Old Town and Orono residents should be aware that if their telephones ring between 9 a.m. and noon Saturday, March 9, it could well be a call from a neighbor.

Kay Hyatt reports that volunteers for The Animal Orphanage in Old Town will be calling to ask for pledges to support its spay-neuter fund.

Committed to the long-term health and well-being of animals, and providing high-quality care until adoptive homes can be found, The Animal Orphanage sheltered 482 cats and 192 dogs, reunited 163 stray pets with their owners, and placed 446 animals in new homes during 2000 and 2001.

With pet overpopulation a major concern throughout the country as well as right here in our own back yard, funds raised through the phoneathon will help reduce the large number of unwanted dogs and cats.

Animal welfare organizations report that about 70,000 kittens and puppies are born each day in the United States, but only one in nine finds a home. The rest are destroyed or abandoned.

Through its spay-neuter program, The Animal Orphanage works to reduce pet overpopulation and the mass destruction of unwanted dogs and cats.

The phoneathon is being conducted with the assistance of MBNA.

If you are home but do not receive a call Saturday morning, you can make your pledge by calling 866-0753.

If you are not home but would like to help, you can mail a contribution to The Animal Orphanage, P.O. Box 163, Old Town 04468.

Anyone who wants to participate in the Maine Alliance for Arts Education Annual Arts Education Advocacy Day set for 9:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Wednesday, March 13, in the Hall of Flags of the State House in Augusta, must express that interest no later than tomorrow, Wednesday, March 6.

At this event, MAAE will present awards to an exemplary arts teacher and an outstanding administrator for their advocacy work.

Exhibits by arts groups and individual artists, and performances by student groups will be included in the event.

Exhibit spaces are available first come, first served for visual and performing artists and arts groups who provide services for schools and students.

To participate, contact Trudy Wilson at trudy@maine.edu or Kathy Slack at kslack@maine.edu.

Rape Response Services provides support for people in Penobscot and Piscataquis counties who have been affected by rape, incest, childhood sexual abuse or sexual harassment.

Sue Currie, RRS client services coordinator, reports the organization is seeking hot line volunteers who take shifts on its 24-hour crisis hot line, provide accompaniment to the hospital or to court, make referrals and attend monthly advocates meetings.

The training is scheduled 6-9 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays, March 25 through May 9. Topics include rape trauma syndrome, crisis intervention, myths and attitudes, and legal and medical issues.

Volunteers are asked to participate in eight-hour shifts on the hot line, and pagers are provided to allow maximum flexibility when working a hot line shift.

“Requirements” for this volunteer position include good listening skills and a caring manner as well as the desire to empower sexual assault victims or survivors of those affected by sexual assault.

If you can help, call RRS at 941-2980.

This year, the Fresh Air Fund of New York City celebrates 125 years of serving children with a variety of events and opportunities.

One of those wonderful opportunities is its Friendly Town Program in which inner-city children are provided a free summer vacation by families in 13 Northeastern states and Canada.

Children between the ages of 6 and 12 are invited by young families, single professionals, “empty-nesters” or grandparents to share their suburban or country lives with an inner-city child.

Volunteer host families in Maine are needed for this summer’s program.

You can offer to become a host family by calling Beth Shea at 784-5342, or the Fresh Air Fund at (800) 367-0003.

More information about the Friendly Town Program can be obtained by visiting www.freshair.org.

Last month we lost three individuals whose presence among us made a difference not only in our lives but, truthfully, in the lives of people throughout our state, our nation and the world.

Rosemary Baldacci, Wes Jordan and Polly Thomas devoted their lives to young people not only as parents but also as caring mentors for their families and their community, in business, politics, education, athletics and the arts.

In effect, their presence in the lives of those they loved, worked with and guided are immeasurable, and their legacy lives on through all whose paths they crossed.

Each of them can be honored and acclaimed for his or her own efforts in making this world a better place in which to live.

And each of them can be honored and acclaimed for passing on to those they loved, those with whom they worked, and those they mentored an understanding and respect for others and recognition that service to community, in any form, is the highest form of service to self.

Family, business, politics, community, education, athletics and the arts all share a common thread: the appreciation of compromise and consideration, the necessity of commitment, and the understanding of the need for acceptance and cooperation to achieve the greater good.

We thank Rosemary, Wes and Polly for sharing those qualities with us, and we extend to their loved ones our deepest sympathy.

Joni Averill, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402;

990-8288.