Columnists & Correspondents

Bill Batty, Jr., is the Director of Public Relations and Marketing for Midcoast Internet Solutions. He graduated from Rockland High in 1990, and took an English degree from the University of Maine, Fort Kent, in 1994. A native of Spruce Head, he now resides in Rockland with wife Susan and daughter Julia. In his spare time he enjoys playing and restoring old drums, hi-fi audio and home theater, and reading.  He is the drummer for the midcoast band, Blind Albert. Visit his eclectic Web site, www.billyrhythm.com.

J. Jules Vitali is a sculptor, columnist and part-time philosophical cerebralist wannabe from Freeport, Maine, who has spent most of his professional life as a graphic designer.  Now retired in his youth, his goal and endeavor is to promote his artform, called "Styrogami"... evolved from a nineteen year disdain of the styrofoam cup and a razor sharp pocket knife.  His humorous views of life's situational morality are as sharp as any polystyrene vessel he has ever carved. Visit his Web site, www.styrogami.com.

Kristina King consults on marketing and visuals from her home office in Rockland. She’s a market grower of authentically raised heirloom fruits, vegetables and flowers and sells at the Maine Mall Farmers’ Market in South Portland (between the Weathervane Restaurant and Hannaford) on Friday afternoons from 2 to 6 p.m. through the summer.

She also offers unusual and authentically raised plants and produce for sale at her home garden at 150 Limerock Street, Rockland. Her small, and as-of-yet rather uninformative, Web site can be found at www.geocities.com/onemorninginmaine. Her email is <onemorninginmaine@yahoo.com>. Stop by if you are in the neighborhood. Kristina is also the local contact person for Slow Food International, whose Web site is www.slowfoodusa.org.

Noreen O’Brien, a world traveller, spent three years in Texas working with Galveston Ornithological Society, where she created a community nature-related newspaper for the GOS. She settled in Midcoast Maine in 2000 and launched a subscription-based bi-monthly newsletter called Maine-ly Women Wordsmiths, a vehicle to share her passion for reading and to promote the extraordinary works the women writers of Maine have produced. She freelances as a copy editor, writer of articles on bird watching and book reviews and works with local authors helping them to prepare their manuscripts for publication, all under the umbrella of her company, Om Point Communications.

Sherree Craig has worked with the Allen Agency and now Allen/Van Alstine Financial Group since 1998. Currently the Insured Benefits Account Manager for the agency, she is very active with several industry organizations researching various resolutions to our current insurance/medical pricing crisis. She was an account executive with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Maine (now Anthem) for 13 years, where she specialized in small business employee benefits.

A 1984 graduate of the University of Maine at Orono, she holds degrees in Journalism and Broadcasting, and is currently pursuing the Certified Employee Benefits Specialist designation through the Wharton School of Business and the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans.

Rockland native Paul "Gil" Merriam is a member of the Board of Directors of the Lincoln Street Center for the Arts in Rockland, is one of the founding partners of GEM Productions, a film production company. He holds an M.A. and Ph.D. in history from the University of Oregon and specialized in researching and teaching American Urban History. He has been a teacher, author, freelance researcher and writer, including work for a documentary television production company. From 1994 to 1998 he was the Executive Director of the Rockland-Thomaston Area Chamber of Commerce, and currently produces and hosts a television program about local history on cable Channel 58 in Rockland.

Constance F. Magistrelli is Senior Business Counselor and Center Director of the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at Coastal Enterprises, Inc. in Wiscasset, serving small businesses in the midcoast region from Brunswick to Camden and surrounding towns.

The SBDC provides no charge one-to-one business management assistance, on an appointment basis, to any small business. At least once a week, she or a colleague meets with business clients in Rockland. Call 882-4340 for more information.

Michelle Painchaud is co-owner of ChelTed Gallery & Design and FeatherBed Bed and Breakfast in Rockport. She holds a M.S. in Computer Science from Rochester Institute of Technology. She has worked for companies such as ITT, AT&T and Bellcore throughout her career as a software developer and designer. In 1996, Michelle and Ted Skowronski founded ChelTed Gallery & Design and FeatherBed. Both businesses allow Michelle to pursue her artistic interests. As part of ChelTed’s custom framing services, Michelle can experiment with colors and textures as well as specially cut and handpainted mats to create a uniquely framed piece. In her spare time, Michelle can be found sponge painting walls or stenciling ceilings throughout the gallery and B&B.

Betsy P. Chapman is a financial consultant and Board Chair of the Maine Public Policy Institute. The Maine Public Policy Institute is an independent, non-profit, non-partisan education and research institute devoted to promoting market solutions to the challenges affecting the people of Maine.  It focuses on three areas: economic opportunity, education excellence, and health improvement. www.maineinstitute.org.