Justice Radio 5/7/26: Mental Health changes and Peer Support for Maine

Host/s: AJ Stash, Kage Johnson, and Hawo Mohamed
Editor: Sarah Johnson
Music: Samuel James
Justice Radio is a WMPG production.

Justice Radio: Tackling the hard questions about our criminal legal system in Maine.

This week: Tyrique, Mags, and AJ discuss how Mental Health program changes and Peer Support can help Mainers.

Guest: Tyrique and Mags

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Around Town 5/6/26: Local News, Culture and Events

Host/Producer: Amy Browne

League of Women Voters of Maine’s June 9th Semi-Open Primary Voter Guide
The VOTER HOTLINE number is 207-558-3333

The Maine Dept of Environmental Protection has issued a Notice of Opportunity to File for intervenor status in an upcoming public hearing on the controversial Juniper Ridge Landfill expansion

Community Action has expanded their Walk-in-Wednesdays for heating assistance applications in Aroostook, Washington and Hancock counties as they encourage residents to apply for heating assistance as soon as possible. Walk-in appointments for the Home Energy Assistance (HEAP) program are available at their Ellsworth office on Avery Street from 9am to 4pm on Wednesdays through May. They recommend reviewing their list of helpful paperwork before coming in.

Theme music: BreakBeat Chemists I, 2015
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 International License

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Outside the Box 5/5/26: “Yes to Better Health Options”

Producer/Host: Larry Dansinger

About the host:
Larry Dansinger (no pronouns) of Bangor came to Maine in 1974 and has been here ever since. Some of Larry’s activities since then: Done community organizing on numerous issues through INVERT and then Resources for Organizing and Social Change (ROSC), committed civil disobedience several times, grown a garden yearly since 1977, joined various food cooperatives and two men’s groups, refused to pay federal income taxes for war, lived on a community land trust for 23 years, and met a wonderful partner whom Larry has loved for over 40 years. Larry has produced Outside the Box features on WERU since 2007 and continues to look for unique ways of seeing almost any problem or situation.

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Around Town 5/5/26: Local News, Culture and Events

Host/Producer: Amy Browne

DIY Energy Efficiency for a More Affordable and Comfortable Home, hosted by A Climate to Thrive, Wednesday, May 6th
DIY projects to save money on energy and make your home more comfortable? Learn more about do-it-yourself energy efficiency projects from energy auditor, Colin McCullough
Wednesday, May 6th at 6 PM in the basement stacks, Jesup Memorial Library, Bar Harbor FMI and to register

Also on Wednesday, May 6th: Friends of Sears Island will host a Zoom presentation by Ron Butler about the butterflies of Maine and the Canadian Maritimes, at at 6:30pm This presentation will cover the taxonomy, evolution, morphology, and ecological significance of butterflies. It will include images of some representative species of the region’s six butterfly families, explore butterfly conservation issues (particularly climate change), and briefly consider the ‘insect apocalypse’. The presentation will conclude with some recommended butterfly identification guides, apps, and websites.

Ron Butler is an animal ecologist and Professor Emeritus at the University of Maine at Farmington, where he taught courses in Zoology, Entomology, Ecology, and Conservation Biology. While Ron spent the first part of his career conducting research with seabirds in Maine, Newfoundland, and Antarctica, for the past several decades his work has focused on ecologically important groups of insects in Maine. Ron helped plan and coordinate several state-wide citizen science initiatives, including the Maine Damselfly and Dragonfly Survey, the Maine Butterfly Survey, the Maine Bumble Bee Atlas, and (presently) the Maine Flower Fly Survey. Ron co-authored Butterflies of Maine and the Canadian Maritime Provinces (2023) and Dragonflies and Damselflies of Maine and the Canadian Maritime Provinces (in press).

You can find more information and sign up to receive the zoom link at Friends of Sears Island’s website or go directly to the registration form

The Penobscot Marine Museum in Searsport is offering Pre-Season Sneak Peak guided tours this week.. Explore new exhibit updates, learn about projects in the library and photo archives, watch newly added sardine videos, and examine historical documents. Guided by PMM staff and volunteers, this 1.5-hour walking tour is a unique chance to learn and ask questions. Sessions are limited to 20 people and will be starting at 10am and noon, this Thursday, May 7th For more information and to reserve a spot

Theme music: BreakBeat Chemists I, 2015
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 International License

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Around Town 5/4/26: Local News, Culture and Events

Host/Producer: Amy Browne

What’s the Word on Maine Street? 5/2/26

What’s the Word on Maine Street?, hosted by Sarah Pebworth, is a weekly short feature Saturdays at 9:30am looking at local literary and visual arts events and offerings!

About the host:
Sarah Pebworth leads the steering committee for Word—a Blue Hill Literary Arts Festival, founded in 2017 and held each October. She serves on the boards of the Cultural Alliance of Maine and Lawrence Family Fitness Center YMCA. Since February 2023 Sarah has written “Shared Seas and Common Grounds,” a column published in the Penobscot Bay Press’s Weekly Packet. She and her wife Julie Jo Fehrle live in Blue Hill.

Theme music: Ross Gallagher is a bassist who grew up in East Blue Hill, ME, and currently lives between Bath, ME and Brooklyn, NY, where he works with a wide variety of musical artists. Infinite Blues is a cut from his recently released neon night, an excursion into an ambient/electronic musical world built around rhythmic bass ostinatos, clouds of processed looping electronic atmospheres, and melody. By turns both subtle and unapologetically noisy, the songs are a collection of luminous constellations, roved between by a band of texturally minded instrumental improvisers.

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