Puppets help
preschool cause
The nationally renowned Tanglewood Marionettes will perform “Hansel & Gretel” at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 19, at Gorham Middle School, 106 Weeks Road.
Tickets are $8; under age 2, free.
The performance, part of a fundraiser for Gorham Cooperative Preschool, will have an “opening act” with local children’s author Sarah L. Thomson. Puppeteer Peter Schaefer will also give a short demonstration about the puppets before the show.
The middle school doors will open at 9 a.m. for an inexpensive a la carte breakfast with muffins, bagels, fruit and juice; arts and crafts, and a raffle/silent auction. Lunch with an entrae and drink for kids and adults costing $4 will follow the show, and raffle winners will be announced.
For more information and advanced tickets, call Jen Doane at 839-3684.
Shiers at summit
Miss Maine Teen USA Jordan Shiers is in Boise, Idaho, to participate in the Global Youth Activation Summit being held in conjunction with the 2009 Special Olympics World Winter Games Feb. 7-13.
Representing Maine, Shiers is one of the youth leaders selected from 22 nations to participate in the fifth annual summit. Shiers is participating in youth leadership training programs and also is writing news stories to be posted on the 2009 World Winter Games and Special Olympics Web sites.
A statement from Special Olympics said Shiers was selected to participate in the summit because of “her personal commitment and beliefs that everyone should be included despite physical or intellectual disabilities.”
A garden
for Gorham
Gorham Recreation Department is planning a community garden in Robie Park with individuals and groups adopting garden beds.
The 8-by-12-foot beds will be installed by Gorham Recreation Department. Participants will be responsible for maintaining their plots.
Several classes are being offered in conjunction with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension at Gorham Recreation Department, 75 South St. A class about starting seeds will be held 6-7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 26, with subsequent classes covering backyard strawberries, yardscaping, companion plantings, putting the garden to bed and creating a spring bulb garden.
To register for classes or for more information about the community garden, call Gail Platts, administrative assistant of the recreation department, at 222-1630.
Lord earns honors
Adam Lord has earned faculty honors for the fall semester at Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Ga.
Lord scored a 4.0 average.
Schindler to speak
Marty Schindler, a master gardener, will speak when the Gorham Garden Club meets at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 24, in the recreation room at the Gorham Municipal Center, 75 South St.
Schindler’s topic is “Removing Animal Pests Which Plague Our Gardens.”
The public is invited.
Bartlett eyes energy stimulus
State Senate Majority Leader Phil Bartlett, D-Cumberland, recently called to order the first meeting of the Legislature’s new Joint Select Committee on Maine’s Energy Future.
As its first order of business, Bartlett presented a proposal to set up a fund to capture additional federal stimulus money for conservation and renewable energy. This will ensure that money received will be spent to further Maine’s larger energy goals.
“I am pleased with how our first meeting went,” said Bartlett. “I can already see the intense interest among the members in thinking big and taking dramatic action to secure a sustainable energy future for Maine.”
The committee, which was established by the Presiding Officers to create a comprehensive energy policy for the state, met in Augusta, where its members were briefed by John Kerry, the director of the Office of Energy Independence and Security; Sharon Reishus, chair of the Public Utilities Commission; and David Littell, commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection.
U.S. taxpayer debt
The Bureau of Public Debt reported on Feb. 6 that the U.S. public debt was $10,717,280,371,345.89.
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