Bangor

Mental health workshop

NAMI Bangor is holding a mental health workshop from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday, May 18, in the Leonard Room at Acadia Hospital, to help families and friends of people with mental illness cope with the difficult job of caregiving. Learn how to deal with a psychiatric crisis, how to get services, difficult behavior, defining mental illnesses and get answers to questions. To learn more, call 223-5686.

Memorial Day parade

A parade will be held at 10:30 a.m. Memorial Day, Monday, May 26. As in the past few years, at 9:30 a.m. the parade will form in the Kenduskeag Plaza behind Fleet Bank and along Exchange St. The parade route will be from Exchange Street, to State Street, to Harlow Street, to Central Street, up Main Street to the reviewing stand in front of the Merrill Merchant Bank’s parking lot, and then to Cedar Street, where it will disband.

Immediately after the parade, a commemorative ceremony will be held in Davenport Park in front of the Battleship Maine Monument. The ceremony will conclude with the placing of memorial wreaths at the base of the monument by representatives from several veterans organizations, followed by a three-volley salute by a rifle squad from Bangor High School Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps and a bugle sounding taps.

For information, call William J. Deering at 942-6482.

Barbershop singing

The River City Harmonizers and the Maine-ly Music Chorus will perform at 7:30 p.m. May 17, at the Union Street Brick Church. The cost of admission is an $8 donation. Tickets are available at Patrick’s Hallmark Cards on Broadway and at Knapp’s Music Center, 51 Main St. The concert will benefit the People to People Student Ambassador Program. To obtain information, call 947-1506 or 990-8139.

Awards to Whelan, Maynard

Keep Bangor Beautiful and Bangor Public Works have announced that the Maine Resource Recovery Association, in partnership with the State of Maine, honored two Bangor area residents April 28 at the Sable Oakes Marriott in Portland.

Recognized were Lora Whelan, a volunteer of Keep Bangor Beautiful, and Jerry Maynard, a recycling operator at the Bangor Recycling Center.

Whelan received the Volunteer of the Year award for her work on the City of Bangor and Keep Bangor Beautiful Quarterly Recycling Newsletters.

Maynard received the Operator of the Year award for his outstanding work at the Bangor Recycling Center.

Concert of Jewish music

Julie Silver, one of the stars of contemporary Jewish music, will perform in concert at 7 p.m. Saturday, May 17, at Congregation Beth El, 183 French St.

Silver is a nationally known performer, appearing in more than 100 concerts each year. Her five albums of original songs have earned her compositions a place in the repertoire of synagogues, Jewish camps and youth movements.

Silver is one of a wave of singer-songwriters interpreting the Jewish experience and Jewish tradition for a new generation. Her lyrics may be drawn from texts that are thousands of years old, or they may reflect the struggles and triumphs of the Jewish spirit in our own time, said concert organizers. Her melodies reflect American pop, rock and folk influences.

Admission to the public program is free. For information, call Congregation Beth El at 945-4578.

Seasonal thrift shop

The Hammond Street Senior Center, operated by the Couri Foundation, will reopen its seasonal thrift shop, Aunt Nellie’s Attic on the Bar Harbor Road in Holden on Monday, June 16. Store hours will be 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays, except Wednesdays and Sundays when the shop is closed. Sales benefit the Hammond Street Senior Center.

The thrift shop’s theme is From Minks to Sinks. It sells gift items, videotapes, furniture and dishes. Those who visit are offered free popcorn from a donated popcorn machine.

The thrift shop, operated and staffed by volunteers is seeking donations of resalable items, but not clothing. Volunteers also are needed. To learn more, call Heather Humbert at 262-5532.

Safe Boating Week

The more than 150 members of Penobscot Bay Sail and Power Squadron are urging the public to mark National Safe Boating Week May 17-23 by remembering the importance of life jackets or personal floatation devices.

The squadron’s members include canoeists, kayakers, sailors and power boaters. For Mainers on the water, officials explained, life jackets can make the difference between life and death. The U.S. Coast Guard reports that each year in Maine approximately nine people die in accidents related to recreational boating. In 85 percent of those drownings, victims were not wearing life jackets.

Recognizing the importance of National Safe Boating Week this effort, Gov. John E. Baldacci and Mayor Nichi Farnham have issued proclamations setting aside the time for special attention to boating safety.

The Penobscot Bay Sail and Power Squadron urges Maine boaters to avoid becoming safety statistics this year by using a correctly-sized, appropriate personal flotation device.

Boating knowledge, common sense and courtesy are the keys to safe, enjoyable boating, officials said. Call Jay Johnson at 866-2511, or e-mail Johnson@maine.edu, for information about safe boating classes and other activities sponsored at minimal cost by the Penobscot Bay Sail and Power Squadron.

Spruce Up Day

Each spring patients and staff at the Bangor Mental Health Institute participate in Spruce Up Day. This year’s event will be held Friday, June 13.

There are several gardens on the BMHI grounds, each one established and maintained by a group of patients and staff. Members of the Bangor Garden Club join in to lend a hand and to give advice on planting and other aspects of gardening. A barbecue is planned for noon.

Those interested in donating extra flowers and or perennials to BMHI should call Melissa Hayward in the Volunteer Office at 941-4023.

Brewer

Church milestone

One hundred years ago, the pastor of what was then the Methodist Episcopal Church asked his congregation how much they wanted a new church. By the end of the service, there were pledges of nearly $7,200, quite a sum at a time when a family’s annual income in this part of Maine barely reached $1,000.

The present stone church now housing the Brewer First United Methodist Church will be commemorated with a special service and day of celebration at 10:30 a.m. Sunday, May 18.

The Rev. Dr. George E. Curtis III, pastor, will lead a service which will include a message from New England United Methodist Conference Bishop Susan Wolfe Hassinger. Former pastors of the church – the Rev. David W. Bell, the Rev. Thomas R. Merrill and the Rev. Howard E. Benson – also will be present.

The Brewer church roots go back to circuit rider Elder Jesse Lee, who began preaching in Maine in 1793, riding from town to town to preach wherever he was accepted. Later, the area shared a preacher with Orrington, and services were held up and down the Penobscot River.

The present church was started in 1844 when the Methodists sent the Rev. Seth Howard Beale to live and preach in Brewer and North Brewer. By 1850, the congregations tired of meeting in the town hall and wanted their own building.

They bought the present lot for $250 and in 1853 built a frame building with a high roof, tower and steeple at a cost of $3,000. Pews were rented for $5 and $15 per year.

The church grew, but the frame building suffered from neglect and wear. By the end of the century, the congregation could no longer meet in the main sanctuary. In 1902, the city building inspector condemned the building as unsafe for church meetings. The congregation set about building a new church, laying the cornerstone in 1903 and occupying the new church in 1905.

The church is preparing a new written history for the celebration, and it will be available at the commemoration service. It includes the church history, a list of articles sealed in the cornerstone, many photos of former members and pastors, and remembrances written by church members who have a long history with the church.

For information, call the church at 989-7310.

Motorcycle organization

The Gold Wing Road Riders Association is making plans for the upcoming season, including a busy ride schedule, supper dates and a cycle show at Bangor Mall set for Saturday, May 24.

The group meets at 6 p.m. the first Thursday of each month at the Coach House Restaurant. The meeting begins at 7 p.m. The biker association members receive Wing World, a monthly magazine and are listed in the “Gold Book.” To obtain information about joining the group, call 825-3825.

Hampden

Children’s Day

Hampden Children’s Day will be held Saturday, Aug. 16. The day will begin with a parade at 11 a.m. The Children’s Day committee is seeking groups, organizations and individuals to participate in the parade. The parade theme is “Celebrating Children – Hampden Academy’s Past, Present and Future,” and is tied to Hampden Academy’s 200th anniversary.

Although businesses are encouraged to participate, anyone may enter a float. Kidspeace will provide materials and assistance for children who want to decorate bikes to ride in the parade. Clubs, groups and organizations are invited to walk, march or dance in the parade. Prizes will be awarded in various categories.

The parade will begin at the Reeds Brook Middle School and end at the junction of Routes 9 and 202 – a reverse of the direction in past years, in hopes of providing a safer line-up and to alleviate traffic congestion.

To obtain information or to enter a float, call Amy Lorenzo at 862-5522 for an application.

Summer schedule

The Hampden Highlands United Methodist Church, 44 Kennebec Road, Sunday schedule for the summer months, beginning June 1 through Labor Day Sunday, is worship and Sunday school at 9 a.m. Preschool child care will be available during the service. The church is handicap accessible by ramp and elevator. To obtain information, call 862-4195.

Antique Appraisal Day

The Hampden Historical Society is sponsoring an antique appraisal day from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, June 7, at the Kinsley House, 83 Main Road South.

There is a limit of three items per person. The cost for the first appraisal is $5, $3 for the second and $2 for the third. Proceeds will benefit the fund to rebuild the Kinsley House porch and to make improvements to the ell roof. To obtain information, call 862-2027.

Hermon

American Legion

The Arnold R. Kelly American Legion Post 200 has been re-established, said Edward Drake, commander. The Post had been inactive since the late 1950s. Currently, there are a dozen members and the group is seeking others to join.

The Post meets at 7 p.m. the last Thursday of each month at the Hermon Town Office. Members sponsor public suppers the third Saturday of each month at Hermon Rescue Building to benefit the Post.

To learn more, call Edward Drake, commander, at 848-5653 or Larry Davis, sergeant at arms, at 848-3956.

Orono

Herb sale

The University of Maine’s Page Farm and Home Museum will hold its annual herb sale from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 17, and Sunday, May 18, at the museum, located near the Maine Center for the arts on the UMaine campus. Many varieties of herbs will be for sale. All are grown locally from seed. The sale benefits the museum’s spring planting and garden programs.

Compiled by Ardeana Hamlin