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Get crafty with these holiday gift wrap ideas
(BPT) - Make wrapping gifts more fun this holiday season. Get your supplies ready, invite some friends and turn up the holiday music. Before you get started, here are some creative gift wrapping tips from popular crafting blogger, Cindy Hopper, founder of SkipToMyLou.org . “I love wrapping holiday gifts – from little...
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The stress of family caregiving [infographic]
Over 40 million Americans serve as family caregivers to provide unpaid help to support an adult family member. To help ease this burden, the Philips CarePartners Mobile app allows caregivers to track and coordinate their tasks with a private network of caregivers. With CarePartners Mobile, caregivers can spend more time caring for their loved ones and less time figuring out what needs to be done.
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Top communities providing support for returning veterans
(BPT) - When veterans return home from serving overseas, the support found in family, friends and the community can make a huge difference for a smooth transition. Pittsburgh ranks as the top place in the nation for veterans to transition from combat boots to civilian shoes, according to a study commissioned by USAA and Military.com. The “ Best Places for Veterans” list identifies U.S. metro areas that offer America's most recent veterans more opportunities to find a job or go to college ...
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Busted: Common volunteering myths disproved
(BPT) - With busy work schedules and hectic family lives, many people believe they don’t have the necessary time, energy or skills to volunteer. Unfortunately, these myths may deter many people who would make capable and helpful volunteers. For many Americans, volunteer work constitutes small, but empowering acts of ser...
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Seven things employers must provide reservists returning from military service
Since Sept. 11, 2001, more than 800,000 reservists and national guardsmen have been called to leave their civilian life to serve the military full-time, with more than 250,000 pressed into active duty more than once.
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Veterans growing as entrepreneurs
Veterans returning home face many challenges that weren't present when they were serving in the armed forces. Between adapting to civilian life, reacquainting with family and friends, and finding employment, the adjustment can be a difficult process.
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Celebrate the holiday season with charitable giving
The holiday season is about more than picking the fullest tree, listening to nostalgic carols and planning the perfect family photo. Between addressing holiday cards and toasting the New Year, it's a great time to incorporate charitable giving into your traditions. No matter your time constraints, there are many ways for...
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The aging population: a benefit, not burden
With life expectancy increasing, the percentage of population over age 60 is booming. By 2030, the population over 60 will be growing 3.5 times as rapidly as the total population, according to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
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Caring for a child with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome - it takes a village
Having a reliable support system is important to all of us. It is particularly important to the families of those living with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS), a severe and rare form of epilepsy that affects an estimated one in 50,000 to one in 100,000 children and up to 4 percent of children with epilepsy. Many families may be struggling with the demands of caring for a loved one with this condition - a task that may require around-the-clock attention and support.
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From hurricane help to health care questions - 2-1-1 is there
Wouldn't it be great if there was a number you could call if you had any sort of question about resources in your community, from something as simple as where to find the nearest library to something as urgent as where you can find relief after a catastrophic event? Good news: You don't have to wish for this all-in-one h...
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The conversation on giving: What is your family passionate about?
How many times has your child come home with news of a new penny drive or fundraiser happening at school or a place of worship? Often, children are eager to get involved with these fundraising efforts because there are reward incentives at the end, but parents can take this opportunity to discuss with children the real v...
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Working together to help maintain bone health in people with multiple myeloma
Taking care of a loved one with an illness, such as cancer, can be both physically and emotionally challenging. For caregivers of the approximately 70,000 American adults currently living with the second most common blood cancer, multiple myeloma, there are additional responsibilities associated with taking care of their loved ones.
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national news
Immigration bill gets Senate boost; House effort teetering

Candidates hold U.S. flags during a naturalization ceremony to become new U.S. Citizens at Convention Center in Los AngelesBy Richard Cowan WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Supporters of U.S. immigration reform are hoping that the smooth and drama-free passage of their legislation through a Senate committee - a departure from almost everything that has happened in Congress over the past four years - will boost the likelihood of the bill winning full Senate approval. Even Senator Charles Grassley of Iowa, the senior Republican on the Judiciary Committee who voted against the immigration bill on Tuesday, told Reuters TV that the "very fair" debate by the panel "does improve its chances. ...


Wed May 22 17:29:42 UTC 2013
Oklahoma tornado victims astounded at how they survived
By Carey Gillam and Ian Simpson MOORE, Oklahoma (Reuters) - Tornado survivors thanked God, sturdy closets and luck in explaining how they lived through the colossal twister that devastated an Oklahoma town and killed 24 people, an astonishingly low toll given the extent of destruction. At least one family took refuge in a bathtub and some people shut themselves in underground shelters built into their houses when the powerful storm tore through the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore on Monday. ...
Wed May 22 17:43:17 UTC 2013
FBI says man shot dead while being questioned about Boston bombings

FBI Agent Kills Man After Questioning Him About the Boston Marathon BombingBy Barbara Liston and Mark Hosenball ORLANDO, Fla./WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An FBI agent shot and killed a man of Chechen origin who turned violent while being questioned on Wednesday about his connection to Tamerlan Tsarnaev, one of two Chechen brothers suspected of carrying out the Boston Marathon bombings. A friend of the dead man identified him to local media as 27-year-old Ibragim Todashev, who had previously lived in Boston and knew Tsarnaev, the older of the two brothers suspected of planting two bombs at the marathon on April 15, killing three people and injuring 264 others. ...


Wed May 22 17:11:07 UTC 2013
94-year-old woman lost home for second time in tornado, helped neighbors survive in shelter
Nancy Davis, a 94-year-old resident of Moore, Oklahoma, lost her house during Monday's tornado. It was the second time a tornado had destroyed her home, CBS News reports. In 1999, Davis lost another home to another massive tornado that killed 36 people. Following that deadly twister, Davis rebuilt her home on the same land, according [...]
Wed May 22 17:05:50 UTC 2013