Judy Higbea to be honored at FCS meeting

The public is invited to the Freeport Community Services annual meeting, Monday, Oct. 26, at 6:30 p.m., at Freeport Community Center, 53 Depot St. The guest speaker is Steve Rowe, president and CEO of Maine Community Foundation, who will discuss, “Building Community through Philanthropy.”

Highlights of the evening will also include a tribute honoring the work and memory of the 2015 FCS Carol Kaplan Award winner, Judy Higbea.

For more information, contact Kim Hudak at 865-3985, ext. 202.

Ghosts of

Freeport’s past

The adventurous and open-minded are invited to Freeport’s Woodlawn Cemetery this Halloween season for an encounter with specters and spirits, courtesy of Freeport Historical Society. The group is bringing history back from beyond the grave, with the appearance of notable Freeporters in the graveyard, with the assistance of the Freeport Players.

The reincarnations of famous and not-so-well-known former residents of Freeport will share tales of their lives, and illuminate interesting aspects of Freeport’s past. Tours lasting approximately 45 minutes, will take place on Oct. 28, 29 and 30, beginning at 6:30. Tours depart at 6:30, 7 and 7:30 p.m. Admission is $10, children 12 and under $5 and $5 for historical society members.

Woodlawn Cemetery is the resting place of some of Freeport’s most prominent past residents, including shipbuilders, industrialists, maritime captains, clergy and others. This year’s tour will incorporate some favorite tales from previous years, but will include some new appearances, including the survivor of an 18th-century Indian raid and an eccentric 20th-century artist. Since the tours will take place on uneven ground in the dark, participants should bring a flashlight. Participants should also dress appropriately for nighttime, outdoors, in late fall. Reservations are encouraged. Call 865-3170, see www.freeeporthistoricalsociety.org or email [email protected].

Halloween

open house at

vet hospital

Freeport Veterinary Hospital, 4 Post Road in Freeport, will host a Halloween open house on Saturday, Oct. 31, from 11 a.m.-2 p.m., featuring a behind-the-scenes tour. Judy Moore and her pup, Pablo, from Canine Behavior Counseling, will be on hand for training demonstrations, and the Coastal Humane Society will have adoptable pets to meet. Refreshments, raffles and kid-friendly activities will be offered. Children can bring a stuffed animal to practice their bandaging skills, and those in Halloween costumes will receive a special treat.

For more information contact the hospital at 865-3673.

Craft fair

coming up

The Freeport Fire Rescue Auxiliary will be hosting its annual craft fair on Saturday, Oct. 24, from 9 a.m.-4 p.m., at the Freeport Fire Station. Local artists will have arts and crafts items for sale. Those interested in reserving a table should call 865-6568 for more information.

Chamber Trivia Night Oct. 27

The Greater Freeport Chamber of Commerce will host a Trivia Challenge on Tuesday, Oct. 27, from 6:30-8:30 p.m., at Stirling & Mull, 175 Lower Main St. The cost is $15 per person or $50 for a team of four. Proceeds will benefit the chamber’s Budding Entrepreneur Scholarship fund, which will benefit a graduating high school senior looking to start his or her own business or enter a business-related study program.

Cole Tamminen will be the host again, and a 50/50 raffle will be held.

For more information, see www.freeportmainechamber.com or call 847-5240 to register.

New square dancing classes

RSU 5 Recreation and Community Education is offering new square dancing events and classes this fall. This is a family-friendly activity for people of all ages.

The Modern Square Dancing class runs on Tuesdays, Nov. 3-24, from 6:30-8:30 p.m., at Freeport Middle School cafeteria. Individual registration is $29, and a parent/child registration is $34. Participants will learn a series of easy American square dances, including traditional square dance, contra dancing, and modern western square dance.

“Halloween Hoe-Down” will be held at Morse Street School on Wednesday, Oct. 28, from 6:30- 8:30 p.m. Individual registration is $10, and a parent/child registration is $15. Participants can learn about modern square dance in this Halloween celebration. The square dance caller, Al Hipkins, will teach all the steps and keep everyone dancing all night. Feel free to wear Halloween costumes. No partner is needed and no dance experience is necessary.

To register for these events, call 865-6171, visit www.rsu5-rce.org or stop by the office at 17 West St.

Turkeys from

the farm

Each year, Wolfe’s Neck Farm raises a limited number of Thanksgiving turkeys and pasture-raised lamb for the community. Orders are are now being taken online at www.wolfesneckfarm.org. Frozen, pasture-raised broiler chickens are also available.

Library hosts visits

from two Maine authors

Susan Conley of Portland will share her debut novel, “Paris Was the Place,” on Wednesday, Oct. 28, at 7 p.m., at the Freeport Community Library. Paris in the 1980s is the setting where Willow “Willie” Pears, a 30-year-old Californian, teaches poetry to refugee girls detained in an immigrant center.

On Wednesday, Nov. 4, at 7 p.m., author Paul Doiron will talk on “The Precipice,” his latest book in the Mike Bowditch crime series. In the most remote section of the Appalachian Trail, two young female hikers’ bodies are found. Their remains suggest a natural predator, but Mike Bowditch, a Maine game warden, has his doubts and so does his girlfriend, wildlife biologist Stacey Stevens.

Volunteers needed

Freeport Community Services is seeking a few more caring neighbors to volunteer as substitutes in the food pantry and the thrift shop. There is also a very specific need for one or two volunteers who have experience and interest in a donation sorting-room atmosphere. If interested in contributing some time to something special, call Debbie at 865-3985, ext. 206.

Shoemaking

exhibit continues

The Freeport Historical Society’s exhibit, “Cobblers to Capitalists: Two Centuries of Freeport Shoemaking,” continues through Jan. 15, 2016. A donation of $3 to support the work of Freeport Historical Society is suggested. The exhibit is at Harrington House, 45 Main St.

Shoemaking was an important industry in Freeport for more than 100 years, beginning with the Davis brothers’ factory on Beech Hill Road in 1872 and ending with the final pair of shoes manufactured in town by Eastland Shoe in 2001. The exhibit describes the history of shoemaking in Freeport, beginning with the early itinerant cobblers who constructed custom-made shoes at people’s homesteads in the late 18th century.

Photographs, a number of shoes, early Bean boots, cobblers’ benches, hand tools, sewing machines and other items related to the shoe industry are on exhibit.

Annual 10K race set for Oct. 31

RSU 5 Recreation and Community Education will hold its 34th annual Great Osprey 10K Ocean Run on Saturday, Oct. 31, at Wolfe’s Neck Farm, starting at 10 a.m. Pre-registration by Oct. 29 is $25, including a shirt. To register, go to www.running4free.com or for more information, call the RSU 5 office at 865-6171.

Exercise program at FCS

An exercise program with the instructor Rebecca Drouin is offered Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 8-8:45 a.m., year-round, in the Bradley Room at the Freeport Community Center. The class focuses on strength, flexibility, endurance and balance and is appropriate for all fitness levels. The first class is free and subsequent classes are $5 each or $40 a month. For more information call Drouin at 751-7781

Historian to speak

Historian Amy Smith will present a talk, “Portland’s Black Abolitionists: The Story of the Abyssinian Meeting House,” Wednesday, Oct. 21, 6:30 p.m., at the Freeport Community Library. In 1828, a group of free African-American men – wealthy, self-employed property owners – formed Portland Abyssinian Church. Its landmark meeting house is today under restoration at the foot of Munjoy Hill. Smith will tell the story of the third-oldest independent African-American meeting house in the nation and who its founders and congregants were.

Absentee ballots now available

The deadline for Freeport voters to request an absentee ballet at the Freeport Town Clerk’s Office is Thursday, Oct. 29, at 6 p.m. They can be requested in person Monday through Thursday, from 7:30 a.m-6 p.m.; electronically at http://maine.gov/cgi-bin/online/AbsenteeBallot/index.pl; by mail by calling the town clerk at 865-4743, ext. 123; through a third person, also by calling or visiting the town clerk.

Also, those who have moved since the last time they voted should stop by the town clerk’s office with proof of residency by Oct. 29 so their names will appear on the correct district voting list. For additional information, call 865-4743, ext. 123.

GOP meeting

Oct. 21

The Freeport Republican Committee will meet Wednesday, Oct. 21, at 6:45 p.m., at the Masonic Lodge, Mallett Drive, lower level. All Freeport registered Republicans are invited to attend. For more information or to be added to the email list, contact Jason Thyen, chairman, at [email protected].

Those who attend are asked to bring non-perishable Thanksgiving Day items for the Freeport Community Food Bank.

Trail challenge

under way

A Freeport Trail Challenge has begun in which participants hike four local through October and win prizes. They can collect stamps from each trail on the Trail Challenge Passport or post a photo selfie from their walk to Freeport Conservation Trust’s Facebook page or on Instagram #freeporttrailchallenge. There will be prizes for kids who get all four stamps in their Passports and adults completing the challenge will be entered into a raffle for prizes.

The four trails in the challenge are Cousins River Trail, Powell Point Trail, Frost Gully Woods Trail and Hedgehog Mountain Trail. Pick up a Freeport Trail Challenge Passport around town and through the co-sponsors the town of Freeport, Casco Bay YMCA and Freeport Conservation Trust. Directions to each trailhead are on the Passport cards or online at www.freeportconservationturst.org.

For more information, contact Freeport Conservation Trust at the Community Center, 865-3985, ext. 212, or email [email protected]. All walks must be completed by the end of October, and passports turned in or photos posted by Nov. 2.

Upcoming meetings

Hunter Road Fields Advisory Committee, Thursday, Oct. 22, 7:30 a.m., Town Hall Conference Area.

A full listing of upcoming town meetings and agendas is available on www.freeportmaine.com.