Baltimore has 15-thousand vacant properties and lots of plans to address them. Bree Jones buys and rehabs houses a city block at a time to stabilize neighborhoods. How’s it going? Plus, Rebuilding Together Baltimore's free house repairs help seniors and low-income families remain at home.

Links: Parity, Rebuilding Together Baltimore

Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his [email protected] 410-235-1472

Seventy-eight years after the U.S. first deployed atom bombs an award winning producer asks, essentially, why nuclear weapons still exist … and what will the next generation do about them? We ask Robert Frye about his new documentary.

Links: The Nuclear World Project, In Search of Resolution, Youth 4Disarmament 

Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his [email protected] 410-235-1472

Here’s a Stoop Story from ... Liz McAlister about … standing up, and standing in the way, for what you believe in. There is more information at Stoopstorytelling.com

Tomorrow, from 9 p.m. until 2 a.m. Sunday, Baltimore Beat will host its Summer Jam. That happens at The Compound 2239 Kirk Avenue Baltimore. There will be DJs, bands, and beverages--all enjoyed in support of Baltimore Beat: the city’s Black-led non-profit newspaper. More information here.

Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his [email protected] 410-235-1472

For veterans of the military, the transition back to civilian life can be a struggle. Those who served during the United States’ recent conflicts are much more likely to report a difficult time readjusting to life back home, according to Pew Research Center. 47 percent of veterans who served post-9/11 say the transition was difficult, -compared to 21percent of Pre-9/11 servicemembers.

And that can take a toll on the health of veterans and the people who love them. The consequences are tragic, including higher rates of suicide among veterans than adults who are not veterans.

Jim Cooper is a coordinator for the Maryland Chapter of ‘Heroes on the Water.’ It’s a national organization with chapters across the country that provides recreational and therapeutic outlets for veterans and their families.

Plus, the passage of the PACT Act in August of 2022 was hailed by supporters, including the White House, as the most significant expansion of Veterans Administration healthcare in 30 years.

For decades, U.S. military veterans exposed during their service to toxic substances, like radiation, chemical weapons and carcinogenic burn pits were denied benefits.

Veterans who apply by August 9 are eligible to have their benefits backdated to August of last year.

(Photo courtesy Heroes on the Water)

Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his [email protected] 410-235-1472

What’s behind the rise in tick-borne illness? And what can you do to protect yourself?

Nicole Baumgarth is a Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She arrived last September to head the public health school's new Lyme and Tickborne Diseases Research and Education Institute.

Learn more about the geography of tick-borne disease on the Johns Hopkins Lyme and Tickborne Disease Dashboard.

Then, a conversation about the value of green space, no matter how small. 

Katie Lautar is the executive director of Baltimore Green Space, a non-profit helping local communities manage and advocate for parks, gardens, and other pockets of nature in their neighborhoods. Sylvester Myers is part of Baltimore Green Space’s Forest Stewardship Network.

Find out more about how to get involved and learn more about the green spaces in your neighborhood on their website.

 

Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his [email protected] 410-235-1472

Laura Lippman’s new psychological thriller swirls around characters caught as teenagers in headlines about the Prom Mom and the “Cad dad.” She follows them into their 30’s and hurtles toward an end we don’t see coming. Plus, what’s going on with Lippman herself?  

Tuesday, July 25, 6:00pm
The Ivy Bookshop Presents
at Whitehall Mill
3300 Clipper Mill Rd
Baltimore, MD
LINK

Wednesday, July 26, 7:00pm Politics and Prose
5015 Connecticut Ave NW
Washington, DC
LINK

Thursday, July 27, 5:00pm Browseabout Books Presents
at The Lewes Public Library
111 Adams Ave,  Lewes, DE
LINK

Friday, July 28, 12:00pm Mystery Loves Company Bookstore Luncheon
at Doc’s Sunset Grill
104 W Pier St, Oxford, MD
LINK to purchase tickets

Saturday, July 29, 2:00pm A Likely Story Bookstore Presents
at Exploration Commons
50 East Main Street
Westminster MD 
LINK    

Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his [email protected] 410-235-1472

A good book can capture a child’s imagination. Baltimore County librarian Conni Strittmatter shares summer reading picks for kids, including a graphic novel about a young Vietnamese refugee’s arrival in the U.S. Check out the library's calendar of events.

Plus: nonprofit leader Amber Ivey shares a story about a Baltimore girl who makes friends with a robot in "AI... Meets... AI."

Titles:
"Papá's Magical Water-Jug Clock" by Jesús Trejo
"Our Pool" by Lucy Ruth Cummins
"Wombats Are Pretty Weird : A (Not So) Serious Guide" by Abi Cushman
"Hands-On Science: Matter" by Lola Schaefer
"The Disney Villains’ Cookbook"
"Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret" by Judy Blume
"Let's Fill This World With Kindness: True Tales of Goodwill in Action" by Alexandra Stewart
"Family Style: Memories of an American from Vietnam" by Thien Pham
"The Legacies" by Jessica Goodman
"Four Eyes" by Rex Ogle (not mentioned)

Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his [email protected] 410-235-1472

Here’s a Stoop Story from Maya Kosok and Max Romano about a cross-country journey on two wheels. 

Check out upcoming Stoop events and the Stoop podcast. 

Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his [email protected] 410-235-1472

When women got their own chance to cycle the Tour de France, nearly four decades ago, they faced skepticism, chauvinism, poor equipment and sparse finances. Baltimore documentarian Jill Yesko’s new film "Uphill Climb" shows how they persevered.  

"Uphill Climb: The Women Who Conquered the Impossible Race" can be seen on Discovery Plus and on Peacock, which is also covering the new women’s race that starts on Sunday: Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift.

Watch the trailer and check out the film's four-part companion podcast.

Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his [email protected] 410-235-1472

For decades, drag performers have made a home in the ancient ridges and valleys of the Appalachian mountains. In Cumberland, Maryland, in the historic Embassy Theatre downtown, you can catch a glimpse of something glamorous and unique to this corner of the Rust Belt.

Photographer Michael Snyder, who grew up in nearby Frostburg, first experienced the Cumberland drag scene more than a decade ago. He would return again and again, before starting to photograph the drag performers. His pictures capture the glamour and grit of Cumberland’s queens.

Bruce Baker, known on stage as Mary Jane LaFay, joins us to talk about performing in Cumberland's drag scene.

Snyder's photography exhibit, "The Queens of Queen City," is open July 29 through August 19, 2023 in Allegany Art Council's Saville Gallery in Cumberland.

Later in the show, Kijana West discussed founding a new hub for LGTBQ+ community building in the region. Safe Space Cumberland opened last November, and offers virtual and in-person services.

Scenes from queer life in Allegany County are also captured in Rae Garringer's essay in the recent edition of the Virginia Quartely Review. Garringer is the founder of Country Queers, an ongoing, multimedia, community-based oral history project documenting rural and small town LGBTQIA+ experiences.

(Photo by Lindsay Ryklief)

Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers [email protected] 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his [email protected] 410-235-1472