Black Friday Mania

Some stores here in the Atlanta area were open at midnight on Thanksgiving eve to usher in the holiday shopping frenzy. The evening news showed people already lined up at the doors. I wasn’t one of them.

I know that in this bad economy, people spending money for Christmas is a good thing for the retail businesses. My question is, however, where are people getting the money to spend in these stores? If they are using credit cards, it will probably take them till next year and beau coup interest to pay it off. Then they will undoubtedly start the process all over again. How does this practice figure into a boost in the economy? Broke people are still broke people. By the way, whatever happened to Christmas club accounts at your bank? Remember them? My mother paid into hers religiously every week.

I haven’t shopped or been to a mall during the Christmas buying season in years. I don’t have the money to pay those prices and I refuse to go into debt for a few presents. I prefer to buy things not found in a mall, like a magazine subscription of interest to the recipient. If I go into debt, it’s only for the short haul, and only for one or two special gifts. You can call me a Grinch if you want to, but I think this present-buying frenzy is getting way out of hand.

Whatever happened to home-made and home-crafted Christmas presents anyway? Where are the home-knit sweaters, scarves and mittens? Where have our imaginations gone? We all have special talents we can share with others at this time of year. I have given a gift of my writing on a few occasions when I could offer nothing else. Some people are good seamstresses or cooks. Use those skills for your Christmas giving. I always enjoy getting a gift like this because I know the gift giver made a special effort to make something especially for me.

The Christmas trees we gathered around in the South End always had gaily wrapped presents stacked in piles around it. Everyone was the recipient of special gifts just for them. My sister and I usually got one or two special toys or other things we had asked for; but the rest of the gifts were usually practical things like socks and clothes we needed for the winter. My mother was good at supplying everyone with those essentials. She also had a good memory. If someone mentioned something they wished they had during the course of the year, she would store that information somewhere in the Christmas present file in her brain; and come Christmas Day that person would be surprised to open that gift.

This year I will be doing what shopping I’m going to do online. Maybe I’ll be missing out on all the Christmas cheer and ambience offered at the big malls; but I try to remember what the season is supposed to be about and count my blessings instead. I hope you all don’t go overboard in your spending this year.

(All this being said, please read my Cyber Monday piece from the list on the right.)

I’ll get off my soapbox now and wish you all a safe and happy Christmas season. Thanks for listening.

Sneak Peek, "On Being a Southender, Vol. 1, 2009"

May Baskets and the Cold War

(This was the most popular blog of 2009)

It was the Cold War of the 50s. McCarthy was holding court in Washington. We saw Communists under every rock. In the USSR, Uncle Ivan was showing his muscles and threatening world war. Then along comes May 1 and in Russia they get all their big guns and tanks out and polish them to a bright shine so they’ll look good on T.V. Every soldier they had got out his boots and also gave them a good spit polish. Then all the tanks and guns and troops lined up and marched past the Kremlin so the big bosses of the Communist Party could give their approval and gloat at the rest of the world.

While all this folderol was going on in the land of the hammer and sickle, we celebrated May 1 or May Day in the South End, but in a very different way—with May baskets. Next to Halloween, it was one of my favorite days. Most of these baskets were handmade of crepe paper, tissue paper, ribbons and such. Some of the older women in the neighborhood with time on their hands made a cottage industry out of making May baskets. They were small enough to fit in a child’s hand, all were one-of-a-kind, and all were works of art.

So what did we do with these beautiful pastel May baskets? Well, we would fill them with a small amount of candy, usually some kind of dinner mints, and hang them on the doors of our friends, knock, and run. The fun part was getting away with it. They would come and hang one on your doorknob while you were sneaking around elsewhere. The excitement came afterward when you counted how many you had and how different each one was. The candy inside was a side attraction. I treasured my baskets and kept them long after May Day. They were delicate, however, and eventually they would fall apart or get all squashed up from overuse by the owner. Then we’d have to wait till the next May Day to get new ones.

I don’t imagine they still carry on this tradition in the South End. I would be thrilled if they did. Maine is the only place I have found that celebrated May Day in this fashion. When I went to school downeast, my landlady, Effie, was one of those ladies who made May baskets. I wish I had one of them now.

I don’t know what happened to all the ones I got over the years. If anyone has one or a picture of one, I’d love to see it. Remembering May baskets, I can’t help but think that perhaps our hippie flower children friends of the 60s weren’t far off when they stuck flowers in the barrels of guns. Guns and Roses and May baskets from Maine. My kind of world.

Thanks for listening.

(After this blog posted I heard from my sister, Sally, out in Arizona. She polled her women’s sewing club and discovered there were pockets of places in the U.S. that carried on this tradition too. Women from places as diverse as Michigan, California, and North Carolina said they had celebrated May Day this way.)

Pictures from the Blog CD, Another Sneak Peek

These are some of the pictures included in the CD "On Being a Southender, Vol. 1" now on sale
 (see Winter Holiday Special)

Mcloud Street House: from "Early Memories of Mcloud Street"

Me and Eleanor Richardson from "Mechanic Street Memories"

My father, Ted Sylvester, Sr., at Bald Mountain from "A Tribute to My Father

 and...to the Men Who Go Down to the Sea"

Rockland High School Basketball Team, circa 1957 from

 "Homage to Rockland High School Class of 1959"

Birthday Party at the Berry House

 from "Early Memories of Mcloud Street"

Me from "Winter and Brewster Suits"

Crescent Street Class from "School Days

Fuller's Market from "Eating My Way Home"

My brother, Ted, Jr. from

 "Mary had a Little Lamb and it Lived in my Brother's Car"

The gang at Spruce Head from "Rainy Days and Summer"

Thanksgiving Dinner To-Go

I’ve eaten a bunch of Thanksgiving dinners over the years. Most of the early years I sat at my mother’s dining table with the good china and silver and a whole bunch of family seated around the table. Besides my immediate family, which included my mother and father and my sister and I, we also had my brothers and their families. Sometimes we’d have all of them, sometimes they were at their in-laws’ table.

I’d say we had an average of ten people at those dinners. Our Great-Aunt May was always present, as well as my maternal grandfather, Herman Winchenbaugh. Grampie Wink always gave us a prayer which never seemed to end. He was a lay preacher at one time in his life and he knew how to belt out a good prayer when asked. I know my mother was worried the food would get cold while he went on and on.

It was also the only time of the year I heard my Aunt May referred to as “Captain Emery” by my grandfather, respecting her service as a nurse in the Army-Air Force during two world wars. She always called him, “Reverend,” also respecting his past vocation.

Some years, my folks and sister and I went to dinner over at my Aunt Freda’s and Uncle Carl’s farm in Bremen. We have two cousins, Diane and Mary Sue, who were near the same ages as I and Sally respectively. My Aunt Freda, like my own mother, was an excellent cook. She would keep the food coming at us till we couldn’t move any more. At one time she was a pastry cook at a restaurant in that area and I always looked forward to her confections as well as her yeast rolls hot from the oven.

As we all got older and more spread out, it was sometimes harder to get us all together. For a couple Thanksgiving dinners, my parents and I went on the road to Quincy, Mass to have dinner with my Aunt Virginia and Uncle Mac. We did this mainly because Sally was in nursing training at Deaconess in Boston and couldn’t take all that time off to get up to Maine. I would be home from school, so we’d take off early in the morning and return the same day. It was a lot of driving for my father. It was worth it to us, however, to at least have part of the family together for the holiday. Aunt Virginia, my mother’s sister, always gave us a dinner identical to the one my mother would make if we were home.

At one time, we also went for a couple years to the Boston area to have Thanksgiving dinner with a Hungarian couple who used to rent the bungalow next to the farm in Bremen, which Aunt Freda and Uncle Carl owned. Ann and her husband became very good friends of the Hiltons and therefore she invited us all to come and have dinner. As she was Hungarian-born, she had her own twist on cooking. I especially enjoyed the delicate pastries she’d make using special iron molds.  We were not always sure what Art, (not sure if that was his name) did for a living. We eventually surmised that he worked for the CIA. When he and Ann retired, they decided to move west. Unfortunately, they were in a car accident on the way and Ann was killed. We were all so sorry to hear that.

When Sally and I both lived in Connecticut, I had several holiday meals at her house. Her husband, Jerry, is a great cook and always contributed to the dinner fare. He came from Polish roots so his food reflected that. My folks came down from Maine and Jerry’s folks often came from Massachusetts too. I also seem to remember that Aunt Virginia and Uncle Mac came one year, but Sally will have to clarify that for me. We all enjoyed being together and I especially enjoyed spending time with my niece and nephew, Chris and Kim.  I don’t think we realized it at the time, but it is in this manner that the traditions of the holidays are passed on to the next generation.

When I got out on my own and moved farther away from home, I could no longer get up home for the holidays. I therefore made my own Thanksgiving Dinner and invited my friends to come enjoy it with me. We had many a good dinner together over the years. I have also participated in pot-luck Thanksgiving dinners, or “dinner-to-go.” Everyone would bring their favorite dish. I don’t know as we ever actually had turkey. One time I had such a dinner with a German friend of mine at her apartment complex’s common room. Many of her tenant friends came, including one oriental gentleman who brought tofu with him to share. I didn’t indulge on that dish.

As the next generations of the family carry on the traditions of the past, I hope they will pause for a minute or two to remember Thanksgiving dinners when they were young kids. I hope they also remember the people still dear to our hearts who made them possible. The folks are gone now as well as Aunt Freda and Uncle Carl, but Aunt Virginia will turn 100 on Dec. 7 of this year. To her I give special Thanksgiving wishes.

This year Nanci and I will have our dinner here at home. The menu will be a smaller one than ones we’ve both eaten at our mother’s homes. We’ll have turkey breast; mashed potatoes; a broccoli casserole I’m going to try from my November Menus blog; stuffing and gravy; cranberry sauce, crescent rolls; and deep dish apple pie. We’ll also have some chex mix, deviled eggs, etc. to nosh on during the weekend. Not at all bad I’d say. We both give thanks that we are able to afford and enjoy Thanksgiving dinner this year. Like many of you, we are feeling the economic pinch of the times.

We wish all of you a Happy Thanksgiving and hope you get to spend it in the bosom of your family.

Thanks for listening.

Guest Blog--Midcoast Community Chorus Ad Campaign

by Cindy Anderson

Greetings fellow supporters of Midcoast Community Chorus. Our ad campaign is in full swing in anticipation of our November 29^th deadline. We are accepting ads for our January program.

 As you know, we are a community giving BACK to the community through substantial financial support for various beneficiaries. We have given $10,000 to New Hope for Women; $10,000 to the Knox County Free Health Clinic; and $9,500 to Five Town Communities that Care.

 We are a non-profit organization and depend on our ad sales and ticket sales to acquire our funds. We have a wide variety of ad sizes and prices available. Our program booklet is approximately 5”x 7”.

Ad rates are as follows:

1/8 pg. - $30 (we usually shrink a business card slightly to fit this ad request)

¼ pg. – (vertical or horizontal) - $50

¾ pg. - $100

Full pg. - $135

Inside front or inside back cover – (black & white) - $200

Back cover (full color ad) - $350

You may email your ad to me: Cynthia Anderson, Ad Manager: anderson4215@roadrunner.com. Please leave your name and a phone number where I can reach you for payment arrangements. You may also send your ad with payment to: Midcoast Community Chorus, P.O. Box 192, Rockport, ME 04856.

The Midcoast Community Chorus is a multi-generational chorus of 140 members offering a supportive environment for anyone who wants to sing. Performing music of hope, healing, and peace all over the world. Singers are given a place to find voice for themselves and give voice to some of the issues of our time, with the belief that “when we sing, we change who we are, when we change who we are, we change the world.”

 MCC performs two concerts a year, In January and June. This year we are also performing under the umbrella of Bay Chamber Concerts, with Grammy Award winner, Paul Winter, noted composer and renowned musician. We are very proud to be invited to perform with this internationally acclaimed musician.

Thank you kindly for any contribution you can give to support us in our endeavors, and we hope to see you January 9^th at the Strom Auditorium in Camden Hills High School, at 4:00 p.m. for our winter concert.  Ticket information will be announced soon. Again, we thank you so much for your continued support.

Flash Gordon, Our Hero, on the Radio

To hear an episode of Flash Gordon called, "On the Planet Mongo," go to www.oldtimeradiofans.com/template2.php?sho.


hit "Click Here to Download This Show"


You can also hear a lot of other old time radio shows here. Have fun.

Our Heroes

“Space Patrol” heroes, Captain Video, played by Al Hodges and Video Ranger, played by Don Hastings.

 Veterans Day brought to mind all the heroes we had in the 50s. Some of them were real and some not and sometimes there was a fine line between the two.

 We had our war heroes coming out of the war, the biggest of them being General Dwight D. Eisenhower, who was to become our president. We all had “We Like Ike” buttons. Then there were the entertainers and sports heroes who were our war heroes, including Ted Williams, the baseball player; John Wayne, Henry Fonda, and Glenn Miller with his wartime swing band. After the war these entertainers and more would star in a popular movie genre of the day “war movies.” It was a case of art imitating life.

As we moved into the 50s we had our sports heroes: Bob Cousy of the Celtics; Jackie Robinson, and Willie Mays, who won all the awards going for a baseball player at that time including MVP, Rookie of the Year, and all star in four World Series.

From the world of science, the biggest hero of the 50s was Jonas Salk who gave us a cure for polio. We were all in a panic, especially when we saw those newsreels of people lying in iron lungs and kids in heavy metal braces trying to walk. When they put the lights up and passed the bucket for the “Jimmy Fund” we all put in our change left over from buying candy at the theater concession stand. Locally, our own hero, Eliza Steele, no doubt made sure all the kids under her jurisdiction got their shots. We must also recognize Albert Einstein, who launched the space program. Rachel Carson was also a hero and probably one of our first recognizable environmentalists with her book, Silent Spring.

In the late 50s and early 60s we had our civil rights heroes including Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, who refused to give up her seat on the bus down south after a long day on the job working for the white man. Many more African-Americans were heroes of the day during their struggle for equal human rights in the land of the free.

We all had our favorite “cowboy” hero: Roy Rogers and Dale Evans; Gene Autry, Hop-a-Long Cassidy, and the Lone Ranger. We also had supernatural heroes such as Superman and Wonder Woman. We followed them and cheered them on as we listened to the old radio shows and watched them on Saturday Matinees at the Strand and Park Theaters.

Then there was Captain America, who saved us all from communism.

We had a fascination with space and we had a real life hero in Alan Shepard, the first man in space. We were disappointed when Russia launched “Sputnik” and beat us into space; but Shepard came through for us and saved the day.

Our imaginary “space heroes,” preceded the actual space program we came to know as NASA. The picture above shows two of those heroes as they appeared on the early T.V. program, “Space Patrol.” I am attempting to upload a video of this show called, “Hit by a Meteorite.” If successful I will post it for you. Otherwise, you can catch this video on YouTube.com. Look for Space Patrol. Note the silly girls and the blond with the perfect “pageboy” hairdo, something many teen-aged girls of that time aspired to. The costumes were a bit over the top too, especially those hats.

Flash Gordon was another fictional space hero we first came to know on radio. See the separate blog for one of those old shows. The real hero of this show was the announcer. He had his work cut out for him to first set the scene and then narrate the ensuing action. Producing this action-packed show purely in an audio format over the radio airwaves was an act of pure genius.

Our Rock and Roll idols didn’t become heroes till later on in the 60s when many of them joined the “Peacenik” anti-war movement. Notably I remember Joan Baez and Bob Dylan, the voice of a generation. Some would say that many more heroes were born at the famous Woodstock gathering.

Heroes are all around us every day. They may not be famous, but they get the job done when necessary to keep everyone safe. Give a high-five to our police officers, firemen, teachers, civil servants; and those who perform medical miracles; as well as all our service men and women. These people perform services for us as on a daily routine without ever looking for a thank-you or recognition of any kind. We salute them.

Thanks for listening.

Additions to Fair List and Benefits and Good Works

New items are being added to the Holiday Fair List and Benefits and Good Works.on a daily basis as I receive them. Please check them. The new items will appear at the top.

Volunteers Busy During Off-Season at the Museum

Volunteers gathered to cut wood for the new Engine House #1.

Picture courtesy of “Readin’ Both Pages,”

 a membership publication of the Sail, Power & Steam Museum.

Those pictured were not identified.

Volunteers are busy at the Sail, Power & Steam Museum during the off season doing many things to make the grand re-opening on May 1, 2011 successful. New things are in the works, including a post and beam building-designed Engine House #1. The wood for the building is being cut from Tom Hammermeister’s wood lot. It will be built and finished by volunteers, Rolly James, Marshall Merriam, and John Holliday. I assume some of them appear in this picture. Engine House #1 will house the ten steam engines owned by the museum and allow them all to be operating at the same time. A glass fronted façade with a steam whistle in the cupola and an array of belt driven jack shafting are in the future works.

New contributions are constantly being donated to the museum, including a wooden ship’s band saw, made by the workers at Snow’s Shipyard during WWII. It was made of wood to spare steel for the war effort.

The lime kiln on the museum property is waiting to be fired up again. Volunteers Joe Auciello and Dale Woodworth build up the kiln from time to time. Donations from Dragon Cement Co, George Hall & Son, and Ferraiolo Concrete Products make this project possible.

More volunteers are needed. Call the museum at 207-701-7627 to find out how you can help bring history to life in our own South End.

Memberships are also available. Student membership is $15; Individual, $25. There are also memberships at $50, $100, $250, and $500 with increasing benefits accordingly.

Helping our Military Families and Veterans

Today, November 11, is Veteran’s Day. When I was out today I briefly glimpsed a guy riding a motorcycle with three big flags attached and waving in the breeze as he went along. I couldn’t see all three flags, but the biggest one was the American Flag. He was his own parade and seemed determined to remind us of what day it was.

I also came across a quote from a friend on Facebook: “The nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave.”—Elmer Davis.  Today we honor the veterans of all the foreign wars our country has fought in. We also honor those now serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other places far away from home. It is our duty as citizens of the country they have protected from invaders and terrorists to support and honor them today and every day.

My friend and former classmate, Pat Pendelton attended a program at South School today to honor local veterans. She reports that veterans from four different eras spoke. The History Channel recorded it and it’s going to be in the Library of Congress. After the program, Pat says, they released doves out on the football field. She says it was a very moving ceremony. We should keep an eye out for the program on the History Channel.

If you would like to help a military family this holiday season, go check out this website: www.operationonceinalifetime.com. You can make donations here for such good reasons as: securing toys for soldiers’ kids; money to help fly a soldier home for the holidays; linens and toiletries for soldiers from the 21^st combat hospital who are returning to their barracks; to help a military family suffering from the recession to pay utility bills and medical bills not covered by military health care.

Operation Once in a Lifetime can be found on Facebook. Go there to see stories and videos of soldiers who have been helped by the organization. Since 2007 they have helped 11,522 soldiers.

If you know someone in your local VFW post, you could also call them and ask how you can help this holiday season to make some military family’s celebrations better. It’s difficult to be away from your family on the holidays, especially for those serving overseas. Remember those overseas also by donating money to send them some special treats over the holidays.

Together we can help our military get through the holidays with a smile on their faces.

Don't Be a Teenage Boozer

In case this video doesn't show up on the "Learning from Educational Films..." blog, here's the first one.

Beware of "Hipsters"

Here's the second video for the "Learning from Educational Films....." blog.

Food Memories

At this time of year our thoughts turn to food. All thoughts of dieting cease to exist for the next two months at least. Those of us, who have sat down to many a Thanksgiving dinner, have food memories we still carry with us. My food memories, of the taste and smell of the season, were all made possible because of my mother, Evangeline.

My mother was well known as an excellent cook. My father was a meat and potato man, however, so she didn’t get to experiment very much with our daily menu. He needed to know what was “in” everything, which canceled out many casseroles.

 He had what to us were weird ideas about food. For instance, he loved apple pie, but the smell of an apple once we bit into it, made him nauseous. I think it had something to do with the fact that he had to harvest the apples when he was a kid on the farm. The smell of rotting apples piled up on the ground is not always pleasant. In any event, we had to dispose of our apple cores in the oil barrel we used for a garbage container out by the garage as soon as we’d finished eating the apple.

His taste in some foods didn’t always match ours. He liked bleu cheese and added it to anything he could. If he didn’t have bleu cheese, he’d add whatever cheese we had or a dollop of peanut butter. We always thought his old bleu cheese smelled like stinky feet. He also loved mushrooms. My mother didn’t and refused to cook them for him. Consequently he’d go out and pick wild mushrooms and cook them himself. He was expert at telling the difference between mushrooms and the poisonous toadstools. He knew the best places to find them too.

I never liked his old “stinky” bleu cheese or his love of mushrooms until I got out on my own. Now I love both and use them in whatever I’m cooking when I can. Bleu cheese dressing is my favorite on salad or with celery when eating chicken wings. I also developed a recipe for stuffed mushrooms which I believe I’ve added to the Maine Recipe blog. My Dad loved those mushrooms and I made them for him as often as I could when I came home to visit.

My best food memories, however, come to me over the holiday season. If I have occasion to replicate them myself during the season, I do. The smells and tastes we remember bring us closer to those who are no longer with us. I often feel the presence of my mother when I put a turkey in the oven and it begins to fill the house with that special smell we all remember.

Other holiday tastes and smells I remember is the smell of creamed onions cooking slowly on the stove along with all the other holiday vegetables like squash, sweet potatoes, and turnip. One year here in the south I put together all the things my mother used to make on Thanksgiving, including stuffing that didn’t involve cornbread like they use here in the south. Everyone loved my efforts that day. It was a lot of work and I could appreciate how much effort it took my mother to put together a meal like that for 10 to 15 people and have it all done at the same time and be hot at the same time. That was quite a trick in the days with no microwaves.

Do you have some of these same taste and smell memories? How about the smell of New England baked beans cooking in the pot; the smell of an apple pie cooking; the taste of hot homemade pan gravy you’ve poured all over your plate full of turkey, mashed potatoes, veggies, and stuffing?

I don’t make big meals like that much anymore. When I get the chance to experience a holiday dinner such as the one my mother always put together, I jump at the chance. I have noticed how much you all enjoy reading my Maine Recipe blog and the November Recipe blog for this month. I would not begin to instruct all you Maine cooks on how to cook a turkey. You all know how to do that. If you are young and this is your first year cooking a bird, I expect you’ll do what I did when I cooked my first turkey—call your mother.

FYI: If you’re looking for ways to decorate for the holidays, I found two good sites online for table centerpieces from Martha Stewart; Thanksgiving crafts to do with the kids; how-to videos and more. www.holidash.com had a bunch of ideas and www.diylive.com has more including how to make a cornucopia. If you have the time for that, they are both good sources. 

Thanks for listening.

November Benefits & Good Works Update

REMEMBER THE ANIMALS

We ask you to remember all the shelter animals this holiday season. The best thing you can do is adopt an animal. Animals make the perfect gift, however, be sure not to surprise the recipient. Making sure the animal will be wanted and well-cared for in the recipient’s home is important for the animal’s health and well-being. The Humane Society of Knox County is offering a 50% reduction in their adoption fees during the month of November. The reduced fee is $25. Raffle tickets are available for the Christmas village, donated by Judy Feyler and currently being displayed at the Thomaston Town Office. Tickets are $1 each or 6 for $5. The raffle will be drawn on November 30. The Humane Society shelter is located at 17 Buttermilk Lane off Route 1 in Thomaston. Contact number is 594-2200.

The Camden-Rockport Animal Rescue League has several ways to help the animals this holiday season. The annual gift bag program is in full swing at Hannaford’s. You simply by one or more bags containing food or supplies for shelter animals and pay for them at the check-out. They are also offering a calendar for $15 featuring photos by the renowned photographer, Patrisha McLean. The calendars are available at several locations as well as at the shelter at 146 Camden Street. Call the shelter at 236-8702 for a llist of locations. Photos with Santa were done November 13 and are available for pick-up at the shelter on November 30. In December, the annual silent auction and Christmas ornament gala takes place at Prism Gallery and Restaurant in Rockport. Call the shelter for more details.

                                     

The Knox-Lincoln Soil & Water Conservation District will again team up with the Marine Corps Reserve for their Toys for Tots program. Toys will be collected during November and December. Drop off unwrapped toys at the SWCD office at 191 Camden Street. For more information, contact Katherine Ward at 273-2005, ext. 101 or at kathy.ward@me.nacdnet.net.

WARREN FOOD PANTRY TO OPEN

Bread for the Journey Food Pantry in the Warren Baptist Church will open November 18. A benefit dinner and auction in October brought in $1,000 for the pantry.

SPECTRUM GENERATIONS COLLECTING

COATS FOR SENIORS

If you have a gently used adult sized coat to donate, please drop it off at the Spectrum Generations office, 61 Park St., Rockland, no later than 2pm, November 18. L.L. Bean will assist in laundering and will donate $5 for every coat collected to the KeepME Warm Fuel Fund. Information on the coats’ availability will be announced later. Call 596-0339 for more information.

.

SCHOONER BAY TAXI HOLDS

FILL THE VAN CAMPAIGN

The First Annual “Fill the Van” campaign, sponsored by Schooner Bay Taxi, will collect non-perishable items in their 15-passenger van to benefit the AIO Food Pantry. They will be at Shaws to collect your donation on November 15 through November 20 from 8am-4pm. You can also donate to any of their drivers or call 594-5000 and they will come and pick up your donation.

 CHRISTMAS CRUISE

A Christmas Cruise to benefit the Edgecomb Congregational Church’s steeple repair fund takes place Saturday, December 4 from the Fisherman’s Wharf dock in Boothbay Harbor. Space is limited, so reserve your space now. The cruise will be around Boothbay Harbor; through Townsend Gut; and around Ebencook Harbor. Tickets are $35. Call the church for information and reservations, 882-4060.

BUSINESSES ASKED TO DECORATE WREATHS

FOR BIG BROTHER, BIG SISTER

Businesses in the area are asked by the Big Brother, Big Sister Organization to decorate wreaths to be auctioned off to benefit the organization. Businesses can promote their business with gift cards and other products they can attach to the wreath. Call 593-0380 for wreath delivery to be decorated. Bidding begins November 24, continuing through the first week of December. Display sites are: Camden National Bank in Camden, Rockland, Waldoboro, and Belfast; Key Bank at Camden Plaza, Bangor Savings Bank in Unity; and Bath Savings Institution in Damariscotta. Call 593-0380 for an auction site near you.

HELP SOMEONE WIN A CAR FOR $1

Do you know a Maine family in need who could really use a car? Atlantic Motorcar, an automotive service center in Wiscasset will continue their tradition started last November of allowing a deserving family to purchase a refurbished Volvo station wagon for $1. The car includes new tires, brakes, fluids, detailing, and includes service for a year. The car comes with a turkey for Thanksgiving dinner too. Nominations will be accepted from now till November 19. The winner must have a Maine driver’s license. The winner will be announced November 22^nd. For details, call Atlantic Motorcar, 882-9969. Nominations including the name, address, and phone number of the person submitting the application; a brief explanation of why the nominee deserves the car; the name, address, phone of the nominee may be emailed to: Car@AtlanticMotorcar.com or mailed to: Atlantic Motorcar Service, Attn: “Keep a Family Rolling,” 10 Ox Horn Rd., Wiscasset, ME 04578.

SALVATION ARMY OFFERS

 HOLIDAY BASKETS, GIFTS

Knox County residents can apply to the Salvation Army for Thanksgiving and Christmas food baskets and gifts for children up to age 16. Deadline for applying is November 19 for a Thanksgiving basket and December 17 for a Christmas basket and toys. For qualifications needed and further information, call the Salvation Army on Payne Avenue in Rockland, 594-5326.

HOLIDAY HOME TOUR

Five Town Communities That Care, an organization that promotes healthy youth development in Appleton, Camden, Hope, Lincolnville, and Rockport, will host their second annual Holiday Home Tour on December 4. Tickets go on sale November 17 for $15. Application deadline to show your home or inn is Nov. 10. Applications are available at the Five Town office or by email at: info@fivetownctc.org. For more information, call 236-9800.

PBMC CHILDCARE CENTER

 SILENT AND LIVE AUCTIONS

Pen Bay Medical Center’s Creative Learning and Child Care Center will hold live and silent auctions to support future improvement projects. The silent auction runs from November 5-17. A list of items for the silent auction can be found at penbay-childcare.org. Bids are accepted by email. The live auction is at Camden National’s Hanley Center in Rockport (in the Fox Ridge Park Office, just south of the intersection of Rt. 1 and 90 in Rockport) on November 18. Registration is at 6:30pm and bidding begins at 7pm. Hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar will be available. All are welcome. For more information on items to be offered for bid, call 596-8700.

 COMMUNITY SCHOOL AUCTION

The Community School will hold its 30^th annual auction on November 12 at the Rockport Opera House. Cocktails and hors d’oeuvres will be served. The auctioneer is Bruce Gamage and tickets are $25. Proceeds support scholarships and school operating expenses. For more information on the auction and to purchase tickets, email:

michelle.thecommunityschool@gmail.org or call 236-3000.

VFW POST 4525 BINGO GAME

 TO BENEFIT CHILDREN’S FUND

The Bingo Game held every Monday at the VFW Hall on 50 Main St. in Waldoboro, will donate the proceeds from the November 8 game to the Kevin Murray Memorial Fund, which is managed by the Medomak Valley Community Foundation. Doors open at 4:30 and the early-bird game starts at 6:30pm. MVCF will also offer a 50-50 raffle and a Stocking Stuffer raffle of gift certificates and small donated gifts. The Kevin Murray Memorial Fund provides funds to help children obtain equipment and supplies needed for a sport activity of their choice. For more information, visit: www.themvcf.org or call 832-7761.

BENEFIT SUPPER FOR JEFF SONDERGAARD

A benefit supper to defray medical expenses for Jeff Sondergaard of Edgecomb, who received a bone marrow transplant for leukemia in Boston on October 19, will be held November 13 at St. Patrick’s Church in Newcastle at 5pm. The church is located at 380 Academy Hill Rd. Tickets are available at the Parish Office, 563-3240 or Postal Center USA, 563-7667. Donations can also be made to a special account at Midcoast Federal Credit Union under the names of Deb and Jeff Songergaard.

NANA’S KITCHEN TO SERVE FREE THANKSGIVING DINNER

Nana’s Kitchen on Rt. 1 in Northport will serve a free Thanksgiving dinner to anyone in need from noon to 4pm on Thanksgiving Day. All are welcome on a first-come, first-serve basis. Donations are accepted and will benefit the Belfast Soup Kitchen. For more information, ask for Nana at 338-1524.

Holiday Fair Schedule

It’s the time of year for local Holiday Fairs. Here’s the list of Fairs I have. Some Fairs have already taken place and I didn’t have the dates at hand in time, but if you have any more to add, please email me.

Penobscot Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce

Samoset Resort, Rockport

November 27, 9am-3pm

Our Lady of Good Hope Church

Union St., Camden

November 20, 9am-1pm

Broad Cove Church

Cushing

November 27, 10am-1pm

Aldersgate Methodist Church

Rockland/Rockville

November 20, 8:30am-1:30pm

Luncheon also served from 11:30-1:00pm

Georges Valley High School

Thomaston

November 27, 9am-3pm

Waldo County General Hospital

Belfast

November 19, 8am-2pm