in time the snow will rise

corey templeton, of portland daily photo fame, has been rallying portland bloggers to write about their favorite local good-doing organizations and causes this week. what popped into my head is the one group i've supported financially this year. my financial contribution may have been a paltry drop in the bucket, but my enthusiasm for this organization is enormous.

it's blunt youth radio at wmpg, and here's how they describe themselves:

The Blunt Youth Radio Project produces a weekly call-in talk show that airs Monday nights from 7:30-8:30 on WMPG, Greater Portland Community Radio. High school age youth from the Portland area, both free and incarcerated, staff the show. Blunt Members are trained in all areas of radio production: interviewing, hosting, reporting, editing, and engineering. The show has won several Gold and Silver Reel Awards from the National Federation of Community Broadcasters and a number of First Place Radio News Awards from the Maine Association of Broadcasters.


blunt is in my top five reasons-why-i'm-glad-my-kids-grew-up-in-portland-maine. there are only a couple of other programs like it in the country, and it's played an enormous part in zoë and isaac's lives. i probably can't even begin to summarize what they've gained from blunt, but the list includes responsibility, independence, how to say no, how to work collaboratively, public speaking, critical thinking, and the deliciousness of japanese curry. and that doesn't even include the technical radio skills they've learned, recording, editing, interviewing, live hosting, and engineering. and that's just my kids--blunt is a resource for every high school-age person in the portland area, including those who live at long creek youth development center. blunt has basically given teenagers a (loud) voice, a forum in which they demand (politely) to be taken seriously.

here are some ways you can support blunt:

financially. a donation to portland, maine's amazing community radio station, wmpg, is a donation to blunt. when you donate, be sure to mention blunt specifically.

blunt embarked on its first kickstarter campaign this fall. they will only use this kind of fundraising for specific projects, like their trip to the 2011 new york city audioslam. check their website, listen to the show, and like them on facebook for updated information.

listen to the program, and if you're braver than i am, call in with questions and comments. it airs every monday evening from 7:30 to 8:30pm on 90.9 and 104.1 fm locally, or you can listen online at wmpg.org.


thanks for taking the time to read this, and thanks to corey for the inspiration!

(did you think i'd forget your dog-of-the-day? not a chance.)