It was a tumultuous autumn, but we still have good news to report from the field. The death of a senator has brought out a sequence of tribute programs on MTN. These include a 1990 campaign speech from his first term, a recent visit to Lucille's Forum, a very recent Q&A from the Somali community with the late Senator answering in the Somali language, and finally the spontaneous outpouring of sympathy captured on the capitol steps in St. Paul that last Friday in October. Just two weeks before the small plane went down outside of Eveleth, we celebrated a wedding, home-grown right here at MTN. Producer Patrice Winston, creator of "Turn or Burn," "Sword of the Spirit," and "Difference Makers," has wed her co-host, Brother Jerome Love. The program "MTN Update" will feature an 18 minute A/B roll (two simultaneous cameras) edit of the unification ceremony of these two individual personalities in the coming weeks. It's good medicine & fine entertainment! Also at MTN this fall, we bid adieu to Samson Tsehaye with a farewell dinner party for him at the Kilimanjaro Cafe in the West Bank neighborhood. Samson has moved to Florida, challenging himself to pursue a degree in high-end computer animation at a school near Orlando. We thank him for his four years of dedicated work as checkout staff employee, and his work in playback, quickly training in to fill a shift or two weekly at MTN master control. He intended to write a letter from his point of view for "The Monitor," but his class schedule is very intense with quizzes, mid-terms & finals on the way. He did send word of his gratitude for the opportunity of working with such a fine group of producers, co-workers, and guests of MTN. He feels he learned much about life, society, communication and respect, and being a "positive and open-minded" individual, which he will take with him in the future. He sends his greetings and will be stopping in to MTN whenever he returns to the Twin Cities. This issue’s highlighted producer is Steve Gardner, producer of "Metro Minnesota Destroyed." I interviewed Steve this month in Terra, the DV Cuts edit room he has taken quite a liking to here at MTN since he discovered us about six months ago. He began producing his program at NW Community TV two years ago and in that time has produced 15 hour-long episodes. The show features large stands of trees in the western suburbs that have been slated for sacrifice within development zones. Deliberately and rather quickly, the forests are sawed down one tree at a time and the land is prepared for upscale housing tracts. He adds sad classical music as the only soundtrack to emphasize the loss of habitat for birds & animals, the loss of natural diversity in suburban areas and particularly the loss of large trees - his favorite being the oaks. Mr. Gardner hopes his programming inspires a more sustainable approach to development. He has watched 35 projects green lighted & rubber stamped as one natural area after the next gets flattened, irregardless of the efforts of many residents who petition or protest these plans.  Most of his programs have been shot in Plymouth; more recently he has expanded into Hopkins, Maple Grove, Minnetonka, Wayzata & Golden Valley.  You can watch his efforts weekly on MTN Channel 16, Saturday nights at 8 p.m.