This week’s edition!
Concerts for a Cause celebrates MLK Day with Novel Jazz Septet
The event will feature the music of Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn, along with stories about their relationships with Dr. King, their experiences with racism and homophobia, and their efforts to promote civil rights.
The UUCB Concerts for a Cause series will celebrates MLK Day with a concert by the Novel Jazz Septet on Saturday, January 13 at 7:30 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Brunswick. The event will feature the music of Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn – civil rights activists, friends and favorite musicians of Martin Luther King, Jr – along with interesting stories about their relationship with Dr. King, their experiences with racism and homophobia, and how this affected their music and forged their promotion of civil rights.
Troop 121 collects Christmas trees this weekend
Members of Boy Scout Troop 121, including Liam Rose, Kyle Mansur, Jacob Clark, Bryce Holt-Giard, Noah Phillips, Jordan Burns, and Matthew Kozak, prepare the mailing for their sixth annual Christmas Tree Recycling program.
Boy Scout Troop 121 of Auburn will again collect Christmas trees in the Cities of Auburn and Lewiston this year. While the two cities offer various locations for free tree disposal, they no longer collect the trees at curbside.
For a minimum donation of $5, the scouts will pick up Christmas trees on the weekend of January 6 and 7. To make a pick-up request, send your donation to Troop 121, United Methodist Church, 439 Park Ave., Auburn, ME 04210. The troop will in turn send you a tag to place on your tree when you place it curbside; trees should not be placed curbside until the morning of January 6. For more information, call 783-0790.
Franco Center presents African Music Dance Party
DJ Nigel Katende will provide the music, including Afro-Beat, Lingala, Zouk, Soukous, and more.
The Gendron Franco Center will host its first African Music Dance Party & Social on Saturday, January 6, from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. This five-hour event will bring all who love to listen and dance to African music together at the most inviting social spot in Central Maine. DJ Nigel Katende will provide the music, including Afro-Beat, Lingala, Zouk, Soukous, and more. There will be a $5 cover charge at the door. A cash bar and light snacks will be available.
Swingin’ Bears defy bad weather to collect stuffed toys for Oxford Hills kids
Eleanor Herrick, President of Swingin’ Bears Square Dance Club, and Karen Ellis of Community Concepts of Oxford, pose with the 418 stuffed toys club members collected for “Right Start for Kids.”
When the Swingin’ Bears Square Dance Club had to cancel its annual Teddy Bear Dance on December 9 due to poor weather conditions, prospects for its annual Teddy Bear Collection Drive were not looking merry and bright. The project counts on the contributions of other area square dance clubs, whose members bring their donated bears to the dance.
Stanton Bird Club plans January event, announces results of Christmas Bird Count
This Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker was photographed during the club’s annual Christmas Bird Count on December 16. Although Sapsuckers breed in Maine, they have usually migrated much further south by this time of year. This was the first one spotted on the club’s Christmas Count since Stanton started participating in 1980. (Photo by Dan Marquis)
The Stanton Bird Club of Lewiston and Auburn will not hold a monthly meeting in January since USM’s Lewiston-Auburn College, where the meetings are usually held, will be closed for the holidays. Instead, the club will lead a birding field trip on Saturday, January 13 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. to look for winter ducks, especially Harlequins and King Eiders, at Marginal Way and Ogunquit.
Rotary Club Carolers a Big Hit at Schooner Estates
Joanne Bollinger sings a memorable “Five Golden Rings.”
The residents of Schooner Estates Retirement Community gathered in its Village Green on December 20 to enjoy the Lewiston-Auburn Rotary Club Carolers singing favorite Christmas hymns and memorable Christmas songs from past years. One resident was heard to exclaim, “My Goodness, there are 25 of them!” So true, as the line of men, women, and young children carolers stretched across the entire stage area.
It was a wonderful concert and residents couldn’t help but join the carolers in singing the songs. To the delight of the audience, the carolers also had their own style of movement, gestures, and impromptu dance steps. As the Rotarians fed off the applause and reaction from the appreciative audience, they got more spontaneous, which added to the response of the crowd.
Rotary Breakfast Club meeting
Auburn Mayor Jason Levesque
Auburn Mayor Jason Levesque will discuss plans for Auburn’s 2019 Sesquicentennial Celebration at the next meeting of the Auburn-Lewiston Rotary Breakfast Club on Wednesday, January 9 at 7 a.m. The club meets every Wednesday at the United Methodist Church, located at 439 Park Avenue in Auburn. The cost for breakfast is $15. All are welcome to attend.
Auburn Public Services Dept. becomes first in Maine to receive APWA accreditation
Pictured here at the award ceremony are (l. to r.) APS Office Manager Geri Crane, Auburn City Manager Peter Creighton, APS Operations Manager Gary Wadsworth, APS Director Dan Goyette, APS Deputy Director Scott Holland, APWA Region 1 Director Gary Losier, Auburn Mayor Jason Levesque, and Auburn Communications & Compliance Manager Liz Allen.
The City of Auburn’s Public Services Department was recently awarded the prestigious American Public Works Association accreditation designation. The APWA accreditation program recognizes public works agencies that go beyond the requirements of the nationally-established management practices in the public works industry, as contained in the APWA Public Works Management Practices Manual.
Reading Connects! brings family literacy to County Jail
Pictured here (l. to r.) are Jail Administrator and Captain Jeff Chute, APL Children’s Department Manager Deb Cleveland, APL Director Mamie Anthoine Ney, program supporter and attorney Jenifer Ferguson of Fales and Fales, and Jail Programs Director and Sergeant Victoria Langelier.
Staff members from Auburn Public Library delivered two bags of children’s books to the Androscoggin County Jail recently as a part of the library’s ReadingConnects! family literacy program for jail inmates and their children. The book bags are brought to the jail on a monthly, rotating basis, providing quality children’s literature for inmates to read to their children on visit days. Each bag contains books on such themes as holidays, seasons, and animals, along with activities complementing the theme. For more information about the program, visit www.auburnpubliclibrary.org.
Red Cross Blood Ambassadors
The volunteers in this photograph have contributed a combined 175 years of service to the American Red Cross. Here (l. to r., from front) are Marjorie Hansen (12 years), Eleanor Wheeler (18 years), Pauline Bonney (30 years), Gilda Dennis (24 years), Lorraine Higgins (31 years), Marie Barter (19 years), Mariette Bernier (14 years), Kathryn Grefer-Kirkland (1 year), Pati Keene (6 years), Sue Goddard (5 years), and Maryann Jalbert (15 years).
The Lewiston-Auburn American Red Cross Blood Ambassadors convened recently for their annual Christmas luncheon in Auburn. Lead volunteer Pauline Bonney has organized the event over the past twelve years to get the group together and thank them for the important work they do. The Red Cross is a volunteer-based organization that could not fulfill its mission without the help of individuals like the Lewiston Auburn Blood Ambassadors.
