Brian Bickford, Executive Director for Maine Golf, brings deep industry experience, having served in leadership roles with MSGA and the NEPGA. A two-time NEPGA Golf Professional of the Year, he was inducted into the Maine Golf Hall of Fame in 2016.
A 1987 USM graduate, Brian was named head coach of USM’s men’s golf team in April 2023. He also began coaching the women’s team in its inaugural 2024 season.In his first year, the men’s team finished fourth at the Little East Conference (LEC) Championship, In 2024, USM captured its first-ever LEC title under Bickford, who was named LEC Coach of the Year.
Bickford previously coached at Greely, Yarmouth, and Cape Elizabeth high schools, winning a 2020 state title with Greely and mentoring five individual girls' champions.
BITS AND PIECES: | By Juliana L'Heureux
President John Thompson welcomed Rotarians, guests and the program speaker, and Brian Nickerson led the Pledge of Allegiance. President John led the “Message of the Day”, sharing two of his favorite quotes. “Don't listen to what people are fighting about. Listen to what people are fighting for. People generally fight for 3 things: 1) Power and control 2) Care and closeness - who can I trust and will you have my back? 3) Respect and recognition - do I matter and do you value me. - Esther Perel. John added a humorous quote, “You never know what worse luck your bad luck has saved you from.”- by Cormac McCarthy
SEADOG SOCIAL:Next Thursday, August 14th, join fellow Portland Rotarians for a day game, as the SeaDogs take on the Somerset Patriots, the NY Yankees affiliate at 12 Noon.Purchase your tickets by clicking here. Tickets are $12. Bring family, bring a friend, join in the Rotary fun! There will not be a club meeting on that Friday the 15th.
WELCOME: Ian Nagle introduced four guests: Yuki Handa a guest of Laura Young, Richard L’Heureux, husband of Juliana, Program speaker Jim Bouchard guest of Tom Talbott and Kathryn Nagle guest of her brother Ian. (Phot0)
FRESH DECK: Niki Merrill led the raffle. The jackpot was won on July 25th by Ian. Jim Bouchard drew the ticket for the chance to win this week’s $38. Mike Fortunato won the draw but did not select the Queen of Hearts from the fresh deck of cards. 51 left.
READ UP: David Patterson gave a brief update about the summer reading program at the Boys and Girls Club The sessions are going well., still two more weeks of Monday readings though all remaining sessions are full. (Photo)
PLUS ONE: President John announced that Bruce Moore will fill a Board vacancy, agreeing to l complete the Rotary 2025-26 term. Thank you Bruce!
LOBSTER RAFFLE PLANNING: Bill Milliken asked Rotarians to prepare for the 2nd annual “Lobster Raffle”! We need everyone’s help to sell tickets to cruise ship passengers when they disembark at the Portland Ocean Gateway terminal. If each Rotarian volunteered to help with just one time slot, all the scheduled slots to sell the raffle tickets would be filled. We need you, so please join in!
FLAGS FLY HIGH! Hooray for Flags for Heroes! Appreciation was extended to everyone who helped the success of this program. Charlie Frair reported that 200 heroes were honored, more than ever before. Publicity and recognition included 2 TV interviews, advertising on WMTW and WGME television, a WGAN radio interview, and commercials on 8 radio stations for 6 weeks, plus various articles in papers and social media. Honorees included people who contribute to the safety and betterment of our community, teachers, nurses, police, firefighters, first responders, service organizations leaders, veterans and veterans’ group. With an approximate gross of $32k and expenses of $4k, we have a net of $28,000 to support Rotary programs. 82 heroes were sponsored by individuals and 118 were sponsored by corporations. Many thanks to Paul Tully, who is the originator, and a top fundraiser for the Flags for Heroes and grateful praise extended to the entire team who contributed in multiple ways. Thanks!
INTERNATIONAL NEWS: David Small: Good news about the District Grant award he submitted to purchase water filters to take to the Bateys (where the sugar cane workers live) in the Dominican Republic. $3,969 will be donated to the project. The cost of the filters has gone up so the committee will purchase 75 filters, not as many as hoped, unless donations are received to cover the costs to buy more. Donations for solar lamps are also requested. The humanitarian hearing, hands, H2O filters and solar lamps trip to the DR is scheduled for January 10-13, 2026, Hearing aids continue to be collected to be restored and given to patients who attend the hearing clinic with Dr. Roger Fagan. For more information contact Roger.
OPIOID TASK: Jan Chapman reported that at the Sweetser led training held at Cross Insurance, eleven Rotarians signed up to engage with offered programs, including Milestone. Doreen Rockstrom added praise about her experience attending the training by explaining how the program expanded beyond recovery to include mental health. The training addressed the importance for developing listening skills and how to observe changes in a person’s behavior when facing a mental health crises. Safety considerations were also discussed. A follow up meeting is scheduled at 11 AM, on Friday, August 8th before the Rotary meeting. This volunteer training is free.
HAPPY DOLLARS: Several Rotarians donated to express pride in being members of Portland Rotary. Dave Putnam is very happy to be recovering from recent surgery and appreciative for our many loving Rotarian friendships. Dick Hall and his wife are hosting their 8 year-old grandson at camp, Laura Young will be hosting 19 of her daughter’s friends at her home. Niki Merrill is happy to be attending Rotary again after a busy stretch!
LAST WEEK'S SPEAKER:JIM BOUCHARD, Keep It Human Movement | by Jake Bourdeau
Tom Talbott introduced Jim Bouchard as our speaker at Rotary last Friday, and Jim shared his thoughts about the Keep it Human Movement for leadership in the age of artificial intelligence (AI). Jim noted that the discussions may touch a nerve with some people, and hopefully that would lead to constructive debate.
Jim said he went from loser to leader, from drug addict to black belt and Sensei (teacher – or the one who went before, in Japanese). After hitting bottom, Jim earned a black belt in martial arts and has been practicing and leading for over 25 years.
Jim led the club through some concepts and thoughts about leadership. He said leadership does not necessarily have to do with rank, title, or position of authority. A person can lead if they just learned something five minutes ago and are willing to share it. So, who is a leader? A person who can attract willing followers and is willing to serve.
These days, a leader is the opposite of a dictator. Jim said when leading, people should avoid slipping into a dictatorship role. Occasionally, leaders can be authoritative, but this is different from being a dictator, who uses fear, force, and coercion. Jim said the age of command and control is dead—many don’t respond well to that anymore.
Some food for thought: Jim said the most dangerous words in the English language from a management standpoint are, “We have always done it that way.”
He offered examples of human-centric leadership:
Inspire – Touch people’s hearts; make sure they have what they need to proceed.
Guide – Share knowledge and wisdom, face to face, unconditionally.
Positive discipline – Lead with purpose; nature abhors a vacuum.
Share – Share your experience and wisdom, in person.
Hybrid Work – Physically moves people apart, compared to in-person.
Empower – Provide support, communication, and resources.
What is success? It’s different for everyone. Jim had nothing when he quit drugs. He learned about gratitude—being thankful for what he had, no matter how little. Success, he said, is the feeling of having “enough”—material, emotional, or spiritual. And what can you accomplish without respect, trust, and loyalty?
Jim spoke about emotional and spiritual leadership. Spirituality doesn’t have to be religious. To a martial artist, it can be something you can’t measure or define—like love.
On AI, Jim said while it may pull people apart, it’s not going away. He and his wife use AI assistants to help with daily tasks, though they can be distracting.
Will AI replace leaders? Jim asked his assistant—it said no. AI cannot be held accountable or take responsibility. But AI can help streamline text, compile data, and assist in paperwork-heavy jobs like nursing. It may even give people more time to connect with others.
Jim’s advice: Don’t fully trust AI. Trust, but verify. AI sometimes produces “hallucinations,” where results are inaccurate. Always check references.
Jim’s final thought: Leadership is about many things—but mostly, it’s about sharing. The rest is how you go about it. Photo: Tom Talbott, Jim Bouchard and John Thompson)
Speaker Schedule
August 14th - Sea Dog Social! Day Game -Start 12noon!
August 15th - No Meeting
August 22 - Gregg Frame, Employment Law
August 29 - No Meeting
September 5 - Chris Timm, Executive Director, Maine Maritime Museum
September 12 - Emma Bodwell, District Governor
September 18 - Thursday Night Social TBD
September 19 - No Meeting
September 26 - Bonita Thompkins - Center for Entrepreneurial Studies
Club Executives
President John Thompson 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.
Brian Bickford, Executive Director for Maine Golf, brings deep industry experience, having served in leadership roles with MSGA and the NEPGA. A two-time NEPGA Golf Professional of the Year, he was inducted into the Maine Golf Hall of Fame in 2016.
LOBSTER RAFFLE PLANNING: Bill Milliken asked Rotarians to prepare for the 2nd annual “Lobster Raffle”! We need everyone’s help to sell tickets to cruise ship passengers when they disembark at the Portland Ocean Gateway terminal. If each Rotarian volunteered to help with just one time slot, all the scheduled slots to sell the raffle tickets would be filled. We need you, so please join in!
commercials on 8 radio stations for 6 weeks, plus various articles in papers and social media. Honorees included people who contribute to the safety and betterment of our community, teachers, nurses, police, firefighters, first responders, service organizations leaders, veterans and veterans’ group. With an approximate gross of $32k and expenses of $4k, we have a net of $28,000 to support Rotary programs. 82 heroes were sponsored by individuals and 118 were sponsored by corporations. Many thanks to Paul Tully, who is the originator, and a top fundraiser for the Flags for Heroes and grateful praise extended to the entire team who contributed in multiple ways. Thanks!
INTERNATIONAL NEWS: David Small: Good news about the District Grant award he submitted to purchase water filters to take to the Bateys (where the sugar cane workers live) in the Dominican Republic. $3,969 will be donated to the project. The cost of the filters has gone up so the committee will purchase 75 filters, not as many as hoped, unless donations are received to cover the costs to buy more. Donations for solar lamps are also requested. The humanitarian hearing, hands, H2O filters and solar lamps trip to the DR is scheduled for January 10-13, 2026, Hearing aids continue to be collected to be restored and given to patients who attend the hearing clinic with Dr. Roger Fagan. For more information contact 
OPIOID TASK: Jan Chapman reported that at the Sweetser led training held at Cross Insurance, eleven Rotarians signed up to engage with offered programs, including Milestone. Doreen Rockstrom added praise about her experience attending the training by explaining how the program expanded beyond recovery to include mental health. The training addressed the importance for developing listening skills and how to observe changes in a person’s behavior when facing a mental health crises. Safety considerations were also discussed. A follow up meeting is scheduled at 11 AM, on Friday, August 8th before the Rotary meeting. This volunteer training is free.