Heritage Day sets
attendance record
The ninth annual Heritage Day was recently held on Sept. 14 at the North Chapel Common in Arundel. It was hosted by the Arundel Historical Society and turned out to be a well-attended event exceeding our expectations and surpassing past attendance records.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank our sponsors and contributors: Arundel Ford, Beal’s Little Acres, Bentley’s Saloon, Champion Auto Body, Champion Auto Sales, Coca-Cola, Inc., Ed’s Grove Inc., Fraternal Order of Eagles, Generations Dentistry, Kennebunk Savings Bank, The Lobster Company, Sharon Arnold Lux School of Dance, Mann Memorial Veterinary Clinic, Neil’s Motors, Inc., Wayne Parry (lobsterman), Pottys-R-Us, Saco Biddeford Savings, Salon 171, Shields Meats, Staples, Weirs Motor Sales, M. Welch and Sons, Inc.
Our sincere thanks to all of these businesses and individuals for their support and generous donations of cash, food, materials, raffle prizes, and/or services. We ask that you keep these businesses in mind when shopping for goods and services as they are the backbone of our local economy and deserve our support.
We would also like to thank all our volunteers whose help and assistance made our event so successful. Without the support of these businesses and volunteers this event would not be possible. For this we are truly grateful.
Arundel Historical Society Board of Directors
Read the
proposed charter
I urge fellow residents to read with care Section 4.2.5 (Special Provisions Applicable to Voters Petitions Addressed To Land Use Ordinances) of the proposed charter. But before you do review the following:
The proposed charter removes our right to vote on land-use ordinances. If this charter passes all ordinances ( with exception of budget/borrowing) will be controlled by a town council.
The Charter Commission justifies this removal of our rights by referencing Section 4.2.1 through Section 4.2.4. These sections list a detailed set of requirements a citizen must accomplish just to get a new or amended ordinance, or a request to repeal an ordinance before the town council.
These requirements include:
A narrative that has been legally reviewed ( at petitioner’s expense); 500 signatures of Kennebunk registered voters (signature takers must be notarized at petitioner’s expense); review of signatures by town clerk/review of entire process (including grammar and composition of narrative) by town attorney; and the petition then goes to town council where it may or may not make its way to your ballot.
But wait. Here comes Section 4.2.5, Special Provisions …
While you the voter petitioner are running about jumping through hoops the proposed charter creates an open door for a party in Interest. This undefined party files directly to the town council an equally undefined, motion to dismiss the voters petition.”p Directly to town council; not a hoop in sight.
The town council is empowered to unilaterally accept the motion to dismiss. This results in the voters petition being rushed to a public hearing followed by within 10 days an election. Barely enough time for the voting public to be aware of the petition’s existence.
In short, we the voters of Kennebunk can make a good faith effort to retrieve our rights but only until a mysterious party in interest speaks directly to our town council. Then it’s a whole new ballgame on a decidedly uneven playing field.
Patricia Sass Perry
Kennebunk
Candidate leads
on housing issue
I urge everyone to re-elect our accomplished House District 134 representative, Traci Gere.
Concerned about Maine’s housing challenges? Traci’s colleagues recognized her leadership on this issue by selecting her to be House chair of the Joint Select Committee on Housing. Her career in business helps her understand the interests of developers, town planners, and working citizens. She is a respected problem solver on this issue.
Want a responsive representative? Since 2020, Traci has made time to listen to, and resolve, a range of constituent requests while also crafting and passing bills that help all Maine families and businesses succeed. Those of us who know her personally are impressed by how tirelessly she manages the grueling Augusta schedule and demands that this office requires of those who commit to it fully. It is a job for proven, energetic doers.
Worried about extreme politicians taking control in Maine? You should be. The current, common-sense leadership in our statehouse has rejected efforts to ban books, roll back environmental protections, and take away a woman’s right to make decisions about her own reproductive health needs. Traci is the only candidate in this district race who will stand up for protecting women’s freedom from government control of their choices.
The stakes couldn’t be higher. Vote for the candidate with a track record who is running on results, not just rhetoric. Please join me in voting to keep Traci Gere working for us.
Connie Dykstra
Kennebunkport
Candidate stands
up for women’s rights
I am writing in support of Traci Gere for re-election to the Maine House of Representatives. On the issue of the rights of women, the choice is quite clear on the best person to represent District 134. Traci Gere has consistently stood up for the right of women to make decisions about their own bodies and to access reproductive care as needed, including the right to an abortion.
Contrast Traci Gere’s position with that of her opponent. Elizabeth Jordan says she supports individual freedom, but argues that that freedom does not extend to women’s rights to control decision-making about their bodies. In a recent interview with the Christian Civic League, Jordan affirms this view. The choice is clear, vote for Gere.
Steve Kaagan
Kennebunkport
Elected bodies
work for the people
We have heard it all … efficient government, responsive government, like other towns, the divisive recall effort. But not once has there been concern or mention of the voice of the people. This charter proposal systematically diminishes the voice of the people and increases the difficulty of being heard.
Out of the box, this commission tackled the recall effort but set aside the form of government, budget process and more. Adding steps, adding signature count, increasing required voter turnout, slowing the process … removing the voice of the people.
Let’s be honest. The recall effort worked exactly as it was intended to. The voice of the people was heard loudly and clearly. The elected official retained his position. The only thing missing from the process was the public hearing, which was readily available to the individual, however, he elected not to be heard.
Look at the school chaos. Time after time the public interests are discarded, comments are cut, time has run out. I recently read comments about a similar situation at the Kennebunk Select Board level. Time has run out, you are repeating yourself, and more. Neither body is listening to those they serve. The proposed charter change further quiets public participation, silencing the voice of the people.
It isn’t perfect and at times can be cumbersome and frustrating, but a true democracy starts with the people. The elected bodies work for us. How can they represent us if we are not heard?
I have served many years for the good of this community: Site Plan Review, Select Board and now Budget Board. Not every meeting was pleasant, but every meeting was informative and helped guide the decisions made. Why?? Because the voice of the people was heard.
Vote no on the charter change. We deserve better.
Richard Morin
Kennebunk
Read up on
charter proposal
Section 2.5.5 of the proposed new Kennebunk Charter deals with responsibilities of members of boards, commissions, committees or task forces. Some of the provisions in this section seem a bit draconian, i.e. “Members shall refrain from using social media or other public means to comment on applications or projects pending before any Town Agencies … All correspondence from members or Agencies intended for the public shall be pre-approved by the Agency’s Town Council liaison or Town Manager.”
It seems that these provisions preclude any volunteer member of a town committee from writing a letter to the editor on any project before the town. It seems that a member of the Garden Committee, for example, could not as a private citizen, write a letter to the editor about the proposed charter revision.
Does this seem like overreach?
Please do your homework and be sure to read the minority report on the proposed charter before you vote on Nov. 5.
Betsy Smith
Kennebunk
Research facts
before voting
One of your readers has suggested in a letter to the editor that the former president should be given credit for improving health care in this country. All of the initiatives mentioned had bipartisan support; the STAR Act, Sen. Jack Reed’s childhood cancer bill, had broad backing from both houses of Congress.
The fact that the former president signed the bill is beside the point. He couldn’t very well disapprove of something so obviously in the public interest. Senator Reed is a Democrat.
Voters need to research the facts before selecting a candidate.
Bevan Davies
Kennebunk
Candidate supports
education system
According to a 2024 report in U.S. News & World Report, the state of Maine is ranked No. 51 in the country in education. How could we have plummeted from No. 1 in the 1990s? Cascading government policies, nationally and locally are a good place to investigate.
I became an advocate for education in the mid ’80s. I was developing and implementing fitness and homeschooling programs, serving as an educator, coach and mentor. Now, the ranking House Republican member of the Joint Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs, my concerns for the direction of our educational system have dramatically increased since first elected in 2016. Unfortunately, due to the current one-party rule in Augusta, it is very difficult fighting against the destructive policies or to effect significant positive change to our declining educational scores, standards, and standing.
To effect change in Augusta, we must change who is elected to affect our education system. Elizabeth Jordan is the Republican candidate for Maine’s House District 134. Elizabeth is a strong advocate for improving the status of Maine’s education. She will support common sense efforts including a return to strong academics, create options for school choice, protecting parental rights, respecting female sports, and promoting career and technical education training.
Elizabeth stands with improving Maine’s education. I stand with Elizabeth. Support Elizabeth this election. Vote early. To learn more about Elizabeth Jordan, visit www.jordanforhouse.org.
Heidi Sampson, Rep. Dist. 136
Alfred
Give credit where
credit is due
The recent letter from Mrs. Evelyn gives credit to Trump for things in 2017 that the Obama administration and Congress worked on before Trump, and the FDA, not Trump, did the work for the generic drug approvals. The Independent Payment Advisory Board created by the Affordable Care Act was to have 15 board members appointed by the president, but Trump never appointed anyone. Trump tried repeatedly to kill the ACA. Do you remember the vote by Sen. John McCain to save it?
To paraphrase her letter for a different view: If you like a politician who single-handedly destroyed the confidence of millions of Americans in our free and fair election system, and who continues to lie and deny his clear and legitimate 2020 loss and refuses to concede, unlike any previous loser in American history, vote Trump.
If you like a politician who always promised a better national health system but then never did, vote Trump. If you like a candidate who stops the bipartisan solution to the border and immigration problem and tells his Republicans in Congress to stop it because he’d rather scream about the problem during this election, vote Trump. But we never will.
Don and Nancy Gasink
Kennebunkport
Thinking out
of the box
As summer has faded and the November election draws nearer, political signs have cropped up all over town. You know, the rectangular boards stuck in the ground by the wire frames that hold them. One among these stands out. It is round and it asks us to re-elect Traci Gere.
Good idea. Traci has proven that she is a creative problem solver who applies her considerable education and experience to public service. She serves as House Chair of the Joint Select Committee on Housing and and is a member if the Labor and Housing Committee. Last spring she sponsored a bill that passed the Maine Legislature with broad bipartisan support. This bill allowed the passing of vacated courthouses in Sanford, York and Biddeford to housing authorities in each town. These buildings are in good shape and will become affordable housing.
Wow. This is how government is supposed to work; legislators coming together to help solve community problems. And Traci with her round, out-of-the-box signs took the lead with her out-of-the-box thinking. Do not let this devoted public servant slip through our hands. Re-elect Traci Gere.
Linda Ward
Kennebunkport
Free teachers to
focus on teaching
We’ve lived in Kennebunk for over 50 years, attracted originally by the community’s “Schools of Excellence.” Our three children attended Kennebunk schools, grades 1 through 12. They graduated in the mid ’80s and went on to complete college in four years. Indeed, they got a good education.
Although I have not been that involved in our schools for some time, I recently attended a school budget meeting. My impression was of a school unit in disarray. This impression was further reinforced by reports of high teacher turnover as well as the Maine Policy Institute’s report entitled, “The Decline of Maine K-12 Education.” This report describes how Maine schools, which formerly ranked first or second in math and reading, have declined to 35th or 36th.
Clearly, something is not working and changes need to be made. Although there are many reasons for the reported decline, I believe one of the main ones is that our school has lost sight of its core mission, i.e., to help students acquire the knowledge and tools necessary for them to become successful adults and responsible citizens. This loss of focus begins at the top with a commissioner of education who believes that academics need to take a back seat to social emotional learning. A school is, after all, an academic institution where individuals should be evaluated on the basis of their character and their actions and not on an identity.
It is long past time for our schools to drop their focus on DEI and CRT, and free teachers to concentrate on teaching the ABCs and 123s which have served students well for many years. And while you are at it, let’s get smart phones out of the classroom. I don’t think even the best of teachers can be successful having to contend with that distraction.
Robert Giles
Kennebunk
Candidate listens
regardless of party
This letter supports Elizabeth Jordan, running to represent the town of Kennebunkport and coastal portions of Kennebunk and Biddeford. She is a sharp contrast to our existing representative:
1. Elizabeth listens and has knocked on hundreds of doors. She will consider the opinions of her constituents, regardless of party affiliation. She will not charge off co-authoring a vastly unpopular, poorly constructed piece of legislation such as LD 2003. This bill rewrote building codes statewide without soliciting opinions from local planning boards and state oversight.
2. Elizabeth supports decorum and will add a voice of reason to debacles such as LD 1578, adding Maine to states bypassing the electoral college. Debate on this bill was stifled along with our Constitution.
3. Elizabeth, an athlete, supports girls’ Title IX rights. Her opponent supported LD 855, allowing the state to change birth certificates, redefining males, females, locker rooms and playing fields.
Susan Boak
Kennebunkport
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