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From Wonderwoman and Lois Lane to Cathy and Veronica Lodge, there have been no shortage of women represented in comics. In the new book, “Women in Comics,” authors Nhora Lucia Serrano and Portland State University’s Susan E. Kirtley explore the history of not only the women on the page, but the authors behind them. Using archetypes commonly found in comic books, Kirtley and Serrano look at some of the most influential women that have changed the medium. Kirtley joins us to share more on the book and the impact women have had on the industry.

Portland’s Alano Club is dedicated to helping people recover from alcoholism, addiction and mental health disorders. It serves 10,000 people a month with meetings, classes, workshops and other activities and programs. Founded in 1947, it’s the oldest and largest such recovery nonprofit in the country.   Several years ago, a participant in its programs decided to start bringing naloxone from the Alano Club and distribute it to bars and restaurants whenever she could. When the executive director got wind of this effort, he immediately began writing grants and invited her to run a formal program to provide naloxone to communities all over the state. Those initial efforts became Project Red, which now works with organizations in all 36 Oregon counties to get the life-saving medicine to as many people as possible. Like many 501-C3s, it lost a significant portion of federal funding, which nearly ended the program. But recent grants from Boulder Care and Pearl Jam’s Vitalogy Foundation have enabled the expansion of the program and guaranteed its operations through 2027.   Kasey Anderson is the executive director of the Alano Club of Portland. He joins us to tell us more about the nonprofit’s work and how Project Red became integral to distributing naloxone throughout Oregon.

Between AI chatbots, social media influencers and websites offering medical advice, it can be difficult to parse the vast amount of health information online. It also presents a challenge to physicians and other healthcare providers who are fielding questions from patients based on what they’ve read online.   Kristin Whitman is the head of information and learning services at the Oregon Health & Science University Library. Fabrice Jotterand directs the university’s Center for Ethics in Health Care. They join us to offer advice on how to navigate chatbots and other online resources in health-related situations.

At a time when many rural hospitals are either closing or merging with larger, urban health systems, a group of Oregon hospitals want to try something different.   Eleven hospitals and health systems are asking for state approval to form a clinically integrated network. They say the partnership will allow them to share resources while maintaining their independence.    Landon Dybdal is the CEO of Lake Health District and the chair of the proposed Cascade High Value Network. Nate White is the CEO and president of Cibolo Health, which has helped establish these networks in other states. They both join us to talk about the new partnership.

The Major League Baseball playoffs began on Tuesday. As fans around the nation watch the action, one lifelong fan of the sport in Sisters is busy fielding emails or answering calls to see if he might be available to talk baseball, or rather, baseball cards.    Michael Blesius is the owner of Sports Card Ink, a store in downtown Sisters that specializes in vintage baseball cards and is open for just about three hours a week, by appointment only. Blesius opened it roughly six years ago as a place to house – by his estimation – nearly 2 million baseball cards he has collected over the decades, along with sports memorabilia dating to the 19th century.    The Bulletin recently profiled Blesius, who refers to Sports Card Ink as his “high blood pressure medicine” and a place for making connections, not profits. A good day at work might be spent appraising a collection, hearing stories from a retired professional player, or giving away cards to children who never got to see Willie Mays make an over-the-shoulder catch at the Polo Grounds.

The future of a new homeless shelter in Grants Pass is in question after the shelter and the organization providing wraparound services ended their working agreement. Under the terms of a lawsuit settlement, Grants Pass is required to provide space for 150 unhoused people in the city, which the shelter is meant to fulfill.   The shelter, known as Parker’s Place Village, is required to provide case management, housing navigation and other wraparound services in addition to basic needs such as clean drinking water, around-the-clock staffing and sanitation. Local organization MINT agreed to provide those services and was already paying for security, utility and trash service at the shelter. But it will end those services Oct. 15.   Reporter Jane Vaughan has been covering these developments for Jefferson Public Radio. She joins us with more details.

Mazama Energy, a Texas-based geothermal company, has recently secured more than $135 million to dig deeper and harvest heat for renewable energy. Project Ceres, which the funding will be put toward, is a horizontal well development in Central Oregon and could generate more than 15 megawatts of power next year. That’s enough to power 4,500 homes. OPB climate reporter Monica Samayoa joins us to share more on geothermal energy in Oregon and its future.

Tape Op is an independently published magazine about the art and science of recording music founded 30 years ago and edited by Portland music producer and studio owner Larry Crane. The magazine features interviews with the skilled technicians and creative minds who help bands and artists realize their vision in the recording studio. The albums they’ve worked on span decades and genres, from hip-hop to bluegrass, pop to death metal and more.    “Making Music: Conversations with Record Producers,” is a newly published collection of interviews from the Tape Op archives. Crane co-edited the book with Tape Op publisher John Baccigaluppi. It contains two dozen conversations Crane and others did with producers who’ve worked with artists like U2, Kendrick Lamar and The Beatles. Crane joins us to share the enduring appeal of Tape Op and the songs that still inspire him in the studio and beyond.

A course at Portland Community College is currently being taught where students use styrofoam, clays, paints and their imaginations to create “haunted” charcuterie boards adorned with fake moldy cheeses, unappetizing crackers and rancid-looking slices of deli meats.    Olivia Vavroch, a Portland artist, teacher and theater designer, is teaching the Halloween-themed class. The Portland Mercury recently profiled Vavroch in its Fall Arts issue, describing the career transition she made into the world of theater several years ago after contracting long COVID-19. Vavroch designs and dresses sets, specializing in making custom theater props that include fake foods like cake or lasagna that can help bring depth to performances and layers of authenticity to the story. She is also one of dozens of artists whose work is being featured in “Inconvenience Store,” an interactive art exhibit currently taking place inside a former 7-Eleven in downtown Seattle.    Vavroch joins us to share more details about the delicious art of making fake food.

More than 2,500 zoo and aquarium professionals will gather in Portland this week for the annual Association of Zoos and Aquariums conference.The nonprofit organization is dedicated to advocating for the advancement of zoos and aquariums, as well as being the accrediting body for high-standards of care for animals. Dan Ashe is the president and CEO of the AZA. He joins us to discuss the role of zoos today and their future.

Public school districts across the region are facing dropping enrollment, budget cuts, and other financial strains. Many districts are planning for school consolidation and closures as a solution. Closing schools is one way to preserve resources and balance budgets, but it’s a deeply personal matter to families, teachers, administrators, and the broader community. Two of the school districts that have announced they’re weighing options for school closures in coming years: Evergreen Public Schools in Washington, and Salem-Keizer in Oregon. We speak with Will Denner, education reporter at The Columbian, as well as Eddy Binford-Ross, a Report for America Corps member who covers education for the Salem Reporter. They share more about the challenges the districts are facing and the solutions they’re deliberating.

Menopause is one of the biggest transitions women go through, and for some, the most difficult. For many, it’s a challenge to get medical care and other support during those years. That’s because research and education about menopause and perimenopause has been severely lacking, as well as the cultural space to center women’s experiences — particularly around menses, perimenopause and menopause.   Oregon author Lidia Yuknavitch aims to expand that space with a new book of essays she edited. “The Big M” is a collection by 13 different writers reflecting on their experiences of menopause and perimenopause. The book uses these distinct but unified perspectives to rebrand and reinvent our understanding of “the big change.”   Portland authors Cheryl Strayed and Monica Drake contributed their stories to the book. They join us, along with Yuknavitch, to discuss their essays and their perspectives about the cultural conversation about menopause.

George Saunders’ biting, imaginative short stories and novels have made him one of America’s most celebrated authors. His 2017 novel “Lincoln in the Bardo,” which won the Man Booker Prize, follows Abraham Lincoln as he grapples with a host of spirits following his son’s death. In his most recent novel, “Vigil,” Saunders returns to the afterlife to explore corporate greed, climate change and the nature of salvation.    Saunders joins us to talk about life, death and everything in between in front of a live audience of students at Portland’s McDaniel High School.

Freddy Trujillo has a long history in Portland. Originally from California, he moved to Portland in 1993 and has made a name for himself as a bassist. He has performed with Richmond Fontaine and the Delines, but his latest work is a solo project.   “Ave Trujillo,” his fifth solo album, will be released Friday. It is shaped and inspired by his love of avian creatures and birding, which he uses to tell stories of grief, displacement and environmental change. Trujillo joins us to share more on his latest album and gives an in-studio performance.

Retiree Christina Maier moved from Portland five years ago to Tollgate, a subdivision two miles west of Sisters surrounded by the Deschutes National Forest. She quickly set to work helping her community improve its wildfire resiliency, starting with her own home. Nearly two years ago, it became the first home in Oregon to receive a Wildfire Prepared Home designation by the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety. She has also made fire risk assessments on 175 properties in Tollgate and won a state grant to remove diseased ponderosa pines and conduct other forest thinning work.    Maier is now receiving national recognition for her wildfire resiliency efforts. Last week, she was named one of 10 finalists in the national Neighbor of the Year contest sponsored by Neighbors Bank, which will award $20,000 to the winner. Maier was nominated by Kellen Klein, executive director of Sisters nonprofit Citizens4Community. (Klein was interviewed on “Think Out Loud” last September to talk about community-building efforts and recovery from the Flat Fire.)     Maier joins us to discuss her nomination and efforts to help her neighbors.