The state of Maine spends millions of dollars every year fighting drug abuse; from enforcement to care and treatment to broken families and ruined lives.

On Feb. 18, at the Bristol Consolidated School, a propane leak was discovered and reported during the early morning hours. Bristol Fire & Rescue, under the leadership of Paul Leeman and Jared Pendleton, worked in great collaboration with mutual aid towns Bremen, Newcastle, South Bristol and Damariscotta to identify the issue, cordon off the area so that no one had entry to the building and assured the safety of all.

An interesting chain of events has been occurring in Wiscasset.

On Feb. 3 the Wiscasset Waterfront Committee was presented with a Maine Department of Transportation Alternative Waterfront Concept group of drawings, apparently their first public appearance.

It’s a funny thing, how life’s coincidences seem to bunch together. Almost everyone has had those occasions when, for some unknown reason, you just hit a specific run of luck.

By any standard, pumping 2,087 gallons of No. 2 heating oil into a septic system is a monumental screw-up.

Like so many others, my wife and I moved from Boston to Maine in 2013 for the improved quality of life. We didn’t want to raise our newborn daughter in a crowded and expensive city, but rather a beautiful, peaceful place surrounded by a community of caring people. We moved to a quiet town in the Midcoast and haven’t looked back.

During his State of the Union Address, President Obama mentioned several times the goal of deficit reduction, and the progress that’s been made toward that goal since the Great Recession.

I am just a bit disturbed by the front page story of the Jan. 21 issue. (“Damariscotta woman injured after being knocked down by spooked deer,” Page 1)

We can’t think of a more difficult job in Maine public service right now than that of overseeing county corrections.

Reading the paper is often difficult, but researching stories worldwide can bring tears of sorrow and a lack of understanding why treatment of the poor and homeless seems so cruel and unkind.

This is from a recent NBCnews.com article: “Pope Francis suggested there are limits to freedom of expression, saying in response to the Charlie Hebdo terror attack that ‘one cannot make fun of faith’ and that anyone who throws insults can expect a ‘punch.’

For those of us from away who have chosen to make our home here, there is a process that happens over a period of years that transforms the community from a new home to a home to just home.

The recent accident in Edgecomb where the vehicle involved was taking a left-hand turn into the pottery business was upsetting to me. As a longtime instructor, now retired, for the AARP Driver Safety program, we always suggest avoiding left turns if at all possible.

The holidays have come and gone and the people of Waldoboro have been amazing once again. As always, I feel very privileged to be part of such a wonderful and generous event. This year’s Waldoboro Toy Program went very well, with a lot of help from a lot of you.