Week of January 2, 2020

Celebrating 31 years of local news

Erskine Renaissance Awards presented for December

On Friday, December 13, Erskine Academy students and staff attended a Renaissance Assembly to honor their peers with Renaissance Awards. Recognition Awards were presented to the following students: Jack Allen, Lily Bray, Nathan Million, Sydni Plummer, Hanna Spitzer, Benjamin Lavoie, Alyssha Gil, and Eleena Lee…

Your Local News

New police chief, patrolman selected

CHINA — At a short Dec. 23 meeting, China selectmen appointed a town police chief and met and appointed a new patrolman. Craig Johnson, who has been serving in China’s part-time police department for almost two years, is the new chief…

School agrees to cooperate with selectmen on solar power

VASSALBORO — At their Dec. 17 meeting, Superintendent Alan Pfeiffer said, Vassalboro School Board members unanimously approved two motions to cooperate with the selectmen in developing solar power in town…

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It’s flu season

by Nancy Bostrom — Flu is now widespread across nearly half the country and officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate there is good chance that flu activity could be at its peak…

Six quick tips from Car Care Council for winter driving

CENTRAL ME — When it comes to winter car care, many motorists tend to think of antifreeze and batteries—but vehicles need extra attention in winter, especially when the temperatures drop…

Rémy Pettengill earns Eagle Scout rank with Troop #479

CHINA — Friends, family members, elected officials and other scouts gathered together to honor Rémy Pettengill for earning his wings – the rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America. The Eagle is the highest rank that Scouting bestows in the advancement program…

Hallees celebrate 50th wedding anniversary

WATERVILLE — Roland and Joan Hallee, of Waterville, were feted on the occasion of their 50th wedding anniversary at a celebration held at You Know Whose Pub, in Waterville, on November 22, 2019, with 60 family and friends in attendance. The occasion was planned by their children and grandchildren…

Kennebec Historical Society to hear from Jeffrey Ryan on the hermit Jim Whyte

AUGUSTA — KHS speaker, Maine based author, and photographer Jeffrey Ryan has a contagious passion for exploring the outdoors, particularly on foot. The presentation will be followed by some light refreshments and take place on Wednesday, January 15, 2020, at 6:30 p.m., at the Maine State Library…

Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund receives grant

AUGUSTA — The Augusta Nature Education Center was recently awarded a $3,000 grant from the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund. This enabled the Nature Center to enhance visitorsʼ experience by replacing boardwalks, installing new signage, and improving and updating the trail map…

Sew For A Cause group

VASSALBORO — The ladies at the Vassalboro charity group Sew for a Cause are at it again: saving the world one thread at a time. They will meet again on January 9 and 23, weather permitting, at St. Bridget Center from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Some of their recent accomplishments include…

Central Maine Sports

Central Maine Youth Hockey U8 White Mite Team

Team photo by Mark Huard, of Central Maine Photography…

Central Maine Youth Hockey Association U10 team

Team photo by Mark Huard, of Central Maine Photography…

Central Maine Youth Hockey Association Yellow Mini Mites

Team photo by Mark Huard, of Central Maine Photography…

2019 Real Estate Tax Due Dates

Due dates for 2019 Real Estate taxes for Albion, China, Palermo, Vassalboro, Waterville and Windsor…

Webber’s Pond

Webber’s Pond is a comic drawn by an anonymous central Maine resident…

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

WASHINGTON: The Gibbs Library will be exhibiting the Maine bird photographs by Patti Forster, a local birder and photographer, from January 8 through March 3, 2020. It took her four years to spot and capture this photo of the glossy ibis, and it was by accident… (…and many other local events!)

Obituaries

CHINA – George Francis Balbo, 69, of China, passed away peacefully at home on Monday, December 9, 2019, following a brief and courageous battle with an aggressive form of cancer, succumbing less than four weeks after his initial diagnosis and leaving his broad circle of family and friends shocked and heartbroken at his passing… and remembering 13 others.

Common Ground – Round 12: Win a $10 gift certificate!

DEADLINE: Friday, January 10, 2020

Identify the people in these three photos, and tell us what they have in common. You could win a $10 gift certificate to Retail Therapy Boutique in Waterville! Email your answer to townline@fairpoint.net or through our Contact page. Include your name and address with your answer. Use “Common Ground” in the subject!

Previous winner: B.J. Bradstreet, of Palermo

Town Line Original Columnists

Roland D. HalleeSCORES & OUTDOORS

by Roland D. Hallee | My first encounter with an opossum was in 1967 while living on Long Island, in New York. There was a stockade fence between the property where I was living and the neighbor, and I found it laying, “playing ‘possum,” along the fence. I never really gave them much thought…

Emily CatesGARDEN WORKS

by Emily Cates | The cold winter winds dance along the frozen landscape, whispering their secrets to the trees swaying to the beat of a timeless song of the season. Shaking the snow from their limbs, they remind me of slow-motion pets stepping inside to dry off, throwing wet snowflakes in every direction…

Peter CatesREVIEW POTPOURRI

by Peter Cates | One of the more disturbing elements of cinema, and contributing a little to society’s desensitizing during the last 50 years, has been the stylizing of violence with humor, sophistication, exquisite cinematography etc…

THE MONEY MINUTE

by Jac M. Arbour — For those of you who need to choose a pension payout option, you might agree that the task can seem confusing. In this month’s article, I will share eight key considerations when making this decision…

GROWING YOUR BUSINESS

by Dan Beaulieu | Now one morning, as you drive to work, you go by the old baseball field and horrors! You see that someone has bought the lot and construction has started on a large building. When you slow down to see the sign on the temporary construction barriers, you see the name of one of those giant national furniture stores that will be coming to this very site and soon…

I’M JUST CURIOUS

by Debbie Walker | My thought of the new year is a fresh start. It reminds me of the term “clean slate.”.The saying comes from the slate boards used in schools years ago. Each day the “slate” started out clean. These days it usually means a fresh start; another chance to wipe out old offenses…

Marilyn Rogers-Bull & PercySOLON & BEYOND

by Marilyn Rogers-Bull | The Solon Pine Tree 4-H had their monthly meeting on November 9. They had 13 members in attendance and three visitors. The craft project was making decorative plates with fabrics…

FOR YOUR HEALTH

(NAPSI)—Some games topping holiday wish lists-including the season’s most anticipated release, “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare”—contain imagery that could be putting the health of young people at risk…