Many of us, at times, have felt our freedom curtailed by circumstances. When this occurs, we make a choice between remaining trapped or lifting ourselves–and others–out of imprisonment. This week we discuss freedom with State Representative and former Sheriff for Cumberland County, Mark Dion; author Monica Wood; and John Williams & Kate Beever of the 317 Main Street Community Music Center program at the Long Creek Youth Development Center.
Our first featured guest is Mark Dion, State Representative District 113 and former Sheriff for Cumberland County. Rep. Mark Dion is serving his first term in the Legislature and has been assigned to the Joint Standing Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology and is a member of the Ethics Committee.
Rep. Dion has most recently served three terms as the Sheriff for Cumberland County. In that capacity, he has been an advocate on mental health and substance abuse policy, community correction practices, and inter-agency partnerships involving public health and safety. Rep. Dion is a graduate of Harvard University’s Senior Executives Program in State and Local Government. He is also a graduate of the University of Maine School of Law and is practicing law in Portland. He resides in Portland with his wife, Cheryl.
Our second featured guest is Monica Wood, author of “When We Were the Kennedys” and creator of the “Meet the Author” program at the Maine Correctional Center.
Monica Wood is the author of When We Were the Kennedys: A Memoir from Mexico, Maine. She is also the author of four works of fiction, most recently Any Bitter Thing, which spent twenty-one weeks on the American Booksellers Association extended bestseller list and was named a Book Sense Top Ten pick. Her other fiction includes Ernie’s Ark, Secret Language, and My Only Story, a finalist for the Kate Chopin Award.
