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JOURNEY

INTO SLIM

Martha T.

Soto-Galicia

With spring

fast upon us,

another battle of

the bulge awaits

Editor's note: Today we welcome a weekly column by The Lebanon Voice president, Martha T. Soto-Galicia.

posted 10 a.m., Sunday, March 3

Spring is almost upon us, and I can hardly wait. The garden, the long days, so green and lush.

We can’t wait. With spring we lose our layers of clothes and OMG! What happened? Where did these folds come from? Are those flaps under my arms? I guess hot chocolate with Jack Daniels is high in calories.

The reality of the winter months of hibernation sink in and we know what comes next. Hours of trying to find the right diet, the right routine to shed these winter layers.

Once again, get on that healthy living horse.

Being overweight is all I know. The first time I cried about being fat I was 8 years old. My struggle has been a long, lonely and painful road. I am a true soldier in this war of overeating, and my knowledge has been acquired in battle. I have over 50 years of dieting nightmares behind me.

I was a traffic school instructor in Florida and a motivational speaker. What, you may be thinking, does that have to do with weight loss? It parallels as I am not only an instructor but a safe driver MOTIVATOR. I excel in helping people use what they already know and utilize it in their daily lives. Running red lights and Twinkies. They are both potentially lethal.

According to a study conducted by researchers from the University of South Carolina and published in the journal Translational Behavioral Medicine, Twitter, the social networking site, can be a powerful tool in promoting weight loss. That got me thinking: I don’t have to lose weight by myself. The good folks of Lebanon and Milton can take the journey with me.

In this column we can explore the latest news on weight loss, share what works and encourage each other on this healthy new life.

As every soldier knows you need a platoon behind you. So I ask you to take this Journey into Slim with me.

Martha T. Soto-Galicia, the president of The Lebanon Voice, is a longtime dieter and a motivational speaker. She lilves in Lebanon.

EDITORIAL

Teachers came through;

now it's the district's turn

posted 7 a.m., Sunday, March 3

When we heard last week that a MSAD 60 teachers union vote was to be held to determine whether educators would accept a one-day furlough to help the school district with its fiscal crisis, we considered writing an editorial exhorting them to accept the day off without pay, especially in light of the fact that their doing so was expected to bring back this year’s Excel and elementary band programs.

But that would’ve been like exhorting Florence Nightingale to help a suffering patient, or urging George Washington to tell the truth, or Martin Luther King that peaceful protest is the right way to change the wrongs of yesterday.

Was there ever a doubt teachers would be there for their kids?

True. Not all teachers voted to take the furlough day. Sixty-nine voted nay.

Teachers Union President Darcy Goulet said there is a level of distrust among teachers now, much of it due to the loss of so many educators’ jobs, including ed techs and teachers as well as school administrative and clerical support staff.

And, in fact, there’s no guarantee that taking the furlough day will bring any job or program back.

When jobs are lost, there are mortgages that don’t get paid and dreams that go unfulfilled. There’s hardship and pain.

Goulet would like to see some sort of oversight group to scrutinize how this year’s budget blew up, not to point fingers or assign blame, but to ensure that it doesn’t happen again next year, or any year ever again.

Some of the $580,000 shortfall has to do with Gov. LePage’s curtailment, about $185,000. But that still leaves a lot of money left underfunded.

Can things be done to mitigate the chances of such an occurrence in the future? Of course.

Will the district superintendent and school board work diligently to make sure that it doesn’t happen again? Guaranteed.

For teachers to be the best they can be in the educating of our children, do they need to know that those for whom they work are doing all they can to make them feel secure in their profession and career choice. Makes sense to us.

- HT

Maine State Police

in Lebanon full time

posted 11 a.m., Saturday, March 2

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

LEBANON - After years of revolving law enforcement coverage by Maine State Police and the York County Sheriff’s Office, the cumbersome practice has come to an end with State Police now providing full-time coverage to the town of Lebanon.

The new agreement was supposed to go into effect in January, but negotiations stalled between State Police and the YCSO for unspecified reasons.

Officials from the State Police and YCSO were unavailable for comment on Saturday.

In December the Sheriff’s Office had agreed in principle to the change, which was to give state

police sole law enforcement responsibility in Lebanon, Alfred, Dayton, Lyman and Hollis.

It is not known if that plan was the one ultimately approved by both law enforcement agencies.

The talks began back in October.

In December Lt. Louis Nyitray, commander of State Police Troop A in Alfred, told The Lebanon Voice that the two agencies sharing coverage of Lebanon on a month-to-month basis didn’t allow for optimum law enforcement or allow for the consistency of community policing people deserve.

He added that either the State Police or YSCO would do a much better job of community policing and protection if they were doing the job alone and not rotating back and forth month to month.

Milton fire chief hopes

for high voter turnout

posted 11 a.m., Friday, March 1

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

MILTON - Two years ago a vote to build a new Milton Fire Station failed by just seven votes.

This time around Milton Fire and Rescue Chief Nick Marique is hoping for a large voter turnout, which he hopes will help secure town approval and town funding for a new $2.7M headquarters.

To try to spur public awareness of the need Milton Fire and Rescue have had several open houses at their current headquarters.

A final open house before the vote is scheduled for Thursday at 6:30 p.m., where Marique will provide a powerpoint discussion detailing the inadequacies of the current station as well as offer tours of the stationhouse.

“I think a larger turnout will help” Marique said Friday of the upcoming vote. “It seems a larger

percentage (of residents) are for it, and even those who are against still agree we need a new one.”

The main sticking point among naysayers is the cost, Marique said, but he said the building committee worked very hard to get the best bang for the buck and prices are only going to go up if voters don’t act now.

“The biggest thing is that there’s people who always vote, (but) in order for this to pass, for people who want a fire station, if you’re thinking your vote isn’t going to count, that’s off base on this issue. We want everyone in town to have a say.”

Since it involves a bond issue, voters need to approve the funding by a three-fifths majority, which makes the hill a tougher climb, Marique admits.

In another effort at outreach, Milton Fire and Rescue has sent postcards to every town resident making its case for a new station.

MILTON SELECTMEN CANDIDATE PROFILES

Ghip Gehres

Age: 67

Family: married, one daughter

lived in Milton since 1991

Occupation: sales manager

Town government experience: school board, budget committee, conservation committee, economic development committee, Zoning Board of Appeals

Chip Gehres is focused on one thing and one thing alone: slow the rate of tax growth in Milton.

“By far that’s the most important thing,” he said this week, adding the “economy doesn’t allow people to support the rates of tax increases in the past years.

“We’ve got to slow the rate of growth.”

In addition, he said he wanted to be a part of the fire department’s quest for a new station if they don’t get it this year.”

He had no comment on how he would vote regarding the proposed $2.7 million fire station.

He added that his experience on various town boards gives him the ability to decide on things when they come up and how the town should proceed.

Mike Beaulieu

Age: 57

Family: married, three children

lived in Milton for 20 years

Occupation: self-employed contractor

First time running for office

Mike Beaulieu wants to be a part of what makes Milton work, he says.

Among his priorities are working on finding a solution to the loss of the New Bridge Road bridge that connects Lebanon.

“I look across at the Maine side and I see a failing business, and all the people over there who want to shop in Milton are inconvenienced and have to go to the south side bridge,” he said.

He’d also like to find more activities for the youth of Milton as well as the town’s senior citizens.

Thirdly, he’d also like to take a hard look at the tax rate.

“I’ve listened to the people of Milton, there are a lot of concerns about the tax rate,” he said, adding he’d like to see more commercial development so people wouldn’t always have to leave town to do business and shopping, which he said would lower the residential tax rate.

He said he supported the fire department, but was leery of the $2.7 million cost for the proposed new headquarters. He would not say how he would vote on the proposal.

Finally, he sympathized with lakeside property owners saddled with high view taxes. “The lake is the engine of the town, and I think residents who live on the lake get beaten up pretty good on the tax rate,” he said. “I can’t make a promise that I could soften the blow but would like to put my participation into this to see what I can do.”

Band, Excel

programs

set to be

reinstated

posted 7 a.m., Wednesday, March 6

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

Acting as promised, MSAD 60 Superintendent Steve Connolly is following through with his pledge to reinstate elementary band and schoolwide Excel programs after teachers accepted a furlough day that eased the district’s financial crisis.

Connolly will present the school board with his proposal to reinstate the programs tomorrow night, and it is his expectation that the board will go along.

Both programs were a part of Connolly’s Priority 1 list of student services that would be brought back if funds became available.

The teachers overwhelming approval of the furlough day last Thursday loosened up those necessary funds.

The programs were to have been eliminated May 17 due to the district’s $580,000 budget shortfall for the current fiscal year, which ends June 30.

In a letter posted Monday on the MSAD 60 website, Connolly thanked teachers as well as clerical, secretarial, administrative, custodial and maintenance staff for “sharing the district’s financial burden.”

In order to follow through with what amounts to one less day of school, elementary teachers will forgo planned spring conferences, while grades 6-12 teachers will recoup a half day through eliminating spring conferences, with the other half day to be determined.

With no spring conferences, Connolly urged parents to take advantage of the district’s Infinite Campus website portal to stay up to date on students’ academic progress.

Connolly said he was heartened by the teachers vote.

“So many things that have taken place negatively, that this was nice,” he said on Tuesday.

He added he’s confident the district will be able to meet all its financial obligations connected to the current fiscal year with no further layoffs or loss of student services.

Accepting the furlough day means the school will have just 179 days of instruction instead of the mandated 180, but Connolly is confident that due to the district’s financial dilemma the one-day reduction by will be approved by the state.

Boarding (to) school

Harrison Thorp photo

Austin McKay and Ken Breeden, both of Charles Street in Milton, take advantage of balmy temperatures on Saturday to board to Rochester, where they were headed to the skate park at Spaulding. They said it would take them about an hour to get there whereas walking takes about two hours. The first weekend in memory without a snowstorm gets even better today with highs forecast near 50.

posted 2 p.m., Monday, March 4

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

It looks like any replacement talks for the New Bridge Road bridge are dead in the water.

Six months after New Hampshire removed its portion of the decking and a week after Maine removed theirs, there’s been little accomplished at the state or local level, according to Jeff Everett, who as owner of Everett's Cove Marina may have the most to lose.

“I’ve talked to selectmen from both towns and I don’t think anyone cares,” Everett said over the weekend.

He’ll open his marina as usual in late spring, but with a trimmed down workforce amid dimmed hopes for a successful summer.

The talk from New Hampshire and Maine hasn’t changed since questions about the bridge’s need to be replaced first surfaced three years ago. Maine won’t even begin to discuss a timetable to fix the bridge until New Hampshire says it has the money.

And the New Hampshire Department of Transportation won’t even put it on a timetable until Milton pledges to commit its share of the cost, which is 20 percent of half of the total expenditure necessary. The other half would be paid by Maine.

In the meantime, Everett looks from his once-flourishing marina out onto the channel and sees a bunch of pilings, skeletal remains of a once bucolic span, a span folks from Milton used to traverse several times a week for an ice cream cone at his marina’s small eatery.

“I depended on that Milton crowd,” Everett said, adding at least a footbridge ensured him some regular customers.

A new one-lane concrete bridge has been estimated at $1.4 million. On the New Hampshire DOT website it shows the Granite State’s estimated cost at $700,000, with Milton’s portion at $140,000.

But until Milton submits an application for State Bridge Aid and Construction in which it pledges its share, the project won’t even go on a timetable, according to Stephen Liakos, the state bridge engineer for the New Hampshire DOT’s Bureau of Planning and Community Assistance.

Milton Town Administrator Joe Ryan said today a variety of options had been discussed in recent meetings but would not be specific.

Selectmen from Milton and Lebanon were unavailable for comment for this story.

If the state of New Hampshire did approve funding, the earliest it could be fixed would be 2023. That timeframe would also be dependent on Maine’s OK.

As bridge options fade,

is there an alternative?

Beyond the daunting task of coordinating a major project such as this between two states and two towns, the overall bridge replacement and repair funding levels of both states are at historic lows.

Chip Getchell, a Maine Department of Transportation spokesman, said last week that the state’s bridge budget had tightened significantly. He said for the next biennial budget the department was getting about half of what it needed.

Liakos said assistance programs to help municipalities like Milton were totally stressed, with not nearly enough money to go around.

Could there be an alternative?

Everett, who said he sometimes feels like he’s chasing windmills, has gone so far as do his own research, poring over the Internet and elsewhere looking for less expensive spans that might serve as alternatives to a more-expensive state-built bridge.

He said he’s gotten some quotes from a company called Excel Bridge Manufacturing Company (www.excelbridge.com) that offer a two-lane bridge for about $220.000, even less for a one-lane bridge.

Both New Hampshire and Maine DOTs said if the two towns decide to go it alone, that’s fine with them, adding they would even inspect and approve preliminary plans.

Liakos said several towns in New Hampshire have decided to go it alone building bridges, unable or unwilling to wait for state funding.

While New Hampshire and Maine wait in the wings to see if a plan comes together, Everett doesn’t have that luxury. His marina and ice cream shop open in about 12 weeks.

“We’ll see what happens,” he said.

After subcontractors for the state of Maine removed decking from the Lebanon side last week, all that remains are the wooden pilings, hardly a tourist brochure moment.

Harrison Thorp photo

One of the bridges built by Excel Bridge Manufacturing Co. that could be bought for about $200,000, some $1.2 million less than a concrete bridge.

Second hit-run victim

interviewed by police

posted 2 p.m., Tuesday, March 5

By Harrison Thorp

LEBANON - State Police have spoken to both females struck in last Friday’s hit-and-run incident on Flat Rock Bridge Road and say they are now trying to locate the vehicle and person who was driving.

Early reports of the incident indicated only one female victim was involved and that she was struck twice by the same vehicle before a suspect fled.

The female, in her 20s and from Rochester, was transported to Frisbie Memorial Hospital. State Police Spokesman Stephen McCausland said on

Determine the circumstances, and chain of events.Tuesday the woman suffered a broken leg.

The incident occurred around 3:15 p.m. near the Flat Rock Bridge Family Camping Resort.

A second woman who was hit but left the scene prior to Lebanon Rescue personnel arriving has now been located and interviewed by police, McCausland said. The extent of her injuries are thought to be minor, but McCausland had no additional information on her condition.

"Right now we're trying to determine the circumstances and chain of events," he said..

Snow budgets OK,

road bosses report

posted 1 p.m., Thursday, March 7

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

Despite one of the snowiest winters in recent memory, road bosses in Milton and Lebanon say their snow budgets are in decent shape despite taking a pounding the past two months.

Lebanon Road Commissioner Larry Torno said the two-a-week storms we were getting for a while had put a slight strain on his budget, but he’d planned for a hard winter, he said.

Torno said he normally expends about $14,000 a week for plowing during the hard winter months, but the past two months he’s been spending about 20,000 a week.

He said he staying within his budget, however, but says if the stormy pattern continues much more, it will affect what projects he can tackle come spring.

“We can’t take too many more of these storms,” he said on Thursday. “It’s getting to the point if we keep going like this it’s gonna be less we can get done this spring.”

Torno said he’s still waiting to find out if the town will be reimbursed by state emergency officials for the $51,000 the town spent on plowing during the Blizzard of 2013.

He said he’s hopeful the money will be allocated.

Meanwhile, Milton Highway Chief Pat Smith said his budget’s looking pretty good as well and that he’s got plenty of sand and salt to get him through the rest of the season.

He said he’s spent about $25,000 overall in snow removal overtime this year, which isn’t much in light of the number of plowable events.

He added he’s used about 2,000 yards of sand and has run out of salt money, but has enough left to get him through the winter.

A LEBANON VOICE SPECIAL REPORT: AFTERMATH OF A SHOOTING

Affidavit paints chilling picture of Jan. shooting

The affidavit says when Ronald Bauer, 48, demanded money from Potorksi, who said he had none, Bauer replied chillingly, “Well, I got nothing to lose then” and shot him in the shoulder area.

Susan Gutierrez wasn't happy with just stolen items, the affidavit states. She wanted him to get some cash.

posted 9 a.m., Friday, March 8

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

LEBANON - When Ronald Bauer returned from burglarizing a home with some stolen items but no money, his girlfriend became angry and “ordered him to go back and get money,” according to her arrest affidavit filed at York County Superior Court in Alfred.

About 20 minutes later, Richard Potorski lay in a pool of blood, paralyzed on the floor of his Second Street home, and Susan Gutierrez was leaving the Dunkin Donuts in East Rochester headed to a Rochester shopping plaza to pick up Bauer, who had just phoned to say he’d shot a man and stolen his black Ford Explorer.

The affidavit says Bauer, 48, demanded money from Potorski, who had caught him burglarizing his home. When Potorski said he had none, Bauer replied chillingly, “Well, I got nothing to lose then” and shot Potorski in the shoulder area.

Dunkin’ Donuts surveillance tape shows a vehicle matching Gutierrez’ green 1996 BMW convertable pulling in at 12:16 p.m. and leaving at 12:39 headed south on Route 202 toward the Spaulding Turnpike, according to the affidavit.

That was two months ago, today.

Since then the pair have been arrested and jailed: Bauer at the New Hampshire State Prison in Concord for parole violations connected from an earlier conviction; and Gutierrez in the Alfred jail, unable to come up with her $400,000 bail.

Gutierrez, 48, of Epping, N.H., is charged with elevated aggravated assault, a Class A felony; and hindering apprehension, a Class B felony.

Bauer still has no file at York County Superior Court, having been remanded to New Hampshire State Prison.

Meanwhile, Potorski remains paralyzed, bullet fragments lodged in his spinal canal from the gunshot wound to the shoulder allegedly inflicted by Bauer at close range.

Potorksi’s wife found him lying on the bathroom floor that fateful Tuesday and summoned help. He was conscious but couldn’t move his legs, the affidavit states. He told her he had been shot by an intruder.

Potorski was Medflighted to Maine Medical Center in Portland, where he stayed for an extended period of time. Due to medical privacy laws, his condition now is unknown. Steve McCausland, spokesman for Maine State Police, would only say last week that he was alive.

According to the affidavit, Potorski’s wife found several items missing from the house, including jewelry, a digital camera, a white Ipod and silver tea set.

The affidavit sheds light on why Bauer and Gutierrez were in Lebanon that Tuesday two months ago and what they did immediately following the shooting.

They had come to Lebanon with the expressed intent to burglarize a home for money, the affidavit states. Gutierrez dropped Bauer off in an unspecified area on Route 202 and waited in her car. When Bauer returned a while later with some stolen items but no money, she demanded he go back and get some money, setting in motion the day’s tragic turn of events.

After the duo met up at the Rochester plaza after the alleged shooting they ditched Potorski’s SUV behind the Big Lots and bolted with some stolen items but no money.

Around 2 p.m. on the same day, Jan. 8, Bauer used his New Hampshire ID to sell allegedly stolen items at a Seacoast pawn shop.

Little is known about their movements after that until they were arrested Jan. 16 at an Indigo Hill, Somersworth address on a fugitive from justice charge.

The next day they appeared in Dover District Court, where Bauer was ordered remanded to prison for parole violations in connection with firearms and drug trafficking convictions in Strafford County.

The violations put him in prison till late 2014, but he could appeal for a shortened sentence, a prison spokesperson said.

Gutierrez, who was convicted for drug trafficking in 2009, is scheduled for a status conference in April.

Susan Gutierrez Ronald Bauer

Lebanon Rescue photo

Law enforcement officers swarm the crime scene on Second Street in Lebanon on Jan. 8.

JOURNEY

INTO SLIM

Martha T.

Soto-Galicia

You can't sleep

it off, but it's

a good start

posted 6 a.m., Sunday, March 10

We are back to Daylight Saving time. Gain an hour, lose an hour; bottom line it messes with our sleep.

A recent study completed by the Institute of Human Nutrition found that reduced sleep may lead to a tendency to overeat. That can explain my bad food choices after a less-than-perfect night’s sleep.

So we get more time in the sun. Great time to go out and start taking a slow stroll. I tend to overthink my exercise routine and by the time I can do it, I’m exhausted just thinking about it. Don’t think, just do it.

During the time I was at my thinnest I walked four miles a day. I could maintain my weight at 2.5 miles a day. I now go up and down the stairs to the kitchen; that’s the extent of my activities.

So I will once again start some kind of workout routine. But what you ask? Well I only like to go to the gym when we don’t have power; they have hot showers. And no matter how hard we pray, spring is not quite here so walking is out for now.

I’m going to start working on my sleeping routine first and as the studies suggest, I will make sure to get eight good hours of sleep. It’s a small step but an important one nonetheless.

A recent study completed by the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and published in Appetite, sought to understand how the types of foods a person eats affects their sleep. Analyzing data from more than 4,500 people, the researchers divided the participants into four groups based on their sleep patterns: “Very Short” sleepers were those that slept less than 5 hours per night, ”Short” slept 5-6 hours per night, ”Standard’’ got 7-8 hours of shut-eye, and ”Long” sleepers slept for 9 hours or more.

“Very Short” sleepers ate less red and orange-colored fruits and vegetables (i.e., foods which are rich in antioxidants and vitamins.) Short sleepers ate more lutein - a substance found in leafy greens, but had a lower intake of vitamin C and tap water. Longer sleepers consumed the most alcohol. The “Standard” sleepers were found to have the most varied and well-rounded diet.

I will strive to be among the “standard” sleepers to achieve the well-rounded diet. But I think I will try the “long” sleepers way first; sleep is sleep.

Martha T. Soto-Galicia, the president of The Lebanon Voice, is a longtime dieter and a motivational speaker. She lilves in Lebanon.

Srnec: This is the

wrong year to OK

new fire station

Posted noon, Monday, March 11

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

Selectmen Chairman Bob Srnec told The Lebanon Voice today that his vote on the $2.7 million Milton Fire and Rescue proposal was misrepresented on tomorrow’s Milton ballot, that he had voted against the new fire station and that he thought this year was not the right year to saddle taxpayers with the added burden.

On the ballot’s Article 2, it states that town selectmen were unanimously in favor of the bond. The Deliberative Session warrant from last month indicated a unanimous board approval as well.

Srnec said they both were incorrect.

“I don’t think this is the year to put it in,” he said today. “I’m totally in favor of a new fire station, so I don’t care how it goes. But I’m not in favor of doing it this year.

“Even without the fire station, taxes are going up about 4 percent.

Srnec said he thought this was a good year to bring up the police salaries and those of other town employees. He also felt the highway department needed some new equipment.

“The old equipment is beginning to break down a lot, and it’s costing us money,” he said.

He added the town bought a new firetruck and a new ambulance just last year.

Selectmen Tom Gray and Bob Bridges voted for the new fire station.

The proposal requires a 60-percent voter approval for passage.

Srnec will retire from the board this Friday at 5 p.m. when the winner of tomorrow’s selectmen’s race will be sworn in.

Selectmen chairman says they got his vote wrong on Tuesday ballot

Meeting minutes

refute comment

made by Srnec

posted 4:30 p.m., Monday, March 11

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

Selectmen Chairman Bob Srnec’s statement that he voted against the proposed $2.7 million fire station bond has been categorically denied by the town’s two other selectmen and refuted by a review of meeting minutes by the town clerk’s office this afternoon.

Srnec could not be immediately reached regarding his comments earlier in the day, in which he said he voted against the proposal and that his vote had been misrepresented on the town meeting warrant on which residents vote tomorrow.

Selectmen Tom Gray and Bob Bridges noted that it was, indeed, a unanimous vote when selectmen voted on the referendum question earlier this year.

The town clerk’s office called The Lebanon Voice this afternoon to confirm meeting minutes indicated Srnec voted for the new fire station proposal.

Other residents called The Lebanon Voice concerned with the timing of the story the day before the election.

Srnec told The Lebanon Voice earlier today that he had voted against the new fire station and that he thought this year was not the right year to saddle taxpayers with the added burden .

On the ballot’s Article 2, it states that town selectmen were unanimously in favor of the bond. The Deliberative Session warrant from last month indicated a unanimous board approval as well.

Srnec said earlier today they both were incorrect.

“Even without the fire station, taxes are going up about 4 percent,” Srnec said, explaining why he was against it.

Srnec will retire from the board this Friday at 5 p.m. when the winner of tomorrow’s selectmen’s race will be sworn in.

Gray, Bridges agree he

voted for new fire station

Lebanon man indicted

on stolen property rap

posted 10:30 a.m., Thursday, March 14

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

A Lebanon man has been indicted by a York County grand jury on a charge of receiving stolen property.

Christopher M. Witt, 32, of 100 Creamery Hill Road, was arrested by Sanford police, who were

unavailable on Thursday for comment on the case.

Witt faces his first court hearing following the indictment in April.

An indictment is not an indication of guilt, only that a grand jury has found sufficient evidence for the case to proceed to trial.

Receiving stolen property is a Class C felony punishable by up to five years in prison plus a fine.

BETWEEN

THE LINES

Harrison Thorp

Fire station

vote was

hardly a

rejection

posted 9 a.m., Thursday, March 14

Call it the immaculate invection.

When outgoing selectman Bob Srnec said he thought he voted against the proposed $2.7 million fire station, he didn’t come out and rail against it.

He didn’t do any negative posturing against the project at the deliberative session or even up to the day before the election.

All he did was, in answering a reporter’s question about what he would say to Milton voters who were against the project (the questioner thinking all along he was for the new fire station as indicated in the printed warrant), was casually reveal that he was, in fact, against the article, himself, and had voted against it at a selectmen’s meeting earlier this year.

When confronted with the fact that he had, in fact, voted for the new fire station, he reiterated he’d thought he voted against it.

Could there be an absence of malice?

Remember in the first inning of Game One of the 1975 World Series against the Reds? Dwight Evans believed he had heard third-base coach Don Zimmer shout “Go!” when the coach had actually yelled “No!” on an infield hit by Fred Lynn. Evans rounded third and ran for home, only to be cut down by Dave Concepcion’s throw to the plate.

Miscommunication happens all the time. I’m sure everyone reading this could tell a whopper about their experiences with the phenomenon.

But it is intriguing, and vexing, to ponder if those comments by Srnec on the eve of the vote could have cost the vote. It’s something we’ll never know for sure. Just 21 votes spelled the difference.

One thing is for sure. Milton voters certainly did not reject the fire station. They actually overwhelmingly supported it.

Consider the presidential election of last year. President Obama won 51 percent of the popular vote to Romney’s 47 percent and pundits labeled it an “overwhelming” victory for the president.

Now look at Milton’s vote: 447 for the fire station, 334 against.

That means 57 percent of Miltonians were for the new fire station even though it was going to raise their property taxes (about $80 or $90 a year for the average homeowner).

Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on which side of the fence you sit, the issuance of a bond required a 60 percent majority.

If it were a presidential election, Nick Marique would be getting ready for the inaugural ball, instead of behind the eight ball, again.

Heavy load

limits on

town roads

set till April

posted 6 a.m., Tuesday, March 12

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

LEBANON - Just like March is the time sap flows freely in the maples, it’s also the time town roads become soft and can be damaged by heavy trucks, according to Lebanon Road Commissioner Larry Torno.

Torno has posted signs throughout the town warning truckers to stay of most town roads.

“At this time of year the roads are actually soft,” he said. “It gets soft underneath the pavement because the moisture stays. It’s muddy on top.”

Sometimes it can mean frost heaves; sometimes the damage can be more severe.

The signs restrict heavy trucks on almost all Lebanon Roads to about 12 tons. The only ones open for heavy trucks are Route 202, Depot Road, Milton Mills Road and Hubbard Road.

Torno says he does allow heavy trucks to travel between 6-9 a.m. because chilly nights prevent road damage through the early morning hours.

He said any resident who sees semi-trailer trucks on restricted roads later than 9 a.m. should call State Police and report it. He said the signs will stay up until April 15.

Home invasion

gun use 'justified'

posted 11:30 a.m., Friday, March 15

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

LEBANON - A Lebanon man who was shot as he and two accomplices allegedly attempted to carry out an armed home invasion in Farmington in January faces possible indictment by a Strafford County grand jury.

Matthew Roaf, 22, of 33 Second St., waived his probable cause hearing at Rochester District Court earlier this month and will await the grand jury’s decision in April.

Tom Velardi, County Attorney for Strafford County, said the man who shot Roaf and one of the other intruders will not face any criminal liability in the case because the shooting was “justifiable under the circumstances.”

Roaf turned himself into police several days after the shooting after being treated for a single gunshot wound to the torso at a Boston hospital. He was shot by a .22-caliber rifle, Velardi said.

Roaf is charged with robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery, both Class A felonies. Stephen Roy, 24, of Lords Court, Somersworth, and Joshua Dionne, 27, of Market Street, North Berwick, have also been charged.

It is alleged that on Jan. 11 Dionne waited in a vehicle outside, while Roaf and Roy, both wearing masks, entered a Meetinghouse Hill Road residence while demanding drugs and money. Roy allegedly used a machete to threaten the two occupants.

Lebanon suspect shot during alleged robbery try

at Farmington residence

Velardi said the man who did the shooting was actually outside the home, heard the commotion, then came in and confronted the intruders after which the shots were fired.

Roy was treated at York Hospital for a gunshot wound to the head.

Whether any of the three charged in the home invasion knew any of the other three individuals is still part of the investigation, Velardi said, but no one at the Meetinghouse Hill Road home is considered a suspect.

“We’re still looking at why the three had come to choose that particular house,” Velardi said.

Matthew Roaf

Three locals

nabbed in

burglary try

Police say trio

attempted to

rob Farmington

general store

posted 10 a.m., Saturday, March 16

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

Two Lebanon men and a Milton woman have been arrested in the attempted burglary of a Farmington convenience store last Sunday, a store that ended up proving troubleome for alleged lawbreakers twice the same night.

Ryan D. Towle, 17, of 94 Hubbard Road, Lebanon; Dustin A. Rice, 20, of 54 Kennebeck Drive, Lebanon; and Tammy Ewing, 18, of 14 Pineland Park, Milton, were arrested early the following day on charges of attempted burglary and conspiracy to commit burglary.

Towle was also charged with criminal mischief for damage he allegedly caused to the store, likely a window broken in a vain attempt to gain access.

The three were released on personal recognizance bail and will be arraigned in Rochester Circuit Court.

Around 10 p.m.the night of the incident Farmington officers responded to the Route 11 store for an alarm activation. They found a broken window and heard movement in the woods nearby, according to police reports.

While Farmington Patrolman. Sean Leach stopped a vehicle that was leaving the area and detained three people, a Rochester Police Officer with a police dog conducted a K-9 track that led to where the suspects’ vehicle was parked.

Two of the detained suspects matched the likenesses of the alleged perpetrators caught on tape from store cameras, polce said.

Later that night around 2 a.m. a separate attempted burglary occurred in which the suspect used a truck stolen in Alton later found torched in Rochester.

The suspect in that case also broke a window to gain entry, tripped the alarm and was seen speeding away in the truck by a witness who worked at a local business.

Shortly afterward, Rochester Police Department officers discovered a charred 2005 Ford Ranger that was believed to be involved in the attempted burglary.

Despite being hit twice the same night, none of the suspects ever gained entry into the store, police said.

Anyone with information regarding this incident should contact Sgt. Scott Ferguson at the Farmington Police Department at 755-2731 x110.

Ryan D. Towle of Lebanon

Tammy Ewing of Milton

Dustin A Rice of Lebanon

Sunday bar hours story

turned out a tasty scoop

BETWEEN

THE LINES

Harrison Thorp

So I was working the afternoon shift on The Lebanon Voice city desk. It was quiet. Too quiet.

Then I got a call from an old friend. He wised me up to a story I hadn’t heard, one that intrigued me and my editor.

He said Trains Tavern was starting a petition to put a warrant article on the June ballot that would allow residents to drink at town bars on Sunday.

I said whoa. This is huge.

Next thing they’ll be letting you buy lottery tickets on Sunday and buy beer at a convenience store, I said to my editor. He said they already do, kid.

I said, Oh.

Anyway we smelled a story, so I hotfooted it to Trains Tavern.

Got there about 4 o’clock, and I was thirsty, let me tell ya.

So I asked the barmaid if she could swipe my card for just one beer and she said no.

She had legs that didn’t stop and a perky disposition I knew I could get used to.

She said, you live in town? I said, yeah. I knew she was after me.

She said, You want to sign a petition that allows the tavern to sell alcohol on Sunday?

I said, Oh (feeling a little let down) sure.

She said, You a registered voter?

I got a little peeved, Yeah, what of it?

She said, Well, you have to live in town and be a registered voter to sign the petition.

I said (again) Oh.

Then she says, OK, I’ll let you buy just one beer on the card.

Then before I could say Bud Light this guy sitting next to me says, I’ll buy ‘em a beer. He was with his female friend.

I signed the petition for the cute barmaid behind the bar and said thanks to the guy buying me the beer. He was snarfing down some good looking chicken wings that he said were a dime apiece. I said they look pretty good. He ordered me a buck’s worth. Guy was pretty loose with his money.

I thought to myself, this is OK. I’m out chasing a story and getting free beer and dinner, and my editor is back at the office editing school lunches. What a country.

Then my cuisine and brewski benefactor leans over and he says, They should be able to serve here on Sunday. It’s stupid that they can’t. I mean we like to go ridin’ on the bike in the summer, and after we ride a while we want to stop and have a beer. And if they don’t let you get a beer in the summer when you’re out on your bike and enjoying the day, well, we’ll go elsewhere.

The wings were very tasty. I nodded in agreement.

Let’s hope they get the signatures necessary for the warrant article and town residents get wise. It makes no sense to make folks leave town to enjoy a beer on a Sunday. It just takes money out of the town and oftentimes out of the state.

Me, I finished my beer and most of the wings. Last thing I remember as I left was seeing him eating the few I left behind.

That’s a guy you could depend on, I thought. A real, true wing man.

Fire station bond

narrowly misses

posting 6:50 am., Wednesday, March 13

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

In a stunning turn of events a $2.7 million bond proposal to fund a new Milton Fire Station failed to reach the 60 percent approval vote required by just 21 votes on Tuesday, one day after Selectmen Chairman Bob Srnec revealed he had voted against the measure instead of for it as reflected on the ballot.

A review by the Town Clerk’s office on Monday showed Srnec had, in fact, voted in concert with the other two selectmen in approving the new fire station earlier this year.

Srnec reiterated his claim that he voted against it again on Tuesday as he sat inside the Emma Ramsey center with still-Town Clerk Michelle Beauchamp.

“I honestly thought I voted for it,” Srnec said. “They tell me I voted for it, but I don’t think I did.”

The defeat was a crushing blow to Milton Fire and Rescue Chief Nick Marique who did everything from guided tours of the current fire station’s dilapidated headquarters to Open Houses to compelling powerpoint presentations to drive home his point that now, in fact, was the time to take on the building project.

In the selectmen’s race, political newcomer Mike Beaulieu defeated Chip Gehres, 385-336, while Michelle Beauchamp retained her town clerk/tax collector position over James Smith, 506-263.

Former Milton police officer Reginald “Andy” Crone won a spot on the school board with 304 votes, joining Ann Walsh who had 540 votes.

Articles 3 and 5, which both dealt with purchasing or leasing new dump truck/snowplows were defeated, 446-341 and 458-319, respectively, as well as the town’s $3.5 million operating budget, 422-355. The town will now revert to the default budget, which is $3.4 million.

A number of functionary funding mechanisms for maintenance and upkeep of town equipment and capital reserve accounts all passed.

An article to buy $5,000 worth of computers for Milton Free Public Library also passed.

Both articles that proposed selectmen appoint the Fire Chief and Public Works Director rather than have them elected failed, 484-306 and 485-285, respectively .

An article that would end the practice of depositing 50 percent of revenues collected by the land use change tax penalty into a Milton Conservation Commission account and instead funnel all the funds into the town’s general coffers also failed, 427-332.

The proposal to change Milton Free Public Library purchasing agents from library trustees to selectmen also failed.

Other election victories include Pam Arnold as treasurer, Nicholas Marique as fire chief, Candace Cole-McCrea as library trustee, Eric Ohlenbusch for budget committee; Lisa Stewart as Trustee of the Trust Fund, Joseph A. Michaud and Lawrence D. Brown for planning board, and Brown and Beaulieu for the Zoning Board of Adjustment.

In addition Chris Jacobs was returned as School District Moderator and Kristine Giunco as School District Treasurer.

A number of positions had no candidates and as of this posting the write-ins had not been released.

Town clerk candidate James Smith at the candidates' line outside the Emma Ramsey Center on Tuesday.

Mike Beaulieu

...ready to listen and learn

Beaulieu says he's ready to get down to business

posted 6 a.m., Friday, March 15

MILTON - Mike Beaulieu said he was excited at the prospects of becoming a town selectman today at 5 p.m. when he is sworn in at a brief ceremony at the Emma Ramsey Center.

“I am happy that I won and looking forward to getting started,” he said this week after winning the election on Tuesday.

Beaulieu defeated Chip Gehres, 385-336, to win his first political office.

“I found out about 7:30 (p.m. on Election Day),” said Beaulieu adding it was a long day standing outside for about 11 hours in a cold drizzle.

Beaulieu added he’s ready to listen and learn from the other selectmen and try to help the town move forward.

Mark Wachowiak

Milton man

sentenced in

theft case

posted 6 a.m., Friday, March 15

A Milton man facing a felony burglary trial was sentenced earlier this month on a lesser charge in connection with the case.

Mark Wachowiak, 20, received a one-year sentence with all but 10 days suspended, and a one-year supervised probation for a guilty finding on a theft charge, a misdemeanor, instead.

The charges alleged Wachowiak entered a residence’s garage on St. James Ave on Feb. 5 with the intent to commit the theft.

The guilty finding was entered on March 6. The burglary charge was thrown out.

After 12 months supervised probation, Wachowiak will face another 12 months during which the sentence can be reinstated if he violates conditions of his probation.

A word to

the whys

for dieters

posted 9 a.m., Monday, March 18

The most important question you can ask yourself before beginning a new diet is WHY. That word will save you from making less-than-perfect decisions and also save you thousands of calories a year.

Why do you want to diet? Why did you gain the weight? Why do you want to lose it? Why are there calories in the air? Once you answer those then you can go on to the food plan you feel will be most beneficial to your lifestyle. Why that one?

It’s a sea of why’s but without a clear picture of what you want and how you will achieve it, we are lost and just wonder.

Now you know what you want and what your goal is. Our friend, Why, can help with the everyday battles. Why do you want to eat that? Why do you want to eat it now?

This might sound strange but I need to ask myself such questions because I had to take measures and keep a journal of my food intake so as not to fall victim of EATING AMNESIA. A nasty monster if you ask me.

Why? To be honest, I have been known to forget eating a complete meal. Not to mention the snacks and everything else that popped into my mouth as I walked through the kitchen on any given day.

Dr. Anne McTiernan, Ph.D. and researcher from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center reported in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, "For individuals who are trying to lose weight, the No. 1 piece of advice based on these study results would be to keep a food journal to help meet daily calorie goals. It is difficult to make changes to your diet when you are not paying close attention to what you are eating."

So I will start by keeping a journal of my food consumption and staying in the 1,200 calorie range per day. I will ask why of myself before putting anything in my mouth. Sometimes asking why is enough to deter me. I will follow the advice of the good doctor and pay close attention to my intake.

I am sleeping more and as for working out, spring is just around the corner.

JOURNEY

INTO SLIM

Martha T.

Soto-Galicia

Harrison Thorp photo

Near whiteout conditions prevail Tuesday afternoon on Prospect Hill.

End-of-winter whallop

ushers in cold spring

posted 8:30 a.m., Wednesday, March 20

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

Yesterday at the height of the storm, Milton Police Cpl. Evan Favorite reported traffic on Milton roads was light and no accidents had been reported.

In Lebanon the only crash called in during the storm turned out to be a phantom wreck in the area of Champion Street and Poplar Hill Road that was mysteriously cleared before Fire and Rescue crews arrived.

It seems that every year as winter winds down Milton and Lebanon residents finally figure out how to drive in the snow and respect Mother Nature enough to avoid driving unless they have to.

In Lebanon, despite snowfall that continued on and off for 24 hours, only about 10 inches was measured on Prospect Hill.

Whiteout conditions occurred several times Tuesday afternoon as blowing, falling snow combined with snow dislodged from trees by heavy gusts.

Despite the winds and heavy snow, no power outages were reported in either town.

In one of the snowiest and stormiest winters in recent memory, it was only appropriate that this last storm of winter ushered in what is forecast to be a very cold start to spring, which begins today.

According to Accuweather long-range predictions, high temperatures the next three weeks will be well below seasonal averages, with the vast majority of days a full 10 degrees below the average; while snow-haters will be happy to know the only snow forecast after today is a possible brief snowshower on April 3, when the high will be only 41.

One of the few days spared the frigid temps will be Easter Sunday, with a high of 51. The Easter Bunny is expected to approve.

According to Accuweather long-range predictions, high temperatures the next three weeks will be well below seasonal averages, with the vast majority of days a full 10 degrees below the average.

A sign at the corner of Rochester and Upper Barley roads shows Bob Fizzell, contrary to statements made last year, wants to stay a selectman.

Harrison Thorp photos

Frizzell

running

again

posted 4 p.m., Thursday, March 21

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

Selectmen Chairman Bob Frizzell, who said at a selectmen’s workshop last year that he would not be running for re-election, has taken out nomination papers for a third term.

Frizzell, along with Robie Marsters, who lost in last June’s election to Jason Cole, and Betty Harris-Howard are the only ones who have taken out nomination papers for the office of selectman, Lebanon Town Clerk Laura Bragg said today.

The announcement by Frizzell on Dec. 10 came in response to a question by The Lebanon Voice after Frizzell was asked about his nonattendance at selectmen’s meetings last year, the scope of which came to light at the Dec. 4 selectmen’s meeting from which he was also absent.

After a review of records at that meeting, it was indicated by town office staff that Frizzell hadn’t been at a meeting since May 1, only workshops which typically take place in the afternoon and rarely attended by the public.

Frizzell explained his absences as “scheduling” conflicts in his personal and business life, adding, “I’m very busy.”

Frizzell did not return a phone call from The Lebanon Voice today. Candidates need only 25 signed names on their nominating papers to be placed on the ballot.

Two petitions are also being circulated in an effort to gain the 300 signatures necessary to be placed on the town warrant: one to allow Sunday bar hours at the town’s two taverns; and the other to increase the selectboard to five positions instead of the current three.

Lebanon man

indicted on

assault rap

posted 11 a.m. Wednesday, March 20

A Lebanon man has been indicted in an assault on a female in Rochester in which he allegedly choked her and restricted her ability to breathe.

William Douglas Mueller Jr., 29, of 489 River Road, is alleged to have applied pressure to the female victim’s throat with his forearm, causing impeded breathing, according to the indictment handed down by a Strafford County grand jury.

The alleged assault occurred on or about Dec. 12.

The second-degree assault charge is considered a Class B felony, punishable by 3½-7 years in prison and a $4,000 fine.

An indictment is not a finding of guilt, only that a grand jury has found there is sufficient evidence for the case to go to trial.

Criminal

mischief

case goes

forward

Updated 2 p.m., Wednesday, March 20

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

A Milton woman has been indicted on a charge of criminal mischief in connection with damage done to an individual’s residence and car in Rollinsford last year.

Carolyn Clough, 31, with a last known address of 20 Silver St., is said to have purposefully done damage to the property in excess of $1,500 which is a Class B felony punishable by 3 1/2-7 years in jail and a $4,000 fine.

When Rollinsford officers arrived at the scene on Oct. 17 of last year they found that Clough, along with an accomplice, Owen Flanagan of Dover, had smashed the glass front door of the resident’s Portland Avenue home and broken the windshield of their car, said Rollinsford Police Chief Bob Ducharme.

“The victim said the suspects felt they owed them some money,” Ducharme said on Wednesday.

An indictment is not a finding of guilt, only that a grand jury has found sufficient evidence for the case to go to trial.

Caroline Clough

Milton Elementary School's

Star Students of the Month

(WHAT IS A STAR STUDENT?)

Contributed by Betsy Baker

Library Director at Milton Free Public Library

posted 8 a.m., Monday, March 18

This month's star student, or rather students are Haley and Jaylynn Merrill. Ms. Ordway, a third-grade teacher at Milton Elementary School, nominated both girls because they are "sweet as pie."

Both girls are fairly new to Milton, having moved here from Barrington in September. The girls are identical twins but each is unique in her own way.

Haley is the older sister by 30 seconds. Haley considers herself the more "girly" of the two. She likes the colors pink and purple. Haley is also the reader of the two. She loves finding books at the Nute library. She has books piled up under her bed and throughout the house.

Neither girl spends much time in front of the television. Haley spends her free time outside whenever she can. She loves the snow and the sunshine and she is looking forward to learning to ride a horse this spring. Haley notes that she is a bottom of the bunk kind of gal, she doesn't want the smoke detector "bouncing off her ears" should it sound. (Kudos to the family for having smoke detectors throughout the house!)

Jaylynn, or Jay as she likes to be called, is especially proud of being a good friend, noting that she has more than 100 friends in Barrington. Jay loves sports: football, basketball - any game that involves lots of people. Jay

Haley, right, and Jaylynn Merrill

also likes board games, namely chess and "beyblades." Jaylynn also likes to sing and dance - anything that "keeps her on her feet. Her favorite colors are blue and green. Jay is in Mrs. Soucy's third-grade class.

Both girls note that there are plusses and minuses to being twins. Haley notes that they are often "lumped together" and Jay says there are times when they just can't be together (in the same room).

Haley corrects Jay's grammar. Jay cleans up after Haley. They both note, however, that there are often times when being part of a duo is terrific; Jay likes that there is always someone to play with. Haley says that If anything happens, they are there for each other. The girls shouldn't feel too lonely as they have one sister, Brianna, and three brothers (Kyle, Pete and Andy) and one stepbrother, Jordan.

Harrison Thorp photo

From left, Selectmen Bob Bridges, Mike Beaulieu and Tom Gray discuss a point at last night's Milton selectmen's meeting at Town Hall.

Library, lawmen to feel

brunt of budget defeat

posted 8:30 a.m., Tuesday, March 19

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

MILTON - About $17,000 worth of repairs to upgrade the Milton Free Public Library in Milton Mills is among the projects that will have to be put on hold due to the rejection of a proposed budget by town voters a week ago today.

Also unfunded is about $30,000 for police officer raises designed to bring the salaries of the Milton department more in line with neighboring towns, which Milton Police Chief Mark McGowan had said is vital to retain experienced officers.

McGowan told WMUR-TV last Wednesday that he’d probably lose some officers due to the proposed budget’s rejection.

Residents voted down the $3.5 million budget, 422-355, putting in place a default budget of $3.4 million.

The other major impacts include two part-time positions – one at the police station and one at Town Hall – as well as a 1.7 percent cost of living wage increase proposed for town workers, according to interim Town Administrator Joe Ryan, who revealed the major impacts at last night’s regularly scheduled selectmen’s meeting at the Emma Ramsey Center.

The meeting marked the introduction to the board of newly sworn-in Selectman Mike Beaulieu, who asked at one point as he signed several documents if you “got pens with the job.”

“No, but you do get writer’s cramp,” Selectman Tom Gray quipped.

Later in the meeting, Ryan suggested the possibility of posting unapproved minutes of selectmen’s meetings online immediately after meetings. He said some residents had voiced concern over the delay in posting approved minutes and that this might mitigate some residents’ frustration.

Gray, who was voted selectmen chairman at the start of the meeting, said that the town had done that in the past, and that news items had shown up in newspapers that were incorrect and represented as from official minutes. He voiced disfavor on the proposal, and no further action was taken on the matter.

The unapproved minutes will still be available at Town Hall, just not online.

Resident David Hall asked how soon it would take to post the minutes online once they were approved and was told they would be posted the next day.

Also selectmen were apprised of a state bridge report that urged more bridge closure signs on both sides of the Allen Hastings Way bridge at the bottom of Piggot Hill in Milton Mills and that the Winding Road bridge in west Milton over Lyman Brook should be certified with an E2 weight restrictions and that the town could opt for even stricter limits.

The meeting, which was attended by about 15 residents, lasted just 40 minutes and adjourned at 6:40.

Posting of unapproved

board minutes panned

They're galaxies apart, but they're both stars

ME bikers must register

by April 1st, no foolin'

posted 6:30 a.m., Saturday, March 23

It may not seem like motorcycle weather just yet, but Maine residents who own a street bike need to be aware the rules for registering their motorcycles have changed.

Beginning this month all motorcycles registered in the state will have transitioned to an annual March registration. That means all Mainers have to make sure their bikes are registered by this coming Friday, given that April 1 falls on a Monday.

The change was made to accommodate the placement of a motorcycle’s annual inspection sticker in the upper left of its license plate, with each year’s registration validation on the upper right.

To facilitate fee calculation and to ease the municipal clerks’ workloads, the Bureau of Motor Vehicles encourages motorcycle registrants to use the online service Rapid Renewal to renew whenever possible. Approximately three-quarters of all Maine registrants live in towns participating in Rapid Renewal. https://www1.maine.gov/online/bmv/rapid-renewal/

Lebanon does participate, but it does not allow credit cards for payment, according to the state website, only electronic checks.

The standard annual motorcycle registration fee is $21. .

Harrison Thorp photos

York County Commissioner Chairwoman Sallie Chandler, center, makes a point as Henry Laviolette, left, and his wife, Lucinda look on at Saturday's Lebanon Democrats meeting.

Dems rap LePage's

school, town aid cuts

posted 7:40 a.m., Sunday, March 24

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

LEBANON - Lebanon’s state representatives pledged on Saturday to fight to keep the state’s revenue sharing to Maine cities and towns intact, but admitted that as the budget showdown continues in Augusta, some portion of the state aid will likely be cut.

State Representatives Bill Noon, who represents East Lebanon; and Joshua Plante, who represents West Lebanon, held constituency hours yesterday morning at the Lebanon Fire Station on Upper Cross Road, followed by a meeting with Lebanon Democrats.

Both Democrats, Noon and Plante expressed frustration with the LePage administration’s effort to curtail state aid to both towns and schools.

“You shouldn’t go back on a promise you made to people,” Noon said about the governor’s efforts to rescind revenue sharing as well as shelving Maine’s Homestead Exemption and Circuit Breaker program, which aids low-income homeowners and renters.

Many at the meeting expressed frustration with the politicizing of the state’s budget battle, saying while partisan posturing continues and a shutdown looms this July, towns like Lebanon are having to formulate their own budgets with no idea on how much state aid will be available.

Lebanon Selectmen Chairman Bob Frizzell has estimated the town stands to lose as much as a half-million dollars a year if revenue sharing expires.

Noon vowed there was no way Democrats were going to allow it to be completely scrapped.

Plante said it was probable that revenue sharing would be cut, but he wanted to make sure

Bill Noon, left, and Joshua Plante at Sunday's meeting of Lebanon Democrats

lawmakers proceed thoughtfully realizing what the impacts of such cuts would be at the local level.

Legislators normally have a budget in place by mid-April, but that may be unlikely this year, Plante and Noon agreed. The deadline is June 15, and if no budget is in place by June 30, state government would shut down the next day.

“No one wants that,” Noon said.

One hopeful note for Democrats, Plante said, was Gov. LePage’s movement to reconsider Maine’s participation in President Obama’s Affordable Care Act Medicaid expansion.

Plante said if Maine isn’t on board with the program by 2014 the state will lose $200 million in federal aid that can’t be recouped.

He said the Medicaid expansion would involve a health care system patterned after Massachusetts where some form of health insurance is mandated by all. Plante said in Maine even those on state assistance would pay a share of their premium.

It has been reported that the expansion would allow about 55,000 more Mainers to be eligible for MaineCare, the state’s version of the Medicaid program.

posted 9:10 a.m., Saturday, March 23

Selectmen on Monday appointed three residents to various committees that work with town departments, including David Levin to the Conservation Committee and Mike Chisholm and Jennifer Duprat to the Recreation Committee.

All three were sworn in at the meeting, during which Selectman Tom Gray was also voted in as selectmen chairman by fellow board members Mike Beaulieu and Bob Bridges.

Town officials are also looking for Zoning Board of Adjustment members and are asking town residents to contact Town Hall if they are interested.

Trio get nod to serve

on boards

China Pond lovers rejoice

Harrison Thorp photos

Many in town thought their favorite Chinese restaurant China Pond was going the way of the panda, straight into extinction, with the expected expansion of the Cumberland Farms next door. But a sign on the door, inset, proclaims they'll be back open in early May after some renovations.

With spring fast

upon us, change is in the air

posted 6 a.m., Friday, March 22

Here we are towards the end of March, and there's no spring in sight. The cold and snow continues to wrap around us.

Many years ago there was an extremely cold day in Lebanon on March 13, 1766. Rev. Isaac Hasey wrote in his diary that his fowls froze on the roosts in the barn. Can you believe that was 247 years ago?

When I lived in Lebanon I remember cold snowy winters in March. Us kids loved it because we could still go sledding. The snow was usually hard and crusty that time of year so we could walk or slide on top of it.

We had some great places to slide. One place was a huge field with a slope. We would climb to the top pulling our sleds. Then slide the length of the field, through an old road and into a lower field. lt was quite a trip down and sometimes we hit soft spots that turned into large ruts. Our sleds would suddenly stop but our bodies wouldn't until we landed face first into the snow. lt hurt sometimes but it did not stop us from going again.

I remember at the end of the ride there were tall bushes of pussy willows. The pussy willow is native to the northern part of North America. Before the male catkins of these species come into full flower they are covered with fine, grayish fur leading to a likeness to tiny cats, also known as "pussies." The catkins appear long before the leaves and are one of the earliest signs of spring. Sometimes the flowering shoots of pussy willows are used for spring religious decoration on Palm Sunday, as a replacement for palm branches, which do not grow this far north.

If spring comes early so does mud season. I lived on a hill with a dirt road. Cars coming up that hill usually made large ruts and ended up getting stuck. The melting of the snow also caused waterways to run down the sides of the road. Us kids loved making boats and sending them downstream or building dams out of the winter debris.

Easter was a favorite time when I was young. If it was a warm day the Easter eggs were hidden outdoors. The search seemed endless at times but worth the effort once we sank our teeth into the sweets.

After the hunt we would get dressed in our Sunday best and our Easter bonnets. We would all go to church and then go home for a special ham dinner.

I guess it really doesn't matter if we have a longer winter with more snow or an early spring with a lot of mud. Either way, do not let it get you into a rut. Enjoy your month!

Marilyn Ricker Bolduc, a Lebanon native, has had her articles published in several magazines. She lives in Sanford.

TALES FROM

LEBANON'S PAST

By Marilyn Ricker Bolduc

JOURNEY

INTO SLIM

Martha T.

Soto-Galicia

As with all, in dieting, time is of the essence

posted 8:10 a.m., Sunday, March 24

Having dealt with the Why, now we move further in our Journey to Slim with When. When do you have your meals; When do you use that energy by doing something physical and When do you sleep? The all-important phase of a successful weight loss routine is the When to eat.

Yes, this sounds like a routine. Not a fan of routine by any means. However, in reality, everything we do is repetitious, hence a routine. Ah, semantics.

So what is my routine? I don’t like to eat in the morning. I get up at 6 a.m. and can go five hours without eating. I have breakfast at 11 a.m. Some may call that lunch or brunch. Just give me coffee all day long. Having tried every diet known to man, I find the small meals do not work for me. I do my best at three meals a day and nothing in between. That one is difficult to follow when I must have snacks with my “happy hour” adult beverages.

So up at 6, "breakfast" at 11, lunch at 3, then dinner. Unfortunately I find myself in bed before the dishes have drained.

In researching this article, to my horror I found that exact diet format. Others have followed this routine for thousands of years to maintain their desired weight. Why horror? Because, I just outlined the daily diet of a Sumo Wrestler. While Sumo Wrestlers are revered in Japan, they must weigh 440 pounds and wear thongs. What a visual. During their training they are not allowed to have breakfast;

they start their morning workout and train for hours before they can have their first meal. After that meal they must nap. Then it’s up again for more physical training, a very large meal and to bed.

Needless to say this explains a lot about my physique. If I want to shed the Sumo look I have to shed Sumo routine.

There is much controversy on the various studies pertaining to food intake and what time. Some advocate small meals or the aforementioned three meals a day. All agree that we should let one to two hours pass after a large meal before going to bed.

I will try to have breakfast early within the first hour after I rise. Hard to do as it’s the only time of the day I don’t think about food.

Spacing my meals by four hours works so I will maintain that part; but I must give myself more than an hour between my last bite and bed. I will stay up and dry the dishes and consider that my evening workout.

Martha T. Soto-Galicia, the president of The Lebanon Voice, is a longtime dieter and a motivational speaker. She lilves in Lebanon.

William Douglas Mueller Jr.

Harrison Thorp photo

Betty Harris-Howard, who is running for selectman, says some things in Lebanon are broken and she wants to fix them.

Thompson

expected to

make run for

selectboard

Posted 9 a.m., Sunday, March 24

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

Another Lebanite is expected to throw his hat into what has become a crowded ring in the town’s selectman’s race.

Ben Thompson of Depot Road, the longtime owner of Thompson’s Auto Body, took out nomination papers and is expected to join Robie Marsters and Betty Harris-Howard as they seek to oust two-term incumbent Selectmen Chairman Bob Frizzell.

Frizzell had earlier made it known he didn’t intend to seek a third term, but reportedly told one resident, “Don’t believe everything you hear,” upon being queried about his unexpected candidacy.

Harris-Howard, who attended the Lebanon Democrats meeting on Saturday, said she didn’t believe in fixing things that weren’t broken, but some things in town were.

“I think the citizens deserve more transparency from town government,” she said, adding it was time for a new look in the selectmen’s office.

Harris-Howard has lived in town for four years and served on the Appeals Board and Budget Committee.

Rescue probe

comes to light

Investigation

began in Oct.

posted 10:30 a.m., Tuesday, March 26

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

LEBANON - Selectmen Chairman Bob Frizzell confirmed on Monday that a four-month investigation into several grievances filed by former Lebanon Rescue Department members over alleged safety issues and mismanagement by the department is nearly complete.

Stu Morrison, a former deputy chief and 10-year veteran of the department; and Ryan Therrien, a former captain, along with three others, they say, met in mid-October with Frizzell and town attorney Alan Shepard at his Kennebunk offices to discuss their grievances.

The five former volunteers, one by one, spoke privately with Frizzell and Shepard, according to both Therrien and Morrison.

Top among their safety concerns, according to documents obtained by The Lebanon Voice, were improper use of the Lebanon Rescue command vehicle and outside parking of an ambulance, which can render some medications ineffective in cold weather.

The two said that several times upon arriving at the Depot Road home of Samantha and Jason Cole, Rescue Chief and Assistant Rescue Chief, respectively, to use the command vehicle it was found to be littered with children’s car seats, toys and clothes, had food and gum stuck on the floors and was missing supplies intended to be always on hand in the vehicle for emergency calls.

They also allege that for long periods of time in winter months the ambulance was left outside at the Cole residence. They said many medications that are called for in emergency situations would be unusable due to such long-term exposure to the cold.

The other three who had grievances did not wish their names to appear in this article, Morrison and Therrien said.

Selectmen Chairman Bob Frizzell, above right, is heading the investigation into grievances against the Rescue Dept. and Jason Cole, above left. Selectperson Karen Gerrish has chosen not to participate in the probe.

Morrison and Therrien also say volunteers were allowed to use the Rescue Department's ATV without proper training and certification, another safety issue.

Cole said today that he had no comment on the allegations involving misuse of the command vehicle, but said that it had already been investigated and found to be unfounded. He further stated that there was only one incident when the ambulance had been parked at his house in cold weather for about four hours, but that it had been running the entire time so the effectiveness of medications would not have been diminished. He also disagreed with the number of individuals filing grievances, saying it was only Therrien and Morrison.

Morrison today disagreed, saying that three other individuals submitted written grievances back in October at Shepard's Kennebunk office.

Frizzell said he would not comment specifically on the grievances, because the investigation is ongoing but stressed it will be over soon.

Selectwoman Karen Gerrish chose not to participate in the investigation and adjudication of the probe.

Morrison said he has not been contacted by Frizzell or Shepard since the October meeting and expressed frustration with the long time it has taken for Frizzell to make a finding.

Shepard was not available for comment.

Gerrish clarifies her

decision on probe

complete, I would then partake in the viewing of the evidence as well as the executive session with both the Rescue Chief and Assistant Rescue Chief, Samantha and Jason Cole.”

In 2011 Jason Cole lost his selectman’s seat to Gerrish in the June elections after a bitter campaign marked by controversy and accusations of dirty politics.

Whether Gerrish would have a say in any punitive action against either of the Coles, or the department, after the executive session is unclear.

Karen Gerrish

Officials closing in

on vehicle scofflaws

posted 6 a.m., Friday, March 29

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

Some 300-400 cars in Lebanon driveways this morning are illegally registered in New Hampshire, Selectman Jason Cole suspects.

And for those vehicle registration scofflaws, the rubber is getting ready to hit the road.

Summonses will be going out in the next couple of weeks after officials confer with suspected violators to make sure there is not some legitimate reason that enables them to register their car in a different state, in most cases New Hampshire.

The implications are far-ranging, including tax fraud charges by the state of Maine and criminal charges from New Hampshire where it is a felony to use the wrong address to register a vehicle, according to Cole who has spearheaded much of the effort.

Officials are also cross-referencing suspected scofflaws with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries to see if they have purchased a Maine resident fishing or hunting license using a Maine driver’s license.

New Hampshire drivers are not compelled to buy vehicle insurance, and many are posing as New Hampshire residents to not only avoid insurance

premiums but also to avoid paying Maine state income tax. New Hampshire has no income tax.

“They (the state of Maine) will audit everybody we find, because they probably aren’t paying (Maine) income tax,” Cole said.

When they purchase the care in New Hampshire they also avoid paying the sales tax when they register it in the Granite State.

A law enforcement officer is currently helping to “document through many resources violations throughout the town,” Cole said. “We’re making a book on each car.” Making a “book” refers to writing down the vehicle’s movements to help determine if the owner is a New Hampshire resident or not.

Once a violator is summonsed the fine is $911 a day until they properly register their car in Maine, which they would also need auto insurance to do.

Then the town would collect any excise tax due, and the state of Maine could investigate the individuals for taxes owed, Cole said.

Excise taxes collected stay with the town, and the approximately $120,000 that would likely be collected if suspected vehicles were properly registered in Maine would go a long way to helping the town’s budget and taxpayers who are paying extra taxes because of violators’ deceit, Cole said.

posted 8 a.m., Wednesday, March 27

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

LEBANON - Selectwoman Karen Gerrish sought to clarify her absence in the investigatory portion of a probe into grievances filed by several former Rescue Department volunteers against the department. (See story below.)

In an email to The Lebanon Voice on Tuesday after an article was published detailing the investigation, she wrote: “The original rescue complainants came to me back in October of 2012. That very day I brought the complainants allegations to Chairman Frizzell and followed that up with a telephone call to the town attorney, Alan Shepard.

“When speaking Alan (sic) he suggested that there needed to be a full investigation led by either Chairman Frizzell or myself. He suggested that it not be me due to the political history between Selectman Cole and myself. I agreed. I thought residents would see this as personal from me against Selectman Cole had I led the investigation.

It was at that time that I recused myself from the investigation. I knew that once the investigation by Chairman Frizzell and Town Attorney Shepard was

Half dozen

now in race for selectman

posted 1:20 p.m., Tuesday, March 26

By Harrison Thorp

The Lebanon Voice

LEBANON - Two more townspeople are joining the fray looking to unseat Selectmen Chairman Bob Frizzell in this June’s election.

Richard Harlow III of Jim Grant Road and Corinna Cole both took out nomination papers for selectman recently.

They join Ben Thompson of Depot Road, the longtime owner of Thompson’s Auto Body; Robie Marsters, who lost to Jason Cole last year, and Betty Harris-Howard as candidates for the spot.

Frizzell, who said last year he wouldn’t be running for a third term, said he changed his mind when he realized the scope of the budget crisis the town faces in the wake of proposed state reductions in aid.

“Now is the time for experienced leadership,” he said on Monday during a selectmen’s workshop.

JOURNEY

INTO SLIM

Martha T.

Soto-Galicia

A good time to

renew vows for

a healthy life

posted 9:15 a.m., Sunday, March 31

Getting out my spring Sunday best once again hits me over the head with what this cold hard winter has done to my body.

Nothing from last spring fits!! So on this day of resurrection I must once again find all the strength I can muster and renew my pledge to take firm steps toward my Journey into Slim.

Having determined the When and the Whys, now I must proceed to the How in this journey. How am I going to stick to these goals I have established so I may live a healthier happier life?

The How is simple. Take care of myself and my needs first. This is not being selfish or self-centered for we must be at our best in order to provide our best to our family, friends and occupation. When we are at our best, we are capable of greatness.

Therefore, let us start loving ourselves, which means doing the right thing, eating right, sleeping right, taking control of our lives and taking time to pray (not in panic). Taking control of our lives is three fold,

Body=food intake and exercise,

Mind=thoughts you entertain,

Soul=affirmation, prayer, reading

Affirmations is the way to go for me. In the past I have been successful in conquering those statements drilled into head from childhood. .. “Clean your plate as there are hungry children in China” (well not so much today as they have our jobs). “Eat, you will feel better.”

To quiet that noise I used affirmations to change my mental perception.

Affirmations are set in the future not the present. It is a positive statement that states the results you want to achieve. The only way it works is if you believe in your statement. "I am a size 4" is not a true affirmation for me. I don’t believe it as in my mind I was born wearing a 12 toddler.

I’m more prone to believe, "I look real good in my clothes." That one works for me as I can see it in my mind. There is plenty of data on the negative side effects of using wrong Affirmations. These leave the person feeling worse. So try to make your affirmations realistic and positive in the future (and the future is the next second).

In determining your affirmation, it is imperative that you believe it. A prime example for me is "I only serve myself enough food to fuel my body."

I learned about Affirmations at Overeatera Anonymous, and like all 12-step programs, the main lesson to learn is to let go and believe. Also take it one day at a time.

Today being Easter Sunday, one of my food affirmations is. "I am happy that I passed on that chocolate bunny." May not seem like much (and the ham is shivering because I did not mention it) but I will stay away from chocolate bunnies for the next 24 hours. And no, I will not honor this affirmation on Sunday then dash to Wal-Mart on Monday to purchase bunnies and peeps at 50 percent off.

Remember it is a journey, not a marathon, and every step counts no matter how small. Together we can Journey into Slim on this most blessed day.

Martha T. Soto-Galicia, the president of The Lebanon Voice, is a longtime dieter and a motivational speaker. She lilves in Lebanon.

Not liking spring is like

not liking a little puppy

BETWEEN

THE LINES

Harrison Thorp

posted 8 a.m., Saturday, March 23

The sap runs heavy and sweet, Mother Nature awakes from her slumber and another spring is upon us.

For many of us, it is the most emotional of seasons, bedecked in the splendor of green grass poking through frozen dirt, the sighting of that first robin and watching snowdrifts melt ever-so-slowly away.

This month we changed our clocks to daylight saving time. Easter is little more than a week away. Palm Sunday is tomorrow. The days of spring zoom by like a wonderful runaway train.

Religion and nature seem to merge in a crazy cacophony of life, rebirth and resurrection.

Will it snow again? Maybe a flurry on April 3, according to Accuweather.com’s long-range forecast.

But The Lebanon Voice says no to snow. It is done. Gone. Good riddance.

Ask anybody on the street if they like spring, if they love

spring. A person would be lying if they said no.

Dammit, they’d be lying.

I was walking into a store yesterday and a person walked by me and said, “Hey, how you doing?” I turned and asked, “Do I know you?”

He shook his head sideways.

That’s how people get in the spring. It’s bloomin’ wonderful.

Maybe the home heating oil dealers don’t like spring, or firewood dealers. Maybe they’re the only guys don’t like spring.

But I’ll bet underneath, they really like spring, too.

Not liking spring is like not liking a puppy.

How could you not like spring.

Maybe the reason we like spring so much is that we finally begin to realize we just may have been lucky enough to survive another winter in these parts.

Welcome back, old friend. What took you so long?