The first time she did it, Heather slipped off to her grandmother’s empty beauty shop. She was 13, overwhelmed and struggling with the death of her grandfather, one of the few people in her life she could trust. She had been closer to “Pepe” than… Read More
BOSTON – The Pentagon wants to close the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard by 2008, four years ahead of the schedule officials there had been planning for, according to documents recently sent to the Base Realignment and Closure Commission. The documents posted this week on the commission’s… Read More
BANGOR – Citing growth in enrollment, rising costs of doing business and flagging state appropriations, the Maine Community College System plans to eliminate or reduce in hours 17 faculty, staff and administrative positions. Also in response to the budget crunch, 11 degree options within programs… Read More
ELLSWORTH – A Superior Court jury has awarded more than $510,000 to a Seal Harbor woman who claimed that sex discrimination played a role in her 2002 firing as fund-raiser for the Maine Sea Coast Mission. Ann Schwartz, 45, had worked for the Bar Harbor-based… Read More
Consumers from Maine and 17 other states who purchased the prescription drug Hytrin or its generic form terazosin are eligible for a refund, according to an announcement Friday from the office of Maine Attorney General Steven Rowe. The drug is used to treat high blood… Read More
Despite the growing attention to self-injury in recent years, there’s nothing new about body modification. From ancient rituals practiced among Australian Aborigines to the decorative scarring still seen today among African tribes, body modification has its place in history, most often in the context of… Read More
Recent news stories have suggested that the U.S. Small Business Administration is shortchanging Maine by allowing big companies to get contracts that are meant to help small ones. SBA officials will likely hear such complaints when they come to Maine next week as part of a national series… Read More
A bill aimed at keeping Canadian loggers out of the Maine woods isn’t likely to work and could put American jobs at risk. It also puts the Maine Legislature at odds with the state’s congressional delegation. Because of heightened security concerns last year, the U.S. Read More
With the recent appropriation of $82 billion, we now have spent or obligated $300 billion to the Iraq-Afghan war and reconstruction effort. After other rationales proved false we were told it was an investment toward democratizing the Middle East. Last year about 1.5 million Afghans… Read More
I am a summer visitor who loves your state, but I confess disgust with the state’s general position on national politics. I read the letter, “Aligned against Bush” (BDN, May 28-29), by Jeffrey K. Jacob, wherein he’s patting the backs of moderate Maine senators who… Read More
Kudos to Kimberly Johnson for highlighting the important role parents play in fighting underage drinking (“Alcohol: Maine’s No. 1 youth drug problem,” BDN, May 28-29). At Anheuser-Busch, we share Johnson’s interest in helping teens make smart, responsible choices when it comes to drinking. Throughout the… Read More
Years ago Bangor was known for its great log drives. All the logs from the big woods went through Bangor. Now history repeats itself. Now the logs are still driven through Bangor – up Union Street and out Hammond! Terry Leavitt googletag.cmd.push(function () { //… Read More
What makes your cartoonist think that Richard Nixon is in heaven (“Expletive deleted,” BDN, June 2)? Hank Garfield 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++)… Read More
A woman from Southwest Harbor suggested (BDN, June 1) that there was hypocrisy in Laura Bush’s prayer for peace stating that people who want peace do not start wars. Douglas MacArthur received the Thayer award in 1962 and had the following to say to the cadets of the… Read More
I read with interest the article about Gov. Baldacci’s approval ratings dropping of late and couldn’t help but reflect on our short memories. We seem to have forgotten that the governor inherited a $1.2 billion deficit that people said couldn’t be solved without a broad-based tax increase. We… Read More
The Maine Legislature will soon debate what bonds to present to the public for our consideration in November. I would like to examine one that is likely to come up and review the cost, need and representation of the Land for Maine’s Future program. I believe a reality… Read More
In politics, as in love, the mundane of daily life is more lethal to ardor than any competing suitor. For evidence, consider your two favorite heads of state, President George Bush and Gov. John Baldacci. “Favorite” may not be the mot juste here. Does “loathed” work?… Read More
Now that the we know the identity of “Deep Throat,” the secret Washington Post source that helped bring down President Richard M. Nixon during the Watergate scandal of 30 years ago, the fun begins. With the announcement by 91-year-old W. Mark Felt, once the No. Read More
One of the four base closure panelists who visited Maine this week will make a return call so he can see the Defense Finance and Accounting Service office in Limestone, which is on the Pentagon’s cutback list, Maine’s two U.S. senators announced Friday. Retired Air… Read More
With her long, blond curls, her petite stature and her dazzling smile, it would be easy to mistake Kimberly Pinette, 19, for a TV model hired to promote new cars at Darling’s Ford in Bangor. That is, if she weren’t standing behind the service counter. Read More
BOSTON – Stride Rite Corp. said Thursday it is acquiring Saucony Inc. for $170 million in a pairing of Massachusetts shoemakers that is expected to boost the smaller Saucony’s prospects amid industry consolidation. The cash deal comes 10 months after Saucony hired an investment bank… Read More
WASHINGTON – General Motors Corp. said Friday it would recall nearly 300,000 Saturn L Series sedans and wagons because of problems with brake and tail lights. The problem could make it difficult for the driver of another vehicle to realize the Saturn’s brakes were being… Read More
PORTLAND – Half of all Mainers say the economy is worse off than a year ago and think it will decline even more in the year ahead, according to a public opinion survey released Friday. The survey by Critical Insights showed that 50 percent of… Read More
ORONO – Five area businesses received honors Thursday evening for providing a healthy workplace for their employees. The Bangor Region Chamber of Commerce announced the winners at an awards dinner held at the Black Bear Inn. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes =… Read More
AUGUSTA – Jenna Shue of Hampden stood alongside the governor Friday and watched as two years of her hard work became law in the space of about five seconds. Her brief visit with Gov. John Baldacci worked out just fine, because the Hampden Academy junior… Read More
AUGUSTA – An affirmative final vote Friday in the Maine Senate on a proposed Washington County tribal casino and racetrack, called a racino, fell far short of the two-thirds support needed to overturn a promised veto from the governor. While prospects for a supermajority vote… Read More
PORTLAND – Officials on Friday said they were piecing together why a fugitive who killed himself after firing on state troopers and leading them on a high-speed pursuit came to Maine and whether he had help from any accomplices. Michael Hancock, 28, of Bradford, Pa.,… Read More
BANGOR – The soldiers are safe at home, but the U.S. Army hasn’t forgotten their sacrifice. While Maine National Guard members are still serving abroad, a number of Maine soldiers will be honored this weekend in Bangor. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes… Read More
LINCOLN – Joel Stanley II went to Helsinki as America’s best welder and returned ranked fifth in the world. The 22-year-old Medway man, who is a Northern Penobscot Tech Region III adult education student, led the United States to a fifth-place finish in what is… Read More
AUGUSTA – Maine’s juvenile justice system is comparable to a term used in Italian cooking – insaporire – suggesting a blending of ingredients to create a new flavor, a Supreme Judicial Court judge said Friday during a statewide conference on legal issues affecting youth. The… Read More
PITTSFIELD – Deconstruction, construction and reconstruction will be happening from one end of Pittsfield to the other this summer, thanks to several grants the town successfully obtained. Town Manager Kathryn Ruth said she recently learned that a federal grant to build a new snow removal… Read More
LOWELL – Chuck the German shepherd might have been searching for a phantom driver, but considering that he had just graduated from police dog school, he and his handler, state police Trooper Josh D’Angelo, earned high marks Friday. Chuck and D’Angelo came straight from graduation… Read More
BANGOR – A special yard and bake sale is planned today. Apostolic Lighthouse Church, 517 Hammond St., says the sale will run from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, June 4, at the church. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var… Read More
GLENBURN – The Glenburn Evangelical Covenant Church will host a “pampered chef” party at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 8, at its Hudson Road location. Proceeds will benefit the furnishing of Sunday school rooms. Read More
MONSON – Six people applied for the position of Monson town manager, and three were selected for interviews, according to Town Clerk Julie Anderson. Selectmen were expected to hold their last round of interviews Thursday night and are expected to name a replacement soon for Judith Doore, who… Read More
Born in February 1999, Ryan, 6, is a handsome, activity-loving boy. He enjoys playing outdoors and spending time with his foster family. In addition to enjoying jumping on a trampoline, Ryan likes to play with blocks and is a fan of the “Bob the Builder”… Read More
ELLSWORTH – Beth Van Dyk will play the piano and organ when the First Congregational Church holds its final show of the 2005 Maine Winter Concert Series at 3 p.m. Sunday, June 12. Van Dyk is the church’s organist and choir director. She studied piano,… Read More
HOULTON – Bargain hunters who will be converging on Market Square for the annual Midnight Madness celebration later this month will have another way to get to the festivities – by walking over the new pedestrian footbridge. Town Manager Douglas Hazlett confirmed on Thursday afternoon… Read More
HOULTON – At this time last year, 12-year-old Jimmy Ross was skateboarding along the short strip of concrete beneath the town’s amphitheater, waiting anxiously for construction of the Cutting Edge Skate Park. “I can’t wait for it to open,” he told the Bangor Daily News… Read More
PATTEN – Town Manager Rhonda Harvey admitted Friday she was not sure what to do next after residents rejected a proposal Wednesday evening to allocate an additional $100,000 for construction of a new municipal building. The decision came during a special town meeting attended by… Read More
PRESQUE ISLE – Aroostook County farmers have been planting potatoes full speed ahead this week, after waiting several weeks to get into fields that had been turned into quagmires of mud by the spring thaw and unheard-of rain during May. Tractors, potato planters, cultivators and… Read More
CARIBOU – Mark Draper of the Tri-County Landfill will speak to the Caribou Historical Society at 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 21. For information, contact Phil Turner at 496-6461. Read More
PRESQUE ISLE – There will be a yard sale from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, June 18 at 260 State St. All proceeds will benefit the high school varsity softball team’s trip to Orlando, Fla. Read More
A Machias woman was charged Friday with theft after walking out of the Get-A-Pet store on Stillwater Avenue in Bangor with a miniature schnauzer puppy. Jessica Papallo, 23, was holding the salt-and-pepper colored puppy – valued at $1,099 – in the store, but after she… Read More
WILLIMANTIC – Differences over the handling of a winter road maintenance contract and assessment that opened a wound between a group of residents and their elected board of selectmen continues to fester in this small community on the outskirts of Guilford. Now those residents say… Read More
ABBOT – The summer operation hours for the Abbot Town Office, effective June 6 to Sept. 2, are: . 1-4 p.m. Monday and Tuesday. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i… Read More
DOVER-FOXCROFT – The Piscataquis County Soil and Water Conservation District is hosting its annual yard sale from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, June 11, in the Pine Crest Drive parking lot. Tables are available for rent; nonprofit organizations can set up at no… Read More
ELLSWORTH – A small group of city officials and landowners is exploring the idea of creating a new road to connect the Maine Coast Mall with Foster Street and the Ellsworth Shopping Center. The street would help alleviate traffic congestion on High Street and allow… Read More
MACHIAS – The Liberty Pole has arrived and is ready to be raised on the in-town site of the old meeting house from 230 years ago. The town’s historians are circling around, waiting for the formative moment when the Machias Historical Society surges to life. Read More
BLUE HILL – A contradance with the Oakum Bay String band and caller Joe Dupere will be held at 8 p.m. Saturday, June 4, at Blue Hill Town Hall. Admission is $6. For more information, call 359-2070. Read More
BAR HARBOR – Musician John Tercyak will perform aboard the schooner Margaret Todd departing from the Bar Harbor Inn pier, 6 p.m. every Wednesday, Memorial Day through Columbus Day. For more information, call 288-4585. Read More
LINCOLNVILLE – Jimena Lasansky, dancer and choreographer, will hold a workshop from June 27 to July 1 at the Lasansky Studio. Lasansky will have two sessions, one from 9 to 10:30 a.m. for children age 6 to 7 and another from 10:45 a.m. to 2… Read More
CAMDEN – Molly Gove was presented with the Crowell Summer Award in field biology at the Moving-Up Day ceremonies recently held at St. Lawrence University in Canton, N.Y. Gove is a junior at the college and a graduate of Camden Hills Regional High School. Read More
CAMDEN – The Camden Rotary Club will host a concert at 7 p.m. Sunday, July 3, at Harbor Park. The free concert will be a celebration of the nation’s birthday. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var… Read More
UNION – A teenager was summoned for driving to endanger Thursday afternoon, following a rollover accident on Appleton Road. Brandon S. Cain, 18, of Union was traveling south on Route 131, also known as Appleton Road, when he lost control of his 1992 Honda sedan,… Read More
ROCKLAND – Two drivers and a passenger injured Thursday in a head-on collision on Rankin Street remained hospitalized Friday. Lisa Berger, 47, Shawn Seavey, 25, and Melissa Gray, 35, all of Rockland, were injured in the mid-morning two-vehicle crash, which is believed to be alcohol-related. Read More
BLUE HILL – “The Letter,” a documentary film focusing on the plight of 1,100 Somali refugees in Lewiston, will be shown at 7 p.m. Thursday, June 9, at Roland Howard Room, Blue Hill Public Library. For more information, call 374-5515. Read More
MARS HILL – Margie Keller and Friends will be performing at 6 p.m. Sunday, June 5, at Mars Hill Full Gospel Assembly Church, 9 Maple St. For more information, call 425-6661. Read More
THORNDIKE – English country dancing with Yankee Soul Review will take place 7-9:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 8, at Harvest Moon Grange Hall, Route 139. For more information, call 568-7597. Participants are encouraged to bring soft-soled, nonstreet shoes. Read More
SOUTH BROOKSVILLE – The Flash in Pans steel drum band will perform at 7 p.m. Monday, June 13, in the field across from Bucks Harbor Market on the Coastal Road off Route 175. The performance will benefit the Brooksville eighth-grade class. Read More
CALAIS – The Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge will be holding its 8th annual children’s fishing derby from 9 a.m. to noon June 11, at the Cobscook Bay State Park Headquarters Pond. For information, call 454-7161. Read More
MACHIAS – Down East hospice is holding their annual meeting and dinner at 5 p.m. Thursday, June 23, at the Bluebird Ranch Restaurant. The board of directors meeting will precede the annual meeting from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. The dinner is $10 a person plus… Read More
PENOBSCOT – The United States Postal Service will offer a special commemorative cancellation in honor of an event paying tribute to William Hutchings, the last Revolutionary War survivor in New England. William Hutchings Day, on Saturday, June 18, is sponsored by the Maine State Organization… Read More
HAYDEN, Idaho – It’s not the typical family vacation, though Mark and Dawn Altman are bound to hear, “Are we there yet?” a bit more than most parents this summer. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner… Read More
While the sun has finally peeked out from behind those clouds that have overshadowed us, you may still be suffering from the rainy day blues. That’s why the New Renaissance Singers have a message for you. “Come hear us! googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot… Read More
BANGOR – Aiming to help students with special needs prepare for the work force, Bangor High School will hold a “Project Transition Job Fair” from 2:30 to 5 p.m. Thursday, June 9, in the cafeteria. The idea is to ensure that high school juniors and… Read More
AUGUSTA – Muna Abdullahi, 17, is a black Muslim woman. When her family moved to Portland from Somalia in 1996, they were one of two families from the war-torn African nation that lived the city. Abdullahi knows what it is like to be told she… Read More
TOWNSHIP 14, RANGE 9 – Twenty-six Stearns High School students, the majority of them members of the senior class, were summoned early Wednesday morning for possession and consumption of alcohol after police raided a graduation pit party near Sebois Lake. A number of the students… Read More
HALIFAX, Nova Scotia – A British airliner diverted to Nova Scotia because of a false hijacking signal resumed its trip to New York on Friday after sitting on a Halifax tarmac for almost four hours. Canadian authorities were looking into the cause of what airline… Read More
BANGOR – As the waters of the Kenduskeag Stream continued to recede Friday, hopes for finding the body of a missing Hampden man were increasing, a search official said. Searchers have eliminated some areas. Improved conditions, including sun and shallower waters, are expected make the… Read More
It’s another rainy weekday morning, and the only sound to be heard outside Columbia Street Baptist Church in downtown Bangor is the drumming of rain drops on buildings and blacktop. Inside the yellow-brick church, up a flight of stairs, the rhythm of the weather is… Read More
First Congregational Church, 55 Elm St., will present the Allegro Handbell Ensemble from Hinsdale, Ill., in concert at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, June 18. Directed by Michael Surratt, the group consists of 12 people ages 14 to 18 ringing a five-octave set of handbells, or 61 bells, and a… Read More
First Congregational Church on Meadow Street will celebrate its 200th anniversary June 11-12 with a round of activities. Founded on July 24, 1805, by nine people, the church is actually older than the town, which was chartered six years later. The Rev. Douglas Drown has been pastor since… Read More
Should residents in Maine be allowed to invite a local Christian minister to pray publicly at their town meetings? What do you think? This month we’re asking for your voice on the matter. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes… Read More
PORTLAND – Local residents pulled out all the stops for the return of extreme sailor Bruce Schwab and his sailboat Ocean Planet on Friday. A flotilla of Casco Bay boats assembled to escort the racing sloop into Portland Harbor, where Schwab set anchor in the… Read More
BRUNSWICK – A freedom of information lawsuit seeking documents in the Sarah Cherry murder case has been settled with the state attorney general, allowing the perusal of a microfilm copy of hundreds of documents. Brunswick author James Moore wrote a book in 2002 that maintained… Read More
BOSTON – The worst red tide in decades idled about two-thirds of the state’s shellfish beds Friday, as the toxic algae bloom spread to Nantucket. The state shut down all of the shellfish beds on the island and in waters three miles around it, as… Read More
The planning board is meeting at 6 p.m. Monday and the school committee is meeting at the high school conference room at 7 p.m. The June City Council meeting is 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall, and the high school trustees meeting is at 7 p.m. A board… Read More
The annual SAD 63 budget meeting starts at 7 p.m. June 9 and is being held in the gym at the Holbrook Middle School. The SAD 63 validation referendum vote is June 14. Voters in Clifton can head to the town office 8 a.m.-8 p.m., and Eddington residents… Read More
The council is expected to vote on the final city and school budget at its regular meeting at 7 p.m. Monday at the Old Town Public Library. The proposed budget calls for total city expenditures of $7.5 million and total school spending of $13.3 million. After adding about… Read More
Tires, rusted metal, and at least one piece of sewer pipe were removed from the stream near the town office Friday when municipal staff members and public works employees did some spring cleaning. The stream runs beside the town office, and most of the debris has been there… Read More
Authorities are looking to identify a woman (photo) who they said tried to use a stolen ATM card late last month. A purse containing the ATM card and other items was stolen from the YWCA in the early afternoon of May 24, Bangor police Officer Marty McCrea said… Read More
Bangor’s Great Fire of 1911 burned more than 55 acres of land, including 267 homes and more than 100 business buildings in a single afternoon. Bangor High School geography students from have created historical atlases about the fire and other events in Bangor’s history and have put them… Read More
Recognizing Louis Sockalexis Local author making pitch for Penobscot Indian to Baseball Hall of Fame
OLD TOWN – A little more than 100 years after Louis Sockalexis stepped on to a baseball diamond as a Major League Baseball player in Cleveland, Nate Lonko stood in the infield of Old Town High’s baseball field, posing for a photo with a bat over his shoulder. Read More
OXFORD, Miss. – The University of Maine baseball team played outstanding baseball against Mississippi Friday night in its debut at the NCAA Tournament’s Oxford Regional. What the Black Bears couldn’t do was generate any momentum to quiet the partisan crowd of 6,701 Ole Miss fans… Read More
There’s a certain amount of job security on the Van Buren baseball team – the Crusaders have just nine players. But that lack of depth hasn’t hurt the team, which finished the regular-season 13-1 and is seeded first for the Eastern Maine Class D playoffs. Read More
He doesn’t have a fancy den to showcase it or a trophy case to put it in, but with a soon-to-be 2-year-old son running around the house, it’s probably just as well. So at least for the foreseeable present, Addison native Barry Alley will keep… Read More
Bangor’s Kevin Mahaney has an impressive list of accomplishments and he’s hoping to add another to that list later this summer. And it just may be the most challenging of his life. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes =… Read More
Former University of Maine pitcher Pete Fisher was transferred from the Single-A Wilmington Blue Jackets to the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs, a Boston Red Sox affiliate, the Sox announced Friday. Sea Dogs righty David Pahucki was transferred to Wilmington to accommodate Fisher on the roster. Read More
HIGH SCHOOL CLASS A 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 () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes… Read More
HIGH SCHOOL Official final standings for baseball and softball as reported by the Maine Principals’ Association. 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… Read More
Break out the bats, it’s the AL East! Except for the NL Central where the Cardinals have begun to move from the pack, the rest of the divisions in MLB are up for grabs with no reason to believe that is going to change for much of this… Read More
EASTPORT – Nick Wood fired a one-hitter, striking out eight and walking only three to lead the Washington Academy Raiders to a 5-1 Downeast Athletic Conference baseball championship win over Shead on Friday. James Ramsell hit an RBI triple for Washington Academy of East Machias… Read More
OXFORD, Miss. – Friday was a hot, steamy day in the South – sunny, 85 degrees with 51 percent humidity – and several members of the University of Maine baseball team took full advantage of it. With an hour-long morning practice session behind them and… Read More
Contrary to popular opinion, Dan Smith is not a worm farmer. Not really. Yes, Smith owns the company most of us associate with the wriggling, squiggling critters, and yes, he sells millions of them a year. “We know worms,” Smith says, matter-of-factly. googletag.cmd.push(function () {… Read More
At the head of a narrow island, where a long finger of ledge tickled laughter from the river, the angler quietly sculled the 17-foot canoe to within easy casting distance of a dark, foam-flecked eddy. Silently, then, he laid the paddle across the gunnels and slowly lowered the… Read More
In spring, there’s every reason to get outdoors. It’s finally stopped raining, the sun is high in the sky, now that it’s out, and there’s 15 hours of daylight. There’s such a quantity of trails all over this state that choosing where to start off the season can… Read More
The weather on Memorial Day weekend may have been less than ideal, but our trip to Baxter State Park did not disappoint. As usual, we had reserved the bunkhouse at South Branch Pond campground. With a snug shelter and a wood stove, we were less… Read More
The Maine Wildlife Park in Gray will host a number of interesting program over the spring and summer months. On June 11, visitors are invited to join artist Joe Bolf for a chainsaw wood sculpture demonstration from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. googletag.cmd.push(function () {… Read More
Thankful Cottage boasts no intricate moldings. It has no stained-glass windows. It wasn’t designed by an architect. No heads of state slept here. No historic documents were signed in the living room. No one famous lived here. No one famous died here. It’s the type of house you’d… Read More