July

A public hearing was set in Livermore to review applications for a new marijuana cultivation facility and large engine repair shop. Also discussed were changes to the Building Ordinance. It was reported the Planning Board had been working on changes required as a result of state bill L.D. 2003 – a knee jerk reaction to create more housing in Maine – that went into effect July 1.

Several store owners and local crafters, dubbing themselves the “Village Makers of Wilton”, were looking to bring new life to downtown Wilton with plans to take over the area on the second Saturday of every month from June all the way to the end of the year. Vera Johnson came up with the idea. She and the rest of the owners decided to host an event on the second Saturday of the month starting last year in October. According to the women, the turnout was a resounding success and they opted to begin the monthly event earlier this year to include the summer months.

With an application to convert part of the Wilton bowling alley into a cannabis dispensary yet to be filed with the Planning Board, the future of Meadow Lanes was still hanging in the air. Noticeably absent from the planning board agenda was an application for the Meadow Lanes bowling alley, located at 907 U.S. Route 2 in Wilton.

No findings of fact were produced after the public hearing due to an unfiled application. The Planning Board stated it would reconvene to review and discuss once more before making a final decision. Meadow Lanes was the subject of a public hearing in June where potential buyer Frank Berenyi listened to concerns from local residents and patrons of the bowling alley.

Kim Fast and a friend were near the foot of Wilson Lake in Wilton when a young moose jumped in the lake to go around them. “It was a riot,” Fast said. “He was just a young guy. He jumped in the lake to go around us.”

It happened pretty quick, Fast said. “There were not many people there at the time,” she added.

Maine’s Paper & Heritage Museum would lose a $25,000 grant to repair the building’s foundation if it doesn’t raise the required $25,000 match by end of November, it was reported. Museum President Greg Bizier said the museum had been working at it for almost a year. So far, about $8,000 had been donated.

“The building was built in 1906,” he said. “In the spring or when we get a lot of rain the foundation will leak. It pulls sand right into the basement. It is very humid down there. We don’t want that.”

The Regional School Unit 9 board of directors had a presentation on SEL [social and emotional learning]. Liz LeClair, a commercial arts teacher at the Mt. Blue Campus, gave the presentation along with Assistant Superintendent Monique Poulin and Interim Mt. Blue High School Principal Joel Smith.

“SEL is basically how people, students, parents, community members, acquire knowledge, skills and attitudes in ways that they can manage emotions, learn empathy, and then make responsible decisions moving forward,” Smith said.

SEL is a product of CASEL [Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning], a non-profit that formed in 1994 that has been the leaders of the SEL movement for over two decades, according to its website. The mission statement is to integrate social and emotional learning into academic curriculum.

Livermore Selectpersons reviewed a survey of Wyman Road which shows the road is aligned differently than originally planned. As a result, the town will be snow blowing less of the road next winter while steps to discontinue the road to winter maintenance move forward. Christopher and Addie McHugh are the only residents on the road. The dead-end road has a 15% grade. Abutting landowners have different accesses to state Route 4.

Main-Land Development Consultants Inc. in Livermore Falls prepared the Wyman Road survey and found what they feel was the original road, Chair Mark Chretien said. Wyman Road was part of the Cottage Terrace subdivision dating back to the 1920s, according to Sept. 30, 2010, special meeting minutes. The subdivision was never built, the road is very steep and finding room to put snow is an ongoing issue, according to that document.

With donations from numerous businesses and organizations inside and outside Franklin County, United Way of the Tri-Valley Area was getting kids ready for school with a fully stocked backpack. For more than a decade, UWTVA has been making sure underprivileged youth were fully prepared for the school season with the Packs for Progress program.

Official sponsors of the backpack program included Bangor Savings Bank, The Dugout Bar and Grill, Skowhegan Savings Bank, Poland Spring, and Hilltop Collision Center, as well as the Farmington Rotary club. LL Bean was also a sponsor and had donated 75 new backpacks for distribution.

August

Competing at the Special Olympics World Games in Berlin, Germany, was a dream come true for Trent Paradis thanks to the efforts of area organizations. Paradis grew up in Jay, now lives in Lewiston. He was the only Maine athlete representing Team USA June 17-25 at the games.

“Like they say, it takes a village to raise a child – but in this case an amazing 36 year old young man,” Gary Desjardins, Franklin County Special Olympics area manager said during a meeting of the Livermore/Livermore Falls Historical Society that recognized Trent and his accomplishments at North Livermore Baptist Church in Livermore.

At the Farmington Select Board meeting, a presentation on the proposal for Franklin Memorial Hospital to become a Critical Access Hospital highlighted the financial benefit for the hospital, that patient care would remain the same. If approved, the change in status would take effect Oct. 1.

“There will be no difference in your stay or your care,” Barb Sergio, president of Franklin Community Health Network at FMH said. A patient on Sept. 30 or Oct. 1 will see no changes, she noted.

The Spruce Mountain High School Envirothon team placed 16th at the 2023 National Conservation Foundation Envirothon held in Tantramar New Brunswick, Canada. The Spruce Mountain team won the Maine Envirothon held June 7 at the Viles Arboretum in Augusta, earning the right to represent Maine at the National competition which included championship teams from most American states, Canadian provinces, China, and for the first time Singapore.

For most team members, it was their third consecutive win at the Maine Envirothon. The team included 2023 graduates Abrahm Geissinger, Owen Schwab, and Dan Wilson, as well as rising seniors Leah Burgess and Brenden Veilleux. The students spent a great deal of time this summer studying, learning from natural resource professionals, solving practice problem scenarios, and working on oral presentation skills.

The 21st Century Kids summer program held at Spruce Mountain Middle School Monday through Thursday ended with a talent show and ice cream social July 27. Singing, gymnastics routines and solving Rubik’s cubes were a few of the talents shared.

Franklin County Children’s Task Force in Farmington organized the summer program which had weekly themes: super heroes, ocean, animals, and camping. The activities stemmed from four categories of focus: literacy, STEAM [Science, technology, engineering, art, math], SEL [social and emotional learning], and nutrition.

Masons from Farmington and Wilton donated eight bikes that were raffled off at the end of the Jay-Niles Memorial Library summer reading program. Part of the Masonic Bikes for Books program, there were bikes for a boy and a girl in four different age categories.

Typically, the bikes are channeled through area schools. “This is a chance to do the Masonic Bikes for Books program again,” Shane Cote with Masonic Lodge Maine #20 said. “It has been at least three years since we have been able to do this in schools, ever since COVID-19.”

Those wondering what the red hearts seen in several downtown business windows in Farmington were informed they were in memory of the Valentine’s Day Bandit, but some questions remained unanswered. Susun Terese, owner of Minikins on Broadway knew the hearts were for the bandit. She didn’t know how long the hearts should be displayed.

“They were put up about a month ago, right before Summer Fest,” Andy Shattuck, of Wilton and a Summer Fest organizer, said. “They are everywhere.”

Livermore Selectpersons by consensus increased the amount of excise tax revenue to use when determining the tax commitment from $375,000 to $400,000. Chair Mark Chretien noted the excise tax revenue figure was used when the tax commitment is determined.

When Richmond first joined the Select Board, the number was $300,000. He said it went to $325,000 then $350,000, has stayed at $375,000 for several years. “We probably could have changed it last year,” he stated. “Excise tax in July last year was $50,000. We took in $54,000 this year.”

Chesterville celebrated its newly built playground with a ribbon cutting ceremony and barbeque. Members of the Select Board were in attendance, as well as members of the Recreation Committee and representatives from Franklin Savings Bank and Skowhegan Savings Bank.

Construction of the playground began officially on Friday, July 31, and was completed in two days. The playground features a sandbox, play structure, monkey bars, slide, and four-bay swing set, which was donated in memory of Chesterville resident and World War II veteran John Gee.

Pride Pediatrics Therapy, a new private practice that specializes in occupational therapy for children planned to open it’s doors with a grand opening featuring a ribbon cutting ceremony along with numerous activities and information regarding occupational therapy. The practice is located at 411 US Route 2 E, Suite C next to the Dollar General in Wilton.

“A lot of people don’t know what occupational therapy is, unless their kids are currently in it,” owner Courtney Pride said. A licensed occupational therapist, she specializes in feeding therapy, helping kids with a limited diet because of sensory aversion or other factors.

Regional School Unit 73 board of directors conditionally approved a contract for JustNiks Micosilva LLC to work with teachers and students to raise chaga mushrooms on district-owned land. “The Spruce Mountain mycroforestry outdoor research project [MORP] is a program where Spruce Mountain High School students will have the opportunity to learn about fungi [chaga mushrooms] in an outdoor environment,” Rob Taylor, a science teacher at the high school, said. “Chaga mushrooms are a valued commodity, prized for their high levels of antioxidants.”

Students involved with the project will learn first hand about growing fungi within a forest, design and conduct experiments using scientific method, and will gain an appreciation for outdoor career opportunities, Taylor noted.

September

The Livermore Select Board set the tax rate for 2023-24 at $16.25 using $75,000 from the undesignated fund balance to help lower the amount taxpayers need to provide for town operations. The board reviewed four options before setting the tax commitment. The option chosen raises taxes 25 cents from the current rate of $16 to $16.25 per $1,000 of property valuation.

Matt and the Barnburners took over French Falls Park, bringing their blend of old school blues to a big crowd in Jay. Barnburners, a blues group based out of central Maine, played the free performance to a big crowd of roughly 50 people who brought lawn chairs and blankets to enjoy what remained of the summer season.

The event was sponsored by the Jay Recreation Committee. The event featured Fresh Eatz food truck, which provided hot food for the crowd as they enjoyed the blues musicians.

The Wilton Town Office was seeking volunteers for a hiring committee for the new town manager. Requirements included residency in the Town of Wilton. According to current Town Manager Perry Ellsworth, at least seven applicants applied with two having experience in the position in other towns. “It’s really up to you at this point,” he told the Select Board.

Ellsworth formally announced his resignation in July with his anticipated final day set for the first of November.

The 182nd edition of Farmington Fair was set with many popular favorites returning and several new or expanded events. Franklin County Agricultural Society, established in 1840, puts on the annual fair which features exhibitions, entertainment, fair food and so much more.

Throughout the week, it was advised to check out entries in the hay bale decorating contest, a new event this year. Area non-profit organizations and youth groups decorated a bale with the public using dollar bills to vote for the favorite. The entry raising the most money would be declared the winner. All groups were to receive the money collected for their entry at the end of the fair.

Another new event came from the generosity of a fair supporter. Two seven-speed, 24 inch tall tri-bikes with baskets on the front and back had been donated and senior citizens would be able to enter a raffle to win one of them on either Tuesday or Thursday evening right after the 6 p.m. bike drawings for youth in the pulling ring.

At the Regional School Unit 73 board of directors meeting, community members were asked to respect bus signals for the safety of the entire community. “School bus drivers have been doing an absolutely wonderful job,” Phoebe Pike, director from Livermore Falls said. “I can’t thank them enough for all their hard work as well as the level of safety they keep in mind when taking care of the children and everyone else in the district.”

The Sun Journal reported an incident on Sept. 8 where a student had to jump out of the way to avoid being hit by a car while waiting for the school bus in Livermore Falls. That same day, a driver apparently fell asleep at the wheel and partially drove under a school bus in Kingfield, the Sun Journal reported.

The monthly deadline for the Hope Fund, a program set up through United Way of the Tri-Valley Area, was set. Applications could be completed online or in person at the United Way office at 218 Fairbanks Road in Farmington.

Established in June of 2017, the Hope Fund’s intent is to provide assistance for unmet needs of children in greater Franklin County, Livermore and Livermore Falls, with an emphasis on removing barriers to enable low-income children to engage in a wide variety of enriching experiences in which they would not otherwise be able to participate.

Farmington Selectmen voted for the Parking Committee to review the possibility of changing parking and come up with great new ideas for the downtown area. “The parking has been challenging for my crew and for customers, too,” Wendell Olmsted, manager of Renys: A Maine Adventure on Broadway, said. He came before the board to see if there might be options to improve parking “for all the people who are working in this area and customers. It’s two-hour parking on Broadway and Main Street.”

Suggestions Olmsted mentioned were making all day parking available everywhere except Broadway and Main Street or setting up parking permits where people [employees and customers] could pay for a sticker to use in areas where parking is limited.

After a public hearing was held, the Wilton Board of Selectpersons voted unanimously to close Mill Street, located off of Main Street in East Wilton, to winter maintenance. Mill Street joins Farmer Road, Cemetery Road, Hanslip Road, and Magrath Road for roads in Wilton that are closed to winter maintenance due to the conditions of the road. The Select Board voted to stop winter maintenance to the other four roads in May.

Town Manager Perry Ellsworth stated that this closure would not affect summer maintenance and the road would still be maintained during the summer months.

October

At the Regional School Unit 73 board of directors meeting a report on food distribution from the Spruce Mountain Primary School food pantry found a 5% increase during the last school year compared to the previous year.

Michael Glynn, principal of the primary school in Livermore, said for students at his school 26,273.08 pounds of food equaling 21,894.23 meals were given out from the Phoenix Food Pantry during the 2022-2023 school year. In 2021-2022, 24,907.65 pounds were shared. The pounds provided last year were 5% more than the previous year.

Superintendent Christian Elkington unveiled Regional School Unit 9’s plan for the 2023-2024 school year to improve attendance and reduce chronic absenteeism. The theme of the plan is “Every Day in School Matters” and its two long-term goals are to reduce the rate of chronic absenteeism by 50% by spring 2026 and to improve the overall daily attendance for all schools in the district by 5%.

“Attendance is the key to everything,” Elkington shared with the board. “You can’t be in school, you can’t learn, you can’t eat. If you can’t be at school, you can’t do a lot of things.” Elkington shared with the directors in August that all seven district schools had seen rising chronic absenteeism over the past six years and his administration was formulating a plan to address it. In his data, he showed that Mt. Blue High School had the highest rate at 38.95% in 2022-2023. By contrast, in 2017-18 it was 28.63%.

At the Regional School Unit 73 board of directors meeting Kristopher Targett, principal at the middle school provided copies of the speech he gave at the Holocaust and Human Rights Center’s [HHRC] annual awards banquet in Falmouth where he was the guest speaker. “I was asked to speak about the incidences about swastikas, racial language and other incidents that happened last year at the middle and high schools and how we responded,” he said. “How restorative practices and education came together and has made a difference and helped deter any more of those events.”

In October 2022, two Livermore Falls teens were charged with drawing one swastika each in two bathrooms at Spruce Mountain High School and writing a racial slur. Later that month the two students were expelled. In a separate incident that month, during an away football championship game featuring the Spruce Mountain Middle School seventh/eighth grade team, racial comments were made by some of its players and parents.

The Wilton Board of Selectpersons voted unanimously to move this year’s Halloween event to Kineowatha Park. Renee Woodard, of the Recreation Committee, asked the Select Board to close off parts of High Street to vehicles for the event, which was scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 31.

Previously, Wilton’s Halloween event had been hosted in downtown Wilton, where locals stayed in their vehicles and traveled along Main Street receiving candy in the form of a Trunk-or-Treat from community members parked along the road. This event was suggested by former Chief of Police Heidi Wilcox during the COVID-19 pandemic, Woodard said.

Community and descendants came together this year with much happening at Washburn-Norlands Living History Center to further preserve its legacy. Last December, it was announced the center was at risk of dissolving if it didn’t receive a $3 million infusion of cash by spring. By March, hope of re-opening programs emerged as people from throughout Maine and beyond rallied in support.

In March Renee Bonin, president of Washburn-Norlands Foundation, which oversees the center, said over $140,000 in donations had been received. A Congressionally Directed Spending [CDS] application was submitted for needed repairs to the library which could foster economic development in the area following the mill closure, she noted then. The Norlands continued to bring in donations from community and family members and was selected by Sen. Susan Collins for a $3.42 million CDS grant to restore the 1883 Washburn Memorial Library and the 1828 Meeting House.

The Regional School Unit 9 board of directors voted unanimously to approve a revision to the Foster Career and Technical Education Center [FCTEC] cooperative agreement. The changes to the agreement, which serves as a way to plan, develop, and coordinate educational services for vocational students enrolled at FCTEC, were done to impart a greater distribution of control over financial decisions among the four districts.

The four districts involved in the agreement are RSU 9, MSAD 58, RSU 73 and RSU 78. The revised agreement placed approval of the annual budget in the hands of an advisory board comprised of the superintendent [or a designee] and one school board member from each district.

The Spruce Mountain High School football team’s season came to an abrupt and unexpected end Oct. 16 with players not informed beforehand. Marc Keller, athletic director for SMHS said the decision not to play MDI was a joint decision made by the coaching staff, the athletic trainer, the principal and himself.

“I was in contact with the Maine Principals’ Association about this decision and was told that a decision would need to be made by Monday morning,” Keller indicated. “This decision was solely based on the safety of our student-athletes. Our program has had numbers in the high 20s during the year and dipped to a low of 15 in uniform for the game at Camden Hills. We had to put student-athletes in positions that they were not trained in and had not played all year long when three other injuries brought us to 12 healthy players. This is an unsafe situation for those players and for the others that they need to help protect. We felt that because of this it was not safe for us to continue this season.”

Matthew Drost, transportation planner for the Maine Department of Transportation, gave a presentation to the Wilton Board of Selectpersons regarding work on the sidewalk on Depot Street utilizing Maine DOT’s Village Partnership Initiative program. The Village Partnership Initiative which began in 2022 was designed by Maine DOT to “work in partnership with local officials to reinvest and revitalize one of the distinguishing features of New England: our iconic village centers.”

Wilton Town Manager Perry Ellsworth called the proposal “an opportunity” to combine multiple upcoming projects that need to be done on Depot Street into one large project. “We know the sidewalks on Depot Street have been put aside for a number of years now,” Ellsworth stated.

November

Livermore’s new firetruck arrived and two days later it was called into service for a car fire. “We got the truck last Tuesday at 11 a.m.,” selectperson and fire captain Scott Richmond noted. “After training Wednesday it was put into service Thursday.” The truck’s first call was Thursday night, he added.

“It performed beautifully,” Fire Chief Donald Castonguay said. He said several items from the department’s rescue truck were put on the new truck so only one truck is needed to respond to calls.

While 50 children were anticipated, more than 150 attended the first hour of the Kids Halloween Boo Bash at French Falls Park in Jay. While many events scheduled over the weekend were canceled due to the shootings in Lewiston, the Jay event [staged by the Recreation Committee] went on as planned.

Recreation Committee member Debbie Breton and Town Manager Shiloh LaFreniere provided cookies, frosting and other toppings at one table. “We went through 150 cookies,” LaFreniere said a little after 11 a.m. “We had at least that many kids plus their parents. We were planning on 50.”

With over 120 years under its belt, Tyngtown Club in Wilton shows no signs of slowing down with new, active members joining to keep the long running fraternity going strong. In February of 1901, several women banded together with the explicit purpose of helping their community in whatever way they could. For over 122 years, the women of Tyngtown Club have been lending their hands to the community, including annual donations to the Wilton Public Library.

All over Wilton, Tyngtown’s fingerprints can be seen in the fabric of it’s history. Nestled beside Wilson Lake, members of Tyngtown Club teamed up with another local organization in 1974 to lay the groundwork to what would eventually become Bass Park. Members of the club even had a hand in painting the mural on the side of Food City in the downtown area.

The Jay-Nile Memorial Library was keeping the spooky vibe of Halloween going with an upcoming program by the Paranormal Five, a family of ghost hunters that travels all throughout New England performing paranormal investigations and more. Paranormal Five are a family of ghost hunters dedicated to sharing their love of Maine and its history, both normal and paranormal, with others in their community.

The event promised a class titled “Paranormal 101”, where the paranormal investigators would give participants a crash course on what goes into searching for ghosts, specters or phantoms. After the lesson, the investigators would lead participants on a ghost hunting expedition throughout the library.

Veterans Day observances were held in the Tri-Town with a rededication of the Brettuns Memorial at the intersection of Route 4 and Church Street in Livermore. The memorial has two monuments: one honoring Livermore service people buried in unmarked graves, the other dated 1947 which honors all sons and daughters of Livermore who served their country.

As part of the restoration efforts, two raised wooden planters were built, placed behind the 1947 monument and filled with artificial flowers. A stone bench was added near the other monument. Resident Dennis Lee recognized community members who “helped restore [Brettuns Memorial] this year. It’s really a blessing for all of us. It helps give National pride back that we have been missing over the years. A lot of people have put in time and their hearts.”

During his report to the Regional School Unit 73 board of directors, Joseph Sage, school resource officer said an intruder gained access to Spruce Mountain middle and high schools earlier in the day. “The staff did an amazing job, they identified the suspect and gauged that person very quickly,” he noted. “It was exactly what they should have done. We responded and took the suspect into custody.”

Sage said the investigation is ongoing, with the suspect charged with several crimes. “As far as school safety is concerned, some of you got robocalls,” he stated. “Protocols are in place. We have very good safety protocols but when you add a human element to that and especially with children, sometimes things like this will happen.”

Mallory Merrill, 14, is a freshman at Spruce Mountain High School who spends hours each week in a dance studio. For the second year in a row, she was chosen for the role of Clara in local performances of “The Nutcracker” ballet being put on by Thomas Performing Arts Center (TPAC) in Farmington.

Merrill studies under Lauryn Thomas at the center, where she is in her 12th year of dance. “I started dancing at TPAC when I was four and a half but before TPAC I danced at Sandy’s School of Dance for two years,” she wrote in an email to the Livermore Falls Advertiser. “Dancing started out as just something fun that I really enjoyed. I enjoy performing on stage and taking classes to become better. Now it is a passion and the air I breath. It’s just something that has come natural to me my whole life.”

Regional School Unit 9 Superintendent Christian Elkington shared an article with the board of directors regarding the ambiguity of students that are identified as home schooled. “We’ve had some conversations about home schooling,” Elkington stated at the meeting. “The numbers are changing and growing for many reasons.”

Elkington stated he would provide newer, more accurate numbers at the next meeting. He noted the group of home schooled students was twice the size of the numbers prior to COVID-19. In October, Elkington reported 270 parents or guardians had applied to home school their child or children for the 2023-2024 school year. In contrast to that, the number of families that applied in 2019-2020 was 123.

Farmington was expecting to receive $53,801.70 in January for damages to roads during Storm Elliott last December. “We should be expecting some checks in January,” Leia Durrell, Public Works administrative assistant, said. “One was for $53,801.70. The state reached out to us the other day saying they are going to start to process in January.”

During an update to the Select Board on Aug. 22, Durrell said the town was claiming $75,225 for the December storm: $10,500 for tree removal, $64,725 for infrastructure on roads. The May storm estimate then was $162,955, was expected to go up, while the June storm [which also hit Jay] had damages estimated at $28,475, she said. A small portion of Webster Road washed out in that storm, she stated then.

Frank Donald, long-serving director of the Wilton Parks and Recreation Department, announced his retirement from the department at the Wilton Board of Selectperson meeting. Donald’s last official day in the role will be on Friday, Feb. 2, 2024.

In December of last year, Donald announced he would be stepping down from full-time to a part-time position, citing his age as the driving factor. He assured members of the public that he would still be around despite the change in hours.

December

Farmington Selectmen set the cost of living adjustment at 3% for the coming year. The percentage would be needed during the upcoming budget process. Interim Town Manager Stephen Eldridge said the New England Consumer Price Index for October was 3%, in November is 2.7% so it dropped a little bit.

Selectman Joshua Bell suggested determining an employee pay scale with more of a set structure for another year. With the COLA adjustment, the less an employee makes the less that increase will be, he said.

While many who hear the name ‘Greenwood’ may think of the famous inventor of the earmuffs, his wife Isabel Greenwood made a strong legacy for herself with her work with the woman’s suffrage movement as well as numerous other contributions to the Farmington community. Greenwood, along with her husband Chester, was a powerhouse figure in the community and often gets overlooked in favor of her famous spouse.

Isabel spearheaded the suffragette movement in Farmington and the rest of Franklin County, and fought to see the changes in the advancement of women. She was also the founder of the Farmington Equal Suffrage League and the Franklin County Equal Suffrage League, the latter of which she collaborated with to host the 1907 Annual Maine Suffrage Association Convention held in Farmington. In addition to that, she was a member of the Farmington Monday Club, the Women’s Alliance and the Roderick-Crosby Post.

The state of broadband in Wilton was uncertain, it was reported. In November of last year, the Board of Selectpersons voted to have former Town Manager Perry Ellsworth work with Matrix Design Groups to apply for grant funding through the Maine Connectivity Authority [MCA].

The plan was to have Matrix Design Group utilize the funding, along with funding from the town and their own personal funds, to install the necessary infrastructure for broadband capabilities. The application was filed and the Wilton Select Board voted to accept the grant in July of this year. Since then, multiple curveballs had jeopardized the initial plan.

Students from low-income families in Spruce Mountain schools were receiving critical, non-reimbursed dental hygiene services. Maine Dental Health Out-Reach, Inc. received a $5,000 grant from Northeast Delta Dental Foundation to help cover costs at Spruce Mountain Primary School. This year MDHO will visit the four schools of Regional School Unit 73.

“In past years we have treated students throughout Central and Western Maine in up to 36 schools,” Susanne LaVallee, director of Maine Dental Health Out-Reach, noted. “However, the needs at RSU 73 have doubled and there is little dental care available for MaineCare students [formerly Medicaid] in this area. Because of this I decided to serve only the RSU 73 students this year. That was a very difficult decision for me to make, but I chose the RSU 73 students over the Augusta students because there is a dental clinic in Augusta those students can get into. There is no such thing in Livermore/Jay.”

Board of directors for Regional School Unit 73 unanimously approved permission for Superintendent Scott Albert to request a waiver for two days of missed school from the Commissioner of Education. Schools throughout Androscoggin County were closed October 26 and 27 following the mass shooting in Lewiston on Oct. 25.

“We needed to close out of an abundance of caution for the safety of our students and also for the fact two of our towns and one of our schools were under the shelter in place recommendation that was made,” Albert said. Winthrop, and RSUs 4, 10, 16, 17 and 52 have received waivers, he noted.

The kids at W.G. Mallett School got a chance to practice components of their STARS program by showing kindness and carrying bags of food donated from their families to the RSU 9 Community Food Pantry. With a hop, skip and a jump, the children quickly filled tables with food in the basement of the Farmington Community Center, host of the pantry, as a part of the school’s thirty-fifth annual “Helping Hands” food project.

Started in 1988, Helping Hands has donated food to the community through various forms and methods throughout the years. From bucket brigading bags of food in a chain of kids from both WGMS and Cascade Brook School to the various food pantries that have been the recipients over the years, a lot has changed but the idea stays the same.

Power outages, washed out roads, rescued motorists and closed schools were just some of the impacts from a rain and wind storm Dec. 18 and 19. Monday afternoon there was a washout on part of Greenridge Way near the intersection with Route 4 in Jay. Water rushed along the edge of Route 4 and a firewood stand in that area had been upended by the wind. Later Monday in Jay, Route 4 and parts of Route 133 were flooded and a large pine tree was blocking Route 156 near Bean’s Corner.

Regional School Unit 73 and other area schools dismissed early Monday because of the storm. Schools were shuttered Tuesday and Wednesday. RSU 73 held classes for the scheduled half day Thursday, although neighboring Regional School Unit 9 [with schools in Wilton, Farmington and New Sharon] did not.

The Wilton Board of Selectpersons voted to move an estimated $78,000 of funds allocated for the disposal of sludge potentially contaminated with harmful forever chemicals, or PFAS, into the water and sewer department’s undesignated fund. Dalton Plante, serving as interim water and wastewater superintendent after Heinz Grossman stepped down from the position in April, told the Select Board the department had funds remaining from the disposal of sludge to a treatment plant in Madison.

Plante stated $200,000 was allocated to the budget for removing and transporting sludge to the facility required by legislative guidelines and regulations from August 2022. Approximately half of the budget line was from a 15% sewer rate increase with the remaining half coming from the department’s own account.

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