thumb”¢nail (thum’nail’)
…2. anything quite small or brief,
as a small drawing or short essay
Thumbs up to the Ossipee Mountaineers Snowmobile Club, now celebrating its 40th year. The membership recently celebrated this milestone with a special ride, ceremony and public supper. Like all snowmobile clubs, its members find camaraderie in sharing their love of motoring through the backwoods trails of wintertime, blazing across frozen ponds and taking in the sights of remote, snowy locales. Snowmobiling is a treasured pastime throughout Maine, giving people a chance to beat cabin fever and make some friends during the least hospitable time of year. It’s the hard work of clubs like these, whose members negotiate with landowners for passage and work hard to clear and maintain trails, that keep it viable. We’d like to applaud the club for its longevity and wish all of its members happy trails.
Thumbs down to the layoffs at York County Community Action Corporation, which are separating people who use the transportation service from the drivers upon whom they have depended for years. The YCCAC buses take people to medical appointments and other necessary stops, such as grocery stores ”“ an indispensable service for those who use MaineCare or elderly people who want to continue living independently but can no longer safely drive themselves. The MaineCare transportation system has been in shambles since its management was taken over by Logisticare due to conflict of interest concerns raised by the Center for Medicaid Services. The drivers of YCCAC had built relationships with their clients over the years, and it’s unfortunate to see those come to an end along with cuts to the busing service. The state must address the failures of the transportation brokerage system and restore the transportation system to its previous setup.
C Thumbs up to the McArthur Public Library in Biddeford for its recent efforts to promote local authors at its “Biddeford Bookshelf” event Jan. 26 and its children’s author event Jan. 17. These meet and greets with local writers give readers an opportunity to connect with those whose work they admire, get a book signed and even learn a thing or two about each author’s approach to the writing process. The library has many events to encourage reading, and recognizing our local celebrities of the pen is a great way to bring the community together over books. The library is also moving to lend less traditional items, such as croquet sets and ladder golf, to draw in the public, and as their resources and offerings expand, the library only becomes more of a community asset.
Thumbs up to the Saco Police Department for once again sponsoring a citizens’ police academy that allows people to learn about police procedures and policies, as well as get to know the officers. The officers who teach these courses are volunteering their time, in the interest of garnering public support and understanding of their work. It’s no small effort to take a group of community members and give them a “Cliff Notes” course in police work, from motor vehicle laws to computer fraud, drug detection and child abuse. There’s even a stint in the shooting range and a ride-along with an officer. These courses, which are offered in other communities as well, go a long way in helping people understand the realities of police work and give them an opportunity to meet officers in a relaxed setting, which can increase cooperation and, therefore public safety, in the long run.
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Thumbnails is a Monday feature of the Journal Tribune’s opinion pages. If you want to respond, feel free to write to the Readers’ Forum via email at jtcommunity@journaltribune.com or by dropping your letter off at our Biddeford office.
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