In-Person

This is a once-a-month walkabout in a nearby woodland.  It will involve some travel, not to exceed 45 minutes, with carpooling encouraged.  Outings will be planned for 2 or fewer hours, excluding travel time.

Dates: June 16, July 21, August 4, September 15, 2026

Time: 9:30 am - Variable

Location: TBD

Ray is a devoted sportsman and outdoorsman, and has led numerous hiking and paddling tours with Gold LEAF.

In-Person

Paddling local waters will begin with traveling in personal vehicles for up to 45 minutes to a nearby lake, pond, stream, or river. Destinations will be based on participants' interests and skill levels.   

In general, launch sites will offer relatively easy parking and access to the water.  Participants are responsible for travel, safety, and equipment, along with any personal items they wish to bring. 

The trips will leave from the Park and Ride in Farmington at 9:30 am, but independent travel to the launch site is also okay.  Return will be between 12 and 1:00 pm.  A description of each upcoming outing and related details will be sent by email about a week ahead.

Dates: June 24, July 15, August 19, September 23, 2026

Time: 9:30 am - Variable

Location: TBD

Ray has paddled many waters in the local area over the last 20 or so years, fishing and enjoying the Maine outdoors.  Many of those outings have involved Gold LEAF.

In-Person

Join a group of casual walkers for exercise and sharing goodwill.  At each session (roughly three per month), we will meet and walk 1-2 hours on mostly flat and obstacle-free paths, trails, or roads in the greater Farmington area, starting in late June. 

Walks may include the Whistle Stop Trail, the Prescott Field Trail, the Explore Farmington on Foot Trail (I made that up!), and more. Walk guides are Barbara Toner and Lisa Bailey. 

Dates: June 25, 2026

July 9, 20, 27, 2026

August 3, 20, 27, 2026

September 2, 11, 24, 2026

Time: 10:00 am - 12:00 pm

Location: TBD

Barb Toner and Lisa Bailey are longtime “walk and talk” friends who appreciate what Western Maine has to offer for the outdoor adventurer. They are retired teachers who still love to share with others and take time to smell the roses while keeping active.

In-person

Participants will meet once a month for lunch at various restaurants in the Farmington area. Reservations must be firm one week before the date. Participants will order from the standard menu and receive separate checks.

Dates:

July 2, 2026

August 6, 2026

September 3, 2026

October 1, 2026

Time: 11:30 am.

Location: TBD

Patricia Overall has been a member of GLI for many years.  She is a retired high school mathematics teacher who later worked in hotel management, bartending, and other occupations, including NACA (now NASA). She has lived in 18 states and obviously enjoys eating out.

In-person

Protected by Georges River Land Trust since 2017, the Langlais Art Preserve is a 90-acre nature preserve in Cushing, Maine, with a 10-acre art environment at its heart.

The Langlais Art Preserve encompasses the former homestead of Maine-born artist Bernard Langlais and his wife, Helen Friend Langlais. Dotting the landscape are more than a dozen of Langlais’s large-scale wooden sculptures, remnants of the expansive outdoor art environment he created here from 1966 to 1977.

Today, a 1/4-mile ADA-accessible path provides a route through the art environment, and the 2 1/2-mile Woodland Trail traverses the forest beyond. Cushing is approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes from Farmington.

Car pooling will be coordinated shortly before the trip. We will start the tour at 10:30 with staff introductions and information, then we will have time for our group to explore & enjoy the preserve. We will also have the opportunity to take a tour of Langlais's workshop, which has been carefully preserved, watch a 15- minute film created in 1977 at the height of Langlais's career in Cushing, view additional Langlais works, and try our hand at a Langlais-inspired craft.

You are encouraged to bring a lunch to eat on the lawn or at the picnic tables. A porta-potty is available. The preserve is a nonprofit running on limited resources. Each member of the group is asked to donate $10 to help offset staffing costs and support the Preserve’s operations and programs. Website: https://www.langlaisartpreserve.org 

Address: 576 River Rd, Cushing, ME

July 30, 2026.   Rain date: August 13, 2026

Caitlin Kelty-Huber is the Langlais Art Preserve Program Assistant.

In-Person

The day will start with a visit to the Bowdoin Art Museum with a docent. Following that, the group will go to lunch at the cafeteria in the Moulton Student Union.  Then, those who wish can go to the Peary-Macmillan Arctic Museum. Lunch at your own expense.

Date: August 12, 2026

Time: 11:00 am - 3:00 pm 

Location: Bowdoin College, 245 Maine Street, Brunswick, ME  04011

Cassandra Braun is a curator at the Bowdoin Art Museum.

Hybrid

Intelligence for the Rest of Us: Hype, Hope, and the Future of AI will focus on and explain the current state of AI, address claims (true or otherwise) made by large tech companies, and how major media outlets report on the technology. We will also explore the reality of using AI technology every day and how it is actually shaping the general public.

Part One will provide an overview of the radical increase in large language model-based AI models, the marketing strategies applied to promote AI products and services, and the future-focused claims made by tech giants like OpenAI, Anthropic, and other major players in the AI industry. Finally, we will examine how major news media outlets and platforms have skewed public perception of AI capability and define the current state of AI technology.

Part Two will detail ways in which users can be more aware of AI content, access resources and tools for cutting through the noise of AI news reporting, and garner clarity and reassurance on the probable trajectory of AI, its products, and its uses.

Please note: This presentation will include discussion surrounding political content and misinformation. These topics will only be discussed insofar as they apply to the AI industry.

Dates: August 14 and 28, 2026

Time: 10:00 am - 12:00 pm

Location: Education Center, room 112

Tyler Provencher is the Program Coordinator for Greater Franklin Digital Literacy - a free community tech support program across Franklin County. Tyler's background includes a Bachelor's Degree in Anthropology from the University of Maine at Farmington. He has hands-on experience with smartphones, laptops, tablets, and desktop computers, as well as participation in virtual software and hardware events and conferences.

Through his work at Greater Franklin Digital Literacy, Tyler aims to provide practical, actionable, and rational technology education to the broader Franklin County community.

In Person

Two walks, one exploring Vienna Mountain and the other again searching for the Three Birds Orchid at the Mountain Trail in Belgrade.  Weather conditions will determine which walk will be on which day.

Dates: August 18 & 25, 2026

Time: 10:00 am - 12:00 pm

Location: Vienna Mountain & Belgrade

Carpool: TBD

Deb is a regular GLI member and nature presenter. She graduated from the Maine Master Naturalist Program in 2020.