Hasta La Gadget!

As spring rears its damned gorgeous head and fills the air with the sweet perfumed scents of life “in bloom,” it must be met with equally explosive white wines of aromatic intensity and bright fruit character. So much intensity that the flowers will turn from the sun to bend toward your glass and birds will fall quiet with each popping cork, afraid that the wine will sing more beautifully than their own spring-y tweets. Hopefully these nine wines will inspire these righteous efforts.

1. CK Mondavi Family Vineyards Willow Springs Blonde Five, California, USA ($6.99)

Taste: White flowers and tropical fruit notes. Touch of sweetness in the end.

Drink It With: A fruity salad, ceviche–or save it to accompany dessert.

Factoid: Know thy Mondavis! Cesare and Rosa Mondavi moved to the Napa Valley and purchased the Charles Krug Winery in 1943. Their sons, Robert and Peter, created CK Mondavi Family Vineyards and day-to-day operations are handled by Marc Mondavi, son of legendary Napa Valley wine icon Peter Mondavi Sr. Got it?

2. Producteurs Plaimont 2010 Les Bastions Blanc, Côtes de Saint-Mont, France ($10)

Taste: Lots of bright, fresh, clean citrus flavor, bolstered by ample acidity and good mineral character and a refreshingly tangy finish.

Drink It With: Definitely seafood and oysters, but why not foie gras? Why not?

Factoid: This popular gem is made in a co-op and is a blend of three grapes you’ve never heard of: Arrufiac, Gros Manseng and Petit Courbu. Don’t think too hard. Just enjoy it.

3. Mat Kearny’s Verse & Chorus 2013 Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley, USA ($15)

Taste: A riper style of Sauv Blanc, showing mango and melon notes and a tangy lemongrass character, bright and refreshing.

Drink It With: Anything they cook in Nashville and also Thai curry spice dishes or Indian cuisine.

Factoid: Musician Mat Kearney, whose “Nothing Left to Lose” put him on the map, lives in Nashville and known for his use of the “spoken word” in his songs. So let this wine speak to you. This particular vintage is sold out online, but available at most Whole Foods Markets.

4. Inama Vin Soave Classico, Veneto, Italy ($15)

Taste: Aromatic white floral notes give way to a mineral-driven wine that saw a bit of skin contact, for some mouthfeel. Malolactic fermentation rounds out citrus notes and leaves a lingering almond note on the finish.

Drink It with: Sushi, salads and bruschetta.

Factoid: You’ve seen this label before. No more staring. Take home a couple bottles of this 100 percent Gargenega from the “classico” hills of Soave in the Veneto.

5. Cosentino Winery 2012 “The Chard” Chardonnay, Lodi, California, USA ($16)

Taste: Peaches and pear, hints of warm oak and brioche, vibrant acidity. Pleasant and balanced.

Drink It With: Any salad with spinach as the base. Or ham and cheese on a baguette.

Factoid: This wine is delicious and not much is produced, so try the winery directly to find out where it might be carried locally and look for the label’s red counterparts “The Cab” and “The Franc.”

6. La Caña 2013 Albarino, Rias Baixas, Spain ($17)

Taste: Aged on the lees and fermented in large oak vats giving richness, with stone and tropical fruit notes mingling alongside nice mineral character.

Drink It With: Beer-can chicken.

Factoid: Spain’s Rías Baixas DO (pronounced: “ree-ahs-buy-shuss”) is hot right now among the wine-drinking elite. There’s lots of water there: rivers and rain, which can cause rot, and hence vines are trained high on pergolas to avoid such malefactors.

7. Vietti 2013 Roero Arneis, Piedmont, Italy ($19)

Taste: Medium bodied, crisp wine showing bright yellow flowers, citrus and melon notes and a toasty almond note in the finish.

Drink It With: Prosciutto and melon balls, honey-glazed salmon or vegetable pizza.

Factoid: Alfredo Currado, one of the family owners, is credited with “rediscovering” the grape Arneis in 1967 when the Monkee’s “I’m a Believer” was #5 on the Billboard’s Top 100 Hit Songs of the year. This wine will, um, make you a believer in Arneis.

8. Comte Leloup Du Château De Chasseloir 2009 Muscadet Sèvre-Et-Maine Sur Lie, Cuvée Des Ceps Centenaires, France ($19)

Taste: Killer lime citrus, to the point of tasting like a candied lime peel. Bone-dry, however, and loaded with orchard fruit and a splendid chalky mineral finish.

Drink It With: Oysters and charcuterie.

Factoid: Produced by Bernard Chéreau, this sur-lie bottle-aged Muscadet (known as melon de Bourgogne locally) comes from pre-phylloxera vines, more than 100 years old.

9. Oro Bello 2013 Chardonnay, California, USA ($20)

Taste: Creamy and lush mouthfeel, lemon citrus on the nose, toasty oak and tropical fruit, mango and kiwi, on a clean finish.

Drink It With: Friends who know how to BBQ.

Factoid: Winemaker Alexandre Remy has a name for Burgundy: “Drops of Gold” and that inspiration led him to produce this wine, a blend of Chardonnay from Monterey and Napa counties. If you’re uncertain about how to enjoy it, he’s produced this video to give you some ideas.


Jonathan Cristaldi was dubbed a “Wine Prophet” by Time Out New York for his unconventional creativity as founder, educator, entertainer and host of The Noble Rot. Cristaldi’s work has also appeared in Los Angeles Magazine, Time Out LA, First We Feast, Thrillist, Tasting Table, The SOMM Journal, Tasting Panel Magazine and he is Editor of NapaValleyWineAcademy.com.



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If Asian Americans were a country, their spending would represent the eighteenth largest economy in the world. The numbers are staggering, yet many brands continue approaching their multicultural marketing efforts solely considering Hispanic and African-American audiences. Asian Americans are often considered an afterthought pending the availability of leftover budget.

I had the opportunity to catch up with Tim Wang, Founder and Principal of TDW+Co, a cross-cultural advertising agency that works with brands such as Verizon Communications, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, Principal Financial Group and Waste Management by helping them appeal to the new mainstream of America. Tim took some time to explain the business opportunity presented by the Asian American consumer and why it is critical that this segment of the population be at the forefront of a multicultural marketing strategy.

A little goes a long way

Tim explained that Asian American buying power is mighty. He noted that while this consumer segment comprises a smaller portion of the American population, its purchasing power per household is higher than any other racial group – Asian American household spending is currently 20 percent more than that of the general market and is expected to reach a total of $1 trillion by the year 2017.

Members of the Asian American community often lead affluent lifestyles and value luxury goods; in fact, according to my company’s research, Asians over-index in spending on financial services, cars and education.

Despite the purchasing power of Asian Americans, skeptics continue to believe that targeting Asians isn’t a high priority. To that, Tim argued that Asians are in the midst of outpacing even Hispanics in population growth with a 2.9 percent growth rate, (compared to the Hispanic population’s 2.1 percent growth rate) which is higher than that of any other population group. Although Hispanics are more than three-times more numerous, Asians have far greater per household income than any other race group, including white non-Hispanics (Anglos).

The diversity of “Asian”

While the proof is in the pudding, marketers remain hesitant to double down their efforts on the Asian American population. This is likely due to the diversity of the community, which is made up of varied nationalities, which fall under the Asian umbrella, each with their own respective languages, heritage and traditions.

Though there are similar cultural traits between the various Asian segments, the unique diversity and language differences present a difficult challenge for brands to create a simple strategy that reaches the broader Asian community. Instead, smart marketers create multiple versions of creative and messaging components to build an effective, inclusive marketing campaign. This is admittedly an investment, but if done correctly can earn them exponential rewards.

Pilot and evaluation

Finally, I asked Tim how he recommends that a novice should approach the market, and he suggested that a company take their first steps with a pilot or trial period. He explained that by focusing on two or possibly three key language groups, an organization is able to execute a smaller, more manageable campaign that can be expanded and scaled effectively.

Tim and I also agreed that grounding a campaign in data and concrete insights is critical to success. If you gain a holistic understanding of your target market, your campaign is bound to appear dramatically different and be far more effective than one based off of guesswork and stereotypes.

Today’s technology offers a level of sophistication that enables users to define and code individuals by country of origin, acculturation and language, information that is necessary to build a successful campaign. Marketers will be well on their way to success if they recognize the diversity within the Asian American population segment.

I often hear that the entire concept of multicultural marketing is incredibly daunting, yet it doesn’t have to be – and my discussion with Tim was no exception. Ask any brand that has successfully executed a campaign and they will echo that the effort was worthwhile. The numbers do not lie – and Asian Americans are one of the fastest growing demographics within the new mainstream of consumers. It’s important that we as marketers overcome our hesitations and begin taking advantage of this immense business opportunity.

How does your company address the Asian market? Is it a high-priority? If there is hesitation, what is the reason for that? Do they understand the level of growth and buying power?

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Cheryl ‘Action’ Jackson has been rolling out the red carpet for those in her community for over seven years and giving every family the celebrity treatment. Cheryl has not only inspired those in her community, but recently had the opportunity to inspire people all over the world through her recent appearance on Good Morning America as she found out that she was the winner of the 2015 Animated film Home Movie Premier Contest.

In 2008 Cheryl started a food pantry with food from her kitchen in Plano, Texas to give free healthy meals to families in need. Since her start in 2008 the non-profit organization Minnie’s Food Pantry which is named after her late mother Minnie Hawthorne-Ewing has grown tremendously. Today they have served over four million meals and still counting.

“My parents had little finances, but a Huge Heart! They lead by example” – Cheryl ‘Action’ Jackson, Founder

Cheryl’s contribution to those in her community and abroad has made a tremendous impact and through her hard work and dedication she has received awards from the BET Network for her efforts and was awarded the progressive charity with a gift of $30,000 and Steve Harvey awarded her with the “Harvey’s Hero Award” along with a gift of $25,000 from Hillshire Farm. Cheryl has been the recipient of many awards and has also made national appearances on The Talk, ABC World News with Diane Sawyer and many more.

Cheryl has always had a strong desire to give back to those in her community in a major way because of how her mother taught her. Minnie’s Pantry has allowed Cheryl to not only give back to her community, but to give those in need hope for a brighter future. There was a time in Cheryl’s life where her family was in need and she learned quickly about the treatment many received as they would go and apply for public assistance. It was then that she decided to do something that would provide healthy meals, motivate, and uplift each individual that were in desperate need.

“Minnie’s Food Pantry is a grassroots organization that came from a place of pain. This week I lost the woman for whom the pain inspired my passion, Minnie Hawthorne-Ewing.” – Cheryl ‘Action’ Jackson, Founder

Every family at Minnie’s Pantry is greeted with a warm smile, a lot of love, and given the celebrity treatment as they enter. Cheryl wants families to know that they will make it regardless of their temporary situation. On May 7, 2015, Cheryl lost her mother and even at this difficult time in her life she is using her journey to inspire others through her amazing strength.

Many may not have had the honor of being in her mother’s presence, but through the courageous courage, love, and dedication that drives Cheryl ‘Action’ Jackson you can see that her mother was a phenomenal woman with a heart of gold. Cheryl and her mother Minnie had the honor of having their story archived in the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History.

This post is in memory of Cheryl’s mother Minnie Hawthorne-Ewing. If you would like to read Cheryl’s inspiring story or learn more about Minnie’s Food Pantry, please click on the link below.

Minnie’s Food Pantry Website:
http://minniesfoodpantry.org/

Cheryl ‘Action’ Jackson hugs her mother Minnie Hawthorne-Ewing

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David Brooks called mistakes leading up to the Iraq war “data points in a larger education,” which is, oddly enough, what William Randolph Hearst said about the Spanish-American War. President Obama has long espoused a Kenyan anti-colonial philosophy, so why is he so upset about colony collapse disorder? And Claire McCaskill tweeted her displeasure with “Game of Thrones,” much like that time when Louie Gohmert bemoaned “Mad Men” losing its slow-boiling ennui and transcendent meditations on materialism and intimacy. This is HUFFPOST HILL for Tuesday, May 19th, 2015:

MCCONNELL PLANS VOTE ON HOUSE PATRIOT ACT BILL – Plus a voice vote on S.RES.211 “I Miss You, Jim Bunning, I Miss You So Very Much.” Burgess Everett: “Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on Tuesday he will allow a vote on the House’s surveillance reform bill this week, even though it may not be able to pass the Senate. McConnell told reporters on Tuesday that the Senate needs to see “where the votes are” to keep in place expiring PATRIOT Act provisions. McConnell favors a straight extensions of current law. A bill he has introduced would keep in place bulk data collection programs, which were exposed by Edward Snowden. But the popular House-passed bill would eliminate it.” [Politico]

BOEHNER WANTS OBAMA TO ‘START OVER’ ON WAR AUTHORIZATION – Because Congress is hard. Jen Bendery: “House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) hasn’t taken any action to authorize the ongoing war against Islamic State militants. But on Tuesday, he criticized President Barack Obama’s proposal for authorizing the military campaign, and said Obama should just withdraw it. ‘The president’s request for an Authorization of Use of Military Force calls for less authority than he has today. I just think, given the fight that we’re in, it’s irresponsible,’ Boehner told reporters. ‘This is why the president, frankly, should withdraw the Authorization of Use of Military Force and start over.’ It’s been nine months since the U.S. began bombing the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS, without new congressional authorization. The Constitution requires Congress to declare wars, but in this case, Obama has said he doesn’t need lawmakers’ sign-off because a sweeping 2001 AUMF covers his actions.” [HuffPost]

Ebony and ivory, in our mailbox: “ACLU & Tea Party Patriots Co-Sponsor TV Ads Calling for Washington to Rein In Government Surveillance”

HILLARY DOES THING! – Congrats, Sidney Blumenthal! You’re a Hillary “friend!” …for “a long time!” That’s gotta be worth at least a few mil in net worth! Boomshakalaka! Igor Bobic: “Hillary Clinton on Tuesday called for the immediate release of email correspondence sent during her tenure as secretary of state, saying that the email records are ‘not mine, they’re the State Department’s.’ ‘Nobody has a bigger interest in getting them released than I do,’ the presidential contender told reporters during a campaign event in Iowa. She urged State Department officials to ‘please move as quickly as they possibly can to get them out.’ … Clinton also brushed off concerns raised in The New York Times about her correspondence with Sidney Blumenthal, a longtime friend. The two were in communication about Libya while Clinton was at the State Department. ‘He’s been a friend of mine for a long time,’ Clinton told reporters Tuesday. ‘I’m going to keep talking to my old friends, whoever they are.'” ‘[HuffPost]

Committee For Americans Who Don’t Want Alex Seitz-Wald To Be Big-Footed By Richard Wolffe Or Whoever Once The Clinton Campaign Heats Up

Haircuts: Jess McIntosh (h/t television)

DAILY DELANEY DOWNER – A faction of Republicans in the House of Representatives wants to stop poor people from buying junk food with food stamps. Under proposed new legislation, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program’s 45 million enrollees would only be able to use their benefits for lean meat, poultry and food products approved under a separate federal nutrition program that supports nutrition for pregnant women, infants and children. Energy drinks out would be out; Enfamil in. “Over the years, the nutrition portion of food stamps has become obsolete,” Rep. Tom Rice (R-S.C.), who authored the legislation, said in a statement. “Today, beneficiaries can use taxpayer dollars to purchase nearly anything in the grocery store. Meanwhile, families barely living over the poverty threshold are pinching pennies and clipping coupons to make ends meet.” [HuffPost]

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HEDGE FUND MANAGERS SAVED FROM PENURY FOR AT LEAST A COUPLE OF YEARS – No child should have to suffer through their father coming home from his job in Stamford in an Acura wearing a suit from *gulp* Macy’s. We can’t let the innocent suffer. Richard Rubin: “‘Any major changes to private equity’s most favored tax break won’t happen until 2017,’ House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan said. Ryan said he’s excluding the taxation of carried interest from this year’s bipartisan attempt to revamp business taxes, sparing fund managers from any change. ‘That is on the individual side of the code, so it’s not something that we’re looking at right now,’ Ryan, a Wisconsin Republican, said at an accounting conference in Washington Tuesday…Obama wants to tax the carried interest of private-equity managers, venture capitalists, some hedge fund executives and real estate managers as ordinary income instead of capital gains. That proposal would raise $17.7 billion over a decade, according to the Treasury Department. Carried interest is the profits interest that private-equity managers receive in the companies they take over and manage.” [Bloomberg]

BEADS??? – Trust us, you don’t even want to know how this one factors into the planned invasion of Texas. Tennille Tracy: “The White House is backing efforts to scrutinize the link between pesticides and a dramatic increase in honeybee deaths. In a report Tuesday, a White House task force said it wanted to see the number of honeybee deaths drop to 15% during the cold winter months when bees are particularly vulnerable. The task force laid out a multipronged strategy to research the problem and to improve and expand honeybee habitats. Winter loss rates are well above the task force’s stated goal, reaching 23% in the most recent winter. The annual loss rate, meanwhile, reached 42% for the 12-month-period ending in April, the U.S. Agriculture Department said earlier this month. Among the many causes scientists are researching is the role played by pesticides, and particularly a class known as neonicotinoids, which are often applied to crops. Pesticides are absorbed by plant tissues and then transferred to pollen and nectar. Bees, used to pollinate many different types of crops in the U.S., exhibit a wide range of sensitivities to the neonicotinoids, the report said.” [WSJ]

No one tell them about the Agenda 21 special forces amassing off the coast of Florida: “It didn’t take long for a conservative blog to connect the U.S. military’s upcoming ‘Jade Helm 15’ training exercise to President Barack Obama’s order Monday that banned certain military-grade equipment from being given to local law enforcement agencies. Michele Hickford, the editor-in-chief of former Rep. Allen West’s (R-FL) website, noted the timing of the President’s order and the military exercise, which some people believe is a cover for the implementation of martial law, in a blog post published Monday.” [TPM’s Catherine Thompson]

STENY HOYER SUPPORTS STENY HOYER BEING ELECTED DEMOCRATIC LEADER – He also supports that donation his leadership PAC just made to your reelection campaign. *wink* Bridget Bowman: “House Minority Whip Steny H. Hoyer, D-Md., agreed Tuesday morning that congressional salaries should increase. Rep. Alcee L. Hastings, D-Fla., made the case for a lawmaker pay raise during a Rules Committee meeting Monday night, arguing that the high cost of living in the District of Columbia will lead to a situation where only wealthy people can afford to serve in Congress. ‘I agree with Mr. Hastings,’ Hoyer said in his weekly pen-and-pad briefing with reporters Tuesday morning. He echoed Hastings’ argument, noting that the current salary “dictates the only people who can serve are the rich. I don’t think that’s what the Founding Fathers had in mind.’ … Members of Congress earn an average annual salary of $174,000. In April 2014, then-Rep. James P. Moran made headlines by making a similar argument for a pay raise.” [Roll Call]

ALAN GRAYSON IS ONE CLASSY GUY – No word on when he and Scott DesJarlais will form the “Women! Am I right?” Caucus, but we suspect it will be soon. Jesse Byrnes: “The saga between Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) and his estranged wife took another turn after an agreement on terms for their divorce fell apart. ‘I’ll sum it up for you: Gold diggers gotta dig. That’s all I gotta say,’ he told local ABC affiliate WFTV on Monday after leaving the courtroom, accusing Lolita Grayson of reneging on an agreement. His estranged wife of 25 years, Lolita, filed for divorce early last year. The House member and former telecom company co-founder has sought an annulment on the basis of bigamy, and they appeared to reach terms last month on an annulment, which would not require equal division of $30 million in assets.” [The Hill]

DAVID BROOKS CHAMPIONED AN AVOIDABLE WAR THAT LEFT 200,000 PEOPLE DEAD, BUT IT’S COOL BECAUSE HE NOW HAS A SERENE UNDERSTANDING OF HUMAN FALLIBILITY AND A BOOK ABOUT MORALITY THAT YOU SHOULD BUY AND PONDER WHILE ON THE ACELA – In terms of an Iraq war booster shamelessly fusing his record with a book promotion, this is almost as bad as “Big Russ and Me: Why My Dad Didn’t Mind My Softball Interview With Dick Cheney.” Brooks: “The Iraq war error reminds us of the need for epistemological modesty. We don’t know much about the world, and much of our information is wrong. A successful president has to make decisions while radiating hesitancy, staying open-minded in the face of new evidence, not falling into the traps that afflict those who possess excessive self-confidence….These are all data points in a larger education.” [Times]

Mikey loves it, naturally: “PLAYBOOK FACTS OF LIFE: Presidential candidates talking about Iraq, rather than parsing the question, might want to take a page from Brooks and focus their answers on: ‘Here’s what we learned … ‘” [Politico]

Chait summarizes the problem underlying the whole debate: “This is how the dodge works. Step 1: Prevent a Senate report from looking into whether the administration lied. Step 2: Ignore the existence of the report that did show the administration lied. Step 3: Pretend that an intelligence failure and a deliberate effort to cook the intelligence are mutually exclusive. It was a mistake, therefore it could not have also been a crime.” [NY Mag]

BECAUSE YOU’VE READ THIS FAR – Here’s a baby panda.

CLAIRE MCCASKILL DONE WITH ‘GAME OF THRONES’ – “Claire McCaskill says she wants to keep America safe, but if she can’t predict that there will be gratuitous rape scenes in ‘Game of Thrones,’ how can she predict when Iran will get the bomb?” Igor Bobic: “The Missouri Democrat, who often personally opines on newsy topics via her Twitter account, on Tuesday sounded off against a particularly brutal scene in the latest episode of “Game of Thrones,” HBO’s TV adaptation of the fantasy book series ‘A Song of Ice and Fire.’ ‘Ok, I’m done Game of Thrones.Water Garden, stupid.Gratuitous rape scene disgusting and unacceptable.It was a rocky ride that just ended,’ [she tweeted]. Fans of the series erupted in outrage on Sunday after young Sansa Stark, one of the show’s few remaining beloved protagonists, was raped by her new husband, Ramsay Bolton, a psychopath who has an affinity for skinning people alive. The ‘Black Wedding,’ as it is being called by fans online, never occurred in the books — Sansa’s friend is subjected to Ramsay’s torment instead.” [HuffPost]

COMFORT FOOD

– Navy’s humongous new gun was made by Bae Systems. Make of that what you will.

– A scene from “Bloodsport” transformed into a Mentos commercial.

– Voice actor ably offers his services to replace Harry Shearer’s replacement

TWITTERAMA

@aedwardslevy: Idea: compile favorability ratings for literally every human being in America

@jackshafer: This week’s journalistic rediscovery: biker gangs.

@IgorBobic: INBOX: What the Gyrocopter Pilot’s Return to DC Means for 2016

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The majority of the population has been touched by it, be it in their own household or enduring the suffering of someone they know or love–it is safe to say nearly everyone in the world has been affected by it. It’s the word no individual wants to hear–cancer.

We all know of somebody who has struggled through treatment and lost that heroic battle. Billions and billions of dollars have gone into research and today, due to new forms of medical treatment, many are surviving and thriving after cancer. I want to take you on a journey that began in 2005 and has helped nearly 700 women and their families find hope and get their lives back after cancer.

In March of 2005 my Wellness Director and I attended the annual International Health, Racquet & Sports Club Association (IHRSA) convention. We had the privilege of sitting in on a presentation by Julie Main, former IHRSA president, club owner and partner of three clubs in the Santa Barbara area. Her presentation centered around the Cancer Well Fit Program, which she put together with a hospital there. I was so impressed with Julie’s presentation that I asked permission to allow us to borrow and customize her template at The Claremont Club. Julie, being the wonderful person that she was, agreed, and in 2005 we started the Living Well After Cancer program in partnership with Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center’s Robert & Beverly Lewis Family Cancer Care Center.

The Claremont Club hosts an annual Art of Giving charity event in partnership with PVHMC to absorb the cost of the program and one hundred percent of the net proceeds go directly to LWAC. Our complimentary 13-week program emphasizes activity-based therapy and consists of a support group, cardio and strength training, Pilates, yoga, oncology massage, and nutrition and cooking classes. Participants meet twice a week and are encouraged to use the club as often as they wish. Complimentary childcare is offered if needed. They go through an initial assessment and post assessment at the end of the program that measures quality of life outcomes implementing the concept of Exercise as Medicine. Seeing the transformation after 13 weeks–regained strength, flexibility, confidence and self-esteem–is extraordinarily rewarding and has changed all of our lives.

What became crystal clear to us during our initial run of the program was that the effects of cancer extended beyond the person who had it–it affected the entire family. Boys and girls at home were terrified of losing a parent. They were not interacting with their friends at school; they were withdrawing and having trouble concentrating and doing their homework. Immediately we knew it was essential to open up the club to the entire family to give them all some time to “get away” from cancer and have some fun.

The extensive success of this program prompted us to start a program for children and young adults affected by cancer. Our Pediatric Cancer Program works with youth ages five to 18 and runs for one full year. The younger children are involved with fun activities in our childcare department, including all 11 weeks of our summer camps and field trips, our kids’ Friday Night Out program and all social activities. These children are encouraged to bring a friend to attend the program with them for the entire year. Young adults work with cardio and strength conditioning exercises. We have also put together a program for the parents of participants. We are in our third week of the program and the input we are getting from both the kids and their parents is simply heartwarming.

We are currently working with several medical physicians and clinicians at multiple hospitals on a Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) grant application that if funded will study the benefits of exercise on children affected by cancer.

Is it possible to thrive after cancer? Watch the video below and decide for yourself.

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