2015 was a year of high notes and low notes for Caribou and its surrounding areas. We saw awards and new ventures, heartache and a group bent on splitting Caribou in two. The following is a list of highlights from January through June.
January
Limestone welcomed their new town manager, Fred Ventresco, on Jan. 5. He brought with him eight years of municipal management experience, and four of those years were spent managing Maine communities.
A Caribou woman suffered significant injuries after she was struck by a vehicle in Stockholm. Reighel Waugh suffered leg and head injuries in the crash after being hit by Garth Johnson of Caribou. No charges were filed.
The five leaders of the Caribou Secession Committee prepared to submit a petition to the City Council that would begin the process of breaking the community into two parts — the proposed Town of Lyndon, which would encompass 80 percent of Caribou’s current rural mass, and 20 percent of the municipality around the downtown area to remain the city of Caribou.
Of the 39 indictments handed up by the Aroostook County grand jury in January, one indictment was for the former secretary of the Limestone Town Office. Assistant District Attorney Carrie Linthicum clarified on Friday that the grand jury indicted Susan E. Tucker, 44, Limestone, for theft from Rathbun Lumber Company, in around November of 2011 and May of 2014, totaling over $10,000. Tucker was hired by the town of Limestone on July 27 of 2014 and departed from her secretary position on Oct. 15 the same year.
February
Fire swept through a mobile home at 100 Dow Siding Road early morning Feb. 2, claiming the life of Jordan McEwen. He was found by firefighters in a bedroom of the mobile home, having succumbed to smoke inhalation. The fire started in the back corner bedroom mobile home, and the whole back end of the home was fully engulfed when firefighters arrived at the scene.
A new business made its way to downtown Caribou, the call center Sitel, which was slated to complete its purchase the former ATX building at 63 Sweden Street around mid-March. Caribou City Manager Austin Bleess said that he was excited about the new downtown business.
Steve Sperry retired from the Caribou Fire Department. Sperry’s 46-year tenure at the fire department meant an opportunity for the captain to touch the lives of community members and fellow firefighters in his own modest way. Sperry’s focused attitude helped the now-chief at his very first fire. While the crew is happy for Sperry and wishes him well in retirement, he’s missed at the firehouse.
March
Rep. Carol McElwee and County law enforcers met at the Caribou Head Start Center where they took time to socialize with young children. Caribou Police Chief Michael Gahagan and Aroostook County Sheriff Darrell Crandall sat down with children and read “Officer Buckle and Gloria,” a book about safety tips.
For its dedication to enriching the lives of Loring Job Corps Center students, Eastern Aroostook Adult and Community Education was presented with the center’s Citizenship Award.
Turning one northern Maine municipality into two moved a step closer to reality in March. Members of the Caribou Secession Committee submitted their petition to leave Caribou and take 80 percent of its landmass with them.
RSU 39’s building committee selected PDT Architects of Portland to design and construct the coming improvements. Following a final interview with the RSU’s building committee on Feb. 13, PDT received a guided tour of Caribou’s facilities, including the three schools most urgently requiring attention — Caribou Middle School, Hilltop Elementary and Teague Park Elementary.
Four people were killed in a head-on collision involving an SUV and a sedan on Route 161, north of Caribou. The crash happened near Rainbow Cove in Township 16 Range 4 near Stockholm, about 15 miles north of Caribou.
Eighth-grader Kaylee Trombley is the proud owner of a new iPad thanks to her teachers in the Caribou Life Skills Program at the Caribou Middle School. After a fundraiser with Bennett Drive Redemption Center in Caribou her teachers raised over $500.
A Travis Hewitt, 48, of Caribou was charged with unlawful trafficking of scheduled drugs after agents from the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency seized cocaine and weapons from his home.
April
Caribou City Clerk Jayne Farrin verified the signatures from the Caribou Secession Committee she received in March — a task she completed within three weeks. 1,315 signatures contained in the petition, 117 were found to be invalid with 1,198 valid.
Virtual Managed Solutions (VMS or VMS US) said is would be adding an additional 65 to 100 jobs at its Sweden Street facility by mid 2016. The CEO explained that one client of VMS approached the Caribou company about expanding its workforce to meet the client’s anticipated increased demands.
Caribou Fire & Ambulance was recognized with a national emergency medical services (EMS) excellence award, the first time a fire department from Maine has earned the honor.
Woodland school board members Wanda Anderson and Travis Prashaw stopped by the Woodland selectmen’s meeting on April 21 to discuss negotiations with RSU 39 and about being approached by the Washburn school district to send students there for high school.
May
The Loring Job Corps Honor Guard returned from a business trip to Washington, D.C. where they were invited to post the nation’s colors in honor of Job Corps’ 50- year anniversary.
Caribou Secession Committee spokesperson Paul Camping told Caribou city council that his committee was eager to have their public hearing at any time and at any place. Council members came to an agreement on June 11 at 6 p.m. for the secession committee’s public hearing.
The Union 122 school board held an informational meeting at the Woodland School. The topic of the meeting was the Union’s new exclusive multiyear contract with Washburn School Department (SAD 45). The contract with Washburn could save Union 122 an estimated $804,357 over the next five years, according to the school board.
June
Limestone Community School’s principal, Travis Barnes, was been awarded the position of principal of Caribou High School, and began his new job on July 1.
Rural residents who wished to secede from Caribou to create Maine’s newest town, Lyndon, lauded the plan at a public hearing, and declared they’re fed up with taxes they say are unfairly levied upon them. For the effort to continue, legislation will have to be introduced in Augusta within the next year to create the new town, according to committee spokesperson Paul Camping.
Excitement grew as RSU 39 inched along the path toward a new school. While the school district was still determining if their Capital Improvement Project would lead to a new building or a renovation project, PDT Architects had made it clear that consolidation and new construction was the direction to take.
