Areawide

Honoring troop greeters

The Maine House of Representatives honored members of the Maine Troop Greeters of Bangor recently on the occasion of greeting their 3,000th flight home of members of the U.S. armed forces.

Rep. Patricia Blanchette of Bangor, who introduced the official legislative sentiment, paid tribute to the members of the armed forces who have made sacrifices to protect the country.

“It was my pleasure to sponsor this sentiment,” Blanchette said in her floor speech. “I am proud of the greeters and the service they offer.”

Greeters were recognized for their sacrifices, including driving to Bangor International Airport in the middle of the night, often from areas as far away as Houlton, through every kind of weather, to be there to welcome service members home.

As service men and women walk into the waiting area at BIA, they are greeted with smiles and high-fives and offered a cell phone to call home.

Rep. Charles “Dusty” Fisher of Brewer, a greeter, expressed appreciation for the recognition and commented on support from many groups across the state. “The greeters get to spend time with the best the nation has to offer – quite an honor, to say the least,” Fisher said.

In addition to Blanchette and Fisher, the sentiment was co-sponsored by Sens. Joseph Perry and Douglas Smith, Bangor Reps. Jackie Norton, Sean Faircloth and Michael Dunn, and Rep. Peter Johnson of Greenville.

Bangor

A special trip

Members of the Maine Air National Guard are working to raise money to help one of their families make a special trip to Hawaii.

Lia Grant, the 31-year-old wife of Staff Sgt. Richard Grant, is seriously ill with cancer, which she has been battling for a number of years.

Her wish is to go to Hawaii with her husband and two children, a trip that needs to happen very soon given the state of her health.

Guard members are asking the public to help raise money to make the trip possible.

Checks should be made payable to The Family Program and marked “The Grant Family.” Checks may be sent to 103 MAINEiac Ave. Suite 505, Bangor 04401.

“Any assistance you can provide will be greatly appreciated,” said Pattie Reynolds, volunteer leader.

Peace rally with Mallett

Maine’s own singer-songwriter David Mallett will perform at a peace rally to mark the fifth anniversary of the Iraq War at 1 p.m. Saturday, March 15, at Paul Bunyan Park on Main Street. Snow date is March 16.

There also will be remarks by Bill Murphy and Kay Carter, and a reading of the names of Maine troops killed in Iraq.

Afterward, participants will form a Chain of Concern along Main Street between the statue and the Bangor Area Homeless Shelter for a vigil.

For information, call 942-9343.

Family Art Nights

Attention grandparents: If your grandchild is between 8 and 11, bring him or her to the Maine Discovery Museum’s Family Art Nights and enjoy doing an art project together. The program will leave grandparent and grandchild with a piece of art they have, as well as quality, fun time spent together.

Those who participate in Family Art Nights have the option of having their art work shown in a two-week exhibition at the museum.

Sessions will be held 6-8 p.m. Wednesdays, April 2, 9 and 16, at the museum.

The sessions are taught by Arrah Vanier, chairwoman of the art department at Hermon High School. Vanier is a professional artist who has had her own studio. She received the 2004 Art Teacher of the Year Award for Maine.

Family Art Nights are a free program sponsored by Community Health and Counseling. They are funded by grants and donations from the Holt Family Fund of the Maine Community Foundation, Northeast Cardiology Association and the Wing-Benjamin Trust. For more information and registration, call the museum at 262-7200.

Local church ‘going green’

Hope Lutheran Church announced that it will “go green” and challenges other area churches to do the same.

The church at 1520 Union St. will collect items as part of the Juice Pouch Brigade and the Yogurt Cup Brigade sponsored by TerraCycle Inc. Details may be found at www.terracycle.net.

Juice pouches from Capri Sun and Kool Aid will be collected and removed from the waste cycle – other brands are accepted as well, but not juice boxes. Yogurt cups will be collected in the 32-ounce and 6-ounce sizes – but not Dannon Activia cups – and be re-used in other products.

The juice pouches and yogurt cups must be rinsed and straws removed. Donate juice pouches and yogurt cups to the collection at Hope Lutheran Church by calling the church at 990-5900 or Becky Reeve at 356-0425.

Maine Women’s Fund

The Maine Women’s Fund announced the launch of its 2008 grant-making season with workshops in four communities for nonprofits interested in applying for a grant from the Maine Women’s Fund this year.

At these workshops, the agency will familiarize nonprofits with its new Economic Security Initiative and its grant-making process for 2008.

For nonprofits planning to submit a grant proposal to the Maine Women’s Fund this year, attending one of the workshops is strongly recommended. The organization will help nonprofits figure out where they fit into the new economic security initiative and how to best write a grant.

. 2-5 p.m. Tuesday, April 8, Husson College Center for Business, Bangor.

To register, e-mail brianna@mainewomensfund.org or call 774-5513. To learn more about the Economic Security Initiative, visit www.mainewomensfund.org/economicsecurityinitiative.html.

The Maine Women’s Fund is a public foundation creating lasting social change by investing in the power of women and the dreams of girls.

Reading to Patches

Bangor Public Library is offering a new program called “Reading to Patches.”

Peggy Smith and her Portuguese water dog, Patches, will introduce parents to the program at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 13, in the Story Room. The library will offer times to read to Patches in April.

Patches is not just any dog, he is a Reading Education Assistance Dog. The R.E.A.D. program improves children’s reading and communications skills by encouraging a child to read to a dog, a dog that will not criticize, complain or correct, but will listen patiently.

For information about the program, visit the library’s Web site at www.bpl.lib.me.us or call the Children’s Department at 947-8336, Ext. 111.

Children’s museum

These events have been scheduled at the Maine Discovery Museum:

. Sing Along with Lovey Williams, 2 p.m. Saturday, March 15. This one-man-band will perform favorite sing-along, tap-along, dance-along songs in a program for kids of all ages and abilities. Williams is an accomplished musician in percussion, acoustic guitar and vocal music, and has performed at child care centers, schools and museums for 25 years. Admission is $6.50, free to members and children 12 months and under.

. Parents’ Night Out, 5:30-9 p.m. Saturday, March 21. Don’t hire a sitter. Plan to drop the children ages 4 and up for a pizza dinner, a science and craft activity, plus supervised play time in the museum. $18 per member child, $20 others, siblings half price. Call to pre-register. The evening is sponsored by New Moon Restaurant and Cristor’s Irish Public House.

. Parents: Coffee with Sandy Caron, 11 a.m. Saturday, March 29, “Where do Babies Come From?” Parents are invited to meet Caron, a professor of human sexuality from the University of Maine, for a discussion about how to address the curious questions of children about sex, gender and the human body. The museum will provide child care for parents who participate. Admission $6.50, free to members and children 12 months and under. Pre-register by calling 262-7200.

. Teddy Bear Clinic, 2 p.m. Sunday, March 30, Join Dr. Colette Sabbagh, Norumbega Pediatrics. Bring your stuffed buddy and find out what doctors and nurses do during a checkup. If your teddy is a little under the weather, our volunteers will be on hand for some minor ‘suturing’ and repairs. $6.50, free to members and children under 12 months.

Tuesday Forum

Tuesday Forum, a women’s networking group designed to promote personal and professional growth, announced its meeting schedule:

. March 18, open forum to discuss programs for the upcoming year.

. March 25, personal profile of Esther Littlefield from Families and Children Together.

. April 1, business meeting.

. April 8, open forum to discuss upcoming programs.

. April 15, group dynamics discussion led by David Green of Ward Green consultants.

. April 22, open forum about psycho-geometric group strengths.

. April 29, personal profile of Laura Emack, a CPA with Roy and Associates in Bangor.

Meetings are held at noon Tuesdays at the Muddy Rudder in Brewer. Guests are welcome to attend. Lunch is provided. Meetings cost $10.25 for members, and guests pay $8.25.

NAACP meeting

The Bangor branch of the NAACP will meet 6-8 p.m. Sunday, March 30, at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 120 Park St. Guest speaker will be Shenna Bellows, executive director of the Maine Civil Liberties Union. The topic will be “Hot Topics in Civil Liberties: Marriage, Immigration, Spying and Security.” For information, call 548-2081 or 947-4625. The meeting is open to the public.

EqualityMaine awards

Three Bangor-area residents were honored March 8 at the awards dinner of EqualityMaine, the state’s oldest and largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender advocacy organization.

The Rev. Mark Doty, Kevin Gilgan and Jean Vermette were honored along with the Maine Civil Liberties Union and people from Winslow, Lewiston and Portland.

Doty, pastor of Hammond Street Congregational Church, is the second recipient of the Faith in Action Award.

Vermette and Gilgan are recipients of the Out Front Award. Both have been honored by the organization before.

Brewer

Interim minister

Second Congregational Church of Brewer has new interim pastors, the Rev. Foster Williams and his wife, MaryJane Williams.

Foster Williams was born and raised in Selden. He is a graduate of Houghton College and the Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He earned a doctorate from Princeton Theological Seminary in New Jersey. He was ordained in 1958.

MaryJane Williams has a certificate in lay ministry from Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary. The couple served churches in Pennsylvania, Maine, Massachusetts and California, and live in Winterport.

Foster Williams is an area minister and director of the Institute for Ministry for the American Baptist Churches of Maine, and MaryJane Williams is a Christian education specialist for American Baptist Churches in the U.S.A.

They said they are looking forward to their time of interim ministry with Second Congregational Church and are deeply grateful for the privilege.

Bucksport

Challenging Choices

Now is the time to beat the dull winter hum-drums and begin some healthy exercise options with classes offered by Challenging Choices of Bucksport Parks and Recreation.

Two of these opportunities offer bonding time for parent and youth.

. Yoga for youth and parents. Eileen Dunn-Kell is eager to show students relaxation and exercise techniques. The class begins in March for six weeks.

. Parent and Youth Chinese cooking. Lusan Li from China will teach new recipes such as General Tso’s chicken and crab Rangoon. Not only do you cook, but you sample the food and take home leftovers. The four-week class begins March 18.

. Dance, Dance, Revolution. Come learn all sorts of new dance moves. The class can begin as soon as there enough participants. It’s a great way to socialize, laugh and have fun.

Share some ideas on activities you would be interested in participating in. For more information or sign-up, contact Barb Ames at 469-6682 or 469-3518.

Hampden

Grant for Dyer Library

The Edythe Dyer Library recently received a $600 grant from the Rose and Samuel Rudman Library Fund to support its summer reading program.

Children earn “book bucks” as they read throughout the summer and use them to buy books at the end of the program.

“This grant will allow us to purchase popular excellent quality books for children,” said Donna Beck, children’s librarian at Edythe Dyer Library.

The Edythe Dyer Library was established in 1983 when Edythe L.R. Dyer gave her home to the town of Hampden. Dyer believed that putting books into the hands of children helps make them lifelong learners, and the library staff continues in this belief.

Holden

Mississippi River Delta

Joe Kelley, a voice to be heard on Louisiana’s coastline, will tackle the issues surrounding Hurricane Katrina in his talk “The Destruction and Planned Re-Construction of the Mississippi River Delta” at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 25, at Fields Pond Nature Center.

The Mississippi Delta is a major landform created by river and ocean processes during the past 7,000 years. It has grown generally seaward and added land by building upward to keep pace with rising sea level, and outward into the Gulf of Mexico.

Hurricane Katrina did what many expected a large storm eventually would. Now, engineering and natural solutions are being considered to “save” the delta.

The cost of admission is $5 members, $6 others. For more information, call 989-2591.

American Chestnut trees – in Maine

A ghost from America’s past has reappeared in Maine – the thrilling find of a logger who thought twice before putting his chainsaw to the trunk of a strange-looking tree.

Research revealed that the tree was a rare American chestnut, one of a species that virtually had been wiped out by blight a century ago. Thriving far north of the species’ natural range, the tree is just one of a grove of chestnuts that somehow never got the news that others of its kind had disappeared from North America. Now trees from that grove, and the seeds they produce, are contributing to the effort to restore the American chestnut tree nationwide. It is expected that within a decade, offspring of these survivors will be available for planting in Maine landscapes.

The story of the rescue of the American chestnut is filled with mystery, adventure and suspense. Learn more about it from Glen Rea, president of the Maine chapter of the American Chestnut Foundation, who will present a lecture 2-4 p.m. Sunday, March 16, at the Page Farm and Home Museum, University of Maine campus. The lecture is free; all are welcome.

This program is one of a series of free monthly public forums sponsored by the Dr. Edith Marion Patch Center for Entomology, the Environment and Education. For information, call Mary Bird at 866-2578.