In Dover-Foxcroft a question on the future of Mayo Regional Hospital will be on the warrant for the annual town meeting at 9 a.m. on Saturday, April 27 at the Morton Avenue Municipal Building Gymnasium. The warrant was signed by the selectmen during an April 8 meeting.

Puritan Medical Products, LLC, along with its sister company Hardwood Products Co, LLC, recently received the Spirit of America Foundation Tribute Award from the town of Guilford.

Guilford Medical Associates closed permanently on April 5. Patients looking to transfer within Mayo Practice Associates (MPA) are encouraged to contact the New Patient Intake coordinator at 564-1224.

The Center Theatre, the county’s most iconic landmark, recently underwent some significant renovations, and on Thursday, April 25 from 5-7 p.m. area business owners are invited to the Piscataquis Chamber’s Business After Hours event for the big reveal, in addition to an enjoyable evening of networking and socializing. This will be a member-only private event, and an RSVP is appreciated but not required. Those who plan to attend can call the Chamber to RSVP at 564-7533.

The pictures on Paul Lancisi’s cellphone are a testimony to his love of baseball and his continuing connection to the game. Newly signed Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Bryce Harper, 2016 National League MVP Kris Bryant of the Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox infielder Yoan Moncada, and rising prospects Pete Alonzo and Jeff McNeil -- opening-day starters at first base and third base for the New York Mets -- all are on display.

Mayo Regional Hospital officials told community members Monday night, April 1 they are working toward a goal of keeping as many medical services in the region as possible as part of a proposed merger with Northern Light Health, a statewide system comprised of hospitals across Maine.

Partners for Peace, the domestic violence resource center serving Piscataquis and Penobscot counties, celebrated its community partners during the organization’s annual meeting at The Commons at Central Hall on March 21.

Enter: Abby Moore. “There were qualified applicants with great job experience and stability, with management or marketing backgrounds; but Abby stood out to me; she was well-rounded and capable in every area specific to the job, [she is] a local who loves this area and knows everything about it; she demonstrated her amazing personality in the first five minutes of our conversation, and I knew she had the right temperament for the job,” said Buzzelli.

A Piscataquis County Sheriff’s Office lieutenant who has served as the DARE officer in area schools for more than two decades, goes above and beyond the call of duty and who gives back in other ways is now the Grange Northeast Region Law Enforcement Officer of the Year. Lt. Jamie Kane received news of the honor during a surprise presentation by Valley Grange Lecturer and Program Director Walter Boomsma during a morning grade 5 DARE class on Friday, March 29 at Piscatquis Community Elementary School.

Medical cannabis was legalized in Maine 20 years ago and since that time patients either cultivated their own plants or authorized a caregiver to do it for them. This past December a new medical cannabis law took effect giving Maine’s approximately 50,000 medical patients broader access to cannabis and cannabis products, thus making the process safer and laws easier to enforce.

Food Animal Concerns Trust (FACT), a national nonprofit that promotes the safe and humane production of meat, milk and eggs, awarded a Fund-a-Farmer Grant to Turning Page Farm, owned by Joy and Tim Bueschen. This grant is designed to expand humane farming. Turning Page Farm will use its award to improve pasture and install fencing for goats and chickens on pasture.

Premium Choice Broadband is nearing the final stages of its latest project to bring high-speed fiber internet connections to rural Maine. The company has invested $2 million in private funds and installed over 40 miles of fiber-optic cable connecting Dover-Foxcroft and downtown Monson with what is the fastest internet connection in the state.

Citizens of the 13 Hospital Administration District 4 member communities should have a voice in determining the fate of the potential merger between the district’s Mayo Regional Hospital in Dover-Foxcroft and the statewide Northern Light Health system, Sebec residents indicated with their vote at a special town meeting during the evening of March 21 at the Harland A. Ladd Municipal Building.

A Superior Court judge has dismissed a lawsuit that sought to halt the ongoing merger between Mayo Regional Hospital in Dover-Foxcroft with Northern Light Health, the statewide health care organization that includes Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor.

The board of directors at Northern Light Health unanimously voted March 20 to merge with Mayo Regional Hospital in Dover-Foxcroft, which would make the small Piscataquis County hospital the health care system’s 10th.

Penquis President and CEO Kara Hay was recognized by the National NeighborWorks Association (NNA) at the annual NeighborWorks Executive Directors Symposium in Washington D.C. Hay was one of three leaders nationwide acknowledged at the NNA’s 15th annual Excellence Awards, which honors outstanding practitioners in the field of housing and community development.

Rural Maine could be making $5.6 billion in rural tourist dollars by 2030, if visitor experiences across its interior "woods region" are improved. That's according to a pair of studies conducted by global consulting firm FutureIQ on behalf of the nonprofit Maine Woods Consortium.

Leaders of Mayo Regional Hospital say the merger they’re pursuing with one of the state’s largest hospital systems is critical for the Dover-Foxcroft facility’s survival after years of operating losses. But the negotiated merger agreement with Northern Light Health would only obligate the hospital system to keep operating Mayo in its current form for five years after the merger.