JON BON JOVI & MAYOR CORY BOOKER CUT RIBBON IN NEWARK

December 8, 2009

Newark, NJ

by Roxanne Lord

Jon Bon Jovi, Mayor Cory Booker, Kenneth and Maria Cole were some of the good samaritans on hand last Tuesday to cut the ribbon on a brand new 51 unit apartment complex in South Jersey. The HELP Genesis JBJ Soul Homes will be home to low income families and will also provide special care and housing to HIV/AIDS residents. Ruben Mayor, (Black man in above picture) the complex's first resident, suffers from diabetes and is HIV positive. He said that he feels very good that he will be able to have his own apartment now. He used to live at Broadway House, a nursing home type of facility for continuing care.

This project led by leaders like Governor Jon Corzine, Mayor Booker as well as philantropists in New York and New Jersey is intended to be a major part of  the redevelopment of the area around Rafael Hernandez school. "With affordable housing and an integrated facility, with post-acute care AIDS services, this housing complex will connect resdients with ecah other, their community and a continuum of care. We are grateful for the support of Jon Bon Jovi, Mayor Booker ad the Municipal Council for supporting our efforts to improve the quality of life for Neward residents," said Council Member Ramos.

Twenty five percent of the apartments will have tenants living with AIDS.The other seventy-five percent will be low income mostly minority families with their children and teenagers. When asked if this will pose a threat to innocent and sometimes gullible teenagers and families who do not have the disease but may now live in the same building with many struggling with the disease; the Executive Director of the African-American Office of Gay Concerns, Gary Paul Wright, also a Board Member of Broadway House for Continuing Care, a facility that provides housing and special care services for people living with HIV/AIDS, maintained that "HIV does not spread from casual contact and we cannot discriminate against people with HIV."

Elle Decor has donated time and resources to furnish and decorate a two-bedroom model apartment for the project, which will be shown in ELLE DECOR's March 2010 issue. Chairperson of HELP USA, Maria Cuomo Cole, the wife of designer Kenneth Cole,  is proud to be part of "this dynamic public private partnership." HELP USA remains committed to developing services and to providing enriched  permanent housing to working families and people living with HIV/AIDS.

In the wake of the White House's National discussion at Columbia University, moderated by Rosie Perez, earlier this month, from which mulitiple requests and comments for housing for HIV/AIDS patients, it is timely that philanthropists like Jon Bon Jovi, Maria Cuomo Cole and elected officials are stepping up to the plate to provide much needed housing and services.

For video of this event, please go to www.youtube.com/bornkool

How to Get the Desires of Your Heart

SUCCESS MEDITATION
How to Get the Desires of Your Heart
“Beloved, BELIEVE that ALL things are possible through Me, God, and it shall be so.” This Christmas season, as we meditate on all the things we would like for Christmas for both ourselves and our families, I encourage you to meditate on Christ. For Jews and Muslims, you can meditate on some of Jesus’ best teachings, like walking on water, with faith or like healing the sick by the power of the Holy Spirit.

As we focus on God’s power, not our own power or human logic, to accomplish the desires of our hearts, we will begin to rely on Him more and access or tap into Divine Power. Many people go around saying ‘I can’t’ a lot of times; I challenge you to start believing that ‘you can’ indeed do all things through Christ who will strengthen us. We are God’s children, we have every right to tap into our Father’s power and use His energy to accomplish our desires and goals. Start believing in Him more; stop using your own logic, your own strength, which is limited. Won’t you like to tap into unlimited power? Believe and know that He is Lord. Tap into limitless power of the Most High.

I encourage you to pray out loud more, speaking and asking God for all things, out loud, that you desire. Pray on them often, seven times a day if you really believe and absolutely need your desire to manifest. Try praying to God and asking Him for all that you desire with childlike faith, knowing that your good Father will totally make a way for you. Now if you been bad, and you know that you don’t have a good relationship with the Father, the SON or the Holy Spirit, I will advise you to repent and say you’re sorry first of your wrongdoing. Ask for forgiveness, say out loud what you’re sorry for, speak like you’re speaking to a Omniscient, Omnipotent, Omnipresent Being, you cannot fool Him, He knows you, so come clean, with a pure heart. Then negotiate for the desires of your heart. Like a good father, God will give you those desires that mean you and your family good.

You may have to wait for the seeds of your desires to grow so learn to be patient. Working on yourself or your home, focusing on building up yourself while waiting for your desires to manifest, will keep you busy as you wait. Get ready, prepare for the successes, the manifestation of your desires while waiting for them to ripen. You will reap if you sow good seeds and water them daily through prayer (talking to God). You have to give people, sowing seeds means giving, try helping someone not as fortunate as yourself, even though you might have very little, let some of it go to build up someone else. If you have a lot, make someone’s day by sharing with them, take them out to a meal at a fancy restaurant or give them $100 just to brighten their day or their children’s day. Send money or give money to a struggling church or a struggling non-profit, where the founder is really trying to make a difference. So often the rich give only to the rich, who get richer, and the poor remain poor or get poorer. If you’re rich and reading this, break that cycle, give to the poorer people, not just the rich in your circle. Less pompous more ‘real’ needed. It’s great to give to HUGE charities that don’t really need the money, but consider giving, time or money, making a difference to a struggling charity or individual in a low income community whose mission and success can affect many.

To get ready for success in all areas of your lives, you will need the following: Faith, hope, love and a business bank account. You will also need to clean up your mind, body and spirit as well as your home for all the good that is coming into your life. Pull up the weeds of envy and self-doubt, replace with confidence and self-love; complete the tasks that you need to complete, to make ready for your blessings. Take action; stop sitting down and thinking of how you may fail if you try and how you fell on your face or butt last time you tried. Get up, dust yourself off, put your best foot forward and get ready to win! May God bless You richly this holiday season.

THE WHITE HOUSE & ROSIE PEREZ LEAD DISCUSSION ON HIV

Columbia Medical Center, NY
Friday December 4, 2009 (6pm-8.30pm)

Written by Roxanne Lord

Acclaimed actress Rosie Perez was the moderator for The White House National discussion about HIV& AIDS. This discussion, held at Columbia Medical Center and hosted by the White House Office of National AIDS Policy (ONAP), offer the public a chance to provide input as the White House works to fulfill the President’s pledge to develop a National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS).

With more than 56,000 new HIV infections occurring in the United States each year, the President believes that we must re-focus national attention on the domestic epidemic. He has articulated three goals for the NHAS: reducing HIV incidence, increasing access to care and optimizing health outcomes, and reducing HIV-related health disparities. The national HIV/AIDS community discussions are just one mechanism for engaging the American people and obtaining input. The Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA) will also provide input, and public comments submitted to the ONAP website will also be taken into consideration.

Ms. Perez, actress and human rights activist, has been busy working with children and teenagers as well as older people to make a difference wherever she goes. Remembered in the films; Do The Right Thing as well as White Men Can't Jump, Perez has built a solid reputation for herself as First Lady Latina in films and community service.

Last night, Rosie represented the White House and President Obama's pledge to develop and implement a comprehensive National AIDS Strategedy, focusing on reducing HIV incidence, increasing access to care in addition to reducing health disparities. Many brave voices came together for this HIV discussion held in New York. Here are some of the stories and comments by New Yorkers of different ages and race and ethnicities, many of whom are infected with the disease and many of whom are in a gay relationship or participate in substance abuse. Many are homeless, many are Latino, African-American and White people. Many spoke about incarceration.

*Need for more media campaigns, targeting immigrants, more community based organizations funding, more testing especially for women.

*Socrates from the Bronx.. Better prevention, better discharge planning for people coming home from prison to the Bronx, lack of housing, mental health services, substance abuse services, education and prevention for the previously incarcerated.


*HIV education in the schools; community centers, talk about it more, especially to people with mental health issues.

*HIV and  people over 50. Aids and aging, more awareness of this group as well as more focused treatment and recovery.

*Good evening Dr Obama....... primary care, mental care,  more service and hospitals, more specialists needed in Long Island.
*HIV testing as a routine part of medical care. Call for First Lady and President to take the HIV test in public in America as they did in Africa.

*Care and service for transgender women and men living with HIV and AIDS.
 
*Mobile clinics for HIV are not coming consistently to the communities. Mobile clinics help the community and those who don't have access to healthcare.
 
*Rapid HIV test will allow people taking the test to know in about 20- 40 minutes.
 
*Shelters are no place for people that are HIV positive.
 
*Mandatory or involuntary testing at routine visits.
 
*They should test people more than once in jail.
 
*Latino boys can jump. I wanna talk about substance abuse.Too many brothers are getting locked up. This is not a second chance society. My dad was an addict. Substance abuse should be decriminalized. Elder parents who are users have children who are users. America, America why do you incarcerate so much.
 
* Youth coming through the shelter, these are no places for them. Make shelters for all people, races, gender, age and White people too. More dialogue on racism, include more White people in this dialogue.
 
*Need special department to strategically educate the young generation in high schools.
 
*From a pastor: If you spend the money we will get better, spend more money on HIV counselling, housing and awareness, media campaign.
 
*From a lawyer: Lift some of the legal restrictions and disclosures to be better able to help HIV infected people with housing and other much needed services.
 
* More research needed on alternative medicine for the disease that will strenthen immune system, reishi mushroom a good start as a possible cure.
 
*Strategic emergency housing especially in Albany is needed. Shelters are no good, people are not checked

for even TB there. I want to leave you with something that Plato said, "We can all understand when a child is afraid of the dark, but we cannot understand when a man is afraid of the light!"

What do you think?
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WEST POINT SPEECH: WHAT YOU DIDN'T SEE ON TV

12/01/09

West Point, NY

(Zen Media)

My first impression of West Point is that it resembled a British moat. High mountains and a large body of water, the Hudson River. The West Point Military Academy, where President Barack Obama delivered his long awaiting speech on the war strategy, is a campus of nationally landmarked buildings. The USMA was built in 1802, the garrison was occupied in 1776 and played a key role in the Revolutionary War. Cadets here have all applied directly to the academy and received a nomination from a congressman in order to be selected.

It was in one these historic neogothic granite buildings, the Eisenhower Hall, that the first African-American President of the United States gave his speech. I was moved that the ceremony started off with a prayer by Colonel Mike Durham, West Point Chaplain, for our nation, the young cadets going off to war and for peace. They prayed for the families of the cadets also. Kay Messenger sang the National Anthem and Colonel Ty Seidule, a professor at the USMA gave a brief history and warm welcome to all the attendees. He reminded the cadets to be professional and courteous to the President and said that the President could give a presidential pardon to minor offenses of military men . Then the Superintendent of the academy came up and delivered one sentence only, "The President is not the only one who can give a pardon for minor offenses, I can too. You are all pardoned of your offenses." Lieutenant Hagenbeck then walked off the stage after that statement. The cadets cheered and whooped of course. Then there was silence as we waited for the President to come on stage.

They played the VOG music and we all stood at attention as President Barack approached the podium. His speech was long and the President seemed less passionate than he has at other speeches. Some key points in his speech:

"As Commander in Chief, I have determined that it is in our vital national interest to send an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan. After 18 months our troops will begin to come home. These are the resources that we need to seize the initiative, while building the Afghan capacity that can allow for a responsible transition of our forces out of Afghanistan."

"We have been at war now for eight years at enormous cost in lives and resources...... having just experienced the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, the American people are understandably focused on rebuilding our economy and putting people out to work here at home."

"If I did not think that the security of the United States and the safety of the American people were at stake in Afghanistan, I would gladly order every single one of our troops home tomorrow."

'So, no, I do not make this decision lightly. I make this decision because I am convinced that our security is at stake in Afghanistan and Pakistan. This is the epicenter of violent extremism practiced by Al-Qaeda, it is from there that we were attacked and from there that new attacks are being plotted as I speak."

Our President believes that if we retreat now that Al-Qaeda will pose more of a threat. He maintains that Al-Qaeda is seeking nuclear weapons and that Pakistan is able to supply them. POTUS said that it is important to work with allies, like the British to dismantle, disrupt and defeat Al-Qaeda. To meet this goal, POTUS is calling for a military strategy that will break the momentum of the Taliban. By deploying 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan in early 2010, we will be able to target the insurgency and secure key population areas.

By partnering with other international allies within the United Nations and the Afghanistan government, America will help to strengthen their government so that they can become more responsible in protecting their people and their country. By focusing on agriculture and accountability, America will help Afghanistan to rebuild their war torn nation.

Our President's speech at West Point Military Academy is one of the most important ones that he has ever made. Please go to My Facebook/Lady Simone to view the notes for the entire speech verbatim.

Roxanne Lord

Zen Media