Monday, November 1

HORSE OWNER WORKSHOP (HOW) MEETING PURINA EVENT –FMI please call 778-5682.

Tuesday, November 2

ART GALLERY – 5pm.  Sallie McCorkle On Site. Exhibit runs October 7 thru November 7 – Tuesday’s, Thursday’s & Sundays. FMI: [email protected], 207-778-7002, http://www.salliemccorkle.net/biography.html.

Saturday, November 6

UMF CRAFT SHOW –9 am to 2 pm, UMF Olsen Student Center,  FMI, or to book a space for the upcoming event, call 778-7344 or email [email protected].

TITCOMB SKI SWAP – 8 am to 12 pm- Ski Sale at Mt. Blue High School, Farmington

Wednesday, November 10

BLOOD DRIVE – Farmington Emblem Club hosting Red Cross Blood Drive at Franklin Memorial Hospital.

Thursday, November 11

TALK: WHY DOESN’T GOD HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR? – 11:30am, North Dining Hall, UMF Olsen Student Center, FMI: [email protected], 207-778-7409.

Saturday, November 13

CRAFTERS SALE – 7:00 am for crafter set up, Fairbanks School Neighborhood Association.

GREAT CHARITY AUCTION – United Way of the Tri-Valley Area, G.H. Bass Room of FMH, 5 pm

HONOR OUR VETERANS –  Registration will begin at 2:30 pm, and the recognition ceremony will start at 4 pm, FMI contact Tom Saviello at 645-3420 or email [email protected].

UMF ADMISSION OPEN HOUSE – 9:30am, FMI: [email protected], 207-778-7050, http://www.farmington.edu/admissions/admissevents.php.

INANNA, SISTERS IN RHYTHM – 7:30pm, Maine’s premier Women’s Drum Ensemble, Nordica Auditorium, UMF Merrill Hall, FMI: [email protected] or [email protected], 207-778-8154 or 207-778-7321, http://artsinstitute.org/.

Tuesday, November 16

FOOD FILM SERIES – KING CORN – UMF Lincoln Auditorium, FMI: 778-7210.

Wednesday, November 17

ENCORE PRESENTATION OF KING CORN FILM – 10 am, 2 pm & 6 pm, UMF Lincoln Auditorium, FMI: 778-7210.

Friday, November 19

SUGARLOAF TENTATIVE OPENING DAY – Join Sugarloaf as we kick off the 2010-11 ski season!

FRANKLIN COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ANNUAL MEETING DINNER – UMF North Dining Hall. FMI email [email protected] or call 207-778-4215. Members and guests.

Saturday, November 20

UMF 2010 5K TURKEY TROT & 1 MILE FUN RUN – 9:30am, UMF Fitness & Recreation Center, FMI: [email protected], 207-778-7138, http://frc.umf.maine.edu.

Saturday, November 27

HOLIDAY SALE – 9:00 to 2:00pm, Fairbanks School Neighborhood Association.

HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE – Rocky Hill Landscaping & Nursery, Wilton, 9 am to 5 pm,   November 27 & 28.  FMI call Corey Black at 645-5381.

SUGARLOAF TIN MOUNTAIN ROUND UP – Sugarloaf, FMI: www.sugarloaf.com , November 27 & 28.

Friday, November 19

FCCOC Annual Meeting Dinner, UMF North Dining Hall, Farmington. We respectfully request your presence at the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting Dinner at the UMF North Dining Hall. Social hour to begin at 5:15 p.m., dinner buffet at 6 p.m. $30 per person. Awards and meeting to follow. FMI, call 207-778-4215 or e-mail [email protected]. Thank you to our major event partner Franklin Savings Bank!

Sugarloaf Tentative Opening Day, Carrabassett Valley. **Weather Permitting** Join Sugarloaf as we kick off the 2010-11 ski season! Skiers and riders can enjoy Opening Day tickets at a discounted price! Join us the following weekend, November 27 & 28, for Sugarloaf’s Annual Tin Mountain Round up. Donate three or more cans of food to benefit deserving local families, and your lift ticket is just $30! FMI on regular season ticket prices and other promotions, such as Maine Resident Specials, College Discounts, Military Discounts, and our Snow Conditions Guarantee, please visit sugarloaf.com or call 1-800-THE-LOAF. Also visit us online and discover how you can save time and money by purchasing e-tickets!

2010/2011 Lift Ticket Rates:

Value Season (opening date to mid-Dec. & late March-closing date)

1 Day

Adult (19+) $74

Teen (13-18) $63

Junior/Senior (6-12/65+) $51

Regular Season (mid-Dec. to late March)

1 Day

Adult (19+) $77

Teen (13-18) $66

Junior/Senior (6-12/65+) $53

Saturday, December 11

Saddleback, Maine Tentative Opening Day, Rangeley. Join Saddleback, Maine as they open for their 50th season! With $50 lift tickets weekends and holidays and $35 midweek. Saddleback offers a great value along with some great terrain for the whole family! FMI on ticket prices and promotions such as Maine Day please visit www.saddlebackmaine.com or call 866-918-2225. Don’t miss out on the on-mountain events this season including: Saddleback 50th Anniversary Celebration, Saddleback Mountain Challenge, Telemark Invasion, Annual Cardboard Box Race, Concerts and more!

Saturday, December 18

Titcomb Mountain Tentative Opening Day, West Farmington. Don’t miss out on the great deals at Titcomb Mountain, located off Route 2 in West Farmington. Be prepared for opening day and stop by Titcomb’s Ski Swap at Mt. Blue High School, Farmington, on November 6 from 8 a.m. to noon. Families can enjoy great skiing and savings at Titcomb Mountain. FMI on regular season ticket prices, promotions and events visit Titcomb Mountain online at www.titcombmountain.com, or call 207-778-9031.

Regular Weekend, Vacation Days & Holidays

Half Day/Full Day

Adult 18 and over: $18 / $25

Young Adult 13 to 17: $16 / $22

Junior 6 to 12: $15 / $20

Pony Lift (Any Age): $7

“It’s Happening Here!” is more than just a marketing slogan for Captain John Bennett of the Salvation Army in Lewiston. As his organization anticipates the arrival of the holiday season, the words evoke an image of community generosity, alive and well right here at home. The welcomed return of the Taste of Home Cooking School, an event sponsored by the Sun Journal with proceeds benefiting the Salvation Army, is representative of the community’s giving spirit and, in fact, has become a signature kick-off to the holiday season for the non-profit organization according to Bennett.

“The Taste of Home Cooking School signals, for us, the beginning of the holiday season,” explains Bennett. “It happens just in time to get us through Thanksgiving.” Five hundred families turn to the Salvation Army each year for either Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner. Bennett continues, “The cooking school proceeds help make providing these dinners possible.”

The idea of bringing the Taste of Home School to Lewiston originated with two Sun Journal advertising department staff members, Jeff Haggerty and Jody Jalbert.

“Jeff received a flyer in the mail advertising what was then referred to as Homemaker Schools,” says Jalbert. “I recognized the Reiman Publications styling of the flyer, having received their cooking magazine in my own home.”

The two thought sponsoring such an event would be fun, something different that would have widespread appeal, particularly for a middle-age audience. They presented the idea to Steve Costello, VP of Advertising and Marketing and, with his support, set to work coordinating a show. As part of the plan, the proceeds from the show would benefit the Salvation Army.

Just as Haggerty and Jalbert had suspected, the first year’s event was a sell out attracting people from Maine and New England.

“The response was overwhelming,” comments Jalbert, who has since become the point person for the event. “In all the years since the first, it never ceases to amaze me the response we get for the Taste of Home Cooking School.”

Following the show, every year Jalbert receives thank you letters from attendees who enjoyed the event and want to see it continue. Laughs Jalbert, “People start calling early, just so they don’t miss the date to get their tickets!”

In the six years the Sun Journal has coordinated the Taste of Home Cooking School, the consistently sold-out event has been a collaborative effort of Reiman Publications, the newspaper staff, co-sponsoring area businesses, the Salvation Army, and a team of volunteers.

The co-sponsorships of area businesses including Hannaford, Agren Appliance, Hammond Lumber, and Blais Flower Shop are critical to the show’s success. Jalbert elaborates.

“Hannaford is our biggest contributor as they supply all the food we need for the show. I bring them a Taste of Home cookbook and a shopping list, provided by Homemaker Ventures, of what we’ll need for the recipes we’ll be preparing at the show. In addition, they select a couple of recipes from the book and fill twenty door prize bags with all the ingredients needed to prepare those recipes.” The business also provides 1,000 bags to be utilized as gift bags for all the attendees of the event. “And, Hannaford serves as a ticket outlet for the school. We can really thank them for the show being sold out every year,” stresses Jalbert.

Agren Appliance of Auburn, who has co-sponsored every school since 1996, outfits the Lewiston Middle School auditorium stage with all the necessary cooking conveniences.

“Their contribution is significant with two microwaves, two stoves, a refridgerator, and two large screen televisions with video systems that project everything the home economist is doing on stage to the entire audience,” says Jalbert. “They make sure everything is up and ready to go.”

As with any good Broadway production, the show also requires a set.

“Hammond Lumber provides us with a full kitchen backdrop complete with sink, countertops, and cupboards,” describes Jalbert. “The finishing touches are provided by Blais Flowers. They decorate the set and create a mood with a beautiful harvest theme.”

Volunteers from the Salvation Army prepare the event registrant gift bags. Other Sun Journal staff members and their assorted family and friends donate their time behind the scenes, preparing items to be used as the “finished” recipe to show the audience the night of the show, baking off items made during the show, and being on hand for set up and

breakdown at the night’s end.

Jalbert recognizes the base of volunteers as the event’s safety net. “We wouldn’t have such a smooth-running event without the help of our volunteers. “

For those attending the Taste of Home Cooking School 2003 for the first time , Jalbert provides a little preview.

“The home economist will demonstrate eleven to thirteen recipes, with periodic breaks. She’ll impart time saving tips, storage suggestions, cooking hints, and tricks of the cooking trade. At the end of the night, we have something called the ‘Parade of Foods’ where the evening’s preparations, dishware and all, are given away to the audience as drawings.” Jalbert continues.

Attendees can also enter their names into the drawings of area vendors who will have booths set up at the event and door prize winners will be announced throughout the evening. This year, the Salvation Army will be on hand with an information booth.

School has evolved over the years. Only six years ago, the production featured more labor-intensive recipes. With more families under time constraints, both parents working, and eating on the run, today’s cooking schools offer recipe demonstrations for meals that are wholesome yet quick to prepare.

“Our recipes are now patterned after the needs of busy cooks. With so many women working and more men finding themselves faced with the responsibilities of meal preparation, even our national company sponsors including the Campbell’s Soup Company are looking to recipes with five or fewer ingredients and requiring a prep time of 30 minutes or less,” states Sandy Bloom, Executive Director of Homemaker Ventures for Reiman Publications in Wisconsin.

“The culture of our company is family. Consequently, we look for recipes for our cookbooks, magazines and schools that feature meals that are nutritionally sound, attractive, appealing, and yet leave time for family and conversation over good food.”

Bloom also adds that Reiman Publications is a very community-conscientious company that supports such endeavors as the Campbell’s “Labels for Education” program. “We always like to see the ticket proceeds of our events benefit the community.”

On that note, perhaps no one is more pleased than Captain Bennett, who will this year be able to express his gratitude to the Taste of Home Cooking School audience in person.

“The involvement of the community on this project has truly impressed me. From the area businesses donating their time and services to the volunteers working long hours for me, it speaks volumes about the character of the people who live and work here,” confirms Bennett. “I’m really going to enjoy the opportunity to personally say thank you.”