It’s always fun to look back on the past year at notable events, both local and national. Some might be burned into your memories while other events, though notable in their own ways, might have passed under your radar.
   Below is a compilation of the notable events of 2007 in Kennebunk, Kennebunkport and Arundel, but first, let’s look at some national events that occupied last year’s headlines.
   President George W. Bush announced a plan to station 21,500 additional troops in Iraq while Sen. Barack Obama announced his presidential bid. The Indianapolis Colts defeated the Chicago Bears to win Super Bowl XLI and the Spurs swept the Cavaliers to win the NBA finals.
   Bob Barker aired his last episode of the Price is Right and comedian Drew Carey debuted as the new host. The final novel in the Harry Potter series was released selling more than eight million copies in the first 24 hours and wildfires in southern California resulted in the evacuation of more than one million people.
   Novelist Kurt Vonnegut died as did Lady Bird Johnson, Merv Griffin, Joey Bishop, Evel Knievel,  Luciano Pavarotti and Barbara West – the second to last living survivor of the Titanic sinking.
   And of course, in 2007, the Red Sox won the World Series in a four game sweep against the Colorado Rockies.
   Drum roll, please – now here are some notable local events you might have forgotten about:
January:    •    The Kennebunkport Conservation Trust (KCT), received a late Christmas present, when it was given  nearly 40 acres of land near Goose Rocks in Kennebunkport. The land donated to the KCT came from Dr. Eleanor Saboski, who donated 21 acres, and Gloria and Erik Moline, who donated 18 acres.
•    When P.M. Construction broke ground on the $1.65 million West Kennebunk Fire Station in September the date for completion of the project was set for sometime around mid-May; but this winter’s lack of snow and unseasonably warm temperatures brought the projected completion of the fire station to March.
    Kennebunk Fire Chief Steve Nichols said all four walls are standing and the roof above the office and bay areas is finished as well.
    Workers are in the process of insulating the building and putting up the sheetrock. He also said the 1,000-gallon, underground propane tank is in place.
•    Less than two years ago one couldn’t turn on a local or national news program without hearing about the devastation that rocked the south when Hurricane Katrina hit.
    Americans were bombarded with images of displaced families trudging along the south’s major highways in an effort to find refuge. Pictures of people waiting on rooftops and those traveling in canoes through city streets were common.
    Now, however, media coverage on the hurricane and its aftermath has dwindled to almost nothing.
    Students at Kennebunk’s New School haven’t forgotten about the storm’s victims and travelled to Louisiana to offer aid to troubled areas of the state.
    From Jan. 8 through Jan. 29 eight students  travelled to Buras and New Orleans where they gutted houses and served food to displaced people.
February:
•    The Kennebunk Police Department’s strategic planning committee  released results from a survey handed out to residents this past fall that asked them their perceptions of the department. More than 2,200 surveys were distributed as part of the department’s Strategic Planning process, which aims to map the department’s future for the next three years.
    The committee received 237 surveys, which equates to roughly 10 percent participation rate.
    The committee has taken the data and planned several upcoming workshops based on the community’s expression of need.
    The first workshop will be one that focuses on issues experienced by Kennebunk’s youth.
    The department also plans on holding a crime prevention workshop for businesses in late February. The workshop will focus on the prevention and preparedness of robbery and touch upon shoplifting and loitering.
    A workshop specifically for banks and how they can prevent and prepare for robberies is scheduled for March:
•    The clapping of their hands and the beat of the music may have been off but with the big smiles on their faces, the message was clear; students at the Kennebunk Elementary School were enjoying the performance being put on by Judy Randall.
    Randall, who sings in the choir at the New Hope Baptist Church in Danbury, Conn., was at the school for the African American Read
 •A familiar face greeted Kennebunk residents as they entered the second floor of town hall. While the face may be familiar, the position of Kennebunk town clerk was a new one for Joanna Moran.
    Moran was elected  Jan. 30 in special election held at town hall. A small number of voters, 106, showed up to participate in the election.
    Moran was the lone name on the ballot.
    Moran is the daughter of former Town Clerk Ethelyn Marthia. Marthia passed away Wednesday, Dec. 13 from pancreatic cancer after serving the town for more than 20 years.
 •One of the Kennebunks’ most beloved events was  recognized by the state as one of the “best attractions” in Maine to visit. The Maine Tourism Commission through the state tourism office honored the Christmas Prelude event for an excellence in tourism award.
  •    The Education Foundation of the Kennebunks held their first ever Spelling Bee at Sea Road School in Kennebunk.
    “When you try something new, you never know how the reception is going to be,” said Sea Road School principal and Education Foundation chairperson Kevin Crowley, “I’m thrilled with the public support we got. It far exceeded our expectations.”
    Winners of the bee were the Dewey Dynamos (Nancy Downing, Susan Mirisola, Carol Whitten) of the Kennebunk Free Library.
  •    On Tuesday, Feb. 13, David Hanlon, 38, of Arundel, and Barry Murphy, 47, of Gilbertsville, N.Y., were arrested on drug charges after York County Sheriff’s Deputies raided Hanlon’s two homes in Arundel and Lyman, discovering a large marijuana growing operation.
    Combining houses, sheriff’s seized more than 300 marijuana plants, four pounds of processed marijuana, $17,000 in cash and six guns.
    The two men had an extremely sophisticated hydroponic growing operation that included a lighted tracking system with a motor to move the lights back and forth (this allows a higher wattage bulb to be used for better production without burning the leaves), ph meters, sound proofing materials, a
 March:
  •    The war in Iraq needs to end now. That’s the message that Mainers all over the state will be sent March 17, as people gathered on local village greens to protest the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq.
    The statewide protest  coincided with a national protest at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. that was expected to draw hundreds of thousands of people.
    The event was called “From Every Village Green,” and more than 100 Maine towns were planning to take part, including Kennebunk.
    The Kennebunk Peace Department, a newly formed group in the area organized the event under the instruction of resident Jamilla El-Shafei.
    “The reason why I started the group is because this area is kind of barren, there are no peace groups,” she said.
April:
  •    Three members of the Kennebunk Police Department   found  themselves in the spotlight at Hadlock Field for their performance and contributions to Kennebunk and its police department.
As part of the Portland Seadogs “Hometown Heroes” night, Communications officer Rodney Storman, Officer Rick Bancroft, and Officer Eric O’Brien will be honored along with nearly 300 other members of police, fire and rescue personnel in Maine.
•”I would say that the impact is, without a doubt, probably comparable to the Storm of 1991, the no-name storm.”
So said Kennebunk Director of Police Services Michael Pardue, commenting on the destructive force of the April 16 nor’easter.
Formed off the coast of the Virginia Capes on the evening of April 15, the storm pulled in Atlantic moisture, grinding into a massive, five hundred mile wide goliath that slowly churned its way up the eastern seaboard.     •    Local, state, and federal officials were confident that Kennebunk would receive federal aid through the Federal Emergency Management Agency after the town suffered an estimated $3 million in damage from a nor’easter that swept through the town April 16 and 17.
Gov. John Baldacci and senators Olympia Snowe (R) and Susan Collins (R) all visited Gooch’s Beach and saw the devastation first hand. FEMA Administrator David Paulison, who was invited by Collins and Snow, met with the senators earlier in the day to discuss concerns.
Most of the damage came from 1,200 feet of seawall at Gooch’s beach that was destroyed after it was battered by three high tides and tall waves from the Atlantic Ocean. Those waves tore up the gravel, cement and the wooden planks used to many to walk the coastline. The estimated damage to the wall was $2.5 million based a $400 per linear foot construction cost estimate.
May:
•    On April 24, Kennebunk selectmen voted in favor to send the Park Street School $2.2 million bond proposal to a referendum vote at Town Meeting on June 13. The decision came following much debate between selectmen, budget board members, and residents.
•    Intervale Road residents in Kennebunk, many of which were crippled by Patriots’ Day storm, found out they would not get immediate tax relief from the town.
Kennebunk Town Assessor Dan Robinson told residents it was essentially timing that was working against of the residents.
•Just days after the Patriots’ Day storm wreaked havoc on the seawall at Gooch’s Beach in Kennebunk, Governor John Baldacci stated the town would bounce back from the disaster and the tourist season would go on. It appears he couldn’t have been more right.
Only a month after the storm caused an estimated $2.5 million in damage, tearing up the seawall and Beach Avenue adjacent to it, the entire area was repaired and remained unscathed for the upcoming tourist season from May until September. That included full vehicle access, parking, and pedestrian access to the beach.
June:
  •    Controversy surrounded one of Kennebunk’s only contested race  at the annual town election.
While voters thought they were choosing between three candidates for two Maine School Administrative District 71 school board seats, they should have been voting for three. That mistake left the status of current board member John Sharood unknown.
•Back to the drawing board – again.
Kennebunk voters said no to Park Street School and yes to $1 million in road improvements on Tuesday at the town’s annual election.
The Park Street School bond article, which asked residents to borrow $2.2 million, was defeated 1014 to 796 with 26 ballots left blank. However, the road improvements passed by a large margin, 1378 to 405, with 31 ballots left blank. Only 1,812 of the 9,152 (19 percent) registered voters in Kennebunk went to the polls.
•Maine’s first Stop & Shop opened it’s doors June 15, beginning at 7 a.m. in Kennebunk. Located at 67 Portland Road (Route 1), the store is a 60,000 square-foot supermarket that is one of 389 Stop & Shops that are located throughout New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York and New Jersey.
July:
•President George W. Bush welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin to his father’s estate on Walker’s Point in Kennebunkport on a meeting aimed at improving the personal relationship between the two leaders.
At the same time, expectations were lowered by officials on both sides of the possibility that the summit will lead to any agreements on issues that have strained relations between Russia and the U.S., such Iran’s pursuit of nuclear energy, the United States’ plan to built a missile defense shield in the Czech Republic and Poland, the situation in Kosovo, and democratic reform in Russia.
•A protest held by the Maine Campaign to Impeach and the Kennebunks Peace Department Drew thousands of supporters from both inside and outside the state’s borders on Saturday. The protest was held in conjunction with Sunday’s meeting between President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin held at Bush’s father’s estate on Walker’s Point.
August:
  •The town of Kennebunk  expected to apply for a $1.5 million Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) that would eliminate four homes and raise another seven on Intervale Road, an area heavily affected by flooding in the past two springs.
Of the $1.5 million HMGP, the town would be responsible for 25 percent, or $375,000, of it. Town Manager Barry Tibbetts said that some of the $375,000 would be offset by in-kind services; money the town has already spent in relation to the flooding. If going forward, Tibbetts estimated the town would have to come up to $200,000 from the Undesignated Fund Reserve for potential contribution, which would have to be approved by Kennebunk voters in a special town meeting.
•Once again, President George W. Bush used his father’s estate on Walker’s Point in Kennebunkport as a meeting spot to improve relations with the president of a European nation. Last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Kennebunkport to ease tensions over U.S. plans for a missile defense shield in Europe.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy interrupted a family vacation to fit in a brief visit to Walker’s Point to meet with President Bush.  The meeting was intended to shore up the French-U.S. relationship previously strained by tensions over the Iraq war.
•When  representatives from the Animal Welfare Society in West Kennebunk learned about alleged animal cruelty at J’aime Kennel in Buxton, AWS Program Coordinator Carol Ann MacKinnon said there was no second thought about the shelter becoming involved.
“That is part of our mission,” she said of responding to help the animals.
    And despite more than 40 people at the kennel site, more than half of which were associated with the AWS, MacKinnon said AWS was looking for volunteers and donations to address the incident that has affected so many animals. Police raided the kennels at 35 Paucek Road on Aug. 21 and found more than 230 dogs, including bulldogs, German Shepard poodle mixes and others. MacKinnon said some reptiles and birds were also on the premises.
September:
•    The Tides Inn owner Marie Henriksen hoped to expand the volume of her building and convert it into a  multi plex able to house 14 residential condo units by entering into a contract zone agreement, which would have been the first such agreement ever in Kennebunkport.
   •    Shiloh Pepin, daughter of Elmer and Leslie Pepin, is an 8-year-old girl living in Kennebunkport and attending the third grade at Consolidated School. According to her father, she does not play with dolls. Instead, Shiloh concerns herself with writing stories in her journal and reading books.
   According to Leslie, the most impressive thing about Shiloh, however, started at her birth; namely, that she lived. Elmer recalls doctors telling him he “had more of a chance at winning the lottery than seeing (his) daughter live.”
   At birth Shiloh was diagnosed with Sirenomelia. With Sirenomelia, in utero the development of the normal blood supply to the lower portion of the body fails, causing a fusion of the lower extremities. It is commonly called “mermaid syndrome,” both because of the inclusion of “Siren” within the name – referencing the mythical mermaids -- and the fused legs of the person. Many of the organs never develop; frequently the lungs and kidneys.
Harvard Medical School resources define the disorder as a lethal birth defect that occurs in one out of every 60,000 live births. Out of those who are born with Sirenomelia, there is a one in 144,304,000 chance of the child living more than a few hours.
•A battle was still  brewing in Arundel following last years June elections.
   Arundel resident Troy Parker  appealed his loss of the Arundel town selectman in Alfred Superior Court.
   “It comes to the intent of the voter. Obviously, if a voter writes a whole name in, they wanted that person,” Parker said.
   Parker was a write-in candidate for the June 13, 2006 elections after he said he failed to submit the paperwork on time.
     “You have to submit X amount of signatures by certain date,” he said. “I had run the year before and went by previous years deadline, but it had been changed. I missed it (deadline) by a week so I was a write in.”
     Although Parker received more than 250 votes, a number of votes were dismissed because some voters failed to put a check mark in the indicator box next to his name.
     According to court documents filed at the Alfred Superior Court, Parker received 256 votes and contender David Lane received 278 votes.
     Lane won the selectman seat, but Parker contends if 28 of the ballots were counted, his votes would outnumber Lane’s by three, enough to have won the seat.
October:
   •Kennebunkport resident Laurie Dobson (Independent Democrat)  announced that she was running for Sen. Susan Collin’s seat on the Senate in 2008. Her campaign symbol, she said, is a blue lobster.
   “The lobster is a symbol of Maine, where I am from, where I always knew I would end up,” she said.
   •Members of the Arundel School Board were expected to make a decision that would have a long lasting impact on their own community and five other York County communities on Oct. 10.
As part of the state mandated reorganization process, the school board was expected to decide whether Arundel will go forward with Regional School Unit 57 (Kennebunk and Kennebunkport) or RSU 56, which includes Saco, Dayton and Old Orchard Beach. Currently, Arundel students in grades k-5 attend Mildred L. Day School, grades six through eight attend Thornton Academy Middle School (the town entered into a 10-year contract with the school last year) and high school students have choice of what high school they attend.
•More than 500 people attended the West Kennebunk Fire Station annual open house Oct. 11, which was held in an effort to remind residents that October is Fire Prevention Month. In addition to their evening at the station, the rescue workers spent most of the day visiting schools and day cares from around the area.
November:
   •The decision was made; Arundel  continued consolidation work with MSAD 71 as opposed to exploring options with Saco schools.
  “We chose to go with the Kennebunks for a few reasons,” said Arundel Superintendent Alton Hadley, who had no say during the school board talks, but acted as a facilitator. “MSAD 71 is a smart choice for us because Kennebunk, Kennebunkport and Arundel are physically closer to our kids. Also we are impressed by their strong educational stature.”
   •“I don’t want my third grade daughter being taken out of her community,” Judie Couture said. “Where our children want to go to high school is their independent decision. Not the decision of someone up in Augusta.”
   Couture was one of more than 15 people who met in Arundel to discuss the uncertain future of the Arundel School System and to hand out petitions in an effort to delay further development of school consolidation plans. Participants have named themselves, “Take Back Arundel.”
   Originally, Arundel was planning to form a Regional School Unit with Saco, Dayton and Old Orchard Beach. After presentations from both Saco and Kennebunk, the school board voted to form a unit with Kennebunk and with the five-year consolidation plan, eventually close Mildred L. Day School, according to Couture.
   “When I attended the (school board) meetings I could see that the way consolidation is set up,” she said.  “At least one of my children will be affected by this.”
   •On Election Day, more than 2,500 Kennebunk residents cast their ballots on three town referendum questions, including one that would approve up to $375,000 to repair flood damaged land and houses on Intervale Road, Meadow Drive and Partridge Lane that were damaged in April 2006 and 2007 storms.
  The town voted in favor of Question 2, which asked voters to allocate $375,000 from surplus to be used for the damaged land and houses on Intervale Road. The question was passed, 1,698 to 945, but Town Manager Barry Tibbetts said the town still doesn’t know where that money will come from because the third question, which asked voters to increase the tax levy limit in an effort to come up with the remaining 25 percent, was voted down.
   Question 3 asked voters to give the town permission to increase property tax levy limit to $5,573,864,  and was voted down 1,372 to 1,225 with 83 blanks. If the town had voted for the increase, Tibbetts said it would have matched the federal grant provided and flood mitigation would begin. He said he thinks the question was voted down because it was confusing.
December:
   •Members of the Kennebunk Police Department presented their final strategic plan to the Kennebunk Board of Selectmen Nov. 27 which Michael Pardue, director of police services, said focuses on continuing quality service to the community and its employees and serves as a business plan for accomplishing change in the future.
   “We started the plan by conducting a survey with the business population and citizens to determine what people expect or need of the police department,” Pardue said, adding the plan will continue to be utilized and evaluated every two or three years.
   The plan included improving and evaluating personnel, integrating more community oriented policing, communication, training, equipment and the overall facility.
   •Talks of a possible merger between the River Tree Center for the Arts in Lower Village and the Heartwood College of Art in Kennebunk have yielded lots of enthusiasm but little action, according to Jim Fitzgerald, chairperson of the Heartwood board of directors.
   “Nothing is definite until the papers are signed. Right now we are in the beginning process, nothing is for sure,” said Fitzgerald. “We are going to take this as slow as necessary, no one likes change. Developing our approach to change will make sense for both organizations and the community."