Skateboarding champ
I truly enjoy sharing the news of Raymond’s many talented residents and this week, I am especially excited because 15-year-old Zac Rose just won the 2011 Gatorade Free Flow skateboarding competition held in Rye, N.H. In its seventh summer season, the Gatorade Free Flow Tour searches the country’s premier skate parks, giving top amateurs the once-in-a-lifetime chance to go from “flow to pro.” The goal is to find top talent from across the country while giving skateboarders of all abilities the opportunity to have fun while competing in a contest. The best skaters compete and the tough judges are looking for perfection and skill.
Zac took first place in the Open Vertical Division after performing an array of Indy grabs and 640s. While I have not had the opportunity to watch him personally, I have seen videos of his performances and am extremely impressed by his talents. Zac began skating when he was in first grade and he spent a lot of time at the Windham Skate Park. However, once he discovered the vertical ramp at Rye Airfield, he has been skating there almost every weekend. Earlier this year, Zac earned a sixth place at the Tampa Am Vert Qualifiers, and I am quite certain we will be hearing about many more of his victories in the future.
40 Years of History
I love to hear stories and see photos of our town’s past and a visit to the Raymond-Casco Historical Society is always interesting and fun. This weekend will be even more special because they will be celebrating their 40th year anniversary on Saturday, July 9, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. In addition to the guided tours of the museum and refreshments served throughout the day, the newly published book “Images of America, Raymond and Casco,” which was written by Pam Watkins Grant and Betty Watkins Glassford, will be available. For more information about the celebration, call Betty McDermott at 655-4646 or visit the Society’s website at http://raymondcascohistory.org. Better yet, just go to the celebration and have fun learning about our town.
Books and More
The Raymond Village Library’s annual book sale will kick off on Sunday, July 10, at 9 a.m. and will continue throughout the summer. Readers can look forward to the wide variety of books in hardcover and paperback including some light beach reading, recent fiction, great non-fiction and classics, as well as cookbooks, books on gardening, sewing and carpentry. There are also children’s books, puzzles, audio books, music CDs and videos for sale at incredibly low prices. New items are added daily so be sure to stop by periodically to find your favorite books. The library is open Sunday, Monday and Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Gardening workshop
Raymond’s Community Garden has been such a huge success with many experienced and new gardeners learning a lot and enjoying the fruits of their labor. The Healthy Lakes’ Communities Putting Prevention to Work program is offering “An Introduction to Permaculture and Soil Building Workshop,” which will be held at the Manchester School in Windham on July 14 from 8:30 a.m. until 3 p.m. and all area school and community gardeners are invited to attend.
This free workshop will include an introduction to permaculture and a hands-on learning session on permaculture building techniques. Participants should plan to be outside for a significant portion of the workshop. Lunch will be provided for free. For more information or to register, please visit http://cppwpermacultureworkshop.eventbrite.com/
Flea market
The Casco Village Church will be hosting its annual flea market and auction on Saturday, July 9, from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on the village green. More than 50 vendors will be there featuring a variety of your favorite items. There will also be a plant sale, bake sale, raffles, activities for the kids and many fabulous items on which to bid for the auction. This traditional summer event is fun for everyone so don’t miss it.
Group running
It thrills me to see more and more people becoming active. Not only is exercise extremely beneficial physically, it also reduces stress and benefits our overall being. Running is an easy and inexpensive form of exercise and whether you are running just for fun or training for one of the many upcoming races, running with others is very effective and motivating.
Hannaford is hosting a series of training runs that are being offered to those training for the Beach to Beacon 10K road race as well as any other runners who simply wish to run with others. A group of runners from Raymond are planning to attend and would like you to join us. These runs will increase in distance each week starting with 3.5 miles and ending with 5.5 miles. They are free and will start at the Forest Avenue Hannaford in Portland each Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. throughout July with the final run held on Aug. 2 and led by U.S. Olympic Gold Medalist Joan Benoit-Samuelson. Free drinks and refreshments will be available as well as the unbeatable camaraderie. We are planning to carpool from Raymond so please let me know if you would like to join us.
Soccer deadline
Summer is in full swing and while fall may seem a ways off, registration for the fall soccer program must be done now. It takes time to formulate teams and recruit coaches so registrations need to be finalized by July 30. If you have not already registered your child, please contact program coordinator Stacey Richmond at 655-5097 or starrich@maine.rr.com immediately. The Raymond Recreation fall soccer program is for boys and girls in kindergarten through sixth grade, is an excellent program and only costs $30 per player. In addition, a pre-school soccer program for 4 and 5-year-olds is being considered this year if enough children and a co-coordinator are interested. Soccer practices will begin the last week in August and games will be played on Saturday mornings beginning in September and running through the last week of October. Volunteer coaches for all ages and field volunteers are needed. Being involved with the kids, helping them hone their skills while witnessing their growth and love for the sport is a very fun and rewarding job.
15-year-old Zac Rose skated his way to a first place finish at
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