Ross Knowlton is a Millinocket-based wildlife and landscape photographer whose work can be viewed and purchased online at RossKnowlton.com or in-person at the Appalachian Trail Café, and River Driver's Restaurant. | |
The Magic City Monthly
March 2023
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The Town of Millinocket is currently seeking volunteers to help with various events and projects! Join our team to help make our community a great place to live! CLICK HERE to sign up online or stop by the Town Office to sign up person. We are looking forward to meeting all community members who want to help make a difference!
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Revaluations Happening for Millinocket Homes in 2023
The Town of Millinocket will be conducting a revaluation in the upcoming months. The most recent full revaluation (reval) was completed around 1994.
We will be updating property records beginning with site visits this spring/summer. Every property throughout town will be visited.
This information will then be incorporated into the town’s assessment database.
Stay tuned for future updates as the process unfolds!
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Subscribe to Receive Texts From the Town of Millinocket!
The Town of Millinocket has registered with Constant Contact for a new texting feature. This allows further communication from the Town directly to your cell phone. This feature will be used for reminders of meetings, events and safety concerns for the public! We encourage you to sign up here or contact Amber Wheaton, Community Initiatives Director, (207) 447-4100 cid@millinocket.org to sign up.
Click here to review the Town's Texting Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions
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Waste Water
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We would like to remind the residents of Millinocket to please NOT flush wipes, paper towels, grease, plastics, Q-tips or anything other than toilet paper into the sewer system. Even the "flushable" wipes will clog the sewer system. These items are causing extreme plugs to the sewer system and costly maintenance to our pumping stations. We would like to thank the residents for this consideration.
Jason Ingalls,
Wastewater Treatment Facility Superintendent
East Millinocket Police Department
- East Millinocket Police continues to see an increase in calls as we move forward into 2023.
- We have hired Ofc Allen-Michael Jones, a native of the Katahdin Region, to fill one of our vacancies.
- Ofc Sallies, who is attending the Basic Law Enforcement Training Program at MCJA is progressing well.
- We are excited to announce the promotions of Jesse Gee and Garrett Carlson to the rank of Patrol Sergeant and we are confident they will serve the department and region well in their new roles.
- Ofc Clayton recently attended training to become a Certified Drug Recognition Expert, DRE, at the MCJA. This class and certification is one of the most challenging for an officer to achieve. The certification is a three phase certification and she successfully passed the first phase.
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Community Initiatives
- Put in Congressionally Directed Spending requests to Senator Collins, Senator King and Congressman Golden's offices for lighting, curb and sidewalk upgrades to Penobscot Ave.
- Received news that the Town was awarded $49,999 from the Penobscot County Commissioner's Fund for the Municipal Building Elevator Modernization Project. Pictured above Town Manager, Peter Jamieson, is accepting the funds from Penobscot County Commissioner, David Marshall. Pictured below is a group photo from the Penobscot County Commissioner's Meeting on March 21st, 2023.
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Event's Committee meetings are held bi-weekly, please consider joining us April 3rd at 4pm in the Manager's office. Email cid@millinocket.org for further information!
Amber Wheaton, Community Initiatives Director
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Department Deep Dive:
Millinocket School Department
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"It has been my pleasure to work with staff and students here in Millinocket. Having been here now about 6 months I see a wealth of skill and knowledge, dedication and drive, as well as care and commitment. It’s been tremendous being accepted in such a quality system. We have work to do but we have people committed to doing it. Over the past few months we worked to update policies, revived committees, celebrated various sports seasons and performing arts. Regular conversations are happening in both buildings to ignite energy and enthusiasm while adhering to laws and regulations.
Honestly, it’s been great. I very much appreciate the opportunity to join Millinocket Schools and hopefully shine the light on all the great things happening and add value in some small way." - Dr. Shelley Lane Superintendent of Schools
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- Thursday, March 2 was “Read Across America Day”. We celebrated all week with spirit week at Granite Street School.
- Kindergarten-5th grade students are taught these major components Phys Ed:
- Motor Skills and Movement Patterns
- Concepts and Strategies
- Fitness Education
- Responsible Personal and Social Behavior
- Recognition of the Value of Physical Activity
- Granite Street School teachers Ms. Tessa DeSilva, Mrs. Debbie Mooney, and Ms. Melissa Wheaton have created a monthly newsletter and a web page to help their parents stay updated with what is going on in the classroom.
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In sports, eight of the 3rd and 4th grade all-star basketball players are in fourth grade at Granite Street School. This 14-2 squad won the championship by beating Orrington. They brought home the gold ball for the first time in Millinocket history. Stop by the Granite Street trophy cases in the lobby to check it out. Congratulations boys!!
- Classroom teachers in grades PreK-2, in addition to four members of Title I staff, are enrolled in a six week Shifting the Balance online workshop. Some of the content chapters from the book and workshop include: comprehension, phonemic awareness, phonics, high frequency words, the 3 cueing systems (meaning, semantics and visual), and reconsidering texts for beginning readers. Our whole school iReady assessment/instructional tool that Granite Street uses to assess students directly, correlates to state standards and testing. This workshop will expand our knowledge of phonics and phonemic awareness that will, hopefully, increase skills across the grade levels.
- The Unified Performing Arts Boosters are diligently working on their 501c3 Status, and the Performing Arts Department continue to appreciate the Millinocket School Department’s support of our programs, students, and performing arts in the Katahdin Region. We will continue to keep you informed of our efforts to help students K-12 in the Katahdin Region.
- It has been a busy month for our Stearns custodial staff hosting Music Festivals, High School and Middle School Basketball as well as a weekend-long regional Junior Pro Basketball Tournament.
- During the February break the custodial staff worked hard at both buildings getting into all the empty classrooms with a focus on cleaning and disinfecting of the touch surfaces and student desks to help ward off the winter flu season.
- In Central Office, the past month has been a focus on budgeting and negotiations, this includes researching other districts and compiling findings into a useful tool.
- Currently, we have expended 54.5% of our total budget and are 69.25% of the way through FY23.
- The technology committee met this month and is making a plan to help us manage and sustain our equipment. As you know, technology becomes obsolete very quickly so we need to find ways to be cutting-edge and responsible at the same time.
- We want to welcome Chelsea Ehret to our team as the International Program Coordinator. She is enthusiastic and ready to jump in. In December Michelle McGreevy, International Program Secretary, held a meeting regarding the direction of the International Program. At that meeting suggestions were made and now Chelsea and Michelle are working to make it happen. There will be a “Host Family” informational session in April, a Summer Program is in the works, which hasn't happened since COVID began, and together we will breathe life into this program.
- With community pickleball all in the gyms on weekends, walkers enjoying exercise in the corridors during the evenings and Rec Department open gyms, there is always something going on in our buildings!
Dr. Shelley Lane, Superintendent of Schools
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- On March 9 several Stearns students who attend Northern Penobscot Region III in Lincoln were inducted into the Technical National Honor Society. These students have attended Region III for a minimum of 3 semesters and held a 93 or higher in each semester.
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Here is information on our graduating Class of 2023 at Stearns Jr/Sr High School: Valedictorian- Cote Briggs, Salutatorian- Jamie Yang, Kelly Farber, Daniel Hallett, Victoria Blanchette Maine Principal’s Award- Sydney Campbell
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Stearns’ Junior Class is raffling off 2 Red Sox tickets, 2 Texas Roadhouse gift cards, and 2 $50 Walmart gift cards as a bundle. Please contact the Principal’s Office if you are interested in purchasing a raffle ticket.
- Mrs. Heather Oakes’ new Junior High elective Home Economics Class made No-Bake Cookies. Here are some pictures of our students learning a new skill in their latest cooking lab. They also visited the Stearns kitchen to learn about food safety and proper food handling techniques.
- Mr. Bruce McLean has been using the newly acquired Lego kits from the CS Carts granted to us from the Maine Department of Education. His students have recently completed an entire STEM unit building functional Lego machines that can be programmed to complete tasks.
- With the help of Boosters and Millinocket Little Pro, we will be purchasing a new scorer’s table for Stearns’ Wentworth Gymnasium. This will be a great addition to our fantastic facility and really make the gym pop for the games.
- The following varsity winter athletes were recognized for their achievements: Kelly Farber named to the McDonald’s All Star team and second team PVC; Gracyn Sanders PVC Defensive Team; Kelly Faber and Rhiannon Gardner played in the PVC Senior game on March 8 at Mattanawcook Academy; Caleb Shearer Third team PVC; Aidan Sanders PVC Defensive Team; Ethan Plourde played in the PVC Senior game on March 8 at Mattanawcook Academy.
- A remote summer four-day Camp Invention has been offered to Stearns’ students for the past three years. The Camp will be an in-person opportunity extending to surrounding schools this year. Additionally, the TDEL program has secured 13 scholarships over the past three years and hopes to secure scholarships for this summer’s camp. https://www.invent.org/programs/camp-invention
- The Junior High Future City Engineering Team won the Most Innovative Transportation award. https://futurecity.org/
- Stearns Peer Counselors collected 60 items for our birthday cake drive including cake mixes, frosting, sprinkles, cake pans, decorations, plates and vegetable oil. We arranged them in the Stearns food pantry on their own shelf.
- Student in 6-12 Phys Ed classes have been snowshoeing around the school complex. Students have also been skating at the skating rink and assisting with shoveling the ice rink.
- An 8th Grade Class did a POD Pi Puzzle, created equations 1-30 using only 3-1-4 numbers and any math symbols/operations, saw who could get the closest to Pi by measuring their oatmeal cream pies and then told some Pi jokes.
- As we look ahead to next year we are considering everything from who we need to perform what tasks, to how we make them “part of the Millinocket School family”. We have developed a Welcome to Millinocket School Onboarding form to capture all the items one might need as they are in a new environment. Part of this effort is to update and create forms that serve our needs. We are developing time and attendance forms, FMLA checklists, etc. long with school related forms such as student tracking, identification for services, etc. We are looking for efficiency and need.
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March 8th, 2023: International Women's Day
In honor of International Women's Day, the Town of Millinocket, would like to acknowledge all the dedicated, intelligent women who work for the Town.
The Town of Millinocket wants to give a huge THANK YOU to the ladies listed below for their commitment to making Millinocket a quality place to live:
Councilor Jane Danforth, Recreation Department Director Jody Nelson, Human Resource Director Lori Santerre, Treasurer Mary Alice Cullen, Tax Assessor Lorna Thompson, Community Initiatives Director Amber Wheaton, Tax Collector Sharon Cyr, Town Clerk Diana Lakeman, Deputy Town Clerk Amber Carney, Deputy Town Clerk Roxanne Johnson, Sue Bouchard, Animal Control Officer Lori Haskell, Officer Mallory Clayton, Officer Jasmine Sallies, Officer Brandi Alton, Katie Cullen Firefighter/Paramedic, Jennifer Bernier Firefighter/Paramedic, Celina Charette Firefighter/Advanced EMT, Julia Allen Firefighter/EMT-Basic, Stacy Labby Firefighter/EMT-Basic, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Shelley Lane, School Administration and Educators Linda Albert, Emma Alley, Heather Ambrose, Amy Anderson, Karen Birmingham, Randi Lee Bishop, Leslie Blanchette, Sandra Brooker, Jessica Burke, Susan Buzzell, Victoria Campbell, Katie Carr, Ramona Cesare, Mia Charette, Amy Clinton, Cindy Cram, Kendra Cummings, Donna Cutliffe, Lori Cyr, Ciera D'Alessandro, Alison DeMello, Patricia Demers, Tessa DeSilva, Katherine DiFederico, Laura Dwyer, Chelsea Ehret, Nikki Fairbaim-Hensley, Katie Farber, Pamela Farquhar, Shelley Farrington, Jessica Freeman, Dorothy Friel, Heather Girsa, Victoria Gray, Angela Guy, Julie Hale, Angela Hannafin, Kristen Harmon, Michelle Hatch, Kristi Hayes, Miranda Hayes, Shelley Illingworth, Jennifer Jandreau, Cassandra Kunkel, Alyssa LaPorte, Alicia Lazareva, Jessica Leach, Katie Leavitt, Courtney LeGassey, Lori Lincoln-Nadeau, Anna Loome, Jesika Lucarelli, Linda Madore, Leah Malcolm, Christy Malcolm, Jolene Maynard, Mary McClery, Michelle McGreevy, Tammy McLaughlin, Danielle McNally, Kamma Michaud, Staci Michaud, Debra Mooney, Jessie Morrison, Laurie Moscone, Lorri Nadeau, Heather Oakes, Karen Oloughlin, Angela Osborne, Mary Osborne, Michele Osborne, Beth Peavey, Kimberly Petrin, Jill Potvin, Corinne Reece, Patti Rioux, Dawn Robbins, Karla Rutherford, Donna Seamans, Erica Silva, Margo Stevens, Joy Stewart, Taylor Sulander, Susan Szara-Kovats, Rhonda Tracy, Cammie Turcotte, Danielle Waite, Amanda Wlech, Melissa Wheaton and Karen Wyman.
Fun Facts: Seven out of twelve Town Departments are lead by women. One woman currently sits on our Town Council. The list above makes up over half the entire staff who work for the Town of Millinocket. #girlpower
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MUD/WTR WITH PETE
Don't forget to "follow" the Town of Millinocket on Facebook and Instagram (click the icons at the end of this newsletter) to stay up to date on the Town's new series "Mud/WTR with Pete". This is an informational series focusing on common misconceptions about municipal government, and sharing exciting updates from the Town.
These short but informative videos air every Friday at 10am.
Click here to view this weeks video! (3/24/2023)
If you have any questions, comments and ideas for your community that you would like to share during this series, please submit them here.
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Millinocket Economic Development Fellow
The Town of Millinocket has identified that a new terminal building is needed at the Millinocket Municipal Airport. This will serve as an economic driver for Millinocket and the region, supporting a necessary transportation upgrade that will allow for workforce development and will attract new visitors. Growing demand is anticipated for air travel directly to Millinocket and airport improvements are seen as a critical component of continued economic growth that will create resiliency in the region. If this project is successful the region could connect better with outside tourism and trade and would allow for economic growth and potentially attracting talent which increases both workforce, and businesses. The region would partner with other rural communities in creating a shared resource (future commercial flights), continue to offer Life Flights (important for our region’s connectivity to major hospitals), attract new industry, and create an asset that showcases the investment the Town is making in this region’s future. In addition to Millinocket, eight towns including Mt. Chase, Patten, Island Falls, Stacyville, Sherman, Medway, East Millinocket would be served by the airport.
The region will benefit from attaining a Fellow by strengthening our transportation options and airport operations. The Fellow will work closely with the Airport Manager and Sustainability Committee to create a comprehensive land development plan while assisting in the Town’s efforts to increase air traffic, which involves a great deal of relationship building and policy advocacy across a diverse field. Due to the regional nature of our airport and the necessity of strengthened and ongoing communication with statewide and regional leaders and community members, the Fellow’s work will inherently build capacity amongst our regional network. The Fellow’s work will provide a completed land development plan, develop strategies on growing air traffic and build stronger and supportive relationships in the aviation/transportation field.
If this opportunity sounds like a perfect fit for you, or someone you know please visit the Maine Service Fellow website for more information.
You may also reach out to Jake Hurner, jake.hurner@maine.gov, for further details.
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