Feb. 8, 1995

The loot in the armed robbery of Day’s Jewelry Store in downtown Westbrook last May 5 was about $110,000, Police Chief Steven Roberts said Monday. He spoke after the arraignment of a Rhode Island man, charged with taking part in the Day’s robbery and the robberies of Fleet Bank in Westbrook and two other area banks.

Westbrook’s mayor and City Council passed a tough amusement permit ordinance Monday that appears to have coincided with a decision by Michel Salvaggio not to pursue his plans for a nightclub in his restaurant building at Exit 8.

From the Gorham Police Notes: Following the recent storm, at least half a dozen residents received summonses for violating town ordinances and blowing snow from the properties onto public roads. Police intervened on Robie Street, Robie Avenue, Main Street, Sebago Lake Road and Osborne Road. Several fender-bender accidents occurred but nothing extremely serious as most motorists stayed home.

Doug and Cherry Finck of Gorham have made their first trip to Las Vegas. Cherry told of the incredible hotels, shows and casinos. They were attending a television industry conference, so they got to see many TV talk-show hosts, including Regis and Kathy Lee.

Westbrook High School’s marching band is going to the Citrus Bowl in Florida in December, and fundraising for the trip is under way. The goal: $80,000.

Feb. 9, 2005

On Saturday, the Westbrook Armory was filled with the sounds of people armed not with guns, but with paintbrushes, mops and assorted small tools. The group of 25 volunteers had a clear mission — to do something for a group of soldiers a long way from home. They were participating in Operation Spit Shine, an ongoing effort by the Maine National Guard to spiff up armories for the troops that are soon scheduled to return from a yearlong deployment in Iraq.

The American Journal won two first-place awards in the New England Press Association’s Better Newspaper contest last weekend. Both went to stories by Brendan Moran. One story focused on how local mill workers were adjusting to layoffs, and one was on the effects urban renewal had on present efforts to revitalize the Westbrook’s business base.

The Redeemer Lutheran Church has bought the former Calvary Temple building at 410 Main St., Gorham, to be its temporary home during planning for a new home on a 20-acre site at the corner of Route 114 and McLellan Road in Gorham. The church is moving from Cape Elizabeth to be closer to its parishioners, who come from all over southern Maine. Its first service in the temporary home is this Sunday.

The second-grade class of teacher Sally Plourde spearheaded a drive at the Prides Corner School that raised $690.10 for the tsunami relief effort. The class named their drive “Cents for Tsunami.” The children brought in pennies to see how many $1 bottles of water they could buy. They raised $30, and then decided to open the drive up to the whole school.

From the Gorham Police Notes: On Jan. 23, police verbally warned someone on South Street about plowing snow onto the sidewalk, and Public Works reported that a Gray Road woman was still blowing snow onto the street. Public Works also reported that a man on Main Street had covered three or four cars while snow blowing.