“This is my wish for you: peace of mind, prosperity through the year, happiness that multiplies, health for you and yours, fun around every corner, energy to chase your dreams, joy to fill your holidays!”
D.M. Dellinger -
“I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes. Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You're doing things you've never done before, and more importantly, you're doing something. So that's my wish for you, and all of us, and my wish for myself. Make new mistakes. Make glorious, amazing mistakes. Make mistakes nobody's ever made before. Don't freeze, don't stop, don't worry that it isn't good enough, or it isn't perfect, whatever it is: art, or love, or work or family or life. Whatever it is you're scared of doing, do it. Make your mistakes, next year and forever.”
YAC delivered stockings filled with art supplies and games to Children's Hospital on December 19, 2013. The stockings were a collaborative kindness project for the holidays. The art department purchased the materials and made the stockings. Special thanks to Mrs. Megan Thompson and Mrs. Phillips Seitter. Casady Service-Learning sponsored the decoration of the stockings by anyone interested at the Woolsey Wing Student Center. The art club students were the first one to decorate, followed by YAC and interested UD Cyclones like seniors Christine L. and Kendall B.
Junior Sidney Jones provided the idea for a very special fundraiser for the stockings fillings. UD Casady Cyclones donated money to select a teacher from their donations to dress as a Christmas character the last day before the break.
Collection jars and box were placed at teachers' classrooms and front office. The contenders were: Miss Croce, Spanish Teacher and winner of the fundraiser as Rudolph. A very closed second was Mr. Halpern, Math teacher, as the Grinch. The other contenders were, Dr. Philipson, UD Principal as Frosty the Snow Man, Coach T., UD Dean of Students, as a Christmas Tree, and Dr. Lewchuk, UD Science and Math, as Scrooge. The fundraiser was announced on Monday with the goal of raising $100. On Thursday, by 3:45 PM, Mrs. Jenkins, from Student Billing, counted the money and $140 were collected. Thank you teachers.
Junior Jessika G. went to Wal-Mart and purchased the wish list for the stocking provided by the Volunteer Coordinator of Children's Hospital, Mrs. Belinda Anderson. Mr. Crofton MD drama classes filled the stockings and due to inclement weather forecast, the stockings were delivered by available YAC members on Friday, December 19 after school. Caroling on Saturday at Children's Hospital was cancelled due to incoming ice storm.
"Twelve Steps to Compassion" aired Sunday, December 1 on OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network.
Oprah Winfrey sat down with bestselling author and TED prize winner Karen Armstrong who shares her groundbreaking insights into the world’s great religions. Karen revealed the thread that she says is common to all the world’s great religions: compassion. In our perilously divided world, she says we need to live more compassionately now more than ever. In her book: Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life, Karen outlines simple practices anyone can follow to make a lifelong commitment to a more harmonious world.
A Compassionate Mentor
We mourn Nelson Mandela. We celebrate him. We owe him our gratitude because he taught us about compassion, forgiveness, reconciliation and how to weather the storm with honesty and dignity. The Charter for Compassion joins the people of South Africa, our two city initiatives in Cape Town and Johannesburg and our South African partners in recognizing that we have been blessed to have walked in his shadow.
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the first global expression of rights to which all human beings are inherently entitled. You can find a link to the Declaration on the UN's website ... HERE.
Hearing of the passing of civil rights giant, President Nelson Mandela, was a sad and, initially, scary occasion for me. He did such an outstanding job of holding humanity accountable for the greater good that my initial thoughts were, ‘what will the world be like without him and who will step up in his place?’ But, I quickly realized that it is up to us, as individuals and as a global society, to honor his strong legacy by upholding and furthering the moral principles for which he governed himself and the world.Ashley Gibson, Director of Communication, Casady School
It is the late 1940s in South Africa. New laws, impacting racial segregation, herald an ominous future for people of color who live at the southern tip of the African continent. Over the coming decades, the plight of black South Africans will worsen. Although they are the majority in their country, they have no say in government because they cannot vote in national elections. How can they be masters of their fate when they are not even allowed to live where they wish?
When people were crowded into sub-standard housing, in the Johannesburg area of Sowetto (standing for "South Western Townships"), racial tensions began to flare. Nelson Mandela, a lawyer and anti-apartheid leader, also had a home in Sowetto. He would rise to become the leader of his nation - South Africa - but it would take years before that happened. Image of Sowetto homes by Matt-80, online via Wikimedia Commons. License: CC BY-2.0
Welcome and Introduction by Sidney J.'15
Moderator: Natasha S.'.15
Youth LEAD OKC expected participants
Hunter S.'15 Seondre C.'15 Carmen C'74. (Casady)., Sam K., (HH) Dane N. and Family (Douglas High School) , Daires (Westmore High School-Flyer). A.R. Tolub (Mercy School Institute), Shannon P. (YMCA), Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Spicer (Casady Parents)
24-Hour Playwriting Project- Five World Premiers Created In A Day
Directors, play writers, performers, and stage crew gathered at 7:00 PM, Friday, November 15 to create, produce and perform an original script with one required guideline; a "fortune cookie fortune" had to be part of the script somehow.
Boxes and giant post-it notes held the preliminary organization of the five world premiers created in a day. By luck of the draw, the sequence of the plays and pick of cast, the director, and the play writer were assigned. Play writers provided a finished play to Mr. Crofton by 6:30 AM. Mr. Crofton made copies for directors to read the play at 7:30 AM. Plays were in rehearsals by 8:00 AM as the group enjoyed the generosity of the Johnson Family who provided doughnuts and Earl's Barbeque for lunch for the enterprising cast and crew.
Rehearsals started immediately. I followed closely the play "School Spirit" written by Thomas Fleming, featuring Catherine Christie and Jimmy Brown and the fortune "You will receive an offer you cannot refuse." because I provided transportation for its director, 87 year old, Marolyn Stout. Mrs. Stout is part of the Casady Service-Learning Program because a book about her story as a garment industry leader, radio and television personality is being created by Jordan Richrds'14. Mrs. Stout's "School Spirit" crew finalize gathering props, costume and lights before lunch. The final rehearsal with technical assistance by Troy and Mr. Crofton took place at 3:30 PM. At few minutes after 7:00 PM, "School Spirit" had its world premiere as the first play featured at Fee Theater. BRAVO! School Spirit!
Other world premiers were
Death,"You will always be successful in your professional carer" featured Gabby Jones (Playwright), Sophie Bright (Director), Fiona Rendon, Philip Pippin, and Alexandra Williams (Cast)
The Interrogation,"Your exotic ideas lead to many new exciting adventures" featured Andrew Johnson (Playwright), Joe Bonfiglio (Director), Emory Hood, Lulu Abuelshar, Deja Kirk, and Turner Waddell (Cast)
A Match Made in Heaven, "Good news of a long-awaited event will arrive soon" featured Olivia Sprankle (Playwright), Bobby Sanford (Director), Kaloh Gier and Natalie Robinson (Cast)
All I have, "A gathering of friends brings you lots of luck this evening" featured Carl Albert and Conner Coles (Playwright), Preston Taylor (Director), Brenden Moss (Cast)
From Generation On. ORG http://www.generationon.org/parents Family Volunteer Day, a Points of Light signature day of service, demonstrates and celebrates the power of families who volunteer together, supporting their neighborhoods, communities and the world. For 22 years, Family Volunteer Day has been held on the Saturday before Thanksgiving to "kick-off" the holiday season with giving and service. This year Family Volunteer Day takes place on November 23rd. Disney Friends For Change is the presenting sponsor of Family Volunteer Day 2013 and Embassy Suites is a supporting sponsor. Volunteering as a family is fun! Family volunteering encourages the members of a family to volunteer as a unit. It can be done by the whole family together, by one parent and one child or teen, or with extended family such as grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. It can be as simple as creating cards for children in the hospital or as complex as bonding hundreds of families together in a day of service at a community park. However families choose to do it, families engaged in service can help mobilize thousands of new volunteers and instill in the next generation a lifelong commitment to volunteering. Get Involved! Families are super teams! The combination of ages and generations in your family means you have everything needed to effect meaningful change in your community: energy, creativity, passion, knowledge, experience and different perspectives and skills (plus practical things like a car.)
Want to create your own family volunteer project?Here are some examples to get you started!
Reflection: An important part of participating in service is reflection. Chances are that you will learn something from the experience of helping others. Download a tool to help you with reflection.
This is a guide for families to use together to plan their service projects.The combination of ages and generations in your family means you have everything needed to effect meaningful change in your community: energy, creativity, passion, knowledge, experience and different perspectives and skills.
International Education Week: 11/12-11/18
International Education Week is an opportunity to celebrate the benefits of international education and exchange worldwide. This joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education is part of our efforts to promote programs that prepare Americans for a global environment and attract future leaders from abroad to study, learn, and exchange experiences in the United States.
We encourage the participation of all individuals and institutions interested in international education and exchange activities, including schools, colleges and universities, embassies, international organizations, businesses, associations, and community organizations. Individuals and institutions tend to hold IEW events as it is convenient for them in their local communities. We want you to celebrate as much and as often as you like!
To that end, we are providing promotional materials that allow you the flexibility to promote events whenever they may be planned! Our activities will begin on November 12 with the release of Open Doors, an annual survey that provides information about international and U.S. student study abroad and will continue through the week of November 18.
The 2013 Institute of International Education (IIE) Open Doors Report is out! Check out the link below for the latest facts & figures in study abroad, and international education, including the top universities hosting international students, how many U.S. students studied abroad last year, and where they all went. http://goo.gl/v3h3VO#IEW2013
Support Thanksgiving Cards for Wounded Warriors
Thanksgiving and support cards for Wounded Warriors are being made by all divisions. PD and LD are making cards in After School Care in collaboration with after school care faculty Mrs. Linn, Mr. Lopez and Mrs. Clay. Maggie Adair'16, YAC-Youth LEADOKCasady, facilitator of this project, spoke at LD and MD chapels inspiring everyone to make cards on their own time and place them on baskets at the front offices. The Service-Learning office located at the Woolsey Wing is also providing time and resources for any interested student or faculty to make cards. Maggie will send cards to the Wooden Warrior program
Wounded Warrior Project http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/programs.aspx; 4899 Belfort Road, Suite 300, Jacksonville, Florida 32256 on November 20th.
From Point of Light Foundation: Stories of Service
On Veterans Day, three powerful stories of service
This Veterans Day, I’d like to pay tribute to all veterans by telling you the story of three people – a boy who lost his dad on 9/11, an Army helicopter pilot and West Point graduate, and a Marine coping with PTSD. All three are making a difference through their service to America’s returning heroes.
At age 5, Sean Egan lost his father, a New York fire captain, on 9/11. Today he is a senior at Monsignor Farrell High School on Staten Island and founder of Hearing Our Heroes, an organization of 300 high school students who regularly visit and help veterans. They shovel snow in winter, do yard work in the summer, and come up with a surprise every now and then.
This summer, they surprised returning combat veteran Army Private Rasheed Akbar. During his deployment in Kuwait, Rasheed's young daughter was diagnosed with cancer and underwent treatment. Like too many other military families must, the Akbars had to endure great sadness and hardship while separated. When Rasheed's tour of duty was finally complete, Hearing Our Heroes honored his service and his family's sacrifice with a celebration of his homecoming.
Erica Jeffries served in the Army for five years, flying helicopters to deliver supplies to the troops. Today she’s a diversity officer at Exelis, a defense and aerospace company in Reston, Va. Exelis partners with Points of Light and AmeriCorps to support the Community Blueprint and Veteran Leader Corps, national programs that coordinate and improve services for returning veterans and their families.
Erica is one of the Exelis Action Corps leaders who are dedicated to serving veterans and military families. Erica and her co-workers volunteer regularly with Fisher House, a nonprofit providing temporary housing for military families near hospitals where their loved ones are recovering from combat injuries.
“When I was on active duty, my mother was able to stay at Fisher House in Texas while I was in the hospital,” says Erica. “It was a wonderful gift and a blessing to our family.” Read more about Erica's story here.
Heath Cobb, a former Marine who served in the Middle East, returned home with what he calls “the scars of war.” As he writes, “Rehab and mental institutions became commonplace. My often bizarre behavior was fueled by rage and I found myself in a vicious cycle of hate.”
An aunt suggested to Heath that he get involved in the community as a volunteer. The effort turned his life around. “I found the pride I felt when serving others was the same pride I felt by defending others,” he writes. “Suddenly, almost overnight, my sense of self was restored, my identity renewed.”
Today Heath is an AmeriCorps member and a member of Points of Light’s Veteran Leader Corps serving other veterans in Georgia. Read more about him here.
Today let us remember, thank and celebrate veterans. And let us honor their service and sacrifice through our actions. Please volunteer, advocate for and support veterans and their families. Click here to learn more.
In service,
Tracy Hoover
President
Points of Light
We mourn Nelson Mandela. We celebrate him. We owe him our gratitude because he taught us about compassion, forgiveness, reconciliation and how to weather the storm with honesty and dignity. The Charter for Compassion joins the people of South Africa, our two city initiatives in Cape Town and Johannesburg and our South African partners in recognizing that we have been blessed to have walked in his shadow.
First Chapter 
At age 5, 
