Interlibrary loans
to return Tuesday

Full Minerva requesting will return Sept. 3. The interlibrary loan service allows someone with a library card in one location to request a book from another library in the state.

Libraries were notified in June that the service was suspended because of a contract dispute, according to an Aug. 12 Portland Press Herald article by Gillian Graham. A new delivery company, STAT Courier, a national library courier company based in Missouri, will now be moving library materials across Maine. The prior company, Freedom Xpress Inc., with offices in Maine and New Hampshire, appealed the decision but lost, according to the Portland Press Herald.

For updates at the Gray Public Library, contact graylib@graymaine.org or call 657-4110.

“American Idol” contestant Julia Gagnon at home in Cumberland last year. Sofia Aldinio / Portland Press Herald

‘American Idol’ singer
to talk at high school

Maine singing sensation and “American Idol” Platinum Ticket winner Julia Gagnon will discuss her life and musical journey at the Gray-New Gloucester High School at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 18. She will be interviewed by Gray Public Library Director Joshua Tiffany.

To submit a question for the event, email graylib@graymaine.org with the subject line “Question for Julia.” Questions can also be submitted at tinyurl.com/5cujh35f.

The talk will be live streamed on GCTV-2 and available after the event on YouTube and on the Gray Public Library’s website.

Tickets for the talk are required and are available to Gray library cardholders. Remaining tickets will be available to the general public starting Tuesday, Sept. 3. Tickets can be reserved at the circulation desk at Gray Public Library, by phone at 657-4110, or by email at graylib@graymaine.org. Tickets must be picked up at the library prior to the event and are required to enter the event.

Learn more at graymaine.link/Gagnon-Conversation.

Reimagining the
Gray Village

Two years ago, the Gray Town Council hired Principle Group, an urban design, development, architecture and planning firm, to help residents reimagine a Gray Village that works for pedestrians, bicyclists, residents and businesses, as well as motorists. Principle Group came up with a new design plan.

The plan calls for shorter, safer crosswalks, new and rebuilt sidewalks, bike lanes, street trees and traffic-calming measures such as narrower travel lanes for cars, slower posted speed limits, and village-appropriate signs. The target area includes Main Street from Wayne Avenue to the Yarmouth Road/Route 100/West Gray Road intersection, as well as major construction work on Yarmouth Road from Main Street to Hillcrest Drive.

Once the initial design phase is complete, the Maine Department of Transportation will apply on the town’s behalf to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s RAISE grant program, which, if successful, would help fund what is being called the Village Transformation Project.

To learn more, go to tinyurl.com/bdf4uxen.

Send your news about Gray happenings to Marilyn Keating-Porcaro at mkp657@aol.com.

Farmers market
through Sept. 13

Gray Village Farmers’ Market is held on Sundays through Sept. 13 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., at Village Green Food Forest, 5 Yarmouth Road, Gray Corner. For more information, go to grayvillagefarmersmarket.com.

All about raptors
at Wildlife Park

Spend a day learning about Maine’s birds of prey at Maine Wildlife Park on Sept. 15. At 11 a.m. a raptor biologist from Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife will discuss raptors in the state and how they are managed.

There will be time for a picnic and to explore the park after this 30-minute presentation. At 1 p.m. back at the raptor enclosures, the wildlife keepers talk about the birds’ adaptations and how they are cared for at the park. The discussions are included with admission.

Food Truck Friday Aug. 30 will feature Shut Up N Eat on site from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Wildlife Park is located at 56 Game Farm Road in Gray. For more information, go to mainewildlifepark.com or call 822-6460.