Tag: community resources

Talk of the Towns 3/28/14

Producer/Host: Ron Beard
Studio Engineer: Amy Browne

Issue: Community concerns and opportunities

Program Topic: Community Response to Domestic Violence

Key Discussion Points :
What is domestic abuse?
• Define
• Tactics of abuse
What is Extent of the problem in Hancock and Washington Counties
• Next Step statistics
• Other statistics and information
• Other trends from the perspective of law enforcement
What are the signs of abuse and what can someone to do help?
What are services offered by Next Step
• Hotline: Who can use the hotline, who works on the hotline
• Emergency shelter: information about trends in shelter
• Transitional housing: what is the benefit, the need, the availability
• Other services: face to face advocacy, support and education groups
• Advocacy in court
• Community education, training, and consultation
Trends in the community’s perception of and response to DV
• What has changed since the first shelters opened in the 70’s?
• What is on the horizon for assessing risks?
• How should we be organizing ourselves as a community to
further enhance our response to DV?
How can community members become effective allies for those who are targets or suspected targets of domestic violence?

Guests:
Rebecca Hobbs, Exec. Director, Next Step
Lt. Rod Charette (Commanding Officer, Maine State Police Troop J),
Rick Doyle (Staff Attorney, Next Step)

Talk of the Towns 3/14/14

Producer/Host: Ron Beard
Studio Engineer: Amy Browne

Issue: Community concerns and opportunities

Program Topic: Getting food to people in need in Hancock County

Key Discussion Points:

1. Katie provides context for Healthy Acadia’s overall work on food systems, the notion of food security, and how that led to their support for gleaning, food pantry networking and the food drive
2. Hannah describes the gleaning initiative, her recent work on food waste and how that connects with food waste initiatives in Europe, Barcelona conference, etc
3. Rick describes the work of Tree of Life food pantry, who it serves, how it is organized and supported, what success they have had, what challenges they face, advice to those wanting to help or work in their own communities… Katie mentions other food pantries and their ongoing networking meetings
4. Kara describes Welcome Table as one of several area responses to the issue of hunger… what was the inspiration to start, how it is operated, who it serves, examples of success and challenges, advice to those wanting to help or work in their own communities
5. Susan describes the history of the county food drive, who it will help, how this one is being organized, how people, local organizations, local businesses can help out…
6. We wrap up by summarizing the several ways listeners can get involved, and those guests in the studio share what inspires them about this work and what their longer term hopes are…

Guests:
Katie Freedman, Healthy Acadia
Hannah Semler, Gleaning Coordinator, Healthy Acadia
Susan Farley, Washington-Hancock Community Agency
Rick Traub, Tree of Life Food Pantry, Blue Hill
Kara Ibarguen, Welcome Table, Ellsworth

Talk of the Towns 1/24/14

Producer/Host: Ron Beard
Studio Engineer: Amy Browne

Issue: Community concerns and opportunities

Program Topic: Where is Poverty Now?

Key Discussion Points:
a. CAP agencies were established as one of the key strategies in the war on poverty, declared by President Lyndon Johnson in January, 1964… what was their basic role?
b. What do we know about poverty today… are there differences that have emerged over the last 50 years?
c. How have CAP agencies changed… what approaches are you trying now that might not have been part of the original design? Provide an overview of WHCA programs and the role of people with low incomes on your board, involvement in the design and delivery of programs…
d. How is WHCA working with homeless vets? What do we know about the “dimensions” of the problem? How did you get started? What are the ways in which you tackle to problem? What are some of the results?
e. Is there more awareness of poverty as a community issue… talk about the emergence of poverty as a risk factor when Healthy Peninsula began work to help school children succeed? What led to the series of community workshops on Blue Hill peninsula, including a recent one… who is Donna Beegle, and how has she helped frame the issue here in Maine and nationally?
f. What other trends do you see that indicate that poverty and its affects are increasing?
(food pantry use, free community meals, general assistance, private and public efforts around fuel assistance, etc..) Is this a shift from assuming that poverty should be addressed by local efforts vs federal programs… what levels of magnitude are evident, between federal efforts like Community Action Program, HeadStart and others, and grassroots efforts like the Tree of Life Food Pantry and its sister efforts?
g.Part of the discussion about poverty relates to another trend in the US… growing income disparity between the very wealthy and the rest, including the middle class and the poor… do you see this disparity having a bearing on how you work on issues of poverty locally, or is this an issue best solved at the national level?
h. What inspires you to continue working on issues of poverty and its affects on people and the wider community?

Guests:
a. Mark Green, Washington-Hancock Community Agency
b. Bobbi Harris, Washington-Hancock Community Agency
c. Barbara Peppey, Healthy Peninsula