UPCOMING

July 20, 2004 11:AM Searsport. Sears Island picnic and tour. Bring bag lunch. Sponsored by the Sierra Club. Info: cphunt@colby.edu

June 21, 2004, 6:30 PM, Searsport Searsport Comprehensive Planning Committee hosts a Public Information Meeting on the proposed Marine District, at Union Hall. Come share suggestions with town and state officials. Due to time constraints, comments should be limited to 2 minutes o debate. Non-residents may also offer their input.

Can't make the meeting? Write down your ideas about potential land uses in the proposed Searsport Marine District, which includes Sears Island. Write your comments and drop them into a box at one of the locations listed below*, or mail to: Phyllis Sommer, PO Box 178, Searsport 04974.

* Suggestion boxes are located at Anglers Restaurant, Carver Memorial Library, Coastal Coffee, Hamilton Marine, Town Hall, Tozier's Market; also at Perry's Store and the Town Office in Stockton Springs.

* Monday, May 10 Capital Building, Augusta. 10 a.m Press Conference against LNG in Penobscot Bay. A coalition of groups including Toxics Action Center, Friends of Sears Island, Stop LNG, the Penobscot Bay Alliance, the Native Forest Network, Sierra Club of Maine, Islesboro Islands Trust and Penobscot Bay Watch will present Governor Baldacci with petitions showing hundreds perhaps thousands of people from around Penobscot Bay opposed to building an LNG port and gas plant in Searsport (or elsewhere in Penobscot Bay). There will also be an announcement of the hiring of attorney Martha Gaythwaite to represent the coalition,

*June 26, 2004 Noon - 3pm Unique House Tour. Event will benefit SLNG (Stop LNG)

PAST EVENTS

Celebrate Earth Day on Sears Island!          Dave Mallett performs Saturday 7:30 pm
Thursday April 22 to Saturday April 24
Map of the Island Info 548-2857

Schedule:
Thursday, April 22
Voluntary island cleanup all day
8-10 am Coffee klatch (bring your own)
10 am Sears Island talk by Tom Seymour, Naturalist and Writer
Vernal pool studies by UMO student/researcher
Historical tidbits by Jack Merrithew
12 noon Bring your own picnic lunch
1-3 pm Clear streams and paths
3-S pm Dog walk with photographer on site

Friday, April 23
Voluntary cleanup all day
8-12 Walk-a-thon, to benefit Sears Island and Pen Bay
10 am Bird watch with Jim/Kathy Zeeman, Audubon
11 am Kite flying (available for purchase, or bring own)
12 noon Bring your own picnic lunch
12-5 pm Activities on your own
5-7 pm Cookout - burgers S2, hotdogs $1, soda S.50, etc.
6:30 pm Campfire and Native American Drumming & Music

Saturdav, April 24 (Rain date Sundav, April 25)
5:30 am Sunrise ceremony with Ken Green
Voluntary cleanup all day
8-11 am Walk-a-thon, to benefit Sears Island and Pen Bay
10-12 Children's activities
Treasure hunt Rock sculptures Fairy houses Sand castles Kite flying
12 noon Bring your own picnic lunch
12:45 Teen & Adult Activities
Volleyball Frisbee Egg toss
7:30 pm Benefit concert for Friends of Sears Island,Dave Mallett with special Guest Mark Obertin at the National Theater of the Handicapped, 96 Church Street, Belfast. Tickets $15 at door or at MH Jacobs Art Gallery 50 Main St Belfast or Prudential Northeast Properties, 185 W. Main St, Searsport. Reserve a seat! 548-2657
Children must be accompanied by a parent or adult.

* May 15, 2004 Searsport. 9 am Searsport Special Town Meeting. Searsport residents wil lvote on a 6 month moratorium on industrial development on sSears Island, whether the island should be within a proposed Pine Tree Zone, and whetther Searsport should have a Pine Tree Zone at all.

* Sunday April 18th 2004 2 pm Friends of Sears Island general meeting. Troy Howard Middle School, Belfast. Info: Janet at 548-2857
* April 17, 2004 WVOM FM 103.9fm 7-10am Call in show on Sears Island. Discussion will feature "Stop-LNG" (SLNG).

April 7th 2004 8-9 PM Maine Public Radio call-in to Governor Baldacci Maine PBS' Capitol Connection allows people around Maine to question the Governor and leaders of the Maine Legislature. Give the Governor a call! Ask if he understand the enormous impact that running LNG tankers through Penobscot Bay could have on 100's of lobstermen and bay-dependent tourism, sailing and recreational businesses.

Monday April 5, 2004 Searsport 5-6pm Direct Action Group Meeting. FOSI Direct Action Group will meet 6:30pm to 8 pm at the Irving Station's restaurant in Searsport. t 6:30 -:8:00 on April 5 at the Irving station in Searsport.

March 31. 2004 2-4pm , WERU (89.9FM) will host a call in radio show about LNG. The panelists will be: Chris Duval, Harpswell activist, Jim Freeman and Don White, Bucksport Activists with experience fighting the last Sears Island Proposal and Astrig Tanguay, Searsport Business owner and proponent of intelligent uses of the island including fostering and preserving it as the "crown jewel" of Penobscot Bay. We need people to call in with questions- Help us get the word out!

PAST EVENTS

March 21, 2004. 2pm Searsport High School. A Community Forum on the Liquified Natural Gas Proposal for Sears Island An informational meeting will take place at the Searsport High School on Sunday, March 21st at 2 p.m., sponsored by Friends of Sears Island, to bring residents of Penobscot Bay communities up to date on the rapidly changing situation with the State's efforts to site an LNG facility on Sears Island (or any other willing DownEast community). This important meeting will include:

* A PowerPoint presentation and expert testimony of the facts of LNG and the impact of a regassification and storage facility on Sears Island and on the entire Bay.

* A presentation by members of Fairplay for Harpswell, who successfully organized their community to reject an LNG facility in their town.

* A discussion of alternative uses of Sears Island which recognize the importance of this pristine, unspoiled jewel in Penobscot Bay and the role it can play as a recreational resource for the people of Maine, and in a long-term strategy for economic revitalization of Searsport and the midcoast area.

* A discussion of the larger picture which is emerging of bullying, exploitation and deception of struggling Maine towns by large corporate interests who entice our communities with promises of property tax relief in return for our landfills and our harbors; and the need for transparency in the State's handling of these projects so the State and its agencies better serve the real interests of the people of Maine.

* A review of the multi-level organizational strategies required to successfully deal with these challenges.

DIRECTIONS to Searsport High School
From Belfast, Rt. 1 North, through downtown Searsport. On the right is a big yellow sign on a gas station that reads "For Sale or Lease", make the first left immediately after, onto Mortland Road. The high school is 3/10 miles on the left.

From Stockton Springs, Rt. 1 South, after passing the Full Gospel Church on the left, make the first right onto Mortland Road. The high school is 3/10 miles on the left.

COME AND LEARN HOW TO SAVE OUR TOWNS, HARBORS AND BAYS FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE PEOPLE OF MAINE

FMI contact: Richard Stander, 567-4075 Astrig Tanguay, 548-6059 For more information, call Jan at 548-2857 or send an email to camping@ime.net

March 9, 2004 Harpswell Residents of Harpswell vote on whether or not to allow an LNG port & industrial plant to be built in their town.

February 26th 7 pm. Searsport Town Hall. Public meeting on LNG. A Liquid Natural Gas Terminal on Sears Island?" Tanks carrying 33 million gallons of Gas in Penobscot Bay? Boating restrictions to keep us out of the water? This threat is real...come learn the facts. Everyone is welcome and should bring a friend. See pictures of a re-gasification plant, hear testimony from a U of M professor, learn what the LNG people won't tell you. Are these tax benefits for Searsport or the slow death of our communities? For more information, please reply to: camping@ime.net

February 22, 2004 Belfast Friends of Sears Island will meet at the Belfast Free Library from 2pm to 5pm. For more info, call Susan at 338-0406.

Feb 1, 2004 Belfast. The Friends of Sears Island (FOSI) will meet Sunday, February 1 from 2-5pm in the Abbott Room of the Belfast Free Library on High Street in Belfast (just south of the Belfast Co-op and directly across from CarQuest Auto Parts). For more information, contact Susan at 338-0406.

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