orono campus are available by calling 581-4100 or visiting the Web site at www.ume.maine.edu/pfhm. The museum also has its own herb garden, with more than 100 herbs, spices and flowers.

For information on Indian Meadows Herbals, check www.imherbal.com.