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FRIDAY EVENING REFORM JEWISH SUMMER
SABBATH SERVICES IN OQUOSSOC, MAINE

7:30 pm Fridays, July 17th through August 28, 2009.

Shabbat Services are held at the Oquossoc Union Church,

“The Log Church,” Route 4, Oquossoc, Maine.

Services led by Rabbi Helen Plotkin, Mike Frisch & Jo Freudenheim, Brian Chandler
and Ira & Marcia Wagner.

To register, participate and for more information, please email Bob at:

rlmeyer888@yahoo.com or phone Suzan at 207-864-3855.

RANGELEY QUILTERS BRING HOME MAINE QUILTS ’08 RIBBONS
By Martha Bicknell

The Maine Quilts 2008 team of judges gloriously awarded Rangeley’s local quilt shop owners, Dan and Carol Perkins several ribbons for their original creations, exhibited in Augusta at the July show. Nationally recognized instructors and experienced judges, Lisa Erlandson, Dianne S. Hire and Roberta Horton evaluated each of the 206 judged entries, awarding points in the categories of overall impact, design, and workmanship.

Dan’s quilt, “Crystal Stars”, a large beauty in purple and black was awarded ‘Second Place’. Judges commented, “precision piecing”; “effective and distinctive”; “magnificent quilting”; and “exciting quilt”. Dan loves intricate piecing and interesting geometric combinations. His original design began with the four center crystal-like blocks. After laying them out on the floor, the quilt evolved with the addition of many pieced stars. Dan states, “It just grew until I felt it was complete.” Graced with his wife, Carol’s, interpretive machine quilting of curving feathers and angular repeating lines, this quilt is, indeed, a gem. Thus the title, “Crystal Stars”.

‘Best of Show’ and ‘Exceptional Merit’ ribbons were awarded Carol’s stunning wall quilt, “Show Me the Way Home”. Pieced in batik fabrics, the Mariner’s Compass block features sharp points radiating out from the center of the quilt. Surrounded by patchwork Flying Geese units heading north, south, east and west, the central medallion was then set on point. Realizing immediately that the quilt’s title would be “Show Me the Way Home”, Carol knew she’d border the quilt with her favorite Rangeley Stars blocks, utilizing Deb Tucker’s ingenious technique taught at a recent Threads Galore Quilt Camp. The Mariner’s Compass was constructed with Brenda Henning’s paper piecing technique. Carol’s forte` is her original hand-guided freehand machine quilting and this quilt features an extensive array of quilting motifs with a lovely variegated thread that brings the artistic designs of the batiks to life and gives the quilt it’s “wow factor” wrote one judge. Other judges commented, “the overall quilt draws one in for a closer look”; “excellent star composition”; “quilting motifs enhance each area of the quilt”; and “superior workmanship”. Carol comments, “This quilt was quite a step ‘out of the box’ for me however I soon realized that a mariner’s compass, flying geese and Rangeley stars will surely ‘Show Me the Way Home’!”

Dan and Carol graciously invite all to view “Crystal Stars” and “Show Me the Way Home”, now on display in the showroom at Threads Galore Quilt Shop, 27 Pleasant Street, Rangeley.

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For more information, contact:

Don Palmer, President

Rangeley Lakes Historical Society

207 864-5647

info@rangeleyoutdoormuseum.org

RANGELEY, MAINE…For over 150 years, “Rangeley Lakes, Maine” has been synonymous with some of the best trout and salmon fishing, and other outdoor activities, anywhere in the country.

A new museum in the area will tell that history, recapture the region’s outdoor sporting lore, and reintroduce the intriguing men and women who brought it to life.

The primary focus of the Outdoor Sporting Heritage Museum in Oquossoc Village, nestled amid the mountains and lakes of the magnificent Rangeley Lakes area, will be fishing and the trophy trout and salmon that have lured anglers to the region since the mid-1800s.  It also will pay homage to hunting and the many other activities that long have attracted lovers of the outdoors and for which Rangeley is famous. 

The museum will relate the traditions and personalities that those past times spawned and also will bring the story and opportunities for recreation into the present.  In addition to paying honor to this colorful past, it will provide a connection with the region’s exciting outdoors experiences that beckon visitors today.  It will help them to contact and connect with local guides and businesses to experience first-hand the variety of available lake, stream, and forest adventures.

Located on an inviting two-acre site, the 2,500 square-foot log Outdoor Sporting Heritage Museum is a project of the Rangeley Lakes Region Historical Society.  The historical emphasis of the museum will focus on the story of some of the finest trout and salmon fishing anywhere for which the Rangeley Region is famous.

The voices of Carrie Stevens, “Fly Rod” Crosby, and Herb Welch will be among those calling out to today’s sportsmen and visitors, awakening a sense of adventure and excitement.  For example, the museum will house the largest and finest collection of the legendary Carrie Stevens’ flies in the world.  Included among more than 150 patterns that she originated and tied, the famous Gray Ghost streamer which is known and still used around the world will be featured.

The story of Cornelia “Fly Rod” Crosby, outstanding fishing and hunting enthusiast, who was honored with presentation of the first Maine Guide license, will be recounted.   Outstanding examples of the renowned Herb Welch’s mounted trout and salmon, and scores of his lifelike paintings and sketches, will be on display.

Also on view will be assorted memorabilia that will bring the past into the present.  Among only a few examples of these are an original 1920’s double-ended Rangeley Boat that was made specifically for fishing in the area, photos and information about the steamships that once transported guests to the fashionable hotels and fishing camps which ringed Rangeley Lake, and the actual room where well-known Dick Frost created the Frost Blue Smelt and other popular flies.

An introductory video will provide an overview of the area’s history, and touch screens and DVD presentations strategically located throughout the museum will offer interactive experiences for visitors of all ages.   Even the building itself will add to the ambience, recapturing the rustic charm of an early sporting camp and taxidermy shop.

Such attention to detail and imagination will help to portray the intriguing and unique role that the Rangeley Lakes Region played in writing Maine’s outdoor history.  The Outdoor Sporting Heritage Museum will recall events that took place over the past century and a half and the fascinating personalities who made them happen.

It also will serve as a bridge to the present, demonstrating how the Rangeley area continues to hold a place dear in the hearts of people seeking to recapture history and, hopefully, to make a bit of their own with the catch of a must-mount trout or salmon, or another once-in-a-lifetime outdoor experience. 

The first stage in creation of the museum has been approval of architectural plans and establishment of a capital campaign.   Contributions and grants, which are tax-deductible, already have raised $400,000 of the $1 million total that will be required for land purchase, which has been completed, along with construction, acquisitions and an endowment fund to insure permanent financial viability.  Two anonymous supporters have agreed to match future contributions as incentive for additional individual contributions.  In addition, some very important items will be donated to the museum in the name of major donors.

The museum’s website is rangeleyoutdoormuseum.org.  To make a donation or obtain more information, call 207/864-5647 or e-mail info@rangeleyoutdoormuseum.org

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Papa’s (Make that Rangeley’s….) Got a Brand New Bag !

If the late great soul man James Brown were still with us…he would undoubtedly be shuffling off to his local market with a number of Rangeley’s new Rangeley Lakes Earth Bags in hand. 

It will undoubtedly become a collector’s item in due time….but more importantly, an environmentally effective, and visible, way to make a statement that you are concerned about the proliferation of plastic bags filling our landfills, stuck in our tree branches, and sinking to the floors of our lakes and ponds.

The Rangeley Lakes Trails Center is working hard to make a positive difference in the this beautiful area by developing a network of outstanding year-round trails… and now, providing for residents and visitors of our beautiful mountain environment, a terrific, low-cost reusable bag for your groceries, your mail, or whatever.

The beautiful, hunter-green bags are now available at the Rangeley IGA, Ecopelagicon, Saddleback Mountain, Oquossoc Grocery, and The Alpine Shop, for only $5.99 each or 3 for $15.00.  Get yours now, and make an effective statement that you are concerned about the Rangeley Lakes Region environment, and want to make a difference.

All proceeds to support the Rangeley Lakes Trails Center…a non-profit, four-seasons world-class trails system on the road to SaddlebackMaine’s alpine ski area.

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