Maine governor creates new group to try to stop elder abuse
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Maine’s governor says a new group she is convening will help combat elder abuse in a state that has one of the highest median ages in the country.
Democratic Gov. Janet Mills signed an executive order on Wednesday creating the Elder Justice Coordinating Partnership. The group will bring together state officials and members of advocacy organizations to tackle detection and prevention of elder abuse.
Mills says the partnership is expected to provide recommendations by December 2021 in the form of an “Elder Justice Roadmap” for the state.
Mills says Maine’s status as an aging state means it’s “crucial that we harness the collective power of state government and private organizations to develop a roadmap to protect them from abuse, neglect, and all forms of exploitation.”
Acadia visitor center ready to close for the season
BAR HARBOR, Maine (AP) — It’s a sure sign of the changing season in Maine: Acadia National Park’s main visitor center is preparing to close for the season.
The Hulls Cove Visitor Center will close on Thursday, and staff will relocate to the Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce information center in downtown Bar Harbor.
Visitors will still be able to talk to a park ranger and learn about the park and activities.
It’ll be open daily through the winter months. The 2020 opening date for the Hulls Cove Visitor Center will be announced later.
Maine recognizes “apple whisperer” for preserving fruit
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Maine officials are recognizing a farmer as the state’s “apple whisperer” for his years of work to preserve different varieties of the fruit.
Gov. Janet Mills and Agriculture Commissioner Amanda Beal have presented apple grower John Bunker with this year’s Commissioner’s Distinguished Service Award. Beal says Bunker’s “years of identifying and cataloging the vast diversity of apple varieties that exist in the state of Maine has resulted in the preservation of an amazing array of characteristics.”
The state gave Bunker a plaque that describes him as “Maine’s own ‘Apple Whisperer’.” Beal described Bunker’s Palmero farm as a “living genetic bank” that will help preserve apple varieties for generations.
Bunker also contacted the Mills administration about installing a heritage apple orchard at the Blaine House, the governor’s official state residence.
Astronaut checks spacewalk off list; new dream is the moon
By The Associated Press undefined
A Maine native who wrote in her high school yearbook that she dreamed of going on a spacewalk has checked that off her list.
Jessica Meir, along with Christina Koch, stepped outside the International Space Station on Oct. 18 for the first all-women spacewalk.
Meir, the valedictorian of Caribou High School’s Class of 1995, said another dream of hers has been to go to the moon. She added, “Maybe I’ll make that my new dream.” In July, the Trump administration set a goal to return to the moon by 2024. The last NASA manned moon mission was in 1972.
Meir arrived on Sept. 25 at the International Space Station. She is about a month into her six-month mission. She’s scheduled to return to Earth in spring 2020.
DOJ awards $1.25M to Maine schools to bolster security
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — The Department of Justice is awarding $1.25 million to bolster school security in Maine.
U.S. Attorney Halsey B. Frank said the grants will enhance student safety and help school districts prevent violence.
The largest grant of nearly $495,000 is going to School Administrative District 15, which covers Gray and New Gloucester.
The funding is part of more than $85 million nationwide to make schools safer by educating and training students and faculty, and supporting first responders.
Wheelchair athlete secures spot in cross-country state meet
CUMBERLAND, Maine (AP) — A high school cross-country athlete who uses a wheelchair has completed his regional meet race, paving the way for him to compete in the state meet next weekend.
A year ago, the state denied Jonathan Schomaker’s petition to compete. But this year, the Maine Principals’ Association reached an agreement to let him participate in the regional meet Saturday in Cumberland.
The Leavitt Area High School sophomore started the race with runners. Then he separated from them onto a modified course aimed at ensuring safety.
The Lewiston Sun Journal reports Schomaker finished his modified 1.8-mile course in just over 37 minutes, a few seconds before the final runners who ran the 5-kilometer course.
Schomaker, who has cerebellar hypoplasia, has competed alongside runners this season and has even recorded a 7-minute mile.
Delayed Maine national monument signs to finally go up
MILLINOCKET, Maine (AP) — Signs directing people to the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument will finally start going up after a three-year delay.
The Obama administration designated the 87,500 acres (35,410 hectares) east of Baxter State Park as a national monument in 2016, but former Republican Gov. Paul LePage, who opposed the monument’s creation initially refused to install signs along I-95 or Route 11. He later agreed to work with federal officials on the signs after it was clear that the designation would not be rescinded. The signs were made and then put into storage while the National Forest Service solicited bids to finish the work.
The Portland Press Herald reports that crews plan to begin installing 22 signs this week and expect to finish by the end of November.
Gov. Mills unveils new charging station for electric cars
WEST GARDINER, Maine (AP) — Democratic Gov. Janet Mills says a new, fast-charging station for electric cars and incentives for more of them will help break fossil fuel companies’ “stranglehold” over Mainers’ wallets.
Mills on Friday unveiled the new charging station at the Maine Turnpike plaza in West Gardiner. She said it was funded through federal Volkswagen settlement money awarded to the Maine Department of Transportation.
Mills also says the 23 municipalities will receive incentives to install 47 new charging stations across the state for the public use.
It’s part of a larger effort to boost the charging infrastructure for electric cars. She said charging stations make electric cars a reality for more people, help people save money on fuel, and protect the environment. She called it a “hat-trick for Maine.”
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