The animal shelter here has plans to double its size so it can accept more animals. Now it just needs a million bucks. The Pets Are Worth Saving shelter, formerly the Camden-Rockport Animal Rescue League, recently bought 2.5 acres next to its spot on Camden Street where …
Articles by Heather Steeves
Rockland man making film based on mysterious Vinalhaven drowning case
A young woman from Maryland who ventured to a Maine island in the 1970s to find herself but later was found dead on a Vinalhaven beach is the subject of a new movie by a Rockland filmmaker. How 19-year-old Bella Baldwin died has never been entirely clear. …
Rights panel: Denny’s employee treated badly, but not fired, because of OCD
AUGUSTA | A woman who argued she was fired from Denny’s restaurant because of her obsessive compulsive disorder was dismissed for giving a trucker a cup of free milk, the Maine Human Rights Commission found Monday. The commission’s vote went against its own investigator’s recommendation. In a a 2-0 …
POLICE BEAT
Thomaston man arrested for allegedly assaulting pregnant girlfriend
ROCKLAND | A frequent offender is again in jail, this time for assaulting his girlfriend, who is 8 months pregnant, police say. Lee Williams, 25, of Thomaston was arrested for domestic violence assault on Friday and made his first court appearance the same day. As of Friday afternoon, Williams …
Rockland to celebrate arrival of summer on Saturday
Route 1 will shut down Saturday evening while Rockland welcomes summer. Musicians, food vendors and a crowd of about 5,000 people will invade Main Street at Rockland’s 14th Summer Solstice from 5 to 9 p.m. Saturday, June 23. “It showcases our downtown businesses. We encourage them to …
Boys-only class in Rockport sees academic success — and critics
Test scores are in and a boys-only classroom here saw significant learning gains. “It’s a lot of growth,” said Theresa Lash, principal of Camden-Rockport Elementary School during a presentation on the experimental classroom to the school board Wednesday night. The ACLU of Maine, meanwhile, which is working …
Owls Head firefighter allegedly drains half of town’s fire truck gas budget on his own car
A firefighter here stole money from the fire station to fuel his personal truck, police say. Christopher Gamage, 19, of Union, was arrested for theft and for misuse of identification on Tuesday. A town official noticed unusual charges on one of the fire department’s fire truck …
Camden schools get new superintendent
ROCKPORT | A new superintendent has been selected for the Camden area. The current assistant superintendent, Elaine Nutter, will step into the role in July, school board chairs announced Wednesday. “We are very excited to have Elaine lead our two districts, maintaining the positive momentum from this past year …
POLICE BEAT
Toddler taken from parents after spanking allegedly leaves ‘severe’ bruises
UNION | A 25-year-old local man was arrested over the weekend and charged with domestic violence assault and aggravated assault for brutally spanking his 4-year-old stepson, according to police. Christopher Cunningham of Union was arrested after police found “severe” bruises covering his stepson’s bottom. The boy’s grandmother, who lives …
Drug plea gets three months tacked on to Dechaine’s life sentence
ROCKLAND | A convicted murderer got three months tacked onto his life sentence Tuesday after pleading no contest to taking morphine while in prison. Dennis Dechaine, 54, was ready to go to trial on Tuesday and the jury was waiting in the wings of Knox County Superior Court when …
Four teens charged after thefts at Hope camps
Four teenagers were charged Monday for allegedly stealing sparklers, alcohol and food from local camps. The Knox County Sheriff’s Office got calls last Saturday night that people were running around Island Avenue and Morton Lane from camp to camp late at night, according to Sheriff Donna Dennison. …
Pay property taxes, Rockland tells church
The property taxes the city assessed on a local church were fair, the city’s board of assessment and review voted unanimously Monday night. “This is what we wanted; don’t get upset,” said Michael Leonard to a group of Aldersgate United Methodist Church members after the 4-0 vote. …
Underwater robot helps find, remove trash from Rockland Harbor
One large computer screen burned yellow while Rachael Miller flicked at a video game controller, making the blurry images shift. “We have to head under the boat for some shade,” Miller said, moving the joystick, which controlled an underwater robot in Rockland Harbor on Sunday. “This is …
Farmers, gardeners learn new skills at Farm and Homestead Day in Unity
When Richard Scott scythes a field, his hips rotate and his arms wave the curved blade gently through the grass, which slumps over instantly. When Jericho Bicknell, of Dover-Foxcroft, scythed the same grassy area on Saturday morning, such was not the case. Bicknell and about 100 other …
92-year-old notary public forced to stop marrying couples in Bernard lighthouse
Irving Silverman will never marry again. That’s his vow. After almost a decade of bringing couples into his lighthouse and joining them in marriage, Silverman has been forced to call it quits. At 92 years old, Silverman had to leave Maine, where he lived for the last …
Ellsworth’s Rooster Brother cooking supply store turns 25
This week Rooster Brother will celebrate 25 years of roasting coffee, slicing cheese and selling cookware. At the helm of the shop are husband and wife duo Pamela and George Elias, both 65 and from Surry. The Eliases have both always been passionate about food, but neither …
70-year-old hiker rescued after falling near Bass Harbor Lighthouse
TREMONT | A 70-year-old woman was injured after hiking alone by Bass Harbor Lighthouse on Friday. It took rescue searchers about an hour and a half to find the unidentified woman who called 911 on an untraceable TracFone, according to Ed Pontbriand, a park ranger and emergency services coordinator …
Midcoast children offered free meals this summer
WARREN | Many children in the midcoast get two meals a day from their schools through the free and reduced lunch program. When the summer comes and backpacks get shoved in the closet until September, that security of having regular meals vanishes. A program in Warren, Damariscotta and Waldoboro …
VIDEO
Midcoast man teaches himself shoe skills, opens Kiss My Boots cobbler
HOPE | When his passion for cabinetmaking faded, 63-year-old Carleton Leavitt turned his hands to shoes. “People’s shoes are funny. They’re very sentimental to them,” he said, picking up a pair of tawny, suede kitten heels. “These old ones, the piping was warped. Now she has a new pair …
Land trust to open unique Rockport picnic cottage on select days
A local land trust will open a historic picnic house for several days this summer. Beech Nut, a sod-roof hut built in 1915, sits on top of blueberry-covered Beech Hill. For about 350 days of the year, the little cottage is closed, but Coastal Mountains Land Trust …
Maine man accused of trying to pass off food carton as inspection sticker
Air Force One Bangor landing may have been called off
Maine substance abuse official accused of drunken driving
Maine dissolves 27 local public health groups with little explanation
Affidavit: Accused kidnapper told victim ‘she might live’
LePage wastes state time, money on ‘investigations’ inspired by grudges
I swim with sharks. That’s how I know we’re the dangerous ones.
Here’s a way Maine can keep more babies alive
Rockland woman saves herself and gives us a lesson in self-defense
Friday night’s high school football scores
Hard-hitting senior heads Old Town’s quest for football playoff spot
Ortiz adds to legend as Red Sox prevail
Sheffield settles in quickly as rover on UMaine football team
‘The marriage or the farm’: Why one Maine livestock farm reached the end of its line
Why good sex may be really bad for older men
A look inside The Portland Meatball Company
Weary and bleary