Issue for October 26, 2023
Lawrence High School student wins Red Cross scholarship
SNash Corson, of Albion, helped save lives by hosting an American Red Cross blood drive and earned a $1,000 scholarship as a result of his lifesaving efforts. As part of the Red Cross Leaders Save Lives program, the Lawrence High School junior hosted a blood drive at the Fairfield Church of the Nazarene which collected 25 pints of lifesaving blood. As a result, Corson was eligible to be entered into a drawing for a scholarship and was chosen as a winner…
Town News
Select board acts on three spending requests
CHINA – China select board members acted on three spending requests at their Oct. 23 meeting. They held a long discussion about trucks with Director of Public Services Shawn Reed. Reed reported the previously authorized new town truck, once scheduled for September delivery, is not yet even “on the assembly line,” due to a series of delays (including a major fire at a supplier’s factory)…
Transfer committee reviews 5-year plan
CHINA – At their Oct. 17 meeting, China transfer station committee members reviewed the five-year plan for the facility and talked about relations with neighbors Palermo and Albion. The plan includes repairs and replacements and a few minor additions, like a storage area for propane tanks and the previously-discussed lighting for the free for the taking building (both scheduled for 2024)…
TownCloud Inc. selected to design and maintain new website
VASSALBORO – After another long discussion, Vassalboro select board members at their Oct. 19 meeting unanimously accepted town Manager Aaron Miller’s recommendation: TownCloud, Inc., will design and maintain the new town website…
Board works toward solving heat problems at school
VASSALBORO – Vassalboro school board members have decided on measures to minimize heat waves inside Vassalboro Community School (VCS), no matter what the weather outside does…
Residents propose using funds to honor veterans
PALERMO – On Thursday, October 19, the Palermo Town Council heard a proposal from two residents interested in using charitable fundraiser proceeds to honor veterans from town. Representing the American Legion, Palermo residents Paul Hunter and Gary Jones approached the town council after being selected by the Palermo Friends and Neighbors ATV club as one of four recipients of an annual fundraiser… by Jonathan Strieff
Fairfield election notes
FAIRFIELD – Residents of Fairfield may cast their ballots on Tuesday, November 7, 2023, at the Fairfield Community Center, 61 Water Street, Fairfield, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. The local ballot will include…
Name that film!
Identify the film in which this famous line originated and qualify to win FREE passes to The Maine Film Center, in Waterville: “One word: Plastics.” Email us at townline@townline.org with subject “Name that film!” Deadline for submission is November 9, 2023…
Webber’s Pond
Webber’s Pond is a comic drawn by an anonymous central Maine resident (click thumbnail to enlarge)…
New primary care doctor comes home to care for his community
OAKLAND – Northern Light Primary Care, in Oakland, welcomes Gavin Hannon, DO, to its team. Dr. Hannon grew up in Oakland and has come back to care for his hometown community…
Vassalboro scouts learn orienteering
VASSALBORO – Members of the Maine Warden Service took time out of their schedules to teach Scouts in Vassalboro Cub Scout Pack #410 orienteering to help the Scouts understand how to navigate their way in Maine’s woods. The compass training took place at Thurston Park, in China, on Monday, October 16…
Local student inducted into National Scholastic Honor Society
SKOWHEGAN – Saint Anselm College student Christopher B. King, of Sidney, a Natural Sciences major in the class of 2024, has been inducted into the Tau Chapter of the Delta Epsilon Sigma National Scholastic Honor Society for the 2022-2023 academic year, in Manchester, New Hampshire. Students are considered for membership if they have completed at least 50% of the credit requirements for their degree and are ranked in the top 20% of their class…
Local happenings
EVENTS: Thank you for your service!
CHINA – Boynton-Webber American Legion Post #179, in South China, will be hosting a turkey dinner for veterans, and one guest, on Wednesday, November 8, starting at noon, at the South China Legion Hall, at 79 Legion Memorial Drive, South China….
CALENDAR OF EVENTS: Palermo Library’s chili fundraiser
PALERMO — The Palermo Community Library is sponsoring a Chili Fundraiser on Saturday, November 4, 2023, from 11 a.m. – p.m. The cost is $7 for a 12 oz. container of delicious homemade chili (spicy, mild, or meatless), a cornbread muffin, a 16 oz. bottle of water, and two chocolate chip cookies… and many other local events!
Obituaries
WINSLOW – Edward Nelson Tansey, 79, of Winslow, passed away on Sunday, September 24, 2023. He was born, in Boston, Massachusetts, on June 11, 1944… and remembering 11 others.
Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Inventions, agriculture & others (new)
ME HISTORY — Previous articles have talked about how agricultural work changed from the 1700s through the 1800s, as manpower was replaced by animal-power and then machines. Other changes, too, helped farmers produce more or expend less effort or both… by Mary Grow
Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Agriculture – Part 7
VASSALBORO HISTORY — Recent articles have mentioned two Vassalboro men, Thomas Stackpole Lang and Hall Chase Burleigh, who each deserve more attention for their agricultural contributions, along with Lang’s father, John Damon Lang… by Mary Grow
Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Agriculture – Part 6
WATERVILLE HISTORY — Another locally-bred trotting horse, even more famous than General Knox (described last week), was Nelson. Nelson was a bay horse. The color is described on line as “a reddish-brown or brown body color with a black point coloration on the mane, tail, ear edges, and lower legs.” Several on-line pictures dramatically contrast his dark mane with his lighter body. He stood a little over 15 hands (readers will remember a hand equals four inches)… by Mary Grow
Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Agriculture – Part 5
KV HISTORY — Some of the central Kennebec Valley agricultural pioneers chose to breed racehorses, specifically trotters, instead of, or in addition to, the cattle discussed last week. For example, Kingsbury mentioned in the chapter on Waterville in his Kennebec County history that George Eaton Shores, of Waterville, who bred Hereford cattle, “also handled some horses, selling in 1879 the race horse Somerset Knox for $2,700″… by Mary Grow
Common Ground: Win a $10 gift certificate!
DEADLINE: Wednesday, November 16, 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: Maylou Ripley, Oakland
Town Line Original Columnists
SCORES & OUTDOORS
by Roland D. Hallee | There they were! Marching along the railing of my porch as my wife and I were enjoying the day’s end of sunshine on a Saturday afternoon. They formed a column like a trucking convoy, one behind the other, all heading in the same direction. Blackish-colored bugs with red stripes, about a half inch long. I had seen them before, but not this many…
CRITTER CHATTER
by Jayne Winters | When I visited with Don today, there were two new admissions in small cages in his living room: a young chipmunk and a gray squirrel, both likely HBC (Hit By Car) victims. The chipmunk wasn’t in good shape; he was hunched up in a corner of his cage, his fur very disheveled. Don said he didn’t appear to have any broken bones, but initially had a bloody mouth and was in shock…
REVIEW POTPOURRI
by Peter Cates | Great American Songbook composer Jerome Kern (1885-1945) was so captivated by reading Edna Ferber’s 1926 novel Showboat that he immediately saw its possibilities as a musical on Broadway. But he had never met Miss Ferber and had no idea how she’d respond…
I’M JUST CURIOUS
by Debbie Walker | I may wind up regretting this, but… you know I love to share knowledge (?). The back up story here is my friend, Edgar, who gave me a couple of books years ago. They have been packed in storage, but I found them again last week. The name of one book is Uncle John’s Supremely Satisfied Bathroom Reader, by the Bathroom Reader’s Institute…
VETERANS CORNER
by Gary Kennedy | Many veterans complain about back pain and perhaps that is one of the most common complaints from our new veterans, especially if they are vets who are retiring after 20-plus years. If you take into consideration the nature of this type of career you will find that many of the venues residing within the military are extremely taxing on the human body. A soldier must be fit or put in shape in order to perform at peak proficiency…
FOR YOUR HEALTH
(NAPSI) —When you’re jetting away from rainy Washington for vacation, your suitcases are often filled with traveling essentials, but did you think of what you may need in case of a dental emergency while relaxing in paradise? “It is important to know whom to call, where to go and what insurance can cover,” said Kyle Dosch DDS, Delta Dental of Washington’s dental director and a member dentist. “This ensures that your smile stays healthy at home and while traveling”…