Firefighters donate Mega Millions

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/firefighters-donate-mega-millions-winnings-ailing-fellow-fireman-183135668.html

Five Albuquerque Station Eight firefighters who won a $10,000 share of the Mega Millions jackpot last week have decided to donate an unspecified part of their winnings to fellow fireman Vince Cordova, who is suffering from a life-threatening tumor.

"We decided to get tickets ten minutes before the sales closed," said Capt. Jed Hyland told local news affiliate KOB. "I ran in shouting that we hit 5 of the 6 numbers."

After convincing their fellow firemen that it wasn't an April Fools' joke, Hyland and his four fellow winners (Steve Keffer, Paul McClure, Clinton Anderson and Si Do) decided to donate part of their winnings to the local firefighters Survival Fund. "Everybody at the station agreed that this would be a good opportunity," Hyland said.

KOAT reports that Cordova, 24, has a rare aggressive tumor that puts pressure on his brain. He'll die if the tumor isn't removed, but life-saving surgery from a specialist in Los Angeles costs several hundred thousand dollars.

While the $10,000 is only a small portion of Cordova's total medical bills, his fellow firemen hope that their donation will help raise awareness and encourage others to donate.

KRQE News 13 reports that Cordova has already undergone two of the three necessary operations, with the final to be performed on Wednesday.

"I'm nervous. I'm scared. I've got these butterflies in my stomach that just won't leave, but I'm hanging in there," Cordova told the station in an interview before his first operation on Saturday. "I can't believe that the fireman b"I just want to tell everyone thank you for standing by me and staying strong," Cordova said. "Thank you for believing in me, and I promise to see you guys soon!"ond is so strong."
The final surgery will be performed by a team of five surgeons and is expected to last at least 10 hours.

"(Cordova) has such a great attitude. He looks at it as another challenge, like he would a structure fire that we face as firemen. He's going to overcome it. He's positive and he's strong—that's the kind of man he is," AFD firefighter Gilbert Baca, who trained Cordova in the academy, told KOAT.

Spreading the Good Word

April 2, 2009, 2:01 pm
Spreading the Good Word
By Catherine Rampell Published in the Economy and the Economics of Everyday Life-Economix Blog- NYTimes.com

Attitude is (almost) everything.
That’s the message Paul Ganshert is mailing to hundreds of friends, family and business associates, inside an envelope containing the button pictured at left.
( I Choose Not To Participate in the Recession)

Mr. Ganshert owns a landscaping company in Madison, Wis. He said in a phone interview that he started the button campaign about two months ago because he was tired of hearing bad news all the time.

Given his positive nature, he said, he has chosen “not to participate” in the recession. For him, that means discounting the media’s barrage of negative economic news, working hard and being optimistic about his company’s future.

“You could pull all your money out of stock market, put what little’s left under your mattress, and cry, but that’s not going to do anybody any good,” he said. The current economic troubles are a crisis of confidence, he reasons, and he says he believes his “grass-root” efforts to bolster local optimism can help restore that confidence.

Members of a national landscaping group he belongs to have also been taking the message, and buttons, to their own communities. Marty Grunder in Dayton, Ohio, for example, has started a radio show called “Good News in Dayton.” The show’s goal is “to communicate the good things going on in and around the Dayton area that we may not have heard about,” according to its Web site. Mr. Ganshert is contemplating starting a similar show in Madison.

And in the meantime, his button has become quite the conversation piece. When he meets with clients, he said, they generally spend 10 to 30 minutes talking about their landscaping needs, and then another half-hour talking about his unusual pin. He says he has distributed “a couple hundred” buttons so far, and is hoping the next batch will total 500.

“You’ve got to start somewhere,” he said.

$100,000 Scholoarship Winner

Solon student wins $100,000 scholarship for 'Stop the Hate' essay
Posted By: Kim Wendel Updated: 3/9/2009 3:49:29 PM Posted: 3/9/2009 8:07:58 AM

BEACHWOOD, OHIO -- The first "Stop The Hate! Youth Speak Out" $100,000 college scholarship was awarded Sunday to Matt Soble, a senior at Solon High School, at the Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage.

Ohio Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher and museum co-founder Milton Maltz presided over the program.

More than 1,200 students from the seven eligible Northeast Ohio counties shared their stories by entering the essay contest. Nearly half of them were juniors and seniors eligible for the $100,000 scholarship.

The top ten finalists, who scored 90 percent or higher on the written essays, made up less than 1 percent of the total essays received.

Read Soble's winning essay, other winners

Maltz museum spokesman Adam Teresi said the essays were personal, compelling and powerful, each describing an act of discrimination and the students' suggestions on how to overcome hatred and bigotry.

Judges that included Ohio House Speaker/state Rep. Armond Budish, (D-Beachwood), state Rep. Josh Mandel, (R-Lyndhurst) and Cleveland Indians President Paul Dolan heard the 10 finalists read their essays out loud.

Scholarship finalists who received a $100 U.S. Savings Bond were: Sophie Grodsinsky, a senior at Walsh Jesuit High School in Cuyahoga Falls; Sarah Harris, a senior at Electronic Schoolroom of Tomorrow; Chelsa Lewis-Bevel, a senior at Success Tech Academy in Cleveland; Alex Port, a junior at Solon High School; Justina Wong, a senior at Independence High School; and Kelly Yarber, a senior at Strongsville High School.

The museum, opened in 2005, hopes to introduce visitors to the beauty and diversity of the Jewish heritage in the context of the American heritage.

It also promotes an understanding of the Jewish heritage and builds bridges of appreciation, tolerance and understanding with those of other races, religions, cultures and ethnic backgrounds.

Other students receiving awards included the High School Overall winner of a $1,000 U.S. Savings Bond was Lauren M. McCafferty, a senior at Olmsted Falls High School.

The 12th Grade Winner of a $500 U.S. Savings Bond was Jane Yiyi Zhang, of Oberlin High School; and the 11th Grade Winner of a $200 U.S. Savings Bond was Cassidy Artz, a junior at Hathaway Brown School.

The Middle School Overall winner of a $500 Savings bond was Divya Thomas of Kenston Middle School in Bainbridge.

Other winners included first place ($200 Savings bond) and second place ($100 Savings bond) for 6th grade: First place, Divya Madhaven of Brecksville/Broadview Heights and second place Dina Rini of St. Mary Byzantine Catholic school; 7th grade first place was Becca Cain of R.B. Chamberlin Middle School and second place winner was Lukash Kowcz of Brecksville/Broadview Heights.

The 8th grade first place winner was Lyssa Collins of St. Paul Lutheran School and second place winner was Jake Amato of Holy Trinity School.

The 9th grade first place winner was Theodore Wilson III of the Arts Academy and second place was Hannah Sellers of Kenston High School.

The 10th grade first place winner was Michelle Hoffman of Kenston High School in Bainbridge and the second place winner was Alexis McNichol of Brush High School in South Euclid.