Urgent help needed at FCS... This note received from Sue Mack at FCS: "FREEPORT COMMUNITY SERVICES HAS TAKEN IN 20 MORE FAMILIES IN NEED FOR THE HOLIDAYS. WE JUST CAN’T TURN ANYONE AWAY AND WITH FUEL OIL SO HIGH MORE AND MORE FOLKS ARE STRUGGLING. WE HAVE SINGLES AND FAMILIES. IF YOU OR ANYONE YOU KNOW CAN HELP ADOPT, PLEASE EMAIL ASAP!"smack@fcsmaine.org. Many Many Thanks!
Please note... This is 20 ADDITIONAL families above the original 100 or so FCS was planned for helping.
Save the Date! Speaking of FCS... January 28th, 2008 is White Nights, the festive annual fundraiser for Freeport Community Services - and you are invited. There is also an opportunity to be a White Nights Sponsor. For details and info contact Dana Anderson at 865-1665 or email dana@postharvard.edu
Police Scam... No, the police are not running a scam. The Freeport Police Department tells us that someone is running a scam saying that they are collecting money for the police department and Law Enforcement Times, or some such.
As with many of these things - not so. If you receive a call along these lines please contact the FPD. (As it turns out, I also apparently did not really win 4 million dollars in an online drawing, either. Therefore I will be back to work tomorrow.)
Jingle Bell Run a huge success! We got this great note from Janet Bourne. Many of you know that Janet organizes the Jingle Bell Run/Walk during Sparkle Weekend for the Arthritis foundation.
"Did I ever let you know how it went???!!! It was great!!! We had more than 570 people (Last year was 438.) and raised more than $28,000! Last year was the highest at around $13,000."
Congrats to Janet for a job well done - and thanks for bringing hundreds of participants and their followers to visit us in Freeport!
Freeport eClub Info? We will be sending a new Freeport eClub newsletter to registered consumers in the next couple of days (Thursday, Dec 13th). If you have special sales or events you would like to include, please email them to dcollins@freeportusa.com right away.
There is no cost to include your information, but you need to get it to us!
New FMA Members Handbook for 2008... Our newsletters and Bullet Point Updates are always full of reminders about features, services and tools that are available to you as an FMA Member. We are always trying to get our members to use our sevices to the maximum advantage.
With so may things to offer, we are in the process of developing a new FMA Members Handbook to be both a help and reminder that we are here for our members. Look for it to come out in print and download after the first of the year.
Still lots of Season and lots of happenings! We had a delightful Sparkle Weekend Celebration with a good albeit cold time had by most all. Traffic and sales seem difficult to predict, with some anecdotal reports saying it's strong, others it's down, and still others that it's about even. All in all, we seem to about be mirroring the national economic trends. (We will issue a Holiday Traffic and Sales Survey shortly. Please take a few moments to respond when you receive it)
We just want to remind you that Sparkle weekend is not the end of what's happening in Freeport for the holidays. Think of it rather as a"Bright Spot" (pun intended).
There are still fireworks evey Saturday evening through Christmas, free Horse and Carriage rides evey weekend, Santa is in town on Saturdays,and many delightful tastings, demos and events happening all around town. You can find many of these things by going to FreeportUSA.com, clicking on our Holiday listings page and by downloading the Northern Lights Brochure.
Freeport is getting great holiday promotion and press. We'd love to tell your story, too. If you have a newsworthy happening, let us know - we'll "alert the media" - literally! |
Executive Directors Message...
Happy Holidays! As always, the holidays in Freeport are both hectic and beautiful. The hectic part is always up for debate - is it too hectic? not hectic enough? The answer depends on your point of view, and sometimes which side of the cash register you may be standing on.
What is never in question is the beauty of Freeport at this special season of the year. There's the beauty of thousands of lights twinkling throughout a historic village. There's the beauty of an earlier time when spirits were warmed by horse drawn carriage rides and gingerbread villages, by carollers and cocoa, and stories told beside a welcoming fireplace.
There is the unique beauty of dozens of Tubas playing Christmas music in extraordinary harmonies, and the beautiful sound of children's laughter as they tickle the branches of a Christmas tree that giggles and talks.
There's the beauty of a home-grown parade and Santa arriving on a boat of all things. And there's the beauty of a community that cherishes both elders and teens and those that work hard to keep every family fed and warm, turning none away.
There's no doubt that shopping is a big thing around here, and that it's very important to our overall economy. But at this special time of year that which fills the heart is as important as that which fills the bank. Freeport has a unique character, charm and beauty that fills the heart each Holiday Season. And that you can't get at the mall.
All the best to you and yours,
Dick
Important Store Hours Reminder...
We've had lots of visits to our "Top Picks After 6" page on FreeportUSA.com since we introduced it a bit more than four months ago (over 7,800). This further confirms what we've heard from many sources. Folks want to shop, play, dine and such in the evening in Freeport.
If you are open after six, your information needs to be on that page! (There is a hand link to click and submit your hours right on that page, or you can just email them to us.)
It is also important to keep those hours up to date and accurate. We have had occasional complaints that the hours had changed and did not match the list. We try to find as many useful ways to inform the consumer and benefit our members as possible, such as posting these extended hours, but we simply do not have resources enough to constantly monitor individual hours and changes.
Please help us help you by keeping us informed of changes in your hours when they happen. This will be especially important during holiday hours changes.
Growing Green going good...
Lots of positive (and potentially carbon-neutral) energy is surging around our Freeport "Green" initiative. Several educational and research projects are in discussion.We are developing an inventory of green focused efforts within the community as well as examples of successful green projects in town.
With all due respect to Kermit, being green is ever easier. Not only is going green the right and necessary thing to do, it's good business, as many consumers are very aware of environmentally friendly (or wasteful) practices.
Going green also saves some pretty good green, which is very important in your business profitability. Here are a couple of examples. The Freeport School system is in the process of switching to green maintainence products. In their research, they found that not only are the products safer and more environmentally friendly, they work better and cost LESS.
FMA, L.L.Bean,Town Hall and several property owners have all continued the transition to LED holiday lighting. LEDs are safer, last longer and draw lots less energy. The cost to run a typical room size Christmas tree for the seaon with traditional lights is about ten dollars. With a comparable number of LED lights the cost is around seventeen CENTS!
If you are going green and want to share your projects with us all, or you'd like to find out how you can go green or greener, contact Dick at FMA 865-1212 or Stephanie at FEDC 865-4743.
Petrillo's newest FMA member!
Delicious! That pretty much says it. Petrillo's Italian Cafe is the newest member of the FMA family. If you haven't been there yet, do yourself a fav and check it out for lunch or dinner. Petrillo's is conveniently located (in fact, too conveniently located) just a few steps from the FMA Hose Tower Information Center on Depot Street.
There's easy parking, everything is homemade, the owner is always on hand, the menu is great and it's reasonably priced. We've even attached the menu here. See you there!
Freeport Creative Arts on the move...
We just wanted you to know that there is great excitement and energy with the Freeport Creative Arts Initiative. We at FMA, and FEDC as well, are very enthusiastic about recent progress withing the group. To find out more go to FreeportUSA.com and check out the FCA on the Arts in Freeport page. |
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