This is a letter I received from the Chairman of The Children Movement of Florida, I am thankful for his efforts. His letter is a wake up call to every one of us,  are we doing enough to protect the future leaders of our beautiful Nation? 

Here is what Dave has to say.... Happy 4th of July!

While we celebrate, let us remember...

Dear Gladys:

I’m a student and reader of history – usually at least a book a week – and my work with The Children’s Movement is built upon what I learn. I believe that a “movement” is about all of us and all children. In my estimation no progress in human history – with the exception of science and medicine -- was achieved with anything less than pushing and shoving. The civil rights movement, the feminist movement, the very birth of our country – none came without people pushing…shoving…insisting (while, yes, trying to be courteous whenever possible).

On this day of celebration of freedom, I look back on the progress that we’ve made (and there has been progress), and find myself sobered by the statistics that tell us how much further we must go:

• The more than a half-million children in our state without basic health insurance.
• 38 percent of our public school fourth graders cannot at grade level – and 90 percent of Florida’s children go to public school (and far higher amongst minority children).
• Almost a quarter of Florida’s children live in the full federal definition of poverty. (How can this be in the richest, most generous country in the world?)

Today, as we celebrate our much-blessed country, let us not forget that nothing is more “American” than our insisting that every child has the chance to succeed in both school and in life.

Dave Lawrence
Chair
The Children’s Movement of Florida

 info@childrensmovementflorida.org

 

Here is an article extracted from National Association of Realtors Publication, find interest the relation to Housing Market with Echo Boomers renting vs buying...are you and Echo-Boomer?
This is something to consider!!
Thank you for visiting my blog! 

Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies released its annual State of the Nation’s Housing report for 2012 and it very closely tracks comments made by NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun earlier this week at a CRE conference on what’s holding back the housing recovery.

The Harvard report, which always does a good job laying out in plain language what’s happening with the market, points to the increasingly strong market fundamentals and says home sales really could see serious improvement this year.
The main weakness is tepid job growth, which Yun talked about as well earlier this week. The overhang of distressed properties is also a continuing problem.
Other issues include the unusually slow pace at which young people today–the Echo Boomers—are leaving their parents’ homes and forming their own households. That’s a big missing link in home sales growth, and it’s certainly related to the weak job picture. Unless young people feel confident about getting a good job, they’re going to remain hesitant to start a new household.
The big beneficiary of the last several years has been the multifamily housing sector. It’s booming. As the report puts it, “the number of renters surged by 5.1 million in the 2000s, the largest decade-long increase in the postwar era.” More rental growth is expected.
It’s in part because of this rental growth that home ownership is poised to improve. The report includes an informative graph (see below) that shows how much more affordable mortgage payments have become relative to rental rates. At some point, renters are going to realize they’re losing money each month they continue to rent.

I was very impressed by this article in Miami Herald and wanted to share it with my bloggers,

we should have this positive thinking trainings in all schools.  My special thanks to Mr. Medina,

this is a great way to build a future for our nation, teaching youth techniques to be a better human being every day, by example!  

Hopefully will have more of this after summer vacations ...Happy Summer to everyone!

Seminar teaches students how to take control of their lives

School principal Eddie Medina teaches students about life from his first seminar, ‘Life’s Lessons,’ at G. Holmes Braddock Senior High School.

By Jennifer V. Moreno

jmoreno@MiamiHerald.com

The world around us isn’t getting any easier or less challenging, and uncertainty in one’s future can certainly cause a lot of stress. For school principal Eddie Medina of G. Holmes Braddock Senior High School, learning how to take control of one’s life with positive thinking is one of the many concepts he shared in his first seminar, titled “Life’s Lessons,” on May 19.
Inspired by Oprah Winfrey, Deepak Chopra, Eckhart Tolle and many more, Mr. Medina created a seminar that fully embraces every aspect of someone’s life; covering topics that include everything from the cost of college, universal laws, leadership, stress control, goals and responsibility to early adulthood.
“It’s been my dream to be able to do this, and I’ve gotten the support from everyone,” Medina said. “My biggest message is to let students think about their lives and who they are.”
At least 71 registered students ranging from freshmen to seniors attended the seminar. As part of their agenda, students were provided a breakfast and lunch, and a “Life’s Lessons” booklet that included written activities, a yearly checklist and a list of website resources to help guide those students who are college-bound.
Medina considers his seminar to be a “first of its kind.”
“This encompasses the whole person,” said Medina. “We get into the six pillars of character, we talk about the things that affect them, where they want to go in life and what they need to do to get there.”
Students were able to apply the lessons in an interactive method by partnering in teams to engage in conversation to test their communications skills, and they wrote thank-you notes to express their gratitude toward someone special at their school.
And instead of cellphones becoming a distraction during the seminar, they became a practical tool; Medina creatively asked students to vote on a Q&A poll-type website by texting what stresses them out the most. The results immediately displayed on the projector screen, and the majority voted their parents as their cause of stress.
Medina also taught students how to practice “the progressive muscle relaxation technique” by lying on the floor with an inflatable pillow while listening to relaxing music and releasing their physical stress.
“Your mind is wired to think constantly — take a moment, breathe in and out and clear your mind,” said Medina as he instructed students.
For Betsy Trujillo, 17, the seminar not only provided her with useful information, but the lessons became invaluable for her to apply in her everyday life.
“This is different from what our teachers tell us every day in class. Instead of it being about a test we’ll have tomorrow, here they focus on telling us about actual life,” said Trujillo. “ It’s really unique.”
And as the seminar came to an end, Medina gathered his students outside of the media-center library for a surprise game activity with a twist.
A group of volunteers teamed up to play a game from one of the lessons, the “FISH philosophy,” which consists of four simple ways to live your life — to be emotionally present; to make someone’s day; choosing a positive attitude; and being able to “play” by tapping into one’s creative natural way of being.
Each team placed their clear gloves in preparation for the game; suddenly, Medina revealed the surprise as he opened a red cooler and pulled out a large fish dripping in water. Many gasped in shock, while others laughed and covered their noses from the “fishy” smell.
The concept of the game: to throw the fish to the other team member without dropping it and to have fun.
During the last few seconds of the game, as it narrowed down to two teams, one of the students, Vanessa Suarez, 17, in an attempt to catch the fish in mid-air, squatted like a professional athlete, caught the fish and was declared the winner.
“I really felt like a baseball player when I caught that fish,” said Suarez. “The seminar was very inspiring, and it’s leading us to do great things; it really shows how much Mr. Medina cares about us, and I had a lot of fun.”

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/05/24/2817777/seminar-teaches-students-how-to.html#storylink=cpy

The Good Samaritan Ministry from St. John Neuman Catholic Church will be hosting a

HEALTH FAIR
SATURDAY JULY 7, 2012
10AM TO 2PM

This is a great opportunity for those in need of Cholesterol check up, and other health issues such a diabetes, osteoporosis, find great information on eating disorders and much more. It was with an event like this, several  moons ago that I was able to identify a health problem I did not even knew I had. Caught on time to treat it with sucess. You are required to register to attend: 305 283 9422. This is not only for Church Members but anyone in the community.
See you there!