Think Out Loud

Portland hosts USA Fencing National Championships

For the first time in nearly 50 years, Portland is hosting the USA Fencing National Championships [https://www.usafencing.org/2026-summer-nationals-july-challange]. The ten-day tournament kicks off this Sunday, with thousands of fencing athletes from around the world competing for national titles.   Michael McTigue [https://www.nwfencing.org/michael-mctigue/] served as the executive director of the non-profit Northwest Fencing for 5 years and now volunteers as a coach. He’s been fencing, competing and coaching for the last 48 years. Sandra Marchant [https://www.usafencing.org/profiles/sandra-marchant] is a national fencing champion who’s coming to town to compete. She frequently travels to Portland to host a women’s-only fencing summer camp called The Athena Project [https://www.nwfencing.org/athena-summer-camp/]. We’ll hear from McTigue and Marchant ahead of the tournament

Portland Art Museum offers regional artists’ works for rent

The Portland Art Museum’s rental gallery has been operating on the same business model since its inception in 1959. In the 1950s, the Portland Art Museum was the city’s art school as well as a gallery. They opened the rental gallery to showcase local artists’ works, and they’ve been offering rentals and sales ever since. Mark Tindle has been the head of the rental sales gallery since 2021, and he joins us to share more about the gallery and its unique model.    The current showcase on display at the rental gallery is a collaboration with OPB’s Oregon Art Beat, featuring local artists that have been featured on the program. The exhibit is up in the rental gallery until July 11th.

How Portland nonprofit is helping homebound seniors, from weekly grocery deliveries to weekly phone calls

For nearly 40 years, Store to Door [https://storetodooroforegon.org/about-us/] has helped homebound seniors and adults with disabilities in the Portland metro area by taking orders for groceries and delivering them each week with a team of mostly volunteers. These “Kindness Couriers”, as the nonprofit calls them, will enter clients’ homes - if requested -  to unpack the groceries and stay for a brief chat. Those interactions can help ease feelings of social isolation for the clients, most of whom are low-income seniors living alone. In July, Store to Door will offer the grocery delivery service on a sliding scale, with no cost for clients facing the greatest financial need.   During the pandemic, Store to Door began offering clients free weekly phone calls made by volunteers through its Friendly Caller program. The calls are intended to foster regular social connections that may evolve into friendships between volunteers and the clients they serve.    Joining us for a discussion about Store to Door and the communities it serves are Program Director Cass Listro; Board President and Kindness Courier volunteer Jeri Janowsky; and Gloria Nussbaum, a Friendly Caller volunteer.

Two Local Filmmakers document the life of “America The Beautiful” creator, Katherine Lee Bates

KATHERINE LEE BATES' GREATEST HOPE IN LIFE WAS TO WRITE A POEM THAT PEOPLE WOULD REMEMBER AFTER SHE DIED. ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY THREE YEARS LATER MILLIONS OF PEOPLE ACROSS THE UNITED STATES WILL SING “AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL,” COMMEMORATING THE NATIONS’ 250TH ANNIVERSARY. HOWEVER, SOME OF THE SAME PROBLEMS AMERICA FACED AT THE TIME BATES WROTE HER POEM ARE STILL RELEVANT TODAY.   Filmmakers Laurence Cotton and John de Graaf join us to discuss their documentary “From Sea to Shining Sea,” which follows the life of Katherine Lee Bates, and the striking relevance of “America the Beautiful” today.

OSU pharmacy professor breaks down peptides, off-label drugs

NEXT MONTH, THE FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE WILL CONSIDER EASING RESTRICTIONS ON SOME PEPTIDES. SOME INFLUENCERS HAVE CLAIMED [https://www.npr.org/2026/02/23/nx-s1-5716162/peptides-science-muscle-growth-longevity-wellness] THESE INJECTABLES IMPROVE MUSCLE GROWTH, CREATE BETTER IMMUNE FUNCTION AND SLOW AGING, AMONG OTHER THINGS. HOWEVER, THERE IS VERY LITTLE EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT THE BENEFITS OF MANY OF THESE DRUGS IN HUMANS. AT THE SAME TIME, PRESCRIPTION PEPTIDES THAT ARE ALREADY ON THE MARKET, SUCH AS GLP-1S LIKE OZEMPIC, HAVE SEEN INCREASING DEMAND [https://www.columbiapsychiatry.org/news/rise-ozempic-sparks-ethical-concerns] FOR OFF-LABEL USE. DANIEL HARTUNG IS A PROFESSOR OF PHARMACY AT OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY. HE JOINS US TO SHARE MORE ON THE FDA PROCESSES AND OFF-LABEL PRESCRIPTIONS.