Category Archives: Intentional Communities

Since my father was told to walk the Trail of Tears our family has traveled 14,000 recorded miles through 24 states by foot and by horse. This journey started when my dad wanted to understand being American Indian (or Native American as said today) and talking with my great grandfather who said pointing out his door in Cherokee North Carolina; Walk the Trail of Tears and than you will know somewhat it is like to be Indian.

Leaving with myself (9 months old in a kids carrier backpack), my mom, and our horse Prince Hussein a retired Thoroughbred race horse packed with our minimal goods we started the walk which took 14 months helped and inspired by the good will of the people. Whenever we needed food or anything dad would offer to do a work exchange and since he was multi skilled laborer there was always work to be had. This trip started a 20 year odyssey of travel by horse. Over the years we acquired 3 more kids, more horses, and a couple of wagons. Our first upgrade was a loaner of a couple of mules and a wagon which we used for about a year. Than we got a 2 wheeled buggy (our chariot) that was pulled by Prince, which had Amish wooden wheels with a metal band around them and we made a cover using bent willow branches and canvas. We used that for quite a few years until we got our Cadillac wagon. This is a 4 rubber tired wagon which is made using the straight rear axles from a Cadillac. Such a smooth ride though we did get the occasional flat. We pulled the old two wheeled buggy behind with our supplies in it. Going by horse has its disadvantages (averaging 5 miles an hour or under 30 miles a day although our record is 76 miles on a cold upper state NY winter day when Prince just wanted to run all day), and advantages (no cost grass powered).

Sung to the clippy clopping of the cadence of the horses hooves;

The bull was looking through the fence,

He says; I seem to have lost my sense of sight,

I think I see a wagon, coming down along the road,

Sure looks like they have an easy load.

Ol Prince is clippy clopping

And ol Smokey just aint stopping

And we thank you Lord for an easy load

Popcorn popcorn road, Popcorn popcorn road, I like the popcorn road

Zoom zoom road, Zoom zoom road, who likes the Zoom zoom road?

I have heard many people say and lately have read many memes that have some version of: It is not the destination, It is the trip.

This is definitely how we went. Although we mostly went back to Alabama, or Tennessee, or once to Israel in the winter to rest up and not travel in the cold weather, we also did travel through Connecticut and New York in the winter. One Christmas we camped out on the green in New Haven Connecticut and we created a real life nativity scene next to the normal one. That was fun as I had lots of kids to play with.

I remember once on my birthday in January we were snowed in somewhere in our buggy and I was crying; this my birthday and I have stuck in this little 5 foot square with nothing to do all day. Somehow in the midst of the windy snowstorm someone saw our tiny 5 foot square buggy with our horse hunkered down nearby and knocked on the canvas. I dont know if it was when dad went out to check on and feed Prince or not, I just remember being invited to a strangers house for what turned into my birthday party. Up to that day I had not liked carrot cake but when they provided me a carrot cake with candles my joy overwhelmed my dislike and I like carrot cake to this day some 30 years later. Reflecting on this miracle, I am truly amazed by the kindness of strangers.

We usually didnt have a problem finding a place to camp, whether is was just the side of the road or in a church lot. When we wanted to rest up or stay in an area for longer than a few days we carried with us the Directory of Intentional Communities and Alternative Schools. These people always seemed up to doing work exchange for us to stay for a week while we looked for more permanent work.

When we hunkered down for the winter in Tennessee we had a truck for hauling wood but mostly for hire. We would haul, transport, drive to work in it and go to town once a month to buy food and do laundry. I got my first full-time job baby sitting or being basically a servant to an eldery man and used the truck to get to work. My first real part-time job ( I was making minimum wage of 3.25) helping Bob, a great handicapped man, with his house and raised bed garden. Since that was only 3 miles away I rode my bicycle there.

In Tennessee we were near a bicycle factory that made low quality department store bicycles and since many people in the area worked at the factory there were tons of these bicycles around. I got highly skilled at repairing them, using only the tools I had, which were a screw driver and an adjustable wrench, as they were such low quality they constantly had to be repaired. Years later, this skill came in handy when I become a manager of the Bike Surgeon bicycle shop where I was the Bike Doctor ( I make house calls) and later when I started my first full time business Alternative Transportation and Energy. Who knew that the hassle of constantly repairing low-quality bicycles would lead there? Now living in a smaller University town I find it easier and faster to get somewhere on a bicycle especially if you have to find parking. In the winter when I ride or walk to gym I always find it funny to see my neighbors who drove to the gym.

We and our society are very car dependent. I got my first car, a 64 Plymouth Valiant, when I was 14, which I loved to drive around our farm and I fixed up to sell. Growing up in rural Tennessee I was driving tractor, raking hay when I was 8. The hard thing is to try to break free from our dependence on the car to try to realize it is just a tool, not a lifestyle or whatever is marketed to us. I love my Subaru and at least once every 3 months (used to be every month) I love going on a high speed jaunt. I do tend to not use my car in town but rather walk or bicycle which is why I bought a small 300 square foot house downtown. I bought a house in town when I found myself driving to town 2 or 3 times a day almost every day for work or meetings. How can I be Living Off Grid, Really?!?! with solar for my electricity but be fuel dependent and waste all that time ( 2 or 3 hours a day) driving?

I am trying to reset my mind that the car is to be used only for travel outside of town or for on a rare occasion hauling a bunch of bulk goods. This is how I grew up but after 10 years of becoming addicted to the car it is difficult to break the addiction. My dream is to live somewhere with a lifestyle that doesnt need the cost and hassle of a car! The challenge, joy and speed of riding a bicycle around town is becoming as addicting.

I look forward everyday to the interactions I have on my Living Off Grid, Really!?!? Facebook page and hope you will join the discussion there.

Stay energized, Aur

Aur Beck has lived completely off-grid for over 35 years. He has traveled with his family through 24 states and 14,000 recorded miles by horse-drawn wagon. Aur is a presenter at The Climate Reality Project, a fellow addict at Oil Addicts Anonymous International and a talk show co-host at WDBX Community Radio for Southern Illinois 91.1 FM. Find him on the Living Off Grid, Really!?!?Facebook page, and read all of Aur's MOTHER EARTH NEWS posts here.

I put together this kids ditty was I was super young and remember it for some reason;

Popcorn popcorn road, Popcorn popcorn road, I like the popcorn road

Zoom zoom road, Zoom zoom road, who likes the Zoom zoom road?

I have heard many people say and lately have read many memes that have some version of: It is not the destination, It is the trip.

This is definitely how we went. Although we mostly went back to Alabama, or Tennessee, or once to Israel in the winter to rest up and not travel in the cold weather we also did travel through Connecticut and New York in the winter. One Christmas we camped out on the green in New Haven Connecticut and we created a real life nativity scene next to the normal one. That was fun as I had lots of kids to play with.

I remember once on my birthday in January we were snowed in somewhere in our buggy and I was crying; this my birthday and I have stuck in this little 5 foot square with nothing to do all day. Somehow in the midst of the windy snowstorm someone saw our tiny 5 foot square buggy with our horse hunkered down nearby and knocked on the canvas. I dont know if it was when dad went out to check on and feed Prince or not, I just remember being invited to strangers house for what turned into my birthday party. Up to that day I had not liked carrot cake but when they provided me a carrot cake With candles my joy overwhelmed my dislike and I like carrot cake to this day some 30 years later. Reflecting on this miracle years later I am truly amazed by the kindness of strangers.

We usually didnt have a problem finding a place to camp whether is was just the side of the road or in a church lot. When we wanted to rest up or stay in an area for longer than a few days we carried with us the Directory of Intentional Communities and Alternative Schools. These people always seemed up to doing work exchange for us to stay for a week while we looked for more permanent work.

When we hunkered down for the winter in Tennessee we had a truck for hauling wood but mostly for hire. We would haul, transport, drive to work in it and go to town once a month to buy food and do laundry. I got my first full time job baby sitting or being basically a servant to an eldery man and used the truck to get to work. My first real part time job ( I was making minimum wage of 3.25) helping Bob, a great handicapped man, with his house and raised bed garden. Since that was only 3 miles away I rode my bicycle there.

In Tennessee we were near a bicycle factory that made low quality department store bicycles and since many people in the area worked at the factory there were tons of these bicycles around. I got highly skilled at repairing them, using only the tools I had which were a screw driver and an adjustable wrench, as they were such low quality they constantly had to be repaired. Years later this skill came in handy when I become a manager of the Bike Surgeon bicycle shop where I was the Bike Doctor ( I make house calls) and later when I started my first full time business Alternative Transportation and Energy. Who knew that the hassle of constantly repairing junk low quality bicycles would lead there? Now living in a smaller University town I find it easier and faster to get somewhere on a bicycle especially if you have to find parking. In the winter when I ride or walk to gym I always find it funny to see my neighbors who drove to the gym.

We and our society are very car dependent. I got my first car, a 64 Plymouth Valiant, when I was 14 which I loved to drive around our farm and I fixed up to sell. Growing up in rural Tennessee I was driving tractor raking hay when I was 8. The hard thing is to try to break free from our dependence on the car to try to realize it is just a tool not a lifestyle or whatever is marketed to us. I love my Subaru and at least once every 3 months (used to be every month) I love going on a high speed jaunt. I do tend to not use my car in town but rather walk or bicycle which is why I bought a small 300 square foot house downtown. I bought a house in town when I found myself driving to town 2 or 3 times a day almost every day for work or meetings. How can I be Living Off Grid, Really?!?! with solar for my electricity but be fuel dependent and waste all that time ( 2 or 3 hours a day) driving?

I am trying to reset my mind that the car is to be used only for travel outside of town or for on a rare occasion hauling a bunch of bulk goods. This is how I grew up but after 10 years of becoming addicted to the car it is difficult to break the addiction. My dream is to live somewhere with a lifestyle that doesnt need the cost and hassle of a car! The challenge, joy and speed of riding a bicycle around town is becoming as addicting.

I look forward everyday to the interactions I have on my Living Off Grid, Really!?!? Facebook page and hope you will join the discussion there.

Stay energized, Aur

Aur Beck has lived completely off-grid for over 35 years. He has traveled with his family through 24 states and 14,000 recorded miles by horse-drawn wagon. Aur is a presenter at The Climate Reality Project, a fellow addict at Oil Addicts Anonymous International and a talk show co-host at WDBX Community Radio for Southern Illinois 91.1 FM. Find him on the Living Off Grid, Really!?!?Facebook page, and read all of Aur's MOTHER EARTH NEWS posts here.

All MOTHER EARTH NEWS community bloggers have agreed to follow our Blogging Guidelines, and they are responsible for the accuracy of their posts. To learn more about the author of this post, click on their byline link at the top of the page.

Excerpt from:

Transportation/Traveling While Living Off Grid - Mother Earth News

Jim Kopriva believes the migration of youth away from rural areas isn't just a lack of career opportunity. It's a lack of habitat.

"What we see around here is land rented to the top bidder," Kopriva said. "Next thing you know, somebody from several hundred miles away is buying land right next door. The whole idea of renting for top dollar becomes like driving 40 miles to get gas for a penny cheaper."

For young people desiring to get started in agriculture, the concept of handing out land to the highest bidder becomes a challenging stumbling block.

And on the heels of a short window when high crop prices turned marginal land into farm ground, many old homesteads that could have been handed over to young farming hopefuls are now gone.

Kopriva, who farms and ranches northwest of Raymond, initially began raising livestock on a small acreage while he held a daytime job in town. Without the chance to fix a rundown acreage as payment for a place to live, he might not have had the chance to pursue his ultimate passion of raising livestock. He believes that encouraging individuals to start small by making land available for them will bring young people back into agriculture.

"They need an opportunity to try and an opportunity to get their hands on some land resources," Kopriva said. "How nice would it be if land owners would prefer to rent to young people that are beginning farmers or just trying to get themselves established in agriculture?"

Living in the country provides families opportunities to become involved in agriculture even if it's not their primary occupation. Some of the most valuable ethics can be taught on a farm, and in Kopriva's mind those lessons are best taught through stewardship of livestock.

Responsibility and commitment are quickly learned when those principles live right outside the back door for families that live in the country.

"Young people need livestock," Kopriva said. "If they don't go out and feed their bicycle nothing bad will happen the next day, but if they ignore their livestock, livestock teaches kids something they can't learn any other way."

Kopriva also sees benefits for the older generations that rent to younger families instead of holding out for the highest bidder. Younger individuals with families can tackle odd jobs to help out older neighbors while building a sense of community in the country.

"When that land owner needs a ride to town or needs snow removed from driveways, who's going to help them?" Kopriva asked. "I think it pays in a lot of ways."

The 2011 Center for Rural Affairs Census Report supports Kopriva's observation that fewer opportunities are available for young people to become rooted in small farming operations. However, South Dakota State University Extension community development specialist Peggy Schlechter notes that South Dakota communities as a whole are growing.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, South Dakota's population swelled by 7.9 percent from 2000 to 2010. While this population boost bodes well for larger South Dakota towns and cities, it masks the 4.4 percent drop in the rural countryside and small towns seen over the past decade.

Schlechter notes that rural communities need to change how they develop opportunities for young people. Instead of providing scholarships for youth to move away and pursue an education, communities need to build more incentives that will draw back former residents, especially those who already desire to return but require economic or entrepreneurial encouragement.

Schlechter has seen interest in young people wanting to move back to their home areas. The issue becomes creating a viable habitat for young people to work and raise families in.

Schlechter believes that rural areas offer prime potential for people to play a significant role in communities. Rural communities require involvement from everyone in order for roles to be fulfilled. These communities need to become more intentional in promoting themselves as well as ensuring that everyone in the community has the chance to play a part, Schlechter said.

"In rural areas you really have an opportunity as a leader to make an impact on people's lives and make a difference dramatically."

Both Kopriva and Schlechter agree that proactive steps need to be taken for rural communities to thrive.

"How many people die with money in their account that they never used, but it crowded young people off the land?" Kopriva asked. "It's worth more to rent locally and keep people in the country than it is to seek the top dollar. To me, that's habitat."

Excerpt from:

Renting land to highest bidder stumbling block for young people looking to start in agriculture - INFORUM

The article goes on to refer to Rod friend of this blog Drehers upcoming "The Benedict Option" book, then swings back into a lengthy piece on the good and bad points of setting up a communal life in the sticks. When I finished it, I was not convinced that this movement is a trend by any means, as the writer only cites one other community to make his case.

That community - which only got two paragraphs in the story -- is a group of Orthodox Christians who live within walking distance of St. John Orthodox Cathedral in Eagle River, Alaska.

Its a shame the WSJ writer didnt visit that group, as its a whole different scene than what he discovered in Oklahoma.

I dropped by the cathedral (pictured with this article) back in 2015 for a Sunday service and noticed the local streets named after saints and how many of the congregants lived walking distance from the church. Located a 20-minute drive north of Anchorage, its nowhere near as isolated as is the Clear Creek group.

Attention editors: There are dangers to taking an upcoming book, visiting one specific community (apparently) mentioned in the book, citing another and then extrapolating a national trend from it all.

When I came out with a book on Christian community in 2009, I was looking all over the country for likeminded communities that would welcome it. What I found was slim pickings. Id be interested in learning that a mass movement had happened in the eight intervening years, but Ive found that experiments like Clear Creek and St. Johns Cathedral are the exception.

This is also not the first time the Clear Creek and Eagle River folks have appeared together in an article. A 2014 piece in Crisis magazine cites Dreher's work and names the same two communities and is similar to the Journal piece, albeit it's critical of the Benedict Option. If you're going to profile a movement, try not to use the same two examples that other writers have used.

Its too bad more of Rods quotes on how many of these communities are out there were not included. Im curious too as to how these folks are different from the Amish, Bruderhof (some tmatt coverage here) and Hutterite communities that have been doing much the same thing for decades.

Im glad the writer found one person who disagreed with the community concept, but unfortunately, she was the wrong person to cite.

A lone fundamentalist Christian church in red-state Florida is not the same as an intentional rural community like Clear Creek. You can't just cite an independent Protestant group in criticism of hierarchical Catholic and Orthodox groups. It's apples and oranges.

If youre going to find a critic, latch onto Facebook groups of people whove lived in multi-household communities where they are geographically close to a church, have some form of income sharing or engage in a common industry. I listen in to one such group (of disenchanted Catholics whove been part of a group of Midwestern charismatic communities) whose members could have provided much better quotes.

I appreciated the piece and the effort taken to report it, but the article needed more.

What does the local bishop think of this group? How connected is Clear Creek to the Diocese of Tulsa? Yes, there are photos on the monastery's webpage of a visit by Cardinal Raymond Burke, but that says more about the community's isolation because Burke is not exactly in Pope Francis' good graces at the moment. If theres anything Ive heard from Catholics whove been members of such communities, its that they wished they hadnt veered so far from the mainstream church but had found some way of integrating more parishes into their vision.

Then again, the monastery has been featured recently by Our Sunday Visitor.Also by the Tulsa World. Can't get much more mainstream than that. But the Journal focused on the lay community near the monastery; a different kettle of fish. There's been a lot written about how even the best-intentioned communities sink into authoritarian tendencies. What steps is Clear Creek taking to make sure the Benedict Option doesn't go bad?

Those are the questions people are asking and which journalists should be answering.

Photos are by the author and from clearcreekmonks.org.

Visit link:

The Wall Street Journal explores trends in Christian community life sort of - GetReligion (blog)

On Thursday, the UW Alumni Association (UWAA) hosted a diverse range of panelists to speak on the topic of food from a wide variety of perspectives. Food: Four Short Talks was an event that was the first of its kind.

The event was collaboratively built with all the panelists in order to reflect the diverse and unique experiences involved with food, according to UWAA senior director Ellen Whitlock Baker.

The whole thing is new, Baker said. Weve never done anything like this.

All of the panelists for Food Talks were either UW faculty or UW alumni. Senior lecturer Anita Verna Crofts, kicked off the night by sharing her experiences as a visual communication trainer to Syrians in Turkey. The talk also showcased speakers Laurie and Leslie Coaston, restauranteurs and former owners of The Kingfish Cafe in Capitol Hill; My Tam Nguyen, tastemaker; and Branden Born, UW professor of urban design and planning.

In her talk, Crofts shared her reflections on a comparison between her breakfast in Turkey and a students breakfast in the Syrian war zone.

In extreme circumstances, meals and the mundane take on an added significance, Crofts said. Who you eat with and what you eat defines who you are, your taste, and your kinship ties. You could also see it as an act of resolve, [as in] You can bomb my city, but Im going to start my day with my tea and my wife and my two kids.

Though the training was in Turkey, her student was stuck in Syria due to closed borders. The sense of both strength and fragility from her students breakfast perfectly captured Crofts teaching philosophy of turning what is most personal into meaningful narrative.

For these visual communication trainings, my goal is to take that vulnerability and transform it into stories that show optimism and show a certain sense of resilience in what is sometimes the most excruciating, profoundly sorrowful point in a persons life, Crofts said.

While Crofts talk focused on foods potential as fodder for compelling storytelling, Nguyens talk raised pressing questions about the local food community in Seattle.

As an immigrant from Vietnam, the Vietnamese community in Little Saigon was reminiscent of the close community Nguyen experienced in her childhood. Though the Vietnamese community in Seattle gave her a sense of a home-away-from-home as a newcomer, the local Seattle Asian American community today faces some challenges.

According to Nguyen, the recent Womens March was beautiful, but it coincided with the busiest shopping weekend for Chinatown, the International District, and Little Saigon, disrupting small businesses and restaurants.

Its a moment of reflection for our community: What happens when our values clash? Nguyen said. How can we share space and build community? How can we be intentional about building these spaces together and share this community together?

Nguyen wasnt the only panelist asking difficult questions about how to sustain food communities. Restauranteurs Laurie and Leslie Coaston enjoyed close-knit ties with The Kingfish Cafes staff and patrons for the nearly 20 years it was open, but closed it in January 2015 when their rent increased by 68 percent due to the local neighborhood development.

We were always this huge family, Coaston said. It was an amazing place to be, and Id love to see those kinds of places remain in the city. But with it being so expensive, our question is, how do you do that? How do we keep those businesses, those communities strong and vibrant?

Professor Branden Borns talk about the intricacies of the global food system concluded the night, followed by a Q&A session between audience members and panelists focusing on food citizenship.

Heres the problem: The food system, that which brings that food to you and everybody else in cities around the world every day, is super complicated, Born said. Its a really complex thing, and its not working for you.

Born emphasized the importance of being informed food citizens who know where food comes from. Some practical ways for being a good food citizen he shared were to grow your own food, learn about the food that you eat, and be aware of how the food system operates. He also encouraged audience members to support local nonprofit food organizations involved in food advocacy, such as the Food Empowerment Education Sustainability Team.

The most political decision you make every day is what you eat, Nguyen said. Be active. Show up. Be a citizen with your dollars, but also with your heart, and your hands, and your feet.

Reach contributing writer Cecilia Too at development@dailyuw.com. Twitter: @ceciliatooo

See the article here:

Food: Four Short Talks brings community to the table - Dailyuw

Carpinteria Family School representatives at the Feb. 28 Carpinteria Unified School District Board of Education meeting rebutted points in a report released last fall that affirmed the school has become an enclave of relative whiteness and wealthiness within the school district. Fashioned in the schools trademark tone of compassionate communication, CFS defended its position in the district as a progressive alternative to mainstream public education while detailing many steps it has taken to overcome its inclusivity problem.

The Family School is just one of many important solutions to education in Carpinteria. We (educate) through compassionate communication, creativity, local and global service projects, high level parental involvement, environmental awareness, student leadership and a prosperous, loving community thats open to all, said CFS second- and third-grade teacher Jan Silk.

Following complaints levied against the school district last spring, a third party investigation was conducted, and a report concluded that the district needed to correct the social and ethnic divide between CFS and Canalino School, which share the same campus. Some of the friction between the two schools is rooted in shared resources like the library and cafeteria and who pays for them.

The discussion on race in schools created ill will on the campus. Silk cited an instance of CFS being referred to as Caucasian Family School as being particularly hurtful, and more so to the many ethnically diverse families at CFS. Silk said representatives of the school all wished to put the report behind them and move forward in a way that addresses concerns but also continues to respect the schools important place within CUSD, much in the same way the new Dual Language Immersion program is an attractive alternative for many families.

Acting Superintendent Jamie Persoon, who is also Canalino School principal and acting CFS principal, described the many steps that have been taken since the report to attempt to make the CFS population reflect the CUSD population. The report did not find any intentional effort to create a less diverse school population at CFS, but the responsibility fell to the school and school district to correct the issue through outreach and greater collaboration between Canalino and CFS in regard to shared resources and a more united campus culture. It is illegal for school districts to simply shuffle students between schools to engineer equally diverse populations.

Persoon gave the example of shared student assemblies to encourage integration between the schools and a cost-sharing system of billing CFS 12 percent for shared resources, since CFS comprises 12 percent of the campus population.

Efforts to increase diversity starting next school year include prioritizing entry to CFS for students who qualify for free or reduced lunch. Each year CFS enrolls 12 new kindergartners through a lottery, and in the past, siblings of CFS students were given priority entrance before the lottery, which left significantly fewer spots available in the lottery. The school district eliminated the sibling policy and will give spaces to students qualifying for free or reduced lunch priority placement in the school before a lottery would be used to fill any remaining spaces.

In 2015-2016, the lottery for CFS included 20 white children, two Hispanics and one English learner.

Co-president of Parents for CFS Caroline Haines took issue with the way the investigation was conducted. She said nobody from CFS was interviewed as part of the investigation other than former principal Leslie Gravitz, who had been released by the school district before the investigation. She also contested the part of the report that said CFS has fewer students in its classrooms than other elementary schools in the district, stating that in fact much of the time there are more students in CFS classrooms than the average.

The differences in demographics between school populations should not be seen as intentional or desirable. As a community we wholeheartedly believe that diversity is a value to our community, Haines said.

CFS will join with other district elementary schools on March 2 at a bilingual transitional kindergarten and kindergarten information night in order to present all schools equally. All sides acknowledged through the process of the complaint and report that CFS could be more proactive in informing spanish speaking and lower income families about the school and the process of enrollment. The school was founded on principles high parent involvement and had suggested it had policies of $500 annual contributions per student and mandatory classroom time in previous materials, but that language has since been eliminated, a move that could persuade families of lower socioeconomic status to feel welcomed.

The CFS and Canalino communities are significantly divided, with the racial and socioeconomic disparity between the schools creating an unsustainable us versus them mentality that models segregation for the students, stated the report written by lawyer Felicita Torres released last fall.

Supe search on track for April 8, 9 interviews

About six candidates for the vacant superintendent position will be interviewed on April 8 and 9. Recruiters hired by the district to conduct the search said applications have been coming in and the window is open through mid March. At that point, they will take a week to scoop the creme de la creme from the top of the stack and invite those candidates for in person interviews. The recruiters held multiple community meetings to gather public feedback about the school district and what qualities will be most attractive in a superintendent to lead the local public schools.

Editors note: The author of this article has a child at Carpinteria Family School.

Go here to read the rest:

Family School rebuts report on lack of diversity - Coastal View News

Max, Christina, and Emma singing their hearts out. Photo by Javi.

Im sure that lots happened this last week here at Dancing Rabbit, but all I can think about is singing.

Christina here, bringing news of drums, voices, and circles.

Before I moved to Dancing Rabbit, singing was barely a part of my life. Sure, I sang to the kids to get them to sleep at night and I sang in the car all the time. But Id been told sometime somewhere that I wasnt a good singer, and so I never really sang with or around other people.

When I came to my first visitor session, I was by myself. I heard that there was this thing called song circle, but I was too timid to go. I remember walking by the Common House that night and seeing people sitting around on the couches and chairs in a loose circle and singing. It looked intriguing.

I decided that it would be a good experience for the kidseducational and all that. So when I came back for my second visitor session, this time with the whole family, we decided to check out this song circle thing.

When we finally moved here, early last February, the kids and I kept showing upon Wednesdaynights at7:45, sitting in those couches and chairs, and learning new songs. The way it usually works is someone starts off by requesting a song. We all do our best to sing it, or learn it if we dont know it. We then go around the circle, and everyone has a chance to request what we sing. There are a few stronger singers, and there are some who are not always (or often) on tune. There are also a few who are good at leading and teaching new songs, and some who forget the words every week.

There wasnt any big revelation for me, or a moment when I realized how important singing had become in my life; it was more of a gradual change. But one day, I found myself looking forward toWednesdaynight, making lists of songs to request, and walking around singing the new songs Id learned all week long.

Fast forward to this past weekend. Alyssa decided a few months ago to organize a weekend singing retreat. The idea was that we would spend a day and a half learning new songs and eating together and not doing much else. Because Alyssa is a master organizer and has a great talent for making things happen, she rounded up over 30 adults and I think 11 kids, from the tri-communities as well as from La Plata and further afield. Housing was arranged, meals were coordinated, tea and snacks were set up, and chairs were placed in a circle again, this time in La Casa.

So, we spentFridayafternoon and night andSaturdaymorning and afternoonand a bonus kid sessionon Saturdaynightlearning new songs. The amazing song leaders who had traveled in for the retreat kept the energy high and the intentions focused. We sang rounds and harmonies and danced in circles and lay on the floor on mats. We learned African songs and Norwegian songs and folk songs and brand new songs that had been written by a friend of a friend. We sang sad songs and joyous songs and silly songs and hauntingly beautiful songs. We shared lots and lots of good foodso much that there was enough for an unplanned dinneron Saturdaynight. My throat was aching bySaturdaylunch, and my head was full of many many new songs.

This might sound like a lot of singingand it was.On SundayI felt that strange mental hangover that I feel after a big holiday or vacation is over.

Obviously, community can exist without singing, but Ive been told that many communities have singing traditions. Its interesting to think about why this isIm pretty sure that none of my friends back in mainstream life have anything of the sort in their lives.

For me, there are a few things I love about this specific kind of singing.

Its super cheap entertainment.In fact, its usually free. Not that I refuse to ever spend money on things that are fun, but I definitely do resent the idea that I think is pretty common in mainstream life that you have to spend money to do anything excitinggoing out to dinner, seeing a movie, even driving to a friends house all cost something. But walking over to the Common House on aWednesdaynight costs nothing but the time.

A bond is created when people are sharing their voices in song. Its partly another example of a time when we work together to achieve something. Its also the fact that theres nowhere to hideyou have to make eye contact at some point no devices or even songbooks to hide behind.

I get out of my head for the time being.It is not easy for me to stop thinkingabout what I have to do today, what I havent done yet, what I already did, what were having for dinner, or whether or not the clothes are dry yet. But when Im singing a song at song circle, I am totally there. Its enough to think about the words of a song that I silence all those other thoughts for a little while, but its not so much that it becomes a stressful task in and of itself.

Watching my kids sing is one of the greatest joys in my life.Looking over to see their sweet relaxed faces, totally focused in the moment and enjoying themselves, is really quite incredible. They are just so pure and innocent in that moment.

There are many many reasons why we moved to Dancing Rabbit, and for the most part, those reasons are still relevant to our decision to stay. But its also fascinating how many things I love about living here that I hadnt even anticipated. Singing is one of those. Im hooked now, and I dont intend on stopping any time soon. Even if I am off-key (most of the time).

Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage is an intentional community and educational nonprofit outside Rutledge, focused on demonstrating sustainable living possibilities. Public tours are offered April October on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays of the month. In the meantime you can find out more about us by checking out our website, http://www.dancingrabbit.org, calling the office at (660) 883-5511, or emailing us at dancingrabbit@ic.org.

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Drums, Voices, and Circles - Memphis Democrat

Twelve members of the Gulf Shores marching band were struck and injured by a 2008 Ford Expedition driven by a 73-year-old Fairhope man during the start of the city's annual Mardi Gras parade Tuesday, forcing its cancellation and creating a chaotic scene at the parade's starting point.

Of the 12, three were listed in critical but stable condition at hospitals where the injured were taken to in Foley, Pensacola and Mobile. The age range of the injured students was from 12 to 17 years old, and involved a mix of middle school and high school students who comprise the marching band.

"We are very saddened by this event," Gulf Shores city spokesman Grant Brown said. "This is 39 years that this parade has been going on. These are our children, these are our friends and our people. To have this happen is horrible."

Police are investigating the incident as a "tragic accident" which occurred around 10:05 a.m. as the parade began on Gulf Shores Parkways near Clubhouse Drive. The stretch of the parkway, which is part of Ala. 59, was shut down for most of the day prompting motorists to be re-routed to alternative routes to leave the beach area.

Gulf Shores Police Chief Ed Delmore said the driver, whose name he declined to release, was not driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Delmore also said there was no indication that the incident was intentional.

"We are certain at this point it was not an intentional act and that it was an accident," Delmore said. "Beyond that, we are still investigating and don't want to speculate on the dynamics of what happened."

Delmore said that police have custody of the vehicle and that the driver was being cooperative in submitting to blood tests and questioning. He said it could be "weeks" before the investigation is wrapped up.

"Like any kind of investigation of this type, we have to look at the human factor and the equipment factor," said Delmore. "Part of that is to look at the equipment and the black box and we combine all of those things to find a conclusion of what happened, not to mention we are looking at video of the incident and witness statements. It takes time."

Delmore said an FBI agent in Mobile contacted his office offering assistance, but police declined it.

"Learning that it was not an intentional act and not anything strictly of a criminal nature, we denied the assistance," Delmore said. "We do appreciate them reaching out to us."

Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley, in a statement, said he's directed the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency to assist Gulf Shores police with any resources they may need. The governor thanked the first responders and emergency personnel for their work in assisting the injured.

"To the students, band members, families and community, please know I, and the people of this state, are praying for you," Bentley said in the statement.

Brown said the Ford Expedition was part of the parade, and was associated with the American Legion honor guard. The vehicle had a "MOAA" banner on the side of it, which stands for the Military Officers Association of American.

Brown said he was unsure what the man's affiliation was with the group, which is based out of Virginia.

The MOAA, in a statement, said they were aware of the accident that involved a vehicle representing "the local MOAA chapter."

"We have been made aware of the incident and our staff is gathering facts at this time," said Jonathan Withington, a spokesman with the organization. "We don't know the circumstances and we're unaware of the cause of the incident involving our Gulf Shores Chapter. We're concerned about those who have been injured and our hearts and prayers go out to them and their families as they deal with this unfortunate mishap."

Baldwin County Schools Superintendent Eddie Tyler said counselors will be on duty Wednesday to meet with students in Gulf Shores. The school system was off Tuesday in recognition of the Mardi Gras holiday, which is celebrated in communities throughout the Gulf Coast.

"It's tough. It's difficult," said Tyler. "We got a great family, law enforcement, the city of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. It's a special county."

Brown said the city had not received specific updates about the injured students, saying that privacy laws and insurance prohibited the release of that information.

The parade's abrupt cancellation caused confusion along the route, which consisted of all of Alabama 59 from the Intercoastal Waterway Bridge toward the beach. Word spread on social media about the parade's cancellation, though a Mardi Gras parade later in the day still took place in Orange Beach. Some of the same floats and marching groups participated in that parade, and a banner honoring the Gulf Shores band was on display.

Near the crash scene, witnesses such as Carol Ann Nix described a scary scene.

"I was thinking, 'oh my gosh this is some terrorism act,'" said Nix of Plymouth, Ind., who is staying in Fort Morgan for the winter months. "Then I saw the old guy and his expression was horror and disbelief."

"It was unbelievable that this happened," she added.

The crash occurred less than three days after 28 people were injured when a truck plowed into a crowd at a New Orleans Mardi Gras parade. The driver of that incident, according to police, was highly intoxicated.

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12 band members struck by vehicle at Alabama Mardi Gras parade - Chicago Tribune

USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin 4:02 p.m. CT Feb. 27, 2017

Letters to the Editor(Photo: USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin)Buy Photo

It appears that Wisconsin has had negligible, if any, voter fraud for the past decades. But since the most recent redistricting after 2010, the Badger State has had colossal election fraud with huge, widespread election impacts. A federal panel of court judges has ruled Wisconsins legislative maps to be unconstitutional. This election fraud has more severe impacts on election results than almost any voter fraud could ever have.

For fair elections, Wisconsin must redistrict the state WITHOUT DELAY. An independent districting board, NOT the Legislature, must do this work using the mathematical principles of compactness and contiguity, tempered with regards for communities of interest. Transparency and intentional, active public oversight and awareness are NECESSARY! It is unacceptable to allow future elections without new, non-gerrymandered legislative maps.

Although it is not possible to quantify exactly, the Wisconsin Election Fraud undoubtedly impacted (altered, influenced) mind-boggling quantities of revenues and expenditures. Given Wisconsins state annual budget (~$37 billion), it is most probable that at least $1 billion to more than $10 billion per year were impacted by this election fraud.

Attorney General Brad Schimel and Assistant AG Brian Keenan seek to delay and soften or dismiss the ruling of the federal panel of court judges. State Sen.Scott Fitzgerald and other senate leaders have spent more than $2 million Wisconsin taxpayer dollars in legal proceedings to maintain the unconstitutional legislative maps and mapping processes.

I call for the immediate dismissals of Schimel, Keenan and Fitzgerald for their attacks on fair legislative maps, an obvious cornerstone of democracy. Furthermore, I call for legal action against committee members who fielded the fraudulent, unconstitutional Wisconsin legislative maps currently in use. And, lastly, I call for suspension of the blank-check legal proceedings initiated by Fitzgerald and other senate leaders to fight redistricting of these unconstitutional legislative maps.

Steve Deibele

Kiel

I enjoy that Sheboygan County is full of people who have lived here their entire lives, maybe even without ever going to a major city. But as the population grows, new traffic patterns have begun to emerge roundabouts, bike lanes, etc.

As a citizen who has been in many near accidents due to others not understanding these new traffic patterns, I have found myself wanting drivers in this community to take the job of driving more seriously. We need to educate on the correct way to enter and leave a roundabout. We need to educate on the purpose of a bike lane, and that it is for bicycles, not a second lane for vehicles. We need to also point out areas where speed limits have changed.

Just as there is a minimum driving age because of a teenager's attention and decision-making processes, so it should be considered when allowing the elderly to drive. I am not trying to discriminate against our senior citizens, but age causes a decline in decision making and reaction time, among many other things. I believe there should be a requirement that after a certain age, all should be required to re-test every year for a valid license. Additionally, this should be required of those who have just had a major medical procedure (regardless of age) that may affect their ability to drive.

I understand the pain that is involved with becoming more dependent as one ages or falls ill, but I think the safety of everyone should be taken into consideration.

Kellie Resnick

Sheboygan

First, I want to thank the citizens who came out and voted for me and the other candidates. It was a good turnout and demonstrates the civic interest of our citizens.

Secondly, I want to thank the other candidates for a collegial election process. I felt that we all conducted ourselves in a friendly and courteous manner.

Finally, I want to thank the staff of the City Clerks office and the poll workers. The election was run efficiently and transparently and these people do their job well. But, this is the first of two steps. Be sure to underline April 4 for the second step and come out and vote.

Henry Nelson

Sheboygan

Editors note: Henry Nelson is one of two city Common Council candidates who advanced to an April 4 election following a primary vote Feb. 21. Nelson is running for the councils sixth district seat, which represents part of Sheboygans south side.

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Letters: Dismiss Schimel, others for maps - The Sheboygan Press

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) Cohousing communities are gaining popularity across the country, including right here in Music City.

Diana Sullivan gave our sister station in Nashville a tour of her cohousing development located in Germantown, Tennessee.

She has lived in the community for about a year-and-a-half.

Sullivan said she first learned about the concept of cohousing while attending a conference in Boulder, Colorado, in 2010.

It is an intentional community. We decided we wanted to have a community that was structured in a very high functioning way because research shows that these communities are very healthy and very thriving, Sullivan explained.

In Germantowns cohousing community, everyone buys their own home, but they share common spaces.

There is a playroom for children, a kitchen to enjoy meals together and extra rooms that the homeowners in the community can reserve for visiting family and friends.

We have community dinners a couple of times a week. A couple of households will become a cook team, will set our menu, buy our food and then host the dinner, said Sullivan.

By sharing meals the group is able to cut costs.

They are $5 or $6 a meal, and it is incredible food, said Sullivan.

Dot Dobbins also lives in the community. She said after her husband passed away in 2008 she began researching different living arrangements because she did not want to be alone.

Dobbins met Sullivan and decided she wanted to be part of the community. Dobbins told News 2 her grandchildren love where she lives and that they enjoy visiting her and playing in the courtyard.

Last spring and summer we had butterflies all over. It was great, it was lovely, Dobbins recalled.

When this community started there were 15 families interested in living in there. Now, there are 25 families in the cohousing development.

When you have housing that is constructed in a way that is supportive of people to reduce poverty, homelessness, reduce alcoholism and drug addiction and its just the housing structure and you can implement that its huge, said Sullivan.

In the United States, there are about 160 cohousing developments. The one in Germantown is the first of its kind in Tennessee.

Currently, there is a lot of momentum to build more of these types of developments in Nashville.

Sullivan told News 2 there is a waiting list of about 650 people who would like to move into the Germantown community.

She said an additional list of 350 people is interested in developing these types of communities in other parts of Middle Tennessee.

The national conference on cohousing will be held in Nashville this May.

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Cohousing communities gain popularity - WDTN

To correct health disparities in eastern North Carolina, providers must take on the difficult task of correcting similar disparities in the makeup of the health care workforce, according to a panel of experts speaking Friday at East Carolina University.

The 13th annualJean Elaine Mills Health Symposium, named for the late ECU alumna and community health administrator who died of breast cancer in 2000, focuses on building partnerships between residents, organizations and ECU faculty and students with the aim of reducing health disparities higher incidences of illness and death in one population group than another.

Where such disparities exist, similar disparities will be found in the workforce population, the educators said. The participants addressed the need for health care workforce equity, which allows care providers to better reflect the diversity of the communities they serve.

This symposium is all about student success, community outreach and the transformation of Eastern North Carolina, event moderator Dean Robert Orlikoff of the ECUCollege of Allied Health Sciences, which hosted the daylong symposium, said.Frankly, we have a long way to go. We have to not only serve that community, but be a part of it. Our health care workers must be representative of the communities that they work in and serve.

Beth Velde,assistant dean for special projects at the college and Mills Symposium director, said the symposium is a community/university partnership that does things with, rather than for or to, the communities it serves.

The symposium featured a panel discussion and keynote presentations by Dr. Kendall Campbell, associate dean for diversity and inclusion and director of the Research Group for Underrepresented Minorities in Academic Medicine at East Carolina University's Brody School of Medicine, and Dr. Brenda E. Armstrong, associate dean for admissions at the Duke University School of Medicine.

Amos Mills, who founded the symposium in his late sisters memory, said most people do not understand that health care disparities affect all people across racial, cultural and political lines.

North Carolina should not rank 43rd in the U.S. for health care disparities while it ranks 10th in manufacturing, Mills said.I hope we will bring what we learn to the greater community so we can break down some of the barriers that exist in this state. I fear for the future if we dont address this problem now.

Campbell described equality as giving everybody the same things.

I decided that Im going to buy everybody here a new pair of shoes... and theyre all going to be Size 6, he said.

Equity, on the other hand, provides what someone needs based on an assessment of that persons specific needs, Campbell said.

Campbell quoted Dr. Camara Jones, president of the American Public Health Association,whose work focuses on the impacts of racism on the health and well-being of the nation.

Achieving health equity requires valuing all individuals and populations equally, recognizing and rectifying historical injustices, and providing resources according to need, Jones said. Based on that, healthcare workforce equity assures conditions that allow for the best possible health for all people.

Campbell said action must be intentional to correct the current system that structures health care workforce opportunity based on social interpretation of how a person looks. Such systems including sexism, classism and racism are institutionally designed to separate and unfairly disadvantage some people while giving an unfair advantage to others.

The solution to institutional inequity is diversity, Campbell said.

Student and faculty diversity is indispensable for quality medical education, he said.Diversity of the physician workforce improves access to care for underserved populations; diversity of the research workforce can accelerate advances in medical and public health research; and diversity among managers of health care is good business sense.

Contact Michael Abramowitz at mabramowitz@reflector.comor 252-329-9507.

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Better health needs a diverse workforce - Greenville Daily Reflector