Adopt-A-Family provides joy for families in need at Christmas

The Windham Eagle newspaper
and the Windham Maine Community
Board on Facebook are teaming up
for the second consecutive year to
adopt area families in need of help 
this holiday season. 
COURTESY PHOTO 

By Ed Pierce

The notion of helping others in need over the holidays is universal as the Christmas season arrives every year. It was what made Charles Dickens’ “‘A Christmas Carol” an enduring classic and makes us recall O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi” some 115 years after it was first published. And now residents of Windham and Raymond have an avenue to help neighbors and families in the community by assisting those in need through a special Adopt-A-Family initiative this Christmas.

For the second consecutive year, The Windham Eagle newspaper and the Windham Maine Community Board on Facebook are teaming up to adopt families in need of a hand this holiday season, collect gifts and bring smiles on Christmas morning for community members struggling this year during the pandemic.

“It’s a great feeling to be a part of something like this and inspire others to stand up and do the same thing,” said Aaron Pieper of the Windham Maine Community Board. “Another thing that the Adopt-A-Family means to my family and me is it’s a way for us to do what we can to help others and our community as we’re not in the position to adopt a family ourselves for Christmas. So, by helping organize and doing something of the leg work and behind the scenes work, we are contributing in some way.”

Kelly Mank, publisher of The Windham Eagle, agrees and has lent support of the newspaper to the project.

“There are many families out there who are in need of help and we see it as our mission to be there for them,” Mank said. “This is a positive, kind and caring community and we are fortunate to be able to do this yet again this year.”

According to one of the Adopt-A-Family organizers, Kim MacKaye of Windham, a total of 14 families were assisted last year by the program and that number is expected to double this Christmas because of the pandemic, people out of work and so many area families barely getting by.

“The best part of this is that it brings our community together,” MacKaye said. “It connects those in need with those who want to give. It’s amazing. It shows we need each other.”

MacKaye said applicants for help are taken in good faith and the program is open to anyone in Windham and Raymond.

“We have a great capacity for compassion in this community,” she said. “Last year I was humbled by what people in need asked for, they were small gifts, they weren’t asking for a lot. Some asked for gloves, a winter hat or warm socks.”

Volunteer Meaghan Bisson of Windham helped match families with gifts a year ago and also spent time wrapping gifts so that they could be delivered in time for Christmas.

“It’s rewarding how much the Windham community is as a whole,” Bisson said. “This community truly
cares about one another.”

Another volunteer, Nicole Lewis of Windham will serve as a shopper for the program and expects to be shopping right up until the cutoff for registering families for adoption.

“Every year there’s a group that needs help,” Lewis said. “It’s about the kids. It’s Christmas and this year, kids have lost a lot.”

Pieper said the outpouring of support from the community is not limited to individuals and that local businesses he’s spoken with are enthusiastic about helping too.

“Every single family that we help will receive brand new haircuts and toothbrushes from area businesses,” he said. “Those business owners I’ve talked to so far are really excited to be a part of this.”

Mank said the newspaper offices will serve as a collection and wrapping point for gifts.

“It gets pretty hectic trying to get everything done in time, but it’s really a labor of love,” she said. “We’re thrilled to be a part of this positive program again this year.”

Pieper said that if you or someone you know is in need of help this holiday season, he encourages them to fill out this electronic form for assistance: https://forms.gle/2qjX6haLaE4yzd9n8

Requests for help close Monday, Nov. 30.

Anyone interested in volunteering to help is asked to sign up here:

https://forms.gle/yjEuo3p5WGmxTmqY8

Gift cards and donations for the program may be dropped off be at the offices of The Windham Eagle, 588 Roosevelt Trail in Windham, during regular business hours. If contributing a donation by check, make checks payable to The Windham Eagle. <

Virtual science experiments connect college students with Windham eighth-graders

By Ed Pierce

Even in the middle of the pandemic, some RSU 14 educators are still striving to be innovative while teaching remotely and creating memorable and innovative lessons for their students. A great example of that is Pamela Mallard, Windham Middle School math and science teacher.

With her eighth-grade students in the classroom twice a week and having to learn remotely on Fridays, Mallard teamed up with Chemistry Professor Dr. Emily Lesher at Saint Joseph’s College to conduct a series of engaging experiments online this fall for eighth-graders led by college chemistry students. In past years, Saint Joseph’s have sat in on some of Mallard’s classes in person, but the pandemic resulted in a change of plans with all-virtual experiments that students can perform on their own at home.

Skyler Conant, an eighth grtader at
Windham Middle School, shows an
experiment he worked on virtually
this fall with chemistry students
attending Saint Joseph's College. 
In the experiment, Conant
demonstrated a chemical reaction by
mixing baking soda and vinegar
causing a gas that blew up the balloon.
SUBMITTED PHOTO 

“It has made it possible to overcome a barrier that has been difficult,” Mallard said. “Last year Emily brought her science students into my classroom and did engaging experiments. Our goal was for my Middle School students to see how Science could be fun and lead to a career. This year with the restrictions due to the pandemic, visitors were not going to be allowed to come and present.”

Mallard said that Professor Lesher reached out to her to devise a plan about how to implement the same program but in a different way. 

“She devised with her students to come into my class by Google Meets. College students then led the middle school students in experiments and learning adventures,” Mallard said. 

Supplies needed for the special labs and experiments would be delivered by Dr. Lesher so that the eighth-grade students would have what they needed to perform the experiments at home each Friday. 

Skyler Conant, an eighth grader in Pamela Mallard’s science class at Windham Middle School shows an experiment he worked on virtually this fall with chemistry students attending Saint Joseph’s College. In the experiment, Conant demonstrated a chemical reaction by mixing baking soda and vinegar causing a gas that blew up the balloon. SUBMITTED PHOTO

 

“My students couldn’t wait to see what the package held,” Mallard said. “The surprise brought such excitement to my students. I would like to express my gratitude to Dr. Lesher and her students.  This year has been very difficult for students and this outreach allowed them to have something to look forward to.”

According to Mallard, each of Mallard’s 40 students were given a virtual lesson and experiment, split up into 10 at a time.

“At this age, my kids don’t always see the importance of science,” she said. “But these college students were able to connect science to careers they were preparing to enter such as a medical biologist or a game warden. This allowed excitement to happen again for my students and they could see the crossover to the future plans for these college students and opened meaningful dialogue about it.”

Adding to the relevance for the eighth-grader students were that three or four of the Saint Joseph’s College chemistry students helping lead the experiments were graduates of Windham High School, Mallard said.

“This allowed my students to see local kids who are attending a local college and gave them an opportunity to think about what they might want to study at that level too,” she said.

Participation among the Windham Middle School eighth graders was 90 to 95 percent for the Friday experiments, which spanned a range of topics from chemistry to physical sciences.

“They gave them everything they needed to do the experiments at home and that was met with real enthusiasm by my students,” Mallard said. “They were able to relate to the college kids and the entire program was extremely worthwhile because it helped promote math and science and they could come in to class the next week and share what they learned.”

The final day for the fall experiments for Saint Joseph’s College students interacting virtually with Windham Middle School math and science students was Nov. 16.

Mallard said because of the success of the program this fall, she hopes to continue it in January with Lesher’s new class at Saint Joseph’s  College. < 

Veteran outdoorsman joins newspaper lineup as columnist

By Ed Pierce

This week The Windham Eagle newspaper welcomes Bob Chapin as its new outdoors columnist.

Chapin is a retired U.S. Air Force officer and a retired defense analyst who moved to Raymond about 12 years ago with his wife, Susan, and has been active in local conservation, environment, neighborhood, and local hunting and fishing organizations. He is the past president of Raymond Waterways Protective Association, the current president of Thomas Pond Improvement Association and the Pulpit Rock Road Association of homeowners. He’s also a past president of Windham-Gorham Rod and Gun Club, the current Windham-Gorham Rod and Gun Club entertainment director, and the current president of the Sebago Lake Anglers’ Association.

Bob Chapin will be writing an outdoors column
starting with this issue for The Windham Eagle.
He is active in local conservation efforts, 
environment, neighborhood and local hunting 
and fishing organizations and has lived in
Raymond for the past 12 years.
SUBMITTED PHOTO

He’s been a lifelong fisherman and hunter and has fished in Thailand, Korea, France, Florida, Alaska, Montana, California, Virginia, Maryland, Idaho, Connecticut and Maine. He has hunted elk in Montana, Colorado, New Mexico, and Idaho. While on assignment to Alaska for six and a half years he hunted Dall Sheep, Brown Bear, Black Bear, Moose, Ptarmigan, Grouse, Ducks, and Geese. In Germany he hunted Reh Deer, Wild Boar, Red Stag, and Gomswild or Chamois goats and has also hunted hares, rabbits, ring-necked pigeons and pheasants.

As an experienced fisherman, Chapin has taught fly tying and ice fishing to Boy Scouts, taught fishing to Girl Scouts, taught fly casting to participants in Portland Water District’s field day and is currently mentoring several members of the Windham-Gorham Rod and Gun Club on hunting ducks and geese, turkeys, and pheasants in Maine.

He said the best thing about being an outdoorsman living in the Sebago Lake Region is the assortment of available options.

“We are blessed with such a variety of places, activities, and resources that make pursuing our passions whether they be fishing or hunting, or boating or hiking, or collecting mushrooms, whatever it is, it is right here at our doorstep,” he said. “All we have to do is get out and enjoy it.”

Through this new outdoors column, Chapin said he’ll pass along helpful hints that almost everyone can use.

“Readers should expect to learn something they can apply to their personal pursuits and maybe make them a little more comfortable, safer, or successful doing so,” he said. “I am at that age when I feel I have had so many wonderful experiences all over the world and hopefully learned some of the finer points that I can share with readers.  I have made some mistakes as well and hopefully they can read about them and avoid doing the same. I also like to include some humor when I can because reading the column should be fun as well.”

His interest in outdoors activities didn’t just happen overnight.

“For me it was not just one thing and it took several years to develop. My parents had a summer camp on Lake Housatonic down in Connecticut, that section of the Housatonic River that was captured between two dams, one at Lake Zoar and one in Derby near Shelton, Connecticut,” Chapin said. “I had three brothers and three sisters and all of us kids loved the last day of school after which we bundled up everyone and headed for the camp for the summer. We lived in bathing suits and fished and swam about every day. Neither my dad nor my uncles were outdoorsmen, so our development was a slow one. My interest didn’t really take off until I was through college and assigned to my first duty station, Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska.”

He said he spent quite a bit of time in the coffee bar at the squadron there and when they were not talking about flying, they were talking about fishing or hunting because Alaska is an outdoorsman’s paradise.

“Several guys in the squadron had their own bush planes and could fly us into some remote areas. We would relish the stories when a crew would get back from a hunt and would tuck any special lessons into our planning for our next hunt,” Chapin said. “This continued when we got assigned to Germany. Most guys were content to just shoot trap or skeet on base, but I wanted to hunt in Germany. To do so required you to take and pass the German Hunting Course, which of course was in German and pass a practical shooting and safety test. I did all that and it opened lots of opportunities for me on that and a subsequent assignment later in my career. I continued my interest in each subsequent assignment always researching and following up on opportunities to enjoy the outdoors wherever I was.”

According to Chapin, he’s is a master navigator, a flight examiner, a private pilot, and a certified open ocean scuba diver and in his spare time, he works on minor construction. He’s also a member of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Ducks Unlimited, and through the Sebago Chapter of Trout Unlimited has assisted Maine’s Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Department on several field studies and projects.

His column will be published in The Windham Eagle once or twice every month and Chapin’s first column appears in today’s newspaper. <

Dazzling displays: Holiday Decorating Contest shows Windham’s holiday spirit

It’s that magical time of the year when wishes do come true for children of all ages and a season of good cheer and wanting to express gratitude for family, friends and neighbors is upon us.

And this year in Windham, a new contest is expected to become a beloved tradition in celebrating the spirit of the community.

Decorate your home or business for a chance to win the First Annual Holiday Decorating Contest and be included on a 2020 Holiday Lights Map of Windham.

How do we enter? 

In order to enter your home or business, you must register online at www.windhamrecreation.com and submit a photo.

How will winners be chosen? 

Winning homes and businesses will be chosen by a “People’s Vote” on Facebook and at the Parks & Recreation office during the week of Dec. 14.

Will there be any recognition for entrants who do not win the “People’s Vote”? 

We will also hold a prize drawing for any home who enters the contest and is not a “People’s Vote” winner.

What is the Holiday Lights Map? 

Windham Parks & Recreation will publish a map that lists all of the homes and businesses in the decorating contest, so that local families may drive by and enjoy your decorations in person.

Help spread holiday cheer throughout Windham.

Entry Guidelines

1) Please submit a single still image that may be uploaded to social media for voting purposes. This photo should be uploaded when prompted to submit "Required Documents."

2) If you wish to submit additional photos and/or video, these may be emailed to Parks&Recreation@windhammaine.us.

3) All photos and videos that have been submitted may be posted by Windham Parks & Recreation on our Facebook page or other social media.

4) By participating in this contest, you agree that your home or business location will be recognized on the 2020 Holiday Lights Map.

5) As part of the entry process, you will be asked to provide a public name for your location to be identified on the map. Suggestions include using your family name as in "The Smith Home," or designating a theme such as "Winter Wonderland."

6) During the registration process, please choose to "Check Out Online" and no fee will be charged. This is required in order to complete your registration.

The Holiday Decorating Contest is co-sponsored by the Sebago Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce, Windham Parks & Recreation, and the Windham Economic Development Corporation. <

Dream Come True: Korean War veteran receives medals 70 years later

U.S. Army veteran Edward 'Ed' Salmon of
Windham displays medals, ribbons and a
certificate he received during a special
ceremony on Veterans Day at the Windham
Veterans Center. Salmon, 91, never received
the medals for his military service during the
Korean War following his discharge and return
to civilian life in 1952. PHOTO BY ED PIERCE   

By Ed Pierce

Nearly 70 years ago, Edward “Ed” Salmon answered the call to be drafted into the U.S. Army and logged two years creating critical lines of communication for soldiers in combat zones on the Korean Peninsula during the Korean War. When his time in the Army was up, Salmon returned to the United States vowing to make a life for himself, but there was always something missing.

On Veterans Day, Salmon, 91, of Windham, who went on to earn a college degree in civil engineering and served for 20 years as the Director of Plant Facilities for the University of Maine at Orono, was brought full-circle to his military career when he was awarded five medals and two ribbons for his service in Korea.

Born in 1929 in Cornwells Heights, Pennsylvania, Salmon just missed being drafted for service in World War II because he was too young, but as he was approaching his 21^st birthday in December 1950, he was drafted and was among the first soldiers to train for eight weeks at the newly reopened Fort Meade in Maryland. From there Private First Class Salmon was sent to Fort Benning in Georgia for further training and then he swapped places with a fellow solder going home on a hardship discharge and was sent to Korea early in 1951.

“It was brutally hot in the summer there and 20 to 40 degrees below zero in the winter,” Salmon said. “And it rained all spring.”

Working in heavily fortified areas, he learned to climb telephone poles and crisscrossed much of the
Korean Peninsula building, installing and maintaining communications lines. It was tough and dangerous work, under constant watch by the enemy and sometimes being shot at.

Because of the nature of their mission, his unit didn’t receive much recognition by the Eighth Army based in Tokyo and to a man was overlooked for promotions in rank and unheralded for their work under some of the most trying conditions of the war.

“I didn’t particularly care for any of it,” Salmon said. “You were constantly on the move and I didn’t like Korean food.”

After spending almost 13 months in the combat zone, Salmon was discharged and back in the USA by February 1953, feeling lucky to have survived the experience.

He was accepted for admission to the University of Maine and earned a Bachelor of Science degree. He began his civilian career working as a structural design consultant for a Massachusetts firm and then returned to Maine to work for a construction company in Yarmouth.

Salmon married his first wife and they had four sons together. After his marriage fell apart, he met his current wife, Pat, in Portland and they have been married for 37 years, moving to Windham about 15 years ago.

“He didn’t talk about his time in the military,” Pat Salmon said. “About four or five years ago, we started going to the Togus VA Center for a  hearing problem he has and it was then he started thinking and talking about the medals he never received for his military service.”

She said that he knew he had been awarded some medals for his time in Korea but had never physically received them.

“It was something that had passed long ago,” Salmon said. “I did my job and came back. But I had a life to lead and went on with my life. Over the years I forgot all about them.”

Being around other veterans at the Togus VA Center rekindled his desire to obtain his medals, he said.

Pat Salmon helped him fill out paperwork to receive his medals, but a few issues stalled the process.

“His DD 214 discharge papers had his birthday wrong,” she said. “They had his birthday off by one day and getting that corrected took some time.”

The Salmons then met Lin and David Tanguay, who live in their neighborhood. Lin Tanguay told Pat Salmon that her husband David could help in Ed Salmon’s quest to receive his medals and suggested that they join the American Legion Field-Allen Post 148 in Windham.

In his role as Adjutant of the American Legion post, David Tanguay was able to obtain the medals for
Ed Salmon.

During a special ceremony at the Windham Veterans Center on Veterans Day, Salmon received not three medals as he had thought he had coming, but five medals and two ribbons.

He received the National Defense Service Medal Award retroactive to 1950; the Korean War Service Medal, the United Nations Korean War Service Medal; the Korean Commemorative Medal; the Korean Service Medal; the U.S. Army Presidential Citation Ribbon; and the Korean Presidential Citation ribbon.

“I was very pleased to get them and with two of my kids there to watch me receive them,” Salmon said.

The framed medals, ribbons and a commemorative certificate from the American Legion now occupy a prominent place in the family’s living room and are a source of great pride for them.   

According to Pat Salmon, the family is grateful to Tanguay and the American Legion for helping fulfill Ed Salmon’s dream of receiving the medals he earned in Korea and for the camaraderie of being around other veterans.

“He needed the social outlet,” Pat Salmon said. “It has allowed him to meet and talk with others who have shared his experience. We can’t thank David and his wife Lin enough for their efforts in introducing us to the group and helping make this such a memorable time for us.” <

Windham High’s Restorative Learning Program assists students in getting back on track

Windham High School's Restorative Learning
Program assists students who have been
suspended or expelled to remain engaged and
learning while also helping them take
steps to repair the damage of their actions.
COURTESY PHOTO

By Elizabeth Richards

Often, when high school students are suspended or expelled, they fall behind in their academics because of time spent out of school. The Restorative Learning Program at Windham High School is an innovative approach that keeps these students engaged and learning while helping them take steps to repair the damage of their actions.

WHS Assistant Principal Phil Rossetti said the program began as part of a grant program several years ago, with several area schools involved in similar work. Windham is the only high school that still has the program, he said, which demonstrates the district’s commitment to helping students succeed. 

“School is not a one-size-fits-all system. It fits most but there is a group of students that need alternate pathways,” Rossetti said.  “RSU 14 lives by the motto “Success for all”. This is exemplified in the many ways the district support’s our high school programing. The Restorative learning program is one of several that are designed to support students that are struggling to find success.” 

Jill Tank and Dr. Leisl Johnson staff the RLP at the high school in a typical year. This year, due to COVID 19, the program isn’t functioning normally, so the two are providing academic support for students and coverage for staff who need to quarantine.  

In a regular year, students can enter the RLP when they have made a mistake that leads to suspension or expulsion.  Typical suspension or expulsion doesn’t result in repairing the damage or help keep students engaged academically.

If students are home, Rossetti said, they may continue making the poor decisions that led to those consequences. 

Time may also be spent in unproductive ways, like playing video games, Tank said. 

“They don’t play games in my class,” she said.

Expulsion isn’t the “old school” idea that once you’ve been asked to leave, you’re gone forever,
Rossetti said. 

What it means, instead, is that a student is removed from their program and enrolled in RLP to help them discover what they need to get back on track, he said. Once that hard work is completed, they have an opportunity to return and continue working towards graduation. 

Students enrolled in the RLP are picked up at their homes by a staff person in a district van. The program operates from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Monday to Thursday.

Once at school, students spend their day with RLP staff keeping up with schoolwork and finding ways to repair the damage of their actions, such as reflective work around what prompted their choices or restorative letters to others impacted by their behavior. RLP staff coordinates with the teachers to determine the work that needs to be completed for each individual student.

The RLP is a different way to connect with students, Tank said.

This approach helps keep students on track academically and allows students to build important relationships. Typically, one to four students are participating in the program at a time.

“The success of many students is based on the relationships they form,” Rossetti said.  “The [RLP] staff do a great job building these relationships with students. Knowing that they have a place that is safe where they can be themselves and seek out advice helps foster success.”

Tank said the relationships formed is evident in the number of students who leave the RLP but continue to return to connect with the staff.

“The RLP Program provides students an opportunity to not only remain engaged academically and not fall behind, but form relationships with staff who are there for them even after they leave the program,” she said.

Although the pandemic has put a temporary stop to the program due to the challenges of this school year and transportation difficulties it remains one of many ways in which students can reach graduation in RSU 14. 

“There are many ways for students to be successful in RSU 14 and Windham High School that include not just RLP, but the Katahdin Program, JMG and the APEX program as well. I think that’s what makes us special and unique,” Tank said. <

The Windham Eagle partners with Windham Community Board to assist local families during holidays

The Windham Eagle newspaper and the Windham Maine Community Board on Facebook are excited to come together again this holiday season to create a positive solution by helping some local families who are in need or have fallen on hard times.

If you or someone you know is in need this holiday season, please fill out this electronic form here: https://forms.gle/2qjX6haLaE4yzd9n8

As we cannot guarantee every family will be adopted, we will work diligently to bring cheer to as many Windham and Raymond families as possible. We will be accepting requests from residents of Windham and Raymond until Sunday, Nov. 30.

If you are able, we would love for you to join us in sharing some joy with our neighbors this season.

Let us know how you can help by filling out this form here:

https://forms.gle/yjEuo3p5WGmxTmqY8

We wish everyone a safe and wonderful season. <

 

Raymond firefighters continue Fire Prevention Month tradition adjusting for pandemic

Raymond Elementary School students visit with
Raymond firefighters on a visit to the school
during Fire Prevention Month. PHOTO BY
RAYMOND FIRE & RESCUE

For almost 100 years, firefighters across America have a week every fall to observe Fire Prevention Week, an initiative designed to show children, adults, and teachers how to stay safe in the event of a fire.

Raymond firefighters use the opportunity to provide lifesaving public education to try and help drastically reduce casualties caused by fires.

“For us, this has always been Fire Prevention Month, because we have a lot of activities each year that just don’t fit into one week” said Raymond Fire Chief Bruce Tupper.  “But because of the pandemic, we had to change some of the ways we had been doing things.  All our members wore masks, and we maintained social distancing with the children.”

Because of the pandemic, the Raymond Elementary School requested training videos be created to avoid having firefighters in the classrooms. 

With the help of Bill Blood, Raymond’s videographer, two videos were created:  one for the younger grades emphasized that ‘firefighters aren’t scary’ and told the children not to hide from firefighters during an emergency.  The other video, for grades 3 to 4, emphasized kitchen safety and how to escape from their bedroom at night.

School administrators reported that the videos, which were shown by the teachers in the classrooms, helped the children have sufficient time to digest the invaluable lifesaving information. 

Each class then went outside, and all the grades got to see some of the tools in ‘the big red truck.’  The
children were provided with Halloween trick-or-treat bags with fire safety information for their families.

The videos are available for families to view.  For Kindergarten to Grade 2 students, there is an under six-minute video showing a firefighter suiting up, and why he is “not scary.”  To see the video, go to   https://www.raymondmaine.org/content/suiting

For students in Grades 3 and 4, an under 12-minute video discusses kitchen safety, and how children should escape from their bedrooms at night if there is a fire.  See the video at https://www.raymondmaine.org/content/kitchen-safety

Fire Prevention Month efforts also included other activities.

Raymond Deputy Fire Chief Cathy Gosselin said that members of the fire department also visited several of our day cares, and the Raymond Village Library, in order to connect with younger children and their parents. 

“We have been doing that for many years and the children look forward to it,” Gosselin said. <

Diamond proposes bill to set standards for vanity plates

Senator Bill Diamond of Windham has
introduced a bill to strengthen the standards
used by the Maine Secretary of State's office
in issuing vanity license plates and to reject
applications for those that are vulgar,
contain hate speech or include language
that refer to drugs.
FILE PHOTO

Senator Bill Diamond of Windham has introduced a bill to strengthen the standards that Maine’s Secretary of State uses to issue vanity license plates.

Diamond’s bill will allow the Secretary of State to reject applications for plates that are vulgar, contain hate speech or that include language referring to drugs.

“As a former Maine Secretary of State, I know that these additional standards are badly needed,” Diamond said. “Some of the plates I see when I’m out on the road today provide strong evidence that the Legislature must create more thorough guidance.”

He served as Maine’s Secretary of State from 1989 to 1997, during which time Maine’s vanity plate program was first implemented. Maine law currently prohibits plates that encourage violence, may result in an act of violence or spur other unlawful activities.

In 2015, Maine repealed restrictions on license plates that could be considered obscene, contemptuous, profane or prejudicial, or which promoted abusive or unlawful activity.

“As the Secretary of State who began the vanity plate program, I never imagined that plates would be used to make such vulgar statements as the ones we’re seeing today,” Diamond said.  “Vanity plates are a fun part of driving in Maine, and have even become a tradition here, but we need to have some limitations when it comes to making public statements on state property (vanity plates) if for no other reason than to demonstrate to our youth that with life comes certain boundaries. Setting some clear standards will make sure everyone is on the same page about what is and is not appropriate for our roadways.”

The bill will now undergo further work in committee.

The 130^th Maine Legislature will be sworn in on Dec. 2. <

IIA’s Academic Elders act as patients so nursing students can learn real-life clinical assessment skills

The Academic Elder volunteers brought out the
life experiences, frailty and struggles of the
characters portrayed in the scenarios so
students could learn to see the person and
not just the illness or disease. As a result
of the volunteers, there was improvement
in students' verbal and non-verbal
communication, fostering a positive and
effective nurse-client relationship.
COURTESY PHOTO

By Lorraine Glowczak

Officially established a little over one year ago, the Institute for Integrative Aging (IIA) at Saint Joseph’s College of Maine (SJCME) seeks to address loneliness and isolation experienced by many older adults by offering a variety of intergenerational activities. Programs such as Silver Sneakers®, online Coffee and Conversations, a hiking program, a book club and much more have been and continue to be successful. The recent launch of the Academic Elder Volunteer Program was implemented for the first time this fall with nursing students and also proved to be a success.

“We had four amazing Academic Elder volunteers who virtually joined Professor Nancy Bonard’s Nursing Fundamentals Course, acting as ‘standardized patients’ IIA Director Heather DiYenno said. “This opportunity allowed the nursing students to practice their clinical assessment skills along with general communication and interviewing techniques in a simulated environment.”

DiYenno and Bonard have been collaborating on several projects that support both the nursing program at SJCME and IIA. Due to the restrictions from the COVID pandemic, the Academic Elder Volunteer Program filled a gap in hands-on learning.    

“The nursing program’s clinical sites for long-term care have been part of the curriculum, working directly with patients at long-term care facilities,” Bonard said. “However, this semester, the nursing students were not able to visit the facilities due to the risk of coronavirus transmission.”

Learning how to communicate effectively with the patient and create a therapeutic nurse-patient relationship would not have been fulfilled if not for the help of the Academic Elders.

“While there are ample opportunities for practicing skills on mannequins [such as bathing and transferring clients], there was a need for students to be able to practice therapeutic communication skills,” Bonard said. “The discussions included many important themes for nursing care, such as caregiving, the unique needs of older adults, transitions of care, and holistic care of clients.”

“At the conclusion of the four-week period, both volunteers and faculty noted that there was improvement in students’ verbal and non-verbal therapeutic communication, fostering a positive and
effective nurse-client relationship,” DiYenno said.

Although the students were not available for an interview, they expressed to both DiYenno and Bonard that they were grateful to talk with a real person, being able to ask better questions that included feedback as a result. This included proper and effective ways of communication – knowing what to say and what not to say to a patient. They also said this portion of the experience was one of the favorite parts of their clinicals.

The Academic Elder volunteers, who had heard about this opportunity through email communications with IIA, share some of their own experiences. Lyman and Darnell Stuart were two of those volunteers.

“Meeting with Nancy and Heather was all that it took to see what a wonderful experience this would be for their students,” Lyman Stuart said. “I love helping anyone further their education in whatever they may be learning, and I found this to be unique.”

Darnell Stuart, who is very engaged in theater, was looking for ways to be involved now that theaters are closed. Having had many years of work experience in senior health care, Darnell believed she was able to contribute to the students’ learning. But she also learned something as a volunteer.

“I was reminded of the term, ‘youth is wasted on the young.’ This is not so true - it is not wasted. It is they who keep us young if we allow them to grow.”

A third volunteer, Donna Leitner decided to be an Academic Elder because she had many positive mentors throughout her educational and professional career and thought this would be an opportunity to “pay it forward."

“I’m hoping my involvement afforded students a ‘live elder’ (albeit by videoconference) to practice
communication and assessment skills,” Leitner said. “Most importantly, I feel I brought out the life experiences, frailty and struggles of the characters portrayed in the scenarios so students could learn to see the person and not just the illness or disease.” 

“Watching their growth caused me to ‘up my game’ in portraying the character as realistically as possible,” she said. “In some instances, I had to do research on the character’s illness or the formal medical assessment scales/tools that might be utilized in their questioning.”

There may be more opportunities for both older adults and students next semester.

“Nancy’s class will continue with a different curriculum and there is a possibility to work with them again this spring,” DiYenno said. “Due to limitations of clinical placement, these students would have otherwise lost a whole year of clinicals without the help of the volunteers.”

IIA is also having discussions with other departments at the college including Social Work and Communications about other Academic Elder opportunities. And it seems from the positive feedback from the first set of volunteers, IIA and the professors will not have to look far for more Academic Elders.

“Their enthusiasm is infectious,” Lyman Stuart said. “I am already looking forward to the spring
semester when we can do this again.”

For other older adults who may be thinking about volunteering their time as an Academic Elder, Darnell Stuart has this to say:

“I do hope more people get involved. The students deserve what each of us can give them and we deserve the joy of helping them grow.”

For more information on the Academic Elder Volunteer program, contact Heather DiYenno at the Institute of Integrative Aging by email at hdiyenno@sjcme.edu or by phone at 207-893-7641.<

Raymond Village Library makes annual appeal

By Briana Bizier

Sometimes it feels like the COVID-19 pandemic has changed everything. As we adjust to working from home or working while wearing a face mask, helping our children with hybrid and distance learning, and the awkwardness of Zoom dinner parties, our community connections have become more important than ever.

The Raymond Village Library is not fully funded
by the town of Raymond and nearly half of
the library's budget comes from grants and
private donations collected during their fall
Annual Appeal, now under way.
FILE PHOTO

One of those community institutions is now asking for your help. Unlike many similar libraries, the Raymond Village Library is not fully funded by the town of Raymond. Nearly half of the library’s budget comes from grants and private donations. This means that the funds used to purchase new books, pay for subscriptions, and support their wonderful librarians come directly from generous community donations during their fall Annual Appeal. Raymond Village Library cannot function without the financial support of its patrons and donors.

This investment in our community is especially crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Raymond Village Library has played an essential role in helping Raymond residents navigate this strange and unprecedented time.

As soon as Maine’s COVID restrictions allowed, the Raymond Village Library began offering curbside pickup of books, movies, and children’s materials. The initial curbside pickup program was incredibly well received.

“Our pick-up was so popular we started running out of bags for the books,” said Allison Griffin, Director of the Raymond Village Library. This service is still available through phone, email, and the library’s website at www.raymondvillagelibrary.org.

As the entire world stayed at home and much of our lives moved online, the free internet connection offered by Raymond Village Library became more important than ever. Generous community donations this fall allowed the library to provide additional outdoor seating around picnic tables so that the wi-fi was easily accessible even if the library was closed. In addition to providing internet service, the library also has a professional Zoom account, so that library events, such as the monthly book club or community classes, can be held safely online.

Some of the most perennially popular activities at the Raymond Village Library are the weekly baby and toddler story time hours. When social distancing requirements made those gatherings impossible, Children’s Librarian Karen Perry got creative. The library now offers weekly Story Time At Home kits complete with crafts, books, and songs to help encourage a love of literacy in even the littlest library patrons. These kits, as well as teen and tween crafts, are available every week and are always free of charge.

In addition to the take-home Story Time kits, Perry also created two popular outdoor Story Walks. The first, Jack in the Beanstalk, wound its way around the Raymond Community Garden this summer while the second, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, follows the store window fronts in the Raymond Shopping Center.

All of these activities are only possible thanks to the generosity of Raymond Village Library patrons. Unfortunately, even as the pandemic has made so many library services invaluable, it also has disrupted many of the library’s traditional fundraising activities. The Raymond Village Library truly needs our help this year more than ever.

The library’s 2020 Annual Appeal aims to raise $40,000. This amount will allow the library to expand staff hours in addition to continuing regular (or, regular for the pandemic) services. Donations to the Raymond Village Library are accepted in person, through the mail, or at their website: www.raymondvillagelibrary.org. Contributions of any amount will allow the Raymond Village Library to continue providing books and activities to babies and toddlers, internet access to students completing their work online, new books to homebound seniors, and classes to all members of our community. Together, let’s make sure our library remains available for all our friends and neighbors during this difficult time. <

Windham Town Council elects new chairperson, makes committee appointments

David Nadeau has been elected
chairperson of the Windham
Town Council. FILE PHOTO

By Ed Pierce

In the aftermath of this month’s election with two members sworn in and taking seats on the Windham Town Council, councilors elected a new chairperson and sorted out committee appointments in a meeting via Zoom on Nov. 10.

Councilor David Nadeau was elected as the new council chair, succeeding Jarrod Maxfield, who was voted as the new council vice-chairperson. Councilor David Douglass was chosen as the council parliamentarian.

Nadeau is a retired electronics engineer who has served on the Windham Town Council for eight years and was a member of the town Planning Board for 10 years. In September he was presented with the 2020 Planner of the Year Award by the Maine Association of Planners.

The council also chose Nadeau to serve on the Finance Committee along with Councilors Mark Morrison and Nicholas Kalogerakis. Elected to serve on the Appointments Committee are Councilors Douglass, Kalogerakis and Maxfield.

Morrison, who was elected Nov. 3 as an at-large representative, will join Maxfield in serving as the council’s representatives to the Windham Economic Development Board.

Douglass and Kalogerakis will represent the council on the Marijuana License Fee Committee, while Maxfield and Nadeau will serve on the Public Dire Road Sub-Committee.

The council elected Maxfield to serve as a member of the Highland Lake Leadership Team and Nadeau to serve on the Long-Range Planning Committee.

Councilor Tim Nangle was elected to serve on the Parks & Recreation Advisory Committee, while
Douglass was chosen to serve on the Natural Resources Advisory Committee.

Councilor Brett Jones, who was elected to represent the East District on Nov. 3 will serve on the Public Easement Advisory Committee. Maxfield and Nadeau will serve on the Smith Cemetery Committee.

Councilors also appointed Elizabeth Hall, James Ross and Ken Dolby to serve on the Smith Cemetery Board.

Jacqueline Roux was appointed by the council to serve a three-year term on the town’s Board of Assessment Review. <

Service Dog Strong an admirable force for those experiencing RR-PTSD

By Lorraine Glowczak

Laynie Danforth, a RR_PTSD
survivor, trains her new service
dog, Doug, all due to the help
of Service Dog Strong located
in Windham. Danforth says
that Doug has given her the
confidence to start living her
life again. SUBMITTED PHOTO

Service Dog Strong’s mission is to provide trained service dogs free of charge to individuals who experience PTSD related anxiety due to sexual trauma, otherwise known as Rape Related Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (RR-PTSD). This includes military veterans who experience MST (military sexual trauma).

Service Dog Strong (SDS) officially became a non-profit in June 2019. Simone Emmons, along with co-founder Kristen Stacy, have been working for over a year on a volunteer basis to provide support to others who have experienced pain and suffering due to sexual assault. The Windham Eagle newspaper spoke with them in August 2019 and shared their story. (http://frontpage.thewindhameagle.com/2019/08/service-dog-strong-organization-to.html)

“I started this organization because I simply wanted to help other people who have been through what I have,” Emmons said during that August 2019 interview.

The Windham Eagle reached out recently to see how the non-profit has progressed.

“Since we spoke last, SDS celebrated our one-year anniversary, launched our website, gained many new followers and supporters and we were finally able to financially support our mission,” Emmons said, whose service dog Gunner has eased the angst of anxiety attacks she experiences as a result of personal MST.

“SDS was awarded a generous local Maine grant as well as donations from loving individuals to fulfill our mission,” Emmons said. “We are able to take our survivors who had been on our wait list for almost a year and start our first ever Service Dog training class.”

SDS adopts dogs from kill shelters with the right temperament and places them in a training class where the RR-PTSD survivor is taught to train the dog themselves. They work under the instruction of an expert Windham trainer and veteran police officer, Dominic Rizzo, known as “Detector Dog Northeast.”

Laynie Danforth is one of those individuals who is helped by this organization.

“I had heard about the benefits of having a service animal [with those experiencing RR-PTSD] so I set
out to find an organization that would help me,” Danforth said. “I searched many hours on the internet and all I found were very expensive programs or programs solely dedicated to veterans. Eventually, I came across SDS and there was finally hope for the future. Not only do they help veterans, but they also help survivors like me.”

Danforth and her new service dog, Doug, have been in training together since mid-August. Doug will officially be hers at the end of the 20-week course that ends in January 2021.

In this short timeframe with SDS and Doug, Danforth has experienced a positive and healthy approach to life.

“Before SDS and Doug, I found it very difficult to be around crowds,” Danforth said. “My PTSD was heightened in the dark and I would spend nearly every night suffering from nightmares or sleeping hardly at all. I was on a few medications that my doctors felt would help keep my panic and other symptoms more under control. Unfortunately, they offered little relief. Now, having Doug in my life he helps me in a number of ways- not only to feel more secure when I am alone or in a crowd but he helps me by doing pressure therapy when I am sleeping so that I don’t have as many nightmares. He also turns on the lights when I need him to, alerts me to the changes in my anxiety even before I notice so I can use alternative methods to calm down. I have been able to get off almost all medications. Doug has given me the confidence to get out and start to live again. It's like a world that I thought was gone forever has started to emerge again.”

SDS, a 100 percent volunteer run organization, works with a local shelter, The Green Ark. They hand
pick dogs to fulfil the mission of SDS, and at the same time giving the rescue dog - who would have been euthanized, not only life but a sense of purpose and calling.

“If readers would like to participate in our journey and support the SDS mission, we have two ways currently they can show their support and be strong with us,” Emmons said. “We encourage them to go to our website at www.sdsmaine.org and donate via PayPal or they are free to visit us on Facebook and donate from our page. The cost to put one survivor through our class is roughly $3500.”

Emmons would like to thank the local community and The Windham Eagle newspaper for their continued support and looks forward to more possible assistance.

“We hope our format catches on nationwide and we see changes in options in treating PTSD; having service dogs become a viable option for people looking for a sustainable, non-pharmaceutical tool to lessen the effects of PTSD,” Emmons said.

As for those who may be suffering from RR-PTSD but are hesitant about coming forward for help, Danforth offers this advice:

“You are not what happened to you,” she said. “There wasn’t anything you did to encourage it and I promise that it was not your fault. As scary as it might be to get help, living in fear or in shame is so much worse. Once you take that first step toward healing, you render your attacker powerless and life can begin again.”<