By Pete Warner, Bangor Daily News Staff While the final numbers have yet to be calculated, it appears the COVID-19 pandemic continues spurring people to pursue outdoor activities in Maine.

By Sawyer Loftus, Bangor Daily News Staff Maine State Police is working to pull back its patrol responsibilities in Penobscot County as part of a yearslong effort to reduce its presence in rural parts of the state.

SHIRLEY – Another week, another potential snow storm.

SKOWHEGAN – On Giving Tuesday, Skowhegan Savings announced a commitment to give away 20 $1,000 grants to local charities as part of their “Season of Giving” program.

By David Marino Jr.

GUILFORD – Valley Grange members and friends are delivering bags of children’s’ socks to local schools (Piscataquis Community, SeDoMoCha, Brownville, Ridge View, and Harmony elementary schools) for distribution to kids who need them during what is undoubtedly some of the most bitterly cold weather so far this year.

By Christopher Burns, Bangor Daily News Staff CHARLESTON – A Lewiston man convicted 16 years ago of sex crimes against children has died at the minimum security prison in Charleston.

HAMPDEN – Lisa Warren has earned the designation of Transportation Risk & Insurance Professional from the International Risk Management Institute.

District will be in remote learning through Monday, Jan, 24 MILO — SAD 41 is among the Maine school districts following the latest standard operating procedure from the Maine Department of Education.

DEXTER — Dexter town councilors will consider dedicating a portion of the town’s American Rescue Plan Act funds to a local organization that began restoring a building along Main Street to serve as a food pantry and resource center.

By Christopher Burns, Bangor Daily News Staff WARREN – A man convicted of beating his neighbor to death more than 30 years ago has died at the Maine State Prison.

GUILFORD — Last year students at Piscataquis Community Elementary School captured their thoughts and feelings from the coronavirus pandemic in firsthand accounts, poetry, stories and art.

Composite photo courtesy of Dexter Regional High School STUDENTS OF THE MONTH – Dexter Regional High School is pleased to announce the December Students of the Month as selected by the faculty and staff for being exemplary students.

GREENVILLE – Maine Highlands Federal Credit Union presented a check in the amount of $7,500 to support the Northern Light C.

By David Marino Jr.

ORONO — Maine’s attorney general and four other individuals with differing personal and professional perspectives will address the topic “The State of Civil Rights in Maine” as part of eastern and central Maine’s 2022 Martin Luther King Jr.

GUILFORD — An early step for a proposed regional comprehensive high school concerns the governance of the secondary institution.

ABBOT — An old two-story farmhouse in Abbot was destroyed when an indoor wood stove sparked a fire that enveloped the structure Tuesday afternoon.