PORTLAND, ME – Evergreen Credit Union raised over $18,000 at their annual Disc Golf Scramble at Pineland Farms in New Gloucester. All event proceeds benefit the Maine Credit Unions’ Campaign for Ending Hunger.

19 teams conquered the Minuteman course at Pineland Farms and finished the day with raffles and competitions for disc golf memorabilia. “We love planning this event year after year,” said Cole Rowland, planning committee lead for the tournament. “It gets us outside and supports our communities. At the end of the day, what more could you ask for?”

Maine Credit Unions’ The Campaign for Ending Hunger allows Maine’s credit unions give back to their communities by feeding those in need. 100% of all funds raised for this campaign directly support organizations that fight food insecurity. “Raising money for the Campaign is vital to Evergreen’s mission and purpose,” said Jason Lindstrom, Evergreen Credit Union’s President/CEO. “With our financial support, we can help many communities at once. That’s what we’re all about: people helping people.”

The Campaign for Ending Hunger in Maine contributed $1.2 million in 2023. Evergreen Credit Union is the 5th largest credit union in Maine, with over $564 million in assets and 5 branches serving all of southern Maine. Explore Evergreen’s community impact at egcu.org/community.

Evergreen Credit Union’s Disc Golf Scramble raised over $18,000 for the Maine Credit Unions’ Campaign for Ending Hunger.

GORHAM, ME — A General Election, Referendum Election, and Municipal Election will take place on Tuesday, November 5, 2024 in which voters will have an opportunity to vote to elect the President, one of Maine’s two United States Senators, Maine’s two Representatives to Congress, all members of the Maine Legislature (State Senators and State Representatives), certain county officers (which could vary by county), as well as appointments to the Gorham Town Council and Gorham School Committee. The Referendum Election will also allow Maine’s citizens the opportunity to vote on People’s Veto Referenda, Direct Initiatives of Legislation (i.e. Citizen Initiatives), Bond Issues, other referenda proposed by the Legislature, and Constitutional Amendments.

The Town has two seats open for three-year terms on the Town Council, and two seats open for three-year terms on the School Committee.

Absentee voting will take place in the Council Chambers starting October 21st thru October 31st during regular business hours (Monday – Thursday, 7:00am – 5:00pm)

Extra voting hours will be offered on Saturday, October 26th from 8:00am – noon and Wednesday, October 30th until 7:00pm. 

Voter Registration

Unenrolled voters can enroll in a party at any time, including Election Day, since the State of Maine offers Election Day voter registration.

Absentee Voting

Absentee ballot requests are now available. You can request an absentee ballot by calling the Clerks office or by going to the Town’s website. Ballots will be mailed out in early October once the Town Clerk’s Office receives them.

Absentee voting will be available in the Council Chambers at the Gorham Municipal Center (75 South Street, Suite 1). The last day to obtain an absentee ballot will be Thursday, October 31 at 5pm.

To be counted, absentee ballots must be returned to the Town Clerk’s Office by 8pm on Election Day – November 5, 2024 by you or an immediate family member.

We can help. Please call our free, confidential 24-Hour Helpline at 1-800-537-6066.

A trained TTD advocate is available 24 hours a day by phone for support, information, and safety planning. You do not have to be in crisis or needing shelter to call the helpline. Call with questions or talk with someone who will listen to you without judgment or telling you what to do.

Our helpline is for everyone. Friends, family, coworkers, supervisors, police, counselors, clergy, and healthcare providers are welcome to contact us for information and support. TTD has access to interpreters, ASL, and Language Line.

Our helpline is answered by an answering service. An operator will ask for your name and a safe phone number. An advocate will call you back from a blocked or restricted phone number within 15 minutes. If you would feel more comfortable speaking to an advocate in a language other than English, please tell the operator which language you prefer. The advocate will return your call with an interpreter.

BAR MILLS, ME — The Blues on Sunday Quartet will be playing at Saco River Theatre, 29 Salmon Falls Road, Bar Mills, ME,  Friday, November 8 at 7:30 PM.  Tickets: $15 General Admission at www.sacorivertheate.org

“Blues on Sunday” was launched in 2022 as a monthly Sunday afternoon residency at Cadenza in Freeport, ME, with the goal of presenting classic blues covers and original material in a traditional vein that features special guests each month. The core Blues on Sunday Quartet features all-star players from the Seacoast region.

Drummer Per Hanson, original drummer with Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters has laid down the beat, on stage and on record, with a Who’s Who of national blues acts including James Cotton, Pinetop Perkins, Charlie Musselwhite, Debbie Davies, Tab Benoit, David Maxwell, Little Milton, and more. Per also plays harmonica and sings with Blues on Sunday.   Jon Ross, multi-instrumentalist on bass, guitar, steel, and mandolin, has toured or recorded with blues luminaries Duke Robillard, Kim Wilson, Joe Louis Walker, Monster Mike Welch, and other internationally renowned acts.  Jon most recently completed a fall 2022 East Coast tour on bass with harmonica player Mark Hummel and the Blues Survivors. Nelson Checkoway, keyboardist and guitarist has played pedal steel with the Commander Cody Band, guitar and keyboards with members of the Greg Allman Band and Dickie Betts’ Great Southern, and his combo Nelson and the New Breed Thing represented Massachusetts in the 2015 International Blues Challenge in Memphis.  Rounding out the quartet is Kris Day, bassist and guitarist who is equally at ease on the electric and stand-up bass. Kris has toured with legendary rock and roll and rockabilly artists Link Wray, Dale Hawkins and Ronnie Dawson.

FALMOUTH, ME — University of Maine Cooperative Extension and University of Vermont Extension will offer an in-person International Maple Grading School on Friday, October 25 and Saturday, October 26 starting at 8:30 a.m both days. The 2-day workshop will be held at the UMaine Extension Cumberland County office, 75 Clearwater Drive in Falmouth.

The course includes both research-based discussion and intensive hands-on exercises covering the four attributes of grading maple syrup. This approach enables participants to learn how to grade or judge maple products with confidence.

A previous participant stated that the course had a “great balance of lecture and hands-on opportunities. I really liked the different exercise stations throughout the course. The off- flavored syrup samples provided during the workshop were very beneficial.” Another shared that they “learned how to use my existing equipment in more accurate ways. Moving forward I will be more diligent at all times. We sometimes get lax when in a hurry or doing repetitive tasks and this course was a great reminder of the importance of paying attention to the details.”

Registration is required; space is limited to 25. Fee for the 2-day course is $145 per person and includes lunch and refreshments on both days. Participants will also receive a tested hydrometer, a current temporary color grading kit, a thermometer, off-flavored syrup kits and an assortment of print materials relevant to syrup quality and grading. For more information and to register, visit the program webpage. The International Maple Grading School is sponsored by the International Maple Grading Institute and the North American Maple Syrup Council.

To request a reasonable accommodation, contact Jenni Cappello-Ruggiero, jennifer.cappelloruggiero@maine.edu, 207-781-6099.  Receiving requests for accommodation at least seven days before the program provides a reasonable amount of time to meet the request, however all requests will be considered.

WINDHAM, ME — Join Presumpscot Regional Land Trust and Wild Seed Project on Thursday, October 24th, 2024 to see the fall colors!

Wild Seed Project is partnering with the Presumpscot Regional Land Trust to offer a series of Four Seasons Walks at Black Brook Preserve in Windham. These walks showcase native plants and how they change throughout the year. Join Nell Houde, Wild Seed Project’s education lead, as we explore the preserve.  Participants will learn how to identify and form relationships with many of the native plants that grow in the places we live, work and play.  The walk will move at a more leisurely pace, covering a little over one mile of the trail during the walk. Thisis the second walk of a four-part series.

Register at the PRLT website.

To attend the event, everyone 18+ must provide full sign-in information. Rest assured, as a community-based nonprofit, we will never sell your information. We’ll send an email the week of the event with details on location, parking, and more. Thank you, and we look forward to seeing you there!

PLEASE NOTE: All participants except family members need to register separately. Please ask anyone else who plans to join you to register themselves.

Thursday, October 24, 2024

3:00 PM  4:30 PM

Black Brook Preserve Windham Center Road Windham, ME

(*Rain date, Monday, October 28th, 2024)

GORHAM, ME – Casco Bay Wind Symphony Fall Concert, led by Dr. William Kinne will be held Sunday, October 27, 2024 from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM at McCormack Performing Arts Center, Gorham High School, 41 Morrill Ave., Gorham, Me 04038.

Bring the whole family to this menagerie of spooky Halloween music performed by Maine’s premiere wind band, the Casco Bay Wind Symphony. This spine-tingling concert includes a world-premiere by CBWS musician, Heather Hastings, new works from Erika Svanoe and John Mackey, and includes music from the motion pictures “Harry Potter,” “Star Wars,” “Beetlejuice,” “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” “Edward Scissorhands,” and much more.

 Tickets: Adults – $13 in Advance, $15 at the door; Seniors (65 +) – Pay what you can; Students / Kids – Free; Tickets can be purchased at the door, or on our website https://www.cascobaywindsymphony.org/event-details/tunes-from-the-crypt

Costumes are Welcome!!!!!!!!

Upcoming concerts:

Saturday, December 7, 2024, 2 PM

Sunday May 4, 2025, 2 PM

GORHAM, ME — The public is welcome to attend an hour-long reading of original works by local authors scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 23 in the library. Refreshments will be served.

The group, Women Who Write, meets every two weeks at the library where they workshop their writing with their peers. The group includes Lynne Mentzer and Mary Snell of Gorham, Carolyn Gaul and Cheri Wing-Jones of Windham, and Annie Boissevain of Gray.

On October 23 they will read stories, poems, and other works developed during the two years they have been working together.

Prose and Poetry Reading by Women Who Write, North Gorham Public Library at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024

MAINE — On Saturday, October 19th, 2024 from 9am-1pm Falmouth Land Trust (FLT)  is teaming up with the Presumpscot Regional Land Trust (PRLT) for a guided hike through PRLT’s Lowell Preserve and onto the connecting Cross Falmouth Trail!  GPNEMBA will also lead a guided mountain bike ride as well.

We’ll meet at PRLT’s Lowell Preserve in Windham at 9 am to kick off the event. Choose between a guided hike and a guided mountain bike ride for your morning adventure. The hiking group will go all the way to the parking lot of Hadlock Community Forest for a 7-mile adventure.  A shuttle will then take hikers back to the start so everyone can do a fun point-to-point hike. GPNEMBA will lead a medium-paced, no-drop 7-8 mile ride, as well as a faster-paced (but no-drop) ride of 12-14 miles out to Hadlock Community Forest and back.

Funds from this event will support FLT and PRLT’s stewardship efforts. We hope you’ll join us and support these great trails!

Register at the Presumpscot Regional Land Trust’s website.

GORHAM, ME — The University of Southern Maine Department of Theatre’s 2024-2025 season is off! To see the Wizard, that is, in a wonderful radio theatre adaptation of this beloved tale. Written by Linus Speary and directed by Joshua N Hsu, the show is performed by USM Theatre students. To celebrate its inaugural broadcast, we’re hosting a Wizard of Oz listening party on October 26th at 7pm on the USM Gorham Campus.

In a world where everything seems too green, witches are in every direction, and roads unexpectedly end and begin, discover a land where dreams can come true. Join Dorothy and her fearless dog, Toto, as she’s whisked away from Kansas to the wonderful land of Oz. Together with a Scarecrow, a Tin Man, and a Lion, they learn to depend on each other, and discover their power within. Gather friends and family and join us at our listening party. The event will feature an Oz-inspired costume contest, food and non-alcoholic beverages, raffles, fun, and, of course, a listen to the final piece.

For director Joshua N Hsu, this project has been a chance to dive deeply into an American classic in a new way, “…”Oz” is a book deeply embedded in the American consciousness: it’s omnipresent in our music, our films, our art, and our everyday lives. Its thoughts on friendship, self-determination, and our love for “home” continue to endure in our cultural vocabulary. We revisit the story from generation to generation, not just because of nostalgia but because we still cherish the ideals Baum espouses. We’ve tried to capture and convey how much “Oz” is an influential Americana piece.”

This is the second radio play produced in the Bill Dufris Memorial Studio on the Gorham Campus by the USM Department of Theatre. Last year, USM Theatre produced The War of the Worlds in the new studio and offered courses in audio engineering and podcasting.

Audiences can enjoy the Wizard of Oz radio play three ways:

Join us for a Listening Party on October 26th at 7-9 PM in Lower Brooks Student Center on at the University of Southern Maine, Gorham Campus.

This event is free and open to all. Best for ages 7and up. Everyone is encouraged to dress in their best Oz-inspired costume!

RSVP here: https://usm.maine.edu/department-theatre/box-office-tickets/

Also streaming on WMPG 90.9, Portland and Gorham Maine, on October 26th at 7pm.

Audiences can purchase access when the finished piece is ready at: https://usm.maine.edu/department-theatre/box-office-tickets/

Appropriate for ages 7 and up.

For more information, visit USM Theatre online at usm.maine.edu/theatre, or call the USM Theatre Box Office at (207) 780-5151. For more information on USM’s Department of Theatre events and programs, click here.

Those needing special accommodations to participate fully in this program should contact Janice Gardner at (207)780-5289 or janice.gardner@maine.edu. Hearing impaired: call USM’s telex / TDD number (207)780-5646

Mike Lawrence as the Wizard, Jared Lennon as the Tin Man; photo by Michael Kmack