Issue for February 2, 2023

Celebrating 34 years of local news

Ice fishing derbies abound in central Maine

4th annual China Lake Ice Fishing Derby to be held on Maine’s free fishing weekend

The China Four Seasons Club and the China Village Fire Department are co-hosting the 4th Annual China Lake Ice Fishing Derby to be held on Sunday, February 19, during Maine’s Free Fishing Weekend. Similar to last year, there will be town-wide “China Ice Days” activities starting on Friday night with a dinner at the China Mason’s Lodge and a guided snowmobile run directly after. More events including sledding, ice skating and a Cornhole tournament will be occurring throughout the day on Saturday… by Sandra Isaac

VBA ice fishing derby on tap

Vassalboro Business Association will be holding its Ice Fishing Derby & Raffle on Sunday, February 12, 2023, at the Olde Mill, at 934 Main St., Vassalboro. Fish may be entered from all legal Maine waters. Weigh In will be from 1 – 5 p.m. Tickets for fishing entries must be purchased before 1 p.m., on February 12. $1 per ticket or 6 for $5. One fish entry per ticket…

Town News

Planners consider three documents at meeting

CHINA – China Planning Board members considered three documents at their Jan. 24 meeting. They agreed to continue discussion of amending the Board of Appeals Ordinance (which is Chapter 9 of the Land Use Ordinance) at their Feb. 14 meeting, with members of China’s board of appeals and select board invited to participate…

Town manager presents initial town budget

CHINA – China select board members began their Jan. 29 meeting by hearing Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood’s initial presentation on the 2023-24 town budget, with four budget committee members joining them (three others were unable to attend)…

Transfer committee approves two documents for select board consideration

CHINA – At their Jan. 24 meeting, members of China’s Transfer Station Committee unanimously approved two documents for forwarding to the select board…

Select board, WPA officials meet

VASSALBORO – Vassalboro select board members, Webber Pond Association leaders and other interested parties held the joint meeting they planned back in November 2022, on Jan. 25…

Legislative Report as of Friday, January 20, 2023

CENTRAL ME – List of legislative bills sponsored by local senators and representatives…

Name that film!

Identify the film in which this famous line originated and qualify to win FREE passes to Railroad Square Cinema in Waterville: “Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.” Email us at townline@townline.org with subject “Name that film!” Deadline for submission is February 2, 2023…

Local happenings

Real estate group recognizes local state lawmaker

AUGUSTA – The Maine Real Estate & Development Association (MEREDA) honored Maine State Senator Matt Pouliot, R-Kennebec, during its 2023 Forecast Conference and Member Showcase. The organization’s annual event was held at the Cross Insurance Arena in Portland…

Sarah Sachs named president of KFS Mortgage Company LLC

WATERVILLE – KFS Mortgage Company LLC, the Waterville-based lending corporation that is a wholly owned subsidiary of Kennebec Savings Bank, has named Sarah Sachs as its new president…

PHOTO: New chamber board members

WATERVILLE – The Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce new board members…

PHOTO: Windsor Fair president receives award

WINDSOR – Windsor Fair shares that their esteemed president, Tom Foster, has been presented the Catherine L. Damren Distinguished Service Award by the Maine Association of Agricultural Fairs this past weekend at their annual conference…

KVCAP: The Importance of a Ride

KENNEBEC VALLEY – For many of our neighbors in central Maine communities, they no longer have access to a car. Imagine needing to get to a doctor appointment, your important dental visit or to see your Eye Doctor and you have no ride…

EVENTS: Val­entine Vaude­ville — Back by popular demand

SKOWHEGAN – Enter the world of a supper club: a great variety show and drinks and dinner complete with hat check and candy cigarette girls – Val­entine Vaude­ville. The public is invited to join the fun on Saturday, February 18, at T & B Celebration Center, in Skowhegan…

EVENTS: Maine Sci-Fi & Fantasy Nerd Fest coming to Vassalboro

VASSALBORO – A fun family event is coming up Sunday February 5, 2023, in Vassalboro. The Olde Mill is the perfect place for what many call the “Nerd Super Bowl”…

EVENTS: SMASH proudly presents “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”

MONMOUTH – Southern Maine Association of Shakespearean Homeschoolers (SMASH) proudly presents A Midsummer Night’s Dream, February 2 & 3 at 6:30pm and February 4 at 2pm. It will be performed at Cumston Hall in Monmouth, Maine.  Tickets are available at the door or online…

EVENTS: Gaslight Theater presents 2023 Season of Laughter

HALLOWELL – Gaslight Theater proudly presents its “2023 Season of Laughter” starting with Love is Murder in February. Love is Murder, a comedy by Tim Kelly, will be directed by Gaslight Theater’s Matthew McLaughlin, at Hallowell City Hall Auditorium, at 1 Winthrop Street, in Hallowell. The show will be produced over two weekends, including Sunday matinees, February February 10, 11,12,17, 18, 19. Friday and Saturday shows start at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday matinees start at 2 p.m…

Gilman named to dean’s list at Cedarville Univ.

CHINA – Josette Gilman has been named to the dean’s list for Cedarville University, in Cedar­ville, Ohio, for Fall Semester 2022…

Local student on dean’s list at Cedarville Univ.

SIDNEY – Linnea Estes, of Sidney, has been named to the fall 2022 dean’s list at Cedarville University, in Cedarville, Ohio. Students receive this recognition for obtaining a 3.5 GPA or higher for the semester and carrying a minimum of 12 credit hours…

Evelyn G. Mercier named to Fall 2022 dean’s list at Saint Michael’s College

WATERVILLE – Named to the dean’s list at Saint Michael’s College, in Colchester, Vermont, for the Fall 2022 semester was Evelyn G. Mercier, a freshman sociology and anthropology major from Waterville, and a graduate of Snow Pond Arts Academy, in Oakland…

Indiya Clarke named to Wofford College’s fall 2022 dean’s list

VASSALBORO – Indiya Clarke, of Vassalboro, has been named to the fall 2022 dean’s list at Wofford College, in Spartanburg, South Carolina…

Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Weather events (new)

KENNEBEC VALLEY HISTORY – James North and Ruby Crosby Wiggin, quoted last week, were not the only local historians to mention the Year without a Summer. And 1816 was not the only unusually cold spell – though it was the longest spell of (fairly) consistently cold weather – recorded in the central Kennebec Valley since the settlers’ arrival… by Mary Grow [1846 words]

Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Floods of central Maine – Part 3

KENNEBEC VALLEY HISTORY – Before this series moves on to describe the year without a summer, one more flood needs mention and another a description. The Fairfield Historical Society’s bicentennial history says a March 2, 1896, freshet took out the last remaining of the three 1848 covered bridges between Fairfield and Benton, the easternmost one between Bunker Island and Benton… by Mary Grow [1877 words]

Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Kennebec River floods – Part 2

KENNEBEC VALLEY HISTORY – After the great freshet of 1832, with which last week’s article ended, Augusta business leaders went ahead with their plan to build a dam across the Kennebec River to power mills; and a Fairfield company dammed part of the river there… by Mary Grow [1940 words]

Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Kennebec River floods – Part 1

KENNEBEC VALLEY HISTORY – January in Maine seems like a good time to talk about weather, including floods. Some local historians collected a lot of information on the topic; others paid it little attention. Here is your writer’s proposal to share some past events… by Mary Grow [1978 words]

FICTION: The House, part 3 (chapter conclusion): Tiger, tiger, burning bright

With uncertainty in his voice Dave said, “I don’t know about you guys but it’s getting dark, which means we’ve been up here a lot longer than we should have been. How much time just passed? I think we should go back downstairs and think about what just happened”… by Peg Pellerin

Webber’s Pond

Webber’s Pond is a comic drawn by an anonymous central Maine resident (click thumbnail to enlarge)…

CALENDAR OF EVENTS: Homeschoolers present A Midsummer’s Night Dream

MONMOUTH — Southern Maine Association of Shakespearean Homeschoolers (SMASH) proudly presents A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Thursday, February 2, and Friday, February 3 at 6:30 p.m. and Saturday, February 4, at 2 p.m. It will be performed at Cumston Hall, in Monmouth… and many other local events!

Obituaries

SOUTH CHINA – Barry C.B Blackinton, 61, passed away on Wednesday January 25, 2023, at home. He was born in Cranston, Rhode Island, on August 28, 1961, the son of the late Walter and Edna Blackinton… and remembering 15 others.

Common Ground: Win a $10 gift certificate!

DEADLINE: Wednesday, February 9, 2023

Identify the people in these three photos, and tell us what they have in common. You could win a $10 gift certificate to Hannaford Supermarket! Email your answer to townline@townline.org or through our Contact page. Include your name and address with your answer. Use “Common Ground” in the subject!

Previous winner: Bob Poulin, Winslow

Town Line Original Columnists

Roland D. HalleeSCORES & OUTDOORS

by Roland D. Hallee | Well, we’ve turned the calendar and it is now February. Time for me to go visit my furry, rodent friend, Woodrow Charles, the weather prognosticating groundhog. Folklore has it that if he sees his shadow, we are in for six more weeks of winter. If he does not see it, we can expect an early spring…

SMALL SPACE GARDENING

by Melinda Myers | Keep gardening longer with less muscle strain and fatigue with these pain-free gardening techniques. You’ll not only keep your garden looking its best but also make it a more enjoyable experience…

Peter CatesREVIEW POTPOURRI

by Peter Cates | Former 20th President James Abram Garfield (1831-1880) was the last of the Ohio Republican Triumvirate to serve in the White House, following his predecessors Grant and Hayes…

LIFE ON THE PLAINS

by Roland D. Hallee | Life on The Plains in the 1950s and ‘60s was pretty simple. World War II had ended a few years earlier, the Korean War was raging, but I was too young to remember that. Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, the “man who defeated Hitler” was elected president in 1952, and the country was going through some kind of industrial revolution…

FOR YOUR HEALTH

(NAPSI) | You’re probably not getting enough of these vitamins and minerals. Here’s how to fill your plate with power foods for your body and mind. You try your hardest to eat a healthy diet (you really do!)…