Bangor

Visit by NASA astronaut

Challenger Learning Center says former NASA astronaut William F. Readdy will attend the first Astronauts’ Ball on June 20 at Wellman Commons, 300 Union St.

The ball is a celebration of the summer solstice, the longest day of the year. The event will feature actual astronaut artifacts and exhibits from NASA and many valuable door prizes donated by area businesses.

Admission will include a chance to win the grand prize: a three-day trip for four to Orlando, Fla., with a VIP opportunity to tour the Kennedy Space Center or watch a space shuttle launch from a restricted viewing area.

Readdy is an astronaut who retired from NASA in 2005 after logging 672 space hours on three flights.

Readdy is founder and managing partner of Discovery Partners International, an aerospace consulting firm. He joined NASA’s Johnson Space Center in 1986 as a research pilot at Ellington Field in Houston, and was selected as an astronaut in the 1987 group.

“We will celebrate the moon rising, the sun setting, our special honored guests and all of our honored attendees with an event that kicks off the summer social season in Bangor,” said Nathan Michaud, executive director. “Proceeds from the event will benefit the Challenger Learning Center’s mission to inspire Maine’s students.”

Reservations are required. Admission is $75, $125 a couple, $500 table of eight, including the prize drawings. To be added to the invitation list, call the Challenger Learning Center at 990-2900, Ext. 4.

Parkside Children’s Learning Center is offering babysitting services to parents who want a night out. Call 941-2122 to arrange babysitting services.

Genealogy for Kids Day

Children ages 8 to 14 are invited to attend Genealogy for Kids Day at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 24, in the Story Room at Bangor Public Library.

The Penobscot County Genealogical Society will be on hand to help kids learn about the fun of genealogy. Guest instructors include Dale Mower and Phil Getchell.

A free lunch will be provided by Leadbetter’s Super Stop East, and prizes will be given out. Register at the Children’s Desk, 947-8337, or www.bpl.lib.me.us

Honorary doctorate

Hilda Hutchins McCollum of Bangor received an honorary doctor of public service degree at Husson College commencement exercises on May 10.

McCollum has served as national president for Goodwill Industries Volunteer Services and on the board of Goodwill Industries of America. President Reagan appointed her to his National Commission on the Disabled, and she has served as chairwoman of the board of governance for Columbia Lighthouse for the Blind in Washington, D.C.

McCollum has served as vice chairwoman of the Bangor Theological Seminary board of directors and on the boards of Husson, Colby-Sawyer College, Good Samaritan Agency and the Maine Tree Foundation.

A long-time supporter of the arts, McCollum has led the endowment campaign of the advisory board to the Collins Center for the Arts at the University of Maine. At Husson she played a leadership role in developing the college’s Kenduskeag Research Institute and the college’s new Gracie Theater, named after her granddaughter, Grace McCollum.

“Hilda Hutchins McCollum is an extraordinary, behind-the-scenes leader and volunteer,” Husson President William Beardsley said at the commencement exercises. “We are proud to award her Husson College’s doctor of public service for her career as volunteer. It is well-deserved.”

Talk by local author

Local author Shannon M. Risk will appear at the Meet the Author series at the Bangor Public Library at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 24.

Risk, whose book, “Pirate Shirt Dot Com, was showcased in this month’s Arthritis Today magazine, will speak about the inspiration behind her romantic comedy, the story of three young women who run an Internet dating agency.

“It’s not your typical romance novel,” Risk said, “because one of the characters struggles with a disability. I wanted to show that romance can happen to anyone, anywhere. Whether you have a disability or not, I think that readers of ‘Pirate Shirt Dot Com’ could relate to the characters. We have all had to face something really difficult in our lives, and I wanted to show how one woman, who is living with disability, grapples with this experience.”

Risk believes that “love can be great comic relief.” She is an Iowa native who has lived in Maine for five years. Risk is a graduate student at the University of Maine and will travel to Fredericton, New Brunswick, in the fall on a Fulbright scholarship.

Boot Camp for New Dads

The Penquis Parents Are Teachers, Too program will offer Boot Camp for New Dads, a free workshop for first-time dads-to-be in the last trimester of pregnancy 5-8 p.m. Wednesday, June 18, at the social action agency Penquis, 262 Harlow St. Use side entrance.

Pizza and beverages will be provided.

New babies don’t come with owner’s manuals. Lots of first-time fathers have questions, such as how do I hold, feed, talk to or play with a baby?

Boot Camp for New Dads offers first-time fathers-to-be a chance to talk with experienced dads who bring their own babies to the workshop. The goal is for participants to leave the workshop more confident in their ability to be great dads.

To register or obtain information, call Wendy Pace at 973-3674 or 888-389-3610.

Gospel concert

Singer Michael Brown will give a concert at 4 p.m. Sunday, May 25, at the Hammond Street Congregational Church, 28 High St. The event is sponsored by Redeemer Lutheran Church. Admission is by donation.

Introduced to Bangor area audiences in February, Brown returns to sing gospel, rock ‘n’ roll, blues and jazz. A self-taught musician, Brown began playing an upright piano at age 4. He was 12 the first time he accompanied and directed a choir. He recorded two singles that were featured on “American Bandstand” and composed jingles heard nationally.

For information, call 942-4381.

Bradley

Children’s Days

Children’s Days will be held 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Wednesday, May 28; Friday, May 30; and Monday, June 2, at Leonard’s Mills Living History Museum. Children will play old-time games, visit the blacksmith shop, help split cedar shake shingles, watch the sawmill in action and participated in many other activities representative of the late 18th century.

Visiting schoolchildren will take part in fiber-related tasks such as spinning, weaving, knitting, quilting, rug hooking, rug braiding and embroidery. To learn more about the event or to volunteer fiber art or other skills, call Cathy Goslin at 581-2871 or e-mail info@leanoardsmills.com.

Holden

Memorial to veterans

After interviewing veterans in the Ambassadors of Patriotism Program last fall at Cole Land Transportation Museum in Bangor, eighth-graders in SAD 63 decided to build a memorial to veterans as a service learning project.

The monument, engraved “Dedicated to all Holden veterans – past, present, future,” will be unveiled during ceremonies at 4 p.m. Memorial Day, May 26, near the gazebo by Holden Elementary School.

The Kids of Liberty from Holbrook School held fund raisers and wrote letters to raise some $16,000. Student leaders for the project are Jamie Muth, Kylie Danforth, Jasmine Coulter, Emily Ellis and Willie Paine.

Donations came from Brewer Wal-Mart and the Galen Cole Family Foundation, as well as materials contributed by businesses and individuals.

Paving stones, with names of individual veterans, branch of service, rank and war in which they served are available for $150 each, said language arts teacher Trisha Smith.

The keynote speaker for the event will be Clifton resident Lt. Col. Eric Johns. Galen Cole and John Bryant will speak, and Bonnie Clark will cut the ribbon.

The U.S. Marine Corps League will present the colors. Holden and Eddington elementary choruses will sing, and the Holbrook Middle School Band will play patriotic music. The event will end with a barbecue hosted by the Holden Fire Auxiliary.

To order a paving stone, call Smith at 843-7769.

‘Ethical Obligations to Animals’

Dr. Greg Fahy, medical ethicist and professor of philosophy at University of Maine at Augusta, will deliver a presentation about the uncertainties we struggle with in our obligations to non-human animals.

Sydney Carroll, Audubon volunteer, had the opportunity to interview Dr. Fahy.

“He speaks with delightful candor about our need for certainty when it comes to defining our ethical stance about how we are to live with and treat non-human animals,” Carroll said. “Dr. Fahy points to the often hidden inconsistencies that remain unaddressed: the differences in the way we treat our pets, lab animals, working animals, animals in entertainment and other non-humans who provide our clothing and food.”

Fahy will review Peter Singer’s Utilitarian philosophy and contrast that with what he refers to as the Land Ethic or bio-centrist approach. He will address differences in habitat and species protection and the ethical dilemmas that arise when these ideals conflict with more individualized approaches.

Whatever your position may be on humans’ obligations to animals, the Audubon Center invites all to come hear Dr. Fahy’s challenging and thought-provoking presentation. There will be plenty of time for questions, comments and great discussion.

Fahy will present “Thoughts on Our Ethical Obligations to Animals” at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 29, at Fields Pond Audubon Center.

A fee of $5 members and $6 nonmembers will benefit the nature center.

Orono

Scout-planned event

Ashley Nickerson of Greenbush is working on her Girl Scout Gold Award. She is organizing an event to raise awareness of multiple sclerosis. It will be at noon Sunday, June 1, at Orono High School. The event is free to all.

Activities planned include tie-dying, jewelry making, seed planting, henna tattoos, face painting, scrapbooking, information on multiple sclerosis, a bake sale and silent auction.

A band concert will take place at 4 p.m., with music provided by several bands.

Quilt show winners

The winners of the viewer’s choice voting at the Bear Paws and Orono Quilters show held April 25-26 in Orono are Mary Lou Drake for her There was a Crooked House quilt, first place; Pat Cody, One Cat, second place; and Jean Campbell, Vern’s Garden Party, third place.

Winterport

High school reunion

The next reunion of those who attended Winterport High School will be held Aug. 23. Charles and Jane Rancourt are collecting names and addresses of those who were students at the school. Contact the Rancourts by mail at 61 Fairfax St., Bangor 04401; call 947-4587; or e-mail cerjhr@roadrunner.com.

Areawide

Governor’s Service Awards

Gov. John Baldacci and the Maine Commission for Community Service recognized on April 29 the winners of the 2008 Governor’s Service Awards for exceptional contributions to Maine communities. At a separate ceremony at the Maine State Museum, 410 volunteers were inducted to the Roll of Honor for outstanding service to the state.

Those honored included:

. Outstanding Public Sector Volunteer Award: Tina McLaughlin, Bangor.

. Excellence in Volunteer Administration Award: Cynthia Smith, Orono.

. Small Business Volunteerism Award: Trans-Tech Industries Inc., Brewer.

Area people receiving Exemplary Service Awards were: Mary Henderson of Brewer and Joseph Taylor of Ellsworth.