A company that spent years trying to bring two resorts, 1,000 second home lots, a golf course and other tourist attractions to the Moosehead Lake region appears to have finally given up on those efforts amid economic challenges that started with the Great Recession.

Thanks to Anheuser-Busch and the Maine-based Valley Beverage, the Milo Fire Department now has a pallet of emergency drinking water to support relief efforts and hydration. A pallet containing 98 cases of drinking water was dropped off at the station mid-morning on Thursday, Sept. 26.

Now located in The Mill complex, for the last decade Dental Hygiene Associates of Maine, LLC has been providing the community with affordable, quality preventative dental care for all ages in a non-traditional setting. The "spa-like" dental oasis is intended to ease dental anxiety through a relaxing, cozy office.

Since opening more than a year ago, Head to Tails Family Pet Store proprietor Liz Martin has worked to provide local pet owners with all their needed supplies, saving them a trip out of town, and potential pet owners with additions to their homes. Fish, reptiles, small mammals and birds are available and with all the necessary educational information to ensure everyone is happy after leaving the store.

The parent company of the Bangor Daily News is the new owner of the Penobscot Times, a small weekly newspaper that covers Old Town, Orono and surrounding towns.

Former Dover-Foxcroft Police Department Sgt. Todd Lyford, who now is chief deputy with the Piscataquis County Sheriff’s Office, has been awarded the Carnegie Medal from the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission in recognition of a July 2018 incident in which he risked his life to an extraordinary degree to save the life of another.

Difficulty: Moderate. The hike, out and back, is 3.6 miles if you only visit the Middle Summit and viewpoint, and it’s another 0.4-mile if you add the short side trail to the forested North Summit of the mountain. The hike is mostly gradual but includes a few short steep sections and rock staircases.

More than 20 students in the younger grades at Piscataquis Community Elementary School are now HEROs for their outstanding conduct during the first few weeks of the new school year. The HERO honorees were recognized with the presentation of certificates during the elementary morning meeting on Friday, Sept. 20.

The concerns for downtown Dover-Foxcroft vary, those raised included tractor trailer trucks turning on the narrow streets, where pedestrians can safely cross and deteriorating asphalt and cement on the road and sidewalks, and while there may be no immediate fixes, town and state officials hope to develop some short-term and long-term solutions. An early step in the process was taken with a Dover-Foxcroft Urban Area Transportation Study public meeting on Sept. 19 at the Morton Avenue Municipal Building.

Elaine’s Bakery is well known in Piscataquis County, not simply because their finger-licking products can be found in convenience stores, cafes and markets across the state of Maine but because of the bakery’s owner Elaine Poulin. Most would say of Elaine, “to know her is to love her.”

Theresa Mudgett, career pathways manager in Dover-Foxcroft, has retired after 31 years of providing Workforce Development services. Mudgett began her career in Workforce Development in 1988 with TDC, and was hired by EMDC in 2009. Her work fostering partnerships with other service providers and working one-on-one with individuals has been a valuable asset to job seekers, employers and EMDC.

SeDoMoCha School officials were excited to welcome some special guests into grade 1 classrooms on Sept. 19. Dan and Karen Cashman, who are the co-founders of Dirigo Reads, came to deliver a brand new book to each first-grade student.

During the week of Sept. 16 students at the SeDoMoCha School enjoyed foods grown in the state for Maine Harvest Lunch Week.

Ever want to spend a day in the field with a state fish expert? One lucky winner and a friend will win just such an opportunity in the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife’s third “Keeper of the Maine Outdoors Experience” contest.

Fewer soccer errant balls going over and around the posts will be traveling far beyond the Piscataquis Community High School goals thanks to a pair of backstops with netting provided by a pair of area businesses.

Maine’s highest peak in Baxter State Park is named for an Abenaki word meaning greatest or main mountain. The possibility of changing the official name of Mount Katahdin to Katahdin -- which would be made by the Maine Legislature -- was proposed by Baxter State Park Director Eben Sypitkowski to the Piscataquis County Commissioners. The commissioners made no formal motion, but expressed that they would not be in favor of such an adjustment during discussions as part of a Sept. 17 meeting.

Difficulty: Easy to challenging, depending on what campsites you select. Some campsites require longer paddles than others, and some require portaging (carrying your canoe and gear over land to reach the next body of water).

SeDoMoCha School students can avoid boredom on the daily ride to and from home thanks to each bus now containing a library of books for various ages and abilities to read. The “Erma’s Books on the Bus” program, which also runs in Florida and is named for a registered READing (Reading Education Assistance Dog) and a therapy dog with Alliance Therapy Dogs, kicked off at the end of the day on Thursday, Sept. 12.