05/16/2008
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Staff photo by Joe Phelanfrom the Kennebec Journal
QUESTIONS REMAIN
No complaints from those who switched to Somerset County center
Vote on 1 may hurt some in election
Steeple at center of debate in Whitefield
VETERANS REQUIRE ASSISTANCE: Homelessness takes center stage
J.P. DEVINE: Overcome sadness with hope
BASKETBALL: NBA Hall of Famer Barry doles out advice at Thomas College
HIGH SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY: Maranacook sophomore Mace dominates Class B field
All of today's:
News | Sports
from the Kennebec Journal
from the Morning Sentinel
A year later, families await answers on fatalities
Owner of topless coffee shop on the comeback trail
Officials report cheaper, better service after switch
Two people in critical condition
Young Marines stick to program
Issue of homeless veterans at center stage
GIRLS SOCCER STATE CHAMPIONSHIP: Winslow falls to York in Class B
Bard hits her marathon stride
All of today's:
News | Sports
from the Morning Sentinel
She and other members of Maine Youth Voices at Winthrop High School are amassing the shoes to illustrate how many people a day die in the United States from tobacco-related illnesses.
They aren't picky about styles.
"We'll take anything: high heels, clogs, adult shoes, children's shoes," Bolster said.
Bolster said Maine Youth Voices has a dual mission.
"We are a group of students looking at preventing underage drinking and trying to stop it in our community. Last year the focus was alcohol-related," she said.
"This year we expanded into tobacco because we have a number of young people who smoke in our community," she said.
In March, the high school students talked to middle-schoolers "about why we don't drink and why we don't smoke," she said.
Bolster said the Project 1200 idea came from a workshop she and Tyler Arsenault attended during a Tobacco Summit at the Augusta Civic Center. "Our presenter from Mountain Valley High School had done it in his school and gotten a lot of success in it," Bolster said. So the Winthrop students decided to adopt it for themselves.
"So far we have almost 300 pair of shoes," Bolster, a Winthrop High School senior, said. Shoes can be dropped off in the office at the high school, she said. "We have a storage area we're keeping them all in," she said.
After the May 23 collection deadline, the shoes will be donated to various nonprofit agencies, Bolster said.
Advising the eight or so students in the project are Megan Karges, community coordinator for Winthrop Public Schools, and biology teacher Danielle Doucette.
Betty Adams -- 621-5631
badams@centralmaine.com
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