Community Connections in Maine

Justin Chenette of Sweetser is our guest. We discuss the upcoming fundraising comedy show "Smiles for Sweetser" taking place at the Italian Heritage Center in Portland on October 23rd. We also discuss the many ways Sweetser works to address and treat the mental health of many Mainers. We also learn about a capital campaign to build Maine's first youth psychiatric residential treatment facility.

Joe Kellner, CEO of Life Flight of Maine is our guest. Maine's medical air response team was formed in 1998, covering the entire state, and delivering patients in urgent situations to trauma centers in Maine as well as New Hampshire and Boston. We discuss how Life Flight of Maine operates and works with local municipalities, and about a new addition to the Life Flight fleet.

Our guests are Joseph Jackson and Chiara Liberatore, co-executive directors of Maine Inside Out, a Lewiston-based theatre group that works with and gives a voice to those affected by systemic oppression, with a focus on the incarcerated population. We discuss the importance of their work, and how it fosters self-expression and peer support amongst its participants.

We're joined by John Kuehnle and Emma Gabriele from Partners For World Health. This Portland-based organization collects donated medical supplies and arranges to have those supplies delivered to countries that need them. They also benefit Mainers by offering supplies to those that need them at deeply discounted prices. We learn about their missions and impact, and about a number of volunteer opportunities.

We chat with Whitney Wildes and Alex Woodhouse from South Portland-based STRIVE, an organzation that works with individuals with mental and emotional disabilities from tweens to seniors. STRIVE offers a number of programs to help clients live independent lives, and programs to foster social connections with peers.

Our guest is Patrisha McLean, founder of Midcoast-Maine based Finding Our Voices. We discuss Finding our Voices' work in supporting survivors of domestic abuse, and providing prevention education and resources. Finding Our Voices once again is working with scores of Midcoast and Downeast eateries in July with "Into the Light," where the sale of highlighted menu items benefits the work of the organization.

We explore the programs of SailMaine with the organization's executive director Michael McAllister. Portland-based SailMaine teaches kids and adults the ins and outs of sailing, and offers scholarship programs as well as adaptive programs to improve the accessibility of sailing.

Emily Southard joins us from the Presumpscot Regional Land Trust. The Trust holds over 3000 acres of land in Cumberland County. Many of these parcels are open to various forms of public recreation. We learn why preserving this land is so important, and how the Trust acquires and stewards these properties.

With the onset of the busy summer season, the American Red Cross says the need for blood donations is great. Dan Dowling of the American Red Cross also shares the importance of platelet donations, due to its short shelf life and its usefulness for cancer patients. We also discuss some incentives the Red Cross are offering in the month of June to encourage donations.

We sit down with Emily Gormley, Development and Community Engagement Director of Caring Unlimited. This organization provides crucial and confidential resources for York County residents experiencing domestic abuse. We explore how we define domestic abuse, the resources available, and the impact on children. We also discuss upcoming community fundraising events that supporters can take part in.