People Who Inspire Me
DeAnna Hoskins Is A Woman Of Resilience
I am SO proud of DeAnna Hoskins. I met her many years ago. A single mother of three, her obstacles were huge but not unconquerable. She found the inner strength to leave behind drugs and an abusive relationship, to find a new path after being incarcerated. DeAnna has three degrees including a master’s degree in criminal justice, and she is considered an expert in the field of re-entry. She is also a licensed clinical addiction counselor, a certified offender workforce development specialist/trainer and a certified recovery/peer-to-peer coach. DeAnna is featured in The Women’s Book as a woman who inspires greatness in others. I don’t know anyone more deserving.
Congratulations DeAnna!
Character Council Honors Greater Cincinnati Heroes Of Character
Samuel Wenger
When it comes to understanding everybody’s basic need for being included, Loveland Middle School student Samuel Wenger has a pretty good grasp. Actually, as a 7th grader, Samuel understands the meaning of friendship, acceptance and belonging better than many adults.
Just ask his close friend. Corey’s impulsiveness and language delays made getting to know others somewhat difficult. That is, until he met one of the most popular students in school. Samuel purposefully sought Corey out to include him at recess, in the lunch room, and in class; and, by mid-year, their classmates also came to realize Corey had gifts to share.
That story of genuine caring is not unique. In Runner’s Club, if a student was struggling to finish or seemed lonely, it was always Samuel who would break apart to join him or her.
However, don’t think for a second that I am writing about a boy who has everything easy. Samuel’s asthma has been the cause of many emergency trips to the nurse’s office, missed classes and missed recess. But he never misses finishing his homework and making the honor roll.
On November 7, 2012, he will be among five students and four adult leaders to be recognized by the Character Council of Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky as Heroes of Character.
Adult honorees include Dr. Jane Knudson of Indian Hill Schools, Matthew Long of Green Recycling Works, Dan Hurley of Leadership Cincinnati, and George Vincent of Dinsmore & Shohl, LLP. Other Kids of Character honorees are Ty Battle of St. Vivian School in Cincinnati, Julia Feldmann of Union Elementary in West Chester, Brookln A Davis of Rees E Price Academy in Price Hill, Dillon Held of St. Veronica School in Anderson Township.
Good People Doing Good Things: Dan Andriacco
Many people like me know Dan Andriacco either from his days as reporter and editor at The Cincinnati Post or his current position as communications director for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. But, until today, I had no idea Dan also is an 
accomplished mystery writer whose third book in a series, The 1895 Murder, will hit the book shelves November 1.
I did some research. On Amazon.com where you can easily find his books, there are reviews. Four and mostly five star ratings consistently.
Dan’s fascination with mysteries began early. He discovered Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s original Sherlock Holmes stories when he was nine years old and couldn’t stop reading. Next came Agatha Christie, Ellery Queen, Rex Stout, and many others. Not surprisingly (although unknown to me), it has long been Dan’s career goal to be a mystery writer.
Dan’s Sebastian McCabe – Jeff Cody mystery series, set in a small town in Ohio, is very much in the tradition of his Golden Age favorites.
“McCabe is a great detective in the classic mode,” Dan wrote on his blog. “By that I mean he is a polymath amateur sleuth. He’s a college professor at at small Catholic college, but he’s also a mystery writer, a magician, and a linguist. I would love to meet the man, but I’m not sure I’d want to be his best friend.
“His ‘Watson,’ Jeff Cody is not only his best friend, but also his brother-in-law and the public relations director for the college where Mac teachers. These multiple relationships carry multiple tensions, which I hope is a source of humor. These books are supposed to be fun and funny. Judging by reviewers, they seem to hit that mark for most readers.”
I admit, I haven’t been much of a mystery reader until now but I think now I have a reason to become one.
Rose Syracuse Retires After 73 Years At Macy’s
Wow! How about this for job loyalty? At 92 years young, Rose Syracuse is just now retiring from a 73 year career with Macy’s…and the only reason she is leaving now is because she broke her hip six months ago. (as reported in the New York Daily News) “This was my first job and I didn’t go anyplace else,” she told The News after being feted by teary-eyed coworkers Wednesday. “I was happy here.” To read the full story, visit the New York Daily News.
Happy 116th Birthday, Besse Cooper!
