Waterville Creates announces staffing changes

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Waterville Creates (WC) has announced the arrival of several new staff members across the organization.

Bryant Cyr was hired as production manager and Michael Churchill appointed technical director for the Waterville Opera House.

Cyr previously worked in the Boston and New York City theatre industries for national tours, regional productions and Off-Broadway shows. Churchill studied entertainment production at the New England School of Communications prior to beginning his career at theaters around New England.

“We are thrilled to welcome Bryant and Michael to the Waterville Creates team,” said Michelle Sweet, executive director of the Waterville Opera House. “They bring years of experience in the industry that will elevate our stage productions and enable us to expand offerings at the Waterville Opera House.”

Austin Frederick was hired as AV coordinator at the Maine Film Center (MFC) on Nov. 1. Frederick brings invaluable experience from previous roles at the Maine International Film Festival (MIFF), including operations coordination and venue management.

“We’re so excited to welcome Austin to the MFC staff,” said Mike Perreault, executive director of MFC. “Austin will coordinate regular-run and special screenings at MFC, technical components for special events throughout the Paul J. Schupf Art Center, and projection operations of MIFF.”

Lisa Wheeler has joined the Waterville Creates staff as education and outreach coordinator. In her previous role as art educator in the Waterville Public School system, Wheeler oversaw Waterville’s gifted and talented program for the visual and performing arts and was a frequent community collaborator with Waterville Creates.

Jordyn Chelf has joined Waterville Creates as marketing and development coordinator. Chelf brings extensive theatre experience to her new role, having worked at the Theater at Monmouth in Maine, as well as the Creede Repertory Theater, in Colorado.

Sara Stewart was hired as WC’s event and volunteer coordinator and brings a wide array of event and operations experience from her previous roles at the Tribeca Film Institute, in New York City, Campus Movie Fest, in Atlanta, and the Sunset Beacon Neighborhood Center, in San Francisco.

“We are delighted to welcome our new employees to the Waterville Creates team. Their collective expertise, professionalism and enthusiasm to support the arts in Waterville is both inspiring and provides a solid foundation which enables us to offer a wide range of arts experiences,” said Vice President Patricia King.

More information about upcoming events and classes can be found at watervillecreates.org.

Waterville Creates connects artists, organizations, and the public with arts and cultural events and programs happening in our community.

Admit Day at Winslow High School

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Sharon Oliver, back, Director of Transfer Admissions at the University of Maine, with Winslow High School senior Lainey Bell. (Central Maine Photography photo)

by Mark Huard

On November 29, 2022, Winslow High School hosted its annual Admit in a Day for Seniors. Admission representatives from the University of Maine, Husson University, of Bangor, Thomas College, of Waterville, Kennebec Valley Community College, of Fairfield, the University of Maine at Farmington, and the University of Maine at Augusta, were at WHS and gave students on the spot admission decisions, as well as feedback on their applications. In total 61 of 101 WHS seniors scheduled 117 admissions appointments for application review. Winslow High School is pleased to report that 100 percent of the students who participated were accepted at one or more colleges. As a result of their commitment to academics while at Winslow High School, the six colleges and universities awarded a total of $2,038,000 in merit scholarship money to students over their four years with the expectation that they maintain an identified GPA.

Scouts hold Lego derby at Camp Bomazeen

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Excitement filled the Camp Bomazeen Dining Hall where the Lego Racing took place.

by Chuck Mahaleris

Gabriel Booker, of Augusta Pack #603, had the fastest Lego Car.

More than 60 Cubs and Scouts, some from as far away as Buxton, West Paris, and Bath, rolled into Belgrade’s Camp Bomazeen on Saturday, November 12, for the second annual Lego Pinewood Derby. Isa Russell, of Lewiston Troop #2019, won Best in Show with her Phoenix Lego Derby Car. She is a Life Scout from Randolph and enjoys the creativity of the Lego project. Gabriel Booker, a Tiger Cub with Augusta Pack #603, was the fastest Lego car in the Camp’s Dining Hall. He had plastic lights on the back of his car so other racers would be able to follow him to the finish line.

Camp Director Julie McKenney, of Belgrade, reviewed the rules at the start of the day with “Have Fun!” being the most important one. “Scouts and their mom or dad built the cars today and then they raced them. Even parents could build a car. It is a great event because the kids love Legos and parents love spending the time with their son and daughter working on the project together.”

Participating racers are given a kit of blocks and other items to built their cars which have met specific height, width and length requirements largely in order to fit on the track and not interfere with other racers. Trays of additional blocks and accessories are provided as well to help feed their imagination.

Ryder Johnston, of Albion, is a Tiger in Cub Scout Pack #445, and built a Star Wars-themed car with his dad Josh Johnston. Ryder’s favorite characters in Star Wars are the Storm Troopers. “I like their masks,” Ryder said. “It’s a lot of fun,” Josh said.

Adam and his son Finn Theriault, who is a Tiger Cub from Pack #349, in Buxton, built a Santa Claus car. “Santa knows how to go really fast,” Finn said. Adam enjoyed seeing the excitement Finn had in building the car he had imagined.

Photos by Chuck Mahaleris

The lego cars

Adam and Finn Theriault of Buxton

Isa Russell of Randolph

New book by Waterville author gets rave reviews

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by Jeanne Marquis

Michelle Shores

When you discover the compelling combination of a haunting mystery, unexpected plot twists and romantic conflict, you know this is a story that needs to be written. That was exactly what author Michelle E. Shores, of Waterville, thought when she stumbled across the Nelly Butler ghost hauntings of Franklin, Maine. This spark of an idea grew into the novel, The Gathering Room – A Tale of Nelly Butler.

Shores has had a lifelong love of history, genealogy and was already a nonfiction author of historical records, so a typical evening for Shores would be to pursue historical records. On Halloween night of 2015, Shores came across The Nelly Butler Hauntings: A Documentary History edited by Marcus LiBrizzi and Dennis Boyd. She became obsessed with this legend. It was a six-year long obsession that took her through the process of researching and writing a story, which she said at some points seemed to mysteriously write itself.

The Gathering Room is based on real people – Nelly Butler, George Butler, Lydia Blaisdell and Reverend Abraham Cummings – living in the late 1700s in an early port town of coastal Maine. Author Shores found actual written testimonies of the appearances of the ghost of Nelly and skillfully used these accounts as the foundation for her novel. She developed other fictional characters based on her research of her own genealogy and family portraits from the time period.

Shores’ accuracy for historical details and knowledge of life in early New England came from her two earlier nonfiction books, Vital Records of Bangor, Maine, Volume 1 and 2. Both of these works are part of the collection of the National Library of Congress.

As Shores wove the plot to fill the gaps left by historical records, she drew from her own imagination and detailed research of the customs of the times. Shores explains, “I knew that I needed to write a wedding scene for George and Nelly, and I started researching 18th century, 19th century wedding customs. I came upon the custom of putting the little ring in the posset to find out who the next bride was going to be, whereas we throw the bouquet. They created this custard-like alcoholic drink called posset, and they would put a little ring in it. Whoever found the ring would be the next one to get married.”

Shores tells people the book wrote itself. The ring, a theme running through the book, is one example of why she feels this to be true. She told of another incident of how an idea came to her more mysteriously. Shores was working on her book while on vacation with her husband in Jamaica and was typing along rapidly because the words were flowing. She looked over the text and saw the phrase “sardonic smile.” She didn’t remember ever using that word before and wasn’t quite sure what the word precisely meant. She had her husband, who was sitting on the beach next to her look it up on his tablet. Sardonic was the exact adjective she needed for this description.

Shores has begun to hear from fans of her book who tell her the book is a gripping story that’s hard to tear themselves away. Shore remarked, “I had one woman who went out on her deck to start reading, and read until it got dark, realizing she was already on page 142.”

Another reader purchased the book while camping in Bar Harbor, and she realized how close she was to Franklin. She drove over there and located George Butler’s gravestone. She took a photo of The Gathering Room book next to George’s gravestone and posted it on the book’s Facebook page. Shores said, “My book cover is the exact same color as his gravestone. How weird? And I did not do that on purpose. I did not know. I had not even seen George’s gravestone.” Perhaps, this was another aspect of the book that was mysteriously meant to be? Readers will have to judge that for themselves.

The Gathering Room – A Tale of Nelly Butler offers all the elements of an intriguing winter read and a very welcomed holiday gift. This ghostly legend, which once divided a small town on the coast of Maine 200 years ago, comes to life through the writing of Michelle E. Shores. The Gathering Room is available for purchase at www.mshoreswriter.com.

PHOTO: Winslow Cub Scouts visit fire house

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From left to right, firefighter Lieutenant Adam Burgess, Cub Scout Freddie Pullen, Cub Scout Jack Teague, Lorelei Pullen, Cub Scout Jonah Burke, Cub Scout Peter Small, Hannah Small, Aubrey Small, Cub Scout Ryder Johnston, firefighter Shawn Stetson. (photo by Chuck Mahaleris)

On November 5, 2022, the Winslow Cub Scout Pack #445 had the opportunity to explore the Winslow Fire Station and learn about firefighters with firefighter Lieutenant Adam Burgess and firefighter Shawn Stetson. The Cubscouts are working on their Council Of Fire unit learning about their community and the important rolls in it.

PHOTO: New rankings at Huard’s Martial Arts

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Congratulations to the following students who earned new rankings at Huard’s Martial Arts, in Winslow, on Saturday, November 12. From left to right, Mikayla Achorn (3rd degree brown belt), Mayleigh Crews (green belt), Jackson Hanson (green belt), Trenton Clark (green belt), Elsie Dumont (green belt), Ethan Frost (green belt), Manny Hurtado (green belt), Ayden Willey (green belt), Walker Johnson (green belt), Kaitlynn Shores (green belt), and Maddie Field (3rd degree brown belt). (photo by Mark Huard)

Local author’s novel gets “stellar” review

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by Roy E. Perry

Set in Waterville, Maine, Lucy’s in the Neighborhood, by David M. Carew, is an intriguing and stellar whodunit—a thoroughly enjoyable read.

Miss Lucy Bouchier is the owner and proprietor of Lucy’s in the Neighborhood, a popular corner market, in Waterville. The corner market is near the Two-Cent Bridge, and there Lucy specializes in serving up tasty Italian sandwiches, pizza, and whoopie pies. At age 64, Lucy is the star of the show. Specializing in her own zany brand of humor and with a loving heart as big as the State of Maine, she passes the downtime in her store by sharing stories from her past with her best friend and coworker, Jasmine. One day Lucy launches into the true story of a horrendous crime from 1972.

The story centers around the assault of a pretty teenager, 17-year-old Katherine Ambers, and her death two weeks after the assault. Investigating the case is Detective Ed O’Shaughnessy. Before her death, the only clue that Katherine is able to give O’Shaughnessy is that the assailant kept saying “animal” and “cracker” or “animal cracker.”

O’Shaughnessy has two “quasi”-suspects or “persons of interest” who may have committed the crime: a white racist named O’Casey (a supporter of George Wallace for President) and an alcoholic Black man named Curtis Jackson, the father of Mo (“Slo-Mo”) Jackson, a great friend of William Brady, a fellow teenager and Lucy’s boyfriend. The most obvious suspect is O’Casey, but why is Curtis Jackson so eager to “get the heck out of Dodge”—that is, leave Waterville—before Mo’s school term is over?

Detective O’Shaughnessy is indefatigable in his pursuit of the murderer, but time passes and the case becomes cold. But then Mr. Carew adroitly employs a literary device known as deus ex machina, which provides the identity of the criminal. But still: Will there ever be justice for Katherine Ambers?

Lucy’s in the Neighborhood is a tantalizing work of art and a fascinating study of the interaction of colorful characters. Featuring superb dialogue, it is an engaging, entertaining, intelligent look at the human condition. Lucy’s in the Neighborhood may be ordered online at Maine Authors Publishing or Amazon.

Roy E. Perry wrote book reviews for The Tennessean and Nashville Banner for more than 30 years.

Scouting for Food in Kennebec Valley

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Scouts in Kennebec Valley District, which includes Somerset, Kennebec, Franklin, Lincoln and Knox Counties, are taking time during the holiday season to help other people through the annual Scouting for Food Drive. “It’s great to see our Scouts giving back to their communities,” said Kennebec Valley District Vice Chairman Chuck Mahaleris. “A Scout is taught to be ‘Helpful’ and to ‘Help Other People at All Times.’ It is heartening to see our Cub Packs and Scout Troops taking time to put those words into practice.”

Troop #401, in Sidney, had their Scouting for Food drive early in November. “The troop collected a pickup truck full of non-perishable food, plus Scouts handed a check for $150 to the food cupboard from the bottle drive they worked on. The Scouts then separated the food by date and helped take care of the product,” said Troop #401 Scoutmaster Eric Handley.

In Pittsfield, Scoutmaster Shelley Connolly reported, “Amazing Job Cub Scout Pack #428 and Boy Scout Troop #428. We collected a lot of food and had $401.52 in cash donation.” Scouts in that Pack and Troop have an annual “Fill the Tent” program where they ask shoppers at Danforth’s Supermarket to help those in need. They had their collection effort on November 5. Food was given to the Somerset Elementary Pantry and another donation will be delivered to the Pittsfield Food Pantry after Christmas.

Similar efforts have also been held by Cub Scouts in Augusta and Camden with more being organized for December in other parts of the district. “As long as there is a need, Scouts will be there to help,” Mahaleris said.

Scout leaders complete training in Belgrade

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Training staff and course participants outside McCurdy Lodge at Camp Bomazeen. Front row, from left to right, Ginger Fails, of New Sharon, Brett LeBlanc, of Winthrop, Marcy Richardson, of Phippsburg, Tyler Pease, of Sidney. Back row, Allen Blake, of Raymond, Walter Fails, of New Sharon, Jason Crocker, of Jay, Dan Bernier, of Waterville, Shalee Hills, of Kittery, Geoffrey O’Brien, of Scarborough, Chris Fox, of Mechanic Falls, Joe Poulin, of Oakland. The four trainers are the first two (Blake and Fails) and last two in the back row (Fox and Poulin). (photo by Chuck Mahaleris)

Scout leaders completed training courses during the weekend of October 22 at Camp Bomazeen, in Belgrade. Basic Adult Leader Outdoor Orientation (BALOO) Training and the Introduction to Outdoor Leader Skills (IOLS) were the two courses offered. BALOO provides basic instruction for any Cub Scout adult leader or parent who will go on Cub Scout Den or Pack outdoor events, including pack camping overnighters and Webelos Den overnight camping. The IOLS training is for new Scouts BSA Scoutmasters (highest-ranking adult volunteer leader working with youth in a Scouts BSA Troop) and Assistant Scoutmasters in order to safely offer Scouting’s outdoor program to their youth.

Veterans honored at Northern Light

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In the photo, Tim Dentry, right, president and CEO of Northern Light Health, thanks Charlotte Bolduc (veteran), left, with Michelle Rossignol, back, manager of Life Enrichment at Lakewood.

On Veterans day, November 11, 2022, resident veterans were honored at Northern Light Continuing Care, Lakewood, in a special ceremony. Ron Cunningham, chaplain of Northern Light Home Care & Hospice led the event. Tim Dentry, president and CEO of Northern Light Health, delivered a heartfelt message to the veterans. Downeast Brass Quintet opened up the ceremony with their beautiful United States Armed Forces medley. Susan Roy, LSW, MHA, supervisor of Clinical Hospice Services of Northern Light Home Care and Hospice, shared a reading reflecting on our service men and women.