Portland Media Center is excited to announce its November Art Show, “Raw Beauty” by artists who attend Spindleworks.

Spindleworks is a Program of Independence Association, whose Mission is:  To assist individuals with disabilities in obtaining full and inclusive lives in their chosen communities.

They offer guidance for artists to find their creative voice and do not teach a specific approach to artmaking. Artists and Artist Mentors foster creative growth through a shared skill-building approach, shared ownership and care of the studio and gallery, planning exhibits, workshops, and community engagement events.

In July of 2024, Airwaves reported that Opera Maine became a member of PMC, and that we taped their production of Giuseppe Verdi’s Aida.  In November, Opera Maine has agreed to let PMC share this spectacular production with the greater Portland community.  PMC’s taping of the July Opera Maine production of Aida will air on Channel 5 at 8 PM Saturday evenings throughout November.  Verdi’s gorgeous music tells the story of epic love transcending age-old boundaries.  Dona D. Vaughn directed this production performed by world-class singers and the Opera Maine Orchestra and Chorus, all under the baton of Maestro Israel Gursky.  Unlike many PMC programs, this opera will not be available online, so these airings on Saturday evenings are a rare opportunity to opera lovers and first-timers to hear and see this masterpiece!  Don’t miss it.

It’s hard to be even a little involved with PMC these days and not see the changes taking place this year. With our Civic IQ initiative, we are expanding our curriculum and offering more resources. To accommodate the increased activity that will follow, we are also expanding our hours. Starting on November 13, PMC will be open from 11 AM – 7 PM Mondays and Wednesdays, 10 AM – 4 PM on Tuesdays and Thursdays and 12:30 PM to 6:30 PM on Saturdays. PMC will continue to offer opportunities to take classes, attend workshops and produce studio productions at other times that we are not open. But these new hours will give more people an opportunity to discover us, as well as accommodate more walk-in possibilities to get information, check in/out equipment and work on editing projects. No need to memorize these hours, as they will be posted on our front door. By mid-November, plan to walk by and see the lights on, people enjoying their work on productions and staff ready to greet you and get you started producing your own video or podcast.

Vote today and every day in October for PMC to receive grant from Town & Country Credit Union.  Grants go to eight of 20 nonprofits that get the most votes.  Please vote now.  Just follow this link https://www.tcfcu.com/better-neighbor-fund-voting/ or use QR code to get to Town & Country’s voting page.  Once there, enter your email address, scroll down to the fifth row and you’ll see PMC’s logo in a maroon box on the right.  Click on select underneath it and then be sure to scroll back up and click on “VOTE.”  Takes a few seconds and you’ve supported a valuable community resource.  We’ll help out by sending regular reminders.  Thanks in advance for your support.

Join Mr. Antoni Bazia, Senghap Roeun, Eric Kalala, and others as they begin a new venture to assist and educate Westbrook citizens about the intricacies of finances and business ownership. Thanks to the National Financial Literacy Campaign and World System Builder,  residents of Westbrook, ME can learn how to control and increase financial durability and dexterity.  A Brighter Future is dedicated to educating about strategically saving money in everyday expenses, creating and developing business ventures, and minimizing the burden of debt, as well as understanding how taxes work. They also advise on how to accumulate wealth through such aspects as business assets, pensions, and annuities. Services and classes offered by the Brighter Future initiative are free and open to the public, as everyone is always encouraged to learn more about how to best handle their money, build it in their savings, or even to support themselves during a time of financial strife that they may be facing. The new offices are located at 39 Mechanic Street in Westbrook, Maine. It’s a quick, easy, and a beneficial resource if you happen to find yourself lacking in the technical knowledge to enter the world of accounting and business, for either furthering your own career or simply understanding how to handle commerce more effectively.

Portland Media Center is holding its 2024 Annual Meeting on October 24 at 5:30 PM in
our TV studio at 516 Congress Street. The Annual Meeting is our chance to report to
the community, especially our members, what we’ve been up to, accomplished and
planned over the past fiscal year, July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2024. The Board will also
vote on its officers for the year and it’s a chance for the membership to vote in new
Board members and/or current Board members whose terms are up for renewal. We
also have a guest speaker every year, and this year it’s an inside job. PMC Board
President, Tim Wells, and PMC Executive Director, will be presenting our new Civic IQ
initiative, which will help people in the Greater Portland area increase their engagement in civic dialogue and increase the media literacy. Email invitations will go out to our members, but all are welcome to attend. If you wish to attend, please RSVP
at staff@portlandmedia.org or call 207-553-8436.

In collaboration with local nonprofit organizations, PMC is taping and airing two
candidate forums in October for voters to be better prepared to vote in November. The
Greater Portland Council of Governments (GPCOG) organized a forum of State Senate
candidates on September 24 at PMC studios that was taped by a crew led by PMC’s
Production Coordinator, Dino Raymond with his crew, consisting of Brendon McDonald
and Jeffrey Cooper. Tom Bell, GPCOG’s Communication Director, organized the forum
and GPCOG’s Executive Director, Kristina Egan, moderated the forum. Candidates
appearing in the forum were Senate Sen. Anne Carney, Democratic candidate in District
29 (South Portland, Cape Elizabeth and part of Scarborough), Sen. Stacey Brenner,
Democratic candidate in District 30 (Gorham and Scarborough), Sen. Tim Nangle,
Democratic candidate in District 26 (Casco, Frye Island, Raymond, Windham, and part
of Westbrook), Dustin Ward, independent candidate in District 20 (Auburn, Durham,
Poland & New Gloucester), Sen. Richard Bennett, Republican candidate in District 18
(Bridgton, Brownfield, Denmark, Fryeburg, Harrison, Hebron, Mechanic Falls, Minot,
Norway, Otisfield, Oxford, Paris, Sweden, and Waterford). The Senate Forum will air on
Channel 5 at 8 PM Thursdays throughout October.
PMC nonprofit member, Portland Downtown, has partnered with Bayside Neighborhood
Association to organize a debate of 5 at-large Portland City Councilor Candidates and 2
District 1 Portland City Councilor Candidates. It is being taped at PMC Studio led again
by Dino Raymond with a crew consisting of Todd Glacey, Brendon McDonald, Aidan
Perez and Jeffrey Cooper. The debate was organized by Cary Tyson, Executive
Director of Portland Downtown, and Robert Sylvain of Bayside Neighborhood
Association. The forum is moderated by Troy Bennett. At-large candidates appearing
are Jacob M. Viola, Grayson B. Lookner, Jessica M. Falero, Benjamin K. Grant and
Brandon J. Mazer. District 1 candidates appearing are Robert Todd Morse and Sarah E.
Michneiwicz. This forum will air on Channel 5 at 7:30 PM on Mondays throughout
October.

The Rundlett & Baldacci Report

This month, The Rundlett & Baldacci Report are back from the summer hiatus for a new season! As is the tradition at this time of year, Derry and Rob are turning their attention to election season. The two are joined by David Jones, the owner of F.O. Bailey Real Estate. He was on the platform committee for this year’s Republican National Convention and also a delegate for Donald Trump.
They are also joined by Ethan Strimling. Mr. Strimling is the former mayor of Portland, ME, a former State Senator, and a strong
advocate for communities in Maine. The conversation gets lively as the two field questions from Derry and Rob on the upcoming elections around the state of Maine and of course the presidential race between Vice-President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump.
Tune in starting Wednesday October 2 at eight o’clock pm. The show will also air throughout the month on both the PMC’s
Channel 5 and on our YouTube channel!