http://www.meander.co.uk/contrib.htm Your Contributions This letter was received from Neil MacGregor, Director of The British Museum in recognition of the donations received from Jehovah's Witnesses and their Friends.
Click image to enlarge This letter was received from Neil MacGregor, Director of The British Museum in recognition of the donations received from Jehovah's Witnesses and their Friends.
USA Visitors
Visitors from many countries
The British Museum
Mr Emmanuel C. Zervides,
Meander,
59 Commonwealth Avenue,
Hayes,
Middlesex,
UB3 2PN
19 January 2005
Dear Mr Zervides
I am writing to acknowledge receipt of the generous donation of £8536.00 from the Jehovah's Witnesses and their friends. This generosity is greatly appreciated.
May I take this opportunity to say that the Jehovah's Witnesses are always very welcome in the British Museum, and the presence of your groups particularly on Saturdays contribute greatly to the lively atmosphere and vitality of the Museum. I do hope you have not experienced any problems recently with accessing any of the galleries that contain items of Biblical interest; if you do, or if you require any other kind of assistance, please do not hesitate to contact my colleague John Curtis with whom I believe you have often been in touch.
Yours sincerely
Neil MacGregor
| Total contributions made so far by Jehovah's Witnesses & their friends to: | |||
| The Old Observatory Greenwich | £ 971.50 | = | $ 1812.82 |
| The British Library | £ 1247.50 | = | $ 2327.84 |
| The British Museum | £ 132,444.00 | = | $ 247,140.50 |
Neil MacGregor
Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3DG
Telephone +44(0)20 7323 8000
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http://www.dicksonherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051219/NEWS01/512190350/1297/MTCN02
Refugees have much to celebrate
Many don't observe Christmas but enjoy agency's get-together
By AILENE TORRES
Staff Writer
harles Rutaganira does not celebrate Christmas or the holiday season, no matter what it's called.
As a member of the Jehovah's Witnesses, the native Rwandan doesn't observe the Christian holiday.
But despite his religious beliefs, Rutaganira, 45, went to yesterday's annual holiday party for Nashville's refugee population, sponsored by Catholic Charities Refugee and Immigration Services.
"I enjoy this invitation to be together with people — refugees like me," he said. "We want to remember why we came to Nashville, to the United States. I'm strengthened by the Catholic Charities' decision to invite me and other refugees."
Rutaganira survived the 1994 acts of genocide in which 800,000 Rwandans died.
As Rutaganira described how he made it out alive, there's proof he almost didn't. He peeled back his suit jacket and shirt to reveal scars on both sides of his left wrist and neck.
The marks are reminders of how Rutaganira was speared, thrown in a ditch to be buried but, luckily, abandoned when it began to rain.
A good Samaritan, a fellow Witness, risked his own life to retrieve Rutaganira.
Now, almost a year after coming to Nashville, he knows there are other stories and he's eager to hear them.
Gathered in the Symphony ballroom at Loews Vanderbilt Hotel were about 150 people from Cuba, Sudan, Somalia, Iran, Ethiopia and Rwanda.
And Rutaganira is not alone when it comes to refugees who don't observe the most revered American holiday.
Mojgan Nabvi, who is a member of the Ba'hai faith, arrived in Nashville from Iran in 2001.
Nabvi said she and about 13 family members fled their home country because of religious persecution. In Iran, their Christmas equivalent is celebrated in March, she said.
Kerry Marks, a refugee volunteer coordinator for the organization, said because many of the refugees don't observe Christmas, the organization puts an emphasis on the meaning of the season.
"The season is about getting together," Marks said, adding that it's also a good opportunity to introduce newcomers to American traditions.
"The spirit of giving is universal. We focus on that aspect."
"We encourage folks to seek out their neighbors and realize that everybody comes from a different background and to celebrate diversity instead of being afraid of it."
Catholic Charities Refugee and Immigration Services placed about 250 people in Nashville this year alone. Since 1999, it has placed refugees from 19 countries.
In 2004, its parent organization, Catholic Charities of Tennessee, served about 30,000 people, according to a statement.
Nabvi said the four years she's attended the gathering had made it easier to assimilate into American culture, which is now more important because she has an American-born daughter.
"When we came to America, we didn't have anything. Before we come to the United States we don't have Rosie, now we have Rosie," Nabvi said of her 1-year-old daughter, who minutes later, had her first visit with old St. Nick.
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TRANSFUSION CDs
http://www.newsday.co.tt/stories.php?article_id=31809
Sunday 18th December 2005
‘Transfusion not necessary’
THE ASSOCIATION of Jehovah’s Witnesses of Trinidad and Tobago yesterday released DVDs to the media to show how patients can be successfully treated without blood transfusion. The “Transfusion Alternatives Documentary Series” is the religious group’s latest efforts to clarify its position on the matter. In recent weeks there has been a great deal of public focus on the group’s position on blood transfusions following a case in which local doctors obtained a court order to administer a blood transfusion to the premature infant of a Jehovah’s Witness couple.
In a statement accompanying the DVD, the group stated: “Medical alternatives to blood transfusions are simple, cost-effective, safe and successful. As a result, there are a growing number of health care facilities with hundreds of physicians and surgeons from all specialties offering their patients excellent medical care and treatment without the use of blood transfusions. “In the prevention of anemia in premature newborns the emphasis in recent years is the early administration of erythropoietin (EPO) during the third to fifth day of life. It is reassuring that there have never been any reported cases of serious adverse reactions in premature newborns treated with EPO.” EPO is used to increase the body’s production of red blood cells.
Among the other alternatives to blood transfusions are G-CSF (granulocyte colony stimulating factor) and GM-CSF (granulocyte macrophage colony stimulating factor) which are used to increase white blood cells. Interleukin-11 and, when available, thrombopoietin may be used to increase platelets. Other medications can be used to reduce bleeding during or after surgery or sudden blood loss. Special fluids, such as pentastarch, saline, or Ringer’s lactate can be used to temporarily replace the lost blood volume.
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http://www.ydr.com/newsfull/ci_3321164
Officials buy more DJ office property
District Justice Linda Williams' new office to cost $503,250
| By Teresa Amm Boeckel Daily Record/Sunday News |
| Dec 18, 2005 — York County commissioners decided Wednesday to buy another property for a district justice office, but the decision didn't come without reservations by one official. The commissioners voted unanimously to buy a property at 1285 E. Princess St. for District Justice Linda Williams for $503,250. But President Commissioner Lori Mitrick expressed reservations about the county's move toward owning district justice offices rather than renting space. "I personally really have not been convinced that York County should be engaging in this type of real-estate ventures," she said. She added, though, that she would not impede her fellow commissioners who believe it is the right thing to do. County solicitor Michael Flannelly said that Williams' current office at 204 E. King St. lacks parking, and people walk past the judge's office on the way to the courtroom. "This particular location is inappropriate, and we really need something new," he said. "The new location has plenty of parking, and we can adapt the building for security purposes." This is the third district justice office that commissioners recently decided to buy or build. They hired an architect this year to design a new building for District Justice Daniel Garber on the West Manchester Township municipal campus. When the construction bids came in high this fall, though, the commissioners put the project on hold and started looking for alternatives. In August, commissioners approved buying the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses Spring Grove Congregation in North Codorus Township for District Justice Kim Leppo's new office. It cost $400,000 - $200,000 for the building and $200,000 for renovations. Commissioners approved in September obtaining a $6 million loan to build new or buy existing structures to transform into district justice offices. Commissioner Steve Chronister said it makes sense to own rather than to keep making lease payments. Mitrick said she understands Chronister's position with the exhaustion of a mortgage, but with the ownership of office space "there are other costs that come into play that require manpower and additional expenses from the county, and that's why I'm concerned about it." |