Community center may close

FOREST CITY —  A no-longer repairable furnace at the Brookton Forest City Community Center threatens the imminent closure of that facility.  Unless the non-profit organization can quickly raise approximately $10,000 the center will be forced to close later this month and all planned activities for the winter and spring will be cancelled. The resulting loss of revenue could conceivably prevent the Center from reopening next summer.     The center is the site of popular monthly dinners attended by locals as well as folks from Topsfield, Lambert Lake, Vanceboro, Danforth, Orient and Houlton. The center is also rented for family reunions, wakes, parties, celebrations, etc.
    Mason Shain, President of the organization, reports that plans for the Oct. 13 benefit dinner for a recently hospitalized resident and the turkey dinner on Oct.20 are going forward with the hope that mild weather will continue until then.
    When the former Brookton Elementary School closed in 1995 a committee was formed to create the BFCCC as a non-profit organization. BFCCC then signed a lease with the State of Maine. Although the lease payment is just $1 per year, the organization is responsible for all maintenance and operational expenses.
    Fuel, utilities, insurance and normal upkeep consume the entire $9,000 annual budget. Upkeep this year included replacing the hot water system and repairing one side of the nearly 50-year-old building. Usage fees, the monthly community dinners and donations of time and money by citizens have kept the organization afloat.
    Now the center is asking individuals and businesses in the area for monetary help sufficient to pay for the new furnace. Contributions, which are tax deductible, may be sent to: The Brookton Forest City Community Center, Brookton, ME 04413. Hopes are that the center, a resource for the area, will be saved.