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Old 06-11-2011, 09:28 PM
 
Location: Memphis, TN
24 posts, read 68,544 times
Reputation: 15

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Oh where to start.... My family (hubby, me, 4 year-old and infant) are looking to move to Bangor next April. My husband spent his entire childhood and early teen years in Northern ME (he frequently shares stories of riding his bike in to Canada ). I, however, have never lived above the Mason-Dixon line. Ever. I have lived in TN, MS, GA and AL. So, needless to say this will be quite a culture shock. I had a few questions about the area. How exactly does the school system work? We are looking to really live outside of Bangor and work inside. Could we choose to put our son inside of the Bangor system or if we live in Eddington must he go there? Are there a lot of child friendly things (outside of festivals) to do?

Also, we loved living in Athens,GA which was a small town with less people than Bangor, but living closer together. It is a college town with lots of charm and local things to do. I wondered how much Bangor is like that or if Orono (sp?) may be better suited?

I have come to terms that I will not be able to pronounce anything well, but I have very little experience in snow, winter sports (you have to drive 45 minutes to find a darn ice skating rink here), and the like - how easy is it to adapt to those things? From reading many, many posts on here about employment I know it can be a concern. My husband will have something lined up, but I was wondering what the social service industry is like in Bangor and the surrounding areas? I have a MSW, but got pregnant shortly after receiving my degree last year. I am hoping to maybe get back into it when we move.
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Old 06-13-2011, 06:56 PM
 
Location: Northern Maine
10,428 posts, read 18,694,037 times
Reputation: 11563
Maine has a huge social welfare bureaucracy way out of proportion to our population. The size of that bureaucracy is likely to decrease over the next three years. That said, somebody with a MSW might just have the skills needed for a vacant slot. There will always be a need for social services, It is just too big right now for our population.
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Old 06-14-2011, 03:52 PM
 
Location: Newport, ME
276 posts, read 849,048 times
Reputation: 125
Social Service Industry needs a lot of people who have higher degrees. If you go to JobsInME.com - Local Maine jobs, careers and employment (Home) you can get an idea of what jobs we have in the area. Like Northern Maine Land Man said Maine's Social and Human Service Industry is a mess (and I just went back to school last year studying human services). If you go to Maine DHHS - DHHS Jobs you can see DHHS jobs and community listings to give you an idea of some of the companies.
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Old 06-15-2011, 09:29 AM
 
Location: Memphis, TN
24 posts, read 68,544 times
Reputation: 15
Thank you
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Old 06-17-2011, 06:27 AM
 
Location: Philadelphia, PA
177 posts, read 530,717 times
Reputation: 47
I was looking a little while back to move to Maine (still would love to, just not in the cards at the moment), and I noticed way more social service jobs than anything else. I actually inquired about a job with one company - Wings for Children and Families. They had positions open in Bangor and Caribou.
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Old 06-17-2011, 10:44 AM
 
Location: Brooklyn, NY
36 posts, read 150,877 times
Reputation: 25
Quote:
Originally Posted by GiJohnsGirl View Post
I have come to terms that I will not be able to pronounce anything well, but I have very little experience in snow, winter sports (you have to drive 45 minutes to find a darn ice skating rink here), and the like - how easy is it to adapt to those things?
Winter is tough. The hardest thing is to excercise outside after work. I like to ride my bike after work during the week. In the winter, it takes a lot of energy to get all dressed to go out in the cold. It takes me about 30 minutes to get ready and I might just have 30 minutes to ride. When it starts snowing I have to go to the gym which I hate.

In the weekend if I have the whole day than it is not that bad. I might go snowshoeing or something, but things to do after work during the week is the most difficult. It can get very depressing. Going to the laundrymat or grocery shopping can be very tough in the winter.

I get depressed every winter.
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Old 06-17-2011, 11:18 AM
 
1,594 posts, read 4,098,530 times
Reputation: 1099
Quote:
Originally Posted by GiJohnsGirl View Post
How exactly does the school system work? We are looking to really live outside of Bangor and work inside. Could we choose to put our son inside of the Bangor system or if we live in Eddington must he go there? Are there a lot of child friendly things (outside of festivals) to do?
Bangor has a great children's museum downtown. Not sure what you mean by "child friendly" activities -- there are municipal pools, playgrounds etc. If you use the pubic school system, you will have to enroll your child in the local schools. Maine doesn't have public school choice in that regard. There are a number of private elementary and high schools in the Bangor area, both sectarian and non-sectarian.
Quote:
Also, we loved living in Athens,GA which was a small town with less people than Bangor, but living closer together. It is a college town with lots of charm and local things to do. I wondered how much Bangor is like that or if Orono (sp?) may be better suited?
Orono is a small town with a large university grafted onto it. UMaine provides lots of activities and events, and downtown Orono is sort of funky. I like it , but I'm a UMO grad. If you choose to live there, select your home wisely and away from large concentrations of student apartments.
Quote:
I have come to terms that I will not be able to pronounce anything well,
Bangor=BAN-ger, Orono=OR-uh-no, Calais= KA-lus, Penobscot=Pe-NOB-scot, Piscataquis=Pis-KAT-a-quis
Quote:
but I have very little experience in snow, winter sports (you have to drive 45 minutes to find a darn ice skating rink here), and the like - how easy is it to adapt to those things?
Most importantly is to dress for the weather. I once interviewed a women who moved to Orono from Texas, and she had to learn from the locals how to dress her children for cold weather. The Swedish have a saying: "There is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing." Count on buying an entire new wardrobe for the whole family for winter. Wearing the proper outdoor clothes makes all the difference between having fun and being miserable.
Quote:
From reading many, many posts on here about employment I know it can be a concern. My husband will have something lined up, but I was wondering what the social service industry is like in Bangor and the surrounding areas? I have a MSW, but got pregnant shortly after receiving my degree last year. I am hoping to maybe get back into it when we move.
MSWs are like money in the bank here. Bangor is the regional service center for lots of social service agencies. As I'm sure you know, the burn-out rate among frontline workers is very high.
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Old 06-17-2011, 04:39 PM
 
Location: Maine
119 posts, read 263,642 times
Reputation: 109
Quote:
Originally Posted by Coaster View Post

Bangor=BAN-ger,

It's more like BANG-gore, I have never heard a native Mainer pronounce it with a -ger...

BANG-gore
BANG-goar
BANG-goah

ALWAYS with a long O sound. NEVER with an e,
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Old 06-18-2011, 06:19 AM
 
1,594 posts, read 4,098,530 times
Reputation: 1099
Must be the Waldo County pronunciation!
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Old 06-19-2011, 06:14 AM
 
52 posts, read 127,060 times
Reputation: 34
I have worked social services in Maine for the last 20 years and I can tell you it is changing rapidly. I just got done my job at DHHS due to wanting to stay home with our children for a few years. The state is currently on a hiring freeze, has a ton of people already on the registry and approved, and supervisors are struggling because waivers are not being granted to fill open positions. I would not count on getting a job there easily. There are many agencies in the Bangor area, but sadly many are facing extreme budget cuts, just like DHHS, due to our newly hired Governor. Due to jobs being so few, many people rely on their built reputation to get the few openings.
There are programs where you can work one on one with a child, in their home, for a few hours a week. Defiantely not MSW level, but if you need some cash while you look for something else and so that you can network with those already here.
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