She Is One of Just 25 Public Health Nurses Selected for Prestigious Leadership Development Program

July 22, 2015

MONTGOMERY, ALA. – Jessica Hardy, MPH, DNP, RN, the director of the Office of Women’s Health of the Alabama Department of Public Health, is one of just 25 nurses from across the country to be selected as a Public Health Nurse Leader (PHNL) by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). She will participate in a two-year leadership development program designed to strengthen the capacity of senior public health nurses to improve population health, address social determinants of health, respond to emerging trends in health and health care, influence policy, and lead collaboration in their communities.

The program’s goal is to support nurses who are ready to lead public health departments in building a Culture of Health in their communities. Since PHNLs participate in partnerships across all sectors and disciplines that lead to collaborative action, they can leverage new and existing opportunities for even healthier communities. As part of the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, the PHNLs will work closely with the Action Coalitions in their states to implement recommendations from the Institute of Medicine’s Future of Nursing report.

“At RWJF, we are working to build a Culture of Health that enables everyone in the United States to live the healthiest lives possible, supported by a system in which nurses are essential partners in providing care and promoting health,” said Susan Hassmiller, PhD, RN, FAAN, RWJF’s senior adviser for nursing and director of the Campaign for Action—a joint initiative of RWJF and AARP. “We are so proud of all 25 nurses accepted into this program and excited about the many ways they will strengthen their state Action Coalitions by bringing public health expertise to their work. Every one of the nurses in this program will help make their communities healthier and our health care system stronger.”

“I am thrilled to have been selected for this honor, and look forward to strengthening my skills so I can do even more to improve the health of my community and help transform the nursing profession,” Hardy said. “I know this experience will enhance my ability to serve my community. I look forward to working even more closely with the Alabama Health Action Coalition (AL-HAC) Alabamahealthactioncoalition.orgin the months ahead.”

Hardy has served more than 20 years with the Alabama Department of Public Health in various capacities, which include assistant state nursing director, emergency preparedness nurse coordinator, as the Alabama women’s health liaison for the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services and for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and she is passionate about women’s health.

In 2002 Hardy was appointed to serve as the first director for the Alabama Office of Women’s Health (OWH), a position she continues to hold, and was appointed as acting director of Alabama’s Office of Minority Health from 2008 to 2012. In addition to the daily responsibilities of the OWH, she serves as the state coordinator for the Emergency Preparedness Closed Points of Dispensing (POD) Program throughout the state. Hardy has served as a presenter on health issues at local, state, and national conferences, and is an active member in a number of professional organizations.

RWJF’s Public Health Nurse Leaders program was open to registered nurses who hold leadership positions in governmental public health organizations. Its goal is to help the PHNLs develop their leadership skills and connections with key influencers so they can build and spread a Culture of Health. Participating nurses will spend their first year focused on individual leadership development. Second-year activities are designed to enhance the leadership competencies and coaching skills of both the nurses in this program and key members of the Action Coalition in their states.

The Public Health Nurse Leaders selected for this program are from: Montgomery, Ala.; Phoenix, Ariz.; Little Rock, Ark.; Lakeport, Calif.; Los Angeles, Calif.; Marietta, Ga.; Honolulu, Hawaii; Belleville, Ill.; Mason City, Iowa; Hutchinson, Kan.; Paulina, La.; Baltimore, Md.; St. Cloud, Minn.; Jackson, Miss.; Jefferson City, Mo.; Lincoln, Neb.; Santa Fe, N.M.; Syracuse, N.Y.; Charlotte, N.C.; Columbus, Ohio; Marysville, Ohio; Austin, Texas; Brownsville, Texas; Seattle, Wash.; and Martinsburg, W.Va.

The RWJF Public Health Nurse Leaders program is located at the Center for Creative Leadership, a global thought leader in the leadership development field for 45 years.
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If you have any knowledge on this information please call us

Birmingham Times

July 22, 2015

Looking for contacts that might know this guy or his family.
Torris Leo Burtz, 54
Vulcan Pipe Co., Woodward Rd Bessemer

If so please,contact
The Birmingham Times at 205) 251-5158 ext. 12
Thank you.

Farmers Insurance Names Two in the Birmingham Area Among Farmers® Top Agents in the Country

Birmingham Times

July 22, 2015

Birmingham, Alabama (July 22, 2015) – Farmers Insurance℠ today announced that two agents in the Birmingham area were named Championship agents for their outstanding achievement and customer focused efforts by the Los Angeles-based, multi-line insurer.

The Birmingham-area Championship agents include:

· David Porter

· Mittie Brown

“I want to congratulate all of our Birmingham-area agents for their achievements. On behalf of Farmers, we are proud to bestow each of them the honor of being a Championship agent,” said Roy Smith, president of personal lines for Farmers Insurance. “To be recognized as among Farmers top agents is a great honor and we sincerely appreciate all that each Championship agent does for our customers and our organization.”

The agents were selected on the basis of a number of criteria, including their distinction in providing exceptional service to help make customers smarter about their insurance choices and a commitment to furthering the goals and standards of Farmers Insurance.

About Farmers Insurance

Farmers Insurance Group of Companies is a leading U.S. insurer group of automobiles, homes and small businesses and also provides a wide range of other insurance and financial services products. Farmers Insurance is proud to serve more than 10 million households with over 19 million individual policies across all 50 states through the efforts of over 50,000 exclusive and independent agents and approximately 22,000 employees. Farmers Insurance Exchange, the largest of the three primary insurance entities that make up the Farmers Insurance Group of Companies®, is ranked No. 264 on the 2015 Fortune 500 list of largest companies.

For more information about Farmers, visit its Web site at www.farmers.com or at www.Facebook.com/FarmersInsurance.

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ALABAMA’S CELEBRITY VETERAN NOAH GALLOWAY TO SPEAK AT THE ALABAMA ALL VETERANS WEEKEND

Birmingham Times

July 22, 2015

TUSCALOOSA, AL- Noah Galloway will be the featured speaker at the 2^nd Annual Alabama All Veterans and Family Reunion. The event will be held August 28^th-30^th, 2015. All Alabama veterans, current service members and their families are invited to attend a weekend of celebration.

“We are honored to be able to host the 2^nd Alabama All Veterans and Family Reunion in Tuscaloosa. This is an incredible event aimed at thanking our servicemen and women. We have worked extremely hard to bring in top-tier entertainment like Noah Galloway, the GIs of Comedy, Glen Templeton and more. The Veteran’s Reunion would not be possible without the generous support of the Tuscaloosa Delegation, who made history by being the only delegation in the state to pool their tourism grants for a single event. We should all be very proud that our elected officials realize the importance of thanking our Veterans.”

Sergeant Galloway is a native of Birmingham, AL and served during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Three months into his second tour of duty, he lost his left arm and leg in an explosive device attack. He is now a fitness guru and motivational speaker, along with recently taking third place in ABC’s Dancing with the Stars. Galloway appeared on the November cover of Men’s Health Magazine, as he was named the publication’s 2014 Ultimate Guy. He has also been a guest on national talk shows including Ellen, The Today Show and Good Morning America.

The GIs of Comedy will start the weekend on Friday night at the Bama Theater. The GIs of Comedy will be included in the weekend for the registered attendees, and tickets will be $5 per person for the general public. Saturday will consist of the Veterans Appreciation Festival hosted at the Tuscaloosa Veterans Affairs Medical Center campus with activities organized for veterans and family members.

The 151^st Army Band will perform, along with country music artist, Glen Templeton. A Ceremonial Healing Walk will be held to honor and recognize fallen soldiers, as well as those still living and serving. The Eastern Region of the Mercedes Benz Car Club will also be in attendance.

Sergeant Galloway and Lieutenant General Willie Williams will speak Saturday night at a ticketed formal dinner. Williams served as the director of the Marine Corps Staff and is one of only four African-American Marines to wear the rank of three-star general and is a graduate from Stillman College.

Sunday morning will open with a memorial service from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. at Veteran’s Park. The weekend is free for registered attendees with the exception of Saturday’s formal dinner. To register for the event, go to www.alabamaveteransreunion.com.

For more information, contact Brandt Garrison, Director of Communication and Public Relations for the TTS, at 205.391.9200 or bgarrison@visittuscaloosa.com.

Tuscaloosa Tourism and Sports’s (TTS) mission is to increase economic impact to the City of Tuscaloosa by positioning Tuscaloosa as a destination for our targeted markets including sporting events, meetings, reunions and leisure tourism. This generates lodging, dining, shopping and entertainment revenue for the City. To learn more, go to www.visittuscaloosa.com.

‘This Woman Is Dead In A Cell That She Should’ve Never Been In’ – Rev. Al Sharpton

Birmingham Times

July 22, 2015

Rev. Al Sharpton talks about the latest in the Sandra Bland case, including the release of the dash cam footage before her untimely death.

“It is disturbing to say the least. A 29-year-old woman dead in police custody. We don’t need an investigation after seeing the dash cam that was released last night. When we look at the fact that This woman is dead in a cell that she should’ve never been in, let’s start there,” Sharpton said.

Dashboard Cam Video From Sandra Bland Arrest Does Not Show Assault [WATCH]

Birmingham Times

July 22, 2015

HEMPSTEAD, Texas (AP) — A police dashboard video released Tuesday shows that a Texas state trooper drew a stun gun on a black motorist and said, “I will light you up” when the woman refused to get out of her car during a routine traffic stop.

The roadside encounter between the trooper and the driver swiftly escalated (starts at 6:30 in the raw video) into a shouting confrontation as the officer tried to pull 28-year-old Sandra Bland from her vehicle. Days later, she was found dead in jail in a case that has caused her family and supporters to dispute whether she hanged herself with a plastic garbage bag in her cell, as authorities have said.

The video posted by the Texas Department of Public Safety shows the trooper stopping Bland for failure to signal a lane change. After he hands her a written warning, the trooper remarks that Bland seemed irritated. The Illinois woman replies that she is irritated because she had changed lanes to make way for the trooper’s car.

The conversation quickly turns hostile when the officer asks Bland to put out her cigarette and she asks why she can’t smoke in her own car. The trooper then orders Bland to get out of the vehicle. She refuses, and he tells her she is under arrest.

Further refusals to get out bring a threat from the trooper to drag her out. He then pulls out a stun gun and makes the threat about lighting Bland up.

When she finally steps out of the vehicle, the trooper orders her to the side of the road. There, the confrontation continues off-camera but is still audible. The two keep yelling at each other as the officer tries to put Bland in handcuffs and waits for other troopers to arrive.

Out of the camera’s view, Bland goes on protesting her arrest, repeatedly using expletives and calling the officer a “pussy.” At one point, she screams that he’s about to break her wrists and complains that he knocked her head into the ground.

The trooper said in an affidavit that after handcuffing her for becoming combative, she swung her elbows at him and kicked him in his right shin.

In the affidavit released Tuesday, trooper Brian Encinia said he then used force “to subdue Bland to the ground,” and she continued to fight back. He arrested her for assault on a public servant.

The trooper has been placed on administrative leave for violating unspecified police procedures and the Department of Public Safety’s courtesy policy. The agency would not address questions about whether the trooper acted appropriately by drawing his stun gun or pulling her out of the vehicle.

“Regardless of the situation, it doesn’t matter where it happens, a DPS state trooper has got an obligation to exhibit professionalism and be courteous … and that wasn’t the case in this situation,” said Steven McCraw, the department director.

Encinia has been a trooper for just over a year.

Bland was taken to the Waller County Jail about 60 miles northwest of Houston on July 10 and found dead July 13. A Texas Rangers investigation into her death is being supervised by the FBI.

Although a medical examiner has ruled Bland’s death a suicide, supporters insist she was upbeat and looking forward to a new job at Prairie View A&M University, where she graduated in 2009. Bland’s family and clergy members have called for a Justice Department probe, and an independent autopsy has been ordered.

However, Bland posted a video to her Facebook page in March, saying she was suffering from “a little bit of depression as well as PTSD,” or post-traumatic stress disorder. Family members have said nothing in her background suggested she was mentally troubled, and at least one friend said she was just venting after a bad day.

Her death comes after nearly a year of heightened national scrutiny of police and their dealings with black suspects who have been killed by officers.

The case has resonated on social media, with posts questioning the official account and featuring the hashtags #JusticeForSandy and #WhatHappenedToSandyBland. Others referred to #SandySpeaks, the hashtag Bland used in monologues she posted on Facebook in which she talked about police brutality and said she had a calling from God to speak out against racism and injustice.

Court records show Bland had several encounters with police in both Illinois and Texas over the past decade, including repeated traffic stops and two arrests for drunk driving, one of which was later dismissed.

She was also charged twice with possession of a small amount of marijuana. A 2009 case was dismissed, but she pleaded guilty last year to the other charge and was sentenced to 30 days in jail.

A decade earlier, in June 2004, Bland was charged with one count of retail theft of less than $150 in Elmhurst, Illinois. She pleaded guilty and was fined.

The Waller County Sheriff’s Office has acknowledged violating state rules on jail training and the monitoring of inmates.

The Texas Commission on Jail Standards last week cited the jail for not providing documents proving that jailers in the past year had undergone training on interacting with inmates who are mentally disabled or potentially suicidal.

The citation also showed that jailers fell short by not observing inmates in person at least once every hour.

The sheriff’s office said Friday in a statement that jailers checked on Bland via intercom on one occasion rather than in person.

Commission Executive Director Brandon Wood has declined to say if the citation is related to Bland’s death. But sheriff’s officials mention her when explaining the violations, noting that they don’t believe “either one of these deficiencies had any part in the death of Ms. Bland.

Third Annual Downtown Homewood Sidewalk Sale Presented by the Homewood Chamber of Commerce

Birmingham Times

July 22, 2015

Third Annual Downtown Homewood Sidewalk Sale Presented by the Homewood Chamber of Commerce

Who: The Homewood Chamber of Commerce and the retailers of 18th Street What: The Third Annual Downtown Homewood Sidewalk Sale, presented by the Homewood Chamber of Commerce and the retailers of 18th Street

When: Saturday, July 25th beginning at 9 a.m.

Where: Downtown Homewood

Background: Join the merchants of Downtown Homewood for the third annual Sidewalk Sale! Beginning at 9 a.m. and lasting throughout the entirety of the day, merchants will line the sidewalks in front of their shops with merchandise discounted up to 75%! Come early and shop local!

Media Contacts:

Sarah Anne Elliott: marketing@homewoodchamber.org | office, 205-871-5631 | mobile, 423-315-0196

Meredith Drennen: director@homewoodchamber.org | office, 205-871-5631 | mobile, 205-454-7968

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Revealing Black Men During National Black Family Month

Birmingham Times

July 21, 2015

By Ben Jealous and Trabian Shorters

July is National Black Family Month, which is a good time to take a moment to celebrate the role of Black men in their families and in society at large.

Let’s take a moment to reveal Black men to America. Let’s upend the stereotypes and honor what is best about the men who are raising children in our communities and our country.

Tell somebody that according to the U.S. Army, Black men serve this country in uniform at a higher rate than all other men. By that measure, Black men are the most patriotic men in America.

Post on Facebook that according to the U.S. Census, the rate of business creation by Black males has been growing at nearly twice the national average for more than a decade. By that measure, Black men are among the most enterprising men in America.

Share on Twitter that according to the Cultures of Giving Report by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Black households continue to give to charity at a higher rate than all other households. By extrapolation, Black men may be among the most generous men in America.

Enlighten somebody that according to the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics, Black men who live with their children are the most likely to bathe, dress, diaper and interact with them daily. Also, Black men who do not live with their children are the most likely to still maintain contact even after remarrying. By these measures, Black men are arguably the most engaged fathers in the country.

Black men may lead the nation in patriotism, entrepreneurship, generosity and parental engagement. But that’s not the story you’ve heard, is it?

Well, you can change that. You can begin to see and tell a more accurate story, one that is fact-based, optimistic and aspires to illuminate Black men’s roles in society as community-builders.

This is not just a wish on our part. More than 100 Black men who head community organizations, called “BMe Leaders,” have agreed to promote a vision of America’s future based upon valuing all members of the human family, recognizing Black men as assets, rejecting narratives that denigrate people, and working together in asset-oriented ways to strengthen communities.

The nation is hungry for a better story about who we are and where we are heading. We should not ignore the problems facing the Black community – but we must stop ignoring our community builders whose actions create safety, knowledge, opportunity and community.

Black men are willing to lead. Are you willing to #ReachWithUs to build more caring and prosperous communities? Get involved at www.bmecommunity.org.

About Ben Jealous and Trabian Shorters

Ben Jealous is Partner at Kapor Capital and former President and CEO of the NAACP. Trabian Shorters is founder and CEO of BMe, a growing network of all races and genders committed to building better communities across the U.S. They are co-editors of the 2015 bestseller, “REACH: 40 Black Men Speak on Living, Leading & Succeeding.” (www.reachwithus.com)

Black Mississippi Flag Supporter Dies in Traffic Accident

Birmingham Times

July 21, 2015

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A black Mississippi man who often dressed in Confederate regalia to support the state flag has died in a one-car accident.

Anthony Hervey, 49, was killed Sunday when the 2005 Ford Explorer he was driving left the roadway and overturned on Mississippi Highway 6 in Lafayette County, the Highway Patrol said.

The vehicle’s owner and passenger in the car, Arlene Barnum, told The Associated Press on Monday that Hervey swerved and crashed after another vehicle carrying four or five young black men pulled up alongside them, yelling and looking angry. Barnum, of Stuart, Oklahoma, said Hervey yelled something back at the other vehicle before losing control and crashing.

“It spun like crazy and we flipped, flipped, flipped. It was awful,” she said.

She said she gave that account to a Mississippi state trooper when she was taken to a hospital after the accident.

Mississippi Highway Patrol spokesman Johnny Poulos said accident reconstruction experts were on the scene Monday to conduct an investigation. He would not say if officials are investigating Barnum’s account.

Barnum said she and Hervey were returning home Sunday from Birmingham, Alabama, where they attended a Saturday rally to save the Linn Park Confederate Monument. City leaders there recently voted to remove the memorial from the park.

Barnum said they were in her SUV, which was not displaying any Confederate flags or stickers.

She said she had no idea whether they had been followed from Birmingham.

Hervey, of Oxford, has drawn attention over the years for opposing efforts to change the flag. He said he dressed in Rebel soldier garb to honor blacks who served with the Confederacy during the Civil War. He was often seen wearing the Confederate uniform and waving a Rebel flag on the Oxford square.

In an interview with the AP in 2001 after a new state flag design was defeated, Hervey said Mississippians’ support of the flag with a Confederate battle emblem in the corner is akin to “standing up for home.”

“This is not racism. This is my heritage,” Hervey said.

Sorry is not enough

Birmingham Times

July 21, 2015

BY JESSE JACKSON

“That’s what strikes me. There but for the grace of God.”

That was President Obama’s reaction when he became the first sitting U.S. president to visit a federal prison, the medium-security El Reno Federal Correctional Institution near Oklahoma City.

“These are young people who made mistakes that aren’t that different than the mistakes I made and the mistakes that a lot of you guys made,” the president told the press. “(W)e have a tendency sometimes to almost take for granted or think it’s normal that so many young people end up in our criminal justice system. It’s not normal. … What is normal is teenagers doing stupid things.”

Obama’s statement was part of a new-found commitment to reform the criminal justice system, including reducing long-term mandatory sentencing, alleviating conditions within prisons and new efforts to help ex-offenders get a start on the outside.

Obama is not alone. Driven partly by the financial squeeze and partly by spreading protests, reform of mass incarceration suddenly has bipartisan appeal. Hillary Clinton decried mass incarceration policies as “wrong,” even though many of them were championed by her husband. Bill Clinton admitted his policies had “put too many people in prison and for too long.” As Republican governors sought ways to save money and address overcrowding in jails, Newt Gingrich joined in calling for sentencing reform. A new coalition, The Coalition for Public Safety, has been launched with support from everyone from the ACLU and George Soros to FreedomWorks and the Koch brothers. Senators from both parties have rushed to introduce bills to revise federal sentencing guidelines for nonviolent offenders. The president recently commuted the sentences of 46 men and women convicted under those guidelines.

More than 2 million people are still held in prisons and jails. The United States has 5 percent of the world’s population but 25 percent of its prison inmates. Millions of lives have been destroyed by harsh sentencing for what the president recognized were the “normal mistakes” that teenagers make.

Of the 2.3 million people in U.S. prisons, 93 percent are men. About two out of three are people of color. The majority is being held for nonviolent crimes (drugs, property theft and “public order” offenses).

Sensible sentences would be a good first step but hardly sufficient. These destructive policies, now admitted to be wrong-headed, have devastated Black and Latino communities, with millions of lives ruined. If you careen recklessly off the road and smash into someone’s living room, sorry isn’t sufficient. At the very least, you will be responsible for repairing the damage done.

We need fundamental reform of our criminal justice system from racial profiling to mandatory sentences. But we also have to redress the damage done to families and communities. Commuting sentences is a start, but we need new programs to rehabilitate those who are sick or addicted. We need investment and jobs so that those who made stupid mistakes can find decent work.

When Reagan and Clinton led a bipartisan push to lock more people up, they provided some of the money needed for new prisons, more cops and more equipment. The bipartisan push to rectify the wrong-headed policies should provide the money needed to correct the damage, and to insure that kids who make mistakes receive a new start, not a life in ruins.

After Baltimore, the reform movement has gained momentum. But apologies and sentencing changes aren’t enough. It’s not enough to save money on prisons the young don’t need; we’ve got to invest in the schools, training and jobs that they desperately need.

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