Thumbs up to all those who participated in Memorial Day parades and ceremonies to remember America’s war dead. Taking the time to stop and remember those who gave their lives in the defense of our country and its values, here and around the world, is important and those who dedicate hours of their time to planning such events should be commended. It was heartening this year to see a ceremony in Arundel around its newly-installed veterans’ memorial.
In Waterboro, the Massabesic High School NJROTC students put on a nice display Thursday for veterans and ROTC instructors Commander Michael Donlon and Senior Chief Pete Jordan should be applauded for making sure these students, the school and the greater community have an opportunity to reflect on our military’s sacrifices.
Thumbs up to all volunteers from the Heart of Biddeford and the Downtown Development Commission and others who helped to plant trees and flowers and remulch around the existing trees along Biddeford’s Main Street last week. Beautification projects such as these do a lot to instill pride in residents and draw people to the downtown. Le Parc Interim, which isn’t so “interim” after a few years as a vacant lot, is nevertheless a nice welcome mat into the downtown, with its cleverly cut paths and flower boxes.
Thumbs down to Regional School Unit 21 residents for voting down the cost-sharing agreement and budget proposed by the district. It seems Arundel residents and others got carried away with their passionate efforts to oppose the buyout of the town’s contract with Thornton Academy Middle School and let their enthusiasm spill over into the other issues on the ballot. Though the TAMS buyout would have saved the district money in the long run, it’s understandable that many Arundel parents felt passionately about maintaining the contract they negotiated before the RSU was formed and had complaints about how the RSU approached the buyout. The cost-sharing, however, was a good proposal that would have saved money for the town without being controversial, and the budget was uncontroversial as well. We hope that now, with the TAMS issue decided, voters will have a clearer head when considering those two issues next time they come up.
Thumbs up to Gabriela Rodriguez and Dan Quinn who operate Blixx Horses in Kennebunk, for bringing their horse, Lexxie, to Sanford Junior High School last week to teach students there about the importance of proper animal care and interaction. These business people offered the youth a rare opportunity to learn these skills, which they will undoubtedly pass on to others they meet and help spread the word about how to treat animals properly.
Thumbs up to the three University of Maine marketing students Ry Russell, 21, of Scarborough, Patric Brophy, 21, of Farmington, and Tyler Wells, 22, of Holden, Mass. who are operating the Saco Drive-In theater on Route 1 this summer. The theater was up for lease and using it as a learning tool for senior students is the perfect way to provide a community service and keep a nostalgic business open. We applaud Russell and his father for coming up with such a unique idea that will serve both drive-in fans and the students well. We hope this project is something that can be continued by future marketing students.
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Thumbnails is a Monday feature of the Journal Tribune’s opinion pages. If you would like to respond, please write the Reader’s Forum via e-mail at jtcommunity@journaltribune.com or by dropping your letter off at our Biddeford or Sanford offices.
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