Movies at Gray Public Library

Movies at the Gray Public Library are almost like going to the $8 cineplex. The screen’s almost as big, and the sound is as earthshaking. The major difference is the $8. At the Gray Public Library, you don’t have to pay it – or anything.

If you have kids, you might want to see “Tinkerbell and the Legend of the Neverbeast.” You’ve probably seen it advertised on television lately, and now you can see it for free. It’s on Saturday, March 14, at 1 p.m.

More great films are coming up “John Wick,” “Mary Poppins” and “Good Morning, Vietnam.” Watch for times and dates.

For information about these and other Gray Public Library events, call 657-4110.

St. Joe’s awarded for community engagement

Saint Joseph’s College, located in Standish, has been selected by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching to receive its Community Engagement Classification, highlighting the college’s focus on community service throughout its mission and daily interactions on campus and within the local, regional and global communities.

“This classification reflects the dedication the Saint Joseph’s College community has not just to living our core values, but to providing our students learning experiences that prepare them to be both skilled and compassionate citizens of the world,” says Kimberly Post, Saint Joseph’s director of community-based learning. “As a Sisters of Mercy institution we are altruistic by nature, and the Carnegie classification recognizes this as well as our real-world, community-based approach to teaching and learning.”

Valid until 2025, this is the college’s first time earning the distinction from the Carnegie Foundation. For 2015, the foundation selected 240 U.S. colleges and universities to receive its Classification. Post says the application process for the award took more than two years of research and fact gathering, drawing upon the experience and knowledge from numerous members of the college community. Post examined community engagement in all areas of the institution, from students to faculty and staff.

Post said students accomplished one of the more distinguished examples of community engagement noted in the application. During the 2012-2013 academic year, 821 students participated in community-based learning as part of their coursework, and 150 students engaged in co-curricular community service. Faculty participation was impressive as well, she said, with 52 on-campus and online faculty integrating community engagement into the curricula.

This Carnegie classification comes just a month after the college was named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for 2014. The Honor Roll, launched in 2006, highlights colleges and universities that place students on a lifelong path of civic engagement and their role in solving communities’ struggles.

“It’s important for a Catholic, liberal arts college to educate the whole person,” says college President James Dlugos. “Part of that education is to break down the walls that separate higher education from the ‘real world.’ Our students learn from their first semester at Saint Joseph’s that they are embarking on an integrated, community-focused education. This Carnegie Foundation recognition demonstrates that this approach to education works and is important. This is a significant day for everyone in the Saint Joseph’s, neighboring, and global communities.”

In its award letter, the Foundation recognized the college’s “excellent alignment among campus mission, culture, leadership, resources, and practices that support dynamic and noteworthy community engagement … The application also documented evidence of community engagement in a coherent and compelling response to the framework’s inquiry.”

Museum hosts Folk Art Contest

Have you ever imagined seeing your art artwork displayed in a museum? The Rufus Porter Museum, in Bridgton, is holding a 2015 Folk Art Contest. Your original folk art entry interpreting the 1816 weather phenomenon, “The Year Without a Summer,” the theme for the Rufus Porter Museum’s 2016 season, will give you that chance. Entries will be categorized as youth, teen, adult and professional and the winner will be featured in the museum’s 2016 calendar, which will be sold in the gift shop.

The entry deadline is May 15 by 3 p.m. and entries must not exceed 4 square feet in size, fit through the Museum’s entry door, and be able to be photographed. There is entry fee of $5 for youth and teen entries and $10 for adults and professionals. The youth and teen entry fees will be waived for school groups of 10 or more, who contact the museum to arrange their group submittal.

In 1816, Maine, like most of the world, suffered untold hardship due to the weather. There was a frost every month that year and 10 inches of snow fell one day in June. Maine crops were so decimated that sawdust was added to bread recipes to make it more substantial. Even with the enormous problems people faced, creativity never faded and the dreariness influenced inventions and art, including “Frankenstein,” by Mary Shelley.

More information is available at rufusportermuseum.org or contacting 647-2828.

Community Center to offer WorkReady program

Are you currently out of work? Could your skills use some updating? WorkReady is a statewide employer-endorsed credential program supported by a variety of regional businesses and offered at no cost to eligible participants.

Call Rhonda Jacobson (627-4291, ext. 30) at Crooked River Adult Education for information about a WorkReady program starting in April at the Bridgton Community Center.

Bridgton Hospital to host ‘Books are Fun’ fundraiser

Bridgton Hospital will be hosting its bi-annual Books Are Fun fundraiser on Wednesday, April 9, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Thursday April 10, from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Located in the main entrance of the hospital, you will find a large selection of children’s storybooks, cookbooks, inspirational and religious books, stationary, music, executive gifts and much more.

A percentage of sales from this event will benefit the Employee Emergency Assistance Fund, which awards dollars to Central Maine Medical Family employees (including Bridgton Hospital staff) experiencing extenuating financial hardship.

For more information about the Books Are Fun sale and other fundraising activities, contact the Bridgton Hospital Development Office at 647-6055 or email bridgtonhospitalgiving@cmhc.org.