FREEPORT

High school student wins 19th annual art contest

Freeport High School senior Lily Johnston is the winner of Liberty Graphics T-shirts’ 19th annual Art and Our Natural Environment contest for Maine high school seniors.

Johnston took top honors and a $1,000 prize for her monochromatic blue acrylic painting titled “Alpine Zone.”

ELLSWORTH/PORTLAND

People of Color Fund awards 16 grants worth $138,000

The Maine Community Foundation’s People of Color Fund has awarded 16 grants, totaling more than $138,000, to Maine programs that help people of color achieve greater equality through support for health care, leadership development and civic engagement.

Grant recipients in 2018 include:

• Aroostook Band of Micmacs, to implement a traditional culturally based artistic expression project for Micmac youth

• Hand in Hand Mano en Mano, to help Latino and immigrant communities of Down East Maine address systemic causes of racism

• Maine Prisoner Advocacy Coalition, to develop programs that address leadership, racial equality, health care and transitioning for incarcerated and post-release adults and youths.

The next deadline for People of Color Fund grant applications is March 15. For more information, contact Lelia DeAndrade, senior director of grantmaking services, at 412-0843 or ldeandrade@mainecf.org.

ARUNDEL

Heritage Day celebrates town’s rural background

The Arundel Historical Society is seeking vendors, craftspeople and those who wish to demonstrate traditional skills as part of the 2018 Heritage Day, celebrating the town’s past as a rural community.

This year’s event on Sept. 15 will include a Civil War re-enactment, annual meeting and demonstrations by The Spinner’s Guild, along with historical displays, agricultural exhibits, craftspeople, food and performances by the Southern Maine Ukes.

For information or sign-up forms, call 284-6622.

STATEWIDE

New foster grandparents, senior companions sought

The Opportunity Alliance has openings for foster grandparent and senior companion volunteers in Cumberland, York and Oxford counties.

Foster grandparents mentor and support academic achievement in schoolchildren. Senior companions provide companionship, transportation and respite to older adults seeking to remain in their homes.

Volunteers age 55 and older, who commit to a schedule and meet income guidelines, receive a tax-free stipend, mileage reimbursement and other benefits, including monthly training and the opportunity to connect with other volunteers.

For more details, call 773-0202 or email fgp@opportunityalliance.org.

AUGUSTA

Labor Department says two career centers are moving

The Bureau of Employment Services at the Maine Department of Labor has announced that the Skowhegan and Southern Midcoast career centers are being moved to Maine Community College System campuses. The moves include vocational rehabilitation programs housed within each career center. There will be no changes in staffing or services.

The Skowhegan career center will close at noon Friday and move to the Averill Building on Kennebec Valley Community College’s Alfond Campus at 23 Stanley Road in Hinckley. It will reopen at 8 a.m. on Aug. 27 as the Northern Kennebec Valley career center.

The Southern Midcoast career center on Bath Road in Brunswick will move in early fall to Southern Midcoast Community College – Midcoast Campus at the L.L. Bean Learning Commons at Brunswick Landing. Details of the move are forthcoming.

Maine Career Centers, with 12 locations across the state, are part of the Maine Department of Labor and provide free employment and training services for Maine workers and businesses. Job-seekers can use free resources to jump-start their search. Career centers assist employers with recruitment, training and workforce services, and offer access to labor market information.

Visit www.mainecareercenter.gov to learn more.

SCARBOROUGH

Past Kiwanis Club president honored with top accolade

Scarborough Kiwanis Club 2016-17 president Dan Smith has received the Distinguished Club award from current club president Troy Hendrickson. Sharon Binette, the 2016-17 club secretary and a past Distinguished Lieutenant Governor for Scarborough’s division, was honored previously.

Kiwanis International presents the Distinguished Club award to clubs that meet certain requirements, including increasing membership; participating in training conferences, and district and international conventions; fundraising; and community service.