Events

Five years ago, Matt Billian left his fifteen-year career in public safety and turned his passion into a business. He is now known locally for his aerial photography.

“It all started with an interest in aviation,” he said. “And seeing things from up high.”

As a teenager, he paid for flight lessons by cleaning hangars at the Twitchell Airport in Turner. He could fly planes before he learned to drive a car. When drones began to be released, he was immediately hooked.

Billian Moments Productions has a memorandum of understanding with Franklin County’s emergency management services. Billian provides aerial visuals of emergency events as a community service. His background in public safety gives him an understanding of how emergency management operations work and how to operate safely in a crisis.

“To see something in its entirety and to utilize that for disaster relief,” he said, is immensely valuable to the county. During the December 18 flood, Billian took drone footage that was published by the Daily Bulldog and widely shared in the community, helping the public to understand the gravity of the event.

Billian recently changed his company name from Billian Moments Photography to Billian Moments Productions to reflect his wide range of offerings. The list is long: aerial cinematography, cinematic interviews, aerial construction footage, long term construction time lapse, commercial advertising, aerial live broadcasting, contract videography, event videography, real estate videography, directing commercials, and full production from planning to producing.

“Now it’s what you need me to be,” he said, instead of simply photography.

Despite his multi-faceted skillset, Billian’s roots are in photography. He has been playing around with cameras since he was young, owing his skills to never letting himself use an automatic camera setting. “I made myself go to manual right away,” he said. “It was very frustrating, but it’s definitely paid off.”

Billian said that he has found that splitting the business roles with his wife, to make sure “it doesn’t ever become stagnant,” has kept his excitement for visual art alive.

Learn more about Billian Moments Productions at www.billianmoments.com.

 Our Rotary Foundation                                                                                                

   The Rotary Foundation, established in 1917, is the charitable arm of Rotary International.

Its primary objective is to promote world peace, understanding, and goodwill through humanitarian efforts.

The Foundation focuses on seven Rotary’s strategic areas: peacebuilding and conflict prevention, disease prevention and treatment, water, sanitation, and hygiene, maternal and child health, education, community economic development, and supporting the environment.

One of its flagship initiatives is PolioPlus, launched in 1985 to eradicate polio worldwide.

This program has mobilized resources, funding, and volunteers to immunize billions of children and raise awareness about the disease.

Through partnerships with organizations like the World Health Organization, UNICEF and Bill & Belinda Gates Foundation, PolioPlus has made significant strides toward a polio-free world.

Global Grants, Ambassadorial Scholarships and Rotary Peace Centers are also major areas of focus for The Rotary Foundation.

The Rotary Foundation exemplifies the spirit of service, striving to create lasting change and improve lives globally, making it a cornerstone of Rotary's commitment to humanitarian service.

A Rotary Club Assembly is a regular club meeting dedicated to discussing and coordinating club business, such as future plans, projects, and committee reports, rather than a formal program. These assemblies provide a forum for member participation, enabling the sharing of ideas, addressing concerns, and fostering a collective understanding of the club's direction, with the club president typically leading the discussion to ensure transparency and engagement. 

Key Purposes of a Rotary Club Assembly

• Monitoring Progress:

Directors and committee chairs provide updates to the club on their projects and activities. 

• Strategic Planning:

The assembly serves as a platform to develop long-term plans, coordinate committee efforts, and discuss upcoming initiatives for the new Rotary year. 

• Member Engagement:

Assemblies encourage members, especially new ones, to learn about the club's operations and contribute their ideas and feedback. 

• Information Sharing:

Members exchange information on topics of importance to the club, ensuring everyone is informed about goals and ongoing activities. 

• Education:

The meetings offer ongoing education about Rotary, including the importance of membership development, community outreach, and Rotary's values. 

How a Club Assembly Typically Works

• Leadership:

The club president or a designated officer leads the assembly, guiding discussions and ensuring member interests are addressed. 

• No Formal Program:

Unlike a standard Rotary meeting, a club assembly lacks a pre-scheduled guest speaker or entertainment, focusing instead on internal club business and member interaction. 

• Focus on the Future:

While past performance might be reviewed, the primary goal is to look forward, outlining the president's aspirations and the plans of various committees for the upcoming Rotary year. 

• Member Input:

The assembly provides a crucial opportunity for members to voice their ideas, concerns, and commitments to the club's goals. 

Why They Are Important

• Transparency:

Assemblies promote transparency and inclusivity by providing a clear channel for communication between club leaders and members. 

• Shared Vision:

By involving members in the planning process, assemblies help create a shared vision and commitment to the club's success. 

• Improved Administration:

Regular assemblies facilitate effective club administration by fostering communication and allowing for adjustments to plans.

About Sue

She was the President of Farmington Rotary from January 1998 to June of 2000. She has been active with many projects over the years, including many fundraisers, the club’s Festival of Trees, the local youth programs, providing invocations for the club. Sue and her husband Rupert Pratt live in Strong Maine, where they raised their son Andrew and daughter Sarah on the family farm. Beef farming has been a part of the multi- generational family since 1979. She retired from Superintendent of Schools.

Rotary Résumé

Original join date

31 Dec 2003 (Farmington , )

Current club join date

23 Mar 2016 (Farmington , )

Years of service

16 years 3 months

Roles

District 7790

District Governor (DG) (2025-2026)

District Governor-elect (DGE) (2024-2025)

District Governor-nominee (DGN) (2023-2024)

Assistant Governor (2020-2024)

Farmington, (Rotary Club)

Club President (2018-2020)

Member (2003-2011, 2016 - Present)

Rangeley, (Rotary Club)

Member (2014-2016)

The Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry is pleased to announce Chad Hammer as the new Invasive Plant Biologist with the Maine Natural Areas Program (MNAP). Hammer earned a B.S. in Ecology from SUNY Plattsburgh and an M.S. in Forestry with the Natural Resources Department at The University of New Hampshire (UNH). While at UNH, he researched the invasion patterns and impacts of terrestrial invasive plants and published research on increasing the biotic resistance of native plant communities in riparian forests to non-native plant invasions by planting native trees during restoration efforts after Hurricane Irene.

Before MNAP, Chad was a forester and wildland firefighter with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes on the Flathead Reservation and studied Forest Ecology & Management and Climate Science at the University of Montana. In addition, Chad worked with Lake Champlain Research Institute from 2013 to 2017 as a research technician, assisting in collecting and identifying plankton communities and the long-term monitoring of water quality, food webs, and invasive zooplankton within Lake Champlain.

The Tyngtown Club of Wilton celebrates its 125th Anniversary this year! The club founded January 13, 1900 originally included nine women devoted to self-improvement. The women rotated alphabetically to present an area of research including topics such as agriculture and Parliamentary Law. During their recent celebration, current Tyngtown members reminisced and read “A Poem written for the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Tyngtown Club by charter member, Mary A. Bass, in her 92nd year.