Press Release
USDA Invests $10.3 Million in Broadband for Rural New York Communities
PENN YAN, N.Y., Feb. 3, 2020 – Today, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development State Director for New York Richard Mayfield announced USDA has invested $10.3 million in high-speed broadband infrastructure that will create or improve rural e-Connectivity for 2,875 rural households, 10 pre-subscribed farms, three pre-subscribed businesses and two educational facilities in Yates County, N.Y. This is one of many funding announcements in the first round of USDA’s ReConnect Pilot Program investments.
“The ReConnect program, and investments like these in Yates County, will increase access to opportunities across multiple sectors, such as public safety, economic development, education and health care,” Mayfield said. “Under the leadership of President Trump and Agriculture Secretary Perdue, USDA is proud to partner with Yates County as we continue to build out this critical infrastructure in rural communities across America, because we know when rural America thrives, all of America thrives.”
Yates County will use a $10.3 million ReConnect Program grant to deploy a fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) broadband network capable of delivering speeds up to 1 gigabit per second (Gbps). The project will deliver high-speed broadband, which will help improve the overall quality of life for residents and businesses in and around Yates County.
Background:
In March 2018, Congress provided $600 million to USDA to expand broadband infrastructure and services in rural America. On Dec. 13, 2018, Secretary Perdue announced the rules of the program, called “ReConnect,” including how the loans and grants will be awarded to help build broadband infrastructure in rural America. USDA received 146 applications between May 31, 2019, and July 12, 2019, requesting $1.4 billion in funding across all three ReConnect Program funding products: 100 percent loan, 100 percent grant, and loan-grant combinations. USDA is reviewing applications and announcing approved projects on a rolling basis. Additional investments in all three categories will be made in the coming weeks.
These grants, loans and combination funds enable the federal government to partner with the private sector and rural communities to build modern broadband infrastructure in areas with insufficient internet service. Insufficient service is defined as connection speeds of less than 10 megabits per second (Mbps) download and 1 Mbps upload.
In December 2019, Agriculture Secretary Perdue announced USDA will be making available an additional $550 million in ReConnect funding in 2020. USDA will make available up to $200 million for grants, up to $200 million for 50/50 grant/loan combinations, and up to $200 million for low-interest loans. The application window for this round of funding will open Jan. 31, 2020. Applications for all funding products will be accepted in the same application window, which will close no later than March 16, 2020.
A full description of 2020 ReConnect Pilot Program funding is available on page 67913 of the Dec. 12, 2019, Federal Register (PDF, 336 KB). To learn more about eligibility, technical assistance and recent announcements, visit www.usda.gov/reconnect.
In April 2017, President Donald J. Trump established the Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity to identify legislative, regulatory and policy changes that could promote agriculture and prosperity in rural communities. In January 2018, Secretary Perdue presented the Task Force’s findings to President Trump. These findings included 31 recommendations to align the federal government with state, local and tribal governments to take advantage of opportunities that exist in rural America. Increasing investments in rural infrastructure is a key recommendation of the task force. To view the report in its entirety, please view the Report to the President of the United States from the Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity (PDF, 5.4 MB). In addition, to view the categories of the recommendations, please view the Rural Prosperity infographic (PDF, 190 KB).
USDA Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities and create jobs in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov.
With the 92nd Academy Awards just 6 days away, WalletHub today released its 2020 Oscars Facts report, which includes an infographic filled with fun facts about the event as well as a Q&A with a panel of entertainment experts.
Here are some highlights from the report:
Best States for Singles
Worst States for Singles
1. Florida
41. Mississippi
2. California
42. Alabama
3. Texas
43. Alaska
4. New York
44. Kentucky
5. Pennsylvania
45. Kansas
6. Ohio
46. Wyoming
7. Illinois
47. New Mexico
8. Wisconsin
48. North Dakota
9. Massachusetts
49. Arkansas
10. Michigan
50. West Virginia
Best vs. Worst< >Louisiana has the highest share of single adults, 54.05 percent, which is 1.3 times higher than in Utah, the state with the lowest at 42.56 percent.
California has the most fitness and recreational facilities (per square root of population), 0.702745, which is 10.1 times more than in Hawaii, the state with the fewest at 0.069602.
North Dakota has the lowest unemployment rate for the single population, 4.58 percent, which is 2.8 times lower than in Mississippi, the state with the highest at 12.70 percent.https://wallethub.com/edu/best-states-for-singles/31667/
Grief and challenge
by Gail Skenandore and Tom H. Hastings
723 words
Ceasar Quilantan was almost 26 when he was gunned down on his home turf, the Gila River Indian Community, part of the Pima nation in Arizona.
Ceasar was my (Gail's) grandson, and I was deeply shocked the night of December 1, 2019, to get a call that he had been shot that evening at a friend's house in Third Circle Housing, a HUD project.
I’ve been in mourning ever since.
Ceasar and his friend Ramsey were walking, laughing, and a vehicle pulled up.
Six shooters unloaded into the two young men. Ramsey survived multiple gunshot wounds and my grandson didn't.
Violence on the reservation is an epidemic and little is done to prevent it or even bring it to anyone's attention. The tribal members seem too frightened to do much, the nearby Phoenix police seem unable or unwilling to get involved, and the word we get is that no one will say anything, out of personal terror at the violence visiting anyone who speaks.
Herodotus said the most unnatural act is for a parent to bury a child--he said that in opposition to war. But even more unnatural is for a grandmother to bury her grandson. This war must stop.
I (Tom) used to take Ceasar canoeing when he stayed with Grandmother Gail. We went up and down the rivers--the mighty Columbia and the great big Willamette.
Ceasar loved and respected his Grandmother. This was obvious to anyone and he paddled hard in the bow while Grandmother Gail waited by the picnic lunch on the blanket on the beach on the bank of the broad Columbia. We paddled to Washington and back to Oregon, upstream and downstream. The 11-year-old boy was smiling as he proudly hopped out and pulled us ashore.
He helped me (Gail) whenever I needed it. In those years, I was a core member of a community that offered housing to women who would otherwise be homeless, so I needed help cleaning, cooking, gardening, and with the many tasks associated with keeping several women housed and fed and in touch with an array of social services. Ceasar was loved by everyone.
It is tough to think of such a young man, shot dead for inexplicable reasons by people who may never even be identified.
It is also very hard to consider how much violence is epidemic on our reservation and that it is not who we are, but it seems to be who we are becoming.
My job (Tom) is to know about conflict and how to transform destructive conflict into constructive, creative, productive conflict. It is what I teach and what I research.
My job (Gail) is to know my people, to love my immediate and extended family, and to ponder the ways in which this godawful plague of violence can be ended in a Good Way.
While it is entirely possible for the Gila River Pima to be a model to other communities and solve this problem entirely on their own, it is also crucial to understand the long timelines of causation and structural impediments to progress. In that regard, external assistance is desperately needed as well.
When four out of five Native women experiences violence, an intervention is required.
So we believe a light needs to shine on these pockets of escalating violence. The intersection of guns, drugs, poverty, scant education, substandard health care, high unemployment, and corruption are literally producing conditions that invariably redound the hardest and worst on young people of color, Gila River Native Americans in this case.
At a time when divisive language from our nation’s highest executive is common and hatred is encouraged in his political rallies, can we be sober for a minute and confront the pain of losing a grandson?
Can we consider anyone of any color or creed who is suffering right now? Can we interrupt privilege and elite wealth long enough to begin to lift this burden of violence and poverty?
This is what is called for. I (Gail) do not wish my heart-hurt on anyone. I cry at least a few times a day thinking of Caesar and do not wish this injury on anyone else.
What I do know is that what we have right now is not working.
Can we think together in a Good Way to overcome more and more of these terrible factors?
—30—
Dr. Tom H. Hastings is PeaceVoice Director and on occasion an expert witness for the defense in court. Gail Skenandore is a Gila River Pima tribal member and a long-time worker for the poorest of the poor.
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FREE WEBINAR THIS WEEK
Moms with ADHD, Unite! How to Shape a Peaceful, Organized Life for You and Your Kids
with Terry Matlen, LMSW, ACSW
Wednesday, February 5, 2020 @ 1pm Eastern Time (find it in your time zone >)
Can't attend the live webinar?
Register now anyway and we'll email you the replay link
Parenting a child with ADHD is challenging — even more so when Mom has ADHD, too. Overwhelmed parents often wonder: How do I help my kids stay organized when I’m always losing things? How do I get them to bed when I have no set routines? Why do I feel so guilty all the time? This webinar offers strategies — and reassurance.
NOTE: Qualify for a certificate of attendance when you attend an ADDitude webinar live or listen to the replay.
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Thanks to Their Toddler’s Heart Transplant
A Nevada COTA Family is Celebrating American Heart Month
February 3, 2020 -- February is the month to celebrate love and hearts. Since 1964 February has been known as American Heart Month throughout the United States. For the Buskirk family of Las Vegas, Nevada, February truly is a month to celebrate selfless gifts from the heart. Their toddler, Emerson, is alive and able to celebrate Valentine’s Day this year because of the new heart she received just over a year ago.
Emerson Lee Buskirk was born in June 2018 to ecstatic first-time parents, Andrea and Brandon. They were thrilled and thankful to welcome this precious infant to their now family of three. Their first few months at home in Las Vegas with Baby Emerson were like those of other first-time, adoring parents. According to Andrea and Brandon, Emerson was the world’s easiest baby and they knew how fortunate they were. She was a champion sleeper and eater. She was very calm yet very curious. But early in the morning of September 24th, they embarked on a new and unexpected journey with Emerson.
Andrea and Brandon both blogged and posted on social media regularly about Emerson’s transplant journey and what follows are excerpts from their narratives:
Brandon and I are both teachers, so when the school year started for Brandon, we knew it was inevitable he would bring home germs. In early September he had a cold that was eventually passed to Emerson. We did not know it at the time, but that virus was the tipping point for her body. In mid-September 2018 we noticed something was ‘off’ with Emerson. She was not sleeping as well as normal, and was a little more cranky than usual. We decided Brandon would stay home with her on September 24th because that was to be my first day back from maternity leave for my teaching job. However, I was not able to return to my classroom as planned.
That night Emerson’s whole demeanor changed and she was lethargic. We assumed she just was not feeling well because of her cold. At 3:30 a.m. we were awake with Emerson. She was refusing to eat and her wet diaper was very dark, signaling dehydration. We grabbed her diaper bag and left quickly for the local hospital’s emergency room. Upon intake, an IV was started and she was immediately put on oxygen. She was very pale and was having trouble breathing. A chest x-ray was performed and then a doctor came in with news we had not expected to hear -- Emerson was in congestive heart failure. Our world stopped.
We were immediately transferred to Sunrise Children’s Hospital in Las Vegas to meet with pediatric cardiologists. The cardiologist who performed Emerson’s first echocardiogram left the room saying, ‘I need to expedite this’ and then returned very quickly to tell us what he had seen. He knew Emerson would need a heart transplant to survive. We were briefly admitted to the PICU and plans were being made to transfer us to a pediatric heart center. Loma Linda University’s Children’s Hospital had an opening on the cardiac floor, and less than 12 hours later we were being life-flighted there … about 250 miles from our home.
The first week of Emerson’s Dilated Cardiomyopathy diagnosis was grim. By the time she had another echocardiogram performed on September 25th, her heart function had gone from 30% to 9%. Her body was failing. Loma Linda’s team of pediatric cardiac specialists thought she would need to be placed on Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO), which is highly specialized life support. She was sedated, intubated and placed in isolation. The only way we could see her was to put on a gown, mask and gloves. We could not hold or comfort her. We felt lost and far away from our support network. Emerson was officially listed as transplant status 1A on September 26th. Our pastors travelled from Las Vegas to California and we baptized Emerson in the hospital, which was not at all what we had planned. We were preparing for the worst.
The next step was to get Emerson off the ventilator, which could only be done if her heart function got better. On October 8th her first open heart surgery, the Pulmonary Artery Band, was performed. This procedure is so new in the world of Dilated Cardiomyopathy treatment that less than 100 had been performed worldwide. Emerson was the fourth Loma Linda patient to have this procedure. This banding allowed her to come off the breathing tube and start eating again. Her heart function improved to about 20%. With these successes, Emerson was moved from 1A status to 1B since she was no longer quite as critical. Then the waiting began.
A close friend of the family reached out to the Children’s Organ Transplant Association (COTA) to learn more about the organization and about fundraising for transplant-related expenses. Andrea and Brandon then spoke to their Loma Linda transplant social worker to learn more. On October 15, 2018, the Buskirks officially became part of the COTA Family.
COTA is a 501(c)3 charity so all contributions to COTA in honor of Emerson are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law, and COTA funds are available for a lifetime of transplant-related expenses. COTA uniquely understands that parents who care for a child or young adult before, during and after a transplant have enough to deal with, so COTA’s model shifts the responsibility for fundraising to a community team of trained volunteers. A COTA fundraising specialist travelled to Loma Linda on November 3rd to train the family’s volunteers and walk them through the entire process. This group of family members and friends returned to Las Vegas and quickly got to work organizing fundraisers to help with mounting transplant-related expenses.
The months following the Pulmonary Artery Band surgery allowed Emerson’s body to regain strength, allowed her to grow, allowed her to gain weight and allowed her to completely breathe on room air. From what our nurses told us, Emerson was a rare case. When babies need heart transplants, they usually do not look like her. From her appearance alone you never would have known she was so sick. She would light up the hospital room with her gigantic smile and truly loved all the attention she received. She was known as the ‘mood booster’ of the pediatric cardiology floor at Loma Linda. In January our cardiologist wrote to UNOS (the United Network of Organ Sharing) to petition Emerson to go back to 1A status since a heart transplant was her only chance at long-term survival.
We received our life-changing call that a heart was available on January 17, 2019, at 5:46 pm. Emerson was taken to surgery at midnight, and was brought back up at 6:30 am on January 18th. She was extubated right after the transplant. With her now healthy heart, she almost instantly ‘pinked up’ like other babies. Her numbers stabilized. Miraculously she was discharged nine days after her heart transplant.
On February 14, Valentine’s Day, 2019, Andrea posted the following update:
Valentine’s Day has a whole new meaning for us this year, because February 14th is also National Donor Day. Today we are especially thankful for our donor family who gave Emerson a second chance at life. Without families like theirs, our little girl would not be here. They truly gave us a priceless gift. Today I want to bring awareness to the thousands of children and adults who are waiting for a life-saving transplant. I urge you to prayerfully consider becoming an organ donor. Did you know one person alone can save eight people with his/her organs? Emerson required blood transfusions many times throughout her hospital stay. Donating blood is another great way to honor our little girl. Lastly, if you feel so inclined, Emerson was transplanted at six months old. If everyone gave just $6 to COTA for Team Emerson, medications can be provided for Emerson for many, many years to come. The outpouring of love and support we have witnessed over the past months is incredible -- it has allowed us to focus on Emerson’s needs and care … and not on the financial stresses of life. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
Emerson and Andrea remained in Loma Linda until early April and regularly went to nearby clinic appointments to make sure she was doing well. (Brandon had been teaching during the week in Las Vegas and travelling to California on the weekends for several months, which is a transplant-related expense for which COTA funds can be utilized.) They were all able to return home to Las Vegas on April 1, 2019, to resume life as a family of three.
Today Emerson is thriving and is as curious as ever. Andrea and Brandon are elated to have her home and to watch her grow and develop. She continues to love life. Her personality is blossoming with every beat of her amazing new heart. Emerson loves to smile and make funny faces. She loves her kitties, any and all toys that make music and her large collection of stuffed animals.
The COTA fundraising effort in Emerson’s honor has been very successful, which has continued to alleviate many of this young family’s stressors.
According to Brandon, “When we first learned about COTA, it was a relief to see other families who were also in our situation. Through COTA we discovered there is an entire community of transplant families who know exactly what we face each and every day. The COTA.org home page provided us tremendous hope because we could read success stories about other COTA heart kids. COTA has allowed us to focus on our family first and not on worrying about how to pay for the resources Emerson needs today … and into the future.”
On Emerson’s first birthday in June, Andrea wrote her this note:
My Dearest Emerson,
Today you turn one year old. A birthday we did not know we would ever be able to celebrate with you. The challenges and odds you have had to overcome in your first year of life are greater than most people experience in a lifetime. You have overcome Intubation … Being paralyzed … Two open heart surgeries … A heart transplant … Surgery to drain fluid on your heart … Numerous IVs … Countless blood draws … Numerous blood transfusions … Countless heart tests, CTs and MRIs … Withdrawal from narcotics … A collapsed lung … Doctors saying you might not survive … and so much more. Being your mom and watching you overcome such adversity has been a challenge. They always say having kids teaches you so much. That is an understatement with you. You have taught me how to fight … how to be brave … and how to overcome. Your ‘fighter’ spirit is something I pray lives inside of you forever.
“Emerson becoming a Children’s Organ Transplant Association (COTA) kid continues to be a huge blessing for us. Our world turned upside down after her birth, and we had to move to another state for her care and eventual transplant. COTA provided us comfort regarding the mounting medical bills for our lengthy stay. Now that we are back home, we know Emerson will get the best care possible and continue her recovery without the two of us worrying about the medical bills. It is so reassuring to know that when Emerson inevitably needs another heart transplant, COTA will be there at that point and … for a lifetime,” said Andrea and Brandon.
Emerson has not slowed down in any way since her heart transplant. She has shown her Warrior Spirit and has proven she can weather any storm. People comment to Brandon and Andrea frequently that had they not followed her journey or known anything about her health challenges, you would never know what she has been through.
According to Andrea, Emerson is running through life (literally) and shows no signs of slowing down. She is a bundle of energy from the moment her eyes open in the morning. She loves taking her new puppy, Weston, on walks and playing fetch with him. She loves reading books, being chased around the house while letting out full squeals of excitement and dancing to any music she hears (especially if it is Moana!). Emerson is living her life with no abandon.
“While Brandon returned to work in the fall, I stayed home to make sure all of her appointments were always taken care of. We are seeing a delay in eating due to her time in the hospital and are currently working to find the right feeding therapist to help us address these needs,” Andrea said. “We find total comfort knowing COTA funds can be used towards this. That knowledge takes away the financial stress of paying for her necessary therapy and the medications she needs.”
This Valentine’s Day, Emerson will likely be eating her favorite foods and doing her favorite things, which will undoubtedly include dancing, laughing, reading making funny faces and simply being adorable. Andrea and Brandon will be remembering Emerson’s heart donor angel with love.
Happy Valentine’s Day Buskirk Family from your COTA Family!
