Issue for September 12, 2024
Messalonskee girls soccer plans 9th annual Girls Youth Soccer Mentoring Day
Messalonskee High School Girls Soccer and the ShineOnCass Foundation will host its 9th annual girls’ youth mentoring day “ShineOn Saturday”, September 28, from noon to 2 p.m., on the Messalonskee High School Turf Field, in Oakland. The event is held to honor former Messalonskee soccer player and youth mentor Cassidy Charette, who died in a hayride accident October 11, 2014…. by Monica Charette
Town News
Select board OKs revised solid waste agreement with Palermo
CHINA – The four China select board members at the Sept. 9 meeting quickly and unanimously approved two business items on their agenda, a revised solid waste agreement with Palermo and a fire truck purchase by the Weeks Mills volunteer fire department…
Local election will feature a contest for select board
CHINA – China’s local elections will feature a contest for select board; an unopposed budget committee candidate; and four positions to be filled by write-in candidates…
Budget committee approves 56-page CMP, TIF program
CHINA – The five China Budget Committee members at the Sept. 3 meeting unanimously endorsed the 56-page Third Amended Central Maine Power/China Lake Tax Increment Financing District and Development Program, which will be on the Nov. 5 ballot for voters’ action…
Select board approves three questions for November ballot
VASSALBORO – At their Sept. 5 meeting, Vassalboro select board members approved three questions for a Nov. 5 local referendum ballot, on three different topics…
Ambulance director supplies newsletter explaining rate increase request
VASSALBORO – Among reports shared at the Vassalboro Select Board’s Sept. 5 meeting was an August 2024 newsletter prepared by Delta Ambulance executive director Chris Mitchell to answer some of the questions from area town officials…
Planners approve CMP shoreland permits to rebuild transmission line
VASSALBORO – Vassalboro Planning Board members had two agenda items at their Sept. 3 meeting. They were not asked to act yet on Revision Energy’s revised plan for a solar farm on Webber Pond Road. It will probably be on the board’s Oct. 1 agenda…
LETTERS: In support of candidate Katrina Smith
from Shirley Derrico (Somerville) – Katrina Smith is the real deal. As the representative of District #62, Katrina has proven she truly cares about her constituents by keeping them informed about upcoming bills that affect not only the citizens of Maine but the nation as well…
LETTERS: Elise Brown serves her community
from Mike Sherman (Palermo) – As Mainers living in a mostly rural setting far removed from national politics, it tends to be our local governments – at the town and county levels – that affect our day-to-day lives. This is why our local elections and elected officials are so important, and this is why I am voting for Elise Brown for Waldo County Commissioner in District #3…
TEAM PHOTO: Waterville football 5th and 6th grade team
WATERVILLE – Team photo by Missy Brown, Central Maine Photography…
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: “What we have here is a failure to communicate.” Email us at townline@townline.org with subject “Name that film!” Deadline for submission is October 10, 2024.
Webber’s Pond comic
Webber’s Pond is a comic drawn by a local central Maine resident (click on the thumbnail to enlarge)…
Local happenings
EVENTS: Hazardous waste collection days scheduled
CENTRAL ME – The Kennebec Valley Council of Governments, based in Fairfield, plans to host Household Hazardous Waste Collection Days in October in Kennebec and Somerset counties…
EVENTS: Announcing annual wildflower seed fundraiser
ROCKPORT – Knox-Lincoln Soil & Water Conservation District has announced their autumn fundraiser – native wildflower seeds. October is the perfect month to sow wildflower seeds for spring growth…
EVENTS: Start Summit: Innovating to protect elderly from online fraud
CENTRAL ME – While new technology has opened up avenues for communication, learning, and entertainment, it has also given rise to a serious problem — online fraud. Older adults, in particular, are often targeted by predators seeking to exploit their trust and lack of familiarity with the digital landscape… by Jane Margesson (Executive director AARP Maine)
EVENTS: Erskine Homecoming
CHINA — Events for Erskine’s Homecoming weekend…
Become a member! An open letter to our readers
Unfortunately, the last two decades have not been good for the nation’s newspapers. Nearly 1,800 local newspapers have closed their doors since 2014, according to a study done by the University of North Carolina. The hardest hit are community papers like The Town Line that concentrate exclusively on local issues…
CALENDAR OF EVENTS: SCCC seeking crafters
So.CHINA – The South China Community Church is seeking crafters for a craft fair, on Saturday, October 26. Tables are whole tables and all proceeds are yours to keep. To rent a table call Diane at 207-399-6359… and many other local events!
Obituaries
ALBION – Penelope Lu Sweatt, 82, passed away peacefully at her home, in Albion, on Wednesday, August 28, 2024. Penny Sawyer was born on February 5, 1942, in Farmington, the daughter of Norman and Phyllis (York) Sawyer…
Around the Kennebec Valley: A history of Ford’s Corner, Part I (new)
PALERMO HISTORY — In North Palermo, where Arnold Lane and Chisholm Pond Road meet, the North Palermo Road just before Wilder Young Hill goes down into Freedom, is a place once known as Ford’s Corner. You wouldn’t know it today, but over a century ago this quiet corner was the center of a bustling community in North Palermo… by Andy Pottle
Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Early Sidney Settlers
SIDNEY HISTORY — Researching former Sidney residents on line, your writer has repeatedly come across a colorful small book entitled Early Sidney, by Chloe B., with a photo of the historic Levi Powers house on the front… by Mary Grow
Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Lovejoys & Marshes
SIDNEY HISTORY — Previous articles in this series have mentioned two other early Sidney families who intermarried with Bacons and Faughts, the Lovejoys and Marshes. This article will provide more information about both… by Mary Grow
Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Sidney early settlers: the Faught family
SIDNEY HISTORY — The Faughts were another early Sidney family. The first Faught your writer came across was Marlborough Packard Faught, a name that sounded refreshingly unusual; but she soon found that the Faughts, like the Bacons, enjoyed repeating more common names – Frederick, Jacob, Samuel – through generations… by Mary Grow
Common Ground: Win a $10 gift certificate!
DEADLINE: Wednesday, September 12, 2024
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: Tracie Kelley, Palmyra
Town Line Original Columnists
SCORES & OUTDOORS
by Roland D. Hallee | Send out a BOLO! I got that from NCIS, it means “be on the lookout”, what they used to call an APB (all points bulletin – those of you my age will remember). Has anyone seen a woolly bear caterpillar this year? Usually, by mid-September they are everywhere. I haven’t seen a one…
REVIEW POTPOURRI
by Peter Cates | Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) spent a number of years as a boy in Raymond, Maine, with an uncle, Dr. Richard Manning, who built a huge mansion with lavishly expensive wallpaper, fireplaces and Belgian glass windows – local natives referred to it as “Mannning’s Folly”…
FOR YOUR HEALTH
HEALTH | As a pediatrician, I hear many questions from parents. As their children grow from babies to adolescents, so does the number of questions they have about how to continue protecting their kids…