The Harmony Fund gets letters from animal protectors around the world, asking for donations to help keep their rescue operations afloat.
Letters and pleas from rescuers in Serbia, Romania, Bosnia, Africa and the US, for food, medicine and money were answered in November with surprise deliveries containing truckloads of food and support. A video shows the gifts being delivered and the looks of happiness on the rescuers faces.
The Fund, started by American Laura Simpson, offers a lifeline to so called “underdog” animal rescue squads across 16 countries. With its annual rescue of several thousand animals, the Harmony Fund takes “a unique blue sky approach” that allows supporters to enjoy an uplifting experience free of graphic photos and dire forecasts.
(WATCH the video below and LEARN how to donate at harmonyfund.org)
Milwaukee theater professionals have been working with local veterans through intensive weekend workshops that allow emotions to boil from the cauldron of conflict within, using the words Shakespeare.
The Feast of Crispian program, run out of the Milwaukee’s Veterans Affairs hospital, has been such a success that last week it received a $50,000 grant from the Helen Bader Foundation to launch an all-veteran, fully-staged production of Julius Caesar.
In the hospital’s community room, professional actors stand next to the veterans to help them act out the dramatic scenes. They feed them the lines and story plot points, freeing them to concentrate on the emotions without having to memorize or hold a script. The process helps the veterans to strengthen the resources needed to overcome service-related trauma and daily stress.
Further group discussions create a safe space for important stories to be told, giving voice to their human condition.
The program was created in 2012 by the founders of the Milwaukee arts think-tank called the Battery Factory, who were inspired by the Massachusetts “Shakespeare in the Courts” program for juvenile offenders.
The Courts program was designed in 2001 by two Pittsfield artist educators in collaboration with Judge Paul Perachi to give troubled teens a consistent experience of being responsible for their choices without a right/wrong judgment being made. Judge Perachi, a former high school principal, agreed to assign the participants to the program en lieu of community service or, in some cases, lock-up. The therapeutic technique relies on conflict-heavy scenes in Shakespeare’s plays with strong dialogue between two characters, with no long speeches.
“I have witnessed first-hand the extraordinary impact,” said Judge Perachi. “Their self-esteem soared and they seemed to be able to navigate the treacherous waters of their adolescence with greater ease and less anger. Working on this project will decrease the likelihood that they’ll appear before me in the future.”
“The Feast of Crispian bases its techniques on the Shakespeare work in Massachusetts,” said Rebecca Holderness, a stage director, choreographer and theater professor who founded The Battery Factory. “This is an innovative strategy to confront new and old challenges facing our veterans.”
One recent participant, a USAF Veteran, said, “I found an inner reserve of emotions that I now have a way to tap, to access some of the pain and express it in a safe and healthy way.”
Feast of Crispian, named for the rallying cry in Shakespeare’s Henry V, serves veterans of all military branches – active, reserve or guard – and of any discharge status. All veterans are invited to participate; no theater experience is needed and there is no fee. The only requirement is a commitment to working respectfully with each other.
For the full production of Julius Caesar in 2015, The Battery Factory intends to bring together the Milwaukee area theatre community to provide the costumes, make up, scenery, etc. to provide a rich experience for the veterans who have benefitted from any of the nine intensive weekend workshops so far.
Nancy Smith-Watson, an actress who worked with the Feast of Crispian from the beginning, and who facilitates the veterans’ weekends, told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel that “most of Shakespeare’s characters say exactly what they mean, something that rarely happens in the real world. And by digging deep into the feelings and motivation of the character they’re portraying, they’re deepening their ability to connect emotionally.”
After the game, Gardner said, “J.T. is a high-character guy, a hard worker who waited for his shot and was doing so well with it. I was sick for him … It’s like having a little brother out there get hurt.”
Many believe the American economy has some inherent advantages over its major competitors – a more flexible structure, stronger entrepreneurial traditions, a more demographically dynamic society.
“Well, along comes a fascinating new book,” writes Farred Zakaria, that points out, “you ain’t seen nothing yet.”
“Peter Zeihan’s The Accidental Superpower begins with geography, pointing out that America is the world’s largest consumer market for a reason – rivers. Transporting goods by water, he points out, is 12 times cheaper than by land, which is why civilizations have always flourished around rivers.”
”And America, Zeihan calculates, has more navigable waterways – 17,600 miles worth – than the rest of the world put together. By comparison, he notes, China and Germany have about 2,000 miles each and ALL of the Arab world has just 120 miles of river.” (The Chesapeake Bay alone “boasts longer stretches of deep-water ports than the entire continental coast of Asia from Vladivostok to Lahore.”)
Code.org, an organization that tries to get girls excited about coding, unveiled this month a new tutorial that uses a couple of Disney’s wildly popular princesses from the movie Frozen.
Disney has given its blessing, and $100,000, for the creation of a 1-hour tutorial that shows kids how to use computer code to get Anna and Elsa to ice skate around their computer screens.
Using an innovative webpage, the kids can use computer code menus to carve snowflakes and patterns in the ice and create their own winter wonderland.
Since 2012, Code.org courses have been used in 62,000 classrooms.
Clara Leigh-Wong, a crisis counselor and flight attendant in Canada, experienced the joy of being the recipient of an honest deed from a kind stranger.
Clara and her neighbor Adam were walking their dogs in the suburban area of New Westminster, British Columbia. Upon returning home, the 31-year-old realized her green wallet was no where in sight.
After scouring the neighborhood, Clara was unable to locate her wallet. Upset, she began the process of replacing the lost contents. However, with the recommendation of her neighbor Adam, Clara makes a call to the neighborhood’s police department to report the missing wallet.
The next day while Clara was teaching a class, she received a phone call from the police stating that her wallet has been returned with all its contents included. When asked who the kind Samaritan was, he said that she preferred to remain anonymous.
Clara was looking forward to thanking the anonymous lady in person. However, if that isn’t possible, she is hoping that this story would be published in hopes that the woman who found and returned the wallet will recognize this story and know that she is being appreciated for her upstanding act.
If you are waiting in an airport, a train, a security line, or awaiting the arrival of a flight home, these five stories are a perfect way to spend your time and make a smile erupt on your face. (Others around you will just have to bask in your glow.)
While in the Albuquerque Airport I heard an announcement: “If anyone in the vicinity of Gate 4-A understands any Arabic, please come to the gate immediately.” When I arrived, an older woman in full traditional dress, just like my grandma wore, was crumpled to the floor, wailing loudly.
A U.S. veteran, quadruple amputee Taylor Morris, was traveling through McCarran Airport in Las Vegas with his wife, when his prosthetic knee suddenly broke down. His tool kit was out of reach, packed in his luggage, but an American Airlines aircraft mechanic came to the rescue.
A passenger at the airport in Tampa, Florida was trying to pay for his baggage fee when his credit card was denied. He stepped out of line to check his balance, and when he came back a kind note was waiting for him.
Thanks to a team of merry WestJet employees and the power of technology, airline passengers in Canada were treated to a Christmas miracle. 250 people traveling to Calgary arrived to find wrapped gifts especially suited for each individual. (WATCH the fantastic video)
An 82-year-old veteran from Cary, N.C. traveling through O’hare Airport had no idea he was about to fall, literally, into a life-threatening situation involving his luggage and an escalator. A traveling salesman who happened to be in the right place at the right time potentially saved his life with a briefcase full of product samples.
Have a safe journey home, and SHARE this with fellow travelers!
One of the world’s rarest species, the orange bellied parrot, has bucked its long-term trend of decline and almost doubled its wild population, said an Australian news network.
Last November, fewer than 10 wild breeding pairs returned to Melaleuca, its breeding grounds in Tasmania. Thanks to a recovery program, 34 birds showed up this year.
A businessman has returned to the village where he was born in southern China to repay the kindness of residents who, like him, grew up in poverty there.
Having made a fortune in construction and steel industries, 54-year-old Xiong Shuihua spent more than six million dollars to transform the wooden huts into luxury homes and villas for 90 families.
Elderly residents in Xiongkeng will be also be given free meals, according to the Daily Mail
18 of the families, who were particularly kind to the businessman, were given villas of their own.
The Ferguson Public Library is just a block away from the center of protests at the Ferguson Police Department but, through it all, the building has remained open.
One full-time librarian, Scott Bonner, runs the quiet refuge, which has received more than $175,000 in donations after tweets about the library went viral.
The library offers “Healing Kits” for kids to check out that include children’s books dealing with trauma, and a stuffed animal they can keep.
Archaeologists discovered three gorgeous mosaics at the Ancient Greek city of Zeugma, in south Turkey, settled by one of the generals of Alexander the Great, in 300 BC.
All the works of art are in excellent condition and were found on the floors of several rooms.
The one pictured above shows Ocean and Tithys and uses special glass mosaic pieces. (Click to enlarge the photos.)
Another, right, depicts the Nine Muses.
“What is really striking about this mosaic is the wonderful and vivid colors used as well as the beauty of the heroes’ faces.”
The local government presented the hidden masterpieces in a press conference earlier in November.
A Canadian ice hockey goalie made the save of his life – when he rushed into the stands to give CPR to a fan who’d suffered cardiac arrest.
Gander player Patrick O’Brien was getting ready to play when he raced from the Flyers’ dressing room to begin pumping with chest compressions for an unconscious middle-aged man with no pulse.
He had just been trained as a paramedic 5 months earlier.
A handwritten note at the Pasta Pizzeria and Grill in Prattville, Alabama alerted regular customers that the eatery would be closed for Thanksgiving.
But, for the fourth year, the restaurant’s doors were wide open for all fire fighters, police staff, military personnel or lonely seniors who want to feast on a buffet brimming with turkey, ham, dressing, squash and green bean casserole.
“Often for them, this day of feasting and celebration is just like any routine workday.”
Mexican artist Frida Kahlo’s garden and studio will be recreated at the New York Botanical Garden next year, reports the BBC.
Opening May 16, Frida Kahlo: Art, Garden, Life will be the late artist’s first solo show in New York in more than 25 years.
The exhibition will include original paintings by Kahlo, including this Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Humming-bird, all reflecting the use of botanical imagery in her work.
“I’ve never felt such love,” said Natalie DuBose, a Ferguson baker who was not only cleaning up the mess made by rioters this week but trying to fulfill a slew of Thanksgiving orders.
A friend suggested she set up a fund-raising page, and initially DuBose set a goal of collecting $20,000 in donations.
On Monday, after vandals broke windows and some equipment inside, an AP photographer captured an image of Natalie crying outside Cake’s & More, which she had just opened this summer.
But after just two days, the tenacious baker’s GoFundMe page raised $252,000 from more than 7,000 admirers across the world.
“I’m overwhelmed by the amazing generosity I’m receiving,” said the mother of two. “The outpouring of support on Twitter, Facebook, and in the media has been amazing. I was in tears.”
DuBose is just one of the business owners in the suburb of St. Louis, Missouri to take to GoFundMe to try to recoup loses quickly. Ferguson Market and Liquor has raised $22,000 from compassionate strangers and friends.
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Vancouver’s parking enforcement agency awakened the spirit of Christmas early in a one-day toy drive yesterday for residents with unpaid tickets.
To benefit children served by The Salvation Army’s Belkin House, violators were invited to trade new toys in exchange for forgiveness of all their parking fines..
Staff working at the toy drive, cheered when people brought in armfuls of gifts.
”I brought in a whole bunch of things, some Lego and My Little Pony stuff for girls, and generally a bunch of Disney stuff,” Raymond Yee, who had 24 parking tickets, told the Vancouver Sun.
An IMPARK official called the one-for-one exchange a win-win.
“We forgo a bunch of money and that’s OK. If people save money on their fines and children receive gifts, everyone wins.”
Volunteers for the California-based Village Harvest picked more than 900 pounds of persimmons to give to people who might not have the money to purchase costly produce, so they can enjoy the seasonal bounty.
Village Harvest began two years ago, when Craig Diserens founded a backyard gleaning effort that now gathers thousands of pounds of fresh fruit from historical orchards (some planted during the Gold Rush 150 years ago) and private property.
Within a three hour time span about 15 volunteers gathered at the local food agency and received instructions and maps to nearby homes where they were to pick crate after crate of persimmons.
The Village Harvest van was equipped with all of the tools needed to carry out the mission– ladders, telescoping pickers to reach the highest branches, crates, gloves, rakes and more. Three hours later the bounty included 900 pounds of fresh persimmons and a happy volunteers who had come together to benefit their community.
Villageharvest.org volunteers gleaned nearly 500,000 pounds last year alone, and delivered it to local hunger programs.
What differentiates Village Harvest’s Orchards Harvesting Program is their commitment to preserving and restore old orchards for future generations.
The Good People Fund, founded by Naomi Eisenberger (pictured above, with Craig) provides grants to keep the harvest going.
12 days before the big U.S. feasting holiday of Thanksgiving, mentors for Befriend-A-Child in Northern Virginia helped teach their young charges how to make pumpkin pie for their families.
Under the direction of The Aubergine Chef, Jason Shriner, who volunteered his time and expertise, the mentees followed directions, and meticulously decorated their own pies.
After the “big bake” mentees and mentors, along with staff, moved to another room to enjoy a few extra pies before taking their own baked goods home.
The Office of Public Private Partnerships recruited Chef Jason and found donations for ingredients. Kitchen space was generously provided by Truro Anglican Church in Fairfax.
“This Thanksgiving, BeFriend-A-Child is grateful for all the volunteers who shared their time and resources with us,” said Fairfax County worker, Angie Carrera.
“This is a skill these kids can take with them and use to create a happier Thanksgiving every year to come.”
The woman was a ‘random stranger trying to do the right thing,’ the store’s manager told the Daily News. She saved the restaurant from destruction as 25 other buildings along the strip near Ferguson were burned down by looters.
As agitators tried kicking in windows and shoving her, the brave do-gooder eventually wins out as the criminals move on to an easier mark.
This photo epitomizes a grateful heart, with a young lady in Minnesota giving thanks for the snow and the trees and her life.
What are you grateful for on this Thanksgiving Day?
For me, I am thankful for my health; our healthy, happy family; my purpose-driven work; Good News Network supporters, especially CT; my home, the river, and my kitchen; the Foo Fighters music and documentary, Sonic Highways; delicious food and drinks year-round; our Facebook community, and the freedom to choose happiness here in America.
An 82-year-old veteran from Cary, N.C. traveling through O’hare Airport had no idea he was about to fall, literally, into a life-threatening situation involving his luggage and an escalator. A traveling salesman who happened to be in the right place at the right time potentially saved his life with a briefcase full of product samples.
