A Habitat for Humanity home in Kennebunkport has received solar panels installed on their home-at no cost to the homeowners, thanks to the a team of individuals, businesses, and community organizations.

“Habitat’s work to bring safe, efficient, and affordable homes to our area is always a collaborative, community-building effort,” said Amy Nucci, executive director at Habitat for Humanity York County, in a Nov. 1 news release. “Without the initiative and generosity of Kennebunkport residents Dave and Lynn Jourdan, Kennebunk Portside Rotary Club, Rotary District 7780, The Climate Initiative, and Maine Solar Solutions, this important project would not have happened.”

Solar panels were recently installed at a Habitat for Humanity home in Kennebunkport due to the efforts of a team of individuals, businesses, and community organizations. Courtesy photo

The Habitat Home in Kennebunkport was completed in August and the solar panel installation was the final project with the house. A second Habitat home next door is under construction, and the group is currently exploring how to provide a solar
energy course to the home.

According to the organization, the idea for adding solar panels to the Habitat homes was the brainchild of Rotarian Dave Jourdan and his wife, Lynn, of Kennebunkport, who wanted to support the use of solar energy and chose these homes in Kennebunkport as an appropriate demonstration project.

“We offered a $5,000 challenge grant to Kennebunk Portside Rotary Club to raise the necessary funds and assist in finding partners to fully finance the project with a current estimated cost of $26,000,” Nucci said in an email. “We asked The Climate Initiative, a non-partisan youth climate education 501 3(c), to work with us on an educational component to teach the community about the environmental benefits of solar.”

The club was able to leverage its $3,000 contribution by obtaining a grant of $4,000 from Rotary District 7780. The Jourdans have agreed to match donations to the project and have already matched a $500 donation from Bill and Ki Leffler, also local Rotarians.

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According to the news release, the solar panel project is an example of Rotary working to connect individuals and organizations to better the local community. Rotary recognized that every kilowatt of energy installed lowers a home’s carbon footprint by 3,000 pounds per year. For an average 5-kilowatt residential system, that equates to a reduction of 15,000 pounds of cardon dioxide (CO2).

“This is a significant amount of carbon removal, equivalent to Rotary planting 75 trees, said Kate Howell, Kennebunk Portside Rotary president. “Many people think of polio eradication when they think of Rotary, yet Rotary is at the forefront of tackling the climate crisis and adopted climate change as one of its core focus areas.”

Maine Solar Solutions installed the panels and donated equipment and 100 percent of the labor cost to install the solar unit on the first home.

“This partnership will allow us to not only give back, but also to make a long-term difference with energy savings, energy independence, and clean energy,” said Sam Zuckerman, president of Maine Solar Solutions.

The donation is estimated to be more than $10,000 in value.

“This project is especially important, as we are seeing ever-rising utility prices in our area,” Nucci said. “These
panels will allow the family to live comfortably in their new efficient and affordable home … including the ability to have lower utility rates and cleaner energy.”

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For more information, visit www.kennebunkportsiderotary.org,  www.habitatyorkcounty.org or
www.theclimateinitiative.org.

Thanksgiving dinner returns to Stevens Center

The complimentary Thanksgiving dinner returns to the Dorothy Stevens Community Center this year. The center is located on Thompson Road in West Kennebunk.

The free turkey and all the fixins’ main meal, plus pie and other desserts, will be served on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 24 from noon to 2 p.m.

The event has been a fixture in the West Kennebunk neighborhood for many years. It was interrupted by the pandemic in 2020, when organizers provided a delivered meal, said Barbara Weeman. In 2021, the meal was held on a drive-through basis.

This year, places will be set for dining inside. Delivery is also available, said Weeman. To sign up, call 604-2577. Take-out is also available.

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Tree lighting planned in West Kennebunk

West Kennebunk will start the holiday season with a Christmas tree lighting ceremony at 6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 3. Santa will light the tree outside the Dorothy Stevens Community Center on Thompson Road. The Kennebunk Twirlers will perform and Santa will help serve refreshments inside.

Flag retirement service held

Boy Scout Troop 304 and Webber-Lefebvre Post 74, in Kennebunk, held a joint US flag retirement service at the Legion Post. Courtesy photo

Boy Scout Troop 304 and American Legion, Webber-Lefebvre Post 74, in Kennebunk, held a joint US flag retirement service on the Legion Post.

According to Legion Post 74, when US flags become unfit for further use, they are retired. Three members of the scout troop participated in an opening ceremony dedicated to the flags followed by a prayer offered by the post chaplain. After the retirement of the flags, a closing prayer was recited and taps was played by the troop’s bugler.

A luncheon was held at the post headquarters for all of the participants and those in attendance after the activity. Boy Scout Troop 304 has an active schedule and members participate in indoor and outdoors activities. Troop 304 welcomes new participants interested in the scouting journey. Post 74, active in many veteran situations and local activities, encourages participation open to all veterans.

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Field hockey season celebrated

Girls in Kennebunkport, Kennebunk and Arundel, age 5-12, recently completed a couple of years learning the game of field hockey through Kennebunkport Parks and Recreation. Courtesy photo

Girls in Kennebunkport, Kennebunk and Arundel, age 5-12, recently completed a couple of years learning the game of field hockey. Jill Lamontagne, who coached the Kennebunkport Parks and Recreation program, said this was the first-year players in grades 3-6 played games against girls’ teams in other communities.

On Saturday, Oct. 29, all team members took to the field in Halloween costume. Lamontagne said the team includes girls from Kennebunkport, Kennebunk and Arundel who are in kindergarten through sixth grade and noted the first time the girls scored a goal was pretty exciting. “It was amazing to watch their knowledge of the game grow,” she said in an email.

The season is wound down for the year, but Lamontagne said the girls are already looking ahead to next year.

Former intelligence officers schedule November meeting

The Kennebunkport Republican Committee made a fuel fund donation in support of the town’s Fuel Assistance Fund. Attending the Oct. 28 check presentation, from left, were Alison Kenneway, director of public health for Kennebunkport, and committee members Jane Evelyn, Tom Franz, Alan Evelyn, Diane Franz, Elizabeth Jordan and Margaret Myatt. Courtesy photo

The November meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers will feature retired ambassador Robert Cekuta, who has a background in energy resources, sanctions, and security issues. The public discussion on Nov. 19 will address the topic of Russia’s ambitions of regaining the former Soviet Union.

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Cekuta has been a top-level US diplomat, having been ambassador to Azerbaijan and serving in other embassies in Berlin, Tokyo, Baghdad, Albania, Yemen, and Vienna. In his presentation, Cekuta will address Russia’s threat to the countries of the Caucasus and Central Asia, many of which are rich in oil, gas, and uranium and other resources and are working to maintain their independence they won just over 30 years ago. The region has other threats from the Chinese, and Iran including Turkey’s evolving role along with terrorism, extremism, and drug trafficking. The US has its own interests there and some of these countries want more active engagement from the United States.

The AFIO meeting is open to the public and will begin at 2 p.m. on Nov. 19 at the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk.

Library to host ‘Work(s) in Progress’ author

Author and humorist Andy Young will be at Kennebunk Free Library to discuss his latest book, “Work(s) In Progress” on Wednesday, Nov. 30 at 6 p.m.

Author and humorist Andy Young will be at Kennebunk Free Library to discuss his latest book, “Work(s) In Progress” on Wednesday, Nov. 30 at 6 p.m. Courtesy photo

According to an Oct. 28 news release, “Young has been an English teacher at Kennebunk High School for the past 20 years and is a product of the University of Connecticut. Prior to moving to Maine, Young worked as a radio play-by-play announcer for several minor league baseball and hockey teams, and in between those jobs he coached high school baseball, basketball, and soccer; tutored homebound students in algebra; washed dishes, cut grass, picked apples, dug irrigation ditches, sold shoes, and probably did several other jobs that he’s forgotten about. When he’s not working or sleeping, Andy likes to read, write, and bike, though he rarely tries doing all three at the same time. He and his three children live in Cumberland.”

The program is free and wheelchair accessible. Kennebunk Free Library is located at 112 Main St. in Kennebunk. For more information, call 207-985-2173 or email kfl@kennebunklibrary.org.

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Ludwig earns master’s degree at Columbia

Lauren Ludwig

Lauren Ludwig, daughter of Phil and Joan Ludwig of Kennebunk, recently completed her masters of science in bioethics at Columbia University and graduated summa cum laude.

Ludwig is a graduate of Kennebunk High School and Trinity College in Hartford.

Atlantic Hall schedules annual Prelude Fair

Atlantic Hall will hold its annual Prelude Fair on Saturday, Dec. 3, from 7:45 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

The event will feature a variety of items sold at the fair, many from local artisans, including handcrafted wooden lobster traps, wreaths/winter berry greenery, rope craft, handmade paper, wooden sculptures and wooden trays, photographs, jewelry, paintings, antiques, holiday gifts and decorations, oriental rugs, small pastries, cheeses, jams/jellies, and Atlantic Hall’s Old-Time Raffle.

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Also, again this year, the fair will host Ed Wright, acoustic guitarist and Cape Porpoise resident, who will perform a mix of holiday music and familiar standards.

For more information, call Ed Briggs at 207 967 3357.

The town of Kennebunk is looking for a donation of a Christmas tree to celebrate the holiday season. The ideal tree will be 30 to 40 feet in height and full all the way around. The tree should also be easily accessible for transportation to Tibbetts Plaza.

For more information, email Linda Johnson at ljohnson@kennebunkmaine.us or call 207-604-1341. The town has a team ready to look at candidates.

Maine illustrators on view at museum

The Brick Store Museum announced its newest exhibition, The Great State of Illustration in Maine, in collaboration with Illustration Institute, is on view through February 2023. The exhibit features more than 80 historic and contemporary illustrators who call Maine home.

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Maine illustrators in the exhibition include Dahlov Ipcar, Ashley Bryan, Barbara Cooney, NC Wyeth, Rockwell Kent, Edward Hopper and Francis Hamabe. Current illustrators such as Matt Tavares, Chris van Dusen, Melissa Sweet, Scott Nash, Nancy Gibson-Nash, Stephen Costanza, Tim Sample, and Wade Zahares have also shared work that adorn four full galleries of artwork to illustrate the work of Maine illustrators.

According to an Oct. 28 news release, the exhibit was curated by Illustration Institute, based in Portland, which works to raise audience appreciation of illustration in its many forms. The exhibit makes the case that residents are living in a Golden Age of Illustration in Maine, as there are more illustrators living in the state, either year-round or seasonally, than in any other time in history.

The exhibition is supported by the Davis Family Foundation, The Onion Foundation and the Perloff Family Foundation. Illustrator visits and programming will be announced on the Brick Store Museum’s website, www.brickstoremuseum.org, starting with a visit by Matt Tavares on Saturday, Nov. 26. The exhibition runs through February 2023. The museum is open six days per week and only closed Mondays.

York County Audubon plans bird migration presentation

York County Audubon will host birder and author Scott Weidensaul for a Zoom presentation on Tuesday, Nov. 15, at 7 p.m. Weidensaul will present a program on bird migration.

Every year, massive flocks of birds cross immense oceans, fly above the highest mountains, or remain in unbroken flight for months at a stretch. In the past two decades, the understanding of the navigational and physiological feats that birds are capable of has exploded. Experts share what they have learned of these migrations and how billions of birds circumnavigate the globe, flying tens of thousands of miles between hemispheres on an annual basis.

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In the program based on his bestselling book “A World on the Wing,” Weidensaul will take participants around the globe — with researchers in the lab probing the limits of what migrating birds can do, to the shores of the Yellow Sea in China, the remote mountains of northeastern India where tribal villages saved the greatest gathering of falcons on the planet, and the Mediterranean, where activists and police are battling bird poachers — to learn how people are fighting to understand and save the world’s great bird migrations.

Weidensaul is the author of nearly 30 books on natural history, including the Pulitzer Prize finalist “Living on the Wind” and his latest, the New York Times bestseller, “A World on the Wing.” Weidensaul is a contributing editor for Audubon and writes for a variety of other publications.

The program will be presented via Zoom. There’s no charge, but participants need to register in advance at www.yorkcountyaudubon.org. After registering, a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting will be sent.

Lyrics, licks, and loops at Town House School

The mystery behind the music will be revealed at the next Mid-Week Music concert on Wednesday, Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. The show will be held at the Kennebunkport Historical Society’s Town House School at 135 North St.

Before a song gets played in a live setting, there are countless hours spent learning, practicing, listening
and communicating with other musicians. Dana Pearson and Don Wessels will present an impromptu program that promises to reveal how the musical “sausage” gets made. They will perform mostly original music in surprise settings, learning each other’s songs on the spot to illustrate the fun behind the work behind the process behind the fun of singing in public.

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Tickets are $18 and may be purchased at the door or at kporths.com/buy-tickets. The event is BYOB (21
and older only unless accompanied by an adult). For more information, email info@kporths.com or call 207-967-2751.

Vets Day 5K supports Honor Flight Maine

The Wells Chamber of Commerce will host its ninth annual Wells Veterans Day 5K on Saturday, Nov. 12. Proceeds  benefit Honor Flight Maine.

Registration is $20 for adults 18 and older, $15 for students 11-17. There is no registration fee for children 10 and younger. The first 100 paying registrants will receive a long-sleeve T-shirt. The race begins at 10 a.m.

Honor Flight Maine is a nonprofit organization created to honor America’s veterans for their service and sacrifices. Honor Flight Maine transport veterans to Washington, D.C., to tour, experience and reflect at their memorials.

The run/walk starts and finishes start at the Wells Elks Lodge at 356 Bald Hill Road. The 5K loop winds through remote back roads of Wells.

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For more information or to register, visit www.runsignup.com/Race/ME/Wells/VD5k.

Chime Choir concert scheduled for Nov. 13

The Chime Choir of Kennebunkport South Congregational Church will perform Sunday, Nov. 13, at 3 p.m. in the church. The concert features integrated sound flowing from the interaction of eight different players playing 29 different chimes.

The free concert will feature familiar light classical pieces, as well as popular show tunes, including selections from “The King and I,” “The Sound of Music,” Fiddler on The Roof,” and “My Fair Lady.” Piano, vocal and other instruments will also be incorporated into the musical selections.

The South Church Chime Choir was formed in 2016 with a core group of chimes and players. Since that time, more chimes have been acquired, new players added, and repertoire expanded. All of the musical selections have been arranged for chimes by the church’s music director and choir conductor, David Brandes.

South Congregational Church is located at 2 North St., Kennebunkport.

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Library announces featured artist for November

Kennebunk Free Library announced its next Speers Gallery exhibit, “Lone Scapes” by Andrea Roth Kimmich, featuring acrylic and oil paintings on wood custom selected for each piece.

The exhibit runs through Nov. 30, and the public is invited to an artist’s reception on Tuesday, Nov. 8 from 3 to 6 p.m.

According to an Oct. 20 news release, “Andrea is a trained classical pianist, with advanced studies in film and photography. She has also informally been, since childhood, a student of textile arts, mostly knitting and crocheting; later woodworking, printmaking and figure drawing. She enjoys dabbling in a variety of arts.”

“I feel such joy in making something from nothing, whether it’s a gazpacho made from produce picked up at a farm stand, a gypsy scarf made from a leftover wool, or a painting using some discarded paints and wood,” Roth Kimmich said in an email.

Her membership in Arts Organizations include: Ossining Arts Council, River Tree Arts, Maine Women in the Arts, and her work has been shown in a number of galleries in the greater New York area, as well as a few in southern Maine, with her first solo show in Maine in the Kennebunk Free Library’s Speers Gallery.

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According to the library, “Andrea is delighted to have moved a part of her focus to Maine and its spectacular landscapes, and the Kennebunk Free Library is pleased to display the work of this talented artist.”

The public is invited to view the exhibit in the library’s Speers Gallery from Nov. 1-30 at 112 Main St., Kennebunk, during regular library hours when the gallery is not in use for library programs. For more information or current hours and gallery access, visit www.kennebunklibrary.org.

Wreath fundraiser returns at library

Kennebunk Free Library is accepting orders from individuals and businesses for wreaths that will be delivered to the library for pick-up on Saturday, Nov. 19. Wreaths can also be shipped to friends and family around the country for an additional fee. The handmade, double-sided 23-inch balsam wreaths, centerpieces and sprays are made at Wreaths of Maine in Waldoboro.

There are multiple options to choose from ranging from $32-$45 as well as a 33-inch wreath suitable for larger windows and doors for $63. Every wreath is handmade by a wreath-maker and decorated. All proceeds benefit the library. Orders will be accepted through Nov. 8 at 8 p.m.

Order at online store (kennebunkfreelibrary.square.site) or pick up a form in the library. Kennebunk Free Library is located at 112 Main St. in Kennebunk. For more information, call 207-985-2173 or visit kennebunklibrary.org.

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Virtual holiday wine tasting

Kennebunk Free library is sponsoring a Virtual Holiday Wine Tasting on Tuesday, Nov. 15 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Lani Dietz, owner of Kennebunk’s Maine and Vine (13 Western Ave.), will describe three wines that are perfect for the holiday season. There will be time for discussion and questions, and trivia prizes will be awarded.

Mention this library fundraiser to receive a 10 percent discount at Maine and Vine on the three selected wines. The first 10 to register will be entered in a drawing to win a luxury charcuterie box for four from Kennebunkport’s The Port Box Co. as a gift certificate or delivered on Nov. 15 . Suggested donation is $10. To purchase tickets, visit https://kennebunkfreelibrary.square.site/ and receive descriptions of the wines along with pairing suggestions.

For more information, call 207-985-2173 or email kfl@kennebunklibrary.org.

Project Pilgrim offers curbside pick-up or delivery

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Community Harvest, a local nonprofit organization, will host the 24th annual Project Pilgrim on Thursday, Nov. 24, 2022, at St. Martha’s Church on Route 1 in Kennebunk. Traditionally, Project Pilgrim is a complimentary Thanksgiving Day dinner that invites community members to come together and share in delicious food and meaningful company. This year, due to the ongoing impacts of the pandemic, the organization is once again offering curbside pick-up and delivery options only rather than a gathered meal.

In 2021, Project Pilgrim volunteers prepared more than 550 meals for local individuals and families, including dozens of first responders working on Thanksgiving Day.

Meals will be provided cold, with heating instructions. Community members should reserve their complimentary meals by calling 207-967-1911 or visiting www.communityharvestmaine.org. All meal reservations must be made in advance by Sunday, Nov. 13.

Secret Santa applications available

Secret Santa of Kennebunk, Kennebunkport and Arundel has been helping families in need by providing Christmas and holiday gifts to children in the three towns for over 35 years. Applications for parents and/or legal guardians in need of help this year may be picked up at all town general assistance offices or found online at the town websites.

In order to qualify, applications must be turned in to the general assistance office by Friday, Nov. 4. All requests are strictly confidential. For more information, call the town’s general assistance office.

Arundel, 985-4201.; Kennebunk, 985-2102, ext. 3.; and Kennebunkport, 967-4401.

Dan King photo

Governor Janet Mills speaks to a group of supporters in Kennebunk on Sunday, Nov. 6. For election updates, visit www.mainelymediallc.com. Dan King photo

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