THIS WEEK'S SPEAKER:  Deirdre Nice, The Hill Arts

Deirdre Nice is the Executive and Artistic Director of The Hill Arts, formerly known as St. Lawrence Arts, on Portland’s East End.

President Justin Lamontagne led the meeting off with the Pledge of Allegiance. David Small provided an invocation discussing the potential meaning and history behind the term Indian Summer, also referred to as Second Summer, or St. Martins Summer which references St. Martins day of November 11^th in Europe. 

ROTARY GUESTS: John Terry was the greeter for the meeting and he presented the list of many guests who included: Allison Wall, the daughter of Katharine and Jerry Wall; Karly Fortunato, daughter of Mike Fortunato; a builder and guest of David Putnam; Richard Pattenaude who has a PHD and was a guest of Roxane Cole; Harrison Lambert, President Saco Bay Sunset Rotary, and a first-year Master Degree Roux institute student who was a guest of Niki Merril.

THANK YOU’S:  Justin thanked Tim Donnellen and Larry Gross for stepping up and bringing over the box of supplies for the meeting, and he thanked Katharine Wall for setting up and managing the meeting day schedule of volunteers.

ANNIVERSARIES AND BIRTHDAYS: Justin announced five (5) Rotary anniversaries and seven (7) birthdays, and we sang!

RAFFLE: Tim Donnellen hosted the raffle Friday, and the speaker pulled Mike Reed’s ticket from the can for a shot at winning just under $300. Mike was close and selected the Queen of Spades from the deck, letting the Queen of Hearts and the pot sleep another week. Remember, you must be present at the meeting and buy a ticket to win.

FOUNDATION CELEBRATION! Tom Talbott gave an update on the District Foundation Celebration, Saturday, October 17 in Portsmouth, NH focusing on veterans, mental health, and World Polio Day. Tom let us know that it is going to be a high energy event in an airplane hangar, and that over 100 people have already signed up including ten, so far, from our Portland Club. Jerry Wall and Brian Nickerson are organizing a carpool, which adds a whole new level of fun! Our 250 American Flags for Heroes will be part of the interactive participant fun – all hands on deck.  

We’ll also honor Wally Camp Jr. as a Paul Harris Fellow for his support of our Flags For Heroes program and his longtime commitment to veterans’ causes.

Join Jerry and Brian, Laura Young, Jake Bourdeau, Bill Milliken, Art Howe, Paul Gore, Charlie Frair, Niki Curtis, Roger Fagan, Mike Fortunato, Larry Gross and Tom Talbott.

FOR MORE DETAILS and TICKETS - Click our Eventbrite Link.  Only $20, and under 18 no charge. Bring a young person, they'll always remember the day!  

LOBSTER RAFFLE UPDATE: Larry Gross gave an update on the Lobster Raffle ticket sales and let us know the fundraising is going well. Larry is excited that there a bunch of new Rotarian faces volunteering their time and efforts to sell raffle tickets. In fact as of this WJ, all slots have been filled! Larry let us know that any time slots that were originally scheduled to start at 8 AM should start at 9 AM, unless you want to talk with the crickets in the park. However, you are more than welcomed to come down and help, just like anyone else. To see the dates and who you can work with, just CLICK HERE. 

PREBLE STREET: Tom Talbott let us know that Preble Street sent a note of thanks to the Rotary volunteers that have already signed up and helped with meal preparation and service to help those with their hunger, homelessness, and/or poverty. Use the following link to help out – Our goal is 100 volunteer hours!Step One -  REGISTRATION

Step Two -  Orientation Video  (Click Photo) (Only 6 mins) 

POLIO WALK AND SOCIAL: Jake Bourdeau filled us in on our Annual Polio Walk will be held Thursday, October 22 at 5:30 PM in honor of World Polio Day on October 24, raising awareness for polio eradication and honoring Jonas Salk, developer of the first effective polio vaccine. We’ll meet at the Rotary Armillary near the head of Portland’s Eastern Promenade Trail and the ferry terminal. Wear a red Polio shirt, red sweatshirt, or other Rotary gear. We’ll walk approximately one mile down Commercial Street toward Maple Street and return via Fore Street. Shorter routes will be available. The goal is to show solidarity, celebrate progress toward ending polio, and be visible in our community. Afterward, around 6PM, we’ll gather at Brickyard Hollow on 9 Commercial St for social, food, drinks and trivia available at 7pm! 

LAST WEEK'S SPEAKER: Don Bowden, Life Beyond the Bars | By Bruce Moore

Donald Bowden spoke to Portland Rotary about incarceration, recovery and reentry.

He grew up with poverty, abuse and substance use, and was involved with the justice system from childhood. By 19, he was addicted to heroin. One night, a man asked if he had ever used heroin. Bowden said no, then turned his head and let the man inject him. “I never looked back,” he said. What followed were some of the darkest years of his life.

His story had a direct connection to our club because several members mentor at Long Creek Youth Development Center or serve with Friends of Long Creek. Bowden spent time at what was then the Maine Youth Center. He told those working with young people that even if the kids do not show it, they remember the people who tried to help them.

Randall Liberty was also a big part of Bowden’s story. Liberty served as Kennebec County Sheriff, Maine State Prison warden and later Maine’s Commissioner of Corrections. He helped develop what became known as the "Maine Model", which puts more emphasis on rehabilitation, education, job training, treatment and helping people return to the community.

Bowden said there was a time when Liberty was “my enemy.” Liberty had been involved in investigations into Bowden’s drug activity. That changed when Bowden entered the CARA recovery program at the Kennebec County Jail. Bowden said the program made him look at his thinking, values and how he saw the world. For once, he began to feel “real, solid, true hope.”

One of the strongest parts of his talk came when he described people starting to see something in him that he could not see in himself. “Once I was planted in some nice fertile ground,” he said, “I haven’t stopped growing since.” He followed that with: “We need each other. We need community.” Then he told the room, “Reach out. You never know.”

During his last prison sentence, Bowden learned upholstery. He talked about broken furniture that people might throw away, then taking it apart, rebuilding it and returning it to use. He realized that was similar to what people had done for him. Today he owns an upholstery business and hopes to use that trade to help people coming out of prison.

Bowden also talked about juvenile corrections. He does not believe incarceration should disappear, that sometimes it is absolutely necessary, but said putting young people in cells is not enough. They also need education, life skills, job training, purpose and meaning.

The questions that followed showed how much the room appreciated Bowden’s willingness to tell his story so openly. Members congratulated him and asked about his education, his work, juvenile corrections and what had helped him turn his life around. His honesty about some very difficult parts of his past, and how much he has overcome, made for a program our club clearly appreciated hearing.

After the meeting, Mike Fortunato, Jim Willey, Don's Friend, Don, David Putnam, and Tom Talbott shared ideas for ways to share Don's message. Mike, Jim, David and Tom work with Friends of Long Creek. 

What are the Seven Areas of Focus that our Foundation addresses? The most recent addition is Protecting the Environment where innovative solutions to develop sustainable service projects are established to resolve environmental challenges, to strengthen local ecosystems, and to address issues of our planet.