This blog was a requirement by Virginia Commonwealth University professors, largely Dr. Marcus Messner and Mr. Tim Bajkiewicz of the Mass Communications department.

None of the work here was meant for factual news consumption and those featured only participated  largely as a generous act to help me as a graduate student.

As with all artificial set-ups, this work was produced with unnatural scenarios, such as 15 students converging on one festival, or as pieces that were forced to reflect VCU’s inclusive and multicultural ethics policy; this isn’t necessarily negative, as it got many out of their comfort zone and forced them to improvise and seek out original angles.

Additionally, the program itself is fast-paced, and professors heavily relied on students taking the initiative to solve their own dilemmas both technologically, logistically, and in all capacities as their own editor: this can only result in errors.  Again, this isn’t necessarily negative, as the gist of the program was to push boundaries, improvise with new shared technology, and realize the potential for multimedia publishing in even the most budget conscious newsroom.

For more current examples of my work go to Blackstone Fly-In and Downtown Blackstone Virginia.

Firearms continue to be more of a threat to the possessor rather than any assailant or accidental victim. Over 40% of all Virginia suicides in 2006 had a history of mental illness or a recorded prior attempt.

By Dawn Dickson Van Ness

On Saturday, November 21, 2009, the bodies of a Bristol, Virginia, couple were found on their property by Washington County Sheriff’s Officers, according to the Associate Press and Bristol Herald Courier.  The murder-suicide is only a recent example of the ongoing tragedy of suicides in Virginia, which has steadily grown in rate and number.

Who is at Risk

Suicides employing firearms were present in all age groups from 10 to over 85 from 1999 to 2006.  Men and women of different ethnicities were present in each category.

However, white males between the ages of 21 to 45  end their lives in greater numbers.  Overall, the 45-54 age group showed the most pronounced upward trend.

Virginia's state programs focus on youths, the elderly, and veterans, leaving a large swath of people overlooked. However, rates have fallen or not increased in those categories, which may indicate these programs' worth.

Google Docs:  Data derived from Center for Disease Control Wonder database.

Virginia Department of Health’s Violent Death In Virginia Report of 2006

Released in April 2008, the VDH’s report from the office of the Chief Medical Examiner analyzed the violent deaths from 2006 detailing the breakdowns of age, ethnicity, manner, locality as well as time of year.

According to the report, of the 895 deaths due to suicide, over 50% had mental health problems noted; over 40% of which had received treatment in the two months prior to event.  This is consistent with a report focusing on senior suicide which reported depression and hopelessness by medical professionals two weeks prior to suicide attempts.

Nearly half of all suicides were foreshadowed by the persons either disclosing intent or contemplation, if not actually having a prior attempt.

That, however, leaves over half of all suicides unforeseen or unexpected.

Contrary to popular belief, the 2006 analysis reported suicides were most common in July—holidays were not a factor.

Norther Virginia had the lowest rates, while southwestern Virginia had the highest rate, twice that of the state.

Critical Signs

No list is definitive, but many websites list commonly noted signs prior to suicides.

• Talking about wanting to hurt or kill oneself
• Previous attempt(s)
• History of mental health problem(s)
• Recent life crisis: divorce, job loss, severe illness
• Talking or writing about death, dying, or suicide
• Hopelessness and frustration
• Rage, uncontrolled anger, seeking revenge
• Recklessness, carelessness
• Loss of interest in activities once enjoyed
• Withdrawal from family and friends

How to Avoid Increasing the Risk of Suicide

The National Center for Suicide Prevention’s training website refers to the need for face-to-face training for those in a position to evaluate youths—particularly noteworthy is the advisement about “talking to the young person without increasing the risk of suicide.”

Brochures, such as the VDH’s Prevention of Suicide in the Aging, not the critical need to take the signs seriously, take the person seriously, ask for professional advisement and help, and remove devices of suicide are critical.

Learning About Suicide

Suicide, The Forever Decision by Paul Quinnett, Ph.D, is available for free and can be downloaded to a computer; it is recommended for those haunted by suicidal thoughts or for those who would reach out to them.  It is available on the Kristen Brooks Hope Center website.

Kristine Brooks Hope Center and National Hopeline Network

Reese Butler II, the current board president and CEO of KBHC, emphasizes that empathy is the number one attribute of those who can successfully help those who feel hopeless.

“You can have all the education in the world—be a certified counselor,” said Butler.  “But to be effective, you have to have genuine empathy the person can feel.”

Currently there are over 200 KBHC crisis centers nationwide.

“We are working on providing free face-to-face counseling,” said Butler when asked about the expense and the limited accessibility to professional help.

Currently there are 24-hour hotlines and online chat support from organizations such as KBHC as well as others.  Butler emphasized the amount of training, which was both a large investment of time, but also something that was manageable for those who wanted to get involved.

“Those on the phone have had 50 hours of training,” said Butler.

The training itself costs $500, and volunteers are asked to put $250 toward it which the organization will match.

“There is a major time commitment,” said Butler.  “They learn how to talk with someone who is homeless, how to talk with a young person, how to talk with the elderly or disabled.”

But the common goal is to take advantage of ambivalence and offer hope.

“All the studies say the same thing,” said Butler.  “At that moment when someone is about to pull the trigger or swallow the poison, there is ambivalence.  ‘Do I really want to die?’  And everyone who survives agrees that it was the worst thing they could have done because they wanted to live—they wanted to live without pain, but not to die.”

Getting Help

Resources are not only there for those who are suicidal but also for those who would help those who are suicidal.  Finding advice and support, locating resources, and making it available is accessible to everyone.

Getting Help by Phone

(800)442-4673 …..1-800-442-HOPE — same routing as 1-800-SUICIDE

(877)838-2838 …..1-877-Vet2Vet Veterans peer support line

(800)784-2432 …..1-800-SUICIDA Spanish speaking suicide hotline

(877)968-8454 …..1-877-YOUTHLINE teen to teen peer counseling hotline

(800)472-3457 …..1-800-GRADHLP Grad student hotline

(800)773-6667 …..1-800-PPD-MOMS Post partum depression hotline

Getting Help by Phone outside of the U.S.:

www.befrienders.org

For online chat support:

*None of these are 24/7 but will tell you if online counselors are available.

http://newhopeonline.org/counseling/liveperson.html

http://www.realmentalhealth.com/chat/default.asp

http://www.kidshelp.com.au/teens/get-help/web-counselling
(only available in Australia)

For email support 24/7: jo@samaritans.org
*It may take a few hours or more to generate a response.

Intervention – Legal Limits and Virginia Code

According to Virginia code § 37.2-808 regarding emergency custody–issuance and execution of order, a magistrate of the city or county can grant a petitioner a warrant for someone who may be in imminent danger of self-harm.  This, however, is granted only after a strong case is made and would then entail the person being taken out of his or her residence for a set time and evaluated.

Federal Prohibition on Gun Possession by Mentally Ill or Previously Institutionalized Persons

According to federal law, a person who is declared mentally defective or has been involuntarily committed to a mental institution may not purchase a gun.  The enforcement of the law is up to the states—Virginia demonstrated its ineffectiveness in 2007.

A New York Times 2007 article by Michael Lou, which investigated the Virginia Tech murders, there is a lack of effective communication between states and the  federal National Instant Criminal Background Check System which would alert sellers and police of a persons eligibility status.

For those worried about a firearm in the possession of a person contemplating self harm, there is legal room to confiscate the weapon, but only if there is a recorded history of mental illness.

Currently there is a Virginia Commission on Mental Health Law Reform.  The website states there is a “comprehensive examination of Virginia’s mental health laws” that will change laws so they will effectively “serve the needs of people with mental illness.”

Local Virginia Suicide Prevention Sites

VDH lists local sites which can help create programs in your area and provide assistance with program planning.

Other Resources

• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK, http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org
• Suicide Prevention Resource Center (SPRC): http://www.sprc.org
• Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide: http://www.sptsnj.org
• SPAN USA: www.spanusa.org/C_suicide-resources.html
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA): http://www.samhsa.gov/
• Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Suicide Prevention Activities http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/dvp/PreventingSuicide.htm
• American Association for Suicidology: http://www.suicidology.org/

INFO LINKS

PDFs and Podcasts

http://www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/suicide/index.html

http://www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/suicide/

http://www.mentalhealth.va.gov/suicide_prevention/

http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/medExam/pdfs/VVDRS_20061.pdf

REFERENCE LINKS

Center for Disease Control WONDER – http://wonder.cdc.gov/

Commission on Mental Health Law Reform -http://www.courts.state.va.us/programs/cmh/home.html

Emergency Custody Order – http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+37.2-808

Kristin Brooks Hope Center – http://www.preventsuicide.us/hopeline-new/

RELATED ARTICLES

FAMILY IS IN SHOCK AFTER MURDER-SUICIDE by Claire Galofaro -

http://www2.tricities.com/tri/news/local/article/family_is_in_shock_after_saturday_murder-suicide_in_bristol_va/36164/

US RULES MADE KILLER INELIGIBLE TO PURCHASE GUN by Michael Lou – http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/21/us/21guns.html?_r=1

With suicides trending upward, and regular reports of suicide becoming national news, resources and reaching out become critical to turn things around.

Suicide for continues its trend upwards since 2006 according to the latest 2008 review released by the VDH.

More to come December 7, 2009. Any suggestions and leads are welcomed.

While some urban areas have dramatic drops in recycling rates, some counties improve theirs by the double digits.

by Dawn Dickson Van Ness

While a few rural counties increase their recycling rates and turn a modest profit, inconsistence of recorded rates, the depressed value of recyclables, and lack of a proven method hinder other localities.

The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission reported that Virginia localities spent $48 million to recycle in their communities, but the funds are chiefly coming from urban populations like Virginia Beach and Richmond. According to Steve Ferguson, Nottoway County Planner, recycling in rural counties is unfeasible due to population density, cost prohibitive pick-up, unreliable community participation, and the drop in value of recyclables like aluminum.

“I would say 99.9% of all recycling is in the urban areas where they have curbside pick-up,” said Ferguson. “Virginia Beach has something like 380 people per square mile. Nottoway is more like 40 per square mile.”

But while the population density, or lack thereof, is problematic, it is not prohibitive in all cases–out performing urban areas with curbside pickup, counties like Madison and Patrick are showing that rural recycling can be done.

Recycling in Patrick County

Geri Hazelwood, the assistant to the Patrick County Administrator, found it is not only possible, but if run like a start-up business, it can grow itself.

“Oh, we are real rural,” said Hazelwood. “Forty people per square mile, maybe.”

When asked what makes their program work, Hollenworth pointed to the small business owners and a local organizer.

“It takes a personal investment,” said Hollenworth. “But with community support and someone who knows how to structure and coordinate a program like we were fortunate enough to have, it can be a real good thing. We hope to keep increasing our numbers each year. And instead of paying out $1,409 for trash disposal, we were paid $1,824 for recyclables. That’s a nice difference.”

Recycling efforts in some communities, whether city, town, or county, were erratic with some doubling their recycling rates and others losing ground in the double digits.

Due to recycling businesses closing, the loss of population or the loss of a large business, some areas are loosing ground when it comes to recycling.

Recycling Going Out-of-Business

Sharon Mills, a representative of EMI which buys recyclables and runs transfer stations in Patrick County, has seen recycling businesses going out-of-business.

“If you look at October, you see the recycled trade materials went from $150 a ton to $12,” said Mills. “The recycling business is going to need time to recover.”

Madison County: Small Recycling Business Model

Even so, recycling is helping rural counties by providing some money from selling recyclables and saving money that otherwise would be paid to landfill. Madison County increased its recycling rate and reduced refuse by being thorough and creative.

“There are grants to get you started,” said Mercury Payton, County Planner for Madison County. “We found you have to have a personable sort who is able to talk to all the farmers and business owners. Just go visit, touch base regularly and ask, ‘You have anything you want out of here?’”

Payton said rusting machinery and appliances were overlooked items that were worth money as scrap metal.

“Fallen trees and scrub brush can be chipped and shredded, so you have mulch then,” said Payton. “Just take a look around: brush, tires, oils, appliances, farm equipment. Then you have paper, bottles, and cans. Let one operation help support another. Aluminum may not pay right now, but use the grant money and other money from the farm equipment to get through the year. Price will go back up.”

Networking and Learning about Recycling Operations in Fairfax

With a business approach and a committed organizer, said Payton, all that is needed is some good business sense and the sense to talk to those who are efficient.

“Those boys in Fairfax know what they are doing,” said Payton. “You can visit, see what they are doing and how they are doing it, then adopt a smaller model.”

Payton said that getting as much into a box truck or trailer is important.

“We got a compactor for our glass so that we break it down,” said Payton. “You put more in a trailer and have less pick-ups. Make the most of it.”

Ferguson said glass was recommended, ironically so, to be crushed for roads.

Both Payton and Miller were eager to share their success stories, while acknowledging that they were facilitated by recycling companies, like EMI, which were already operating in their areas.

Location Location Location

EMI was started in the ‘80s not for recycling, but for shredding confidential documents; they then later expanded their business to include recycling.

“With companies like mine, we can provide drop-off trailers to areas that can not operate their own transfer stations,” said Mills. “You can’t bring it to us, we can come to you. We do 2.5 million tons a month and have 70 trailers. I give estimates based on transportation cost and scheduling. With every statement the landfill expense is calculated so the customer can see how much they saved.”

EMI has also assisted counties to dispose of electronics and oil by coordinating drives with schools and the cub scouts.
Electronics, batteries, and oil are items which are hazardous or contain hazardous components which will leach toxins into ground water.

Recycling Inconsistencies and Conversion Quandaries

Virginia has reduced the amount of refuse by several hundred thousand tons, and it has maintained an average recycling rate higher than the national average or the averages in nearby state; but there here is some difficulty calculating how well or poorly areas are doing. There also is a problem with records the counties are maintaining.

Steve Coe, Environmental Program Specialist at the Department of Environmental Quality for Virginia, said the challenge is to accurately reflect how Virginia is doing to reduce its waste production and increase recycling.

“Because of the way recycling is reported, different reports don’t reflect one another,” said Coe, explaining why the percentages and amounts reported by localities do not match on the Recycling Rate Report and the DEQ’s Waste Management Report.

“Also, when it comes to landfills, a ton of one item doesn’t take up the same amount of space of another item,” said Coe.

“You can’t convert tons into cubic yards. A ton of glass bottles, a ton of aluminum cans and a ton of appliances is different for all sorts of reasons.”

Geri Hazelwood, the assistant to the Patrick County Administrator and the person responsible for reporting recycling rates in her community, said when she started, not all businesses participating in recycling were on the worksheets provided by the DEQ.

“We created a new spreadsheet and filled in all the numbers,” said Hazelwood. “Before that, they weren’t being recorded.”

Without an accurate record of how well a locality is doing, there is less proof that rural areas can recycle effectively.
The inconsistency raises a red flag for Virginia’s mission to become a greener state; this with the drop in the value of recyclables and lack of community organizers in rural areas demonstrates Virginia’s need to do more before tonnage increases and recycling rates begin to drop.

Good News for Now

The good news, according to Coe, is that although times are not favorable for recycling, the economy has forced business and consumers to behave differently.

“Four years ago, and you can’t point to any one event, there was a change,” said Coe. “Manufactures used more plastic and thinner aluminum. People started buying in bulk because of the economy. And it became more popular to be ‘green.’ There is more education and awareness, but more than that, there is more material for the recycling stream. And some of it is lighter.”

Required Recycling Programs in Every County

If a county does not have a visible recycling program, there must be something in place or an exception made.

“Every county is required by Virginia code to have a program in place,” said Coe. “Although some may have an exception because of economics. But each has someone in charge of that program and they are listed on the DEQ website.”

Like in Nottoway county, some counties are not held to the same recycling standards as other areas because of population density and poverty rates.

Patrick County demonstrates that this need not hinder recycling efforts.

Need for a Reliable Recycling Business Model, Big and Small

With a larger overall population in Virginia, an untapped rural population that potentially could reduce, reuse, and recycle, and several years of high profile campaigns and initiatives, Virginia has managed to increase its recycling rate by 0.1% in the past two years. Whether that has to do with inaccurate records, change in consumer and business behavior, more awareness, or more material in the recycling stream, or all of the above, leaves questions as to how well Virginia is really doing and whether rural counties can do more. But without monetary initiatives, organization, and a rise in the value of recyclables like aluminum, rural areas of Virginia will continue not to recycle while garbage is imported from other states to rural landfills.

Charts Generated from Virginia Waste Management Data and U.S. Census Data

The reduction in waste is a combination of changing consumer habits, education about recycling, packaging reduction by manufactures and more material in the recycling stream, according to Steve Coe, Environmental Program Specialist at the Department of Environmental Quality for Virginia.

With an ever-growing population, Virginia has a larger potential to reduce, reuse and recycle.

South Main Street in Blackstone, Virginia is still a work in progress with new street lamps and old awnings.

By Dawn Dickson Van Ness

Cluttered storefront windows that reflected empty sidewalks, bricked-up windows, and faded, paint-flaked advertisements from the 1970s are characteristics of many small towns which have seen the days of tobacco, bustling freight trains, assembly lines, and factories wane.

Casualties of Virginia’s changing economic structure has been Virginia’s Main Streets, but because of the Virginia Main Street Program, twenty-one communities are seeing their downtowns revived.

“People are starting to feel more pride,” said Lafayette Dickens, Program Manager of Downtown Blackstone Incorporated, a (c)3 non-profit coordinating the efforts in Blackstone, Virginia. “We want people to come and feel good about being here and being associated with the town. And when one business owner keeps up the appearance of their storefront, it encourages others to do the same, so the effect is cumalative.”

Dickens has been working with the community for two years.

Michael Lysczek, President of the Board of Directors for Rennaisance, the non-profit operating in Culpepper, has been a resident for twenty-one years and a member of the board off and on for fifteen years.

“It really is a domino effect,” said Lysczek. “People who believed that this was a waste of effort are saying now we were right. I know this old crimudgin, and I can say that because we have been friends for a long time now, he was a developer in our area and he said it would never work. He now shakes his head and can smile about it.”

Each community applies for grants and assistance, but the business owners are expected to act as investors and to work on the different commitees throughout the restoration progam.

Downtown Blackstone received a $1 million dollar block grant from the state; the business owners have met and seen it by an additional $2 million.

“Once they see the positive changes and know they are being supported, it attracts others,” said Lysczek. “We had business migrating to the frindges of town to the strip malls leaving a big hole in our downtown. Now we have businesses in downtown that attract international attention. It is amazing what renovating an old boarded up trainstation started.”

Virginia Main Street Program

Virginia Main Street Program, founded in 1985, was a reaction against an earlier movement which promoted the idea of bulldozing older establishments and erecting new, efficient buildings, said Dickens.

“We are about restoring, preserving, and promoting what is already here,” said Dickens. “We look at what new business could compliment the already existing ones. Maybe some don’t think we need another restaurant or this or that, but some competition is healthy. And this approach has worked.

MAP: Twenty-Two Towns Get Second Chances

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The Four Pronged Approach

The Main Street Approach is a branded method that has four parts: design, promotion, organization, and economic restructuring.

“It is a tried and true method,” said Dickens. “The way we are doing things is the way that has already been proven effective in others areas.”

Each aspect has committees made up of outside experts and consultants, business owners, and community members. The committees meet, discuss, and network continually and are supported by a larger network of governmental experts and consultants.

“The design aspect was decided with the help of professional design team,” said Dickens. “We have a four color palette that is used not only to unify the look of the town, but to accentuate the buildings preexisting architectural features like the tin façade on the Gibbs Accounting building.”

New Business Tackle Old Buildings

“We wanted something special,” said Angie Sklutz, co-owner of Blackstone Bistro, which now occupies what was an empty building. “A bistro is more like an English pub and not a café. Every town has a café. This is someplace people can come and socialize.”

To overhaul the building, Sklutz and Mary Wrights, had to repair water damage, update electrical, and bring the building up to code.

“Everyone was so helpful,” said Sklutz. “We just took it one thing at a time, and there was a lot of paperwork, but it all got done.”

The Coca-Cola factory was another building that had stood empty and then stored tires; the upstairs had become the roosting place for a large family of bats.

“They’ve had a recent eviction,” said Bill Laminche of Dominion Carpet, an active business that now operates out of the downstairs of the factory. “We lived with the bats for over a year. We had to wait for them to leave then seal up the openings so they couldn’t get back in and would go elsewhere.”

Laminche’s building is one of a group now owned by the Epes family who operate a embroidery business out of a new addition.

Old Businesses Stand the Test of Time

Blackstone Emporium, a staple of downtown, has a long storefront opposite an antique mall that was formally a grouping of hotels.

“If you look at the building, you can still see them,” said Dickens.  ”But the appearance looks much fresher.”

Many older businesses’ tired facades gave the town a depressed look.

“It attracts new business,” said Mary Winn, co-owner of Blackstone Emporium. “We’d always tried to keep up our appearance, but some things were cost prohibitive. We received some of the grant money and then spent a good deal of our own. What I think is best is that we know our efforts are being supported and it is sustainable change. We are not alone in what we are doing.”

New Businesses Mean New Jobs

When Blackstone Coffe and Bistro was still in its early stages, other businesses, like Virginia Barbeque, were cutting back.

“I came in one day and the owner said he couldn’t afford to pay me my salarie,” said Rita Ingram, former employee of Virginia Barbeque and current Kitchen Manager at Blackstone Coffee and Bistro.

Ingram has three children under ten and has lived in Nottoway county all her life and has worked at different establishments, some of which are no longer in business. She says there is limited opportunity.

“When you have a job, whether you like it or not, you happy you got it,” said Ingram. “I like where I work. I enjoy going every day that is why I haven’t missed but one day all year. And I like working downtown. I see more and the day goes faster. Sometimes it don’t feel like work but feels like you are visiting friends. I just made you breakfast, gentlemen. How you like it? I’m getting interviewed now.”

Ingram’s happiness with her current position is evident, but with the unemployment rate at just higher than the state average and the business and population projected by the census as trending down, the success of Virginia Main Street takes on more significance than aesthetics.

SLIDESHOW: Rita Ingrim Serves Up Some of the Realities of Main Street

Reviving Main Streets: Twenty-two small towns get second chances to be vital parts of their communities

Paul Tchouke, Founder and Director of Africa Warmth Corporation, enjoys entertainment with guests at his first Multicultural Festival.

Nonprofit organizations abound in Virginia, with more than 8,942 nonprofits as of 2005, according to the Virginia Network of Nonprofit Organizations; that is 3,000 additional nonprofits reported by the Internal Revenue Service since 2000. But while things are crowded during this severe economic downturn, a new nonprofit, Africa Warmth Corporation, was established in April 2009, while Meals-On-Wheels and Central Food Bank of Richmond saved $7 million.

Established Nonprofits Combine Forces Saving $7 Million

The Central Virginia Food Bank and Meals on Wheels Serving Central Virginia merged to consolidate resources, saving an estimated $7 million, according to Richard Schultz, former executive of Meals on Wheels and currently an executive director of FeedMore, Inc., the umbrella corporation of the Central Food Bank and Meals on Wheels.

“We were using a for-profit vendor to prepare our meals,” said Schultz.  “When we learned that we were both about to raise funds to build kitchens, collaboration seemed to suite us.  It was experimental as there were no models to follow.”

The kitchen, which took four years to complete, was celebrated by the organization’s members for its first successful year since opening.

“We are happy to share what we learned from the experience,” said Schultz.  “It wasn’t a typical merger.  We didn’t fit a profile.  We were both successful.  Egos were put aside.  We had to reassure employees as we went through with the merger.”

Conception of a New Nonprofit

In the beginning, enthusiasm for a mission gets things accomplished.  Paul Tchouke, founder and president of Africa Warmth Corporation, came to the United States from Cameroon and decided that the United States was the ideal platform to showcase multicultural appreciation.

He said he successfully launched three festivals in Cameroon to lessen the intercultural conflicts of his countrymen.  After developing his ideas, he established Africa Warmth Corporation on April 16, 2009 in Richmond.

“The concept of my organization is quite different from what my observation has so far led to in our community,” said Tchouke.  “Organizations that work on culture are promoting their identity with their goal.  I am promoting cultural diversity in order to build a culture of peace.”

Need for Help in Order to Help

But to successfully move forward with the organization, Tchouke needs help.

“As of today, I have five brothers and sisters of the world who joined me in organizing the Richmond Multicultural Day 2009,” said Tchouke.  “It makes it clear that our Board of Directors is still incomplete.  So people are still awaited.”

Marcia Flaherty, the executive assistant at The Community Foundation Serving Richmond and Central Virginia, is Tchouke’s friend of three-and-a-half years who helped file paperwork to establish Africa Warmth Corporation.

“It took  nine months of submitting and resubmitting paperwork to be granted the IRS determination 501(c)3,” said Flaherty.  “It’s a matter of public record.  Once you have it, you file with the state annually, which is also of public record.”

Considerations for Beginners

Besides the business of successfully obtaining the 501(c)3, there is an amount of preplanning needed, said Flaherty.

“If you are starting a nonprofit, you should try to find organizations doing similar work,” said Flaherty.  “Nonprofits need strategic planning and need to avoid duplicating efforts.  At some point, it might be a good idea even to merge like the Central Virginia Food Bank and Meals-On-Wheels.”

Additionally, there are nonprofit organizations and educational institutes whose mission is to provide assistance and counseling to other nonprofits, including legal advice.

Different Business Models Provide Different Strengths

Although the donative nonprofit model, where an organization is chiefly supported by contributions, is a dominant form, another popular model is the fee-for-service model, such as The Greater Richmond Association for Retarded Citizens.

The ARC helped 238 individuals with disabilities obtain and retain employment in 2008 as well as provided care and support for 566 families in the Richmond area so families did not hear ‘no’ when they need special care for their disabled child.

Butler Jr., who occupies a chair on the board and who has worked for the Richmond ARC for 33 years, has seen grants and some contributions shrink.

“Because we have a fee-for-services model and work heavily with the government and military, maybe we are not hurting as much,” said Butler.  “Some of our supporters stepped in and doubled their contributions as a way to offset what they knew we were not going to get elsewhere.”

Growing Possibility of Charity Fatigue in Richmond

With Richmond as the home base for more than 200 of the growing number of nonprofits, all are competing for attention and charitable donations from a fixed or shrinking number of companies and individuals.  Butler calls it “charitable fatigue.”

“Fundraisers seem to happen all at the same time or in a cycle,” said Butler.  “Some companies and individuals can’t give what they did previously.  We’ve been lucky because some anticipated this and actually increased their donations this year.”

With nonprofit’s annual numbers growing even during the economic downturn, Butler said charity fatigue is bound to increase, necessitating more fiscal responsibility and creative business strategies, like the merger which inspired FeedMore, Inc.  It is a case of work smarter, not harder.

Importance of Sage Counseling and Business Sense

Mismanagement is not only unacceptable, but also unethical, according to Paul Beal, General Manager of the Florida Sea Base of the Boy Scouts of America, who has a graduate degree in business management and over 20 years experience with different nonprofits.

“It would be immoral to pay myself before my employees or the light bill,” said Beal.

Having provided counseling to several other nonprofits, Beal provides no-nonsense advice.

“Don’t allow the mission statement to overwhelm the need to mind the business.  Just because we care a lot doesn’t make things happen,” said Beal.  “Boards never like to hear it; some get mad, but I have told them, either get the money, give the money, or get off the board,” said Beal.  “If you don’t know what you are doing or can’t do it, you are wasting a lot of other people’s time and money.”

Butler agreed.

“The mission is very important, but without managing the business side, there wouldn’t be a mission for long,” said Butler.

September 12, 2009

The new frontier of journalism is boundless but to bound into the new world of journalism may feel more like navigating a trip into outer-space: a cold, oxygen-deprived job environment filled with debris that can pierce ego armored confidence.  For Miranda Mulligan, now a web designer for the Virginia Pilot, there has never been a moment of hesitation, only persistent enthusiasm.

“It really is cowboy country,” said Miranda, her excitement just under her stern, authoritative manner, referring to make-and-break rule environment of journalism today.

Her smart, sophisticated glasses nearly obscuring the snap in her eyes when she talked about the uncharted territory with a Virginia Commonwealth University graduate class full of journalism students.

Complacency Disrupted in the Newsroom

Miranda fresh out of college went to work in a journalism environment that wasn’t full of desire and did not feel the pressing need for innovation; the stale business model, the print technology, and complacent consumer habits had not yet extensively changed and positioned print journalism on the verge of extinction.  The waning atmosphere for print journalism was still viewed as something that would become less hostile one day.  But Miranda didn’t see things that way and said it directly and loudly.

“When I came to work, I started barking at everyone,” said Miranda, sharing her experiences with the Virginia Commonwealth University graduate students of 2010.  “I was in my 20s, and I was barking at people twice my age.”

Self-teaching and Returning to Academics

Miranda’s type of tenaciousness served her well as she started to self-teach herself how to use soft-ware that would become the mainstay of her newsroom at Online Pilot.  She did not wait and allow leaderships complacency to put limits on her profession and attended workshops and seminars.

Attending a workshop in Florida, she met academics and expressed her interest in furthering her skill set.  There she met Jennifer George-Palilonis, Associate Professor at Ball State University, a professor she would work closely with as she earned her master degree.  She remembers Miranda’s ability to take hold of whatever she took on.

“She was always a leader,” said George-Palinonis.  “Whatever she was doing she was always the leader.  She excelled in Flash, something other creative types usually struggle with.”

The Right Brain for a Right-to-Left Position

When it comes to graphic design, said George-Palinonis, Miranda had the ability to incorporate her journalistic skills, her imagination, and her technical skills.

“Flash is difficult because it was originally made for programmers, so you have to understand code.  Miranda was able to master it.  She has the rare attribute of being right brain and left brain.”

Video:  Why Taking on Technology is Important

Launching Print Stories Online

Referring to her multi-media features as her suitcase, Mulligan showcases her talents with such features as Waging Peace in the Horn of Africa and How Offshore Energy Exploration Would Work.

Jane Elizabeth, Director of Online News at The Virginian-Pilot and Miranda’s supervisor, said her ability to take the print story and reimagining it for online is not a common skill.

“She really is one-of-a-kind in the newsroom, which sometimes can be a lonely place for sometimes,” said Elizabeth.

But the projects Miranda produces provide interactive information for the community.  Elizabeth sited the two page story on off-shore oil drilling as a prime example.

“The oil drilling off-shore has been very controversial in our area.  We did a two page graphic for print, but it doesn’t help us online,” said Elizabeth.  “She took the same information and used her imagination to make a presentation.  I always say she makes it do tricks.  She takes a flat graphic and makes it do tricks.”

Real World Discouragement and Persistent Childhood Agendas

Journalism was Miranda’s passion for all times, good and bad.  As a 5^th grader, a teacher told Miranda she would never get A’s.  Excelling academically was the requirement to work on the school paper.  Little Miranda made up her mind then and there that she would make earn A’s and make the paper.   When people at her first job paid little to no attention to her irate talk, she attended seminars and self-taught herself.  When she found a university willing to customize a master’s program, she excelled and demonstrated leadership.  Then as a journalist for the The Virginian Pilot, she was selected to bring the print stories to online interactive features.

If Miranda’s life and career proves anything, it proves Mirandas will find a way to thrive in hostile environments and will not wait to be shown the way.

One of many homes left abandoned on forgotten family farms.

Dana Ragosin, David Farris, Natan Berenshteyn, Karen Romer

Richmond’s Jewish community is eclectic and diverse with an extensive history that takes place in colonial times but extends into ancient times overseas.  The past and  the present culminate making a unique, rich culture that resides under the umbrella of Judiasm while maintaining a kaleidoscope of individuals.  Watch the slideshow featuring incites on Richmond’s Jewish community by some of its members, hear a podcast about the history of Jewish merchants and sailors who preserved parts of the American legacy, and read a story about contemporary Israel in an interview with the Isreali emmisary from the Jewish Community Federation of Richmond.

Israeli Woman Brings Contemporary Israel to the Jewish Community

Dana Ragosin, Emmisary to Israel at the Jewish Community Federation of Richmond talks about her role in the community and the effect she wishes to have.

 By Dawn Dickson Van Ness

Dana Ragosin relates her contemporary Israeli experience to children and adolescents in Richmond’s Jewish community and builds a human bridge of understanding back to the Jewish homeland.  Ragosin demonstrates how something which can be so familiar can still be so foreign, exciting a new generation about the ancient land across the ocean.   

From the time they are babies, Jewish children are taught their homeland is Israel; this conjures images of desert, camels, heat, and ancient bearded biblical figures trudging through deserts with staffs.  Those images could persist even into adulthood, but it is Dana Ragosin’s responsibility as the emissary from Israel at the Jewish Community Federation of Richmond to educate the  community about contemporary Israel. 

Her Israel Today

 Openly smiling, she freely shows her enjoyment for displacing outdated preconceptions.

 “Many do not know you can ski in Israel,”Ragosin said, referring to how the landscape is everything from pasture, to towns, to urban cities, to snow capped mountains; there are beaches and fine dining as well as fast food restaurants. 

 Israel, not much larger than the state of New Jersey, has more college educated adults per capita than most any other country.  Adolescents are technologically savvy and enjoy guilty pleasures like the Israeli version of American Idol with would-be pop music stars singing in Hebrew.

“Considering how small Israel is, I am surprised they keep finding more delusional people to try out each year,” she said with a slight laugh, referring to the first part of the show which contains a special group of confident, but talentless, Israelis. 

In the Classroom

 Her favorite tool in the classroom is a quick game with a slideshow called “Which is Israel?” that she created; it juxtaposes scenes in the United States and other post-industrial societies with scenes from Israel, such as adolescents enjoying the beach or taking in some entertainment; their modern, urban style is a surprise to some.

“There are many basic misconceptions regarding the geography, regarding the people, regarding politics,” said Ragosin, referring to women in politics.  “There is no other country with an Arab woman judge,” she said, referring to the progressive culture; women are expected, just as men, to serve in the Israeli Armed Services after completing their equivalent to high school before going on to college.

An aspect of Israel that surprises the very young children is that Sponge Bob speaks Hebrew; this incongruent idea provokes laughter.  Adolescents discover Israeli music, folk  and contemporary, exceed expectations.

“I want to make the homeland real, not leave it abstract,” said Ragosin as she explained how she weaves the familiar and the unfamiliar, emphasizing Israel’s niche in the contemporarylandscape.  The idea that children could still get a McDonalds Happy Meal does put smiles on some faces, just as Facebook-ing and texting on cell phones please the adolescents. 

David Goldsmith, the education director at Or Ami, who has worked closely with Ragosin and witnessed the effect she has had on classrooms since she arrived in August 2007, is well pleased with the emissary, noting her slideshow.

“It is the most effective presentation.  She relates well with all age groups very appropriately,” he said, recognizing her ability to work with children, adolescents, as well as older members of the community. 

Emek Hefer, Her Heartland

Ragosin said she finds herself missing the smell of her mother’s challah bread  filling the house every Friday, her favorite Israeli beer, and  a chocolate bar that is infused with Pop Rocks.

 And while she is an approachable Israeli personality, she also has a deeper connection than being Jewish or being from Israel, said Mathew Langsam, the assistant executive director of the Jewish Community Federation of Richmond , and Ragosin’s supervisor or ‘boss.’

“A most significant thing, an interesting thing, about Dana,” said Langsam,  “is that she is from Emek Hefer , which is our partnership community.”

Emek Hefer would be comparable to some of the outlying areas around Richmond, with small, suburban towns surrounded by farmlands, interconnected by major roadways, within driving distance of a metropolis with high-rises.  Langsam said when Emek Hefer was selected as their partnership community, that it was important that the communities needed to be comparable.

Langsam said Ragosin’s ability to contextualize the partnership community and Israel was the deciding factor in selecting her, although the language skills she inherited from her English-speaking, Canadian father and the leadership skills she developed in the Israeli Army  were also important.

Accents and Friendships 

Referring to Ragosin’s linguistic skill, her friend and co-worker, Sara Rosenbaum, development executive at the JCFR, said, “Dana has been wonderful with those who immigrated and have strong accents.”

Rosenbaum added with amusement that Ragosin’s ability to affect a deeper Israeli accent has been an asset.  Newly immigrated and older members of the Richmond Jewish community find comfort hearing it, while younger Jewish Americans find it exotic and sometimes humorous.

But Ragosin appreciates what the community has to offer her as well.

Jewish Identity

Being Jewish in some regions of the South can present challenges; choosing where to eat, how to celebrate holidays, and which family traditions to incorporate is not always clear cut.  Some families have inherited multiple traditions from Russia, the Middle East, and North Africa.

When asked whether Israelis’ immersion in the Jewish culture and traditions might take being Jewish for granted, Ragosin’s friend Rosembaum said, “Taking it for granted isn’t the right way to say it, but you may be more conscious of it here.”

Rosembaum said a person who observes Kosher dietary restraints  must put forth an effort that an Israeli in Emek Hefer does not. 

But while here, Ragosin is exposing herself to more of the United States with the freedom of a tourist on extended holiday, consciously pursuing what for others may be the unconscious American experience.

AUDIO! 

There are Stories to be Told About Richmond’s Jewish Community

Click here and listen now!

By Dawn Dickson Van Ness 

 Once someone has been around long enough, there is bound to be a collection of stories.  Richmond’s Jewish Community has been established for 500 years and has a plethora,  from how a stranded sea captain saved a national treasure, to how appliances and furnishings became lasting pieces of art. Listen to a short snippet of what David Farris, the executive director of Beth Ahabah Museum and Archive, has to share.  It may just inspire a collection of local stories and trivia about Richmond residence.

Video!

Origins of Character and Original Contributions Within Richmond’s Jewish Community

Click here and watch now!

By Dawn Dickson Van Ness

Watch a slideshow about the multiple origins of the Jewish community, the choice of religion and individual roles, and the influences of the individual on Richmond.  With over 10,000 practicing Jews within seven synagogues, Richmond is proving to be most diverse.