Week of March 26, 2020

Celebrating 32 years of local news

Although we are keeping regular hours over the next two weeks (March 16 – March 30), we ask that you not stop by the office unless absolutely necessary. Instead, please contact us by email at townline@townline.org or phone at 445-2234. Don’t worry, we will be publishing this week’s issue on Thursday like always!

Mitchell Cates earns Eagle Scout status

Mitchell Cates, son of Brandon and Amy Cates, of Anson, was awarded scouting’s highest honor, the Eagle Scout rank, on Sunday, March 15, during a ceremony held at the Garret Schenck School, in North Anson. Mitchell built three picnic tables for the Anson Town Office for public use and a kiosk for the North Anson Post Office for people to post upcoming events in town for his Eagle Scout service project…

Vassalboro Community School students at State House

On February 18, sixth graders traveled to the state capitol to be Pages for the Day. Students worked in both the Senate and the House, and met their local representatives, Sen. Matt Pouliot and Rep. Dick Bradstreet. (Photos by Victor Esposito)…

Local Coronavirus Updates

New procedures at Vassalboro Food Pantry

VASSALBORO — The Vassalboro Food Pantry will remain open on Thursdays with the following changes to procedures. These procedures will remain in effect until further notice…

China Food Pantry to implement new procedures for safety

CHINA — When you arrive, please form a line on the shoulder of the road starting at the rock wall and extending back toward The Landing. It is important that you stay in your car to avoid contact with others…

Public Service Announcement: COVID-19 signs and symptoms

Due to popular demand, The Town Line newspaper is reprinting this chart showing the difference between COVID-19 and the common cold or flu…

Your Local News

CFAL committee meets to discuss volunteer needs and efforts

CHINA — On March 19, the China for a Lifetime Committee (CFALC) met to discuss the best ways to provide assistance to members of the community that are especially vulnerable during the COVID-19 pandemic… (including important perspective and safety tips from China’s first responders!)

School board hears plans for schools during shut down

VASSALBORO — Vassalboro School Board members held their first virtual meeting March 24, and thanks to the technical expertise of David Trask and Will Backman it worked efficiently. From their homes, board members and administrators discussed issues and made decisions as though they were sitting in the same room…

Vassalboro Planning Board public hearing canceled

VASSALBORO — The Vassalboro Planning Board public hearing on amendments to the shoreland zoning ordinance, scheduled for Tuesday, April 7, has been canceled, according to Codes Enforcement Officer Paul Mitnick….

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Up and down the Kennebec Valley: Augusta & Vassalboro

CENTRAL ME — What is now, and has been for 200 years, the State of Maine, was first explored and settled by Europeans by way of the Atlantic Ocean, and ocean transportation has been important in its history and economy ever since… [1288 words] by Mary Grow

Local Town Meetings Schedule 2020

Local town meetings schedule for 2020 for Albion, China, Fairfield, Vassalboro and Solon. To add your town to this list, email us at townline@townline.org

Sacred Heart church, rectory, office building on the sale block

WATERVILLE — Corpus Christi Parish has announced that it will place the Sacred Heart property, located on Pleasant Street, up for sale. The property includes a rectory, parish office building, and Sacred Heart Church, which has not hosted a weekend Mass since July of 2006…

DAR announces citizenship award winners

AUGUSTA — Local students from area schools have been selected as winners of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Good Citizenship Award and of the American History Essay contest. The Koussinoc chapter, in Augusta, conducted a ceremony on March 9, at the Lithgow Library, to honor these students…

2019-’20 Real Estate Tax Due Dates

Real Estate tax due dates for the following towns: CHELSEA, CHINA, VASSALBORO, WATERVILLE and WINDSOR…

Webber’s Pond

Webber’s Pond is a comic drawn by an anonymous central Maine resident…

ICE OUT 2020? Take a guess. Win a prize!

CHINA — When will the last of the ice disappear from China Lake? Email us your guess by noon, Friday, April 10 and you could win a prize! To help you out, here are dates for the last 145 years…

Obituaries

VASSALBORO – Bruce P. Arnold, 63, of Arnold Road, died March 13, 2020, at Alfond Center for Health, in Augusta, following a brief illness. He was born in Augusta, on September 25, 1956, the son of Paul Arnold and Louise (Young) Arnold… and remembering 11 others.

Common Ground – Round 15: Win a $10 gift certificate!

DEADLINE: Friday, April 10, 2020

Identify the people in these three photos, and tell us what they have in common. You could win a $10 gift certificate to Retail Therapy Boutique in Waterville! 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: Paige Richardson, of So. China.

Town Line Original Columnists

Roland D. HalleeSCORES & OUTDOORS

by Roland D. Hallee | Well, here we are. All stuck in the same place. I realize the severity of the COVID-19 coronavirus that has now taken a strangle hold on all of our normal every day lives. But, after speaking with several other people, with the media blitz we are getting from the news, it is becoming and little much…

Emily CatesGARDEN WORKS

by Emily Cates | Well, folks, I was planning on writing another article in my series about good finds from seed catalogs, but with everything happening with COVID-19, I figured it would be prudent to write about something more relevant. In this new era of uncertainty and social distancing, many of us appreciate helpful information on how to get through it all…

Dan CassidyINside the OUTside

by Dan Cassidy | What was turning into a lackluster ski season beginning with mid-to-late December and running into March, the ski area of choice, Sugarloaf Mountain had put out a tremendous amount of coverage from their snow guns covering trails from January to mid-February when all snowmaking hoses and guns went silent…

AARP OUTREACH

by Japhet Els | Three glass Ball jars were arranged on the kitchen table. From my perspective as a nine-year old, they seemed large. One jar was labeled, “College Fund.” Another, “Short-Term Savings.” And the last jar, “Long-Term Savings.” My mother was pretty straight-forward and the labels reflected her simplicity in teaching the basics of money…

Peter CatesREVIEW POTPOURRI

by Peter Cates | Opera singer Placido Domingo, who’s 79, has tested positive for coronavirus. We can all hope he will be fine, as people even older are recovering from this. But we need to continue with the suggested safety steps, too…

I’M JUST CURIOUS

by Debbie Walker | By Mothers Day this year (May 10) I will be a great-grandmother. It’s funny but it seems like yesterday I was waiting to become a grandmother in this same time period. Deana was pregnant and upset because her baby wasn’t due until after Mothers Day, but her husband would be celebrating his first Fathers Day that year…

Marilyn Rogers-Bull & PercySOLON & BEYOND

by Marilyn Rogers-Bull | Instead of all the bad news out there, I’m going to start with a wonderful message I received on our family website from my daughter in law, Sherry Rogers. “In a society that has you counting money, pounds, calories, and steps, be a rebel and count your blessings instead…

FOR YOUR HEALTH

(NAPSI) — When you breathe a sigh of relief after giving your home its annual thorough cleaning, you may be breathing in more dust, dirt, and pollution than you realize—unless you’ve also gotten the HVAC system cleaned…