Volunteer Profile: Elaine Colella

Name: Elaine Colella
DJ Name: Elaine
Show Name: Global Grooves
Broadcast Time:  Monday 8.30 – 10pm

Local or Transplant?  Transplant.  From MA but before I was in Portland, I was in Chama, NM where I had my first radio experience.  One of the first things my husband and I did when we arrived in NM was to walk into the radio station KFLH to see how to get involved with radio. We got talking with one of the DJ’s there and got on board with World Wide Music Show, broadcast back in 2001 on Thu nights.

What do you do at WMPG?   DJ with my husband, Rick on Global Grooves

How did you get involved at WMPG?  When we were moving to Maine, Rick researched radio stations and found there was a radio station here at USM.  Then when we moved to Portland, Rick got in touch with the program director and we did the training.

I took over Chickens Are People Too when I moved here.   When I got a job teaching, I was able to have the kids come in and do the show with me. This was around 2004.  When I was teaching 8th Grade, the Tweenlight Zone show was born.  I wanted the kids to do radio themselves.  They engineered the show, chose the music, topics to discuss and ran the show.  I have seen some of ‘my radio kids’ go from Chickens Are People Too to Tweenlight Zone to Blunt Youth Radio all here at WMPG.  Now we do world music on Global Grooves.

How long have you been at WMPG? Since 2004 – 14 years

What do you do when you aren’t volunteering? I like to run.  I like to work in the yard.  I draw and read. I play guitar.  I do yoga.  I kayak (in the summer). I teach myself different languages (depending on where we are going for vacation).  At Peace Corps, I went through language training. It comes in handy for my travel in Europe.  One time I was able to go into a Turkish shop, in France, and speak Turkish and get what I needed very easily.

I also write music and perform, and sometimes do open mics and gigs around town.  I just finished a CD.  Myself and Rick try and put a CD together every year.

I teach at King Middle School – 8th grade.  I’ve been there for 14 years.

Why is WMPG meaningful to you?

It brings people together.  It really is a radio family.  A great connection.  A unique niche.  You get to know the DJ, who that person is by what they are playing and what they talk about when they are playing music. It’s quirky.

Link to Elaine’s music – reverbnation.com/elainecolella

Photo credit: Annella Linton
Interview: Annella Linton