Dec. 29, 1993

After hearing complaints from several citizens about two 5 percent raises for Superintendent Edward Connolly, the Westbrook School Committee shut off further debate and approved the new contract. He will be paid $65,625 this year, retroactive to July 1, and $68,906 the each of the following two years.

Westbrook will inaugurate Fred C. Wescott for his third term as mayor in ceremonies Jan. 3, but the mayor may miss the event. He went back to Brighton Medical Center on Wednesday, missing Christmas at home, and was still there yesterday, under treatment for the lung and brain tumors that were found shortly before the Nov. 2 election. “If he’s not with us, we’ll go to his bedside and see that he’s sworn in,” said Kenneth Lefebvre, council president.

The alert notice by Westbrook residents Denise and Dennis Wescott of something amiss with cars parked at the East Bridge Street senior citizens’ housing helped police nab four people who turned out to be responsible for 101 car burglaries in Westbrook. One South Portland teen took part in all the burglaries and another South Portland teen took part in two. Two others took part in several. Another ring of two Westbrook teens responsible for multiple car burglaries was also busted.

Cornelia Files, now 90 years old, still cares about the residents of the nursing home she founded in Gorham. She took part again this year in the joint effort of several church groups to provide lap robes or afghans to people in the Cottage at the Gorham House. In the 1960s and 1970s, the building was the Files Nursing Home. Files lives with her daughter Becky at 10 Lincoln St. in Gorham.

Dec. 31, 2003

Westbrook voters on Tuesday rejected Scarborough Downs’ proposal for a racetrack and slot machine facility, 3,168-2,207. Voters rejected the proposal in every ward in the city. Some 40 percent of Westbrook voters participated. Sharon Terry, owner of Scarborough Downs, characterized the defeat as “disappointing,” but said she will continue to look for ways, be it a racino or otherwise, to keep harness racing alive in southern Maine. Ken Lefebvre, who co-chaired the pro-racino group Westbrook Citizens for Jobs and the Economy, said time was not on their side. “It’s very disappointing we didn’t have the opportunity to let the community weigh all the details,” he said.

When the clock strikes midnight on New Year’s Eve, bar patrons throughout Maine will be asked to put out their cigarettes. The smoking ban may be welcome for some, but others are upset. “To me it just doesn’t make any sense,” said Paul Profenno, owner of Profenno’s in Westbrook. “Why don’t you give the owners a choice? They’re going to put people out of business.”

Third-grade classes at Westbrook’s Congin School sent handmade greeting cards and boxes of gifts this week to four U.S. soldiers deployed overseas. About 115 students took part. Originally, students were just going to send letters, but they wanted to do more. The gift boxes contain gum, hard candy, toilet paper, beef jerky and other items. The three soldiers from Maine in Iraq receiving the cards and gifts are Spc. Kenneth Merrifield, Spc. Matthew Valade and Ssg. Anthony Roman. Sgt. Philip Simonds Jr. of Westbrook, stationed in Okinawa, also was sent a package.

There are three things Gorham boys basketball fans have come to expect each winter: a gym full of enthusiastic spectators, a trip to the state tournament and Kevin Jenkins coaching from the Rams bench. Members of the Gorham basketball family, past and present, joined together on Sunday to honor Jenkins for his 20 years as head coach of the boys varsity. Jenkins’ tenure at Gorham is highlighted by nine trips to the Western Maine finals, six state title appearances and two state championships, in 1996 and 2000.

The Westbrook Farmers Union, owned by the Jensen family, sold feed, grain, fertilizer and other farm products at the corner of Main and Saco streets. The area where this building once stood is now a grassy lot bordered by Main and Saco streets and William Clarke Drive. To see more historical photos and artifacts, visit the Westbrook Historical Society at the Fred C. Wescott Building, 426 Bridge St. It is open Tuesdays and Saturdays, 9 a.m.-noon, and the first Wednesday of each month at 1:30 p.m., September-June. Inquiries can be emailed to westhistorical@myfairpoint.net. The website is www.westbrookhistoricalsociety.org.