Service Project at Highland Park, Pittsburgh -- Literacy AmeriCorps

In the photos are many members of Literacy AmeriCorps including, Molly, Lauren, Robert, myself (wearing the blue coat in the partly obstructed photograph, Robert took that shot),

Caroline, Elizabeth, Kenneth, and others.

In our service project at the Pittsburgh National Conference, our Literacy AmeriCorps group helped with the environment at the Highland Park doing various tasks. The group I was with helped to save tress from being attacked by wild animals -- rabbits and deer -- who nibble at the roots of young trees. To protect the tress and not hurt the animals in the process, we had to place mesh fencing around the trunks of the trees. To do this we had to climb the hill -- or as I called it, "the mountain." I tried to climb the hill/mountain, but the trail was too muddy from the wet snow for me -- with my limited sense of balance-- and I keep sliding down. It was becoming rather unsafe -- due to my back problems and limited physical ability -- so, mercifully, they gave me another job. Now I could just cut the mesh fences from a large roll of mesh, attach wood stakes to them, and give these to more agile and younger people to take up the hill. (You can see a photo I took of Robert cutting the mesh fence above; Robert is the tall fellow.) So, this worked out ok, although I am still very sore. But it was fun despite the obviously cold weather conditions -- see all that April snow in the photos! I did not get hurt. And it was for a very good cause. Hurrah! We got things done ! despite the snow and the mud.

Afterwards, we all had pizza for lunch. That made facing the cold all worthwhile too.

-- Adrian

Gibson

Gibson in action in Pittsburgh.

Gibson Goes to Pittsburgh

In the continuing adventures of Gibson, this time we find him winning the hearts -- and perhaps the minds too-- of everyone at the Literacy AmeriCorps National Conference in Pittsburgh. These are really nice photos of him -- despite being blurry. (Sorry, folks. I have a cheap camera, and I am not the world's finest photographer.)

The top two photos are, of course, of Sarah and Gibson. Sarah is helping Gibson with breakfast. The next two shots are of Gibson playing with a spoon. I think he makes a game of it. He drops spoons on the floor a lot, and the silly grown-ups nearby keep picking up the spoons. Yes, that's lots of fun. Sitting behind Sarah and Gibson are several members of Literacy AmeriCorps.

The last two photos are of Gibson with the National Director of Literacy AmeriCorps at GPLC -- Greater Pittsburgh Literacy Council -- Elizabeth Rivera. As you can see, Elizabeth and Gibson are pals.

-- Adrian

Bridge Photos at the Literacy AmeriCorps National Conference in Pittsburgh

These are some photos I took around town during a free moment. Most of the time we were in seminars or at the service project saving trees at Highland Park, but when I got a chance, I took some photos. The photos of the bridges I took from the Incline; this is a gondola or lift that goes up the side of a very steep hill called Mt. Washington. I had a habit of calling ALL the terain in Pittsburgh which was not totally flat a "mountain" because in New Orleans everything is totally flat except for the highest point in town, which is about 8 feet high, "Monkey Hill" in the Audubon Park Zoo. The other photo, which I took from inside our van as we drove to Highland Park and the service project, is of the Heinz football stadium. I remember the days when the stadium there was called Three Rivers Stadium (where the Allegheny and Monongahela turn into the Ohio); this was where Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, and Lynn Swann used to play ball back in the 70's. I followed the Steelers because Bradshaw was from, of course, Louisiana.--Adrian

Volunteer Mary Ann McGrath Swaim Helps AmeriCorps at Earth Fest

We had a special volunteer helping our Literacy AmeriCorps (LAC) group help the public library at Earth Fest last weekend who has been well-known with at least two of us with LAC for a long, long time. She is Mary Ann McGrath Swaim. She is the former Irish dance teacher for the Coordinator of Literacy AmeriCorps Sarah Fischer, and she is my sister. (Mary Ann also taught Irish ceili dancing to Shannan Cvitanovic of the YES /YMCA Educational Services -- which is in the main library downtown. There used to be regular ceilis or dances at O'Flaherty's Irish Pub in the Quarter years ago; I used to play Irish music for them often.) Mary Ann came to help us with her son Billy Swaim (in the blue shirt) and his wife Tara (red and white blouse) and their two daughters, Claire and Sarah (with the pink cast on her arm). They had a great time helping AmeriCorps at Earth Fest.

Mary Ann has helped Literacy AmeriCorps, unbeknownst to most people, behind the scenes over the past two years by helping me immensely, together with my other sister Marci and her husband Chris Smith, and thereby making this very blog possible. Our thanks go forth once again!

If the name Swaim sounds familiar, it is because you may have read about Mary Ann's husband, Frederick "Louisiana " Swaim, The "Socrates of Loyola University" on this very blog during our "Remember Katrina" series at http://www.svdpalc.blogspot.com/2008/09/remember-katrina-fred-swaim-socrates-of.html

Fred was a professor of Admiralty Law at the Loyola Law School for about 30 years before he passed away after the onslaught of Hurricane Katrina just a matter of weeks after Mary Ann's (and my) mother, Isabella McGrath, also died following Katrina. For our family, like for so many others in this city of New Orleans, Katrina can never be forgotten. But one way to honor the memories of the dead is to help make our city a better place for the living and for the younger generation. We can do this in large ways or small, and a very good way to help is by volunteering at Earth Fest and supporting Literacy AmeriCorps. Mary Ann has done both.

-- Adrian

Literacy AmeriCorps Helps the Library At Earth Fest

Literacy AmeriCorps helped out at the NOPL library booth again this year handing out library information and information about the various free literacy programs offered by Literacy AmeriCorps and our work with the Literacy Alliance of Greater New Orleans.

In the photos are member Laura Klein and her friend and volunteer Andrew, members Lauren Pigeon and Bradley Narcisse, and Robert Taylor. Other members present were Kelly Medere and yours truly, Adrian, who is always behind the camera.

The penguin was the symbol at Earth Fest for the Library. The green creature is a Wetlands Watcher Alligator (not a dinosaur as one of our non-New Orleanian Literacy AmeriCorps members thought).

It was a beautiful day for a wonderful event. Thanks to all who came and helped!

--Adrian

Literacy AmeriCorps Goes to Earth Fest: Jefferson Parish Environmental Dept.

On Saturday and Sunday, March 21 and 22, several of our Literacy AmeriCorps members helped out at the booth for the New Orleans Public Library at Earth Fest at the Audubon Zoo. We handed out literature about the library, our literacy programs, and about the Literacy Alliance of Greater New Orleans.

Also at the fest I visited with the representative from the Jefferson Parish Environmental Department, Mr. Jason Smith. He was kind enough to take the time to describe to me the various works which the Environmental Dept. does to help prevent coastal erosion including the use of the famous Christmas trees. These donated trees are placed in holding pens which act as a barrier to protect the coast yet also allow in helpful sediment. Many volunteers help in this program. A model of this Christmas tree device was on display. Our thanks to Jason for giving us many maps and literature about the project and about other aspects of the environment which we can use in our Literacy AmeriCorps program. It is possible that Literacy AmeriCorps could partner with Jefferson Parish Environmental on a project in the future.

-- Adrian

Dr. Petrice Sams-Abiodun Visits SVDP-ALC

(In 1st photo, L - R, Adrian McGrath, Ruby Sterling, Dr. Petrice, Jennie Gorden, Eliria Knox, Linda Nelson.)

The director of the Lindy Boggs National Center for Community Literacy, Dr. Petrice Sams-Abiodun, PhD made a special visit to our school on Thursday to meet with the student members of our International Women's Day group.

The students were really excited about her coming, and they -- with the help of Sr. Kathleen and Sr. Lory -- really made it a great event by getting everything ready for the visit.

Dr. Sams-Abiodun -- who just likes to be called Petrice-- made a wonderfully warm and friendly speech to the students. Then on a more serious note, she spoke about the importance of adult education for both women and men and how this can help alleviate many of the social ills we face today in New Orleans such as poverty and crime. Then the four students from our International Women's Day group (two were unavoidably absent) presented their topics on Sacagawea, Women Pioneers, Joan of Arc, and Women's Education in Afghanistan.

Following this we had some refreshments and cakes which were supplied by Jennie and Sr. Kathleen.

It was a great day, and Petrice is hoping to meet again soon with the students ... but this time at her office at Loyola University at the Boggs Center.

We are all looking forward to that!

See more about the Lindy Boggs National Center for Community Literacy at http://www.boggslit.org/ and read about the other two related organizations also at the Boggs Center, the Literacy Alliance of Greater New Orleans and Literacy AmeriCorps, at www.literacygno.org.

--Adrian

McMurdo Station, Antarctica

Our penpal from Antarctica, John Miller, USAP, has sent us some photos from his new station in Antarctica. When we last saw John, after his brief visit back to the USA, he was at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. But now he is re-located to the McMurdo Station on the Ross Ice Shelf in Antarctica. It is actually on Ross Island, but the island is surrounded by ice. In the photos you will see John at the sign at McMurdo. Also, you will see a photo of a lone penguin molting (getting his feathers). All the other penguins left for the Antarctic winter, I was told. This lone one was a bit late, but he is leaving too. I'm not sure where they are going; we will have to ask John in our next email exchange. McMurdo is different from South Pole in many ways. McMurdo is a bit warmer but more windy and at a much lower altitude. It is easier to breath at McMudro, and there are more USAP members there and more buildings. But the South Pole is... well... the South Pole, the most remote and exotic place on Earth. But we are looking forward to learning about life at McMurdo.

Below are a few comments directly from John Miller in his latest correspondence with us:

Mcmurdo Station is ... located at sea level so it is much easier to breath here. Pole elevation is 9343 ft, and with the low barometric pressure caused by the extremely low humidity, the equivalent altitude is anywhere from 10,500 to 12,000 feet. Also a reason for the warmer temperatures (in a manner of speaking) here as well.
The cold here is exasperated by wind that blows pretty much 24/7. Typical wind speed is around 20-30 mph, with gusts that have been know to reach well over 100 mph. I believe the top wind speed recorded was around 150 mph. Those of you in New Orleans know all about that.
And the wind can really make working outside miserable. Not only do you have snow blowing around, there is also a fine/gritty volcanic dust that gets into everything, especially your eyes and mouth. At the pole you have snow; and more snow; and even more snow....
Did I mention the snow at the Pole?
Honestly, if I had a choice, I would rather work in -75 and little or no wind, than in -10 with 30 mph wind.
Most of the wild life that is here in the summer has departed for the winter, including our lone penguin that was molting at the time. Penguins cannot swim while molting so they pretty much just sit in one place for the duration. I'm glad this guy left when he did, otherwise he would not have been able to feed because of the lack of open water.
Even the Weddell seals have left the area, along with the Antarctic Skua, and Turn. Only thing here is us dummies. And we won't see another plane until the end of August.

St. Patrick's Day -- Lake Isle of Innisfree

(Here's a nice poem from 1893 for us all to reflect upon for St. Patrick's Day, March 17th, 2009. It is the same one I put up last year when our blog was just getting started. Hasn't the blog grown!! The photo is of W.B. Yeats from Wikipedia Commons. Adrian)

Lake Isle of Innisfree

By William Butler Yates

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,

And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;

Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey bee,

And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow

Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;

There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow;

And evenings full of the linnet's wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day

I hear the lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;

While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements gray,

I hear it in the deep heart's core.

International Women's Day at St Vincent de Paul - ALC

Ruby Sterling did an outstanding job opening our International Women's Day (IWD) event with a re-enactment of a speech made by Sojourner Truth, a Civil Rights activist from the 19th Century. Ruby learned the speech and made her own costume and gave a magnificant presentation. Later in the day Ruby spoke about women pioneers. What a great day it was, and I was happy to be the moderator for the event.

-- Adrian