Thumbs up to Kennebunk Elementary School second grade student Brian Foisy and his schoolmates who donated 54 pounds of their Halloween candy gatherings to send to U.S. troops and children in Afghanistan.

Foisy’s parents should be commended for teaching the child ”“ and through him, the school community ”“ about Operation Shoebox, a humanitarian organization that sends care packages to Afghanistan.

Thumbs up to Saco’s proposed new fire station, which would be paid for not through taxes but through ambulance billing. As Fire Chief Alden Murphy noted, the current fire station is inarguably inadequate. Though it is a quaint historic building with horse heads carved above the bays, it’s also too small to serve the needs of today’s firefighters and their equipment. Supporting the fire station would be a painless and smart investment for the town.

Thumbs up to the ladies of the Dorcas Society of Buxton-Hollis for keeping the memory of esteemed former resident, author Kate Douglas Wiggin, alive by presenting her play, “The Peabody Pew” annually. Their dedication to small town pride and community are inspiring and part of what makes Buxton and Hollis strong.

Thumbs up to York County Budget Committee member David James of Kennebunkport Budget Committee vice chairman Joseph Hanslip for their support of the budgets proposed by the sheriff’s department and district attorney’s office. Officials from those departments have made clear that public safety is suffering from staffing cuts and the support of Budget Committee members is heartening.

Thumbs up to Middle School of the Kennebunks teacher Mike Denniston and other area schoolteachers who are participating in Vital Signs, a consortium that allows science students from across the state to take part in actual, real life science by gathering data on invasive species. When children get a chance to participate in real life experiments and take leadership roles, they start to understand career options and develop an earnest interest in a field of study.

Thumbs up to Josephine Cooper and Aleah Graham, co-creators of Project Aware’s new film, “Influenced,” and to all the cast and crew members who worked on the movie. Created as a public service, the film seeks to be an impetus for parents to talk with their teens about serious issues and to think about their own role modeling. It was also a great opportunity for the youth to learn about filmmaking, first hand.

Thumbnails is a Monday feature of the Journal Tribune’s opinion pages. If you would like to respond, please write the Reader’s Forum via e-mail at jtcommunity@journaltribune.com or by dropping your letter off at our Biddeford or Sanford offices.