Maine Wild Blueberry Weekend
Downeast Cider + Cheese Festival
A new statewide agritourism event in 2021 , initiated by the Maine Wild Blueberry Commission . Farms , restaurants , and any other business or community across the state are invited to offer wild blueberry products .
3 days of celebrating cider , a historic industry in Downeast Maine , especially Ellsworth , and it ' s natural companion , Maine cheeses . Tastings , orchard tours , demonstrations , farm market , music , and more .
Opportunities To Conserve Cultural , Historic , And Scenic Features Cultural
• Collaboration with Tribe , Wabanaki Cultural Center , Wabanaki Heritage Center , Passamaquoddy Museum and Abbe Museum to build capacity at the cultural centers & museum in Sipyak and Motahkomikuk to offer community programming and bring native artisan festivals to Passamaquoddy community .
• Collaboration among the region ’ s 36 historical societies to develop story-telling tools - walking tours , interpretive panels , audio stories , apps for storytelling , story maps , historical society programs for school and community .
• Include local history in schools , teach the truth of European settlement and treatment of native tribes .
• Offer Passamaquoddy history and language classes by and for both youth and adults . Incorporate Passamaquoddy language into regional interpretive & educational materials .
• Offer Latino history and Spanish language classes by and for both youth and adults . Incorporate Spanish language into regional interpretive & educational materials .
• Develop student and adult programs for learning the history of the place , build strong sense of “ This is where I ’ m from ”, or “ this is the place I call home ”.
• Create a series of historic downtown walking tours that depict a shared heritage of industry , history , culture , and more .
• Offer incentives and assistance for preservation of historic buildings that are eligible for the Historic register – private homeowners and businesses have fewer resources available for historic preservation than do non-profit organizations .
• Build “ sister city ” relationships with the communities where buildings , streets or other infrastructure were built with granite from Downeast Maine ; develop interpretive information about the origin and history of the granite .
• Explore Cultural Planning funds with the Maine Arts Commission .
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