Digital photo workshop

Sabbathday Lake’s Brother Delmer Wilson (1873-1961) launched his photography hobby in 1898 with glass plate negatives and using all types of film through his life, including color Polaroid.

At a workshop at Shaker Village on Saturday, Sept. 16, New Gloucester photographer Vicki Lund will show participants how to create a great shot using the features of their digital cameras. She will teach camera operation/functions, use of natural light, composition, raw versus jpeg file formats, and white balance. After a brief class, you will explore the grounds of Shaker Village, photographing along the way, then returning to the class for critique.

The workshop will be held from 1-4 p.m. Please bring your camera manual, SD card, fresh batteries and, if you have one, a tripod. Pre-registration is required, and the fee is $50. Class size is limited to 12. Register online at www.maineshakers.com/workshops or call 926-4597 to reserve a spot.

Hike for Ike

New Gloucester resident Isaac Blake, 18, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes five years ago. Normally the family enters the annual Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Walk to Cure Diabetes fundraiser in Saco, but they won’t be able to attend this year because of an inspiring development.

Isaac will be starting his freshman year at Saint Michael’s College in Colchester, Vermont, studying elementary education. Because the date of the walk conflicts with Parents Weekend at his college, his mother and father, Shelley and Tom Blake, are opting to visit him at school.

Shelley writes, “While this is an exciting time, it is also fraught with other anxieties and fears. As a young adult, he isn’t just going away from home for the first time, but is going to be in charge of his diabetes care. This can be an enormous challenge. We will worry, at least for a while; does he have enough juice to prevent a low blood sugar, snacks, insulin, etc.? Will he feel a low blood sugar in the night?”

The Blake family encourages people to support JDRF through donations, such as the walk, to fund research for advanced treatments and ultimately a cure. To make a donation to the Sept. 17 walk, go to www.jdrf.org. To donate to Isaac’s team specifically, scroll down to JDRF One Walk and search for Hike for Ike.

Visit the History Barn

The next monthly New Gloucester History Barn Open House will be held on Saturday, Sept. 2, from 9 a.m. to noon. It’s free and open to the public. Make a visit the highlight of your Labor Day weekend. The History Barn is located at 383 Intervale Road, Route 231, and the open house is sponsored by the New Gloucester Historical Society.

Harvest Festival

The fourth annual Harvest Festival at the Pineland Farms Education Barn, 100B Valley Farm Road, promises a day filled with harvest-related activities for families with children of all ages. It’s scheduled to be held from 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 30.

Activities include apple cider pressing demonstrations, the Cooperative Extension’s class for making apple sauce, face painting, farmers obstacle course, corn maze, farm photo booth, tractors to explore, and complimentary showings of “It’s a Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown.”

The rain date is Sunday, Oct. 1. Online ticket sales will be available through Friday, Sept. 29. Go to ‘Classes & Events’ at www.shop.pinelandfarms.org. Tickets will be available day of the event, as well. The cost is $6 per person for advance online purchase, $8 day of event. Season pass holders pay $6 per person for either advance or day of event purchases. For more information, call 650-3031 or email education@pinelandfarms.org.

Happy anniversary to me

This month marks my tenth anniversary of writing “Inside New Gloucester” for the Lakes Region Weekly. The publication date of my first community column was Sept. 14, 2007. I continue to enjoy the experience and would like to extend my gratitude to those of you who have sent me communications to share. As always, if you have news items relating to New Gloucester that you’d like to have included, please get in touch – my contact information appears above.

Kaidan Marchand, 5, of Gorham, makes a get well card for Ava Winslow, who is battling osteosarcoma, during the Gray-New Gloucester Rallies for Ava fundraiser on Aug. 26. He became acquainted with Ava when they both attended Rise and Shine Childcare and said that she is his best friend.