Black Bear License Plate Unveiling Set for Friday; Plates to Become Available in November
Contact: Media contact: Joe Carr at (207) 581-3571
ORONO, Me. — University of Maine students, employees and alumni will gather at UMaine’s Buchanan Alumni House on Friday, Oct. 24 at 2 p.m. for a festive event marking the unveiling of the new UMaine Black Bear license plate. The plates will be widely available for sale beginning Monday, Nov. 3, in Motor Vehicle branches and in those municipal offices that issue license plates. The plates can be sold as soon as Nov. 1 at municipal offices that issue license plates and are open on that Saturday.
Jeffery Mills, UMaine’s vice president for advancement and president of the UMaine Alumni Association, will host the event. Secretary of State Dan Gwadosky and Commissioner of Transportation David Cole will also offer remarks.
“We are excited about this new license plate,” Mills says. “It will offer an outstanding opportunity for people all over Maine to prominently display their Black Bear pride.”
UMaine students will benefit from sales of the new plates. Each set will cost $20 for the first year and $15 for renewals. Ten dollars of that cost is tax deductible and will go to the Maine Black Bear Scholarship Fund, which will support need-based scholarships for UMaine students.
The license plates feature the familiar “MAINE” in blue at the top, with the words “The University of Maine” at the bottom. The snarling Black Bear, the recognizable logo for Maine’s only Division I athletics program, is featured on the left side of each plate.
Friday’s event will include refreshments and a visit from Bananas the Bear, the UMaine mascot. A large-scale version of the license plate will be on display, along with an actual sample. Staff from the UMaine bookstore will also be on hand to distribute replica key chains to those in attendance.