ALNA — The Climate Action Committee of the Town of Alna announced an Alna Community Solar Day to celebrate the successful completion of the town’s solar transition project, learn more about how the new solar system works, and see demonstrations about the town’s proposed new Battery Lending Program.

The Rockland Makers Market (RMM) is returning to Harbor Park for its second season at the harbor, Saturday, June 7, from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m., with 50 local makers, Shift Wood Fired food truck and local music by Cat’s Pajamas.

Foliage Cannabis Co. is opening a store at 140 Park Street in Rockland. The Midcoast’s newest recreational cannabis retail store will be holding a grand opening celebration. The three-day event will take place Friday, June 13, through Sunday, June 15.

Rockland’s Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee invites the community to a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new Bog Overlook Trail on Saturday, June 7, at 10 a.m. This marks the official opening of the beautiful half-mile loop trail located on the eastern side of the Rockland Bog — a 700-acre peat bog surrounded by 5,000 acres of forested land, long considered one of Midcoast Maine’s best-kept secrets.

Leigh Barry Watercolors and Gifts recently opened a new shop on Route 1 in Camden at 94 Elm Street. The shop offers a variety of beautiful gifts, featuring her artwork, such as original and fine art prints, each hand signed by the artist.

She and her husband also print her artwork on stoneware mugs, tea towels and ceramic ornaments.

There is a wide variety of art and gifts to choose from, including many scenes of Midcoast Maine.  In addition to the coastal scenes, landscapes and florals, there is also an Irish section in the shop. 

Here’s another indication, not that we need it, of just how thoroughly the Sport-Utility Vehicle has come to dominate American car sales: of Acura’s six products, four—66%—are now SUVs. This puts Acura ahead of the curve; in 2024, the SUV’s U.S. market share reached 58% of all vehicle sales. Pickup trucks, which in some regions seem nearly as common, constitute about 21% of our new-car market. 

Maine Department of Labor offers no-cost trainings for June 2025. 

Upcoming classes:

Establishing or Improving Your Safety & Health Committee -

June 3 l 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. SafetyWorks! Training Institute, 45 Commerce Drive, Augusta

BLUE HILL — University of Maine Cooperative Extension in Hancock County is hosting the annual 4-H June Jamboree, June 14, 2025, from 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., at the Blue Hill Fairgrounds, 223 Ellsworth Road. This event, a tradition for 4-H members and the wider community, promises a weekend of hands-on learning, outdoor adventures and family-friendly fun.

SWANVILLE — University of Maine Cooperative Extension is hosting a tractor safety workshop, Thursday, May 29, 2025, from noon - 3 p.m., at Waldo County Gardens, 685 Swan Lake Avenue, in Swanville.

AUGUSTA (May 22, 2025)— The arrival of spring is catching the interest of home buyers across Maine. Today, Maine Listings reported 942 homes changed hands in April 2025, a slight decrease of 0.74 percent compared to April of 2024. Realtors across Maine’s 16 counties sold 942 single-family existing homes with a median sales price (MSP) that reached $400,000—up 4.44 percent year over year. The MSP indicates that half of the homes were sold for more and half sold for less. 

United Midcoast Charities (UMC) announces the appointment of Karen Foxwell to its Board of Directors. With a lifelong commitment to community service, Foxwell brings five decades of volunteer experience to the organization, reinforcing its mission to support and uplift the Midcoast community.

“When the opportunity to join the United Midcoast Charities Board presented itself, I jumped on it," said Foxwell. "I am thrilled to be part of such an important resource in the community."

The sputtered drone of a vacuum pump filled the former milking barn that now houses Kennebec Valley Community College’s heat pump lab. Instructor Dave Whittemore, who held the yellow vacuum in one hand and displayed an app tracking atmospheric pressure on his phone in the other, explained in a raised voice how to do an “evacuation,” ridding the heat pump of air and moisture to avoid malfunctions down the road. 

ROCKPORT and BELFAST — In observance of Memorial Day, MaineHealth Pen Bay and Waldo Hospitals announce the following adjusted holiday hours:

 The retail pharmacy at MaineHealth Pen Bay Hospital will be open for abbreviated hours, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., on Monday, May 26.  All physician practices, including walk-in care, as well as outpatient labs and radiology, will be closed Monday, May 26.

All practices and departments will resume normal business hours on Tuesday, May 27.

CAMDEN — PAWS Animal Adoption Center honored long-time volunteer Paula Horton by dedicating its gardens to her at their annual volunteer appreciation event. Horton has been volunteering at PAWS for over a decade and has led volunteer coordination efforts at the organization.

“It is volunteers like Paula who are the lifeblood of our organization and the important work we do for animals and the community," said Jill Parker, President of PAWS Board of Trustees. "Our staff and volunteers are amazing humans who love animals and have so much love for the pets that we care for.” 

Belfast Area High School Peer Leader LEOs chose the But Still I am One charity for their yearly 5K run/walk fund-raiser. The organization’s mission is to empower young adults aged sixteen to twenty-one experiencing homelessness in Waldo County. They do so with services like the PEX Visa Card Project of prepaid cards for essentials; arranging driving school support and providing for a Youth Outreach Specialist.

Toyota began selling something called a Land Cruiser about 70 years ago and since then maybe no automotive badge has been applied to as many different vehicles. The first one I knew was the squared-off, flap-fendered, now-iconic FJ40. In August 1979, four of us drove two heavily loaded examples 530 miles from Calgary, Alberta, to Mile Zero on the Alcan Highway—Dawson Creek, British Columbia—and on to Watson Lake in the Yukon Territory, an epic journey of 600 more miles of then unpaved dirt road. Gnarly, dude.

WISCASSET — Announcing Maine DEP’s Inland Shoreline Stabilization Practices Certification course on June 5, at the Wiscasset Community Center, located at 242 Gardiner Rd, Wiscasset. Registration and payment deadlines are Monday, June 2, 2025.

Knox-Lincoln Soil & Water Conservation District and Maine DEP are co-sponsoring this in-person half-day training that will be held from 8 a.m. to noon, and includes a morning refreshments and materials.

Sixty people attended a march to the Rockland Post Office, May 17, in support of local post offices and their workers. March coordinator Dora Lievow provided pictures of the event.

Initial story:

ROCKLAND — Inspired by other communities who have done this, Dora Lievow has initiated an action on May 17.

ROCKPORT — Inside Kelly Hokkanen's pocket-sized used bookstore measuring only 120 square feet, there are vast worlds — and the public is just starting to hear about it.

The Tiny Bookshop, sitting at 163 Union Street, is in a little outbuilding on the property she owns with her husband. Having opened on March 15, it is an inviting spot for anyone who loves books and bookstores. While a vast, big-box store gives off cavernous impersonal vibes, Hokkanen's minuscule shop is precisely the opposite. It invites you to come in, poke around, and have a chat.