New Year Star
to rise again over Star City
By Scott Mitchell Johnson
Staff Writer
Photo courtesy of Northern Maine Community College
THE STAR CITY’S New Year Star, constructed by NMCC welding and metal fabrication students and instructor Dennis Albert, will once again rise to usher in the New Year in downtown Presque Isle.
PRESQUE ISLE – As the famous Times Square Ball drops again in New York City on New Year’s Eve, so will the Star City’s Star rise to usher in 2011 in northern Maine. The heart of downtown Presque Isle will come alive Dec. 31 with a full evening of family-friendly celebration that will culminate with the raising of an illuminated six-foot tall metal star in the moments leading up to midnight.
The third annual Star City First Night celebration is hosted by the Presque Isle Downtown Revitalization Committee and supported by more than two-dozen supporting businesses and organizations, including lead sponsors MMG Insurance, Key Bank and Northern Maine Community College. Planned are numerous activities and entertainment for the entire family, beginning at 8 p.m. and running through the star rising event at venues in the downtown corridor that includes the immediate area encompassing State and Main streets. Festivities will build up to the midnight star raising on the State Street side of the four-story Key Bank building with entertainment continuing into the first hour of the New Year.
“We have planned a great evening of entertainment,” said James Francomano, Presque Isle city planner and a member of the promotions committee of the PIDRC, which is coordinating the First Night activity. “This is a wonderful opportunity for area residents and holiday visitors to ring in the New Year as a family. All of our events have been planned with family in mind, from activities at the Wintergreen Arts Center to entertainment at the Northeastland Hotel.”
A special evening-long celebration for children will be hosted by the Wintergreen Arts Center at their 149 State St. studio beginning at 8 p.m. The festivities include New Year’s hat decorating, confetti balloon making and popping, face painting, a piñata pull, and early New Year’s countdown complete with a sparkling cider toast and confetti cake all before 9 p.m. The children’s activities will conclude with a dance party featuring a bubble wrap stomp and flash light limbo at the arts center between 9-10 p.m. All of the Wintergreen First Night events are being offered free of charge to participants. No reservations are required.
“We are very much looking forward to ringing in the New Year at the Wintergreen Arts Center. Not only will this be a fun evening for all of the children attending, but the celebration marks the one-year anniversary of the opening of our new space in downtown Presque Isle,” said Lara Cannon, Wintergreen executive director. “It was during the Star City First Night Celebration a year ago that we first opened the doors to the new Wintergreen Arts Center and, by any measure, it has been a great year, so this party is also a celebration of our success!”
Celebrating The County through music will be the theme of the Star City First Night line-up at the Northeastland Hotel. Beginning at 8 p.m., a stellar list of Aroostook musicians will perform in the Red Room at the downtown Presque Isle landmark. Among those scheduled to appear are Common Crossing, Sheldon Wright, Jan and Evelyn Kok, Johnny Mack, Travis Cyr, The Nothies, and the Windy Grass Singers.
Musical entertainment for the entire family will also be featured at the Wintergreen Arts Center following the planned children’s activities. Performances by Jan and Evelyn Kok and The Nothies are set for Wintergreen beginning at approximately 10:45 p.m.
According to First Night entertainment coordinator Patrick Patterson, the performers selected to appear at this year’s celebration are reflective of the rich culture and heritage of The County and showcase some of the finest talent in the region.
“Our goal was to usher in the New Year highlighting the soundtrack that is uniquely Aroostook,” said Patterson. “The County is blessed with so many talented artists and performers, and we wanted the First Night event to be a celebration of this talent.”
For the second consecutive year, Patterson will be the “voice” of the official New Year countdown and star raising. This year, he will be joined on the platform by the Windy Grass Singers group of the Aroostook Band of Micmacs, who will perform the Micmac Honor Song, beginning at approximately 11:40 p.m. through the midnight countdown. Windy Grass will also have the honor of playing the first song to usher in the New Year. In place of the traditional Auld Lang Syne, the group will welcome 2011 with the Micmac Welcome Song.
Traffic on State Street in Presque Isle between the intersections of Second Street and Main Street will be restricted by the Presque Isle Police Department and the city’s Fire Department at approximately 11:30 p.m. as spectators gather to watch the star make its rise behind the Key Bank Building (east side facing the Maine Public Service building). Volunteers with the Presque Isle Fire Department will use the city’s ladder truck to raise the star into the night sky, until it reaches its peak height at midnight.
The Star City New Year Star was constructed in December 2008 by a dozen NMCC welding and metal fabrication students at NMCC and instructor Dennis Albert. It is not only imposing in how tall it stands, but in its three-dimensional appearance. The finished product, which was fabricated using 26 gauge galvanized steel and held together with steel rivets, has the appearance of two very large barn stars joined back-to-back. At its center, the star measures a foot-and-a-half wide.
The star raising will be especially significant for the NMCC campus community this year as the downtown Presque Isle event marks the community kick-off of the college’s 50th anniversary. NMCC was founded in 1961 on the former Presque Isle Army Air Base, and the college has planned a series of events in 2011 to mark the milestone.
