Artists Join Educators

BERWICK – Artists and educators join together to benefit students at Central School in South Berwick.

According to Kate Smith, who teaches music at Central School, the after school program known as WOW (We Offer Wonders) aims to incorporate art into the program for elementary students Pre-K through third grade. The program has previously included lessons in performing arts, cooking and sports.

“We’re trying a new Artsy WOW, something we've never done before.” said Smith.

The four week program would likely start in November at a cost of $20 per child. The cost would cover snacks and a one hour lesson once a week from a local artist. The local artist would receive a sum of $100 regardless of how many students participated.

“Any extra money that could potentially be earned would be used for scholarship funds either for this WOW program or summer camps,” said Smith.

Students would assemble at 3:15 and take fifteen minutes to eat a light snack, use the bathroom and settle in. The lesson would then run from 3:30 to 4:30 and would be age appropriate for students as young as four and as old as nine.

Smith approached the Berwick Art Association at their September 18 meeting to recruit any artists that might be interested in teaching the course. Member Ruth Bleau showed immediate interest in working with the children.

Bleau said she wasn’t sure at first what art lessons she could offer the young students. However, the more she thought about it, the more she began to recall days of her own youth where she spent time outside collecting beautiful things and turning them into interesting objects.

“I would love to instill in these children a love of the outdoors, the beauty of everyday things,” said Bleau “I am thinking of collecting cones, acorns, leaves, bark, lichen - what have you and making objects. Cones turn into Christmas decorations, maybe we can make wreaths from evergreen branches. I would love to try bracelets made from birch bark. The idea is really to enjoy being outside and appreciating nature but with added benefits.”

This hands-on approach fits in ideally with Smith’s goal of encouraging kids to “wonder about the world”. We want students to stop and think about their curiosities or problems before running directly to Google or grabbing a calculator, explained Smith.

“Absolutely the ability to research is a good skill to have but so is the ability to investigate, problem solve, deduce, eliminate, estimate,” said Smith.

Smith also pointed out that with classes getting cut back kids have to make harder choices today about what lessons they want to pursue. Programs like WOW offer those children a chance to explore areas that are being cut from many school itineraries.

Source

Happy Ending for 37 Rescued Cats

BERWICK – The level of community support received after The Red Barn Pet Services took in 37 rescued cats has left shelter owner, Peg Wheeler, with a renewed sense of faith in humanity.
 
On August 31, Berwick police responded to a call reporting a concern regarding multiple cats at a residence on River Street in Berwick. When Officer Bill Kelloway arrived he quickly learned that the woman at the residence had a warrant out for her arrest. 

However, after Kelloway determined there was no food in the house to feed the 37 cats, his first priority was to relocate the animals to a safe location. The woman, whose name has not been released, surrendered the cats voluntarily. 

The cats were transported to The Red Barn Pet Services in Berwick where the condition of their health was checked. No major health issues were found in any of the felines. However, Wheeler reports that they were all covered in fleas.  The cost to test and treat the cats was nearly $1,500.

“It was a miracle with this many cats in such a small space that the cats were as healthy as they were,” said Wheeler. 

According to Wheeler, amongst the 37 cats rescued one was a cat only six months old that is due to deliver a litter of kittens any day.  The oldest cat in custody was only ten months.

“It all started with two cats that were not spayed and just kept having kittens. Then those kittens started having kittens,” explained Wheeler. 

Shortly after the story reached the media, Wheeler was inundated with people from surrounding communities that were anxious to lend a helping hand.  People from Sanford, Biddeford, Portland and even Bangor started dropping of cash donations and supplies, said Wheeler. 

A visit to The Red Barn revealed dozens of economy sized bags of cats food, 700 pounds of cat litter and other supplies lining the walls. 

“There was a line of people going down the street, eager to adopt or donate,” said Wheeler. “I couldn’t believe it.” 

As of Sept. 10, there were four litters of kittens that were placed into foster homes, leaving 13 other cats that are quickly being adopted. 

Source

Berwick Residents Questions Selectmen Motives

BERWICK – The board of selectmen in Berwick faced some heavy criticism from displeased residents at the September 3 selectmen meeting. Two residents stepped forth during the public comment segment of the meeting to voice their concern over the lack of consistency in the manner that public meetings are announced.  

The standard procedure for most towns is to post public meetings on the town’s website, which isn’t always done in Berwick. However, the real subject of discourse seems to surround, not the website, but the sign outside town hall that has come to be an expected source of notification from residents. Many residents are upset that this sign is not used in a consistent manner to announce public meetings. 

  

When faced with complaints regarding the lack of public notice of town meetings at the last two selectmen meetings, town manager Patrick Venne, stated town officials have been in compliance with Maine state law’s requirements for notice of public meetings.  

However, Maine state law is rather vague on the method and length of notice that towns are required to give to the public stating: Public notice must be given in ample time to allow public attendance and must be disseminated in a manner reasonably calculated to notify the general public in the jurisdiction served by the body or agency.  

The question then comes into play: What is considered ample time?  

According to Berwick resident Oscar Stone, some meetings have only been posted hours before the meeting was scheduled to take place. Stone has spoken to this issue at the past two selectmen meetings, and many other times by Stone's own admission, yet the problem persists. 

At the August 19 selectmen meeting Stone referred to the board as a "bunch of sleazeballs" that had a hidden agenda to intentionally conduct business without the knowledge of the public. At the September 3 selectmen meeting, Stone merely suggested that the board suffered from general "incompetence".

Berwick resident, Mike Reed, joined the crusade against the town’s procedures in meeting notification. At the September 3 selectmen meeting Reed indicated that the recent meeting regarding the fire department’s report to the selectmen was never on the sign.  

“I’m very disappointed in the board of selectmen and the town manager’s procedures,” said Reed. “The perception around town is that this board wants to do things behind closed doors without letting residents know.”  

Reed also claimed that many long-time residents have been forced to move from Berwick because of the excessive spending the town has approved.  

Selectman Bart Haley, acknowledged the oversight of some meetings not being posted on the sign and one instance where a meeting was posted without a complete time. At the aforementioned fireman's report meeting, the sign outside town hall read: Meeting 30 PM. Haley stated he believed the reason for this was the town didn't have a seven for the board as most meetings typical start at five or six. Haley also assured Reed that they had appointed a town clerk with the responsibility of keeping up with the sign and that the problem would cease to exist.  

Board of selectman member, Eleanor Murphy, stated that the sign was a relatively new means of media and implied it wasn’t an official tool of communication.  

“There was never even a motion to put the sign up,” said Murphy. “As far as I’m concerned that board [sign] belongs to the former selectman that purchased it.” 

Venne also acknowledged Stone and Reed’s complaints at the meeting.  

“Your concerns are not falling on deaf ears, but all legal obligations were met,” said Venne.  

“What’s legal is not always what’s right for the town,” said Reed.  

Source

Getting Fresh in Berwick

BERWICK – The Berwick Coffee House and General Store, located on Route 9 in Berwick is now under new ownership. Former owner, Peter Pastor, sold the business to new owners, John Holder and Charlene Turgeon, in July.

Holder and his fiancé, Turgeon, decided to purchase the business after Holder responded to a craigslist ad for a store manager with the possibility of ownership.  Holder was immediately attracted to the idea of managing the Coffee House and General Store.

After speaking with Pastor, Holder became convinced that buying the business was something he and his fiancé needed to pursue. Initially, Turgeon was leery of the idea. However, when she learned that the store was owned by Peter Pastor, she was sold.

“I knew Peter from the days when he owned The Bread & Butter General Store in York,” said Turgeon. “Once I knew it was Peter’s store, I immediately felt comfortable with the idea because I knew everything he did was successful.”

Turgeon brings over 15 years of customer service to the business. Paired with Holder’s 20 years of restaurant service and management, the couple felt they couldn’t go wrong.

The store will soon become known as The Berwick General Store & Deli. Holder and Turgeon felt that they wanted to change the name to bring more focus onto the deli side of the business.

“We didn’t feel that coffee house was a good description of the store,” said Holder. “We also felt changing the name would make it noticeable that the store is under new ownership.”

However, the name of the business is not the only thing that is changing about the store. According to Holder, the store started focusing on bringing a fresher quality to the deli food. They started by baking their own muffins in the store daily, having doughnuts delivered each day from Brookline Bakery, and using fresh beef instead of frozen. They have also taken a healthier approach to food preparation by cooking pizza without oil.

Turgeon said the store has a history of bringing in more revenue from the general store items than from the deli. The couple aims to change that by putting more focus on the deli service.

“We feel that there is real value in being able to have a conversation with the person making your meal verses buying a pre-packaged sandwich that was dropped off by a truck,” said Turgeon. 

Although, Holder and Turgeon are taking a "fresh" approach to some aspects of the general store, they also recognize the importance of keeping the popular items like, New England coffee, Oakhurst milk and AJ's Rush that keep customers coming back. 

“We’re still trying to carry what the locals are used to,” said Holder. “We just want to bring a fresher, healthier, quality to it.”

John Holder and his fiance, Charlene Turgeon

Reigning Cats

BERWICK – It’s no big secret that Berwick, like many other local towns, is overpopulated with feral and stray cats. Many towns choose to ignore the problem.  However, one Berwick resident has decided to take action toward alleviating the pressures that the growing homeless cat population in Berwick is putting on local shelters.  

Peg Wheeler, owner of Red Barn Pet Services, has helped organize a spay and neuter clinic for low income residents. The two “Spay Days” are scheduled for Saturday, August 24 and Saturday, September 7 at the Berwick Police Department. Residents can drop their cat off at the police department Saturday morning to be taken for treatment at a local clinic. Pets will be transported back to the police station that same day for pick up. The cost is $20 per pet. However, openings are limited.

“There have been very positive results in other towns that have implemented spay days,” said Wheeler. “If we could make this work in Berwick, we could have a big impact on the problem.”

Wheeler was inspired to take action when she saw the positive effect Rebecca Chassey from Voice for Animals had on the feral cat population at the transfer station.  Chassey trapped dozens of feral cats at the transfer station, transported them to a spay and neuter clinic, and released them to “host families” that have previously agreed to manage the wild cats. 

“Rebecca is one of those unsung heros,” said Wheeler. “She pretty much single-handedly solved what would have become a huge town problem.”

Wheeler said that her shelter has received “buckets of cats” from the transfer station, many of them sick and in need of medical care. After the cats are treated, Wheeler takes the cats to a location where they can be managed by sponsors. The cats are fed in a cage for two days at a pre-arranged location and then released on the hopes that they will remain in that area. 

“Once a cat becomes feral, it can't make the transition to domestic pet,” explained Wheeler.

According to Wheeler, most of the stray cat populations are found in areas surrounding low income housing. Currently, landlords in Berwick are not required to ask potential tenants to provide proof that their pet has been spayed or neutered. Wheeler believes that if this were a requirement, it would greatly reduce the problem. 

The Spay Days in Berwick were funded largely in part by the Animal Welfare Society’s Cleo Fund. However, Berwick Police Benevolent Association and Red Barn Pet Services also each made a $200 donation toward the cause.  It’s Wheeler’s hope that the sponsored “Spay Days” in Berwick will be an annual event.  

“If we keep chipping away at the problem we might be able to eventually eliminate the issue,” said Wheeler. “Doing nothing is not the answer.”

Source

To reserve a place in the program, qualified individuals should call the Animal Welfare Society at 207-985-3244 extension 120.

Berwick Art Association Plans Downtown Facelift

BERWICK - Residents of Berwick can expect a change of scenery in their downtown area, courtesy of the Berwick Art Association (BAA). The group has obtained permission to paint a mural on the outside walls of Prime Tanning, adjacent from town hall, and plans to submit a draft for final approval early next week.

Obtaining permission from the legal representatives of Prime Tanning was no easy feat, said BAA co-chair Justin Bloom. According to Bloom, the group made calls daily to Prime Tanning representatives for over a month before they finally reached an agreement that would allow the association to paint a mural.

Part of that agreement was the BAA could claim no ownership to the artwork on the wall. This would mean that if and when Prime Tanning is demolished, the group could not take legal action to protect their artwork.

However, the group has already found a “state of the art” method in preserving their work through one or more companies that create digital time montages using GPS and cell phones. The way it works is a company, like Circa, creates an app for a cell phones that enables the phone to access photos of what a certain location looked like in different stages of history, simply by pointing the cell phone at the desired location.

The group plans on documenting the progress of constructing the mural and uploading the photos to Circa. In this way, the Berwick mural will be immortalized in history archives.

“Even if we can only put something up for two years before it is torn down, it’s better than nothing at all,” said Bloom.

The group of artists plan to create a rural scene of rivers, trees and farmlands that runs at least 500 feet along the Prime Tanning wall. Within the rural scene there will be designated shaded areas, outlined by simplistic shapes, that will be made available to the members of the public that would like to contribute to the mural. The end result will resemble a quilt-like design.

“We want to let anyone that wants to participate, including youth groups, have access to the wall,” said Bloom.

Although Bloom said town officials do not oppose the idea, they are not in any position to fund the project. Therefore, the financial obligation would fall solely on the BAA.

BAA founder Erin Duquette, said she has already made contact with several painting businesses that are willing to donate services and materials to prepare the wall for the mural. These materials and services would be given in exchange for a small company logo incorporated onto the wall.

Final approval of the project is pending design acceptance from Prime Tanning’s legal representatives. Bloom said that he also plans on presenting a draft to town officials to make sure they do not oppose to the contents of the design. 

Source

Could you see something like this in downtown Berwick?

Letter to the Editor: Berwick's Possibilities

7 Additions I want to see in

Downtown Berwick: A path to a vibrant and prosperous village center.

Author: James Peter Bellissimo

Photo credit: GLA, A Division of BETA Group, Inc.

It’s not everyday a village has an opportunity to create a downtown from scratch.

Have high aspirations folks!

Because innovative, sustainable ideas that solve problems attract major funding. There are millions  (more on this in future articles) of dollars in Grant money available. The issue is not financial; it is a challenge of vision and creativity, which we all encompass.

These additions serve to spark a whole new local economy that Berwick hasn’t seen before, which could create enough opportunity to employ and sustain local village members. Initiatives like a Wellness Center and Music Amphitheater help to bring people in town, serving as a central draw that other local businesses can thrive of off.

These additions are designed to beautify our environment and bring people together, giving community members a comfortable and most importantly a meaningful way to interact.

So without further ado, here are my top 7 things I’d like to see added to Berwick’s downtown area:

#7 New Welcome to Berwick signs

How about something we can get done right away?

Questions:

Coming across the Somersworth/Berwick Bridge, what are some things that we could add that add to the town’s aesthetics? What would you want to see removed?

What kind of welcome sign would you like to see?

Some notable responses from the survey:

“Where the river meets recreation.”

“Where you always feel at home.”

“A Place to Build Memories.”

#6 Public transportation

I want to see convenient and comfortable public transportation to spots like Portland, ME, I say Portland because I go to school there, (add wherever you’d like to go as well.)  It’s about connecting to other towns.

While it may not make sense at first to give people an easy option to leave Berwick, the idea is that our vision will create enough interest for people to actually want to come into town.

How’s this for a marketing campaign:

Escape the city; come to Berwick, a fresh breath of air.

Give people an option to take a bus into town = less cars = less traffic, more walking and this means more business for local shops.

#5 Berwick Resource Center

Much like the library, where you can go to and “rent,” but instead of books or movies, you’d be renting essential equipment, tools and machines that help get stuff done around your house or for the community. Having these resources readily available, open access, allows for things to get done in the moment. And besides, not every single person in our 7,000+ member community needs a screwdriver right? Not just limited to tools either, how about exchanging skills?

How valuable would it be to have local skill-trades? Want to learn about carpentry? Great, Mr. _____ has been doing it for 25 years, oh you have a skill to offer the town? Awesome, let’s share our gifts and learn to exchange locally.

Photo credit: Century 21 Newson Associates

Potential Location: 25 Sawmill Hill Road

Potential other uses for this building: Restaurant, Function Facility, School (Day Care, Pre-school, Dance, Ballet, Yoga, Gymnastics, Karate), Retail (Grocery, Gym etc.), Town Recreation area and facility.

This location is right across the street from the Salmon Falls River!

 

Source

#4 Intellectual Café
A place you go to cultivate ideas. The whole environment is set up for collaboration and inspiration. Also a place where you can grab something delicious and healthy!

Example: treehouse institute creates “unique physical spaces to foster collaborative creativity.

#3 Berwick Rec Center

I play basketball. It’s a great way to build instant connections, community is found through common unions.  How much could our local athletes benefit from having a place to play sports? Maybe something like the USM field house in Gorham Maine. You could also do track, indoor soccer. Hold tournaments and competitions for all ages. This building could double as a Wellness Center, something like Health Food Store and Yoga By Donation in Portsmouth.

Photo credit: University Of Southern Maine

#2 Greenway trail system

A greenway trail system, accessible to bikes and horses, would be a unique and pleasing way to get to different points of the downtown area. Connecting the library, Berwick Rec Fields, new Resource Center and Rec Center;) and Downtown, throughout the town.

During the winter, we could get around by snowshoe and XC skiing.

Trail connections could also connect to neighboring towns

#1 Berwick Outdoor Amphitheater

Human expression, music brings people together, it transcends perceived differences. It’s a tool that has been used since, well ever by our species to connect. This amphitheater would serve as a central draw for the downtown area. Local restaurants, specialty shops in Berwick would majorly benefit from 500-1,000 people in town.

Potential Cultural Event:

How cool would a New Year’s Winter Music/Arts festival be in town?!

 

Source - Brunswick Outdoor Arts Festival

Could you see something like this in town?

Comparison: Cochecho Arts Festival – Dover NH

“The Friday Night Headliner Concerts are the signature Series of the Festival, with average crowds ranging from 1,500 to 2,500 per night.  Music lovers of all ages flock to Henry Law Park (Corner of Washington St and Henry Law Ave) with picnic blankets, lawn chairs, friends and family to enjoy music in a setting that truly epitomizes the charm and sense of community found only in New England cities as vibrant and historic as Dover.” Source

What about our rural culture?

What would you rather see? 

Photo Credit: St. Germain Collins Environmental Consulting Group

Photo Credit: Statesman Journal / Timothy J. Gonzalez

The additions suggested keep in mind that we want to stay away from overdeveloping and looking like a concrete mess. Comfort, sustainability and aesthetics are extremely important.

“Do we have the “market to make these additions tangible?”

We have 10,000 cars that drive through our town daily to get somewhere to do something that’s obviously vacant from our town. There are 50,000+ people within a 25-mile radius of our town.

“What about parking and traffic flow?”

Needless to say, this is essential to figure out. We attempted to address in these challenges in this initial sketch, which was completed after our first Charette  on May 2^nd . If you have any ideas, please to share!

There’s so much more to discuss!

I hope this article got you thinking about what’s truly possible! But of course these are just possibilities. To make stuff like this happen it will require our town to get on the same page! I’ve seen some amazing things already in our community and I’m inspired. I’ve called Berwick my home for my entire life of 24 years and intend to stay.

We’re a gateway to Maine, let’s be a shining example of what a vibrant community looks like!

Until next time,

James

Do you agree? Disagree? I would love to hear your comments.

Feel free to post on the Facebook page

Or e-mail me @ Bellissimo247@Gmail.com