(First airdate: December 1, 2020) CHRIS JAMES: AN ADOPTION STORY. Our Town Host Maryanne McNellis interviews Chris James, Alaskan adventurer & contractor. Chris was born in England and moved to the USA with his family as a child. He vaguely knew that he was adopted but didn’t much care. He was a restless youth who dropped out of high school, driving to Alaska mid-winter with no clear plans – and no money. He hustled his way through jobs, starting in a crab cannery and eventually on board almost any sort of vessel in the Alaskan fishing fleet. When his first child was born he began to think about a more stable existence. Eventually, he founded a construction company in Port Angeles. The impending birth of his first grandchild prompted him to seek out his biological mother. To his profound shock, he found her. Although his Irish mother was dead he suddenly had five Irish siblings, aunts, uncles and a huge number of cousins. They have embraced him into a family he never knew or even dreamed of!

(Airdate: November 3, 2020) SEBASTIAN EGGERT:  HISTORY AND WEDDING CAKES. Our Town Host Maryanne McNellis interviews Sebastian Eggert, the founder of Rain Shadow Wood Works. Sebastian has a fascinating niche as a restorer of historic buildings. He has been involved in almost every restoration around town — including the Courthouse, Saint Paul’s Church, Fort Worden, and even a 51foot wooden sailboat. When he first sets foot into a crumbling historic building, Sebastian sees it as a wedding cake with the entire inside hollowed out. The mere outlines of the elaborate frosting remain. His job is to re-create the interior. He sets about preserving what he can and restoring things to their original splendor. Often he uses old labor-intensive methods of construction. He will use modern technology if absolutely necessary. But he prefers a seamless transformation, where you can’t tell the old from the new.

(Airdate: 10/20/2020) Our Town Host Maryanne McNellis interviews Robert Ambrose, the chairman of the board of KPTZ. Robert has an adventurous past including stints in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, England and the San Francisco Bay area before settling in Alaska. He and wife, Jessica, decided that they did not want to raise their sons in an urban center. They found life quite different in rural Alaska. It suited them well. He was a stay-at-home dad for a while and Jessica was in public health. But the call of the local community station soon had Robert more than just a little involved. All was good. But years later Jessica died in a tragic accident. Robert was undone and after some travel and life reassessment he decided to move. He was lucky to find Port Townsend. His passion for community radio is so deep that he pitched a show to Larry Stein, KPTZ’s program director, even before he got to town. Soon he was on the board and quickly after that became chairman. So now he’s in charge of all of KPTZ’s efforts. He’s leading the team through some tough times. The station is growing and adapting to the challenges of the Covid pandemic.. It also needs funds to help renovate quarters at Fort Worden. The show is scheduled to air on Tuesday, Oct. 20 and Sunday, Oct 25.  

(Airdate: 10/6/2020) Our Town Host Maryanne McNellis interviews Mike Howell, owner of Howell’s Sandwich Shop in downtown Port Townsend. Mike opened his eatery only two years ago. Business took off rapidly – his first two years were stellar. Sure, a major winter storm blew out his windows the first year. But that was nothing compared to coping with Covid. With limited seating and hours he’s struggling to stay afloat. Howell’s only has about 1,000 square feet. Mike’s fortunate that he has a deck with a dynamite view. But now that winter is coming on, that asset might not help that much. His first two years were heaven and now he’s facing hell. He calls it “purgatory” and hopes to climb out soon. Here’s another small home town businessman that we all need to help support. The show is scheduled to air on Tuesday, October 6, and Sunday, October 11.

(Airdate: 9/22/2020) LOIS VENARCHICK: ARTISTIC DREAMS WOBBLING. Our Town Host Maryanne McNellis interviews Lois Venarchick, owner of the Wynwoods Gallery and Bead Studio on Water Street. Lois is a jeweler and an artist. She has also owned her own shop since the early 1980s. Business has had its ups and downs over the years. But nothing like this. The gallery and shop were closed from early March until June. That meant zero revenue. But she still had bills to pay, like everyone else. She’s open now. But, of course, on only 30% of her previous hours with restricted numbers of customers allowed in at any one time.. Will her business survive? She sure hopes so and she’s a fighter. We are all rooting for her and for all of the other small businesses in Port Townsend. They are the life blood of this town. The show is scheduled to run on Tuesday, September 22, and Sunday, September 27.

(Airdate: September 8, 2020) HOME ALONE FOR PTHS CLASS OF 2021. Our Town Host Maryanne McNellis interviews Melanie Bakin & Soso (Sorina) Johnston, members of the Port Townsend class of 2021. This year will be an unusual, if not surreal, experience. Due to the coronavirus, there will be no in-classroom learning first semester. Melanie will be returning full-time to PTHS. She loves the teachers and she loves the school. Upon reflection, Soso is taking a different path. Even though she was student body president during her junior year and was elected senior class president this year, she’s decided not to return full-time. She is going to be taking advantage of Running Start, which is a joint program between Peninsula College and the high school. Both students have their reasons. It is a daunting prospect to be learning entirely at a distance. High school will definitely not be as much fun! It will take real grit to buckle down in front of your computer day after day.

(Airdate: July 28, 2020) FROM DISTILLED SPIRITS TO SANITIZER. Our Town host Maryanne McNellis interviews Jake Soule, owner of Admiralty Distillers. Jake grew up in Calgary, Canada, which is better known for cowboys than sailors. But he fell in love with sailing and ended up on the crew of a tall ship. To help pay the bills he became a skilled carpenter and all-round construction guy. That led to Port Townsend’s own Wooden Boat School. Jake also loves spirits and he soon realized that the town lacked its own craft distillery. After considerable study and a pass through the regulatory maze, he opened Admiralty Distillers. But that business, like every business around, was slammed by the COVID virus. However, Jake realized he could help the community. He turned his still into a hand sanitizer production facility. Admiralty’s sanitizer is playing a crucial role in community safety.

(Airdate: July 14, 2020) GARDENING THROUGH THE PANDEMIC. Our Town host Maryanne McNellis interviews Jose Borrayo, owner of the Port Townsend Garden Center. Jose has never been afraid of getting his hands dirty. He literally worked his way up from the bottom: maintenance man, cashier, manager and ultimately owner of the garden center. This determined young entrepreneur decided to create a bright and secure future for his family – wife Jillian and three small children. Along the way he’s mastered the names and properties of thousands of plants, fertilizers and insect sprays. If you have a gardening question, Jose’s your man. Gardening has become even more of a passion during the COVID lockdown. Novice gardeners are joining the ranks of our passionate gardeners. Jose and his team are helping with this green revolution.