At a very young age, Jan Collins, along with her sister, two older brothers, and her mother, were forced into abject poverty after the only "breadwinner " of the family, her father, as a result of problems related to alcohol, found himself in the  Thomaston, Maine State Prison Facility.  In a series of peculiar coincidences later in life, and once again finding her own son Gregory following in his father's footsteps, it was at that point Jan knew something had to be done. Welcome to the county "Fiefdom,"  ...truly an alien world unto itself, with its own set of rules, mores, and ..read more

Jan Collins of the Maine Prisoners Advocacy Coalition discovered her true calling almost literally, by way of abject poverty, as a young school girl, by growing up with her sister and mum in a plywood trailer,  donated by her uncle, a Maine dairy farmer.   Other coincidental circumstances , and much more, are explained as Jan's good fortune finds its way among Maine's incarcerated populations ... oh, almost forgot to mention, this was far from your typical camper or mobile home... Jan calls it rightfully, the 2 bunk trailer.    A  minor disclaimer is in order here ..read more

Jerome Weiner is a  "child of the 1960s,..." " I left college thinking I was basically going to fix the world ..."    I've worked all my life in non-profits... "We work with people from every walk of life..." Abuse knows no boundaries." Non-profits have never been taught to work together..."  We had to put some parameters around it..."  We've become better competitors..." I'll stop when I realize I'm not having this much fun ..read more

                              Caution! Smoking may lead to bank robbery... "Anybody can do anything they want to do..." Trust yourself...step out of your comfort zone... Follow your dream! " Most of society is very black and white...                               Most people don't want to talk to us..." [those in recovery]   Support the show ..read more

Michael Paddleford  ..."I did a lot of stupid stuff... just to feed my habit."  It all went to the same place, every time.    "It was very eye-opening to realize... "      "We know connections work..." Support the show ..read more

Michael Paddleford  ..."I did a lot of stupid stuff... just to feed my habit."  It all went to the same place, every time.    "It was very eye-opening to realize... "      "We know connections work..." Support the show ..read more

Deb shares some of her views in explaining how working as a Certified Intentional Peer Specialist has its unique challenges as well as rewards. Both valuable and useful to herself, as well as knowing how to trust oneself to have " found the untold story." Support the show ..read more

 After 26 years of service at the federal level, Matt Brown brings a contagious, and uniquely selfless perspective of the plight of the homeless, living day to day on the streets of Portland, Maine.   What's so different, as well as compelling at the same time, is a  certification process that is quickly catching on at many of the mental health, and crisis and recovery centers in this region.  Matt speaks of one such crisis center, The livingRoom,  on Elm ST, in downtown Portland, and why suddenly residents, as well as other city services are finally taking notice. Sup ..read more

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Interview with Rob "Rage " Bartlett , Local Journalist / Holistic Recovery Project manager, speaking on recent untimely deaths of two incarcerated individuals at both the Maine State Prison and the Maine Correctional Center. The state of Maine contracts with Well Path medical care , who is responsible for the oversight of medical care for those incarcerated at any prison facility within MAINE. WellPath also contracts with 34 other facilities across the nation.Support the show ..read more