Next Event:
Can Someone Tell Me Where the US Stands on Vaccines? Changes in Federal Guidelines and Implications for Our Nation’s Public Health
Dr. Katelyn Jetelina, MPH, PhD, and Dr. Dora Anne Mills, MD, MPH
Monday, Mar 30, 2026 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Freeport Performing Arts Center
Dr. Katelyn Jetelina, MPH, PhD, known online as "Your Local Epidemiologist", is a prominent epidemiologist, data scientist and science communicator who gained widespread recognition for her analysis and translation of complex scientific data during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Dora Anne Mills is the Chief Health Improvement Officer at MaineHealth. She is a board-certified pediatrician and a prominent figure in Maine's public health landscape, having served as the Director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention for 15 years.
Lead Sponsors for this event are Dr. Ross W. Greene and Jenny McBrady
Welcome to Our 2026 Season!
To become a Freeport Speech financial supporter – which provides you tickets for all our events - click "Join Us" below.
Our fifth season finds us, once again, coming together to explore a range of topics—urgent, complex, compelling, and sometimes even entertaining or uplifting. We are pleased to announce the events below for our 2026 season. Watch this space for an additional discussion in the works on the rule of law—What is it, exactly? How much does it matter? Are we in danger of losing it? Tickets are on sale now for our first event on vaccines March 30 and generally go on sale about a month before each event. We hope you’ll join us.
Can Someone Tell Me Where the US Stands on Vaccines? Changes in Federal Guidelines and Implications for Our Nation’s Public Health
Dr. Katelyn Jetelina, MPH, PhD, and Dr. Dora Anne Mills, MD, MPH
Monday, Mar 30, 2026 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Freeport Performing Arts Center (30 Holbrook St, Freeport, ME)
Dr. Katelyn Jetelina, MPH, PhD, known online as "Your Local Epidemiologist", is a prominent epidemiologist, data scientist and science communicator who gained widespread recognition for her analysis and translation of complex scientific data during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Dora Anne Mills is the Chief Health Improvement Officer at MaineHealth. She is a board-certified pediatrician and a prominent figure in Maine's public health landscape, having served as the Director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention for 15 years.
Lead Sponsors for this event are Dr. Ross W. Greene and Jenny McBrady
Are You Cyber-Savvy? Understanding the Geopolitics and Personal Threats of Cyber Attacks
Nathaniel Fick and Rachel Wilson
Wednesday, May 20, 2026 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Freeport Performing Arts Center (30 Holbrook St, Freeport, ME)
Nathaniel Fick, a Maine resident, former American diplomat, technology executive and author of the memoir One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine Officer, Ambassador Fick was selected to lead the U.S. State Department's Bureau for Cyberspace and Digital Policy in 2022. Ambassador Fick will be joined by Rachel Wilson, Head of Cybersecurity for Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. Ms. Wilson transitioned from a career leading counter-terrorism and cyber-exploitation missions at the National Security Agency to protecting the financial sector.
Have we Overreached our Planetary Boundaries? A Conversation on Sustainability
Katherine Richardson and Deborah Bronk
Thursday, Jun 18, 2026 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Freeport Performing Arts Center (30 Holbrook St, Freeport, ME)
Dr. Katherine Richardson hails from a family of distinguished Mainers and is an eminent professor at the University of Copenhagen and leader of its Sustainability Science Center, whose work bridges the gap between marine science and global climate policy. She will discuss global sustainability with Dr. Deborah Bronk, CEO and President of Maine’s Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences.
From the Wilds to the Words: How Living in a Positive State Makes for Good Storytelling
Jenny Finney Boylan and Ernest Thompson
Thursday, Jul 16, 2026 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Kresge Auditorium, Bowdoin (239 Maine St, Brunswick, ME)
Ernest Thompson, Oscar-winning author of ON GOLDEN POND and his new novel OUT CLAUSE, and Jennifer Finney Boylan, author of SHE’S NOT THERE and co-author (with Jodi Picoult) of MAD HONEY, discuss the ways Maine has shaped their lives and stories.
Promise and Peril: The US and the Middle East
Aaron David Miller, Jon Allen and Jackie Northam
Thursday, Aug 20, 2026 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Freeport Performing Arts Center (30 Holbrook St, Freeport, ME)
Aaron David Miller is a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, focusing on U.S. foreign policy. Dr Miller served at the State Department as an historian, analyst, negotiator and advisor to Republican and Democratic secretaries of state, where he helped formulate U.S. policy on the Middle East and the Arab-Israel peace process. Ambassador Jon Allen spent his career as a Canadian diplomat and was Ambassador of Canada to Israel. He is currently a Fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs in Toronto. Jackie Northam is a veteran International Affairs Correspondent for NPR.
We Might As Well Laugh…
Lew Schneider and Brett Pierce
Wednesday, Sep 2, 2026 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Kresge Auditorium, Bowdoin (239 Maine St, Brunswick, ME)
Lew Schneider is an American television producer, writer, director, actor and comedian. Schneider began writing for television in 1993. His credits include The George Wendt Show, The John Larroquette Show, The Naked Truth, The New Adventures of Old Christine and The Goldbergs. He wrote for Everybody Loves Raymond, receiving two Emmys as part of the production team. Brett Pierce is an educator, program developer, writer, producer and founder of Meridian Stories, a digital storytelling nonprofit. He worked extensively in educational and social impact projects for Sesame Workshop and PeaceTech Lab.
Women at the Helm of Space Travel: Is There Room in the Celestial Sandbox for Public and Private Exploration?
Darby Dyar, Tara Ruttley and Pamela Ann Melroy
Thursday, Oct 1, 2026 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Location TBD
Dr. Darby Dyar is a prominent planetary geologist, mineralogist, and spectroscopist and is currently the Deputy Principal Investigator for NASA’s VERITAS mission to Venus. Dr. Tara Ruttley is a scientist and engineer who currently serves as the Chief Scientist for Orbital Reef at Blue Origin, where she guides the scientific vision for a next-generation commercial space station. Pamela Melroy is a retired U.S. Air Force Colonel and former NASA astronaut who most recently served as the Deputy Administrator of NASA and is one of only two women to have commanded the Space Shuttle.
2026 Lead Sponsors
Bath Savings Institution |
Gregory Boulos |
Joseph Boulos |
Gladys Cofrin and Dr. Dan Logan |
The Dara Jeanne Kaufman Fund |
Marion Freeman and Corson Ellis |
Dr. Ross W. Greene and Jenny McBrady |
Legacy Properties Sotheby’s International Realty |
Ineke Schair |
David Douglas Stone |
Robert and Joan Carpenter Troccoli |
Joseph and Carol Wishcamper |
Amy Woodhouse and Tobey Scott |
2026 Community Sponsors
Polly Bakewell |
Liza Bakewell |
Paul Biberstein |
Kathy Biberstein |
Joe and Maury Bohan |
Jack and Katherine Emory |
Marcia Feller and Bob Murray |
Lori Garon and Timothy Cloudman |
Ret. Amb. Robert Gelbard and Alene Gelbard |
Sara and Ben Gideon |
Peggy Greenhut Golden |
Martin and Shayla Haines |
Gordie and Judy Hamlin |
Ret. Adm. Gregory Johnson and Carol Hancock |
Jenna Klein Jonsson and Glenn Jonsson |
Amanda and Nicholas Kent |
Michael Lamprecht |
Charlie and Eliza Lee |
Arnie Macdonald and Liza Moore |
Elizabeth McLellan |
Col. Joseph and Janet Moan |
Fred and Pat Palmer |
Chris Parker |
John and Dean Paterson |
Beth Reuman and Rick Hemond |
Tom and Rita Saliba |
Dr. Nirav Shah and Kara Palamountain |
David Soley and Deb Coppinger |
Clayton Spencer |
Barrett Takesian and Qamer Hussein |
Susan Thornton and Michael Joseph Daley |
Vistage |
CONTACT
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Freeport Speech
PO Box 284
South Freeport, ME 04078, USA