Heart of Maine Resource Conservation and Development Area Success Stories

FastTrac for Veterans

The Heart of Maine RC&D sponsored a special FastTrac class specifically for veterans started on September 27 and is being held every other Saturday at the Armed Forces Reserve Center until December 13, 2003.  Thirteen veterans, six of whom are from Penobscot County, are enrolled in the 45-hour course, which is designed to help them put together a business and marketing plan for their existing business or do a feasibility study to tests their business idea.

Through a partnership with the Veterans Corporation, located in Washington, DC., each veteran graduate will receive a new Gateway computer upon completion of the course.

The coalition is made up of several veterans’ organizations, as well as service providers like the Small Business Development Center, SCORE, and the U.S. Small Business Administration.  Congressman Michael Michaud’s office representatives were actively involved in promoting the course to area veterans.

Nonrenewable Resources Put to Work

"To inspire and cultivate the leadership needed to create jobs and enrich lives through the conservation and development of local natural resources", is the mission of the Heart of Maine Resource Conservation and Development.  FastTrac, a tested, comprehensive business development program that equips entrepreneurs with skills to develop and management successful business ventures, is one program the Heart of Maine Resource Conservation and Development is using to speak to this mission.  The following is an example of the successes of this program.

The members of Woodnet, a group of community woodworkers headquartered in East Wilton, Maine, strive to pump up community pride in locally produced products, while using nonrenewable resources in the most efficient way possible.  For example, Woodnet members recover the scraps of cherry wood from a local flooring company and create rustic furniture with it; or, members creating objects only from architectural salvage that's at lease 150 years old.  Woodnet promotes the use of by-products and the fact that beauty can be created from wood that's typically looked over.

Woodnet started in 1999.  They realized that local merchants weren't interested in selling locally-made goods.  Besides their interest in making better use of others' by-products, their goal was to drum up interest in Maine-made items to keep more money in the community.  In 2001 a Woodnet member attended the FastTrac Program.  Because of the networking and business atmosphere, communications and interest developed and things started to come together.  Woodnet now has 67 members who display and sell goods at the SugarWood Gallery Inc. in Farmington.

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