Articles by Kathryn Olmstead
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Aroostook ties run deep, pay big dividends
Generosity is not a trait typically associated with the nation’s wealthy in this age of anger among the “99 percent.” Yet recent and past gifts to Aroostook County provide a counterpoint to popular stereotypes of the affluent. I remember back in the 1980s when townspeople in Easton were surprised by ...
Maliseets bless new six-unit housing complex in Houlton
By Kathryn Olmstead, Special to the BDN on Feb. 10, 2012, at 1:52 p.m.
HOULTON, Maine — Families in the Houlton Band of Maliseets have begun to move into new homes in a six-unit apartment complex on Clover Circle in Houlton that was opened officially in a ceremony Feb. 9. Tribal Chief Brenda Commander cut the ribbon held by Undersecretary Dallas Tonsager of U.S. ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Global warming forum moves some participants to action
An OpEd by author and environmentalist Bill McKibben in the Jan. 23 Bangor Daily News probably attracted more readers than it would have had it not appeared on the heels of a Jan. 20 statewide forum sponsored by the University of New England Center for Global Humanities and the Maine ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
The dying art of making ash wood baskets
When Roldena Sanipass was a girl she watched her mother weave strips of brown ash into traditional Micmac baskets. She could be seen in the background, pounding ash or cleaning splints while her mother, well-known basket maker Mary Sanipass, demonstrated her craft, but she didn’t have the confidence to weave ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
‘Naturally, beautifully friendly’ residents of Fort Kent made German bride feel at home
Just a year ago, the Bangor Daily News was advertising a forum at the Bangor Public Library for readers to talk with Philomena Baker, the subject of a seven-part series of articles titled Flight to Freedom that appeared in the paper between Dec. 25, 2010, and Jan. 1, 2011. People ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Loring structure’s refusal to collapse is symbolic of Aroostook County resilience
It was to be the largest implosion in the state of Maine. The building that had served as the heating plant for Loring Air Force Base from 1953 until the base closed in 1994 was expected to collapse in on itself in six seconds. Demolition crews had spent weeks removing ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Aroostook farmer the face of organic growers’ fight against Monsanto
I have wanted to catch up with Bridgewater organic farmer Jim Gerritsen ever since he was named in October to the 2011 list of 25 visionaries who are changing the world by the national magazine Utne Reader. When I finally succeeded last weekend, he was on his way to New ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Only travel medicine clinic north of Bangor saves Central American trip
It was not until the week before my departure for a trip to Central America that I read the details about immunization. I had focused on the sentence: “No immunizations are currently required for visiting Belize,” in the materials we received weeks ahead of the journey. When I read on, ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Home birth was first in Grand Isle in 40 years
The Grand Isle town clerk was a little nervous when Marada Cook and Ryan Redmond brought their infant to the town office to be registered July 23, 2007. “Seems we were all three a little nervous,” Clerk Marie Sirois recalled recently. “It was a first-time experience for me.” In her ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Moose welcome to visit anytime
Wouldn’t you know. A moose walks into my front yard and I can’t find my camera. The little case is empty. Where did I put it? I gaze at the huge animal munching on the leaves of the apple trees outside my kitchen window. I guess I will just have ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Blowout highlights kindness of residents in Aroostook
It wasn’t a big hole, but it was deep, very round and too close to avoid after I saw it — a black space in the white line beside the road. My front right tire took the hole squarely with a thud and the warning light on the dash glowed ...
Boundaries mean something different to residents of borderlands
What do borders mean? It’s an intriguing question that drew residents of both Maine and Canada to a pair of discussions in Houlton and Frenchville on Sept. 16 and 17. Sponsored by the Maine Humanities Council, the programs asked participants to explore and expand their views of the border as ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Defending Aroostook in midst of New York Times article
A first visit to Aroostook County can be a myth-defying experience. Aroostook myths germinate in a segment of the population prone to the comment: “I’ve lived in Maine all my life (or for X number of years) but have never been to Aroostook County,” spoken with a hint of pride. ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Aroostook Birders find silver lining in polluted water
I never thought I would see any benefits in water pollution, but a recent excursion with the Aroostook Birders taught me there is a silver lining to our polluting past. Back in the 1960s and ’70s, Aroostook County farmers were temporarily sold on the idea of growing sugar beets as ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Transplant envious of Aroostook Swedes’ cultural awareness
Living in Aroostook County has given me a kind of heritage envy. I am sure my ancestors had compelling narratives of the hardships they endured in coming to a strange land, but they arrived so long ago their stories have been lost. Descendants of immigrants to northern Maine and adjacent ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Lil’ Farmers exhibit lets children see, feel where food, clothes come from
Aroostook County is a great place to turn a good idea into reality, especially if it involves children and agriculture. When cash is scant, energetic promotion of a vision can attract volunteers and donations to create something new. That’s what happened when Kevin McCartney, president of the Northern Maine Fair ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Garden slugs prefer Budweiser over imported brands
My battle against slugs in the garden could tarnish my reputation in the community. Apparently the slimy creatures, who look like large snails without shells, were breeding in the thick bed of straw that covered the garden last winter and became saturated with a month of rain in May. So ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Fort Fairfield, Easton Amish families bring out the best in people
I am pushing the speed limit on Route 1A between Fort Fairfield and Easton when I come upon a black horse-drawn buggy, a replica of the image on a caution sign I just passed. Reflexively, I disengage the cruise control. Interesting, I think. Why did I do that? Safety? Respect? ...
Seeds may need more love than gardener has to give
If seeds must be planted with love in order to thrive, my garden is at risk. Some people can’t wait to get out and dig in the dirt as soon as the frost leaves the ground. Not me. “I’ll spend one hour in the garden,” I told myself on the ...
KATHRYN OLMSTEAD
Glitch confirms columnist can’t manage without computer
Even with all the headache computers cause, being without one is the worst.
Rosa Scarcelli suing stepfather for not firing her mother
Man shot in Hermon home invasion arrested for second time Friday, released Tuesday
Bangor police looking for Florida firefighter
Scarborough boy, 11, rocking open mike nights at Lewiston restaurant
What’s more important — presidential or party preference?
Toilet-papering spree in Bangor neighborhoods a result of high school swimmers’ success
No. 8 Houlton stuns No. 1 Orono, will face Stearns in semifinal
Cianbro has 150 job openings
Gambling board approves Maine’s first casino: Hollywood Slots becomes Hollywood Casino Bangor
Maple syrup producers concerned about mild winter
Maine inspires chefs and foodies nationwide
Photos of Mainers who served in Vietnam War needed for national center
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