Alton

Wickett Family Reunion

The 10th annual Wickett family reunion will be held on Saturday, Aug. 19, at the Town of Alton Municipal Building. A potluck lunch will be served at noon.

Family members are asked to participate in the Crazy Hat Contest and to bring items for the silent auction. There will be a cake walk. For information, call Eloise McLaughlin at 394-2892.

Bangor

Saturday in the park

The Mix, a community outreach event sponsored by Abundant Life Church, is going to Broadway. The public is invited to a free barbecue 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 19, at the park on Broadway. The family event will feature live music, dance, drama and games for children.

The event will tell the community about the love of Jesus through the use of secular music.

The Mix also will hold a similar event Saturday, Sept. 2, at Manna Ministries, 629 Main St., Bangor.

For more information, call Judy at 356-5466.

Fall bulb sale

The Penobscot County Soil and Water Conservation District announced that it is now taking orders for its 2006 Fall Bulb Sale. The sale offers tulips, hyacinths, daffodils, irises, lilies and much more. All orders must be received by Friday, Sept. 1.

The Penobscot County Soil and Water Conservation District is a nonprofit organization. Funds from the sale will be used to promote conservation and the wise use of soil, water and other natural resources.

For more information on the bulb sale or district programs, call 990-3676, visit www.penobscotswcd.org or write the district at 28 Gilman Plaza, Suite 2, Bangor, ME 04401.

Stuff the Bus

The National Retail Federation estimates parents will spend more than $525 per child this year for back-to-school items. For some parents that can be an incredible hardship, but still their kids need to be ready for school.

Penquis Community Action Program, along with Z107.3, Cyr Bus Lines and the Brewer Wal-Mart Supercenter, is going to stuff a school bus full of school supplies for youth residing in Penobscot and Piscataquis counties.

Stuff the Bus will be headquartered outside the Brewer Wal-Mart Supercenter Thursday through Saturday, Aug. 17-19. The school bus used in the event is donated by Cyr Bus Lines.

The goal is to stuff the bus with as many school supplies as possible to help families in Penobscot and Piscataquis counties.

Donations also will be accepted at any Penquis CAP office throughout Penobscot and Piscataquis counties during August.

Donations will be accepted at the Brewer Wal-Mart during the Stuff the Bus campaign.

For more information, call Jen Brooks at 973-3558 or (800) 215-4942.

School supplies

During the month of August, Penquis CAP will distribute free school supplies throughout Penobscot, Piscataquis and Knox counties. Call your local Penquis CAP office to register. Be prepared to provide your child’s name, age, grade, and school, as well as your name and contact information.

Penquis CAP may be reached at 973-3500 or (800) 215-4942.

School supplies will be distributed on a first-call basis until the supply is depleted.

Dessert with Elvis

The public is invited to Dessert with Elvis 6-9 p.m. Friday, Sept. 8, at the Elks Club, 108 Odlin Road. Bruce Nye, the Elvis Guy, will provide entertainment. The evening also will include silent and live auctions, and a dessert buffet.

Elvis will take attendees on a musical trip to the 1950s and 1960s while they enjoy homemade desserts prepared by the ladies of Grace United Methodist Church.

The auctions will feature such items as a pinball machine, gift certificates from restaurants, the theater, Penobscot Bingo and other places, gifts and more.

Tickets are $10 per person and may be purchased in advance at Patrick’s Hallmark store, Broadway Shopping Center, Bangor; at Marden’s in Brewer on Friday, Sept. 1; at Grace United Methodist Church, the sponsor of the event; or at the door the evening of the event.

Proceeds from the event benefit Grace United Methodist Church outreach programs.

Goodie Grannie program

Come meet the Goodie Grannie!

Judy Babcock, a summer resident at Branch Pond in Ellsworth, is a member of Book PALS – Performing Artist for Literacy in Schools.

Book PALS read to pupils weekly in an effort to enhance their reading skills and to entice them to become readers for life.

Goodie Grannie brings more than 40 years of teaching experience and many years of performing to the dramatic presentation of stories for young people.

Come join us at 10 a.m. Tuesdays, Aug. 15 and 22, in the Story Room at Bangor Public Library to enjoy listening and reading together.

Pet show for kids

On 10 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 16, children ages 4 through 12 are invited to a pet show at Bangor Public Library.

Bring your pet to the library – leash, cage or container required – for a parade of animals and a chance to tell about your pet.

Registration is required and will take place before the show, 9:30-10 a.m.

Judges will award ribbons in several categories, including best in show and most unusual. Only live pets will be admitted.

The rain date is Aug. 17.

Pathfinders: Support For Grieving Children

Pathfinders: Support for Grieving Children, has announced its fall 2006 session, to be held 6-7:30 p.m. Mondays, Oct. 2 through Dec. 4, at Redeemer Lutheran Church, Essex Street. Visit www.pathfindersmaine.org for location directions.

The 10-week session provides 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 may attend on their own as long as they have the consent of a caregiver.

Celebrating its 12th year, Pathfinders was founded by Maria Brountas and the late Barbara Eames. The program provides special bereavement support geared specifically for children ages 3-18.

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

Volunteers are still needed to help facilitate the session. Facilitators are specially trained to meet the needs of grieving children.

For more information on attending a session or volunteering, call Linda Boyle at 973-8269.

Dog Ownership Day

The Penobscot Valley Kennel Club will hold an AKC Responsible Dog Ownership Day 1-3 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 17, in Paul Bunyan Park, Main Street. The goal of the event is to teach dog owners to be a good pal to their pooch.

Activities include:

. AKC Meet the Breeds.

. Canine Good Citizen testing. Ten-step test for AKC certification, $5.

. Microchip implant clinic, $25.

. Informative demonstrations.

For more information, call Bonnie Raymond, 843-5222.

Opera House restoration

Penobscot Theatre Company officials are cheering the success of Maine Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins in earmarking $200,000 for the revitalization of the Bangor Opera House.

“This is significant step in restoring what was and what will again be the showpiece of Bangor’s Main Street,” said Scott R.C. Levy, producing artistic director of the Penobscot Theatre Company. “We are incredibly grateful to Senators Snowe and Collins.”

The grant is part of the 2007 Transportation Treasury, Judiciary, and Housing and Urban Development spending bill. If included in the final budget, the $200,000 will be devoted to improving handicapped accessibility as well as renovating and restoring the simple architectural elegance and Egyptian-inspired art deco design of the Opera House, which was built in 1920.

“This is a wonderful start to an exciting journey that will require many more gifts like this one before we, as a community, are able to celebrate,” added Levy.

Donations to the Opera House Restoration fund may be made by calling the Penobscot Theatre Company at 942-3333 or (877) PTC.TIXX. Donations also may be made securely at www.penobscottheatre.org.

Brewer

Class of 1996 reunion

The Brewer High School Class of 1996 will hold its 10th year reunion Saturday, Aug. 26.

. A family cookout, noon-3 p.m. at Doyle Field in Brewer. There is no cost for the event, but donations are accepted. The event is alcohol-free.

. An appetizer and drinks reception will be held at 7 p.m. at the Muddy Rudder restaurant in Brewer. The evening will include music of the ’90s and trivia, door prizes and other contests. The cost is $10 per person, or $15 per couple at the door.

Brewer High School Class of 1996 alumni and faculty are invited to the reunion. RSVP to Jacob Carr at jacobcarr@hotmail.com.

Bucksport

Antique and classic car show

Bucksport True Value Hardware and Highway Legends – the antique and classic car club – will host the sixth annual car show 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 13, in the parking lot at Bucksport True Value Hardware on Main Street.

Vehicle registration will be held 8-11 a.m., with a $5 registration fee.

The public is welcome to attend, free. Lunch will be available, and there will be prizes and a 50-50 raffle. For information, call 469-2056.

Castine

On painting mushrooms

“Botanicals: A Painting Workshop Focusing on Mushrooms,” originally set for July, has been rescheduled to 9 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 24.

Participants will meet at the Wilson Museum’s Doudiet House, 120 Perkins St., to view the botanical paintings of Alice McLaughlin, a summer resident of Castine in the late 1800s, who spent much time painting watercolors. She collected local mushrooms which became subjects of numerous botanical sketches.

Liddy Fitz-Gerald, artist and amateur naturalist, will talk about local mushrooms. She has had an interest in wildflowers, birds, sea life and nature in general from early childhood. After marriage to Clark B. Fitz-Gerald, she became interested in the many varieties of mushrooms in and around Castine, eating some and avoiding many.

Artist Lyn Mayewski, artist, will lead the painting workshop. Participants will walk to Trinity Episcopal Church where she will demonstrate the technique of using gouache and colored pencil in botanical paintings.

Workshop participants will have a chance to do their own paintings. While the focus will be on mushrooms as subject matter, participants may bring flowers or other botanical materials.

Materials for the workshop will be provided. Advance registration is required by calling 326-8433. Sponsors are the Castine Arts Association, Castine Garden Club, and the Wilson Museum.

Hampden

Teddy Bear Picnic

Children who will be in kindergarten at McGraw School in September are invited to a Teddy Bear Picnic 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 22, at the McGraw School playground. Participants are encouraged to bring a friend and meet a friend. A lunch of hot dogs or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches will be served. Children will play games and play on the playground equipment.

In order to attend the event, children must be registered for kindergarten.

Registration deadline for the Teddy Bear Picnic is Wednesday, Aug. 16

Hermon

Sweet music at Ecotat

Sweet Adelines Heart of Maine Chorus will perform at 7 p.m. Monday, Aug. 14, at Ecotat Gardens, at the intersection of 2699 Route 2 and Annis Road.

Park off Annis Road and bring a lawn chair. The event is free, but donations are welcome.