crystalogormanwrites

Zombies come alive Oct. 4 to help the hungry in Gastonia

Posted on September 28, 2014 by crystalogormanwrites

The Charlotte Observer
Gaston/Catawba News
Saturday, September 27, 2014

The living dead rise to help the hungry and homeless Oct. 4 for the third annual Downtown Gastonia Zombie Walk and Food Drive.

Courtesy of Downtown Gastonia Zombie Walk
1000 participants came to last year’s event. Robb expect 1,300 this year.

This family-friendly street festival includes performances from local indie rock bands like The Menders and The Ramparts, a scavenger hunt, dead walk, and more than 40 vendors representing artisans, crafters, nonprofits, food and even reptiles.

Event organizer and “Walking Dead” fan Sue Ann Robb said, “Everyone is into zombies these days, but it’s a great way to get the younger generation involved in the community.”

The walk not only boasts entertainment, but goes dead for donations, collecting canned goods for local food pantries BREAD, Inc. and The Salvation Army Center of Hope. Every person who donates two nonperishable canned goods is eligible for a free zombie makeover by Paul Mitchell School of Gastonia and Boy Scout’s Venture Crew 6.

Bessemer City resident Robb said, “I wanted to do something to address the issues of homelessness and poverty that are big in Gastonia – helping the people who need it and bringing people back into downtown Gastonia.”

Last year, the food drive collected 1,100 cans of food for BREAD, Inc., a faith-based nonprofit that provides food for the homeless, elderly and low-income individuals and families in Gaston County.

This is the Salvation Army Center of Hope’s first time benefiting from this event. The organization’s Capt. Mark Hunter said, “Our food closet desperately depends on drives such as this to provide for 500 to 600 families per month.”

Even the kids have a deadly good time.

The event will also hand out prizes to the best dead man and woman walking, as well as for the scavenger hunt winner who finds the most fake body parts. The prizes are zombie packs with commemorative event T-shirts, DVDs of Season 4 of AMC’s “The Walking Dead” and “The Zombie Survival Guide” by Max Brooks.

Robb said, “Above all else, we just want everyone to come out, support downtown and the local community and have a good time.”

Robb, 39, has been a small business owner in the downtown area for 2 1/2 years; she owns Running with Scissors hair salon and co-owns the Retro Sideshow Vintage & Thrift store. She said she’s seen the area revitalize into an artsy district since the recession and hopes the event will bring more traffic into downtown. “I remember the hustle and bustle of downtown Gastonia as a child, and I’d like to see that happen again.”

Courtesy of Aaron Kendrick – Prints for sale at the walk.

Aaron Kendrick, a Gastonia resident and artist, will be selling his drawings for the cause. Kendrick, 32, said he will give away 100 percent of the proceeds to The Men’s Shelter of Charlotte, local food pantries and a friend’s family that is battling cancer. He will even have goodie bags for kids, a cornhole game and a raffle for free artwork.

“This may seem like an ordinary zombie walk but it is really so much more – local small businesses and the community coming together to have some fun and help raise money for multiple causes. … There is going to be all kinds of wacky fun to be had. I’m just happy to be a part of it all and hope to see it get bigger and better in the years to come.”

Posted in Charlotte Observer, Events and Galas, Newspaper, Philanthropy, Traditional Journalism | Tagged Aaron Kendrick, Downtown Gastonia Zombie Walk and Food Drive, Gastonia homelessness event, Sue Ann Robb | Leave a comment

Charlotte school’s I-CAP fosters creative expressions of life lessons

Posted on September 28, 2014 by crystalogormanwrites

The Charlotte Observer
City News
Saturday, September 27, 2014

It’s 3:15 p.m. on a Tuesday afternoon: School announcements blare over the sound system and a crowd of students floods the halls at Bruns Academy.

Most students are hurrying home, but 16 have chosen to stay.

These students enthusiastically smile, gyrate and belt out the lyrics to hit songs as they make their way into a makeshift band room for the Integra Creative Arts Program.

Barry Sherman actively listens to the students share their personal experiences and wisdom on living behind a mask.

Bruns Academy social worker Barry Sherman created I-CAP four years ago as a summer camp for Nations Ford Elementary; this is the second year he’s taught I-CAP to students in grades six through eight at Bruns Academy.

Sherman said the idea for the program came from an adult version he taught for 20 years with at The Institute for Life-Leadership and Coaching, an organization that provides personal development classes in Charlotte.

I-CAP uses creative expression to teach valuable life lessons such as authenticity, respect, trusting one’s self, valuing and praising uniqueness in others, working together for peace and justice and celebrating one’s efforts.

Students audition to get into the program, which meets every Tuesday.

Sixth-grader Ashaurrea Smith is enthusiastic about working with students who share her passion for the creative arts.

“Integra means having integrity: be proud of who you are,” she said. “I joined to be with people who are like me – excited about coming together and sharing our different talents.”

“This is a great outlet for the kids to show off their talent and learn valuable life lessons,” said Bruns Academy music teacher and co-facilitator Kristin Madison.

UNC Charlotte social-work graduate Jose Montoya, who is interning with Sherman, said, “It’s really interesting interacting with young minds and seeing them get it.”

Sherman said the life lessons are just as valuable as academics. “These ideals combined with the creative arts teaches them to think critically and work collaboratively,” Sherman said. “It also gives them the freedom to claim who they are in the world and use that newfound passion to make a positive contribution.”

To learn more about I-CAP, visit http://integraforkids.org/integra.html

On this Tuesday, Sherman, a social worker for 25 years, asks the students peering from behind a circle of brightly-colored masks, “What is authenticity?”

Eighth-grader Quadarius Hall replies, “It’s when you know who you are and no one else can tell you who you are going to be.”

Kendra James, also an eighth-grader, said, “If you can’t be yourself now, how can you follow your own path in the future?”

After a series of poems, worksheets, YouTube video presentations and peer discussions, the students broke into small groups for writers, actors, singers and dancers.

They use creative interpretation to show how hiding behind their fancy-feathered masks symbolizes the way people metaphorically mask their true selves, and how once people live and act authentically, they are able to share their talents with the world.

Students perform a dance meant to reveal their true selves through movement during the I-CAP afterschool program.

The weekly lessons will be incorporated into a six-act play to be performed for the school in spring. Sherman said the students will collaboratively choreograph and script the performance as a journey of self-discovery.

“I would like the Integra students to leave the program with a greater ability to stand strong and proud in the truth of their hearts,” Sherman said. “I also hope they are awakened to their responsibility as leaders in the world, leaders who step up, in small ways and big ways, to advocate and work for greater peace and justice in our beautiful and struggling world.”

Posted in Charlotte Observer, Education, Entertainment/Creative Arts, Family and Parenting, Health and Wellness, Newspaper, Traditional Journalism | Tagged Barry Sherman, Bruns Academy, Charlotte afterschool program, Charlotte Observer, creative arts leadership program, I-CAP | Leave a comment

Foundation celebrates building Liberian school

Posted on September 25, 2014 by crystalogormanwrites

The Charlotte Observer
Cabarrus News
Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Pictured Founder Saya Doe-Sio with her husband Francis Sio at the gala on Saturday night.

Saya Doe-Sio knows what it’s like to overcome challenges.

Doe-Sio grew up in Buchanan, Grand Bassa County, Liberia, and struggled every day. Her mother, the late Annie T. Doe, encouraged her to make education a priority. Even when she had little to eat, she said her mother – who was uneducated – reminded her that education was her path to a better future.

Doe-Sio immigrated to the U.S. in 1998. Since then, she has received a bachelor’s degree in accounting, a master’s degree in business administration and became a certified public accountant. Doe-Sio works as a finance director.

In December 2010, she visited her hometown in Liberia. Doe-Sio said she saw hundreds of children struggling to survive with few resources and opportunities for growth.

Doe-Sio said, “I am the same as them.”

From that moment, she knew that she wanted to make a difference. Upon return, Doe-Sio began working to create the Annie T. Doe Memorial Foundation, a nonprofit named in memory of her mother that would provide a free primary education to children in Africa, free basic health care services and women’s empowerment programs.

Courtesy of Annie T. Doe Foundation: Students pose in front of the Annie T. Doe Memorial Academy.

Just shy of four years since she visited Liberia, Doe-Sio stands in front of a crowd in an elegantly decorated ballroom at the Embassy Suites Resort and Spa in Concord for the fourth annual Annie T. Doe Memorial Foundation’s Charity Gala on Sept. 13. The anticipation mounts as she takes the microphone to announce the successful opening of their first free primary school in Buchanan, Liberia.

“I have prayed for this school to be finished before my 40th birthday, and today, it has happened,” Doe-Sio said.

Since August 2011, the Annie T. Doe Memorial Foundation has raised $100,000 from the support of 250 people. These donations were used to support three programs: a micro-lending and entrepreneurial program for 10 Liberian women, an Ebola awareness campaign and the building of the first free primary school, the Annie T. Doe Memorial Academy.

The bright-blue 6,000-square-foot school building sits on 2 acres at the site of Doe-Sio’s childhood home. At full capacity, the school will accommodate 200 students from kindergarten through sixth grade, but it will start out with 75 kindergarteners and first-graders.

The school was set to open this month, but has been delayed until January. The Ebola outbreak caused the Liberian government to issue a 90-day state of emergency last month; schools were forced to close.

In response to the Ebola outbreak, the foundation’s director of finance and strategy – Doe-Sio’s husband, Francis Sio – said, “At the end of the day, we (Liberia) will be stronger.”

Regardless of the health crisis, the Annie T. Doe Memorial Academy’s principal Chapman Adams said in a video response that they were excitedly awaiting opening day to give these children an opportunity to “receive love, learn, grow and evolve.”

One of the school’s supporters, Georgia Hansen of Indian Trail, attended the charity gala. She said she moved to the United States 27 years ago from Grand Bassa County, Liberia. She found out about the Annie T. Doe Memorial Foundation three years ago and has been supporting it ever since.

“I am very proud of Saya and what she’s doing in her mother’s name to help poor people. I am happy to help in any little way that I can to give back to my country,” Hansen said.

Over 150 people attended this year’s gala at the Embassy Suites Resort & Spa in Concord, N.C.

At the end of her speech, Saya Doe-Sio points toward two walls in the ballroom lined with photos of the 75 children who will attend the academy.

In each photo stands a child age 5 to 13, some smiling and some not. Each photo includes a short story about the child’s home life and dreams. Even though the situation depicted in every story seems unbearable, each child seems hopeful, given the prospect of attending school for the first time.

“Somebody believed in me. I was less fortunate and somebody believed in me. And now I believe in them,” Doe-Sio said.

Posted in Achievements and Awards, Charlotte Observer, Education, Events and Galas, Family and Parenting, Human Interest, Newspaper, Philanthropy, Traditional Journalism | Tagged Annie T. Doe Memorial Foundation, Charlotte Observer, Liberian school, Saya Doe | Leave a comment

OSHA changes recordkeeping rule, hopes to save lives

Posted on September 22, 2014 by crystalogormanwrites

Fulton & Barr, Attorneys at Law
Fulton & Barr: The Legal Pad
Sunday, September 21, 2014

32-year-old Luis Rey Rivera Pavia died last year, because his employer willfully ignored safety regulations. He was working as a machine helper for Wire Mesh Sales, LLC in Jacksonville, Fla. on August 15^th 2013, when he dropped a metal bar into a wire-mesh manufacturing machine. He went in to retrieve the bar and a light curtain – sensor that detects a person’s presence inside the machine – was supposed to shut that machine off; however, it was disabled. Unfortunately, Rivera was struck by the part of the machine that feeds the wire in and was killed.

It’s tragic and preventable losses of life, such as Rivera’s that Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA) Dr. David Michaels exemplifies as reason for the “long overdue” changes to the way fatalities and severe injuries are reported to OSHA.

According to OSHA’s Recordkeeping rule update, there are two significant changes to the way employers must report fatalities and severe injuries beginning in January 2015.

The first change updates the list of industries required to keep OSHA illness and injury records. Some industries are not required to keep these lists, because of the low rate of occupational injury and illness. The list will now be compiled based on the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) versus the old Standard Industry Classification (SIC). The rule still exempts small business with 10 or less employees on staff at all times during the year from keeping these records.

The second change is that ALL employers must report any work-related fatality to OSHA within 8 hours and any worker with an amputation, hospitalization or loss of an eye within 24 hours of the incident. Right now, employees only have to report fatalities if three or more people are severely injured or killed in the accident and are not required to report all hospitalizations, amputations and/or loss of an eye.

Dr. David Michaels said in a teleconference that this will help them identify that most serious hazardous work places and target compliance assistance.

In Rivera’s case, a recordkeeping rule like this could have saved his life. Two other employees had been severely injured by that machine prior to his death – one with a crushed forearm and another with an amputated arm. If those injuries would have been reported to OSHA, like with the new rule, OSHA would have found the 35 or more violations before Rivera lost his life.

22 of the violations were considered serious, such as disabled shut-off mechanisms, broken pallets cluttering the factory floor and a bathroom sink clogged for months with maggots swimming in the standing water. Wire Mesh Sales, LLC was fined $697,700 and placed in a Severe Violators Enforcement Program for their citations at their Jacksonville plant.

The announcement of the recordkeeping rule change comes on the heels of OSHA’s 2013 annual work-related fatality count. When discussing the count, Dr. Michael’s said, “4,405 on the job dead is 4,405 too many. We can and must do better.”

Dr. Michaels also said when deaths and severe injuries are reported OSHA will use “behavioral economics to ensure workers’ safety.”

When every report comes in the employer will be asked:

What caused injury?
What does the employer intend to do to address the hazard and prevent further injuries?

All of these records will also be available for the public on OSHA’s website.

Dr. Michael’s hopes “public reporting will nudge employers to not be seen as unsafe to employees.” He also said that the new reporting standards will help OSHA allocate non-fatal resources and better identify companies like Wire Mesh Sales, LLC and prevent fatalities.

As these changes are made in the New Year, Dr. Michaels plans to engage the public in conversation about better ways to prevent deaths and serious injuries while working. These regulation changes are imperative to save lives and create a more safe work environment for Americans.

Posted in Brand Journalism, Business, Civic and Government News, Fulton & Barr: The Legal Pad, Health and Wellness, Human Rights, Law, Professional Blog | Tagged Dr. David Michaels, Fulton & Barr, hurt on the job, LLC, OSHA reporting of accidents on the job, Wire Mesh | Leave a comment

Mother keeps fighting for daughter’s dream: No more cancer.

Posted on September 17, 2014 by crystalogormanwrites

The Charlotte Observer
South Charlotte News
Tuesday, September 16, 2014

– THE ISABELLA SANTOS FOUNDATION
Isabella Santos at 4 years old in 2009. Every day in September, her mother, Erin Santos, will write about what cancer can take from the loved ones it leaves behind.

Isabella Santos lives on in the Santos home.

Her mother, Erin Santos, said Isabella’s room is just as it has always been, filled with princess costumes and American Girl dolls.

“I still trip over her red boots,” Erin Santos said.

Isabella was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a rare form of childhood cancer, at 2 years old. She went in and out of remission for years.

Isabella died June 28, 2012; she was 7 years old.

During her sickest times, she stayed steadfast in her pursuits to grow hair, beat cancer and live her dreams: raising kittens and one day becoming a mother.

Isabella at 2010’s race. Pictured left to right: Eve Raubenolt, Isabella Santos and Soleil Foreman.

“Isabella always gave to charity,” Santos said. “She volunteered at the Ronald McDonald house and donated all of her birthday gifts to the kids on 11th floor at Levine (Children’s Hospital).”

When it comes to the Isabella Santos Foundation, Erin said, Isabella always knew she was the star of the show, just as she understood the organization was her legacy.

“She used to proudly say ‘I’m famous,’ ” said Santos.

“Every race, she would walk or be pushed in a wagon until the last 10 feet, and then she would run to the finish line,” she said.

Stuart and Erin Santos started the Isabella Santos Foundation in 2009 as a way to raise money for Isabella’s medical bills. After learning about the lack of funding for neuroblastoma research, the Santoses raised money to help find a cure.

Courtesy of Isabella Santos Foundation
Starting line at 2013 5K. ISF’s annual fundraising run includes a 5K, 10K and 1-mile family fun run. For registration details visit, http://5kforkidscancer.racesonline.com/register.

Through 5K footraces and other fundraising events, ISF raised $7,000 in 2009. To date, the foundation has raised $650,000.

The goal is to reach $1 million by the end of this year.

Funds raised by ISF go to neuroblastoma research, as well as supporting local charities serving children and families with childhood cancer, Erin Santos said.

In 2013, ISF gave $100,000 for neuroblastoma research to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York. The foundation also gave $20,000 to Carolinas HealthCare System’s Levine Children’s Hospital, $20,000 to the Ronald McDonald House of Charlotte, $20,000 to the Make-A-Wish Central & Western Carolinas and $20,000 to various pediatric cancer charities and as financial support for local families battling cancer.

ISF’s annual 5K Race for Kids Cancer presented by the Charlotte Checkers will take place 8 a.m. Sept. 20 at Ballantyne Corporate Park. The event includes a 10K, 5K and 1-mile family fun run. Other activities include a kids’ zone with games, face painting, slides, a bounce house and a photo booth. There also will be a raffle and silent auction with items including beauty and spa packages, sporting events, date nights, vacations and jewelry.

JON COX – ISABELLA SANTOS FOUNDATION
Kids participate in the 1-mile fun run in 2013. “Kids want to change the world,” said Erin Santos.

ISF’s Development Director Maitland Danner said, “This is a family event. All the kids’ activities are free to the public and we encourage people who are not running to come out, have fun and raise awareness.”

“Isabella believed in helping people, and we want kids to be able to associate with her because of that,” Santos said. “I still do it for her. It keeps her memory alive. I allows me to feel like a part of her still lives.”

Posted in Charlotte Observer, Events and Galas, Family and Parenting, Health and Wellness, Human Interest, Newspaper, Philanthropy, Traditional Journalism | Tagged 5k Race for Kids Cancer, Erin Santos, Isabella Santos, Isabella Santos Foundation, Maitland Danner | Leave a comment