by Ruth Leubecker

by Sarah Craighead Dedmon

It was Gianna Hall’s and Helen Racherla-Mace’s first day at sailing camp when a rare waterspout kicked up on Indian Lake in Whiting. The two girls were out for a sail with their instructor, Scott Fraser, on Monday, Aug. 5 when Fraser noticed the increase in wind speed that often accompanies a wind shift. Then, their sailboat capsized. It was a clear, sunny day.

“I just saw a little puff coming across the lake, and next thing you knew we were heeled up really hard,” said Fraser. “We ended up in the water very quickly.”

by Sarah Craighead Dedmon

Machiasport held elections on Tuesday, Aug. 6 to fill a vacancy on its three-member Board of Selectmen and to elect a representative to the school board.

Of the 144 votes cast, Hinerman received 62, candidate Bob Mercer received 56, and candidate Jim Clark received 26. Ninety people cast a vote for Rose Williams, who ran unopposed for the open seat on the school board.

by Wayne Smith

by Sarah Craighead Dedmon

Caissie Roberts doesn’t like to loll about, so when she was confined to bed for eight weeks during her pregnancy, she knew she would have to find something to do, or else go crazy.

“Before [our son] Lincoln was born, our kids were Mia and Wyatt, our dogs,” said Roberts. “So I just started making them some collars out of sheer boredom.” Roberts started sewing brightly-colored dog collars featuring whimsical designs, many related to life on the Maine Coast.

by Ruth Leubecker

Using telemarketing and hard-sell tactics, phone call solicitation has increased with medical device fraud lately heading the list Downeast.

These calls are trying to sell such things as back, knee, shoulder or wrist braces. Hundreds of thousands of such calls nationally leave the elderly and disabled especially vulnerable. In rural Maine where often this population lives alone, if not isolated and in pain, solicitors find a ready market.

by Jayna Smith

The 46th Annual International Homecoming Festival, a celebration of friendship between Calais, Maine and St. Stephen, New Brunswick, is set to begin on Wednesday, Aug. 7 and run through Sunday, Aug. 11.

Many events for all ages are held on both sides of the border during the five-day festival, beginning with the “Hands Across the Border” Opening Ceremony on Wednesday. The Ferry Point Bridge to Canada is closed during this event, allowing many from both sides to meet in the middle where the countries’ two flags will be hung.

by Kaileigh Deacon

A lot of people will spend hours browsing online shopping sites or visiting brick-and-mortar stores to find that perfect item they are looking for, whether for a gift or for themselves. Meredith Dow took another approach to this — she took the things she wanted and said, “I can do that.”

The Eastport Arts Center’s popular summer concert series continues on Aug. 16 with the Resinosa Ensemble, including Joëlle Morris, mezzo-Soprano, Eliza Meyer, cello and Bridget Convey, piano. A reception with refreshments courtesy of Sweetie’s Dog-O-Rama will follow the concert.

by Sarah Craighead Dedmon

The names of three candidates will be on a Machiasport ballot on Tuesday, Aug. 6, when voters will vote to fill one vacancy on the Machiasport Board of Selectmen. Selectman Jeff Henderson has resigned, and the newly elected selectman will serve a three-year term, beginning immediately after the election.

Jim Clark, Mike Hinerman and Bob Mercer are running for the position. We asked each candidate the same questions, and present their answers here to inform your vote.

by Ruth Leubecker

Describing an epidemic of loneliness in Maine, a state expert is advocating that rural communities need to get creative in addressing the burgeoning elderly demographic.

by Sarah Craighead Dedmon

In preparation for a scheduled replacement of the Machias dike in 2021, the Maine Department of Transportation will be conducting work for 11 business days beginning Tuesday, Aug. 6.

by Jayna Smith

A chili cooking contest is planned for Saturday, August 10, in downtown Eastport. This won’t be just any chili contest, however; it is the CASI (Chili Appreciation Society International) Maine State Chili Championship.

Competitive chili cook Jenny Windsor and her husband Jack, fairly new residents of Alexander, attended a small chili cookoff in Calais last fall. It was that event that inspired Jenny to organize this competition that raises funds for local charities.

Oral rabies vaccine (ORV) baits will be distributed in northeastern Maine beginning on or about Aug 3 - 7 as part of ongoing, cooperative rabies control efforts aimed at reducing the incidence of raccoon rabies. The distribution of ORV baits has occurred annually since 2003.

by Ruth Leubecker

Weighing in on Maine’s newest governor, the future of the Bucks Harbor prison and a few broken promises, Rep. Will Tuell last week provided the Machias Rotary with a  firsthand update on Maine’s 129th legislative session.

by Sarah Craighead Dedmon

Laid along a kitchen counter there are trays of freshly-assembled English muffin pizzas waiting for the oven. Some are piled high with vegetables, some bear only cheese, and all are the creation of Narraguagus students taking part in the Teen Ag Summer Program, a Healthy Acadia camp for teens. Last week the students met daily to learn about gardening, local food systems, and to build a garden of their own at their school.

by Nancy Beal

The Port and Starboard Yacht Club has been holding sailing regattas in Jonesport’s Chandler Bay for half a century. The 2019 event will take place Saturday, August 10 and the organizers are hoping to lure some out-of-town boats to swell the ranks of the racers.

by Wayne Smith

Albert Walker, 73, of Milbridge has a dog named Susie. This story is about the love of a dog. Readers might want to get a kleenex to wipe their tears with or you might get a chuckle out of it.

The Eastport Arts Center’s popular summer concert series continues on August 2 and 9 with gifted Washington County-raised musicians who return home to share their new music. Soprano Molly Abrams will take the stage on Friday, August 2 at 7 pm, with a recital titled, ‘Seascape,’ featuring classical and musical theatre selections celebrating the coast, its beauty and its inhabitants, including selections by Gabriel Faure, Alan Menken, Kurt Weill, and Benjamin Britten, and piano accompaniment by Gregory Biss. A reception sponsored by The WaCo Diner will follow the concert.

by Joseph Horn