Let’s be honest, this week isn’t like every other week.
This Election Day feels different, and I think it truly is different as I can’t recall in my four decades of being aware of politics that there has ever been two so widely divergent views on where our country is and where it should be heading. A political primary system that was designed so that we select the bluest blue to campaign against the reddest red has finally given us precisely that. I don’t recall a time when the two major parties were so far apart.
With that being said, the chamber does not endorse candidates, and my personal views are strictly only that. However, regardless of how you feel, when Wednesday rolls around (or whenever the winners are declared for each race), we must get to work on the issues affecting all of us. Affordable housing, access to health care and child care, increasing career pathways for students, and making sure we have clean water to drink do not belong to any particular party. These are issues affecting all of us, and they will take all of us working together on them to solve them — especially those who we elect to take on these tasks as our representatives, senators, commissioners and president.
With that, I think the best way we can overcome the division that this election season has wrought is to get back to the very essence of community, which is to commune. We need to gather together and enjoy activities with one another, regardless of our political views. Much like the issues I listed above, our community events and activities typically don’t have a political party, either — they are for everyone. So, in the spirit of that, I wanted to highlight a few upcoming events and activities that I encourage you to join us at in the coming days and weeks so that we can commune together. I think when we spend time together we see in the plainest way that we have more in common than what separates us.
Meet the candidates on YouTube
Before we get to the events though, if you are reading this before you head to the polls and especially if you don’t know who the candidates are for your district of the State House, I strongly encourage you to go to the Bath-Brunswick Regional Chamber Facebook page or our YouTube channel of the same name. We interviewed 16 of the 20 candidates for the eight House districts and two Senate districts that our chamber of commerce covers (four candidates never got back to us).
These are not “gotcha” interviews, and that’s intentional. We wanted each candidate to take around 15 minutes to introduce themselves in an easy, stress-free, conversational way and for you to hear, in their words, why they are running for office. If you haven’t voted yet — or if you don’t see this until after the winners are announced and you want to see what that candidate stands for — you can find the videos there.
Grow Your Business with the BBB, Nov. 6 at Union + Co.
Union + Co., the incredible, modern co-working space in downtown Bath, is the host site for a night of networking and presentation by the Better Business Bureau from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 6. BBRC Assistant Director Anthony Jamison has been working hard organizing this and teaming up with Hannah Liedecke of the Better Business Bureau to present this night.
Meet local business leaders, see the beautiful Union + Co. space and meet Hannah to find out more about the Better Business Bureau. Even if you can’t be there the entire time, they would love to see you. You can register through the event calendar on the BBRC website at midcoastmaine.com.
Ribbon-cutting at Cousin’s Beverage and Redemption, Nov. 7
This is a rescheduled ribbon-cutting from October that you can join us at to celebrate new businesses in the Midcoast. These two businesses are under the same owners and are right on Bath Road in Brunswick next door to Fat Boy’s. We will be cutting the ribbon a little after 4 p.m. Thursday, Nov., 7 and no pre-registration is required.
BDA’s Early Bird Sale and Rolling Slumber Bed Races, Nov. 9
The Brunswick Downtown Association has its annual downtown sales event this coming Saturday with many businesses giving discounts (and in some cases, deeper discounts the earlier you arrive). The details of the sales can be found at brunswickdowntown.org, along with the details for the Rolling Slumber Bed Races, which begin at 11 a.m. on Park Row. Cory the Elf will be there again representing the Midcoast Tree Festival race team, which is getting a major lift thanks to some runners from Wilcox Wellness & Fitness, a huge chamber supporter. Come enjoy the ridiculous spectacle!
Chamber After Hours at Maine Pines Racquet & Fitness, Nov. 13
I’m really excited for our next After Hours at Maine Pines Racquet & Fitness in Brunswick from 5-7 p.m. on Nov. 13. If you are a chamber member or a perspective member, we’d love to see you there for these networking events that regularly pull 50-75 business leaders to network and share their business updates. You can register to attend on the BBRC event calendar page.
Midcoast Tree Festival, Nov. 22-24 and Nov. 29 through Dec. 1
This week is sneakily a big week for the festival as we need to get all of the paperwork to the State of Maine this week to get our license in time for the event, which begins in just a few Fridays! We will have more details next week on all of the additions to this year’s festival, but I can tell you we have a record number of tree spaces this year, more entertainment and we will have a gingerbread house decorating contest opening night sponsored by Anderson Green Homes! More news next week.
Cory King is executive director of the Bath-Brunswick Regional Chamber of Commerce.