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Lawn care Garden Club topic

Pat Lewis will speak about lawn care when the Gorham Garden Club meets from 7 to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, April 26, at the First Parish Church on Church Street.

Lewis of Lewis Brothers Golf Course & Property Services Inc. will speak about caring for lawns in an environmentally safe way.

The meeting is open and free to the public.

Snell to read poetry

Mary Snell of North Gorham and the island of Lesvos, Greece, will be one of three Maine poets who will read their work from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Friday, April 22, in Room 215 of the new Abromson Community Education Center at the Portland campus of the University of Southern Maine.

The reading is part of the university’s “Thinking Matters Day,” celebrating student scholarship. Snell and the other two poets, David Stankiewicz of South Portland and Lillian Baker Kennedy of Auburn, are graduate students studying for masters of fine arts degrees in the USM Stonecoast MFA creative writing program. Annie Finch, an internationally recognized poet who directs the program, will lead a post reading discussion.

Snell is a former staff writer for the Maine Sunday Telegram. She reviewed theater for the paper for 25 years. Her poetry has appeared in “Ubris” and “Words & Images.”

She is currently the arts promotion director at the university where she is also founder and director of the USM/Aegean Arts and Cultural Exchange, in addition to teaching a summer course on Greek culture. She is president of Hellenic Society Paideia of Maine, and through it she recently helped establish a sister city relationship between Portland and Mytilene, Lesvos.

Cutline(Mark Fisher) – Mark Fisher

Fisher Northern Chi top student

Mark Fisher of Gorham has been named the March Student of the Month at Northern Chi Martial Arts Center in Scarborough.

“Mark continually demonstrates a great attitude in class. He brings to Northern Chi a wealth of experience from his previous studies, while at the same time he keeps a very open mind in his training. He willingly works with true beginners in a respectful and positive manner. Mark recently tested for his Purple Belt,” said Jim DiVirgilio, studio director.

Each month, the school’s instructor team selects the student who best captures “the essence of Northern Chi, and who in all ways demonstrates respect,” DiVirgilio said

In recognition of the honor, Mark receives a $25 gift certificate.

Northern Chi Martial Center, located at 136 U.S. Route 1 in Scarborough, offers instruction in kempo karate, t’ai chi and women’s self defense. Founded in 1994, Northern Chi strives “to provide an environment where everyone can enjoy the benefits of martial arts,” DiVirgilio said.

Cutline (Farrington and Mitchell) – Rep. David Farrington, D-Gorham, on the right, visited with former Maine Sen. George Mitchell at the State House on April 13. Mitchell, who has served as U.S. Senate majority leader and chairman of numerous international peace-brokering missions on behalf of President Clinton, was at the Statehouse to present the Mitchell Scholarship to graduating high school seniors from across the state. Farrington is a teacher at Gorham High School. Courtesy photo

Cutline (Barstow #1) – Gorham residents Lorraine Birrell, Rep. Chris Barstow, Michaelina Birrell and John Wilkinson, left to right, pause for a photo in the speaker’s office in the Statehouse. The three recently testified in support of a bill submitted by Barstow to increase safety for domestic abuse victims. Courtesy photo

Cutline (Barstow 2) – Rep. Chris Barstow on the left with Thomas Estes, vice president and relationship manager for Union Trust Company’s Ellsworth Branch. Estes job-shadowed Barstow recently, as part of Maine Bankers Day.

Smith on dean’s list

Erika Smith has been named to the dean’s list for the winter quarter at Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, Ga.

Smith is a fashion major. She is the daughter of John Larsen and Kimberly Smith.

50 years ago

The Westbrook American reported in its issue of April 20, 1955, that Ralph Newell had been named chairman of a Gorham School Survey Committee.

Others named to the committee were Agnes Gibbs, Kenneth Morse, Alton Benson Jr., Ruth Elliott, Gary Locke, Waino Ray, Bernard Rines, Carroll Wentworth and Frederick Robie. Rines and Wentworth were named to a sub committee to project school enrollment. Benson, Locke and Gibbs were named to a sub committee to determine Gorham’s growth rate.

Newell was a former chairman of the school committee while Gibbs was the chairman 50 years ago. Morse was a town selectman.

The article said Gorham voters approved $175,000 for a new school to replace the Frederick Robie School in Little Falls.

Community chorus needs support

The Gorham Community Chorus, a non-auditioned group of amateur singers of all ages, meets weekly during the school year to rehearse choral music. A concert will be presented in the Gorham High School performing Arts Center at 7 p.m. on Sunday, May 15, with admission by voluntary donation. A silent auction will be held before the concert and during intermission.

The chorus began in 1992 under the direction of Chris Peterson, followed by John Rimkunas and now Patrick McCarthy. Concerts are presented in December and May and by request at local events.

Because our membership, and thus our dues income, has dwindled over recent years, the chorus is requesting financial help from local businesses, former members and local residents in order to continue as a viable musical endeavor. Members are also hoping interested community members will consider joining the chorus in the fall of 2005. No audition is required.

It is the custom to present up to $500 in scholarships to local music students at the May concert. Chorus members raise the money themselves, as well as through contributions received at the concerts. This year our income has been less than anticipated. Additionally, the $25/semester dues has never increased in an effort to keep the group accessible to as many aspiring vocalists of all ages as possible. The cost of music, hiring a director and accompanist, as well as increased requests for scholarships, have all presented a significant financial challenge.

Please consider becoming a sponsor at any amount and be mentioned in our concert program. If you are a business owner, we will place an ad for your business in the concert program. The chorus is also soliciting donations of items and gift certificates for the silent auction.

We hope you will attend the concert on May 15th, bid on auction items and bring your musical friends to come sing with us in the fall.

Please contact the chorus president, Cindy Smith, at 892-2617 by Sunday, May 1, to contribute in any way, or for more information about joining the chorus.