Buffet luncheon ‘outstanding’

The annual salad luncheon buffet of the Woman’s Literary Union was held at 11:30 a.m. on June 12 at the Deering Masonic Hall on Bishop Street, Portland. The luncheon benefited the Eunice Frye Fund. The WLU also presented two scholarships to local high school seniors.

It is an outstanding luncheon; the salads and desserts are all made and donated by members. The freshly baked bread, peasant bread from Standard Baking Co., was donated by Mary Kibbee. The salads of many vegetables were placed on a long table, and some included chicken, shrimp, tuna, etc. The desserts included frosted cakes, cookies and marshmallow bars, and all were delicious.

If members wanted to start a tearoom, it would be a most popular place to eat.

Anne Powell, the WLU’s executive secretary, was very helpful to me, with details of the scholarship winners. They and their parents were our guests at the luncheon. The two winners were Margaret Bagley, a senior at South Portland High School, who will attend the University of Maine, Orono, and Nicole Deschambault, a senior at Windham High School, who will attend the University of New England.

Sitting at the table I was at were Mary Jean Pearce, Lorraine McKee, Betty Lones, Doris Gene Briggs, Gloria Stover and Doris Chapman.

I was pleased to chat with Colleen Reed, who introduced me to Anna Brown, who donated the flowers at each table from her garden in Sebago. She told me that the peonies, which were in large vases on the salad table, were from the garden of member Patricia Shapazian, who lives on Stevens Avenue, Portland. They were gorgeous.

Virginia Tomer, chairman of the Scholarship Committee, presented the scholarships to the two girls – $3,000 apiece.

Anne Powell had a nice paragraph in her note to me: “Special thanks to all members who supported the event with their donations and attendance, and to the volunteers who made many telephone calls, collected money, helped set up and clean up. Committee members were Pat Kinkade, Nora Stetson, Arla Cohen, Patricia Babyock, Karin Sears, Louise Whitehead and Vicki Webster, chairman.”

I was awaiting my ride home, when Jean Childs was leaving the Masonic Hall and offered to drive me home. It was a very welcome invitation.

Wildlife whereabouts

Joan Ashley of Falmouth sent me an interesting copy of the Guillemot nature newsletter for March-April. I like to print listings found in our area.

Spring peepers were found in York and Scarborough in March and April. Raccoons had been raiding bird feeders and garbage cans since the first of March; a red-throated loon was reported in Falmouth on April 9; double-crested cormorants were showing up in coastal rivers from Scarborough to the Penobscot, following the run of smelts along the coast; a least bittern (heron) was found at Buxton April 30; great blue herons returned to Brunswick and Scarborough March 19 and 20; great egrets and snowy egrets were at Scarborough Marsh in March; green herons were in Freeport and Portland in April; Canada geese were in Scarborough in March; mourning doves, rock doves and a white-winged dove were found at Capisic Pond in Portland on May 8.

A long-eared owl was reported at Lane Island in Freeport, and a short-eared owl was at Biddeford Pool on March 24. A few glossy ibis were found outside their usual haunts at Scarborough Marsh; a single white-faced ibis mixed in with the glossy at Scarborough on April 4 for that day only. Brant were along the coast throughout March and April; the first green-winged teal were at Scarborough Marsh on March 8, with up to 120 at Bowdoinham on April 1.

Harlequin ducks were not as widely reported this spring, as they often are. Birds were at Brunswick, Biddeford and Cape Elizabeth March 24-April 24; rough-winged swallows were at Biddeford Pool on April 7 and Saco on April 10; bank swallows were seen at Castine and New Gloucester; barn swallows were seen at Bradbury Mountain, and at Falmouth on April 14; house wrens were seen at Scarborough Marsh, Freeport and Augusta, all in early May; a marsh wren at Freeport on May 1 was the first and only one reported.

Joan Ashley wrote me that the gull she saw at Kettle Cove, Cape Elizabeth, was a laughing gull, not a black-headed gull, as we reported. (The laughing gull does have a black head.) Joan also reported a rose-breasted grosbeak and hummingbirds at her backyard in Falmouth.

Some of you readers may have favorite bird visitors, too. Let us know, if you’d like to see them in print.

Think banana

Today’s recipe is from Haydn Pearson’s “Country Flavor Cookbook,” 1956.

ZEBULON WOOD’S BANANA PUDDING

Two or three ripe bananas

1?2 cup white sugar

1 pint whole milk

1?2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon heavy cream

41?2 tablespoons flour

1?2 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

Cook sugar, milk, salt, heavy cream and flour together in top of double boiler until flour is cooked and mixture thickens. Beat the two eggs, add to mixture and cook for one minute. Cool, and add 1?2 teaspoon vanilla. Slice two or three bananas, depending on size, into a casserole dish. Pour the sauce over these and stir gently with a fork, so the banana is well distributed. For the love of good food, serve this pudding cold.