Anne Schmidt
Happy summer, Black Bears! I hope that you all are having a fabulous 2019 so far. We don’t get much of a spring here in Texas. I often joke with friends that the seasonality of east Texas exists in only two realms — summer and not summer.
And what we transition out of, otherwise known as winter in most of the US, we jokingly refer to as “not summer” here in the Houston area. While many people further north are watching the crocuses poke their delicate purple crowns out of the ground, down south we’ve already got the air conditioners cranked and the pools are full of energetic children. It is a way of life that, four years after moving here, I still have not gotten used to. However, spring in Texas also means my new favorite pastime: crawfish boils! This is the time-honored tradition where friends gather around a boiling trough of spicy seasoned water, boil up dozens of pounds of tiny mudbugs, and eat until we cannot move. Wash it all down with some refreshing Texas beer and you’ve got yourself a relaxing Saturday. It may just put the New England lobster bake to shame. Did I just say that out loud? Sshh!
But let’s talk more about beer! Very exciting things happened this past fall for the Orono Brewing Company gang, right in our old UMaine area stomping grounds. Mark Horton is part of the team of OBC owners who transformed an old concrete plant into a state-of-the-art brewery, restaurant, and bar on a quiet road in a residential neighborhood in Orono. The new facility will expand the company’s production, allowing more beer-loving Mainers the opportunity to enjoy their creations.
In sports news, Jeff Mannix is coming back to UMaine as the new face and voice of men’s hockey television broadcasting. Previously, Jeff hosted a morning radio show in Portland and was the play-by-play broadcaster for the former Portland Pirates. Welcome back to Orono, Jeff! I remember you calling games when we were students.
Jen Adams wrote with her news: “My husband, Rob Harville, and I would like to announce the birth of our first child, Hazel Elizabeth Harville, born September 20, 2018 at 9:27 am. She weighed six pounds three ounces and measured 18.5 inches long.” Jen and her family live in Scarborough.
Cooperative extension educator Tori Jackson G received the 2018 Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of County Agricultural Agents. The award is given to Extension educators with more than 10 years of service, and is presented to only one county educator in Maine each year. Congratulations, Tori!
Additional work accomplishment news out of Bangor: Tracy Collins has joined the staff at the law firm of Rudman Winchell. She comes to the firm with seven years of experience in the courtroom as an assistant district attorney with the Bangor district attorney’s office. At her new post at Rudman Winchell she will support the firm’s litigation section.
That’s it from me here in Houston, TX! If you are a Class of 2004 grad and happen to be reading these notes, please send me your news! I love hearing how my classmates are doing and we’d love to share your adventures with other Black Bears.