#Fort Wayne Children's Choir

[wutbju]

Our beloved father, Wayne Edward Booker, Sr. died in his home surrounded by his three children on August 21, 2023 at the age of 85.

He was born in Peoria,IL in December 1937. His family moved to Fort Wayne, IN where Wayne played the trombone in the H.S. band. Wayne and his late wife Rachel Carolyn first met and bonded over their mutual appreciation for Christian ministry and church choirs at Bob Jones University and continued to share this love throughout their marriage of 50 years.

Wayne and Carolyn ministered together in several churches across four different states modeling, discipling, hosting, encouraging many in gospel ministry over their years together.

He leaves behind three children: Ed (Jennifer) Booker of Indianapolis, IN, Susan Booker of Woodstock, GA, Michael (Kristy) Booker of St. Louis, MO. He was also blessed with seven grandchildren: Stacy Robinson, Stephen Booker, Joshua Booker, Caleb Booker, Jonny Booker, Isaac Booker, Kenzie Booker.. Finally, two great-grandchildren: Jude Booker and Miles Robinson – and two more great-grandchildren on the way.

Wayne was preceded in death by his wife of 50 years Rachel Carolyn Booker.

The funeral will be held at Lebanon Baptist Church, Roswell, GA on Saturday, August 26th at 11AM. It will be preceded by a visitation at Lebanon at 10AM. All friends and family are welcome.

[aroundfortwayne]

What’s happening in the parks the week of July 26, 2021

New Post has been published on https://aroundfortwayne.com/news/2021/07/25/whats-happening-in-the-parks-the-week-of-20210726/

What’s happening in the parks the week of July 26, 2021

What’s happening in Fort Wayne parks the week of July 26, 2021.

[dailyunsolvedmysteries]

Murder of April Tinsley

April Tinsley was a member of the children's choir at the Faith United Methodist Church, and a second-grader attending Fairfield Elementary School. On April 1, 1988, a Good Friday, she was playing with two of her friends and they were moving between houses. Tinsley went back to retrieve her umbrella and then disappeared around 3:00 pm. John Miller, who later pleaded guilty to murdering Tinsley, said he had planned to kidnap a child, but he had not seen April before abducting her. He said that he asked her to get into his car and he took her to his trailer where he raped and killed her. At night, he took her body to a ditch.

 Tinsley's mother reported her daughter missing to the police when she did not arrive home for dinner that night. The initial search for Tinsley included 250 Fort Wayne police officers and 50 volunteers. A witness later reported seeing a white man in his 30s forcing a girl believed to be Tinsley into his blue pickup truck. A jogger found Tinsley's body on April 4, 1988, in a ditch just west of Spencerville, Indiana. Near the site, investigators found one of Tinsley's shoes, and a sex toy in a shopping bag. A motorist later reported seeing a blue pickup truck near this site. Tinsley's autopsy report suggested she had been raped and then strangled to death. The report determined that she had been dead for about one or two days before she was discovered, and that she had been placed in the ditch four hours before this discovery. 

On May 21, 1990, police found a message on a St. Joseph Township barn reading "I kill 8 year old April M Tinsley," and "did you find the other shoe haha I will kill again." The message was written with crayons which were found near the barn. Investigators initially believed it could be connected to the murder of 7-year-old Sarah Jean Bowker, whose body was found on June 14, 1990, in Fort Wayne. Local and state police formed a homicide team in April 1991 to investigate Tinsley and Bowker's cases. 

On August 7, 1991, the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit determined that, although Tinsley and Bowker's cases were similar, they were ultimately unrelated. During the Memorial Day weekend in 2004, four notes were found in the Fort Wayne area that are believed to have been written by Tinsley's murderer. Three of these notes were left on girls' bicycles, and another one was left in a mailbox. Three notes were placed in plastic bags, along with used condoms and Polaroid pictures of a man's lower body. One of these notes read, "Hi honey... I been watching you....I am the same person that kidnapped an rape an kill april tinsley, ... You are my next victim....if you don't report this to police an if I don't see this in the paper tomorrow or on the local news...I will blow up your house."  The DNA from the condoms matched the police's DNA profile of the suspect, leading investigators to believe the incidents were connected.

On October 26, 2018, the Indiana State Police honored three Fort Wayne investigators for helping authorities identify John D. Miller as a suspect in the Tinsley case.

[criminol]

The Abduction and Murder of April Tinsley

April Tinsley was an 8-year-old girl from Indiana and first-grade student. She liked singing and was a member of the children's choir at a local church.

On 1st April 1988, April was playing with two of her friends, the children were moving between each other's houses. April went back to get her umbrella and then disappeared at around 3 pm. Her mother reported her missing when she did not arrive home for dinner that night.

A witness reported seeing a white man in his 30s forcing a young girl, believed to be April, into his blue pickup truck.

April's body was found on 4th April 1988 in a ditch. One of her shoes and a sex toy were found in a shopping back nearby and a motorist reported seeing a blue pickup truck near the site. The autopsy report showed that April had been raped and strangled to death. The report also indicated she had been dead for 1-2 days before her body was found and that she had been dumped in the ditch 4 hours before this discovery.

On 21st May 1990, police found a message on a barn reading "I kill 8 year old April M Tinsley," and "did you find the other shoe haha I will kill again." The message had been written in crayon and the crayons were found close to the barn. During Memorial Day weekend, in 2004, four notes were found, three left on girls' bicycles and one in a mailbox. Three of the notes were in plastic bags with used condoms and Polaroid pictures of a man's lower body. One of the notes read: "Hi honey... I been watching you....I am the same person that kidnapped an rape an kill april tinsley, ... You are my next victim....if you don't report this to police an if I don't see this in the paper tomorrow or on the local news...I will blow up your house." The DNA from the condoms matched the profile of April's murderer which proved the incidents were connected.

The FBI created a profile of the suspect in 2009 describing him as a 'Preferential Child Sex Offender,' white male, low-medium income and living or working in the Fort Wayne area.

In May 2018, the DNA was narrowed down to one of two brothers one of who was 59-year-old John D Miller, the police found used condoms in Miller's trash and matched the DNA to the suspect's DNA. Detectives approached Miller and asked him to go with them to the police station when police asked Miller if he knew what they wanted to talk to him about he replied 'April Tinsley.' During an interview at the station, he confessed to the murder, saying he abducted April, raped her, choked her to death, sodomised her body, and dumped it. Miller later stated he had premeditated abducting a child but has not seen April before.

Miller was charged with murder, child molestation and confinement. He was sentenced to 80 years in prison, 50 for murder and 30 for child molestation. His early possible release date is 15th July 2058, when he will be 99.

[yegarts]

2018 Large Artist Project Grant Recipients

Artist Project Grants are investments in the specific projects of individual artists and artist collectives as they pursue their artistic and professional advancement. Twice per year, EAC awards small Artist Project Grants up to $5,000. Once per year, EAC awards large Artist Project Grants up to $25,000, intended to fund projects that are larger in scope and take longer to develop.

We are excited to announce the 42 artists and projects that have been awarded large project grants in 2018, and are looking forward to seeing the projects they create. Look out for most of the final projects as they are exhibited, showcased, and published in 2019, though some of the projects you’ll be able to see for yourself as early as this month. Congratulations!

The next deadline for Small Artist Project Grant applications is February 15, 2019. Click here for more information and to apply; applications open on January 15, 2019.

Alida Kendell is a choreographer developing a piece of dance theatre called The Particulars working with local composer Dean Musani and playwright Matthew MacKenzie.

Composer Allan Gilliland is recording two of his symphony compositions, Dreaming of the Masters I and Dreaming of the Masters IV, with a 60-piece orchestra in Dvorak Hall in Prague.

Visual artist Allison Tunis is developing mixed media paintings and an interactive installation that will explore the relationship between language, body size, mental health, self-esteem, relationships, and safety.

Musician Ann Vriend is writing, recording, and performing a new album of soul music based on living in Edmonton’s McCauley neighborhood.

Theatre artist Beth Dart is producing and directing a site-specific, immersive, historically-based horror theatre experience called Dead Centre of Town in Fort Edmonton Park—experience it for yourself October 18 - 31, 2018.

Experience Dead Centre of Town at Fort Edmonton Park October 18 - 31 Filmmaker Beth Wishart MacKenzie and visual artist Lana Whiskeyjack are touring a collaborative arts project called pîkiskwe-speak Art and Film Installation: An Invitation to Conversations in Reconciliation.

Theatre artist Brenley Charkow produced the play Scorch, which looks at the complex nature of gender identity, at the Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival.

Musician Cam Neufeld is travelling to Bulgaria, Istanbul, Azerbaijan, and Trabzon to study the tonalities of music from these regions that will inform concerts and educational materials in Edmonton.

Filmmaker Conor McNally is creating a short film about local visual artist, and McLuhan House Artist in Residence, Lauren Crazybull.

Visual artist Dana Belcourt is researching, writing, and painting a children’s book, Billy and the Magical Skate, based on a story passed down to her through her family through the use of Indigenous traditions.

Darren Jordan is producing a multi-disciplinary showcase 5 Artists 1 Love for Black History Month.

Darrin Hagen is writing a literary nonfiction book based on his play Witch Hunt at the Strand, which looks at the arrest of gay Edmontonians in 1942.

Dean Kheroufi, founder of Keeping on Records, will be producing and manufacturing vinyl singles by three local artists.

Musician Garth Prince will be recording music with The Edmonton Youth Choir, Edmonton-based Tanzanian-born children’s author, Tololwa Mollel, and Francophone artist Patrick Dunn for a children’s album.

Playwright Harley Morison is producing the site-specific play KalderSaga: A Queer Tavern Drama for a Midwinter’s Night, which works to establish an origin myth for queer people.

Playwright Jason Chinn is producing the play E Day, a political comedy set during the 2015 provincial election.

Writer Jason Lee Norman is publishing Funicular, a literary magazine of short fiction and poetry by writers in Edmonton and around the world. Look for the first issue available later this year.

Filmmaker and dance artist Jennifer Mesch is creating a short film about Edmonton painter Violet Owen.

Musician Jerrold Dubyk is travelling to Cuba with his band to perform at the Jazz Plaza International Festival in January 2019.

Visual artist Jessa Gillespie is using digital media and virtual reality to explore built environments and ecology during a residency at Residency Unlimited in Brooklyn.

Filmmaker Justin Kueber is producing a fictional short film about racial equality.

Musician Karen Donaldson Shepherd and photographer Noella Steinhauer are producing the Kisâkihitin gala which will feature photography and live music showcasing Indigenous people in the Edmonton region.

Visual artist Kasie Campbell is presenting her performative work We Are Revealed at Art in Odd Places 2018: Body festival in New York City.

Dance artists Kate Stashko and Krista Posyniak are creating a new site-specific contemporary dance production.

Kate Ryan is producing and directing a version of the musical Fun Home which explores suicide, sexuality, LGBTQ equality, and familial relationships.

Kristi Hansen and The Maggie Tree are producing the play Blood: A Scientific Romance. See it October 16 - 27, 2018 at Backstage Theatre in the Fringe Theatre Building.

Gianna Vacirca and Jayce Mckenzie in The Maggie Tree’s play Blood: A Scientific Romance. Photo by BB Collective Photography Lady Vanessa Cardona is producing her play Three Ladies, about healing from trauma of sexual abuse and civil war in Colombia.

Liam Salmon is developing his play The Boy with No Face, which address gun violence and toxic masculinity.

Lizzie Derksen is writing a fiction novel, Rascal, about the spectacle of mass murder.

Margaret Macpherson is writing a creative nonfiction book, Skin, and seeking out professional development opportunities and mentorship.

Marianne Watchel is creating a multidisciplinary show with new Canadians, local musicians, and local visual artists.

Marie Winters will perform a durational web-based performance that will address mental health, PTSD, and sexual assault.

Artists Sean Caulfield, Marilene Oliver, and Scott Smallwood are creating and curating multimedia artwork for an exhibition called Dyscorpia: Future Intersections of the Body and Technology that will look at the physical body as framed by medicine, artificial intelligence, and digital communications.

Sound artist and photographer Mark Templeton is creating a photobook and accompanying musical score recorded onto cassettes to explore themes of alienation and the exotic.

Filmmaker Niobe Thompson is making a short film, Makepeace, inspired by Marcel Theroux’s Western thriller novel Far North.

Rachel and Sarah Seburn are organizing a project called Parking Lot Platforms that will see two Edmonton visual artists work with two Estonian artists to create art for transient gallery spaces in The Quarters.

Kathak dancer Riya Mittal is creating and presenting a new dance under the mentorship of renowned dancer Ayan Banerjee.

Photographer Scott Portingale is using time-lapse photographic and animation techniques to create visual representations of black holes based on scientific research.

Writer Theresa Shea is researching and writing a novel, The Constellations of Youth, which will examine the effects of divorce.

Writer Tim Bowling is researching and writing a literary nonfiction book that explores hermitage in the digital age.

Poet Titilope Sonuga is producing a spoken word album that will feature Edmonton artists Ahmed Ali, Sierra Jamerson, Brandon Wint, and Oozeela.

Theatre artist Wayne Paquette is producing Anne Washburn’s play, Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play.

[rockrageradio]

Styx founding member Dennis DeYoung is back with a new solo album, "26 East, Vol. 1.” The album will be released April 10th.

Tracklist:

1. East Of Midnight

2. With All Due Respect

3. A Kingdom Ablaze

4. You My Love

5. Run For The Roses

6. Damn That Dream

7. Unbroken

8. The Promise Of This Land

9. To The Good Old Days

10. A.D. 2020

Line-up:

-Dennis DeYoung: Keyboards, fake drums, fake bass, fake news, and some vocals. Oh, and Vuvuzela.

-Jim Peterik: Guitar, Bass, Keyboard, Vocals and Vuvuzela

-August Zadra: Electric Guitars, vocals

-Jimmy Leahey: Acoustic and electric guitars

-Craig Carter: Bass, vocals and invocations

-Mighty Mike Morales: Drums and all day sound checker

-John Blasucci: Keyboard’s

-Mike Aquino: Electric Guitars

-Kevin Chalfant: backing vocals

-Matthew DeYoung: Drums on “To The Good Old Days”

-Ed Breckenfeld: Drums on “Unbroken”

-Zoe and Austin Orchard for Ring Around The Rosie

-The Chicago Children’s Choir and conductor Josephine Lee

Dennis DeYoung Live:

3/13: Northfield, OH @ MGM Northfield Park

3/14: Newark, OH @ The Midland Theatre

3/20: Portland, OR @ Revolution Hall

3/21: Bremerton, WA @ Admiral Theater

4/3: Chicago, IL @ House Of Blues

4/4: Fort Wayne, IN @ The Clyde Theatre

4/17: Huntington, NY @ The Paramount

4/18: Morristown, NJ @ Mayo Performing Arts Center

4/24: Atlantic City, NJ @ Resorts Atlantic City

4/25: Bethlehem, PA @ Wind Creek Event Center

5/1: Quebec City, QC @ Le Grande Theatre De Quebec

5/2: Montreal, QC @ Theatre St. Denis

5/3: Montreal, QC @ Theatre St. Denis

5/8: Harris, MI @ Island Casino Showroom

5/9: Harris, MI @ Island Casino Showroom

5/22: Kansas City, MO @ Star Pavilion at Ameristar Casino

6/4: Ashland, KY @ Paramount Arts Center

6/5: Florence, IN @ Belterra Casino

6/12: Davenport, IA @ Rhythm City Casino

7/10: Grand Prairie, TX @ Verizon Theatre

7/11: Austin, TX @ ACL Live @ The Moody Theater

8/14: Saskatoon, SK @ Rock The River

10/2: Nashville, TN @ Brown County Music Center

For More Info Visit:

http://www.dennisdeyoung.com

[laikanbrooke]

Solved Saturday's - April Tinsley

Solved Saturday’s – April Tinsley

Welcome back to Solved Saturday’s. Let’s get straight into it.

April Marie Tinsley

April Marie Tinsley was an 8 year-old girl born in Fort Wayne, Indiana on the 18th of March 1988, to Mum Janet Tinsley. She was a member of the Children’s Choir at the Faith United Methodist Church and attended Fairfield Elementary School, April was a loving girl, happy and always smiling, she loved being…

[stevedonnellyfaith-blog]

The End of the Chase (Post 22) 2-5-14

                        For Pam and I coming to Brentwood represented the end of our chase for the materialistic American Dream.  There are many American Dreams available.  Often, I think, immigrant’s dreams are the purest. Ours was not so healthy.  We were seeking wealth, success and shiny objects. We would probably not have described our goals that way.  We might have told you that we wanted our children to have all the things that we never had.  That would be hooey; we wanted better and bigger stuff because we defined ourselves in secular terms.

Coming to Brentwood represented a change in strategy for us.  We had decided to come to California and live in a smaller house with a good deal fewer possessions … for a time.  Our plan was for me to gain a background in Lean Manufacturing so that we could head back East and parlay our short-term sacrifice into even better stuff than we had in the first place.

We were semi-realistic as we packed up to come cross country.  We realized that everything that was residing in our 3000 square foot house would not fit into a 1600 square foot rental property.  We decided to chuck the extra couch, air hockey table, weight set and all the other junk that resided in our finished basement. It was no great loss.  The air hockey table had originally seemed to be a great Christmas present, but we had so much other stuff that nobody headed down into the basement to play very often.  It did not help that our cats had used the cellar carpet for a urinal so it was hard to play a game to higher than three without the fumes making you light-headed.

The downsizing also was helped by the poor condition of our furniture.  Many of the items had made our entire pilgrimage from Virginia Beach to Maysville KY, back to Wilson NC and onto Fort Wayne IN.  Unsurprisingly, upon our arrival in California we found that several pieces of our furniture were virtually kindling.  I was aggravated as I damaged a few of these few pieces myself and had no convenient scapegoat.  In the end we didn’t miss any of these material possessions and after nearly seven years here it becomes increasingly hard to remember why we thought owning all that garbage was a good idea in the first place.

A couple of weeks ago, Nicholas and I emptied out the garage.  We filled up the bed of his Sierra long-bed twice with some more remnants of the life we used to lead.  It was like doing an archeological dig into our materialistic past.  Some of the treasured items that we finally tossed hadn’t been stored outside of an attic, closet or garage since I was an Ensign. It seemed like we had kept much of it out of momentum.  My life felt lighter as Nick and I pushed all the flotsam and jetsam, our family had acquired off the tailgate of his truck into the smelly pile at the landfill.

It made me realize how much the family priorities had changed.  When I ceased jockeying for the next step up the ladder, I found I had much more time for the kids and to get involved in the parish.  We began to look at things like our cars more as transportation or old friends rather than as status symbols to be replaced just a little sooner than we could afford.  We still place some value on material objects, but those things are now usually Wiley rosaries, picture albums or a pink woman’s cap that I have hidden away. We still spend more money on stuff than we should.  We are saving some in hopes of Sending Natalie and Abby on the Vatican trip with the Youth Choir in 2015.  Hopefully we are on the right track, but we still have far to go.

Electronics seem to have opened up a new “Pandora’s Box” of idol-like materialism in our lives.  The other week, Nicholas and I were watching a hockey game together and heard Natalie blubbering in the back room.  We rushed back to the master bedroom expecting that she had been perusing a wedding album or something else having to do with Pam.  Instead, we found her in tears because she had accidentally deleted the swimming pool on an interactive online gaming website for kids under ten named Club Penguin. Evidently the swimming pool was her favorite part of the igloo.  She ranted and raved about the unfairness of Club Penguin and contemplated the possibility of a class action suit against “The Man” for negligence in allowing a child to inadvertently delete a swimming pool.  

Nick and I shook our heads in disbelief.  Nick intervened and showed her that she had not, in fact, deleted the treasured pool.  I pondered the future of the next generation that has been conditioned against the wisdom of the beatitudes even through the allure of virtual materialism. Hopefully, some Christian company will market a video game based on the life of Mother Theresa or St Francis.  I would buy a copy.

[csrgood]

Smithfield Foods Donates More Than 40,000 Pounds of Protein to Three Square Food Bank; Eckrich Brand Provides Funds to Local Schools

Today, Smithfield Foods, Inc. and Albertsons joined forces to donate more than 40,000 pounds of protein to Three Square Food Bank. Smithfield’s contribution was part of the company’s 2019 Helping Hungry Homes® donation tour. Helping Hungry Homes® is Smithfield’s signature hunger-relief initiative focused on alleviating hunger and helping Americans become more food secure. The donation, equivalent to more than 169,000 servings, will help families fight hunger across Southern Nevada.

“One in eight people in Southern Nevada is struggling with hunger, including more than 103,000 children,” says Michelle Beck, chief development officer with Three Square Food Bank. “Our mission of providing wholesome food to hungry people, while passionately pursuing a hunger-free community would not be possible without the support of partners like Smithfield Foods and Albertsons. We are incredibly thankful for the support provided at this community celebration.”

Representatives from Smithfield and Albertsons presented the donation to Three Square Food Bank at a community celebration and grand opening event at the new Albertsons Las Vegas store location this morning. Members of each organization discussed food insecurity in the local community and the significance of this donation, which will provide protein throughout the food bank’s service area, reaching food insecure individuals across Southern Nevada.

“At Smithfield, we’re committed to supporting community vitality from coast-to-coast,” says Jonathan Toms, associate manager of charitable initiatives for Smithfield Foods. “As part of our social purpose, we deliver on this commitment through donations from our Helping Hungry Homes® program, as well as the initiatives led by our family of brands, to those in need across the country. We are proud to do this today for our Nevada neighbors in need with such a great community-focused event and our partners.”

In addition to Smithfield’s large-scale protein donation, Albertsons presented more than $50,000 in community grants to 15 local organizations to support musical arts, athletics, healthcare, special needs, and education in the local area. Eckrich®, a brand of Smithfield Foods, supplemented Albertsons’ donations to local schools with a $6,000 contribution as a part of their commitment to support education in the community.

“Giving back to the community is part of the Eckrich brand heritage, and we are excited for the opportunity to continue this tradition through the donations made today,” said Elizabeth Di John, director of marketing for Smithfield Foods. “We are proud to support these local schools and teachers by enabling their positive impact on the community.”

“Albertsons is thrilled to expand its ability to serve the residents of Las Vegas and are proud to present these donations to our local community,” said Shane Dorcheus, executive vice president and president of the Southwest Division for Albertsons, Safeway and Vons. “We’re fortunate to unveil this brand-new location alongside fantastic community-focused partners who support our efforts to give back.”

To officially open the new Albertsons Las Vegas store location, partners hosted a community celebration which included a ribbon-cutting event, musical entertainment from country recording artist Ben Rue, secured by Eckrich, as well as presentations from Centennial High School including the ROTC, choir, cheer squad, marching band, and orchestra student organizations.

This is the sixth large-scale protein donation made by Smithfield to food banks across the country during its 2019 Helping Hungry Homes® tour. Since the program’s inception in 2008, Smithfield has provided more than 120 million servings of protein to food banks, disaster relief efforts, and community outreach programs nationwide.

For more information about Smithfield Foods’ Helping Hungry Homes® initiative and a list of upcoming donation events, visit helpinghungryhomes.com.

# # #

About Smithfield Foods

Smithfield Foods is a $15 billion global food company and the world's largest pork processor and hog producer. In the United States, the company is also the leader in numerous packaged meats categories with popular brands including Smithfield®, Eckrich®, Nathan’s Famous®, Farmland®, Armour®, Farmer John®, Kretschmar®, John Morrell®, Cook’s®, Gwaltney®, Carando®, Margherita®, Curly’s®, Healthy Ones®, Morliny®, Krakus®, and Berlinki®. Smithfield Foods is committed to providing good food in a responsible way and maintains robust animal care, community involvement, employee safety, environmental and food safety and quality programs. For more information, visit www.smithfieldfoods.com, and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.   

About Eckrich  Founded by Peter Eckrich in 1894, Eckrich has a rich heritage starting from a small meat market in Fort Wayne, Indiana, to one of the most recognized regional premium deli and meat brands on the market today. Through it all, Eckrich meats have been recognized for their great taste and supreme quality, craftsmanship, care and pride. For more information, visit www.eckrich.com. Eckrich is a brand of Smithfield Foods.

About Three Square Food Bank

Established in 2007 to provide hunger relief, Three Square Food Bank offers wholesome, nutritious food to nonprofit and faith-based organizations, schools and feeding sites that serve a wide range of Southern Nevadans. A national model project inspired by Founder Eric Hilton with a grant provided by the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Three Square is a community collaborative partnership with businesses, nonprofit agencies, food distributors, higher education institutions, the Clark County School District, governmental entities, the media and thousands of volunteers to efficiently and effectively work together to serve those in our community struggling with hunger. Three Square currently provides more than 39 million meals – the equivalent of more than 47 million pounds of food and grocery product – per year through a network of nearly 1,400 community partners. Three Square is a member of the Feeding America network of food banks. For additional information visit threesquare.org. For the latest news and events on Three Square, visit Facebook and follow them on Instagram and Twitter (@threesquarelv).

About Albertsons Companies

Albertsons Companies is one of the largest food and drug retailers in the United States, with both a strong local presence and national scale. We operate stores across 35 states and the District of Columbia under 20 well-known banners including Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Jewel-Osco, Shaw’s, Acme, Tom Thumb, Randalls, United Supermarkets, Pavilions, Star Market, Haggen and Carrs, as well as meal kit company Plated based in New York City. Albertsons Companies is committed to helping people across the country live better lives by making a meaningful difference, neighborhood by neighborhood. In 2018 alone, along with the Albertsons Companies Foundation, the company gave nearly $300 million in food and financial support. These efforts helped millions of people in the areas of hunger relief, education, cancer research and treatment, programs for people with disabilities and veterans outreach.

Media Contacts:

Dalton Agency for Smithfield Jana Beasley (904) 534-8568 jbeasley@daltonagency.com

Three Square Food Bank The Firm Public Relations (702) 739-9933 ThreeSquareMedia@thefirmpr.com

Albertsons Nancy Keane (480) 318-3082  nancy.keane@albertsons.com

source: http://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/41807-Smithfield-Foods-Donates-More-Than-40-000-Pounds-of-Protein-to-Three-Square-Food-Bank-Eckrich-Brand-Provides-Funds-to-Local-Schools?tracking_source=rss

[instituteforqualityeducation]

School Choice is the Right Choice for Me

Good afternoon. My name is Reyna Rodriguez. I am a senior at Bishop Luers High School and receive the School Choice Scholarship. To begin, I would like to thank all my teachers and my family for being so supportive throughout every hardship, and assisting me to get where I am today. Without all of the support that I have been shown while at Bishop Luers, I would not be as successful inside or outside of the classroom. Personally I do not prefer to talk about my family’s financial situation, but when I was asked to speak about this I knew it was my time to pay my second home, Bishop Luers, back for all they have helped me accomplish the past four years.

I am one of six children and the first of my family to attend a private school.  My sister is a sophomore at Bishop Luers, and my younger brother and sister attend St. John the Baptist School; we all receive the School Choice Scholarship.  My mother works for Parkview Hospital as a home health care and hospice nurse, while my father works for the Fort Wayne Fire Department. I never would have imagined myself where I am today eight years ago, but I would have it no other way. The only reason that I am able to attend Bishop Luers High School is because the School Choice program has assisted my family tremendously. Now four of the six children attend private school and my parents are very grateful because they know we are receiving a faith based, quality education that is preparing us for college.  

Before and after school I am very involved in the Luers community. I help set up for all school masses and participate in Academic Super Bowl, where I serve God and others, along with sharing my knowledge through my faith. I have participated in varsity sports throughout my time spent at Luers including, cross country and soccer. Along with all of that, my happiness and well being lies in the Performing Arts Department and in the Show Choir at Bishop Luers. My second mother would have to be the famous Mrs. Krouse.  She would give anything to her students, who she refers to as her part-time children. She gives nothing but the best to us, and expects only the best in return.  I am so thankful to have the opportunity to be involved with the Bishop Luers Minstrels.

At Luers I face new challenges everyday that have helped prepare me for my future. There have been many times that I have taken on more than I can handle, but with all the support from the staff and students around me, I am always able to push through and make it out stronger than I was before. Through all the assistance the School Choice program has granted me, attending Luers has not only thrown many challenges at me, they have taught me how to persevere through and to let go and let God. Freshman year I came in as the "new girl" from a public school.  I thought I was ready for high school, but after my first big exam I realized I truly was behind academically. So on top of trying to fit in, I had to catch up. Without the support and assistance from all the teachers that believed in me, I would not be where I am today in my education.

Through the School Choice program I have been able to continue my education in a faith based high school along with sharing my talents and love for the stage with those who help me to grow as a person spiritually and academically.

After high school, I will carry out the knowledge, skills, and talent that have been made accessible to me while at Bishop Luers. I am proud to say that I have been accepted to Saint Mary's College,  Notre Dame and also Indiana University, Bloomington. At the moment, I am looking forward to studying to be an optometrist, while my final decision on a university is not yet decided.

My family has never had too much, but we have always had enough. The love, blessings, and support that I receive from my parents and siblings is more than anything I could even put into words. Along with the support from the School Choice Program, I cannot thank everyone enough for blessing my family with the aid that we receive for myself and my three younger siblings. While I am committed to my education, my parents love to watch me succeed in all that I put my heart into, especially while on stage. My parents would do anything for me and my siblings, even if it means they have to give up something or pick up a few extra shifts at work. Without the continued support from all those in favor of the School Choice Program, I would not be where I am today academically or spiritually. I firmly believe that the School Choice Program and Bishop Luers have forever changed my life and will continue to help my family and many other families that are financially burdened.

As Bishop Luers teaches "We are the light of the World," and School Choice corresponds with that, allowing the light of Christ to shine into the lives of each of our students, setting us up to be knowledgeable, gracious, and respectful followers of Christ. Thank you to my parents, siblings, teachers, and supporters for believing in me always. Thank you all for making School Choice the right choice!

[aroundfortwayne]

Fort Wayne Children’s Choir to host annual Choralfest - July 26-30, 2021

New Post has been published on https://aroundfortwayne.com/news/2021/07/22/fort-wayne-childrens-choir-to-host-annual-choralfest-20210726/

Fort Wayne Children’s Choir to host annual Choralfest - July 26-30, 2021

After shifting its annual Choralfest to a virtual event last year due to COVID-19, the Fort Wayne Children’s Choir is thrilled to host Choralfest 2021 in person, July 26-30, 2021.

[aroundfortwayne]

Fort Wayne Philharmonic and First Presbyterian Theater partner with ArtsTix

New Post has been published on https://aroundfortwayne.com/news/2021/07/20/fort-wayne-philharmonic-and-first-presbyterian-theater-partner-with-artstix/

Fort Wayne Philharmonic and First Presbyterian Theater partner with ArtsTix

Today, Arts United announced that Fort Wayne Philharmonic and First Presbyterian Theater has joined the ArtsTix Community Box Office.

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Foellinger concerts and movies announced

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Children’s Choir European Tour and Bon Voyage Concert

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The Fort Wayne Children’s Choir at the Cities and Towns conference

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The Fort Wayne Children’s Choir presents annual “Rejoice!” concert

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