State honors Windham High teacher as a semifinalist for '2027 Maine Teacher of the Year'

By Ed Pierce

Combining compassion, leadership, and unwavering belief in her students, Windham High School teacher Adrianne Shetenhelm is among eight semifinalists from across the state in the running to be honored as 2027 Maine Teacher of the Year.

Windham High School teacher Adrianne
Shetenhelm is one of eight semifinalist
nominees for 2027 Maine Teacher of
the Year. The winner will be
announced in October.
PHOTO BY SAWYRE GRENDELL 

Shetenhelm was announced last week as a semifinalist for the award by the Maine Department of Education (DOE) and Educate Maine.

“Congratulations to the 2027 Maine Teacher of the Year semifinalists on this impressive and well-deserved recognition,” Maine Education Commissioner Pender Makin said. “We are honored to champion you and your peers through this important program, which highlights the challenging and often underappreciated work of educators and the ways in which unwavering dedication in the classroom can be life-changing for students.”

As a semifinalist, during the next school year Shetenhelm will act as an ambassador for her students, colleagues, and school communities, celebrating and elevating the teaching profession in Maine.

“We are proud to celebrate and recognize these outstanding educators,” said Dr. Jodi Mezzanotte, Director of Educator Engagement at Educate Maine. “Their dedication, leadership, and commitment to their students, the teaching profession, and colleagues across the state reflect the very best of public education in Maine.”

The selection process for Maine State Teacher of the Year is rigorous and designed by educators to offer candidates an opportunity to reflect on their instructional practice. 

Every January, candidates are nominated for this recognition by a member of their community. The candidates first participate in the county selection process, in which a distinguished panel of teachers, principals, business leaders, and community members chose them from among hundreds of nominees as Maine County Teachers of the Year. These 16 teachers began the selection process for 2027 Maine Teacher of the Year in May, showcasing their instructional practices through a classroom video and written reflection.

At Windham High School, Shetenhelm serves as the lead educator behind Windham High School’s APEX program (Alternative Programming for Excellence), a support system for students whose education has been disrupted, who need flexibility in earning credits, or who require a different pathway to graduation.

She says that for her, the work is far more than instruction, it’s about helping students reconnect to hope, responsibility, and possibility.

Last December, in an interview with The Windham Eagle, Shetenhelm said she started her career in education as an English teacher.

“When I started teaching English, I was eager to share my love of literature,” she said. “Through the students’ writing, I saw the complex lives my students lived. When some disappeared – due to homelessness, transfers, or mental health struggles – I felt powerless to help.”

Her move to the APEX program at WHS changed how she viewed her job.

“Here, students can resume classes after a break in education, or a move from a new school, or earn the credits they need to graduate in a small learning community. My job has shifted from solely teaching literature, to helping students take responsibility for their learning and move toward their goals after high school.”

Shetenhelm describes her job as “having one foot in the traditional classroom and one foot in alternative education,” she said. “We support students earning credits or those needing a home base in a large high school. I truly have the best students – talented, unique, and inspiring me every day.”

She says she also recognized that many educators supporting nontraditional student pathways weren’t connected under a formal department. In response, she proposed creating a new “Alternative Pathways” department, which she now chairs.

“I wanted those teachers to have a voice and a community,” she said. “When adults feel supported, students feel supported.”

Earning a bachelor’s degree in English and Secondary Education from Wheaton College, Shetenhelm worked at a Portland middle school as an in-school suspension teacher before earning her master’s degree in Curriculum & Instruction from Boston College. She taught for six years in Massachusetts before returning to Maine to teach at Sanford High School before joining the staff at Windham High.

This fall will be her 20th year of teaching and her 13th year of leading the APEX program at WHS.

The Maine State Teacher of the Year finalists will be announced this fall, with the 2027 Maine Teacher of the Year to be announced in October. That teacher will represent Maine in the National Teacher of the Year program.

The Maine Teacher of the Year program is administered by Educated Maine through a unique partnership with the Maine Department of Education with support from the Maine County and State Teachers of the Year Association and the Maine State Board of Education. Funding for this program is provided by Bangor Savings Bank, Geiger, the Maine State Lottery, and Unum. <

Raymond Waterways’ annual meeting to feature speaker discussing camp road maintenance

By Nancy Crilly-Kirk
Special to The Windham Eagle

The 2026 annual meeting of Raymond Waterways Protective Association, a local non-profit dedicated to maintaining lake health in all of Raymond’s lakes and brooks, will host its annual meeting at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 5 at the Raymond-Casco Historical Society Museum on Route 302 in Casco.

The annual meeting for the Raymond Waterways
Protective Association will be held at 9:30 a.m.
Wednesday, Aug. 5 at the Raymond-Casco
Historical Museum, 1 Shadow Lane in Casco.
COURTESY PHOTO

The main speaker will be Heather Huntt, Senior Project Manager for the Cumberland County Soil and Water Conservation District (CCS&WD), who will discuss maintaining camp roads and managing stormwater runoff, which can harm area lakes and waterways. She will offer steps residents can take to maintain private roads and reduce long-term repair costs, as well as how to budget for road maintenance, and prevent erosion.

Available at the meeting will be Cumberland County Soil and Water Conservation District fact sheets about road maintenance and Huntt can also facilitate on-site assessments from CCS&WD engineers.

During the meeting, Raymond Waterways will also elect board members, report on its extensive work this year of running the Courtesy Boat Inspection Program at four boat launches in town, the milfoil-removing diving program at Turtle Cove in Sebago Lake, and the free LakeSmart lakefront advisory program for Raymond lakes, ponds, and brooks, and will invite stakeholder questions and comments.

The Courtesy Boat Inspection program involves trained, paid and volunteer inspectors (CBI’s) at the Sebago boat launch on Route 302, at Crescent Lake on Route 85, at Panther Pond on Mill Street, and at Thomas Pond on Route 302, checking incoming and outgoing boats for invasive species that could ruin the quality of our lakes.

A recent University of Maine study revealed that property values in any town with lakes, not only for lakefront owners, but for non-lakefront owners and businesses as well, are very much tied to the health of their lakes and ponds.

Courtesy Boat Inspections check boats, from paddleboards to pontoon boats, for signs of invasive weeds on trailers, propellers, live wells, and any other obvious surfaces, and report their findings to Lake Stewards of Maine in Bridgton and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. They also urge boaters to check their own boats for weeds far away from any waterways.

This year, Raymond Waterways increased the hours of inspections from 97 hours each week last year, to 122 hours each week for 2026. Thorough and reliable coverage should continue through Labor Day weekend, ending on Sept. 7.

LakeSmart is a state-wide program that educates landowners about the role of erosion and stormwater runoff (also known as non-point-source pollution) in degrading water quality. Importantly, the voluntary, non-regulatory program offers homeowners concrete suggestions for reducing these negative impacts on lake health that are tailored to the specific challenges of each property.

The Raymond-Casco Historical Society Museum is located on Route 302, west of Raymond’s public safety (firehouse) complex, and features a wonderful array of historical displays, including a working blacksmith shop. Refreshments will be served, including coffee donated by Aroma Joe’s.

The public is welcome, free of charge, to attend the Raymond Waterways’ Annual Meeting and no registration is required.

The Raymond Waterways Protective Association is a non-profit association dedicated to protecting and improving the water quality of Raymond's lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams and fostering watershed stewardship for the benefit of residents and visitors to the area.

The RWPA is an important aspect of local environmental protection because:

** Most Raymond lakes, ponds, and brooks are connected, so invasives or phosphorus can flow from one waterway into another.

** Not every lake or pond has an association, so RWPA helps them all.

** There is an economy of scale with the RWPA where we oversee larger programs, such as the Courtesy Boat Inspectors on boat launches throughout town, and receive state and town grants.

** Raymond property values, both shoreline and non-waterfront property, depend on clean lakes.

To learn more about the Raymond Waterways Protective Association, visit raymondwaterways.org. <

Meet Windham’s First Responders at National Night Out

By Erin Rose

Police Department and Windham Fire-Rescue will welcome the community to meet first responders from 5 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 4 during the National Night Out at the Windham Public Safety complex on Gray Road.

National Night Out in Windham will be held from 
5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 4 at the Windham
Public Safety Complex at 375 Gray Road
in Windham.  COURTESY PHOTO

“It’s a way for the community to see what public safety does, to be able to come and ask questions, and to see equipment and the gear and the specialties,” said Eugene Gallant, Support Services Captain at the Windham Police Department.

The day provides the opportunity for members of the public to establish relationships with first responders outside of emergencies, and also allows residents to get more details about the different programs the department provides.

“It gives them a chance to see exactly what we do and the things we can do for them, and the programs that we have that may benefit people that they may not know about,” Gallant said. “I’ve had people reach out to me with questions about ‘how do I get my dock fixed,’ or ‘what are the rules behind installing a mooring’.”

In addition to exploring the vehicles that the town’s emergency responders use to protect Windham, including police cars, fire trucks and ambulances, bounce houses will be available for children in attendance along with a dunk tank.

There will also be a number of exhibitions throughout the event to illustrate the operations of several different specialties within law enforcement.

“The three most popular things are the bomb squad because they blow stuff up, the K9 demonstration, and the drones,” Gallant said. “The kids love the drone with a speaker on it, so they can yell to their friends.”

Windham’s K-9 team of Zeus, a Belgian Malinois who joined the department last year, and his partner Officer Samuel Pattee, will provide a demonstration. Gallant will also show how they use drones in law enforcement and will talk about the different equipment that the department’s dive team uses in water rescues. The Maine State Police Bomb Squad will demonstrate how they safely dispose of explosive devices.

Free food will be available at the community cookout, with hot dogs and hamburgers being served to residents. There will also be giveaways for a skateboard and a backpack filled with school supplies, which Gallant says has been very popular in previous years.

The event also gives other public safety organizations a chance to interact with members of the Windham community. The Maine State Police Bomb Squad, Maine Wardens Service, Maine Forestry Service, and the Cumberland County Regional Communications Center will attend and meet with members of the public.

Local community non-profits will be participating including the Sebago Lake Rotary Club, the Animal Refuge League of Portland, and the Maine State Society for the Protection of Animals.

Windham is one of 22 Maine police departments that participate in the National Night Out event, held on the first Tuesday of August each year. It gives police departments nationwide the opportunity to connect to their communities through open houses, block parties, and other gatherings. Members of the public can meet officers and build relationships with first responders outside of emergency situations.

The National Association of Town Watch, with funding from the Bureau of Justice Assistance, part of the U.S. Department of Justice, held the first National Night Out in 1984, seeking to find a way to bridge the gap between members of the community and their local police forces. Since the initial event, which included 400 communities across the United States, participation has grown to include 17,000 communities and 38 million people.

“It’s been going on for a long time, but it really caught popularity after COVID,” Gallant said, explaining that Windham had previously held their event in conjunction with the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office and Gorham Township. “We brought it here to the public safety building three years ago, and it’s been very popular.”

“We had the most people ever attend last year,” he said.

The Windham Public Safety Complex is located at 375 Gray Road in Windham. <

Operation Summer Snacks returns for 11th year

By Ed Pierce

What originally started more than a decade ago in Windham as a small faith formation effort has resulted in the collection of thousands of snack items to assist area residents in need through the years.

'Operation summer Snacks,' a program collecting snacks for
children, families and elderly residents in need, is back for
its 11th year in Windham. The program gathered more than
10,000 individually packaged snack items for donation to the
Windham Food Pantry last year and hopes to exceed that
amount again in 2026. COURTESY PHOTO    

“Operation Summer Snacks,” an dinitiative of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Windham, annually collects food for children in need who receive bags of food from the “Backpackers” program during the school year but in many cases do not have the snacks during the summer. The program is back once again in 2026 to support the Windham Food Pantry and is now in its 11th year of making a difference for children, families and older people facing food insecurity.

Jill Russell-Morey, a parish catechetical leader who helped launch the program in 2016, says “Operation Summer Snacks” remains as relevant today as when it started.

“This is the 11th year we will be collecting snacks for the Windham Food Pantry,” Russell-Morey said. “As many families still continue to struggle, it's crucial we continue to support our neighbors and help fight food insecurity in the community.”

She said thanks to the community’s generosity, last year’s 10th anniversary program goal of collecting 10,000 snacks was exceeded.

“This year we are again hoping to collect 10,000 individually wrapped non-perishable snacks,” she said.

When the program started in 2016, the aim was to collect 1,000 nutritious treats for children in the community. It has been so successful that eventually snacks were also made available for families and elderly community members as well.

According to Russell-Morey, suggested donations for the public to make to the program are applesauce pouches, cracker packs, fruit cups, raisin boxes, granola bars, pretzel packs, juice boxes or pouches, cereal bars, pudding cups, popcorn or cheese puffs and gluten-free or nut-free snacks.

Items donated must be kept in their original packaging so that expiration dates are visible.

Donations can be dropped off at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church, 919 Roosevelt Trail in Windham, through August by the Faith Formation bulletin board outside the parish hall. Items may also be dropped off or shipped to 9 Thornbury Way in Windham.

“Interested people can also have donations directly shipped to my house from Walmart and Sam’s Club,” said Russell-Morey. “We receive several donations that way each year.”

Monetary donations are also welcome by cash or checks payable to Jill Russell-Morey, or by Venmo to Nealie-Morey10 and “Operation Summer Snacks” program volunteers will do the shopping for you.

“The community we live in is amazing and the parishioners and supporters always help when needed,” Russell-Morey said. “The Holy Spirit continues to touch and work through people which provides great hope.”

The program intends to continue buying and donating snacks for the Windham Food Pantry through the beginning of August.

This summer, the rate of food insecurity in Maine and especially among families with children is at an all-time high. Federal reductions to SNAP benefits for low-income families, combined with sustained high costs for food, housing, and other essentials, continue to strain household budgets across the state.

Starting in October 2026, Maine must cover 75 percent of SNAP administrative costs up from the previous 50 percent split. More than 13,000 Mainers lost SNAP food assistance this spring resulting from federal eligibility changes.

U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics for 2026 show that Maine has the highest rate of childhood food insecurity in New England, with one in five kids unsure of where their next meal will come from.

For further details about the “Operation Summer Snacks” program in Windham, send an email to [email protected] or [email protected] or call 207-653-9898. <

Windham Town Council authorizes purchase of new ambulance

By Ed Pierce

The Windham Town Council unanimously approved a waiver of the bidding process and the purchase of a new ambulance for up to $465,000 from Autotronics of Madawaska during a meeting on July 14.

A schematic drawing shows the new 2027 Chief XL-III
E-Ford-450 ambulance that Windham has ordered from
Autotronics of Madawaska. COURTESY PHOTO  

Through this action, Windham will reimburse town funds from the proceeds of bonds to be issued in the future in an amount not to exceed $465,000 for the Original Expenditures related to the ambulance purchase.

During the Annual Windham Town Meeting on June 13, voters authorized the issuance of bonds and notes in anticipation thereof in a total sum not to exceed $3,905,000 and the appropriation of the proceeds to pay for various projects as set forth in warrant articles, with the details of such borrowing to be determined by the Town Council and approved the sum to be borrowed for the ambulance.

In a memo to Windham Town Manager Bob Burns, Windham Fire/Rescue Chief Brent Libby said that the town’s Fire/Rescue Department has been working with Autotronics of Madawaska since 2016 and is the authorized dealer for Braun Ambulances. He said the last three town ambulances have been purchased from the company, which also has completed two remounts for the department.

Libby said the Autotronics’ proposal for a new Windham ambulance would match current units exactly.

According to Libby, he asked town councilors to waive the bidding process for the purchase of a new ambulance so Windham Fire/Rescue can ensure that all town ambulances remain the same.

“I have confirmed with other departments that have made recent purchases with other vendors that our price quote is within the same range,” he said. “In times of emergency, training and operation having exact copies of these vehicles has proven invaluable for good patient care and operational efficiency. Since our first purchase in 2016, we have received excellent customer support, and the Braun product has been superior with minimal challenges.”

He said the company successfully remounted two Braun ambulance modules for Windham so far saving the entire cost of a new ambulance.

Windham’s Municipal Purchasing Policy specifies that town council shall approve and authorize any purchase beyond the amount provided for such purchase within the municipal operating budget or approved capital equipment replacement plan, and all purchases which are proposed to be funded through a lease-purchase agreement, the issuance of bonds or notes, or any other kind of credit financing.

A price quote for the new ambulance dated July 30, 2025 will be honored by Autotronics, Libby said, and includes the equipment needed for the town to obtain an in-service fourth ambulance. The purchase would include a 2027 ambulance, power-load stretcher and a stair chair.

“With an immediate order we can expect delivery in May/June 2027,” Libby said.

Windham Emergency Medical Services continues to provide a vital service to the community, Libby said.

“Looking back at the last four years of data, the most frequently served age group has been 70- to 79-years-old,” he said. “The average emergency medical incident lasts approximately 1.6 hours.”

In 2025 alone, Windham EMS completed 2,251 medical reports and transported 1,918 patients to medical facilities. Some 52.8 percent of calls for help involved emergency medical situations.

The three most common reasons for Windham EMS medical responses in 2025 were medical weakness-related emergencies, respiratory issues including shortness of breath, and cardiac-related concerns.

Windham Fire/Rescue currently operates three ambulances, a 2021 Ford E/Braun ambulance, and two 2024 Ford E-450 Braun ambulances.

Based in Maine, Autotronics was established in 1981 and became a distributor and service center for multiple specialty component manufacturers for many local municipalities. The company continues to grow and maintains a close partnership with vendors and manufacturers specializing in emergency vehicle design. <

In the public eye: Windham Fire/Rescue Live-In student focusing on communication skills

Editor’s Note: This is another in an ongoing series of Windham and Raymond town employee profiles.

By Ed Pierce

Communication is key to establishing a human connection and one that is essential to personal and career success as a firefighter. It’s also the cornerstone of what Andrew Bilodeau is trying to accomplish as a Live-In student with the Windham Fire/Rescue Department.

Student Andrew Bilodeau is serving with the
Windham Fire/Rescue Department while
training to become a professional firefighter/
emergency medical Technician as part of 
Southern Maine Community College's
Live-In Fire Academy Program.
SUBMITTED PHOTO 

Just starting his career in public safety, Bilodeau attends Southern Maine Community College and is part of the Live-In Fire Academy Program where he’s able to live at the fire station and responds to all calls while working a 12-hour shift alongside Windham Fire/Rescue crews. Through classroom learning and hands-on experience developed in the live-in program, he will be well-prepared to enter the professional firefighting ranks upon graduation.

It’s not as easy as it looks though. Bilodeau must maintain a minimum of a “C” average in at least half of his classes at SMCC while working long hours at the fire station.

“I have been with Windham for about a year,” Bilodeau said. “The best thing about what I do is getting to help people on what could be their worst day.”

He says that he’s found the most challenging aspect of his job is trying to balance schoolwork and responding to calls for assistance.

“I think the biggest thing that people don’t realize is that we take this job really seriously, whether it be with a comfort ride into the hospital or consoling someone after a loved one just passed,” he said.

The training that Bilodeau is receiving is invaluable.

The Live-in Fire Academy is an intensive training course focusing on the basic firefighting and Emergency Medical Service skills required for local first responders. Completion of the academy qualifies live-in students such as Bilodeau to serve as firefighters in their assigned communities. Opportunities are provided to live-in students to complete training for state and national Firefighter I & II certification, EMT-Basic licensure and other credentials during the student’s live-in service time.

To participate as a Live-In student in the program, Bilodeau met all medical regulations for structural firefighting and hazardous materials response and was willing to accept the responsibility of serving local citizens.

Bilodeau says that his most memorable moment while working for Windham Fire/Rescue so far was responding to the first-ever structure fire of his career last September.

Originally from Cumberland, Bilodeau graduated from Greely High School and Westbrook Regional Vocational Center in Westbrook studying Heavy Equipment Operations.

“Since graduating from high school a year ago, I have obtained my Firefighter 1 certification and I’m working toward Firefighter 2 certification,” he said. “That allows me to be able to go into a fire and be able to do more at the fire scene.”

He’s also been able to obtain his Emergency Medical Technician Basic (EMT-B) certification.

“That has to be one of the most interesting courses I’ve taken by far,” Bilodeau said. “Its 60 hours of classroom time and a lot more hands-on time.”

According to Bilodeau, one thing that the public may not know about serving as a firefighter/Emergency Medical Technician is the physicality required to perform the job.

“People don’t realize how demanding the job is,” he said. “Trying to lift people, and rescue people is demanding on the body and working out is really important.”

Along with his duties as a Live-In student with Windham Fire/Rescue, Bilodeau also is a member of the call company for the Town of Cumberland as needed for certain emergency situations.

His family has been supportive of his efforts to become a professional firefighter and Emergency Medical Technician when he graduates from the program.

“They are really happy for me,” Bilodeau said. “They think that Windham compared to Cumberland is going to be a great learning experience.”

Of everything he’s learned as part of the Live-In Fire Academy Program, one thing stands out above the rest.

“Communication is key,” Bilodeau said. “That goes for outside the fire service, but communication while on the grounds of a fire and letting people know what you are doing and to asking where the shift captain would like me to be positioned, it all comes down to effective communication.” <

St. Anthony of Padua Parish honors youth leader Morey

Nealie Morey, a 2026 graduate of Windham High School, has been presented with the St. Carlo Apostle of the Eucharist Award by St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Parish.

2026 Windham High School
graduate Nealie Morey has been
presented with the St. Carlo 
Apostle of the Eucharist Award
by St. Anthony of Padua Catholic
Parish for her dedication to 
service, faith and leadership. 
COURTESY PHOTO

This award is given annually to a graduating senior from the parish who exemplifies the virtues and legacy of St. Carlo Acutis through friendship and kindness toward all, exceptional compassion and empathy toward others, devotion to the Virgin Mary, the Eucharist and family life, and serving as a positive faith-filled role model to peers.

She was given the award by the Rev. Lou Phillips during a special ceremony held at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church in Windham on June 28.


Phillips said that Morey has faithfully served St. Anthony of Padua Parish in numerous capacities, most notably through her more than 10 years of leadership in coordinating the Operation Summer Snack Project, an initiative that supports children, families and older adults experiencing food insecurity.

He said that Morey has also demonstrated outstanding leadership and commitment within the parish’s Youth Ministry Program.

“Her dedication to service, faith and leadership makes her a most deserving recipient of this honor,” Phillips said.

As the winner of this year’s St. Carlo Apostle of the Eucharist Award, Morey was presented with a hand-painted wooden statuette of Saint Carlo Acutis mounted on a stand with a personalized plaque. She will also be recognized on a plaque in the St. Carlo Acutis Veneration Chapel at St. Anne Catholic Church in Gorham.

Morey will attend Saint Joseph’s College to major in nursing and compete on the school’s track and field team.

She also was the recipient of the Peter Connolly Scholarship; Windham Dentistry LLC Scholarship; Windham Maine PTA Scholarship; Windham Raymond Athletic Boosters Scholarship; Windham Republican Town Committee Scholarship; and the Peter E. Connolly Award. <

‘Monster Locker’ illustrator to discuss graphic novels for children at Windham Library

By Erin Rose

Illustrator and author Andrés Vera Martinez will speak to children about the “Monster Locker” series of graphic novels at the Windham Public Library at 4 p.m. Tuesday, July 28.

Illustrator and author Andres Vera Martinez
will speak to children about his 'Monster
Locker' series of graphic novels during a
presentation at 4 p.m. Tuesday, July 28
at the Windham Public Library.
SUBMITTED PHOTO   

Developing the series is “one of my favorite things I’ve ever done,” Martinez said. “It was so much fun.”

“You work on graphic novels for so long, you have to be passionate about it,” he said, noting that most novels take two years to complete.

“Moster Locker” follows the adventures of middle school student Pablo Ortiz, after he discovers a locker in the basement of his school that opens a portal and summons an Aztec goddess. His new friends Takashi and Maggie help him take on the vengeful monster, and the trio bond through their journey.

“I liked the idea of a locker in the basement being haunted. When I was in middle school, I was very nervous about having a locker for the first time,” said Sam Cote, Windham Children’s Librarian, who sought to bring Martinez to the library. “I thought it was an interesting way to express that fear I think that a lot of middle schoolers have.”

Co-written with Jorge Aguirre, the two worked closely together to develop the story. Their mutual agent introduced the duo to work on a picture book together, and they decided to develop the idea for the series together after that successful collaboration.

“I had suggested that we write a middle school graphic novel series, and he did three pitches of a paragraph each,” Martinez said. “I chose one about a little girl who finds a monster in her locker. The monster wants to summon bigger and scarier monsters.”

“That was it,” he said. “We started on that.”

As the story developed, Aguirre took many of Martinez’s suggestions and made changes to the story to accommodate, proving a true partnership when coming up with the storyline for the novel.

“I’ve never had that kind of collaborative process with a writer that was so involved,” Martinez said. “There was no way this could have been made without each of us being involved.”

“We both had equal parts in the characters, their stories, what they looked like, how they act,” he said.

For example, Martinez explained that while the original main character was a girl, he thought a boy might speak to an unexplored audience.

“Middle school graphic novels are really popular for girls, so I wanted to go against everything and have a boy protagonist,” he said. “What would I have liked to read in middle school?”

Also, the duo had discussed using Greek mythology as the basis for the monsters in the book, but Martinez suggested the Aztec mythos instead, in a nod to Pablo’s ancestry.

“Since he’s a Mexican American kid, why don’t we have Aztec mythology coming out of the locker?” he said. “We got to do a lot of research into Aztec myths and how we can portray it.”

Capturing multiculturism was essential to the writers, as Aguirre is the son of an immigrant from Colombia, and Martinez is Tejano, descendants of Native Americans who settled in Texas before it became a state. Pablo’s two friends are also bicultural, as Takashi is Japanese and Jewish, and Maggie is Irish and Jamaican. The duo plans to devote a book in the series to each of the characters which will factor in stories from their cultures.

“Each kid, instead of having skeletons in their closet, they have this otherness that doesn’t really blend in,” he said.

The multicultural theme continues in the second book in the series, “Monster Locker: Nine-Tail Trouble,” as readers follow Takashi, who summons Kitsune, a nine-tailed shape shifting fox based on Japanese mythology, to help him. Before long, this helpful new monster grows out of control, leaving Maggie and Pablo to find a way to save their friend and their school.

There will potentially be two more books in the series, but Martinez and Aguirre are waiting to hear if their publisher has decided to proceed with those additional tales. Separately, Martinez has an adaptation of “Esperanza Rising”, a book by Pam Muñoz Ryan, that will be released in March.

Martinez’s work has been recognized by The New York Times, National Public Radio (NPR), the Society of Illustrators, and he has been honored with a number of awards, including the selection of “Monster Locker” to represent Maine in the Library of Congress Book Festival. However, the most meaningful praise is from the students he encounters as he goes to schools and libraries to talk about the novel.

“I’ve done some school visits where the kids ask questions about the characters, about what will happen next, what they can’t believe happened,” he said. “They’re fully invested in something I spent so much time on.”

“That’s the most important thing to me,” Martinez said.

Recognition for his work also helps spread the word to other teachers and librarians who could highlight the book for their students, allowing the book to reach more children.

“The awards give more chances for librarians and teachers to notice it, so they can put it in more kids’ hands,” Martinez said. “I think the awards are supportive of the goal – to get kids to hopefully enjoy books.”

One such nod led Cote to reach out to Martinez to see if he could give a presentation to children in Windham.

“I saw that he had been picked by the Maine Humanities Council and the Maine State Library for their Read ME program,” she said. “I had read and really liked “Monster Locker,” so I was excited to invite him to our library.”

Martinez continues to develop new projects but is looking for another adventure to add to his lengthy resume.

“My next step is teaching high school art,” he said. “I want to be an art teacher.”

While originally from Central Texas, Martinez has been “unsettled” since he was 17, he said, and attended college in Chicago before spending two years in Japan, teaching English. He lived in New Mexico for some time and spent a year traveling the world. Martinez spent 12 years in New York City, where he completed his master’s degree, married his wife, Na, and the couple had their two children, Mei, who is now 19, and Pablo, 12. After getting a job at Leslie University in Massachusetts, the couple ended up settling in Maine, where they have spent the past 12 years. Martinez also published a book with his wife, called “Little White Duck: A Childhood in China,” based on her experiences growing up in China.

For more information about the upcoming “Monster Locker” presentation, visit the Windham Public Library’s website at www.windham.lib.me.us. <

Medical Loan Closet remains a valuable resource for many in Windham

By Ed Pierce

It’s a tradition of service to the community that not only benefits residents but can help save them money too. Since 1940, the Windham Medical Loan Closet has made durable medical equipment such as wheelchairs, mobility scooters and rollators more available to those who are in need.

Located inside the East Windham Fire Station at 47 Falmouth
Road, Windham's Medical Loan Closet makes available,
at no cost to town residents, durable medical equipment
such as wheelchairs, mobility scooters and more for
anyone in need in the community.  FILE PHOTO  

Temporarily housed inside the East Windham Fire Station, 47 Falmouth Road in Windham, the Windham Medical Loan Closet is managed by the Town of Windham’s Social Services Department and gives those in need the chance to borrow necessary equipment that may not be affordable or available to that individual at the time.

Medical equipment is gathered through donations from people who have extra or unused equipment. People donate things like briefs and pull-ups, bed rails or sometimes money. 

The loan closet does not take anything battery powered or electric due to the cost of maintenance and disposal if no longer functioning. Any old or broken equipment the town recycles for aluminum or steel.

The loan closet allows borrowers to hold onto items for up to three months. Items cannot be purchased from the loan closet and should be returned at the end of three months to give others in need the chance to borrow them as well.

Residents may borrow wheelchairs, commodes, beds, walkers, crutches and knee scooters for themselves or to care for their loved ones. There is no time limit on the loans, but the volunteers ask that items be returned once they are no longer needed so that they may be provided to others in need.

Recent donations have allowed the Medical Loan Closet to obtain better equipment over this past year, and volunteers are constantly working to maintain the equipment for many clients.

Volunteers staff the Medical Loan Closet to assist in ensuring that all equipment is safe and clean when needed by members of the public.

The Town of Windham budgets a small amount every year to the Medical Loan Closet through a $600 annual grant, however monetary donations are also accepted.

Two meetings for volunteers a year are held to set up a rotating schedule for the next six months. On average, volunteers service about 25 calls each week.

The Medical Loan Closet is always looking for new volunteers and never turns anyone away.

The Medical Loan Closet is open Mondays through Fridays. Checking out for donations of equipment is by appointment only. To set an appointment, call and leave a message on the closet’s automated voice message and a volunteer will return the call promptly. The phone is monitored daily. The closet facility is for pick-up only. Volunteers do not deliver any equipment.

The Windham Medical Loan Closet began as the Windham Health Council in the 1940s. The facility worked with schools and children, weighing, and measuring them. In the 1950s it organized a Well Baby Clinic that operated until about late 1960s. It was then that council volunteers worked to make fluoride treatment available to all Windham children. Following this, the Windham Health Council recruited the town’s first dentist in the 1970s.

In the beginning, Frederick Alken, Windham’s Superintendent of Schools at the time, and Beverly Allen, a Windham school nurse, recognized the need to loan medical equipment to those recovering from an injury or struggling with a medical condition that couldn’t afford the necessary items immediately. Soon, town doctors Sidney Branson and Robert Burns joined, as did other volunteers.

Since its inception, the Windham Health Council has transformed into the Windham Medical Loan Closet and has served in getting medical equipment to those in-need. However, none of it could be made possible without the commitment and kindness of volunteers.

To obtain medical equipment, to donate items or to sign up as a volunteer, call 207-894-5999 and leave a message saying what you are calling for and a volunteer will return your call. <

Raymond-Casco historical presentation focuses on era of stagecoaches and highwaymen

By Ed Pierce

In early days of Maine, stagecoaches transformed the way people thought about commerce and transportation as the reliability of mail delivery improved, roads began to take shape and opportunities to travel longer distances rose. Those journeys were not without potential peril though and a new presentation offered by the Raymond- Casco Historical Society will explore what it was like to travel by stagecoach here in the late 1800s.

The Harrison Stagecoach is shown in a photo from the late
19th century. Historian Mike Davis is offering a free
presentation called 'A Night of Stagecoaches, Highwaymen
& Rum Runners' at 6:30 p.m. Monday, July 20 at the
Raymond-Casco Historical Society Museum, 1 Shadow
Lane in Casco. SUBMITTED PHOTO     

At 6:30 p.m. Monday July 20 at the Raymond-Casco Historical Museum, 1 Shadow Lane in Casco, historian Mike Davis will discuss “A Night of Stagecoaches, Highwaymen & Rum Runners” focusing on bringing to life an untamed era that shaped travel through the Lakes Region in the late 19th century.

The free presentation invites the public to step back into a world where the roads were rough, the nights were dark, and every bend in the Route 302 corridor held the promise of danger or discovery.

Before guests even enter the building for the presentation, they’ll be greeted by the museum’s striking mural of the Murch Stagecoach, frozen in time as three powerful horses pull a Concord Coach on its daily run from South Casco to Portland. It’s a vivid reminder that the stories Davis will tell were once the everyday reality of those who braved these roads.

Mark Twain himself captured the drama of stagecoach travel in “Roughing It,” describing a stagecoach that “swung and swayed … an imposing cradle on wheels,” flying over hard roads, its horses changed every 10 miles. Twain’s words echo the experience of countless travelers who trusted their lives to the craftmanship of Lewis Downing, whose 1827 Concord Coach became the gold standard of rugged travel with its tall, wide chassis with huge wheels and spokes, and weighing 2,500 pounds of wood, leather, and grit.

Sumner Davis of Harrison became a prominent stagecoach entrepreneur of the era. He ran stagecoach lines connecting Waterford to Portland, Brownfield to Bridgton, and Bridgton to Norway. During the peak of his business, Davis operated several coaches and was known to employ more than 30 stagecoach drivers.

According to the New England Historical Society, coaches operated by Davis carried passengers, mail, and other services.

Sue Spiller Pride of the Raymond-Casco Historical Society says that her own great-grandfather, Lyman H. Spiller was once employed by Sumner Davis, driving a coach from Harrison to Bridgton.

Later Spiller found work as an Express driver in Bridgton and whose encounter with a robbery attempt reads like a chapter in the dime store thrillers.

In 1895, while delivering packages for the American Express Company, Spiller turned his team from Main Street onto West Depot, on a pitch-dark deserted night. As he approached the bridge, voices rose from the darkness – “Here he is --- now it’s our time.” Two men then lunged at the team, one grabbing the horse’s head, and the other climbing onto the wagon.

Spiller drew his revolver and fired into the night. One attacker fled shouting that he had been hit in the leg. The robber also ran away. By the following morning, the story had spread across Bridgton like wildfire.

Serving as a stagecoach driver in the late 19th century was a tale of danger, ingenuity, and endurance and also one of the people who kept communities connected long before roads became smoother and paved.

The Raymond-Casco Historical Society invites the public for an unforgettable journey into the past. This dramatic, story rich program is open to the public. Refreshments will be served afterward in the air-conditioned museum building.

For further details about the “A Night of Stagecoaches, Highwaymen & Rum Runners” presentation, visit www.raymondcascohistoricalsociety.org and follow the Raymond-Casco Historical Society on Facebook. <

Bird language to be translated during Raymond Village Library discussion

By Erin Rose

If you’ve ever wondered what the birds are saying to each other, an upcoming presentation will help you learn to translate it.

Maine Audubon Advocacy and Outreach
Coordinator Nick Lund will lead a 
discussion on interpreting the different
sounds that birds make and how to 
distinguish between bird species from
their calls during a presentation at 5 p.m.
Thursday, July 23 at the Raymond
Village Library. SUBMITTED PHOTO  

Maine Audubon Advocacy and Outreach Coordinator Nick Lund will lead a discussion about how amateur birders can learn the meanings behind the different sounds birds make and how to distinguish between bird species from their calls at the Raymond Village Library at 5 p.m. on Thursday, July 23.

“It’s just like learning different languages and different accents out in the world,” Lund said. “When you put a little time into it, you can learn to tell the difference between a few species, and then over time, hundreds of species.”

The 45-to-50-minute discussion will include tips and tricks on how to identify different species, particularly notable Maine birds, such as thrushes, waxwings, wrens and puffins.

“The conversation will focus on the different sounds birds make and the different things that birds are saying, or have to say to each other,” Lund said. “Then we’ll talk about a bunch of different highlight vocalizations out there that people should be aware of.”

While many have heard common birdsongs, there is more to some bird vocalizations than the melodic tunes typically used for specific things or during certain seasons.

“The variety of things that they say would surprise people. Most of the sounds that are most familiar to us are the birdsongs, which are only given at a specific part of the year and have specific purposes for defending territory or attracting mates” Lund said. “But birds say a lot of other things that aren’t singing.”

“They make specific contact calls to keep in touch with each other. There are certain calls that are given between parents and babies. There are calls given in alarm, social calls that are understood across species,” he said.

Another surprise is that the national symbol of the United States and a Maine dweller, the Bald Eagle, is often misrepresented in the species’ appearances on television.

“They are not the thing you hear on TV,” Lund said. “Most of the time when they show an eagle, they play a Red-Tailed Hawk because it sounds so much better.”

While there are many apps that can be used to identify which birds are talking, Lund favors Merlin to help introduce people to the world of birding.

“Merlin opens the door to people’s backyards and to bird sounds,” he said. “It can be a daunting challenge when you’re just walking out there and hearing all of this noise, the cacophony. The Merlin bird identification app helps sort through it. But there are also other ways to do it as well.”

Technology can help, but the tried and tested methods used by people for centuries to identify the birds in their environment should be trusted.

“I would encourage people to learn on their own as well,” Lund said. “It can be done by all of us and has been done by all of us for years, to learn birdsongs on our own. It’s more satisfying to do it on your own.”

The local area provides ample opportunities for bird enthusiasts to search out different species, according to Lund and he says that he recently led a walk in the East Windham Conservation Area in Windham that found many birds there to observe.

“Once you get up to Sebago Lake, there are trails through the wetlands and trestles which are really good too,” he said. “When you want good bird diversity, you want diversity of habitat. Any place that you can get forest and fields and ponds or wetlands is a place that will have increased diversity.”

The variety of habitats in Maine help provide the opportunity for a large diversity of bird species to either live or pass through the state.

“We have the sea birds who are not necessarily unique to Maine, but we showcase them spectacularly, such as the Atlantic Puffin that only breeds here in Maine in the US. We have boreal forests in northern Maine, the deep dark spruce fir forests that have a bunch of species that only live there,” Lund said. “We have eastern forests that run up through Windham and the southern part of the state. We have grasslands, wetlands, and lots of open ocean species that only spend winters here with us.”

“Maine is a paradise for birding all year round,” he says.

After seeing more than 350 different species, Lund says that vagrant birds, the birds that end up finding their way unexpectedly to Maine, can be some of the most exciting to observe.

“These are birds that do as birds do. They just fly, and they fly the wrong way, or they go too far and they wind up in Maine when they should not be in Maine,” he said. “Those birds are extremely exciting because you never know when they are going to show up or what it is or what’s going to happen.”

A recent example of an exciting bird that visited Maine is a Steller’s Sea Eagle, which found its way to Arrowsic and Georgetown in 2021 and spent several years frequenting the area before moving north to Canada. Native to northeastern Asia, the eagle, who was nicknamed Stella, was the first seen in the United States.

“Birders like me are just thirsting for those birds to show up,” Lund said. “This one came across the globe and wound up in Maine. That bird was just beyond anything we could have imagined.”

“It’s the biggest eagle in the world, with a crazy looking face,” he said. “It was super cool.”

At the same time, there are birds that call Maine home that are exciting to see because of their rarity or the remoteness of their habitat within the state, including owls which are both reclusive and few in number.

“There are birds that are rare because there are either not a lot of them or they’re hard to find,” Lund said. “There are owls that live all across Maine but it’s exciting when you see one because they are just hard to see and there are not many of them. Those are cool and there are a bunch of them in Maine. Bicknell’s Thrush is a bird that breeds in Maine, and only in a small handful of places at the very tops of mountains, right before the tree line ends. Finding a Bicknell’s Thrush after getting up to that habitat is a real treat.”

While many are smaller in size, the impact of birds on the environment is immense.

“They are an essential part of the fabric that weaves everything together,” Lund said, adding that birds eat insects and help spread seeds and pollinate. “Plus, they are an essential part of our love of our environment, because they are beautiful and they fly and they sing so beautifully. Birds are maybe the best ambassadors to the natural world that people have.”

Maine Audubon, located in Falmouth, is dedicated to protecting bird species, along with other wildlife that are found across the state and the habitat they depend on. The organization was founded in 1843 and includes education and conservation programs to preserve the wilds of Maine and advocacy to help inform legislators at the state and national level as to the issues impacting Maine’s environment. It is not a part of the National Audubon Society, Lund said.

“We love wild Maine,” he said. “We have tons of education programs and scientists on staff who are learning about it. We have advocates on staff who bring what we learn to Augusta and DC. We’re a full-service Maine wildlife organization.”

“We’re not just birds,” Lund said.

The Raymond Village Library is located at 3 Meadow Road in Raymond. For more information about Lund’s upcoming presentation, visit www.raymondvillagelibrary.org.<

Gardening author prepares for appearance at Windham Public Library

By Erin Rose

Gardening enthusiasts should jot down Wednesday, July 22 on their calendars. That is when Maine resident Margot Anne Kelley will be in Windham to give a presentation about her book “A Gardener at the End of the World” at the Windham Public Library.

Author Margot Anne Kelley will be at
the Windham Public Library from 6
to 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 22 to give
a presentation about her book 'A
Gardener At The End Of The World.'
COURTESY PHOTO   

Kelley’s presentation runs from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, July 22, and the book follows a season of gardening during the COVID-19 pandemic and explores how gardening and agriculture have impacted the spread of pandemics throughout history.

“I had some very ready inspiration. I was part of a local task force, and one of the people on the task force said ‘well, you know, there weren’t any pandemics until we had agriculture,’ Kelley said, replying with, “you just ruined my garden for me.”

“She said you had to have a certain density of population for diseases to pass,” she said, explaining that as agriculture expanded to support larger populations, the opportunity for diseases to spread grew as well. “I started thinking about how this thing that is giving me solace, gardening, is also one of the reasons why we have pandemics. Then I started the deep dive and never came back.”

The book is set from March 2020, when the pandemic hit and the world began to shut down, through December of that year, when the first vaccine was given emergency authorization by the Food and Drug Association (FDA).

“I decided that the book was going to start in March when lockdown happened and it was going to end in December when the first vaccine got emergency authorization, because that is also pretty much the same arc as the gardening season in Maine,” Kelley said. “You can’t do much before March, and if you have carrots, you pick your last carrots the first week of December.”

While discussing COVID can be a very heavy topic, filled with difficult emotions, Kelley notes that there is hope infused in history.

“If in every generation that has endured a pandemic before, enough people survived that we’re here now, we’d survive this” she said. “I can also find a little bit of hope in there.”

“We went through the Bubonic Plague,” she said, discussing that if humankind can survive a pandemic which “decimated” the population of Europe at the time, we can likely survive anything, especially together.

“We are for each other. We are because of each other,” she said.

As the lockdown spread, many people turned to new hobbies to pass the time, and gardening is one pastime that experienced sudden growth.

“We have a huge population that’s doing it currently and COVID definitely contributed to it,” Kelley said. “A lot of people who did it then kept going. Once you’re doing it and you get the satisfaction from it, whether it’s from flowers or food, people keep going.”

While promoting the book, Kelley has heard frequent reminiscences from readers about their experiences during the long months of the pandemic, including from one woman recently who made a distinct impression on the author.

“A woman came up to me and, not in a cruel way, said ‘while you were working in your garden, I was trying to teach grade school kids on ZOOM,’” she said. “She started tearing up. I felt both really moved that she shared it and deeply apologetic that, even though she wanted to read the rest of the book, she was definitely triggered.”

After a career educating students as a professor of both English and photography, Kelley has written and published four non-fiction books, co-authored a book with another photographer, and has completed three other special edition books.

Two of her books are half-writing, and half-photography, Kelley said, explaining that teaching and displaying her photography professionally helped lead her into writing.

“I learned how to write tight vignettes and then paired those with photographs. One of the greatest compliments I got about the writing was when my show was up in a prep school in Massachusetts,” she said. “I talked to the curator and he said, ‘no one ever stops to read the little tags next to pictures, but they’re reading yours every single time.’ If I can get high school kids to read the little bit besides the picture, this is working.”

“That made me excited that I could go somewhere with writing,” she said. And says after her most recent book, “I finally feel like I’m hitting my stride, and that feels good.”

The author is also expanding her repertoire as she will be publishing a mystery book in 2027, her first foray into fiction writing. Her husband, Rob, writes thrillers and he introduced her to the expansive crime writing community in Maine. That community helped inspire her to take on a new challenge.

“Maine has an amazing crime writing community. There are so many people up here who write crime, and they are so supportive of each other,” Kelley said. “I would go to his conferences and the people were fabulous. They have huge hearts, and very dark imaginations. After a while, I thought I would like to try this. If I’m going to keep coming to these conferences, I might as well ante up.”

Attending the conferences not only helped Kelley to be able to work on her draft with other writers in the community but also witness the level of detail that the genre’s authors put into their work.

“I kept learning from the people who go to those conferences,” she said. “I’d go to panels and they would talk about what exactly you would see if you came upon a crime scene, or what you should be looking for; or panels about how to introduce red herrings without it being really obvious that it’s a red herring. They address everything that happens in the real world of crime investigation to know how to write the different details of it.”

After spending many vacation hours in Maine throughout her life, Kelley moved to Maine in 2010 and settled in Port Clyde with her husband.

Transportation for Kelley’s presentation may be available from Age Friendly Windham by calling 207-892-4649. For more details about the presentation, visit the library’s website at www.windham.lib.me.us. <

Voting for 2026 Eagle Choice Awards nears end

For the 12th consecutive year, The Windham Eagle newspaper is sponsoring the Eagle Choice Awards, and the popularity of the annual competition continues to grow.

Last year's Eagle Choice Award recipients gather during an
event at Eric's Church in Windham to celebrate their
achievement and thank the community for their support.
FILE PHOTO
 

Voting opened July 1 and continues through 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, July 22, with the winners to be recognized in August.

Launched in 2015, the Eagle Choice Awards recognize local businesses in the area through popular vote. This honor is evidence that residents take notice when they receive outstanding service and find superior products offered by local merchants.

Melissa Carter, advertising director for The Windham Eagle, said the Eagle Choice Awards continue to set new participation records each year. In 2025, nearly 10,000 ballots were cast across more than 90 categories, and she expects even greater participation in 2026.

“The tremendous response each year reflects just how much Lakes Region residents value outstanding service, exceptional products and the businesses that help strengthen our communities,” Carter said. “Because every Eagle Choice vote is cast by the public, these awards are a meaningful way for residents to recognize and thank the local businesses and merchants who consistently go above and beyond throughout the year.”

Kelly Mank, the owner and publisher of The Windham Eagle newspaper, says that the Eagle Choice Awards continue to reveal that outstanding customer service and trusted products are not overlooked by the community.

She said the Eagle Choice Awards not only celebrate outstanding local businesses but also introduce community members to hidden gems and trusted favorites they may not have discovered before, inspiring them to explore new connections and support businesses they might otherwise have overlooked.

“It’s all about giving people choices,” Mank said. “The Eagle Choice Awards highlight businesses that have earned the trust and support of the community, making it easier for residents and visitors alike to discover outstanding local businesses throughout the Lakes Region of Maine. Every vote cast is a reflection of the public’s confidence in those businesses and the impact they have on our communities.”

Carter said a few categories for this year’s voting have been revised. Voters are now able to cast ballots in separate landscaping and hardscaping categories instead of those services being combined into one category and this year a new chimney services category has been created.

“We do our best to stay as current as possible by adding new businesses to categories and deleting those businesses that are closed,” Carter said. “We welcome feedback to help improve ballot choices for the future. Voters always have the option to write-in a business that is not already listed if that’s what they want to do.”

Eagle Choice Award voters must cast ballots in at least 10 categories or more and must also include their email address when uploading or turning in a ballot for it to be valid and ensure that only one vote is cast by an individual. Email addresses collected during the Eagle Choice Awards competition are not sold or distributed to a third party.

Ballots are available in The Windham Eagle newspaper’s print edition this week. The ballots can either be mailed to the address listed on the ballot or a photo can be taken of it and uploaded by email to: [email protected]. The easiest and most popular way to vote is digitally online and can be found by visiting www.thewindhameagle.com/awards. <

HART’s Annual Yard Sale raises funds and hope for cats in need

By Masha Yurkevich

For those who like to find a good deal and support a great cause, HART of Maine annual yard sale is a chance to discover everything from antiques and artwork to furniture and children’s books. The Homeless Animal Rescue Team (HART) of Maine will host its annual yard sale at the Cumberland Fairgrounds Exhibition Hall on Aug. 6 through Aug. 9, bringing together hundreds of community members for what has become one of the largest fundraisers for the organization.

Volunteers organize thousands of donated items for HART of
Maine's annual yard sale at the Cumberland Fairgrounds
Exhibition Hall. Proceeds from the four-day fundraiser from 
Aug. 6 to Aug. 9 support the care of cats at the nonprofit's
no-kill shelter in Cumberland.  SUBMITTED PHOTO   

The four-day event features thousands of donated items, with proceeds going directly toward caring for the cats at HART no-kill shelter in Cumberland.

"It is an incredibly important event," said Sarah Michniewicz, HART vice president and yard sale lead. "This represents a really large chunk of our budget."

Founded in 1997, HART began in a barn before eventually moving into its permanent shelter on Range Road in Cumberland. Since then, the nonprofit has built a reputation for providing care to injured, sick and special-needs cats that often require extensive medical treatment before they can be adopted.

"We are able to take on some of the more challenging medical issues and give a second chance to a cat that maybe otherwise would not have been able to get the care they needed," Michniewicz said.

That mission comes with significant costs, making fundraising events like the annual yard sale essential to the organization's operations.

Unlike many yard sales, this event resembles a well-organized retail store. The spacious exhibition hall is carefully arranged with dedicated sections for furniture, houseware items, clothing, jewelry, electronics, artwork, antiques, vintage items, books and small appliances. Volunteers spend weeks sorting, pricing and displaying thousands of donated items before the doors to the event open.

"People think of a yard sale as a jumble of things," Michniewicz said. "This is not. It is a great building, and we are grateful to the Cumberland Fairgrounds for renting it to us because it is the perfect place to display merchandise."

Michniewicz said the fundraiser began around 2005 in the HART shelter parking lot, when volunteers held several smaller sales throughout the year. As donations and attendance grew, organizers consolidated everything into one large annual event. In 2014, the sale moved to the Cumberland Fairgrounds Exhibition Hall, where it has continued to expand.

"We now have every shelf filled with all kinds of incredible things," she said. "People donate the most amazing things to us."

Although the fundraiser is critical financially, Michniewicz believes its greatest strength is the sense of community it creates.

"I have never been part of any event like this where so many people come together and work so hard for four weeks and do so much good," Michniewicz said.

About 100 volunteers help prepare and operate the sale each year. Some are long-time HART volunteers, while others return specifically for the Annual Yard Sale event.

"There are some people who come here specifically during their vacation in the summer to help volunteer," Michniewicz said. "It is pretty mind-blowing."

The event has also developed partnerships with other nonprofit organizations. After the sale concludes, many unsold items are donated to charities that can use them, extending the impact of each donation beyond HART itself.

"It is sort of a virtuous cycle," Michniewicz said. "We are happy to pass things on to others."

As the cost of veterinary care continues to rise, HART remains committed to treating cats with serious medical needs, even when doing so requires extensive resources and Michniewicz hopes the public recognizes the unique role the shelter plays in helping animals that might otherwise have nowhere to go.

The organization is currently accepting donations for the yard sale at its shelter, located at 302 Range Road in Cumberland, through July 24. Donations can be dropped off daily between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., though donors are encouraged to review the HART website for a list of items the organization cannot accept. HART is also seeking additional volunteers to help sort, organize and price donations before the sale begins.

The yard sale officially opens Thursday, Aug. 6 and runs from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, with the final day on Sunday running from 8 a.m. to noon. A special Sip & Shop preview event will be held the evening before the sale.

For first-time shoppers, Michniewicz offered one simple piece of advice.

"Get there early," she said. "It really is a good time, with positive energy and good people. You will almost certainly find something that you will want to take home."

For HART, every bargain purchased this year helps write another success story for a cat waiting for a forever home. <

In the public eye: Compassion, expertise and leadership essential qualities of Windham Fire/Rescue captain

Editor’s Note: This is another in an ongoing series of Windham and Raymond town employee profiles.

By Ed Pierce

They say that firefighters save more than homes, they give everything they have to save hearts, memories, and dreams of individuals and it’s a great description of how Gabriel Cummings approaches his job every day that he shows up to work.

Gabriel Cummings is a captain for the Windham Fire/Rescue
Department and has been with the department for five years.
In his position, he manages and supervises a duty crew of
eight firefighters working 24- to 48-hour shifts and provides
incident com man for structure and wildland fires and
oversees emergency response tasks such as fire safety, fire
suppression, search and rescue and emergency treatment
and transport. SUBMITTED PHOTO 

Cummings, a full-time captain with Windham Fire/Rescue has been with the department for five years and says he welcomes balancing the demands of a rising call volume, fire prevention, and training with a sense of caring about the community.

“Solving problems with positive outcomes, from the smallest to the largest incidents is the best thing about what I do,” he said.

Among his specific duties and responsibilities for Windham Fire/Rescue, Cummings manages and supervises a duty crew of eight firefighter/paramedics for 24- to 48-hour periods. He also provides Incident Command for Structure and Wildland fires, Motor Vehicle Collisions, Special Operations and supervision of the department’s emergency response tasks including accountability, safety, suppression, ventilation, forcible entry, search and rescue, overhaul, and emergency medical treatment and transport.

He is expected to run routine calls and for large-scale incidents to take command of initial operations until they are resolved or command is taken over by a fire chief. He enforces department policies and offers daily training for all members on and off shift in both emergency medical services and firefighting. Cummings also works as a paramedic assisting the frontline ambulances and takes on rescue calls that require a paramedic if all other paramedics are being used for other emergency situations.

He says the biggest misconception people may have about his work is that the public is “bothering” the fire department when they call for seemingly minor problems such as beeping smoke detectors, odors or not feeling quite right.

“We would always rather respond to help verify that there is no larger problem or condition, or find that everything is ok, than have someone become sicker or an incident get larger,” Cummings said.

Originally from Vermont, Cummings attended Southern Maine Community College and graduated with an Associate of Applied Science degree in paramedicine in 2014.

Before joining Windham Fire/Rescue, he served with Vermont Urban Search and Rescue Task Force One, was a Medical Team Manager and Rescue Swimmer, and worked as a full-time firefighter/paramedic for the City of South Burlington’s Fire Department. While working for that fire department in 2018, he was deployed to North Carolina for rescue efforts during Hurricane Florence.

Cummings is a perfect choice for his role as a captain with Windham Fire/Rescue and he manages teams using a combination of technical expertise, compassion, and effective communication. He’s able to make quick decisions under pressure and can assess dangerous situations and make informed decisions quickly, with the safety of his team and the community always at the forefront.

His experience allows him to convey complex information in a way that is easily understood and his technical expertise with firefighting equipment, firefighting and emergency management help Cummings make informed decisions that keep his teams safe and ensure the best possible outcomes for the community.

According to Cummings, he learned a lot about leadership from working closely with the late Windham Deputy Fire Chief John Kooistra.

“The lessons he taught me about exercising leadership through compassion will stick with me for the rest of my career,” he said. 

He said that something the public may not know about his job is how seriously firefighters take their work.

“Most people picture firefighters primarily fighting fires, but a more subtle part of the job is providing compassion, reassurance, and high-quality service during someone's worst day,” Cummings said. “Emotional responsibility is an important part of the profession that often goes unnoticed.”

His most memorable moment so far in working for Windham Fire/Rescue was when Cummings had to deliver two healthy babies on board Windham Fire Department ambulances earlier this year.

“It is always memorable to be involved in positive patient encounters such as those,” he said.

Cummings says his family is proud of his work with Windham Fire/Rescue. “They are very supportive, and enjoy the strong community built within and around the department,” he said. <

Senior Tax Assistance Program delivers relief for eligible residents

By Erin Rose

Windham’s senior and disabled residents who are struggling with property tax payments may be eligible for relief from the town.

Eligible senior and disabled residents in Windham
could receive up to $700 under the Senior
Property Tax Assistance Program. The 
deadline for applications is Monday, Aug. 3.
COURTESY PHOTO   

Applications are being accepted by Windham’s Town Manager’s office for the Senior Property Tax Assistance Program, with the window for residents to apply closing on Monday, Aug. 3.

“We have a council who is very much in favor of this program and helping seniors remain in their homes,” said Tammy Hodgman, Executive Assistant to the Town Manager. “Last year, we had 350 applicants and most received something.”

The program provides property tax refunds of up to $700 to residents based on several requirements. To be eligible, residents must be at least 65 years old or be 100 percent disabled with Social Security Administration document verification, have owned or rented a home in Windham for a full year, have lived in Windham for at least five years, have fully paid property taxes for the previous year, and have a household combined gross income of less than $65,000.

“It’s a refund of taxes paid,” Hodgman said. “We check that applicants meet certain income levels and requirements, such as age and residency, etc., and then we look to see if the previous year’s property taxes were paid.”

Payments are prorated based on each resident’s income and property tax burden.

“Most people receive something,” Hodgman explained. “If someone’s income is toward the limit and their taxes are relatively low, they may not qualify for as much as someone who has a lower income and a higher tax.”

Hodgman encourages those who have applied previously, but were denied, to reapply for the program in future years, as the requirements change annually.

“If you don’t qualify one year, it doesn’t mean you won’t qualify the next,” she said. “With inflation, income level requirements change.”

Typically, the application period runs from July 1 to Aug. 1, but residents have a few extra days this year thanks to the calendar.

“The application period is the month of July,” Hodgman said. “The deadline is typically Aug. 1, but Aug. 1 falls on a weekend, so the next business day is Aug. 3.”

The program is included as a line item in the town’s annual budget, with the town council dedicating $280,000 to provide the tax support to residents.

“It goes through the entire budget process and gets approved at the town meeting,” Hodgman said. “That’s why we wait until the new fiscal year to advertise it.”

The Windham Town Manager’s office is responsible for taking and reviewing all applications, including the associated documentation, with the Windham Finance Director providing guidance as needed. Residents must provide forms to verify their income, including federal tax forms, Social Security benefit statements, Veteran’s Disability Income Statement, retirement statements, W-2s, or Interest Income documentation.

“It gets quite busy in July,” Hodgman said. “We get about 25 to 30 people a day, with 16 or so business days in the month.”

The busy pace however doesn’t stop the staff from enjoying seeing familiar faces.

“It’s a great time to catch up with our seniors,” Hodgman said as the office sees many of them on an annual basis. “We get a little time to chat.”

For further information and to access the program application, visit the Windham website at www.windhammaine.us or call 207-892-1907. <