The Community Caring Collaborative is excited to invite all children and youth service providers, program managers and advocates across the entire age continuum (prenatal to young adult) to a summit of children’s services in Washington County.  This event is coming right up on April 10th at Cobscook Institute in Trescott.  Learn more and register here, but don’t delay — the deadline to register is April 3rd.

Join Maine Seacoast Mission on Friday, March 21 from 12  to 3 pm for a college and career exploration fair at the Weald Bethel Community Center, 39 Weald Bethel Lane, Cherryfield. During this event, students and community members can meet with representatives from different schools and businesses throughout Maine and New England. Attendees will get a chance to visit and chat with admissions counselors from many of Maine’s colleges and community colleges including Central Maine Community College, Husson University, Kennebec Valley Community College, Maine Maritime Academy, University of Maine, University of Maine at Augusta, University of Maine at Machias, University of Maine at Presque Isle, University of New England and Southern Maine Community College, as well as Clark University and New England College.  There will also be representatives from local businesses including Align Physical Therapy, General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, MDI Biological Laboratory, Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center, Machias Savings Bank, Northern Light Health, and the State of Maine’s Office of Child and Family Services.  Download a flyer to share.

April Biz Fit: April 4th, 8 — 9 am.  No matter what stage of business you’re in, there are always seeds of new ideas emerging, the initial stages of success, unexpected challenges, and the joy of growth – whether incremental or rapid.  Join this early spring session to share how our businesses evolve and grow:

• How do you experience each stage?
• Which stage are you feeling the most right now?
• How does the fear of failure morph into the pressure of success?

Bring your coffee or tea and join us to listen, share, and learn from one another in curious conversation. Biz Fit is an informal, confidential, and supportive gathering where we exchange ideas and share insights!  Register here.

Sunrise Opportunities is again partnering with NYU Dental School to offer a free dental clinic the week of April 7th at the Lee Pellon Center in Machias.  See flyer for details.  Contact Teresa Alley with questions at talley@sun-rise.org or 207-255-3254.

Sunrise County Economic Council provides free help with password and account recovery, email, syncing or backing up devices, setting up a new device, remote storage, internet access and more.   Download a flyer with the March–April 2025 schedule.

March is Save Your Vision Month, which focuses on evidence-based approaches to prevent vision loss and promote eye health across communities.  About 3 million people aged 40 years and older suffer from visual impairment and 1 million were blind in 2018. Almost 2.1 million children and adults under 40 years old are visually impaired or blind. Maine is the state with the lowest visual acuity loss, where 1 in 75 residents suffer vision loss compared to West Virginia with the highest prevalence rate of 1 in 30 residents having visual acuity loss.  The Downeast Public Health Council shares valuable information and action steps to prevent or reduce vision loss in their March 2025 Newsletter.

Do you know someone who is a natural with children & wants to be their own boss?  For Pembroke’s Tabitha Bennett, starting a child care business was a bit of déjà vu. When her daughter was young, Tabitha ran a home-based child care that she closed when her family moved for her husband’s job. As she watched her now-adult daughter struggle to find child care for Tabitha’s granddaughter, Tabitha jumped at the chance to do it again. “Taking care of the kids is the easy part, right?” Tabitha said. By working with the Child Care Business Lab, Tabitha gained skills to “manage the business and get all the ducks in the row.”  Like Tabitha, do you dream of spending your day with children, being your own boss, and want to know how to get started? Apply to join the Child Care Business Lab, a free program designed to help people in Maine achieve their dreams of child care ownership! Applications are being accepted for the Get Licensed program until March 21st.  Click here to complete the application.  Questions? Call 207-449-0959 or email cei.childcare@ceimaine.org.  Download a flyer to share.

Few things are more disorienting than shifting from being cared for by your parents to caring for them—especially when dementia is involved. It’s one of the hardest challenges…(read more).