(Airdate: April 19, 2022) Our Town host Maryanne McNellis interviews Erin Reading, co-founder of the Port Townsend Psychedelic Society. She grew up in Washington state and has always been transfixed by our mountains. At the University of Washington she studied both philosophy & geology. It made sense to her – combining the theoretical and applied. She was on her way to a PhD when she had her first experience with psychedelics. It changed her life. Erin somehow fell in love with Chimacum and moved here. She found a community of like-minded people. She soon was the co-founder of the Port Townsend Psychedelic Society, which currently has over 600 subscribers to its newsletter. The group is working to decriminalize natural psychedelics such as mushrooms or peyote. The group ’s focus is on legalizing plants, not synthetic chemical compounds. It’s a nation-wide movement that has seen places such as Oakland CA, Ann Arbor MI, Washington DC and dozens of others move toward decriminalization. The Port Townsend City Council recently passed a resolution directing police and prosecutors to make psychedelics their lowest priority. According to Erin, that amounts to “de-facto decriminalization.”

(Airdate: March 22, 2022) Becky Steffens, Physical Therapist. Our Town host Maryanne McNellis interviews Becky Steffens, a Physical Therapist with Jefferson Healthcare. Becky grew up in rural Iowa in an agricultural town of about 100 people. But this farm girl wanted to get off the farm and travel. She was fascinated by the medical world. But after working part-time as a CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant) as a student, she realized nursing wasn’t for her. But there are other opportunities in the medical field – if you are willing to work hard to get there. You might not realize it, but physical therapy certification requires a doctorate these days. But Becky didn’t let that – and a mountain of student debt – hold her back. After graduation she first became a “traveling physical therapist” zigzagging across the country on assignments. That helped her see the country. Traveling physical therapists also make more money than full-time staff people. She really wanted out from under that debt load. Port Townsend was one of her stops but it really caught her attention. Now she has joined Jefferson Healthcare full time. Her start date at Jefferson Healthcare was supposedly March 2020. She had already moved here when the job was put on hold due to the pandemic. Single and new in town, she threw herself into working for the Food Bank. When the worst of the crisis eased she started with Jefferson Healthcare. She loves working one-on-one with patients on their road back to mobility and health.

(Airdate: March 8, 2020) Our Town host Maryanne McNellis interviews Artis the Spoonman, a talented and eccentric musician. After dropping out of school in the 10th grade, Artis spent a few years in the Navy. He says his two goals from childhood were being a musician and seeing the world. He figures he’s accomplished that. Artis has played with the likes of Frank Zappa and showcased his spoon-playing skills on the David Letterman show (among many TV appearances). Over the years he’s played gigs all over the world. He’s as comfortable busking on the street as he is playing with the Seattle philharmonic in a white silk tuxedo. Artis is proud of his “heritage in the hippie world” thanks to his free-spirited Mother. A Northwest native, Artis was a fixture at the Pike Place Market in Seattle for many years. But he ended up here in Port Townsend a few years ago. He loves it here but he’s worried about gentrification. After all, he’s not all that gentrified.

(Airdate: February 8, 2022) Our Town host Maryanne McNellis interviews Dr. Linda Rosenbury, PT’s new Superintendent of Schools. Dr. Rosenbury came to teaching from an art history background.  She soon found herself as a teacher and later a principal at some of the nation’s toughest schools in areas such as the Bronx and Brooklyn. At one point, her school had the distinction of being in the highest crime rate district in the nation. A full 100% of the kids in that school fell below the poverty line, thus qualifying for free or reduced-cost meals. Dr. Rosenbury soon realized that most schools faced common issues including a disciplinary system that simply removed kids on suspension and didn’t address the underlying problems. After earning a Doctorate at Harvard, she came to Port Townsend. Despite COVID-19 she has moved ahead with an ambitious agenda. For example, a rethinking of the disciplinary system means there’s now on-campus suspension where kids on both sides meet with counselors. There’s a new data management system. There are also efforts to make school a safer place for students of color. She’s a woman with drive & ambition and part of her mission is improving the PT school district.

(Airdate: January 25, 2022) Our Town host Maryanne McNellis interviews David Faber, Port Townsend’s new mayor. David is partner in the uptown law firm Faber & Feinson. His family moved to Port Townsend when he was eight years old so he has first-hand knowledge of the PT school system as well as most local issues. David was a council member and Deputy Mayor before assuming the largely ceremonial post as Mayor. PT also has a City Manager, John Mauro, as well as a mayor and a seven-person city council. The council hires the city manager and approves his major decisions. David says that affordable housing is one key issue facing our community. He has also been listening to citizen concerns about the state of our roads, which have had little maintenance for years. But adequate repair of our streets is an expensive proposition. Major arteries such as Water Street or Discovery Road are candidates for either federal or state grants. But neighborhood streets are not eligible for that sort of funding. Where are we going to get the money to fix our streets? It’s not a simple matter.

(Airdate: January 11, 2022) COLIN FODEN: MAKING RADIO DREAMS REALITY. Our Town host Maryanne McNellis interviews Colin Foden, KPTZ co-founder and long-time President & Chairman. Colin joined IBM as a young man. Those tech skills turned out to be easily transferable when he left Northern England and headed for New Zealand. Next it was on to California where he worked for financial giant Pacific Life. He hadn’t been on a college track back in England. But Pacific Life financed his MBA at Pepperdine University. The plot digressed when he and his partner had a baby girl. Soon they were in the proverbial VW van headed up to the Pacific Northwest. He had friends in Port Townsend and soon was part of the community here, serving as the key financial guy at Centrum for several years. But before long he was the single parent of two toddlers. That role clashed with full-time employment so he left Centrum to become a consultant. A chance meeting with a friend at Swains (an institution which folded a few years back) resulted in him joining a small band of idealists devoted to starting a community radio station. The rest is history, as they say. They started the ball rolling in 2007 and by 2011 our own community radio station – KPTZ, 91.9 FM – was up and running. Colin was at the helm as President & Chairman of the Board during KPTZ’s first decade. It hasn’t always been easy.

(Airdate: December 14, 2021) Our Town host Maryanne McNellis interviews Steve King, PT’s Public Work Director. Steve literally started his job on pandemic lockdown day – March 20, 2020. The office was pretty empty and the town was a ghost town. But, as an essential worker, Steve jumped right in. He has a long background in government work. Most of his career, he worked for the city of Wenatchee. He rose through the ranks there for 18 years. But then he got an itch. He took off some banked vacation time and set out to walk the world-famous Camino de Santiago – a 500 mile trek across the Pyrenees through France and Spain. When he returned he decided he needed a career change. Port Townsend seemed like the perfect fit. Starting during the pandemic hasn’t been easy. Now he’s involved in almost every infrastructure project around town – including the new water contract with the mill, upgrading our roads, and overseeing several new housing projects. Did you know there’s a 100-unit project called Madrona Ridge that’s coming down the pipeline? That’s the tip of the iceberg.

(Airdate: November 30, 2021) Our Town host Maryanne McNellis interviews Haden Starbuck, a local artist specializing in jewelry and fiber art through Mystic Beach Studio. The pandemic wiped out her business. Like most of our creative class, Haden is self-employed. As such, she didn’t even qualify for unemployment when the pandemic first hit. The rules changed and self-employed people ultimately did qualify for government assistance. But those programs have now largely ended. After spending through her savings for the past 18 months, Haden’s looking at how she can continue as an artist. She’s launched a new venture called “creatrix compass.” (www.creatrixcompass@gmail.com) She’s producing podcasts featuring creative people and hopes to both consult and run classes on creativity. So far there’s no revenue stream, but Haden’s optimistic. She’s also returning to various shows and venues to directly sell her work. But some shows require an $800 or $1,000 upfront fee for the booth and perhaps a cut of sales. It’s a stiff price for anyone post pandemic. But Haden’s sure she can and will make it!

(Airdate: November 2, 2021) Our Town host Maryanne McNellis interviews Gina Landon, the owner of the Farm & Sea Grill in Port Hadlock. Gina signed the lease on her restaurant-to-be in February 2020 – not realizing that her timing was disastrous. She vowed that COVID-19 was not going to count her out even before she started. The restaurant opened in July 2020. Her not-so-secret weapon was hiring staff who helped create the remarkable community feel of the late, lamented Don’s Pharmacy Lunch Counter. Their friendly chatter is now helping create a warm glow at the Farm & Sea. Summer business was great but now we are in the dark days of winter. Gina’s facing the same problems as all restaurateurs — including staff shortages and supply chain woes. As a new restaurant, every little thing matters. But if pickles are hard to find, she will find them somewhere. She’s determined to succeed!