Painting the crosswalk on South Street, Downtown Sidewalks and the Downtown Intersection

Role: Katie O’Donnell, digital content specialist, works with her team to provide training and support to the hundreds of website managers who manage content on umaine.edu, with an eye for brand standards and 508-accessibility guidelines.

Bio: O’Donnell joined the Division of Marketing and Communications at UMaine in 2022 after an 11-year stint at her alma mater, University of Maine at Farmington, where she worked in alumni and development. She has worked various roles from international travel lead for a retirement community to communications with Walt Disney Company in Orlando. She lives in Wilton with her husband, two wonderful stepkids, and her goldendoodle, Bodie.

We will be meeting at the Western Maine Community Action Office in Wilton, after our morning meeting, to fill around 200 backpacks for local children.  

Enrichment

Participating in Enrichment Classes is Good for Health!

Enrichment classes for adults offer numerous benefits, including improved cognitive function, enhanced emotional well-being, expanded social connections, and increased opportunities for personal growth and skill development. These classes can also foster a sense of accomplishment and confidence, contributing to overall life satisfaction. 

Here’s a more detailed look at the benefits:

Cognitive Enhancement: Enrichment activities like puzzles, board games, and learning new skills can help improve memory, reasoning, and overall cognitive abilities. This can help reduce the risk of cognitive decline and conditions like dementia. 

Emotional Well-being: Engaging in meaningful activities and creative pursuits can be deeply fulfilling, boosting self-esteem and a renewed sense of identity. It also helps seniors cope with life’s challenges more effectively. 

Social Connection: Enrichment classes provide opportunities for interaction with peers, instructors, and mentors, fostering a sense of belonging and reducing the risks associated with loneliness and social isolation. 

Skill Development: These classes can help individuals master new skills or improve existing ones, whether for career advancement or personal enjoyment. They also encourage a mindset of lifelong learning, which is crucial for adapting to changing circumstances. 

Personal Growth and Purpose: Participating in enrichment activities can provide a sense of purpose and accomplishment, contributing to a more positive outlook on life and greater life satisfaction. 

Overall Quality of Life: Enrichment classes can contribute to a higher quality of life by promoting mental and physical health, social connections, and a sense of purpose. 

Where Can I Find Meaningful Enrichment Classes?

Adult education programs across the state offer enrichment classes for adults. These classes often charge minimal fees to support the instructor and any needed supplies. Programs do not try to make money offering enrichment classes but have to charge something because classes must support themselves. There is no state subsidy attached to enrichment classes; these classes operate aside from academic programs but they are important aspects of building healthy communities.

What Types of Classes Are Available?

There are SO many classes available for adults to participate in across Maine! After a quick scan, these classes were available:

Yoga

Line Dance

Using Digital Devices

Cake Decorating

Quilting

Basic Sewing

Walking Club

Using a Compass for Navigation in the Maine Woods

Hunter’s Safety

And SO MUCH MORE!

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.

We move the doors of the trauma center closer to the patient.

We deliver ICU-level care anywhere in Maine to anyone who needs us. Our highly skilled crew is equipped with state-of-the-art medical equipment, which we bring to our patients with the speed of a helicopter, airplane, or ground ambulance. We give people in Maine facing critical illness or injury their best chance on their worst day.

LifeFlight of Maine and The LifeFlight Foundation each have a multidisciplinary team that oversees operations. Governance and oversight for LifeFlight of Maine are provided by a Clinical Practice Committee and a Steering Committee, while the Foundation has a Board of Trustees.

LifeFlight is a nonprofit organization comprised of three divisions:

• LifeFlight of Maine was established in 1998 as Maine’s air ambulance service for critically ill and injured patients, providing care for the entirety of Maine and mutual aid throughout New England. LifeFlight of Maine is a nonprofit limited liability company with original funding from its members, Northern Light Health and Central Maine Healthcare, two of Maine’s largest nonprofit healthcare systems. LifeFlight is operated as an independent business unit.
• The LifeFlight Foundation was established in 2003 as an independent fundraising organization dedicated to supporting LifeFlight of Maine by raising funds and increasing awareness of it mission.
• LifeFlight Aviation Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of LifeFlight of Maine, was established in 2020 to maintain and operate LifeFlight of Maine’s aircraft. LifeFlight Aviation Services is the FAA Part 135 Air Carrier Certificate holder for LifeFlight.

Comments from a Proud Dad

Scott Boucher, President of the Old Town Rotary Club, is also the PolioPlus Chair on the District Foundation Committee for the Maine side of the border. Scott will provide us with an update on the status of PolioPlus in our district and globally. Undoubtedly, he will provide ideas for clubs to utilize to celebrate World Polio Day on October 24th and bring awareness of the disease to our community. 

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.

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.

Visit the Addams Family, if you dare!

Come see Morticia and Gomez Addams as they head a perplexingly macabre family whose members include a giant named Lurch, who acts as doorman, a disembodied hand named Thing, not-quite-right son Pugsley and morose daughter Wednesday. Perhaps they will offer you some candy.

 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.

Assistance requested to offload the 200 cases of Cabot Seriously Sharp Cheddar Cheese from the Wiles Funeral Home lift truck into St. Joseph's Parish Hall Basement.

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.