Isaac Kahn, a senior at Kennebunk High School, has been named a U.S. Presidential Scholar by the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars.

According to a May 15 press release, Kahn is one of two Maine students, and 161 nationwide, to be honored with the distinction this year.

“I’m very thankful to everyone in the community who made this possible,” Kahn said in an email. “It is an amazing honor and a great culmination of my time here at KHS.”

Kahn also recognized KHS math teacher Alexis Ovington as his most influential teacher in helping him rise to this prestigious honor.

U.S. Presidential Scholars are drawn from the top academically performing high school students across the country each year, and according to a release from the U.S. Department of Education, are selected based on academic success, essays, school evaluations, and transcripts, as well as a demonstrated commitment to community service and leadership. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said that Kahn and the other Presidential Scholars, “represent the best of our nation’s schools and inspire hope in the bright future of this country.”

“I am delighted to celebrate their accomplishments, and encourage these scholars to continue to aim high, lift up others, and embrace opportunities to lead,” Cardona wrote.

Kahn will receive a personal letter from Cardona and be recognized with the rest of the 2024 class in an online celebration later this summer.

Following his graduation from Kennebunk High School, Kahn will attend Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, to study engineering.

 

Land trust seeks

plein air artists

Registration is open for artists to participate in Kennebunk Land Trust’s second annual Nature’s Canvas Unveiled: Plein Air Art Auction and Art Showcase.

The land trust is looking for plein air artists to create pieces in KLT preserves. Participating artists will create plein air art in the preserves during the weekend of June 21-23. During the scheduled time, the public will be invited to hike out into the preserve to watch the painting and experience nature.

The pieces will be submitted to an online auction opening on July 22. The auction will culminate at the trust’s summer celebration at The Colony Hotel on July 25, with the proceeds shared between KLT and the artists. Artists will attend the Colony Hotel event to show off their work, talk with bidders, and discuss the natural landscapes and KLT preserves they painted.

For more information, visit kennebunklandtrust.org/naturescanvas. All participating artists need to register through the website. The deadline for artists to register is June 1. Space is limited.

The Summer Soiree celebration will be held at The Colony Hotel on July 25. Tickets will go on sale in June for the event that is back for its third year.

 

Arundel will honor

unused punch cards

The town of Arundel, along with Casella Waste Systems, has agreed to honor the punch cards purchased for use at the Transfer Station until June 30, 2024.

Starting July 1, 2024, residents who have remaining balances on punch cards can return them to the Municipal Office for reimbursement. Staff will take names and addresses along with the card(s) and then a check for the remaining balance will be processed and mailed.

The deadline for return of the cards is Sept. 1, 2024.

 

Arundel releases

election information

The town of Arundel will hold an election on Tuesday, June 11, at the Arundel Municipal Building, located at 257 Limerick Road, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Registration of new voters, as well as changes of name or address, may be made with the registrar at the Town Office during regular business hours of Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. or at the polls on Election Day. The last day to switch parties prior to the election was Thursday, May 23.

Online voter registration is available at registertovote.sos.maine.gov. Residents may request an absentee ballot or vote in person at the town clerk’s office without any specific reason until 5 p.m. on June 6.

Online absentee ballot request forms are available at www.maine.gov/cgi-bin/online/AbsenteeBallot/index.pl.

For more information, call the Town Office at 207-985-4201.

 

First Church

bean suppers begin

First Congregational Church is hosting a baked bean and American chop suey supper on Saturday, May 25, from 4:30 to 6 p.m. The church is located at 141 North St., Kennebunkport.

First Church bean suppers will be held on the last Saturday of each month through October. There will be two types of home baked beans. One type of beans will be meatless. There will also be American chop suey, macaroni and cheese, hot dogs, rolls, and coleslaw and homemade pie. Adults and children age 12 and older, $10 per person, children younger than 12, $5 per child.

For more information, call Carol at 207-710-7060.

 

Arundel nomination

papers available

Nomination papers for the upcoming June 11, 2024, municipal election are available at the Arundel Town Office beginning May 14, for the RSU 21 director position, a one-year term.

To qualify for a municipal office, a person must be a resident of Arundel, at least 18 years of age and registered to vote in Arundel. A minimum of 25 signatures of registered Arundel voters must be submitted prior to the close of business on May 28, 2024, in order for a candidate’s name to be placed on the June ballot.

For more information, call 207-985-4201, ext. 102 or stop by the town office during business hours, Monday-Thursday, 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (closed noon to 1 p.m.).

 

Graves Library plans

photography session

Graves Memorial Library in Kennebunkport will host an evening of photography on Wednesday, May 29, at 5:30 p.m. Mark Jones will share thoughts and takeaways that can be used to improve photography regardless of the type of camera.

Jones is CEO and president of Saco & Biddeford Savings. He joined SBSI in 1985 after completing his education at the University of Southern Maine. He volunteers as a board member and treasurer of Shutterbugs4Charity, the vehicle through which support is provided for various causes. Outside of SBSI, Jones has a passion for photography, learning, practicing, and teaching.

Louis T. Graves Memorial Public Library is located at 18 Maine St., Kennebunkport. For more information, call 207-967-2778 and ask for the Junior Room or visit www.graveslibrary.org.

 

Author event

at River Club

Graves Library will host journalist, author, and professor Paul Hendrickson to its 13th annual Author Event on June 20, at 5 p.m., at the Kennebunk River Club Casino, 116 Ocean Ave. in Kennebunkport. Hendrickson is the author of several histories, including The New York Times best-seller, “Hemingway’s Boat: Everything he loved in life, and lost.” He is also the author of “Sons of Mississippi: a story of race and its legacy,” and “The Living and the dead: Robert McNamara and five lives of a lost war.”

Hendrickson’s most recent publication is “Fighting the Night: Iwo Jima, World War II, and a flyer’s life.” According to the Wall Street Journal, it is an exploration of his father’s World War II service as the pilot of a P-61 Black Widow night fighter.

Tickets are $75 and include an autographed copy of “Fighting the Night” and a pre-reception. For more information, call the library at 207-967-2778, visit graveslibrary.org, or Eventbrite. All proceeds benefit Graves Library.

 

Atlantic Hall hosts

pancake breakfast

The Atlantic Hall pancake breakfast is scheduled for 8 to 11 a.m. Sunday, May 26. Blueberry pancakes, maple syrup, sausages, juice and coffee will be served at 173 Main St. in Cape Porpoise.

The cost is $10 for adults, children, $5. Patrons are encouraged to visit the Atlantic Hall Library for flea market treasures.

 

Garden club sale

set for May 25

Seacoast Garden Club will host its Plant & Pie Sale on Saturday, May 25, from 8:30 to 10 a.m. at St. Martha’s Church, Route 1, in Kennebunk.

Starting in early May, club members dig up healthy plants from their gardens, put them in sterilized pots (to prevent transmission of diseases) and add potting soil. The final touch is placing an identification card in the pot (with name of plant, indication of shade or sun, and other useful information for growing). During the sale, club members are available for advice and suggestions.

Fresh fruit pies will also be for sale, most of which are home-baked by garden club members. For more information, email Gail Phillips at gailphillips1@gmail.com or Karen Andrews at abzme@yahoo.com.

 

Montembeau earns

UMF degree

The University of Maine at Farmington held its commencement ceremony on May 4. Among the graduates was Kennebunk native Callister Montembeau, who earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education, summa cum laude.

 

Castinetti announces

Kennebunk office

Castinetti Realty Group announced that it has opened a new location in Kennebunk.

“We have many clients looking to move to Southern Maine to live or vacation,” owner Andrea Castinetti wrote in a press release. “We are thrilled to have this new opportunity.”

The new location is established with Sue Gordon as the lead. Gordon owns a home in Kennebunk. “I made the commitment to a home in Kennebunk and love the community,” Gordon wrote. “I look forward to helping others move to the area.” Gordon can be reached at 207-204-2035.

Castinetti Realty Group is a member of the Kennebunk, Kennebunkport, Arundel Chamber of Commerce.

 

Museum showcases

‘Bold Visions’

The Brick Store Museum opens its summer exhibition, “Bold Visions: The Folk Art of Collyer Bowen and Cookie Davis,” now on view through Sept. 1. The show, according to a press release, “features the works of two local artists who both created prolific creations in their final years. The colorful and whimsical scenes will thrill and surprise audiences in this unexpected exhibition.

“Bowen, a trained artist and antiquarian, created sailors valentines, tinsel paintings and textile works based on historic works he experienced while traveling. He recently passed away and left his collection to the museum. The second artist, Davis (also known as Coleman Davis and Dominique London) was a beloved local transperson who painted in their spare time between odd jobs. Cookie later transitioned to a female but continued her artwork, which now hangs in dozens of homes in our community.”

Following the opening of the exhibition, an outdoor mural honoring Davis’ role in the community will be unveiled at the museum on Wednesday, June 26, alongside the museum’s annual meeting. The exhibition and its related programming is sponsored by: BBsquared, Beverly Bernson, Kennebunk Savings Bank, Morph Gallery, and Deborah Randall. Interested supporters can visit brickstoremuseum.org/support to learn more about sponsoring the community mural. Programming related to the exhibition – including storytelling nights – will be announced at brickstoremuseum.org.

The Brick Store Museum is open six days a week, closed only Mondays. In addition to its regular hours, the museum will be open late from 5 to 7 p.m. on the second Friday of each month from June through September for the Downtown ArtWalk, sponsored by Huntington Common. For more information about the exhibitions and how to get involved, visit www.brickstoremuseum.org or call 207-985-4802.

 

Church on the Cape

sponsors blood drive

The Church on the Cape will partner with the Red Cross on Friday May 31 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The church is located at 3 Langsford Road in Cape Porpoise. Walk-ins are welcome.

Those donating blood can also reserve a time by visiting RedCrossBlood.org and enter 04046; or call 800-733-2767 (800-RED-CROSS). Preregistration assures the Red Cross of a commitment and allows for suitable staffing.

 

Softball league

begins practice

Kennebunk’s co-ed 50-plus softball league will conduct its first practice on Friday, May 24. The practice is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. at Lloyd Nedeau Memorial Park in West Kennebunk.

The league is set to begin its eighth season. All games and practices are held at Nedeau Park. To register go
to Kennebunk’s Parks and Recreation, Adult Activities. For more information, call Jim Thompson at 207-502-7796.

 

St. David’s hosts

Tobacco Awareness Group

The Tobacco Awareness Group, an in-person support group, is free and confidential. Whether thinking about stopping or ready to stop, according to a press release, the group can provide information, encouragement, and resources to assist in becoming tobacco free.

The only requirement for membership in the Tobacco Awareness Group is the desire to stop using tobacco or vape products and live a nicotine-free life. The group is open to the community and members can join or leave at any time.

Tobacco Awareness Group meets on Mondays, 6-7:30 p.m., at St. David’s Church on Route 1 south in Kennebunk. For more information, email Ed Perka at edward.perka@yahoo.com.

Edward J. Perka, Jr. is an addictions therapist with over 30 years of experience in the field.

 

Astro society schedules

June 7 meeting

The Astronomical Society of Northern New England’s next Meeting will be on Friday, June 7 at 7:30 p.m. at The New School in Kennebunk.  A business meeting, also open to the public, commences at 7 p.m. The New School is located at 38 York St., Kennebunk.

The society will host a presentation by Dr. Fabian Kislat. Kislat is an experimental astrophysicist, who develops new instruments to examine the polarization of X- and gamma rays. Kislat will explain that stellar-mass black holes and neutron stars are objects to observe for astronomers, since the extreme environments in their immediate vicinity are the laboratories for astrophysicists to test the fundamental understanding of how the universe works.

Kislat is an assistant professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy and a member of the Space Science Center at the University of New Hampshire. He has more than 12 years of experience in X-ray polarimetry and the development of instrumentation for high-energy astrophysics. He joined UNH in 2018 after six years at Washington University in St. Louis, first as postdoctoral researcher and since 2015 as research assistant professor. He received his Ph.D. from Humboldt University in Berlin, Germany, in 2011.

For more information, visit www.ASNNE.org.

 

Registration open

for KFL 5K

Registration for the Kennebunk Free Library 27th Edition 5K is open. The USATF-certified course begins and ends in the library parking lot, winding through local neighborhoods and the Hope Cemetery and Woods trails.

Following the race, patrons and the community are invited to a party on the library lawn, with live music, food, and a beer tent.

Preregistration closes at 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, July 10. Same-day registration begins at 4 p.m. on race day, Friday, July 12. Prizes will go to the top male and female finisher in each of nine age categories.

Those unable to participate in person are encouraged to run their own course and send the library photos. One winner, determined by KFL staff vote, will receive a prize.

For more information, email email kfl@kennebunklibrary.org or call 207-985-2173. For race fees or more information, visit www.kennebunklibrary.org.

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