History of Machias’ role in Revolution released

Longtime Machias Memorial High School English teacher Leonard N. Hooper delivered the manuscript for “Machias Patriots and the Margaretta” just one month before he died unexpectedly in February, Valdine Atwood of the Machias Historical Society said.

Hooper wrote the book at the society’s request to tell “the story of Machias’ role in the American Revolution, based on the events of June 12, 1775,” about the Battle of the Margaretta, which is considered the first naval battle of the American Revolution, Atwood said.

The historical society is hosting a reception for the release of the book from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Friday, June 20, at Holy Name Parish on Broadway in Machias.

Some of Hooper’s former students will read excerpts from the book, and guests will be able to meet Milbridge artist Patricia Sharp and see the book’s original illustrations.

Light refreshments will be served at the reception, to which the public is cordially invited.

Donna Jenkins is parade coordinator for the Canoe Hullabaloo Parade in Old Town.

Registration for the event is free. The lineup for the parade begins at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, June 21, in the parking lot of Old Town High School. The parade begins at 10 a.m.

Jenkins wrote that “if you have an antique car, tractor, special interest vehicle or a hot rod, we are looking for you” to be in the parade.

After the parade, the vehicles will be displayed at the park for judging.

Trophies will be awarded for first place, ribbons for second and third, and certificates for all participants.

Space is still available, although reservations are recommended, for the 11th annual Hospice Garden Party, A Day of Enchantment in the Garden, beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday, June 21, at Fieldstone Gardens in Vassalboro.

The event, which benefits Hospice Volunteers of Waterville Area, not only features a garden that first-time visitors “often refer to as one of Maine’s best-kept secrets,” wrote Hospice Volunteers executive director Dale Marie Clark, but it also features the appearance of a special guest.

The Fairy House book series artist and author Tracy Kane will help children and adults build Fairy Houses in the Fieldstone Gardens forest and sign copies of her work at midday. Children are encouraged to dress as fairies, butterflies or dragonflies.

Admission is $5 for all ages and includes a Fairy Feast for children from noon to 1 p.m. You can also enjoy a gourmet buffet luncheon from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. for $10.

For reservations, call 873-3615, visit www.hvwa.org/special-events or stop at the Hospice Community Center, 304 Main St., Waterville.

The rain date is Sunday, June 22.

The 11th annual Harbor House Tremont Trot begins with registration at 7 a.m. at the Tremont Community Center. The race begins at 8:30 a.m. Sunday, June 22, at the Seawall Picnic Area in Southwest Harbor. Runners will be bused to the starting site.

For those not pre-registered, the fee for the 4-mile event that is part of the Eden Athletics-Jack Russell’s Steak House Points Series is $20.

The race, which runs through part of Acadia National Park, is open to runners 13 and older. A free fun run for children 12 and under follows the race.

For more information about the race, visit Edenathletics.com, call Harbor House at 244-3713 or visit www.Harborhousemdi.org.

Margy Vose of Harbor House reports that the slogan for this year’s event is “More Than a Race. A Community Cause,” and she hopes many people will “come out and help support Harbor House and your community.”

Rebecca Hosley e-mailed a reminder that the deadline for entries in the Maine Center for Creativity’s Art All Around international design competition is Wednesday, June 25.

Also, she wrote, the entry fee has been waived “so now it is free to enter, and you can enter as many design ideas as you want.”

The winner of the grand prize receives “a cash prize of up to $30,000 and the winning design will be painted on 16 of the most visible tanks, including tops, at the Sprague Energy Corp. tank farm in South Portland,” Hosley said.

“The goal of the project is to underscore the importance of creativity as a driving economic force for Maine. Art All Around represents one of the state’s largest, public art projects to date,” she wrote.

Hosley urges all artists to enter, and you can do so by visiting www.artallaround.com.

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