Jimmy  Darts

SB Mowing

Pattie Gonia

Little Miss Flint

Kalina Silverman / @makebigtalk on Instagram

The Dogist

Samuel Weidenhofer

Patriotic Kenny Foundation

Peter Bond

That Good News Girl

Ben Saunders - Flawless Cleaning

Flavor Flav

Ask Uncle Jack

Amy Jandrisevits

FowlMouthFarmer

Tess Bohne

Latonja and Taylor Richardson

Officer Richard Craig

John Wolfe

Khloe

<div>Hello, my name is Judy Leary-Wagner, and I am the Democratic Auditor of Pike County, Pennsylvania.
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<div>In September 2024, just hours after I questioned a county expenditure of over $125,000 that lacked proper documentation, the Pike County Commissioners issued a directive stating that no document requests from the Auditors would be honored unless signed by two Auditors.
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<div>That directive changed everything. It effectively blocks any one Auditor — especially a minority Auditor — from independently reviewing county spending. This restriction undermines checks and balances and threatens every taxpayer’s right to transparency.
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<div>In Pennsylvania, voters elect three county Auditors, but each voter may only vote for two candidates. That structure helps promote balance and independent oversight, ensuring no one group can dominate financial review.
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<div>To be clear, no document requests have been submitted that were signed by two Auditors. One of the majority (Republican) Auditors has been collecting documents without any such dual authorization. This selective enforcement shows the directive was not about efficiency or fairness — it was about control. It appears the majority wants a way to prevent me from obtaining records they would prefer I not see. It effectively silences one elected watchdog and denies taxpayers an independent voice.
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<div>As Auditors, we swear an oath to obey the law and safeguard public money. The Pennsylvania County Code gives Commissioners no authority to impose restrictions on elected Auditors. Allowing this directive to stand would set a dangerous precedent — one that lets those in power limit oversight whenever it becomes inconvenient.
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<div>I filed a legal challenge to defend not just my rights but the integrity of all county Auditors. Without independence, oversight becomes meaningless.
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<div>In a lower court hearing that was intended only to address preliminary objections — not the substance of my legal action — a ruling was improperly issued, leaving the main legal issues unanswered. Misleading information was presented to the court, and I was never given an opportunity to respond. That is one of the key reasons I am now appealing the decision, with new legal representation.
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<div>This case is about preserving the public’s right to transparent, accountable government. When oversight is weakened, misuse of public money can go unnoticed and uncorrected.
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<div>I have funded this legal action out of my own pocket because I believe deeply in transparency and open government. I am a widow, I work two jobs, and I’m raising two wonderful children, ages 18 and 17, both on the autism spectrum. Despite these challenges, I’ve already spent thousands of dollars in legal fees — because this fight matters to every taxpayer who deserves to know how their money is being spent.
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<div>The implications of this case reach far beyond Pike County. It could determine whether local officials across Pennsylvania can block elected Auditors from doing their jobs. If this precedent stands, any minority Auditor — and the taxpayers they represent — could be shut out of oversight entirely.
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<div>Your support will help protect transparency, fairness, and accountability for all. Every donation, no matter the size, helps ensure that taxpayer oversight remains independent and that no one in government can silence lawful scrutiny.
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<div>Thank you for standing with me to defend open government and the public trust.
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<div>— Judy Leary-Wagner
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<div>Pike County Auditor
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Help Protect Transparency in Pike County

<div>Delaware Valley Action! is raising funds for a series of electronic billboards in Pike County near Milford, Pennsylvania. The focus is to hold Trump accountable for his campaign promises and statements ("prices will drop" and "the war will end on day 1," "The stock market will soar," "Believe the Survivor, Release the Epstein Tapes," etc). Can you help us keep these billboards up through the  2026 November election? The monthly cost is $1,500.
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Keep Trump Accountable: DVA's Electronic  Billboard

<div>We hope you will join us to enable young people to have an ICYE experience globally! ICYE-US returnees and others  are creating a scholarship fund to make this possible.  In the U.S., the ICYE program is administered by Boston non-profit United Planet through its <a href="https://www.unitedplanet.org/volunteer-abroad/long-term" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Quest Program.</a>
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<div>As a Scholarship Committee representing  five decades of ICYE exchanges, we will oversee scholarship awards from funds raised. <strong> Any</strong> tax-deductible donation will help make an impact.  Perhaps your ICYE year introduced you to program leaders or other returnees who inspired you.  Perhaps you have children or grandchildren who are ICYE age. Or perhaps you are looking at estate planning and may want to provide a gift that will change a life--like ours were changed.
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<div>Feel free to post about your ICYE experience on Facebook: 
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<div>  <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/213064510243" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/213064510243" target="_blank" class="" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">https://www.facebook.com/groups/213064510243</a></a>
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<div>If you are new to ICYE, it facilitates year-long community-service volunteer exchange opportunities, sending and receiving young people among 40+ countries.  Young people learn a new language, discover new cultures and contribute toward making the world a more peaceful and just place.  
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<div>Thanks in advance for your contribution to this cause that means so much to us.  <strong> Share this GoFundMe campaign widely!!</strong>
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<div>Just like ICYE-US between 1957 - 1996, United Planet is a non-profit organization with a mission - to create a global community, one relationship at a time. It connects volunteers who want to make a difference with communities in 35 countries, where they learn, teach, work, engage and immerse themselves in a culture outside their comfort zone. For many, it's the most fulfilling experience of their lives.
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<div>To donate by check or something other than a credit card, make it payable to "ICYE-US Returnee Scholarship Fund" and send to ICYE Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box 322, Milford, PA 18337.
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<div>Scholarship Committee:
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<div>Chair - Ed Gragert - Korea 1966-67, ICYE-US Director 1979-90
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<div>Richard Tani - Germany 1958-59)
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<div>Leon Ball - Germany 1966-67 
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<div>Ken Galt - Sweden 1973-74
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<div>Frannie Waldron - Germany 1980-81, Ghana 1988
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<div>Summer Pierce Weinstein -  New Zealand 1994-95
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<div><strong>Questions and/or comments?  Estate Planning? Email to::  <a href="https://mailto" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">[email redacted]</a></strong>
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</div><img alt="56713389_1620488277326556_r.jpeg" media_type="3" src="https://d2g8igdw686xgo.cloudfront.net/56713389_1620488277326556_r.jpeg" width="100%" />

Scholarship Fund for ICYE-US

United Planet

<div>Yesterday, while the DDMS music dept was on their annual trip, the Pauley family lost their home and all of their possessions to a house fire. Amanda, Chris and two children are now displaced and trying to navigate the next steps to rebuilding. Please help ease the burden on them by donating. They will also need clothing, as everything they had is destroyed.  They have been a huge part of this community and my &amp; my  children’s lives, and they need us all now. 
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<div>thank you.
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Stand with the Pauley Family in Their Time of Need

<div>It is with great sadness and a heavy heart that we have to share the unexpecting passing of Dagny Benedict on Febuary 8th, 2024. Dagny was a daughter, sister, cousin, and aunt. She was a 16 year old 10th grader from Owasso Oklahoma.
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<div>With all the emotional pain and stress death brings, it also brings unexpected financial burdens. We would like to raise money to help take care of any funeral expenses.
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<div>It is in times of sadness and loss when people can come together to help one another make it through. Any support you may be able to provide would be greatly appreciated. Please keep Dagny’s family in your thoughts and prayers.
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<div>Thank you in advance for your loving kindness.
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Dagny Benedict

<div>Donations are now being accepted at this link:
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<div><a href="https://secure.givelively.org/donate/charitable-allies-inc/defense-of-democracy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">DONATE HERE</a>
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<div>Mission Statement
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<div>We advocate for legislators, educators, and administrators who will work to maintain communities as well as a public education system that supports and enhances our shared experiences regardless of religious beliefs, cultural background, or sexual orientation.
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<div>Statement of beliefs:
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<div>*Anyone who is part of our group must be an ally; our members are expected to regularly advocate for marginalized communities.
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<div>*We do not take a stand regarding specific books. Our group believes that giving children access to literature is a major part of the learning experience and one of the most important ways to enhance critical thinking skills. We support our educators who are trained to make decisions regarding which books would be appropriate on their shelves.
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<div>*We do not take stands regarding what is taught in individual classrooms. Our group believes that exposing children to new ideas is a major part of the learning experience. We support educators who are trained to enhance our children's critical thinking skills by sharing a variety of age appropriate information. Information about the human experience, including gender identity, different religious beliefs, and accurate historical facts should be part of all levels of education.
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<div>*Promoting a “religious worldview” by a public school official is intolerable at any level.
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<div>*Our group cares about our children and while it is heartbreaking that we have to even include this point... common sense gun control and stricter gun laws are important parts of our beliefs as well.
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Defense of Democracy

<div>Our Beautiful Mother Jeanne Roskoski passed away nov. 29th. And we need help to cover the costs of putting her to rest. If you can help please we appreciate everything and anything. Thank you all.
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Help support Jeannes passing

<p>We are your Pike County neighbors working with Delaware Valley Action to put out a message for our entire community. Please read our letter supporting equality and taking a stand against any and all forms of hate in Pike County. We will be running a full page ad for $1500 in our local newspaper. Any additional money will be put towards further ads and circulating our message of support.
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<p>To Our Neighbors,
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<p>Community is not one, it is all and as a community we've come together, to stand together, to say that hate and intolerance has no home here. No, not here. We've come together, to stand together, to say that racism and homophobia and transphobia and anti-semitism and age-ism and able-ism and bullying and cruelty... has no home here. No, not here. As your neighbors, we will never stand by and watch any child made to feel ashamed or unwanted or unsafe. As your neighbors, we will not stand by and allow the color of your skin or your sexual identity be threatened or mistreated or demeaned or worse, defiled. As your neighbors, we will stand up to injustice and to violence and to any and all forms of abuse. As your neighbors we will not step away or turn away or turn the other cheek from folks being violated or tormented or harassed because of who they are and how they live their very life.
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<p>As your neighbors, we refuse to allow any form of hate and intolerance to seep into the sidewalks we walk on, the streets we drive on, the restaurants and cafes we eat at, the businesses we've built and work at, and especially - most especially - the halls our children walk down.
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<p>Pike County. Our home. Our community. This is where we live and work, this is where we fall-in-love and bury loved ones; this is where we lift spirits and give a hand up. This is where we root each other on, champion the Arts and culture, support local events, feed our friends - neighbors - who are hungry and make room for those who feel left behind. This is where we come, gather, when the world aches from unbearable pain. We are not one color, we are not one sexual identity, we are not one religion. We are not one political view or political party or one age. We are not one, we are many.
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<p>Pike County. Some were born here, some came back here, some stopped in and stayed, and many - so many - moved here to find community - to form bonds and friendships, to build homes and build lives. To find solace.
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<p>On Sundays, many of us pray together, and no doubt we pray silently for the very same things: to be healthy, to be cared for, to be loved, to feel safe, to be unafraid; we pray to find peace, to find work, to find comfort. On Sundays we may not be sitting in the same church or synagogue or temple but we are each one sitting with a heart in need of hope for better, kinder days, sitting with our own fears and doubts and worries, sitting with the pain and sorrow of loss.
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<p>Love thy Neighbor is not just three words that are spoken or read on a Sunday morning. Love thy neighbor isn't some throw-a-way line that gets recycled once a week. Love thy neighbor as thyself. We are 'thy neighbors', your very neighbors.
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<p>Signed,
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<p>We, The Residents of Pike County<br /><br />Delaware Valley Action, a nonprofit organization taking action to advance justice, respect and equality for all<br /><br />Author, Amy Ferris
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Pike County Letter of Equality

I just found out that my amazing 22 year old daughter Alexis, a college student, who is not only an incredibly kind soul but has volunteered and and worked since she was 15, was in a major car accident. We are still evaluating the level of her injuries. Her car was totally wrecked after flipping on a Bellingham bridge, on her way home. The medics on scene were amazed that she crawled out of the car. We are grateful beyond belief. She’s on her way to urgent care today. Her hand is in rough shape, among other traumas. There were some angel witnesses who helped her (including a mom and a Doctor who saw the accident and stayed with her until the ambulance came. Whoever these people are, we are so grateful). <br />While she did have liability (no collision, as she’s been juggling paying most of her own bills, working hard (all through Covid) while in school. Thankful for basic medical insurance but her medical bills, car replacement, days off of work, etc.. will be impossible to cover fully on her/ our own at this time.<br />Please consider contributing a gift of any amount to help Alexis. She needs to be able to heal for and then return to work and school, hopefully soon.  Every dollar will go directly toward her recovery, expenses and transportation. <br />Please send her your love. She’s one of the best humans I know. <br />Deepest gratitude,<br />Saskia and family

My Daughter’s Serious Accident

Peter Spielhagen was a loved member of the Milford, PA community for over 30 years.  He always had a smile for everyone entering his antique store in the historic Forest Hall building at the corner of Broad and Harford.  <br /><br />We, his many friends in the Milford area, are raising funds to purchase a bench and plaque through the Milford Enhancement Committee in the memory of and to honor Peter.  The bench will be installed near Forest Hall.<br /><br />We hope you will join us in this tribute to Peter.

In Memory of Peter Spielhagen

<p><strong>NEW UPDATE 10 AUGUST: <a href="http://donaldtrumpswearjar.com" target="_blank">Donald Trump's Metaphorical Swear Jar</a> </strong> (aka "Phase II") is live but in a preliminary phase. Ongoing satirical/charitable efforts (in the spirit of this campaign) will be concentrated there...please see "Updates" section just above this paragraph for information/explanation. May the Basic Human Decency be with us. #TrumpSwearJar<br /><strong><br /><span style="text-decoration:underline;">IMPORTANT:</span></strong> all money raised goes directly to vetted organizations working to help Syrian refugees, and <span style="text-decoration:underline;">NOT</span> to Trump or any political figure. Don't worry...it's satire for a good cause. Please read past the 2nd paragraph (well, 3rd paragraph counting this one. Sorry, math AND reading skills required at this point...which could actually help screen out and disorient the negative/ignorant trolls). <br /><br />On 2 August 2016, a veteran handed Donald Trump a Purple Heart medal at one of his rallies in Virginia. Making light of a military decoration awarded to combat-wounded service members just days after attacking a fallen soldier’s family, Trump remarked “I've always wanted to get the Purple Heart. This was much easier.”<br /><br />As with seemingly everything else in his life, Mr. Trump got one handed to him instead of earning it. That being said, <strong>as a Purple Heart recipient </strong>[<a href="http://imgur.com/a/FwMy5" target="_blank">proof</a> ]<strong> </strong>who earned one the old-fashioned way by returning from Afghanistan one leg lighter,<strong> I fully endorse his desire to earn one and would happily oblige his interest in doing so</strong>, by being one of the first to chip in to fly him to the conflict zone of his choosing. After all, <strong>y</strong><strong>ou're never too old to follow your dreams.</strong><strong><br /></strong><strong><br />…ok, let’s be serious.</strong> Super serious. We’re not going to be able to help Donald realize his conveniently retroactive military fantasies, and based on precedent he could likely get a series of deferments to avoid going even if we tried. So instead, we’re going to convert his toxic bigotry, ignorance, and callousness into something positive. As Michelle Obama said/as Melania Trump might say at some point in the future: "when they go low, we go high."<strong><br /></strong><br />What better way to do that than to redirect money to <strong>a good cause that Donald Trump would vehemently oppose: aiding Syrian refugees.</strong> All money actually raised will be distributed to vetted groups working directly with Syrian refugees as well as refugees of similar conflict zones - the decent fellow humans who were unfortunate enough to be in one of these regions when everything around them collapsed, and whom Trump has broadly categorized as likely terrorists unworthy of resettlement.<br /><br /><strong>Due to the amount raised so far, the funds will be split between three organizations</strong> with different specialties:<br />-1/3 of it will go to the <a href="http://www.rescue.org" target="_blank">International Rescue Committee</a>, which is one of the nine voluntary agencies (VOLAGs) that work directly with the admitting/screening U.S. government agencies to help refugees “move in” and establish their new lives, while at the same time helping them become self-sufficient and well-integrated members of their community.<br />-1/3 of it will go to the <a href="http://www.sams-usa.net/society/" target="_blank">Syrian American Medical Society</a>, which is comprised of medical professionals of Syrian descent offering a wide range of medical services to Syrians in need, both inside and outside of Syria. In addition to providing medical care themselves, they also help to “teach a man to fish” by providing instruction to Syrian medical professionals.<br />-1/3 of it will go to <a href="http://net.fluechtlinge-willkommen.de" target="_blank">Refugees Welcome International</a>, essentially an “AirBnB for refugees” that engages our European and Canadian friends whose governments allow private refugee sponsorship (something the U.S. does not yet do). Because so much of the spirit of this fundraiser is centered around a unified global outlook (we’re all fellow homo sapiens, sitting on a rock hurtling through space together), I figured we could help our European and Canadian allies demonstrate the efficacy of private sponsorship.<br /><br /><strong>Why these three groups?</strong> I wanted at least two of the organizations to be smaller (yet established) groups that need the money more than the big VOLAGs, while at the same time giving at least some to a leading secular VOLAG with a proven record. Furthermore, I could not find anything substantially negative on any of them, save for the occasional xenophobic lowest-common-denominator all-caps rantings of Trump supporter types on obscure blogs/social media.<br /><br /><strong>Admin note:</strong> GoFundMe holds fundraisers legally accountable for using money raised on their site "in the exact manner you state within your campaign." I have contacted all three organizations via email (and Facebook) to figure out how to transfer the money directly to them when this fundraiser concludes. Proof of transfer and full receipt of funds will be provided (both on this page and in an email to donors) for purposes of transparency.<br /><strong><br />UPDATE</strong> (5 August around 5:30pm): <strong>#PurpleTrumpsOrange</strong> is now the official hashtag for this fundraiser (credit to Ollie Mastrangelo).</p>
<p><br /><img class="not-resizable" src="https://2dbdd5116ffa30a49aa8-c03f075f8191fb4e60e74b907071aee8.ssl.cf1.rackcdn.com/13432119_1470432484.9436_funddescription.jpg" alt="" width="100%" /><br />Credit for the design of the <em>"Purple Trump Fantastic Medal for Huge Classy Terrific-ness and Definitely Not for Total Lightweights, Captured POW Losers, or Unfair Meanie-heads"</em> goes to<strong> Tyler Kerr.<br /><br />For periodic updates over the past several days, please see the “Updates” section (just below the photograph of Darth Trump himself, if you can bear to look at it for more than a few seconds…kind of like looking at the sun, except that he doesn’t provide any light energy for life on Earth or drive photosynthesis or anything nearly as useful)<br /><br /></strong>“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts.” -Mark Twain<strong><br /><br /></strong>[Also yes, the orange theme on this page is very much intentional.]<strong><br /></strong></p>

Help Trump Get a Purple Heart

Eight years ago, I came to the United States as a 13 year-old boy from Sierra Leone with $40 in my pocket that I thought would last me a month. I was unprepared for what was to come. But eight years later, I’m now a senior at The George Washington University. Two months from today I will be a graduate of that same institution. My journey did not start in America. <br /><br />6,525 miles away from my dorm room in Washington DC is Sierra Leone where I grew up. I saw my first murder at 5. The Revolutionary United Fronts came to my house and killed my parents in front of me. In a split of a second my world completely changed. They took me to become a child soldier, and from the age of 5 to 9, I was trained to be a killer instead of going to school. I learned to refill a bullet chamber instead of an ink cartridge. I mastered how to spray walls with lead before I could lather paper with ink. I grew up where the only thing I feared wasn’t God but children high on drugs wielding AK 47’s taller than they were and forced to kill or be killed. I was one of those children. You see, the issue of education is important to me, because education is that which has saved as well as liberated me. It offered me the freedom to explore and share my wartime stories with the world so that others will learn from them. It is my belief that you can give a man the world and that world could crumble, but if you give that man an education he will rebuild his world. I’m passionate about education because it is my desire to learn that has brought me this far.  <br /><br />     A few weeks ago, I was accepted into the World Teach Program. As a volunteer, I will spend a year in Colombia teaching English. This was only a was a dream for me, but now, my dream is becoming a reality. I am asking friends, family and professional contacts to help me fund this trip abroad. As part of your donation I will pledge the following: I am currently working on my memoir, which will be published not too long after the completion of my service in Colombia. The first 30 people who donate a minimum of $100, will receive a  first edition, signed copy with a personalize note. The first 50 people to donate a minimum of $25 and above will receive a postcard from Colombia. All donations are welcome big or small. I will also be keeping a bi-monthly blog of my trip and the people I meet along the way. Please help this trip become a reality. <br /><br />As a sign of good faith, below is an excerpt of  a chapter I have recently finished working on:<br /><br /><strong>Who am I ? What am I? Am I an object? Or an illusion? Am I visible or invisible? Can you hear me? Can you feel me? Can you see me? Come closer. What do you see? Look beyond my smile or the birth defect on my left cheek that you have so graciously called a cute dimple. Do you see anything else? Focus on my eyes only. Still nothing? No, not the Mohamed that played soccer with or against your kids in high school. You are only looking at the tear film of my eyes, look past that. No, not the Mohamed that went to prom with your daughter, those are the cornea of my eyes. Stay with me. Don’t look at the sclera of my eyes because that will only show you the Mohamed that went to the same University as you or your child, or the Mohamed that raised his hand in your World History 1500-Present class and asked a question about the Berlin Conference of 1884. Wrong Mohamed again. If you are seeing the Mohamed that applied for the same internships or jobs as you, that is because you are only looking at the iris of my eyes. Keep going. What else do you see? Please do not tell me you see the Mohamed that at 13 ½ years of age decided to stay in New York City with $40 in his pocket and thought that was enough to last him a month. Because that would again mean you have now shifted your focus to the lacrimal caruncle of my eyes. You are almost there. Don’t give up quite yet. Just a little bit more until you reach the center.  Do you see the black hole? Yes, that’s it, the pupils. Watch closely as it opens up and lets in light. Yes you are right, it’s still dark. That is because no matter how much light is let in, it will always remain dark. The same reason I can’t seem to understand or bring to light a past that is so eerie. It’s easier to explain the things that you can see, but what about the things that are protected by so many layers? How about my past? It’s getting dark and quiet, but continue to watch closely, because my eyes are trying to tell you my story. My pupils are dilating and soon, there will no more light to let in. Don’t be scared of the twilight, for it is only there my story would be told.</strong><br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br />

Edwin Gragert

Edwin Gragert

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