NEWS TEAM

The Biddeford Gazette is very fortunate to have a talented team of local, passionate and dedicated volunteers who are all committed to our mission by helping us gather and deliver news and feature stories that matter to our readers.

Our team is also supported by a diverse COMMUNITY ADVISORY COUNCIL that represents a cross-section of community interests, including Biddeford’s arts, business and non-profit sectors.

We are also honored to feature the work of some talented, local professionals who work with us as MEDIA PARTNERS in support our mission.

Want to Join Our Team?

We’re always on the lookout for contributing writers, guest columnists, photographers and designers. To learn more about these opportunities, just CONTACT US

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GAIL TOUSSAINT | Copy Editor | Gail Toussaint of Biddeford is a Medicare consultant with 38 years of experience, known for her professionalism, upbeat personality, and attention to detail. She volunteers with a local dog rescue group and enjoys spending time with her husband, traveling, and being a proud mother and grandmother.

She volunteered for the Biddeford Gazette because she felt there was an opportunity to contribute in a meaningful way, while supporting the exchange of local news.

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CY CYR | Contributing Writer Photographer | Cy Cyr www.cycyr.com) grew up in Biddeford and returned after 25 years away. He started BrickTides.com as a way to reconnect with the community that shaped him, using photography and longform storytelling to document the people shaping southern Maine today.

BRICK+TIDES is a weekly digital magazine based in York County, Maine. We share positive and inspiring stories about local businesses, people, and places that make Southern Maine special.

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JIM KRAUSE | Contributing Writer | Jim has always told friends, “I may have been born in Pennsylvania, but I belong in Maine.” Jim’s maternal family is from Saco, and he would spend about every Christmas season and most summers in Maine.

In 2023, he made it official and became a full-time Maine resident after retiring from a career in Fire/EMS services and owning a small food business. Jim has been known to spend hours upon hours working in his garage. If he’s not there, you might find him enjoying anything to do with railroads and model railroading. Jim said he joined the Biddeford Gazette’s team (“an intriguing opportunity”) to better connect with his community.

“Working with the Gazette has been more than I expected, and I am really enjoying this endeavor,” he said.

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TOM MCPHEETERS | Contributing Writer | Tom is a life-long lover of Maine and a year-round resident of nearly three years.

After a journalism career or 25 years at three newspapers in Ohio and New York State, Tom spent the last 30 years as a community organizer and advocate in Albany, NY. He lives in Biddeford Pool.

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KAREN GARNETT | Biddeford School Department Contributor | A proud Biddeford alumna, Karen brings more than 30 years of experience in marketing, public relations, graphic design, and development across the health care and education sectors. She currently serves as Communications Director for the Biddeford, Saco, and Dayton School Departments.

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REP. MARC MALON | Legislative Columnist | Marc is a Biddeford native and is now serving his second term in the Maine Legislature, representing District 133 in Biddeford. He sits on the new Housing and Economic Development Committee and the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee.

Marc offers Gazette readers a regular monthly column featuring a behind-the-scenes look at what is happening in the Legislature and how it impacts Biddeford

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SEN. HENRY INGWERSEN | Legislative Columnist | Henry Ingwersen is serving his second term representing District 32 in the Maine Senate, which includes Biddeford and the surrounding communities of Arundel, Dayton, Hollis and Lyman.

In addition to his legislative service, Ingwersen also serves as president of the Arundel Conservation Trust and is a member of the Kennebunk River Remediation Advisory Committee for the Town of Arundel. He also serves on the board of Defend Our Health, a group working to ensure all people have access to safe food and drinking water. In the state senate, Ingwersen chairs the Health & Human Services Committee and also serves on the Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee.

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RANDY SEAVER | Editor & Founder | Randy is a fifth-generation native of the Biddeford-Saco area. After returning to Maine in 1997, Randy found himself back in his hometown, covering the cities of Biddeford and Saco for a weekly newspaper. He later became the managing editor for five weekly publications in southern Maine.

Randy brings to the table more than three decades of professional experience in journalism, advocacy and public relations, and his work has been featured in publications throughout New England. “For me, the Gazette is a labor of love,” he said, “And I couldn’t be happier.”

A former news carrier, Randy first worked in a newsroom during an unpaid, high school internship at the Journal Tribune in 1981.

As a consumer of mental health services, Randy is also an outspoken advocate for those impacted by mental illness. He has served as a guest speaker at numerous forums and testified on mental health issues before the Maine Legislature. He routinely blogs about media issues at Lessons In Mediocrity | Outlaw Journalist.

You may contact Randy by email at biddefordgazette@gmail.com

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LAURA SEAVER | Publisher | Although not a Biddeford native, Laura feels strongly connected to her new hometown where she has lived for more than 20 years.

Laura was twice elected and served two consecutive terms on the Biddeford City Council as an at-large representative. In 2011, after being elected to two consecutive terms on the Biddeford School Committee, Laura was appointed by Mayor Alan Casavant to serve on the city’s Policy Committee, a role she greatly enjoyed for the next four years.

Laura stepped down from public office at the end of her city council term in 2019.

Laura earned a bachelor’s degree in criminology from the University of Southern Maine. She is a licensed social worker, and she now works part-time as a crisis worker for a non-profit mental health agency in Cumberland County.

In her spare time, Laura enjoys camping, fly fishing and kayaking throughout central and northern Maine.

You may contact Laura at biddefordgazette@gmail.com

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