The program aims to utilize local volunteers who will work with teachers to schedule an agricultural activity in their classrooms during Maine Agriculture Week (March 12-16). Shelia Richards, Executive Director of PCSWCD is particularly excited over the "hands on" aspect of the activities. "Thanks to our rural nature in Piscataquis County, we don't have the 'nature deficit' that some more urban areas experience," she said. "But that doesn't mean we shouldn't be offering our kids an opportunity to involve all their senses and get some hands on learning."

Walter Boomsma, program director for Valley Grange agrees. For the past few years he's visited second graders at PCES to make butter. "We have fun and the kids almost don't realize they are learning--some have even asked for instructions and then made butter at home as a family activity." Grange members have also done seed planting activities and created animal graphs. "We also spend some time just talking with the kids—many have chickens and gardens and it's fun to share experiences." Richards has also seen positive impact of these hands on experiences—she's visited a local preschool with a kid – the goat kind – for several years. After last year's activities, she and Boomsma agreed to explore working together to expand and formalize the program.

Boomsma notes that within a few days of announcing the program they had 27 classes signed up, but there should be no shortage of volunteers and resources thanks to the collaboration. "We've got master gardeners and farmers available through Extension Programs and PCSWCD includes partners and resources that are committed to good stewardship. Our goal is to keep this informal, local, and a true partnership between our schools, teachers, and volunteers. It's not so much that we have a program to offer—it's more about working together to make good use of our resources. Our volunteers will have the sort of agricultural experience and background to be especially relevant to students while providing insight into the importance of agriculture in our area."

This year, the group is planning to focus on kindergarten through third grade but is hoping to make this an annual program and expand into additional grades.

This year's offer is for a GrowME volunteer to visit for about 20 minutes and work with students on a simple, grade appropriate activity. Teachers and administrators who are interested need only furnish contact information: teacher's name-email address and grade. Interested teachers may email grange@boomsmaonline.com or call Shelia at PCSWCD, 564-2321. Additional information is also available at http://valleygrange.com.

• Juice Pouches —— Capri Sun, Honest Kids, Kool-Aid 2¢
• Lunchable Containers —— 2¢
• Cookie Wrappers —— Nabisco and Keebler (only the package wrapper) 2¢
• Candy Wrappers — Skittles, Starburst, Twix, M&M's, Snickers, Swedish Fish, Sour Patch 2¢
• Energy Bar Wrappers —— Cliff, Odwalla (any that have a foil lining) 2¢
• Chip Bags —— Lays, Fritos, Doritos, Sun, Cheetos 2¢
• Yogurt Cups —— Any stackable yogurt containers (please make sure they are clean) 3¢
• Starbucks Coffee Bags— 2¢
• Ziploc Boxes 2¢
• Colgate —— EMPTY tubes and boxes 2¢
• Kashi Boxes— 2¢
• Nabisco Chips —— Ritz, Wheat Thins 2¢

Tyson labels are collected all year long. They are worth 24¢ each. We need the whole bag top or box end. These are found in the freezer section.

Fast Fixins have a rectangle gold emblem on the bag that says "HOME TEAM SCHOOL REWARDS". These are worth 30¢ each. These are found in the freezer section.

Campbell's labels are still being collected. We have 'banked' these labels the last couple of years instead of redeeming them because of the new community school. The labels (upc's) to collect are Cambell's, Prego, Pace, Swanson, Pepperidge Farms, and V8.

I do have a couple of suggestions for those who save juice pouches. Please don't put any other labels in with the pouches. They tend to get wet and sticky and sometimes I have to throw them away because they are ruined. Please don't save the pouches for weeks at a time. They get moldy and are harder to clean. Another help would be to not cut off too much of the top part of the pouch. Just above the straw hole is fine. Also, please try opening the energy bars along the seams. I don't think tearing the packages apart is the right way to earn rewards money. I have sent in four boxes of juice pouches and one box of yogurt containers this school year.

Thank you for saving for your child's education!
Jeff Crowell, Coordinator

Although funding was approved by the state this past spring for $140,000 of interior work, the check has yet to be received. "The state controls the purse strings," said Dexter Community Farm Project (DCFP) Vice Chair Dave Pearson about the delay. "So you dance the way they want you to dance."

Without the state's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) money in hand and no approval to release the requests for proposals (RFPs) for interior work, the project has been stalled.

Then came the rain and the discovery that water was entering the Fossa store through a wall shared with the former Dexter Café building. "During that last heavy rain a couple weeks ago, it was a big splash," said DRDC Executive Director Judy Wilbur Craig of the Dexter Community Farm Project (DCFP). "One whole wall is wet and it's seeped onto the floor and into the basement. It's a huge problem."

The exterior siding and roofing renovation was completed this summer with a $230,000 CDBG from the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development.

Craig has met with the roofing, siding and general contractors several times at the store trying to identify the source of the water problem. All parties now agree that the leak is coming from the building next door. The DCFP has not contacted the architect or neighbor yet, but will in the near future.

No interior work should begin until the drainage problem is resolved, Craig stated. Meanwhile, the state just gave the store the long awaited green light to release RFPs for electrical and heating bids.

"It's been a long row to hoe," sighed Craig.

Yet volunteer work continues upstairs, an area that is not part of the CDBG. DCFP Board Member Tim Breen pulled up hundreds of usable floor boards. A five-man work crew from Charleston Correctional Center removed the two-inch long square nails from these boards, laid a subfloor and then designed a new/old floor. Fossa Member Sam Brown donated white ash boards, which the crew mixed with Breen's used ones.

The pattern of light and dark boards that the inmates laid looks like a tiger, according to Pearson. "It's very striking."

The Charleston crew also removed thousands of nails from the floor beams during their seven days at the Fossa store. "All I heard was tink! tink! tink! tink! There were nails flying everywhere," said Craig about their enthusiasm.

"It's been different," said Neal Hoskins of North Anson dryly, as he reached for yet another board in the unheated building. The crew used the bathroom across the street at the Dexter Police Station and Fossa supporters provided coffee and baked goods.

The non-profit Fossa General Store's purpose is to be a retail market for farmers' products, with as much locally grown and produced as possible. "We hope to keep local farms (25 mile radius) profitable by coordinating locally," said Pearson. Besides the sales, the store foresees renting its commercially-approved kitchen to growers to further process (value enhance) their products for sale, too.

For more information, contact Craig at 924-3067 or visit the Dexter Farm Project website or Facebook page."This content originally appeared as a copyrighted article in the SVWeekly.com and is used here with permission."

Created in 1947, the Voice of Democracy (VOD) scholarship program is an audio-essay contest for high school students in grades 9-12 that annually provides more than $3 million in scholarships. The first-place winner will then compete with all of the first-place VFW Department winners, and will receive a $30,000 scholarship that is paid directly to the recipient's American university, college or vocational/technical school.

As the winner of the VFW Post 4298 contest, Sarah was previously awarded $100 and a $1,000 scholarship for college. Besides competing for the top scholarship prize, as well as other national scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $16,000, each Department's first-place winner receives an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C.

As the winner of the local VFW District 5 competition, Sarah will now receive an additional $200 and is invited along with her parents to an all-expenses paid Voice of Democracy banquet, which will be held at the Winslow VFW Post 8835 on Saturday, Jan. 14.

The VOD program is endorsed by the National Association of Secondary School Principals' contest criteria and is designed to foster patriotism by allowing students the opportunity to voice their opinion in a three to five minute essay based on an annual theme.

 

They had a great 2011 festival and plan to build upon the event to add more activities. With the focus on family and fun, it is time to pick a theme for 2012. They have a few suggestions, but they are asking for help from the central Maine community. If you have a theme idea, the Egg Festival Committee would like to know about it. Suggestions must be received by 12 PM on Wednesday, December 28th at the Pittsfield Town Office.

The 2012 Egg Festival Organizational Meeting will be held on Thursday, January 12th at 6:30 PM in the Pittsfield Municipal Building Council Chambers. Volunteers to help with the Egg Festival planning are welcome.

If you have a theme idea, activity suggestion, or want to help out, please e-mail your ideas to Kathryn Ruth at townmanager@pittsfield.org or drop your suggestions off at the Pittsfield Town Office.

The Town Office staff is assisting the Committee until their organizational meeting in 2012.

To date, over 200 customers have contacted CMP about problems with a variety of appliances and devices including phones (cell, cordless, and landline), answering machines, Internet routers and wifi, personal computers, TVs, garage doors, fire alarms, clocks and even electric pet fences.

The most common problem is interference with wireless internet routers, because they use similar radio frequencies. The problems can often be resolved by simply changing a setting on the device. Other concerns include malfunctioning phones, Internet routers crashing or freezing, damage to computer hard drives, static and clicking sounds on communication and computer gear, inability to stream Netflix, failure of TV remote, and other appliance malfunctions.

Public Advocate Richard Davies said, "We believe that these 200 plus customers are only a subset of those affected. CMP has already installed nearly 425,000 meters, so there may be many more customers who are having problems with devices and appliances, but don't know that the problems may be caused by the smart meter. We have asked CMP to do a better job informing customers about these potential problems, and while CMP's website does refer to the issue, we don't think it goes far enough. My agency is troubled by the possibility that people may be spending their time and money fixing a problem that may be caused by CMP's meters, and that can and should be fixed by CMP."

CMP received the first calls about interference problems shortly after they began installing the meters last fall, and they continue to receive calls as meters are installed in more communities.

"If customers notice that some appliances began malfunctioning soon after their smart meter was installed, they should contact CMP," said Davies. "Customers can find information to correct common radio frequency interference problems on the CMP website, or they should call the company and ask for assistance." According to the CMP website, the number to call is 1-800-750-4000. Or, there is an electronic form customers can fill out that is found at the bottom of CMP's smart meter webpage: www.cmpco.com/smartmeter/

New Maine driver's licenses can only be obtained at BMV branches or mobile units. The only valid website for renewing a Maine driver's license is http://www.maine.gov/online/bmv/dlr (proof of residency and legal presence must already be established to renew online). A complete listing of BMV locations can be found at http://www.maine.gov/sos/bmv/locations.

If you believe you have been a victim of a driver's license scam, please contact the BMV Investigations Unit at 624-9000, extension 52144 or visit the Attorney General's Consumer Protection website at http://www.maine.gov/ag/consumer/.

The umbrellas are available at home sports games or by contacting a member of the senior class or email macdonaldb @ myfairpoint.net"
(NOTE by Judy: it is a big nice umbrella with a sturdy wooden handle)

As you know, many businesses may not have to register with the Town Office, so we may not have the information to include you in that listing. OR, you may have change email address; have a new website, phone number, etc. from your original listing.

Check out www.DexterMaine.org and click on Dexter Businesses and see if you are included and that your information is correct. If not, please use the submit form at the top of the page and make changes.

For more information contact webmaster Judy Craig Consulting at judy@DexterMaine.com or 924.3067

Check out the hundreds of photos and results from the 2011 fair!

It's estimated the "average" victim loses nearly $1,900, spends $372 repairing the damage done to his or her credit rating and reputation, and uses 30 hours in time and effort to recover.

While anonymous Internet prowlers are the most likely predators, they are not the only thieves. In 16 percent of the cases, the victim knew the person who stole his or her identity. Six percent of victims discovered a friend or family member was responsible.

These sobering figures come from the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, part of a coalition sponsoring National Protect Your Identity Week Oct. 17-23.

Sometimes ID thieves can find your personal information easily, for example, in old photocopiers. A company called Digital Copier Security Inc. says most copiers made since 2002 store the images they copy on a built-in hard drive; the images stay there until they are erased or a full drive eliminates the oldest files to make room for new ones.

Copy machines are often re-sold without having those files erased. For identity thieves, such machines are heaven-sent. Security companies can clear out old data for a fee, or sellers can remove the drive and make sure any data it contains is destroyed. Also, be sure cell phones, PDAs and other data-storing devices are cleaned up before selling or giving them away.

A relatively new threat is known as the timeshare scam. It can work in two ways. In the first, a caller says a timeshare is available at a "special price," and all you need do is send some money to cover some fee. That's the last you hear of your money or the caller.

In the second scam, a crook might take the owners of a timeshare to dinner and tell them some financial changes require them to pay several thousand dollars or face higher penalties. The crook might have the owners fill out paperwork revealing their personal and financial information. Even if they manage to get their money back, the owners' information is still at risk and they will need to keep checking their credit reports, likely for life.

Another fairly new scam targets businesses. In Colorado, the state recently suggested businesses ask for alerts from the branch of government that registers businesses. This came after thieves accessed the state department database and changed the contact information and often the address of the targeted business. Then the thieves applied for lines of credit using the falsified information, obtaining funds they had no intention of paying back.

The FBI warned of a scam this summer on Facebook, with strong appeal to younger people. A video supposedly telling "the truth about Coke [Coca-Cola]" included a button to skip the video that linked to a poll, which asked for personal information.

A new twist on mass e-mailing to gain personal information, or phishing, is called "spear fishing." It's an e-mail scam targeting an individual, maybe referring to a pending business or legal matter. A link which, when clicked, takes the reader to a spoofed website or installs malware on the reader's computer. That spyware can send personal information to the thieves when the reader is online.

Visit protectyouridnow.org, a website created specifically to mark Protect Your Identity Week. The site is loaded with tips on keeping your personally identifiable information out of the hands of thieves. The Identity Theft Resources Center at idtheftcenter.org is another nonprofit agency trying to minimize threats.

Consumer Forum is a collaboration of the Bangor Daily News and Northeast CONTACT, Maine's membership-funded, nonprofit consumer organization. Individual and business memberships are available at modest rates. For assistance with consumer-related issues, including consumer fraud and identity theft, or for more information, write: Consumer Forum, P.O. Box 486, Brewer 04412, or go to http://necontact.wordpress.com.
"This content originally appeared as a copyrighted article in the Monday, October 11, 2010 edition of the Bangor Daily NEWS and is used here with permission."

• It is the universal custom to display the flag only from sunrise to sunset on buildings and on stationary flagstaffs in the open. However, when a patriotic effect is desired, the flag may be displayed 24 hours a day if properly illuminated during the hours of darkness.
• The flag should be hoisted briskly and lowered ceremoniously.
• The flag should not be displayed on days when the weather is inclement, except when an all weather flag is displayed.
• The flag should be displayed on all days, especially on New Year's Day, January 1st; Inauguration Day, January 20th; Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday, third Monday in January; Lincoln's birthday, February 12th; Washington's birthday, third Monday in February; Easter Sunday (variable); Mother's Day, second Sunday in May; Armed Forces Day, third Saturday in May; Memorial Day (half-staff until noon), the last Monday in May; Flag Day, June 14th; Father's Day, third Sunday in June; Independence Day, July 4th; National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day, July 27th; Labor Day, first Monday in September; Constitution Day, September 17th; Columbus Day, second Monday in October; Navy Day, October 27th; Veterans Day, November 11th; Thanksgiving Day, fourth Thursday in November; Christmas Day, December 25th; and such other days as may be proclaimed by the President of the United States; the birthdays of States (dates of admission); and on State holidays.
• The flag of the United States of America should be at the center and at the highest point of the group when a number of flags of States or localities or pennants of societies are grouped and displayed from staffs.
• When flags of States, cities, or localities, or pennants of societies are flown on the same halyard with the flag of the United States, the latter should always be at the peak. When the flags are flown from adjacent staffs, the flag of the United States should be hoisted first and lowered last. No such flag or pennant may be placed above the flag of the United States or to the United States flag's right.
• When flags of two or more nations are displayed, they are to be flown from separate staffs of the same height. The flags should be of approximately equal size. International usage forbids the display of the flag of one nation above that of another nation in time of peace.
• When displayed either horizontally or vertically against a wall, the union should be uppermost and to the flag's own right, that is, to the observer's left. When displayed in a window, the flag should be displayed in the same way, with the union or blue field to the left of the observer in the street.
• The flag should never be displayed with the union down, except as a signal of dire distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property.
• The flag should never touch anything beneath it, such as the ground, the floor, water, or merchandise.
• The flag, when it is in such condition that it is no longer a fitting emblem for display, should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning. (Many American Legions offer this service. Check with your local groups.)

GIFT CERTIFICATES AVAILABLE

Dexter Lakes Association Photos * Stories * Info and more...

The website, www.MaineOpenGov.org, offers searchable databases of public information, including the payroll of all employees and retirees that draw paychecks from state or local government, from judges to elementary school teachers. The website also offers a searchable database of more than $1 billion in Maine vendor payments in 2006 and 2007. The website is unique because this information has never been available in a searchable format on the Internet.

Tarren Bragdon, CEO of the Portland-based think tank, says the website's purpose is to make state and local government more transparent. "MaineOpenGov.org provides a new, clear look into how state and local tax dollars are spent, down to the agency, person, and penny," Bragdon said in a press release.

Pull your can tabs and bring them to the Redemption Center or the High School and the Shriners use the tabs to purchase orthopedic beds, arts & craft supplies and dialysis time and many other items for their Children's Hospitals.

Save tabs from:

• soda, beer or juice cans
• high energy drink cans
• Cambell's soup cans
• Progresso soup cans
• Friskies & Alpo cat food cans

• Newspaper and Magazines
• Corrugated Cardboard
• Tin Cans (soup cans, cat & dog food cans)
• #2 Plastic (milk jugs, laundry detergent containers, kitty litter containers, etc.)
• Glass Jars and Bottles
• Mixed Paper (junk mail, cereal boxes, shredded papers, etc.)
• Office Paper (clean)

Have a Club, Church, Town and/or other Event???
Add your UPCOMING EVENT free of charge - Email Editor@TheDailyME.com

• Operation Shoebox
• Military.com
• Donate a calling card to help keep service members in touch with their families at: Operation Uplink
• Send a greeting via e-mail through Operation Dear Abby at AnyServiceMember.Navy.Mil or OperationDearAbby.net
• Sign a virtual thank you card at the Defend America Web site
• American Red Cross