by Katie Ouilette

Guess what I found, WALLS! I know, I know, WALLS, I do keep a lot of STUFF, as I might need a subject to write about some day. Well, WALLS, I found an October 27, 2011, issue of The Town Line, on the page entitled Somerset County News was an article written by Lee and Marcia Granville and was titled: What’s happening at the Skowhegan Free Public Library. Well, thanks to Builder, Steve Dionne and his crew, the work that is described in the column has been completed, but, faithful readers, the new news is that Librarian Jandreau is retiring on July 1. We WISH YOU THE BEST OF EVERYTHING throughout your retirement, Mr. Jandreau and say it with all honesty, we were so fortunate to have you at the Skowhegan Free Public Library.

Y’know, WALLS, one of the things that has captured the minds of members of the Skowhegan Woman’s Club is the many books that have been written and the speakers that they have had have brought such interesting subjects to the group. Yes, I was a member of the Skowhegan Woman’s Club and always found the meetings to be interesting. True, even at my age (87) I found my life was getting so busy that ‘something had to go’. I am glad that the Skowhegan Woman’s Club has had a representative serving on the Skowhegan Heritage Council, however. Yes, people often say that memberships are dropping in various local clubs, but the clubs continue to do such wonderful things for people in whatever locale a club serves. And, by the way, the Clubs serve folks in our own state of Maine, but all over the world! We are so fortunate to have such dedicated people in our U.S.A. and World!

Now, faithful readers, I’m sorry that space doesn’t allow me to list the names of people who are doing so much to make our world a better place in which to live, but I try to do my part and I hope you do, too.

by Katie Ouilette

Oh, WALLS and faithful readers, all of a sudden the Moose Lottery is on at Skowhegan’s Fairgrounds and the cars coming out of the historic Fairgrounds was amazing yesterday! Actually, the Moose Lottery didn’t start until June 8, so I don’t know why all the traffic was exiting at the back gate there, but I saw it when leaving Hannaford’s, so all I could think of was ‘run, little moose, run!’. Obviously Katrina has worked very hard at putting the weekend together!

Speaking of Katrina, who has headed up the Skowhegan Main Street organization. But, 2002-2004 were days of my learning and doing by attending all the training sessions in Augusta, plus taking Skowhegan Downtown Business Owners to the events. Yes, Main Street came to Skowhegan Downtown in 2002 and joined designated Main Streets in New Hampshire and throughout the project’s earliest days in Maine. By the way, faithful readers, do you know what the first designated Main Street in Maine was? Yup, it was Brunswick. Also, in speaking of New Hampshire, the National Main Street was Littleton, New Hampshire. Yes, if it wasn’t a good program, then Town Manager “Pat” Dickey would not have urged me to send a Skowhegan application. Yes, Skowhegan won, at the time, but Skowhegan’s Town Meeting had been changed and the people of Skowhegan hadn’t voted for it. So not only did a different community win, but because of the cost of the program, Littleton, NH, and all the town’s in Maine, except Skowhegan, have dropped the program because of cost and, yes, Watervile, because of the new building going on by Colby College. Katrina has done well in planning the Moose Lottery for three days in June 2018!

Speaking of Katrina, who has been on Ch.11’s Now You Know, she has chosen her office to be in the, once, Dr. Dumont’s home on Court Street.

Yes, I remember it well, as, because so many young people were employed in those days of my being 15 years old, my first job was there!

So, Katrina is following in my footsteps, for sure!

by Katie Ouilette

WALLS, so sorry our faithful readers missed us last week! Yes, my phone rang and rang again! However, I used more words on the column about Dr. H. Leslie Sawyer’s name now gracing the New London, New Hampshire, four-year college. Yes, I’m not only proud to have been a 1950 graduate of the, then, two-year Junior College, but truly proud to be living in the Maine town in which, when a child, Dr. Sawyer grew up.

Just last week, a student at Colby Sawyer was written about in another daily newspaper and now, WALLS, let’s tell folks why my best friends in Skowhegan High School chose to go to Colby Junior College (CJC) back in 1948. So many people in Skowhegan knew of the fine education one might receive at the New London, New Hampshire, college. In fact, we learned in my medical secretarial class that Skowhegan’s Dr. Young was once the doctor who read all CJC X-rays!

I mentioned my classmates from SHS who were graduates of CJC in 1950. Both have elected to go to a full-care living facility. Marilyn Cockburn Leggett is now in South Burlington, Vermont, and Jean Finley Doughty isat Pierce House, in Wilton. In fact, I’m about to write both of them and tell about Jeanette Poulin Dionne, Violet LeClair Ferland, Dick Getchell (president of our ’48 class), meeting here at my house in East Madison to plan our 70th SHS reunion! Wow, lots of happy memories in those 70 years…yes, prior to ’48. By the way, faithful readers, we have been discussing those of ’48 with our SHS ’48 LEVERS in hand, so for those of you who know new addresses or ‘whatever’ about our classmates, please contact Jeannette Poulin or Vi Ferland with info.

Y’know, WALLS, the four of us have shared so much of our lives with each other. Our meetings have been truly fun. Just imagine what it will be like when we all get together!

Y’all come….hear?

by Katie Ouilette

Well, faithful readers and WALLS, can you believe that Mother’s Day is about to be? Well, at least all the snow has disappeared, but we sure did have a wind storm so that trees have lost a lot of their branches, but the buds promise us the Spring that we all have been looking forward to. Oh, well, it is Maine and we should be happy with what we get, because weather in other parts of the U.S.A. has been pretty frightful! Yes, as I’ve said before, when I lived in Tennessee, we heard tornado warnings all the time, and a few years ago we found out that we had to come to East Madison to have one!

Well, enough of that, WALLS. Now, with Mothers Day on May 13, it is time for all moms to give thanks for children. Yes, we moms have been blessed with our own and, recently, there has been much on TV for want-to-be parents! Wonderful for you and the children who become part of your families! I know I wrote about Lucetta Trafton Russell who I remember so well, as she became my step-grandma. I remember so well the families that used to drive into Grandpa and Lou’s dooryard with ‘many thanks’ for the children that Lou had brought up until timefor adoption. Also, my daughter, Lynn Rooney, has adopted a ‘very special needs’ young man. The adoption took place a long time ago, but this man is now 30 years old and he is so lucky to have a mom who has taught him so much. Yes, Lynn is comptroller for Richard Carrier Trucking, but he has wonderful caregivers and, when I was at RFGH, D.J. and his caregiver, Larry, visited me. Yes, I am a proud mom and grandma and great-grandma and I think all of those grandkids and greats will celebrate at Lynn and Chuck’s house on May 12. WALLS, you also know that our great, Reese Paine, will tap in her recital at Skowhegan’s Opera
House that afternoon.

Celebrate, you bet I will and I hope you will, too, no matter what day is Mother’s Day for you faithful readers. Yes, yes, Dad’s Day will be here in June, but this is your day, too, dads. How wonderful and proud you must be!

by Katie Ouilette

WALLS, the program that we did last Tuesday, March 27, and that Laurie Denis suggested I talk with Jim Fortunato, of Redington-Fairview General Hospital, in Skowhegan, was absolutely fantastic. Host, Chris Perkins and I were happy with what Jim had done for you, for sure. Betsy Putnam, MT, RN, talked about Lyme Disease and, since I got that tick bite when living in Littleton, New Hampshire, 30 years ago, I was especially interested in all that has been done, since 30 years ago, no one knew about treating it. Yes, faithful readers, that is why it is named Lyme Disease, because it was discovered in Lyme, Connecticut! A while ago, when we had someone visit, I was asked why I had no cupboard door in our kitchen. Well, that little tick made me so weak that 30 years ago, it took two hands to lift my toothbrush and, just in case, I opted for no cupboard doors, as there was a day when I didn’t have strength to open cupboards, also.

Also, Jim asked Andrea Fortin to tell our TV audience to tell all that Redington-Fairview General Hospital is doing with folks who may have a danger of falling….no matter what a person’s ago.

The entire program was truly interesting. Now, lucky faithful readers, you may hear about Lyme Disease at Poulin-Turner Hall, 653 Waterville Road in Skowhegan on Saturday, April 7, from 9:30 to 11 a.m.

Now, faithful readers, don’t say you’ve heard all that there is to know about Lyme! There are new discoveries all the time….and, take it from one who knows, those discoveries include everything from clothes to sprays. There was a day 30 years ago when local doctors didn’t know how to treat anyone (including me), but much has changed and constantly. Yes, I’ll see you on April 7!

When you read this, you will have had a very happy Easter, WALLS hope. So, if the weather isn’t exactly what we ordered, enjoy the weather that is waiting. Lew’s and my family reaches from the Atlantic to the Pacific, so we will be in touch by phone with our Washington State family. Even my kiddos are scattered in Maine, but we are grateful that they have enjoyed, too. Aren’t we lucky to have grandchildren and great-grandkids to have had the Easter Bunny visit them. Yes, we all grow up and older, but we are sure lucky to have our Grands and great-grands that help us to believe.