Tulip fundraiser planned for Portage Lake Fitness Path
ASHLAND NEWS
by Susan Feeney Hopkins
As part of the fund-raising effort for the Portage Lake Fitness Path, the committee will be selling Pink Tulip bulbs.
It is the hope that enough bulbs will be sold to create a tulip garden in the area of the fitness path. There are gardens of this kind planted throughout the state to raise awareness and offer hope for those affected by cancer. Planting will be done in October and by next spring a mass of bright pink!
Bulbs will be sold for $3 each and one-third of the proceeds will go directly to the Woman’s Cancer Fund of the Maine Cancer Foundation. Contact Corrine Routhier at 435-6854 to place your order.
Ashland student to compete in Hershey Track and Field Games
Cassidy Pelletier, 12, of Ashland, will again this year compete in the Hershey Track and Field Games North American Final. The program is sponsored by the Hershey Co. and features over 400 of the best young track and field athletes in North America. The finals will be held Aug. 6 in Hershey, Pa. at the Henry Hershey Field on the campus of the Milton Hershey School. This will mark the 34th year that Hershey Track and Field Games has provided boys and girls between the ages of 9-14 with the opportunity to learn and develop the skills required to participate in basic track and field events.
Pelletier will compete in the girls (ages 11-12) softball throwing event. This will be her second time to go the North American Finals. The first was in 2009 for the same event in the 9-10-year-old category. Pelletier is the daughter of Bonnie and Carrie Pelletier and attends the Ashland District School. Best of luck, Cassie. We’re all rooting for you!
Portage Lake Housing board closer to fund-raising goal
The Portage Lake Housing board is getting a little bit closer to their goal of raising $35,000 for the land purchase phase of the town’s senior housing complex project.
Photo courtesy of Susan Feeney-Hopkins
THE PORTAGE LAKE HOUSING CORP. stands with their fund-raising sign in the town center (hung with Dean’s Restaurant sign) which will display the progress of their efforts to secure money for the purchase of land for a low-income senior housing complex to be constructed in town. With the sign are, from left: corporation board members Jen Curran, Darey Gagnon, Ray Wakefield, Ray Cyr, Daniel Higgins, Pat Goodblood and Jeanie Jones.
The Portage Lake Housing Corp. (PLHC) was organized in 2007 with the intention of establishing a low-income senior citizen housing complex within the town of Portage Lake. It was recognized that a majority of the town’s retired elders were having difficulty maintaining their lifelong homes (financially) on fixed incomes with many of them having to leave the community to find affordable housing elsewhere. These caring and concerned individuals were driven to find a solution. An official committee was formed and its members have worked tirelessly to figure out how the town of Portage Lake can provide safe and decent housing for its low-income seniors allowing them to remain in their hometown community.
Since its establishment, the committee has spent hundreds of hours researching and making a plan to see its vision through. As we are midway through 2011, I am happy to announce the housing project is moving forward with an actual plan for “Mountain Valley Manor” to be constructed on an eight-acre parcel of land located next to the town hall. The $35,000 needed at this time will be used to purchase the land which also includes the survey and closing cost fees associated with the purchase. The complex will be a six-unit building (with an option to expand to 12 in the future) and will charge rent based upon the tenant’s income and will provide all utilities and services. Most of all, it will allow the town’s aging citizens to remain in their hometown, safe and cared for.
The Portage Lake Housing Corp. is a 503 (c) non-profit corporation that will also retain ownership of the complex which means the complex will remain in the caring hands of its local townspeople who sit on the corporation’s board of directors. It is not owned by any person or entity; and will not be a “money making” venture. Its sole purpose is to provide safe and decent housing to the town’s low-income and disabled senior citizens.
In order for the PLHC to be successful in obtaining construction funding, the land purchase goal must be met. It is very important to prove to potential funding sources that the community wholeheartedly stands behind this project. What better way to prove this than by showing them that the community has banded together in its fund-raising campaign!
To date, the corporation has raised $7,060 toward its $35,000 goal. The hope is to have raised all the needed funds by Sept. 30 in order to secure the purchase of the land by the end of the year. The board of directors is asking the citizens of Portage Lake to come together and help them reach their goal. Whether you make a personal donation or make your contribution by attending the local fundraisers, every bit, no matter how big or small, will help the project tremendously. Your donation will make a difference in the lives of many of the community members and will strengthen the ties that bind you! All donors will be recognized on a name-bearing plaque which will be unveiled at the grand opening of Mountain Valley Manor. Because this is a non-profit corporation, all donations are tax deductible.
If you would like to make a donation or are interested in seeing a copy of the building’s conceptual design, drawings, cost estimates or have any questions, please contact Ray Cyr at 435-6709.
Susan Feeney-Hopkins is the correspondent for Ashland, Portage Lake, Oxbow, Masardis, Garfield, Nashville Plantation and the surrounding areas. She can be reached at 435 – 8232 or Feenhop@aol.com
