Portland-MAINE PASSPORT SETS SAIL IN PORTLAND Portland, ME – The cruise ships are making Portland a favored destination and one local company is looking to make sure that downtown businesses are in the best position to make their cash registers ring. Beginning in 2008, Maine Passport, a division of Next Day Art, Inc. located in the Old Port, will be greeting passengers as they “land” in Portland by personally handing them a “Passport” good for special offers designed just for them. The small pocket-sized expedition books will include special offers by local merchants, a walking map, interesting facts about the area and function as a valuable resource guide that they can use to contact merchants once they return home. “The major difference in this type of marketing program is that it is “active” as opposed to much of the destination-based efforts”, states Jim Meserve, president of Maine Passport. “Destination marketing plays a big role in getting the passengers here and it is very valuable. The Maine Passport answers the question ‘what now’ by hand-delivering very specific offers good for the day of their visit only. Portland has so many unique shops, restaurants, museums and attractions – we need to make sure that we are putting our best foot forward. This will pay dividends not only now – but when they return home and share this information with friends and family”, explains Meserve. Ad space in the 2008 Portland edition of Maine Passport is now being sold for 2008 and will have a distribution of over 10,000 books targeting the 30 plus cruise ships that are scheduled to dock in Portland. You can reserve your ad by contacting jim@mainepassport.com or by phone at 207-761-4278. You can find out more about the program by visiting their website at www.MainePassport.com. Deadline for inclusion in the 2008 edition is January 30th. Maine Passport is a division of Next Day Art, Inc., located at 424 Fore Street, 2nd Floor, Portland, ME and is a member of the Portland Chamber of Commerce.

Portland-Pemaquid is Maine`s first Web design studio to create applications for Facebook members using the open Facebok Platform architecture.

More:

http://pemaquid.com/blog/

http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/story.php?id=149826&ac=iHerald

Bucksport-The Over The Bridge Concert Series will host Jess Klein with special guest Chris Merenda, live at the Alamo Theater in Bucksport at 7:00 on Dec. 13th.

Tickets are $10 for students, $12 in advance, or $15 at the door. Advance tickets are available at BookStacks on Main St. in Bucksport (469-8992).

“Jess Klein grabs an emotional subject, wrestles it to the ground, makes it cry or moan with passion, then rises demurely, dusts herself off, and gives the audience a big, sweet grin.” -Marilyn Rae Beyer, WUMB

For more information and a complete schedule visit: www.myspace.com/overthebridgeproductions

Portland-Designs by Calvin announces a complimentary redesign for a nonprofit in need of website design services.

Rules and Restrictions: Must be a 501(c)(3) Charity, Must be located in Maine, Cannot be affiliated with a national charity or brand, Total Annual Revenue must be less than One Million Dollars, Administrative costs must be less than 10% of total revenue

No new content will be added to the site. Designs by Calvin will only redesign existing content.

This free service will be in exchange for the right to use created site as a portfolio piece.

Contact info@designsbycalvin.com with any inquiries or company suggestions.

Auburn- The Dave Rowe Trio, Denny Breau, and Phil House will once again present their annual holiday concert at the First Universalist Church at 169 Pleasant Street, Auburn on Saturday, December 22 at 7PM. This holiday concert is a Lewiston/Auburn holiday tradition. The show will start with the performers taking their turns on stage and coming together for some selected tunes. The Dave Rowe Trio includes singer/guitarist Dave Rowe, who is the music director at the church; bassist Kevin O’Reilly; and fiddler Edward Howe, formerly of popular Lewiston-based band, Wake the Neighbors. The trio is one of the area’s most popular folk groups, performing their own Maine brand of original and traditional music to audiences across the country. Guitar master and songwriter, Denny Breau, is a Lewiston-Auburn hometown boy who has made a name for himself as much for his jaw-dropping guitar work as for is ease and gentle on-stage humor. He and Rowe were bandmates in Turkey Hollow with Dave’s dad, Tom Rowe of Schooner Fare fame. Phil House, pianist extraordinaire and organist at the church, will present his holiday offerings on the Chickering grand piano and the church’s historic Hook & Hastings pipe organ. The concert will culminate with Rowe and House performing their annual rendition of O Holy Night in English and French, which always leaves the audience breathless. This L/A holiday tradition was the brain-child of Dave’s dad who started it all by organizing the first concert with he, Dave, and Phil back in the early 1990s while Dave and dad were performing as Rowe by Rowe. It has been an annual tradition ever since and most regular attendees comment that this concert signals the beginning of the holidays for them. CD recordings of the 2005 concert will be available for sale at the concert as will the new “Christmas in Maine” CD, released to benefit Maine Credit Union Campaign for Ending Hunger in Maine and to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the “Maine Christmas Song” by Con Fullam. Tickets for the concert are $15/$13 for students and seniors and may be purchased at the door, all seating is first-come, first-served. Doors will open at 6:30 PM. More information is available by calling toll-free 866-655-7171 or logging on to www.daverowemusic.com. ###