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Ka'ū News Briefs, Wednesday, August 19, 2020
Next Ka'ū News Briefs, Thursday, August 20, 2020
Previous Ka'ū News Briefs, Tuesday, August 18, 2020
Captain Kiko Johnston-Kitazawa, of Honuʻapo in Kaʻū, sailed The Golden Rule by Waikiki this week, calling for
the demilitarization of Hawaiʻi and the end of the RIMPAC war games. Photo from Veterans for Peace
HONUʻAPO'S KIKO JOHNSTON-KITAZAWA is captain of The Golden Rule, the Veterans for Peace sailboat that cruised the shore of Oʻahu this week in support of ending the biannual Rim of the Pacific that brings military ships, planes, helicopters, and missiles from many countries for war games in Hawaiʻi's nearshore waters.
Veterans for Peace sponsors The Golden Rule voyages to demilitarize,
denuclearize, and neutralize. Photo from The Golden Rule Project
On local network TV this morning Kitazawa-Johnston told Hawaiʻi News Now about the peace mission of The Golden Rule. He mentioned that in history, Hawaiʻi earned a reputation for neutrality and he called for Hawaiʻi and Pacific Island nations to further develop that reputation.
TheGolden Rule Project has taken the boat to ports around Hawaiʻi, welcoming the public with presentations on promoting peace and denuclearization. The captain said The Golden Rule had planned a trip to the Marshall Islands and other destinations on its way to Japan, where the crew planned to participate in commemoration ceremonies regarding the U.S. bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II 75 years ago. on Aug. 6 and 7. However, the COVID-19 pandemic put a pause on the sailing plans. He said the schedule of sailing to Japan may resume in January.
Helen Jacard, who manages The Golden Rule Project, told TV news this morning that demilitarization and neutralization of Hawaiʻi and other Pacific islands would provide protection for island people in the long run. She said that $4.7 trillion spent on nuclear weapons could be transferred to helping to solve such problems as the pandemic.
On Sunday, The Golden Rule sailed along the Oʻahu shore as the Cancel RIMPAC Coalition conducted a vehicle convoy form Pearl Harbor from Sand Island to Pearl Harbor to Ft. DeRussy in Waikiki with banners saying Cancel Rimpac.
Capt. Kiko Johnston-Kitazawa, left, explains the mission of
The Golden Rule this morning on Hawaiʻi News Now.
Photo by Helen Jaccard
The Golden Rule's first peace mission was in 1958, in opposition of nuclear testing in the South Pacific. The leader of the mission was a former U.S. Navy Commander who pledged to stop the nuclear testing that displaced islanders and made their homes uninhabitable. He faced arrest, the testing went forward. He continued his mission with talks around the U.S. The boat was restored by Veterans for Peace and returned to its peace mission. See more at vfpgoldenruleproject.org. See #cancelRIMPAC Cancel Rimpac Coalition Veterans For Peace Hawaiʻi - Chapter 113 Hawaiʻi Peace and Justice.
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see Facebook. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter. See our Fresh Food on The Kaʻū Calendar and our latest print edition at kaucalendar.com.
FUNDING AND HEALTH CARE GUIDANCE FOR FOR CHILDCARE PROVIDERS during the pandemic are sorely needed, according to Sen. Mazie Hirono. "The child care system is instrumental to our nation's recovery. By offering work support for essential workers and families, the child care system ensures that families can safely return to work. Equally paramount is the role providers play in fostering children's healthy development and providing supplemental education for our nation's youth," says the letter from Hirono, Senators Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Corey Booker, and others.
Hirono noted that more than one in three child care facilities could be at risk of permanent closure due to the financial strain of the pandemic. The National Women's Law Center estimated the child care system would need $9.6 billion per month to provide emergency relief and prevent permanent closures. A Bipartisan Policy Center nationwide survey reported in April that 60 percent of the child care facilities and family child care providers in the United States had to close their doors because of COVID-19 and, for 30 to 50 percent of these providers, the closures will remain permanent.
Hirono has called for Congress to provide support. In June, she cosponsored the Child Care is Essential Act to provide $50 billion for child care providers. She cosponsored the Coronavirus Child Care and Education Relief Act to provide the same amount.
To develop better guidance, Hirono and colleagues wrote to the Office of Child Care at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The letter follows Hirono's recent conversation with Hawaiʻi child care providers, who said current guidance is oftentimes conflicting and unclear. Hirono said that nationally, child care centers and family-based child care providers have also asked for updated guidance, as they work to keep children healthy and safe while maintaining high-quality child care programs. The Senators asked that the OCC work with the CDC and relevant health and child development experts to issue new recommendations for center-based and family child care providers.
They asked for specific guidance, including technical assistance to child care centers and family child care providers for translating guidelines from the CDC into actionable measures; recommendations for how to use and find publicly available information on infection rates and community spread and make decisions on whether to remain closed, reopen, or close temporarily, such as what to do if community infection rates spike; and detailed information on how and whether to request COVID-19 testing of employees, vendors, and children. The letter can be found here.
ACCELERATED CONTACT TRACING EFFORTS from Department of Health now include 50 Hawai'i National Guard members. In a ballroom converted for contract tracing at Hawai'i Convention Center on Oʻahu, Gov. David Ige today addressed the efforts to track down close contacts of people who've been diagnosed with COVID-19. He was joined by Hawaiʻi Emergency Management Agency Director Ken Hara, DOH Director Dr. Bruce Anderson, and Dr. Emily Roberson, the recently appointed DOH Disease Investigation Branch Chief.
The governor said, when Hawai'i began seeing the triple-digit surge of cases over the past two weeks, he directed DOH to ramp up contact tracing efforts. "I'm confident DOH has what it needs and will continue to accelerate contact tracing and support. Expanding contact tracing is critical and just one of the measures needed to control the virus."
DOH says this complements existing tracer training in conjunction with the UH John H. Burns School of Medicine. DOH said a "significant hurdle" for expanding the DOH contact tracing team was the lack of physical space at DOH.
Roberson addressed the restructuring of the State's contact tracing efforts for peak performance. Among the enhancements: Restructured case investigations with Hawaiʻi National Guard for peak performance; clerical tasks delegated to support staff; data collection with improved forms; focus only on data "that is actionable." She said they are prioritizing cases where there is rapid outbreak and focusing on four groups to identify and screen close contacts: those in high-risk occupations, settings, or with high-risk factors, like underlying health issues, and on those who "are sick with symptoms. She said, "The overarching goal when prioritizing groups is to focus our efforts. We're continuing to improve our process for better efficiency."
Anderson said 56 of today's reported cases are associated with the cluster at the O'ahu Community Correctional Facility and 37 that were not reported yesterday due to a lab reporting backlog. He said, "Subtract those out… still significant but fewer than we projected a week ago. Our statewide hospital census is stable and we are not experiencing any crisis situations in any of our hospitals." He said he remains confident that with new restrictions on gathering and enhanced enforcement "we'll see case numbers drop in the next several weeks."
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see Facebook. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter. See our Fresh Food on The Kaʻū Calendar and our latest print edition.
CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT OVER THE STATE'S USE OF COVID MONEY for testing and contact testing ramped up this week with a letter from the U.S. House of Representatives Chair of the Subcommittee on Health, House Energy & Commerce Committee. Rep. Anna Eshoo wrote a letter to Gov. David Ige, asking for details on the expenditure of more than $50 million. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard called for the investigation.
Eshoo says Hawaiʻi has received over $50 million through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Epidemiology and Lab Capacity Grants program. "This funding was intended to be used to develop, purchase, administer, process and analyze COVID-19 tests, scale-up laboratory capacity, trace contacts, support employer testing, and support other testing-related activities, which are essential to containing the virus."
She asks Ige to issue a response to the committee by next Friday "to better understand the exponential increase in COVID-19 cases in Hawaiʻi." She asks for the numbers of contact tracers on staff weekly since COVID-19 was declared an emergency by the governor's office, how many have been trained, and how many volunteered. She asks for details on the training process and qualifications, duties, and benchmarks for each case.
Eshoo also asks for DOH's guidelines for testing, quarantining, and tracing visitors, residents, medical professionals, and staff. She asks for an accounting of federal funds for testing and contact tracing, to provide a detailed timeline of state testing rates, contact tracing records, and funds allocated.
She asks Ige to provide "specific actions" to be taken "to bring your State's testing and contact tracing efforts up to nationally recommended standards."
Gabbard said, "The crisis we face today is a direct result of our state's failed leadership. Governor Ige and his team had months to hire, train, and deploy a robust contact tracing team to prevent the very situation we face today. Months ago we worked in Congress to deliver over $50 million in
funding to the state so that they had the resources to trace, test, and contain future COVID-19 cases. Yet, we have around a dozen people doing contact tracing today, who are so overwhelmed that they can only reach a small number of individuals who have contracted COVID-19. If Governor Ige and his team had done what they were supposed to do, we could have prevented the major outbreak we are experiencing today that has taken more lives and resulted in so many of our kūpuna, families and keiki getting infected and sick.
"This is a punch in the gut to Hawai'i residents who have sacrificed so much to try to prevent the spread of this virus, only to see our state leaders failing the people. This is inexcusable. The people of Hawai'i deserve better, and they deserve answers. So far, we are getting none. I want to thank Rep. Anna Eshoo for her leadership in seeking the truth and getting answers to determine where over $50 million in federal funding has gone, and what specifically is our state doing with contact tracing," said Gabbard.
STRONGER MEDICINE IN SOCIAL PRACTICES TO TAMP DOWN THE RAPID COVID-19 RISE are needed, according to Lt. Gov. Josh Green, MD. He responded today to Gov. David Ige's new rules for O'ahu where the pandemic has exploded. In a Hawai'i News Now interview, Green said that O'ahu should be under a "safer at home order," which would have more people work from home and shut down gatherings and large venues. He said he is concerned that hospitals could become overwhelmed. Green posted on his Facebook today: "With 3,590 active cases currently, we can expect to see about 394 hospitalizations (give or take a few) about 10 days from now."
To read comments, add your own, and like this story, see Facebook. Follow us Instagram and Twitter. See our Fresh Food on The Kaʻū Calendar and our latest print edition at kaucalendar.com.
Gov. David Ige at Hawaiʻi Convention Center, where a contact tracing
center is established with help from Hawaiʻi National Guard.
Photo from State of Hawaiʻi
MORE EVIDENCE OF COMMUNITY SPREAD IN HILO comes from four new cases reported there today and three elsewhere on the island. A statement from Civil Defense says the four cases "have been identified as Hilo-based. These new cases are not associated with any known clusters and are considered community spread. These cases are now isolated and monitored by the Department of Health." Hawaiʻi Island reports the first hospitalization on-island since the end of July.
Two more people have died from the virus on Oʻahu, for a state death total of 43. Both were over 60 years of age. Gov. David Ige said the deaths are "another tragic reminder" of the consequences of coronavirus. He extended condolences to the family and friends of the victims.
Monday, there were 158 adult and 16 children new cases in the state. Tuesday, there are 129 adult cases and 5 children. Child cases are household contacts of adult cases, indicating the virus is spreading within households, says DOH.
Investigations and contact tracing are continuing to identify cases connected to gatherings or "hanging out with close friends" or co-workers. There are also cases of residents who traveled recently or hosted out of state visitors. One recent case on Hawai'i Island has a history of travel to O'ahu.
Onset of COVID-19 cases in the last 28 days, by zip code.
White is zero cases. Yellow is one to 25 cases. Light orange
is 26 to 50 cases (not pictured). Dark orange (not pictured)
is 51 to 150 cases. Red (not pictured) is 151+ cases.
Hawaiʻi Department of Health map
From March through Aug. 18, DOH says 58 cases were reported from skilled nursing facilities, 20 cases from community care foster family homes, 11 cases from adult residential care homes, three cases from developmental disability residential settings, and two cases from assisted living facilities.
Hawaiʻi Island reports seven new cases today. Statewide, 261 new cases are reported, with 20 on Maui and 233 on Oʻahu.
There are 23 active cases on Hawaiʻi Island, with a total of 159 since the pandemic began. It has been more than 28 days since a case was recorded for a Kaʻū or Volcano zip code. Since the pandemic began, no one died on this island.
Since the pandemic began, Oʻahu reported 5,111 cases, Maui County 262, and Kauaʻi 54. One case from Mauiwas recategorized to Oʻahu, and one Oʻahu case was removed. Twenty-three victims are residents diagnosed while visiting other places.
The state has tested 168,672 people, for a 3.32 percent positive rate.
In his daily message, Hawaiʻi County Civil Defense Director Talmadge Magno said, "Again, Hawaiʻi Island has seen a daily increase of positive cases for the past two weeks. Most of these recent cases are not travel related which means the virus is being transmitted within the community. Data from the Department of Health indicates the majority of these new cases originated in Hilo. It has been noted that many have not been following the policies of gatherings, distancing, and wearing of face coverings. A review is now underway to see what policy changes, if any, need to occur to address the growing spread of the virus.
"Know that person to person close contact is the main method that the virus is spread and we need your help in following the guidelines of gatherings, distancing and face coverings. Thank you for listening, be safe. This is your Hawaiʻi County Civil Defense Agency."
COVID-19 case count in the U.S.is more than 5,516,639 – about 25 percent of worldwide cases. The death toll is more than 172,667 – about 22 percent of worldwide deaths. Worldwide, there are more than 22.24 million COVID-19 cases. The death toll is more than 783,525.
Read online at kaucalendar.com. See our Fresh Food on The Kaʻū Calendar
directory for farms, ranches, takeout. Print edition of The Kaʻū Calendar is
free, with 7,500 distributed on stands and to all postal addresses throughout
Kaʻū, from Miloliʻi through Volcano throughout the district. Read online at
kaucalendar.com and facebook.com/kaucalendar. To advertise your
business or your social cause, contact kaucalendarads@gmail.com.
Daily, weekly, and monthly recurring Kaʻū and Volcano Events, Meetings, Entertainment, Exercise, Meditation, and more are listed at kaucalendar.com.
Give Input on Proposed Improvements to Miloliʻi Beach Park
through Tuesday, Sept. 8. A draft Environmental Assessment is released by County of Hawai'i Department of Parks and Recreation, which would update the park to comply with Americans with Disabilities Act guidelines; make improvements to the parking lot, boat ramp, walkways, playground, and basketball/volleyball courts; and replace the restrooms, water system, and hālau.
Introduction to Papermaking Workshop with Mary Milelzcik on Saturday, Sept. 12, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. This papermaking workshop, using a household blender, will introduce papermaking using recycled papers with various additives, including cotton linters, and local plant materials. volcanoartcenter.org/events, 967-8222
Catalyst Abstract Watercolor Workshop with Patti Pease Johnson on Saturday, Sept. 19, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. volcanoartcenter.org/events, 967-8222
Dine In or Order To Go Oktoberfest Meals from Crater Rim Café in Kīlauea Military Camp on Saturday, Sept. 19 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Menu offers Bratwurst, Knockwurst, Bockwurst, German Potato Salad, Sauerkraut, Tossed Salad, and German Chocolate Cake. $14.95 per person. Call 967-8356 to book a reservation for dine-in or place a grab-and-go order. Face coverings and 6 feet social distancing are required in common areas. KMC is open to all authorized patrons and sponsored guests. Park entrance fees may apply.
Apply for a Crossing Guard Position at Nāʻālehu Elementary, to help keiki cross the street safely before and after school. Apply online at governmentjobs.com/careers/countyhawaii or contact Officer Torey Keltner of the Traffic Services Division at 961-2305 for more information.
St. Jude's Episcopal Church Soup Kitchen, open every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. , with a modified menu and increased health & safety standards. Hot showers, the computer lab, and in-person services and bible studies are suspended. Services and worship are posted online at stjudeshawaii.org. Join the Aloha Hour via Zoom at 11 a.m. on Sundays, us02web.zoom.us/j/6843449828?pwd=YW94djVvU0szOGNKaFZ1V0pUL1owUT09, Meeting ID: 684 344 9828, Password: Aloha.
The Food Basket, last Tuesday of the month, Aug. 25, provides food at St. Jude's to those in need. See hawaiifoodbasket.org.
On-Call Emergency Box Food Pantry, Cooper Center, weekdays from 8 a.m. to noon. Eligible one time every three months. Call Kehau, 443-4130.
Pāhala and Nāʻālehu Public Libraries, open for pick-up services. Nāʻālehu is open Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 9 a.m. to noon and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Pāhala is open Tuesday and Thursday from 9 a.m. to noon and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Library patrons schedule Library Take Out appointment times to pick up their hold item(s) at their favorite libraries by going to HSPLS Library Catalog and placing a hold on any item(s) they want to borrow, or they may call their favorite library branch to place a hold with the library staff. After receiving a notice that item(s) are ready for pick up, patrons schedule a Library Take Out time at picktime.com/hspls. For patrons who placed holds during the closure, their item(s) are ready for pickup after the patron schedules a Library Take Out appointment. For more information, visit librarieshawaii.org.
Free Book Exchanges, at the laundromats in Ocean View and Nāʻālehu, provided by Friends of the Kaʻū Libraries. Everyone is invited to take books they want to read. They may keep the books, pass them on to other readers, or return them to the Book Exchange to make them available to others in the community. The selection of books is replenished weekly at both sites.
Apply for Assistance through U.S. Department of Agriculture's Coronavirus Food Assistance Program. The deadline to submit an application is Friday, August 28. Visit farmers.gov/cfap for more information.
Avocado Growers Survey Open. Help identify opportunities for expanding the local avocado industry, to assist local farmers, buyers, and agencies develop strategies to bolster Hawaiʻi's avocado industry, says Hawaiʻi Farmers Union United. Farmers and farm names kept anonymous, results shared publicly. Survey completion gives option to register to win a $200 gift certificate to Home Depot. For a hard copy of the survey, email: info@growfruithawaii.com. Take the survey: surveymonkey.com/r/Hawaiiavosurvey2020.
Receive Help Over the Phone with Critical Financial Issues, through Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund Financial Navigators from County of Hawaiʻi, in partnership with Hawaiʻi First Federal Credit Union. Access these remote services by completing the webform at hawaiifirstfcu.com/community-resource-center or by calling 808-933-6600 to sign up. The Financial Navigator will then send a short service agreement and call the client to begin their personal session. Organizations across the County can also refer clients directly to a Financial Navigator. For more information, contact Sharon Hirota at 808-961-8019.
Find Resources for LGBTQ+, Loved Ones, and Allies at Sexual and Gender Minority online resource hub. Hawaiʻi Department of Health's first website dedicated to LGBTQ+ resources. Developed by the Sexual and Gender Minority Workgroup in partnership with the DOH Harm Reduction Services Branch. Resources: Understanding the Pacific's alternative genders; Pronoun guide; Book lists for children and teens; ʻOhana support; and DOH data. For more information on joining the SGM Workgroup, email Thaddeus Pham at thaddeus.pham@doh.hawaii.gov. See health.hawaii.gov/harmreduction/sexual-gender-minority/sexual-and-gender-minorities-sgm-in-hawaii/.
Learn About Hawaiʻi's History & Culture through the Papakilo Database, a resource developed by The Office of Hawaiian Affairs. The Kahalo Center says database consists of "collections of data pertaining to historically and culturally significant places, events, and documents in Hawaiʻi's history. The purpose of this educational online repository is to increase the community's ability to preserve and perpetuate cultural and historical information and practices." See papakilodatabase.com.
Native Hawaiian Farmers and Ranchers urged to use U.S. Dept. of Ag On-Farm Market Directory. U.S. Office for American Indian, Alaskan Native, and Native Hawaiian Programs is developing a list of Native Hawaiian farmers willing to sell direct to consumers through the On-Farm Market Directory. On-farm markets are managed by a single farm operator that sells products on their farm, or on a property next to their farm. Some on-farm markets may also deliver or ship their goods directly to consumers. Visit the program website for more information and to register: ams.usda.gov/local-food-directories/onfarm.
Receive Free Marketing Assistance, for small businesses affected by COVID-19. Owners can receive free marketing assistance from Univeristy of Hawaiʻi-Hilo faculty and their senior class. They offer help with moving a business online, finding out more about the businesses' customers, analyzing marketing effectiveness, and providing customer service or website feedback. Visit https://bit.ly/2YvFxsl.
Find Grants and Loans Offered to Farmers and Ranchers, at oahuaca.org. The website has a new search feature to help find information that applies to the searcher.
Begin Learning Basics of Organic Farming, from two free modules of a virtual training program by the Organic Farming Research Foundation, the University of California Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education Program, and California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. See https://kohalacenter.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=54bdd67c601f0c0d3ea430053&id=9e1691c22d&e=0e3fe20c1f.
Apply for Internships with Sen. Brian Schatz's office. Internships for undergrad, graduate, and law students are offered in the Honolulu and Washington D.C. offices. Applications are considered on a rolling basis year-round. Non-office internships are open for high school students to advocate in their communities. Applications due Sunday, Sept. 13. Schatz may also nominate exceptional students for appointment to the U.S. Service Academies. Applications due Friday, Oct. 23. See schatz.senate.gov/services.
Exhibition Hawaiʻi Nei Invitational: Nā ʻAumākua, runs through Saturday, Sept. 12. Also available to view online, view the exhibition in person the Gallery in the Park during normal gallery hours, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. , Wednesday through Sunday. Free. The exhibition is a group exhibition will present works focusing on the theme of Nā ʻAumākua, family gods. VAC will not hold an opening reception on August 8th.
volcanoartcenter.org/events, 967-8222
Volcano Art Center, Niʻaulani Campus in Volcano Village, open Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. , closed Saturday and Sunday. The Gallery in Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park is open Wednesday through Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. , closed Monday and Tuesday. Virtual Shopping Appointments are offered at Volcano Art Center locations. Via Skype or FaceTime, a VAC associate helps customers browse the selection of artwork up close, and gives personalized tips and recommendations to help customers "find that perfect piece of locally made artwork, wherever you are in the world!" Book appointment online for $5 and VAC staff will help schedule a date and time at volcanoartcenter.org/shop. Shop the online gallery 24/7. Orders are shipped as regularly scheduled. Free local pickup is available.VAC now offers a Virtual Classroom, which features over 90 videos.
Guided Nature Walks through Nature Trail & Sculpture Garden, Mondays, 9:30 a.m. at Volcano Art Center Niʻaulani Campus in Volcano Village. No reservations for five or fewer – limited to ten people. Free; donations appreciated. Email programs@volcanoartcenter.org. Garden is open to walk through at one's own pace, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays. Free. volcanoartcenter.org/events, 967-8222
Health and Fitness Website for Kūpuna, 808b-fit.com, contains videos for kūpuna to play and move along with. There are videos for stretching, tai chi, yoga, dancing, dance fitness, bon dance, hula, chair dancing, and chair yoga.
Yoga with Emily Catey Weiss, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. at Volcano Art Center Niʻaulani Campus in Volcano Village. Advanced registration required; $5 per class. volcanoartcenter.org/events, 967-8222
Volcano Farmers Market, Cooper Center, Volcano Village, open on Sundays from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m., with much local produce, island beef, and prepared foods. Call 808-967-7800.
Ocean View Community Market, open Saturdays and Wednesdays (starting next Wednesday, Aug. 12), 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. , on the corner of Kona Drive and Highway 11, where Thai Grindz is located. New market location for vendors of the recently closed Ocean View Swap Meet. Managed by Mark Cocucci. Masks are mandatory. Limit of people is 100. Social distancing is required. Gate will be unlocked for vendors at 5:30 a.m. Vendors can show up without a reservation for now, with $15 dollars. Parking is in the upper lot; parking on the side of the road is prohibited. All vendors must provide their own sanitizer. All food vendors must have the permits required for the items that you are selling. Vendors and attendees are encouraged to carpool.
ʻO Kaʻū Kākou Market, in Nāʻālehu, open Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday, 8 a.m. to noon . The goal is no more than 50 customers on the grounds at a time. Vendor booths per day are limited to 25, with 30 feet of space between vendors. Masks and hand sanitizing are required to attend the market. Social distancing will be enforced. Contact Sue Barnett, OKK Market Manager, at 808-345-9374 (voice or text) or kaufarmer@aol.com for more and to apply to vend. See facebook.com/OKauKakouMarket.
See our Fresh Food on The Kaʻū Calendar directory for farms, ranches, takeout.
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Home/Entertainment/Bill Clinton Hospitalized for 'Non-COVID Related' Infection
Bill Clinton Hospitalized for 'Non-COVID Related' Infection
Bill Clinton has been hospitalized for a "non-COVID related" infection, according to a spokesperson for the former president.
Angel Ureña posted on Twitter Thursday night that Clinton was admitted to the University of California Irvine Medical Center on Tuesday, and is now "on the mend."
"On Tuesday evening, President Clinton was admitted to UCI Medical Center to receive treatment for a non-Covid-related infection," Ureña wrote. "He is on the mend, in good spirits, and is incredibly thankful to the doctors, nurses and staff providing him with excellent care."
Ureña also provided a statement from Clinton's team of doctors at the hospital, Dr. Alpesh Amin and Dr. Lisa Bardack.
"President Clinton was taken to UC Irvine Medical Center and diagnosed with an infection. He was admitted to the hospital for close monitoring and administered IV antibiotics and fluids," the statement reads. "He remains at the hospital for continuous monitoring. After two days of treatment, his white blood cell count is trending down and he is responding to antibiotics well. The California-based medical team has been in constant communication with the President's New York-based medical team, including his cardiologist. We hope to have him go home soon."
Statement from President Clinton's physicians pic.twitter.com/kQ4GDOxBcU
Former President Clinton hospitalized in Orange County with non-COVID infection
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Bold British stage version of '1984' being developed as a limited TV series

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Forgiveness isn't always easy, but it's always an available choice. Dive into biblical principles and encouragement to find the freedom to let go of the offense. Based on June Hunt's bestselling Hope for the Heart Series, this 6-week Bible study (2nd in the series) features insight into God's heart for forgiveness. Learn all forms of forgiveness and the difference between forgiveness and reconciliation. Forgiveness isn't based on a feeling, but rather on the fact that God calls us to forgive.


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NB! Unlike other providers we are concerned that these chairs are very durable reproductions. We are not the cheapest in price but have opted for quality. For all office chairs we give 2 year warranty. When you receive your order and you are not satisfied, we will take your order back.


In this post we will see TestNG dependency example between different test methods using @Test annotation's dependsOnMethods and alwaysRun attributes.
A very simple and real life use case [where these attributes can be handy] is user update operations e.g. In order to update a user, it must be created at first place. So while writing tests, you can write both createUser and updateUser tests, make updateUser depends on createUser, and execute updateUser if and only if the createUser executed successfully. Let's get going.
dependsOnMethods : dependsOnMethods attribute on a test method [test1 e.g.] specifies all the test methods [test2, test3,..] this test method depends on. It means test1 will start execution only after all the tests it depends on executed successfully. If any of the tests specified via dependsOnMethods attribute failed, then test1 will be skipped.
alwaysRun=true : Setting alwaysRun attribute on a test method to true forces the execution of this test even if the tests it depends on were failed.
It's evident that divide method will throw ArithmaticException if b is 0.
Let's write a trivial test class.
Clearly, testAdd will be executed fine. But testDevide will throw an ArithmaticException as we are dividing by 0. This will cause testDivide to fail.
It's clear from above output that testProcessRealNumbers was skipped as one of the method it depends on (testDivide) failed.
Method testProcessEvenNumbers, however was still executed, thanks to alwaysRun=true.


The flagbearer of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akufo-Addo, will beat his main contender and incumbent President John Evans Atta Mills if elections were held today, according to the latest Synovate Ghana opinion poll.
The report said Nana Akufo-Addo will poll 44% ahead of President Mills, who polled 36% from about 2000 Ghanaians interviewed.
The report also pegs the Progressive People's Party (PPP) leader, Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom, at 8% to be trailed by the People's National Convention (PNC) leader, Hassan Ayariga with 1% on the assumption that presidential elections are held in Ghana today.
It outlined that Nana Akufo-Addo won in six out of the 10 regions, while President Mills won the other four. In their strongholds, the two main presidential contenders won. President Mills bagged 76 percent in the Volta Region as against Nana Addo's 17, but in the Ashanti Region, President Mills had 22 as against 73 percent for Akufo-Addo.
The poll also concluded that 27% of the over 2000 Ghanaians interviewed contends that the economy is in a very poor state.
The Greater Accra, Central, Western and Brong Ahafo regions were christened as swing areas where Akufo-Addo recorded impressive results with the Central region going the way of the NDC.


Please join us to hear acclaimed classical guitarist, concerto soloist and chamber musician John Muratore.
John has been the featured soloist at the Academie Festival des Arcs (France), St. Petersburg (Russia) Chamber Concerts, the Atelier International Concert Series in Paris and AIMS (American Institute for Musical Studies) in Graz, Austria.
He has performed with numerous ensembles while on the faculties of Dartmouth College and Boston University and is guitar program coordinator at the All Newton Music School.
Can You believe that it's already August?
At Summerhill, our residents make the most of each sun shining day!
In going here and there for fun during these hot and humid days, we're happy to freshen up snacking on watermelon! Between entertaining and interesting activities and trips, many of our days are on the GO - GO - GO!
Keeping us hydrated and cool runs at the top of the priority list in making it a GREAT day!
The residents of Summerhill love getting out in the fresh air and having a back yard cook out!
There's nothing like a special barbecue dinner every week to keep the summer hopping when shared with good friends. Aylmer prepares a feast that is server table side while our residents savor an al fresco evening.
Residents and daughters enjoyed a wonderful tea party in the Monadnock room on May 11th.
Over 45 guests came, most of them wearing favorite hats while visiting with family and friends and enjoying a true English tea to celebrate.
The Residents worked very hard this year Making and Selling over 350 Apple Pies this year!
Thank You to Residents, Family, Friends & Staff for all your support!
On a sunny early morning, some of our Assisted Living and Meadows residents settled into the Summerhill bus and headed for the blue green ocean waters of Hampton Beach. Many of us reminisced about taking our children to the ocean and were flooded with our own delightful childhood memories of beachside excursions. Jean Kundert shared the highlights of our journey and our intrepid Chef Aylmer drove the bus for all to enjoy a fun filled day at Hampton Beach to view the magnificent Sand Sculptures and boy, they did not disappoint!
We were greeted by a noble sandcastle complete with four towers, a smiling sun and many more. These were created on a grand scale and so detailed you would have sworn they were done in clay, not fragile sand. The smell of the salt sea air, feel of the sand and sounds of the seagulls was just heavenly while the sea breeze kept us comfortably cool.
After spending some time at the beach, admiring the sculptures, a walk along the boardwalk, Jean and Aylmer treated us to a scrumptious seafood lunch at Browns. It is a quintessential coastal seafood favorite restaurant we love to stop at! After lunch, we all boarded the bus once again for a picturesque ride along the coast road, looking at all the grand estates and trying to select which one we'd live in, if we won the lottery. The views were breathtaking, and we were all a little disappointed when Aylmer had to turn the bus for home.
We all agreed, we could not have asked for a better day to go to Hampton. A salty breeze kept us cool, a bright sun warmed our hearts but best of all, the day was shared with good friends!
One resident exclaimed, she'd take a trip to Hampton any time of the year. It was a fantastic change to go from the wonderful mountains and wood lands of the Peterborough to the salt marshes and ocean side of Hampton. We do hope you'll join us next time – it's well worth it!
The bus was filled with our Assisted Living and Memory Care residents for a fun filled day along Hampton Beach to see the wondrous, amazing and creative sand castles created from artists from all over New England and beyond. After much fun and laughter, we drove up the coast to see all the lovely homes and then headed to Brown s Seabrook Lobster Pound for a delicious lunch. Ice cream was a must for desert before heading back home.
Many of the residents shared special memories of when they were at the beach, time with their families there, taking in the smells of a summer day on the water and of course, people watching! Some of our resident s families were surprised and thrilled we make this an annual trip. We can t wait to go next year.
"Twas The Night Before Christmas" was the theme of our Christmas gala this year.
The Christmas Party started with guests being fully transported to Santa's Village, entering the holiday garland elevator with a greeting of "Twas the Night Before Christmas". This set the tone for a fairy-tale memory making evening.
The sun-room captivated many with spectacular ice sculptures of Rudolph and his sleigh offering jumbo shrimp cocktail and stone crab claws. All of Summerhill was a Christmas display designed to bring out the kid in all of us. Oh what joy!!
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse at the Grandfather clock cheese extravaganza. Then the stockings were hung by the chimney with care in our living room where tasty gourmet grilled panini sandwiches were served.
A twinkling was heard not on the roof but in our dining room with the party tradition of dancing and singing - The Twelve Days of Christmas being an all-time favorite!
To finish off the night the Country Kitchen was transformed into an endless dessert and chocolate waffle bar, not a single person went away hungry and a good time was had by all!
Thank you to the families who brought in presents for the local community toy drives.
You can view a selection of photos below.
It all started on Friday night with a reading of the very popular Clement C. Moore poem, "Twas The Night Before Christmas". A special guest and early appearance of Santa and Mrs. Claus, along with a few elves from the North Pole made for a memorable evening. Mulled cider and cocoa was served as residents sat before the fireplace listening to this enchanting tale. Santa was so full of cheer that several ladies were delighted to sit on his lap and share wishes for the new year. Even though some of the residents expressed having been "Naughty", Mrs. Claus found them all on the "Nice" list.
It was wonderful to hear of various Christmas and holiday family or personal traditions that several residents spoke of from their childhood and later years. Many commented on enjoying such a fun night and having the occasion to get to know each other ever more.
Our spring outing to Vermont Country Store located in Rockingham, VT is a lovely scenic ride traveling alongside the Connecticut River. Eight of our Assisted Living and Memory Care residents went on this annual jaunt with great anticipation for the treats from this old fashioned purveyor of practical and hard-to-find products. Beyond browsing through the home goods and clothing section, our residents love to taste the samples of cheese, dips and jellies before selecting their goodies to take home.
Ardelle fines just the right mug!
Twelve Assisted Living and Meadows residents shared in our annual trip to the Butterfly Conservatory and Gardens. This amazing Lepidoptera source in Western, MA features 4,000 exotic and domestic butterflies in a tropical environment within 8,000 within this conservatory. After our fun outing, we enjoyed a picnic lunch outside followed with ice cream to celebrate this event.
Our resident started baking for the Alzheimer's Association fundraiser in June using fresh strawberries and rhubarb making delicious pies. Many of these were sold to the family of our residents, visitors and staff even before they came out of the oven!
Soon the residents went blueberry picking and tasty blueberry pies were made while the orders kept coming in for more pies. Before you know it, we had apple donations from many to keep the Summerhill Bakers busy working together in pealing, cutting and mixing the filling for tasty fall apple pies. Jean and one of our residents managed to keep up making the best homemade crusts – as many customers exclaimed!
180 pies were baked so far this year. We continue making apple and pumpkin pies until just before Thanksgiving. So, if you want a delicious pie for the holidays let us know. Many thanks to all who support the Alzheimer's Association!
Anyone who has felt a connection with a pet and experienced that unconditional love and acceptance, knows the value of a pet's companionship. These qualities make animals ideal therapeutic visitors for our residents.
Anyone who has felt a connection with a pet and experienced that unconditional love and acceptance, knows the value of a pet's companionship.
The Rindge Recreation Department bus of young children dressed in fabulous and creative costumes joined other Halloween attired family members of our residents and staff. They went door-to-door trick or treating and greeting everyone with smiles.
The kids (and even some adults) then paraded around the building to show off their marvelous costumes! Afterwards we had punch and cookies. Thank you to all that came and shared in the fun!
Once again, our resident Veterans joined other Veterans from the community for a special gathering to honor their service to our country. Our eight residents look forward to meeting fellow Veterans to talk about how they served. A very special lunch was served to show Summerhill's appreciation for each of these Veterans. We look forward to doing this again next year. Please consider joining us.
This year's gathering was extra special with the gift of a quilt for each Veteran that was presented by Quilts of Valor® Foundation. This now nationally organization was started by a Blue Star mother, Catherine in Delaware. She was inspired after her son was deployed to Iraq. Initially these quilts were given as healing quilts to returning service men and women touched by war.
Peter Smith, graciously spoke about and displayed his family antique hand tools from the 1800 – 1930's. The residents enjoyed testing their knowledge of tools in playing a game of "Guess the Tool". Many learned even more about how the they were used, i.e. carving beams. It was a great educational experience for us all! Thank you Peter for your time and sharing these fascinating tools.
Our Assisted Living residents very much look forward to our summer Lobster Bake which is a fine evening of indulging in steamers, lobster, corn on the cob along and potato salad. The tables were set with sand, mini beach balls and boats to mark the occasion. Jarvis played the guitar while Bob played his drums and residents sang songs before the group sat down to enjoy this feast.
Frank with his Sign I love Lobsters!
On January 20, 2016 Summerhill welcomed the advisory Board of Monadnock at Home for their annual meeting. In all, it was attended by about twenty members. They joined together in the Pub at 12:30 for social time and then sat down to a luncheon After all had enjoyed their meal, they moved to the Monadnock Room for their meeting. It sounds like it was a very successful afternoon and Summerhill looks forward to welcoming them back.
We also wish to thank them for the generous gift they gave to Summerhill's activity department. Very kind and much appreciated.
Our residents reached out to the dedicated Police, Fire & Rescue Departments of Peterborough with gifts of homemade pies to express heartfelt THANKS for all they do for our community!
We Raise over 3,000.00 The Residents Made & Sold over 65 Apple Pies, Baking Breads, Cookies, and Jams.
Our annual Christmas celebration was filled with Christmas cheer as residents laughed, danced, and ate the night away. Both the Assisted Living and Meadows residents, alongside family and friends were all given the chance to experience the magic of Christmas. This year's theme was "The Polar Express," based from the beloved children's book and movie. Director of Culinary Services, Alymer Given and the kitchen staff delighted our taste buds that evening with exceptional and delicious food cleverly presented. Once again, he amazed us with crafting three Polar Express ice sculptures that did not disappoint. We marveled at the jingle bell, Santa Claus and train that directed us to the shining "BELIEVE" written in lights. Talented Customer Relations memory maker, Jean Kundert was behind the camera throughout the night capturing candid moments and treasured pictures! This year's photo booth was a hoot with special guest "conductor Tom Hanks" by our sides! The "HOT HOT chocolate" room was every chocolate lovers dream come true. Listening to the "12 days of Christmas," sung by our beloved residents, staff and family was a treat for all. The residents were able to gift their families with the 1,200+ cookies they worked hard with Jean to make. Add this all together, plus the open bar and the night was one for the books. We want to thank the generous families who contributed toys in support of Toys for Tots. Our elf stayed busy collecting the many that were brought in! Thank you also to everyone who worked hard to ensure our beloved residents and guests would enjoy the night. It was certainly a magnificent success!
Once again Summerhill honors our Veterans and Service Men and Women with a "Thank You" luncheon.
A memorable afternoon with our residents sharing times with other veterans from the Community.
Congratulations to our own Josh Brescia for his performance at this years Special Olympics. Josh took home a gold and a bronze medal in his events. We couldn't be prouder of him.
Three cheers for Josh from all his friends at Summerhill.
Congratulations to Aylmer Given, Director of Culinary Services (aka Top Dog Chef of Summerhill!!!!) for being The Biggest Loser. Aylmer lost the most weight in our three month contest. He looks and feels great with a 21 pound weight loss. It should also be noted that Aylmer turned all in winnings back to be donated to Alzheimer's Association. So very generous. Thank you Aylmer!!!!
Also, a round of applause for all the staff that participated in the contest. Everyone lost weight in varying amounts. Keep up the good work.
Margret and many others have been knitting gifts of hats for newborns and comfort dolls.
These cuddly dolls have been sent to Aides orphans in sub-Saharan Africa, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Ethiopia, Nicaragua, Uganda and Jamaica.
Close to 1,000 dolls have been delivered by local doctors traveling on mission trips.
These small gestures bring great comfort and joy to many children and offer a soothing effect while at medical clinics.
Summerhill is looking for volunteers to work in our Pub. No experience needed. We will train. It's a lively fun place where folks meet in the evening from 4 - 5 for a cocktail or soft drink. Most evenings there is entertainment. A fun and rewarding job for outgoing individuals who enjoy being around the same! Call Mary Pat or Deb. Thank you.
Summerhill Assisted Living held a Volunteer Appreciation lunch on November 19th, 2015. Below is a list of the volunteers honored at this lunch.
Margot Graham has been reading to Summerhill residents for 25 years.
Christine Falcone comes once each month with Msgr. Gerry Belanger from Divine Mercy Catholic Church in Peterborough and plays piano during mass.
Neil Falcone is Chris's husband, also from Divine Mercy Catholic Church in Peterborough. He is a Eucharistic Minister, assists with monthly mass at Summerhill, and helps deliver communion to residents who are unable to come to mass.
Rev. Jamie Hamilton is Rector at All Saints' Episcopal Church in Peterborough, and provides pastoral care to several Summerhill residents as well as Episcopal worship at Summerhill once each month.
Rita Klug volunteers in the Meadows.
Cathy LaRoche is Barbara LaRoche's daughter and runs the weekly Wednesday evening Assisted Living knitting group.
Jane Meneghini is a Eucharistic Minister from Divine Mercy Catholic Church in Peterborough. She assists with monthly mass and Summerhill's weekly Rosary prayer group.
Pastor Lourey Savick is the minister at the Peterborough United Methodist Church and provides pastoral care to several Summerhill residents.
Ruth Wright plays scrabble with residents in Assisted Living.
Summerhill Assisted Living celebrates Children and the Arts Day with local home schooled students to create this beautiful dragon that was displayed in the window of Hobb's Jewelers.
On Thursday, November 20, 2014 Summerhill hosted New Hampshire Public Television's Brit's Wit's. Our Monadnock Room was transformed into a theater and the entrance became a "London Tea Room". Brit's Wit's has it's own followers through NHPTV and many of our residents joined in for the afternoon. They previewed a soon to be shown Brittish comedy, sipped tea and port and were treated to Aylmer's goodies. NHPTV expressed delight over the welcome that Summerhill rolled out. Everyone is welcome back anytime.
with some of her devoted family membersCongratulations to our June MacDonald!!! She received The Boston Cane in recognition of being the oldest citizen of Rindge.
June is 99 years young and certainly does not look it. June has lived here at Summerhill for a little over three years. She is shown here with some of her devoted family. Again, congrats June!!!!
On May 3rd, Summerhill got into the spirit of the Kentucky Derby by holding their own celebration. Mint Juleps and appetizers were provided for all the residents who attended. Residents were encouraged to wear a special "HAT" of their choosing and creation to celebrate the Derby.
Many original hats were worn with great pride and our bouquet of Roses was presented to Ruth Graeff, for "Best Hat" of the day. (The wreath of Pansies she wore came right off her front door. Hysterical !!) A fun time was had by all!
On July 16, starting at 12:00 noon, Summerhill is hosting our Hawaiian Luau Theme BBQ for all residents and their families.
And on July 23 @ 12:00 noon, a Beach Themed BBQ for our Meadows Residents and their Families.
(Hamburgers, Hot Dogs and a variety of salads and accompaniments will be served.) We hope you can join us !
Summerhill is very proud to share the results of our most recent State of New Hampshire survey ( August, 2014).
We were found to be 100% deficiency free.
We are so proud of the entire staff of Summerhill. It is their success story because it is they who provide extraordinary care to our wonderful residents. Take a well deserved bow folks!!!!!
Also, our Executive Chef, Aylmer Given has selected his Summer Menu for our residents and guests. Paring fresh fruits and vegetables with lighter dishes for dining.
Summerhill Community has been baking, canning and fundraising in all kinds of ways to raise money for Alzheimer's. We have already reached our goal and we still have a couple of weeks to go.
On September 20th we will head to Keene to walk for Alzheimer's awareness. We hope to see old friends and meet new ones. Thanks to all who have supported our efforts. A special thanks to Jean Kundert, Jean Palmer and Kay Kereazis. Their baking, canning, pickle and jam making as well as Kay presiding over her "Lemonade Stand" helped push our fundraising efforts over the top.
On Thursday, September 4th, Summerhill hosted our monthly Memory Cafe her in our pub from 2:00 - 3:00 in the afternoon. Our presenter for this month was Tiffany Calcutt (pictured). Tiffany spoke extensively about the benefit of certain foods to promote good health and possibly slow down memory loss. It was standing room only. Our best turnout yet! Twenty three folks from the community in addition to our wonderful residents and staff. Aylmer put out a buffet of heart and brain healthy treats including salmon, colorful fruits and vegetables with a lovely yogurt dip. Attendees sipped iced tea, lemonade seltzer and sherry. The questions were thoughtful and the answers informative.
Our residents recently took a day trip to the Belgian Chocolatier. Only 15 Minutes from Peterborough, Unbridled Chocolates is a small "boutique" chocolate shop located near Keene, NH in the Monadnock Region of New Hampshire.
More than a chocolate store, Unbridled Chocolates is a place to hold parties, a place where you can order dessert, and taste tempting treats.( samples are encouraged) Their pride in business comes from combining unique flavors with fine Belgian chocolate. Our residents enjoyed the tour and the specialties of the shoppe thanks to Alan Crofut, Owner and Chef.
The Summerhill Assisted Living Annual Easter Bunny Visit and Egg hunt was held on Saturday March 30th at 10:00am.
Residents of Summerhill, their Grandchildren and great Grandchildren participated in the egg hunt.
Summerhill staff also brought their children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews to help celebrate and participate in the hunt as well.
Thank you to our Activities Director Jean Kundert, staff, and employees of Summerhill, for graciously giving of their time to making it another fun filled day !
This Summer we have taken two trips up the winding service road to the top of Pack Monadnock. From the peak you can view Mt. Monadnock, Mt. Washington and even Boston on a clear day!
A trip to Humdingers in Marlborough provided a challenging afternoon of mini golf. The delicious ice cream we enjoyed after was a reward for our efforts on the greens.
The photo to the right Is from a recent outing for our Residents in Summerhill's Assisted Living facility to the Vermont Country Store. Our residents were accompanied by our Activities Director, Jean Kundert.
As you can see from the photo a fun time was had by all!
We visited Executive Director Mary Pat Jackson's lovely gardens and pastures at the peak of iris season. The iris were in full bloom and all the horses loved the carrots and attention. Even Elba, Mary Pat's beloved Mastiff got in on the action. We were even lucky enough to make a few new friends as we enjoyed the sights. This was one of the first trips in our new bus!
On a picture perfect day, several of our residents climbed Mount Monadnock. They could not have chosen a more classic hiking day. A cool breeze, no bugs and big smiles. All came home a little tired but very satisfied. Great job guys!!!! Mount Washington next???
A sleigh ride was enjoyed by Summerhill residents on what turned out to be a perfect Winter day.
With a winter chill and snow flurries in the air, the Silver Ranch Stables on RT 124 in Jaffrey, NH, provided an expert driver and vintage sleigh. With 2 beautiful Belgian horses in the lead, our residents were treated to an hour long, snow covered ride, along many of the Monadnock regions country roads and trails.
On June 6th Summerhill had some very adorable four legged friends visit with us. Cover Girl (complete with hat and sneakers!!!) and Ginger graced us with their presence. And, presence they had! They roamed the halls and living areas of Summerhill greeting all our residents, families and staff. They nibbled carrots, shared kisses and even a little pony ride or two. We all hope they will be regular visitors. They call home a therapeutic riding facility in Hopkinton N.H. Cover Girl and Ginger's owner, Pauline has offered our residents the opportunity to get back in the saddle and ride once again. Our Activities department is in the process of putting this together for our residents who would like to pursue this.
I am thinking some more very special photos will be following these. Stay tuned!
Summerhill is so proud to be able to offer our Memory Cafe. On the first Thursday of each month we are opening up our beautiful newly renovated pub to folks from the Summerhill community as well as anyone in the Monadnock area who would like to join us. We will occasionally have a guest speaker who will bring insight into the area of dementia.
Occasionally, we will have music of some type. However what we will always have is plenty of compassion, understanding, support and friendship. Our chef, Aylmer Given is collaborating with our Executive Director, Mary Pat Jackson to not only welcome all from Summerhill but from the community to come relax and enjoy refreshments. All are welcome including folks giving care to loved ones with dementia and the people they care for. There is no charge and reservations are not required but can be helpful.
Please consider spending part of your afternoon with us and letting us pamper you.
At long last our beautiful coach bus has arrived. And we're off................ on this particular day it was a scenic ride with a trip to Kimball's for an ice cream. We have been on the road each day since it's arrival. Both floors of our memory care as well as our assisted living residents take turns on outings. Thanks so much to our remarkable Activities staff for all the fun outings they plan.
On November 8th, our honored veterans were treated to one of Aylmer's spectacular lunches.
The Well School treated our residents to a Thanksgiving performance.
Scarecrows, scarecrows, scarecrows everywhere!!!!! We can't even have a scenic ride or wander our gardens without being spooked!!!! Oh well, Halloween is special all around and that certainly includes Summerhill. Stay tuned for our trick or treaters.
Notice how we at Summerhill paid homage to our beloved chef Aylmer Given. Could anyone ask for more than this - to be so beautifully displayed???
On October 13th we attended the annual Art Tour for Peterborough and surrounding towns. We are constantly reminded of all the talent within the Monadnock Region. We saw spinners, painters, glass blowers, blacksmiths and so many more. Artists of all kinds open their homes, barns, studios etc. to share their particular passion. It was a special day and enjoyed by all who attended.
Early in October we were invited to Silver Oak Alpaca Farm in Ashby, Massachusetts to visit with the most adorable alpacas. We saw large and small and all were just wonderful. Thank you so much Pam and family. One of our resident's daughter and her husband own this beautiful farm so Francis was able to brag to fellow residents about all the wonders of his daughter's farm. Enjoy the photos!!!!
On September 22, we headed to the beautiful Red Apple Farm in Phillipston, Massachusetts for a day of apple picking. It has been owned and operated for four generations by The Rose Family. Residents came back with bags and bags of apples. The apple pies coming out of The Country Kitchen were spectacular. Thank you so much ladies.
On September 21st, staff and residents as well as family and friends headed to Keene, N.H. for the annual Alzheimer's Walk. It was a gorgeous fall day just meant for a vigorous walk or stroll depending on ability. All that attended were so glad that they had. Summerhill had been fundraising for a year prior to the walk. Residents baked and sold their goodies as well as canned items from our gardens. We all worked as a community to raise funds and the results were extraordinary. Our Activities Director has already begun to "rally the troops (elves)" for next year. Way to go Jean, Mark, Annmarie and Barbara as well as our dedicated residents. You know who you are!!!!
On August 9th we made our way back over to Jaffrey. It's a tough job but someone has to do it!!! Look at all those unhappy faces!!! Once again we indulged. Lobster rolls, fries, onion rings, burgers etc. And to think we had to finish it off with ice cream. We love those trips and are already looking forward to their reopening in the spring.
On September 4, 2013 some of our Meadows residents had a visit with some of The Peterborough Players staff. They were treated to a performance and photo op!!!!!!
On August 6, 2013 Summerhill had our annual lobster bake. It was a picture perfect summer day. Warm temperatures, no humidity and a cool breeze. Ideal weather to sit back and feast, which is exactly what we did.
Aylmer and his staff put out an amazing spread including lobster, steamers, corn on the cob, potato salad, lemonade and ice cold beer. It doesn't get any better!!! When we all thought we could not eat another bite, out came the homemade blueberry pies. Our residents went blueberry picking the week before and then were kind enough to spend a morning baking pies. Thank goodness Aylmer purchased extra lobsters because today lobster rolls are on the menu followed by a trip to Kimball's for ice cream. We love summer here at Summerhill!!!!
Ruth, Jean, Andy, Shirley, Marge, & Sheri went blueberry picking yesterday in between the rain showers we picked 12 pounds of blueberries .Tomorrow we will make 6 blueberry pies.
On Thursday, June 20th Summerhill welcomed The Peterborough Chamber of Commerce for their after hours gathering. What a great group! Approximately sixty members arrived around 5:30 and the fun started. They enjoyed cocktails and Aylmer's amazing appetizers (see pictures). They all had such complimentary things to say about our beautiful facility. We would love to have them back anytime.
Summerhill was transformed on July 16th . We became an Hawaiian island in costume and with a delicious feast that only Aylmer and Jean could pull off. Assisted Living residents and their families dined on sweet and sour pork, shrimp fried rice, a variety of vegetables, ambrosia, native fruits and the absolute favorite – vanilla ice cream with fried pineapple and fresh caramel sauce. Yum!!!!!
On Tuesday, July 25th a group from Summerhill headed to the beach for lobsters and a chance to view the amazing sand sculptures. What a day we had!!! Temperatures soared as did spirits as we dove into a feast of seafood delights. With tummies full and smiling faces we headed up the beach to see the sculptures (and oh boy, the sights that only Hampton Beach has to offer!!!). The sand sculptures were beyond words as you will see from our pictures. Residents were such good sports ignoring the heat and humidity to enjoy these creations.
We all agreed it was a great day and eagerly look forward to returning next year.
Annmarie has recently joined Summerhill in our Activities Department. She is a graduate of Palm Beach Atlantic University, with a degree in Cross Cultural Studies.
Annmarie loves sports, especially running, reading, crafts, and has a special place in her heart for all animals. She is a welcome addition to our Summerhill family and residents and co-workers alike will benefit from her approach and personality.
Beth & Warren from Dublin NH are participants in the "Pet Partners" Program and visit our Summerhill residents on a regular basis. Along with their 3 Golden Retrievers, Sofie (9 yrs old), Willow(6 yrs old), and Alice(3 yrs old), the owners and dogs Touch the lives of our residents, while Improving their Health.
Thank you from all of the Summerhill residents and Staff for enriching our lives with your kindness and visits.
Kristen, Mia & Baby Weston, (not pictured) , are our latest Volunteers at Summerhill.
The family is from New Ipswich and Kristen recently called our facility and asked if she and her children could come to visit and hopefully brighten our residents day.
And that they have. Eyes widen and smiles come upon the faces of our residents on our Assisted Living and Memory Units when they arrive.
Thank You Kristen and Family for Brightening our Day !!
We are all deeply saddened that one of our dear residents, Helen Brazil, passed away on Sunday, November 17th.
Helen was such a gift to all. She shared her jokes, singing, puns, smile, and friendship to all who had the privilege of meeting her. She will be dearly missed.
Attached is a recent poem Helen wrote about Summerhill. Helen loved it here and it shows.
Summerhill participated in the 7th Annual Monadnock Wellness Fair on Saturday Sept. 29, 2012, sponsored by the Monadnock Rotary Club.
We had a great day, and great looking display. So many people contributed to success of this effort and we want to thank them all!
We had an opportunity to speak to so many nice people. It's gratifying to know that Summerhill has such a great reputation in the community. Throughout the day we heard many "Thank You's" from families and friends of former and present residents. It truly warms ones heart to be a part of this amazing family. We even had the opportunity to speak to former employees of Summerhill who remembered the charm and ambiance of the old "Farm House".
A great day was had by all. Thanks again for this amazing opportunity!
Summerhill Assisted Living is pleased to announce that it has been given the Alzheimer's Foundation of America Excellence in Care Dementia Program of Distinction.
The Alzheimer's Foundation of America (AFA) developed Excellence in Care to partner with care settings in the establishment of a nationwide standard of excellence in care for individuals with Alzheimer's disease or related dementia.
Excellence in Care offers the opportunity for facilities to ensure that their dementia care settings meet the optimal care needs of their residents/clients. The program, created with the input of industry experts, consists of a comprehensive on-site evaluation and consultation on strategies to achieve the established standards for quality of care and to sustain performance.
A dementia care professional who has undergone comprehensive training—an AFA Excellence in Care Specialist—will partner with the care setting to meet the program's standards of excellence. Key areas of review include: environment, education, staff-client interaction and programming.
Care settings, such as the Summerhill Assisted Living Meadows Facilities, that successfully reach the standards established by this initiative will earn the status of Alzheimer's Foundation of America Excellence in Care Dementia Program of Distinction.


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ChildrenTamil NaduUnderprivileged
From Chennai's Streets to Football in Moscow, These Girls Are Living Their Dream
By Rayomand Engineer
These kids, from Chennai, have put in tremendous effort and beat many odds, to compete in an international sporting event.
According to a World Bank Group and UNICEF report, 'Ending Extreme Poverty: A Focus on Children', India is home to over 30% of approximately 385 million children living in extreme poverty-the highest in South Asia.
To rise above abject poverty, and make a mark in this world is very difficult, yet for these kids in Chennai, battling difficult circumstances isn't new.
Karunalaya Centre for Street & Working Children is a Chennai-based NGO that focuses on rehabilitating street children. Children who have been labourers, faced abuse, and been homeless have been rescued by the Society.
The NGO uses sports as a means to help these kids. Sports infuse discipline and other good traits in children.
The society sent an all-girls football team to participate in the Street Child World Cup, an event held just like its FIFA counterpart.
The girls from Chennai have all had a difficult past, but now, through sport, they are building a future. Image Credit:- Karunalaya
The team was led by 17-year-old Sangeetha, a Class 9 drop-out, who was a child labourer, rescued from a steel factory in 2013.
Due to adverse family circumstances, young Sangeetha had to discontinue her studies. But once she was rescued by the Society, her life turned around. Football is an integral part of her life, and she aspires to become an IAS officer.
Dr. N Paul Sunder Singh is the Founder and Secretary at Karunalaya. He told The Better India about how they are helping kids rise above their past and build a future.
"All the children have disadvantaged backgrounds", he says, explaining the circumstances from which the girls have been rescued. Living on the street with their parents, they lack basic amenities, and day-to-day existence is difficult.
The girls from Chennai formed a team, and trained hard to take part in the event. Image Credit: Karunalaya
He explains that Karunalaya Society uses art, music, theatre and sports, to help the children living there. Participating in the Street Child World Cup for the first time in 2014, Karunayala's team at the time consisted of boys.
It was the first time that girls have gotten the opportunity to shine for their country. And shine, they did! It was a well-fought tournament, Singh says, even though the team didn't win the cup. Along the way, were difficult matches against seemingly superior opponents, like England and Russia. The girls from Karunalaya played extremely competitive football and didn't let anything deter them. Singh is extremely proud of the team and its achievements.
"Education is a very important part of bringing up these kids," Singh says, stressing on the fact that the sports programme is only open to kids who choose to attend school. As a result, many children who were not particularly keen on academics, took up books, in the hope of playing football one day. Singh says that education helps the children become more aware, and gives them a better chance at fighting their adverse circumstances.
For the girls, from Karunalaya, Chennai, playing at an international event in Moscow was an incredible experience. Image Credit: Karunalaya
Singh says, "The children were very happy and very enthusiastic about the tournament," adding that there are certain criteria that a girl must fulfil, before being selected for the team. She must be a resident of the NGO for at least one year. She also must be between 14-17 years old. He explains that it takes about a year to work with them, and the time helps the NGO arrange important documentation required for the girls to travel.
The Chennai squad, from Karunalaya, ready for the Street Child World Cup in Russia. Image Credit: Karunalaya
"It was very difficult, because the girls did not have IDs", Singh says, adding that in order to make any identity proof for a minor, the parent's ID proof is required as well-which is something that is very difficult with these kids, who have lived on the streets with their families.
It took a lot of running to and fro, to get the girls proper documentation and passports so they could travel for their tournaments.
The game of football was far removed from the daily reality that these kids have to face. Take the case of Shalini, a 17-year-old who was saved from child marriage. Or Tamizharasi, the 15-year old mid-off player, who didn't know where her parents were. Or Nirosha, who lives in the shelter after her parents abandoned her as well as her two younger brothers. Today, they all want to make positive impacts on society, to alleviate the lives of children like them.
"It is indeed very fulfilling to see these children rise," Singh shares, talking about the current coach of the football team who had come to Karunalaya and stayed there for years. The coach then decided to stay back to train the girls, and give them tips because giving back is very important!
From Chennai, to Moscow, representing India, these girls have come a long way. Image Credit: Karunalaya
Karunalaya Society continues to pursue the sport, as a means to help kids staying there. "There is a Cricket World Cup for street children, very similar to the football initiative. We aim to get a team ready, and win that tournament," Singh concludes.
You may also like:- Team of Five Street Children Make India Proud by Winning Medals at Rio Street Child Games
As of now, the children at Karunalaya are basking in the experience of their Moscow trip, which went off very well. What's more, during the event, the children even participated in a cultural initiative, showcasing Indian culture to the rest of the world. Through sports, Karunalaya has managed to help these kids who, given the circumstances they were in, would not have had a future.
All images courtesy: Karunalaya Centre for Street & Working Children.


China and the rest of the world have been dependent on U.S.-based firms for their chip designs, but as we enter the era of AI, it's a smart decision for China to own their own IP in the area.
Facial recognition and digitization of your identity are the major themes for This Week In China Tech. We stay on top of the most important tech stories coming out of the mainland every week and make sure you understand why they matter. Here's all the news you need to know coming out of China's thriving tech scene.
This is a big day for China. Historically, the chip design industry has been dominated by the West, but not anymore. Alibaba made two big announcements this week (article in Chinese): 1) their first AI chip dubbed Ali-NPU (neural processing unit) from their AI research center, DAMO Academy and 2) the acquisition of ZhongTian Micro, China's only independent chip design firm.
Alibaba's CTO, Zhang Jianfeng said, "The acquisition of ZhongTian Micro is an important part of Alibaba's chip layout." He also said that entering the core IP area of chip design is critical for China's "autonomy and control." China and the rest of the world have been dependent on U.S.-based firms for their chip designs, but as we enter the era of AI, it's a smart decision for China to own their own IP in the area.
The Ali-NPU seems destined to power AliCloud, Alibaba's answer to Amazon Web Services. But other applications may also be on the horizon like Apple, Qualcomm, and Huawei's AI chips that are used in mobile phones. Either way, it's clear that Alibaba has seen this as a strategic necessity as they have previously invested in a variety of chipmakers over the years like Cambricon, Kneron, ASR, DeePhi and Barefoot Networks. However, an outright acquisition and their first AI chip announcement shed light on just how important Alibaba thinks the battle for AI dominance will be in the future.
Traveling is still a hassle, but China is taking the next step in ultimate convenience: using your face to let you check in and board planes. In the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou's Baiyun Airport (only Terminal 2 at the moment), you can self-check in your bag, get through security and board your airplane using just your face. This security system is very sophisticated and solves one of the major inconveniences of travel, but users are still required to bring their ID card as a backup (read the next story for more about how this may also go away soon).
The Baiyun Airport Operational Control Hall (article in Chinese) is powered by AI applications from visual analysis technology leader Haiyun Data. This big data solution is dubbed "Rising Star" and assesses three key aviation areas: the flight areas, terminal areas and the connecting areas like underground baggage storage. The data collected from these three airport areas is combined with external data sets like traffic, meteorology and maps, and analyzed by their AI. The AI-powered results help to optimize five major data streams: aircraft, passenger, baggage, cargo and traffic flow. The current system can handle 60,000 messages per minute and allows the airport controllers to visualize their entire airport in real-time and diagnose issues as they happen.
A pilot of a new digital e-ID card is rolling out across China. For anyone that uses Apple, you can think of this e-ID card like your Apple Wallet. Users will be able to digitize their information at a police station (their physical ID card, face and fingerprint data) and store their confirmed e-ID in their WeChat Wallet (article in Chinese) via a mini-program. Mini-programs in WeChat are like the mini-app integrations you see in Facebook Messenger and Apple's iMessage, for outside programs like Google Maps, Paypal and Yelp!.
The benefits of such a system are profound. Today, when a user checks into a hotel, it's widely known that their personal data can be misused. Also, the check-in process can often be painful. With your WeChat e-ID, you can simply walk into a hotel, scan your face and then receive the keys to your room. Your face scan is automatically cross-referenced against the local police database and confirmed or denied. Your personal information is never given to the hotel.
The current pilots are focused on travel across Guangzhou, Foshan, Wenzhou, Beijing and a few other cities. The solution seems to be going well and will likely be rolled out quickly, and other verticals like banking are being trialed soon.


Before the throw-in last Saturday afternoon in Ballinaglera, GAA fans in the county already knew that yet another County title would be heading to the north of the county but the big question was which of the two neighbours and firece rivals would be celebrating at the final whistle.
The all conquering Glencar/Manorhamilton were seeking to add the Junior B Championship title to the Senior Championship or would their neighbours Dromahair be able to claim their first adult title in six years.
In Manorhamilton they will feel if there was to be another few minutes to be played at the end of the game they would have emerged victorious such was the convincing manner in which they finished the game.
However, Dromahair will also feel they should have all but wrapped up victory in the first half such was their dominance in the opening 30 minutes but they were let down by some wayward shooting and as a result only led by three points at the interval.
The game began with Dromahair completely dominant as they attacked a sluggish Glencar/Manorhamilton team at will. Niall Farrelly and Camillus McMorrow were afforded too much time and space in midfield and they were to able to feed the full-forward line with plenty of possession.
Dromahair opened the scoring inside the opening minute through Kevin Conlan but three further opportunities were spurned before Killian Torsney doubled Dromahair's advantage when he rose highest to meet a Conlan free which he diverted with his fist over the bar.
Having been thoroughly outplayed in the opening stages Glencar/Manor would have been pleased that they only trailed by two points and when they were presented with their first scoring opportunity, they duly took it. Niall Brady found Kenneth McMorrow who pointed for Glencar/Manor's opening score of the game.


"Mag works wonderfully. However, I did have to modify mine to be able to clip into the mag well correctly. The notch on the back of the mag that clips in was too laege, so I sanded the surface from the bottom to take a bit of material off. After that it was perfect. I'd still rate it a 4/5 because the quality of it is fantastic and has been working without any issues.
Definitely pick it up if you need a mid cap.
"This is a good mag. It holds 80 rounds and feeds them very well. They are built to be strong and durable and I have tested that many times i.e. dropped on concrete, stepped on, banged up against buildings. The one thing that disappointed me was the finish. It feels like a really cheap pot metal and feels rough to the touch. I personally don't mind since I don't buy for aesthetics but more for performance. I just wish that they held more than 80 rounds like the Classic Army mid-caps that hold 180 rounds. Another big turnoff is the price, at 30 bucks it's too much for a mag that only holds 80 rounds. If it held as much as what some of the M4/M16 mid-caps that around 130 rounds then I wouldn't mind paying the high price.
I gave it a 4 because of the round count. These would be the best M14 mid-caps ever made if G&G would double the round count.
Discuss about G&G M14 Standard Magazine for G&G and CA M14 Series Airsoft AEG with your friends and fellow Evike.com shoppers!


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text:
The family of prisoners were gathered in fornt of the Sanandaj's court
Kurdpa Agency: The family of detainees of the Sanandaj prison held a protest rally in front of the court of this city.
According to a report by the Kurdistan Press Agency, on Monday, May 13th, the families of detainees in Sanandaj were gathered in front of the court to protest against the inappropriate situation of prisoners in Sanandaj's Basij Blvd.
The Kurdpa journalist in Sanandaj reported that after the gathering of the families of the prisoners, the anti-riot security forces assembled to attack and disperse the protestors.
According to the Kurdpa journalist, the anti-riot police has beaten up the crowds.
The imprisoned prisoners in Sanandaj Central Prison are deprived of welfare facilities and are in poor conditions, and this has caused their families to be dissatisfied.


Tx Scrapper Mom: Happy New Year Blog Hop!!!
11. txscrappermom <----- That's ME!!!
As soon as I found out I was going to be participating in the hop, the design for this card automatically came to my mind and I went with it. Amazingly enough, what I had in mind is what came out on paper (how often does that happen?! lol). I used Simply Charmed for the bottle and glasses and Don Juan for the 2011 title. The cloud was welded together with some rectangle in order to give it the "exploding-out-of-the-bottle" look. Hope you like it!
I love this card! Isn't it great when the idea comes out the way you want it to?? You did a great job. Happy New Year!
Very nice card and Happy New Year tfs!!!
So cute!! stopping by from the blog hop! Now following your cute blog!
Super cute. I love the way it turned out. TFS!!!
Thank you for joining in on the blog hop. Great job.
Did you hand stitch it? I tried enlarging but couldn't.
Really cute bottle! What a great card!
Cute Idea! Love the bottle.
Nice! I can't tell if that is hand stitched or you drew the stitches with a pen....either way, very nice.
LOL yes it is rare that what we think actually comes out at end product. Love the exploding 2011!!
Happy New Year! Your card is very cute! Thank you for sharing!
Wahoo! The first blog hop of 2010. Love your project. One of my resolutions, of course, is to scrap more! Happy New Year!
Love your card! Happy New Year! Also, good luck in Robyn's Design Team challenge. You did a good job on that too!
Love how you did the cloud.
Cute card! Very neat idea with the welded cloud.
Happy New Year. I like the card, especially what you did with the background!
Wonderful card. I love the embossing and champagne bottle. Happy New Year!
Great card...Happy New Year to you...I hope it's filled with lots of creative vibes.
I love the button you made as well for you blog...soo cute!!
TFS! I love the way you made the cloud explode out of the bottle!
Great card!!! I love the colors...makes it so elegant!


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Kirby Star Allies Review
When Dark Hearts rain down on Dream Land, it is the power of friendship that saves the day in Kirby Star Allies. It is HAL Laboratory that is the creative force behind the pink puffball's first appearance on Nintendo Switch, an adventure that is worlds apart from when we restored Planet Popstar's colour in his clay-built outing on Wii U.
In many ways, the experience that you can expect to have with Kirby Star Allies can be likened to the chaotic madness that New Super Mario Bros. Wii became known for. While Kirby's Adventure Wii had been the ever-cute character's first side-scrolling adventure to let up to four players trek across Dream Land together, the developer has found room for a more meaningful and heartwarming reason to let you team up in multiplayer in this Nintendo Switch exclusive.
As you would expect, Kirby remains the star of the show and can still inhale an enemy and either swallow them to gain a Copy Ability or to spit them out as a damaging projectile. But, thanks to a falling heart that hits him on the head, the pink hero now has the power to spread some love on his escapades. This means that Kirby can now chuck a Friend Heart in an enemy's direction, which, as an early cutscene rather adorably shows, will let him recruit allies to help him hunt down whoever is causing trouble in Dream Land this time around.
This gameplay mechanic soon becomes a key part to your adventure, with the unlikely companions that you rally to your side being called upon to help you overcome obstacles, solve puzzles, and take down enemies that you encounter. Working together in such ways lends a setup that is more than a perfect match for local multiplayer sessions on the portable home console, and results in a gaming experience that embodies its resolute mantra in being able to play anywhere, anytime, and with anyone – even if the game's resplendent visuals are best appreciated on a TV screen.
That's not to say that it can't be enjoyed solo, thanks to incredibly smart friendly AI that knows where it needs to be and when, and loves nothing more than to leap to your defence in combat. There's far more to Kirby Star Allies than simply using Friend Hearts to make new friends, though. With Kirby free to change Copy Abilities whenever there's an enemy for him to suck up and swallow, you can also swap out his recruited allies with other enemies that he crosses paths with. And then, there's the chance that the Copy Abilities that everyone has can be combined.
This basically lets you add different elements to weapons, such as the Ice and Sword Copy Abilities combining to create a Blizzard Sword, or the Fire and Yo-Yo Copy Abilities resulting in the Sizzle Yo-Yo. It's simple to do (and change), with the player that is wielding a weapon-based Copy Ability holding up on the Left Stick while the other carrying an element strikes them with an attack. Elementally charged weapons not only deal more damage but are used for the game's many puzzles where you will ignite bombs and smash through walls to uncover the secrets that each stage hides.
When you aren't punishing your enemies with Copy Abilities, your team will unite together to perform special moves. These are all based on the power of friendship and will see your four characters roll through a stage as a Friend Circle, create a Friend Bridge to safely escort a key-carrying enemy to a locked door, or hop on board the Friend Train – which is both a personal favourite but is criminally underused. It is in these moments, as well as the many boss battles, where the game entertains most.
The problem that Kirby Star Allies has is one that it has run into before with Kirby's Epic Yarn, in that it is far too easy. Setting out to restore peace to Dream Land with three friends, we managed to reach the game's dramatic conclusion in less than five hours. At that point, we had around 88 extra lives to spare and it was only a lapse in concentration that ever saw us lose any. That makes the game accessible to all – something that we shouldn't readily look over – but those that have stuck with the tiny ball of puffy pink mischief over the years will undoubtedly be disappointed at the lack of challenge that this game presents.
After the credits draw to a close, you unlock the chance to replay stages without Kirby in the Guest Star ???? Star Allies Go!, a time attack mode that isn't that appealing a reward. Neither are the two minigames – Chop Champs and Star Slam Heroes – that challenge you to cut down trees as quickly as you can or strike an incoming meteor with as much power as you can muster using a baseball bat. These are entertaining but shallow additions that fail to retain your interest for long. There is The Ultimate Choice, a boss rush mode where you can handpick your team and choose your difficulty level (one aspect that should have been carried across the whole game), but even in this, you won't chase your best scores for long.
Even drenched with charm, this calls into question the game's longevity and whether there's really enough to encourage you to keep coming back post-completion. There are picture pieces to collect that steadily reveal anniversary 'celebration pictures' that you can look at in the Gallery and big switches to hunt out in certain stages that each unlock a trickier Extra Stage, which will add more hours to your playtime.
We know that more Dream Friends will be released over time, which are special characters – like King Dedede, Meta Knight, and Bandana Waddle Dee – that you can summon in-game using the Dream Rod at the Dream Palace to add them to your party. But, again, I'm not sure if this is substantial enough to maintain anyone's interest.
And that's a shame, because you will be hard-pressed to find a game with as much visual spectacle on Nintendo Switch at this point in time. From the menu design to the characters to the world map, Kirby Star Allies is a kaleidoscopic treat for your eyeballs, matched with a sensationally energetic soundtrack that you can sit back and listen to in the Jukebox.
Entertaining but lacking the challenge that many will crave, it's hard not to come away from playing Kirby Star Allies with a mixed opinion. With impeccably polished visuals but uncomplex stages to overcome, this short-lived adventure in Dream Land has much room for improvement which we can only hope the pink puffball's next outing will deliver on.
Version Tested: Nintendo Switch
Review copy provided by Nintendo
Related TopicsHAL LaboratoryNintendo Switch
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