Category Archives: Intentional Communities

Kent residents should expect more permanent neighbors this spring or summer: chimney swifts.

While the birds are not new to the city, a designated shelter for them will be, since Kents city council approved a chimney-swift tower to be built sometime in the summer.

The sanctuary will be located on the Hike and Bike Trail on Haymaker Parkway, in between Kent States campus and the police station.

The tower will be built like a traditional brick chimney, since the swifts need vertical places to nest. Chimney swifts have small feet and legs, which makes it hard for them to move on the ground, so brick chimneys are the birds preferred nesting place, said Rhonda Boyd, the city of Kents senior engineer.

According to Columbus Audubon, chimney swifts spend most of their time in the air. They feast on small insects and spiders and are closely related to hummingbirds because of their wing structure and movement.

However, there has been a decline in the population of chimney swifts because of the destruction of their habitats. With modern housing excluding the open flues the traditional brick chimneys had (most modern chimneys are chapped) and the loss of hollow trees, housing is even more limited for the swifts.

Because of the habitat loss, city council applied for two grants to complete the sanctuary project, including one for $1,000 from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) and one for another $1,000 from the Kent Environmental Council. The city will also use funds that were allocated for the construction of the police building since the shelter will be located on its property, said Gwen Rosenberg, a Kent city councilperson at large.

The Department of Natural Resources is trying to encourage communities to provide housing for the swifts, Rosenberg said.

The decision comes with the upcoming demolition of Kents old police station on the corner of state Route 59 and Water Street.

There is a colony of migratory swifts that lived in the chimney of the police station, Boyd said. We're having less and less habitat available for the swifts.

At Kent State, biology professor Dr. Ralph W. Dexter conducted extensive research on the swift, starting in 1944.

Dr. Ralph W. Dexter releases a chimney swift from the top of a building at Kent State. [kent.edu]

According to a Kent Stater article written in 1961, Dexter was a nationally recognized authority for his work regarding swifts. The same year, he reported there were 17 pairs of chimney swifts nesting in the air shafts of Kent, Merrill, and Franklin Halls, and the Administration Building.

Dexters research found chimney swifts reside in Kent from early April to the fall. When the temperature begins to drop, the swifts migrate to South America.

The research was recognized so widely the university included the swift at the top of its official seal, Rosenburg said.

In this Daily Kent Stater article from 1979, the chimney swift is shown at the top of the seal. [Kent Stater Archives]

We're calling it Kent's original mascot before the black squirrel because it's been on the seal since the sixties, Boyd said.

With the extensive history and the presence of the birds in Kent, the city is hoping the shelter will not only provide a nesting place for the swifts, but will also give the public a way to learn more about their chimney-residing neighbors, Rosenberg said.

These birds don't exist everywhere, he said. This is something that could draw some visitors in a non-disruptive way for the birds.

As a way of making the structure more community based and collaborative with the public, the city commissioned a ceramic artist to create swift-themed tiles for the structure.

[Rhonda Boyd] said, why not make a cool sculpture and art garden, make it a focal point? said Emily Ulm, the artist commissioned. She asked me to make some swift tiles that actually have pictures of the swifts on them.

Emily Ulm shows a ceramic mold she will use to create the chimney swift tiles. "With all my work, I create an original design using sculpting tools," Ulm said. [Emily Ulm]

There will be a few big tiles with the pictures of the swifts, as well as small tiles, which will depict different pollinators and things of that nature, Ulm said.

In the long run, the city hopes to attract both chimney swifts and swift-interested visitors, Boyd said.

We're hoping that if we can get a large enough community of [visitors], we can hold events like a swift night out, and we can have a naturalist come and talk about the habitat, Boyd said. We can make events to celebrate wildlife at that site.

The city also hopes to bring attention to the importance of the sanctuary.

Creating an intentional place brings awareness to the situation, said Renee Ruchotzke, the president of the Kent Environmental Council. Any awareness that we can bring to our citizens about creating and protecting environments for wildlife is important.

Bella Hagey is a journalism student at Kent State University. She'll be a member of the Collaborative News Lab @Kent State this summer.

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Kent Plans To Build A Chimney That's Literally For The Birds - ideastream

The past year has created unprecedented strain for essential workers, especially in healthcare. A recent study showed that more than one in five healthcare workers has experienced depression and anxiety during the pandemic. Fatigue and burnout also are common and not just in clinical spaces. Senior living community leaders, providing essential services to their residents during the COVID-19 pandemic, are facing similar challenges.

As residents face heightened threats to their health, leaders are working long hours, facing exhaustion and isolation, and limited to online contact with many of their loved ones. The cumulative stress is taking its toll on the leaders own mental and emotional health, which, unfortunately, tends to drop on the list of priorities.

Until broad-based herd immunity is achieved, there are no easy, immediate answers to this problem. There are small steps senior living community leaders can take to support their own mental and emotional health, however, and these steps, in turn, will help their teams. The following are a few ideas to get started.

Dont shoulder the burden alone. Many organizations offer counseling resources, family services and group programs for employees, including some tailored to specifically to leadership. Those offerings may be expanded or updated in response to evolving needs, so try to keep your finger on the pulse of whats available and ensure that you and your team know your options.

Whenever relevant, encourage colleagues to use these resources. If they feel hesitant and uncertain about trying something new, positive reinforcement from you may help them feel more comfortable and confident. At times, you even may have an opportunity to express that you also are dealing with challenges and have found it valuable to seek help. Although its important to be intentional and appropriate in what you share, when youre willing to be vulnerable as a leader, it can show others solidarity and build a stronger sense of shared community and experiences.

During periods of increased mental and emotional strain, taking care of your body often falls by the wayside, but it is the core foundation for your overall health and well-being. Exercising, eating healthy and getting a good nights sleep are more important than ever.

It may help to team up with loved ones or coworkers to build motivation. Get a group to participate in an online exercise challenge, or plan a regular walk, run or bike ride to catch up. Do your best to eat healthy, nutritious foods, and avoid the temptation to stress-eat and snack. Finally, of course, try for seven to nine hours of sleep each night. Thats easier said than done, but a rested body supports a clearer and calmer approach to the day.

Whats your favorite way to unwind and recharge? Maybe it helps you to practice mindfulness. Be sure to check out the new meditation apps that help clear away the mental clutter. If youre an outdoors person, dont wait for the weekend to connect with nature. Pack a lunch that can serve as a picnic or walk to the nearest green space to get your steps in. Take a call on the patio (camera off, if needed). If you need to refocus and reset, try scheduling breaks for activities where you can be fully absorbed, such as reading, working puzzles or playing word games. Whatever works for you, be sure you make space for it, even on the busiest days. Those actions only may require a small amount of time, but they can make a big impact on managing stress and anxiety.

Its never simple to find the right balance of personal and professional, but its important to try as we navigate the next phases of the pandemic. In senior living communities, healthy leaders are in a better position to sustain their teams and provide the services residents need. Self care, ultimately, supports better care for others.

Rich Poirier is the president and CEO of Church Mutual Insurance Company, S.I. (a stock insurer), which offers specialized insurance for religious organizations of all denominations, public and private K-12 schools, colleges and universities, senior living facilities, secular and non-secular camps and conference centers, and nonprofit and human services organizations throughout the United States. Church Mutual is a stock insurer with policyholders who are members of the parent mutual holding company formed on Jan. 1, 2020.

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From one leader to another: Taking care of others requires taking care of yourself - McKnight's Senior Living

Women carry red dresses to raise awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous People during the Womens March in 2019 in Juneau. (Lyndsey Brollini/KTOO)

The morning after Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day, Iupiaq advocate Jacquii Lambert noticed half of the stories shed shared on Instagram about the day had disappeared.

Lambert immediately tweeted about it because it was so odd.

I thought it was just me, I thought it was some kind of glitch. But then I went to go look at other people I know who have also shared onto their stories, the same thing was happening for them, Lambert said.

On Wednesday, people all across the country shared stories and pictures to memorialize thousands of Indigenous people who have disappeared.Now, many Instagram users reported that content they shared to their stories disappeared, too.

One account whose posts were deleted from Instagram Stories was Jordan Daniels account Rising Hearts.

Daniel, who refers to the movement as Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relations, is Lakota and a member of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe.

When she posted on her Instagram that her stories had been deleted, hundreds of people commented with similar experiences.

It feels like a never-ending hamster wheel. When youre trying so hard and you know the community is trying so hard, and to have this one day be taken away was just heartbreaking, Daniel said.

This is not the first time the company has been accused of targeting Indigenous voices.Earlier this year,Indigenous beading accounts were being deactivated without explanation.

Daniel said social media is one of the greatest tools for Indigenous advocacy such as in the case of the Standing Rock protests.

RELATED: Alaskans travel to North Dakota to stand with Standing Rock

But its also a double-edged sword because we are advocating for justice so we have to talk about the injustice, Daniel said. We have to talk about all of the problems that have created these systems of oppression. We have to talk about colonization. We have to talk about white supremacy and racism. And so thats when censorship comes in. Thats where erasure comes in.

To Lambert, there was a certain irony to these specific stories disappearing.

It just felt weird, that were talking about Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and then all of our content to raise awareness goes missing, Lambert said.

Many Indigenous Instagram users tagged Instagrams social media accounts to call them out on taking down MMIP content. Later that day, Instagram tweeted a response, saying there was a widespread issue with Instagram Stories that was unrelated to any particular topic.

In other words, no one was being targeted.

But Daniel thinks the companys response does not explain why so many stories specifically about Missing and Murdered Indigenous people were taken down.

I just find that really odd, especially when its a lot of the content that only addressed [Missing and Murdered Indigenous people] stuff, Daniel said. That even allies who are not Indigenous, all of their posts that had nothing to do with this advocacy remained, but anything that had to do with advocacy and awareness for [Missing and Murdered Indigenous people] was removed.

Regardless of whether Instagrams removal of the posts was intentional or not, the effects of the removal remained.

Daniel described being put into emergency-response mode, trying to re-do all the work that was done the day before and re-share everything that was taken down.

All of this confusion was happening just as another Alaska Native woman had been found dead.Her ex-boyfriend has been arrested.

Jerilyn Nicholson was discovered dead at Eklutna Lake near Anchorage about a week ago.

Its still fresh, especially for Alaskans, you know, Lambert said. We are facing a tragedy right now.

On Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day, Lambert felt a sense of solidarity and healing with the Indigenous community who experienced this loss.

But the next day when all the stories she shared were gone, Lambert said she realized, They do see us and they do know us, but theyre silencing us.

Late Friday, Instagram tweeted that they had identified and fixed the problem. The companys communication account lays out that several communities were affected and that it wasnt just Indigenous content creators who were having problems.

And they apologized, saying: We are so sorry this happened. Especially to those in Colombia, East Jerusalem and Indigenous communities who felt this was an intentional suppression of their voices and stories.

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Posts about missing and murdered Indigenous people disappeared from Instagram. The company says it was a mistake. - Alaska Public Media News

The title for this article is inspired by President Joe Bidens statement on April 24, Armenian Remembrance Day, in which the United States officially recognized the Armenian Genocide of 1915. This moment of recognition reminds me there is a vast difference between involuntary forgetting and intentional banishment from memory.

A case in point would be the Armenian Genocide, which was the systematic murder of up to 1.5 million Armenians, Assyrians, Syrians and Greeks during World War I by the Young Turk regime of the new state of Turkey. Both the United States and Turkey have continued to deny officially this fist holocaust of the 20th century, with the exception of President Reagan, who labeled it a genocide during his presidency, and President Biden, who followed suit this year.

The Armenian Genocide is remembered widely by children of survivors, and scholars (including a handful of progressive Turkish academics). It is further documented by rare film and photographic footage. Museums have taken part in commemorating this dark chapter of history. In 1990, at the re-opening exhibition at the Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration, protestors representing Turkish deniers of the genocide succeeded in having troubling images of the genocide removed, only to be replaced by even more shocking images whose veracity was proven. While some objected to the graphic nature of the images that would be seen by schoolchildren, it was determined these historically accurate photos were a crucial part of the narrative. And there they remain as aide-memoires for the hundreds of thousands of visitors the museum receives each year.

Memory is a moral issue, writes historian Peter Balakian. As Hitler confirmed at the end of his speech at Obersalzberg on Aug. 22, 1939, a week before Germany invaded Poland and thus sparked World War II, Germany would find more Lebensraum, or living space, by destroying its enemies and sending to death mercilessly and without compassion, men, women, and children of Polish derivation and language. When questioned by those who thought this plan unfeasible, Hitler replied, Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians? This last phrase is inscribed on a wall of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., urging us never to forget, always remember each and every holocaust, lest we let them become precedents for future acts of terror.

For if historical atrocities are not officially recognized and at the very least not remembered, then what would stop other persecutors like Stalin, Mao, the Khmer Rouge, Pinochet, the Tutsis, Saddam Hussein and the recent slaughter of Uyghur Muslims by the Chinese government and of the Rohingya by the military of Myanmar? The point is that the first genocide of the 20th century has been immorally forgotten, partly because very little physical evidence remains. But it happened, nevertheless.

Architectural historian Adrian Forty asks, How does forgetting occur, and what do material objects have to do with it? As we witness with regularity the teardown of monuments extolling the victors, what is emerging with deliberate frequency are the memorials for victims.

In the anonymous Field of Stelae in Berlin, 2,711 concrete blocks of a range of heights memorialize the victims of the Holocaust. Similarly, the hanging stelae at the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, commonly known as the National Lynching Memorial, commemorate the victims of racial terrorism in the United States. Astonishing in its elegance, ease of access, yet a no-holds-barred deep dive into one of our nations most appallingly protracted chapters, this memorial soberly calls out and documents nearly all locations where lynchings occurred in the U.S.

Complete with a visitors center, educational films, and publications telling the story of racial realities in the United States, this sacred space of memory in Montgomery, Ala., also furnishes communities far and wide with a matching stela inscribed with the county and state where lynchings occurred.

There is a stela with the following:

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Dougherty County, Georgia and its two lynching victims:

As other counties far and wide have done, lets install this memorial in Albany, the seat of Dougherty County, and never forget to remember to remember, lest our forgetting sets a precedent for more racial violence tomorrow.

A stela at the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Ala., is a reminder of two lynchings that occurred in Dougherty County. Thomas Royal was murdered in 1906, and Curley McKelvey in 1920. (Photo: Andrew J. Wulf/Albany Museum of Art)

Known as the Mother Road of the U.S., Route 66 connects Chicago to Los Angeles. Stacker compiled a list of 50 Route 66 attractions for any traveler looking to make the eight-state road trip. Click for more.

Andrew J. Andy Wulf is executive director of the Albany Museum of Art. A native of Los Angeles, he has a Ph.D. from the School of Museum Studies, University of Leicester, United Kingdom, and an M.A. in Art History and Museum Studies from the University of Southern California. Before coming to the AMA in October 2019, he was executive director of the New Mexico History Museum and the Palace of the Governors in Santa Fe, N.M. (2015-19) and supervisory museum curator for the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum (2010-15).

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ANDY WULF: Against the corrosive influence of forgetting - The Albany Herald

Photo courtesy of Kachine Kulick

In the school and society class, I teach at The University of Colorado Boulder, I center Black, Indigenous, Latinx and Asian American counternarratives that animate the history of institutionalized oppression in schools which foregrounds the erasure in dominant narratives of schooling. I always hear similar questions from my students, such as, Why have I never heard about this erasure until just now? Why is this being hidden from us? Wait, didnt racism end after the civil rights movement?

The superficial understanding of the history of racism in America exists beyond my classroom racism exists across the United States. According to an NPR poll inquiring about American attitudes towards race, white Americans are divided on if we need to continue systemic level change for Black Americans or if our country has already made the changes that are needed. This historical erasure is intentional and has contributed to the misconception that racism ended decades ago.

Racism is ever-present and alive today as it was before the civil rights movement. Universities play a significant role in racisms preservation. Actions towards dismantling university-level racism are the responsibility of the white people at these institutions including those here at CU Boulder.

Anti-racism work is never-ending because our current social systems are founded on white supremacy. At CU, anti-racist work needs to be the ethos of white CU students, staff, administration and the surrounding community. The university must move beyond diversity training and into a commitment to center voices of Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) and call out white supremacy as it pops up in the everyday fabric on CU Boulders campus.

Universities across the country are heeding calls to address the pervasive culture of white supremacy in higher education. CU Boulder is no exception. My experiences as both a doctoral student and an educator map onto these widespread calls for anti-racist, institutional reform and point to the need for white folks to lean in and accept responsibility for their direct implication.

For example, in my research and teaching with preservice teachers, I focus on anti-racism not as just a set of teaching practices, but an everyday positioning in the world. For example, teachers must be deliberate in their reflections and actions about all the ways race impacts daily interactions, which proves to be a challenge in itself due to socialization within a white supremacist world. Indeed anti-racism begins with the inner intellectual and embodied work to the outer, actionable resistances and disruptions within schooling institutions.

In June 2020, CU Chancellor DiStefano offered only a superficial statement addressing anti-racism. We are moving forward to enhance CU Boulders anti-racism and anti-harassment efforts to improve the campus experience, the statement said.

When the Chancellor says that anti-racist actions are required to transform the campus, we white people are directly implicated. Just as my students have suffered from a lack of education and an intentional erasure of our shared racist past, so too have I, and likely, you have too.White people must sit in discomfort and face our own isolation, guilt, and shame in order to transform these feelings into acceptance of the truth and action. If white folks commit to this work, white people wont feel alone, but rather a part of something bigger than any individual can achieve alone.

At CU Boulder,Divest2Invest Collective Plan of Action: Divesting from CU Campus Police for Investment in CU BIPOC and theIDEA Plan call for systemic-level change to disrupt the pervasive culture of white supremacy within the university.

The Divest2Invest Collective Plan of Action demands that CU defunds the campus police and invests in funds supporting the mental well-being of BIPOC folks on campus, as well as, supporting BIPOC initiatives and projects. In addition, the Divest2Invest plan requires everyone affiliated with the university to take mandatory anti-racism courses.

Most recently, Dr. Rabaka, a CU professor in ethnic studies, submitted a proposal for an African and African American research center (CAAAS) at CU to support Black students on campus and highlight Black arts. Notably, white people should get behind their leadership because there is no opting in and out for faculty, staff, and students of color.Everyone at CU needs to read and be vocal about plans like this.

As a white person, there is a multitude of avenues to start anti-racist work. First, its important to recognize that racism is not a topic for debate. White folks need to actively listen to what BIPOC people are saying and take note of places of resistance within themselves to begin processing with other white people. White people should not rely on members of BIPOC communities to teach, absolve or console them during this process.

Secondly, white people need to accept that racism lies in the fiber of America through harmful policies and practices in education, housing, healthcare, transportation and the economy. White people need to learn about the truth of this history and extend their understanding by engaging in intentional reading, reflecting and analysis with themselves.

While studying the true history of America, people should conduct research specifically on whiteness and white body supremacy to understand how racism exists within their thoughts and their bodies. White people must be open to acknowledging uncomfortable histories and embracing their own implications in these histories. In order to reimagine and act on a new future, white folks must face the realities of the racist past and present.

Once individual learning progresses, white people need to engage in collective dialogue with other white folks to work through this discomfort, shame and guilt. They could create book clubs, white caucus or affinity groups or places to process with other white people. Continuing to exist only with other white people will not completely shift institutional structures built on systemic racism. However, working within coalitions beside other people of color requires collective work in an accountable community.

Herein lies the binaries within this work. There are so many nuances and intersections, where binaries are set up to distill and simplify. Our existences and actions are complex and nuanced. Humans must let go of binaries like right or wrong, bad or good, sad or happy and embrace the discomfort borne of this freedom from deep-seated constructs of whiteness. White folks must be able to hold many truths at once.

Acknowledging the existence of racism is not enough. White people must identify and overcome stereotypes, microaggressions, biases and racism while owning that with racial privilege comes inherent power. White people need to learn from the organizing efforts of BIPOC folks in order to see how to leverage ones privilege to contribute, without absorbing the attention and taking all recognition.

Lastly, white folks need to know that this work is possible, but does not come without discomfort. White people need to know that they are worthy and also carry trauma from white supremacy. Though this trauma is starkly different from what BIPOC folks face every day, everyone carries the hurt caused by white supremacy. Systemic policy change requires a collectivized group of people committed to liberation at every level.

Anti-racism is an ongoing, never-ending endeavor. White people need to visibly stand in solidarity with BIPOC community members at CU in pursuit of justice and equity for all.

This was a guest opinion submitted by Kachine Kulick, PhD candidate at the University of Colorado, Boulder. To submit a letter to the editor or a guest opinion, email tips@cuindependent.com. Our submission policies arehere.

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Opinion: Addressing racism is a white responsibility - cuindependent

NEW HYDE PARK, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--For the second year in a row, Northwell Health has been named the best health system for diversity in the United States, according to the latest DiversityInc ranking of Top Hospitals and Health Systems.

New York States largest health care provider and private employer made the list for the ninth straight year and remained in the top spot in the 2021 DiversityInc rankings for Hospitals and Health Systems.

The DiversityInc ranking is a reflection of Northwell Heaths decade-long journey toward the tenets of diversity, inclusion and health equity for its team members, patients and communities. In partnership with the Healthcare Anchor Network, Northwell was one of the first health systems to declare racism as a public health crisis.

The foundation laid has been instrumental in addressing the health and racial inequities unveiled by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. No health system treated more COVID-19 cases more than 191,000 patients over a 13-month span as it collaborated with state and local government to aggressively roll out diagnostic testing and then vaccination efforts to underserved communities across New York City, Long Island and Westchester.

We are extremely proud of this important recognition and also recognize this journey continues. We know that equity, diversity, and inclusion matters to our mission and is at the heart of all that we believe, value and do for our team members, patients and communities, said Maxine Carrington, Northwells senior vice president and chief human resources officer. We believe a supportive and inclusive work environment, where everyone feels valued and included, contributes to our overall care for our patients and communities.

Northwell was recognized nationally for its commitment to integrating the tenets of diversity, inclusion and health equity into its health care delivery strategy with a focus on enhancing the health and wellness needs of the underserved communities and the diverse patients it serves.

DiversityInc examined companies using a 200-question survey that focused on six key areas: Leadership accountability, human capital diversity metrics, talent programs, workforce practices, supplier diversity and philanthropy. Northwells 76,000-strong workforce is a reflection of the communities they serve: one of the nations most diverse populations.

The pandemic unveiled the importance of our human connection and the realization of our vulnerabilities. When neighboring communities dont have the opportunity to be healthy, our entire ecosystem is effected, placing us all at risk, said Jennifer H. Mieres, MD, senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer. This requires us all to be active partners in addressing health care disparities. On our journey to health equity, Northwell has been intentional with formalized strategies, dedicated resources and the implementation of an expanded health care delivery model which fosters a partnership with our communities to provide culturally customized care.

In addition to the top Hospitals ranking, Northwell fared well on several other DiversityInc specialty lists. Northwell ranked eighth among top companies for Veterans, sixth for Latino Executives, No. 10 for Asian American Executives and No. 11 for Talent Acquisition for Women of Color.

Addressing racial health disparities requires acknowledging the effects of structural racism on health status and requires us to be purposeful in re-designing our health care delivery policies through a health equity lens, said Michael Wright, vice president of diversity and health equity. The path forward requires our continued commitment to advancing and sustaining our focus on diversity, inclusion and health equity and harnessing the power of allyship as critical to this important work into the future.

The latest recognition comes on the heels of another workforce honor: Northwell was named one of Fortunes 100 Best Companies to Work For in 2020.

About Northwell Health

Northwell Health is New York States largest health care provider and private employer, with 23 hospitals, 830 outpatient facilities and more than 16,600 affiliated physicians. We care for over two million people annually in the New York metro area and beyond, thanks to philanthropic support from our communities. Our 76,000 employees 18,900 nurses and 4,800 employed doctors, including members of Northwell Health Physician Partners are working to change health care for the better. Were making breakthroughs in medicine at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research. We're training the next generation of medical professionals at the visionary Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell and the Hofstra Northwell School of Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies. For information on our more than 100 medical specialties, visit Northwell.edu and follow us @NorthwellHealth on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

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Northwell Ranked Nation's Top Health System for Diversity - Business Wire

Growing up as a particularly social kid, friendship and connection with others have always been important aspects of my life.

Joking, talking about nothing of importance, and processing the deeper stuff are all part of what I love most about being on this earth.

Today, Im an extroverted psychotherapist who enjoys a mix of social connection and solitude to fill my self-care cup.

That balance between social time and alone time has become more pronounced as Ive learned to live with multiple sclerosis (MS) over the past 6 years.

In the beginning of my chronic illness journey, an unusual-for-me dynamic showed up in the midst of flares and difficult symptoms: my outgoing, socially connected self became more inward, quiet, and overwhelmed.

I stopped reaching out to friends as much as I normally would, and at first, I didnt understand why.

Over the years and through countless conversations with others in the chronic condition community, Ive come to find that its fairly common to go through periods of aloneness and loneliness when you live with challenging health conditions.

There is one dynamic Ive noticed in myself and others that can play a role in isolation: experiencing emotional stuckness around when, how, and whether or not it even makes sense to begin reaching back out to our social networks.

Id like to share some tools to help you manage these inner dynamics in a way that may allow you to find the right balance of social connection in your life.

Whether you consider yourself to be on one end of the introvert-extrovert spectrum or somewhere in the middle, its likely that managing complicated health symptoms can impact your desire and energy to reach out to the people in your life.

Thats OK.

It makes sense to feel less energy and motivation to connect with others when youre going through something big with your body.

Even if youre someone who tends to reach out to friends when things are tough, you may feel a little surprised to see that you just arent doing that right now.

When Im in the midst of a challenging period with my MS, time seems to shift. The minutes and hours feel like they drag on. Theres not as much contrast or differentiation from one hour to the next, so its hard to feel like any time has gone by at all.

Its easy for days to turn into weeks of little-to-no outreach to friends.

A major shift in symptoms can feel disorienting and disappointing. I sometimes find myself wishing for the kind of daily life I had before MS and wanting to take part in activities that require more energy than I currently have.

Lots of emotions show up: sadness, fear, loneliness, anger, annoyance, and sometimes even a sense of numbness to the intensity of it all.

In periods like this, Im so busy managing my emotional experience and dealing with decreased energy that the last thing on my mind is socializing with people.

Even though I love processing my feelings with friends, if I dont have the bandwidth to do so, reaching out to them feels more like a chore than a help.

If were not careful, its easy to slip into a mental space of self-criticism when our needs, priorities, desires, bandwidth, and behaviors shift.

The truth is, we are ever-changing people. Were supposed to feel different ways on different days.

Instead of giving yourself a hard time for having low motivation to connect with others, spend a little time identifying why it makes sense that you dont currently feel like it.

Giving yourself a little compassion can help validate the experience youre going through and keep you out of a shame spiral that has you feeling stuck.

Living with chronic conditions and managing difficult symptoms means we likely need even more connection and support than we may realize.

As much as it can be nourishing to have alone time and space to just be, we arent meant to do the entire journey of life, or chronic illness, alone. Were wired to live in connection with one another, to be impacted by each other, to feel nourished by others presence, and to give and receive help.

Balance is key. Its OK to give yourself room to be on your own and its also important to notice when solitude has the potential to turn into loneliness.

Sometimes, loneliness has its own snowball effect. If we havent reached out to others in a while, it can feel less and less easy to do so as time goes on. And so we go longer and longer without connection and get more and more lonely.

The thoughts that can show up during a stuck period may sound something like:

As we repeat these thoughts in our minds, our feelings of disconnection can become even more entrenched.

We know we need to reach out, but we can think of so many reasons why it isnt easy, why it wont make a difference, or why our loved ones wont be responsive or accepting.

Keep in mind that this stuckness is simply a practiced thought pattern that becomes more convincing over time. If we listen to these thoughts without questioning them, we may be convinced that theyre universal truths.

The key is understanding that the inner voice of stuckness doesnt have to be the part of you that calls the shots. The stuck pattern is one part of the mind, but its not the whole you.

Because its message is so convincing, its important to take some small steps in exactly the opposite direction of its advice.

You dont have to cut off the voice of stuckness and isolation, but you can offset it with these reminders:

Reigniting the process of reaching out to others wont necessarily feel easy if youve been immersed in a cycle of stuckness. Thats why its a helpful stretch its something that serves you without necessarily coming easily.

One of my favorite ways to break the cycle of loneliness and isolation is to send a message to one friend and share candidly about whats really going on.

It might look something like this: Im sorry I havent been in touch in a while. Ive been having some tough symptoms lately, and am not really sure how to talk to people about it, or if it will even make sense. So today I figured just telling you that might help. How have you been?

This is a transparent way of inviting someone into your real, imperfect process. Youre giving them information about whats happening for you at this moment in time.

The truth is, whether they have a chronic condition or not, your experience is likely to be pretty relatable on some level.

Another way to get connected is to explore chronic condition communities online, search chronic condition hashtags on social media, read chronic condition blogs, and listen to chronic condition podcasts.

Something powerful happens when we begin to read and hear about others experiences with health challenges.

Even if their experiences arent identical to our own, we start to feel less alone and our lived experiences feel more valid and understood.

I have a few chronic illness buddies whom Ive met through online communities. Whats special about having friends who also live with health challenges is that they get it without me having to explain nearly as much.

We give each other lots of grace and understanding when reaching out feels especially tough, because most of us have been there.

It can feel supportive and reassuring to know that we have a few people in our lives who are in this shared experience with us.

Even when you feel isolated, youre in the shared company of many others who may be feeling that exact way in this very moment. Keep in mind that theres nothing wrong with you if youre struggling with reaching out.

Its important to give yourself some care and understanding around why youre feeling what youre feeling, give yourself some intentional nourishing thoughts to support your next steps, and take small actions to reconnect with others.

Note: If youre having feelings of hopelessness, self-harm, or suicide, know that most people feel this at some point in their lives. Many dont talk about it, but it is actually pretty common.

If you or someone you know is considering suicide, help is out there. Reach out to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255. If someone is at immediate risk of self-harm, call 911 or your local emergency number and stay with them until help arrives.

Being a human can be tough, and we never have to do it alone.

Lauren Selfridge is a licensed marriage and family therapist in California, working online with people living with chronic illness as well as couples. She hosts the interview podcast, This Is Not What I Ordered, focused on full-hearted living with chronic illness and health challenges. Lauren has lived with relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis for over 5 years and has experienced her share of joyful and challenging moments along the way. You can learn more about Laurens work here, or follow her and her podcast on Instagram.

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Living with a Chronic Illness Can Be Isolating These 4 Tips Can Help - Healthline

Its sometimes tough to be a Catholic in America. In California, Governor Newsoms rigorous and discriminatory limits on church attendance were only recently overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court. In Oregon, rioters overtook part of downtown Portland, shattering glass doors at the entrance to Saint Andr Bessette Catholic Church in the citys Old Town. In Minnesota, violent protests following the shooting of Daunte Wright have been marked by looting and violence, making cities unsafe for their inhabitants.

And more than that, in many areas today, it is difficult for Catholic mothers and fathers to raise their children without government interference, in a community where people share their faith and values.

In response to the challenges posed by the secular culture, some parents have doubled down, choosing to enroll their children in religious schools or to homeschool. Increasingly, however, Catholic parents are reconsidering their options even moving their families across the country in search of a community where faith is respected and nurtured. Those families may come together in an intentional community, such as the Catholic community in Ave Maria, Florida, or the recently announced Veritatis Splendor community in the Diocese of Tyler, Texas. Others find a parish in their hometown that is determined to preserve and strengthen faith in their parish and school.

One parish, Our Lady of the Rosary (OLR) in Greenville, South Carolina, has drawn Catholic families from around the area and across the country, and has even coined a word to describe whats been happening there: Relocati. Relocatiis a neologism that is supposed to sound like Latin. The created term describes the phenomenon of Catholic families relocating for reasons of faith and culture.

As of April 2021, 14 new families have moved to Greenville to attend OLR from 11 states California, Oregon, Washington, Minnesota, Illinois, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and Nevada and more are on their way. It is easy for them to assimilate because they tend to share fundamental core values. This makes it very different from receiving a potpourri of new families coming for, say, work-related reasons.

Some of the Catholic transplants became aware of OLR because its pastor, Father Dwight Longenecker, is a prominent author, blogger and speaker. Others were impressed when, in 2019, the parish dedicated a beautiful new church built in the Romanesque style. Many of OLRs new families have chosen to enroll their children in OLRs K-12 classical academy which seeks to support parents in their role as the primary educators of their children. According to the mission statement:

Our rigorous classical training draws out of students their natural desire for wisdom and virtue. By fostering a love for truth, beauty, and goodness, we seek to form disciples of Jesus Christ, set free to realize their full potential by living joyfully in accordance with the truth revealed by God through nature and the Catholic Church.

Thomas Curtin, the schools headmaster, said the pandemic restrictions have given extra momentum to the Relocati initiative.

This started a couple of years ago, he said, but it accelerated once the lockdown kicked in. People began to see the culture for what it was. People are ready to make radical changes that might have seemed unthinkable before but now they are thinkable.

Curtin reported that many of the newcomers have fled places that have been inhospitable or openly hostile to religion. Whats happened, he said, is that peoples sense of the stakes has changed. Were no longer comparing good with better. Were comparing completely unacceptable with good. If we lack the ability to renew the Church because were overwhelmed by the culture, then we are called to be a pilgrim people, a pilgrim Church to find the place where we can make our gift.

Our Lady of the Rosary, Curtin believes, is a haven, opening its doors to welcome even refugees of sorts. He reported that some of the immigrant families have reached out to encourage others in their former communities to follow, to become part of the new movement of families who have taken up residence in the Upstate of South Carolina and registered at OLR.

I thought it was important, Curtin said, for people to have a way of talking about this emergent behavior to brand it, so to speak. Many Catholics feel deep responsibility to stick it out where they are, to be loyal to their parish and community. Thats a good thing. But there is no denying that changing circumstances are pushing people to take dramatic action. They are not moving across town but across the country. When people realize theyre participating in a movement, they see they are not just being weak. They are being responsive to the Holy Spirit. They feel confirmed in their instinct that what they are experiencing is not right for their family. God desires more for them.

Following are the reports of three families who have taken that leap of faith, who have followed the Holy Spirits leading to make a major change.

A Huge Blessing in Our Lives

Kyle and Molly Dardis moved from Oregon to Greenville with their five children a year ago. We are so grateful we made the move, Molly reports. It has been a huge blessing in our lives.

The town that the Dardis family had called home had changed, becoming the U.S. city with the highest population of homeless people per capita, and that distinction brought with it tent communities, used needles on the sidewalks, and conditions that made Molly feel less safe.

Molly also was disappointed by the Catholic school in their community, and so had spent six years homeschooling their children, aged 5 to 11. Now, the Dardis children benefit from the classical curriculum at Our Lady of the Rosary. Last week, Molly reported, our son, a fifth-grader, came home wanting to talk about Lech Wasa, the Catholic president of Poland. She added that the program of faith formation is solid, and that the curriculum helps her children to develop memory skills memorizing a Bible verse each week, learning to name all of the countries in Europe, reciting historical poetry. Even more, Molly believed that her children benefited from attending school alongside other children from strong families, whose parents are firmly committed to the Catholic faith.

A Homeschool Vibe

MaMay Grimm moved to Greenville with her husband Greg and their children, Thaddeus (8) and Eponine (4), on the Saturday before Easter in 2021. MaMay talked about their decision to relocate. During COVID, we did a lot of soul-searching, she explained.

We realized that we had been renting for more than ten years. ... I was working at school, and three other part-time jobs; and my husband was also working full-time. We said a couple of novenas, then sat down and looked at the pros and cons. We both had to quit our jobs, and we didn't know what was going to happen when we moved out here. But God has been so good!

MaMay hoped that she might be able to work at her childrens school in some capacity, so she sent in her resume. She had some teaching experience, but was not credentialed. The headmaster told her that credentials are great, but that they don't base their hiring decisions exclusively on that. She was accepted as a substitute teacher, and is also volunteering her time. Thats a blessing, she says, because I would prefer to be there, helping the children.

The Grimms were drawn to Our Lady of the Rosary school by the classic literature included in the curriculum, but they were also impressed to learn that the entire school attends Mass each week. In California, she told the Register, the preschoolers and kindergarteners didnt have to go to Mass. She was concerned that some of the children might not be learning at home about the importance of the liturgy. A third point MaMay made was that at OLR, the children say the Pledge of Allegiance.

The Grimm children are thriving in their new environment. Eponine, age 4, loves her new school and is adjusting well. Thaddeus, 8, was not yet writing in cursive, but he mastered it within his first week at OLR and MaMay reported with a smile that his writing had become clearer than hers. With 27 children in his California classroom, Thaddeus had had difficulty concentrating. Now at OLR, hes been able to complete his assignments.

MaMay called the atmosphere at Our Lady of the Rosary kind of a homeschool vibe. She felt that the emphasis on family involvement was important. I love that part of education, she explained. Its a bit more strict in some ways, but in other ways its more laid back. The respect and the quiet in the classroom is just what my son needs in order to focus.

The Grimms are temporarily sharing a home with MaMays mother and stepfather, while her husband continues to seek fulltime employment.

Things Were Changing

Pat and Michelle Langowski recently traded their Minnesota address for one in South Carolina. The couple reported:

We did not like the way the place we lived was changing, and we started to see these changes affect our children and their learning. The focus seemed to be less and less on quality education and good values, and more about pushing a specific agenda. We are grateful to have found OLR! We made the decision to move our family (grandparents, too) across the country to live in a place where people didnt apologize for being Catholic. Furthermore, we have the confidence of knowing our children are receiving a quality, classical, and authentically Catholic education. We know they attend a school where our Catholic values are explained and celebrated. We have seen that the world is all too eager to impose its values on children. We are thrilled that the place where our children spend the majority of their day is a Catholic, classical, loving and caring place.

Our Lady of the Rosary Classical School currently has 145 students, ranging from 4 years old to 11th grade. By next year, the school will offer full K-12 education. In April the parish initiated a Novena to Our Lady of Good Counsel for the intention that families across the country, who desire an authentic Catholic education and culture for their children, will discover Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Church and School and decide in faith to relocate and join their community.

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Would You Move Thousands of Miles to Live in a Catholic Community? These Families Are Doing Just That - National Catholic Register

OREGON (WKOW) -- The Dewbre family from Oregon got to see a lot of each other during the pandemic, as virtual learning kept the kids at home -- hanging out with the family as much as they could stand.

"12- and 13-year-olds think their parents aren't very cool," said mom Sarah Dewbre.

7-year-old Allie, 10-year-old Jack and 13-year-old Owen make up the next generation of Dewbres.

"COVID hit (Owen) pretty hard," Sarah said. "He's a very social kid, so that isolation changed him a little bit."

Change isn't new for Owen.

"He was about 10 when he came to us and said he associated as a male," Sarah said.

Owen was born female. Sarah says the family supported him from the beginning, but growing into a transgender teenager during a pandemic was not easy.

"He's not going through any of those normal biological changes that a boy would go through in eight grade, right?" she said. "So his voice isn't changing and sounds still very feminine. When he's on a video call, most of them don't even have their cameras on -- it's usually just people talking. and I think that was really hard for him."

Isolation kept him safe from the virus, but something just as sinister started slowly infecting him.

"It's much easier to say on social media, 'You're gross. You're transgender,'" Sarah said. "Where someone probably wouldn't say that to their face."

Owen has been vocal about being transgender, speaking last year to a crowded Oregon park celebrating marginalized communities after George Floyd was killed.

He was the same way online, finding a community that accepted him.

"There was this group of probably, I don't know, a thousand different kids that all messaged back and forth which each other," Sarah said.

That filled his socialization void -- until the community turned on him.

"That was when my son tried to take action and tried to commit suicide," Sarah said. "My ex-husband took him into the hospital, and then I took his phone."

What she found on his phone shocked her.

"There were at least 800 messages sent to my son telling him to kill himself," Sarah said.

Owen spent eight days in an emergency facility.

The messages kept coming.

"One of the young people found his Facebook profile, and then found out I was his mom through his Facebook profile," Sarah said. "They started sending me threatening Facebook messages about how I'm raising this terrible kid and he should kill himself."

The Wisconsin Office of Children's Mental Health says this state is among the top five for most insurance claims for intentional self-harm injuries during the pandemica 100 percent increase in self-harm, substance abuse and mental health claims for teens in 2020 compared to 2019.

The pandemicand its isolationgripping kids tightly.

"We're getting a large number of calls from parents looking to find ways to get support for their children," said Anna Moffit, who runs Dane County's chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. She says this mental health crisis is not new to 2020.

"Pre-pandemic, we were really looking at a steady increase in mental health conditions across the board," she said.

State health data shows that increase each year in people using mental health services, until 2020 -- when there was actually a slight drop.

While the mental health crisis exploded, the availability of services was slim.

"I think when we all went into sheltering in place, people obviously were worried about going out, or maybe they didn't want to engage with telehealth services, which is what most providers moved towards," Moffit said.

In Owen's situation, mom Sarah says he needs a type of continued support that just isn't available.

"Right now, when we're looking for them, the waitlist is about three months long for him to get into any of those facilities," she said.

That's three months Sarah doesn't have.

Toward the end of April, three weeks after his first trip to the hospital, Owen was back in emergency care.

He tried to take his life again.

"I think my story's exactly what's going to happen with other individuals," Sarah said. "A scare happens, you bring them to the right facility, you do the things that you need to, and then they come home. But they're not here, they're not healthy yet, and they need more support."

Moffit says the wait times for continued care have been long for quite a while.

"Wait times have been an issue since I have been engaged with the behavioral health system," she said.

Moffit says organizations like her's are working hard to fill gaps, but big, systemic changes are needed to address mental health -- from all levels of government -- because the problem will only grow.

"There's really going to be this collective trauma that we've experienced and that will need to be addressed down the road," she said.

Moffit is optimistic that because the crisis is now so visible, it will finally be addressed.

"I do think it has elevated the issue of behavioral health and the importance of support for people who are living with a mental health condition," she said. "So that has been really positive."

But change comes slowly.

And for a family, and a boy, dealing with so many changes -- slowly won't cut it.

"I can call until I'm blue in the face," Sarah Dewbre said. "But that's not going to make a bed open up."

The Oregon community is hosting an event to celebrate LGBTQ people there on June 5. That's the same event at which Owen spoke last summer.

If you, your child or someone you know is struggling, you can always reach out to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or chat with them online at suicidepreventionlifeline.org.

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Pandemic isolation took a toll on kids' mental health, but treatment is backlogged -- and some families can't afford to wait - WKOW

Lets be honest: pyramids are not the first thing that come to mind when thinking of Bosnia and Herzegovina. But one Bosnian town is increasingly proud of its pyramids, attracting new age tourist euros and scorn from the scientific community in equal measure.

Visoko, around 35 kilometres north of Bosnias capital Sarajevo, is the site of a cluster of hills that it is often said look like pyramids.

Many locals claim, however, that its more than just a passing resemblance.

For people like Semir Osmanagi, the hills are actually the largest man-made pyramids on Earth.

For the past 15 years, Mr Osmanagi has advanced the pyramids theory, based on several excavations which have taken place since 2006. According to him, the pyramids were most likely built by the Illyrians, one of the ancient communities of the Balkans. In an interview in 2017 Mr Osmanagi claimed the structures date back 34,000 years.

He further claims that tunnels below the hills, known as the Ravne tunnels, are also man-made and equally ancient, He says that he has discovered standing waves at the top of the largest hill which travel faster than the speed of light and allow for intergalactic communication.

Ancient peoples built a machine with which they could communicate with the furthest reaches of the cosmos, Mr Osmanagi told the Russia-based web portal Sputnik. In the same interview, he extolled the health benefits of visiting the pyramids, noting that they could help those with high blood pressure and alleviate hyperglycaemia.

Unsurprisingly, Mr Osmanagi is light on official archaeological credentials. He holds a masters degree in international economics, and has lived in the United States where he founded a manufacturing company of which he is still the CEO.

He has claimed in a book, The World of the Maya that the Mayans are watchmakers of the cosmos who are descended from aliens from the star cluster Pleiades.

Mr Osmanagis Archaeological Park: Bosnian Pyramid of the Sun Foundation now funds the promotion and investigation of the Bosnian site.

And promote it he has. Over the years, local authorities have funded excavations of the site and allowed schoolchildren to visit the pyramids where they were taught they are part of Bosnian heritage.

Volunteers are now constructing a botanical garden at one the pyramids, where meditation sessions are held. Another of the hills has been substantially altered and now resembles a steeped pyramid.

The complex attracts many visitors which for Visoko, a small town of around 40,000 inhabitants, has been a boon in economic terms.

Serbian tennis star Novak okovi, who is no stranger to New Ageism and quackery, is a big fan of the Bosnian pyramids. Earlier this month he completed his third pilgrimage to the site, and met with Mr Osmanagi himself.

Scientists believe that the hills are not pyramids at all, but rather natural structures known as flatirons. These do resemble pyramids, but they are the result of the differential erosion of a layer of resistant rock overlaid on softer strata.

Flatirons are found across the globe, from Ethiopia to Russia, and in geological terms are not especially rare or interesting.

Nevertheless, with the marketing in place, tens of thousands of people are visiting the Bosnian pyramids each year.

The issue is not just that Mr Osmanagi is, in the view of scientific groups such as the European Association of Archaeologists who called the entire thing a cruel hoax on an unsuspecting public, promoting falsehoods. Activities such excavations and the construction of theme parks can potentially negatively affect the actual archaeological heritage of the area.

Visoko was an important medieval centre in Bosnia, and the site of the coronation of the Bosnian king, Tvrtko the First. In the Old Town, there is a medieval fortress whose inner bailey is a fine example of how towns looked in the era.

There is scarcely a scientific body in Europe that hasnt condemned the pyramids theory yet its supporters are not backing down. Several intentional seminars have been held by its proponents, attracting many alternative scientists who advance various pseudoscientific theories.

And while many scientists have called on the local and federal authorities in Bosnia to end their support, in 2016 a second park was opened at the site, with the support of the local government who declared it it a place of significance.

Local politicians might be driven but tourist money, but why has the theory captured the imaginations of so many people and many volunteers?

Writing for the Smithsonian Magazine in 2009, American journalist Colin Woodard says the pyramids are a social phenomenon born out of the horrors and destruction of the Bosnian War.

With widespread infrastructural damage (which in the Visoko region was estimated at around 200 million US dollars) people are drawn to the idea that their region was once the seat of an advanced and mighty ancient civilisation. The potential tourism revenue is handy too.

Similar claims exist elsewhere in the region. In Serbia, parapsychologists and other assorted New Age scientists have claimed the Rtanj mountain as the site of such things a star gate, a cosmic lighthouse, and that the mountain contains proof that Serbs actually originate from the long lost city of Atlantis.

Others, however, have claimed that ancient Serbs were actually once at war with the Atlanteans.

Whatever the explanation for such claims, there seem to be enough believers in the Western Balkans for them to endure. The Bosnian pyramid complex is not shutting down anytime soon.

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Are there ancient pyramids in Bosnia and Herzegovina? - Emerging Europe