Who We Are - Maine Trust for Local News

Donna Loring, Bradley

Donna is an elder/ former Council member of the Penobscot Indian Nation. She was the Nation’s Representative to the Maine State Legislature for over a decade.

She authored “An Act to Require Teaching Maine Native American History and Culture in Maine’s Schools” and "In The Shadow of the Eagle a Tribal Representative in Maine". She hosts her own radio show, Wabanaki Windows at WERU Community Radio in Orland.

She has written a play Mary and Molly Premiered at the Portland Museum of Art produced as a digital short film by Speedwell Contemporary. She holds two Honorary Degrees from the University of Maine and Thomas College.

Roger Katz, Augusta

Roger Katz is an Augusta trial lawyer who has also served as Mayor and State Senator.

A proud graduate of Cony High School, Katz earned his BA from Harvard College and his law degree from Boston University. Katz is a former president of the Maine Trial Lawyers Association.

Following four years as Mayor, Katz was elected to the Maine State Senate from 2010-2018, serving in Republican Senate leadership, on the Appropriations Committee and chairing the Government Oversight Committee and Marijuana Legalization Implementation Committee.

Roger previously hosted “The Maine Event” – a weekly statewide program on Maine Public Television that explored Maine politics and public policy.

Roger is married to Ericka Katz. He has two adult children, Jonathan and Shari, and four grandchildren.

Karen Miller Pensiero, Mount Desert

Karen Miller Pensiero is a veteran news leader with a career focused on upholding journalism standards and ethics.

Pensiero spent most of her work life at The Wall Street Journal, which she left in 2023 after over five years as managing editor. She previously held a variety of positions at the Journal and its parent company, Dow Jones, including standards editor, Money & Markets editor for Europe and director of corporate communications.

Pensiero is senior advisor for NYU’s Ethics & Journalism Initiative and serves on boards, including the Missourian Publishing Association, Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism CUNY Foundation, and Center for Ethical Leadership in Media. She has judged the Pulitzer Prize and the Ancil Payne Award for Ethics in Journalism.

She and her family live in Mount Desert and New Jersey.

Georges Budago Makoko, Westbrook

Georges is the founder and President of Ladder to the Moon Network and co-founder and publisher of Amjambo Africa. Georges was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo and moved to Rwanda in 1994 due to political unrest in his country. He graduated from National University of Rwanda with a degree in Business Administration, and moved to the United States in 2002, where he sought and received asylum. He is the author of Ladder to the Moon: Journey from the Congo to America, a book about his life. Georges worked as Senior Property Manager with Avesta Housing for 15 years. In 2012, he was awarded Site Manager of the Year, a joint award from the United States Department of Agriculture Rural Housing Service and Maine Rural Development. He is currently the Director of Residential Services at Serenity Residential Care, LLC. He has worked with the Governor office of Policy Innovation and the Future as community outreach coordinator in the initial process of establishing the office of New Americans in Maine.

He serves as a motivational speaker and professional interpreter, and speaks more than six languages, including English, French, Swahili, Kinyarwanda, Kirundi, Lingala and Kinyamulenge. He strongly believes in advocating for peace, reconciliation, and justice for all.

Josephine Katandula, Portland

My name is Josephine Katandula. I’ve lived in Maine for almost ten years, originally hailing from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Transitioning from two seasons to four has been quite a journey. I’ve made friends and have called Maine my home ever since. I’ve been in the banking industry for three years; currently, I serve as the community development and CRA coordinator for Bangor Savings Bank. Before this, I worked in the social service division as a Financial Eligibility Specialist for Portland. My alma mater is the University of Southern Maine, where I graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, majoring in Business Management and Finance. I’m an active volunteer, serving as an assistant treasurer for JARME and contributing to the Immigrant Welcome Center and my alumni engagement council, among other activities.

Sam Hight, Skowhegan

Sam graduated from Skowhegan Area High School and earned his B.A. in economics from Bowdoin College, graduating Magna Cum Laude with Phi Beta Kappa honors. He was an investment banker with Deutsche Bank in Boston before returning to Skowhegan in 2008 to start Hight Ford, part of the Hight Family of Dealerships begun by his great-grandfather Walter H. Hight in 1911. He is now Dealer Principal at Hight Ford and Hight Chevrolet Farmington, and part owner of Hight Properties LLC and LINE-X of Skowhegan, and 55 Weston Avenue LLC. Sam and his wife, Amanda, live in Norridgewock at Somerview Farm with their six-year old daughter, Hadley, poodle, Maple, goldendoodle, Willow, and their goat friends. He serves on other boards including Redington Fairview General Hospital, Skowhegan Savings Bank and its charitable foundation, the Somerset County Jail Board of Visitors, Educare Central Maine, the Skowhegan Regional Chamber of Commerce, Governor appointed Paid Family and Medical Leave Authority, Governor appointed Motor Vehicle Franchise Board, and is Chair of Maine Automobile Dealers Association. Sam focuses on community development through economic initiatives such as new business development, affordable housing, volunteerism, and philanthropy.

Shanna Cox, Lewiston

Shanna Cox, President and CEO, Lewiston Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce.

Shanna creates and implements strategies to attract and develop businesses, enhance quality of life, and grow the economy of Androscoggin County. Pulling on her experience as a community developer, small business owner, and strategy consultant, she is grateful to be able to use her UMaine Economic degree in her daily work. Shanna lives in Lewiston Maine with 4 sons, partner, and dog – endlessly tackling DIY projects in their 1912 Craftsman Bungalow.

Mark Stodder, Cape Elizabeth

Mark Stodder is a builder of local news and information businesses, leader of government technology startups, and former news media executive who cares deeply about transparency in government, civic engagement, and preserving and reinventing local news and civic information platforms. He is a consultant for information companies, advising on growth and acquisition strategies and the challenges of technology and product modernization. Mark earlier served as president of Xcential Legislative Technologies, which drove modernization of core lawmaking systems in legislatures and regulatory agencies in the U.S. and around the world. Prior to that, he was executive vice president of Dolan Media Company, leading the company’s newspaper and digital information operations across the U.S. Beginning his career as a community newspaper reporter and photographer, he went on to lead newspaper groups in Colorado, Southern California and Wisconsin. He has been an active volunteer with student journalism organizations and state press associations and with groups focused on freedom of information legislative challenges. He lives in Cape Elizabeth with his wife, author Muna Shehadi Sill.

Jenn Thorn

Vice President, Human Resources

Jenn is focused on all aspects of the employee experience from an employee’s first day with the company through retirement. She believes in supporting each person to do their best work by offering comprehensive benefit plans, employee engagement, and developing an open, inquisitive, caring culture. Jenn is proud to be a part of our growing diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, and our continued commitment to building positive and strong relationships with our labor unions. Jenn was born and raised in Maine, leaving briefly to attend college in Boston and experience life in a big city. After graduation, she realized that her heart longed to return to Maine and make it the place she calls home.

Andrew Dicentes

Vice President, IT & Facilities

Andrew’s responsibilities include systems administration, managing capital and expense budgets as well the facilities department and budget, contracts, vendors and continuous efforts to find the best solutions. He focuses on helpdesk, infrastructure, system security and availability. Andrew was born and raised in Maine and loves the outdoors, from the beaches to the mountains and the farmland in between.

Allison McCann

Vice President, Business Development

The focus of the Business Development group is to create and maximize advertising revenue opportunities for our sales teams. Allison’s team leverages all METLN properties and capabilities to create new sales opportunities broadly, as well as develop strategic, creative solutions to meet individual client needs. In addition, she oversees the Branded Content Studio, which creates sponsored content for advertisers across all platforms, and the Live Events team, which hosts experiences to deepen the connection between our newsrooms, readers and sponsors. Allison came to the Press Herald after nine years at The Boston Globe. After living in downtown Boston, she was eager for green space, visible stars at night and a yard for her dog.

Courtney Spencer

Vice President, Advertising

Courtney leads and supports a dynamic sales team that connects advertisers to readers and supports our journalistic mission. Her team develops custom, integrated campaigns across our suite of publications and websites that produce results for our clients. Courtney moved to Maine in 1991 thinking she would stay two to three years before heading back West, where she was born, but fell in love with the people and the place.

Jody Jalbert

Publisher & General Manager, Community Weeklies

As publisher, Jody’s focus is to build on the local strength and character of the Sun Journal and Western Maine Weekly brands by ensuring their vitality for our employees, readers and the local business community. Jody places a particular emphasis on community news and believes that producing the best products possible ensures our readers and advertisers will continue to support the important mission of our newsroom. Jody is a lifelong resident of Lewiston.

Judy Meyer

Executive Editor (Sun Journal, Kennebec Journal, and Morning Sentinel)

Judy oversees the newsrooms of three daily papers and a group of weeklies. She previously served as the Sun Journal’s managing editor/days, editorial page editor, special projects editor and Oxford County bureau chief. She started her career as a freelance writer and page designer. Judy is president of the Maine Freedom of Information Coalition and a member of the Right to Know Advisory Committee to the Legislature, and serves on the Courts & Media Committee working to protect and preserve access to public records and proceedings. She is a member of the boards of the New England Newspaper & Press Association and the New England First Amendment Coalition. She was inducted into the Maine Press Association Hall of Fame in 2021.

Steve Greenlee

Executive Editor

Steve oversees the newsroom of the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram, the state’s largest newsgathering operation. Steve joined the Press Herald – for the second time – as managing editor in 2012 and became the executive editor in 2021. He has directed some of the Press Herald’s most important work, including an investigation that won the prestigious Loeb Award and a project that was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize. Before moving back to Portland, Steve spent 12 years as an editor at The Boston Globe, where he led a team of award-winning reporters and editors whose work received national acclaim. In the 1990s Steve held a variety of positions at the Press Herald, including features editor, city editor, night city editor and City Hall reporter. Steve grew up in Warwick, R.I., and graduated from the University of Rhode Island. He is also a jazz critic and a musician who plays in the bands Sons of Quint and Under the Covers.

Matt Fulton

Chief Audience Officer

In his role, Matt oversees the consumer marketing and digital product development teams and their efforts to drive audience growth, engagement, subscribership, and retention. He previously worked in various development and technical leadership roles in advertising and digital media, including The Boston Globe, where he served as Manager of Advertising Technology. Matt and his wife live in North Yarmouth with their three daughters.

Stefanie Manning

Chief of Staff

Stefanie fosters collaboration while contributing to the strategic direction of the Maine Trust for Local News. She serves as a liaison between departments, facilitates communication and helps execute key initiatives while leading the human resources, creative services, communication and fundraising/development teams. Stefanie also serves on the boards for the Local Media Consortium, Portland Public Library and Press Herald Toy Fund. Stefanie spent most of her publishing career in New York City, most recently as Associate Publisher of O, The Oprah Magazine at Hearst, for 13 years. Stefanie and her family moved to Maine in 2013 to take advantage of life the way it should be – she’s been working to sustain local journalism in Maine since.

Lisa DeSisto

CEO & Publisher

Lisa oversees the publishing of five daily newspapers in Maine – the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram, Morning Sentinel, Kennebec Journal, Sun Journal and Times Record – and their websites. The network also includes 17 weekly newspapers and a commercial printing operation in South Portland. Together the Maine Trust for Local News papers constitute the largest news-gathering organization in northern New England and reach most of Maine’s residents. The Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram, the state’s largest newspaper, has in recent years won some of journalism’s top awards, including the Loeb Award and the Polk Award, and was a finalist for a Pulitzer in 2016. Lisa serves on the board of the Associated Press and the board of the Portland Regional Chamber. She hosts a live event series, “Like A Boss,” in which she interviews other Maine CEOs on their leadership principles. Before joining us in November 2012, Lisa spent 17 years at The Boston Globe, where she served as chief advertising officer and vice president/general manager for Boston.com. A native of Stoneham, Massachusetts, she is a 1985 graduate of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Lisa lives with her family and a herd of alpacas in North Yarmouth.

Amy Lamb

Group Vice President, Financial Planning & Analysis

Amy oversees the financial reporting and budgeting process, produces analytics and financial models to provide key insights and inform executive level strategic planning, and is the project lead on initiatives that streamline processes, enhance productivity and execute cross-company strategies. Amy was born and raised in Aroostook County, earned a degree in business economics from University of Maine at Farmington, and started down the career path in financial research and analytics after working with the Maine Health Research Institute. She lives in Brunswick with her husband and three children.

Michael Ivancic

Group Vice President, Production

Michael has more than 25 years of experience in newspaper production management. From 2000 to 2010 he worked with Freedom Communications as the operations director of The Gaston Gazette and The Shelby Star. Prior to that he held various roles throughout his 14 years with Dow Jones at The Wall Street Journal. Mike earned his degree in newspaper production management from the Rochester Institute of Technology and a degree in electrical engineering technology from Mohawk Valley Community College in Utica, N.Y. He lives in Lyman with his, wife, Stacey and their son, Zack.

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