Thumbs up to Sarah-Jane Poli and Carl Stasio Jr. for their many years of service in education and good luck to both on their future endeavors. Poli wrapped up 48 years in the Biddeford School Department last week, and in that time she was a student, teacher, curriculum director, assistant superintendent and, for the past eight years, superintendent. Poli has overseen many changes in the district, including maintenance work on all the schools, construction of a new middle school and the renovation of Biddeford High School, in addition to the annual changes in staffing, students and programs.
Across the river, Stasio has served as headmaster of Thornton Academy for 26 years, seeing 26 new freshman classes enter the schools doors and those 26 classes once again leave the school after graduation. Stasio is only the seventh headmaster since 1889, and he leaves a legacy of high performance and a diverse student body, with students coming from around the country and the world to study at TA. Both Stasio and Poli are lifelong educators and have dedicated decades to the improvement of young people through their K-12 careers. They have done well, and we wish them the best.
Thumbs up to the announcement that a new health center in downtown Sanford will get a funding boost from the federal government. Recently, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree announced York County Community Action Corporation will get a $600,000 renewable grant for the new community health center to pay for staffing, medical supplies and equipment. The new clinic is expected to see more than 6,000 patients annually, and employ 12 medical professionals in the first year and create 20-22 new jobs by the end of the second year. This center is definitely needed in Sanford’s downtown, to serve the town’s population as well as those in need of medical services in nearby towns and cities. This funding will certainly help keep the project moving forward.
Thumbs down to officials in Hancock County who have kept Philip Roy in place as the county’s chief financial officer. Although charges were not filed against Roy, an investigation by the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting revealed that Roy, in 2009, while serving as treasurer of the Maine Republican Party, used the organization’s account without authority to buy himself a $15,000 camper. He repaid the Republican Party by using federal funds from the account of a workforce development agency where he served as the fiscal agent. Roy eventually paid the money back with interest after the unauthorized loan was discovered, resigned from both positions and was the subject of an FBI investigation. Even though Roy has not been charged, the fact that he admitted to misusing funds at both organizations should be enough for Hancock County to consider replacing him as the person in charge of the county’s finances. County officials should heed the warnings and concerns of member towns’ officials that they want someone who can be trusted paying the bills for the county and handling taxpayer dollars.
Thumbs up to the Harbour Singers, a local choir formed in 2008, whose members sing to those who are dying in hospice care. The chorus is non-denominational and affiliated with the Unitarian Universalist Church of Saco & Biddeford. Members perform twice a month at the Gosnell Memorial House, a hospice facility in Scarborough. They sing in the hallways, and if invited, in people’s rooms. The Harbour Singers are bringing joy to the patients at these facilities, as well as their families, at a difficult time in their lives. The 28 members who take the time to visit hospice centers, nursing homes and even people’s homes are doing a great service to the community and those who hear their songs. We’d like to encourage them to keep up the good work.
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Thumbnails is a Monday feature of the Journal Tribune’s opinion pages. If you want to respond, feel free to write to the Readers’ Forum via email at jtcommunity@journaltribune.com or by dropping your letter off at our Biddeford or Sanford offices.
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