Birds that are great at soaring often seem to do so into, what is for them, uncharted territory, especially in spring when they can ride warm, southerly winds and thermals.

Since the founding of the United States, it is estimated that 558 million Americans and immigrants have lived in this country. More than 1.1 million of them have died defending the United States in wars and combat actions since the American Revolution. They each have stories to tell. The crosses at Normandy. The

The best thing about being self employed is that you get to make your own hours. You decide when you work, no need to ask permission to take time off, to wait for approval. The part no one really makes clear is, you aren’t going to get paid for vacation, for sick time, for holidays.

When Rockport residents head to the polls in a few weeks they will find an opportunity there to potentially transform their town. 

First, they will get the chance to cast an up-or-down vote on the Town’s budget. Among Budget Committee members, I cast the sole “no” vote on the budget and would strongly encourage voters to do the same. Nothing else voters do at the polls on that day will send as powerful a signal that big changes are needed.

That said, residents also have the chance to put new municipal leadership in place. With three slots open on the town’s five-person Select Board, Rockport

I’m a Democrat running to be your next State Representative because I believe a better future is possible—for all. And we need experienced leaders who will fight for that better future with everything they’ve got.  

I was raised by my grandma, who came of age during the Great Depression and World War II. She raised me on her Social Security check, and she instilled in me New Deal values of hard work, fairness, and a deep understanding that we’re all in this together. When she passed away, it was my public schools and my teachers that created the safe, nurturing, supportive place I needed to

Wow! Can you say , "reset?"  After attending the candidates' meeting for Camden Select Board, I strongly recommend Chris Nolan and Bobbi Oxton.

Both of them left no doubt that the Camden citizen voice on town issues will be welcome and considered. While Nolan, as an incumbent, was well-informed, I was particularly impressed with how well-versed newcomer Oxton was on matters that will impact town administration.

On questions regarding police organization, paid parking, and reception of citizen petitions, both candidates were boldly eloquent in their emphasis upon the need to take greater

I am very thankful to all those who are willing to be on the Camden Select Board. The position is known as a thankless, unpaid, challenging position, so hats off with, much gratitude for those so generous with their  time, expertise, and willingness to serve our community.

Thank you to the town of Camden for showcasing all those running for the position. Every single candidate has something important to offer. I appreciated both Bobbi’s and Chris’s ideas on adding value to our town by improving/expanding the Snow Bowl and Tannery park, as well as each one’s vision for creating a stronger, more

Over the last month as we’ve walked our little black dog around the neighborhood each morning, we’ve rarely been out of earshot of the trilling songs of either dark-eyed juncos or chipping sparrows. Both species are among the vast numbers of birds that produce a song made up of rapidly repeated notes.

It can be quite difficult to tell apart the regularly occurring birds of our area that have these trilled songs. The list includes, along with the junco and chipping sparrow, pine warbler, palm warbler, and swamp sparrow. Add in species like worm-eating warbler, which breeds as close as

I’m writing to urge Camden and Rockport primary voters to vote for Josh Gerritsen for State House on Tuesday, June 9. 

Josh is right on the issues. He is ready to develop solutions to our state and regional housing crisis. He is ready to lead the way to a more equitable health care system, in which all citizens’ ability to access affordable care guides the debate. He is devoted to clean energy sources and local control over our power grid. And he recognizes the importance of early childhood development, including universal pre-k, in raising the playing field for all children as they navigate

Marcus Mrowka and I have served together for the last six years on the Five Town CSD and Camden-Rockport Schools school boards. We have served through COVID, major facilities projects, leadership transitions, and difficult budget conversations. Through all of this, Marcus has been a steadfast and level headed leader.

Marcus’ great strength is that he values people – those with whom he serves on the Board, educators and staff in our schools, parents, and the students. He shows up, taking time to sit in on classes, attend events, listen, collaborate, and balance the needs of our students and

Around noon Friday, during that brief reprieve I have built into my work day, when I go for a quick walk or otherwise get out of the office, I received a text from my daughter, who was up at UMaine for the All-State Choir. “If y’all do prayer stuff ever, a quick one for Alden’s brother is needed.”

Her boyfriend’s brother is a deputy chief with the Hope Volunteer Fire Department. This is the first I learned of the horror unfolding at Robbins Lumber, just over the Camden Hills. Rushing back to the office, I remained glued for much of the afternoon, between clients, to the news reports and social

For us, spring birding this year has been marked by a new species arriving just about every day, making us very aware of that deep pulse of life on Earth called migration. Eastern kingbirds arrived last week, a house wren a few days ago, and today, our first prairie warblers and brown thrashers. Right in the backyard, a flock of warblers flitted through—a black-throated green singing “Zee-zee-zoo-zee” to alert us that it was there. After a few minutes of scanning the newly green maples, we’d seen black-and-white warbler, northern parula, yellow warbler, chestnut-sided warbler, and

I’m glad Maine has ranked-choice voting this year. Know who fought hard for this citizen-initiative back in 2017? Hannah Pingree.

I’ve known the Pingree family since the 1990s when Chellie Pingree was publishing her popular Maine Island Classic knitting books with Yankee Publishing, where I worked. Hannah, like her mother, is one of the smartest, most productive, community-oriented women you’ll ever meet. Hannah’s solutions are innovative, far-reaching and sustainable—not quick fixes.

For the past six years, she has worked with the Governor’s Office on housing, economic development, and

On June 9, Camden residents have an important opportunity: to elect new members to our Select Board and to reflect, as a community, on how we want our town to be governed.

We are proud to cast our votes for Christopher Nolan and Bobbi Oxton Blake. They will bring to the Select Board something our town government sorely needs — stronger fiscal oversight, a genuine commitment to transparency, and a willingness to listen. They understand that good governance is not just about making decisions; it is about making decisions with the community, not for it.

Camden has always been a place defined by

Healthcare is often discussed in terms of hospitals, clinics, insurance systems, and policy, but at its heart, community health is built through people working together.

Recently, the Knox Clinic witnessed a powerful example of what that collaboration can look like. A patient came to us with a serious knee injury and was in urgent need of orthopedic care.

Through a close partnership with MaineHealth Pen Bay Orthopedics, the patient was scheduled for an appointment the very next morning, with one of their providers graciously coming in early specifically to ensure this individual could be seen

May 15, 2026 is the 78th “anniversary” of NAKBA — translated it means “The Catastrophe”.

On that day, 750,00 Palestinians were expelled from their homes and their land, never to be allowed to return. Families lost everything that they could not load into a car to take with them — gardens, orchards, family burial grounds, homes, businesses, schools—mass displacement of people and destruction of hundreds of communities. I try to imagine being one of them. I can’t.

And now, May 15, 2026, we are witnessing not only displacement of a people, but the intentional starvation and murder of families and

Last week, I sat in a room with Bobbi Oxton Blake, a lifelong Camden resident, who wants to be elected to the Camden Select Board. She’s running on a two-pronged platform of transparency and fiscal responsibility. She had a lot of questions. As did Chris Nolan who was also in the same room, is running for re-election to the Camden Select Board and is concerned about the town possibly phasing out the Camden Police Department. 

 How, Oxton Blake asked, did the town of Rockport manage to lower its proposed 2027 fiscal year budget from the previous year as opposed to Camden, which didn’t?  What’s

In case you missed it, two ospreys were found electrocuted last week in a nest near the Camden-Rockport Middle School. The pictures you may have seen on the evening news are mine, but the official reports you’ve read are missing a lot.

In case you don’t have the energy to read all of this, here’s the quick takeaway. Power lines kill millions of birds a year and the bigger they are the more likely they are to be electrocuted. It may be about to get a lot worse in Maine because we have no laws requiring modern design standards for avian protection.

Maine’s sailing tradition, of course, goes back to the beginning of European settlement, being the only way to get here. Those early explorers and colonizers, making their way up our rocky coasts, I can only imagine how many ended up at the bottom of the sea, victim to rocks and winds.

It was in 1608 when the first English-built ocean going vessel was launched from Fort George at the ill-fated Popham Colony. Family lore says that I have an ancestor who attempted to settle at the Popham Colony, but I am not sure of the veracity of this legend. Regardless, that ship, The Virginia, was originally