When I was growing up in Windham, and the population was less than 5,000, most people lived in the southern end of town – and the area was served by city bus service. One could get from South Windham village to Westbrook or Portland, several times a day. When automobiles became more common and affordable,  bus service was discontinued.

The population of Windham grew to 17,000 – and has shifted to the north. A while back, bus service returned, serving Windham and towns to the north. Not everyone is aware of this resource or can afford it.

Do you need help paying for the bus? If you live in Casco, Naples, Raymond or Windham, help is available. Free Lakes Region Explorer passes are available to people with financial need.

The bus makes four round trips each weekday from Bridgton to Portland, with stops in each community along the way, including Westbrook, Windham, Raymond, Casco and Naples. Schedule information is available at: www.rtprides.org/lakeregionbus. To apply for passes, contact one of the following:

Windham: Rene Daniels – 892-1906

Casco: Lucille Griffin – 627-4515, ext 205 or: clerk@cascomaine.org

Raymond: Alice Hamilton – 655-4742

Naples: Kim Thomson – 693-6364 or: kthomson@townofnaples.org

SMART Child & Family Services: Becky Humphrey – 894-3111 or bhumphrey@smartcfs.org

Crosswalk Outreach: Joanna Moore – 615-3226 or crosswalkoutreach@yahoo.com

Passes made available by Cumberland County’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program. For general information about the program contact: Rick Harbison (rharbison@gpcog.org) or Zoe Miller (zmiller@gpcog.org)

Need help with Medicare?

On Tuesday, March 21, Southern Maine Agency on Aging will offer a “Welcome to Medicare” seminar at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church at 919 Roosevelt Trail, Windham, from 10 a.m. to noon. In addition to the Medicare seminar, there will be one-on-one Medicare counseling with SHIP volunteers available from 9 a.m. to noon.

The seminar and counseling are intended to help you sort through your Medicare options, answer questions – and to help you enroll. In addition to Medicare assistance, counseling on tax and rent rebates, food stamps and fuel assistance can be arranged. Call the SMAA to register for an upcoming seminar or to make a one-on-one appointment with a SHIP counselor at 396-6500 or 1-800-427-7411.

Seminar walk-ins can usually be accommodated. Further opportunities for these services will occur monthly on the first and third Tuesdays at the same times and location. Visit the website at www.smaaa.org to learn more about the many other services that are available.

Kay Soldier welcomes reader ideas for column topics of interest to seniors. She can be reached by email at kso48@aol.com, or write to 114 Tandberg Trail, Windham, ME 04062.