QR codes are everywhere – from restaurant menus to package tracking. But where there is innovation, there are criminals exploiting them for fraud. QR codes are now being used by scammers to lead you to phishing websites, where they may steal sensitive details like banking info, login credentials and more.  

Before acting on a QR code in the real world, check for signs of manipulation (a sticker over the original QR, for example). And you don’t have to use a QR code – if you’re at a restaurant, ask for the printed menu. Also, look at emailed or texted QR codes with suspicion; the point of

In a town where community values run deep, the enduring partnership between First National Bank (FNB) and the Boothbay Region YMCA is a heart-felt beacon of what local collaboration can achieve. Their shared commitment to social responsibility and community well-being is not only visible—it’s transformative. 

“First National has long understood that connecting with people is the most valuable kind of investment,” says YMCA CEO Andy Hamlett. “Their continued support enables us to expand our reach and deepen our impact across the region.” 

One of the most visible examples of this partnership

It was eleven o’clock on Sunday night, May 18, here in Maine. The lilac flowers glowed like purple ghosts in the dim light from the porch lamp; near the end of driveway, limbs covered in apple blossoms reached through the darkness to the sky. Occasionally, a car passed through the light beaming down from the telephone pole at the corner.

It was not a moment that many people would associate with bird migration.

Yet above us, unseen, were hundreds, perhaps thousands of birds flying north. We knew because of their high-pitched flight calls pitched down in the dark—short little packets

Should the sun start shining for more that two or three days in a row … and Saturdays being one of those days (it seems every Saturday for the past month has been cloudy, rainy and downright miserable for getting outside to work or play), the unofficial summer season begins this coming Monday, Memorial Day, and, hopefully, tourists will start flocking to the region.

Our region depends on tourism and depending on the weather, it’s a make or break time for local businesses. Having gone through one summer (I am sure there were others, but this one comes to mind) during my college years, where

With recent forecasts looking a bit glum, and additionally, with my fog infatuation, I figured it might be better to look elsewhere for this week’s adventure. So, a deep archive dive was in order.And look what I found! 

When Megan and Morgan were little folk we lived in the Harbor, up on Sherman Street, next to Nettie Mitchell (no relation) in a house previously owned by Verna Coady, a direct relation to “Commander Coady,” my personal hairdresser whose office was located under the bowling alley just off the sidewalk from the “Footbridge” approach.Bernard Coady actually suggested I/we have

Not far from the Boothbay town office stands the statue of a Civil War soldier. On its side, you can view a list of the names of men who served during that terrible conflict. Many of these names are familiar, as many of their families still live in our region.

There is another list of veterans in the great room of Boothbay Harbor Memorial Library. A yard or two from the used bookstore’s porch is another memorial. There are other memorials at the Southport library, on the side of the road in East Boothbay, and in the square on Southport.

These memorials and others are part of the way we honor

The Community Center will be closed on Monday, May 26 in honor of Memorial Day. We’ll be back to our regular hours on Tuesday, May 27. Have a safe and meaningful holiday! 

We’re so grateful to Cynthia, El, and teacher Molly from Boothbay Harbor Middle School for spending Wednesday, May 14 with us as part of their community service! Their positive energy and willingness to help made the day extra special. It was wonderful having them at The Community Center! 

A big thank you to Bethany for her ongoing support of the Community Center through her monthly tech sessions! She’ll be back on June

Dear Editor:

Dee and I send our very best wishes to that half of the dymanic duo of librarians, Anne, at Southport's Memorial Library who retired as of last Saturday. Not withstanding that we are going to have to seek long term deep psychotherapy resulting from the trauma of separation issues.

Through the years your most insightful, intellectual conversations have always been so uplifting (No guilt of course!). Go for it, Anne! Enjoy your new time as a grammy! We thank you for your always warm friendship and that good old, can't be beaten, Southport, Maine humah!

Dee and Howie Wright

East

Dear Editor:

Today, the terms “affordable” and “workforce” are often used together, obscuring HUD-specific meanings.

The paper from which the following quote is taken includes a definition for “affordable housing” but none for “workforce housing.”

Where affordable housing development is a municipal priority, especially workforce housing, conservation land trusts and their community partners can proactively identify properties near or adjacent to conservation land that might be suitable for housing. Working together, they can develop a plan that allows for both workforce housing

Dear Editor:

The vote on Edgecomb’s school budget was one of the most pivotal moments of my life. The town hall was packed and the energy was electric. To see so many townspeople under one roof, coming together to make big decisions, was incredibly uplifting. I daresay that somehow, some way, everyone left more or less pleased with the result.

While I’m proud of the victory, it is a shared one–and I have a long list of people to thank.

First, of course, is my wife Jaime. I can’t possibly express how much she has supported me in everything that I’ve done. Taking this position is a sacrifice

Dear Editor:

You have nothing to lose, not even your gold chains, and everything to gain: an “intimate private dinner” with the digital gold miner himself, Donnie ‘Big Dollar’ Trump, followed by a private tour of the White House.

Here’s how it works: Become one of the 220 largest investors in the memecoin $TRUMP, and join the most exclusive cryptocurrency club in the world. “Let the President know how many $TRUMP coins you own!”

The Emoluments Clauses of the U.S. Constitution be damned — in his second term, Trump has netted $350 million from the launch of $TRUMP and $900,000 after he

Dear Editor:

I was proud to be a part of the community of Edgecomb yesterday at the school budget voting and at the polls, casting ballots for candidates for local positions and on the town warrant articles.

We had lots of discussion and debate at the packed school budget meeting, all of it civil and considerate as well as informative. Our moderator, Melissa Holmes did an exemplary job in a complicated and confusing forum. The end product was a compromise which kept the budget increases low and satisfied all parties involved. A group of citizens did their due diligence researching our school

Dear Editor:

The letter “Christian patriots” asserts that “this nation is and always will be a christian nation.” This is not what our constitution says nor the preponderance of judicial precedent. But we are a nation of Christians Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindu and capitalists each worshiping our gods in our own way and each bringing our world views and values to our cultural melting pot.

What is critical, and the “Christian patriot” seems to dismiss, is that religion is not in the constitutional purview of our government. With a few minor exceptions Christian nationalists have had some

Dear Editor: 

A group of dedicated residents believes citizens are entitled to accurate financial information that affects their tax assessments and the expenditure of public funds. This group will continue to provide the work and finances necessary to achieve that goal. Information will be provided (https://edgecomb.me/ ) that is often not readily accessible as well as data and analysis where there are inconsistencies in the available public documents. 

Continued Inconsistencies: 

For example, the repeated explanation by the Edgecomb school board regarding the FY2026 budgeted social

Dear Editor:

I would like to thank Chief Roy Potter and the members of the Edgecomb Fire Dept. for installing the Veterans Banners in Edgecomb. We much appreciate you taking your valuable time from family, fire department duties, and other community service work. Your work honors those from Edgecomb who proudly served their country.

If others would like to purchase a Veterans Banner for an Edgecomb family member, relative, or friend, please email me at jmorley1@roadrunner.com for information/order form. Those wanting banners for display by Veterans Day need to have orders in by (9/1/25). I

Dear Editor:

I feel incredibly fortunate to live in a small town on the coast of Maine. Edgecomb has been my home for over 20 years -- a place where I’ve raised my family and where my boys attended Edgecomb Eddy, a school that remains the heart of this community for so many of us. Our school isn’t just where our children learn -- it’s where our community lives and grows.  It’s why my wife and I initially moved to Edgecomb.  

On Saturday the 17th, I attended the Edgecomb town meeting. It was clear that people in the room care deeply about our town -- there was real passion and commitment. But

Hannah Hills, a proud senior at Boothbay Region High School, embodies the spirit of youth development through her leadership, her dedication to academic excellence, and her active involvement in extracurricular pursuits.Her journey reflects the core values championed by the Boothbay Region YMCA, inspiring her peers and community alike. 

Growing up amidst Maine’s rugged coastline, Hannah has always been drawn to the water. Whether she’s kayaking in the bay, sailing with family, or volunteering with local conservation efforts, water has become a source of inspiration and tranquility for her

The rain held off; the shears were applied, and the bushes around the Rotary clubhouse no longer look like a set from a Tarzan movie.  The reward for the outdoor clean-up was the chance to get to know our newest member Alex Rioux and soon-to-be member Desiree Scorcia. Both of them may be new to the club, but certainly not to our community: You know you are in the presence of the cognoscenti when the conversation turns to the first location of Everybody’s Restaurant. (Hint: No, it’s not the Meadow Mall. Mike Thompson tells me I was wrong.) 

New members and old delights: Laurie Zimmerli chef

What Memorial Day is all about was best said by John A. Logan, Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, who, in 1868, authored his Memorial Day Order, designating May 30, 1868, for honoring our comrades by strewing flowersor otherwise decoratingtheir graves. In his words ...

 GENERAL ORDERS 
 No. 11 

I. The 30th day of May, 1868 is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet churchyard in the

Recently, I told a friend that I had a birthday coming up. It is a big one, the big seven zero. My friend quickly replied that I didn’t look 70 at all. Which was nice, but it made me wonder what, exactly, 70 should look like? Is 70 the new 60? Probably not, but it begs the question: what does aging look like in our modern society? 

Gone are the days of retiring to your rocking chair on the front porch. Many Mainers continue to work well past the Social Security retirement age of 67. Maine’s retirees and other older citizens are often active in many different ways in their communities as