1. Shalbajean "Mammie" Farren - Obituary

    Addison

    Shalbajean "Mammie" Farren age 84 of Addison, fell asleep in the arms of Jesus, surrounded by her family, unexpectedly on December 3, 2023. She was born on August 1, 1939 in Harrington to the late Sidney and Beryl (Seavey) Mitchell. 

    Shalba graduated from Harrington High School in 1957. She married her best friend and love of her life, Phillip Farren, on July 2, 1959. She was blessed with a large and loving family.

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  2. Christmas Frenzy Sweeps Machias as December Begins

    By Will Tuell

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  3. Machias Midwife Delivering More Than Babies for Women Downeast

    By Paul Sylvain

    Look up the definition of “midwife” and most sources online state it is a person trained to deliver babies. Washington County’s only certified nurse midwife does that, of course, but she delivers much more than babies -- she delivers comprehensive women’s care to an area where healthcare professionals are badly needed.  

    Licensed master of surgery and certified midwife-nurse Bjarni Thomas has been helping Machias area women meet their obstetrical and gynecological needs locally for more than four years.

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  4. Lawmakers Reject Wash. Co. Public Safety Funding Bills as January Session Looms

    By Will Tuell

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  5. MDOT Agrees to Ho-Ho-Hold Off Dike Closure for Christmas Festivities

    By Paul Sylvain

    The planned closure of the Route 1 dike and causeway between Helen’s Restaurant and Dunkin’ in Machias has been delayed a week by Maine’s Dept. of Transportation. 

    The project, which was scheduled to start Nov. 27, has been delayed until Dec. 4 at the request of town officials to allow for a full weekend of Christmas festivities the first weekend in December.

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  6. Machias Arts Council Winter Art Show at MMHS Dec. 2

    The Machias Arts Council (MAC) will hold its Winter Art Show on Saturday, Dec. 2, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Machias Memorial High School in Machias.  The show will feature local and regional artists along with students from the Machias Memorial High School.   

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  7. Moore Named ‘Elected Women of Excellence’ Award Winner

    By Will Tuell

    State Senator Marianne Moore (R-Calais) received a “2023 Elected Women of Excellence” Award, the third-term senator’s office said in a media release before Thanksgiving. Moore, who serves as the Senate’s top Republican on the Legislature’s Health and Human Services (HHS) and Marine Resources committees, joined the Legislature in 2018 and has fought to restore funding for Downeast Correctional Facility in Bucks Harbor, reopen the Calais DHHS office, and served as an ex-officio member on the county’s budget committee. 

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  8. National Popular Vote Plot Thickens

    by Jonathan Reisman

    The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact effort by the Democrats and the League of Women Voters to abolish the Electoral College and disenfranchise every right of center voter in the 2nd Congressional District took some ominous steps in recent weeks.

    After previously asking Senator Collins (no answer) and Representative Golden (non-responsive response), I sent the following message to Senator King on Nov. 9:

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  9. Work Nearing Completion on Cooper Street Townhouse Apartments

    By Paul Sylvain

    A townhouse-style apartment project on Cooper Street that began in earnest this past spring with groundwork and the pouring of a foundation is expected to be completed with its first tenants moving in sometime in January.

    That’s according to Northfield developer Justin King, of King Construction and IMK Properties. A sign showed up on the site a few weeks ago advertising “apartments for rent.” King explained that he is accepting applications for the building's six apartment units.

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  10. The Nature of Phenology: Highbush Cranberries

    By Joseph Horn

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  11. Machias River General Store Hosts Robbinston Children’s Author Tona Mareglia

    By Paul Sylvain 

    Meeting children’s author Tona Mareglia, you quickly discover she has a deep and genuine passion for writing and especially about the characters she creates.

    Mareglia, who lives and writes from her home in Robbinston, was on hand at the Machias River General Store Nov. 17 to sign copies of her book, Manny and Lizzy: Friends Forever. The book, published late last year, tells the story about a big, burly moose named Manny, who hears a strange sound coming from a “box” stuck in the rocks on a nearby shore. 

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  12. Jonesport Fire Department in Need of Volunteers, War Memorial Work to Begin

    By Nancy Beal 

    Boyde Crowley, chief of the Jonesport Volunteer Fire Department, attended the Nov. 15 selectmen’s meeting seeking advice. The JVFD’s roster is getting seriously low, he said. Although there have been no major fires in recent months, he knows one will happen eventually and is concerned about his department having the manpower to put it out. Beals also contracts with JVFD for fire protection, so both towns would be impacted. 

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  13. Cherryfield Native Inducted into New England Auto Racing Hall of Fame

    By Wayne Smith

    On Nov. 5, Andy Santerre, formerly of Cherryfield, got inducted into the New England Auto Racing Hall of Fame.

    Santerre reflected, “There were six that were inducted in the Hall of Fame, and there were two from Maine. I felt pretty special. I’m going to be inducted in the Maine Hall of Fame next October, but I didn’t think I would ever get in the New England Hall of Fame. For a Maine guy, it’s pretty tough.”

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  14. Change in the Air as Middle, High School Athletes, Coaches, Refs Prep for Basketball Season

    By Phil Stuart

    With fall sports in the record books, it is time for the sport everybody looks most forward to.  High school basketball is the king of sports in Maine for both boys and girls. Basketball is the most talked about sport year-round by the Monday morning experts over coffee at their favorite local hangout.

    In a few short weeks, the high school varsity games will begin, and before that, junior high games will start.  This year, there are a lot of new things happening with rule changes, coaches, and officials. 

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  15. Rep. Golden, the National Popular Vote, and the Constitution

    by Jonathan Reisman

    In early November, I sent the following request to Rep. Golden:

    I am writing about the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, which the Maine Legislature will be voting on in 2024 (LD 1587). I am specifically requesting that you submit legislation granting Congressional consent to this interstate compact, as required by Article 1, Section 10, Clause 3 of the Constitution.

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  16. Local 4-H Club Assists Beloved Retired Teacher and Husband

    By Daisy Ratzlaff/ University of Maine Cooperative Extension Communications Professional    

    Members of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension Cobscook Currents 4-H Club recently stepped in and helped a local teacher and her husband with their fall harvest. The group of dedicated 4-H youth picked up 500 pine cones and harvested the last batch of the carrots from their property in Edmunds. As a token of appreciation, the students were rewarded with delicious homemade pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.

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  17. Wake Up and Smell the Coffee: Machias Dunkin Reopens With Updated Look

    By Paul Sylvain

    Hey, Machias! Dunkin’ has reopened with a new, updated look and all your favorite coffees, donuts, and sandwiches.

    After being closed for two weeks for major renovations, the popular morning hot-spot reopened for business-as-usual with a full crew on board Nov. 20. It will take a few days for workers to get used to new procedures and finding things that have been moved from once-familiar places, but customers appeared to like the new updated look.

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  18. Dessert Auction Raises $13,000 for Faith-Based Addiction Recovery Center

    By Will Tuell

    Whether it was an Oreo cookie ice-cream cake, a batch of homemade donuts, or any one of a couple dozen desserts, area residents flocked to the annual Arise Addiction Recovery supper and dessert auction recently and supported the local faith-based addiction recovery center in a big way. 

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  19. The Nature of Phenology: Deer Digestion

    By Hazel Stark

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  20. County Budget up 11.33%, Driven by Added Public Safety Responsibilities

    Gardner Blames State Lawmakers for Creating, Ignoring Fiscal ‘Tidal Wave’

    By Paul Sylvain

    The Washington County Budget Committee completed its work on the draft 2024 budget on Nov. 9, just hours before the county commissioners’ regular monthly meeting. The county’s fiscal year begins Jan. 1. The final budget will be formally delivered to the commissioners at their Dec. 14 meeting.

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  21. Downeast Communities. Schools Honor Hometown Veterans with Songs, Ceremonies, Parades

    By Paul Sylvain

    Many communities in Washington County took time out on Veterans Day weekend to honor the men and women who have served and are serving on active duty and in the Reserve and National Guard units of the United States armed forces.

    The holiday, originally named Armistice Day to commemorate the end of World War I on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918,  was changed in 1951 to Veterans Day.

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  22. Beals 70-year-old Celebrates Birthday by Hiking Solo up Cadillac Mountain

    by Nancy Beal

    How else should an avid hiker mark the 70th year of her life but by walking alone a mile and a half up Cadillac Mountain, especially since she had already done so 10 years prior when turning 60? The answer is found with an enthusiastic, spry-at-70 Nancy Bell, who, with her husband Joe and shelter pets, moved to Beals Island eight years ago.

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  23. Maine DOT Acts to Avert Catastrophic Failure of Route 1 Dike

    Town Manager Predicts Project Could Take ‘Years’

    By Paul Sylvain

    A years-long debate over whether to simply rebuild Machias’s crumbling Civil War-era dike and Route 1 causeway with a new, improved version or remove and replace the dike with a bridge was decided last week by Maine Department of Transportation with news that sections of the existing structure are teetering on the edge of catastrophic failure.

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  24. PFAS Testing, Shellfish Conservation, Broadband, and New Website Highlight UT Supervisor’s Report

    By Paul Sylvain

    With a list that included PFAS testing at the Marion Transfer Station, a shellfish management plan review, a dedicated unorganized territories website launch, and plans for expanding broadband access in rural parts of the county, Washington County Unorganized Territories Supervisor Dean Preston had no shortage of topics to brief county commissioners on at the commissioners’ Nov. 9 meeting.

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  25. Election Post-Mortem Notes

    by Jonathan Reisman

    It was gloomy and raining when I went to the Cooper Community Center (the former Grange) to vote. I brought some cake for my neighbors who were working the polls and defending democracy, hoping to give them a little cheer on what would be a long, dark, and stormy day. If Election Day was somber, at least most of the results in Maine were not. The results across the nation were more of a mixed bag.

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  26. Washington Academy Tri-M Music Honor Society Pays Tribute to Three Lifelong Musicians During Veterans Day Tribute

    By the Washington Academy Tri-M Music Honors Society       

    Washington Academy’s Tri-M Music Honor Society’s mission is to recognize student musicians and provide leadership opportunities for them through music-based service projects in our community.

    One of our service project ideas this year is to highlight local musicians who have excelled in bringing music to our Downeast communities. And with this, our Tri-M Lifetime Musician Award has been born.

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  27. The Nature of Phenology: Raccoons Denning

    By Joseph Horn

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  28. Narraguagus Lady Knights Win First Ever Volleyball Championship in Straight Sets

    by Wayne Smith

    It was an electrifying night of volleyball at Ellsworth High School on Oct. 30 as the Narraguagus Lady Knights won the Class C State Volleyball Championship, the first volleyball championship in school history, beating Calais in three straight sets. 

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  29. Area Schools Mark Veterans Day

    By Will Tuell

    With one of the highest concentrations of servicemen and women in the country, Washington County schools have historically gone above and beyond to pay homage to those who fought for America’s freedom. Whether it be colorful ‘thank-you’ cards lovingly inscribed by kindergartners, speeches honoring loved ones who fought overseas by junior high students, or rousing renditions of patriotic tunes from high schoolers, the area youth and their teachers have faithfully honored veterans young and old. 

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  30. UMM, CDC Investigating Case of Tuberculosis

    By Will Tuell

    The University of Maine at Machias and Maine Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are investigating a reported case of tuberculosis on campus, the university said Oct. 31. Publicist Jackie Leonard stressed in a follow-up inquiry from The Machias Valley News Observer Nov. 1 that the case was isolated at this point in time and that all who may have come in contact with the patient have been notified. 

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  31. Machias Ambulance Service ‘Making a Difference’ in Downeast Health Care

    Community Outpouring for Andy Foss Touches Mass. Ambulance Crew

     

    By Paul Sylvain

    The Machias select board on Oct. 25 authorized Machias Ambulance Service Chief Ryan Maker to spend up to $45,000 to equip a recently purchased 2014 Chevrolet ambulance with a heart monitor and other items needed to put the truck in service for emergency calls and patient transfers.

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  32. Former Bluebird Ranch Family Restaurant Hopes to Open as a Tap House by March 17

    By Paul Sylvain

    Toby Lamb and business partner Chris Marley met briefly with the Machias Planning Board on Nov. 1 to get approval for a four-foot by eight-foot--or 32-square-foot--concrete pad for an outdoor freezer at the former Bluebird Ranch Family Restaurant at 78 Main St.

    “Mostly, we’re just doing renovations inside,” explained Lamb. “We had not planned on changing the outside footprint, although we would like to pour a four-by-eight pad to put a freezer on right outside where the freezers are now. Basically, it’s right next to those.”

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  33. Beyond the Pale

    by Jonathan Reisman

    The phrase “beyond the pale” means unacceptable or beyond the standards of decency. It stems from the Pale of Settlement, a vast and varying swath of the western Russian Empire from Lithuania to the Black Sea where Jewish settlement was allowed. The Pale was established in the late 18th century and persisted until the Russian Revolution in 1917.

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  34. A Season to Remember for WA Raiders Volleyball Team

    By Phil Stuart

    In nine years as varsity volleyball coach at Washington Academy, Corey Schwinn has built a powerhouse, and they aren’t going away anytime soon.   After winning the Class C title a year ago with ease, losing only two sets the entire season, the Raiders needed more of a challenge:  they simply outgrew Class C and decided to move up despite graduating 12 seniors.

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  35. Washington Academy Honors Gaddis for ‘A Lifetime of Dedication’

    Washington Academy recently honored longtime trustee Dr. John Gaddis, who graduated from the East Machias-based high school in 1965. 

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  36. The Nature of Phenology: Burdock

    By Hazel Stark

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  37. Results of the Referendum Vote

    84% of the vote reporting

    Question 1: Citizen Initiative

    Do you want to bar some quasi-governmental entities and all consumer-owned electric utilities from taking on more than $1 billion in debt unless they get statewide voter approval?

    Question 1: Yes - (65%-35%)

    Question 2: Citizen Initiative

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  38. Drama as Selectboard Gets into the ‘Weeds’, Begins Work on New Marijuana Ordinance

    By Paul Sylvain

    The Machias selectboard’s marijuana ordinance subcommittee -- which, in fact, is the entire selectboard -- held its inaugural meeting to begin the process of crafting a new ordinance Oct. 25. However, the meeting was not without drama. 

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  39. Machiasport Selectmen Enact Commercial Solar Moratorium

    By Paul Sylvain

    Citing a need “to keep control of what we can keep control of,” Jeff Davis, Chairman of the Machiasport Board of Selectmen, led board members Ryan Maker and Ryan Sprague in a unanimous vote to enact a 180-day moratorium on new commercial solar farm applications in the town.

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  40. Van Norden Ignites Passion for Literacy in Area Youth at Porter Memorial Children’s Library

    By Will Tuell

    Julianne van Norden has served as the Children’s Librarian at Porter Memorial Library in Machias since 2021, and one thing is apparent from an Oct. 16 interview with the former educator who spent nineteen years working with children before volunteering at the library -- she has a passion for literacy that is infectious. 

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  41. Fish Briefs J’Port Selectboard on Hefty County Budget Increase

    by Nancy Beal

    Jonesport First Selectman Harry Fish has been a member of the Washington County budget committee for many years. He reported to his fellow selectmen Oct. 25 that the county committee, which is currently compiling next year’s budget, anticipates a hefty increase to its bottom line. The amount on that line is paid by all the municipalities in the county—calculated according to the state-assessed value of each town’s real estate.

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  42. Planning Board Giveth and Taketh Away: Rescinds Provisional Approval of King’s Fremont St. Apartments

    Town Officials Could Thwart Developer’s New Plans for Big Building

     

    By Paul Sylvain

    Based on a recommendation from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection’s Bureau of Land Resources, the Machias Planning Board on Oct. 23 unanimously voted to rescind its Sept. 20 provisional approval of a multi-unit townhouse-style apartment project at 53 Fremont St.

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  43. Deadline to Enter Maine Scallop License Lottery Nov. 6

    By Will Tuell

    Time is running out to enter Maine’s dive or drag scallop fishery lotteries. The lotteries, which opened Oct. 16, are set to close Nov. 6 at 4:30 p.m, according to the Department of Marine Resources. 

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  44. Letter to the Editor

    To the Editor:

    On Oct. 16, 2023, the Washington County Budget Committee held a public hearing on the 2024 county budget proposal. After considering the information presented at the meeting, Maine Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #006, representing full-time patrol deputies for the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, is releasing the following statement regarding the proposed Sheriff’s Office line item increase. 

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  45. Correspondence and Communications Update

    by Jonathan Reisman

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