He’s the spiritual storyteller in our midst. He has been in Boothbay Harbor since he took his place at the pulpit of the Congregational Church in July 1993. As members of his congregation, we became familiar with his preaching style. It was different, innovative, whether shared from the pulpit, in the aisles among the church members, or during the children’s story time – assisted by puppet Mr. Moose - before heading for their Sunday School classes. Sometimes Mr. Moose even helped with the sermon. In fact, Peter and Mr. Moose are still working together – most recently at the Second Congregational Church of Warren as guest preacher(s) on Easter Sunday.

In 2003, Rev. Peter Panagore was recruited to apply for the pastoral position on WCSH Channel 6’s First Radio Parish Church of America. Apply he did. And on air he went, becoming the program’s fifth and final spiritual host, successor to the Rev. Dr. David R. Glusker.

For 15 years, Panagore shared his shorter stories about the challenges, celebrations and life events his audience faced. His gift as a minister, in addition to being an interested, caring listener, was his ability to keep the teachings within the Good Book relevant to his contemporary church and audience members. He did this throughout his 15 years at First Radio Parish Church of America's Daily Devotions, telling of the love of God and encouraging Maine viewers to seek the light. As he says, “The light is there and everyone can see it.”

The last few years, the program went from daily to once a week. After his broadcast on Sunday, Feb. 25, his future looked uncertain, but he was, and is, exceedingly grateful for his years at WCSH.

“It was a great run. For 91 years, the First Radio Parish Church of America helped the people of Maine through five ministers, face recessions, wars, Depressions … we always brought the light and love of God for everyone … our audience was Christian, atheist, pagan, Jewish … everybody watched. We were the church of Maine, a cultural influence for the good. At WCSH I worked with, and learned from, some very talented people.

“For 15 years I was a paid writer,” continued Panagore. “I had total freedom of expression as a writer." A time or two, Debbie Sample came flying out from behind the scenes to say, ‘I don’t think you can say that Peter' amidst laughter, he said. "The 250-260 words for the story required density of thought; language was paramount. And I could add layers of imagery if I was careful with my word choices.”

A writer to the core, he is currently writing a book proposal. If accepted, and there’s no reason to think it will not be, he will begin work on his third – quite possibly a followup to his best-selling “Heaven is Beautiful.” Panagore previously wrote “Two Minutes For God,” a compilation of stories, just like the ones he shared on Channel 6. Wrote Panagore about this book, “The notes provided for many entries correspond to Scripture, but the message is God's job, not mine. I'm just a storyteller winding my way through life on my way home.”

Thirty-plus years ago, at 21, he had a near death experience high on an icy mountain,  He chose to return to the physical world rather than stay in Heaven, he said. He said he asked to go back, to live his life. He said God sent him back, but told him he would not be living his life. And, in large part, God was right. Yes, Panagore went on to meet and marry Michelle Miclette and raise two children with her; but he has also spent most of his adult life as a minister of God, driven to help as many people as he can to see and feel "the Light."

“I know that this is not the end of life, it is just the passage through to real life. With God. And I pray for it every day. After that experience on the mountain all I have ever wanted to do was to be a lens for the Light; be a carrier of the Light. I’ve tried to be a radiant light helping people to see the Light, to recognize the Light.”

To that end, he now has his own YouTube channel, 171701 Welcome to Peter Panagore on YouTube01 Welcome to Peter Panagore on YouTube, where he continues to weave his stories in the hope they will lead listeners to "the Light." As he did with First Radio Parish Church of America, some of the episodes on his YouTube channel are filmed in the Boothbay region. 

He also reaches out to people one on one as a personal coach with clients in the U.S. and abroad seeking guidance with grief, death, faith, the mystical, the spiritual, others who have had near death experiences, and others.

There are also a few other ideas out there, but, none are ready to see the light of day, for now, anyway.