Composer: Brahms; Composers: Mendelsohn & Beethoven; Guitarist: Big Bill Broonzy; Band leader: Glen Gray

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Peter CatesREVIEW POTPOURRI

by Peter Cates

Brahms

Two Piano Concertos
Dimitris Sgouros, piano, with Emil Tabakov conducting the Sofia Philharmonic; 1 plus- 51 000; 2 CDs, recorded 1999.

Sgouros plays with commendable musical feeling the two very powerful Concertos, still among my top five in this genre. Tabakov and his players provide exciting support, making this a reasonably priced and desirable album for getting to know Brahms through some of his very best music.

Mendelssohn and Beethoven Violin Concertos

Joshua Bell, violinist, and Sir Roger Norrington conducting the Camerata Salzburg; Sony-SK 89505, CD, recorded 2002.

These two Concertos are basic also to a classical CD collection because of the sweet melodic appeal of both works. Bell and Norrington give a top notch collaboration.

P.S. Norrington blew opportunities for repeated engagements with the Cleveland Orchestra because he showed up for a rehearsal dressed in shorts, sandals and a T-shirt, thus repelling most of the much more modestly dressed players.

Big Bill Broonzy

Big Bill Broonzy

Bad Acting Woman; I’m Woke Up Now
Okeh, 6724, ten-inch 78, recorded early ‘40s.

Big Bill Broonzy (1893-1958) came out of a share croppin’ background and preaching to become one of the finest writers and performers of blues from the ‘20s through the ‘50s, living in Chicago for many of those years and recording pile discs for a sizable number of labels. The above two songs are typical of blues – the treacheries of love relationships, addictions, employment problems, etc. And there is always the lament of Woe Is Me !

Broonzy was a true artist – he knew timing, delivery, drama, and context. And the record is a treasure!

Glen Gray and the Casa Loma Orchestra

Bei Mir Bist Du Schon; Let’s Make It a Lifetime
Decca 1575, ten-inch 78, recorded December 1, 1937.

My three favorite big bands are those of Woody Herman, Harry James and Glen Gray – the last of whom made more sweet music than swing, unlike the other two. I own a number of his blue label Decca 78s (the ones that originally retailed for 35 cents a platter) and later LPs for Capitol, Hindsight, Harmony, etc.

This record contains a good rendition of the Andrews Sisters’ megahit, Bei Mir Bist du Schon and a very nice ballad that I was previously unfamiliar with, sung wonderfully by one of Gray’s lead singers at the time, Kenny Sargent. What gives this record and others of Gray is the classy intelligence and good taste in the arrangements. There are not the trite notes, the bombastic sounds and the simply bad material that so often bedevil certain other groups that will remain unnamed. I return to the Grays, the Hermans and the James’s for repeat hearings with pleasurable anticipation.

Sheepscot Pond will benefit from alewives

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COMMUNITY COMMENTARY

by Frank Richards
President Webber Pond Assn.

I read, with interest, the Community Commentary column about LD 922 in last week’s issue of The Town Line (October 5). This is legislation to open the fish way on Sheepscot Lake and allow sea-run alewives to return.

That column makes a reference to Webber Pond . . . “but, overabundance of alewives (as has been experienced recently in Webber Pond) can degrade water quality and cause other complications.”

I am the president of the Webber Pond Association. That commentary goes way beyond both the discussion at our annual meeting this August and the article in The Town Line about that meeting by Roland Hallee, published in September.

There has never been a recorded case of overabundance in a spawning run causing problems. Alewives have overpopulated in the Great Lakes. However, that is comparable to living in the ocean, not a spawning run from the ocean to an inland lake.

Webber has had alewives since 1997. The run has slowly grown over an approximately 20-year period. In 2014 the run plateaued at 350,000 spawning adults and seems to have stabilized at that number, way more than we ever expected.

The Webber Pond Asso­cia­tion is trying to learn about an academic model, which estimates inputs of nutrients from spawning adults and outputs of nutrients from out migrating juveniles. Evidently, it may be possible to estimate an optimum sized run for Webber, where the most nutrients would be exported.

It’s fair to say that the Webber Pond Association has questions about the size of the run. At least one person has undocumented suspicions that it has become so big that it may be degrading water quality. However, rumors about overabundance of alewives actually causing problems on Webber Pond are erroneous.

It is important for people interested in LD 922 to understand that Webber’s experiences with alewives have been positive and alewives are popular among its residents. The lake has cleared substantially following their return.

When alewife restoration began in the mid-1990s, we too heard about the studies, mostly from the Midwest, which warned of negative effects. However, nearly 30 years later none of those problems ever materialized.

The good experiences on Webber have been replicated locally on Three Mile Pond and Togus Pond. Further north, Sebasticook Lake, Pushaw Lake, Chemo Pond, and Davis Pond have also had the same good experiences.

Last year, I was invited by a representative from the Natural Resources Council to testify in favor of LD 922 at the initial hearing. The committee seemed to already know about the positive effects of alewives on several inland lakes. As one might expect, it also seemed well aware of the economic development benefits of alewives to the lobster industry as bait and to the ocean fishery as forage.

The committee has probably been advised that the fish ladder passed alewives for many years without creating problems for the rearing station. They seemed openly skeptical about both lampreys and rearing station issues.

Several people with scientific credentials testified in favor of LD 922. No one with credentials testified in opposition. If it had been a fight, they would have stopped it.

A legislative committee will listen respectfully to any citizen. However, on something like this, at some point there needs to be confirmation by a scientist, before the committee will give those views much weight.

The Sheepscot Lake Association has been engaging in a political campaign to defeat LD 922. They are acting in good faith, out of concern for the lake’s welfare.

I wish they had reached out more to get a broad range of ideas and professional advice. I will assert that they have arrived on the wrong side of history and are actually opposing something that has worked well on other lakes and that credentialed scientists believe would benefit Sheepscot.

Alewives are the means by which nutrients are exchanged between the ocean and inland lakes. There is more involved than simple clearing of lakes, such as Webber, with phosphorus imbalances.

I predict that LD 922 will be reported out of committee as “Ought to Pass,” possibly by unanimous vote. I predict that a few years down the road, after gaining experience with alewives, Sheepscot’s residents will be as happy as the residents of any other lake that has them.

IF WALLS COULD TALK, Week of October 12, 2017

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Katie Ouilette Wallsby Katie Ouilette

Yes, the very first thing WALLS want to say is a message of thanks to the faithful readers of this column! Yes, a huge thanks to all of you who call me Walls, or who ask about having so much to say about so much every week. Well, surely you recognize me from the picture that appears at the top of this column. Yes, folks, when I visited the eye-doctor, I said I had to have a wild glasses frame so that people would recognize me. In fact, while I was waiting for the lenses, I never got a ‘hi’ or a wave, but I do again now! So WALLS say ‘thanks’ again!

Frankly, I used to work for Dr. Poulin, the Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist, in Waterville. Yup, his office was over LaVerdiere’s Drug. Why am I telling you this faithful readers? Well, surely, you who have frequented Waterville of late know that the city that was a shopper’s delight has changed BIG. Yup, Waterville downtown is now Colby College’s annex. Lordy, Lordy, how Watervile’s downtown is changing and almost by the minute. Yes, faithful readers, if you are old enough, you remember when Colby College’s Campus was on Waterville’s College Avenue. As a matter of fact, Joe Denis lived on Abbott Street and his class of ’52 was the first to graduate from the new campus called Mayflower Hill. Now Colby is back, in part, on Waterville’s Main Street.

Well, WALLS, you saw the photo of my trying on my wedding gown with the help of an employee at Alvina & Delia’s Dress Shop, on Waterville’s Main Street and you know that Alvina & Delia’s no longer exists, just as Dr. Poulin’s Office above LaVerdiere’s Drug. Ah, how times change our yesterday’s memories. Remember Levine’s Clothing Store for men? Yes, it has gone, too, and will soon be a boutique hotel!

Yes, WALLS, you have concentrated on Waterville, but city and town has changed or is changing, as we so well remember. Just for kicks, you have been writing about Skowhegan’s Water Street and the town that used to be a tourist’s mecca has changed much since the youth of many. We’ve lost Woolworth’s, Grant’s, McClellan’s, The Bonnet Shop, Cora Cayouette’s and Laney’s Men’s Store plus Rexall Drug, Haines’ Drug and LaVerdiere’s Drug (yes, Skowhegan, too) and even the liquor store is now in a grocery store!

Yes, times do change and young people will soon be part of the Skowhegan downtown scene, when the Charter School moves to what used to be Holland’s Variery.

We are told that folks in Maine are old, but youth has taken control of Central Maine, for sure.

SOLON & BEYOND, Week of October 12, 2017

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Marilyn Rogers-Bull & Percyby Marilyn Rogers-Bull & Percy
grams29@tds.net
Solon, Maine 04979

Good morning, dear friends. Don’t worry, be happy!

Legos Time will be Saturday, October 14, from 10 a.m.- noon, at Stewart Public Library, 37 Elm St., North Anson. Regular library hours will be 2:30 – 4:30 p.m. that same day.

The Embden Community Center will be serving chicken cordon bleu at there monthly public supper on Saturday, October 14, at 5 p.m.

On October 21, Steve & The Good Ole Boys band will be playing at the Embden Community Center from 7 – 11 p.m.

There were at least 125 motorcycle riders at the Solon Hotel on a perfect, beautiful fall day recently who were all going for a ride in this event. This is the 23rd year that it has taken place starting at the Solon Hotel. A spaghetti supper would be served to those who were hungry after their ride. Eleanor Maclean was making her famous recipe of spaghetti, which she has done for many years, and is now still doing it at 88!

Somerset Woods Trustees and Brian Alexander are still at it! Two more work days have been scheduled to complete Phase 1 of the new Coburn Woods Trails before their grand opening, scheduled for October 29. (Put that date on your calendar too!)

On the e-mail that I received it tells of two working days, Oct. 7 and Oct. 15. for those Eager for Exercise Before the Snow Falls? No tools are necessary as Brian has plenty but if you have a favorite trail cutting tool please do bring it. Starting time is 8:30 a.m., work until 1 p.m., or as long as you have to work.

We appreciate your help to build these trails! Once all phases are completed they will have around six miles of trails for all users, including mountain bikes.

I know how much many of you love Percy’s memoirs and before that, his wise words of wisdom! And so in memory of Percy who died two years ago, I am going to share especially those of you who are ‘Cat Lovers’ with some information on cats. Some of this information comes from a little three-inch square book that I bought at a yard sale, and in the introduction it states, “No wonder the ancient Egyptians worshipped cats as gods – is there an animal with more dignity, more aloof serenity, and innate grandeur? What other domestic creature behaves like an honored guest and is treated as an equal?”

Cats fix us with their gaze and put us in our place. They beguile us with their startling affection and charm us with the beauty of their fluid bodies. They amaze us with their composure and delight us with their agility.

Cats do as they please, and for that we admire – and even revere them. They treat us as companions, demanding and receiving our respect as their due. The fact that they choose to spend their lives with us is a gift we accept gratefully.

Now for a few of the quotes in this little delightful book in memory of Percy! “His friendship is not easily won but it is something worth having” – words by Michael Joseph, English publisher; and by Lilian Jackson Braun, American writer – “To understand a cat, you must realize that he has his own gifts, his own viewpoint, even his own morality.”

One by Mark Twain says, “One of the most striking differences between a cat and a lie is that a cat has only nine lives.” And by Jim Dais, American cartoonist – “Way down deep we’re all motivated by the same urges. Cats have the courage to live by them.” I like this one from Abraham Lincoln – “No matter how much cats fight, there always seem to be plenty of kittens.”

And so I will close with this one which was anonymous – “No self-respecting cat wants to be an artist’s model.” (I didn’t find that to be true, Percy let me paint him several times!)

Post-harvest tour at Thurston Park

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Hikers on Bridge – Photo courtesy: Town of China

This post-harvest tour of Thurston Park in China is being held as a follow-up to a June pre-harvest tour on Sunday, October 15, from 9 a.m. – noon. It is co-sponsored by the Thurston Park Committee and the Two Rivers chapter of Maine Woodland Owners. The park is a 400-acre, town-owned forest with waterfalls, hiking trails and cultural and historical landmarks.

Directions: From Rte. 202 at the head of China Lake, turn onto Pleasant View Ridge Road. Travel 0.4 miles, veer right, then another 0.3 miles, and left on Dutton Road, which becomes Libby Hill Rd, one mile. Right onto York Town Rd., one mile to parking.

For more information, contact Jeanne at jeanne@mainewoodlandowners.org.

GARDEN WORKS: Stampede of fun – Stomping grape juice the old-fashioned way

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Emily CatesGARDEN WORKS

by Emily Cates

My eyes dart back and forth between another tub of apples waiting to be made into sauce and a shimmering colander of freshly-picked grapes. “What shall I do?” I wonder as I try hard to figure out what to do with my precious few moments of spare time. As I picture in my mind the other day when my neighbors and I got together for a grape-stomping party and how much fun it was for the kids to stomp around on the grapes to make juice, the grapes won out and the rest of my day’s activities were set.

Making grape juice is refreshingly simple and an exciting departure from the occasional drudgery that can accompany preserving jar after jar of produce in the autumn-time kitchen. From there, the juice can be enjoyed right away, left a couple days to develop effervescence, or aged further into wine or vinegar. (I’ll leave it to you to determine how you wish to proceed.) For now, though, let’s look at the joyous occasion of extracting the juice the way it has been done for ages. From the vine to the press, we’ll see how to handle grapes in a way that will produce some of the yummiest juice in all the land.

The first thing we could do, if we’re up for it, is to invite friends for a stomping party. If pressed for time, we could have the grapes already harvested; if there is time, let’s invite friends to help us harvest and hand them an extra pair of pruners. It can be a lot of fun that way, especially for kids who can see where the scrumptious juice comes from and who have a part in its production. (Of course, juice-making can be a relaxing solo endeavor as well, though I really enjoy watching the expressions people make when they smoosh grapes between their toes!)

How the fruits are harvested makes a huge contribution to the quality of the juice. I personally use whatever variety is ripe, sometimes blending different varieties to taste. Since I never bother to spray my grapes with pesticides or anything, I occasionally do find “organic” things on them we would not want to eat.

Spiders, especially, seem to enjoy spinning webs on or near grapes. Yellow jackets and ants will clue me in on to deliciously ripe fruits by their presence. And where individual grapes grow touching each other, there is a greater chance of something taking up residence in this area. With all this in mind, while harvesting, before the clusters are placed into the basket, make sure to carefully inspect each individual grape and toss any that are substandard.

Unripe, overripe, diseased and insect-ridden fruits should be discarded – preferably into a container, and tossed away from the vines for the chickens or compost pile. If the grapes are thoroughly picked over and rinsed clean, they should be in beautiful shape when ready to press.

At pressing time, place cleaned grapes into a sturdy colander set into a stock pot or something similar that is not iron, aluminum, or Teflon-coated cookware – always keeping in mind this could make a mess! Whoever stomps on the grapes must have impeccably clean feet. (While we’re at it, let’s sing/dance/ make up songs about juice-pressing!) The juice is then strained through a sieve and poured into clean glass containers of choice. Make sure everyone has a taste! Ahhh….delectable! Now you have participated in an activity that has delighted mankind from the ages of long ago.

Going to the open field

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Winslow Youth Football fifth-sixth grade team member Talon Loftus carries the ball downfield during a recent game.
Photo by Kevin Giguere, Central Maine Photography staff

TECH TALK: A.I. on the Road: Who’s Driving?

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ERIC’S TECH TALK

by Eric Austin
Computer Technical Advisor

In an automobile accident – in the moments before your car impacts an obstacle, in the seconds before glass shatters and steel crumples — we usually don’t have time to think, and are often haunted by self-recriminations in the days and weeks afterward. Why didn’t I turn? Why didn’t I hit the brakes sooner? Why’d I bother even getting out of bed this morning?

Driverless cars aim to solve this problem by replacing the human brain with a silicon chip. Computers think faster than we do and they are never flustered — unless that spinning beach ball is a digital sign of embarrassment? — but the move to put control of an automobile in the hands of a computer brings with it a new set of moral dilemmas.

Unlike your personal computer, a driverless car is a thinking machine. It must be capable of making moment-to-moment decisions that could have real life-or-death consequences.

Consider a simple moral quandary. Here’s the setup: It’s summer and you are driving down Lakeview Drive, headed toward the south end of China Lake. You pass China Elementary School. School is out of session so you don’t slow down, but you’ve forgotten about the Friend’s Camp, just beyond the curve, where there are often groups of children crossing the road, on their way to the lake on the other side. You round the curve and there they are, a whole gang of them, dressed in swim suits and clutching beach towels. You hit the brakes and are shocked when they don’t respond. You now have seven-tenths of a second to decide: do you drive straight ahead and strike the crossing kids or avoid them and dump your car in the ditch?

Not a difficult decision, you might think. Most of us would prefer a filthy fender to a bloody bumper. But what if instead of a ditch, it was a tree, and the collision killed everyone in the car? Do you still swerve to avoid the kids in the crosswalk and embrace an evergreen instead? What if your own children were in the car with you? Would you make the same decision?

If this little thought exercise made you queasy, that’s okay. Imagine how the programmers building the artificial intelligence (A.I.) that dictates the behavior of driverless cars must feel.

There may be a million to one chance of this happening to you, but with 253 million cars on the road, it will happen to someone. And in the near future, that someone might be a driverless car. Will the car’s A.I. remember where kids often cross? How will it choose one life over another in a zero-sum game?

When we are thrust into these life-or-death situations, we often don’t have time to think and react mostly by instinct. A driverless car has no instinct, but can process millions of decisions a second. It faces the contradictory expectations of being both predictable and capable of reacting to the unexpected.

That is why driverless cars were not possible before recent advances in artificial intelligence and computing power. Rather than traditionally linear, conditional-programming techniques of the past (eg: If This Then That), driverless cars employ a new field of computer science called “machine learning,” which utilizes more human-like functions, such as pattern-recognition, and can update its own code based on past results in order to attain better accuracy in the future. Basically, the developers give the A.I. a series of tests, and based on its success or failure in those tests, the A.I. updates its algorithms to improve its success rate.

That is what is happening right now in San Francisco, Boston, and soon New York. Las Vegas is testing a driverless bus system. These are opportunities for the driverless A.I. to encounter real-life situations and learn from those encounters before the technology is rolled out to the average consumer.

The only way we learn is from our mistakes. That is true of driverless cars, too, and they have made a few. There have been hardware and software failures and unforeseen errors. In February 2016, a Google driverless car experienced its first crash, turning into the path of a passing bus. In June 2016, a man in a self-driving Tesla was killed when the car tried to drive at full speed under a white tractor trailer crossing in front of it. The white trailer against the smoky backdrop of a cloudy sky fooled the car. The occupant was watching Harry Potter on the car’s television screen and never saw it coming.

Mistakes are ubiquitous in our lives; “human error” has become cliché. But will we be as forgiving of such mistakes when they are made by a machine? Life is an endless series of unfortunate coincidences, and no one can perfectly predict every situation. But, lest I sound like Dustin Hoffman in the film Rain Man, quoting plane crash statistics, let me say I am certain studies will eventually show autonomous vehicles reduce overall accident rates.

Also to be considered are the legal aspects. If a driverless car strikes a pedestrian, who is responsible? The owner of the driverless car? The car manufacturer? The developer of the artificial intelligence governing the car’s behavior? The people responsible for testing it?

We are in the century of A.I., and its first big win will be the self-driving car. The coming decade will be an interesting one to watch.

Get ready to have a new relationship with your automobile.

Eric can be emailed at ericwaustin@gmail.com.

Obituaries, Week of October 12, 2017

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EVELYN M. BOLDUC

BENTON––Evelyn M. Bolduc, 85, passed away Thursday, September 28, 2017, in Benton, where she resided with her daughter, Anne. She was born in Oakland on August 29, 1932, the daughter of Charles and Laura (Carpenter) Veilleux.

She grew up in Waterville and left school at a young age to go to work to help support her family.

On September 1, 1951, she married her true love, Lawrence Bolduc. They were wed at St. Francis de Sales Church, in Waterville. They were blessed with 44 years together.

Evelyn along with Larry created rental properties known as “Bolduc Apts.” They also owned and operated Sandy Beach Campground, in Madison.

After retiring they enjoyed several bus tours to Washington D.C., and the Grand Ole Opry, along with many winters in Holiday, Florida. creating many lifetime friendships.

Evelyn was always volunteering and helping everywhere she could. Until she fell and broke her arm last year, she had volunteered for seven years at St. John Food Pantry helping to feed the hungry.

She loved going out to eat, playing the Hee-Haw machine at Hollywood Slots, girl trip to Ellsworth each winter, Bingo, playing cards and watching her heart throb, “James Drury” on “The Virginian.” She even had a beta fish her granddaughter gave her named “James.” She also loved scrapbooking and made many albums filled with loving family memories.

Evelyn was predeceased by her husband, Larry; her son, Leo, her infant son Lawrence, Jr.; and son-in-law, Chuck Hodgdon; also three sisters, Lillian Berube, Gloria Dawe and Yvette Butler; and two brothers, Arthur Albert and Richard Vigue.

Evelyn is survived by three children, Gary Bolduc and wife, Paula, of Winslow, Anne Hodgdon, of Benton, and Louann Barnes, of Skowhegan; 10 grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; a brother, Robert Veilleux; two sisters, Violet Paquet and Theresa Cloutier; and a brother-in-law, Roger Bolduc; along with many nieces, nephews and cousins.

An online guestbook may be signed and condolences expressed at www.gallantfh.com.

BARBARA W. FITZPATRICK

BENTON––Barbara Wright Fitzpatrick, 94, of 336 River Road, passed away Saturday, September 30, 2017, at her home in Benton.

Barbara was born September 1, 1923, in Framingham, Massachusetts, the daughter of Samuel and Mabel (Farrar) Wright.

Barbara’s family moved to Clinton when she was age seven. Barbara attended Clinton schools, and graduated from Clinton High School.

During World War II she worked for the phone company in Newport News, Virginia, Newport, Rhode Island, and Waterville.

On August 17, 1946, Barbara married Glenn Fitzpatrick, of Benton. She worked in the office of Fitzpatrick Dairy part time. The dairy started in 1923 by Glenn’s father and was located next door to their home. The business was owned and operated by Glenn and his brother Merle until 1988. In addition, Glenn and Barbara maintained a herd of cows until the early 1970s.

Barbara’s hobbies included playing piano, gardening, and sewing. She was very crafty and artistic and Barbara’s home is filled many of her creations. Barbara was the past president of the Wesleyan Club and the Women’s Club, both in Fairfield. For years she enjoyed swimming regularly at the Waterville Boys and Girls Club.

Barbara was predeceased by her husband Glenn in 2011; her parents; her siblings, Sam, Stan, Charlie, Dave, Phil, Caroline, Marybelle, and Margaret; and nephews, Harry and James Fitzpatrick.

Survivors include two daughters, Marilyn Fitzpatrick Cosgrove and husband David, of Waterville, Judy Fitzpatrick-Weston and husband Peter, of Scarborough; two granddaughters Laura Cosgrove, of Waterville and Beth Cosgrove and husband Seth Dromgoole, of Park City, Utah; great-grandchildren , Margaret and Jay Brock, of Waterville, and Sally and Samuel Dromgoole, of Park City, Utah; nephew Merle, Jr. Fitzpatrick and wife Judi, of Shawmut; and her sister-in-law Dorothy Wright, of Greenfield, Massachusetts.

An online guestbook may be signed and memories shared at www.lawrybrothers.com.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to the charity of your choice in Barbara’s memory.

HEATHER A. MAYO

VASSALBORO––Heather Ann Mayo, 47, of Main Street, died Sunday, October 1, 2017, at Maine Medical Center, Portland, following an extended illness. She was born in Framingham, Massachusetts, on January 5, 1970, the daughter of Charles Burton Hammond and Barbara L. (Kent) Hammond.

Heather graduated from Somersworth (New Hampshire) High School.

She was employed as a store manager by Rite Aid Pharmacy for several years.

Heather was predeceased by her father, and a brother, Craig Hammond.

Surviving are her husband, Richard J. Mayo, of Vassalboro; a son, Joseph C. Mayo, of Vassalboro; two sisters, Amy Hodgson, of Somersworth, New Hampshire, and Lisa Dore, of New Durham, New Hampshire; five brothers: Chris Hammond, of Milton, New Hampshire, Brian Hammond, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, Kerry Hammond, of Milton, New Hampshire, Jimmy Hammond, of Vassalboro, and Scott Hammond, of Tampa, Florida; her sister-in-law, Becky Mayo, of Somersworth, New Hampshire; her parents-in-law, Joseph and Betty Mayo, of Berwick; and several nieces, nephews and cousins.

Condolences, photos and memories may be shared at www.plummerfh.com.

Memorial donations may be made to Brigham and Woman’s Hospital, Heart Transplant Program, or to Delta Ambulance.

SPENCER R. GAGNON

FAIRFIELD––Spencer Reid Gagnon, 25, died unexpectedly Sunday, October 1, 2017, at his home in Fairfield. Spencer was born April 17, 1991, to Frank D. Gagnon and Iris J. (Stoddard) Gagnon.

He was raised in Rochester, New Hampshire, and Benton, where he attended local schools and graduated from Lawrence High School, in Fairfield.

Spencer had many hobbies; among them were working out, reading, and tinkering in his garage. He had a true passion for music; he enjoyed playing the guitar. He loved cats.

Spencer was a peace keeper. Everyone who knew him was blessed by his kindness and sense of humor. His legacy is the kindness he shared with everyone he met.

He was predeceased by his father, Frank D. Gagnon Sr., on April 28, 2007.

Spencer is survived by his mom, Iris J. Gagnon, of Fairfield; his two brothers, Frank D. Gagnon Jr., and wife Marcia Gray, of Dover, New Hampshire, and Michael Gagnon and wife Mary Hand, of North Berwick, and his children, Zoey and Kaynan; his five sisters, Kimberly Grate, of Freeport, and her children, Ashley, Jessica, Joseph, Sarah, Abigail, Olivia and Sophia; Kristina Ferraro and husband Anthony, and their children, Anthony, Kennedy and Baylie, all of Benton; Sherri Pedrick and husband Thomas, and their sons, Lincoln, Harry, and Quincy, all of Rochester, New Hampshire; Emily Gagnon and her partner Rick Plaisted, and their daughter Natalie, of Rochester, New Hampshire, and Julie Gagnon, of Portland; and many aunts, uncles, and cousins.

An online guestbook may be signed at www.lawrybrothers.com.

THERESA A. MCKENNEY

PALERMO––Theresa A. (Gove) McKenney, 68, died Sunday, October 1, 2017, at the Alfond Center for Health, in Augusta, following a long illness. She was born in Augusta, on March 27, 1949, the daughter of the late Lawrence Gove Sr. and Simone (Blouin) Gove. She was raised by her grandparents, Leslie and Eva Gove, of Weeks Mills.

Theresa was a 1967 graduate of Erskine Academy and was a member of the Palermo Snowmobile Club. In 1988, she married Dennis McKenney, of Palermo. She was happy to be part of the McKenney family, of Palermo,l for almost 30 years. She always enjoyed their family gatherings around birthdays and holidays, as well as summer afternoons at Westshores on Sheepscot Lake. As a third-generation upholsterer, she was the owner/operator of Country Loft Upholstery for over 30 years. Being self-employed allowed her the flexibility to have her grandchildren get off the bus at “Nanny’s house and enjoy time with her until they were picked up at night.

Theresa loved the outdoors and enjoyed many trips to Loony Town, a camp she and her husband built on Loon Lake in northern Maine. Many of those trips included two vehicles loaded with grandchildren to enjoy animal spotting, fishing, swimming, and of course, plenty of snacks. Her green thumb kept her busy in the summer and fall, as she enjoyed tending to flowers and vegetables. In the fall she was likely to be found canning the goods from the garden, much of which was given away to loved ones.

Theresa was predeceased by two brothers, Leroy and Daniel Gove; as well as a nephew, Sonny Gove.

She is survived by her husband, Dennis J. McKenney, of Palermo; son, Scott Pilsbury and his companion Diana Bickford, of Windsor; son, Joseph Pilsbury and wife Natalie, of Westbrook; daughter, Angela Plummer and husband Jeffrey, of Palermo; 14 grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; three brothers: Lawrence Gove Jr., and wife Jackie, of Pittston, Robert Gove and wife Sheila, of Windsor, and Richard Gove, of Whitefield; a sister Shirley Hopkins and her husband Timothy, of Augusta; as well as many nieces, nephews and cousins.

At her request, there will be no public visiting hours. A funeral service will be held Saturday, October 14, at 1 p.m. at the Erskine Academy gymnasium, in South China. Burial will follow in Hannan Cemetery, Palermo. Arrangements are under the care of Plummer Funeral Home, Windsor Chapel, 983 Ridge Rd., Route 32, Windsor.

Condolences, photos and stories may be shared at: www.plummerfh.com.

Memorial donations may be made to Kennebec Valley Humane Sociey, 10 Pet Haven Lane, Augusta ME 04330.

MARTHA TOMPKINS

JEFFERSON––Martha Bond Tompkins, 91, of Jefferson, died on Monday, October 2, 2017, in Newcastle. She was the daughter of Willis A. and Ruth Hodgkins Bond, both of Jefferson and was born on August 2, 1926, in the home of her Bond ancestors, early settlers of the town of Jefferson,

Martha attended the Jefferson Village School through 8th grade, and then attended Cony High School, in Augusta, graduating in the class of 1944. She graduated froom the University of Maine in Orono with a BA in physics in 1948. The same year she started employment at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D. C., working as a physicist in the rocket section, a forerunner of NASA.

In 1952 she married Robert D. Tompkins, an electrical engineer at NRL. They lived in Chile for 18 months while Bob was employed as an engineer for Bethlehem Chile Iron Mines. On their return to the U.S. with young daughter, Ann, they returned to Washington, D.C., where Bob was again employed at NRL.

On Bob’s retirement in 1981, they retired to Jefferson and built a home on the original Bond property overlooking Damariscotta Lake. Here many happy years were spent, with family and friends, gardens, church and community work, and research into town and family history.

She was a member of the First Baptist Church of Jefferson for 78 years, was a life member of the Jefferson Historical Society and secretary of the Bond Burying Ground Association for many years.

She was predeceased by her husband of 65 years and is survived by daughters, Ann Liburt, of Jefferson, and Marilyn Tompkins, of Jackman; sons, Steven Tompkins, of Glenn Dale, Maryland, Andrew Tompkins, of Leesburg, Virginia, and Richard Tompkins, of Plana, Texas; seven grandchildren; one great-granddaughter; sisters, Kathryn Maryan, of Ocala, Florida, Emily Kaune, of Nederland, Colorado, and Beverly Blair, of Cape Elizabeth; and several cousins, nieces and nephews.

Memorial donations may be made to the First Baptist Church, P.O. Box 921, Jefferson ME 04348.

To extend online condolences, please visit www.hallfuneralhomes.com.

DOROTHY A. POOLER

WINSLOW––Dorothy A. Pooler, 76, of Winslow, passed away on Tuesday, October 3, 2017, at the Alfond Center for Health, in augusta. She was born in Albion on April 9, 1941, the daughter of James and Pauline (Flye) Pottle.

Dorothy graduated from Besse High School, in Albion, and later from Center Maine Beauty School, in Augusta. She owned and operated Dorothy’s Beauty Salon, in Waterville, for many years. Her hobbies included snowmobiling, knitting and attending her great-granddaughter Lili’s horse shows and events.

She was predeceased by her husband, Lawrence Pooler; two brothers, Raymond Pottle and Lloyd Pottle; a sister, Helen Burgess; a grandson, Travis Finley; and a great-grandchild, Liam Finley.

She is survived by her daughter, Ronda Bell, and her husband Kevin, of Windsor; stepdaughter, Kimberly Marois, of South China; a grandson, Justin Finley; four great-grandchildren, Kaden Finley, Lukas Finley, Lilianna Finley and Leah Finley; two step-grandchildren; several nieces, nephews and cousins.

Condolences, memories, photos and videos may be shared with the family on the obituary page of the website at: www.khrfuneralhomes.com.

Memorial donations may be made to the Humane Society Waterville Area, 100 Webb Road, Waterville ME 04901.

CELEBRATION OF LIFE

A Celebration of Life will be held for David Frost of Norridgewock at 16 Ryan Lane, Skowhegan on Saturday October 21, 2017 from 1:00-4:00 p.m. For directions or further information call 778-2580 or 431-9964

Letters to the editor, Week of October 12, 2017

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Monarch article factful

To the editor:

My special thanks to Roland Hallee for his explanation of the Monarch butterflies’ migration journey. At last, after a lifelong interest, I “get” how it takes four generations. The whole article (The Town Line on October 5, 2017) is fact-filled and very easy to read. I enjoy The Town Line as a subscriber and always find something of special interest. The butterfly article is especially special.

Charlotte Henderson
Washington