Archive for ‘News’

  • With help from others, Community H.E.L.P. finds a home

    By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer Nearly a year after starting out without any funding, knowing only there was a great need, the founders of Community H.E.L.P. have been given a hand up to help them help others in need. Last December they moved from their tiny unheated storage space at 39 Depot Street into a […]

  • Brownie Scout undertakes food from the heart project

    By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer NAPLES — Nine-year-old Allison Baker believes that part of being a Girl Scout is being kind to others. When she had the opportunity to organize a project for her troop, she decided to organize a food drive for the Naples Food Pantry, a town-based service that serves 30 families. […]

  • SAD 61 trims budget to 5.7% hike to local assessments

    By Wayne E. Rivet Staff Writer Will a 5.7% school tax increase to local municipal assessments fly? On May 21, voters will make the final decision — possibly. Directors hope they will avoid a repeat of last year’s budget season when voters rejected two proposals. Unlike a year ago, SAD 61 will conduct exit polls […]

  • Resurrection of United Parish Church

    By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer HARRISON — When members of the United Parish UCC of Harrison and North Bridgton gather on Easter Sunday, they will enter a church where every square inch of interior surface— even down to the electrical wires inside the ceiling — has been meticulously wiped clean and made new. Though it […]

  • Fryeburg Academy prevails in labor dispute; union likely to appeal

    By Wayne E. Rivet Staff Writer FRYEBURG — Fryeburg Academy and its teachers are back to square one — they have no contract. Back in October, the two sides thought they had reached an agreement and signed on the dotted line, but a disagreement regarding the new salary scale surfaced. Academy officials claimed that, “This […]

  • Naples safety net to offset state’s budget

    By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer NAPLES — People are frequently forced to compensate when projected income doesn’t materialize. Sometimes, the purchase of items that are both necessary and desired is delayed for a few more years. Many eyes have been focused on Gov. Paul Le Page’s proposed state budget — which would reduce revenue […]

  • Local preference tabled after reconsideration

    By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer Stone Surface has now relocated to the former Chapter 11 property on Main Street. A new building façade and stacked slabs of granite in the parking lot testify to signs of industry and a new life for the prime downtown commercial lot. But memories of what might have been — […]

  • Merry Watson hangs up her fire hat

    By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer NAPLES — For Merry Watson, the choice to step down after five years as a Naples firefighter and 37 years as an emergency technician had to do with timing. Timing also played a factor in 1975 when Watson and a handful of residents founded an informal volunteer rescue group […]

  • Former Bridgton native publishes first novel

    By Wayne E. Rivet Staff Writer As a young boy, Chris Berry was mesmerized by the “magic of books.” Just as his teacher, Dotti Sanborn, was able to lure him to reading, Chris hopes to draw a new generation of youngsters into the magical adventures that await in his debut novel, AVES — The Age […]

  • Bridgton vacillates on fireworks ordinance

    By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer A proposed fireworks ordinance, that would set extra limits beyond what the state allows, hit a snag March 26 when Selectman Bob McHatton suggested a competing ordinance. He wants to ban fireworks altogether. Members of the Fireworks Committee and several selectmen were incensed, viewing McHatton’s actions as an 11th-hour attempt […]