It is absolutely amazing and so gratifying how the entire community comes together every year to provide for the children of our area at Christmas. Now an unexpected crisis is at our doorstep.

With an effort to support social distancing and reduce potential exposure to COVID-19 within the Piscataquis community, the Piscataquis Regional YMCA announced that the facility will close on Monday, March 16 through Friday, March 27.

The Center Theatre announced Monday that it is closing in an effort to slow the spread of COVID 19. According to an announcement posted on the website, "We are joining many other local organizations who are taking action to slow the spread of COVID 19 to give our healthcare systems and supporting infrastructure a chance to cope with this global pandemic. We do this not out of fear but from a sense of shared responsibility for the health and welfare of our community."

The board of directors for Three Rivers Kiwanis of Milo/Brownville have decided to suspend meetings for Wednesday, March 18 and Wednesday, March 25. Due to the Covid-19 virus the board is taking every precaution to keep people safe and healthy.

The woods and waters of what is now Piscataquis and Aroostook counties were largely uncharted territory for the people of European descent in Maine in the years prior to statehood in 1820.

The Narrow Gauge Riders Snowmobile Club is again conducting the annual Lake Hebron Ice Out Contest. Guess the closest date and time, without going over, of ice out on Lake Hebron and win $150. All proceeds will go to support club equipment, grooming and other trail maintenance.

The Center Theatre is now accepting registrations for the 2020 April Vacation Drama Camp. The camp will run from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday, April 20 through Friday April 24 at the Center Theatre.

There’s a symphony going on in the North Maine Woods, and few people know about it. Perhaps a handful of loggers have noticed. A smattering of snowmobilers might have heard the din while pausing on the trail. I rarely run into birders there. Indeed, never.

The Piscataquis Regional YMCA is pleased to announce the appointment of Mandy Adams as its new executive director/CEO, effective March 11. Adams was selected by the Y’s CEO search committee, following a 3-month search.

To protect staff and constituents, the Piscataquis County Soil and Water Conservation District will be closing its office after 4:30 PM on Friday, March 13 and will be telecommuting starting Monday March 16. PCSWCD plans to reopen our office at 8 AM on Monday, March 30. If this date needs to be adjusted, we will communicate this.

University of Maine Cooperative Extension will offer two sessions on using small-scale greenhouses to extend the growing season beginning 1-3 p.m. on Thursday March 12, at the UMaine Extension office, 165 East Main St. in Dover-Foxcroft. The program repeats from 10 a.m. to noon on Wednesday, March 25 at the Extension office, 307 Maine Avenue in Bangor.

A group of concerned citizens in the PIttsfield area are coming together to try to save and revitalize the Pittsfield Community Theatre. Their vision goes beyond just restoring and refurbishing the Theatre, they hope to create a community center that will be a space for people of all ages to engage in various forms of art and culture.

As winter slowly winds down in Maine, giving way to mud season, it can be a challenge to plan outdoor adventures. Throughout the state, snow depth can vary drastically from the coast to inland mountains, dictating whether you can ski, snowmobile, snowshoe, ice skate, bike or hike on solid ground.

The Center Theatre announced that Gretchen Huettner has joined the Center Theatre staff through the Americorps Vista program. Through a partnership with Goodwill of Northern New England, Huettner will be the Center Theatre's volunteer coordinator. In this position, she will be responsible for the Center Theatre's volunteer recruitment, training and retention.

Upcoming events around the region.

"I'd go, 'Well, we're going fishing this weekend. We can't do that,'" Brann said. For 11 years, that excuse worked. But this year, with an annual fishing vacation to Moosehead Lake with three other couples looming, Collins made Brann a deal he couldn't refuse.

With the pending retirement of a Waterville hospital executive and the recent addition of a new hospital, Northern Light Health is shuffling around the leadership of its hospitals in central Maine and Piscataquis County.

The plan for Legislative District 119 includes work in seven of the district’s towns: Abbot, Greenville, Monson, Parkman, Sangerville, Sebec and Shirley. It includes 12 projects over the next three years, totaling over $12.88 million. Highlights include reconstruction of Route 6 in Abbot ($8,680,000) and work on Route 23 in Sangerville ($2,660,000).