A 4,000 square feet building right opposite the Dr RN Cooper hospitals canteen in Mumbai was earlier supposed to be used as a hostel. In March, it was converted into an isolation facility for Covid-19 patients. On December 29, work to convert it into a model vaccination centre began.

Over 30 labourers are now working on war footing day and night to prepare the model centre in Cooper hospital. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has asked contractor Eckon to hand over the centre by Monday night.

Cooper hospital, along with seven BMC hospitals, has been selected for the first phase of immunisation of healthcare workers. Mumbai has registered 1.26 lakh heathcare workers for vaccination in the first phase.

On Sunday, the Drug Controller General of India approved emergency restricted use of Serum Institute of Indias Covishield and Bharat Biotechs Covaxin vaccines.

BMC officials said they expect the vaccine roll out to begin soon and have asked contractors to speed up work. On Sunday evening, labourers were busy painting chairs for waiting areas at Cooper hospital, with some setting up beds and some finishing off electrical work.

We began civil work last week and have only a day to finish work. We are not changing the basic infrastructure since it was already being used as an isolation ward, an on site Eckon contractor said. While the K West ward is handling drainage and installation of curtains or partitions, BMCs maintenance department is going to set up signages.

The centre will have a waiting area under a shed at the entrance. The registration will be done in a corridor, which leads into three vaccination rooms. In each room, around five persons can be vaccinated at a time.

An observation room further down the corridor will have several chairs to monitor each vaccinated beneficiary for half an hour. In case of anaphylactic reaction or severe adverse effects, the beneficiary will be transferred to two other rooms that house beds and emergency medical equipment.

Dr Pinakin Gujjar, Dean of Cooper hospital, said a team of specialists from anaesthesia, ENT, chest and general medicine will be available to handle severe adverse effects. We did not have to spend a lot on the centre, we just had to spruce up the existing facility. We are installing water cooler and repairing toilets, said Additional Municipal Commissioner Suresh Kakani.

BMC currently has selected five storage centres in KEM, Nair, Sion and Cooper hospitals as well as the F South health office where the first batch of vaccine will be stocked. A nodal storage facility is, meanwhile, under construction in Kanjurmarg.

The Cooper hospital vaccination centre can vaccinate 2,000 people a day. Ten teams will be deputed to work in two shifts for the purpose.

With Cooper hospital being the main vaccination centre in western suburbs, BMC is mulling over creating a token system at the registration counter. It is possible that a huge crowd comes at the same time for vaccination. To prevent overcrowding at the verification counter, a token will be issued to beneficiaries to create a waiting list and house them in the waiting area, Kakani said.

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Mumbai: Cooper hospitals model vaccination centre to be ready today - The Indian Express

This Entrepreneur Made Two Million By Mastering The Art Of Membership Sites | Stephanie Burns

What started off as the worst thing to happen in Jennifer Allwoods career eventually turned into the best. Back in 2000, she was laid off from her software development job.

I broke down in tears, says Allwood. Until I realized that I was grieving a job that I actually hated. What she loved was her evening side hustle: using paint to turn the kitchen cabinets of her Kansas City, Missouri, neighbors from drab to fab. It was that December that Allwood decided to trade a pager and pantyhose for paint brushes and overallsfull time.

Allwood had kicked off her painting business making $90K a year from it as a part time venture. By 2014, she was running a thriving interior painting business that brought in multiple six-figure revenue every year. That was enough to support her, her family of five (now six!), and a team of painters. But it was a massive drain on her energy and her time. She was burning the candle at both ends offering in-home painting and design services to clients plus answering business questions by email, one at a time, to every entrepreneur who reached out to her wondering how she was seeing so much success. Something had to change. Thankfully she came upon two perfect solutions for her new problem.

Now, Jennifer Allwood is a business coach to creatives who runs a multi- seven figure a year company. Shes the author of the #1 best-selling book, Fear is Not the Boss of You.

Heres how this business coach to creatives went from being laid off to becoming a multi-millionaire with time to spare. Follow her advice to fast-track yourself to similar success.

This Entrepreneur Made Two Million By Mastering The Art Of Membership Sites | Stephanie Burns

Stephanie Burns: Some people take the leap into entrepreneurship while others get pushed. You were already running a successful business part time when you were laid off. Why not take the leap sooner?

Jennifer Allwood: I was always taught to do responsible adult things: get a good paying job with a matched 401k and paid time off, work hard for a raise every year and then have fun after you retire. I knew I wanted more out of life, but I was too scared to leave that security blanket on my own. Getting laid off was incredibly stressful for a period of time. I remember laying in bed at night with my stomach in knots. But it was the one thing that forced me to evaluate what it was that I really wanted out of my life and gave me the opportunity to go after it.

Burns: How were you able to get your business off the ground and running as a busy mom?

Allwood: When I started the painting company, I didnt have kids but I did get pregnant that very first year. Our budget was tight. But tight places often yield big opportunities. I was desperate to not have to go back to a 9 to 5 desk job, so I got scrappy. I visited every designer that I could in person and if I couldnt get them in person, Id call them. By 2014, I had three kids, my husband was working long days in his corporate sales job, and I was feeling like there just wasnt enough return in our bank account for the amount of hours I was working. After taxes, tithing and paying my contractors, there just didnt seem to be anything left. So once again, I got scrappy. I took what I was doing in client homes and started teaching online tutorials of the very same processes to my social media audience. The videos alone brought in six figures in just a years time. As an entrepreneur, if youre feeling like the wheels are about to come off the bus and youre not seeing results, think about what you do well offline or one-to-one and how you can bring it into the online space and make it one-to-many.

This Entrepreneur Made Two Million By Mastering The Art Of Membership Sites | Stephanie Burns

Burns: Its really easy as an entrepreneur to spread yourself thin trying to do all the things. How can we streamline and still be massively successful?

Allwood: Like a lot of women right now, particularly in the age of COVID-19, I realized in my second year of business that I simply did not have enough hours in the day to be a mom, be a wife, run a business and still have energy left for anything else. So I quickly learned how to outsource things that didnt need me. I hired other painters and trained them the way that I wanted the work done. Then, after a couple of years I hired somebody to help me with the emails and administrative tasks. Wanting to control every single thing in your business comes from a place of pride in thinking no one can do it as good as you. I traded my ego for my time back and thats a trade worth making!

Burns: What got you interested in even starting a membership site?

Allwood: After I began selling tutorials online, so many people reached out to me online. They were asking for advice because they watched my social media and saw my business blowing up. At first I didnt want a membership group because I didnt consider myself a teacher. But I knew I could reach more people inside of a paid group than I could through coaching one-on-one. The one-to-one business model works for some, but when you can transition your business to a one-to-many model, you are allowing yourself to scale in a considerable way and create more time for your personal life. Im able to work when I want and Im able to step away and be a mom when my family needs me.

Burns: How did you get your membership site to go from 500k to 2 million in just one year?

Allwood: For a couple of years I ran the membership on an open cart model, meaning people could join at any time for $47 a month. But I felt like we just couldnt make it over this $500k a year hump that I had been trying to surmount for a long time. So at the advice of business coach and membership guru, Stu McLaren, I decided to pivot to a closed cart model where we only accepted new members a few times a year. We told my audience that we would be closing enrollment and in that 10 day period, we added 1,100 new paying members which was the game changer for my business. Oftentimes youll have clients who stall at making a decision and so if you can force them into action, youd be surprised at how many will finally make a move and sign up!

This Entrepreneur Made Two Million By Mastering The Art Of Membership Sites | Stephanie Burns

Burns: How did you work on retaining members in the group?

Allwood: I refined the content that I shared. People will quit a membership when they feel like they cant keep up with the teachings and theyre overwhelmed. Instead of deluging my members with content, I reminded myself that less is more. I also created high touch offers. Sometimes people need a consultant more than group coaching. So for people who werent getting enough out of the membership, I gave them the ability to upgrade to a more intensive and expensive option.

Burns: Are membership sites for everyone? How did you figure out they were for you?

Allwood: In my coaching I teach seven different ways you can make money in the online space, and thats based on where your business currently is, what your skills are and what the business that you want to build looks like. For some people, a membership group doesnt work, and thats okay. I found out they were for me because I love showing up consistently for my clients, and it also provides a consistent income, which I also love. I did one-on-one coaching for quite some time, and it felt so heavy to me. I was drained by so many calls. And oftentimes if youre doing something that feels so heavy, or you literally dread doing it, that can often be a sign for you that its time to pivot.

Burns: Given how much weve all had to pivot this past year, what advice do you have for entrepreneurs on staying profitable and growing to seven figures now?

Allwood: The biggest key to staying profitable is watching what consumers are doing. Years ago when I saw everybody getting onto Facebookbut I realized that not a lot of people were using Facebook for business yetI put my foot on the gas there. Now when you watch peoples buying habits, theyre still using social media but theyre also buying from emails, they also like text marketing. Watch your ideal clients, figure out where they are and what they need, and then get creative to figure out how to meet them where theyre at and deliver what they need in a way that feels good for you.

The second key is to offer your customers a couple of different options. Some people are looking for a closer touch and those people will pay more for more access to you. Dont give your clients a one-size-fits-all solution, but instead think of multiple ways that you can help them while still making sure that its a wise business decision.

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This Entrepreneur Made Two Million By Mastering The Art Of Membership Sites - Forbes

As 2020 comes to an end, we note that it has been quite an active year for insurance law, in particular due to the long-awaited judgment of the Quebec Court of Appeal in Deguise. It is now time for our traditional annual review of the key judgments from across Canada that marked the past year.

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1.Surespan Structures Ltd. v.Lloyds Underwriters, 2020 BCSC

This judgment of the British Columbia Supreme Court concerns the interpretation of a construction project insurance policy, in particular whether there was a limit on the amount payable under the policys mitigation of loss coverage.

The insurers in this case argued that the mitigation of loss coverage was constrained by a $10 million insurance limit and further reduced by amounts paid on behalf of insured professionals and claim expenses incurred during the investigation.

The Court found that as a matter of contractual interpretation, the absence of any reference to a limit of liability in the mitigation of loss coverage wording itself suggested that there were no such constraints for this specific coverage. This conclusion was also supported by the relative independence of this type of coverage in relation to the rest of the policy.

The Court concluded that no limit applied to the mitigation of loss coverage in the project specific professional liability insurance policy.

An appeal was filed on February 6, 2020.

2.Van Huizen v. Trisura Guarantee Insurance Company, 2020 ONCA 222

This case highlights the distinction between an insurance policy and an insurance contract, and more specifically the importance of this distinction in determining whether the insurer has a duty to defend the members of a group insurance plan.

Trisura Guarantee Insurance Company issued a professional liability insurance policy, i.e., the master policy, to the Appraisal Institute of Canada (AIC). The master policy concerned claims made against the AIC, AIC members, their personal corporations and their employers for the negligent provision of professional appraisal services. Coverage under the master policy was extended to individual members of the AIC by way of an individual application. An individual certificate of insurance was issued to each member.

The Courts judgment addresses the differences between insurance policies and insurance contracts, as recognized by the statutory definitions of contract and policy in the Insurance Act. The Court noted that insurance policies are instruments, which do not create legal obligations merely by their existence. Absent a further contractual relationship, a policy is simply a recitation of terms and conditions that do not attach to a particular person or object. In contrast, an insurance contract creates contractual obligations between the parties. Like any other contract, there must be offer and acceptance, and agreement on all material terms. The premium, the nature and duration of the risk to be covered, and the extent of liability are all essential terms of an insurance contract.

The Court explained that the master policy was not a binding agreement on its own, but merely set out the terms of the professional liability insurance being offered to the members of the AIC. Each AIC member who seeks coverage must apply for it. Provided the member and the insurer come to an agreement on the other essential terms (for example, the premium to be paid and the term of the insurance), a certificate of insurance will be issued to the member to confirm the existence of the insurance contract.

3.Markham (City) v. AIG Insurance Company of Canada, 2020 ONCA 239

The Ontario Court of Appeals recent decision in Markham (City) v. AIG Insurance Company of Canada has significant implications for situations where several policies are triggered and may lead towards the joint handling of loss from the outset in cases where two insurers are potentially liable.

This judgment is significant in that it highlights the importance of specific wording. When several policies cover the same risk, priority is often dependant upon other insurance clauses to determine which is the primary policy and which is considered excess. The primary policy controls the defence. It should be noted that the Court of Appeal placed less emphasis on the wording of the primary and excess policies. It departed from the application judges decision by concluding that Lloyd's policy was excess solely in regard to the allegations that overlapped and that fell under the coverage provided by AIG.

For insurers, this judgment reiterates the importance of implementing appropriate file management systems to minimise potential conflict issues.

The Supreme Court of Canada refused leave to appeal on December 3, 2020.

4.SNC-Lavalin inc. (Terratech inc. et SNC-Lavalin Environnement inc.)v.Deguise, 2020 QCCA 495

This highly anticipated judgment of the Quebec Court of Appeal is considered the main judgment in the pyrrhotite files. The matter has been divided into three waves of proceedings, and this judgment was rendered on the appeal of the decision in the first wave.

Recall that the owners of buildings in Trois-Rivires brought close to 880 actions for damages, grouped into 69 different files, due to the deterioration of their foundations caused by the swelling and cracking of concrete. The actions were instituted against several parties, including the individual sellers, the general contractors and formworkers involved in the construction of the foundations, the concrete producers that supplied the problematic concrete, the corporation operating the quarry that supplied the aggregate, the geologist who approved the use of the aggregate and his employer, SNC-Lavalin Inc., as well as all the insurers of those parties.

First, and subject to some exceptions, the trial judge found the contractors, the concrete producers, the quarry, the geologist, SNC, and their insurers liable. He found that the presence of pyrrhotite was both a latent defect and a construction defect resulting in the loss of the work.

The Court of Appeal found that the Superior Court did not err in its interpretation of the insurance policies of the concrete producers, the quarry, and certain contractors. The trial judge correctly rejected the insurers argument that the policies should be declared null and void because the insureds breached their obligation to declare the risks. The insurers also failed to demonstrate the existence of a pyrrhotite exclusion. Finally, the Court of Appeal found that the trial judge did not err in his interpretation of the clauses in SNC-Lavalins insurance policy, including those relating to the exclusions and the retroactive date invoked by the insurers. The Court also found that the contractors had a direct right of action against the insurer in relation to the amount of the liability insurance, which must be used exclusively to pay their claim. The insurers cannot invoke a reduction in the amount of insurance coverage based on erosion caused by claims expenses and legal costs, regardless of the origin of such amounts.

This decision may be analyzed from various perspectives. In the field of insurance alone, several issues are addressed, including the insurers underwriting process, defence costs outside of limits to the benefit of Quebec claimants and the complications of tower insurance. We refer you to our specific articles on those issues.

5.Condominium Corporation No. 9312374 v.Aviva Insurance Company of Canada, 2020 ABCA 166

A recent judgment of the Alberta Court of Appeal reminds insurers that clear policy wording is required in multi-peril or all-risk policies for a faulty workmanship clause to apply.

The Court of Appeal considered the judgment finding that the claim of Condominium Corporation 9312374 (Condominium) was not covered by its insurance policy issued by Aviva. The appeal was allowed.

The facts are as follows. Condominiums parkade sustained structural damage when the workers hired to perform repair and remediation work on the parkade membrane cut too deeply into the concrete slab. Aviva denied coverage for the claim on the basis of the exclusion for the cost of making good faulty workmanship in the multi-peril policy. However, the exclusion clause contained an exception for loss or damage caused directly by a resultant peril.

The Court found that the exclusion clause and the exception were ambiguous. It noted that the parties reasonably expected that the cost of making good faulty workmanship would be excluded, but not the consequences of that faulty workmanship. The Court concluded that the repair and remediation work to the parkade membrane was not covered by the insurance policy but that the damage to the structure of the parkade was a covered loss under the policy.

6. Constructions Reliance inc. (Constructions Reliance du Canada lte) v. Compagnie d'assurances Temple, 2020 QCCA 947

In this judgment, the Quebec Court of Appeal provided an interesting clarification on wrap-up insurance policies.

In the context of a construction project, a painting subcontractor struck a sprinkler head in a stairwell, causing water damage, after the date of receipt of the certificate of substantial completion of the work from the general contractor. Temple denied liability, arguing that the loss could not be covered by the wrap-up policy because the painting work underlying the water damage was not completed at the time of the occurrence.

Temples policy covered many types of claims for damage resulting from the performance of the construction work by the insureds. However, it contained an exclusion for property damage caused to the project itself.

The exclusion contained a completed operations hazard exception, which specified that property damage to the project would be covered if the occurrence was after the Insureds Work has been completed or abandoned. The policy also defined this expression.

In this case, the issuance of a certificate of substantial completion of the work could not be used as proof of completion of the work because the certificate was issued in the name of the general contractor rather than the owner.

The issue in dispute, however, was related to the application of the expression set out in the policy to define completed work, that is when the work has been put to its intended use.

The Superior Court accepted three meanings that could be attached to this expression:

The Court found that so long as the painting work had not been completed, the work could not be put into service or used for its intended purpose. The Court also noted that the fact the lofts were more than 80% occupied had no impact on the analysis. Because the painting work had not been completed in the common areas, that work could not be deemed completed within the meaning of the policy.

On appeal, the Court added to the Superior Courts analysis, noting that the possibility that incomplete work of another nature could be deemed completed within the meaning of the expression has been put to its intended use could not be set aside. That said, the painting work, in view of its nature and the extent of its progress could not be deemed completed within the meaning of that expression.

7.Le Treport Wedding & Convention Centre Ltd.v.Co-operators General Insurance Company, 2020 ONCA 487

In this judgment rendered in July, the Ontario Court of Appeal reversed the trial judgment finding that Treport Wedding & Convention Centre Ltd. was covered for sewer back up only and that there was no coverage available under the flood endorsement of its all-risks policy issued by Co-operators.

Treports commercial premises sustained severe flooding as a result of a rainstorm. Water entered the building through the doors, floor drains and ceilings, causing significant damage to the premises. Treport presented a claim for indemnity to Co-operators General Insurance under its all-risks insurance policy. The insurer paid out the policy limit pursuant to the sewer back up endorsement. The dispute centered on whether the policys flood endorsement applied to the claim. The trial judge found that the flood endorsement did not apply for two reasons: 1- the damage to the property was caused by surface water, defined in the policy as water or natural precipitation temporarily diffused over the surface of the ground and accordingly, the surface water exclusion in the policy applied to exclude coverage; 2- the event was not caused by a flood as defined in the flood endorsement. The Ontario Superior Court of Justice therefore found that the insured was not entitled to coverage under the flood endorsement.

The Court of Appeal examined the policy wording in detail to determine whether the event constituted a flood within the meaning of the policy. The Court reiterated that an endorsement is not independent from the policy as it has no independent existence from the rest of the policy. They must be read together. The Court also noted that giving effect to the definition of surface water when interpreting the flood endorsement would have the effect of nullifying the coverage provided. Flood coverage would effectively be nullified in almost all cases because most buildings stand a certain distance away from the water. Thus, the flood endorsement must be read without giving the surface water exclusion any weight.

Co-operators filed an application for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada on October 20, 2020.

8.Sky Clean Energy Ltd. (Sky Solar (Canada) Ltd.)v.Economical Mutual Insurance Company, 2020 ONCA 558

This is an update to the judgment cited in our 2019 annual review. This decision of the Ontario Court of Appeal addresses the interpretation of an expression commonly used in liability insurance policies, that is, the expression arising out of the operations.

Sky Clean Energy appealed from the judgment of the Superior Court of Justice dismissing its application against Economical Mutual Insurance Company. Recall that when Sky Clean contracted with Marnoch Electrical Services Inc. for the installation of two transformers in the context of two solar energy projects, Marnoch agreed to name Sky Clean as an additional insured under its CGL policy. However, coverage was limited to liability arising out of Marnochs operations. After installation, a fire broke out at one of the sites where the transformer was located. It was replaced, and Sky Clean eventually sold the projects to Firelight Solar Limited Partnership. A few months later, another fire broke out at the other site, also caused by the solar transformer. Firelight shut both projects down for investigation and repairs and sued Sky Clean for remediation costs and loss of revenue. In turn, Sky Clean filed a claim for indemnity from Economical under the insurance policy to cover its losses pursuant to its liability to Firelight. The insurer denied coverage on the basis of the limit set out in the policy, asserting that the loss did not arise from the operations of the contractor, Marnoch. The Ontario Superior Court of Justice agreed with the insurer, finding that the contractor had been told to install the transformers in accordance with Sky Cleans instructions. The appeal was dismissed.

The Court of Appeal considered the requisite connection between the contractors operations and the liability of the additional insured. It confirmed the usual limitations to the expression arising out of the operations, which requires more than a but for test to establish the connection between the liability of the additional insured and the operations of the insured. The Court explained that requiring an unbroken chain of causation and a connection that is more then merely incidental or fortuitous between the liability of the additional insured and the operations of the named insured provides certainty and predictability for all parties. The Court also found this approach consistent with the reasonable expectations of the parties to the construction contract and that of their liability insurers.

9.Future Electronics Inc. (Distribution) Pte Ltd. v.Chubb Insurance Company of Canada, 2020 QCCS 3042

With the soaring interest in cybersecurity issues, we found it important to highlight this recent judgment on the subject.

Future Electronics was the victim of a social engineering fraud, a practice of psychological manipulation for the purpose of perpetrating a swindle, in the amount of US$2.7 million. It therefore submitted a claim to its insurer, Chubb, under its crime insurance policy. The insurer refused to indemnify Future for the loss, asserting that it was a case of social engineering fraud covered under a crime policy endorsement with a coverage limit of $50,000. Future Electronics argued that its loss was covered under the computer fraud or funds transfer fraud provisions of the policy. The Court agreed with the insurer.

The insurance policy provided coverage for direct loss sustained by the insured, resulting from computer fraud by a third party. The policy used the expression unlawful taking. That requires a direct act of stealing perpetrated by a fraudster, through the use of a computer. However, it cannot be construed as being so broad that the simple operation of a computer in an incidental way would give rise to a situation covered by the policy. The use of a computer by the fraudsters as a means of communicating with the employees did not give rise to coverage under the computer fraud provision.

10.Nagy v.BCAA Insurance Corporation, 2020 BCCA 270

In this case, the British Columbia Court of Appeal distinguished between omissions and misrepresentations.

The obligation of good faith is a central element of insurance contracts in the sense that both insureds and insurers must conform to high standards regarding disclosure. For insureds, this means that they must disclose all material facts concerning the risk. Any omission or misrepresentation affecting that risk will be considered a relevant factor should the insurer attempt to cancel the contract. However, there may be differences between the two.

In Nagy, the Court of Appeal provides advice to practitioners for situations where the boundary between omissions and misrepresentations becomes blurred.

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Canada Year-end review: The top insurance cases of 2020 - Lexology

When our family arrived in the United States in 1989, we quickly discovered the magic of yard sales and alley finds. At yard sales, we bought housewares for a quarter a piece, a 1970s couch for $40, an armful of toys and stuffed animals for a buck. In back alleys, we found free mismatched dining chairs and mid-century modern telephone tables now very much back in vogue, I hear.

At the time, we were living in a roach-friendly apartment complex in Annandale, Virginia, a hub in the Washington, D.C. area for many lower-income immigrants during the 1990s. It was poorly-lit and cramped, but it was a place to make our own after a two-month stay at the home of a Korean woman who hosted new immigrants. One day, my father came home with a 10-by-15 piece of carpeting from an alley nearby. At that time, we thought it was a rug, but now I realize it was a scrap piece of leftover carpet the kind a stingy landlord might install in a slipshod rental-unit renovation.

My dad wanted to wash his new alley find, but he didnt know about carpet cleaning services nor could he afford it. So our entire family my parents, brother, grandmother and I headed down to a nearby creek with the rolled-up carpet. I cannot trace my fathers reasoning for washing the carpet in that creek; I imagine that very act probably contaminated the scrap even more. In any case, on that summer day in 1989, our family washed the carpet along the bank of the creek. I was 9 years old, and I still remember the feeling of the cool stream around my ankles.

This was a memory buried deep in my mind, likely suppressed by the same shame that kept me from inviting friends to our apartment or taking the food we ate at home to school for lunch: Poor is bad, different is bad both notions so egregiously false I wish I could travel back in time to tell my child self that these are lies, to tell her to hold her head high.

The memory of my family by the creek from our hardcore years, as my brother and I jokingly refer to them bubbled to the surface as the closing scene of Minari faded to black and the credits rolled after a virtual screening I attended in November. The new film based on the childhood memories of Korean American director Lee Isaac Chung and starring Korean American actor and Second City alum Steven Yeun (The Walking Dead, Okja, Burning) has been garnering praise and generating awards buzz. It was even the subject of some controversy recently, when the Hollywood Foreign Press Association rejected the film from entering the Golden Globes Best Picture race because it was predominantly in Korean.

Minari has been described as a story about a Korean American immigrant family a concept so specific and loaded for me that as soon as I hit play on the trailer a few months ago, I began to tear up. My instinct then was to claim the film right away: This one is about, and for, Korean-American immigrants and their children. This one is almost better than Parasite. That one was a South Korean film, and I was so proud when it swept awards season, but this one this one is about my parents and my brother and my grandmother and me in the United States of America. This one is ours.

Thats what a lack of representation does: It makes you rabidly proud and irrationally possessive of something that finally reflects you.

Chung, the filmmaker, has said his intent was to make a film for everyone. During a Q&A after the virtual screening, he said, We just didnt want this film to be something that people compartmentalize as being, this is an immigrant story about this directors parents. It felt like it needed to go to that register of creating more of a human story that could work on a universal level.

The film does that, I think. But the way it conjured up memories of my own familys early years in the U.S. painful, hilarious, harrowing, bizarre ones tells me there is a specific power, a particular magic, in seeing an authentic reflection of something approximating ones own experience, especially for people of color. As entertained and moved as I have been by countless films and TV shows throughout my life, none in recent memory has evoked so much stuff, for lack of a better word, as this film has.

The way Yeuns character, the patriarch, would raise his voice or sit alone, stewing in his white, sleeveless undershirt, reminded me of my own father and the fear he sometimes invoked in my brother and me. As children, we didnt understand his perpetual anger and anxiety. Now I recognize them as byproducts of what I call immigrant life stresses finding jobs only to lose them months later, not being able to understand the language of the world around him, scrambling to make rent each month, trying to maintain ties with relatives back in the motherland, daily losing his grip on the elusive American dream.

Of all the imagery in Minari, though, the most powerful, for me, was the way the character of Monica, the wife and mom played by South Korean actress Han Ye-ri, wiped her tears during her arguments with Yeuns character. She always wiped them swiftly, with dignity, as if they were a waste of time. Thats how my mother cried when she argued with my father over, well, immigrant life stresses. In South Korea, she was a brilliant, spunky social worker who helped orphans. Here in the States, she worked in a Kmart stockroom, a dry cleaners, a shoe-repair shop and a convenience store. This year, she was forced into retirement at age 70. The law firm where she worked as a conference-room aide setting up lunch and coffee for attorneys half her age, cleaning up after their meetings laid her off when work-from-home became a semi-permanent policy during the pandemic.

In the Minari Q&A, Chung said he started off his career thinking that I wanted to make films that arent about my life. But after making this film, he acknowledged that it felt precious to have something that I can show to my family both to my parents, in which they feel like they were seen and heard, and then also to my daughter, something I can leave behind to her, that she can see where we come from.

Beyond being a gift to Chungs loved ones, Minari, for me, is a reminder that we need more, not fewer, stories like this today more movies, more books, more poems. To help us understand one another beyond stereotypes and caricatures, to find common ground, to make many feel seen for the first time and embolden them to tell their stories.

Seeing ones own life, culture, and perhaps more importantly, their economic class, mirrored in a film is not a common experience for many immigrants and more broadly, for people of color. Recently, Hollywood has held up films like Crazy Rich Asians and Always Be My Maybe as examples of Asian-American representation. But they still portray a life that does not reflect mine beyond the color of our skin. Minari, which features a leaky mobile home and a cursed farm for much of its running time, is a truer reflection of the precarious struggle of my family and many others like us.

All my life, Ive watched characters like Kevin McAllister in Home Alone, Kelly Kapowski on Saved By the Bell (the original series, not the 2020 remix), the well-coiffed 20-somethings on Friends. They were entertaining enough, but difficult to relate to. Frankly, meaningful representation wasnt something I even knew to expect. But more than three decades since that summer day by the creek, I am thrilled to finally see a film that represents my family and me. It joins a growing canon of thoughtful films about the immigrant experience.

It allows me to say: This one is about us. This one is ours.

Esther Yoon-Ji Kang is a reporter for WBEZs Race, Class and Communities desk and WBEZs Education desk. Follow her on Twitter @estheryjkang.

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Watching Minari, I Saw My Immigrant Experience On The Screen For The First Time - WBEZ

Performance venues across the country are anxiously awaiting a post-pandemic environment when they can throw open their doors to waiting crowds and hear the sweet sound of thunderous applause.

The Lyric Theater in historic Overtown is no exception, and its operators are more than ready with a restored theater auditorium and brand-new stage. All it needs is the green light from public health officials to reopen.

Shortly after theaters were forced to shutter in March, rotting stage floor boards at the Lyric led to the discovery of a termite infestation. Thats when the decision was made to quickly eradicate the pests, demolish and rebuild the stage, and undergo a full blown auditorium renovation during this unplanned intermission.

What awaits the public in 2021 is a historic space restored to the opulence and grandeur of the original 1913 playhouse. The Lyric Theater is on the National Register of Historic Places and is the last remaining original structure from Miamis segregation-era Harlem of the South.

Geder Walker, the Black businessman who built the Lyric Theater, was a well-traveled man, and when he decided to construct this building in Miamis Colored Town, he did so with the beautiful and grand opera houses and theaters from Europe in mind, said Timothy A. Barber, Lyrics executive director.

Over the years the theater has seen many different iterations, but the current interior more closely resembles the magnificence of the original space, hailed by a 1915 newspaper as the most beautiful and costly playhouse owned by colored people in all of the Southland, said Barber.

The $120,000 restoration was made possible with funding from the Southeast Overtown Park West Community Redevelopment Agency, Miami-Dade County through the office of then chairwoman Audrey Edmonson and volunteers from the Overtown community.

Besides the complete rebuilding of its 2,600-square-foot stage, theater enhancements include interior painting in the auditorium and historic lobby; custom woodwork in the theater on the proscenium, walls and doors; new built-in stairs for the stage; carpet installation; custom door painting; and bespoke fixtures installed on doors. Local residents were hired for demolition. Vendors who worked on this labor of love include Ronys Fine Carpentry, Nutting Engineers, National Concrete Polishing, Alliance Fabrication, Tito Miller and Jerry Mack. The entire project was designed and overseen by Barber himself.

Timothy A. Barber, executive director of the Historic Lyric Theater and Black Archives, unveiling the theaters renovated auditorium and stage in November 2020.

Front and center on the stage foundation is the face of a lion, which is the logo of The Black Archives, History and Research Foundation of South Florida, which acquired the Lyric Theater in 1988. The lion comes from the African proverb, Until the lion tells the story, tales of the hunt will glorify the hunter. The foundation believes the proverb is the essence of the archives, whose mission is to collect, preserve and disseminate Miamis Black history from 1896 to present, and tell its untold stories and ensure that history is preserved for future generations.

Inside the restored Lyric Theater facing the balcony.

Built in 1913, the Lyric Theater quickly became a major entertainment center for Black Americans in Miami. The 400-seat theater was built, owned and operated by Walker, an enterprising Georgian who came to Miami prior to 1900. The theater anchored the district known as Little Broadway, an area alive with hotels, restaurants and nightclubs frequented by Black and white tourists and residents. It served the community as a movie and vaudeville theater for almost 50 years, and was a symbol of Black economic influence free of discrimination and a source of pride and culture within Overtown.

An image of the Lyric Theater in its segregation-era heyday is displayed on the wall of the theaters original lobby.

A view of Lyrics new 2,600-square-foot stage, recently rebuilt after a termite infestation.

After his death in 1919, Walkers wife, Henrietta, continued to operate the Lyric, which was also used as a community auditorium. School children and civic groups performed on its stage and special events such as commencement ceremonies were held there. Visiting luminaries like Mary McLeod Bethune, Ethel Waters and the Fisk Jubilee Singers lectured and sang at the venue.

The Lyric continued to operate as a movie theater until 1959, when it became a church of the General Assembly of the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith. When Overtown began to deteriorate in the 1960s the Lyric closed and would remain shuttered for decades.

Phase one of restoration of the former showplace began in 1989. In 2000, after extensive rehabilitation and funding from the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, the newly restored Lyric Theater opened once again.

This is the first time in 20 years that the theater has been closed to audiences, but it is persevering through the generosity of its funders.

As a Black-owned nonprofit organization, we are not strangers to funding difficulties and the stretching of resources. The Black Archives has always had to be extra vigilant about obtaining and safeguarding our coffers. Thankfully, we were able to practice good stewardship over our resources, said Barber.

The Black Archives has had to pivot from public in-person events to virtual activities due to the coronavirus pandemic, like many cultural institutions throughout the nation. It has been presenting thoughtfully curated online programming for the last 10 months, from live Black history trivia shows and childrens storytime, to panels on race, religion and social justice. The date for the next fully public event is tentatively slated for February 2021.

Because the Lyric does not host its own theater company and has typically served as a performance venue for others, developing original programming is a new enterprise that entails careful planning under current conditions that makes economic sense.

While we are still watching the developments with COVID-19 and the current surge, we are hopeful that at the top of 2021, we will be able to bring back in-person activities. Things will be different than before, taking into account safety measures and social distancing, but we are looking forward to returning with signature programming like our amateur night showcase, Lyric Live, Barber said. We know that people are really craving live entertainment and we hope to bring it back to Overtown in a safe and well-thought-out way.

Miami anxiously awaits that day.

An old photograph of when the Lyric Theater fell into disrepair in the 1960s while being used as a church.

Officially renamed The Black Archives Historic Lyric Theater Cultural Arts Complex, the venue is now the oldest legitimate theater in Miami. Adjacent to the citys central downtown business district, it is an anchor site of the Historic Overtown Folklife Village. Just as in Overtowns glory days during the early part of the 20th century, the theater is poised to once again become, in the 21st century, a symbol of Black economic influence, as well as a social gathering place and a source of pride and culture.

The Black Archives History and Research Foundation of South Florida is a photographic and manuscript archival research repository dedicated to documenting the history of people of the African Diaspora in Miami-Dade County. Founded in 1977 by Dorothy Jenkins Fields, it has became one to the largest repositories for the history of Black Americans in Miami. The nonprofit organization is housed at the Lyric complex.

An exterior view of the present day Black Archives Historic Lyric Theater Cultural Arts Complex.

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Lyric welcomes the new year with new stage - The Miami Times

With the addition of snow and ice under our feet, the fear of falling heightens for many. However, Mother Nature is not the only culprit when it comes to falls. Many falls happen in the home, where you may think you are most safe.

Fortunately, there are ways to make your home a safer place with a few easy adjustments, according to RiverView Healths Coordinator of Physical Therapy Lindsey Ebertowski, DPT.

Before the snow even fell, we were seeing a higher number of falls taking place throughout the community, Ebertowski shared. I think its due to the lack of exercise with more people being homebound and getting deconditioned.

RiverViews Physical Therapy Team can help with any mobility issues you or a loved one might be experiencing.

There are actions you can take today, and as you age, to help keep you safe and independent tomorrow, she stated. Make a plan today. Stay independent tomorrow.

Ebertowski suggests the following:

Check the floors in each room in your home and reduce tripping hazards:

Check the kitchen:

Check the bedrooms:

Check inside and outside stairs and steps:

Check the bathrooms:

Falls are also more likely when wearing inappropriate footwear, such as flip-flops that dont cover the heel. Wear safe shoes that fit well, have a firm heel to provide stability, and have a textured sole to prevent slipping.

Falls and a fear of falling can diminish your ability to lead a full and independent life, Ebertowski stated. Although one in every four older adults falls each year, falling is not a part of normal aging. You have the power to reduce your risk of falls.

Ebertowski and RiverViews Physical Therapy Team are movement experts who improve quality of life through hands-on care, patient education, and prescribed movement. If you worry about falls, have had a fall, or have experienced a loss of balance, talk to your primary care provider about having a physical therapy evaluation. For more information, call RiverViews Rehab Services at 218.281.9463.

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RIVERVIEW'S PHYSICAL THERAPY TEAM OFFERS FALL PREVENTION TIPS, SERVICES - kroxam.com

Talk about a stark contrast ...

Couple weeks ago, I got down on the floor to play with my granddaughter.

For years Ive been wearing knee pads whenever a task involved getting down on my hands and knees. Some prior surgery, and 60 years of wear and tear made it necessary. Going without felt like kneeling on a Lego block.

When I asked my doctor about it years ago, he said he couldnt recommend ever getting down on your hands and knees. Physical therapists smile when I tell them what the doc said.

How about the guys who install carpets for a living, I thought.

But this was something new. It was a really sharp pain in my right knee, like someone heating up an ice pick and stabbing it in right below the kneecap.

Just what I need, I thought as I struggled to get back up from the floor from playing with my granddaughter, another trip to the orthopedic surgeon.

But I figured a guy cant go through life without getting down on the floor with grandkids and Labrador retrievers. So I called the clinic where that orthopedic surgeon works. And this is what I posted on Facebook (because, like, we put everything on Facebook these days):

A sharp pain in my right knee flared up last weekend. On Tuesday I called (the clinic one town over) for an appointment with the doc who fixed my other knee and both shoulders. Hes in (my town) today, the scheduler said. Can you be there at 1:40?

You betcha.

So I had my appointment within four hours, my post continued. X-rays were taken, and I had my diagnosis of bursitis by mid afternoon. Then I was able to get right in to see the physical therapist Ive gone to in the past. Its now three days later, Ive had two physical therapy sessions, and Im well on my way to recovery.

This is not a health care system I want to fundamentally change.

The surgeon I saw who is also the team physician for our university football team fixed my left knee when I tore my quadriceps tendon 11 years ago. Then he fixed rotator cuffs on both my port and starboard shoulders. Great guy.

I wasnt on Medicare for those surgeries, but I am today. So Im not the most attractive patient with a bum knee. Nevertheless, I got great care.

So I put all that on Facebook. And I soon got a response from a young mom overseas, who I have known all of her life, who was born in the United States but now has two sons and a daughter in a country that has nationalized health care. This is what she wrote:

Dave in (my countrys) health care. Pain in knee. Call Dr., appointment in two weeks. Goes to appointment, told to take Paracet. Gets sick leave. Dave calls Dr. again a month later, gets another appointment in two weeks. Goes back in. Gets told to try some rub-on pain killer prescription. Longer sick leave. Dave calls back still in pain. Another two weeks waiting for appointment. Dave insists on X-ray. Dr. agrees just to get him to quiet down. X-ray is scheduled in three months down the road. X-ray Dr. looks and says there is nothing wrong with it. Dave gets sick leave for extended period. Dave is pissed he cant get decent healthcare and is willing to pay more for diagnosis. Dave goes home to Wyoming where he should have never left.

She added that when her son was 18 months old, he needed to see a dermatologist.

I called in January to find out his appointment was for November, she wrote.

I know our health care in the United States isnt perfect. I know how fortunate I am to have such great care available so quickly.

I just think the folks who are determined to turn our health care over to the government should talk to folks, like this young friend of mine, who are living with it every day.

Lets not screw up what, at least in my experience, is some pretty wonderful care.

Dave Simpson has been a newsman for four decades, working as a reporter, editor, publisher and columnist. He lives in Cheyenne. He can be reached at davesimpson145@hotmail.com.

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Two sides of the health care coin | Rocketminer | wyomingnews.com - Wyoming Tribune

The riverboat captain is a storyteller, and Captain Don Sanders will be sharing the stories of his long association with the river from discovery to a way of love and life. This a part of a long and continuing story.

By Capt. Don SandersSpecial to NKyTribune

Thank goodness 2020 is three days behind us. The day before the turn of the calendar, I found myself reflecting on New Years days gone by.

The steamboat cruising season began in Spring lay-up, and once started, lasted until nearly the end of the year sometime around Thanksgiving.

There were never any Christmas or New Years Eve celebrations aboard the DELTA QUEEN when I was there. Before the end of each year, the crew was laid off and collecting their unemployment checks at least I was. In fact, I looked forward to the break at the end of the year as we had no off-days, vacations, or other forms of time-off. The steamboat cruising season began in Spring lay-up, and once started, lasted until nearly the end of the year sometime around Thanksgiving, usually. The official Logbook of the DELTA QUEEN, 1971, notes:

Sun. Nov 28. The End of the Trip and the end of the 1971 Season. Most of the crew paid off, and [boat] departed Podras Street Wharf for Avondale Shipyard.

On Thursday, 25 November 1971, Thanksgiving had no annotation in the Log commemorating the holiday. If there was a special celebratory meal served on the Main Deck for the passengers in the Orleans Room dining area, the festivity failed to spread below to the Crews Mess. Later crews may tell a different story when the DELTA QUEEN ran later into the year.

However, holidays aboard the Casino Boats of the late 1990s and early to mid-2000s were a different tune. On the five gambling boats I commanded, the DIAMOND LADY, EMERALD LADY, PLAYERS, GRAND VICTORIA I, and the GRAND VICTORIA II, holidays were special times of celebration as they were when most people were off work and available to patronize the vessels. Of my five casino boats, I remember the GRAND VICTORIA II the best, where 16 years of my life were invested in that lovely stern paddlewheeler.

I remember the GRAND VICTORIA II the best, where 16 years of my life were invested in that lovely stern paddlewheeler.

From Christmas Eve through New Years Day, the GRAND VIC II, or GVII, on the Middle Ohio River, Mile 506 at Rising Sun, Indiana, and across the river from Rabbit Hash, Kentucky, was one of the busiest and most lucrative times of the year. Onboard the boat, inside the spacious shoreside pavilion, and around the grounds and roadways belonging to the property, all took on a holiday air thanks to the vessel and shoreside crews working diligently under the marine departments command with the Captains and the Marine Director in charge.

During that special week, employee and crew vacations and requests for days off for the holidays were denied. Every hand available was necessary for the rush of anticipated patrons flocking to the lure of the gaily, although gaudy, decorations.

On Christmas Day, the casino closed from 3 a.m. until noon giving most of the employees, except for the on-duty mariners required to be aboard the GVII according to the vessels Certificate of Inspection, some holiday time at home with their families. By noon, though, a crowd stood waiting beyond the turnstiles for the gates to the boarding ramp to open. Unless a rare emergency arose, such as exceptionally high water on the Ohio River rising to such a level to flood the roads leading to the property, Christmas morning was the only time gaming closed during the year.

An outside contractor came aboard specializing in installing inflated balloons inside a huge net suspended from the overhead atop the vast open space above the escalators.

Of all the holidays, New Years Eve was the grandest and most celebrated on the GRAND VIC II. While gaming continued after the Christmas Day rush, an outside contractor came aboard specializing in installing inflated balloons inside a huge net suspended from the overhead atop the vast open space above the escalators. A pull line attached to the nets bottom was the trigger that released the balloons with a hard yank. Once the net and contents were in place a few days before the beginning of the upcoming year, the rope had to be secured and guarded until the countdown reached zero when a hardy tug unleashed the balloons onto the revelers heralding in the coming year below. Tensions remained high for several days before the big night lest some prankster pulled the cord prematurely, thereby jeopardizing the captain-in-charges employment security.

New Years Eve aboard the GRAND VICTORIA II was a super-gala event. Instead of just one group of celebrants aboard the vessel, the evening was divided into three separate cruises.

Each had their time aboard the boat, and after the lesser sub-groups had their turn, the primary party-goers crowded aboard for the countdown to midnight. Everyone dressed their best, and my costume was the full-dress uniform with a shiny, silk bowtie and the ornate high-pressure Captains Cap.

My costume was the full-dress uniform with a shiny, silk bowtie and the ornate high-pressure Captains Cap.

Everyone from the General Manager to all the company directors was aboard. The pilothouse became the hub of activity where a TV, tuned to the balls drop in Times Square in New York City, coordinated the drop of the festive balloons inside the vessel beneath the Captains quarters.

During the hours before the anticipated stroke of the clock announcing the approaching new year, the pilothouse hosted various department heads who needed the assurance that everything was in readiness for the anticipated drop of the inflated rubber bladders hanging high above the opening beneath the roof to the carpet of the Main Deck, some five stories below.

The visitors most welcome in the wheelhouse were Tom Sanders, Director of Marine Operations, and Arland Boyd, Director of Security. Except for the General Managers occasional appearance, the other big shots were accorded their ranks courtesy. Still, they were regarded as no more than curious interlopers in the delicately-tuned operation.

A quarter of an hour before the countdown, either the Bridge Mate or the Deck Mate took charge of the scene at the net.

A quarter of an hour before the countdown, either the Bridge Mate or the Deck Mate took charge of the scene at the net and carefully readied the pull cord while the deckhands stood by to clear the, then stopped, escalators of the balloons after the release. Of course, all of the participants co-ordinated the exercise with two-way radios they carried; assigned to Channel 9, the mariners channel.

With the television tuned to the station carrying the traditional merrymakers in Times Square, the Captain-on-Watch (me on several occasions), watched carefully, and with a hand on the switch controlling the microphone to the public address system throughout the vessel, followed along with the count from New York City:

FIVE FOUR THREE TWO ONE HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

That goes for this year, too

HAPPY NEW YEAR, 2021!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR, 2021!!!

Captain Don Sanders is a river man. He has been a riverboat captain with the Delta Queen Steamboat Company and with Rising Star Casino. He learned to fly an airplane before he learned to drive a machine and became a captain in the USAF. He is an adventurer, a historian, and a storyteller. Now, he is a columnist for the NKyTribune and will share his stories of growing up in Covington and his stories of the river. Hang on for the ride the river never looked so good.

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The River: Reflecting on New Year's days gone by on riverboats and saying a relieved goodbye to 2020 - User-generated content

Alan Froman|ThisWeek group

For many people, the primary focus for 2020 was to just get through the trying year of the COVID-19 pandemic, an economicdowntown, social unrest and a contentious presidential election, making it a year they'll likely always remember but want to forget.

Meanwhile, Grove City officials are entering 2021 with a focus on planning for the next 20 years and beyond, Mayor Richard "Ike" Stage said.

"We're usually in a constant state of long-range planning," he said. "We've survived the pandemicyear quite well as a community financially and in the impact on our economy."

The city was helped by being one of the most diversified in central Ohio, offering a mix of housing and jobopportunities anda blend of businesses, he said.

"That diversity is shown in the mix of housing and job opportunities we have," Stage said. "It's the blend of all the industries we have in Grove City, from high tech to logistics and lots of thingsin between."

No amount of planning could have prepared the city for something as unexpected as the pandemic, however, council president Christine Houk said.

Both the council and the administration were dedicated to providing support that residents and businesses needed, she said.

"That was on the front burner for the nation and for our community," Houk said."We will continue on that front, but I can't really make a crystal-ball projection" regarding what form that support will take in 2021.

The pandemic did force the city to reprioritize its 2020 plans and delayed progress on a number of projects that should get started or ramp up over the next 12 months, Stage said.

That includes the Columbus Street extension that will serve to connect Grove City's Town Center with the new Beulah Park Living development.

"We hope to start construction before the end of January, and it will be a four- or five-month project," Stage said.

The Columbus Street project originally was expected to get underway in 2020, but the pandemic and the process of the city negotiating with the owners of 18 properties affected by the planned expansion to buy a portion or all of their parcels lead to pushing the starting date back, Stage said.

The city also expects to take the first steps toward developing the 30-acre park that will be in the middle of the Beulah Park development area, he said.

It's still to be determined the entire slate of amenities for the new park, but during 2021, "our goal is to make it begin to look like a park," Stage said.

The initial work will include completing additional grading, placing a path around the perimeter of the park and planting trees, he said.

An amphitheater is planned as a centerpiece, but a timeline for development of one still is being finalized, Stage said.

The city has applied for $1 million from the state's capital budget to help fund the $3.5 million amphitheater project, he said.

Beulah Park is one of three public recreational-space projects the city has preliminary concepts for,but details still must be worked out,Houk said.

The other planned projects are the redevelopment of the old Grove City Public Library parcel on Park Street and an adjacent city-owned parcel into a park site and the creation of a new in the Pinnacle development.

"All three of them are in the concept form right now, but we have not yet committed to what the amenities are going to be in those parks," Houk said.

The decisions regarding the parks at Beulah and the old library site will be shaped in part by the recommendations in the Town Center conceptual framework, which is expected to be adopted this year, she said.

"Both the City Council and the planning commission were presented with a draft version of the framework in 2019, and we're expecting to receive the document in its final form early in the new year," Houk said.

The framework will help provide guidelines to develop a vision for the new parks, she said, but 2021 also likely will include an effort to determine cost estimates for potential amenities that could be included at the sites.

"Those cost estimates will help us determine what we think we can afford and want to do at the parks, what some funding opportunities might be and prioritizing the order in which we want to try to get these projects completed," Houk said.

Last February, council approved a resolution that Houk and Stage had originated to form a substance-addiction and mental-health action-plan committee for the Grove City community.

Creating an opioid action plan was one of the goals council had set for 2019, Houk said.

"The committee is a partnership with ADAMH and a number of local partners in our community," she said. "The first goal was to get a community roundtable discussion organized to include representatives from South-Western City Schools, mental-health clinicians and health-care providers to talk about theissues they are seeing involving addiction and mental health."

The pandemic's rise made it difficult to get everyone togetherfor the public discussion, but the committee has begun meeting on a regular basis, Houk said.

"The stress of the pandemic has affected a lot of people's mentalhealth, and some people are copingthrough addiction," she said. "We need an effort like this even more than before."

The pandemic forced the temporary closure of the city's Evans Senior Center, and the facility remains closed because of concerns about the higher risk of contracting COVID-19 among older adults.

The closure has allowed the city to complete some planned sprucing up in the building, including upgrading the restrooms, repainting walls and ceilings, making the building more handicapped accessible, installing new carpet and reconfiguring some rooms to provide more space for activities, Stage said.

Exactly when the Evans Center will be able to reopen is unknown, he said, but when the public is able to return to the center, "they will find a more enhanced facility," he said.

afroman@thisweeknews.com

@ThisWeekAfroman

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Grove City in 2021: Focus is on planning, not just for this year but for next 20-plus - ThisWeek Community News

The Telegraph

Chinese billionaire Jack Ma, who hasnt been seen in public for several weeks after criticising Chinas financial regulatory system, has now disappeared as a judge on a TV talent show that he created. Mr Ma was absent from the final of The Apprentice-style Africas Business Heroes, a show that offers budding African entrepreneurs the chance to compete for a share of US$1.5 million (1.1 million) in prize money. Mr Ma was originally due to be part of the panel that judged contestants business ideas. But he was replaced as a judge by an executive from Alibaba, the ecommerce company that he founded, in the November final. His photograph has also been taken down from the judging webpage and he was left out of a promotional video, according to the Financial Times, which also reported that broadcast of the final has been delayed until the spring. The paper cited a spokesperson for Alibaba as saying that Mr Ma could no longer be part of the judging panel due to a schedule conflict. One of Chinas most successful entrepreneurs, Mr Ma appears to have fallen foul of its leaders after he criticised the countrys regulators and its state-owned banks in late October. In a speech in Shanghai, he called for reform of the regulatory system, which he said was stifling innovation. About a week later, the Shanghai Stock Exchange ordered a US$37 billion initial public offering of Ant Group, a financial technology firm co-founded by Mr Ma, to be suspended. Mr Ma reportedly hasnt been seen in public since then. In late December, Chinese authorities announced an investigation into Alibaba for suspected monopolistic behaviour, and ordered Ant Group to restructure its operations to meet regulatory guidelines. Chinese authorities are trying to tighten oversight of the countrys financial sector, but are also seen as wanting to rein in the huge influence of private tech giants. Mr Ma is a popular figure in China, and one of the countrys best-known businesspeople abroad. Formerly an English teacher, he founded Alibaba in 1999, which became Chinas biggest online ecommerce company. He stepped down as the companys chairman in 2019, but is still one of its largest shareholders.

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Crystals installed on Times Square New Year's ball - Yahoo News