PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — Passenger rail will make a special return to Aroostook County Father’s Day Weekend with area newborn and pediatric patients set to benefit from the proceeds of the charity rides.
Maine Northern Railway (MNR), TAMC and WAGM-TV are partnering to offer two special passenger train excursions Saturday, June 20 to benefit children’s health care locally. Two runs, departing at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. from downtown Presque Isle, will take passengers to scenic Scopan Lake and back to the Star City. Passenger boarding will take place in the Riverside area of the downtown near the District Courthouse.
Three passenger cars, which will be brought in for the event from MNR’s sister rail company, NB Southern Railway, headquartered in St. John, New Brunswick, will carry 200 passengers on each run. The train will be powered by two of MNR’s signature green locomotives, which have become a familiar site throughout northern Maine as the rail company successfully continues to grow its business in the region.
Tickets for the excursions are $25 per person/seat. They can be purchased online at www.tamc.org or in person in the new Country Heart Gift Shop at TAMC’s A.R. Gould Memorial Hospital.
“Maine Northern Railway employees live and work in the Aroostook County region, so we are proud to be a partner of such a worthwhile cause. TAMC’s excursion train ride is raising funds that will benefit newborn and pediatric patients in the area,” said Wayne Power, vice president of JDI Transportation and Logistics.
For TAMC, the opportunity to partner with MNR is both a fun and creative way to raise funds for much needed newborn and pediatric equipment. Specifically, proceeds will support the purchase of bilirubin blanket, a portable phototherapy device used to treat babies with jaundice, that parents can take home, and a Panda Warmer unit, newer technology used to keep newborns healthy.
“This will be a fun, cool way to support the great care being provided to pediatric patients at TAMC. We take great pride in offering the most advanced and comprehensive newborn and pediatric care north of Bangor,” said Dr. Peter Morningstar, pediatrician at TAMC’s Aroostook Pediatrics. “In addition to our top-notch provider team and staff, having access to the latest technology is an important component in our ability to care for The County’s newest residents and our greatest treasure — our children.
“The Panda warmer is a state-of-the-art bed and treatment unit for newborns at the hospital, and the bili blanket will allow for care of the jaundiced infant that is better suited to babies spending as much time as possible in their parents’ arms rather than being restricted to an isolette,” he said. “I look forward to seeing everyone out on the train!”
Providers and staff from Aroostook Pediatrics, TAMC OB/GYN Services, and the Women and Children’s Unit at the A.R. Gould Memorial Hospital will ride the rails with passengers on both June 20 excursions to greet and thank riders for supporting their work. Among them will be the newest provider, Presque Isle native Janna Clukey, a certified nurse midwife and women’s health nurse practitioner.
“We are very grateful to the team at Maine Northern Railway for donating their time and equipment to provide not only an enjoyable train ride for area residents, but to help raise needed funds to purchase equipment that will help us care for newborn babies in Aroostook County,” said Clukey. “We are all looking forward to an enjoyable day supporting a wonderful cause.”
MNR has been leading a major infrastructure improvement program on the Aroostook lines in northern Maine since 2011. Over the course of the past four years, the company has grown its workforce from 23 to 57, and has improved rail transit times for customers by over 33 percent.
The 233-mile Maine Northern Railway is a vital economic corridor and transportation asset in northern Maine, connecting the region to markets via the North American rail transportation network.
For more information, log onto www.tamc.org or call 768-4044.
