PHOENIX — PetSmart and its loyal shoppers have succeeded in making the holidays a little brighter for millions of children, families, and pets across North America. The pet specialty retailer announced a record-breaking toy drive resulting in 2.3 million Chance, Lucky & Friends plush toys being collected and sales of its Holiday Philanthropic Collection, which […]

AUGUSTA (AP) — MaineHousing Deputy Director Peter Merrill is stepping up to serve as interim director upon the retirement of John Gallagher on Jan. 5. Merrill has served as deputy director for more than five years, and has been with the agency for more than two decades. He is responsible for MaineHousing’s day-to-day operations and […]

THOMASTON (AP) — A lobsterman in Maine has carried on his tradition of giving away lobsters to those in need on Christmas. Noah Ames set up his pickup truck in a parking lot in Thomaston on Sunday with a sign that read “Free lobsters today for families truly in need.” Ames started the tradition four […]

FALMOUTH (AP) — The University of Maine Cooperative Extension is looking to train the next generation of Maine beekeepers. The cooperative extension is offering beginning beekeeping courses and workshops on honeybee diseases, swarm management and how to handle queen bees this winter. The courses start with the beginner beekeeping classes on Jan. 3 and the […]

AUGUSTA (AP) — A federal judge has ruled that Maine’s secretary of state can’t be excluded from participating in the work of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity, on which he serves. A U.S. District Court judge’s ruling Friday in Washington largely agrees with Matthew Dunlap’s argument that as a commission member, he must […]