567-2029

jeffdavis55@hotmail.com

Town news

The Select Board meets at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21, at the Town Hall. They will have a full agenda and our thoughts are with them as they attempt to plot a course through the rough waters facing our small coastal community.

Not to a be a town to let our troubles get us down, the Senior Luncheon is alive and well. The next offering is scheduled for noon, with seating beginning at 11:30 p.m., Feb. 27, in the Community Room of the Town Hall. To ensure that enough food is prepared, please RSVP at 567-3404. The suggested donation is $7.

Town Manager Rich Couch reports that the town has been advised by its risk management consultant from the Maine Municipal Association and a reputable local builder that the Town Hall roof needs to be replaced. In an effort to accomplish that task, the town of Stockton Springs is accepting proposals from area contractors. For more information and a copy of the RFP, contact the town manager at 567-3404 or mananger@stockonsprings.org. Depending on the price, this may be a budget request at town meeting in June. We are fortunate to have a number of skilled contractors on the town's bid list, and finding a suitable craftsman should be a lot easier than finding a harbormaster.

Recreation Department news

As Director Candy Moore prepares to pass the Recreation Department's torch to the next generation of volunteers, the opportunities for the town's children remain in full swing. Basketball practice for all grades is ongoing. The game schedule will be posted when completed. Zumba classes are still a bargain at a mere $3 per class, and are offered from 5-6 p.m. Saturdays, at the Stockton Springs Elementary School Gym. That is about as cheap an exercise class as you can get without a doctor's note. And although the Women Over 40 volleyball may not be bringing the ESPN cameras to town, as I had hoped, it is bringing continued health to its participates. You can tighten up your muscles from 6-7:30 p.m. Mondays, in the gym. Thank you, Candy, for all you have done for us.

I remember when I offered to coach soccer for the Rec Department. It brought me a lot of pleasure. And then our middle son took his turn with floor hockey. I tried to warn him. I don't think his shins will ever be the same. “They are plastic,” he said. “What can they do with plastic sticks?”

Stockton Springs Community Library news

Library volunteer and town resident Debbie Harris is proud, on behalf of the library, to announce the upcoming presentation of a special film screening of the smash animated hit, "Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted." Although the library offers many opportunities for our town's children of all ages, this special presentation may prove to be the highlight of the film season. You do not want to miss this one. The promotional poster Debbie emailed invites one to “Come in your pajamas and enjoy the movie, snacks and surprises” at 6 p.m. Friday, Feb. 22, at the library. I hope my grown children don't read this and call up complaining again about how they never had a nice local library when they grew up in Stockton. Get it over it, will you? We did the best we could.

Passings

That is all the news that is fit to print this week. It should be a quiet week as we await the warmth of spring. However, we did lose two of our lifelong residents, Ted Fraser and Gene Pomoroy. Their quiet passing saddens me, as I know I will not get to see them again. But the mark they left on the town remains and there are places in town that I will never drive by without thinking of them and smiling. Rest in peace, gentlemen. You shall be missed in the beautiful town of Stockton Springs.