Androscoggin

Senator Collins received the AbilityOne Congressional Champion Award yesterday in Auburn at Pathways, Inc. An AbilityOne Champion is an elected policymaker who has demonstrated significant support for the AbilityOne Program and participating community-based not-for-profit agencies in his or her district and/or state through congressional actions. Not only has Senator Collins shown her program support through her ongoing work on a modernization of the Javits-Wagner-O’Day Act but also she has worked hard in Maine to ensure her constituents who are blind or severely disabled enjoy employment opportunities under the AbilityOne Program.

Another great weekend. On Saturday, a large group of volunteers joined me as we marched in the Bowdoinham parade, ate lunch at the famed Italian restaurant Graziano's in Lisbon, campaigned along the main streets of Lisbon, picked delicious MacIntosh apples at Ricker Hill Orchards in Turner, and visited the town of Raymond. At the Turner farm, Jeff Timberlake talked with me about the joys and challenges of a farm that has been in his family since 1803.

This morning the bus tour continued in Lewiston where Senator Collins spoke to over two hundred 8th graders at Lewiston Middle School. She told the students the story of her journey to the United States Senate, answered the students interesting questions and urged them to take their education seriously, to follow their dreams and to never give up.

Simones' Hot Dog Stand is a landmark third-generation, family-owned restaurant in Lewiston, a required stop for anyone wanting to catch up on the local news, politics and sports. This week, it is celebrating its 100th anniversary. I stopped by to congratulate the owners, Jimmy and Linda Simones, their son George, and all the crew who were busy serving up steamed red hot dogs with all the fixings, their home-made chili, and tons of French fries.

Senator Collins toured Geiger Brothers in Lewiston last week.

Geiger Brothers is the largest family-owned and family managed distributor in their industry, and has a unique heritage spanning 4 generations and 3 centuries.

They employ over 350 people in Lewiston, and have 450 independent sales consultants throughout the country.

Senator Collins celebrated the home opener of the Lewiston Maineiacs the other night, an opening she was proud to have helped make happen. She authored a guest column in the Lewiston Sun Journal that explained the issue that she helped the team overcome: