VINALHAVEN — It was a wish granted. And that doesn’t happen every day. “It’s pretty rare that what you wish for is what you get,” said Joanna Reidy, mother to 10-year-old Tess Reidy. In February, the non-profit Make-A-Wish Maine granted Tess her wish by sending Oreo, a service dog, to live with the Reidy family
Island girl fulfills farm woman destiny
NORTH HAVEN — For Libby Young, 23, life on the Turner Farm was meant to be. It’s a notion she reiterated more than once during our interview on a bitter cold January morning. “It’s just great,” she said. “I really love it. In my high school yearbook my secret desire was to live on
Negro League star the subject of opera
PORTLAND – Composer Daniel Sonenberg and Portland Ovations are taking a leap of faith together this spring. May 8 will mark the world premiere of Sonenberg’s “The Summer King,” an opera in two acts on the life of Josh Gibson. Gibson was a catcher for baseball’s Negro Leagues in the 1930s and 1940s and is
The go-to du jour: Soup’s on
Someone once said that if you need to make more of a dish, just add to it whatever you have most of. That would hardly ever be beef steaks or lobster. Water? No problem. To feed a crowd on a little, make soup. That’s why we have soup kitchens, but not roast chicken kitchens. Still,
Tales of ‘Ladies Night’ became island legend
What do you think of when you hear the term Ladies Night? Discounted drinks and free hors d’oeuvres at your local bar? On Little Cranberry Island the term Ladies Night specifically refers to a potluck dinner at an island home where the hostess provides a main dish and other female guests bring a variety of
Scavenging seaglass and remembering messages in bottles
After a week indoors—babysitting and feeling sick—I ventured out yesterday. I felt close to being better and it was sunny, though cool once I stepped out, and my mother wanted the dog walked anyways. The dog who, when kept inside all day, gets antsy during the night and rips apart tissue boxes or decapitates/unstuffs her
North Haven’s Casino, home to sailing programs, on firmer footings
NORTH HAVEN — Each summer, the North Haven Casino is a hive of activity. Despite the name, nobody gambles or watches over-the-top performances at the Casino. Instead, it’s the hub base for small sailboats that swoop through the Thorofare, piloted by excited junior sailors and overseen by teen instructors. Experienced sailors compete against each other
Beach access issues remain unsettled following high court action
Court watching may become a statewide pastime this spring as coastal communities await a decision from the Maine Supreme Judicial Court on beachfront access. On April 9, oral arguments are scheduled to be heard on whether the court should reconsider its recent ruling barring public access to parts of Goose Rocks Beach in Kennebunkport. In
A love affair with a coastal town brings out its best
BELFAST — A Waldo County weekly newspaper columnist once described Mike Hurley as a cross between the Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia and boxing promoter Don King. That’s about right. Hurley’s got the hippie resumé—attended the Woodstock festival, part of the back-to-the-land movement—and the flamboyant impresario skills that today are called guerrila marketing. He’s run several
Searsport high school charts hands-on education in new center
SEARSPORT — The high school’s four-year-old boatbuilding program is navigating through a sea of educational change, but fair winds seem to lie ahead. The program is moving downtown and other upgrades are in the works. Searsport District High School’s shellback dinghy course is now based at the old seine loft building where its long-time owner