Enjoy Spring walking at Beaver Park during the Month of March. Park
admission is free for walkers this month. This is a great opportunity to
explore the Park trails during a family outing. Guided walks will also
be held every Thursday from 7:15 to 8:15 a.m with Ranger Brooks. For
more information contact Verla Brooks, Lisbon Park Ranger at
353-9075 or vbrooks@lisbonme.org

You are invited to participate in this year’s One Book/One Community Celebration that is being launched this week by the Lewiston and Auburn public libraries in collaboration with a cadre of community partners.  This year’s title, written by award-winning author Barbara Kingsolver, is Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, a first-hand recounting of how Kingsolver’s family was changed by one year of deliberately eating food produced solely on or around their family homestead in rural Virginia.  Part memoir, part journalistic investigation, the book takes an earnest and entertaining look at both this personal struggle to limit one’s diet to locally grown foods and at the system of food distribution that exists in the U.S. and around the world.

Over a dozen other activities related to this year’s OneBook/One Community program will take place locally through the end of April, including book discussions, a screening of the documentary “Food, Inc.,” workshops in organic gardening and cooking, a talk by MOFGA director Russell Libby, and a sustainable foods conference.  For a complete list of One Book-related programs, please see the One Book Brochure 2010 (PDF).

For more information call the Auburn Public Library at 333-6640, or the Lewiston Public Library at 513-3135.

Kicking off One Book, One Community

When: Friday, February 26, 2010, 4:30-6:30 p.m.

Where: Auburn Public Library, 49 Spring Street, Auburn

Contact: Sharon Hawkes, Administrative Librarian, 333-6640, x5

Bring the whole family to the Auburn Public Library on February 26 and enjoy the pick of the farm, live folk music, and a foot stompin’ good time. From 4:30-6:30, the library will host local farmers and vendors throughout the library, featuring items such as handcrafted soaps and lotions, organic carrots and apples, heirloom seeds, drinks and bakery goods, and organic bread and granola.  Free samples will be available along with information on gardening and local farms.

Participating farms include Bert’s Awesome Stuff and Valley View Farm, Auburn; Thyme for Goat, Dresden; Right Here!, Durham; Doggie Delights and St. Mary’s Nutrition Center, Lewiston; Little Ridge Farm, Lisbon Falls; Better than Average, Mechanic Falls; Gentry Gardens, Monmouth; The Fudge Lady and Willow Pond Farm, Sabattus; Hummingbird Farm, Turner; and Little Alaska Farm Market, Wales. Music will be provided by Carole Wise, Greg Boardman, Nancy Chandler, and Michele Roy and Patty Weidler.

This event serves as the kick off for Lewiston-Auburn’s One Book, One Community, reading “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle” by Barbara Kingsolver.  Call 333-6640, x5 for further details.

Farmers Markets create community, revitalize neighborhoods, and connect farmers and shoppers. They bring life into towns and cities, and fresh, delicious, food into the hands of families. Best of all, Farmers Markets are fun!

You’re invited join others in Lewiston-Auburn on Wednesday, March 3rd, to discuss ways to make our Local Farmers Market the very best it can be. Share your vision of what you’d like to see at the Market from the type of vendor, to the time and place. All are welcome to attend! Your ideas will be heard and considered.

The meeting will begin at 6pm at the St. Mary’s Nutrition Center at 208 Bates Street.
Light Refreshments will be served.
If you are interested in selling at the Great Falls Farmers Market this year their will be a separate informational meeting for vendors shortly after. Please inquire about time and place of the vendors meeting at 207 513-3848

For more information about the Market in general please call 207 513-3848

Please take a moment ahead of time to share your thoughts on the Farmers Market now by clicking the link below to take a short informational survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Z5PP7ZV

Brought to you by the Great Falls Farmers & Artisans Market Association. greatfallsmarket@gmail.com

Inhalant Abuse: Its Right Under your Nose and Methamphetamine: What you
Need to Know

1. May 5, 2010: Portland City Hall, State of Maine Room
2. May 10, 2010: Green Ladle, Lewiston Regional Vocational Center
3. May 20, 2010:  Holiday Inn Express, Saco

All trainings are Free, CEUs will be offered for both training.

*Additional trainings will be held Statewide throughout the Fall of 2010

Continental Breakfast and Lunch provided for those attending both trainings.

Registration is required. Space is limited.

Brochure and Registration Form will be available starting at the end of March.

Inhalants Are Deadly–learn more to protect your children

Inhalants are ordinary household products that are inhaled or sniffed by children and teens to get high. Inhalants are common products found right in the home and are among the most popular and deadly substances kids abuse. Inhalant abuse can result in death from the very first use.

Come learn more at this free parent training called:

Inhalants: It’s Right Under Your Nose see flyer (PDF)

March 3^rd 6pm-7:30pm
Lewiston High School, B109

Presented by Rebecca Miller, New England Poison Control

Sponsored by Healthy Androscoggin and the Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative

For more information visit www.healthyandroscoggin.org

Sponsored by the American Red Cross, 4H, and the MAINEiacs:

Hockey for Haiti (PDF)

4-H clubs in Androscoggin, Sagadahoc and Cumberland counties are partnering with the
Lewiston MAINEiacs to raise money for Haiti earthquake relief.

Wednesday, February 10, 7pm

MAINEiacs home game at The Colisee
Tickets: $13 in advance from 4-H and UMaine
Extension - one dollar less than normal price!
PLUS - Raffle with great prizes during the game!
For tickets call or stop by:
Androscoggin-Sagadahoc University of Maine Cooperative Extension
24 Main Street
Lisbon Falls, ME 04240
207-353-5550
OR
Contact your local 4-H Club

Healthy Androscoggin is please to announce the new hire of Scott M. Gagnon, a resident of Auburn, as the new Safe Schools/ Healthy Students Substance Abuse Prevention Coordinator.

In 2008, Lewiston Public Schools, in collaboration with Auburn Public Schools, was awarded the Safe Schools/Healthy Students grant, whose goal is to create a safe school environment that promotes healthy childhood development, and prevents youth violence and alcohol, tobacco and other drug abuse.

Healthy Androscoggin has been contracted to work on Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug Prevention Activities, one of the Five Elements being addressed by the Safe Schools Healthy Students Initiative.  Some of the strategies Mr. Gagnon will utilize include coordinating school/ community environmental strategies to address substance abuse; implementing prevention curricula and family interventions; and social marketing campaigns.

Scott M. Gagnon brings several years of experience in the substance abuse prevention field as a program coordinator and evaluator.  Previously he worked in the Prevention and Intervention Services component of Day One in South Portland, Maine.  Mr. Gagnon also brings experience in working with students in schools.  At Day One, he served as the Coordinator and Evaluator for the Natural Helpers of Maine program which trains peer listeners to provide one-on-one listening support to their peers in school. He also served as facilitator for several in-school education sessions and was a part of the team that administered the Juvenile Treatment Network.  Additionally, he was the coordinator for the Maine Gambling Addiction Network (MEGAN) and sat as a member of the Maine Gambling Advisory Board.  Mr. Gagnon holds a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from the Edmund S. Muskie School of Public Service.

In partnership with One Book, One Community (a coalition which includes the Lewiston Public Library, the Auburn Public Library, Lewiston Adult Education, Healthy Androscoggin, local schools, and local farmers) the St. Mary’s Nutrition Center is offering:

Where does your food come from?

An exploration of food systems through conversation, science, and taste

Thursdays, 6:30-8:00pm starting February 11th

St. Mary’s Nutrition Center, 208 Bates Street, Lewiston

This four week class (PDF 1.27 MB) is for adults interested in learning more about the complexities of our food system.

Quick Outline of the class:

Week 1: Discuss what a food system is, the differences and similarities between local, organic, sustainable, industrial, and conventionally produced foods, learn how to map our “foodshed”.

Week 2: Activity and discussion about the differences between cost, price, and value. Introduction to the hidden costs of food.

Week 3: Small groups will teach the larger group about the hidden costs of food, including: how worker rights, energy use / global warming, policy, and genetic engineering are related to our food and affect the food we eat.

Week 4: Exploration of taste - do foods taste different when they come from different food systems?

The class fee is a sliding scale structure - we will talk about what this means in more detail during the 2nd class. To put it simply, participants will be asked to pay what they feel is appropriate based on the value of the experience in the class and their income.

There will be homework between each class.

For more information or to register for the class contact Ari at 207.513.3844 or lotstogardens@gmail.com

The class will be limited to 15 participants.

One Book, One Community is a coalition organizing activities related to reading Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle this spring. Where does your food come from? An exploration of food systems through conversation, science, and taste is meant to help introduce community members to the complexity of our food system in preparation for reading and activities related to Kingsolver’s book.

Introducing Healthy Androscoggin’s newest publication!

Healthy Androscoggin seeks to promote healthy eating and buying local. We hope this Androscoggin County Farm Guide helps you accomplish both.

Click here to view the PDF versions:

farm-guide-cover-final-9-23-09 (PDF 976 KB)

farm-guide-text-final-9-23-09 (PDF 1606KB)

Copies will be available to the public from the Healthy Androscoggin office, as well as other locations in the community.  Stay tuned…