University of Maine at Presque Isle presents reading with Cathie Pelletier

The University of Maine at Presque Isle will present a special evening with award-winning writer Cathie Pelletier on Monday, June 3, at 7 p.m. in the UMPI Library, when it hosts a reading and book signing for her long-anticipated new novel The One-Way Bridge.

Pelletier’s tenth novel, published by Sourcebooks, returns readers to the logging town of Mattagash, the scene of several of her novels including The Funeral Makers and The Weight of Winter. The June 3 reading, which will include a reception featuring light refreshments and wine available through a cash bar, is part of The One-Way Bridge national book tour.

Two hundred and nineteen students graduated from the University of Maine at Presque Isle on Saturday, May 18, during the 2013 Commencement Exercises – the University’s 104th Commencement ceremony. President Linda Schott conferred degrees for the 2012-2013 academic year upon 145 students who participated in the ceremony held in Wieden Gymnasium.

John Cariani, the accomplished playwright and award-winning actor, addressed the graduates as this year’s commencement speaker. During the graduation event, Cariani was presented with an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters Degree.

The Aroostook Agency on Aging presents the Aging Well Living Well EXPO at the University of Maine at Presque Isle on Saturday, June 1, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The agency is partnering with the United Way of Aroostook, AARP, WAGM-TV, UMPI, and SAGE (Seniors Achieving Greater Education) on the event, which also serves as a celebration of SAGE’s 15th anniversary.

The EXPO is especially for people nearing retirement, who are retired, or who want to improve their health and well-being. The EXPO will include informative sessions and event exhibitors sharing products and information to help attendees improve their quality of life and maintain their independence.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle will host a Thunderstorm Safety/Spotter Workshop with WAGM Meteorologist Ted Shapiro on Tuesday, May 21 from 7:15 to 8:45 p.m. in Folsom Hall Room 105. Campus and community members of all ages are invited to attend this free event.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Student Senate will host a “Nickel Carnival” on Saturday, May 11 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Gentile Hall Gymnasium to support My Friends’ House and All About Me programs in Fort Fairfield. This event is free and open to the public.

All carnival games will be a nickel and there will be a prize booth where the participants can redeem tickets for prizes. Carnival food such as cotton candy, snow cones, popcorn, and candy will be available to purchase for $1 each as well.

President Linda Schott has announced that John Cariani—the playwright and actor who has performed on Broadway, in the movies, and on the small screen, and hails from Presque Isle—will deliver the commencement address during the University of Maine at Presque Isle’s 104th Commencement Ceremony, to be held on Saturday, May 18. During the event, an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters Degree will be presented to Cariani.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Gentile Hall is celebrating the end of the semester and getting a jump start on summer by hosting its very own Amazing Race on Saturday, May 4 with a mass start at 11 a.m. Up to 25 2-member teams will vie for bragging rights and great prizes.

UMPI’s Amazing Race is being coordinated by Keli Marston, UMPI’s Fitness and Wellness Coordinator, and Amanda Baker, UMPI’s Recreation Programs Coordinator. The race will include 20 challenges located at specific spots on the University grounds. Teams will race around campus with a partner, using clues to find the right location, and then complete a challenge of a physical, mental, funny, or completely random task before getting their next clue and moving on to the next challenge.

Officials with the Wintergreen Arts Center and the University of Maine at Presque Isle are making final preparations for their second annual blank canvas event, the 12×12 Art Auction, which will feature original works by more than 50 artists from throughout Aroostook County, the nation, and Canada. 12×12—a fundraiser that will help officials to establish a Cultural Center in the downtown area—will be held Friday, May 3, from 6-9 p.m. at the Wintergreen Arts Center during the May 2013 First Friday Art Walk. The community is invited to attend this free event. Light refreshments will be served.

The staff of the University of Maine at Presque Isle’s literary journal is celebrating the publication of its latest issue with an official Upcountry Reading and Launch Party at 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 25 in the Normal Hall Faculty Lounge.

This very special Spring/Summer 2013 “Town and Gown” issue includes a bountiful selection of written and visual works from both campus and community members, some of them returning contributors and others who are new writers to the journal’s pages.