Dr. James H. Page was appointed Chancellor by the University of Maine System Board of Trustees in March 2012 to lead their repositioning of the University System to meet Maine’s 21st century higher education needs.

Prior to becoming Chancellor, Dr. Page was principal and CEO of the James W. Sewall Company, a national consulting organization founded in 1880 and headquartered in Old Town, Maine, specializing in forestry, natural resources, civil and spatial engineering.

Page is the first University of Maine System Chancellor to be born in Maine or to have been educated at one of the System’s universities. He was born and raised in Caribou, and obtained his BA in History from the University of Maine at Ft. Kent. Subsequently he completed Master’s work in the philosophy of physics from St. Andrews University, Scotland, and obtained his Ph.D. in the philosophical foundations of mathematics from MIT. He taught at several universities before joining the private sector and has served on a number of Boards in the public, private, and NGO sectors.

Chancellor Page lives in Old Town with his family.

Stuart Kestenbaum is Maine’s poet laureate, which is a position in Maine that lasts for 5 years. Mr. Kestenbaum is also the former director of Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, and he currently works for Maine College of Art (MECA). On Friday, he told numerous anecdotes and read numerous poems from various poets that included topics such as: saying a prayer to the Maine Legislature; taking a long car ride; preparing maple syrup; walking and falling along a wet rocky coastline; and even about a poem based upon unrelated words that his students provided to him in class one day.  

To start his discussions he looked at the 'Four Way Test' banner and told us that poetry, as its essence, passes the 'Four Way Test.' He considers how language is used in culture and the dialogue of poetry becomes more important in its meaning to each individual. 

After many of the poems that he read, Mr. Kestenbaum provided us his opinions and insights as it relates to poetry.   For him to prepare a successful poem, he lets his brain reign free on a topic, and then edits the poem later. He does not think a successful poem can be made if the editing process is completed during the initial flow of information to the page. One might not be sure where a successful poem is leading when it is initially written. He made the comparison of dropping an ice cube on a warm stove: the melted water moves in many directions. 

Mr. Kestenbaum stressed his opinions on preparing poems, and he feels many of the good poems have had limitations placed on the process. The limitations could be restriction like time, the word choice, the rhythm of the poem, or a specific topic. For instance, time is finite and an ultimate restriction. Basically without that restriction, the poem could go on forever. He told us a quote about comparing limitations in poetry to a football game: what makes the last two minutes of a football game so exciting? If you know, why wait through 58-minutes of the game to get there: the limitations provide an interesting framework. 

After stating an opinion that the National Endowment for the Arts should be maintained, Mr. Kestenbaum told us an anecdote about a teacher who was helping his students to write poetry. The teacher told the 5th grade students that is was okay to lie in class that day. The students really latched on to the concept and moved beyond what they knew to be true in the physical world. The concept allowed them to push creative concepts outside the box along the lines of dream or fantasy. For instance, do humans fly, or can they fly down the highway? The truth can be stretched a little to promote creativity or a point.

For more information on Stuart Kestenbaum, go to: poetryfoundation.org/poems-and-poets/poets/detail/stuart-kestenbaum

(Photo L-R: Bob Martin, Stuart Kestenbaum and President Laura Young.) 
 

President Laura opened the meeting welcoming 55 members, 1 visiting Rotarian and 4 guests.

Russ Burleigh shared poems for our invocation, and Amy Chipman led our Pledge of Allegiance. President Laura welcomed Robert Duquette, a visiting Rotarian, and we greeted our summer resident Kirk Duffy, from Georgia.

President Laura extended thanks to the day’s support team, the Preble Street volunteers, and the Deering Locker Project volunteers.

She then noted that Dick Hall’s father was honored with the first District 7910 "Ed Hall Foundation Award" for his Rotary service, especially in Haiti. She also asked us to keep new member Andy Stone in our thoughts, as he recovers at Maine Med from a heart attack.

David Small shared a 'Rotary Moment' with a reminiscence of his memories since joining in 1981 at the suggestion of Harold Nelson who told him that Rotary was a “place to do good, while doing well.” He said he was delighted to have been in Rotary for “half my life.” “Thank you for wonderful opportunities to grow, break bread, and getting to know you.”

We welcomed a new member, Deborah Lavoie, introduced to us by Loretta Rowe. She is currently Executive Director of Gary’s House, a respite provided by Mercy Hospital to assist families whose loved ones are undergoing treatment at Mercy. Be sure to introduce yourself to Deb at the next Rotary meeting and welcome her as our newest member.

(Photo L-R: Dave Putnam, Kevin Stilphen (PATH Director), Kevin Siegel, and President Laura Young.)

Dave Putnam introduced Kevin Stilphen, Director of the Portland Area Technical High School (PATH), who shared the school’s selection of Kevin Siegel as the recipient of the Rotary Youth Service Award. Stilphen commented that “every year I look forward to this day more than any other” and thanked the club for the Youth Service Award program. He shared that Kevin Siegel had demonstrated superior citizenship and commitment to the idea of "Service Above Self" by volunteering to be the student representative on the Portland School Board for two years, representing the interests of students in 19 schools. Siegel will be attending the University of Vermont next year.

Amy Chipman brought us up-to-date on our Rotary Foundation goal: we have contributed $14,200 of our $15,000 objective. She introduced Bruce Moore who presented a Paul Harris Fellow (PHF) award to his wife and fellow Rotarian, Jan Chapman, her first PHF. Amy acknowledged Bruce’s gift with his second PHF. Congratulations to both Jan and Bruce!

Amy should have stuck to the Rotary Foundation, but no, she led us, or attempted to lead us, in the singing of “Hail, Hail, the Gang’s All Here,” proving, once again, that we have no penchant, or ability, for songs. We continue to demonstrate our capacity to sing as no one has sung before.

Conducting the weekly raffle, Nick Lotfey asked our speaker pull a name out of the holding vessel and he pulled President Laura’s name for a chance to play in our new raffle for $320. She found the Ace of Hearts in the 52 cards. Paul Gore had better odds last week, and a much bigger pot. So once more....the pot starts to grow. 

(Photo left: PP Kris Rosado.)

(Photo right: Alex St. Hilaire.)

Alex St. Hilaire and Past President Kris Rosado brought us up to date on the progress of the Maine Outdoor Challenge (MOC) planning. We are on track for a record year with close to $60,000 in commitments so far. We need Silent Auction contributions from local businesses. Connect with Alex to get involved at: alexander.st.hilaire@bangor.com 

Contact Loretta Rowe (lrowe@maine.rr.com  or 883-5432) to reserve your ticket(s) and register for the Lobster Bake on June 7th starting at 5:00 p.m. with social hour:

AmVets
148 North Rd, Yarmouth, ME 04096

Directions from Portland:
Take I-295 heading North....Take exit 17 onto US Rte 1 South to North Road on right
Follow this road until you see AmVets Hall. 
 

Directions from Portland:
Take I-295 heading North....Take exit 17 onto US Rte 1 South to North Road on right
Follow this Road until you see AmVets hall.

PLUS PLUS.....there are still raffle tickets to buy! Contact Gracie Johnston to get yours at gracie.johnston@wcsh6.com.
 

The tennis league concluded their Spring sessions with a BBQ bash at Russ Burleigh's abode in Scarborough.

Here Bill Blount is presenting Russ Burleigh with charter member 25-year anniversary shirt.

Winning Spring team: Norm Pullen, Jack Carr, Jim Barns, and Howie Herodes.