Portland Helmich

History

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1 year 30 weeks

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Personal Information

State

MA

Bio

I guess you could say I've explored storytelling from all sides -- as a television host, reporter, and producer and as a writer, radio announcer, voice-over artist, and actress.

I began investigating alternative and complementary medicine and therapies a decade ago. As host of "Journeys Into Healing," a series of 26 half-hours that I created and produced for Wisdom Television, I interviewed scores of healers, natural health experts, and their clients. I've worked as an alternative medicine correspondent for Oxygen Media, hosted "Vermont’s Alternative Fix" on Vermont Public Television, and interviewed nationally known leaders in the holistic healing movement for "Omega Presents." As a producer, I've further explored the subject for "HealthWeek" and "Healing Quest" on PBS and as a medical producer at WCVB-TV, Boston's ABC news affiliate. I've also written for Alternative Medicine, Body & Soul, and Spa magazines.

I was Barry Nolan's fill-in host on "Nitebeat," a live evening talk show covering all topics on the Comcast Network. I also spent a few years hosting "Rural Free Delivery," a magazine series about rural Vermont life on Vermont Public Television. I've been a reporter for "The American Consumer" on PBS and a segment host on "American Builder," a Comcast home improvement series.

For "New Morning", a magazine show on the Hallmark Channel, I've produced many uplifting stories about people who find the spiritual in everyday life.

I know this sounds like a lot of TV, but for about three years (2002 - 2005) I also worked in public radio on a freelance basis. I filled in as a local news host during NPR programs like "Morning Edition" and "All Things Considered" and "Marketplace" at WGBH, 89.7 FM Boston. I read the news there, grantor credits, weather reports, that kind of thing. I have always wanted to find a way to do interviews on public radio. They are my passion, no doubt.

I've done countless commercial and corporate voice-overs. Credits include: Fidelity, Hewlett-Packard, Mellon Financial Corporation, Prentice Hall, the American Red Cross, and the PBS series, "The War That Made America."

I began my career as an actress, studying at Circle-in-the-Square Theatre School at New York University. I've performed on stage, in commercials, small films, and on soap operas like "All My Children."

I hold a BFA in acting from New York University and an MA in Teaching English as a Second Language from St. Michael's College in Vermont.

What's your favorite public radio show?

Fresh Air -- hands down. I love Terry Gross. She has a genuine curiosity about her guests that allows them to reveal themselves. And her ability to listen between the lines, to what people are not saying, or to the emotion behind what they're saying allows her to ask original questions, not just the next question on a preproduced list. She creates an atmosphere of intimacy that allows the listener to feel as if they're eavesdropping on a private conversation. She's simply the best.

What's your secret talent?

Photographic memory.

Which station do you listen to most?

WGBH, 89.7 FM Boston, where I've worked

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