Emotional graduation; Levesque cooks

At the Lewiston High School graduation June 3, former Superintendent Leon Levesque was there, but not as the retired school boss. He was there with his wife to watch their granddaughter, Catherine Foss, graduate.

Levesque, who retired in December, looked rested. He said he was full of energy. His wife, Jeannie, says he’s become an accomplished cook in the kitchen.

“He cooks? That’s the first I’ve heard of that. Wow,” joked Levesque’s former secretary, Diane Duplissis.

Lewiston School Committee Chairman Jim Handy was there in his official capacity — school board members are on the stage and pass diplomas to students. He was also there as a dad.

His youngest, Jordan Handy, 18, was among the graduates. Jordon got his diploma from his father, along with a big hug. Seeing his son graduate “is a watershed moment,” Jim Handy said before the ceremony began. “Water’s going to be coming from my eyes.”

— Bonnie Washuk

Nice string of fish

Several volunteers gathered on the shore of the Androscoggin River on Thursday morning in Gilead to selectively stock about 300 brown and rainbow trout into likely hiding places and feeding habitat.

Mike Mayo was in the bow of a drift boat holding onto a rope attached to three large plastic float bins filled with about 60 fish and floating ahead of the boat in the river when he set his oarsman to laughing loudly.

“This is the longest string of fish I’ve ever had on my line,” Mayo said.

— Terry Karkos

Prevailing currents

While the search and salvage crew was searching the Androscoggin River Reflection Pool on June 4 in Rumford for a submerged Volkswagen Passat, one searcher asked fire Chief Bob Chase to toss a bottle out to check the current.

He wanted to see if the bottle would reveal the car’s location.

Chase said he would, then yelled back that the searcher would have to pay the littering fine.

He returned from his truck with a half empty plastic Mountain Dew bottle and tossed it into the pool where the car entered on June 3.

And then everyone laughed a few minutes later when the current took the bottle up the very shallow Bean Brook inlet — in the opposite direction of where the car was later found.

— Terry Karkos

‘Luna Lovegood’ graduates from Hebron Academy

Among the 76 students who graduated from Hebron Academy on May 28 was Polly Drown, who bears a striking resemblance to Harry Potter’s classmate Luna Lovegood, as portrayed by actress Evanna Lynch in the movie series.

Polly, her mom Grace Drown said, has written Lynch to tell her this and Lynch, in turn, sent Polly an autographed poster of herself as Ms. Lovegood.

Additionally, mom said, Polly has trick or treated as Luna Lovegood every Halloween.

— Terry Karkos