Pioneer Public Television's Postcards is an award winning  weekly art, culture and history program showcasing the people and communities of western and southwestern Minnesota. ThePostcards production team consisting of Senior Producer Dana Johnson and Videographer/Editors Ben Dempcy and Kristofor Gieske have plans to visit several communities in the next few weeks to gather stories for Postcards Season 7 which will begin airing in December 2015.

On Monday and Tuesday, July 7 & 8, the Postcards team will be in the Pipestone area to record stories about Pipestone carver Rhonda Johnston, Wet Plate Photographer Dave Rambo and painter and set designer Tammy Grubbs.

On Saturday July 11 the Postcards team will be in Alexandria recording the Minnesota Lakes Classic Boat Show at the Arrowwood Resort & Conference Center on Lake Darling.

On Monday July 13, the Postcards team will be in Worthington to capture a story about Miniatures artist Kimberly Jansen.

On July 17 & 18, the Postcards Team will be in Hutchinson to collect stories surrounding the Riversong Music Festival and the Crow River Winery.

On July 21, the Postcards Team will be spending the day in Sauk Centre to collect a number of stories about Sinclair Lewis and the many jewels to be found in that historic community.

On August 5- 9 Pioneer's Mobile Studio, under the direction of Production Director Timothy Hale Bakken, will travel to the El Rancho Manana Campground near Richmond, Minnesota to record the Minnesota Old Time Music and Bluegrass Festival.

And on August 28 - 30  Pioneer's production crew will be recording the 4 H at the State Fair program for 2015 which will air during National 4 H week on Thursday, October 8 at 7:30 p.m.

If you are interested in meeting up to talk with Pioneer Production staff as they ply their craft helping to lift up, document and celebrate the creative economy of the region, please call Patrick Moore at 320-289-2919  320-841-1487 (cell) or email pmoore@pioneer.org and he will place you in contact with them.

About Pioneer Public Television
Established in 1966, Pioneer Public TV is an award-winning, viewer-supported television station dedicated to sharing local stories of the region with the world.   For more information visit:  www.pioneer.org.

Producer Laura Kay Prosser was born in Crystal, Minnesota and received a B.A. in English Literature and Journalism from the University of Minnesota Duluth.  Most recently she worked as the Lifestyles Editor for the Greenwood Mississippi Commonwealth and was co-editor of the Clara City Herald and the Raymond Prinsburg News.  While at the Herald, Prosser earned first and second place prizes for her stories in the Arts & Entertainment category in the 2013 Minnesota Newspaper Association Better Newspaper Competition.

Prosser will be working to develop and launch a new public affairs program for Pioneer Public TV.  “The opportunity to use video to tell community based stories of importance to the region is absolutely thrilling for me, “ said Prosser.  “It definitely feels like this is where I am supposed to be,” she added.

The Telly Awards has named Pioneer Public Television as a Silver Award winner in the Film/Video Social Responsibility Category in the 36th Annual Telly Awards for the documentary Haiti Love which traces the story of Jay and Kris TeBrake of rural Prinsburg, Minnesota as they adopt two girls from an orphanage in Haiti.

The Telly is made by the same company that produces the Oscar™ and the Telly Silver is the highest award given. Less than 10% of entries are chosen as winners of the Silver Telly from a pool of  hundreds of entries from all 50 states and numerous countries. 

“The Telly Awards has a mission to honor the very best in film and video,” said Linda Day, Executive Director of the Telly Awards.  “Pioneer’s accomplishment illustrates their creativity, skill, and dedication to their craft and serves as a testament to great film and video production.”

Pioneer’s Senior Producer Dana Johnson produced and directed the documentary, Dan Huiting was the director of photography with additional videography by Kristofor Gieske.   Kevin Russell was the editor for the program which originally aired on Mother’s Day in May, 2014.  The entire video can be viewed online at  video.pioneer.org/video/2365244418/.

The first episode of the new seven-part classic romance on PBS: POLDARK ON MASTERPIECE will be shown in a special sneak preview screening event to be held on Thursday, June 11 with the screening beginning at 5:45 p.m. at the Center for Active Living at 211 11th St in Worthington, Minnesota. Doors open at 5:00 p.m. and participants are invited to come early and enjoy free appetizers and refreshments. Pioneer Public Television is co-sponsoring the event in cooperation with Compassionate Care Hospice, Minnesota West Community and Technical College and the Center for Active Living.  The event is free and open to the public.  For more information, contact Nicole Zempel, Pioneer Public TV Community Relations Representative at  320-212-3945.

British comedies and dramas continue to hold court Sunday nights on PBS: POLDARK ON MASTERPIECE is a swashbuckling new adaptation of the iconic hit series that premieres nationwide on June 21 at 9:00 p.m. on Pioneer. The re-imagined saga stars Aidan Turner (The Hobbit) as the dashing squire Ross Poldark and includes original “Poldark” protagonist Robin Ellis as Reverend Halse.

Poldark is based on a beloved series of novels by Winston Graham. The first, Ross Poldark, was published in 1945; the last, Bella Poldark, appeared in 2002, the year before Graham’s death.  All twelve novels trace the fortunes of a landed, mine-owning family in windswept Cornwall two centuries ago.

Almost 40 years ago Captain Ross Poldark galloped across the TV screens of millions of PBS viewers, vexing villains and winning female hearts in one of MASTERPIECE’s earliest hit series. Now the gallant captain rides again in a thrilling new version with all the action, adventure, and romance of the original, plus even more spectacular Cornish scenery and rousing local color.  The first episode of the series will begin as Ross Poldark, a redcoat who returns to Cornwall after the American Revolutionary War, discovers that his father is dead, his lands are ruined and his true love is about to marry his first cousin.

“We are delighted to be able to offer this sneak preview screening to the Worthington community in partnership with some fantastic local organizations,” said Zempel.  “There is only one of these special screenings happening in our viewing area which covers parts of 5 states, and the energy to host such an event is alive and well in Worthington,” she added.

Established in 1966, Pioneer Public TV is an award-winning, viewer-supported television station dedicated to sharing local stories of the region with the world.  For more information visit www.pioneer.org.