Online Features
Community Cares
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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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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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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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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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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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
Investigators seek cause of New York commuter train crash

Passengers wait to be picked-up after two commuter trains collided in BridgeportBy Karen Brooks (Reuters) - Federal investigators on Saturday searched for the cause of a rush-hour train crash in Connecticut that injured dozens of people commuting home from New York City, three of them critically. More than 60 people were hospitalized Friday night after an eastbound commuter train derailed and collided with a westbound passenger train on an adjacent track near the Connecticut suburb of Fairfield. Eight people remained hospitalized on Saturday, three in critical condition, Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy said. ...


Sat May 18 13:06:17 UTC 2013
Powerball jackpot could go higher than $600 million

People wait in line to purchase Powerball lottery tickets at the Port Authority bus station in New YorkBy Karen Brooks AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - The Powerball jackpot Saturday night could be even higher than the record $600 million being advertised, possibly rivaling the largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history, a Texas Lottery official said on Saturday. "Oftentimes, the advertised amount is lower than what the actual jackpot ends up being," said Kelly Cripe, a spokeswoman for the Texas Lottery. "It's entirely possible this $600 million jackpot will end up being a bigger jackpot." The Powerball record in November was advertised at $550 million, but ended up being $587. ...


Sat May 18 13:30:43 UTC 2013
US Airways plane makes unusual belly landing at Newark airport
By David Jones NEWARK, New Jersey (Reuters) - A US Airways flight made an emergency landing on its belly at Newark Liberty International Airport early on Saturday after the plane's landing gear failed to deploy, but no one was injured, airline and government officials said. Piedmont Airlines flight 4560, operating for US Airways from Philadelphia with 34 passengers and three crew members, landed safely at 1 a.m., and passengers were evacuated on the tarmac and transported to the terminal, a Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman said in an email. ...
Sat May 18 12:51:40 UTC 2013
Residents capture amazing videos in the face of tornadoes
A series of 16 violent tornadoes ransacked north Texas this week, killing six people and flattening entire neighborhoods. Seven people who were reported missing early Friday morning have now been accounted for, but the storms aren't over yet. Severe thunderstorms are expected late Friday in Alabama and Mississippi, and the Plains and the Midwest face [...]
Fri May 17 19:53:22 UTC 2013