May 12 meeting for ‘Oz’ volunteers

Freeport Players and Freeport Family Performing Arts need volunteers to assist in building sets and props and working on costumes for the upcoming production of “The Wizard Of Oz,” July 17-27 at the Freeport Performing Arts Center. Carpenters, sewers, crafters and tinkerers are welcome. An informational meeting will be held at the Freeport Performing Arts Center, 30 Holbrook St., Monday, May 12, at 7 p.m. The design will be unveiled and questions will be answered. Those who want to volunteer but cannot attend the meeting can sign up by emailing Elizabeth at info@fcponline.org.

Bird author David Sibley in town for event

Freeport Wild Bird Supply will host a program with David Allen Sibley, author of “The Sibley Guide to Birds, second edition,” Friday, May 16, from 5-7:30 p.m., at Freeport Community Library. Sibley’s presentation will be followed by a question and answer session and book signing. Books will be available for purchase at the event.

When Sibley published “The Sibley Guide to Birds” in 2000, he introduced a new approach to the field guide, which quickly became the go-to guide for birders of all levels. This new second edition, published in March, is a completely updated version of the book. It features more than 600 new paintings (including 115 rare species), more than 700 revised range maps and expanded text.

Freeport Wild Bird Supply is a retail store, located at 541 Route 1 in Freeport that specializes in products that enhance the appreciation and enjoyment of wild birds, birding and nature. It is locally owned and operated by Jeannette and Derek Lovitch of Pownal. See www.freeportwildbirdsupply.com for more information.

Bean supper at First Parish Church

The First Parish Church Congregational is hosting a Mother’s Day Weekend Pasta and Bean Supper, Saturday May 10, from 5-6 p.m. at the church, 40 Main St., Freeport.

The menu includes three kinds of baked beans, macaroni and cheese, American chop suey, hot dogs, rolls, coleslaw, rolls, pickles, home made pies, beverages, etc. The cost is $8 for adults, $4 for children. The proceeds will benefit church outreach.

Open Stage Coffee House

The next Open Stage Coffee House will be Saturday, June 7, at 7 p.m., in the Community Room of the Freeport Community Library. This is a relaxed performance and safety zone for creativity and an opportunity for budding artists as well as established entertainers. Enjoy music, comedy, poetry, and skits free of charge. Coffee, tea and desserts will be available for purchase. Performers should show up at the library and sign up. There will a two-song limit. For more information, contact Eric Bryant at 865-0052.

Dirigo State delegates chosen

Freeport High School juniors, Abby Gray, Ryder Bennell and Lily Kolle, have been chosen to serve as delegates for this year’s annual American Legion Dirigo Boys and Girls State programs.

Sponsored by the American Legion and the American Legion Auxiliary, Boys and Girls State provides Maine high school juniors with an opportunity to participate in an interactive program that supplements their high school courses in government and its functions. Dirigo Girls State will be held at Husson University in Bangor from June 15-20. Dirigo Boys State will be held at Thomas College in Waterville during the week of June 15-19.

Spring cleanup at campground

Recompense Shore Campground at Wolfe’s Neck Farm is looking for volunteers to help clean up winter debris May 9-11. In return for help, free camping and some meals are provided. Bring weather-appropriate clothing and footwear, a rake and garden gloves. Those who would like to help out can call 865-9307.

Alzheimer’s session May 14

“The Basics: Memory Loss, Dementia and Alzheimer’s,” a seminar with Mark Pechenik of the Maine Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association, is scheduled for Wednesday, May 14, at 6:30 p.m., at Freeport Community Library. This 90-minute free evening seminar provides information on detection, causes and risk factors, stages of the Alzheimer’s disease, treatment, and more. For more information, see www.freeportlibrary.com or call 865-3307.

Author talks on home fix-up challenges

Ron Tanner, author of “From Animal House to Our House: A Love Story,” will be at Freeport Community Library, Monday, May 19, at 6:30 p.m., to share his stories.

Twelve years ago, Tanner and his then-girlfriend Jill bought condemned property – a big Baltimore Victorian brownstone – and vowed to bring it back to its original glory. The house had been home to Baltimore’s most notorious fraternity for a decade and they bought it wrecked and abandoned. “From Animal House to Our House: A Love Story” tells how they learned the hard way about love and life and saving precious things from ruin. In 2008, This Old House magazine featured their work and then the article went viral online, becoming one of the site’s most popular postings ever. Tanner has since become a licensed house inspector and is now prepared to offer advice and tips, especially for couples who take on DIY projects in their houses, wrecked or otherwise. They also have a website about home renovation, Houselove.org.

Denley Poor-Reynolds photos on exhibit

The Freeport Community Library is hosting a first exhibit of photography by Denley Poor-Reynolds of Freeport during May in its main reading room. In September 2012, she attended the Wooden Boat School’s Marine Photography week-long class. Since her high school years she had been an occasional photographer, but the week rekindled her love of photography. Since then she has continued to work and develop her skills with well-known professional photographer Jon Strout. She has sailed all her life, and has a background in marine and coastal ecology.

Writer Charlotte Bacon in South Freeport

South Freeport Congregational Church is holding its first fundraising Author Luncheon on Friday, May 16, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m., with writer Charlotte Bacon, author of “A Private State,” “Lost Geography,” “There is Room for You,” “Split Estate” and her newest, a mystery, “The Twisted Thread.” The luncheon will be at the church’s Community Hall, 98 South Freeport Road.

Bacon, who lives in Maine, will speak about her work. There will also be a question-and-answer period and book signing. Bacon’s debut collection of stories, “A Private State,” won the PEN/Hemingway Award for First Fiction in 1998.

The cost for the luncheon is $20 per person and tickets must be purchased in advance. Call 865-4012 for reservations.

Compost bin giveaway

Freeport residents who have never composted or who have tried and been unsuccessful can sign up to receive a free compost bin. In exchange for the free bin, residents must agree to attend a Recycling Committee meeting on Oct. 15 at 6:30 p.m., to share their stories with committee members of success and/or failure. Interested residents who would like instruction on how to compost can arrange a time to speak with Suzanne Duplissis, recycling center manager, for a free composting lesson.

Compost bins will be given away on a first-come first-served basis. Application forms are available at Town Hall, the Recycling Center on Hedgehog Mountain Road, at www.freeportmainemaine.com or by emailing sduplissis@freeportmaine.com. The free compost bins will go to the first 15 eligible people to submit the completed form. Those with questions can call 865-3740.

Book talk focuses on PTSD and Vets

Freeport Community Library will host a special Memorial Day-related book talk Wednesday, May 21, at 6:30 p.m. with Susan Dahlgren Daigneault of North Berwick,

author of “In the Shadow of a Mountain: A Soldier’s Struggle with PTSD.” The book the story of the World War II veteran and Aroostook County resident, Lt. Edward C. Dahlgren, as told by his daughter. Once described as “Maine’s very own Sgt. York,” Dahlgren was awarded a Congressional Medal of Honor by President Harry Truman at a White House ceremony in August 1945 for his bravery in combat. But Dahlgren and many other soldiers were haunted by the gruesome events of war. Dahlgren lost 40 pounds, suffered from jaundice, stammered and his hands shook. He also suffered night terrors.

His daughter recounts the price her father (and her family) paid as he battled what is now identified as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. For more information, see www.freeportlibrary.com or call 865-3307.

Plant sale coming up

The annual Wolfe’s Neck Farm plant sale will be held on Saturday, May 17, rain or shine, from 9 a.m.-1 p.m., at Wolfe’s Neck Farm, 184 Burnett Road, Freeport.

A large selection of perennials, annuals, herbs and seedlings, from full shade to full sun, will be available. All plants are donated by volunteers, friends and neighbors. There are plants for the beginning gardener and those with green thumbs. Proceeds support Wolfe’s Neck Farm, a nonprofit that provides educational and recreational opportunities for area residents.

Anyone wishing to donate plants should bring them to the farm on Friday, May 16, between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.

Peaks Island author to speak

Eleanor Morse, author of “White Dog Fell from the Sky,” will be at Freeport Community Library for a book talk and signing, Friday, May 9, at 7 p.m.

Morse’s earlier novels, “An Unexpected Forest” and “Chopin’s Garden,” were well received by readers. Her latest book, “White Dog Fell from the Sky,” published in 2013, takes place in Boswana in 1976. The audience will have an opportunity to learn more about the novel and about Morse’s four years living, traveling and working with refugees in Africa. “White Dog Fell from the Sky” was one of O Magazine’s “16 Must Read Books” in 2013. For more information, see www.freeportlibrary.com or call 865-3307.

Two novelists to talk on writing process

Christina Baker Kline, author of “Orphan Train,” and Kate Manning, author of “My Notorious Life,” will be at the Freeport Community Library on Monday, May 12, at 6:30 p.m., for a shared dialogue on their writing process and discussion of the similar, primary source research that resulted in their two individual and acclaimed novels.

Between 1854 and 1929, so-called orphan trains ran regularly from the cities of the East Coast to the farmlands of the Midwest, carrying thousands of abandoned children whose fates would be determined by luck or chance. In “Orphan Train,” a young Irish immigrant, Vivian Daly was one such child. The novel moves between contemporary Maine and Depression-era Minnesota. Kline’s two previous novels are “Bird in Hand” and “The Way Life Should Be.”

Based on a true story from the scandalized headlines of Victorian New York City, Manning’s “My Notorious Life” is a portrait of Axie Muldoon, the impoverished daughter of Irish immigrants who becomes a successful and controversial midwife.

Copies of both books will be available for purchase and signing.

Parade planning

Plans are under way for Freeport’s annual Memorial Day parade and ceremony. This year Memorial Day falls on Monday, May 26. The word is out early in hopes that many civic groups will be involved with the parade and ceremony that follows at the Town Park. For more information, contact Gloria DeGrandpre at 232-6648, or email GloriaD556@aol.com.

Financial advisory earns top marks

Edward Jones has won the 2014 TNS Choice Award for outstanding performance in investment services, according to TNS, a global research consultancy.

Caleb Stephens, 5 Depot St., Freeport, represents the company as a

financial adviser. The awards recognize financial-services firms and banks that outperform their competitors in acquiring, retaining and developing clients.

The selection of Edward Jones was based on data provided by more than 6,900 U.S. households with $100,000 or more in investable assets. The research firm states that Edward Jones’ client experience is based on strong adviser relationships and an extensive branch network of 13,000 financial advisers. The firm earns high client satisfaction scores and strong client retention, according to TNS.

Upcoming meetings

Freeport Planning Board, Wednesday, May 7, 6 p.m., Town Council Chambers.

Freeport Withdrawal Committee, Thursday, May 8, 6:30 p.m., Freeport High School Conference Room.

Hunter Road Fields Advisory Committee, Thursday, May 8, 7:30 a.m., Freeport Town Hall.

Freeport Active Living Task Force, Thursday, May 8, 7:30 a.m., Freeport Community Center.

Freeport Shellfish Conservation Commission, Thursday, May 8, 6:30 p.m., Freeport Community Center.

Winslow Park Committee, Monday, May 12, 6:30 p.m., Freeport Community Center.

Freeport Coastal Waters Commission, Wednesday, May 14, 6 p.m., Freeport Community Center.

Public sessions with Freeport town department administrators, Wednesday, May 14, 5-6 p.m., and Thursday, May 15, 7:30-8:30 a.m.,Town Council Chambers.

Carmen Footer, right, with her sister Claudia Eckert, returned to her accustomed spot with the Freeport Flag Ladies on Tuesday morning, April 29, for the first time since she underwent heart surgery on March 21. She joined her fellow Flag Ladies, JoAnn Miller and Elaine Greene.  Abby Gray Lily Kolle

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