text:
column from the Christian Research Journal, Summer 1988, page 5. The Editor-in-Chief of the Christian Research Journal is Elliot Miller.
The Unification Church Seeks Influence, Acceptance among the Political ("Christian") Right
After newspapers across America last December revealed Unification Church attempts to infiltrate the political "Christian Right" through gifts to political action committees and conservative Christian groups, the Moonies quieted their activities.
Now some Unification Church-watchers are concerned that the group is stepping-up another tactic which may result in political acceptance: infiltrating independent charismatic ministries to gain favor in the burgeoning charismatic movement as a whole.
"They're out there winning friends and influencing people," said a source at the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) who did not want to be named, adding that gaining acceptance in America is essential to the church's objective of having their leader Sun Myung Moon recognized as the second coming of Christ.
Last December's articles, which appeared mostly in prominent Knight-Ridder newspapers, stated that in March 1987 Moon forged an alliance with the Christian Voice, the largest conservative Christian lobby in America. They also reported that Moon has been funding anticommunist guerrillas in Central America, Afghanistan, and the Philippines, and that the Unification Church gave the late John T. Dolan, founder of the 300,000-member National Conservative Political Action Committee, a $775,000 gift. Former Treasury Secretary Robert Anderson had also been paid $127,500 as a Unification Church consultant.
Recently the NAE warned its members to be wary of Unification Church attempts to infiltrate their ranks by joining with organizations that seem to have conservative goals. Moon-watchers say two points of Moonie infiltration into the Christian community have been over issues of religious freedom and anticommunism.
In recent years certain Christian leaders have been criticized for what some perceived as drawing too close to the Unification Church. Several years ago Tim LaHaye, Christian author and head of the American Coalition for Traditional Values, came under fire for accepting a gift from Col. Bo Hi Pak, a former Korean intelligence officer, president of the Washington Times newspaper, and Moon's right-hand man. Since then, a number of pastors from a broad spectrum of denominations have received free trips from CAUSA, a Unification Church-funded anticommunism organization. Churchmen have also been speaking at CAUSA rallies (e.g., Jerry Falwell spoke at a conference in Miami last year which was co-sponsored by CAUSA).
Another group admitting Unification Church funding is the American Freedom Coalition (AFC), publisher of the monthly Religious Freedom Alert, headed by Donald Sills as president and Robert Grant as chairman. Although LaHaye, Florida pastor D. James Kennedy, and others have left the AFC because of the Moon connection, others, such as Trinity Broadcasting Network's Paul Crouch, Ben Armstrong of the National Religious Broadcasters, evangelists James Robison and Rex Humbard, and other prominent evangelicals have remained on AFC's executive committee. (Although there is no known direct connection between CAUSA and AFC, Sills often speaks at CAUSA functions. CAUSA is headed by Phillip V. Sanchez, former U.S. Ambassador to Honduras and Columbia.)
In recent days Sills has been concentrating on attacking anti-cult organizations as a threat to religious freedom to audiences with a high percentage of charismatics. Sills (who visited Moon during his prison term) appeared May 3 on Crouch's "Praise the Lord" show on TBN and denounced the secular Cult Awareness Network (CAN). From there Sills went on the AFC's radio network hosted by Grant and sharply criticized CAN and cultwatchers in general. (In recent months Sills has emerged as a public affairs spokesman for the Greater Grace World Outreach -- formerly The Bible Speaks World Outreach, a controversial group a federal judge recently ordered to return $6.6 million in contributions it swindled from a former member.)
But many agree that the church's best attempt at influencing the political right is Bo Hi Pak's Washington Times newspaper, which is reportedly losing $200 million a year. Moon himself is widely reported as saying he is having an influence on President Reagan "through the Washington Times."
Unification Church Tries to Quell Rumors About Rev. Moon's "Reincarnated" Son
Rev. Sun Myung Moon made headlines again in late March when reports surfaced that the Korean-born leader of the Unification Church was "channeling" voices from the dead and that he had contacted his late son, Heung Jin Nim Moon.
More striking were revelations that a black church member from Africa was being possessed by Heung Jin Nim, who had been killed in a 1984 car crash at age 17. According to the Washington Post, church members were startled by the news, but they went along with it because it came from Moon.
But as the bizarre story has unfolded with the appearance and subsequent coronation of the unnamed Zimbabwean as Moon's son, some church members have become skeptical, while others have been working to quell rumors of theological differences inside the sect.
The Zimbabwean, described as a baby-faced black man in his early 20s, has been a member of the church for the past three years. Last year he began claiming to hear the voice of Heung Jin Nim. After a church-sponsored investigation concluded that the man probably was Moon's son, he came to America and met with Moon. According to the Post, the man knew the answers to five questions only Moon's deceased son could have known, and thus won Moon's enthusiastic acceptance.
Since then the Zimbabwean has gained tremendous power in the church, and has spoken at a number of functions, with some of them promoting the American Freedom Coalition, a Moon-sponsored political lobbying group. Other reports have stated that the man has become very authoritarian, and has beaten and slapped church members, including Moon's second-in-command, Bo Hi Pak.
South Carolina Prophet of doom Attracts Widening Audiences
Radio preacher Brother R.G. Stair of Walterboro, South Carolina, claims God speaks directly to him. In fact, he claims God has appointed him "God's end-time prophet to America," and that he was designated to anoint the end-time "Elijah" -- which he did several years ago when he met a young man during a trip to the Soviet Union.
What the Almighty told him, Stair thundered early this year over his daily radio broadcasts heard on more than 50 stations nationwide, was that the US would face an economic collapse by the end of April, that President Reagan would be removed from office shortly thereafter, and that a limited nuclear war would strike the US before the end of the year, wiping out every major city. A way to escape the horrors to come, the self-proclaimed prophet declared on his "Overcomer" broadcast, was to get out of the cities and flee to the countryside.
A number of people all over the US have done just that. Convinced America is under God's wrath, some have sold their homes, given all their money to Stair's Faith Cathedral Fellowship, and joined him at his Waterboro campground and at other rural sites Stair's ministry owns.
Stair's sensational prophecies, coupled with complaints from parents of his followers that their children have been brainwashed by his teachings, attracted national attention. That's when he changed the date of America's economic collapse from April to May, and declared himself a false prophet if his prediction did not come true at the end of May. When May breezed by with the economy strong, Stair pushed the date back to the end of the year.
Stair didn't back down on his other predictions. In June he went on a television show in the Philadelphia area still affirming a nuclear war by the end of the year and declaring that if it didn't happen, his ministry "was down the drain" and he'd quit the ministry.
But in his June newsletter, Stair changed his story again and blamed God for it. He insisted that God did prophesy the calamities through him, but He was apt to change His mind just as He did when He decided not to destroy Ninevah in the book of Jonah.
It turns out that Stair has a history of false prophecies. Back in August, 1986, he told the local Walterboro weekly newspaper Press and Standard that God told him that "President Reagan will be removed from office after seven more months and that we may never have another presidential election."
Stair continues to gain a following. With the boosted income from new followers joining him, he has been able to beef up his broadcasts. At press time he was on 88 Christian stations nationwide.
Holy Order of MANS Sect Changes Name, Joins Eastern Orthodox Church
The Holy Order of MANS (HOM), a controversial group founded in San Francisco in 1968, has changed its name to "Christ the Savior Brotherhood," and joined the Eastern Orthodox Church.
However, the leader of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Queens, New York (Vasiloupolis jurisdiction), with which the HOM was granted affiliation, is not a member of the Standing Committee of Orthodox Bishops of America (SCOBA), which oversees most US groups in the Orthodox tradition.
But that doesn't mean that HOM has not moved into Christian orthodoxy, said Father Andrew Rossi, director general of the sect and successor to the late Earl Blighton, who claimed he founded the sect after receiving a "divine revelation."
The Holy Order of MANS ("MANS" standing for Mysterian, Agape, Nous, and Sophia in Greek, or mystery, love, mind, and wisdom in English) amassed numerous critics in the early 1970s due to its occultic theological position and practices. In an early critique of the group by the Spiritual Counterfeits Project (SCP) of Berkeley, California, researchers brought out the fact that HOM believed it was their mission to "unite all faiths." They believed Jesus was a great teacher (but mere man) who had attained contact with an impersonal kind of "Christ-consciousness." They also embraced the classical occult "sciences" of alchemy, tarot, Cabala, and astrology, according to the SCP.
Rossi said his order has repudiated all those beliefs and now affirms biblical orthodoxy, including the belief in the Trinity, salvation through faith in Jesus Christ alone, and the Nicene Creed.
"We had a lot of New Age elements in the brotherhood," Rossi continued. "What they (SCP) were critical of, they had a right to be. We began to purge ourselves of New Age elements and by 1979 we started going the other direction....The mysticism got out of hand. We were searching for experiences and found that it would lead us astray without sound doctrine."
The changes accelerated after HOM leaders began reading Christian authors such as C.S. Lewis and Dietrich Bonhoeffer, said Rossi.
However, many of the group's controversial practices have not ended, and under the terms of the merger, the group will continue to have a great deal of autonomy. Rossi affirmed that members who have taken second vows to the group still take them for life -- a sore point among critics. Additionally, the group is still highly liturgical, with members adorning themselves in robes and clerical collars. Rossi said the group has about 1,000 members spread throughout the US. Although it maintains its headquarters in Forestville, California, many of its main functions take place in Portland, Oregon.
National Council of Churches Gathering Explores Mystical Prayer
While one group practiced principles of Buddhist meditation, another was introduced to Asian spiritual exercises. In another workshop, a group of people were celebrating feminine "biblical" images of God through prayer, song, mime, and dance.
The occasion wasn't the latest New Age convergence, but rather "A Gathering of Christians," a mega-event sponsored by the National Council of Churches of Christ (NCC), which drew more than 2,000 people to Arlington, Texas, May 21-25, 1988. Assisting the ecumenical body in planning the event was a 25-member team that included representatives of Protestant, Orthodox, Evangelical, and Roman Catholic churches.
Other "how to pray" sessions during the special "Explorations in Spirituality" workshops included: Quaker, black oral, and Eastern Orthodox prayer, ancient Lectio Divina and Centering Prayer, monastic prayer, and "creation spirituality" prayer. The NCC said the reason they sponsored the various workshops on prayer was to demonstrate unity and to affirm diversity.
"Gathering planners commented that each Christian tradition has created unique forms of prayer in response to specific secular and spiritual needs," according to an NCC press release on the event. "Experiencing the prayer of another tradition can be a powerful means of understanding and appreciating that tradition and of affirming diversity."
There was no acknowledgment by the NCC that some of the forms of prayer and spiritual exercises, being from non-Christian sources, might be unbiblical and unchristian.
Copeland-Martin Meeting Fails to Materialize
"Don't be disturbed when people accuse you of thinking you're God," Ft. Worth evangelist Kenneth Copeland claims Jesus said through him. "The more you get to be like Me, the more they're going to think that way of you. They crucified Me for claiming that I was God. But I didn't claim I was God."
This statement was found in Copeland's February 1987 Believer's Voice of Victory magazine.
In a July 19, 1987, Kenneth Copeland crusade televised by the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN), Copeland further said: "I say this and repeat it so it don't upset you too bad .... When I read the Bible where He [Jesus] says 'I am,' Yes, I am too!"
These statements, which seem to deny the deity (or at least unique deity) of Christ (along with others by Copeland in recent years), caught the attention of Christian leaders who already were publicly critical of the popular evangelist's "word of faith" theology. One of these was Walter Martin, founder and director of Christian Research Institute (CRI), who had been trying to meet with Copeland in recent years to discuss some of his teachings considered heretical, according to CRI researcher Dan Schlesinger.
CRI contacted Copeland's office in May, 1987, and invited Copeland to meet with Martin and "explain what he meant by the (Feb. 87) prophecy," Schlesinger said. Martin also began to pursue a meeting with Copeland through TBN President Paul Crouch.
In spite of assurances from Copeland's office that they were working on setting up a meeting, no meeting took place. One tentative meeting between Martin, Copeland, Crouch, and Church on the Way pastor Jack Hayford was postponed and never rescheduled.
Despite the lack of a meeting there has been written contact between the Copeland camp and CRI. Following CRI inquiries, Copeland sent CRI a 5-page treatment of the Incarnation which he claimed vindicated his belief in the deity of Christ. Copeland added he was going to publish the paper in an upcoming Believer's Voice of Victory. But when CRI found that the paper advocated an extreme view of the Incarnation (i.e., that Christ ceased being God while on earth) they sent Copeland a 5-page response detailing major problems with his view. "We asked him if he understood what he was doing if he published it," said Schlesinger. Copeland published the treatise in the August Believer's Voice of Victory.
Meanwhile, after all of Martin's attempts at arranging a meeting with Copeland through Crouch fell through, he sent Crouch a letter dated January 27 cancelling a future appearance on TBN. In the letter (which was also sent to nine other Christian leaders) Martin said he would not appear on TBN until Crouch arranged for him to meet with Copeland and another TBN regular, Atlanta "kingdom now" teacher Earl Paulk. This would be to discuss their doctrines, especially their statements that Christians can "hold the rank of a god." Martin also cited the teachings of TBN regulars Charles Capps and Randy Shankle, and charged that by doing little to stop the spread of heretical teachings on TBN, Crouch is perceived as supporting it.
Crouch wrote a detailed letter back defending his right to offer varied teachings on TBN, and told Martin he's "called, pled and asked all of these brethren to come [and talk with you]... but to no avail." Besides, wrote Crouch, "everyone has a 'little heresy' in the opinion of another teacher, so why not preach salvation...and let the Holy Spirit work it out?"
Now it looks like there will be no Martin-Copeland meeting. In a letter from Copeland to Martin dated April 7 Copeland wrote: "It would not be in your best interest, or mine, or the Lord's for us to get together until you do something about the hate you have for me and my ministry." Copeland then added that he had re-read the prophecy and he stood by it, affirming: "I did not say Jesus was not God."
"I hold you responsible for ever misquoting me again for that statement," Copeland said in conclusion.
Alamo Foundation Falls Under Increasing Scrutiny
Sixty sheriff's deputies swooped down on properties owned by the Alamo Christian Foundation (aka Holy Alamo Church Consecrated) in Saugus, California on March 24 and arrested four men on charges of child abuse.
In recent days former members and parents of members have been reporting that the controversial sect, founded by Tony and the late Susan Alamo in 1967, has been applying increasingly strict discipline to members and their children, sometimes in the form of beatings.
The raid stemmed from the case of Carey Miller, 34, and his brother Robert, both 16-year ex-members of the Foundation. The Millers, who own a trucking business in Arkansas, left the sect in 1987 during a dispute with leader Tony Alamo over their business. Their wives, however, refused to leave with them, fleeing west to an Alamo ranch in the Saugus area (30 miles northwest of Los Angeles) where the sect in recent years has shifted much of its resources and people. Before long they were living along with their three children with new "common-law" husbands, according to court documents.
Although Carey and Robert Miller won custody of their children in court late last year, their wives never returned them. The deputies recovered the children during the raid on two church communes in the Saugus area, and in late June the courts awarded permanent custody (with no visiting rights) of the children to their fathers.
According to Cynthia Kisser of the Cult Awareness Network, the Miller situation marks the third active case in which the sect has tried to whisk away children from their families.
In the other two cases the parents (both ex-members of the group) who won legal custody of children were not able to recover all of them. In one case a mother's two daughters, ages 10 and 11, have been missing and presumed to be somewhere in the sect since 1982. In another case a mother who recently exited from the sect and told law officials that children are being harshly beaten in the group, was able to get her two-year-old daughter out of the sect, but her son, born August 28, has not been recovered and she believes the church is hiding him.
Watchtower Reverses Itself on Resurrection Doctrine
In a major doctrinal reversal, The Watchtower magazine of June 1, 1988, announced a new viewpoint on the resurrection: the individuals who were killed when God rained fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah will not be raised up again -- not even to face Judgment Day. According to the new view, "Jesus saying that it 'would be more endurable on Judgment Day for Tyre or Sodom' did not necessarily mean that those people will be present on Judgment Day...It is apparent, then, that those whom God executed in those past judgments experienced irreversible destruction (pages 30-31)."
The Watchtower's wording in presenting the new doctrine is similar to the wording used 23 years earlier when presenting the former view on this matter: "For it to be 'more endurable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah' than for others, it would be necessary for former inhabitants of that land to be present on Judgment Day...So apparently individuals who used to live in that land will be resurrected (The Watchtower, August 1, 1965, p. 479).
Former Jehovah's Witnesses now actively opposing the sect reacted by pointing out that the new view represents a return to what had been taught prior to 1965. Notable among the ex-Witnesses who objected to the June 1988, article as a "flip-flop" was David T. Brown of Alpha & Omega Ministries in Phoenix. Brown circulated photocopies of a June 1, 1952, Watchtower article that ruled out resurrection for the Sodomites (p.338).
Current Jehovah's Witnesses received the new teaching with more than mere academic interest since, to them, the fate of the men of Sodom has some bearing on whether or not they can expect to see their own non-Witness relatives raised up.
End of document, CRJ0092A.TXT (original CRI file name),
"News Watch"
release A, May 10, 1994
R. Poll, CRI
A special note of thanks to Bob and Pat Hunter for their help in the preparation of this ASCII file for BBS circulation.
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Questions about receiving help:
How does the Emergency Food Helpline work?
Why is it necessary to call the Emergency Food Helpline after I've registered in the databank?
If I don't need food myself, can I call for a family member or friend who does?
Does the Food Bank distribute food directly to individuals?
How is the Food Bank involved in the Food Stamps Program?
Questions about helping out:
How far do my donations go?
How do I volunteer at the Food Bank?
How do I start a food drive?
Where can I drop off nonperishable food donations?
Does the Food Bank accept prepared or perishable food?
Why is the Food Bank involved in advocacy?
How do I get food?
It all starts with a call to the Emergency Food Helpline at (800) 870-FOOD (3663). Follow the menu options to "get food today." If your call is not answered by one of our operators, leave a message clearly stating your name and phone number and the call will be returned — usually within an hour, but always on the same day. Calls placed after 4 p.m. will be returned the next business day.
The Emergency Food Helpline operates from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays.
Note: Customers of Metro PCS and some other regional mobile phone networks may not be able to place 800 and other toll-free calls. Those subscribers can reach the Helpline by calling (510) 635-FOOD (3663).
How does the Emergency Food Helpline work?
The first time you call the Helpline, we'll register you in our database. The process takes about 5 minutes.
Be prepared to give us your address and a contact number (so that we can match you to the nearest sources of food), information about those living in your household (so that we can connect you with enough food) and your primary sources of income (a full- or part-time job, Supplemental Security Income [SSI], etc.). We won't ask you for specific income numbers — we understand that even those working multiple jobs in Alameda County sometimes need help putting food on the table.
Once you've been registered or verified, we'll identify Food Bank member agencies in your neighborhood that distribute food on the day and time that you need it. Our operators will place a "referral" — or hold — on a bag of food (or, in the case of a soup kitchen, add you and/or household members to the meal list).
Helpline operators do much more than provide referrals for same- and next-day food. They also provide information about other local food distributions programs and sites — i.e., USDA, Mercy Brown Bag (for seniors) and the Summer Lunch Program (for children and teens) — and can help clients identify government nutrition programs, such as CalFresh (commonly known as food stamps), for which they may be eligible.
Why is it necessary to call the Emergency Food Helpline after I've registered in the databank?
Our member agencies rely on the Food Bank to provide them with an adequate food supply to meet community demand — and to distribute food equitably among those in need. As such, they require referrals from the Food Bank for all commodities distributed through the Emergency Food Program. The Helpline has the resources to refer each client to an array of local agencies.
If I don't need food myself, can I call for a family member or friend who does?
Yes. Please be able to provide basic details – name, address, phone number, household size and source of income – for the person(s) for whom you wish to provide a food referral.
Does the Food Bank distribute food directly to individuals?
No. The Food Bank's location near the Oakland Airport serves as a clearinghouse for donated, surplus and purchased food for nonprofit agencies. We distribute food to 240 member agency partners – food pantries, soup kitchens (hot meals), child-care centers, senior centers, after-school programs and other community-based organizations – more than 50% of it in the form of fresh fruits and vegetables. If you need food, call our Emergency Food Helpline at (800) 870-FOOD (3663) – (510) 635-3663 for Metro PCS subscribers.
How is the Food Bank involved in CalFresh?
CalFresh, which used to be called food stamps, is an integral part of the Food Bank's strategic solution to eradicating hunger. Our daily food distributions respond to an urgent need in this community; CalFresh serves as a longer-term solution to the hunger crisis in Alameda County. The program alleviates demand at the Food Bank and injects federal funds into our local economy. Unfortunately, only about half of those eligible for CalFresh in Alameda County participate in the program (leaving approximately $100 million of federal funds on the table each year that could be flowing into our county).
The Food Bank's multilingual CalFresh Outreach Program – which serves as the blueprint for food banks across the nation – screens clients for CalFresh eligibility from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. each weekday.
Call the Food Bank's CalFresh Outreach Team at (510) 635-3663 to find out if you may be eligible for CalFresh and for application assistance. Clients deemed potentially eligible will have their applications expedited to the Alameda County Social Services Agency. For more information about the Food Bank's screening service, click here.
You may also apply for CalFresh at your local Alameda County Social Services office.
Note: Although the Food Stamps Program is known nationally as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance (SNAP) Program, California has adopted the name CalFresh. All three names refer to the same nutrition assistance program.
What are the Food Bank's funding sources?
The Alameda County Community Food Bank's funding comes from individuals, corporations, foundations, special events and federal, state and county government agencies. The Food Bank is unique among non-profits – even among food banks – in that we receive most of our support (about 60%) from individuals. For more details, see our latest Annual Report.
How far do my donations go?
The Food Bank has received Charity Navigator's highest rating – Four Stars – for nine consecutive years, an honor matched by just 1% of nonprofits nationwide. Our bulk purchasing power and ultra-efficient distribution network allows us to distribute $6 worth of food (retail value) for every $1 donation. See our latest Charity Navigator report.
Despite recent increases in food allotments from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and steady community support via food drives, the Food Bank must purchase 59% of the food it distributes to keep up with current demand. We rely on financial donations more than ever.
There are three ways for individuals to make a direct, tax-deductible financial donation to the Food Bank:
- By making an online donation.
- By mailing a check to: Alameda County Community Food Bank (or ACCFB), P.O. Box 2599, Oakland, CA 94614
- By starting a Virtual Food Drive, where donors can grab a virtual shopping cart and see how our bulk purchasing power compares to retail prices – and/or sign up as a group to promote the cause.
For other ways to donate, click here.
For corporate donations or sponsorships, click here.
How do I volunteer at the Food Bank?
Volunteers are the heartbeat of the Food Bank. In the past year, 15,000 volunteers helped connect people in need with food by:
- Sorting and boxing food
- Serving as Emergency Food Helpline operators.
- Educating the community and lawmakers about hunger and poverty.
- Assisting with special events.
- Providing marketing help and technical assistance.
- Keeping the Food Bank's office and warehouse running smoothly.
All volunteers must be scheduled. Because most volunteers choose to sort, screen, box and shelve food items in our warehouse, those opportunities often fill up well in advance. Individual volunteers must attend a one-hour orientation, held at 12:45 p.m. on Wednesdays. Volunteers coming with a group – corporate, business, church, youth, etc. – are not required to attend a Wednesday orientation.
To learn more about all volunteer opportunities, click here.
For all volunteer inquiries, email email@example.com or call (510) 635-3663, ext. 308.
How do I start a food drive?
Food drives are the Food Bank's primary source of high quality, name-brand non-perishable food. The Food Bank makes it easy to organize a food drive at your work, school, place of worship or elsewhere in your community. We provide barrels or, for smaller drives, boxes – along with display posters (for your worksite, school hallways, etc.) and tips on how to conduct a successful drive. Our trucks will pick up full barrels.
For more information and helpful tips, click here.
To sign up online (recommended), click here. You can also schedule barrel pickups online.
A resource-light alternative to a traditional food drive is our Virtual Food Drive, where donors can grab a virtual shopping cart and see how our bulk purchasing power compares to retail prices – and/or sign up as a group to promote the cause.
Where can I drop off non-perishable food donations?
Please bring donations larger than one bag/box of food to the Food Bank – located at 7900 Edgewater Drive near the Oakland Airport. For smaller donations, click here to see drop-off sites throughout Alameda County.
Does the Food Bank accept prepared or perishable food?
Because the Food Bank must comply to U.S. Department of Agriculture distribution regulations, we do not accept prepared food (from restaurants or individuals).
However, we will attempt to connect any donors to an appropriate Alameda County hunger-relief agency in their community. For assistance, please email us or call (510) 635-3663 ext. 326.
Some of the member agencies through which we distribute food have the facilities to accept prepared food and privately harvested fresh produce. Feel free to contact these organizations directly. They are:
Emeryville Community Action Project, 3610 San Pablo Ave. in Emeryville, accepts donations Monday – Thursday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Friday – Saturday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Please call (510) 652-8422 before dropping off donations.
Dublin, Pleasanton, Livermore
Open Heart Kitchen has revolving locations in Dublin, Pleasanton and Livermore. Email email@example.com or call (925) 580-6793. Open Heart Kitchen accepts donations Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Other organizations that help fight hunger by distributing fresh produce in Alameda County:
If you need help harvesting your personal fruit trees for donation in or around Oakland, contact People United for a Better Life in Oakland (PUEBLO) at (510) 535-2525 or firstname.lastname@example.com. PUEBLO staff and volunteers will harvest your trees and donate the fruit to low-income seniors in Oakland.
Ample Harvest is a nationwide program that helps diminish hunger by enabling backyard gardeners to share their excess bounty with a local food pantry. Sign up at AmpleHarvest.org.
Why is the Food Bank involved in advocacy?
The Food Bank is committed to promoting public policies that address hunger and its root causes. Working with policymakers and elected officials to improve access to government food programs – such as the CalFresh Program and the Summer Food Program for children and teens – helps ensure that all Alameda County residents have safe, nutritious, and adequate food at all times. Such programs also alleviate demand at the Food Bank.
Every four years, the Alameda County Community Food Bank's Advocacy & Policy Team publishes one of the most comprehensive local studies of hunger in the entire Feeding America network.
To learn more about joining our advocacy efforts, click here.

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March 24, 2013
Mirrored Images: Realism in the 19th and 20th Centuries - Heckscher Museum of Art
Through March 24, 2013 - Huntington
Throughout the history of art, artists have turned to the observed world as a source of inspiration. This exhibition, drawn entirely from the Museum's Permanent Collection, explores the various realist movements of the 19th and 20th centuries, beginning with the mid-19th century Barbizon movement in France and the concurrent Hudson River School in America, and progressing through later 19th-century realism and 20th-century movements, such as the Ashcan School, American Scene painting, Magic Realism, Photorealism, and East End (Long Island) realism. December 8, 2012-March 24, 2013.
Aesop's Fables - Long Island Children's Museum
March 24, 2013 - Garden City
In the tradition of comedy teams like the Marx Brothers and Abbott and Costello, wacky siblings Wolfie, Syd, Barry, and Harriet tell us classic tales with a slapstick twist. They invite everyone into their magical world where anything is possible when you use your imagination. Whether it's The Tortoise and the Hare or The Boy Who Cried Wolf, everyone knows at least one of Aesop's great fables. In this spell-binding production, storytellers use song, dance, and drama to bring these famous fables to life.
Messy Afternoons - Long Island Children's Museum
March 24, 2013 - Garden City
Kids will be up to their elbows in goop, guts, shaving cream and play-doh. It's the type of artistic activities that everyone loves, but not one likes to clean-up after. Except the museum staff. The afternoon will offer a variety of sensory activities for children ages 18 months to age 4.
New York Islanders vs. Florida Panthers - Nassau Coliseum
March 24, 2013 - Uniondale
Here's your chance to root for your favorite team. Watch them delight fans as they romp on the ice to settle old scores and win new victories.
Cirque Du Soleil: Totem - CitiField-Lot C
March 24, 2013 - Flushing
The mission of Cirque du Soleil is to invoke the imagination, provokethe senses and evoke the emotions of people around the world. A fascinating journey into the evolution of mankind.
The world's most famous circus traces the human species from its amphibian state to its human desire to fly. Characters evolve on stage. This production traces the fascinating journey of the human species from its original amphibian state to its ultimate desire to fly. The characters evolve on a stage evoking a giant turtle, the symbol of origin for many ancient civilizations. Inspired by many founding myths, this show illustrates, through a visual and acrobatic language, the evolutionary progress of species.
The word "totem" contains the idea of the order of species. We carry in our bodies the potential of all species, all the way to our desire to fly --like the thunderbird at the top of the totem pole.
Somewhere between science and legend TOTEM explores the ties that bind Man to other species, his dreams and his infinite potential.
Breakfast with the Easter Bunny - Pump It Up of Great Neck
March 24, 2013 - Great Neck
Hop on over to Pump It Up of Great Neck's Breakfast with the Easter Bunny for a hopping good time. Children will bounce and play for 80 minutes followed by "Breakfast with the Easter Bunny" which includes bagels and beverages for every child with a paid admission. Kids will also make an awesome holiday craft and have the opportunity to take a picture with the Easter Bunny. Food Option for adults available for an additional $3.95 per person. Price includes a bagel with your choice of butter or cream cheese and unlimited drinks.
Camp Pa-Qua-Tuck Open House - Camp Pa-Qua-Tuck
March 24, 2013 - Center Moriches
Camp Pa-Qua-Tuck is hosting a series of open houses for prospective campers and families of children and young adults with special needs. Parents should bring their children if they are to be a new camper this summer. During the tour, parents will have a chance to meet the year-round staff and ask questions or address any concerns that they might have. In addition, they will have the opportunity to see the new dining hall that will accommodate more campers during mealtime. Camp Pa-Qua-Tuck is a resident summer camp serving children and young adults ages six to 21 with both physical and developmental special needs. Its mission is to help these children to achieve equality, dignity, and maximum independence through a safe and quality program of camping, recreation, and education. Throughout the program, campers participate in many activities, such as arts and crafts, talent shows, cook-outs, swimming and boating.
One World, One Sky - Vanderbilt Museum and Planetarium
March 24, 2013 - Centerport
Enjoy this show, produced by Sesame Workshop, the Beijing and Adler planetariums, and Liberty Science Center, in the newly renovated planetarium. Elmo and Big Bird live in the United States and Hu Hu Zhu lives far away in China, but they discover that they see the same stars at night. Major funding was provided by the National Science Foundation.
Solar System Odyssey - Vanderbilt Museum and Planetarium
March 24, 2013 - Centerport
Take a futuristic journey through the Solar System at the newly renovated Vanderbilt Planetarium. With Earth's resources being rapidly depleted, a tycoon sends hero Jack Larson on a mission to discover a new home to colonize. This character-driven show aligns with science curriculum objectives. This is an original production of the University of North Carolina's Morehead Planetarium and Science Center.
Stars - Vanderbilt Museum and Planetarium
March 24, 2013 - Centerport
Every star has a story. Some are as old as time, faint and almost forgotten. Others burn bright and end their lives in powerful explosions. New stars are created every day, born of vast clouds of gas and dust. Through every phase of their existence, stars release the energy that powers the Universe. Journey to the farthest reaches of the galaxy and experience both the awesome beauty and destructive power of Stars. The animation -- highlighted by astronauts, spacecraft, telescopes, nebulas, clusters, and more -- was created at the National Space Centre in Leicester, England, produced by Sudekum Planetarium and NSC Creative, and narrated by actor Mark Hamill. The Nashville Symphony Orchestra performed part of the soundtrack.
The Velveteen Rabbit - Smithtown Center for the Performing Arts
March 24, 2013 - Smithtown
Though the most modest toy in the nursery, the Velveteen Rabbit earns the love of a young boy and learns about the joys and pain of becoming "Real." Performed by adults for the entertainment of kids.
The Tale of Peter Rabbit (and Benjamin Bunny) - CM Performing Arts Center
March 24, 2013 - Oakdale
The story written by Beatrix Potter follows the adventures of the mischievous Peter Rabbit as he is chased about Mr. McGregor?s garden.
Pinnochio - Carriage House Theater at the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum
March 24, 2013 - Centerport
In this audience participation play, a young puppet struggles to achieve his goal of becoming a real boy.
Oliver! - CM Performing Arts Center
March 24, 2013 - Oakdale
The musical Oliver! vividly brings to life Dickens' story of the boy who asked for more. From the orphanage to the mean streets of London, the ever-optimistic Oliver strives to survive while encoutering such memorable characters as Nancy, Fagin, Bill Sikes and the Artful Dodger.
50/50: Celebrating Fifty Years of the Hofstra University Museum - Hofstra University Museum
Through March 28, 2013 - Hempstead
This anniversary exhibition highlights the breadth and depth of the collection through just 50 of the 605 acquisitions donated since 2006. The featured works include paintings, prints, photographs and drawings by 20th and 21st century American, Latino and European artists such as Luis Cruz Azaceta, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Stanley Brodsky, Lucien Clergue, Yonia Fain, April Gornick, Robert Kipniss, Howardena Pindell, Robert Rauschenberg, Donald Resnick, Alison Saar, W. Eugene Smith and Stanley Twardowicz, among others. Additionally, the exhibition includes Pre-Columbian figures and vessels as well as early to mid 20th-century African masks.
50/50 The Great Art Caper - Hofstra University Museum - Emily Lowe Gallery
Through March 28, 2013 - Hempstead
Pick up Great Art Caper materials while in the Emily Lowe Gallery to enjoy self-guided super-sleuthing. Search for hidden clues in the works in the exhibit 50/50:Celebrating Fifty Years of the Hofstra University Museum and use the clues to complete a message. This program runs through March 28.
Building a Bunny Hutch (Chocolate or Gingerbread) - Riesterer's Bakery
Through March 28, 2013 - West Hempstead
Sign up for classes to learn how to build a bunny hutch in chocolate or gingerbread. It's a great party for children and adults. Enjoy soda, treats and take home your own creation. See how they make some of Long Island's largest variety of Easter bunnies- up to 3 feet tall. It's a chocoholics dream. Call for exact days. Classes run through March 28.
Community Gallery - Long Island Children's Museum
Through March 31, 2013 - Garden City
Stop by the Community Gallery and enjoy the mixed media artwork created by students from North Babylon Schools. Students were inspired by lighthouses on Long Island and the world.
Cirque Du Soleil: Totem - Citi Field, Lot C
Through March 31, 2013 - Flushing
The mission of Cirque du Soleil is to invoke the imagination, provokethe senses and evoke the emotions of people around the world. A fascinating journey into the evolution of mankind.
The world's most famous circus traces the human species from its amphibian state to its human desire to fly. Characters evolve on stage. This production traces the fascinating journey of the human species from its original amphibian state to its ultimate desire to fly. The characters evolve on a stage evoking a giant turtle, the symbol of origin for many ancient civilizations. Inspired by many founding myths, this show illustrates, through a visual and acrobatic language, the evolutionary progress of species.
The word "totem" contains the idea of the order of species. We carry in our bodies the potential of all species, all the way to our desire to fly - like the thunderbird at the top of the totem pole.
Somewhere between science and legend TOTEM explores the ties that bind Man to other species, his dreams and his infinite potential.
21st Annual Student Art Festival, Part II: Grades 9-12 - Guild Hall
Through April 14, 2013 - East Hampton
The exhibition features over 3,500 pieces of student art from high schools from 11 participating public, private and home schools in the Amagansett, East Hampton, Greenport, Montauk, Wainscott, Southampton, Bridgehampton, Shelter Island, and Sagaponack districts. March 19-April 14, 2013.
Family Scavenger Hunt - East End Arts Gallery
Through April 19, 2013 - Riverhead
Families are invited to explore the gallery with an interactive scavenger hunt, where adults and children alike can search for items like suns and paintbrushes within the works of abstract and figurative art in the current gallery show. This show features artwork that brings the subject back to some sort of beginning – its origin. March 15-April 19.
Tony Hawk / Rad Science - New York Hall of Science
Through April 22, 2013 - Corona
Find out how the physics of gravity, force, velocity and balance make radical tricks possible in action sports in this program that runs through April 22. Children under age 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
Attack of the Bloodsuckers! - Long Island Children's Museum
Through May 05, 2013 - Garden City
Explore the science of what's eating you in this skin-crawling
exhibition. Examine the what, why, when and how of mosquitoes, fleas, ticks, leeches and other parasites known as sanguinivores (creatures that eat blood). Learn why bloodsuckers are important to the ecosystem and how to keep them out of your system. Attack of the Bloodsuckers! offer visitors the chance to look a real leech in the mouth; pull off your socks and test your bug-appealing foot odor; receive a big hug from a giant, inflating tick; get itchy and knotty with the life-size game of "Twitcher" - a buggy variation on the game Twister. This exhibition runs through May 5, 2013.
Math & Science Homework Help - Long Island Science Center
Through June 01, 2013 - Riverhead
Students in grades 1-8 may be dropped off on Saturdays to receive help with homework. No pre-registration required.
After School Arts - Theresa Academy of Performing Arts
Through June 19, 2013 - Lido Beach
Theresa Academy of Performing Arts for Students with Special Needs offers dance, drama, music, drumming, fine art, yoga, and drama classes for students with special needs and their siblings. Classes meet weekly after school and on weekends.
Israel at 65 - Jewish Discovery Museum @ SYJCC
Through August 31, 2013 - Commack
This hands-on exhibit allows families to learn about Jewish life, history, values, traditions and heroes, as well as Israel and the Hebrew language. The interactive displays are designed to transform visitors into participants, offering adults and children a unique opportunity to discover the wonders of Jewish heritage. Through August 31, 2013.
Autism Spectrum Parent Support Group - Family and Children's Association
Through September 01, 2013 - Mineola
Family Center's Spectrum Support Group offers caregivers mutual support by providing opportunities to meet with others also raising children who are dually diagnosed. To be eligible the child must have a primary Mental Health diagnosis and a secondary Spectrum diagnosis. Groups are facilitated by Parent Advocates, each having their own unique experience raising a child under the Spectrum. While caregivers attend group, respite can be provided to children ages 5-17. To receive respite, an intake is required. This ensures staff is familiar with the child, making caregiver's participation more relaxing.
Meetings are held the first and third Monday of each month, except holidays. RSVP Miriam at 516-485-5914 xtn 2223
no later than seven days prior to the meeting date.
Friendship Bracelet and Lanyard Making Class - The Lanyard Ladies
Through October 03, 2013 - East Rockaway
Looking for a fun after-school or weekend activity? Does your child want to learn how to make friendship and lanyard bracelets? Kids can make as many bracelets as they want. Each child will also receive a special gift. 15% sibling discount. Please call to reserve your space. You can also book a private play-date(10 or more children needed). Call for more information.
Feeding Nemo! Behind-the-Scenes Tour - Long Island Aquarium & Exhibition Center
Through December 31, 2013 - Riverhead
Go behind-the-scenes and see firsthand all that's involved in creating a hospitable environment for the aquarium's residents. And you may get a chance to help feed the clownfish. While the Seal Exhibit is under construction, you can visit them up close and personal on the tour.
Behind-the-Scenes Tours - Long Island Aquarium & Exhibition Center
Through December 31, 2013 - Riverhead
Go behind the scenes at the aquarium and see firsthand all that's involved in creating a home for the aquatic residents, including helping to feed the clownfish.
Sculpture Mystery: The Great Art Caper - Hofstra University Museum
Through January 01, 2014 - Hempstead
Uncover clues to help solve a mystery in the outdoor sculpture collection. Pick up your caper kit at Emily Lowe Gallery, have fun while discovering more about these works, and at the end of the caper return to Emily Lowe Gallery for a prize. For everyone ages 4-9 and their grown-up companions all year-round. The program runs through January 1, 2014.
Sculpture Exploration Backpack - Hofstra University Museum
Through January 01, 2014 - Hempstead
Kids and their grown up companions can stop in at the Hofstra University Museum's Emily Lowe Gallery, and pick up a backpack. At the end of your tour, return the backpack and each child will receive a small gift from the Museum. The program runs through January 1, 2014.
Outdoor Sculpture Biennial - Adelphi University
Through May 31, 2014 - Garden City
See the work of 10 skilled sculptors located throughout the scenic 75-acre arboretum on the Garden City campus.
This outdoor installation showcases the talents of Miggy Buck (NY), John Clement (NY), Maria Hall (NY), Ed Haugevik (NY), William King (NY), Anti Liu (NY), Johnny Poux (NY), Kim Radochia (MA), Christopher Saucedo (NY), and Hans Van de Bovenkamp (NY). Works of art encompass use of various materials-steel, bronze, aluminum, concrete and reflective mirrors. These man-made creations are transposed into poetic visual narrations.
The exhibition runs through May 31, 2014.
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Thank you to Changethattape.com for hooking up even more Bode footage. Just incase you needed another reason we gave him rider of the year over the Red Bull Helicopter pilot.
admin one of the founders of the internet.
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dang incredibly strange pictures but the riding was killer and a complete banger ending
The man.
ATTENTION! Video-detector!
One side effect of watching this video is a butthurt.
If you start feeling pain in your ass (especially on 00:41), you should immediately stop watching and face the fact that most likely you are the real JP (?)
Definitely rider of the year material.
bode merrill is everything that is great about snowboarding
lotta dick riders up in here
That last trick was absolutely insanity. I remember watching it like 7 times when the footy first dropped. I don't know how it didnt make it on twsnow's best 10 tricks….oh yea, because it's tw.
Rider of the year for sure.


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TAMPA — The Tampa Bay Rowdies have signed their first Pinellas County product, Northeast High alum Chad Burt.
Burt, the assistant director of coaching for Simply Soccer Futbol Club in St. Petersburg — the same club program he played for — was brought in this preseason on a trial basis and has one goal and an assist in two exhibition games.
"We have added another excellent player to our roster with the signing of Burt," Rowdies coach Paul Dalglish said. "His hard work and commitment during his trial period convinced us that he was the perfect fit for our team. He grew up in Tampa Bay, loves the game and understands the history behind the team and what we are looking to build with it."
Burt, a 22-year-old midfielder, played for the Carolina Railhawks of the USL First Division last season and was with indoor Milwaukee Wave of the MISL in 2008-09, tallying 13 points in 20 games. He also played for the MLS' Colorado Rapids U-23 team and the Atlanta Silverbacks.
The club also acquired goalkeeper Josh Lambo on loan from the MLS' FC Dallas. Lambo, an accomplished young player, played on the U.S. U-17 World Cup team and the U-20 national team before being drafted in the 2008 MLB SuperDraft by Dallas with the eighth overall pick.
Tampa Bay plays its third of five preseason games Friday against the MLS' Philadelphia Union at the University of Tampa at 7:30 p.m. The Rowdies open the regular season April 16 in Baltimore.
Eduardo A. Encina can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com


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Nick Park said he was "shocked" that the film was shortlisted for Best Animated Feature at the Academy Awards.
Speaking from Heathrow airport, Mr Park said he and co-director Steve Box were "absolutely delighted".
The film, the first Wallace and Gromit full-length feature, topped the US Box Office in October.
Major success
Mr Park, originally from Preston, won his first Oscar in 1985 for the Creature Comforts animations.
He went on to win two more for Wallace and Gromit's The Wrong Trousers and A Close Shave.
The company behind the films, Aardman Animations, was formed in Bristol in 1976.
It claimed its first major success a year later when plasticine figure Morph was launched on the BBC, and quickly established itself as a children's favourite.
Wallace & Gromit will face competition from Tim Burton's Corpse Bride.
Some of the puppets for that film were made at Mackinnon & Saunders in Altrincham, Greater Manchester.


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A basketball court is available in the marina area.
Throw in your line and catch a variety of species. A Kentucky Fishing License is required. Click here to purchase a license online at KY Dept. of Fish and Wildlife Resources.
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Fungi seek out warm, dark places to dwell, which is why they're commonly found lurking in shoes and within the hearts of men. Shine a light with this Groupon.
Choose between Two Options
- $199 for one laser toenail-fungus-removal treatment for one foot (a $500 value)
- $299 for one laser toenail-fungus-removal treatment for both feet (a $1,000 value)
The treatment uses FDA-cleared GenesisPlus laser to zap toe fungus, usually allowing clear nails to grow out after one to two treatments.
Complete Foot Care
True to its name, Complete Foot Care hosts a team of technicians focused completely on treating foot ailments. Led by Dr. Nazila Eshraghi, they deal handily with wound care, sports injuries, bunions, and in-grown toenails. One of the newest additions to their arsenal is a GenesisPlus laser, which they deploy to deal with unsightly toenail-fungus. Not only is this laser treatment effective and pain free; it also means patients don't have to worry about the side effects of prescription pills, the hassle of topical ointments, or the risks of dipping one's toes into random half-filled beakers in the high school chem lab.


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NEW YORK (Jun. 19)
A resolution urging its members to seek the friendship of Arab students in their colleges was adopted at the annual convention of the Student Zionist Organization held here. More than 200 delegates from 44 campus chapters of the organization attended the convention. The SZO has chapters at 68 colleges throughout the country.
The Student Zionist Organization, which is sponsored by the American Zionist Council, represents all Zionist points of view on American campuses. Its purpose is to build bonds of friendship and understanding between the university communities of the United States and Israel. At a variety of workshop and plenary sessions during the convention, reports revealed that the organization had more than doubled its membership and the number of its constituent chapters in the preceding year. The convention elected Gilbert Kollin of Columbia and the Jewish Theological Seminary as national president of the organization.


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To the Editor:
Bigotry is bigotry. It was bigotry to ban renting to Jews in the United States just because they were Jews, and it is bigotry to ban renting to Sudanese in Israel just because they are Sudanese.
It is easy to support "social justice" when you have no power. The challenge is to practice social justice when you do have power.
I know the black hats have all kinds of rationalization for their racism. But then so did the guys in the United States who were wearing the white sheets and hoods.
Mitchell A. Levin
Cedar Rapids, Iowa


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12 Hottest Cruise Topics in 2012
Main Page: 2012, the Year in Cruising
Fare Compare: Check Prices on 2013 Cruises
(11:30 p.m. EST) – Think cruise news in 2012, and the haunting image of the Costa Concordia laying on its side, half-submerged in the waters near Giglio, Italy, comes to mind. And Concordia did, indeed, dominate our news coverage this past year. More than one million people turned to Cruise Critic for Costa Concordia-related news, but readers didn't only come to Cruise Critic's news page to read up on the Concordia tragedy.
From the unprecedented disruptions caused by Superstorm Sandy to onboard fires, overboard passengers and several unlucky excursion-related incidents, cruise lines battled what seemed to be a never-ending barrage of misfortune in 2012.
Here are the news articles Cruise Critic readers read and talked about the most:
The Costa Concordia Tragedy
On January 13, 2012, Costa Concordia hit a rock off the coast of Italian island of Giglio. Within hours the ship had capsized, 4,000 passengers and crew evacuated and 32 people had died. Since Cruise Critic first began reporting on the tragedy in the late hours of January 13, news stories about the Costa Concordia accident, subsequent stories of survival, the cruise line's response and plans for wreck recovery have been -- by far -- the most read news items of 2012, with nine individual Concordia-related articles in the top-20 most-read news stories of the year. We expect to see Concordia back in the news in the days leading up to the one-year anniversary and once the murder trial against the ship's captain begins sometime in the new year. Read more.
Superstorm Sandy Wrecks Havoc on Cruises
Hurricane/superstorm Sandy might easily have been one of the most disruptive weather forces the cruise industry has faced, with 10 days of itinerary changes and rough at-sea rides. In all, some 50 itineraries were upended with some passengers forced to remain at sea longer than scheduled, while others were short-changed or had their cruises canceled entirely. Coverage of Sandy, its impact on cruises and how the various lines compensated (or didn't compensate) passengers made up Cruise Critic's second most popular news topic this year, with four individual Sandy articles in the top-20 most-read news stories. Read more.
Carnival Introduces All-You-Can-Drink Package
In August 2010, Carnival announced it had begun testing a flat-fee, all-inclusive beverage program called the "My Awesome Bar Program" on Carnival Victory. Since then the line has slowly expanded the program, now called "Cheers!" to eight ships, and though the line has not officially stopped calling the program a "trial run" or announced a fleetwide rollout schedule, Cruise Critic expects to see it implemented across Carnival's fleet throughout 2013. Read more.
Carnival Passengers Robbed on Excursion
Just because an excursion is ship-sponsored doesn't mean things can't go wrong, something 22 Carnival Splendor passengers learned when they were robbed at gunpoint in February while in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. No one was injured, but most lost a variety of valuables, as well as passports and other forms of identification. Carnival apologized to passengers for the "unfortunate and disturbing event" and said it would work with passengers to reimburse them for lost items and get new IDs. The tour, a guided nature trail excursion, was subsequently eliminated from the line's excursion offerings. Read more.
Royal Caribbean Passengers Injured on Excursion
Carnival passengers were not the only ones to learn ship-sponsored doesn't always mean "safe." Eleven Royal Caribbean passengers were injured during a traffic accident while on a ship-sponsored shopping tour in St. Thomas in late January. The passengers were traveling in an open-air "safari cab" when it collided with a parked car. All were taken to a local hospital and treated for minor injuries, except one who had a broken hip. Royall Caribbean paid the hospital expenses of those with minor injuries and worked with the more seriously injured passenger to cover medical expenses not paid for by her insurance. Read more.
Shipboard Fire Doesn't Dampen Passengers Spirits
On March 30 a fire broke out aboard Azamara Quest while the ship sailed off the coast of Manila. Though the fire was contained within the engine room and quickly extinguished, all electrical and propulsion systems were knocked out and five crewmembers were injured. It took nearly 24 hours to get the ship up and running again, albeit at a very slow pace. To keep spirits up, Quest crew threw an outdoor barbecue with free drinks. Azamara was forced to cancel Quest's next cruise to repair the fire damage. Read more.
Cruise Line Cabin Gaffe Infuriates Passengers
Nothing infuriates cruise passengers like believing a cruise line is sticking it to them, and that's exactly how a number of Royal Caribbean cruisers felt after the line took away their prime location cabins and "accidentally" sold them to other passengers. The passengers, all booked on a series of Rhapsody of the Seas cruises set to sail after the ship's refurbishment, had all booked the spacious corner aft junior suites far ahead of sailing. But after the cabins were renumbered during dry dock, their sweet corner aft cabins had been bumped down the corridor, and the new corner aft junior suites were opened for sale. While Royal Caribbean admitted mea culpa and offered $200 OBC, passengers who were not able to reclaim their original cabins were simply out of luck -- and unhappy. Read more.
Cruise Critic Predicts 2012 Trends
Fewer new-builds but growth in refurbishments, more fee-based offerings and the rebirth of Mississippi River cruising were trends Cruise Critic accurately predicted for 2012. This year the industry saw only a handful of new ships introduced, two of which were on the Mississippi River – the first new ships to set sail along the Big Muddy in 15 years. Of the remaining new-builds, almost all were additional ships in a class. Instead, lines poured money into refurbishing older vessels. Simultaneously, lines began formulating new ways for bringing in more money, primarily through more for-fee dining and beverage offerings. Read more.
Passenger Overboard
Every year the cruise industry sees several people go tragically overboard, and this year was no different. The story of a female passenger who went overboard from Allure of the Seas in September caught the attention of our readers. The sad event was complicated by the fact the ship didn't turn around immediately; instead crew performed a multihour search of the ship before alerting the Coast Guard and turning around. Perhaps the most bizarre overboard this year involved a 31-year-old army sergeant who jumped off Carnival Fascination after a physical confrontation with a crewmember. Read more here and here.
Crown Princess Dethroned by Noro
Few things make cruisers cringe more than the thought of contracting norovirus while at sea. So when Crown Princess was in the news because of norovirus twice in a two-month time span, Cruise Critic readers took notice. The outbreak was severe enough the second time around that the line shortened the sailing and brought the ship in for a two-day intensive cleansing. In a rather unprecedented move, the line also gave all affected passengers full refunds for the cruise, flights home, coverage of change fees for air not booked through Princess, hotel accommodations where needed and a 25 percent future cruise credit. Read more.
--by Dori Saltzman, News Editor


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G143 Sectional Sofa in Black Leather By Glory
This stunning black colored living room set is designed by Glory Furniture. The living room set includes an Ottoman and Raf Sectional two boxes. If you have a drawing room with a lot of space then you can opt for an accent chair, an extra-large accent ottoman to complement the black colored sofa set with an attractive look of leather. The design of the set is simply unique and sober. The well-designed shape is something that enhances its beauty and works as an attraction for people. The classy black color of this living room set goes perfectly with any type of room and decorum. The structure of the living room set is well constructed so that the furniture becomes strong and durable. The upholstery is made up of superior quality leather which is well built and well-tailored. It is highly padded with topmost quality soft and flexible sponges in order to make it soft and comfortable. The extremely soft and contented cushioned seat set will definitely be admired by your friends and neighbors. Moreover, the large size of this stunning black colored living room set can well accommodate five people at a time. So while sitting on this comfortable ottoman you can enjoy all the fun times with your friends
The G143 Sectional Sofa Offers:Ottoman (Accommodates 1-2 Persons)
Right Facing Sectional Sofa (Accommodates 4-5 Persons)
SpecificationsSectional Sofa Set
Color: Black
Style: Contemporary
Brand: Glory
Assembly: Light Assembly
FeaturesBonded Leather
Metals Legs
Adjustable Headrests
Robust Construction
Right Facing Chaise Sectional
Comfy Seats
DimensionsOttoman 56"L x 29"W x 18"H
Right Facing Sectional Sofa 113"L x 83"W x 38"H


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Editor for Chinook
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- Bev and Ken Rees have been editors for the Chinook magazine but they are moving to Lethbridge at the end of July and have to give up this responsibility.We are looking for someone who is willing to take on this position. If you are interested or know someone who is please call or email me. If can answer a few questions about the editor responsibilites too.
Tara Shymanski
Alberta Family Histories Society
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Calgary, AB, T2W 0J8
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text: The Chocolate Turtles Flying T Gift Box is filled with amazing butter caramel layered on top of roasted and salted pecans or delicious roasted and salted cashews and covered with your choice of rich dark or milk chocolate or a combination of both. The chocolate Flying T's come packaged in a gold gift box. You won't be disappointed; a delectable handmade delight!


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The V8 Supercars' annual dilemma of how best to showcase their brand at the Australian Formula One Grand Prix shows no signs of going away.
As Mark Winterbottom and his Ford Performance Racing outfit pocketed $100,000 today for winning the four-race non-championship round at Albert Park, several other teams face bills of similar size after weekend crashes.
Racing for no championship points has led to several format chops and changes - though the introduction of their own pit facilities had raised hopes the V8s could one day compete in a full series round.
But with rival television networks Seven (V8s) and Ten (Grand Prix) holding the rights and race duration at the mercy of the F1 schedule, V8 officials say any racing at Albert Park is set to remain a not-for-points exercise.
Winterbottom was dominant all weekend, winning three of the four races to take the overall title from today's race victor, Shane van Gisbergen, and Holden driver Garth Tander.
Most drivers believe the ideal is finding a way to race for points as part of a contract with the Australian Grand Prix, which runs until 2015.
"Every time we run the cars, we need to be running for points," Tander said.
"It costs a lot of money to run these cars, there's a lot of infrastructure involved, we need to be racing for championship points."
Winterbottom admits there are issues with competing for points at Albert Park, suggesting it would have been farcical if yesterday's race, which was shortened to seven laps after a five-car pile-up, had counted for the championship.
"You've got a pit lane, you've got the infrastructure now, which is a big thing, but when you've got a 20-lap race cut down to seven, you can't really put championship points on that," he said.
"The gates open at 11 o'clock one day here so I'm sure we could find the time to race (for points), but that's for powers which are above me."
Van Gisbergen's win today for Stone Brothers racing, over Tander and Fabian Coulthard, completed a clean sweep for Ford of the four races at Albert Park.
Meanwhile, Holden driver James Courtney was penalised by stewards for careless driving over the incident which triggered yesterday's five-car pile-up.
Courtney was hit with a 50-second pit lane penalty for today's race after his nudge on Jamie Whincup started a chain reaction which resulted in several cars being badly damaged.
While Whincup, Russell Ingall and David Wall started today after overnight repairs, Holden drivers Taz Douglas and Karl Reindler did not as their cars face major fixing ahead of the next championship round in Tasmania from March 30 to April 2.
Conundrum continues for V8 drivers
The V8 Supercars' annual dilemma of how best to showcase their brand at the Australian Formula One Grand Prix shows no signs of going away.


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Motorcyclist crashes into van, one taken to hospital
EUREKA- A motorcyclist was taken to the hospital Monday night after colliding into a van. It happened on Broadway and Tomlinson just after 5 p.m. Eureka police said Shannon Ray, 40 of Wolf Creek, Ore. was driving a Boyd's Coffee company vehicle when the crash happened.
Officers said Ray was in the middle of turning left into the northbound lane of Broadway when the motorcyclist driving southbound on Broadway crashed into the van. According to witnesses the motorcyclist slammed on his brakes and flew over the handlebars into the van's drivers-side door. The motorcyclist was taken to the hospital with unknown injuries. Police believe speed does not appear to be a factor.


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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/12/2010 (2430 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Every new day in one of the better medical dramas in recent memory, the debate over the future of multiple sclerosis, dubbed the "liberation war," gains another soldier.
This year, like hundreds of other Manitobans with MS, Kathleen Olson became one of them.
Just over a year ago, CTV's W5 investigative journalism series put a glaring spotlight on an Italian vascular surgeon, Dr. Paolo Zamboni, and the incredible results he reported in MS patients after the "liberation procedure," a simple angioplasty to force open narrowed veins in the neck and chest.
Olson, who has walked with a cane since 1999, still remembers the day the show aired. "I sat down, put my head between my knees, and took a deep breath," she says. "I saw the sun shining clearly for the first time in nearly 30 years."
In 1982, when she was just 24 years old and working her way through nursing school, Olson learned she had MS. At first, she went years between MS attacks; now, every day is a battle against the numbing exhaustion that is typical of MS.
For the single mom of a teen boy, those hurdles add up. Life isn't unbearable now, Olson says. But it might be. "It feels like my world is getting smaller and smaller," she sighs, a week before hopping on a plane to Albany, N.Y., to be tested and, maybe, treated for what Zamboni dubbed chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency, or CCSVI.
Since CCSVI blew up in the headlines, Manitoba's government and medical experts have urged caution while research comes in; there are still no clinical trials here. But there are patients, tired of patience, hopping planes in the hopes that the simple procedure will halt the progress of a disease sometimes too awful to bear.
Duncan Thornton, the co-founder of the advocacy group CCSVI Manitoba, estimates since he became the first Manitoban to be "liberated" in March, as many as 100 Manitobans have dropped tens of thousands of dollars to receive the procedure in Poland, India, the United States and elsewhere.
When they come back, their stories have helped impact the debate. "In the beginning of August... there was really compelling anecdotal evidence of people seeing positive results," Manitoba Health Minister Theresa Oswald recalls. "Listening to these very articulate individuals who have had in their view very profound changes, that compelled us to articulate at the national level (that) we can't just sit back."
By then, Oswald had been wrestling with the CCSVI issue for over eight months. Meeting frequently with doctors and unstoppable MS patient advocates, Oswald now says she was always on-board with the theory, if cautious.
And as a new year is upon us, only one thing is certain for the future of MS patients in Manitoba: if the trials don't come, the patients may just keep hopping on planes, bound for somewhere else.
-- With files from Mary Agnes Welch
Dec. 14, 2009 -- At a public meeting, later broadcast online, the MS Clinic at Health Sciences Centre announces it will take a "wait-and-see" approach to the "Zamboni breakthrough." Many of the province's 3,000 MS patients express anger and disappointment.
March 25, 2010 -- At a clinic in Poland, author Duncan Thornton becomes the first known Manitoban to have the "liberation procedure." After returning to Manitoba, Thornton, 48, co-founds an advocacy group, CCSVI Manitoba, to promote access to the procedure he paid $10,000 for and tells the Free Press was "worth millions."
April 21 -- Thornton speaks to about 100 people at the first CCSVI Manitoba public meeting. He stands on a chair to speak; someone asks if he could have done that before the procedure. "Not without falling over," he says. Six weeks later, 200 people come to a similar meeting in Brandon.
May 5 -- At the legislature, CCSVI advocates launch their first rally, demanding the province support the procedure or its trials.
Aug. 4 -- Outside the annual premiers' meeting at the Fort Garry Hotel, CCSVI advocates protest what they say is a glacial pace of provincial action. Inside, Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall pledges to fund clinical trials in his province.
Aug. 11 -- MobileLifeSciences, a screening clinic near the Manitoba-U.S. border run by ex-pat Winnipeg medical technologists, announces it will offer screening for blocked veins in MS patients.
Fall 2010 -- Provincial Health Minister Theresa Oswald publicly champions pan-Canadian clinical trials. At a health ministers' meeting in Newfoundland, she helps hammer out an agreement to lobby for them.
Sept. 20 -- About 60 people attend the second "Liberation Day" rally, where Oswald and opposition leaders speak.
Oct. 15 -- Oswald announces Manitoba will kick in $500,000 to a pan-Canadian clinical trial, if and when it happens.
Oct. 22 -- Provincial PC Leader Hugh McFadyen calls the government's response to CCSVI "slow and inadequate," urging Manitoba to join Saskatchewan in planning clinical trials.
Dec. 2 -- While provincial Tories continue to push for funding of clinical trials, some Manitobans with MS gather outside the legislature and report being denied follow-up care, such as blood-thinning medications, by Manitoba doctors after travelling abroad for the procedure. Oswald said medical staff have been given instructions not to shun patients.


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Critical State
Two nights ago, after the prime minister's decision to significantly intensify military action against the Palestinians, one cabinet member explained that this move was made possible by the Bush administration's total backing for Sharon's policy.
1. Powell's language
Two nights ago, after the prime minister's decision to significantly intensify military action against the Palestinians, one cabinet member explained that this move was made possible by the Bush administration's total backing for Sharon's policy. At roughly the same time, Secretary of State Colin Powell expressed sharp criticism of the prime minister and his approach, which seemed to signal an emerging change in the American attitude.
The fact that this cabinet member was unaware of the impending turnabout in Washington's policy isn't surprising. The cabinet members, who know so little about Sharon's moves as it is, can hardly be expected to keep up with developments in the U.S. position. The question is whether Sharon knew.
The evening before, the prime minister's office had issued a statement about a talk that Sharon had with Powell. The tone of the announcement was very assured: "The prime minister updated the Secretary of State about the serious escalation caused by the recent terror incidents and explained to him that Israel will take all necessary measures in order to defend its citizens. The prime minister said that the State of Israel will not allow the Palestinian Authority and the refugee camps to become safe havens for the terrorists."
In other words: Israel is informing its patron that it intends to attack, if not to occupy, the refugee camps and Palestinian Authority facilities for some time, in order to prevent them from giving shelter to terrorists. The announcement was the inevitable consequence of the decisions that Sharon pushed through the cabinet and the expanded kitchen cabinet - to strike harder at the Palestinian terror organizations, and at the PA, which gives them full rein, by means of deeper and continuous military operations. And there were his blunt words in the Knesset: "Israel finds itself in a difficult war, facing a cruel and bloodthirsty enemy. Many losses must be inflicted so that the enemy will feel the heavy price of its actions."
Having been careful up to now to coordinate his moves against the Palestinians with the U.S. administration, Sharon felt it was only proper that he report to the Secretary of State about his decision to escalate Israel's response to the terror attacks. The results came the next day, when Powell appeared before Congress: He reproached Sharon personally, took issue with the reasoning behind his approach to the Palestinians and advised him not to seek an increase in the number of Palestinian casualties. Canadian Foreign Minister Bill Graham expressed similar criticism. Israel's main pillar of political support suddenly looked wobbly.
We'll find out in the coming days whether Powell's harsh words really herald a new trend, or whether they were a one-time anomaly. There are signs that the Secretary of State's remarks were not random, and that they stem from the incredulity and concern that have gripped the American administration in view of Sharon's handling of the conflict with the Palestinians. As much as the Bush administration understands Israel's need to respond forcefully to savage terror attacks, it cannot sit and do nothing in the face of the looming escalation.
Sharon's tendency to give much weight to the positions of Avigdor Lieberman and Uzi Landau (and the menacing shadow of Benjamin Netanyahu) and ignore the opinion of Foreign Minister Shimon Peres has not gone unnoticed in Washington. Though there have been disagreements within the administration this past year over how much rope to give Sharon, this week's cabinet decisions and the prime minister's hotheaded declarations tipped the balance in favor of the State Department: Powell's harsh comments are not just an expression of his personal view; they reflect the concern of the entire administration over the way in which the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is deteriorating, and the implications this could have for the region's stability and on U.S. plans for pressing its war on world terror.
2. Sharon's vise
Meanwhile, Sharon is also feeling the pressure from Shimon Peres and the Labor Party. Granted, the foreign minister has not made such a big fuss yet and Defense Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer made do with taking credit for the decision to hold off on once again moving the tanks closer to Arafat's headquarters, but the noises coming from the direction of the coalition government's senior partner couldn't help but cause the prime minister to lose a little sleep.
At the cabinet meeting, Matan Vilnai seconded Dan Meridor's harsh criticism of the plan of action recommended by Sharon. Peres was also critical, and this time he made sure to express his displeasure outside the cabinet session, too. A group of senior party members called for a meeting of Labor's central committee to discuss the possibility of resigning from the government. Sharon smelled danger and invited Peres to a private meeting in hopes of calming the waters. Even if Sharon's efforts in this regard are successful (Benjamin Ben-Eliezer and Ephraim Sneh are convinced they could easily rebuff any proposal in the central committee that calls for leaving the coalition), the risk to his government's stability was made clear this week.
Basically, Sharon is caught in a vise that keeps growing tighter the more the conflict with the Palestinians escalates: The need to make a strategic decision about where he wishes to lead things is becoming more and more pressing and forcing him to face the contradictions that were built into the coalition from the start. The choice is between trying to quash the Palestinian revolt by means of a crushing military campaign, or pursuing a political dialogue that would eventually mean forgoing the dream of a Greater Israel. So far, Sharon has maneuvered very skillfully between the right- and left-wing factions of his government and evaded any definitive decisions, but reality is now intruding to the point that he will soon have to come down unequivocally on the side of the one of these two alternatives.
While the decisions taken by Sharon this week would seem to indicate what choice he has made, they actually point more to a general inclination than to a clear resolution of where he stands. His bombastic statements about stepping up the military pressure on the PA were not meant to suggest a full-scale war (the statement from the prime minister's office two nights ago, which came in response to Powell's comments, also adhered to this interpretation); rather, they expressed a fiery mood and a desire to appease public opinion more than any solid viewpoint. Sharon still behaves like someone wary of making a clear-cut decision. Though he is certainly leaning rightward and pressing ever harder on the trigger, he has not completely cut off the option of dialogue with the Palestinian leadership.
Sharon's handling of the situation may well be a deception. He may have already resolved to forcefully put down the Palestinian uprising, impose a bantustan-like arrangement and continue to hold onto all the territories. He may be be pursuing these goals gradually and cagily, without publicly declaring his objectives. All of his moves during his year in office can be interpreted this way, though they can just as well be seen in a different light: that they have all been direct responses to terror attacks and the motives behind them are purely security-related. In any case, the instructions that the IDF received this week indicate that, for now, Sharon is refraining from waging all-out war on the Palestinian people and their leadership.
As intensive as IDF actions were this week, they are still defined by the defense establishment as limited operations and not war (although, during his visit to the Tarkumiya checkpoint two days ago, Sharon told the soldiers: "This is a war, but a war of a different kind."). Some even described the military measures as surgical operations. In consultations with the defense minister, the question of how to proceed, should the military moves fail to achieve the desired results, was also discussed. Four days after the new military approach was put into action, no signs of capitulation were evident on the Palestinian side. On the contrary, the terrorist attacks increased. In the defense establishment, there was doubt as to whether the military pressure brought to bear this week would be sufficient to induce the PA to surrender.
If the terror attacks continue, the IDF will most likely recommend that the political echelon approve a further ratcheting up of the military campaign. Then the differences of opinion that became apparent this week will come to the fore once again: The cabinet will ask itself to what extent Yasser Arafat is personally involved in the terror attacks (the heads of army intelligence and the Shin Bet gave conflicting answers to this question, based on the same intelligence source); the right-wing ministers will demand a full-scale war against the Palestinian terror and the left-wing ministers will argue that without the presentation of a political objective that contains some hope for the Palestinians, there is no chance of effecting their surrender, or even of gaining some breathing space for Israel's citizens.
The right-wing ministers will call for the toppling of the PA (Sharon said recently that it was a mistake to declare that this was not Israel's objective, since this gave the Palestinian leadership immunity) and the left-wing ministers will assert that without a central focus of control on the other side, Israel will have to wage a war against thousands of individual terrorists "and there won't be anyone to vanquish," as Dan Meridor succinctly put it. The right-wing ministers will advocate the assassination of Palestinian leaders on the level of Marwan Barghouti, and the left-wing ministers will point out that the targeted killings policy has only led to an increase in terror attacks and that, since the start of the intifada, Israel has already arrested 1,800 suspects. At the cabinet meeting this week, Housing Minister Natan Sharansky said that this government is incapable of reaching agreement on a political objective, but the current reality is imposing agreement on a military objective. Powell's attack on Sharon and the Labor Party's growing dismay with Sharon's policies may go to prove Sharansky wrong: There is no agreement in the government on a military objective either.
3. Barak's brain
Ever since he had to relinquish the prime minister's chair, Ehud Barak has been flirting with public life like a bashful suitor: He supposedly retired from public life, but he still occasionally reaches out for a quick touch. He has a spokesman who keeps track of every word that is spoken or written about him, and who responds on his behalf every so often. He offers his views on what is transpiring here (especially to the media abroad) and has come up with a neat explication of the advantages of the unilateral separation plan and the construction of a security fence, which he laid out Tuesday night at the Middle East Media and Research Institute (MEMRI) in Jerusalem.
Barak's tone of speech and self-assurance haven't changed. But anyone whose despair over the country's present leadership is so deep that he is tempted to pin his hopes on Ehud Barak again
should bear in mind that the man is offering an unconvincing solution, which is based on an unwillingness to give up the territories and a wariness of dealing with the settlers.
The unilateral separation plan being preached by Barak proposes the creation of no less than seven settlement blocs that would be attached to the areas within the Green Line by means of fences. It also calls for the construction of a fence, and the posting of a military presence, in the Jordan Rift Valley, along the Jordan River. In fact, Barak proposes annexing 25 percent of the West Bank and 80 percent of the settler population. As is his wont, he has set a specific time frame in which the plan is to be accomplished - three years. Barak's keen, not to say twisted, mind, continues to percolate: He isn't proposing a simple plan, such as a withdrawal to the 1967 borders or something close to them, but a complicated idea designed to perpetuate Israel's grip on a significant part of the West Bank.
It's hard not to notice the attitude behind the proposal: the anger at the Palestinian rebellion and the arrogance of a general whom the enemy has had the audacity to challenge. Barak talks like Sharon: He urges resolve, insists that victory must be achieved in the conflict with the Palestinians and completely dismisses the Saudi initiative. On the way to reaching these firm conclusions, he also said some nice and true things about the importance of gaining international backing for Israel's moves, the need for internal cohesion and the imperative of convincing the public that military force is being used because there is no other option at this point. But he conveniently ignored the fact that his plan does not have what it takes to produce any such responses.
4. Sharansky's lesson
The decision by the ministerial committee headed by Natan Sharansky, which received government approval this week, to move the construction site of the mosque in Nazareth away from the Church of the Annunciation plaza was received with surprising silence on the part of the Muslim public. Predictions of a furious reaction had led to more than a thousand police officers being concentrated in the Arab sector at the beginning of the week. As of now, in Jerusalem, they're knocking wood and praying that the present quiet is not the calm before the storm.
Members of the ministerial committee learned some interesting lessons as they became acquainted with the Muslim-Christian dispute and the way that earlier governments handled it. They came to believe that the source of the trouble lay in the weakness of the Netanyahu and Barak governments and in the vacillations in their positions. They learned that the more the Islamic Movement smelled weakness, the more bold and extreme its demands became. They found that the dispute made the moderate leaders in the Christian and Muslim communities fearful and caused them to retreat in the face of the Islamic Movement leaders' growing assertiveness.
So great was the fear that, during the committee hearings, a number of well-known figures from the Arab sector declined to appear before the full panel and preferred to present their positions to the chairman, Sharansky, alone, in one-on-one conversations that were not recorded in the protocols. The lesson Sharansky learned from this experience: An aggressive governmental approach liberates the discussion from the intimidation imposed by extreme elements, alters the outline of the necessary compromise and makes intelligent decisions possible. Sharansky recommends that this lesson be kept in mind when it comes to the government's handling of the confrontation with the Palestinians in the territories.
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Harrison Ford
Full Name: Harrison Ford
Hometown: Chicago, IL
Relationship Status: Married to Calista Flockhart
Arguably one of the most popular and successful actors of the past 30 years, the Chicago-born Harrison Ford will forever be associated with the most successful movie franchises of all time: Star Wars and Indiana Jones.
Even excluding those series, his extensive list of credits include some of the most successful modern classics: American Graffiti, Blade Runner, The Fugitive, Patriot Games and Air Force One.
Now in his 60s Ford spends much of his time flying on his 800-acre ranch in Jackson Hole, Wyo. Ford has been married and divorced twice (to Mary Marquardt from 1964 to 1979 and Melissa Mathison from 1983 to 2004) and has two children from each marriage.
Ford wed actress Calista Flockhart in Santa Fe, New Mexico in June 2010. The actor helps Flockhart raise her son, Liam, whom she adopted in 2001.


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Brian S.wrote a review of Columbia Bugaboot Plus XTM Boot - Men's on June 26, 2012
Softer than most high boots
I was looking for a snow boot that would be warm, but not too clunky and these seemed to fit the bill. They fit somewhere between a standard 3/4 hiking boot and a clunky snow boot, with benefits of both and not much negative. They lace up nicely and the laces can be pulled snug and comfy, very adjustable. So far, I tried them out on a couple flat 6-8 mile walks in mild weather and they felt great (and very toasty). I give 4 stars now, as they get their first real test in cold weather in a couple weeks, but I would certainly recommend to someone who wants to stay warm in the cold, but also wants to be able to walk several miles comfortably in them. LOVED the free 2-day shipping!


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FREE (K) Various Christian/Spiritual Themed Books
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Angel In The Saloon (Brides of Glory Gulch) [Kindle Edition] Jeanne Marie Leach (Author)
Upon her mother's death, twenty-year-old Amelia Jackson must go live with an aunt she didn't know existed, who owns a saloon in the raucous lumber town of Glory Gulch, Colorado. Amelia, a Christian who is blind, faces the prospect of living in a saloon with doubt and trepidation, and must rely on all her faith to make the new arrangement work.
As her time in Glory Gulch stretches on, old family secrets surface, and Amelia and her aunt are forced to become the family they always were but never knew.
When two lumber men vie for her attentions, her young, inexperienced heart is frayed, and she must rely on her aunt's advice to try to make sense of it all. As Amelia faces danger, betrayal, and accusations, the only thing she can do is remain strong in her faith in God and trust him to work everything out. Can relationships be healed, hurts forgiven, and anger controlled because of the unwavering beliefs of one Christian refusing to yield under pressure? Or does this rough place get the better of Amelia and send her packing back to an empty life in which she no longer fits? Could she possibly find love the most unlikely place---a saloon?
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