Girl Scout Award

As a community service project for their Bronze Award, Gray–New Gloucester Girl Scout Troop 1214 chose to update the playroom of the Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital at Maine Medical Center. Drawing upon their personal experiences of having had family members hospitalized there, the Scouts identified this project as a need in the community; thereby settling on it as their Bronze Award project.

With donations from family and friends, the troop was able to contribute more than 300 items for the children. The successful project was gratifying to the Scouts and was much-appreciated by the hospital staff.

Win Fuel Oil

Sign up to donate blood at the Gray-New Gloucester Lions Club blood drive and you may become the lucky donor to win $100 worth of home heating oil, donated by Fielding Oil. The Lions blood drive will be held Monday, May 18, from 1-6 p.m. at the Newbegin Center, 22 Main St., Gray.

Donors will receive a Red Cross T-shirt and a chance to win Red Sox tickets. Appointments are highly recommended and can be made through Lion Dean Neal at 926-4723, the Red Cross donor line 1-800-733-2767 or online at redcrossblood.org and enter zip code 04039.

EMS Open House

The annual EMS open house is Wednesday, May 20, from 5-7 p.m. at the Fire-Rescue Station, 611 Lewiston Road, New Gloucester. The EMS staff will be celebrating 40 years of New Gloucester’s rescue department, 1975-2015.

There will be demonstrations, including one on the use of dog harnesses in the car for pet safety, a barbecue, free bike raffle, free blood pressure checks, door prizes, and free T-shirts for the first 50 kids. Call 926-4142 for more information.

Candidates Forum

Four certified candidates are vying for two open seats on the New Gloucester Board of Selectmen. They are Linda Chase, Jean Couturier, Stephen Hathorne and Kathleen Potter. A televised candidates forum, open to the public, will be held on Friday, May 29, 7 p.m., at the New Gloucester Meetinghouse, 389 Intervale Road. Beverly Cadigan will serve as the moderator.

Citizens are encouraged to send questions, to be asked by the moderator, before noon on Thursday, May 21, by email to ngcabletv@gmail.com. Additionally, the format will include an opportunity for audience members to ask questions. After the forum, the candidates will be available to speak one on one with citizens. This follow-up will not be televised.

The forum will be telecast live on local access cable Channel 3 and will be rebroadcast on May 30-31 and June 5-7, at 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. Also, a video of the program will be available online at www.newgloucester.com.

Budget Meeting

The MSAD 15 District Budget Meeting to vote on the 2015-2016 proposed budget will be held Thursday, May 21, 6:30 p.m., at the Gray-New Gloucester High School Cafetorium, 10 Libby Hill Road, Gray. Voter registration will start at 6 p.m. The subsequent budget validation vote will take place on Tuesday, June 9, at respective voting centers in each community.

Shaker Village Opening

The Sabbathday Lake Shaker Museum and Shaker Store will open on Friday, May 22. The museum is located within the perimeters of the only active Shaker Community in the world. Open daily, except Sundays, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. from May 22-Oct. 12, one-hour guided tours provide valuable insights into the Maine Shaker heritage and culture.

Workshops, concerts, tours, craft demonstrations and special events are listed at www.maineshakers.com.

Family Farmyard Opens

Join in on the fun as Pineland Farms opens its 2015 farmyard, site of most of the family education programs held there. A Farmers Olympics and an afternoon full of farm activities for the whole family are offered on Saturday, May 23, from noon to 5 p.m. The rain date is Sunday, May 24.

Buy tickets for $5 per person at The Market and Welcome Center, 15 Farm View Drive, New Gloucester. For more information, contact the Education Department at 650-3031 or education@pinelandfarms.org.

Memorial Day Parade

As was the case last year, the start location of New Gloucester’s annual Memorial Day parade will be the Memorial School at 86 Intervale Road. The parade route will proceed northerly along Route 231 and then turn right onto Route 100. The procession will stop at the New Gloucester Veterans Monument for memorial services with brief remarks by several dignitaries, then the parade will resume and proceed to the ending point, which is the Amvets Hall.

Parade participants are to arrive at the school by 8:30 a.m., Monday, May 25, for a step-off time of 9 a.m. If you or your organization would like to reserve a spot in the parade, call Bill Kiley at 926-4232.

Gray–New Gloucester Girl Scout Troop 1214 updated the playroom at Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital as a community service project for their Bronze Award.Courtesy photo