Do you like music? Like games? Like fellowship? Want to try something new? If any of these are a yes, please join us for some Music Bingo at the Port Hole this Wednesday, this Wednesday, February 19th. The plan is to arrive around 530 to get some tables, since they do not take reservations, and play music bingo starting at 6. The Port Hole has a full pub-style menu, and they know we will be attending hungry. The Port Hole is in downtown Portland on the waterfront at 20 Custom House Wharf Pier.
Music Bingo- You get a card with song titles instead of numbers, listen to short clips of songs played by a host, and mark off the songs you hear on your card, aiming to get five in a row and yell "Bingo!" to win. It's like regular bingo but uses music knowledge, making it interactive and fun for all ages and music taste!
Please RSVP Jake Bourdeau if you plan to attend, so we can get a head count for them, and so we know what to expect table-wise.
BITS AND PIECES | By Laura Young
Co-President Bowen Depke called the meeting to order — notably without a bell. Fortunately, Larry Gross rushed one up to the podium just in time to restore proper Rotary decorum. Saved by the bell! Tom Talbott led us in the Pledge, and Cyrus Hagge delivered the Message of the Day — a delightful children’s poem about a boy who made a snowball his pet, only to have it eventually wet the bed. Even the best intentions can melt under pressure.
WELCOME: David Patterson introduced his corporate member Josh Addo, and Patty Byers introduced her husband, Reid Byers. We were also pleased to welcome Fran Bagdasarian, former Assistant Governor, member of the South Portland/Cape Elizabeth Club, and board member of Farms for Food Equity, introduced by Laura Young.
IN MEMORIAM: Later in the meeting, David Small shared the sad news that Bruce Nelson, his former business partner and longtime Portland Rotarian, has passed away. Bruce joined our club in 1972 and was a dedicated member. We extend our sympathy to his family and friends.
RAFFLE: Mary Pat Donnellon led the raffle with her usual flair. Greg Hansel’s ticket was drawn, and with great ceremony, he selected the 4 of Clubs. The jackpot lives on.
FLAGS ON ICE: Our flags represent heroes. Carry a flag for your hero, and let them know you were thinking of them.
Tom Talbott encouraged members to join us for our “Flags For Heroes” presentation at the Maine Mariners Hockey game, Sunday, March 1st 3pm game. This is a family and friends event, your entire party is invited to each carry a flag. Those too young to keep the flag off the ice are still invited to walk with you.
It’s going to be a great memory! The ticket to get into the game is $19.90 all in. We’ll be following up with details to all registrants on where we’ll meet at the game and organize for our carry in-between the 1st and 2nd period. The ice is all shaved up and easy to walk, but know your limitations.
Great way to showcase Rotary and be proud of what we do!
PAUL HARRIS RECOGNITION – ROGER & LIZ FAGAN: Patty Byers recognized Roger and Liz Fagan as Paul Harris Fellows — for the fourth time each.Roger joined Portland Rotary in 1992 and has long co-chaired International Services. Liz has been a dedicated honorary member since 2004. Patty noted that the Fagan’s truly embody Service Above Self. Since 2002, they have traveled to the Dominican Republic 26 times to serve the hearing impaired, especially children. Their long partnership with Good Samaritan Hospital in La Romana culminated last month in the dedication of the Rotary Hearing Clinic — a dream nearly twenty years in the making. On behalf of the thousands now able to hear, Patty thanked Roger and Liz for their extraordinary and sustained commitment. We look forward to hearing all about the recent DR trip at the March 27 Club Assembly. But first, we all gathered for Team Fagan photo!
THANKS FROM YOUTH SERVICES AWARDEE: Bowen shared a note from January Youth Services award recipient Kendell Sparks. Kendell used her award to purchase a laptop for college and expressed how meaningful it was to learn more about our Club and Rotary’s programs. Always gratifying to see our investments in young leaders put to immediate use.
HAPPY DOLLARS: Lively and far-ranging! Peter Goffin, back from Argentina, Antarctica, Chile, California, Washington, and Detroit, shared a chance encounter in a California desert visitor center with a former Portland Rotarian from decades ago — who fondly remembered Paul Gore. Dick Hall reported that the school in the Philippines, supported in part by $4,000 from the former Portland Sunrise Satellite Club, has been completed. Funds will support books, curriculum, and potentially a second school. Art Howe was up in Stockholm, Maine, and stayed with a former president of the Caribou Rotary Club, discovering a huge collection of antique pressing irons! Ken Johnson shared that Farms for Food Equity lost one-third of its funding last year but made up the entire deficit by the start of this year. Bowen thanked Co-Pres Laura for holding down the fort during his recent travels.
ROTARY RUTH! Ruth was our wonderful club secretary back in the 80's and early 2000's and is remembered by many of our current members who were members back in the day. Ruth still keeps in touch with a few of the members, and sent Bill Blount and Tom Talbott a lovely photo of her, with her daughter Bethany, and Sister-In-Law Shirley on the right. This was in December 2025, just a few days before her 87th birthday. She spoke with Tom this week and they reminisced about our famous Rotary Monument Square Arts Festival, that attracted artists from Maine, NH, MA, probably more. Ruth says hi to everyone from her home in South Carolina. We miss you Ruth, and send our love!
LAST WEEK'S SPEAKER: Ken Johnson - Farms For Food Equity's Maine-Made Model | by David Patterson
At our February 13 meeting, we heard from Ken Johnson, Vice President of Farms for Food Equity (FFFE), a Maine nonprofit with a simple idea that makes a lot of sense. FFFE raises money from corporate sponsors, local businesses, and individual donors, and then uses those funds to pay Maine farms for surplus or imperfect produce. That fresh food is then delivered to people in our community who need it.
The organization started after founder Penny Jordan, a fourth-generation farmer from Cape Elizabeth, pointed out something that didn’t sit right. Many Maine families struggle with food insecurity, while at the same time a good amount of produce goes unharvested each year because there is too much of it or it doesn’t look “perfect” enough for grocery stores. FFFE steps in to bridge that gap. Instead of simply collecting leftover food, they purchase it from the farms. That helps farmers bring in revenue and lowers their risk, while also moving fresh produce into the community.
They began with three farms and have now grown to 14 farms, from the Scarborough area up toward Lewiston. These days FFFE moves about 180,000 to 200,000 pounds of produce each year. Over five years, that adds up to nearly 800,000 pounds of fresh food going back to our communities.
FFFE does not run its own pantry or meal program. Instead, they work through partners that already have systems in place. Wayside Food Programs distributes food to a large network of soup kitchens and pantries. Preble Street prepares and serves about 10,000 meals per week. FFFE focuses on placing orders with farms, coordinating deliveries, and making sure the farms get paid.
Ken talked about how different this produce is compared to what food pantries often receive from grocery stores. Retail donations are usually near the end of their shelf life after being shipped long distances and sitting on shelves. With this program, produce can be harvested just days before it is delivered. That means fresher food, better quality, and more variety for the people receiving it.
A federal local-food purchasing program ended, costing FFFE about $70,000, roughly a third of its funding. At the same time, demand increased due to SNAP disruptions and growing need. When partners asked for an additional 14,000 pounds of food, FFFE was able to respond quickly because they already had strong relationships with farms. There is also a real impact on the farms. Six River Farm in Bowdoinham has been able to increase full-time staffing since partnering with FFFE. Having a reliable outlet for surplus crops and oversized or misshapen produce gives farms more stability.
Ken’s request was simple: keep FFFE in mind when you see opportunities, especially with restaurants, workplace drives, or donors who want to support both local farms and local families. Photo - Cape/SP Rotarian Fran Bagdasarian who joined the FFFE team, Bowen, and Ken Johnson.
NEW MEMBER NOTIFICATION: 1st Notice Ashlee Diver has applied for membership, sponsored by Roger Fagan. Ashlee connected professionally to Roger, as she is the owner of Red Maple Audiology, and has twice served with the Fagans at The Good Samaritan Hospital in the DR. Ashlee's application will be printed a second time and then move to the Board of Directors for vote. If any Portland Rotarian would like to offer a comment on a proposal, please contact Laura Young or Bowen Depke. It will be shared with the Board of Directors prior to a vote on the application.
Have Rotarians been successful at supporting their Foundation? Rotarians raised more than US$569 million in 2024-25 for TRF and surpassed US$2.050 billion for the RI Endowment/Permanent Fund.
Speaker Schedule
February 27- Dr. Ross Greene, Lives in the Balance /Understanding Youth
March 1 - Flags For Heroes Event at Cross Insurance Arena
March 6 - Seth Goodall, The Maine Center
March 13 - Steve Bromage, USA's 250th Anniversary
March 19 - Club Social
March 20 - No Meeting
March 27 - Club Assembly
Club Executives
Co-Presidents Bowen Depke, Laura Young President Elect Justin Lamontagne Vice President Jake Bourdeau TreasurerDick Hall Secretary Juliana L'Heureux Board of Directors Dick Hall, Patty Byers,
Art Howe, Niki Merrill, Bill Milliken, Bruce Moore
Sergeant-At-ArmsZach Newell
The Windjammer is published online by
The Rotary Club of Portland, Maine.
Do you like music? Like games? Like fellowship? Want to try something new? If any of these are a yes, please join us for some Music Bingo at the Port Hole this Wednesday, this Wednesday, February 19th. The plan is to arrive around 530 to get some tables, since they do not take reservations, and play music bingo starting at 6. The Port Hole has a full pub-style menu, and they know we will be attending hungry. The Port Hole is in downtown Portland on the waterfront at 20 Custom House Wharf Pier. 
FLAGS ON ICE: Our flags represent heroes. Carry a flag for your hero, and let them know you were thinking of them. 
each.Roger joined Portland Rotary in 1992 and has long co-chaired International Services. Liz has been a dedicated honorary member since 2004. Patty noted that the Fagan’s truly embody Service Above Self. Since 2002, they have traveled to the Dominican Republic 26 times to serve the hearing impaired, especially children. Their long partnership with Good Samaritan Hospital in La Romana culminated last month in the dedication of the Rotary Hearing Clinic — a dream nearly twenty years in the making. On behalf of the thousands now able to hear, Patty thanked Roger and Liz for their extraordinary and sustained commitment. We look forward to hearing all about the recent DR trip at the March 27 Club Assembly. But first, we all gathered for Team Fagan photo!
ROTARY RUTH! Ruth was our wonderful club secretary back in the 80's and early 2000's and is remembered by many of our current members who were members back in the day. Ruth still keeps in touch with a few of the members, and sent Bill Blount and Tom Talbott a lovely photo of her, with her daughter Bethany, and Sister-In-Law Shirley on the right. This was in December 2025, just a few days before her 87th birthday. She spoke with Tom this week and they reminisced about our famous Rotary Monument Square Arts Festival, that attracted artists from Maine, NH, MA, probably more. Ruth says hi to everyone from her home in South Carolina. We miss you Ruth, and send our love! 
NEW MEMBER NOTIFICATION: 1st Notice Ashlee Diver has applied for membership, sponsored by Roger Fagan. Ashlee connected professionally to Roger, as she is the owner of Red Maple Audiology, and has twice served with the Fagans at The Good Samaritan Hospital in the DR. Ashlee's application will be printed a second time and then move to the
Have Rotarians been successful at supporting their Foundation? Rotarians raised more than US$569 million in 2024-25 for TRF and surpassed US$2.050 billion for the RI Endowment/Permanent Fund.