Our Maine Street's Aroostook Issue 16 : Spring 2013 | Page 65
doing?”
“Growth” is not a bad word. I think some people associate
growth with that urban renewal thing that happened to
downtown Caribou and I get that. But growth simply
means becoming what we can and are supposed to
be. It means taking advantage of our natural beauty to
attract visitors. It means turning some of those visitors
into people that can spark others to move and start a life
(and business) here. It was that word of mouth thing that
organically grew the area back in the pioneer days.
Despite the occasional pessimism I hear, my message is
optimism. As I visit our members and organizations, I
find incredible things going on here in the Caribou area.
We have the largest accounting firm north of Bangor. We
have the tenth largest credit union in the state. We have a
manufacturer that ships worldwide every single day and
is one of only 25 companies in the world that do what
they do. We have an organization that has been helping
people since 1883. We have a gift shop that was the first to
sell Troll Beads in the state of Maine. We have businesses
that have adapted with the times to survive and thrive 30,
50, 100 and 150 years after they began.
Cool things are happening here. It is my job to tell their
stories. I am doing so on our Facebook page and in
weekly newspaper columns. I want to have others see
the strengths of our area like I do. These strengths are
marketable and simply need to be discovered by tourism
and by businesses that could find a great home here.
There are obstacles and it won’t happen overnight and
there will be some tough decisions to make. But they will
be worth it if we put on our 3-D glasses and look at things
in a new way. I see vision in new leaders like Gary Aiken
and Austin Bleess. I see vision in what Richard Cilley
is doing with the Caribou Historical Center. I see the
Caribou Library evolving with the times with a parking
lot full most of the time.
What do you think of this new slogan: “Caribou, the
coolest city in America.” Kate McCartney coined it. I
love it. Let’s do it. And for those of you who think my
enthusiasm will dampen in light of our realities, you
don’t know me very well.
Your “LOCAL” choice for payroll processing
Curt Paterson
President
[email protected]
P.O. Box 189
Presque Isle, Me 04769-0189
Tel: (207) 764-6945
Fax: (207) 433-1099
www.patersonpayroll.com
WINTER 2013
SPRING 2013
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