Rural Maine Teens Put Their Own Story on the Screen

This Saturday night in Dover-Foxcroft, a group of rural Maine teenagers will see three years of work reach the screen. Rural Dreams, an 80-minute documentary written, filmed and produced by the teens themselves, premieres at Center Theatre with a reception at 6:30 PM and screening at 7 PM.

What makes this worth leading the Weekend Edition isn’t simply that it’s a free local film premiere. It’s that these young Mainers were given the camera and the chance to tell their own story in their own words.

Saturday, September 12 | Center Theatre, Dover-Foxcroft | Free

A film made by rural Maine teenagers caught my attention this week for a pretty simple reason: they get to tell the story themselves.

We spend a lot of time talking about what younger Mainers want, what keeps them here, what sends them away, and what the future of small-town Maine is supposed to look like. Rural Dreams turns the camera around and lets the young people who are actually living it do the talking.

That feels worth listening to.

And it is only one part of a busy three days around the Penobscot Valley. We’ve pulled together what looks worthwhile from Friday through Sunday so you can spend less time searching and more time enjoying the weekend.

— Sandy

Friday and Saturday are shaping up as the best outdoor days, with sunshine and comfortable September temperatures. Sunday stays mild, with only a small chance of a shower.

Friday: Sunny. High near 70°. Clear Friday night, low around 46°. West winds may gust close to 30 mph.

Saturday: Sunny. High near 76°. Partly cloudy overnight, low around 52°.

Sunday: Partly sunny. High near 74° with a 20% chance of showers. Sunday night low around 56°.

Source: National Weather Service, Caribou, Maine — forecast for Bangor.

Orono Festival Day — Orono | Saturday, September 12

Orono packs a full day into Saturday, beginning with the Firefighters Association pancake breakfast from 8–10 AM at the Public Safety Building. The afternoon brings the downtown procession featuring the Pride of Maine Black Bear Marching Band, followed by the UMaine tailgate and Black Bear Fun Zone. Maine football kicks off at 5 PM, with a drone-show finale planned for about 8:30 PM, after the game. The pancake breakfast is $6 per person; the community activities are free, while the football game requires a ticket.

Garden Fest & Fun Run — Old Town | Saturday, September 12

Rogers Farm, 914 Bennoch Road, hosts its annual Garden Fest from 10 AM–1 PM. More than 30 demonstration gardens will be open, along with tastings, garden activities, pollinator and soil information, the Great Veggie Race, and an 11 AM Harvest Fun Run for children 12 and younger. Free and open to everyone.

On Golden Pond — Bangor | Friday–Sunday

Penobscot Theatre Company opens its new production of Ernest Thompson’s On Golden Pond this weekend at 131 Main Street, Bangor. It is a two-hour production, including one intermission, built around Norman and Ethel Thayer and the relationships that unfold during another summer at Golden Pond.

8th Annual Apple Hill Stables Charity Rodeo — Levant | Friday–Sunday

Apple Hill Stables, 19 Upper Lane in Levant, has a full rodeo weekend scheduled: Friday at 7 PM, Saturday at noon and 6 PM, and Sunday at 2 PM. The event includes bull riding, broncs, roping and barrel racing, with proceeds supporting Make-A-Wish Maine and Shriners Hospitals for Children.

Founders & Freedom — Bangor | Sunday, September 13

Bangor Historical Society leads a special Revolutionary-era walking tour through Mount Hope Cemetery from 10–11:30 AM. The route explores people buried there who took part in the Revolution and families connected to early Bangor. Tickets are $12, advance purchase is required, and the tour is limited to 20 people.

A few more ideas if you’re looking for something easy to work into the weekend:

Friday — Knitting Social, Brewer
Experienced knitter, beginner, or somewhere in between, the Brewer Public Library welcomes everyone Friday from 9–11 AM at 100 South Main Street.

Saturday — Gardening for Wildlife, Holden
Fields Pond Audubon Center hosts a fall garden-cleanup workshop from 3–4:30 PM at 216 Fields Pond Road. The focus is helping pollinators, beneficial insects, and other wildlife as gardens wind down for the season. Registration is required.

Saturday & Sunday — Live Harness Racing, Bangor
Bangor Raceway at Bass Park has live racing Saturday at 3 PM and Sunday at 12:10 PM. It’s an easy afternoon option if you haven’t been to the track in a while.

Saturday — Mahjongg Group, Orono
The Orono Public Library hosts its weekly Mahjongg Group Saturday from noon–3 PM at 39 Pine Street.

A good weekend for stocking up on local produce, baked goods, crafts and other Maine-made finds. Here are the markets running Friday through Sunday:

Friday — Hampden Farmers’ Market
2:00–5:30 PM
70 Western Avenue, Hampden

Friday — Newport Community Market
4:00–7:30 PM
409 Moosehead Trail, Newport
The Newport market continues through September.

Saturday — Dover Cove Farmers’ Market
9:00 AM–1:00 PM
1049 West Main Street, Dover-Foxcroft

Saturday — Bangor European Market
8:30 AM–12:30 PM
117 Buck Street, Bangor

Saturday — Orrington Farmers’ Market
10:00 AM–4:00 PM
191 River Road, Orrington

Sunday — Howland Farmers’ Market

10:00 AM–2:00 PM
5 Bridge Street, Howland

Sunday — Bangor Farmers’ Market
11:00 AM–1:30 PM
Abbot Square, 140 Harlow Street, across from Bangor Public Library. It runs every Sunday through November.

Dr. Meaghan Staples — Refine Physical Therapy

Dr. Meaghan Staples did not set out to build a practice around women’s pelvic floor physical therapy. She opened Refine Physical Therapy with exactly one client on grand opening day, then listened closely to what patients in Greater Bangor were actually asking for.

Her own path started years earlier as a gymnast and college pole vaulter in Minnesota. An ACL injury introduced her to physical therapy, and seven years of schooling eventually led to travel PT work — including an assignment in Lincoln, Maine. Then she met a Mainer, and Maine became home.

In our conversation, Meaghan talks about taking the leap into private practice, the moment that helped reshape the direction of Refine, and why listening to patients can sometimes tell a business owner where they are supposed to go next.

Listen on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/4k0eQkLdSYOf6z1punByUW

Read her Maine Thrive story:
https://mainethriveinsights.com/dr-meaghan-staples

Best of the Penobscot Valley — Pat’s Pizza, Orono

Pat’s Pizza in Orono is more than a familiar local restaurant to our family. We went there as college students, later as a married couple, then with our daughter as she was growing up — and still later with our daughter, her husband, and our grandson.

That is a lot of life measured in trips back to the same place on Mill Street.

Pat’s has been part of Orono for generations, but for us it isn’t just a piece of local history. It’s a part of our lives.

Pat's Pizza

11 Mill Street

Orono, ME 04473

207 866-2111

— Sandy

If you enjoy the Penobscot Valley Voice, the easiest way to help us grow is simple: share it with one person who would enjoy it too.

A neighbor. A friend. A coworker. Someone who wants to know what is happening around the Valley without having to hunt for it.

Every new reader helps us keep building a stronger local publication around the people, events and businesses that make this region worth paying attention to.

We want the Penobscot Valley Voice to get better every week, and the best help comes from the people who actually read it.

Did we miss something this weekend? Get a detail wrong? Or include something you especially enjoyed?

Just reply to this email and tell me. I read the responses, and they help shape what we cover next.

— Sandy

Maybe We Should Listen First

Adults are pretty good at deciding what younger people think.

We talk about why they leave Maine, why they stay, what they want from their communities, and what we think they ought to value. Most of the time, we’re doing the talking.

That’s one reason Rural Dreams caught my attention. These young Mainers picked up the cameras and told the story themselves.

We may not agree with every conclusion they reach. We don’t have to. Listening is different from agreeing.

But if we really care about the future of places like Dover-Foxcroft, Bangor, Brewer, Old Town and all the smaller communities in between, it probably makes sense to hear from the people who are going to inherit them.

Sometimes the best thing we can do is stop explaining the next generation and give them a little room to explain themselves.

Thanks for spending a few minutes with the Penobscot Valley Voice.

There is plenty happening across the Valley this weekend, and I hope this edition helps you find something worth doing, somewhere worth visiting, or maybe just one local story worth passing along.

Have a good weekend, and Scout & I will see you Tuesday morning.

— Sandy