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Friday, July 31, 2026
Volume 21 • Issue No. 31
Maine Celebrates National Night Out 2026 YORK COUNTY The public is invited to participate in National Night Out 2026, a free annual event designed to strengthen relationships between local residents and public safety personnel. Launched in 1984 by the National Association of Town Watch, the nationwide initiative promotes community-police partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie. Held on the first Tuesday in August, the event now includes more than 16,000 communities across the United States and U.S. territories. National Night Out encourages positive interactions between law enforcement and the communities they serve. It aims to enhance neighborhood spirit and foster partnerships that contribute to safer, more connected communities. The event provides an opportunity for residents and public safety officials to engage in a relaxed, informal setting. Each year, millions of residents participate in National Night Out through events such
as block parties, festivals, parades, and cookouts. Activities often include safety demonstrations, youth programs, visits from emergency personnel, and informational exhibits. Area towns are participating in the event, which takes place this year on Tuesday, August 4. All events and activities are free and open to the general public. Kennebunk: 4 to 7 p.m. at Parsons Field, 19 Water Street. This family-fun event will feature free barbecue, ice cream, popcorn, and lemonade, as well as events and activities such as live music, dancing, treasure hunting, a basketball challenge, and a maze. It will also include booth activities such as face painting and finger painting. Guests will have a chance to meet members of the town’s police, fire, and harbormaster departments and be able to explore equipment and vehicles. Kennebunkport: 4 to 8 p.m. at Kennebunkport Recreations Field. Activities will include a dunk tank, inf latable obstacle
courses, carnival games, educational displays, demonstrations, and multiple raffles. Local restaurants and businesses will provide free food while supplies last. The department will also collect donations for the COS Kennebunk Food Pantry, with requested items including paper towels and condiments such as mayonnaise, mustard, relish, ketchup, salt, and pepper. Kittery: 5:30 to 8 p.m. at the Kittery Community Center, 120 Rogers Road. The free event will feature local area public safety organizations, including the town’s police, fire, harbormaster, and public works departments, along with the Eliot Police Department and Portsmouth Naval
15 Years of Woodies in the Cove WELLS The Fif teenth Annual “Woodies in the Cove” car show, sponsored by the Historical Society of Wells and Ogunquit (HSWO), will be held Saturday, Aug. 8. The beloved annual show brings together Woodies
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from the Model As of the 1920s to the tin Woodies of the 1950s. Interest in these unique vehicles has made this show one of the largest attended and most popular Woodie car shows in New England and on the East Coast. A “Woodie” is a wood-paneled station wagon that became popular in the 1930s, reaching its cultural crest in the 1950s and 1960s. Although true woodbodied Woodies were phased out in the early 1950s, simulated wood paneling remained a popular styling feature on station wagons through the 1970s and 1980s and even reappeared on Chrysler PT Cruiser models in the early 2000s. The Woodie became closely associated with Southern California’s emerging surf culture of the 1950s and 1960s. Think “Gidget,” “Beach Blanket Bingo,” and the music of the Beach Boys and Jan and Dean. “Loading up the Woodie” with surf boards became an enduring image in surf rock music and popular culture.
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Beyond its cultural appeal, the Woodie’s distinctive appearance came from its unique construction and styling. Early models featured wood body framing and panels, often giving them the look of fine furniture on wheels. On many vehicles, the wood detailing extended beyond the exterior to the dashboard, inner door panels, and rear tailgate. As all-steel automobile bodies became standard, manufacturers replaced structural wood with metal and later used simulated wood-grain finishes and decorative framework to preserve the classic Woodie appearance. The public’s ongoing interest in these unique vehicles has made the annual car show one of the largest attended and most popular of its kind in New England, perhaps even on the East Coast. The show is HSWO’s largest fundraiser and remains free to the public. Donations to
Shipyard Police & Fire. The Kittery Police Department will be serving up free hot dogs, water, freeze pops, and fried dough for everyone to enjoy. There will be a bouncy house, a bubble station, STEM activities, caricatures, lawn games, and a free concert featuring Girls Just Wanna Have Fun from 6:30 to 8 p.m. South Berwick: 5 to 7 p.m. at Shoetown Park, 71 Norton Street. Visitors can meet the faces behind the badges and patches, explore police cars, fire trucks, and public works vehicles, watch an exciting K-9 demonstration, enjoy family games, tackle the inflatable obstacle course, grab a free hamburger or hot dog, and dunk some friendly faces in the dunk tank. Kids can also pick up a free books and a take-home craft from the South Berwick Public Library and enter for a chance to win one of two bicycles
in the bicycle raffle, courtesy of the police department. Wells: 4 to 8 p.m. at Wells Junior High School, 1470 Post Road. Visitors can meet local police officers, first responders, and community partners. The final winner of the department’s officer and canine baseball card collection game will also be announced during the event. York: 5 to 8 p.m. at Bog Road Fields, 50 Bog Road. The York Police Department and fire departments, will host the town’s fifth annual event. Attendees can enjoy food and drinks and a variety of family activities. Community members will also have the opportunity to meet local emergency responders and explore the numerous police and fire vehicles on display. For more information, visit www.natw.org or find your town’s police on Facebook.
Blue Fest Community and Craft Fair KITTERY Fi r s t C o n g r e g a t i o n a l Church in Kittery will host its annual Blue Fest (formerly Blueberry Festival and Craft Fair) on Saturday, August 8, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 23 Pepperrell Road in Kittery Point. The summer fundraiser, held on the church grounds, has been a local tradition for more than a century. This year’s fest will include a pancake breakfast from 8 to 11 a.m., followed by a craft fair with over 30 local vendors and nonprofit exhibitors. Homemade blueberry pies, customized lemonade, wood-fired pizza provided by Stone & Fire Pizza, and a bakery tent will offer food,
while the Kids’ Corner and live music from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. offer entertainment for everyone. Additionally, the church’s historian will lead a stroll through its cemetery at 1 p.m., visiting notable graves with rich stories, including the crew of a shipwrecked brig. Air-conditioned shuttle transportation will run to and from an overf low parking lot at nearby Horace Mitchell Elementary at 7 School Lane from 8:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. Admission to the fest is free. For more information and a complete schedule of the day’s events, visit www.kitterypointucc.org/bluefest-2026.
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