Local Revolutionary War patriots subject of historical presentation

By Ed Pierce

As the nation celebrates its 250th birthday this weekend, contributions made by Raymond and Casco patriots to the cause of liberty are easily overlooked. But thanks to a new presentation being offered by the Raymond-Casco Historical Society, the bravery of Revolutionary War patriots living in Raymond and Casco will not be forgotten.

Sue Pride of Raymond will highlight the lives and
service of 28 Revolutionary Way patriots during a 
free program at 6:30 p.m. Monday, July 6 at the
Raymond-Casco Historical Museum, 1 Shadow
Lane in Casco. SUBMITTED PHOTO  

Sue Pride, the Collections Manager for the Raymond-Casco Historical Society Museum, will discuss and highlight the lives and service of 28 Revolutionary War patriots from the area during a free public program at 6:30 p.m. Monday, July 6 at the museum, 1 Shadow Lane in Casco.

Her presentation includes a richly illustrated PowerPoint talk focusing on the remarkable stories of early local settlers who answered the call to defend America long before Maine became a state.

Pride was inspired to create the presentation while sorting through the historical society’s collections to organize them. It prompted her to research how Revolutionary War veterans ended their journeys in Raymond and Casco.

“This year is the 250th birthday of the United States, and I thought the museum should do something to bring Raymond and Casco into it. I thought we must have some veterans.”

In conducting research, Pride found that some patriots were living in Massachusetts on April 19, 1775, and responded immediately to the alarm of the Lexington and Concord opening of the American Revolution. Others were already living in the district that would become Maine, and they enlisted shortly afterward and marched to Cambridge to join American troops during the Siege of Boston.

When the Revolutionary War for American independence from Great Britain erupted, Raymondtown, now known as the towns of Raymond and Casco after the communities split in 1841, was part of the Cumberland County Militia territory, with its members serving under the command of early settler Captain Joseph Dingley of Raymondtown. Their membership roll was used as a recruitment tool for soldiers to join the Continental Army once it was founded and placed under the leadership of the Continental Army’s General George Washington in June 1775.

“Before the army, it was just the militias fighting,” Pride said. “Lexington and Concord were fought by the militia.”

The area’s sparse population at the time meant that not many men from Raymond enlisted and Pride’s research found four residents who had traveled south to fight. However, she has discovered at least 28 Revolutionary War veterans are buried around Raymond and Casco, which shows the influx of former soldiers locally after the war ended.

“Many of the 28 patriots later served under Capt. Richard Mayberry, taking part in the Saratoga Campaign, a turning point in the war, and enduring the harsh winter encamped at Valley Forge alongside General George Washington’s troops,” Pride said.

Her new program will also touch on the broader story of Maine during the Revolutionary War, including the Battle of Machias, which is often called the first naval battle of the war, and the devastating burning of what is now known as Portland in 1775.

“I found one veteran who only served three days and never served again, but he was at Lexington and Concord, so it was a pivotal three days,” Pride said. “I think there were four who were living in Massachusetts and marched to Lexington and Concord.”

She also found a story of one soldier who was captured by the British and then held in the notorious prison ships afloat in the harbor of New York City, which were decommissioned or damaged ships that were used to hold prisoners in overcrowded conditions, where many died due to illness or malnutrition. He survived to be discharged from the army six months after his service was meant to have ended. Pride also discovered two men buried locally that died while serving. One drowned after falling from a floating bridge and the other died of fever.

Both Dingley and his son Samuel volunteered for military service at the start of the Revolutionary War in the company of men from Raymond and Windham and returned to the fast-growing Raymondtown as Captains, a title that Joseph retained for the rest of his life, even though he later held the rank of Colonel in the militia.

The 28 patriots highlighted in Pride’s presentation came to reside locally and helped to build and shape the community’s legacy.

“As the nation marks its 250th birthday, the Raymond-Casco Historical Society emphasizes the importance of honoring their service and recognizing their influence on the region’s early growth,” Pride said.

To learn more about Raymond and Casco’s role in the Revolutionary War, visit www.raymondcascohistoricalsociety.org or find them on Facebook. <

Restored 1802 Windham map focus of historical presentation

By Ed Pierce

Famed American author Brené Brown once said that "Maps are the most important documents in human history as they are the history of human perception." That may be the case right here in Windham as a new presentation on Monday night will examine a 224-year-old map of the town.

During a presentation at the Little Meetinghouse in Windham
on Monday, April 27, participants will be able to see an 1802
map of North Windham drawn on fabric. The map was 
recently discovered by Raymond Philpot of Windham 
among a box of family artifacts. SUBMITTED PHOTO     

Windham Historical Society member Carol Manchester says that earlier this year, Raymond Philpot, a lifelong resident of Windham, discovered the map when he was given a box of historic Windham items by a family member and an 1802 drawing of the North Windham section of town was contained among the artifacts.

“He believes it was sketched on some sort of fabric,” Manchester said.

Because this document is important to the Windham Historical Society, but very delicate and expensive for them to restore, a decision was made to turn the map over to the Osher Map Library and Smith Center for Cartographic Education at the University of Southern Maine for restoration and display with a commitment that the historical society would be given a representation or copy of the map.

The map was conserved by Green Dragon bindery of Shrewsbury, Massachusetts and features an 1802 drawing and manuscript map by Lothrop Snow of the plans of the last division of the town of Windham.

Libby Bischof, Executive Director of the Osher Map Library and Smith Center for Cartographic Education at USM has examined the map and will offer a free presentation open to the public and lead a discussion about the map starting at 7 p.m. Monday, April 27 at the Little Meetinghouse, 719 Roosevelt Trail in Windham. Bischof’s presentation is called “Mapping Windham Across Time.”

Bischof is a history professor and the inaugural University Historian at USM where she has taught courses in Maine History, History and Photography, Popular Culture, and Public History for the past 18 years. A visual and cultural historian of the 19th and 20th centuries, Bischof is interested in the way in which friendship informs cultural production, especially in relation to landscape and place. 

She believes deeply in site-based, hands-on education and the ways in which teaching local and regional history can lead to deeper civic engagement. In an earlier program for Windham Historical Society, Bischof gave a presentation regarding the history and manufacture of postcards.

Prior to being settled by Europeans, most of Southern Maine, including Windham, was land of the Abenaki tribe of Native Americans. Associated with the Algonquin Nation, the Abenaki lived from the Maritime Provinces of Canada through upstate New York and Ontario.

There were many seasonal Abenaki settlements between the White Mountains and Casco Bay with local lakes and rivers used for travel for thousands of years.

Historians say that the Windham area was first settled by Europeans in 1737. Massachusetts Bay colony granted land to a group of individuals and families primarily from Marblehead, Massachusetts. These settlers named the township New Marblehead, and the township was incorporated as the Town of Windham in 1762.

Windham’s early economy in Windham focused on agriculture and forestry, but the next phase of Windham’s growth centered on industrialization and manufacturing driven by power generated by the Presumpscot and Pleasant Rivers.

By 1940, Windham’s population of Windham was about 2,000 people and since then it has increased to more than 19,000.

Those attending Bischof’s presentation will be able to see the newly conserved map in person. Light refreshments will be served and although the event is free, a $5 donation is suggested at the door.

For more details about the Windham Historical Society, visit https://www.windhamhistorical.org/ <

Local author to discuss his noir fiction novel at Windham Public Library

By Erin Rose

Author and longtime Windham resident Charles J. Pickelhaupt will give a talk about his novel, “One Week of Romance and Murder,” at the Windham Public Library at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, March 18.

Longtime Windham resident and author
Charles J. Pickelhaupt will appear at
the Windham Public Library at 6 p.m..
Wednesday March 18 to discuss his
noir fiction novel 'One Week of
Romance and Murder."
COURTESY PHOTO

During the presentation, Pickelhaupt will read some of the book’s chapters and give attendees an insight into how he decided to embark on his writing journey.

The book, which was published in 2023, is the first in a trilogy, with the second installment being written currently. It is a noir fiction book, following seven days in the journey of World War II and United States Army Air Force veteran David Gardiner as he works to rejoin society in 1946 and falls in love. However, his trajectory is altered when a murder in Boston brings a detective into his life.

“It’s a guy who’s a former pilot trying to make his way through life. He’s 30 years old and he’s had numerous affairs with women but is looking for something more solid, and he finds it,” Pickelhaupt explained, saying that bringing the detective and the main character together “is the crux of the story.”

Noir fiction, which features heavier storylines and more gritty details than a mystery book, appealed to Pickelhaupt, as movies from the same genre are particular favorites. The time period was also selected because of the state of post-war America.

“I am a fan of 1940 noir movies, like Casablanca with Humphrey Bogart,” he said. “I think it’s a fascinating time, when America was together, for the most part.”

The book was a sudden revelation made one Sunday afternoon in 2022 while watching television, the author said, and the first three chapters were written by hand the same day his inspiration hit.

“This idea popped into my head. ‘Oh my god, I want to write a noir novel, with a hard-nosed detective or soldier or something,” he said. “I went to our office, grabbed some paper and all afternoon, I wrote three chapters.”

The entire process of writing the more than 120,000-word novel took about a year, as it was all written longhand before being transcribed slowly into a computer, and Pickelhaupt admits, “I’m not a typist.”

“I was very much aided by my wife, as far as spelling goes,” he said, praising his wife Nancy for her guidance in engaging technology to help his writing, in addition to her continued encouragement. “I would say ‘how do you spell this’, and she would say ‘doesn’t your spell check work?’”

He says that, “you have to get reasonably close in spelling for spell check to have it pop up.”

The sense of accomplishment has been the best part of the writing process for the novel, as it was an unexpected goal in Pickelhaupt’s life.

“The best part of writing a book is accomplishing something I never thought I would,” he said. “I never in my whole life said, ‘I’m going to write a book.” But somehow, that Sunday afternoon, I started writing a couple of chapters and I said, ‘by God, I’m going to do this. And it developed. As you start writing a book, you start out with some ideas and then you enlarge it and add detail.”

Some of the details in the book are particularly familiar to the author, as his father was a member of the Air Force, working as an electrician on B-17 bombers, which are also known as “Flying Fortresses” in North Africa and Italy. Pickelhaupt also spent time in his childhood moving through Air Force establishments in Germany, Italy and England before returning to the United States. His father was also stationed in Detroit, giving Pickelhaupt personal insight into the city that he used in the pages of the novel.

“I know Detroit, I know Michigan. It’s my home state,” he said, noting that his hometown is Port Huron, Michigan. “Detroit is a big city, and a lot of people were gathering there at that point.”

“And I wanted to get them out of Maine,” Pickelhaupt said.

The author, however, made it to Maine and never looked back, as he met his wife of 56 years while his father was stationed at Dow Air Force Base, located in Bangor before closing in 1968. The pair have two children, Charles and Kathryn, and five grandchildren.

“My son and his wife have encouraged me to reach out to the world,” Pickelhaupt explained, saying that he is hoping to give talks at the Gorham Public Library and possibly some senior facilities in the area.

“One Week of Romance and Murder” is available for purchase on Amazon. Copies will also be available for purchase during Pickelhaupt’s presentation at the Windham Library. <

Historical fiction author prepares to discuss novels at Windham Public Library event

By Ed Pierce

A great writer can take readers to faraway places they may never experience themselves or tell stories that inspire their imagination. Michael Meeske of Windham is one of those rare writers whose work is not only commercially successful, but also provides some great storytelling.

Author Michael Meeske of Windham, who
writes under the pen name VS Alexander,
will appear from 6 to 7 p.m. Wednesday,
Nov. 6 at the Windham Public Library to
discuss his novels The Taster and The
Novelist from Berlin.
SUBMITTED PHOTO

Meeske, the author of 11 novels, has sold nearly a half-million books in the past seven years and he will be on hand from 6 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 6 at the Windham Public Library in a free event to meet the public and discuss his writing. Through the years, his novels have received critical acclaim from Publisher’s Weekly, the Library Journal, and other industry publications and he’s been a speaker at numerous writing conferences and events around the United States.

His novels for Kensington Publishing are under his pen name of V. S. Alexander and have been published in more than a dozen countries including Portugal, Spain, Brazil, Czech Republic, France, Italy, Mexico, the United States and Lithuania. A novel of his called The Taster has been optioned for a film.

During his appearance at the library, Meeske will discuss The Taster, his novel about a food taster for Adolf Hitler, and The Novelist from Berlin, based on a true story of a writer during the late days of the Weimar Republic and the early days of the German Reich. He’ll be talking about both of these heroines and their different lives under Nazi rule.

Originally from Kansas, Meeske is a natural at writing.

“I was a storyteller from an early age, but I didn’t know it. I wrote a play – an extremely short one – plus a couple of short stories about astronauts and visitors from another planet. It was kid’s stuff. My last semester at the University of Kansas, I needed a class, any class, to fulfill my credits,” he said. “I enrolled in a fiction writing course taught by James E. Gunn, then President of the Science Fiction Writers of America. I didn’t know who he was, so I went in with no expectations. Also, I knew how hard it is to write good science fiction, having read it for many years in my youth. Most everyone in the class had enrolled because of Gunn’s reputation and stature in the writing world. I didn’t write science fiction, and I got A’s on my stories. He lit the fire.”

After taking Gunn’s class, Meeske said he had a burning desire to write, but his big break didn’t come until much later in life.

“I’d have to say, I enjoy the creative end of writing more than any other part of the business – creating characters, moving them around, keeping the story fresh and exciting for readers which is easier said than done,” he said. “But I realize how far-reaching the editing process is, and how a good working relationship with an editor is crucial. Editorial work is fine tuning and makes the book so much better. Beta readers are important as well. Find one you trust. I’ve had the same beta reader for all my books.”

He says the ideas for his novels are ones he comes up on his own.

“A magazine article, a news story, or a thought, triggers the process,” Meeske said. “If it digs its claws firmly into my head, I know I should do something with it. My editor also has pitched me ideas. He’ll say I want a book on the Magdalen Laundries, or the Irish Potato Famine and I’ve done both of them. When I first started writing, I was a total panster, just thinking that the creative juices would guide me wherever I needed to be in the book. I wrote myself into a corner a couple of times and shortly thereafter, I made bullet-point outlines. The Taster, for example, I developed from a grocery list. I had 15 or so points, and I wrote the book from them. At one point, the heroine grabbed the story, and I followed. It was an exhilarating experience, and her unscripted journey added immensely to the novel.”

When he’s able to write, Meeske enjoys writing in the afternoon or early evening after he’s completed his other tasks for the day. And, unlike some writers, he doesn’t write every day.

“There’s some kind of rule that says writers have to write every day, but I have to take a day off once in a while,” Meeske said. “I find that I’m very productive on weekends – that’s because I used to work full time. I gauge my writing time by word count. My goal is to write 1,000 to 1,200 words per session. That usually takes two or so hours. If you write a page a day, say 350 words, for a year, you’ll have a book. Breaking the process down into manageable tasks helps.”

He previously lived in New England for 20 years before moving to Florida.

“After 23 years there, I was ready to move back. I was tired of hurricanes, the congestion, and a quality of life that had changed since I left Boston in 2001,” he said. “New England has changed as well, and I’ve had some adjustment pains, but I love living in Windham. I grew up in small-town Kansas. The population here is much like my hometown when I was growing up.”

Enjoying an excellent relationship with his publisher, Meeske found a literary agent through a referral from a colleague who couldn’t do a book his editor wanted.

“So, I sold my first book on 75 pages, a 25-page synopsis and three chapters,” he said. “That became The Magdalen Girls in 2017. We’ve been working together for nearly a decade.”

Now firmly established in his career, it took some time for Meeske’s family and friends to approve of his decision to focus on writing.

“When I first told my parents that I wanted to be a writer, sometime after college, they asked, ‘Fine, but how are you going to make a living?’ Probably every kid going into the creative arts has heard that line,” he said. “Eventually, they got behind me. My friends have been supportive and sometimes amazed. It’s hard to make a living as a writer. Only about 15 percent of writers make a living from their craft, and many take on other jobs to pay the bills. You have to love it, and persevere, to succeed.”

Putting together his novels have not come without challenges and one has been the most difficult to overcome.

“I’d say my writing of The War Girls was the most difficult. I had the idea of two Jewish sisters separated by the start of World War II, one living with relatives in England and the other in Warsaw,” he said. “I had to research the Warsaw Ghetto, Special Operations Executive, and, most difficult of all, what a traditional Jewish home would be like in Warsaw before and after the invasion. Not being Jewish, I called upon friends, historical resources, and a sympathetic freelance editor to help me navigate a 5,000-year-old religion. It was a challenge, but the book has been well-received and I’m very proud of it.”

He’s just signed a contract to write his eighth historical novel for Kensington.

“It will be out sometime in 2026. I can’t talk about it at this point, but I’m excited and ready to get to work.” <

Penobscot leader inspires RES students about Maine’s native history

By Lorraine Glowczak

To gain a better understanding of indigenous history and culture, Raymond Elementary School invited John Bear Mitchell, a Penobscot Nation citizen and lecturer specializing in Wabanaki and Multicultural Studies at the University of Maine in Orono, to speak with each class from kindergarten through third grade on Friday, March 29.

Penobscot Nation citizen and UMaine lecturer Jon Bear
Mitchell speaks to a room full of Raymond Elementary
School students last month. He was invited to the school
with the hope to dispel myths and stereotypes about
Native Americans. PHOTO BY GARY HARRIMAN  

Susan Brackett, a fourth-grade teacher at RES who led the project, said the purpose of the presentation was to educate RES students from an American Indian’s perspective and how their life is today.

“We hope to dispel myths and stereotypes about Native Americans and to ignite an interest in students to learn more about past and present Native Americans in Maine,” Brackett said.

Through interactive music and the art of storytelling, Mitchell engaged RES students, offering insights into Maine's indigenous heritage, and addressing concerns regarding the stereotypes and myths people may have about his culture. As a former elementary school teacher and principal, Mitchell has years of experience connecting with students on their level.

The Penobscot leader and educator began each presentation with a call-and-response chant. Mitchell explained why he always begins with this interactive chant when speaking to his audiences, especially young children.

“This gets the students involved, creating a comfortable space for them,” he said. “By engaging children with the chant, they can better immerse themselves in the cultural experience, preparing them for storytelling and singing. When a person feels the experience first, they are more comfortable hearing and listening to it.”

After the chant, Mitchell shared a story that is still taught to Native American children today.

“Long ago, the people of the land experienced a 48-hour snowstorm,” he began. “Realizing they only had three days of food left, the hunters were sent out to search for food. They hunted for a very long time without seeing any signs of animals. They returned to their families, feeling disappointed. The hunters did this the second day. Again, no signs of animals. The third day, the same thing. Feeling sad, they didn’t want to return to the village, disappointing their families who relied upon them for survival.”

He related that the hunters came upon a group of dancing rabbits who seemed to be celebrating. Curious, the hunters asked what they were doing. The rabbits said that their dancing promoted community with each other while celebrating the impending arrival of spring. The hunters, desperate for food, pleaded with the rabbits to help them. Moved by their plight, the rabbits agreed to share their lessons. Guided by the rabbits' counsel, the hunters finally succeeded in their quest, bringing food home to their village.

“The story of ‘The Dancing Rabbit’ teaches lessons about resilience, cooperation, and the importance of respecting nature,” said Mitchell. “It emphasizes the connection between humans and the natural world, highlighting how working together and respecting the rhythms of nature can lead to abundance and prosperity.”

During his presentation, Mitchell also introduced elements of his ancient Passamaquoddy language which included singing songs with rattles and drums all naturally made by hand and spoke to the students about names given to us by our parents.

“How many here have three names, a first, middle, and last name,” he asked the students.

Everyone raised their hands. But only one hand was raised when he asked if their middle name was an animal.

“The purpose is to emphasize our shared humanity. Despite the diversity in our middle names, whether they're uncommon or familiar, we remain a part of today’s modern society,” Mitchell said. “Alongside our Christian names, we still carry on our traditional cultural names, celebrating the richness of our heritage in today's world.”

He also pointed out other ways in which Native American culture integrates into contemporary society.

“We go to movies, we travel to different countries, we are educated, we are like all people with the same needs and wants,” Mitchell said.

Brackett agreed.

“Mitchell’s presentation showed students that Native Americans today are just like them,” she said. “This helped to dispel any misconceptions or stereotypes that the students may have had before his visit.”

RES third grader Shyanne Normand shared what she learned from Mitchell and why.

“It’s kind of cool to learn about his culture because you get to know people differently and get to know what happened in their life.” Normand said. “It was really fun to speak an ancient language, too.”

She said that she realized from attending Mitchell’s presentation that Native Americans are fun teachers who dress in modern clothing.

The students' learning about Native Americans will not stop with Mitchell's presentation.

“To expand upon the students’ education of Native culture, John Bear Mitchell is providing the school with a variety of lesson plans and information that we will be able to use in the future,” Brackett said. <

Lewiston presentation reaffirms faith in human spirit for Windham poet

By Ed Pierce

A Windham resident who believes that written words can soothe emotional pain presented a framed copy of a 14-line poem he composed to Lewiston city councilors during their meeting on Jan. 23.

Windham poet Bob Clark was honored by members of the
Lewiston City Council during a meeting on Jan. 23 for a
poem he wrote last October recognizing the bravery shown
by Lewiston residents following a mass shooting there on
Oct. 25 which killed 18 people and injured 13 others.
COURTESY PHOTO     

Bob Clark composed the poem “Our Candle Vigil” in response to the Oct. 25 news of two separate shooting incidents in Lewiston in which 18 people died and 11 more were injured by a lone gunman.

“I wanted to communicate support for people victimized by the deaths and wounds,” Clark said. “I wanted to acknowledge the collective bravery being shown by citizens as they were directed to shelter in place. Peoples’ plans shifted, and a manhunt was on. I became fearful since Windham was within striking distance of the shooter’s escape. Eventually the danger ended, allowing recovery to begin.”

Clark grew up and spent a great deal of time only a few towns away from Lewiston and said that his aunt had graduated from Bates College there. He had worked for an adult education program in Lewiston after serving in the U.S. Peace Corps in El Salvador in 1980 and has many connections to the area.

“I felt unsettled learning of death and injury details. The ugly truth was on my mind, so I wrote and edited and placed feelings directly into poetry,” he said. “Once the lyrical stanzas were complete, I contacted the Lewiston Sun Journal in the hope that if it was published it might ease some of the shocking pain. In that way, I wanted to communicate with victims that they were not alone in their grief.”

His poem “Our Candle Vigil” was published in the Lewiston Sun Journal in its Nov. 4 editorial section.

At the end of December, Clark visited Lewiston Mayor Carl Sheline and took him a copy of the poem. That led Sheline to invite Clark to present a framed copy of “Our Candle Vigil” to the Lewiston City Council at its next scheduled meeting.

According to Clark he is thankful to have found the will to compose the poem and feels it has had a positive effect upon a grieving community.

“It was not pleasant work to align tortuous words that questioned reality and at the same time reflect feelings of agony,” he said. “By contrast it was uplifting to convey the strength of community-wide solidarity. The poem includes both types. Many candlelight vigils have taken place. Those images became my visual connecting point. Above the poem’s title I presented to the council is pictured the glow of 18 candles. This assault is nothing I take lightly.”

Clark told Lewiston city councilors during his presentation that the community showed resolve and determination during the ordeal.

“So, these traits continue and no doubt in the same way that Bostonians showed strength in their battles of Breeds and Bunker Hill. These traits are helping heal and helping move forward, and to gain our footing again,” he said. “Learning about those October crimes caught me off guard and in disbelief. I was listening, watching, and fearful. Realizing the senseless harm, and injury, and death just plain hurts. Soon after, in open grief, gatherings started taking place, community prayers were raised, and candlelight vigils were held. As heartfelt as ideas are, no words erase scars or do away with pain but this short poem arrangement I hope will serve, alongside others, to honor victims of this gruesome assault.”

Since its publication, Clark says that responses to his poem and the Lewiston City Council presentation have furnished him with faith in the importance of humane connections.

“The composition of ‘Our Candle Vigil’ became positioned with an unexpected outcome. My usual writing themes relate nature to people and people to nature, I’ve never characterized crime or punishment,” Clark said. “The events had jarred my senses. I related with deeply seated sorrow. I was hopeful it could bring some comfort. The poem seems to carry that affect. Work with words is a labor of love, I feel rewarded to realize the use of poetical lyrics does benefit recovery.”

He said that the events before and during the Lewiston shootings had a dismal effect on him and for his home state of Maine.

“I never envisioned a type of support that would have me reading a poem at a televised, open city council meeting. But it has happened,” Clark said. “Words are surely not a medical remedy for the fatigue of emotional pain, though they are a way to communicate. They can relate a positive intent. They can show concern. They can calm nerves. I am gladdened that my words have found a positive place in all the stress and madness of these past crazed events. I am also being inspired to find that compassion remains at the ready, it continues to be reliable. I am glad to have joined in to help victims heal from the shooter’s mind-numbing cruelties.” 

Our Candle Vigil

What pain is there when too much has been ground

Into the heart as if a dagger speared

Would cause to suffer wild screaming sounds

’Til eyes are left to grieve alone in tears?

What prayer verse could have been keeping guard

Where people work and prosper next to each

Among their kin and friends from yard to yard

And ask to only practice what they preach?

These shocking deaths for whom we now do bear

A witness to when love is lost to hate

Does rob us all of playfulness and cheer

Until the burden heals its own weight.

Tonight our candle vigil air is filled

With light that reaches far into the hills.

 

Local citizen shows appreciation for two Windham paramedics for a job well done

A woman injured in a fall last year in Windham
was inspired to present a copy of the official
seal of the Windham Fire and Rescue
Department to the paramedics who responded
and helped her. Now recovered, Angela
Guillette, second from left, and her friend,
Patricia McLellan, third from left, present a replica
of the seal painted by McLellan to
paramedics Paul Silver, left, and Edward
Dippolito at the Windham Fire Station on Oct. 2.
COURTESY PHOTO BY BRENT LIBBY   

By Lorraine Glowczak

A part of a paramedic’s job is to respond to 911 calls and address all medical emergencies. That is exactly what Windham Firefighter/Paramedic Paul Silva and Firefighter/EMT Edward Dippolito did in the morning hours a year ago on Sept. 30, 2019 when Angela Guillette fell, shattering her right femur in five places.

“I had just finished paying my taxes at the town hall and was rushing to attend a recording session for The Lighthouse Jubilee’s monthly program on Channel 5 in Portland,” Guillette said of the two-person Gospel and Golden Oldies group. “I usually walk up and down the ramp but this time, I decided to take the stairs. I didn’t pick my foot up high enough and tripped on the rug, falling hard on the floor.”

At first, Guillette did not feel much pain so when a bystander asked if she needed help getting up, Guillette said she just needed a moment to orient herself and that she would be fine.

“But then, I tried to get up and realized I wasn’t able to do so,” Guillette said. “Someone said that we should call an ambulance, so I lifted up my wrist and told her to press the button on the medical alert bracelet my daughters gave me.”

Within minutes, Silva, who has over 20 years of experience and was just one month into his new post in Windham and Dippolito who has 13 years of experience (11 in Windham) were by Guillette’s side. They determined she needed to be taken to the hospital and surgery was performed the next day at Maine Medical Center. Doctors placed a steel rod into the upper part of Guillette’s damaged leg. A woman injured in a fall last year in Windham was inspired to present a copy of the official seal of the Windham Fire and Rescue Department to the paramedics who responded and helped her. Now recovered, Angela Guillette, second from left, and her friend Patricia McLellan, third from left, present a replica of the seal painted by McLellan to paramedics Paul Silver, far left, and Edward Dippolito at
the Windham Fire Station on Oct. 2. COURTESY PHOTO BY BRENT LIBBY 

Most often, paramedics do not know the rest of a patient’s story once the emergency has been addressed and the crisis is over. Guillette, however, had other plans. She and Lighthouse Jubilee singing partner, friend, and artist, Patricia McLellan had an idea.

 “Pat and I both wanted to do something for the two paramedics who offered their help that day,” Guillette said. “She told me that she would paint the Windham Fire and Rescue Department’s official seal and we could give it to them to show our appreciation.”

Guillette and McLellan presented that shield one year later on Friday, Oct. 2 at the North Windham Fire Station. The 2- by 2-foot painting of the department’s seal was presented to Silva and Dippolito with Fire and Rescue Chief Brent Libby in attendance.

“We feel honored that Angela and Pat have gone to this extent to show their appreciation with us and to those of us in our profession,” both Silva and Dippolito said. “We are very grateful.”

“I believe the people who give us assistance and help us during emergency situations are not appreciated enough,” Guillette said. “Emergency technicians and paramedics need to be acknowledged for their efforts and that is one of the reasons why I am doing this today.”

As for the artist who painted the Windham’s Fire and Rescue’s seal, this is not the first seal McLellan has painted.

“Pat has given seals to the West Buxton Fire Department and the Watertown, NH Fire Department,” Guillette said. “She does this because she also wants to acknowledge our heroes.”

Chief Libby shared his thoughts regarding Guillette and McLellan’s kindness.

“We don’t always hear from our patients or know how things have turned out, so when people do come
forward to let us know, it feels good,” Libby said. “Sometimes we don’t always see the best of things during emergencies, so it is good to see the positive outcome.”
Above all, it is positivity and showing love during a time of challenges that inspired Guillette’s recent actions.

“I am a Christian and I believe the first thing Jesus wants from us is to love each other,” Guillette said. “I am dedicated to Jesus and I am here to help spread his love and kindness.”<