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Pathfinders program for grieving children

“Once again I’m very grateful to be a part of Pathfinders. It is a wonderful program for these kids who need it so badly. I love Pathfinders and not only for what it does for my own soul, but what it does for the kids, and the beauty of it as a whole.”

Pathfinders: Support for Grieving Children, has announced its fall session beginning Monday, Sept. 29, and concluding Monday, Dec. 1.

Weekly sessions will be held 6-7:30 p.m. at Redeemer Lutheran Church on Essex Street in Bangor. Visit www.pathfinders

maine.org for location directions.

Pathfinders offers this 10-week session to provide grief support for children and their families or caregivers who are experiencing the death of a loved one.

Adults who attend with children meet in their own groups. Teens can attend on their own as long as they have the consent of their caregiver.

Celebrating its 14th year, Pathfinders was founded by Maria Brountas and the late Barbara Eames.

The program provides special bereavement support geared specifically for children age 4 through young adults.

To help defray costs, there is a $50 fee per family with a limited number of scholarships available.

Volunteer facilitators are specially trained to meet the needs of grieving children and their adult caregivers.

Training will begin on Saturday, Sept. 13. For more information on attending a session or volunteering, contact Linda Boyle at 973-8269.

Pathfinders is a program of Bangor Area Visiting Nurses and part of Eastern Maine Healthcare System.

Through its members across the region, EMHS advocates on behalf of our communities with an integrated, tireless and passionate voice. Member organizations share common values and work together to ensure that the highest quality care is available to all.

Physical disabilities support

BANGOR – Local wheelchair athletes who took part in Saturday’s Beach to Beacon 10K road race in Cape Elizabeth and South Portland will talk about their experience during the meeting of the Physical Disabilities Support Group at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 7, at Alpha One, 1048 Union St.

Those attending are welcome to bring something for the potluck supper at 5 p.m.

Ask Me campaign

BANGOR – Ask Me is a campaign designed by Rape Response Services to increase awareness of the relationship between excessive alcohol consumption and sexual assault and to highlight the importance of verbal mutual consent for sexual activity.

The vast majority of sexual assaults do not occur in alleys and are not perpetrated by strangers wearing ski masks. They happen between casual acquaintances, close friends and even dating partners, and most often involve alcohol.

While most campaigns directed at increasing this kind of awareness have taken a somber tone with coasters and posters depicting prison bars and using words such as “illegal” and “felony,” representatives of Rape Response Services said they were hoping to do it a little bit differently.

“We believe that talking about respect and consent shouldn’t be so sobering,” officials said. “It can, in fact, be approachable, enjoyable, a little bit humorous, and most of all memorable.”

Rape Response Services kicked off its Ask Me campaign at the Bear Brew Pub in Orono in May and hoped to reach at least five bars in the Bangor region by early summer. Promotional materials include banners, posters, coasters and T-shirts with messages such as “Consent is Sexy,” “Got Consent?” and “May I Kiss You?”

All materials have eye-catching phrases, facts about consent and contact information for Rape Response Services.

For more info, call 941-2980, or e-mail Angel Matson at rrsedu@rrsonline.org

Warren Center staff

BANGOR – The Warren Center for Communication & Learning has welcomed new staff members:

. Christine Probert joins the Warren Center as its new client coordinator for speech services. She is a 20-year veteran of the U.S. Navy who holds a bachelor’s degree in business from Northwood University in Midland, Mich. Probert has two college-age children and lives with her husband, Don, in Winterport.

. Rebecca Phillips is the center’s new business manager. She is a graduate of Husson College with a bachelor’s degree in public accounting and a master’s degree in business with a concentration in health care. Phillips is married with two grown sons.

The Warren Center for Communication & Learning provides evaluations, therapies and technologies in the areas of speech, language development and hearing to the children and adults of eastern and central Maine. For information, call 941-2850.

New EMMC Web site

BANGOR – Eastern Maine Medical Center has launched a new and improved Web site aimed at providing residents of northern, eastern and central Maine improved access to health-related information. The new site maintains the same Web address, www.emmc.org, and features improvements over the previous Web site.

Visitors to the new site will notice a more modern design and a simplified menu structure. In addition, the new site has a state-of-the-art search feature, which when combined with the new menu structure allows viewers to access information about EMMC’s health care services more easily.

Other enhancements include an expanded health library and updated events calendar.

“People are using the Web for everything from shopping for clothing to shopping for health care information,” said Jill McDonald, EMMC vice president for communication and market development.

“EMMC’s new site is not only beautiful, but it also can serve as a primary source of health information, providing details about services we offer at EMMC, and also about health conditions and treatments, in general,” she said. “We’re excited about our enhanced ability to provide the right health information to people who need it, when they want it.”

Over the coming months, EMMC plans to add even more content and features. “Keep an eye on this site,” said McDonald, “because it will be changing all the time.”