Deborah Carll Curtis
56 Green Ridge Drive
Buxton, ME 04093
dcurtis@blackbearpc.com
facebook.com/groups/UMaineClass1988/
Hello, Class of 1988. I hope wherever this column finds you—whether experiencing a cool, fall day in New England or a warmer afternoon in Hawaii—that you are doing well. Age has crept up on all of us, but some of us are lucky enough and able enough to maintain a healthy lifestyle. One such person would be Karen Perreault Fogg, of York, ME. In April of 2017, Karen ran the Boston Marathon, finishing with a time of 3:35.01 (Bangor Daily News). Way to go, Karen!
With education near and dear to my heart (I am a high school counselor in Maine) I receive the Maine Department of Education’s weekly updates and was pleased to see that Maine’s 2017 History Teacher of the Year was Karen Doughty. Karen has taught at Wells Middle School, Lake Region High School, and since 2012 at Hall-Dale High School in Farmingdale, ME.
“Throughout her career, [Karen] has brought her passion for history to her classroom by incorporating experiential, thought-provoking, creative, and hands-on activities into her lessons” (Maine DOE Newsroom). Congratulations, Karen, and thank you for keeping history important and relevant for the students of Maine.
Another educator in the news, William Belcher G, an archaeology professor at the University of Hawai’i – West O’ahu, made the news for leading his students on an archaeological work site at the Honouliuli National Monument, the “site of the incarceration camp where some of Hawaii’s Japanese-American residents were held during World War II.” William’s students are some of the few people allowed at this national monument that only became a monument in 2015. The National Park Service has said it may be many years before the two-year-old monument is ready for visitors. For William’s students, history is not just studied from a textbook or a website but also from what can be found “just up the hill from the campus.” (NBC News). Thank you, William, for helping to preserve a bit of American history—even if that history was not one of America’s brightest moments.
Congratulations to John Ronan, who was named president of Blue Hill Memorial Hospital and Maine Coast Memorial Hospital last August. He has 20 years of experience with Eastern Maine Healthcare Systems—he had led Blue Hill Memorial Hospital for three years and also served as acting president at Maine Coast Memorial Hospital since last year.
Well, Class of ’88, I hope others of you are experiencing great things—whether those moments make the news or not. If willing to share, let me know what you are doing and I’ll add it to the next column. Take care.