By Paul Sylvain

The dust has settled and more than 95 percent of the Maine vote has been counted. While absentee ballots from United States citizens living, working, or stationed with the military overseas will be among the last ballots counted, for all intents and purposes, the 2024 presidential election is in the books.

By Will Tuell

Whitecaps were visible from the Lubec Historical Society overlooking Cobscook Bay Saturday morning as a hearty group of Lubeckers and their guests gathered to honor dozens of the town’s veterans who are featured on banners a citizens group has placed on telephone poles heading into Lubec. All told, some 65 veterans are featured as part of the “Veterans Banner Project” with another 35 banners in the works for 2025, bringing the total number of Lubec and Trescott service members recognized as part of the project to approximately 100. 

By Nancy Beal

Policy review took up much of the Moosabec CSD board meeting on Nov. 6. Revisions to the current policy on post-secondary enrollment options would permit students in all grades to take post-secondary classes and remove the one-course restriction. It would expand the institutions named in the policy where such courses could be taken (currently limited to the University of Maine System, community college system, and Maine Maritime Academy).

by Jonathan Reisman

Poll Worker Musings

I worked the polls from 9:30 a.m. to almost midnight on Nov. 5. It was a long day of recognizing graying neighbors, friends, and a few new arrivals/same-day registrants. I carefully declined asking for any ID, which was fortunate for both legal and old acquaintances I forgot/failed to recognize.

By Nadine Preston 

On Friday, Nov. 8, the students of Rose M. Gaffney Elementary School and Machias Memorial High School held their annual Veterans Day program. This program grows more every year, and all veterans and their families are encouraged to attend. Students from both schools honor our area service members in a variety of ways from choral songs and band performances to the Presentation of Colors by our Scout Pack #125.

By Paul Sylvain

Machiasport clam diggers know that, like the tides, their fortunes can rise or fall, depending on the weather and, unfortunately, the Machias wastewater treatment plant.

To that end, Machias Selectboard Chairman Jake Patryn and Vice Chairman Ben Edwards met with Machiasport Shellfish Conservation Committee members Zach Wood, Whitney Stevens, and David Cale on Oct. 30 to discuss the issue of state-mandated clam flat closures whenever a combined sewage overflow, or CSO, event occurs at the Machias plant. 

By Paul Sylvain

More than a year after beginning a search to hire a grant-funded School Resource Officer (SRO) for Machias Memorial High School, Police Chief Keith Mercier, and school principal Nicole Case have thrown in the towel on finding one.

“We can’t get anyone,” Case admitted, in spite of a search that began with the selectboard’s blessing 14 months ago.

By Nancy Beal

The Downeast Institute (DEI), located in the Black Duck Cove area of Beals’ Great Wass Island, recently hired a research scientist to oversee all internal and external research in its ocean acidification laboratory. Originally from North Carolina, Jaquan High is a graduate of the University of South Carolina, where he earned a bachelor of science degree in geology. Last June, he graduated from Oregon State University with a master’s degree in ocean, earth, and atmospheric sciences.

by Jonathan Reisman

National Popular Vote Compact Karma

By Paul Sylvain

On Aug. 3, scores of family members, friends, and even strangers, packed the Rose M. Gaffney gymnasium in record numbers for a fundraiser to help Jennifer Lee (Green) Fenney in her courageous battle against cancer. Just a short 85 days later — on Oct. 27 — many of those same people filled the Bay Ridge school gym in Cutler to celebrate the life of a much-loved woman, taken much too soon on Oct. 23. She was 49.

By Will Tuell

Down East Community Hospital bid an emotional farewell to one of its own last week. Brenda Wood, of the Hadley Lake district of East Machias, notified hospital officials earlier this month that she would be stepping down from her position in DECH, after nearly five decades serving patients at the Machias hospital.

By Wayne Smith

Richard Bedard is the volunteer librarian at Too Good to Toss Thrift Shop in Columbia Falls. I caught up with him and a few other people who volunteer there earlier this fall to talk about some of the great things you can find without having to go out of your way. 

By Paul Sylvain

As he posted in his own words at the start of a weeklong moose hunt on Oct. 13, Stephen J. Smith is “Off the grid.”

Better known to most people simply as “Smitty,” the long-time, well-known, and often colorful owner of Smitty’s Trading Post and former Machias selectman, died unexpectedly on Oct. 19, shortly after returning from that northern Maine moose hunt. He was 70.

By Paul Sylvain

Most visitors traveling to Maine think of the seacoast in terms of Bar Harbor or the beaches in York and Cumberland counties. Many leave Maine not knowing that some of the most picturesque coastal towns and villages in places like Washington County make their living from the sea and not from tourism.

By Paul Sylvain

Thanks to a year-long partnership with Healthy Acadia, Porter Memorial Library marked the first anniversary of its backyard Storywalk on Oct. 18 with pumpkin-themed goodies and tables full of happy, eager kids painting pumpkins and tiny gourds.

And just like the library’s first Storywalk kickoff last year on Oct. 6, 2023, the event was blessed with a picture-perfect autumn day, clear blue skies, a carpet of colorful leaves, and mild temperatures.

By Paul Sylvain

Forget the Southern border.

Maine, with its mostly heavily wooded and remote 611-mile international land border with the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec, has become an increasingly attractive place for undocumented immigrants to enter undetected into the United States.

By Will Tuell

Students and staff from the Machias Valley Christian School took to the Down East Sunrise Trail Oct. 18 to raise money for their school. Cheered on by parents, community members, and local businesses who helped sponsor the kindergarten-to-seventh graders’ walk-a-thon, the school was able to raise $10,000 towards its budget, board member Ashley Maker said in an interview later that day. 

The Machiasport Historical Society is honored to have the highly respected Passamaquoddy Dr. Dwayne Tomah provide a significant and impactful presentation on "The Doctrine of Discovery From An Indigenous Perspective" at The Gates House on Monday, Oct. 28, at 6 p.m. “The Doctrine of Discovery” refers to a principle in public international law under which, when a nation “discovers” land, it directly acquires rights on that land. Dr. Tomah has been involved in repatriation and the Land Back movement and shares insight regarding the Doctrine of Discovery from an Indigenous perspective. 

By Will Tuell

Higher than expected wind gusts brought about widespread power outages across coastal Washington County Oct. 12 Versant Power reported. As of 11 a.m. Saturday, some 13,400 Versant customers were without power, the company said, adding that 2200 of those were located in the Sunrise County. 

By Paul Sylvain

Machias residents, upset over how a handful of costly spending articles were handled at the Sept. 25 annual town meeting, will have a chance to reconsider their votes at a future special town meeting.

Interim Town Manager Christina Therrien began her manager’s report at the Oct. 9 selectboard meeting saying many questions had since been raised by residents regarding the town’s recreation department budget, grant funding for various projects, and how certain articles were amended at the town meeting.

By Nancy Beal

The last Main Street building in what was once a commercial center in West Jonesport is on the market, and the town could become a potential buyer. Originally the Cummings & Norton store, the 134-year-old building today is surrounded by town-owned property: a modern firehouse to the rear and the old firehouse close on the west side, leased to Paul Farnsworth who maintains an auto repair business there.

By Wayne Smith

I caught up with Paul Cunningham of Machias recently. We talked for about 40 minutes about him decorating his house on the corner of West and Water streets with skeletons. He had a graveyard scene that was both spooky and original. He even had a fog machine; a lot of lights and crazy cobwebs danced on the outside of the house. 

Cunningham talked about Halloween and why he decorated his house the way he did. He is 54 years old, and Halloween has been his favorite holiday since he was a little kid.