Fall into the Holiday Season 2016

Holy Gingerbread Spectacular! The inventive gingerbread architects among us did not disappoint at the annual event at the Opera House last weekend, from a Faberge egg to the Cheshire Cat to a bust of Adonis.

This year I got to see the show through the eyes of a judge along with Lorie Demers, Kit Sherrill, Trish Monroe and Doug Fraher. First off, we had a rockin' good time. But, like Cathy (Sherrill) tells everyone at The Dough Ball where the awards are announced, it isn't as easy as it…

Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!

With our son, Tim, arriving home for Christmas from Nebraska this week, it will be a case of planes, trains and automobiles for him to get here. Thank goodness for the train — the Amtrak Downeaster — which is celebrating its 15th year in 2016 of providing service between Boston and Portland. Tim has used the train in the past to get from Boston to Portland or Brunswick, or vice versa, and it has saved us from picking him up or dropping him off in…

It was snowing and sleeting, and most rational people were keeping to their homes, even on the last weekend before Christmas. We kept checking to see if the Oratorio Chorale was going to cancel its Saturday afternoon performances of “Sing We Noel,” its annual Christmas concert, which this year was held at St. Paul’s in Brunswick. There was no notice of cancellation on any of the news sites, and the Oratorio Chorale’s own website said that the concerts would go on as scheduled, so we gave…

Church of the Nazarene Pastor Wally Staples said donations are down for the Wiscasset church’s annual Christmas toy and food drive, and that the church can use all the help it can get in meeting area families’ needs.

Two Bridges Regional Jail’s industries program made toys to donate; some other items have been collected in the community; and church funds have been used to meet some requests including a bicycle for a boy with special needs, Staples said. One hundred requests for toys…

Moving, humbling and inspiring, is how Ed and Cheri Kavanagh of Federal Street in Wiscasset described being among an estimated 44,000 volunteers taking part in the Wreaths Across America project at Arlington National Cemetery on Saturday, Dec. 17.

The Kavanaghs are both active in the Wiscasset community. They reside in the landmark Octagon house. Their trip to Arlington, Virginia was a year in the making, they told the Wiscasset Newspaper following their return.

“After Cheri and…

Judges Kit Sherrill, Lorie Demers, Lisa Kristoff, Doug Fraher and Trish Monroe selected the following gingerbreads as this year's Top 12 this afternoon, Dec. 16, at the Opera House.

Drum roll please …

Best Traditional Gingerbread House Design - “The Love Shack” - Addie Barter (age 6)

Most Creative: “Fabrege Egg” - Shelia Wiken

Best Holiday Spirit: “Santa’s Ride” - Lee and Nancy Stoddard

Most Obsessive…

Spectrum Generations Coastal Community Center, 521 Main Street in Damariscotta, will, in the spirit of the holiday season, host Santa’s Holiday Luncheon and a Twas the Night Before Christmas Swap on Wednesday, Dec. 21 at 11:15 a.m.

Following the luncheon where Santa will be the guest of honor, the Evergreen String Orchestra under the direction of Katie Newell will perform seasonal selections. Bring a small gift to pass and exchange as Twas the Night Before Christmas is read.

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Whether an elaborate display of fun themes or a simple one with elegant white lights, outdoor holiday lights make the season brighter for passers-by.

For those who string the lights, put out the giant candy canes and maybe even set it all to music, thank you. For the rest of us, let’s keep enjoying those sights in the night that surprise us in our travels through the cold.

This year’s Teddy Bear Sleepover that was scheduled for Friday night, Dec. 9, was canceled Thursday due to low enrollment, Wiscasset Parks and Recreation’s facility and programs manager Bob Macdonald said.

Macdonald said Breakfast with Santa is still on for 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 17 at the Wiscasset Community Center, 242 Gardiner Road. Call 882-8230 for details.

Do you need to get away from the hustle and bustle of your holiday preparations? Do you long to slow down, catch your breath and center yourself in the true meaning of the season? Do you desire a place and the time to pray, contemplate and reflect on life as the New Year approaches? If you can say, yes, to these questions, Edgecomb Community Church invites you to replenish your inner self, your soul, by walking our indoor advent spiral labyrinth. On Wednesday…

The Tapestry Singers, under the direction of Beth Preston and accompanied by Sean Fleming, will perform holiday concerts that include classic and current selections of seasonal music on Saturday, Dec. 17 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Dec. 18 at 4 p.m. Both concerts will be at the Second Congregational Church, 51 Main Street in Newcastle. 

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One of my favorite holiday songs is called “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas.”

Well, it is.

For the record, it looks like our merchants had a pretty good weekend, as streets and stores were filled with visitors and customers. And, the super light show at the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens is drawing huge crowds.

Old Santa Claus himself, accompanied by Mrs. Santa, arrived by boat on Saturday and trudged up the hill to the beautiful Memorial Library where he…

Art in the Square.

That's a 12” x 12” square by the way, and what local and regional artists transform those canvas squares into is quite brilliant. Media range from oils and watercolors to acrylics and casein, mixed media to paper mache and tissue paper.

When the show opened Nov. 25, a.k.a. Black Friday, 30 of the 200 paintings that started the show flew out the door. Before the opening reception for the show on Dec. 3, a.k.a. Harbor Lights, folks were flocking in — and buying.…

Wiscasset McDonald's is holding two great events on Dec. 17 from 2 to 4 p.m. We are having Breakfast With Santa, and at the same time we will also be raising money and accepting donations for the Lincoln County Animal Shelter.

A portion of our sales from 2 to 4 p.m. will be donated to the shelter. We will also be accepting donations such as food, blankets and toys for the shelter’s dogs and cats.

We are hoping to make this a huge success.

Cristie Benner of Wiscasset and her family come every year to the tree-lighting on the common. “We love it. It’s kind of the jumping-off point for the season,” she said with daughter, Mae, 11, at her side in fox paw-styled gloves the Wiscasset Elementary School sixth grader made herself.

“She can make anything,” her mother said. They and several other family members including Benner’s fellow Wiscasset High School graduates Erin and Jody Haggett were on the Wiscasset Common Saturday…

Forget the malls; forget the big box stores. Instead, shop for all your holiday gifts at the sumptuously beautiful stores and galleries in Wiscasset Village on Route 1, just before the Donald E. Davies Bridge. The four-day Wiscasset Holiday Marketplace, from Wednesday, Dec. 7 through Saturday, Dec. 10, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., with some stores open later, will feature festive holiday events, music, munchies and free gift wrapping.

Children are a big part of the Christmas season and…

Twas the sixteenth of December, when all through the lodge, not a person was missing, not even a stranger in need of a feast. The tables were set in the Learning Center with care in hopes that hungry guests soon would be there. The menu is set paired with holiday treats and delectable eats, with chefs to plate up flavor and cheer and seasonal music to fill the air. Friends from the Coastal Community Center will join in the fun to help us unite the whole community in one, and raise funds for…

The Wiscasset Snowmobile Club will hold a Yankee Swap Christmas Potluck meeting at its clubhouse on Recycle Way next to the Recycle Center on Dec. 8 at 6:30 p.m. Members and non-members who ride are welcome to join the fun and meet the members. After a difficult year last year, things are shaping up to be a good riding year.

Bridges have been rebuilt and we are looking at minor reroutes to make the experience even better than it already is. A work day is held each Sunday morning. We…

Melanie “Nana” Cook wiped away tears Saturday as granddaughter Charlotte Dakin, 6 months, and Dakin’s mother Sasha Gieseman stepped down from the Lincoln Theater stage. Mother and daughter had just met with Santa Claus, following his arrival by jeep in a parade from Newcastle to Damariscotta, where the Renys Rockets danced on Main Street.

Dakin is Cook’s ninth, and she thinks last grandchild. Being together means everything, the Waldoboro woman said. “It’s the true meaning of…

Studio 53 Fine Art’s special holiday event, “Fall Into Winter,” is up and running through Dec. 31. 

Over 15 artists are represented on the three floors of the gallery at 53 Townsend Avenue in Boothbay Harbor.

The two and three dimensional art is by members of the Studio 53 Collective: Terry Seaman, Heidi Seidelhuber, Tony van Hasselt, Bob McKay, Nancy Wilkoff, Don Josephson, John M.T. Seitzer, Greg Laderer and Lynne Seitzer; with paintings by Belfast artist David Estey, the late…

Boothbay Region Art Foundation has 150 12” X 12” canvases by 50 local and regional artists in its 2016 Art in the Square Show and Sale — and at $100, each we’re talking affordable art! This much anticipated show opens on Friday, Nov. 25 at 11 a.m.

Some of the artists include Tony van Hasselt, Bob Rose, Jennifer Litchfield, Mark Mellor, Maria Boord, Bruce MacDonald and June Elderkin.

The Art in the Square Show & Sale is one of the most popular shows at the Art Foundation — and…

The annual Wiscasset tree-lighting ceremony will be held Saturday, Dec. 3 at 4:30 p.m. on the town common. Chorus members from grades five through 12 will lead a sing-a-long of familiar holiday songs. Cocoa and sweet treats will be served after the lighting of the Norway Spruce tree. This event has become a tradition in Wiscasset and ushers in the holiday season in our town. Come and enjoy the festivities, after some local holiday shopping.

As families push back from the Thanksgiving table this month, others in the Midcoast will begin designing and baking their entries for Boothbay Harbor’s magical Gingerbread Spectacular. This December marks the 10th annual Gingerbread Spectacular at the historic Opera House and from early scouting reports it sounds like it may be the best one yet.

The Opera House offered a gingerbread house building class in mid-November that  has inspired more than a few…

On Saturdays and Sundays, Dec. 10, 11, 17 and 18 the Boothbay Railway Village will be running the “North Pole Express!" Departures will be at 11, 11:45, 12:30, 1:15, 2 and 2:45 each day. Purchasing tickets in advance is highly recommended to avoid disappointment or long waits.

Start your trip inside historic 1912 Freeport Station (the main train station at the Museum) by writing your letter to Santa by warmth of the wood stove.

Train conductors will call “All Aboard” and everyone…

For those of us who are not fans of snow, or snowy roads in particular, it’s been a good fall. No surprise October storms and no snow at all that I saw until Monday morning, and even then, just a coating.

I don’t need snow for Christmas. I liked last year’s, which found our family playing croquet and chatting with other families on their snow-free, holiday walks. Two in a row might be a reach, but it doesn’t hurt to hope. And for the snow fans, who can’t wait to ski, skate, roll and…

On Saturday, Dec. 10, the Wiscasset Public Library is holding a festive Christmas sale from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the library at 21 High Street. A variety of donated items will be for sale including handmade and costume jewelry, original paintings, prints, ceramics, antique collectibles and books — gifts to delight all ages.

The event is especially geared to children, as library volunteers will be on hand to guide the little ones through Santa’s Workshop and help them select inexpensive…

This year, the annual Wiscasset High School Turkey Aid became the first ever Wiscasset Middle High School Turkey Thyme, in an effort to involve all students and staff in the annual Thanksgiving community food drive.

All the families being assisted have students enrolled in the Wiscasset School Department. The event has been sponsored by the WHS Student Council for the past 25 years. Each of those years, it has partnered with the town of Wiscasset to meet the needs of the growing number…

Hundreds of shoppers, from the peninsula and beyond showed up in the pre-dawn hours for the 2016 Early Bird Sale in Boothbay Harbor on Saturday Nov. 19. Many were first-time shoppers in the harbor and many others have made the annual sale a family tradition that started many years ago. A Gardiner group dressed as sheep and a shepherd.

Pajamas, slippers, and robes were the norm for the event. For some, creative shopping fashion rivals the discounts as the most important part of the…

Allison Pederson had never seen a cell phone amplifier before. On Saturday, she was holding one made of maple and mahogany. A Two Bridges Regional Jail inmate made it in the wood shop that is part of the Route One, Wiscasset facility’s industries program.

Pederson and friend and fellow Phippsburg resident Pam Spooner were attending the program’s annual craft fair. Spooner said she doesn’t go to a lot of craft fairs, but traveling past the jail about a week before the fair, she saw the…

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens' Gardens Aglow opened to a wide-eyed, appreciative crowd of hundreds Thursday, Nov. 17 at its special preview event, before the spectacular light display opened to the public on Nov. 18. Last year's display drew 36,000 visitors.

Over 360,000 lights have been strung up by staff and volunteers.

After enjoying cocktails, wine, beer and hors d'oeuvres, including little cups of lobster bisque, the crowd gathered outside for…

The Mid Coast Hospital Auxiliary holiday bazaar and wreath sale is scheduled for Dec. 1, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Mid Coast Hospital Café and Conference Rooms, 123 Medical Center Drive in Brunswick. All proceeds from the event benefit essential hospital projects.

More than 100 arrangements of coastal Maine greens, seashells, pine cones, and other natural materials gathered from the woods, fields, and shore of the Midcoast are created by the Mid Coast Hospital Auxiliary volunteers and…

The town of Wiscasset has gained a few new shops over the past year, making it an even better destination for holiday shopping than it's been in the past.

And merchants, with help from the Wiscasset Chamber of Commerce and Lucia Droby, owner of Carriage House Gardens and a major force behind the Wiscasset Art Walk, will be ringing in the holiday season in a whole new way in December with the Wiscasset Holiday…

Making the Wiscasset Early Riser sale pre-dawn on Saturday was not a problem for Boothbay Harbor’s Dave Bean. He’s up at 4 a.m. every day for his Boothbay Harbor business, Bristol Lobster Sales. He and wife Kathy were at BIRCH at 72 Main Street. “We’re here on a mission,” he said. They planned to get a photo on canvas, “Monhegan Portrait,” by BIRCH co-owner Brad Sevaldson.

Also before sunrise, Marjorie…

Please join the Boothbay Region Garden Club in celebrating this most merry of seasons. Our theme this year is “Home for the Holidays.” There will be several shops offering holiday-themed goods to adorn your home. The accompanying photo is just an enticing sample of what you can expect to experience at our shops.

The “Nature’s Corner” shop merchandise features all things from nature, such as edible bird houses, pine cone trees, handmade wreaths and ornaments, and many items decorated…

Studio 53 Fine Art will present its 7th annual Gifts For Giving Holiday Sale Nov. 17-20. The much anticipated show and sale features the Boothbay region’s finest  artists, authors and artisans in a festive, community atmosphere where customers are treated like the neighbors and friends they are.

“The gallery has great energy. Our reception on Friday night feels like a huge neighborhood party!” said Leslie Muir Volpe, event organizer. “We have lots…

Every year area organizations and generous individuals, including Wiscasset schools’ staff and students, offer help to families who may need assistance in providing a Thanksgiving dinner.

If your family is in need of help with a Thanksgiving dinner basket this year, call Kathy Onorato at the Wiscasset town office (882-8200, ext. 103) and leave the following information: How many adults and children are in your family, and a phone number to reach you if your family is able to be helped…

Al Cohen has been doing a yearly early bird sale at Big Al’s on Route One since 1988. On Saturday, Nov. 12, for Cohen and other participating merchants, the tradition of the Wiscasset Early Riser continues.

“It’s always fun to see the people stumble in, half-asleep,” Cohen said Friday. “We like seeing all of our friends.”

The store will be ready, freshly filled with as much new stock as can be fit into it. And while the early bird discount at Big Al’s runs from 7 to 9 a.m., Cohen…

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens did something so wondrous last year it attracted 36,000 visitors, most of whom would never have ventured onto the Boothbay peninsula during the winter. From as far away as Texas and California, people made the trek to our little corner of the world to see something so spectacular it had to be seen to be believed.

The gardens were, yes, aglow, with 180,000 LED lights, strung up along walking paths…

Through the efforts of community businesses, organizations and individuals, the town of Wiscasset announces its Spirit of Giving holiday program, designed to assist parents in fulfilling their children’s holiday needs and wishes.

Families seeking assistance are asked to complete an application, which is now available at the town office. The application can also be downloaded at www.wiscasset .org. Parents are encouraged to…

A toddler with a tootsie pop and a monkey costume danced in time to Kenny Loggins’ “Footloose” on Federal Street Monday night. A shark used a flipper in a high-five with a winged creature. Freddy Krueger chatted with a clown. And Michaela West of 42 Federal Street was dressed as a witch and ready for the extra trick-or-treating Wiscasset’s first-ever “Nightmare on Federal Street” would bring to her dooryard.

She bought extra candy. “You don’t want to run out. That’s not good.”

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The Candy Cane Train, a signature event of the local nonprofit Tri-County Literacy, will mark its 11th year with a new partner, the Amtrak Downeaster. The popular, holiday-themed family event will run two 75-minute trips daily from Brunswick Station/Visitor Center to Portland and back on Saturday, Dec. 10, and Sunday, Dec. 11. Trains will depart each day at 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.

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Boothbay Region Art Foundation is asking people of all ages with an urge to create to use a 12” by 12” canvas for its annual Art in the Square show and sale. All works sell for $100 each!

Canvases are available at the gallery at One Townsend Avenue in Boothbay Harbor. Options include painting, drawing, weaving, printmaking, collage, or whatever works upon 144 square inches of empty, white canvas. Up to…

For the Wiscasset Area Chamber of Commerce’s premiere scarecrow contest, Wiscasset Ford staff thought a hunter scarecrow would be a good Maine theme and would go with the trucks the Route One business sells, General Manager Mike Lasselle said Monday. Wiscasset Ford’s hunter, with an orange ski mask and vest, along with camouflage wear and a pickup truck, garnered the judges’ choice for “most unusual.”

The honor was one of four awards the chamber announced in the contest Saturday. “We…

Halloween is commonly associated with the words trick or treat, candy, scary, pumpkins, and ghosts and ghouls. But for the past couple of years, the Boothbay Region Land Trust (BRLT) has added its own vocabulary to the season, like story, nature trail, family walk, and outside by designing its family-friendly “Hike the Halloween Story Trail' along the School House Pond Preserve trail in Trevett.

“The preserve is a little remote,” Tracey Hall, the trust's environmental educator,…

St. Mary's Catholic Church, 144 Lincoln St., Bath will hold a Christmas Craft Fair and Cafe on Saturday, Nov. 5 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Over one dozen crafters will have items for sale, a silent auction with wonderful merchandise and Grandma's Attic loaded with bargains, will be available, and there will be a Cookie Walk. The cafe will offer breakfast and lunch with fish chowder, chili, pizza, hot dogs and more.

For more information, call 443-5389.

On Friday and Saturday, Oct. 28 and 29, from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m., the Boothbay Railway Village will once again be cloaked in mystical moonlight and creepy candlelight for the annual Ghost Train. Just once a year the ghouls and goblins come out to haunt the otherwise peaceful Museum. Witches and other monsters will assist the engineer and train crew with departures every 30 minutes, the last leaves the station at 7:30.

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Wiscasset Elementary School teacher Clara Brown hoped people would respond to her Halloween costume swap idea, and they have. The first grade teacher said the costume count had reached about 60 as of Monday, the two-month mark since Brown announced plans for the swap for WES families in a story published at www.wiscassetnewspaper.com.

She'll be sorting the costumes from the…

Read all about it!

This Wiscasset Newspaper paperboy scarecrow smiling at motorists from the Ames True Value Supply lawn is part of the Wiscasset Area Chamber of Commerce’s first-ever scarecrow contest for businesses and organizations. Scarecrows will remain on display downtown and along Route One through Oct. 29. Winners will be announced Oct. 23. The event is one of several the town and the chamber have either launched or expanded on this year around the scarecrow and Halloween…

Brian and Ashley Barter of Dresden were nearing the turn onto Route 27 Saturday, taking daughter Naytalia, 4, and son Elijah, 2, to the Wiscasset Community Playground. But as they were about to get off Route One, a big bounce house in front of the municipal building caught their attention.

That looked liked more fun, Brian Barter said. So the family stopped at the Parks and Recreation Department’s annual Scarecrowfest and found other features to enjoy, including the touch-the-truck…

The Halloween season is upon us and The Lady in the Red Cloak is ready to take groups on a walking tour of Boothbay Harbor to really bring the spirit home.

On the lantern lit walking tour, The Lady will take you to the back streets and hidden stories of Boothbay Harbor, its mysteries ... and haunts.

Listen to many a ghostly tale - including the Squire who walked on water, spirits that still reside within several local B&Bs and inns, and a nearby island.…

This year the talented crafters of St. Patrick’s Shamrocks have been busy designing and creating some unique and fanciful items that can be used to decorate your home for the Christmas season. Utilizing the abundant harvest of natural materials available, items for sale this year will include twelve-inch tabletop trees with themes (kitchen, coffee lovers, knitters and seashore). Adult bibs for use in the car or at the table are a new and useful addition this…

Damariscotta’s 10th annual Pumpkinfest and Regatta got off to a warm start, but by the time of the pumpkin boat races, ended up in a drenching rain.

Even so, a good time was had by all.

The winners of the Paddleboat races included Robert Watts, Jaja Martin, David Martin, and Amanda Moeser for individual heats, with Jaja Martin taking the final; and Jaja Martin and Robert Watts in the first relay, and David Watts and Todd Sandstrum in the second relay. The paddleboats were…

Drought conditions failed to keep 70 giant pumpkins from lining Main Street in Damariscotta and Newcastle for the 10th annual carving and painting competition on Friday, Oct. 7.

Artist Susan Bartlett Rice said she had grown two pumpkins that had weighed close to 400 pounds although she had watered them less this year.

“I didn’t want to run the well dry. I guess I was just lucky,” she said. She and her daughter Amelia decorated one pumpkin on the theme of Alice in Wonderland and…

The sights and sounds of fall include many things like crisp mornings, apple picking and cider season, and the leaves changing color.  Most of all, autumn makes us think "pumpkins."

The Fall Foliage Festival is just one stop along Maine’s Pumpkin Trail, a new partnership celebrating history, art and giant fruit along 50 miles of Maine’s most beautiful coastline from Bath to Rockland. Pumpkin-themed activities are…

This year, the Wiscasset Community Center, the Wiscasset Area Chamber of Commerce and Wiscasset Elementary School are sponsoring an exciting new addition to Wiscasset’s traditional Fall Scarecrowfest Celebration. We hope everyone will join in the fun. It’s so easy to participate.

Fifth and sixth grade student artists have created drawings featuring the scarecrow theme. These drawings will be reproduced and will be made available to the general public for coloring and embellishing.…