Bartlett Woods received a 2023 Milestone Award from Penobscot Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce at the annual Year in Review Awards Gala on Friday, February 10, 2023. More than 250 Chamber member businesses, elected officials, and local community representatives attended, hosted by the Samoset Resort. The Year in Review Awards Gala was an opportunity to recognize those who have made extraordinary contributions to our community in the past year.

Read official PenBay Chamber press release here

In auspicious company, Bartlett Woods Retirement Community was saluted for its 25th anniversary milestone by area businesses, nonprofits, and community leaders during the Gala dinner party. The award — hand-crafted by Rob Jones of Wooden Alchemy in Camden — reads: 

“2023 Milestone Award Presented to Bartlett Woods Retirement Community in celebration of 25 years . . .  Penobscot Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce.”

Bartlett Woods Board of Directors President Mike Lane and Secretary Marion Grant attended the Gala and accepted the award. (see photos attached)

Along with Bartlett Woods, the Chamber presented Milestone Anniversary Awards to member businesses and organizations celebrating anniversaries in 25-year increments this year. They are WanderWoman Tours (25 years); Project Puffin, Maine Media, and Wayfinder Schools (50 years); The Farnsworth Art Museum (75 years). The Strand Theatre was recognized for celebrating 100 years in operation.

Additionally, Bartlett Woods received a letter from Senator Susan Collins presented on United States Senate official letterhead. The February 10, 2023 document reads:

Dear Mary,
Congratulations on being honored by the Penobscot Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce for the 2023 25th Year Anniversary Award. For 25 years, Bartlett Woods has remained committed to providing exceptional housing, and high quality assisted living services, to the Penobscot Bay region. Your dedication and hard work have helped improve the quality of life for seniors and their families across your community.
Congratulations again on receiving this award.
Sincerely,
Susan Collins, United States Senator.

We are so grateful to the Chamber Team, including Eric, Jake, Amy and Diane, for choosing to shine a light on Bartlett during the festivities this year. We wish all of the awardees an exceptional year ahead.

Mary Eads
Executive Director
February 21, 2023

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First public event of the 25th anniversary year for the non-profit

After a long, pandemic-related hiatus, ART at BARLETT is back! An opening reception will be held Saturday, April 8th, from 2-5pm at Bartlett Woods, 20 Bartlett Drive in Rockland (located off Talbot Street between Broadway and Old County Road). The public is invited to attend.

Bartlett Woods Retirement Community is celebrating its 25th Anniversary in 2023. A signature event of the yearlong celebration is this new art exhibition, featuring twelve established Maine artists and curated by Cushing-based artist Pam Cabañas. Artists Lyn Asselta, Chris Augusta, Krisanne Baker, Phoebe Bly, Diane Dahlke, Pam Cabañas, Dan Corey, Maxwell Nolin, Linda Mahoney, Marnie Sinclair, Peter Walls, and Graham Walton have contributed paintings, drawings, photographs and bronze sculptures. The work is for sale with 100% of proceeds going to the artists. The exhibit may be viewed during regular business hours (8am – 4pm) now through June.

During the Opening Reception on Saturday April 8th, from 2 – 5 pm, enjoy the art, meet the artists, and sample delicious treats and spirits prepared by Bartlett Woods’ own professional chefs.

“Once again, we get to live with Art at Bartlett, now an established tradition,” confirmed Mary Eads, Executive Director. “Curator Pam Cabañas has gathered a beautiful collection of talented, visionary artists. Residents, staff and their families appreciate having the breathtaking work here to enjoy every day. Thank you to everyone participating!”

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December 2022
You know, Midcoast Maine does love a festival, even in the cold weather (especially in the cold???). For the first time, and in honor of our upcoming 25th Anniversary in 2023, Bartlett Woods recently participated in TWO local festival parades. Our creative staff designed a holiday look for our 12-seater bus, inside and out (Thank you Mary, Andy, Mike and Amy). Knowing we would be parading after dark, the emphasis was on LIGHTS and SPARKLE. Amy’s Activities sign-up sheet was quickly filled with residents who wanted to go along for the ride, and represent our
happy home. And so, for Rockland’s Festival of Lights Weekend, driver Mike volunteered to lead us down Main Street for the Saturday night parade. Numerous watchers and parade floats gathered to celebrate the beginning of the holiday season. There was music, lights, lots of smiles and good cheer exchanged between all of us. Our resident passengers sang carols and waved enthusiastically to the crowds, who waved right back, and even cheered for us! Hearts were definitely warmed on both sides of the street.

The following weekend, again with Mike at the wheel, we joined the parade in Camden for Christmas By-the-Sea. Many participants from several towns created a long chain of bright, shiny vehicles that crawled along side streets to downtown. Who knows how many parade watchers there actually were? There seemed to be thousands, leaving little space along the route to travel. Our decorations, lights, happy faces, and first-time appearance seemed to be a big hit.

Thanks to the local media and other friends who snapped shots of us at both events. What a way to end one year, and begin a milestone 25th. Thank you to everyone who made this a memorable project. See you next year!

The below article was originally posted on VillageSoup.com, you can view article in full here: https://knox.villagesoup.com/2022/11/26/santa-kicks-off-rockland-holiday-season

ROCKLAND — Santa Claus arrived at Rockland’s middle pier at noon Friday and was greeted by a gleeful group of children and parents.

Santa then joined city and civic leaders to cut the ceremonial red ribbon to open downtown Main Street for the season.

The lighting of the Lobster Trap Tree was held 6 p.m. Friday, Nov. 25. Main Street from Pleasant to Park streets was closed during the ceremony to vehicle traffic. Santa was assisted by Virginia Oliver, Maine’s oldest licensed lobster harvester, in the flipping of the switch.

On Saturday, Nov. 26, Santa returned to his workshop. Free horse-drawn wagon rides were available from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. provided by First National Bank, and downtown businesses were open with special promotions for Small Business Saturday.

Saturday night, Nov. 26, featured the annual Parade of Lights beginning at 6 p.m.

Floats sponsored by participating businesses, neighborhoods and organizations gathered at the ferry terminal parking lot. The parade began at the ferry terminal and headed south (the wrong way on Main Street), ending at the Lobster Trap Tree.

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In 2023, Bartlett Woods Retirement Community will be 25 years old. Imagine . . . What a time to pause and say thank you to all of you who have inspired us to be the right place because we do the right thing.

Together, we will celebrate our community and show our gratitude through a series of anniversary events, such as The 25^th Anniversary Cookbook. Filled with beloved recipes from residents, family members, and our staff, it captures special moments of meal preparation, which our extended family has enjoyed over the years. From soup to nuts, we hope you make a new delectable discovery or reconnect with an old forgotten favorite when you peruse these pages. This special project is a fundraising effort to support our 25^th community celebration. Our enthusiastic Bartlett Woods family has made this possible. We are so very grateful for the participation of all who contributed.   By doing so, and supporting the sales of the cookbook, you help us mark this significant milestone and acknowledge Bartlett Woods as one of the only not-for-profit retirement communities in Midcoast Maine.

Good news! We are now taking pre-orders for the 100-recipe book. The holiday season is coming, and of course, we believe our project should be on every gift-giving list. The price is $15.00, and we can receive payments now, in cash or check form (made out to Bartlett Woods Inc.). Attached is an order form (pdf) you can print out for your convenience. Please reach out to Amy Sabins or Lori Schafer for further details.

We expect the final product to be in our hands after Thanksgiving. We’ll keep you posted!

We thank you and our wider community for believing in Bartlett. May we all look forward to many more delicacies and delights shared during the next 25 years!

The 25^th Committee
October 25, 2022

To download an order form, please click here (pdf).

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January always looks like a blank page to me. That blank page is the first chapter in a 12 chapter book called 2022. Make 2022 a best seller!

Each day of the month represents a page within that chapter. January 1st is page one of chapter one of 2022. How do you want your story to start? Where do you want your story to go? Your book can be whatever you want it to be, it can be funny, it can be an adventure, it can be a romance, and it can even be a drama. Whatever you chose, make it the best it can possibly be!

Start your book, start your year. Fill your book with music, great food, and fun with friends and time with family.

Bartlett Woods is starting our 1st chapter of 2022 with some fun!

This month we will be trying a new game, “Life sized Tic-Tac-Toe”. This is not only challenging the brain, but it has us up and moving. It’s really simple, yet lots of fun. Basically, we set up 9 chairs in the format of a tic-tac-toe grid. We have 5 balloons for each player. One color represents X and one color represents O. Each player must walk to the chair they wish to place either their X or O on. We have already tried it out and it was a hit! I can see this game gaining in popularity here.

Also this month we will have fun celebrating Elvis Presley’s birthday with a little bit of “Elvis Trivia” and, of course, an Elvis movie. We will also celebrate Martin Luther King’s birthday with trivia and a documentary.

National Flower Day will be another page in our 1st chapter. We will, of course, do flower arrangements, but we will add in some fun “flower games” as well.

January can be a long month. Therefore we decided to bring in something everyone can get excited about. We are having a Winter Carnival!!! Complete with an S’mores bar, a hot chocolate bar, carnival games, prizes, and a photo booth and there will be lots of fun for all!

Thankfully, in these challenging times we have technology to help us out. Zoom has become a permanent fixture in our vocabulary. For Example, The Belfast Free library and the Camden Conference are hosting a Zoom event with a local couple from Belfast, entitled “The Rise and Fall of the Berlin Wall,” it’s the story of how Dick and Maryann Topping were living in Berlin when the wall went up. Their story is a firsthand account of how life was during that difficult time. We will be attending the conference from the comfort of our own media room.

Zoom has also allowed us to continue with our exercise classes with no chance of exposure to Covid. We are so thankful to our local YMCA and the work they are doing to keep us moving!

Our first chapter of 2022 is looking pretty exciting! We will have music, great food, adventures (via Zoom), games, laughter and most of all, fun!

What will your first chapter look like?

Come back next month for a preview of chapter 2.

Karen Tooley/Activities Director

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September has arrived and with it we had an exciting calendar of events for our residents. However, the unwanted visitor of Covid, more specifically the Delta variant, arrived as well. We have worked so hard since March of 2020 to keep this virus out of Bartlett Woods and we cannot let our guard down now.

Therefore, we have had to make some changes to this month’s activities. We have decided to post pone all entertainers until we are safely passed this latest surge of cases in our community. We have also decided to not take trips to any indoor stores, museums, restaurants, etc. The only exception is we will continue our weekly trips to Hannaford on Wednesday mornings.

Despite these changes, we will have a great month with lots of fun. Fortunately in these challenging times, we have learned to adapt as have many others. One such way is by working with the Portland Symphony Orchestra. While they are doing in-person performances again, they are still offering a digital version of many of these shows. We will continue to take advantage of this and purchase as many as we can. This month we are showing an encore performance of “America, America Patriotic Music for the Kotzschmar Organ”. We previously aired this last month with great participation and enthusiasm.
I’m also very excited to have Maine historian and Camden Herald Columnist, Charles H. Lagerbom offer to us a Zoom discussion about his most recent book “Maine to Cape Horn”. This book is about Mainers testing their skill against the infamous waters of this iconic spot. This is sure to be a very interesting presentation.

Along with these digital presentations, we are still able to take our scenic rides, dine out (outdoor settings only), have picnic lunches, attend the Rockland Farmer’s Market, walk the Rockland Boardwalk and visit our favorite ice cream stands, Dorman’s and Bray Brook Farm Ice Cream!

We are also very thankful for our relationship with the YMCA, as they are still able to come see us twice a week for exercise classes, as we are the only facility our instructor is currently visiting. Lucky us!

We will still have our in house activities of exercise classes, discussion groups, cocktail hour, games and documentaries. And as always….we saved a seat for you!

So while Covid has once again foiled our plans, we will not let that ruin our fun. While we are enjoying ourselves safely here, we hope you all remain healthy and safe.

Karen Tooley/Activities Director

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When you live in one of the most beautiful places in Maine, why would you need to go far from home? We have some of the most incredible museums, restaurants, parks and artists right here! Therefore, this month we will be “keeping it local!”

Although we are located on the coast of Maine, we are not far from rich farmlands. We like to visit our local farm stands and farmer’s market as often as we can. This month we will be visiting School House Farms in Warren. They offer some of the best fresh produce, as well as jams, jellies and homemade donuts! We also frequent the Rockland Farmer’s Market every other week. This market, located right on Rockland Harbor, has so many vendors; there are always many options to choose from.

Summer means ice cream! We have many local ice cream shops to choose from, and this month we are visiting one of our favorites… Bray Brook Farm in Appleton. This little shop has a huge menu to choose from, with seats under the trees overlooking the donkey pasture! It’s always a pleasant afternoon at Bray Brook! And as an added bonus, their ice cream is made in Maine!

Golf anyone? Mini golf that is. A fun afternoon it will be at Cardinal Cove in Rockport.
The Midcoast of Maine has some of the best seafood restaurants in the state and we love to support our local eateries. This month we will dine at Archer’s on the Pier, with beautiful views of Rockland Harbor, the Breakwater Lighthouse and the islands and bay beyond, all while enjoying fresh seafood! Later in the month we will visit McLoon’s Lobster Shack on Spruce Head Island to enjoy more incredibly fresh seafood with beautiful views of the lobster boats and islands just steps away.

Rockland is the Art Capitol of Maine and we are so fortunate to have The Farnsworth Art Museum just minutes away from Bartlett Woods.

“In 2021, the Farnsworth Art Museum is pleased to celebrate thirteen remarkable women who have made lasting contributions to the culture of our state. In many ways our tribute was inspired by Lucy Copeland Farnsworth, the woman who founded the museum, which, since opening in 1948, has promoted the arts in the port city of Rockland and has played a key role in shaping the arts in the State of Maine.”

We are looking forward to viewing this exhibit.

Another great museum is the Penobscot Marine Museum just up the road a bit in Searsport Maine. This museum is a true gem, and so much history is available to explore on the large campus. Along with tours of the museum, they have some of the most talented people who love to share their exhibits. Kevin Johnson is the Photo Archivist for PMM and he comes regularly to visit us with collections of his photos and the history behind them all. He is a great speaker and friend to us and we love having him here.

This area is also rich in local talent. We are so thankful to have some wonderful music here at Bartlett Woods. Route 17 Ramblers are pretty much famous in these parts. They bring some good old “Americana” music along with some Country and traditional classics. They always pack the house and lots of toes are tapping and hands are clapping.

As you can see, staying local has so many benefits for our residents. Along with all of the above, we will visit some local shops including Reny’s (A Maine Adventure) and enjoy scenic rides to see all the beauty this area has to offer.

Each month we still have our usual shopping trips, discussion groups, games, knitting group, and cocktail parties. There is always something happening here at Bartlett Woods and we saved a seat for you.

Karen Tooley/Activities Director

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IT’S FINALLY DONE!

Although we took delivery of our new bus last fall, it’s taken some time to finally be able to dress her up!

If you see this beauty around town, be sure to wave!

#BelieveinBartlett

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Happy July! We are at the halfway point for the year. That’s hard to believe. When 2021 started, there was so much uncertainty as to whether or not we would even be able to hug our loved ones, go out to dinner, go to the grocery store again, or enjoy any in-house activities.

I am happy to report we are doing all of those and more, all within the guidelines given to us from both the CDC and DHHS. All Bartlett Woods residents and staff are fully vaccinated! We are so happy that we had 100% participation. That one fact, along with Knox County’s participation rate, is a huge factor in where we are today.

July is going to be a great month here. We start off with a long time favorite, Pianist Arlene Gamble. Arlene will be offering a show of all Rogers and Hammerstein. She always draws a crowd.

Tuesday, July 6th will be a FUN IN THE SUN day. We will set up our dunk tank, have the water cannons ready to go, as well as our friend Silent Bob. We will be serving ice cream and cold drinks. This day is an opportunity for the residents to “soak a staff member” or for a staff member to soak a fellow co worker. We’ve also had residents volunteer for the dunk tank. It’s always a fun day with lots of laughs!

I am very excited to announce local author, birder and columnist Don Reimer will be here to discuss his new book, “Seen Anything Good?”

Don Reimer is a lifelong birder and photographer residing in Warren, Maine. A board member of the Midcoast Audubon Society, he has led field excursions for local environmental organizations and the American Birding Association National Convention. He is a board member of the Friends of Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refuge in Rockland, Maine.

Currently he serves as a regional coordinator for the 2018–22 Maine Bird Atlas project. His bi-monthly column Birding with Don Reimer has appeared in the Rockland Free Press since 2007.

We will also welcome back the Shelley and Jacklyn who are Compass Rose Images.

“The Traveling Sisters”

Compass Rose Images was established by sisters Shelley Lance-Fulk, Jacklyn Amtower and Jacklyn’s husband Jon. We have all had a passion for traveling the world and photographing wildlife. We have been to all seven continents several times to enrich and expand our collection of animal photographs. We reside in a small community in Central Maine where the abundance of local critters, moose, deer, raccoon, fox and birds (not to mention our golden doodle, Latte and golden retriever, Bailey) keep us amused and reaching for our cameras. We travel three to six months each year to capture images of wildlife from animal-rich regions around the globe.

They are a house favorite with their stories and the most incredible photos! We are so excited they are coming back to see us!

This month we received a very generous and special offer. This offer was made possible thanks to a grant from the Maine Bicentennial Commission. I am so very excited and honored to announce that the DaPonte String Quartet will be playing here at Bartlett Woods on Thursday July 22nd. The concert will be followed by a cocktail reception and appetizers. The Maine Bicentennial Commission offered this grant for the quartet to be able to take their music to the communities for the Bicentennial celebrations. Obviously due to the pandemic, those celebrations last year were cancelled. Now they are celebrating the Bicentennial plus 1. We are honored to be included as a location for their music.
I told you July was going to be a great month… but wait, there is more. We will also welcome back the Davis Violin duo!

The Davis sisters have been playing music together for most of their lives. The sisters grew up in Waldoboro where they spent many an afternoon playing their violins and exploring Muscongus Bay in anything that floats. They received their bachelor’s degrees from Oberlin College and Conservatory of Music, and in 2018, Josie earned her Ed.M from Harvard University and Sophie was awarded a Fulbright Research Scholarship to spend a year studying music and climate change in the South Pacific island of Samoa.

Along with all of that fun, we will have a few luncheons out for outdoor dining, shopping trips, including the Rockland Farmer’s Market, ice cream excursions, walks on the Boardwalk, exercise classes, movies, games, discussion groups, scenic rides, wine socials, church services and Bible studies.
It’s going to be a very busy and a very fun month.
But don’t worry…we saved a seat for you!

Karen Tooley/Activities Director

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Welcome June! This month brings so much hope and excitement towards returning to life as we knew it before Covid19.

Since we have come so far with vaccines and safety precautions, we are now in a good place to be able to start our activities programs again while following all recommended guidelines.
We are still being cautious and limiting our exposure as much as possible, all while having fun!

We are excited to welcome back a few of our favorite entertainers this month. We begin with a longtime friend of Bartlett Woods, Hank Lunn. Hank will be sharing the story of Floating Reed Island on Lake Titicaca in Peru. It will be nice to “travel” to a foreign destination without the restrictions. We are looking forward to his presentation.

Speaking of traveling . . . we are starting a new series this month called “Travel Tuesday.” Each week we will watch a documentary on a specific foreign land or take a ride to a local destination on our new bus. I also hope to incorporate speakers as we progress with this series.

We will be doing some traveling of our own this month to some of our favorite destinations, such as the Rockland Farmer’s Market, Beth’s Farm Stand, Reny’s in Belfast and the Center for Maine Contemporary Art in Rockland.

Another sign of life returning to normal is some of our favorite speakers will be back!! Michael Perry of Freeport has been coming to Bartlett Woods for many, many years. Michael travels all over the world and creates incredible slide shows along with stories of the area to share. After an hour with him, you feel as if you have traveled to the same destination. We welcome Michael back on Friday June 18th for a “Happy Birthday Maine” show!

We will also be welcoming back our favorite fiddle player, Owen Kennedy. This kid is just 15-years old and he is amazing! He’s got a huge following right here at Bartlett Woods. We were also lucky that he came and played outside around our building during our “shelter in place” phase last year. He’s got a big heart and loads of talent. He will be playing for us in our Parlor on June 30th.

Of course our regular programs are all back in place including exercise with our YMCA instructor, Victor. He’s working hard to get us all back in shape after this past year. We are also holding our regular monthly activities, such as games, shopping trips, picnics, lunches out (outside dining only), discussion groups, and the list goes on and on.

We are so excited to be able to resume most of our activities, even if we have to do them a little differently. We are looking forward to making some great memories this summer.
We saved a seat for you!

Karen Tooley/Activities Director

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