Join us this Friday to learn about a student lobstering mentorship program, "Lift All Boats". Teacher/Mentor/Fisherman Wiley Muller will be joined by two students who participated during the inaugural summer of 2022. The program, an offshoot of Luke's Lobster, provides Maine students without traditional access to the working waterfront an entry point into Maine’s heritage lobster industry.

 

Originally from Greenville, SC, Wiley has lived in Maine for almost two decades.  He began his educational career working for the Boy Scouts of America and the Hurricane Island Outward Bound School.  He studied history at the University of Tennessee where he received a B.A. and most recently earned a M.S. Ed from USM here in Portland with a focus on Teacher Leadership.  He has taught in several southern Maine school districts including Windham, Cape Elizabeth, and Old Orchard Beach before coming to Baxter Academy for Technology and Science.

Along with classroom teaching, Wiley spends a significant amount of time in the Marine Trades as a yacht rigger, fabricating parts for all types of boats.  While being a teacher, he also works as a commercial fisherman, a yacht captain, and a home design/remodeling carpenter.  He holds a 100 ton USCG Captain's License and spends a significant amount of his time on the ocean in and around the Maine coast.

Wiley lives in South Portland with his young family and loves all things outdoors.  His true passions are tinkering with fabrication projects, sailing, and chasing his young kids around.

This past Friday, Mark Lee an architect and structural engineer from Harriman and Associates shared with us the $64 million renovation project encompassing four Portland elementary schools: Lyseth, Longfellow, Reiche, and Presmupscott. This is the project that was funded by bond approval a few years ago. The work on the four schools is nearly complete.

 

Mr. Lee described how the primary project goals were to address safety concerns by improving the building entrances and to update the buildings to align the architecture with education philosophy and instruction methods. In working with community and school leadership, the project sought to enhance emotional nurturing and to support distributive learning. Before work started on each school, the design team met with the community to learn what the school and the building meant to neighborhood and what the design priorities should be. The projects varied from extensive remodeling to subtle changes that maintained existing architectural features. Examples included increasing natural light and creating small learning spaces throughout the building.

 

The presentation outlined the design challenges of working within a limited budget as construction costs skyrocketed. The group adjusted the project timeline to enable concurrent construction rather than the prior plan of sequential construction. This switched saved funding and kept the project on budget but required additional supervision and disruption to manage the four simultaneous sites. Mr. Lee reported that the community consensus was extremely positive as each building is completed. The parents, students, and teachers are very pleased with the changes as the learning spaces are much more efficient, warm, and inviting. And by coming in within budget, it is clearly a project well done!  (Mark, Eric Greven, Justin Lamontagne)

 

HAPPY: Bruce Jones introduced Dwayne Black, a guest of Laura Young. President Dick Hall, led off a round of Happy Dollars, thankful for three days of skiing, Tom Talbott was relieved to have survived his first sea cruise, and thanked Laura Young for handling the Windjammer Editor duties in his absence.Larry Gross reported that he and Bruce Jones were happy to have enjoyed a short Florida visit to see snowbird member Mike Fortunato. Zach Newell called Niki Curtis to try her luck in the raffle. Alas, the elusive Queen remained in her castle!

 

WATER WORKS: Erik Greven and Dave Small shared heart-warming pictures and stories from our Club’s latest International Service trip to the Dominican Republic, with three Rotary Clubs joining together: Portland, Brunswick, and Exeter NH. 11 fellow Portland Rotarians, Roger and Liz Fagan, Amy Chipman, Patty Byers and Jim Vincenzi from our Club were kept busy on this early January trip, continuing the continue work on our signature international project: 3H – Hearing, Hands, and H20. This was the 11th visit to the DR, During this visit, our Rotarians distributed and installed 90 clean water filters, solar lights, school supplies in Batey Juaquincito and Barrio Puerto Rico. The team also installed a large replacement tarp  for a patchwork collection of old, torn tarps covering a shelter used as a school room in the batay.  We are grateful for District Grant funding and to many of our  club members who donated to this project.  Check out the smiles! Well done, Rotarians!

 

Patty called Jon and Sue Young up to the podium to present them with pins and a crystal plaque recognizing their attainment of Major Donor status by the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International. Donations to the Rotary Foundation are the fuel that drives the District and International Service projects like our Club’s hearing, clean water, and prosthetic limb work in the Dominican Republic. Congratulations, Jon and Sue!!

NEW MEMBER NOTIFICATIONS: 

February 9 - Michael Ziegler, Portland Conservatory of Music

Thurs Feb 15 - Club Visioning Workshop (Long Range Planning) 4:30p-8p

February 16 -  No Meeting - Please attend the Visionary Meeting :)

February 23 - Marion Cheney - District Governor|

March 1 - Club Assembly

March 8 - Barrett Takesian, Portland Community Squash

March 15 - Club Visioning Presentation