For a good part of the fall, a friend of mine has been wanting to take to the slopes and learn to ski. Time and time again, I’ve told him the same thing: “Take advantage of the Learn to Ski Free Week.” googletag.cmd.push(function () {… Read More
MADAWASKA – Ken Daley connected for a game-high 29 points to power Madawaska to an 80-39 schoolboy basketball victory over Wisdom of St. Agatha here Wednesday night. Pierre Michaud tossed in 15 points and grabbed 15 rebounds for the 1-2 Owls. Joey Cannan had 10… Read More
KINGFIELD – Auburn’s Rob Parisien finished fourth at the Sugarloaf/USA North American Championship Series race here Wednesday at Sugarloaf/USA ski area. Casey Puckett of Wheat Ridge, Colo., won his first Nor Am Championship race with a time of one minute, 24.80 seconds on the 1… Read More
AT HOWLAND Penobscot Valley (5-0) 66, John Bapst (0-4) 7 googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if (isMobileDevice()) { if (slot_sizes[i][0] googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
FARMINGTON – Raymond Alley scored 18 of his 22 points in the second half to lift the Husson College Braves to a 114-110 men’s basketball win over the University of Maine-Farmington Beavers here Wednesday night. Center Brian Burrell paced the 7-4 Braves with 23 points… Read More
WATERVILLE – Melanie Morrell scored 17 points to help pace the Greenville Lakers to a 46-26 schoolgirl basketball win over host Temple Academy here Wednesday night. The win evened Greenville’s record at 1-1. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes… Read More
MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – Kevin Mitchell, one of the best power hitters in baseball, was traded Wednesday from the San Francisco Giants to the Seattle Mariners in a five-player deal featuring Seattle righthander Bill Swift. The trade was made following four late-night meetings between the… Read More
ORONO – During the last two seasons, whenever the University of Maine women’s basketball team was faced with a “big game” situation, a heartbreaking loss seemed to follow. Coach Trish Roberts’ 2-5 Black Bears, out of the starting gate like Mr. Ed in the Kentucky… Read More
AT FORT KENT, 7K Fort Kent boys 11, Caribou 37, Madawaska 31 googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if (isMobileDevice()) { if (slot_sizes[i][0]… Read More
The phone rang at 5 a.m. Billy Swift thought it was some friends or relatives back in Maine. It wasn’t. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i… Read More
HODGDON – Freshman Kerri Ivey hit a 3-pointer with 45 seconds to play to help Hodgdon came a second-half comeback and eked out a 31-30 schoolgirl basketball victory over East Grand of Danforth here Wednesday night. The Hawks trailed by as many as 13 points… Read More
BELFAST – The Belfast Area High School annual Meet the Teams Night has been rescheduled for Sunday, Dec. 15, 4 p.m. in the high school gym. Each team will be introduced and perform a segment of its practice routine. The event will also feature presentations by Coastal Sports… Read More
The first portion of the University of Maine’s hockey schedule is now complete. The Bears, 11-1 and ranked No. 1 in the country, are now preparing for final exams. While they await their academic grades, here is how I would rank their on-ice performance to… Read More
FARMINGTON – Anne Cote scored 22 points as the Husson College Braves rolled past the University of Maine-Farmington Beavers 71-36 in women’s basketball action here Wednesday night. The Braves put the Beavers away early as they took a 37-19 lead at the half. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
The fact the University of Maine-Presque Isle women’s basketball team heads into a Thursday game with as many wins as it had last year comes as a pleasant surprise to Coach Monica Bearden. UMPI finished 5-16 in 1990-91, but takes a 5-3 record into a… Read More
ROCKLAND – Jim Montgomery scored 20 points and hauled down 14 rebounds to lead the Rockland Tigers to 85-62, season-opening victory over Bucksport in schoolboy basketball here Wednesday night. Jeff Woodman scored 19 points for the 1-0 Tigers. Mike Norton had 15 points and 11… Read More
South Portland’s Eric Fenton had always been on the bubble: good enough to be a Division I player, but not consistent enough to stay in the University of Maine’s lineup. The junior center, after redshirting as a freshman, played in seven games during the 1989-90… Read More
PRESQUE ISLE – Seven players hit double-figure scoring as the University of Maine-Presque Isle Owls rolled past the UM-Fort Kent Bengals 137-43 in men’s basketball action here Wednesday night. Dwight Littlefield paced the 4-6 winners with 24 points and Brian Charette and Eric Cowperthwaite each… Read More
Special teams are critical to the success of a hockey team. It’s no coincidence that the University of Maine’s string of five consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances parallels an impressive special teams performance in each of those seasons. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes… Read More
ROCKPORT — For the past year, Penobscot Bay Medical Center staff ophthalmologists Robert Dreher, M.D., and Howard Hoyt, M.D., have been using a new technique for cataract surgery. Called phacoemulsification, or PEM, “it gives us more control during surgery and increases patient comfort and convenience… Read More
JONESPORT — Baxter Jones, owner of the P.L. Jones & Son, artesian well drilling company of Ellsworth, said Tuesday that he would begin after the Christmas and New Year holidays to drill a new deep water well for the Jonesport Town Office and Fire Department. Read More
LINCOLN — The following divorces were granted in 13th District Court in Lincoln by Judge Jessie Gunther on the grounds of irreconcilable marital differences: Patricia V. Jean of West Enfield and Jacques R. Jean of Fort Kent. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes… Read More
Perhaps John Surpless (Readers Write, Dec. 4), is fortunate enough to be working and able enough to have food on his trable. A lot of people are having a hard time right now, and believe it or not, hunting season helps some of them out. Read More
Not long ago, liberals argued for legal abortions because condoms were unreliable in preventing pregnancy. Now they want our children to believe that condoms can contain the lethal HIV virus that is 450 times smaller than sperm. As Tom Bethall says, “Fighting AIDS with condoms… Read More
Why doesn’t Disney get with it? With their fantastic fantasy creations and innovative animation, why can’t they come up with a creative, valuable story line for girls of today? In each and every feature film with female leads we see the same graceful and shapely… Read More
I was appalled to read in your Dec. 3 edition that Ed Winchester of the Maine Public Broadcasting Network has laid off eight people there and announced it publicly without prior approval for his actions. This was done despite successful fund-raising drives this year. Who… Read More
I would like to compliment the excellent work of our local correspondent, Phil Gerow, in reporting activities and news in the Penquis edition. Gerow boosts the spirits of many of our students with photos and reports of school activities. What a wonderful way to teach young people how… Read More
The American people can no longer depend on our elected officials to get us out of the terrible slump this country is in. Now they are talking about giving a tax break to the middle class which is just political posturing. What good will $50… Read More
Today, the state of Maine at all levels of government is faced with reduced revenues. The economy continues to slump and now more than ever we need to generate new ideas and opportunities to turn the course of our economy toward more fruitful seas. But by looking the… Read More
… Gov. John McKernan is trying to put together a program that is necessary to run government the best he can, with the revenues the state has, only to continually run into snags, more excuses, and cracks in the floor. One thing is for certain:… Read More
My daughter lost her wallet while she and I were shopping at the Bangor Mall the day after Thanksgiving. It was a great surprise to me, especially during these hard economic times, that someone found her wallet and returned it including $42 in cash to the mall’s information… Read More
I was aghast to read the Dec. 5 letter in which Skip Umel attacked Gov. McKernan’s plans to privatize some state services. Umel’s muddled arguments fail to recognize that only private enterprise, subject to the rigors of competition, is motivated to provide the products and services our society… Read More
After reading your Dec. 5 article by Carroll Astbury, “Canadians protest low lobster prices,” I would like to comment. There has been in the past two years an increase of 25 percent in the harvest production of U.S. and Canadian lobster (more than 30 million pounds). Last December,… Read More
I missed Don Meagher’s “attack” on Charlotte Iserbyt of Lincolnville, but I did read her defense — with dismay. My son is the beneficiary of those “useless” low teacher-student ratios and flexible academic demands. Because he received one-on-one attention and wasn’t pushed by his teachers… Read More
I would like to express my gratitude to those who go out of their way to help animals that otherwise would not get help at all. We all know we’re facing some of the toughest times ever, and the ones who suffer the most are… Read More
Trivia question: Who is the only nationally ranked Division I college hockey coach to dye his hair and his moustache? Hint: It’s not Jack Parker. Cooper Friend Ellsworth… Read More
BRUNSWICK — Maine appears headed for another record-breaking harvest of sea urchins, turning the once-neglected creatures into a valuable part of the state’s fishing business, officials said Wednesday. Last year, harvesting sea urchins became Maine’s fourth-largest fishery both in volume and money. Divers and draggers… Read More
An Orono resident reported that his car was broken into while it was parked at Hoyt’s Cinemas in Bangor. A .22-caliber Magnum rifle was stolen. A resident of The Terraces apartments on Hancock Street in Bangor reported that his apartment was burglarized Friday evening. Police… Read More
Wednesday’s lottery numbers: 997 — 5848 Tri-State Megabucks: 5 7 16 23 24 29 Lotto America: 9 11 13 19 25 28… Read More
EASTPORT — One of the sailing world’s most revered rescue vessels, the 96-year-old Oscar Tybring, will be restored to its former glory this winter by the Eastport Boatyard and Supply Co. The Oscar Tybring served in the Norwegian Society for the Rescue of the Shipwrecked… Read More
PORTLAND — Entrepreneur Dan Bernard can sell you a non-polluting sports car, a planet-friendly yo-yo and dozens of other diverse items, all certified as environmentally correct. His inventory includes recyclable batteries, a humane mousetrap and a “safe Styrofoam” coffee cup made of porcelain. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
GRAND ISLE — The state budget crisis and its effects on education funding are proving to be particularly harsh on Maine’s small independent school systems. In discussing how the Grand Isle School Department is coping with fewer state subsidy dollars, State Agent Albert Watt said,… Read More
VAN BUREN — Eight years after it was formed, Northern Aroostook Alternatives Inc. will see its first change of command in January. The NAA board of directors has hired Laurence Q. Davis of Presque Isle as its executive director. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot… Read More
VAN BUREN — A small one-room structure on U.S. Route 1 in Van Buren was destroyed in a “very suspicious” fire early Wednesday morning. Van Buren Fire Chief Chanel Bouchard said firefighters were called at about 1 a.m. but remained only 20 minutes because the… Read More
MACHIAS — The Washington County Regional Communication Center has a new “10-20.” Put another way, it’s moved. The RCC has, since 1988, been operating from cramped quarters shared by corrections officers in the Washington County jail’s command center in Machias. All that changed, Dec. 1,… Read More
HOULTON — The following cases were among those processed by Judge David B. Griffiths the week of Nov. 27, in 2nd District Court in Houlton. Only cases with fines greater than $100 or where jail sentences were imposed are listed. Joseph B. Carmichael, 34, Houlton,… Read More
JONESPORT — The selectmen will begin Jonesport’s budget preparations before the end of the year by putting together an administrative budget that will be presented to the town’s budget committee in January 1992. First Selectman Keith Church said Wednesday that the municipal budget process “shouldn’t… Read More
BAILEYVILLE — More than 400 residents will be surprised when they receive notice from the town that their property tax bills have been lowered. The town has issued abatements to correct a “computer glitch” that produced tax bills for some properties that did not correlate… Read More
EASTPORT — What they say about squeaky wheels proved true for the Eastport School Committee, which apparently made enough noise last month to get some grease from the state for the accreditation of Shead High School. The state Department of Education usually provides technical assistance… Read More
MONSON — Monson residents voted unanimously to proceed with attempts to relicense the Monson landfill at a special town meeting Tuesday. About 30 people attended the meeting. Acheron Engineering of Newport was retained to study the options available to the town regarding solid waste and… Read More
LINCOLN — Several spending “freezes” totaling $170,000 were instituted this week by Town Manager James B. Somerville. For the next fiscal budget, Somerville has directed department heads to cut non-payroll items by 15 percent. “If they can’t find it within the non-payroll (items), they must… Read More
WILLIMANTIC — Willimantic residents at a special town meeting Tuesday adopted ordinances dealing with building and shoreland zoning codes and voted to join Greenville Recycling Co. About 20 people attended the meeting. Among the main changes in the new building ordinance is the fact that… Read More
DOVER-FOXCROFT — The Joint Board of Foxcroft Academy Trustees and SAD 68 Directors voted this week to reduce the student days by three and to eliminate one student day as part of its $150,000 budget cut. According to Superintendent Richard Lyons, the four-day cut will… Read More
GREENVILLE — Greenville School directors voted this week to settle a claim against the CNA Insurance Co. relating to the Kathleen Jardine-Carlson civil suit. Jardine-Carlson filed a discrimination suit with the school and was awarded about $22,000 after a trial in Piscataquis County Superior Court… Read More
LINCOLN — Trustees of the Water District on Tuesday approved a new employee health insurance plan that will reduce costs by about 12 percent. Also, trustees discussed employee pay increases, but decided to grant no increases until after reviewing the year-end audit report. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
The Joint Board of Foxcroft Academy Trustees and SAD 68 Directors approved cuts totaling $150,000 Monday, rather than the reported $222,500. The $222,500 in cuts will be addressed at a future meeting. Read More
LEWISTON — A WCBB-TV program titled “Made in Maine” will feature Oakhurst Dairy in a special program on the dairy industry in Maine. The program is scheduled to air at 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 19. Oakhurst Dairy has been a family owned business for generations… Read More
NORTH ANSON — David C. Ela, son of Mr. and Mrs. David Ela of North Anson, has been presented the Carrabec High School’s Principal Leadership Award. The award is sponsored by the National Association of Secondary School Principals and Herff Jones Inc. and is designed… Read More
ST. ALBANS — A special town meeting is scheduled in St. Albans at 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 16, to act on three articles. According to Town Manager Larry Post, voters will be acting on two money articles to authorize borrowing for the Mid-Maine Solid Waste… Read More
PITTSFIELD — The Pittsfield Community Handbell Ringers have announced a schedule of Christmas performances beginning at 5 p.m. Friday, Dec. 13, when they will appear at the Somerset Plaza in Pittsfield. Other performances scheduled include the Dexter Nursing Home, Dec. 16; Athens, Dec. 20; St. Albans, Dec. 22. Read More
OAKHURST, N.J. — The National Sports Federation (NSF) reports that more than 100,000 college scholarships are available each year to high school and junior college athletes. The NSF encourages all students interested in getting a scholarship to contact them because many of the scholarships go unused. Read More
PITTSFIELD — Town councilors trimmed the final figures in the 1992 proposed municipal budget in Pittsfield this week. Determined to eliminate a tax-rate increase, councilors were able to achieve more than half their goal. The final document will be open to public debate at the… Read More
SKOWHEGAN — One person required hospital treatment and another was summoned as a result of a collision at the intersection of Routes 2 and 152 on Tuesday, according to the Somerset County Sheriff’s Department. Sgt. Wilford Hines reported that Charles Pelkey, 71, of Hartland, received… Read More
DEXTER — Despite the poor economic climate in central Maine, Dexter residents are finding the money to pay their property taxes this year. According to Cathy Houlihan, Dexter finance director, 75 percent of property owners have paid their property taxes for this year. This percentage… Read More
ROCKLAND — Rockland City Councilor Jean Chalmers was elected Chairman of the Knox County Budget Committee this week. The nine-member committee met at the county courthouse Tuesday night. Also elected as officers were: vice chairman, Stephen Johnson, the committee’s representative for Warren and Friendship; and… Read More
WALDOBORO — The Christmas holidays are a busy time of theyear for residents of Fieldcrest Manor since Hillhaven Corp. began its Ho Ho Hot Line, involving 2,000 long-term care residents portraying Santa and Mrs. Claus by telephone to nearly one million children. This year, there… Read More
DEXTER — Dexter town councilors will be asked Thursday to approve additional financing for a regional transfer station for solid waste and for a recycling project. The meeting will start at 7 p.m. at the town council chambers. At a special meeting last week, the… Read More
ELLSWORTH — Two local organizations plan to co-produce the musical “Oliver,” but with a twist. The production will vary somewhat from the one staged at Ellsworth City Hall in 1973, but will use many of the same crew members and some of the same actors. Read More
ELLSWORTH — The Hancock County Child Protection Council joins with the Maine Association of Child Abuse and Neglect Councils in calling for the immediate cessation of the state’s 30-day action plan for child welfare services. The child protection council encourages a closer working relationship between… Read More
The following is a partial list of the cases processed Nov. 28 through Dec. 5, in the central division of the 5th District Court in Ellsworth and in the court’s southern division in Bar Harbor. Not included in the listing are cases resulting in fines of less than… Read More
ELLSWORTH — A board member of the Ellsworth Area Chamber of Commerce told the City Council at its Monday night budget workshop that she was insulted by one councilor’s ignorance of chamber operations. Chamber representatives attended the workshop to defend their request for a $15,000… Read More
KEYWORD-HIT. Read More
In the next couple of weeks Bangor officials will investigate a proposal to treat leachate from the Sawyer landfill at the city’s sewage plant. The City Council gave the go-ahead Monday night after little debate. The resolve was before the council for the second time. Read More
HAMPDEN — The Portland School of Art will exhibit artwork from its Saturday School Program at 11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 14, at the Old Hampden Academy building. From 9:30 to 11 a.m. a symposium for parents with guest artist Alan Bray will be held at… Read More
A neighborhood baseball game is more likely to cause injury than archery. America’s favorite pastime caused 2,155 injuries in 1989, according to the National Safety Council. Arrow shooting caused 92. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var… Read More
ELLSWORTH — A 23-year-old Brooksville man could face a prison term of five years after pleading guilty Wednesday to charges stemming from a potential shootout near the Ellsworth Shopping Center. Richard T. Balestrino brought traffic to a standstill in Ellsworth last May when he held… Read More
A story Wednesday on the page opposite the Penobscot page about a historic Brewer residence being earmarked for demolition contained an error. Philip Christmas, who once lived in the house, died in 1964, not 1954. Read More
WASHINGTON — New England’s beleaguered banking industry may be on the mend after two years as the poorest performing region in the nation. Banking experts said Wednesday they see positive signs in figures released this week by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. They showed that… Read More
During this bleak recession, the prospects of unemployed Maine people finding a job have become so remote that the Maine Department of Labor no longer requires that people collecting regular unemployment checks look for jobs. Recipients of benefits under the regular unemployment insurance program, which… Read More
This question gets asked a lot by readers whenever editors stray from their green computer screens long enough to speak to schools and Kiwanis Clubs about newspapering. Deciding which news stories deserve to be front-page stuff in a daily newspaper is a fascinating and serious… Read More
AUGUSTA — The director of Maine’s unemployment compensation system said Wednesday her office has been swamped by applications for extended jobless benefits. Gail Thayer, Maine’s unemployment compensation director, said the state has received about 13,000 additional claims for unemployment benefits over the past two weeks. Read More
AUGUSTA — Legislative conferees, after endorsing a scheme to finesse a chief obstacle to compromise, agreed Wednesday to have the full Appropriations Committee resume budget deliberations. Acknowledging that Democrats and Republicans on the panel remain divided over whether to include new funds for child protective… Read More
The State of Maine won a lawsuit it never even filed Tuesday, when credit-reporting giant TRW Inc. agreed to institute major policy changes designed to protect consumers. Nineteen states and the Federal Trade Commission filed suit against TRW in a Texas Federal Court in July,… Read More
WASHINGTON — A new study released Wednesday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that traced data from nearly 750 weather stations in the United States, China and the Soviet Union found there has been virtually no increase in average daytime temperature, and only a slight increase in… Read More
THOMASTON — The state Attorney General’s Office confirmed Wednesday that a criminal investigation has started into the actions of Maine State Prison guards in the March 1990, death of inmate Larry Richardson. Prison guards have been interviewed at the prison and at the new Knox… Read More
RAYMOND — Property owners along the eastern and southern shores of Sebago Lake are angry about low water levels and they’re demanding that local officials do something about it. Some 500 shorefront property owners have signed a petition asking the local selectmen to work to… Read More
AUGUSTA — Maine’s largest Workers’ Compensation insurers have withdrawn a pullout threat, easing the industry’s latest near-crisis, industry and government officials said Wednesday. But, in a further indication of continuing carrier dissatisfaction at their situation in Maine, an industry group has notified regulators that it… Read More
AUGUSTA — Maine needs a seventh technical college campus and it should be located in York County by 1995, a study commission says. As evidence of the need for the new campus, the 14-member commission said there has been an 80 percent increase in applications… Read More
UNITY — The death of Robert Maxwell and the consequent fate of his financial empire are cause for concern at a Waldo County company. Thorndike Press of Unity is a subsidiary of Macmillan Inc., the New York publishing house and a part of the Maxwell… Read More
BRUNSWICK — The Navy was preparing Wednesday to explain its plans for cleaning up toxic waste at Brunswick Naval Air Station at a cost of $11.8 million. The plans are aimed at cleaning up two toxic waste dumps on the base and an area where… Read More
As this state considers its difficult options in reducing state spending, the Maine Educational Assessment test, which costs approximately $1 million a year to administer statewide, should not be put on the block. The talk in the hallways in Augusta is that the test either… Read More
While most of the national inquiry on education focuses on what is going wrong in public schools, officials from Augusta will be at Bangor High School today to conduct a novel exercise: They want to find out what the school is doing right. Based on… Read More
Controversy still dogs the companies involved in building Sam’s Club in Bangor. The latest dispute involves the alleged failure of New Hampshire Earth Mechanics to pay local companies it hired to provide equipment, haul gravel and perform other work at the 20-acre site off Hogan… Read More