The Kennebec Valley Chordsmen
The Kennebec Valley Chordsmen, of Waterville, will be offering Singing Valentines on Friday, February 14, 2020. For $35, a quartet will sing two love songs, present a card and a rose. Contact Galen Larrabee at 465-6579 (C) or Juan Lavalle-Rivera at 437-9274 or by email to 19rambler60@gmail.com.
Darla Frost
New Dimensions Federal Credit Union, in Waterville, announces its new Vice President of Lending, Darla Frost, who comes to them with over 20 years of mortgage lending experience. Frost is also an active charter member and treasurer of the Waterville Lion Club as well as an affiliate member of the Kennebec Valley Board of Realtors.
Directors and staff are excited to have Frost join their team as her experience and wealth of knowledge will be valuable as she settles into her position. She will spearhead the future path of lending by navigating innovative lending programs, compliance, member satisfaction, and more. She states, “I am amazed and excited that New Dimensions is the type of financial institution that truly cares about their members and it shows by the customer service and special care they take with each member. They walk the talk and I look forward to becoming a part of this team. I am especially looking forward to helping the other lenders succeed by coaching and assisting each of them in a manner that works for their individual needs.” Frost enjoys camping and kayaking and spends most of her summer at a local campground in Winthrop. She resides in Augusta with her fiancé Peter
Ryan Poulin, CEO, states, “I am so pleased that Darla has joined our team here at New Dimensions. She will be an instrumental part of our management team because of her years of experience, knowledge and dedication to our communities. She will focus on member experience, ease of process, and saving members money. We welcome her and I look forward to working closely with her in the years to come.”
Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce and KV Connect will host “Meet the Reps,” an event that brings members of the business community and public together with elected officials at all levels of government, Wednesday, February 5, 2020 from 5:30-7 p.m., at Chace Community Forum, located at 150 Main Street, in Waterville (Bill & Joan Alfond Main Street Commons).
The two organizations renewed their partnership for the upcoming legislative session in order to continue to encourage communication between business and community leaders, professionals and young professionals, and their government representatives.
The event is free and open to the public, but registration is appreciated. Please contact Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce at 873-3315 or cindy@midmainechamber.com if you plan to attend. This event is possible thanks to the sponsorship of Central Maine Growth Council and Kennebec Savings Bank.
Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting and advocating for business prosperity and regional economic improvement. Their region includes the towns of Albion, Belgrade, Benton, Branch Mills, Burnham, China, Clinton, Fairfield, Hinckley, Oakland, Rome, Shawmut, Sidney, South China, Thorndike, Unity, Vassalboro, Waterville, Weeks Mills, and Winslow. Legislators and councilors from all of these towns and cities have been invited. For more information on the Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce, including how to become a member, call (207) 873-3315 or visit www.midmainechamber.com.
KV Connect, greater Waterville’s affiliate of the Realize Maine Network, fosters community among young professionals to create economic growth in the region. To learn more about KV Connect, visit www.kvconnect.org or e-mail kvconnectme@gmail.com.
TOCmedia will host three new social media marketing business-breakfast events, “How to Recruit & Retain Top Talent on Social Media.” The series will kick-off on Friday, January 31, at Thomas College, on West River Road, in Waterville.
TOCmedia, the Waterville-based digital marketing firm, has announced the next three upcoming presentations in its popular “Social Media Breakfast Central Maine” (SMBCME) series of business-breakfast presentations. Hosted by Tracy O’Clair, President/CEO of TOCmedia, the social-media marketing business-breakfast series is designed to empower local business, nonprofit, and entrepreneurial marketers. The series is sponsored by The Harold Alfond® Institute for Business Innovation at Thomas College.
Each “Social Media Breakfast Central Maine” presentation will spotlight 2020’s best practices in social-media marketing, as revealed by a speaker from one of Maine’s most marketing-savvy business organizations or nonprofits.
The first presentation, on Friday, January 31, will feature Rob Gould and Katie Denoia, Director of Public Relations and Strategic Communications Specialist, respectively, at WEX Inc., who will speak on the topic “How to Recruit & Retain Top Talent on Social Media.” Rob and Katie will reveal today’s most savvy social-media tactics for highlighting your organization’s culture, increasing engagement with great future employees, and showcasing why you offer a great place to work.
Subsequent Winter 2020 SMBCME speakers will be Anthony Ronzio, Director of Digital Strategy at Colby College, who will present “Going Digital in a Physical World” on Friday, February 28; and Luke Labree, Chief Marketing Officer at Dennis Paper & Food Service, speaking on the topic “The Secret to a Successful Social Media Strategy” on Friday, March 27. Each of the SMBCME speakers was carefully selected for his/ her distinctive talent, social media expertise, and ability to illuminate and share empowering advice and insights to marketers in today’s rapid-paced, constantly changing digital-marketing landscape.
Each SMBCME event will be held in the Spann Student Commons, at Thomas College, 180 West River Road, in Waterville. Advance registration and payment of $15 is recommended for your convenience at http://Social-Media-Breakfast-Central-Maine.eventbrite.com. The admission fee includes breakfast and coffee, plus a 30-minute business-networking opportunity from 7:30 to 8 a.m. For more information, please visit www.Thomas.edu/haibi or call Tracy O’Clair at (207) 512-0532.
Tracy O’Clair, President/CEO of TOCmedia and a certified Constant Contact solutions provider, founded her digital marketing firm in 2009 and launched the “Social Media Breakfast Central Maine” series of educational presentations in 2014. TOCmedia serves businesses and other organizations who want to successfully spotlight their brand, enhance their growth, and heighten their visibility through social-media marketing management, email marketing, digital advertising, and blogging solutions. For more information, please visit https://toc-media.com/ .
Named for Maine’s premiere entrepreneur and innovator, The Harold Alfond® Institute for Business Innovation at Thomas College has been established to spur economic vitality in Central Maine by nurturing the very talent that will assist in the creation of both jobs and wealth for the area. The institute provides the platforms from which instruction, training, events, mentoring, and access to talent are all made available within the context of entrepreneurship and innovation. For more information, please visit www.thomas.edu/institute.
To the editor:
Former Maine Governor Paul LePage gave a speech at Colby College last month. Their Diamond Auditorium was filled from the entrance to the speakers platform with students lined up holding signs expressing opinions on how to improve human conditions. Perhaps I was the only senior citizen there.
Mr. LePage traced his French-Canadian origins in Maine. He came from a large family and was on his own at age 11 when a business family, in Lewiston, took him in. He later took courses at Husson College, in Bangor. Upon graduation he was excused the balance of his tuition for the many ways he benefited the school through clubs and extracurricular activities.
During my lifetime, there have been many changes. Millionaires have become billionaires. An Indian chief once said, “White man is good at making things, but poor at distributing them.”
In the workforce women holding jobs now outnumber men. Competition has replaced cooperation, and children suffer most from the discord and neglect.
Regarding sexual orientation, men differ from women. Diversity advances a species. Darwin called this natural selection. Same sex stems from the dysfunctional family with delinquent fathers, single mothers, and both parents at jobs. Just consider the vices that can infiltrate a home at electronic speeds.
Drugs are more readily available, both legal and illegal. The network of interstate highways has made criminal activity profitable. Also, there is the violence due to the availability of hand guns and assault rifles. A lack of human values is a factor.
A house divided and vacant will not endure. As there are rules for driving, so there are rules of a higher order. These make for a successful lifestyle regardless of rank.
Abraham Lincoln was born into poverty. He learned to read and write from a Bible with help from his stepmother. As a young man, he studied law from borrowed law books to pass the bar exam in Illinois. He served twice in the legislature there. Twice he was elected president of the United States. From reporters, much of his home spun humor and wit has been recorded. “No one is poor who had a godly mother.” He stood six foot four inches tall. When asked he was known to say, “A man stands tallest on his knees.”
Russell Vesecky
Waterville
Alison Linscott, a management major, from Waterville, was one of 25 students to participate in a mock business negotiation for the 2032 Olympics as part of the Lasell College Fall Connected Learning Symposium on December 4, 2019, in Newton, Massachusetts.
Linscott played the role of Judoka Sergiu Toma, an athlete, to represent Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in a mock negotiation for the location of the 2032 Olympics. The negotiation took place over the course of three days, with the second day coinciding with the Connected Learning Symposium. Each student’s team presented their city’s issues, interests, and concerns regarding the negotiation process, according to Assistant Professor Janet Huetteman, who teaches the course on business negotiation at the College’s School of Business.
Throughout the exercise, groups asked questions of the exercise’s mock International Olympic Committee (IOC) and made direct pitches. Huetteman facilitated the three-day process, at the end of which a winner was selected by the mock IOC.
Literacy Volunteers – Waterville Area’s President Janna Townsend, right, and Eve Sotiriou accepted the 6Who Care’s Agency of Distinction award, at a ceremony held at the Portland Museum of Art. (photo courtesy of Lucille Murphy)
News Center Maine has announced that Literacy Volunteers – Waterville Area, has been named this year’s winner of the 6 Who Care Agency of Distinction award.
Literacy Volunteers – Waterville Area’s Eve Sotiriou, with Lee Nelson, of WCSH TV channel 6. (photo courtesy of Lucille Murphy)
For the past 45 years, Literacy Volunteers – Waterville Area has provided free, confidential, one-on-one literacy instruction to adults. By working with adults who have never learned to read, those where English is a second language and teaching parents how to help with their child’s reading skills, Literacy Volunteers – Waterville Area is helping to create successful families.
Who Care is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to honor volunteers and agencies making a difference in our community. These volunteers could be neighbors or friends of yours. They build, they teach, and they inspire. They are people that go about their day never expecting a thank you for the things they do.
NEWS CENTER Maine partners with United Way of Greater Portland and our sponsors, TD Bank and Dead River Company, to honor the volunteers who see a need in our communities and fill it with care and dedication.
This is the 20th anniversary of 6 Who Care. 140 winners have been able to allocate their grant winnings to local nonprofits throughout Maine.
NEWS CENTER Maine’s 2019 6 Who Care winners have been selected. Our Board of Governors had the difficult task of choosing the winners from a group of volunteers that are all helping to make Maine communities better places.
Literacy Volunteers – Waterville Area’s Eve Sotiriou, center, is sandwiched by Pat Callahan, left, and Amanda Hill, both of WCSH TV channel 6. (photo courtesy of Lucille Murphy)
Dean College, in Franklin, Massachusetts, is pleased to announce the local students that have earned a place on the dean’s list for the fall 2019 semester. These students have demonstrated a serious commitment to their studies while at Dean College.
Zoe Derosby, of Waterville;
Cami Dubois, of Winslow;
Joshua Veilleux, of Winslow.
Melissa Brugnani, recently promoted mortgage loan officer at Kennebec Federal Savings Bank. (contributed photo)
Melissa Brugnani, who offers more than 20 years’ experience in banking and a “we treat every customer like family” work sensibility—has been promoted to Mortgage Loan Officer for Kennebec Federal Savings, in Waterville.
In her new role, Ms. Brugnani will professionally assess the credit-worthiness of those seeking various types of individual mortgages in the Waterville/Central Maine area, and match eligible mortgage-seekers with a financial solution thoughtfully designed to meet their individual and/or business needs.
“I am so excited to be promoted to mortgage loan officer, particularly at Kennebec Federal Savings,” said Ms. Brugnani. “KFS has been named a ‘Best Place to Work in Maine’ for six years in a row, and we work hard each day to pass that neighborly, positive, affirming experience along to each and every customer. When you walk in the door here, you become family.”
Allan Rancourt, President of Kennebec Federal Savings, said Ms. Brugnani was promoted to her new position because of her “neighborly professionalism” and passion for customer service. “With Melissa, ‘We treat you like family’ isn’t just a slogan. It’s the way she treats every customer, every day.”
Raised in Livermore Falls, and Massachusetts, Ms. Brugnani served from 2007 to 2017 at The Bank of Canton, in Canton, Massachusetts, and from 1999 to 2007 at Eastern Bank, in Randolph, Massachusetts. She has been employed at Kennebec Federal Savings since moving home to Maine in 2017.
For more information, please contact Rene Turner at Kennebec Federal Savings, 207-873-5151.
Serena Sanborn in a historic re-enactment of Mattie (Martha) Wadsworth was one of the first women to publish in Entomological News. Born on July 26, 1862, Mattie was an amateur entomologist who lived in rural Maine. (contributed photo)
An exciting new chapter will begin in the new year for Serena Sanborn, education and outreach coordinator at Waterville Creates!, as she has been accepted into the Maine Master Naturalist Program! The Maine Master Naturalist Program is a nonprofit volunteer-based enterprise that trains people to become citizen-naturalists.
The graduates of the Maine Master Naturalist Program help enrich nature education in Maine. The program is quite extensive, with 100 hours of in-depth training and more than 200 hours of practice as students learn about topics varying from Maine’s ecological systems to conservation biology, animals, geology, and more!
The program extends beyond graduation, with students promising to volunteer their time leading nature walks and sharing their knowledge, becoming part of a nexus of naturalists around the state, and having opportunities to continue learning about Maine’s natural world through advanced seminars. Upon her completion of this course, Serena has plans to expand on her already popular guided nature walks, share her knowledge through fun activities, and design even more programming around nature education.
“I am delighted not only to expand my knowledge and participate in this program, but also for all the opportunities that this will allow me to bring back to the Waterville community,” says Sanborn. “I have always been an advocate for citizen science, involvement with the outdoors, and the connections to art, so I’m thrilled and honored to be accepted into a program that focuses on something so dear to my heart.”