UNITY: Barn Raisers hold Day of Service

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Unity College students who participated in Day of Service. (Contributed photo)

The Unity Barn Raisers (UBR) held their annual Day of Service event on Saturday, October 5. The Day of Service is a celebration of community spirit and volunteerism. This year, nearly 100 volunteers completed 12 service projects in and around Unity (other towns include Freedom, Montville, and Thorndike), culminating in a community meal to thank the volunteers and sponsors of this great event. Many of these volunteers included first year Unity College students.

Unity Barn Raisers (Contributed photo)

Projects included trail work with Sebasticook Regional Land Trust, gardening at Triplet Park, tidying of local cemeteries, fall cleanup with the Unity Historical Society and Freedom Historical Society, post-fair cleanup at MOFGA, squash harvesting for the food pantry, stacking wood at Avian Haven Bird Sanctuary, painting the Community Center, and more!

This annual event is a fundraiser for UBR, ensuring their ability to serve Unity and the surrounding communities of Troy, Knox, Freedom, Thorndike, Montville and Burnham. More importantly, it provides an opportunity to complete important community enhancement projects that ensure local vitality and development while coming together as a community.

Generous sponsors of this event include Johnny’s Selected Seeds, Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, Envirem Organics, UniTel, Down East Credit Union, Sandy Stream Mobile Home Park, Unity Foundation, Revision Energy, 93 Main Coffee Shop, TA’s Automotive, Depot Country Store, Hidden Valley Camp, Unity Forge, Timber Frame Farm, and VillageSide Farm.

Anyone interested in volunteering in the community please contact UBR at 948-9005 or unitybarnraisers.org.

Unity Barn Raisers works pro-actively to enhance small-town character and rural environment, while nurturing a thriving community-based economy. UBR believes that a community working together can shape its own future, and in so doing, significantly advance the quality of life of its people, both now and for generations to come.

Unity College faculty earns $35,000 grant to monitor Lake Winnecook water quality using drones

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The grant acquired by Unity College to study the eutrophication of Lake Winnecook, also known as Unity Pond, funds two full-time student positions throughout the summer. (contributed photo)

There are a number of ways to monitor the changes in a lake’s quality of water, such as gathering and testing water samples, using a Secchi disk to measure visibility, and even satellite data gathered over the course of several years. However, when Dr. James Killarney, Assistant Professor of Environmental Chemistry, saw an opportunity to apply for a Maine Space Grant Consortium Faculty Seed Research Grant, he began thinking of new ways to study the eutrophication of Lake Winnecook, also known as Unity Pond. Eutrophication, which is usually caused by runoff from the land, is when the body of water becomes overly enriched with minerals and nutrients due to an abundance of plant life and algae.

The Maine Space Grant Consortium is part of a network funded by NASA’s National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program, also known as Space Grant.

“One of the NASA mission directorates was related to monitoring global environmental change with respect to water quality” said Dr. Killarney. “I had a conversation about the grant with Kevin Spigel, Professor of Geoscience, and because of some drone work he had recently started, he brought up we should do something with them. From there, the idea of using aerial imagery at a local scale to perform water quality analysis started to develop.”

Drs. Killarney and Spigel then reached out to Dr. Janis Balda, Professor of Sustainable Enterprise, to take the lead on the business development piece of the grant, and Dr. Kathleen Dunckel, Associate Professor of Forest Resources and Geographical Information Systems, who can overlay the images taken using GIS.

The grant also funds two full-time student positions throughout the summer. “Students get to go along for this ride,” said Dr. Killarney. “They’re going to see this process of science at a federally funded level, and they’re going to be able to decide if this is something they want to do with their life.”

“I want to congratulate Drs. Killarney, Spigel, Balda, and Dunckel on being awarded this grant,” said Unity College President Dr. Melik Peter Khoury. “Not only is it great to see our faculty engaged in research that will benefit the residents here in Unity, but this grant will also offer our students an invaluable experience conducting research with professionals. This is the embodiment of a Unity College education, getting hands-on experience in the field, and I can’t wait to see what comes out of this research.”

The Friends of Lake Winnecook also helped in funding the research, as they continue to work closely with the college to monitor the lake’s water quality.

“We’re really excited about it,” said Brian Levesque, the President of the Friends of Lake Winnecook. “It’s going to be huge in terms of monitoring and testing, and we think it’s going to be a huge step in the ongoing efforts to clean up the lake. Our end goal is to get Lake Winnecook off the impaired list of lakes in the state, and continue to work with Unity College and other agencies in a collaborative effort to do that.”

While the bulk of the research will be conducted throughout the summer, work with this grant is already underway and will be included in portions of the curriculum for the upcoming Fall semester.

Unity College 2019 graduates: Be prepared for change

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by Jeanne Marquis

The theme heard at the Unity College graduation ceremony, on May 11, 2019, was the importance of being prepared for the changing world ahead. New graduates will need to do more than survive change but lead the way for others. Those who will thrive, in the decades to come, will fearlessly embrace challenges by having a deep understanding of the world and possessing the unique skills to solve 21st Century problems.

Unity College President Melik Peter Khoury announced to the 130 graduates of Unity college and their families: “Class of 2019, you have the foundation and the pedigree needed to take the next steps into this challenging green economy on a global scale. And I speak for all of us here at Unity College when I say that we cannot wait to see what those next steps are. Please, share your stories, share your successes and share your adventures.”

Retired United States Army Staff Sergeant Travis Mills delivered the 2019 Commencement address and was bestowed with an honorary doctorate in sustainability sciences. While on patrol in April 2012, SSG Mills was critically injured by an IED on his third tour of duty in Afghanistan. He is one of only five quadruple amputees who survived from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. His inspiring spirit turned his overwhelming challenges into success. After his hard road to recovery, he established the Travis Mills foundation to help other wounded veterans and wrote a New York Times best seller, Tough as They Come. Travis Mills, with a sense of humor, encouraged the graduates to embrace their own challenges – “I had one really bad at work. Then, I went on to have seven fabulous years since that day.”

The philosophy of embracing change has been deeply ingrained in Unity College since its establishment in 1967. The college founder Bert Clifford envisioned that building a college would secure their town’s future in an era when rural towns were declining nationwide. Clifford’s vision came to fruition with a college that serves the local region and attracts students nationwide.

Raymond Hall, a 2019 recipient of a master’s degree, selected Unity College Online after his own intensive search He found the academic rigor to be competitive, and the online format worked with the demands of his position as a safety specialist of environment protection at University of Texas — MD Andersen Cancer Center, in Houston, Texas. (photos by Jeannie Marquis)

In recent years, Unity College also demonstrated resilience and embraced change. The college leaders’ keen ability to forecast future global needs transformed Unity college into America’s first environmental college.

All areas of study at Unity College blend academic rigor with hands-on field work and a goal of teaching students to translate their knowledge into sustainable solutions. Among their majors are Sustainable Agriculture, Biology, Marine Biology, Captive Wildlife Care and Education, Parks and forest Resources, Environmental Writing and Media studies, Wildlife and Fisheries Management, Sustainable Energy Management and Conservation Law Enforcement.

Nolan Allen, a 2019 graduate with a degree in Conservation Law Enforcement, has accepted a position as an officer on the Fairfield Police Department. Allen chose Unity College because of the flexible law enforcement major that provides him with a variety of career options. He appreciated the low student to faculty ratio, 15 to one, which gave him the chance to get to know his professors.

Recognizing a growing need for distance education, college administrators once again embraced this change and developed Unity College Online offering bachelor’s, master’s and non-degree credits. Distance education provides the flexibility, while maintaining the same high standards to reach out to professions who seek to advance their careers. Unity College Online is fully accredited and most of the online faculty are fulltime faculty or are leading experts in their fields. The online capability provides Unity College to reach students globally and provide students with more diverse field experiences.

Raymond Hall, a 2019 recipient of a master’s degree, selected Unity College Online after his own intensive search. He found the academic rigor to be competitive, and the online format worked with the demands of his position as a safety specialist of environment protection at University of Texas—MD Andersen Cancer Center, in Houston, Texas. Hall says the emphasis on problem-solving throughout the the college course work has prepared him well for challenges that lie ahead.

 

 

 

Travis Mills to deliver Unity College 2019 commencement address

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SSgt. Travis Mills

The road every college student takes to complete their degree is never an easy one. It’s full of trying times, late night study sessions, and early morning exams that can certainly be stressful. Whether they know it or not, the more than 130 Unity College graduates receiving diplomas on Saturday, May 11, all persevered using the mantra of the college’s esteemed 2019 commencement speaker, retired Army Staff Sergeant Travis Mills: “Never give up. Never quit.”

SSG Mills has told his inspiring story of perseverance all over television (including Ellen, NBC Nightly News, and Fox News) after losing all four limbs to an IED on his third tour of Afghanistan. Mills is one of only five quadruple amputees to survive their injuries received in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and he documented his road to recovery in his memoir Tough as They Come, a New York Times Best Seller.

It took 14 hours of surgery, nine doctors, seven nurses – two of which were dedicated to pumping air in and out of his lungs — and 30 blood transfusions to keep Mills alive. When he finally regained consciousness days later on his 25th birthday, the first words out of his mouth were: “How are my soldiers?” Finding out they would be fine, his brother-in-law broke the news to Mills that he wasn’t paralyzed but was, in fact, a quadruple amputee. He became angry and upset, but found the motivation to carry on in his wife and six-month-old daughter.

After returning to the United States for an intense recovery process, which Mills says is an ongoing process every single day, he founded the Travis Mills Foundation based in Rome, Maine, to assist combat-injured veterans. In addition to assisting wounded veterans, Mills worked closely with many victims of the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013, helping to guide them following amputation, just as other amputees had done for him. Mills also consults with and speaks to companies and organizations nationwide inspiring others to overcome life’s challenges and adversity, no matter what form that may take.

“It is certainly no exaggeration when I refer to Staff Sergeant Mills as a national treasure,” said Unity College President Dr. Melik Peter Khoury. “Having watched his story of recovery both physically and mentally unfold on television, I not only find Travis to be a remarkable human being, but also a genuine person who is a natural-born leader. He has a knack for inspiring everyone he comes in contact with, and he can almost always get them to smile or laugh, no matter what it is they’re going through. I can’t wait for our graduates to hear him speak.”

“I am extremely honored to be giving the commencement speech at Unity College, in my home state!” said Mills. “I look forward to sharing my story with the 2019 graduating class, and I hope to inspire resiliency and drive as they enter the workforce or graduate school.”

Dr. Khoury said Mills will receive an Honorary Doctorate in Sustainability Science before addressing the candidates for graduation from America’s Environmental College.

“From here, our graduates will travel all over the world, pursuing careers that they’re passionate about or seek further education,” said Dr. Khoury. “I think that the words and story of Travis will stay with them well after they receive their diploma, and they’ll find ways to apply it in all that they do.”

Commencement exercises begin at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 11. The ceremony, which happens to be Unity College’s 50th May Commencement, is open to Unity College graduates and their guests. The ceremony and speeches will be streamed on the Unity College Facebook page.

Unity College professor earns Fulbright Scholarship for brown bear research in Slovenia

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Dr. Jack Hopkins to look into conflict behavior in bears

Dr. Jack Hopkins

Bears and humans aren’t known for always seeing eye to eye. Sure, the two species can have positive encounters, such as bear sightings at a safe distance in the northern Maine woods. Human-bear interactions, however, can turn nasty very quickly, ranging from the more benign end of the spectrum where bears commandeer human food, agricultural crops, or livestock, to more harmful incidents where people get hurt.

It’s these interactions that are the focus of Unity College Assistant Professor of Wildlife Biology, Dr. Jack Hopkins’ latest research project titled Development of a Multi-method Approach to Study Wildlife Behavior: Investigating Human-Bear Conflicts in the Contrasting Landscapes of Europe. For Dr. Hopkins’ Fulbright Scholarship, he and researchers from the University of Ljubljana will use a large collection of tissues (muscle, liver, hair, and teeth) sampled from roughly 800 bears in Slovenia and Scandinavia over the course of roughly 25 years to investigate human-bear conflict.

“It’s a really great opportunity to work with my partners,” said Dr. Hopkins, noting that Fulbright Scholarships offer only about 20 percent of applicants the chance to either teach, conduct research, or do a combination of both. For the spring semester, Dr. Hopkins earned an award to focus strictly on research, leaving Maine for Slovenia at the end of December with his wife and four children.

“I’m also really excited about the opportunity for my kids,” he said. “Having the chance to live and go to school in Europe has the potential to really change their lives. It’ll be a great family adventure.”

Slovenia has one of the highest-density bear populations in the world, which is in part due to the country’s interest in harvesting them twice a year, using supplemental corn feed to maintain their thriving population. Dr. Hopkins will work with genetic and isotopic data from bear tissues to investigate their reliance on corn, how their diets affect their reproductive success and survival, and how conflict behavior develops in the first place.

“I want to congratulate Dr. Hopkins on this incredible honor, and I can’t wait to see the results and conclusions that his research produces,” said Unity College President Dr. Melik Peter Khoury. “Here at Unity College, we emphasize experiential education for our students, but it’s important to also encourage our faculty to pursue opportunities like this. In turn, they will pass down those experiences and inspire our students in the classroom and in the field.”

Although the research project focuses on Slovenia’s brown bear population, Dr. Hopkins believes the issues, in many ways, are similar here in Maine.

“Brown bears feed on corn in Slovenia like black bears feed on doughnuts and other bait in the fall in Maine,” Hopkins said. “In both places, baits are used to help control population numbers and meet the needs of hunters. Although baiting is controversial in Maine, it is the most successful method used to harvest bears. The concern is that if these artificial food sources are removed from the landscape, harvest numbers will decrease, and human-bear conflict will increase with bear density, which obviously has huge management implications in both Maine and Slovenia.”

For more on Dr. Hopkins’ research, visit jackhopkinswildlife.com.

Unity Rotary Club taking fruit orders as fundraiser

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Jan, left, and Ron Cropley, are taking fruit orders for the Unity Rotary Club. The club will be offering 20-pound cases of oranges or grapefruit for $25 per case, and new this year, mixed packages of a variety of choices for $20. The deadline for ordering the fruit will be the week of November 5-9 for expected delivery to start the first week in December. (Contributed photo)

Ron and Jan Cropley, of the Unity Area Rotary Club, are working hard, along with the other members of the Unity Area Rotary Club, taking calls and messages for fruit orders.

Unity Area Rotary Club’s very first fund raiser was the sale of citrus fruit. The chairman then was Max Gillette (1992 – 2017) who continued as its chairman for 25 years. Ron Cropley, of Troy, currently serves as the fundraiser’s chairman and Jan as his secretary.

Unity’s Rotary club will be offering 20-pound cases of oranges or grapefruit for $25 per case, and new this year, mixed packages of a variety of choices for $20. The deadline for ordering the fruit will be the week of November 5-9 for expected delivery to start the first week in December.

For more information, contact Ron or Jan Cropley at (207)948-2524, message the club through their Facebook page (Unity Area Rotary Club) or any other member of the club.

Last call for Common Ground Country Fair poster contest

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The submission deadline for the 2019 Common Ground Country Fair Poster Contest is nearing.

If you have already sent in your poster design, thank you!

If you have not yet submitted, and are interested, you will find the the poster guidelines and application are available at http://mofga.org/The-Fair/Poster

The winning artist receives $2,500, a press release, and is highlighted in MOFGA’s quarterly newspaper, The Maine Organic Farmer and Gardener. The selected design is also featured on the Fair poster, website, T-shirt and in promotional literature.

The theme of the design must be in line with MOFGA’s mission and the general guidelines for participating in the Fair. We welcome all Maine residents and MOFGA members to enter submissions by August 3rd.

For more information please contact the Fair office at commonground@mofga.org.

Unity College graduates six deputy game wardens

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Six recently graduated Deputy Maine Game Wardens. (Contributed photo)

Four are from area towns Troy, Unity, Frankfort & Windsor

For any student interested in becoming a Maine State Game Warden, there’s no better way to prepare than by landing a summer position as a Deputy Game Warden. This year, all six Deputy Game Warden summer positions were filled by Unity College Conservation Law Enforcement students.

“This is an accomplishment that our students, as well as their professors, should be very proud of,” said Unity College President Dr. Melik Peter Khoury. “ In fact, it speaks to the breadth of our Conservation Law Enforcement program, and the overall quality of our education. Experience is a critical part of a Unity College education, and this will certainly give these students an edge when they graduate, whether they choose to enter the workforce or pursue further education.”

The process began for the six students with an application in December. From there, Marc D’Elia, of Troy; Nicholas Johnson, of Unity; Emily Tripp, of Frankfort; Morgan Jeane, of Windsor; Keegan Nelligan, of Abington, Massachusetts; Will Reinsborough, of Pownal, spent several months taking written exams, oral boards, swim tests, polygraph tests, and psychological exams to emerge as top tier candidates. The process closely mirrors the rigor and difficulty that a full-time candidate would go through.

After passing the first part of the hiring process, the students were then required to attend the Law Enforcement Pre-Service, administered by the Maine Criminal Justice Academy, and pass the training from the Maine Warden Service, which includes firearms, water survival, and mechanics of arrest.

“Many students come to Unity with the goal of one day working for a top agency like the Maine Warden Service,” said Zachary Falcon, Assistant Professor of Conservation Law and Environmental Policy. “The Conservation Law Enforcement program prepares students to compete in the field, but they still need a strong work ethic and a high degree of professionalism to succeed. These six students demonstrate that every day, and we could not be more proud of their achievement.”

“It’s surreal. It didn’t fully sink in until they pinned the badge on me,” said Keegan Nelligan, one of the six students. “I’ve been wanting to be a game warden since I was a little kid, and even though I’m not currently a full-time game warden, this is a big step for me. I’m very excited, and excited to see what the future holds for this position.”

Though he’s currently in his training hours, Keegan said that the majority of his work this summer will be as a Boating Deputy, where he’ll patrol bodies of water such as Long Lake or Brandy Pond to ensure boaters are being safe. The Maine Warden Service, however, could call upon the Deputy Game Wardens for other tasks as needed, such as search and rescue assistance.

After this summer position, Keegan will enter into his senior year at Unity College, and hopes to land a full-time position as a game warden upon graduation.

“It’s always exciting to see where our students go after graduation,” added Dr. Khoury. “With a summer serving as Deputy Game Wardens, I see a very bright future for all six of these students.”

Unity group proposes creating green cemetery

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movie poster (source: imdb)

The citizens of the Town of Unity have expressed interest in opening a green cemetery. Therefore, the Unity Cemetery Committee has arranged to show, “A Will for the Woods,” an award-winning documentary about green burials. The presentation will take place at the Unity College Center for Performing Arts on February 8, at 6 p.m. Admission is free. All are welcome to attend. A snow date has been set aside for February 15, at the same time.

Michael Womersley to speak at SRLT meeting

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What will happen to Maine’s land and ocean resources as climate changes in the 21st century? What likely climate scenarios are there for Maine? What will most likely happen to our weather and to sea level? How should we best respond? What mitigation and adaptation strategies are most likely to work? In fisheries?In forestry and agriculture?Which ones are likely to lead to yet more problems down the road?

Dr. Michael Womersley, Professor of Human Ecology/School of Environmental Citizenship at Unity College, will address these concerns. Womersley has a PhD in Environmental Policy Analysis from the University of Maryland Policy School, with a focus on U.S. cultural acceptance of cli-mate policy. His current research is in political economy and geopolitics of climate change.

Womersley’s presentation is part of the Sebasticook Regional Land Trust’s monthly speaker series, “Restoring Connections to Place,” featuring a wide variety of conservation topics. The programs are held on the second Wednesday of every month at the café, 93 Main Coffee Shop, located at 93 Main St., Unity. These monthly events are open to the public and a five dollar donation is suggested. For more information, please email info@sebasticookrlt.org or call 948-3766.

Sebasticook Regional Land Trust has a mission to recognize and conserve the rich wild and working landscape of Central Maine’s Sebasticook River watershed.