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Make connections, get outside, and plant some seeds! Nancy Dorrans is a natural connector and she shares some stories to motivate you to get out there and make your own connections - https://thewestendnews.com/connections-with-nancy-dorrans/..
Photos courtesy of Nancy Dorrans. 1) New friends at the mile long tailgate party in Sconset during the Nantucket Daffodil Festival. 2) Nancy Dorrans on trail. 3) Crescent St community garden.
Free Trees for Residents to ReForest the City... Susan
LoGiudice shares with readers WENA's efforts to reforest the neighborhood and how you can get free trees to help in that mission - https://thewestendnews.com/susan-logiudice-free-trees-for-residents-to-reforest-the-city/
Photo: Susan LoGiudice plants a serviceberry (or shadbush) tree, one of the native species being planted by the Reforest program. -Courtesy photo
Maine Primary Election is Tuesday, June 11. In Portland voters will also vote on the school budget. Polls open 7 a.m. More on who can vote in the Maine primary: https://thewestendnews.com/voting-information-for-maine-june-11-2024-primary-election/
The City's Walk the Working Waterfront is tomorrow, Saturday, June 8th, beginning at 12 p.m. along Commercial Street. Learn more about the Sustainability Office's efforts to highlight sea level rise, documenting it and preparing for tomorrow's challenges - https://thewestendnews.com/sea-level-rise-and-the-working-waterfront/
PHOTO: By Tony Zeli, WEN Publisher/Editor from Portland Pier, May 2024
These mushrooms do it all! For our May Garden Edition, Liz Trice interviewed Louis Giller about the amazing power of mushrooms to break down toxins and remove heavy metals from our soil. Learn more: https://thewestendnews.com/louis-giller-mushrooms-can-detoxify-our-land/
Layne explores two books he’s been living with. Both are by Bianca Bosker – “Cork Dork” and “Get the Picture” - https://thewestendnews.com/bianca-boskers-classic-characters-in-wine-art/
Check out Layne's live wine tasting improvisational every fourth Wednesday at Blue in Portland, ME. Thank you for reading. Cheers!
Stewards of the Western Cemetery begin their third year of outside activities. Regular tours begin in June on Sundays. Learn more from Stewards president John Funk: https://thewestendnews.com/seasonal-activities-begin-at-western-cemetery/
Photos: Volunteers clear debris from March - April storms for removal by city crews. -Courtesy of Stewards of Western Cemetery
36% of homeowners admit crossing over to a neighbor’s lawn to pull weeds or even mow a portion of their neighbor’s lawn. Meanwhile the city says let it grow (to 3-4") to help build soil and feed the bees. - https://thewestendnews.com/tall-grass-is-for-the-bees/
WEN is joining Adventure Marketplace and our coworking space Think Tank for an Office Warming Party today, Wednesday, 5/8, 5-7pm. Please message me to RSVP.
SO grateful to have Nancy on the team as our volunteer travel contributor. Congratulations to her for 10 years running Adventure Marketplace! Read about her adventure going out on her own and becoming an independent travel agent and entrepreneur - https://thewestendnews.com/10-years-of-venturing-out-with-adventure-marketplace/
Photos: 1. Nancy at NH Highland Games; 2. Dinner in Portugal for Women, Wine, Walking group; 3. At Mt. Hood; 4. In NYC; 5. With local artisan at Elephant Market, Victoria Falls
Portland Police responded to a report of shots fired on Tate Street Sunday evening. Police ask anyone with info to contact them. -
Portland Police responded to a report of shots fired on April 28th, 2024, at 6:41 p.m. on Tate Street.
Layne visits two fine Italian restaurants in Portland and offers insight into their wine lists: https://thewestendnews.com/two-italian-restaurants/
-Photos: 1. Entres at Leeward; 2. Interior at Leeward; 3. Inside Solo Italiano -All photos courtesy of Layne and Judy Witherell
Here's a Bright Idea: Protect our coastal environments. Following others' lead, here are some noteworthy strategies taken by communities worldwide to enhance resilience and sustainability of our waterfronts. Bright Ideas is by Portland Climate Action Team. https://thewestendnews.com/innovating-our-waterfronts-global-inspiration-for-local-solutions/
Come celebrate with and - We have a new office at Think Tank Coworking and want to celebrate with you. (Please private message me with your RSVP.)
Population growth is going to come, and we need to be proactive to make a place in which we want to live." -Myles Smith talks about the Gorham Corridor project. Read more about the opposition to this highway bypass in this month's PelotonPosts - https://thewestendnews.com/myles-smith-highways-vs-smiling-hill-farm/
Local bibliophile Stephanie Miller shares her experience of
Akwaeke Emezi's dazzling and devastating novel "The Death of Vivek Oji." https://thewestendnews.com/the-death-of-vivek-oji-a-dazzling-devastating-story/
This month we feature the free activities at the West End's community center, Reiche Community Room, and the volunteers that make them possible! Read all about it in this month's WEN -
Reiche Community Room Activities are free and open to the public and made possible by dedicated volunteers.
Among other notes on wine culture, Layne tells readers about Court of Two Sisters on Royal Street, a romantic, idyllic setting of old New Orleans with a world class wine list - and the home of the Krewe of Cork, the Wine Society of NOLA
- https://thewestendnews.com/the-problem-with-wine/
Here's a bright idea to kick your spring into gear, become a community scientist! Take the first step. Here's how: https://thewestendnews.com/become-a-community-scientist-this-spring/
Photo credit: Friends of Casco Bay Staff Scientist Mike Doan holds a data sonde, Courtesy photo
Article by Portland Climate Action Team
Local bibliophile Stephanie Miller takes Portland readers to a special library where the librarian is in the business of changing lives. Read her review of the international bestseller "What you are looking for is in the library," by Michiko Aoyama -https://thewestendnews.com/bookshort-what-you-are-looking-for-is-in-the-library-by-michiko-aoyama/
-Hanover Square Press, 2023
Seven Siegel (they/them), a Town Councilor in Gorham, informs readers about the ins and outs of the Gorham Connector project - the process, the opposition, the vision... Check out the March edition of PelotonPosts - https://thewestendnews.com/seven-siegel-talks-about-the-gorham-connector/
Since the first carbon fee and dividend bill was introduced, 28 Maine towns have passed municipal resolutions supporting national cashback carbon pricing. Has your town endorsed? - https://thewestendnews.com/maine-towns-demand-a-cashback-price-on-carbon-pollution/
Photo credits: 1) Flooded bike lane 2015 file photo. 2) King Tide downtown Portland, 2017 by Ron Fucci
Article by Peter Dugas, the State Coordinator for Citizens’ Climate Lobby
Seems this year winter may have skipped us here in Maine and Northern New England... But with the help of travel and friends Nancy is accepting and making the most while looking forward to spring! An ode to change, good and bad, within and without in this month's Adventure Travel column - https://thewestendnews.com/no-winter-last-forever/
Photo credits: 1) Nancy Dorrans outside PelotonLabs during a much snowier February 2015. 2) Nancy with student Mallory and fellow pre-adult coach Paige at New England Disabled Sports (NEDS), Loon Mountain, NH. -Photos courtesy of Nancy Dorrans
In its 37th year, the Camden Conference once again turned the town of Camden into a hub of international dialogue. This year’s topic: India: Rising Ambitions, Challenges at Home. Eva McVicar shares how Portland neighbors enjoyed the conference virtually at USM - https://thewestendnews.com/camden-conference-an-intellectual-journey-like-no-other/
-Photos: 1. David Brancaccio speaks with keynote speaker Nirupama Rao. 2. Bruce Cole, acting chair of the Camden Conference’s program committee, talks with conference speaker Arvind Subramanian, an Indian economist. -Photos courtesy of Camden Conference
"What’s your vision for how we build a future in Maine where you don’t have to get in a car to go anywhere?" Hear Gorham town councilor Seven Siegel's response to this question and learn about the Gorham Connector in the latest PelotonPosts podcast hosted by WEN. Thank you for listening to local independent media.
Every Month PelotonLabs founder Liz Trice interviews a community member for The West End News. This month Liz caught up with Seven Siegel (they/them), a Town Councilor in Gorham to discuss the pending Gorham Connector transportation project.
WEN's home for the past decade, coworking space PelotonLabs closes its doors. What's next for WEN? Find out in this tribute by Publisher-Editor Tony Zeli: https://thewestendnews.com/pelotonlabs-says-goodbye/
Photo credit - 1. PelotonLabs exterior and 2. window sign both by Nancy Dorrans, WEN Travel Contributor
Master Knight of the Vine Layne V. Witherell shares two excellent prix fixe menus in Portland, Maine - https://thewestendnews.com/two-dinners/
Catch Layne's Wine Gig live at Portland Blue on the 4th Wednesday of the month, 6-7p.
-All photos courtesy of Layne & Judy Witherell: 1) Layne tries a sherry luge with bone marrow at Chaval... 2+3) Layne and Judy at Maine Oyster Co.
This is a can't miss conversation on unsheltered homelessness in Portland, Maine today. Jess Falero has experienced homelessness and now is a peer advocate. Cullen Ryan has over 36 years of experience working with people experiencing homelessness. Their insights into the current state of homelessness in our city are invaluable. Read today - https://thewestendnews.com/jess-falero-cullen-ryan-a-conversation-about-unsheltered-homelessness/
Protect our winters - It's not your imagination. 2023 was the hottest year on record. What does this mean for our snowy New England winters? It doesn't look good, but there is something you can do to help protect our winters! https://thewestendnews.com/think-snow-ask-lawmakers-to-protect-our-winters/
File photo submitted by Greta Holmes, cross-country skiing in the West End of Portland, Maine.
Bayside's beloved bibliophile Stepanie Miller reviews "The First Ladies" in this month's Book Short - https://thewestendnews.com/the-first-ladies-a-groundbreaking-partnership/
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