View allAll Photos Tagged support
President Cyril Ramaphosa, President Filipe Nyusi and Renamo leader Ossufo Momade
President Cyril Ramaphosa delivers Message of Support during the Signing Ceremony of the peace and reconciliation agreement at the Parque de Paz in Maputo (Photo: GCIS)
There is a standard CWGC pattern headstone in the Cemetery at Methwold.
G/11409 PRIVATE
R. WATTS
ROYAL SUSSEX REGIMENT
19TH OCTOBER 1919
There is also a plaque attached:-
IN MEMORIAM
OF
ROBERT WATTS
FROM COMRADES AND FRIENDS
QUEEN ALEXANDERS HOSPITAL HOME
(There is a bottom line which I can’t make out)
Private WATTS, R
Service Number:………. G/11409
Died:…………………… 19/10/1919
Unit:…………………….Royal Sussex Regiment
Buried at METHWOLD (ST. GEORGE'S) CHURCH BURIAL GROUND
Location: Norfolk, United Kingdom
Source: www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2803528/watts,-/
No match on SDGW.
The Medal Index Card for Private 11409 Robert Watts, Royal Sussex Regiment, is held at the National Archive under reference WO 372/21/47442
Source: discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D5788014
He qualified for the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. He is also on the Silver War Badge List which shows he enlisted on the 22nd January 1916 and was discharged on the 26th July 1917. The Service Medal Roll shows him only seeing service with the 13th Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment.
Some of his Service Records appear to have survived the incendiary attack during the Blitz on the Warehouse where all the Other Ranks Army Service Records were stored.
Robert Watts, a single Farmer aged 21 years and 1 month, was living at Methwold Hythe, Methwold when he attested at Norwich on the 22nd January 1916. He had no previous military experience.
He was recorded as 5 feet 7 and three quarter inches tall.
His next of kin was his mother, Mrs Mary Watts, of Methwold Hythe, Norfolk.
Having initially attested, probably through an extension of the Derby Scheme, he was posted after 1 days service to the Army Reserve He was mobilised on the 1st May 1916 and posted to a training unit, the 3rd Battalion Royal Sussex Regiment on the 3rd May. On the 7th December 1916 he arrived at an Infantry Base Depot in France and from there was posted on to the 13th Battalion Royal Sussex Regiment on the 25th December 1916.
He qualified for the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. He receibed a Gun Shot Wound to the back on the 27th February 1917. He was repatriated through the medical evacuation chain, landing back in the U.K. on the 5th March 1917.
This wound left him permanently disabled and he was discharged from the Army on the 26th July 1917 as no longer physically fit for service. When the Army wrote to him with his discharge papers he was still a patient at the King George Hospital, Stamford Street, London S.E.1. He was to receive a weekly pension of 27 shillings and 6 pence. By December 1917 he acknowledged receipt of his Silver War Badge, giving his address as Methwold Hythe, Norfolk.
No match on Picture Norfolk, the County Image Archive.
No obvious Soldiers Will or Civil Probate for this man.
On the Methwold War Memorial elsewhere in the cemetery he is recorded as Robert Watts.
There are no obvious entries in the Civil Records for Robert or Mary Watts to link them to this part of East Anglia. He would not have been old enough to vote by the time preparation of the electoral register was suspended for 1916 and 1917. There is no-one with the surname Watts or Watt recorded on the 1915 edition of the Norfolk register of voters in the Methwold Polling District.
Robert stated when he enlisted in January 1916 that he was 21 years and 1 month old. If that is correct and Robert was his first name then his birth could be expected to have been registered in either Q4 1894 or Q1 1895. There are no likely births in Q4 and four births in Q1.
These were :-
Robert Henry, Truro District. Robert Henry, born Probus, Cornwall, was living at Probus, Truro, Cornwall, working as a Labourer, in the household of his parents Charles and Elizabeth on the 1911 Census.
Robert John, Cambridge District. Robert John, born and living Cambridge on the 1911 census. Living with parents Robert John and Lydia.
Robert Malcolm, Foleshill District of Warwickshire. No obvious match 1901 or 1911 census. No obvious match in the death records for England and Wales.
Robert William, Gateshead District. A possible candidate for this soldier was the 16 year old Robert William Watts, born Gateshead, County Durham, then working as an Engineers Fitter. He was living in the household of his parents at 1 Woods Terrace, Gateshead. It is his mother Mary, aged 40 and born Scotland, who is recorded as the head of the household as her husband Septimus Watts is stated to be in South Africa. The couple have been married 20 years and have had 6 children, of which 4 were then still alive. As well as Robert William they were Jane, (18), Eleanor May, (7) and Norman, (2). Going back to the 1901 census his father Septimus, a Milling Machineman was aged 34 and Mary was 30. Septimus was born Newcastle, Northumberland. The death of a Septimus Watts, aged 77, (so born circa 1866) was recorded in Johannesburg in 1943. His children are recorded as Jean, Robert, Eleanor May and Norman. His wife predeceased him, dieing on the 19th June 1937. It would look like Robert was still alive and so can be ruled out.
www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPHF-SZ4B
For now the assumption has to be that mother and son were born outside England and Wales, arriving in the Methwold area after the 1911 census was taken and were not qualified to vote.
On the day - wounded………………………
There is only one date for his wounding shown in his surviving service records and that’s the 27th February 1917. However the Battalion War Diary gives no real clue as to the circumstances of his death.
25th February 1917 – Battalion War Diary
St Lawrence Camp.
The Battalion relieved the 9th Yorkshire Regt. in the Right section OBSERVATORY RIDGE sector taking over the following dispositions. B C & D Coys in the front line from right to left with A Coy in support in HALIFAX TRENCH and Battn. Headquarters at RUDKIN HO. I.24.c.1/4.1 ½
The relief was a long time and was not reported complete till 1 a.m.
The general condition of the line was not good and supply arrangements necessitated large carrying parties.
26th February 1917 – Battalion War Diary
Owing to poor visibility the artilleries of both sides were inactive and except for desultory firing on a few points the day passed quietly. During the night our patrols were active but encountered no resistance.
27th February 1917 – Battalion War Diary
Day again passed quietly. During the morning the enemy fired about 20 5.9’s on RUDKIN HO. slightly damaging the trench but causing no casualties.
On the day………………………………
As he is regarded officially as among the war dead, Robert must have succumbed to his spinal injuries.
The death of a 24 year old Robert Watts, (no middle initial) was recorded in the Wandsworth District of London in the October to December quarter, (Q4), of 1919.
The plaque on his headstone references the “Queen Alexanders Hospital Home” – this is almost certainly either the Queen Alexandra's Military Hospital although that lies just across the river from the borough of Wandsworth.
See: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Alexandra%27s_Military_Hospital
Or there is an Queen Alexandra Hospital Home which was originally opened at Roehampton in 1919.
See: www.military-history.org/articles/charities-queen-alexand...
Joint Forces Training Base home to energy-efficient headquarters
LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. -- Soldiers, family members and civilians of the 79th Sustainment Support Command will soon have a new headquarters, organizational maintenance area and acres of parking at the Joint Forces Training Base here. The work is all part of a nearly $25 million project managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles District.
Andy Stevens of Retrofit Services Company from Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., was onsite Sept. 12 putting the finishing touches on the computerized building management system that will control the state-of-the-art energy efficient heating, ventilation, and air conditioning for the headquarters building. The system uses multiple condensers and is nearly 30 percent more efficient than systems of just five years ago.
"This one [building zone] is calling for one stage cool, fans on, temperature is 72 [degrees] in the zone and the set point is 72, so it's doing just fine," said Stevens. "You can change your occupancy status at any time, emergency override it, shut it down and we do have the chemical alert push-buttons that will close all dampers inside and out."
The alert buttons are located throughout the facility and once activated because of an attack or a release of hazardous chemicals, no air is allowed in or out of the building to protect the occupants, according to Maj. Phillip Oster, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles District's Santa Ana Resident Office deputy who oversees the project.
To reduce construction costs and increase future savings, the project is using eco-friendly features, like re-cycled material, and in the case of the covered parking lots, they will generate energy with a photovoltaic system. The contract partner's quality assurance manager for the project explained the feature.
"At peak, they produce 375 KVA [kilovolt-amps]," said Edward Desmond, Cox Construction of Vista, Calif. "In theory, it's enough power to offset the footprint of the Army Reserve Center building."
While not designated a net-zero facility, the extensive use of energy efficient materials during construction will enable the photovoltaic system to actually return power to the Los Alamitos grid, off-setting the operating costs of other buildings on the base, according to Desmond.
The Energy Policy Act of 1992 mandated the use of "low flush" urinals in government facilities. This project takes it a step further with water-free urinals. The USACE Engineer Research and Development Center estimates that they pay for themselves in six-months to three years and the cost savings don't end there. All new Army construction is designed to satisfy the Silver-level standards of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating system, in accordance with the U.S. Green Building Council guidance.
According Oster, the project is in the "punch list" stage with safety officials, contractors and District project delivery teams making final inspections before furniture is installed and the customer takes possession of the ARC in October.
Members of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Europe District’s Forward Engineer Support Team – Advance participate in Exercise Arctic Edge April 20-30, 2010, where they assisted with aerial route reconnaissance, bridge assessment and contingency gap crossing expertise. Read more about it at www.army.mil/-news/2010/04/07/36961-europe-engineer-suppo... (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers photo)
While staunch members of the Earth Defense League, the Nordic Defense Council maintains its own fleet of star ships capable of defending the Scandinavian colonists in the far flung depths of the galaxy.
Capable of operating away from bases for extended periods in a war fighting capacity the cruiser also doubles as an exploration ship that specializes in analyzing icy planets and moons. These capabilities have led to the ship being nicknamed, Amundsen's Auger.
_______
When I displayed this piece, Magnus was struck by how much it resembled the color scheme in Aleksander Steins amazing NDC builds. The idea stuck and I decided to weave the NDC into the back story. I hope it does NDC justice!
One display reads:
“The purpose of anti-aviation defense is to protect our own forces and establishments from hostile attack and observation from the air by keeping enemy aeroplanes at a distance.” – Brigadier General James A. Shipton, 1917
When the United States declared war on Germany in April 1917, we lagged far behind most nations in adopting Air Defense methods. Thrust into a conflict where new technologies like machine guns, chemical weaponry, tanks and airplanes had completely revolutionized warfare, the American Expeditionary Force was forced to modernize and adapt quickly.
On 26 July 1917, Brigadier General James Shipton and Captains Glenn Anderson and George Humbert left the United States with the first contingent of American combat troops destined for the Western Front. The three officers were tasked with observing both British and French anti-aircraft methods and establishing a new American Anti-Aircraft Service. While General Shipton coordinated with the British and French to acquire the necessary equipment for American air defense, Anderson and Humbert took the lead on researching Allied techniques. The two captains quickly determined that the French methods were far more effective. As a result, both attended the French Anti-Aircraft school at Arnouville-les-Gonesse and upon completion established a co-located American school to instruct incoming American anti-aircraft officers and enlisted on the new doctrine.
Anderson and Humbert incorporated some effective British techniques, which resulted in the use of searchlights for locating enemy aircraft at night. Searchlights, coupled with acoustic locators like the French used allowed for better target acquisition and therefore better accuracy for both the heavy caliber and machine guns on target. The first American anti-aircraft class began in September 1917 and consisted of twenty-five officers.
The school was divided into two sections, focused on employing artillery and machine guns in the anti-aircraft role. A third section, focused on searchlights, was created in January 1918. During its existence, the American Anti-Aircraft School at Arnouville trained 578 officers and 12,000 enlisted in the employment of anti-aircraft systems of the day.
Using a mix of heavy guns, machine guns, sound locators and searchlights, American anti-aircraft units were able to better defend Allied positions and as a result, better engage enemy aircraft. By the time the Armistice ended World War I on November 11th 1918, the American Anti-aircraft Service had gone from an untested, cobbled-together organization to the most successful air defense arm in the world.
The next display reads:
WWI – Anti-Aircraft Machine Gun Battalions
With the establishment of the American Anti-aircraft School at Arnouville-les-Gonesse in October of 1917, the American Expeditionary Force had its own training program for anti-aircraft gunnery in Europe. The school trained US servicemen on the use of heavy guns, machine guns and searchlights. Five anti-aircraft batteries (75mm) and seven anti-aircraft machine gun battalions were activated during World War I. Of those seven machine gun battalions, only the 1st and 2nd Battalions saw combat; the remaining five battalions were either in training or in transit to Europe by the cessation of hostilities.
While the heavy gun batteries were focused on deterring enemy overflights of friendly territory, the machine gun battalions were tasked with directly engaging enemy aircraft. During their brief existence, the 1st and 2nd AA Machine Gun Battalions established a new standard for Allied anti-aircraft machine gun units. Firing just over 225,000 rounds of .30 caliber ammunition, the two battalions shot down 41 German airplanes; or one enemy airplane per 5,500 rounds. Allied statistics could only account for two enemy aircraft per 200,000 rounds by the end of World War I.
The official US kill tally by the end of the war stood at 58 confirmed airplanes shot down by both heavy guns and machine gun units. However, this fairly small number does not accurately reflect the performance of US anti-aircraft units. That figure did not include aircraft downed by American anti-aircraft troops serving on foreign equipment or with foreign units, where credit for the kill went to the higher Allied nation headquarters. Therefore, on 18 May 1918, while serving under the French Army, the 2nd Anti-aircraft Battery was not given credit for a kill, even though the unit shot down the US Anti-aircraft Service’s first airplane.
Despite the flawed kill confirmation process, the anti-aircraft machine gun battalions performed admirably both in the anti-aircraft and ground support roles, setting the standard of tactical flexibility that continues as a cornerstone of the Air Defense Artillery branch of the 21st Century.
Use of improvised anti-aircraft mounts were, like tree stumps, included in the AA machine gun training program.
The French Hotchkiss machine gun was one of the standard anti-aircraft weapons used by US forces on the Western Front.
Anti-aircraft machine guns became a necessity as World War I dragged on and aerial attacks on ground forces increased.
Acoustic locators enabled anti-aircraft units to detect inbound aircraft at greater distances, thereby giving gunners more time to bring their guns to bear on an inbound airplane.
Citation:
The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Second Lieutenant (Infantry) Samuel F. Telfair, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with the 2nd Anti-Aircraft Machine Gun Battalion, A.E.F., at Brieulles, France, on 4 November 1918. Second Lieutenant Telfair was leading a patrol to reconnoiter a position for anti-aircraft machine-guns when his group became scattered by intense shell fire. Upon returning to the shell-swept area to look for his patrol, he found one of the men severely wounded. Making two trips through the heavy shell fire he secured the assistance of Private Laurel B. Heath and carried the wounded soldier to safety.
Citation:
The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Sergeant Frank J. Gardella (ASN: 88892), United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with Machine-Gun Company, 165th Infantry Regiment, 42d Division, A.E.F., north of the River Ourcq, near Villers-sur-Fere, France, 28 July 1918. When two enemy airplanes flew parallel to our Infantry lines north of the River Ourcq, pouring machine-gun bullets into our positions and driving everyone to cover, Sergeant Gardella rushed to his machine gun and took aim at the upper of the two machines. Although he was constantly subject to a storm of bullets from the planes and from enemy snipers on the ground, he nevertheless coolly sighted his gun and riddled the upper plane. It collapsed and fell in flames, striking the lower one as it fell and causing it to crash to the earth also.
The final display reads:
M1918 3-Inch Anti-Aircraft Gun
The M1918 3-Inch Anti-Aircraft Gun represents the culmination of combat experience in the First World War. The US had primarily used foreign-designed heavy guns like the M1897 “French 75” in the heavy gun anti-aircraft role during World War I, with a few M1917 fixed-position 3-inch guns arriving in theater very late in the war.
The Model 1918 3-Inch Anti-Aircraft Gun was the first US-manufactured, purpose-built, mobile anti-aircraft gun. An adaptation of the 3” Coast Artillery Gun, the M1918 had a high muzzle velocity (over 2,400 feet per second) and the new mount allowed for extremely high-angle fire. It completed testing in the Fall of 1918 and the first battery was rushed into service for trials on the Western Front.
Allied observers who viewed the Model 1918 3-Inch Anti-Aircraft Gun were extremely impressed with its performance. British and French efforts in this area were nothing more than mount adaptations of field guns. Those ad-hoc efforts, using weapons that failed to achieve a sufficiently short time of flight, were of limited effectiveness in actually engaging aircraft. The method of engagement had been dubbed “barrage fire” and relied on a wall of shrapnel at a predetermined altitude to deter enemy aircraft rather than precision targeting of individual aircraft. The high-velocity rounds of the M1918 changed that, and although fire control systems were still in their infancy, US anti-aircraft gunners now had a weapon they could use effectively.
There is some question as to whether the M1918 saw combat in World War I. Most sources show that the test guns did not get overseas until December 1918, a month after the Armistice was signed.
The M1918 soldiered on during the interwar years, serving as the primary weapon system for American Coast Artillery Anti-Aircraft units until its replacement, the M3 3-Inch Anti-Aircraft Gun began coming on line in 1928.
The last M1918 guns were phased out of service by 1932. Although production figures are vague, several hundred M1918 Guns were manufactured between 1918 and the early 1920s. Of those hundreds of early AA guns that defended American skies, only one now survives.
The Museum’s M1918 3” Gun was completely restored in 2013 and is as close to its original, operational configuration as possible.
Pointing the M1918 was a complex process, involving two gunners on each side to aim, traverse and elevate the gun.
Unlike earlier weapons that had been pressed into anti-aircraft service, the M1918 had a maximum elevation that was near-vertical, allowing for better target tracking.
Although heavy coastal defense guns were still the focus of the Coast Artillery Corps in the 1920s, anti-aircraft gun emplacements were quickly collocated to defend the heavy guns against potential air attack.
Taken December 11th, 2013.
Volunteers are the heart and soul of any non-profit organization. Sisters Brittany and Stephanie helped with children's activities at Jay Day including apple stamping canvas bags. Brittany volunteered the day before too for National Public Lands Day.
Growing exponentially in membership support from Westchester and Fairfield counties, the Jay Heritage Center (JHC) hosted its annual Fall Family Festival this past Sunday, September 25th, celebrating American culture and traditions. Highlights included costumed tours of JHC's Sesquicentennial Civil War Exhibit "The Jays and the Abolition of Slavery" along with traditional music and activities for all ages.
The event was organized by JHC's Young Preservationists, a group of parents committed to the adaptive reuse of John Jay's landmark home as a community learning center for children and adults, a place furnished with lively ideas and people, not just furniture. The fresh vision of co-presidents, Emma Hanratty and Caroline Wallach had great resonance as over 1200 people showed up to applaud their efforts while munching on crisp autumn apples and sipping cider. The weather held as parents and kids painted pumpkins and ran 3 legged races in the old Jay meadow; the property thrummed with traditional folk tunes like Oh Susannah provided by the duo Cracked Walnuts. Nate the jackstock donkey was back courtesy of Tilly Foster Farm and reminded visitors that the Jay estate was once itself a working farm with plentiful crops and gardens. Farmer's market offerings of pumpkin muffins and homemade jams were on hand thanks to Meredith's Bread from Kingston while Cocoa out of neighboring Larchmont satisfied sweet cravings with artisanal chocolates and brownies. The place was filled with butterflies - both the winged wildlife that naturally adorns the landscape as well as vivid butterfly painted faces and balloon animals to take home courtesy of James Daniels.
Grownups had plenty to see too as veteran JHC archaeologist, Dr. Eugene Boesch, displayed the Paleo Indian and archaic woodland artifacts he has recovered from the grounds of this national treasure including a 4000 year old projectile point. Bruce Macdonald of Ashwood Restoration opened up his preservation workshop and explained the challenges involved in recreating mahogany spindles for the mansion's 19th century staircase. At the 1907 Carriage House, families saw a sustainable dollhouse and learned that their footprints matter in a power point presentation on invasive trees and plants threatening New York State habitats. But many parents and grandparents were content to just sit in wicker rockers on the veranda to watch their children play and drink in the unequalled view of New York State's oldest man-managed meadow a vista famously dubbed "a time funnel" to the past.
The event was part of the Hudson River Valley Ramble weekend which celebrates American heritage in New York State. It also cooincided with President Obama's call to service for National Public Lands, encouraging volunteers all over America to get more involved in the parks they love like the Jay Property.
Photo by Cutty McGill
Jay Heritage Center
210 Boston Post Road
Rye, NY 10580
(914) 698-9275
Email: jayheritagecenter@gmail.com
Follow and like us on:
Twitter @jayheritage
Facebook www.facebook.com/jayheritagecenter
Pinterest www.pinterest.com/jaycenter
YouTube www.youtube.com/channel/UChWImnsJrBAi2Xzjn8vR54w
www.instagram.com/jayheritagecenter/
A National Historic Landmark since 1993
Member of the African American Heritage Trail of Westchester County since 2004
Member of the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area since 2009
On NY State's Path Through History (2013)
Husky is a new protected support vehicle, providing commanders with a highly mobile and flexible load carrying vehicle.
This has been designed for a range of Afghanistan missions, including transporting food, water and ammunition, and acting as a command vehicle at headquarters.
Some vehicles will be fitted out as protected ambulances.
Equipped with a machine gun, Husky will join its sister vehicles Wolfhound and Coyote as part of the £350m Tactical Support Vehicle programme.
This image is available for non-commercial, high resolution download at www.defenceimages.mod.uk subject to terms and conditions. Search for image number 45151141.jpg
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Photographer: Andrew Linnett
Image 45151141.jpg from www.defenceimages.mod.uk
Girl tattooed model with indian headdress wearing a "support tattoos and piercings at work" tattoo t-shirts for women.
Federal Protective Service. Federal Way, Washington. 2010. All police car photos are at the AJM STUDIOS Northwest Police Department and are constantly being updated with new images. 2010.
© All Right Reserved
'Grow a mo' (moustache) to create public awareness of men's health issues and so the Citadis grew a big white mo; the Bombardier a smaller black one. © Henk Graalman 2023
Soldiers of the East Africa Response Force, a Djibouti-based joint team, prepare to support evacuation operations in Juba, South Sudan. At the request of the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Defense Department directed two U.S. C-130 aircraft to evacuate personnel from Juba, the capital of South Sudan, to Nairobi, Kenya. DoD also augmented physical security at American diplomatic facilities in Juba with members of the EARF. (U.S. Army Africa photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. . Micah Theurich, Released by U.S. Africa Command)
To learn more about U.S. Army Africa visit our official website at www.usaraf.army.mil
Official Twitter Feed: www.twitter.com/usarmyafrica
Official Vimeo video channel: www.vimeo.com/usarmyafrica
Join the U.S. Army Africa conversation on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ArmyAfrica
et bien sûr , la musique obligatoire :)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDZFf0pm0SE
Pour le groupe Un jour, une page, une photo...
Les autres photos sur ce thème sont ici : www.flickr.com/groups/2072908@N24/
Surprisingly, hoisting that baby up on to the cake board and riser went well. I only had a mild heart attack when I realized one of my wheel wells had collapsed a bit. Now on to make the tires.
Support the exhaust system in the middle before dropping it. Who the hell puts a toolbox under a car to support an exhaust system? Me.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Air and Marine Operations along with multiple other agencies and good citizens provide support to communities impacted by Hurricane Harvey in Beaumont, Texas on August 30, 2017.
Photographer: Donna Burton
I’m writing this in a moment of utter despair, disappointment and embarrassment on behalf of not only the kids of Hummingbird but also all the other children at risk in this country.
If you have been following recent developments at Hummingbird you will have noticed that our cultural group is supposed to be participating in the mega television show, Criança Esperança (ChildHope), which goes live on TVGlobo tonight.
The show, now in its 20th year running and supported by UNESCO, unites some of the most well known television artists and social entities in Brazil in an effort to raise funds for children’s social development programmes throughout the country.
Our participation was fundamental to the further development of our objectives in the Brazilian socio-cultural arena. A major door opener to say the least!
Until the general rehearsals yesterday, everything was going as planned. Thousands of dollars invested by TVGlobo to secure the necessary infrastructure and quality of our mini-spectacular. Visits by their TV crew to make the video documentary to be shown just before our live appearance. Thousands invested by us in terms of equipment and very hard work during the more than 50 rehearsals these last few weeks.
Being collected by the luxury coach contracted by TVGlobo was a most uplifting experience, raising the self-esteem even higher of our kids, who were full of energy and expectations on their way to the grand stage where the event is to take place. Even though we thought it a little luxurious for such a short trip, money that could have been spent better in our own programme, as we were already very accustomed to a simpler means of transport.
Then on arrival, VIP treatment and checking in for our ID-cards, quite necessary in a show that involves nearly 800 people alone on the production side and more than 300 children and young people making appearances during the show. We were 53 of those!
I was then shown the costumes prepared by Globo’s costume department for our Band and Breakdance group. Very nice too!
Then began the waiting, hours and hours of waiting, quite normal in most mega events of this nature and we were all prepared for that. We thought we were waiting for something good and judging from the immensity of everything surrounding the event, we would be in for something really great!
We were in for a surprise, a very big surprise indeed!!!
To make good use of waiting time we decided to get the kids prepared for their last rehearsal so that we would be ready on the moment our turn arrived. We noticed that the effective use of time was essential to get through all the details of this mega event. Rehearsals for the rest of the show had been going on for three days already and now it was our big day.
Then suddenly, out of the blue, comes the artistic director and calls me aside to tell me that due to some harsh disagreements between their production team and their production director, we would no longer be presenting our musical mini-spectacular, which had been timed in to four minutes exactly and neatly fitting the space reserved for our participation. Also our 6 drummers, who were supposed to be backing the next vocal artist, Marcelo Yuka, to present after us would not be taking place. The only interest for the director at this moment was that I do a live interview with Chico Pinheiro connected to our video clip.
My reaction ofcourse was total distress!
I couldn’t believe my ears. Gladly I am not weak at heart; otherwise I would have had a heart attack there and then!
I needed an explanation but nobody could or would give me one. We were simply left in the blue by the entire production team of this event, which is supposed to be the most prestigious public fundraising event to benefit at-risk children in this country. I was suddenly in the middle of a traumatic experience, which I knew would have dramatic consequences for some of our kids. This event was about to neglect the realization of their dreams. An incredible socially irresponsible action was about to be comitted by the people who are supposed to represent exactly the opposite.
Then began the tiring and frustrating work to discover what was actually going on and why we would not even have the chance to put our foot on that magnificent stage to test the results of our efforts and to share the same space with mega stars such as the likes of Sandy and Junior, Xuxa, Roberto Carlos, Renato Arragão, Zeca Pagodinho and many more.
Why had we suddenly, without warning, been cut-off??? Our last rehearsal for the programme’s Artistic Director at Hummingbird had been highly praised by her, as it also was by Globo’s famous newscaster and programme presenter, Chico Pinheiro, who was responsible for Hummingbird’s video clip. For the sake of all those patiently waiting kids of mine I desperately needed to turn this situation round.
It seemed there was total caos between the people involved in this production and we had been suddenly removed because there was either no time left for our participation or our content matter was too politically disturbing for the likes of this most politically powerful TV station in Brazil, or the fact that the production director, incredibly enough, seemed uninformed of our existence.
Attempts to convince him otherwise by members of the production team and other influential people involved in the programme and the chance for us to at least present our spectacular on stage in a single rehearsal, even if it still meant cancelling our participation for whatever reason he decided was best, failed, one after the other. The guy running this joint was a total dictator and unfortunately hierarchical governance is pretty well imbedded in this society, which still leaves its kids abandoned on the streets and more than half the population destitute in utmost poverty!
Well, several hours later we got his final conclusion; he knew nothing of our participation and there was no room any longer for a four-minute spectacular, no matter who was presenting.
Did I believe this was really happening to us? My kids were all sitting in the grandstand still awaiting their rehearsal; they had already sensed there was something wrong.
My God! Can you imagine their faces when I broke the final decision by the production director, who was coward enough to not stand in front of them to explain exactly why they had wasted weeks of their time investing in a magnificent music spectacular that only they can put enough soul into to make it hit rock bottom in the hearts of every single one of those 65 million Tv spectators who will be watching the show tonight.
I can assure you that I have seldom felt greater frustration than this moment in my 52-year lifespan and I have cried most of the night trying to figure out what went wrong. Nothing ever surprises me anymore regarding the negligence of the Brazilian people shown towards their children. I suppose that’s why we still have thousands and thousands of street kids in this country.
Today I have spent most of my day in long meetings with all the kids involved together with their families to begin the difficult job of treating a most unexpected trauma caused by the irresponsibilty of a programme supposed to help at-risk kids believe in a better future. If this is the future Brazil is creating for its children, then God help us!
The image above is one of the few I took during rehearsals (I lost my appetite entirely!) and was only taken because it represents the kids we believe in so much and who have been role models for our own kids at Hummingbird. The youth of the AfroReggae Cultural Group, our socio-cultural partners in Rio, have managed to come a long way during their 12 years of fighting for a better future for Rio’s favela kids.
When we left the premises in utter dispair, the kids of AfroReggae came in full strength to comfort our kids who were completely dejected by what had just happened. They will be well represented during the mega show tonight, where undoubtably their presence represents the best of Brazilian socio-culture.
“Hold your heads high kids!” said their lead guitarist, “because you are mightier than these people!”
“Don’t let them destroy you because you have so much going for you!”
“Stay strong and fight for everything you believe in because it is the only way we will change this mad world to become a better place for all of us!”
Thank you friends for that valuable moment, it is only people like you, who have shared the same suffering as my kids have who understand how damaging such an experience can be. It is thanks to you guys that they will hopefully overcome this traumatic experience and carry on believing in our social investment in them.
I finish off this rather long text with some words from the chorus line of our spectacular that didn’t quite find a stage:
Wake up my Brazil... Wake up my Brazil... Wake up my Brazil, the people need some hope.
Wake up my Brazil... Fighting to achieve some change.
(Acorda meu Brasil... Acorda meu Brasil... Acorda meu Brasil, o povo está precisando de esperança.
Acorda meu Brasil... Lutando se consegue uma mudança.)
See the slide show
NOTE.
Incredibly, at 4pm today, yet another luxury coach arrived at Hummingbird to transport our kids to the show they are no longer to participate in. TVGlobo had obviously forgotten to cancel the coach, which wasted yet another 300 dollars of donor’s money, reaped in from all the innocent believing tele spectators of this gigantic farce.
21.Reaching out: French TV (Canal+) filmed this project supporting the Robin Hood Tax campaign, sharing it with a large national audience
Photo credit: Robin Prime/Craftivist Collective
A group from Sussex University based in Brighton, England collecting charitable donations at Churchill Square Shopping Centre in support of the victims of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami 東北地方太平洋沖地震, in Japan. They have set up a Support for Japan University of Sussex facebook page.
If you are based in the UK also visit:
Red Cross [British Red Cross Japan Tsunami Appeal website]
or just Donate...
Oxfam [Great Britain / UK - Japan Earthquake and Tsunami website]
or just Donate...
Very many grieving Japanese people - in a population comprising a high proportion of the elderly - need water, food, shelter, warmth, somewhere nice to live.
Part of a set / Slideshow. セットの一部 / スライドショー
も参照してください / See also:
Help Japan / Tsunami [Brighton University / Oki Nami ジヤパニ一ズ・ダィニソグ]
Help the Tsunami Victims [Oxfam, Brighton]
Origami Peace Cranes and Fundraising [Brighton University Help Japan]
Supporting the Poppy Apeal,
The service buses will gain and wear their Poppies for Remembrance Sunday on the 11th of November.
Mercedes Mellor Strata
One of four MV-22 Ospreys from the Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force Crises Response 14-2, out of Moron, Spain taxis in after landing at Roberts Airfield, Liberia. The MV-22's will greatly increase USAID and the military's ability to move supplies and construction materials around Liberia. The U.S. Agency for International Development is the lead U.S. Government organization for Operation United Assistance. U.S. Africa Command is supporting the effort by providing command and control, logistics, training and engineering assets to contain the Ebola virus outbreak in West African nations. (U.S. Army Africa photo by Sgt. 1st Class Will Patterson)
To learn more about U.S. Army Africa visit our official website at www.usaraf.army.mil
Official Twitter Feed: www.twitter.com/usarmyafrica
Official Vimeo video channel: www.vimeo.com/usarmyafrica
Join the U.S. Army Africa conversation on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ArmyAfrica
[This set contains 7 photos] This is a creative commons image, which you may freely use by linking to this page. Please respect the photographer and his work.
I'm not sure of this--there are iron fastenings holding bars extending throughout the building of Tucker's Store (1825) [in Charlotte Court House, Virginia] apparently used as supports for the structure. As to age, I've been unable to find out. If my information is inaccurate regarding this device, I'd love a correction.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Wifi TV JAVA Dual SIM H806 Mobile Phone supports quad band (GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz) dual SIM cards dual standby and dual bluetooth phone comes with Home keyboard and 3.2 inch QVGA wide-touch screen, can be realized all the super functions. And built-in gravity inductor supports auto horizontal video and picture. It is also equipped with JAVA 2.0, so users can install MSN, Office, PDF softwares and thousands of games. WIFI Phone H806 supports Wi-Fi(A Wi-Fi enabled device such as a PC, video game console, mobile phone, MP3 player or PDA can connect to the Internet when within range of a wireless network connected to the Internet), so that you can access the nearby wireless networks at ease if you know the password.
Hot Spots
Dual SIM card work at the same time
WIFI: 802.11b/g wireless internet
Mobile Analog TV
JAVA 2.0
Bluetooth A2DP
E-book reader
Slide to unlock(3 pages)
Schedule FM record
Schedule TV record
FM radio (can output voice)
Dual cameras with flash lamp
Quad band: GSM850/900/1800/1900mHz
Support TF card extend to 16GB Max
G-sensor function(shake music,shake screen,shake TV program
Language: English/French/Spanish/Polish/Portugues/German/Russian/Arabic/Persian/Italian/Bahasa Melayu/Bahasa Indonesia/Czech/Slovak/Dutch/Vietnamese/Bulgarian/Greek/Turkish/Chinese
Features:
Network: GSM850/900/1800/1900MHz
Language: English/French/Spanish/Polish/Portugues/German/Russian/Arabic/Persian/Italian/Bahasa Melayu/Bahasa Indonesia/Czech/Slovak/Dutch/Vietnamese/Bulgarian/Greek/Turkish
Size (L * W * H) 104x56x12mm
Color: Black
Standby Time: About 220-260Hours
Talking Time: About 2-3Hours
3.0inch touch screen, 260k QVGA; PX: 240*320
800 group contacts
T-Flash Card Suphporting,Built in 71.8Kmemory, Support TF card extend to 16GB max
2camera/0.3 Mega pixel camera for Picture & Video capability,solomobi.com test put out biggest size is 640*480
Stereo Loud speaker, 64 chord ring tone
MP3 & MP4 player
GPRS & WAP connectivity, MMS Transceive
USB disk support function to keep the information storage
Bluetooth
calendar,To do list,Alarm,World Clock,Spotwatch
caller picture,caller Ring Tone,caller video
Telephone directories:800 groups of contacts, support incoming call with big head sticker,group ring tone
Schedule power on/off: support to start/close under set time
Alarm clock:5 groups, support alarm clock when machine is closed, can set from Monday to Sunday
Games: 2 common games, JAVA games
More Information: MP3/MP4/Handsfree/SMS group sending/Voice recorder/WAP/Keyboard+Handwritting input/Bluetooth/GPRS download/MMS/Memory extended/ Dual sim dual standby/ Radio/bluetooth/Calendar/Alarm clock/Calculator/Currency converter/Unit converter/Answer machine/Motion games...
Package Content:
1 x WiFi TV JAVA Dual SIM H806 Mobile Phone
1 x Earphone
1 x USB Cable
1 x Charger
2 x Li-ion Batteries
1 x English Manual
Warranty: onThesource.com provides every product with one year warranty
Please note: We only provide one year warranty for the cell phone, and these accessories are exceptions. We will not refund the shipping cost if the returning cause is illegal
Link:
onthesource.com/wifi-tv-java-dual-sim-h806-mobile-phone.html
CAST
Geena Emma McCaffrey
Thomas Neil John Gibson
Henry Stirlingshire Antony Strachan
Little Birdy Emma Clark
Dr Vivien Stirlingshire Nicola Tuxworth
Barry Kristopher Anderson
Ryan Jonathan Allen
Hillary Lisa
Monica Pauline Lockhart
Finlay Paul Harper
Kyle Scott Davidson
Penny Kay Ann Jacobs
Old Billy John Edgar
Davina Pauline Lockhart
Mayor of Edinburgh Mark Howie
Sally Leigh Flynn
Robin Kenneth Ainslie
Ashley Teri Robb
Mackenzie Gavin Yule
Smudge Colin McIlveny
COMEDIANS
Jamie Keith Watson
Beth Katy Gow
Louise Amy McCombe
Stuart Michael Connolly
Mittens Katy Gow
Phil Michael Connolly
Lil Amy McCombes
Dennis Keith Watson
Boy Alan Simpson
Bruce Kenneth Ainslie
Colin Gavin Yule
Bruceta Teri Robb
Eddie Fraser (support)
BB Chantelle Wood
CREATIVE TEAM
Co-Director Maria Oller
Co-Director Joe Douglas
Writer Morna Pearson
Dramaturg Ben Harrison
Assistant Director Amy Gilmartin
Dr Stirlingshire is unveiling her latest discovery at the world famous RZSS Edinburgh Zoo. Her brother Henry, the Zoo Manager, has organised a grand welcoming party but really he believes his sister has an overactive imagination – “she’s not a proper scientist; after all she believes in The Wild Haggis, no really she does!”
Photography by Pete Dibdin
Windandsea Beach San Diego Sunset Brilliant Clouds Dramatic Skies Landscape Photography! Elliot McGucken Fuji GFX 100 Fine Art Landscape Nature Photography Ocean Art Seascape Medium Format Fujifilm GFX100 & Fujinon FUJIFILM GF 32-64mm f/4 R LM WR Lens
Epic Fine Art Photography Prints & Luxury Wall Art:
Support epic, stoic fine art: Hero's Odyssey Gear!
All my photography celebrates the physics of light! The McGucken Principle of the fourth expanding dimension: The fourth dimension is expanding at the rate of c relative to the three spatial dimensions: dx4/dt=ic .
Lao Tzu--The Tao: Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.
Light Time Dimension Theory: The Foundational Physics Unifying Einstein's Relativity and Quantum Mechanics: A Simple, Illustrated Introduction to the Unifying Physical Reality of the Fourth Expanding Dimensionsion dx4/dt=ic !: geni.us/Fa1Q
"Between every two pine trees there is a door leading to a new way of life." --John Muir
Epic Stoicism guides my fine art odyssey and photography: geni.us/epicstoicism
“The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness.” --John Muir
Epic Poetry inspires all my photography: geni.us/9K0Ki Epic Poetry for Epic Landscape Photography: Exalt Fine Art Nature Photography with the Poetic Wisdom of John Muir, Emerson, Thoreau, Homer's Iliad, Milton's Paradise Lost & Dante's Inferno Odyssey
“The mountains are calling and I must go.” --John Muir
Epic Art & 45EPIC Gear exalting golden ratio designs for your Hero's Odyssey:
Support epic fine art! 45surf ! Bitcoin: 1FMBZJeeHVMu35uegrYUfEkHfPj5pe9WNz
Exalt the goddess archetype in the fine art of photography! My Epic Book: Photographing Women Models!
Portrait, Swimsuit, Lingerie, Boudoir, Fine Art, & Fashion Photography Exalting the Venus Goddess Archetype: How to Shoot Epic ... Epic! Beautiful Surf Fine Art Portrait Swimsuit Bikini Models!
Some of my epic books, prints, & more!
Exalt your photography with Golden Ratio Compositions!
Golden Ratio Compositions & Secret Sacred Geometry for Photography, Fine Art, & Landscape Photographers: How to Exalt Art with Leonardo da Vinci's, Michelangelo's!
Epic Landscape Photography:
A Simple Guide to the Principles of Fine Art Nature Photography: Master Composition, Lenses, Camera Settings, Aperture, ISO, ... Hero's Odyssey Mythology Photography)
All art is but imitation of nature.-- Seneca (Letters from a Stoic - Letter LXV: On the First Cause)
The universe itself is God and the universal outpouring of its soul. --Chrysippus (Quoted by Cicero in De Natura Deorum)
Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run;
To bend with apples the moss'd cottage-trees,
And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;
To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells
With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never cease,
For Summer has o'er-brimm'd their clammy cells. --To Autumn. by John Keats
Support the gallery on Patreon today and pass it back.
---
For more about Bonfire 2015, visit www.studentbonfire.com/event/burn-night-2015/.
Marines hook up support equipment before a weapons functional test during Exercise Steel Knight at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, California, Dec. 10, 2015. The Marines are with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121 and Marine Operational and Test Evaluation Squadron 22. The F-35B is a single seat, single engine stealth multi-role fighter bringing the Marine Corps into a whole new generation of aircraft. Exercise Steel Knight allowed for VMFA-121 and VMX-22 to train on integrating the F-35B and find its place in the Marine Air Ground Task Force, while giving the ground forces of 1st Marine Division the ability to become familiar with it.