Bethel

Last weekend’s blizzard left an abundance of powdery snow, creating perfect snowshoeing and skiing conditions in the Bethel area. We had less snow than areas like Gorham, Maine, which got 35.5 inches and the Portland Jetport, which recorded 31.9 inches of snow. I recorded 17 inches of snow at my house. My less-than-perfect method of calculating snowfall includes a yardstick and averaging numerous measurements taken in the driveway, dog pen, and paths leading to the house. Wind gusts moved the snow around quickly, creating treacherous driving conditions on the roads, but also sculpting beautiful snow drifts that reminded me of the sand dunes in Kitty Hawk, N.C.

Cheryl Bileau of Bethel e-mailed me on Monday, Feb. 4, with a thank you to everyone who helped her daughter, Kayla Kofton-Bileau, when she had a skiing accident at Sunday River. Cheryl wrote:

“My daughter, Kayla Kofton-Bileau, 14 years old, was in a serious skiing accident yesterday. I wanted to say that all the people who helped pull her out of a 30-foot ravine did a wonderful job. My daughter was unconscious for at least 20 minutes at the bottom of a ravine in a stream. After plummeting down the 30 foot, she crash landed on a fallen tree, head first onto her head. Thank God she had a helmet on. Her core body temp went down to 93 degrees so she was in danger of dying from hypothermia. Once my daughter came to she screamed for help and quickly one of the staff members jumped into action to save her once they heard her cries for help. The staff from Sunday River who rescued her and brought her to the Life Flight helicopter worked like a well oiled machine. I couldn’t have asked for more from them and my husband and I are very grateful for everything that Sunday River did to help my daughter. She was flown to Maine Medical Center in Portland. Without the staff at Sunday River, the team on the helicopter and the doctors at the hospital, it could have been a very different outcome. My daughter has no broken bones but she does have a severe concussion. She is home now and resting comfortably.

“Many thanks go out to everyone at Sunday River as well as Telstar Middle/High School and the Bethel community. I am very proud that my husband, Marc, works for such a wonderful company as Sunday River. If you could please publish my thank you, I would be most grateful.”

If you read the Sunday Sun Journal, you probably know that the town of Camden is in the running to be named America’s Coolest Small Town. The honor will be bestowed by Budget Travel Magazine after its readers vote. Camden is one of fifteen finalists in the contest. Nearly 1,000 towns were nominated. You can vote to help Camden win the title of coolest small town in America. However, the deadline is tomorrow, Feb. 15. All you need to do is go to the website and vote for Camden. The site is http://www.budgettravel.com/contest/americas-coolest-small-towns-2013,14....

If you have news you’d like to share, call me at 824-2483 or e-mail nancybrown1150@yahoo.com.