Patrick's blog

Check out these recent interviews with Black River graduates who are off writing & making films:

Sean Temple (Class of 2007) & his partner (both in life and film) came into the studio to talk about filmmaking and working in the industry in L.A. We also screen their film from a few years ago, Aster & Sidney, which immediately follows the interview.

Rachel Carter & Asher Ellis, both Class of 2002, stopped by to talk about their careers as authors - in Rachel's case, as a young adult novelist, including the So Close to You series of books. And for Asher, as a writer of horror stories, essays, short stories, and short films. He wrote the screenplay for "Exit 7A", which is screened immediately following the interview. Rachel & Asher are not only former classmates, but they are lifelong friends and occasional collaborators. 

Thanks to Sean, Sarah, Rachel, & Asher for sharing their stories and letting us know where they are now.

Want to help tell the story of one of your friends, family members, or classmates? Nominate them for the "Where Are They Now?" series by sending us a quick email. 

 As with all election seasons, we are doing our part to bring you as much coverage of  local & statewide races as possible. Thanks to the Vermont Media Exchange and our colleagues at community TV stations across the State, we are able to televise all sorts of election programming, leading up to both the primary elections in August and the general election in November.  And...wherever possible, we provide coverage of local candidate forums, debates, and other programs. With the August 14th primary approaching, there is a steady stream of programming, which we are airing on our Education / Government Channel. Check out the daily schedules.

In terms of local coverage, we had a 3-person crew out at the gubernatorial candidate forum in Ludlow on July 26th. Despite the small turnout, there was an engaging discussion among the 4 participating candidates. It was sponsored & hosted by FOLA (Friends of Ludlow Auditorium), who invited all candidates from both the Democratic & Republican parties. Only the 4 Democratic candidates showed up (the 2 Republican candidates participated in a separate debate, which we are also be televising, thanks to CCTV in Burlington & the VT Media Exchange), along with numerous other candidate forums and debates for different statewide offices as well as the U.S. congressional seat.

Election coverage will play on our Education / Government Channel at the following times through August 13th, the day before the primary election (after Aug. 13, through the remainder of the month, these timeslots will be used for legislative programming):

Sundays 5:30AM

Tuesdays 5AM, 12:30PM, & 10PM

Wednesdays 3AM, 7AM, 11AM, & 5:30PM

Thursdays 5PM

Fridays 5:30AM & 10PM

Saturdays 4AM & 12PM

Former Board member and Okemo Valley TV volunteer Sharon Combes-Farr is our 2018 Community Service award recipient. After serving for 5 years on our Board of Directors, Sharon has moved out of Town, to Westmoreland, NH. We wish her well in her newly-adopted community.

Sharon spent 2 as our Board President, 2 as V.P., and helped to lead our marketing & fundraising efforts for most of her tenure.  In particular, she helped to turn our annual fundraiser, the Derby Gala, into a dependable and organized event that consistently raises $4-5K per year for us. She also helped to form a Marketing Committee, steering us in a position where we market and promote ourselves more effectively. She was a proven and effective leader on the Board. We wanted to thank her with this token of appreciation, for helping to strengthen her hometown TV station.

The 2018 Okemo Valley TV Outstanding Achievement Award has been given to Marji Graf, who for the past 10 years led the Okemo Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce. Since Marji was moving and starting her new job in Maryland before our Awards Ceremony & Open House, Executive Director Patrick Cody presented her with the award at the June 20th Chamber mixer, which served as her going away party (thanks to Doanld Dill, we'll soon be televising some video coverage of that event). During her time with the Chamber, Marji produced her monthly series, "Okemo Valley- Your Place in Vermont" with us. She started the show in 2008 and kept it going up until this month, when she recorded her final show. Marji serves as an excellent example of how community TV can be used as a promotional tool. Through the production her show, she made regular use of our services to promote Chamber activities and the business community throughout the region. We were a tool for her, which she put to good and effective use, and in turn, we received a steady stream of current programming. We wish Marji Well! 

(photo credit: Donald Dill)

On Wednesday, June 27th, we will be holding an open house & annual meeting, in celebration of our 17th year. The event will start at 6PM, with a brief awards ceremony, where we will present our annual awards to community producers, volunteers, & Okemo Valley TV members, in recognition of their work during the past year. There are 4 awards: the "Community Service" and "Outstanding Achievement" awards, as well as the "Producer of the Year" and "Youth Producer" awards. The annual meeting will immediately follow the ceremony, and will include the Board of Director election, a re-cap of our own work during the past year, and a presentation & vote on the budget for the coming year. All are invited; appetizers and refreshments will be served. managerokemovalley.tv (subject: Open%20House%20%26%20Annual%20Meeting) (Please RSVP in advance by sending us an email.)

View the agenda for the Open House & Annual Meeting here.