The Contributor: March 2, 2022 by the-contributor-live

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LESSONS FROM A COLD WINTER PAGE 12 & 13

IN THE ISSUE

Contributor Board

Tom Wills, Chair Cathy Jennings, Bruce Doeg, Demetria Kalodimos, Ann Bourland, Kerry Graham, Peter Macdonald, Amber DuVentre, Jerome Moore, Annette McDermott, Drew Morris, Andy Shapiro

LOCALES - POLÍTICA - INMIGRACIÓN - TRABAJOS - SALUD - ESPECTÁCULOS - DEPORTES Y MÁS...

L a N ticia

GRATIS

Marzo

2022

www.hispanicpaper.com

“DONDE OCURREN LOS HECHOS QUE IMPORTAN, SIEMPRE PRIMERO... ANTES”

Año 20 - No. 345

Escanee esta imagen para ver La Noticia newspaper edición bilingüe digital

Nashville, Tennessee

Chef Paola Vélez: Celebremos la Historia y Contribuciones de los Afro Latinos Para la renombrada chef pastelera Paola Velez, el Mes de la Historia Afroamericana también es un momento para celebrar la historia de los afrolatinos y sus contribuciones.

Paola Velez nació en el Bronx, y es Por Cecibel Henríquez, de Medios estadounidense de Directora, y Estrategias de primera geParticipacion, neración y de No Kid Hungry ascendencia dominicana. Esta pastelera, activista y partidaria de No Kid Hungry desde hace mucho tiempo, atribuye a su madre y abuela la mujer que es hoy. De hecho, fue en uno de esos restaurantes, propiedad de la prima de su madre, donde una joven Vélez miraba fijamente a los cocineros mientras su madre trabajaba, fascinada por su picado y rebanado y donde se dio cuenta de la falta de chefs latinos y afroamericanos en la cocina. Vélez se graduó de Le Cordon Bleu y trabajó como chef en Nueva York, mientras vendía golosinas regularmente para recaudar fondos para esfuerzos comunitarios. Más tarde, se mudó a DC y superó todos sus sueños al convertirse en una codiciada pastelera. Sus experiencias de la infancia, visitando la República Dominicana varios meses al año para ver a su abuela, una de las matriarcas de su familia, la marcaron. Algunos de sus primeros recuerdos incluyen jugar entre hileras de árboles de cacao y comer fruta fresca de su patio trasero. “Mi abuela siempre cocinaba comida extra al mediodía, sin importar cuántas personas hubiera en la casa”, recuerda. “Aún si fuéramos solo mi mamá y yo, ella cocinaba comida extra para dársela a la comunidad. No importaba si estabas desempleado o si eras médico o abogado; ella simplemente le daba la bienvenida a la gente”. Mientras reflexiona sobre esos recuerdos, concluye: “Dar es parte de quién soy porque me criaron de esa manera. Mi mamá se aseguró de que, si teníamos tres

Hannah's Farewell

"It’s so tempting to attempt to ice the tug on your heart when you see someone who’s clearly having a hard time..."

La Noticia + The Contributor

Paola Velez, Afro latina pastry chef, and activist, was selected as a Food & Wine Best New Chef of 2021

dólares, regaláramos uno. Por eso cuando veo una necesidad en la comunidad, actúo”. Vélez estaba evaluando qué más podría estar haciendo con sus talentos y habilidades cuando la pandemia de coronavirus interrumpió grandes sectores de la industria de restaurantes, afectando incluso a sus compañeros de trabajo. Ella describe el proceso burocrático de tratar de obtener beneficios de desempleo para su personal y para ella como “muy humillante”. Si tuvo tantas dificultades como trabajadora documentada, apenas podía imaginar lo que estaban viviendo los trabajadores indocumentados en sus intentos de mantener el suministro vital durante los cierres. “No tenía moneda en forma de dinero, pero sabía cómo hacer cosas que podía vender por dinero, que podía usar para donar”, compartió Vélez. Unió fuerzas con Daniella Senior, de Colada Shop, para hacer realidad Doña Dona, una tienda de donas emergente que se especializa en sabores latinoamericanos con influencias americanas para recaudar fondos para trabajadores indocumentados.

“Tuvimos mucho éxito y vendíamos todo, todo el tiempo. A mucha gente le gustó la idea de donar a esta comunidad y recibir una recompensa, en forma de donas”, se ríe. Vélez llevó su activismo a un nivel aún más alto tras el asesinato de George Floyd en el verano de 2020, lo que provocó protestas en todo el país contra la brutalidad policial y un examen de conciencia masivo sobre lo que más personas podrían hacer para tomar una posición contra el racismo institucional. Recuerda haber pensado: “No me avergüenzo de ser negra y latina. No puedo vivir así. Todo en lo que podía pensar es en que mi esposo o un ser querido fueran detenidos mientras conducían y algo sucediera”. Para Vélez, el camino a seguir llegó al co-fundar y lanzar Bakers Against Racism (Pasteleros en Contra del Racismo), una venta global de pasteles que ha recaudado millones de dólares en fondos para apoyar a los capítulos y organizaciones de Black Lives Matter en todo el mundo, centrados en la justicia social, racial y económica.Está claro que todavía tenemos un largo camino por recorrer como país dos

La Noticia, one of the leading Spanish-language newspapers in the nation, brings Spanish content to Contributor. Conoce tusThe derechos: ¿Que hacer en caso de una redada?

años después. Pero Vélez mantiene la esperanza. “Espero que la gente no solo vea la dolorosa historia, ¿verdad? “Espero que en el futuro podamos ver los hermosos logros de las comunidades negras y latinas, no solo en la música y la ciencia, sino también en el arte, los avances sociales y los avances tecnológicos. Ya quiero enseñarles a mis hijos sobre los afro-latinos y los negros que han cambiado el curso de la historia, no solo los mismos pocos individuos en los que se enfocan la mayoría de los planes de estudios escolares”. Vélez visualiza la comida como su forma de marcar la diferencia. Ella llama a la comida el "gran ecualizador porque es lo que nos conecta" y es lo que la impulsó a asociarse con No Kid Hungry, una campaña para erradicar el hambre infantil en Estados Unidos al garantizar que todos los niños obtengan los alimentos saludables que necesitan todos los días para conectarse y prosperar. “Siempre me aseguro de que las organizaciones con las que trabajo estén alineadas con lo que hubiera deseado tener acceso cuando era más joven”. Mientras piensa en el futuro, Paola quiere “hablar abiertamente sobre cómo la historia afro-latina es la historia negra y todos los afro-latinos que han impactado la historia negra, de los que a menudo no se habla”. Quiere que los niños se den cuenta de que “hay una multitud de afro-latinos que luchan porque los vean, los escuchen y tengan las mismas oportunidades. También estamos creando conciencia de cuál es nuestra cultura y brindándoles la misma plataforma que hubiéramos querido tener cuando crecíamos”. “Estoy muy agradecida de ser afro-latina, porque me permite estar en dos comunidades al mismo tiempo”. Y hoy, ella está transformando la industria de forma lenta, pero segura, para garantizar que los sabores del Caribe sean tan reverenciados como los de Europa. Entre sus muchos elogios, ha sido nombrada Mejor Nueva Chef por Food & Wine 2021, finalista del premio James Beard 2020 como Rising Star Chef y nombrada Chef Pastelera del Año 2020 por Esquire. Pero su enfoque sigue siendo su activismo contra el racismo y el hambre. Envíenos sus sugerencias por e-mail: news@hispanicpaper.com ó 615-567-3569

Vendor Writing

Moving Pictures

In this issue, vendors write about God, love, reaching the bottom and Norma B., thanks a lot of her special customers.

Oscar contender Lead Me Home contends with housing crisis at Belcourt Theatre. Get tickets now!

1. Mantenerse callado 2. Sólo dar nombre y apellido 3. No mentir 4. Nunca acepte/lleve documentos falsos 5. No revelar su situación migratoria 6. No llevar documentación de otro país 7. En caso de ser arrestado, mostrarla Tarjeta Miranda (llámenos si necesita una)

por

Contributors This Issue

Hannah Herner • Linda Bailey • Amanda Haggard • Cathy Jennings • Maurice "Bucket Man" B. • Ridley Wills II • Judith Tackett • Busani Bafana • Yuri Cunza • Norma B. • John H. • Mr. Mysterio • Joe Nolan

Contributor Volunteers Christine Doeg , Volunteer Coordinator Joe First • Andy Shapiro • Michael Reilly • Logan Ebel • Ann Bourland • Laura Birdsall • Richard Aberdeen • Marissa Young • Ezra LaFleur • Rachel Stanley • Linda Eisele • Matthew Murrow • Wendy Curland • Gisselly Mazariegos

Cathy Jennings Executive Director

Basados en la Quinta Enmienda de la Constitución, los derechos de guardar silencio y contar con un abogado fueron denominados Derechos Miranda luego de la decisión de la Suprema Corte de Justicia de Estados Unidos en el caso Miranda vs. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, de 1966.

Tom Wills Director of Vendor Operations Hannah Herner Staff Writer

www.juanese.com juanese@usa.com

CORRECTION: In a Vendor Spotlight in early January, it was written that the Nashville Cowboy Church had closed. The church is open and can be found at the following website: https://www.facebook. com/NashvilleCowboyChurch/

Carli Tharp Social Services Intake Specialist Dymin R Cannon Section 8 and E&T Specialist Ree Cheers SOAR Manager Rachel Ternes Housing Navigator

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS!

Catherine Hardy Housing Navigator Jesse Call Operations Consultant Raven Nye Director of Housing Initiatives Barbara Womack Advertising Manager Amanda Haggard & Linda Bailey Co-Editors Gisselly Mazariegos & Isabella Romero Interns

The Contributor now accepts Venmo! Scan the QR Code above, or find us: @The-Contributor Make sure to include your vendor’s badge name and number in the description. If you bought this version digitally, you can still leave your regular vendor a tip. Email Cathy@thecontributor.org for more information or with questions!

Andrew Krinks Editor Emeritus Will Connelly, Tasha F. Lemley, Steven Samra, and Tom Wills Contributor Co-Founders Editorials and features in The Contributor are the perspectives of the authors. Submissions of news, opinion, fiction, art and poetry are welcomed. The Contributor reserves the right to edit any submissions. The Contributor cannot and will not endorse any political candidate. Submissions may be emailed to: editorial@thecontributor.org Requests to volunteer, donate, or purchase subscriptions can be emailed to: info@thecontributor.org Please email advertising requests to: advertising@thecontributor.org

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March 2 - 16, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 3

ESSAY

JOIN ME IN THE BOOTH

Learning that the perfect story arc doesn’t always exist BY HANNAH HERNER

When I was in elementary school in Norwalk, Ohio, my Grandma Jan would pick me up and bring me to Berry’s Restaurant, on Main Street in my 20,000-person home town, for an after school snack. Sometimes I’d pick mozzarella sticks, sometimes fries with ketchup squirt in a crosshatch pattern, sometimes a quesadilla. At least a few times we had a guest join us, Bill, a local who slept on the library steps less than a block away. He’d slide in the booth next to Grandma Jan and we’d share our after-school snack with him. In true small town fashion, my grandma knew his family, and had acquaintances in common. She told me about how he used to be a lawyer, was still really smart, and read a lot. She talked to him about his interests, and never really asked what brought him to sleeping on the library steps. A dozen years later, I decided to study journalism because I wanted to interview artists. Focusing on the Arts department, I was relieved not to have to cover stories of inequity and suffering. I never thought I would find myself working in a nonprofit, and definitely not covering homelessness. But I started freelancing for The Contributor right out of college, and eventually came on staff in June of 2019, two years later. In my writing, I’ve delved into the complexities of public housing, the criminal justice system, social work, mental and physical health, and generally how the city and nonprofits care for those living on the streets. There are always disagreements on how to best serve people, and never enough resources in the most resourced country in the world. I sought to balance all this in my mind by looking on an individual level — what changed the game for this one person sitting in front of me? Or what would we need to change the game for them? And with all the 50-plus vendor spotlights I wrote, I zeroed in on the ways they’ve changed, the ways they’re strong and resilient, the movies and music and hobbies and former jobs in which I thought the readers would find a common thread in. It was all true. But it’s all more complicated than that. I was looking for a beautiful story arc. That someone simply was in a season of struggle and were able to access what they needed and make it to the other side. I wanted to believe they were having a hard time, and they’re doing better now, permanently. I found some beautiful story arcs — one who quit drinking, another

Contributor vendor Maurice “Bucket Man” B. took this photo of the writer on a disposable camera summer 2019. who bought his own home, another started his own business, all with help from The Contributor. But more times than not, it’s a cycle. It’s not satisfying, it’s frustrating, and things don’t necessarily improve the moment people get a roof over their heads. We may lay out opportunities and find that vendors blow them off. They’ll threaten to quit the paper or forfeit their housing. You’re not always going to see many redeeming qualities in the people you meet who live on the street. But it’s only because they’ve lost trust in humanity, they don’t believe that your care will remain consistent, as they’ve been let down so many times already. The two biggest common threads that I’ve observed is that people who are experiencing homelessness do not have family support, or struggle with some level of mental or physical disability, or both. But there’s another common thread that gives me hope. Relationships can slowly and surely break the barriers. People become less destructive when they know someone will notice when they’re not on their corner selling the paper. They become more comfortable when they get to

talk about normal things, like sports or movies, outside of their stories of trauma. They start to trust someone who shows they’ll be consistent in their lives, even with a wave each day on the way to work. In every interview with a vendor I’ve asked, “what is something that your customers do for you that means the most?” I hoped that if I put it out there in print, they’d get more out of it. It was without fail, the kindness and attention of regular customers. They told me about people who stopped to talk at a red light, even if they didn’t buy a paper. People who waved, who made jokes with them, who found out what would be helpful, who asked them questions. My Grandma Jan already knew some of Jim’s story, and saw his value. I was lucky enough to have many of those who’ve experienced homelesness share their stories with me through The Contributor. I’ve seen how much those relationships count, even if they doesn’t change a person’s circumstances. Jan didn’t know that she was modeling that for me. It’s so tempting to attempt to ice the tug on your heart when you see someone

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who’s clearly having a hard time, by telling yourself that they will use your money for drugs, or that they aren’t really homeless or want to be homeless, or don’t really need it. It’s important to remember that a lot of things had to happen to this person to put them in a position that they would ask strangers for money. If anything, they’ve lost pride and stability, and they need the $5 more than I do. If you feel a tug on your heart to give, do so without condition. To go a step further, ask people what they need. Accept that it may not be what you had in mind. In my nonprofit years I’ve learned that helping others isn’t always going to make you feel good. More times than not, it made me feel worse, and I didn’t know what to do with all of the suffering I became so aware of. It’s been heartbreaking to see people struggle to find stability and happiness firsthand for these last few years. But I’m heartened to know that none of us will have a perfect story arc — it’s a reminder that relationships are the only thing that can ease the toughest parts. I can’t solve homelessness, but I can invite someone to join me in the booth.

VENDOR SPOTLIGHT

VENDOR SPOTLIGHT: HANNAH’S GREATEST HITS BY HANNAH HERNER

In my time at The Contributor, I’ve written dozens of vendor spotlights. Here are some excerpts from some of my favorites.

Keith My interview with Keith turned into a tradition of visiting his garden each summer! He always gave me some home-grown vegetables to go. I even ended up helping him to connect to his former foster family, and getting breakfast with them. Keith is a true and original success story of this paper. Something we at The Contributor love about you is your positive attitude. Is that how you’ve always approached life? No, when I quit drinking my attitude changed. It didn’t come in a day, it came gradually. The more I was not into myself, the more I became aware of others. Eight years ago, I wouldn’t have cared. But now I can instinctively tell when something needs to be done to help somebody out. I’m pretty good at figuring it out. When we used to be able to hang around in the Contributor office, I’d see 20 vendors go in and out buying papers. But the certain two or three, I would have a feeling. They’d be coming in and scraping $1.50 together to get three papers, and I’d just say ‘give ‘em 13’ and I’d pop a $5 bill down. I knew when it was time to do something like that. What is your gardening philosophy? My gardening philosophy is to hope and pray and be grateful when it turns out good. And don’t get mad if it doesn’t because there’s always going to be another time. And share, share, share! I have people that tell me, ‘I’ll buy some.’ I’m not selling a thing. I think it would be bad karma. If I have enough to give, I’m going to give.

Teresa Teresa used to fly a sign on the street I lived on, and I was excited to see her get involved in The Contributor. I did her interview while driving her to and from the store and I feel like the drive made the interview especially good. I admire her views on her family, and had such a laugh hearing about her old jobs! Simpson was born in Baptist Hospital (now known as Saint Thomas Midtown Hospital). Having grown up in Nashville, she sees good and bad in the city’s growth. “I’m glad people are not as redneck as they used to be.” She says her father was a redneck, someone who didn’t accept people of color, and even her own younger brother, who was gay. “I listened to my mother. At first I started listening to my father, and I was like ‘that’s not right’ they’re human too, they bleed, they have feelings,” she says. She’s quick to get emotional when talking about her younger brother Michael. The two were very close. “That was my baby,” she says. He died of HIV, “back when you couldn’t tell anyone that you knew anyone with it,” she chokes up. … In her life, Simpson has also worked in carnivals, was a caretaker for her mother, worked as a nanny, and in the ’70s and ’80s she was a topless dancer. “I’m not proud of everything I’ve done, don’t get me wrong, but I’m not ashamed of it either. That’s what makes me. I’m no one to judge. I mean, looking at me, you would have never thought I was a titty dancer,” she laughs.

Pedro Pedro was the first vendor I talked to on my first day working at The Contributor. I think we bonded easily because he has daughters around my age. Pedro is so thoughtful and optimistic, and is always collecting little gifts to give. He’s a gem. Pedro has a lot of stories to share, usually starting with, “Oh, I didn’t tell you this!” He grew up in Chicago with three brothers — one of them is his twin. He was sent home from kindergarten because he couldn’t speak English, and went back the following year, having learned it. His family used to host kids in the foster care system. They used to have big birthday parties in his yard in Chicago, complete with a live rock band. He just happened to be at the famous 1979 baseball game where the disco records were burned. As a teen, he got mad at his dad and hitchhiked across the country. He didn’t know what to do next so he called the police on himself. He waited outside the Chicago Bears stadium for three days, so he could be the third person to get tickets to watch them in the playoffs. He helped build the Brentwood Target, Velocity in the Gulch and a fire station in Hermitage. He loves watching Chopped. “In the future I want to get my own place, and I’m working on my disability,” Pedro says. “I’d love for Nashville to be happy. Sometimes people think it’s a sad city. I want to change Nashville, I do. I want to change how people think about the vendors. A lot of people don’t know your situation. If they knew your situation they’d have a better perspective of a vendor.” And since then, he has gotten into his own place!

March 2 - 16, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 5

Paul Both stubborn Northerners with birthdays one day apart, Paul and I bonded quickly and even went together to get our COVID-19 vaccination. Paul is always giving me great ideas of stories to look into. He likes to keep his ear to the ground and share his theories. One of the first stories I did with him was a photo gallery of him moving from living under Jefferson Street Bridge to his own apartment. This quote from that story is so him: “If it wasn’t for the help from The Contributor, I’d still be up under that damn bridge. That’s how I look at it.” he says. “I want to die with a Contributor in my hand, sitting on a corner. That’s how determined I am.”

NASHVILLE HISTORY CORNER

Littlelot, Tenn.

THE VILLAGE TOO SMALL TO HAVE A BIG NAME BY RIDLEY WILLS II This village, located 11 miles west of Centerville in Hickman County, lies at an elevation of 550 feet in the fertile Duck River Valley. It received its name in 1815 when a landowner, Hugh McCabe, who owned hundreds of acres, gave a quarter of an acre for a church and school. The church authorities thought that the piece of

donated land was too small to have “a big name” so they named the village Littlelot. Littlelot had, in 1876, a population of between 40 and 50. In the village there was a general store, cotton-gin, saw and grist mills and a blacksmith shop. The Methodists and Christians had churches and the Masonic Fra-

ternity had a lodge. There was also a school, Green Wood Academy. In 1918, Littlelot was described as being in “the hog and hominy” part of the state near the Duck River. The article went on to say the area had “beautiful scenery and everything to make one feel free that he will not want to leave. No better people on

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earth.” There was a Littlelot Normal School of Music in the village in 1918. Board could be had in the best homes in the village for from $3.50 to $4 per week. Tuition for the 20-week course was $3 for children over 15 years of age and $2 for those under 15. The school’s president was C. B. Wilson.

March 2 - 16, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 7

Kenneth Redditt is pleased to announce his candidacy for General Sessions Judge in Division II. Redditt has practiced law in Nashville for almost 14 years. His primary practice areas are Criminal Defense, Family, Personal Injury and Landlord Tenant Detainer Actions. He has gone into the tough counties that many stay away from because he does not believe that justice should be limited by zip code. Kenneth has been extremely active in his community. He has held countless expungement clinics throughout the city at no cost to try and assist those who want to clean up their record and find gainful and meaningful employment that would allow them to provide for their families. During some of these clinics, he would incorporate a know your rights component. He would speak about the rights of detainees and some of the limitations on law enforcement in police encounters and the need to remain silent. His breath and depth of both real world and legal experience coupled with his understanding of the needs of Davidson County citizens (fairness) makes him uniquely qualified to serve as the next General Sessions Judge in Division II.

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NEWS

NEWS BRIEFS HUD report shows 326K experienced homelessness in 2021 In February, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released the first part of its 2021 Annual Homeless Assessment Report. The report found that more than 326,000 people experienced sheltered homelessness in the United States on a single night in 2021 — a decrease of eight percent from 2020, according to a release from HUD. Sheltered homelessness refers to people experiencing homelessness who were found in emergency shelters, transitional housing, or other temporary settings. The COVID-19 pandemic caused HUD to waive the requirement for communities to conduct the count of unsheltered homelessness in 2021, which is why the report is only able to provide national estimates on sheltered homelessness. There are some findings on unsheltered homelessness, but only from the communities that conducted unsheltered counts. The report found that the number of sheltered people in families with children declined considerably between 2020 and 2021, while the number of sheltered individuals remained relatively flat. Between 2020 and 2021, the number of veterans experiencing sheltered homelessness decreased by 10 percent. On a single night in 2021 in January, 15,763 people under the age of 25 experienced sheltered homelessness on their own as “unaccompanied youth.” The number of sheltered individuals with chronic patterns of homelessness increased by 20 percent between 2020 and 2021. “The findings of the 2021 AHAR Part 1 report suggest that federal COVID-19 relief had positive impacts on sheltered homelessness,” said HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge. “Yet we know that homelessness in America remains an urgent crisis. As long as people in this nation continue to lack affordable, secure housing, our work to put Housing First is not done. By continuing to leverage American Rescue Plan resources and our federal House America initiative, the Administration will further accelerate progress toward our shared goal of ending the homelessness crisis.” “The 10 percent decline in shel-

like employing violence interrupters and outreach workers to help defuse community conf lict and to connect people to needed services. "Community safety is public safety, and community safety takes all of us,” Mayor John Cooper said in the release. “This is another step in our efforts to support the grassroots groups pursuing solutions that work best for Nashville's neighborhoods.” In the past year, $105,000 in grants have been awarded to 21 local nonprofits. “Violence interruption programs are a proven, public-health approach to reducing violence,” said Erin Evans, chair of Metro Council’s Health and Public Safety Committee. “I want to thank Mayor Cooper, my colleagues on the Metro Council and on the Community Safety Partnership Fund Advisory Board, the Metro Public Health Department, and our nonprofit partners for their work on this life-saving initiative.” The release says violence interruption programs work primarily with high-risk youth aged 14 to 30 and include individual interactions, conf lict mediation and community mobilization. Some families to receive retroactive food assistance benefits

tered homelessness among Veterans between January 2020 and January 2021 suggests that the measures put in place to protect our most vulnerable Veterans and keep them in stable housing during the pandemic and beyond have had encouraging impacts,” said VA Secretary Denis McDonough. “VA remains committed to actively working with our federal, local and non-profit partners to sustain existing and implement new evidence-based programs and policies to permanently house or rapidly re-house Veterans who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness because every Veteran has earned and deserves a safe place to call home.”

The pandemic also resulted in considerable changes to the practices of homeless service providers, according to the release. Nonprofits can now apply for violence reduction funds Nashville nonprofits can now apply for a $1.5 million Cure Violence pilot program in North Nashville. Applications are open until April 22, according to a Metro press release, and the funds must support using public health approaches to violence reduction. The release cites things

March 2 - 16, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 9

Starting in March, eligible children who did not receive assistance through the Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer program for the 2020-2021 school year will receive a retroactive benefit payment. This payment will be sent to children who experienced a change in P-EBT eligibility status during the 2020-2021 school year or who were not accounted for initially. Parents do not have to apply for retroactive P-EBT benefits. “The COVID-19 pandemic caused much uncertainty and changes to daily routines for families, especially those that rely on school meals,” said Tennessee Department of Human Services Commissioner Clarence H. Carter. “In partnership with TDOE, we’ve taken steps to ensure that all children eligible for P-EBT receive the benefit, despite f luctuations and changes that occurred during the last school year.”

NEWS

A Few Questions with Councilmember Emily Benedict, District 7

BY JUDITH TACKETT t became apparent quickly while talking to District 7 Councilmember Emily Benedict how much she loves the area she serves.

METRO COUNCIL COMMITTEES:

“I believe District 7 has the best that Nashville has to offer,” Benedict said. “We have a lively and growing neighborhood in Madison, a suburban neighborhood in northern Inglewood, and urban growth in South Inglewood. We have bustling growth on Gallatin Pike, where our WeGo route 56 has the highest ridership in the city. We have the highest volume bus stop at the Madison library. I ride that bus often. It's an efficient and easy way to get downtown.” Over pizza and a drink, we asked Benedict some questions about her first term serving District 7.

Government Operations and Regulations, vice chair Human Services

What are currently the main issues and concerns you hear about from your constituents? Traffic calming and pedestrian safety. This is by far the largest opportunity we have to improve lives in District 7. Gallatin is the second most dangerous street in the city. We need to make it safer, and NDOT (Nashville Department of Transportation) is working on that. The Nashville Vision Zero Action Plan aims to end all traffic-related deaths and severe injuries. How bad have accidents been in District 7? That’s a passion of mine. I actually chaired a special committee on sidewalks when I was first elected and we learned a lot about why it’s expensive to build sidewalks, why it’s so slow to build sidewalks, and some of those findings from that committee NDOT has already implemented. I’m riding tomorrow with our new NDOT director. I know that we are working to fund some of the pieces of Vision Zero. I’m hopeful that we will get a lot of federal dollars to help us build out bike lanes and crosswalks. Everybody wants sidewalks, but truly crosswalks make a bigger difference in pedestrian safety. Of course, we need cars to obey the law. We don’t want excess, but we’ve got to be able to serve the community, and we’re not doing that when we don’t have crosswalks, when people are dying on the street from crossing the street or walking alongside it. It’s inequitable, and it’s something we need to spend the money on. As the representative of District 7, what are the main goals you set for your first term? The first thing is to make it a more equitable neighborhood, with the right growth in the right place. When I talk about equity, I don't mean equality, which is very important. Rather, I mean that we all have the opportunity to have well-paying jobs, safe places

to live, and affordable/attainable housing. The second thing is to fix the budget. We had mismanaged money for quite some time, including that we have had one of the lowest tax rates in the city's history. We couldn't keep up with the growth, so now we have been playing catch up. We have done well with fixing that problem, although there is more work to do. For instance, in 2019, we had three days' cash on hand for operations. In 2021, we now have a reserve fund that would pay for city operations for up to a month. The average major city has four months on hand, so we have a ways to go, but we have to do this in case we ever again are faced with headwinds like a pandemic or a tornado. We have given raises to our teachers. That was foundational to my campaign. And we have improved pay across the board for Metro employees who hadn't had a raise in years. You are a realtor, as such you observe the housing market. What do you see as Nashville’s opportunities for the city to grow in a healthy way? For one, find ways to partner with affordable housing programs. This is something GNR, the Greater Nashville Realtors, is focused on including with its own committee for affordable housing. As home prices continue to rise at record rates, we need to help

developers buy in places where they can build smaller and more affordable housing units, likely apartments, or condos. When we put these developments on main thoroughfares, that also helps with affordability due to access to things like public transportation, and oftentimes resources like grocery stores. You also serve on the Human Services Committee*, and as much as I try to stay out of the current discussions due to my background as the former director of the Homeless Impact Division, I would be remiss not to ask whether you had anything to add to the recent hearing of the Jefferson Street Bridge removal. In your words, what are your thoughts? It was handled horribly. I'm very concerned about the residents who have been placed elsewhere or displaced altogether. I am especially concerned that we don't currently have a program to track housing for everyone. For instance, if the city is able to place someone in a home or hotel, we don't track if they have stayed in that home or hotel, or if they have returned to the streets. Anyway, we need to help people in encampments, and this was a pilot. It didn't work, and there was no contingency plan. It wasn't communicated well to the encampment residents nor internally. We are talking about peoples' lives. We must take better caution in the future.

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Secondly, we need to listen to the right voices, not the loudest. And finally, I believe the interim director at the Homeless Impact Division was tasked with finding a solution to encampments as his first priority. I am concerned he was not provided enough resources to be successful both with working on encampments and with his role overall. I'm sure that you are familiar with the lack of resources the city has historically given to the Homeless Impact Division. I'm hopeful that we are able to create a standalone department of homelessness and rehousing so we can really allocate resources to end homelessness. As you well know, housing is the only cure to homelessness. It's obvious but I'll say it: no one chooses to become homeless. We need to provide better resources — better human services — to our community so no one will ever end up on our streets. I want every Nashvillian — in a home or not — to be safe, and warm, and fed. I'm hopeful we can do that more quickly than we have historically.

*Tackett agreed in early January to be available as a subject matter expert to the committee members during their discussions of homeless solutions, which is why she launched this interview series with members of the Metro Council Human Services Committee.

March 2 - 16, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 11

COVER STORY

LESSONS FROM A COLD WINTER

‘Contributor’ Director Cathy Jennings serves as chair of the CoC Shelter Committee and on the Metro Covid Emergency Task Force. These are her lessons from a cold winter. BY C AT H Y J E N N I N G S

n Nov. 22, a predicted 27-degree low temperature activated this year’s opening night of the Metro Emergency Overflow Shelter. A group of us, including the vice mayor, a couple of nonprofit directors, and a formerly homeless woman, were at Music City Central on Charlotte Avenue directing folks experiencing homelessness to the 23B bus, which would take them to the Metro Shelter. Funded with ARP funds, the free ride was part of the new “Hub and Spoke” transportation plan put together by the Metro Covid Emergency Task Force, of which we are members, and WeGo Public Transit. The wind was bitter cold. Outreach workers around the city alerted those who would be exposed to deadly temperatures, transporting them to the ‘hub’ on Charlotte,

or ‘spokes’ of various locations around the city, where Mobility Solutions’ vans provided the first leg of the journey towards food and warmth. The location of the shelter was also new. The old elementary school on Brick Church Pike was originally scouted as the replacement for the COVID Shelter at Nashville Fairgrounds, which had returned to its original purpose, but it was an ideal winter shelter. The choice was also more trauma-informed than the Davidson County Sheriff ’s Office facility used in 2019-2020, which homeless advocates and the Continuum of Care Shelter Committee requested that the city reconsider using. Meetings with the surrounding community were held and, within a few weeks, Metro Social Services transformed the building with cots, supplies and portable showers.

The Metro Shelter is one shelter in Nashville’s Cold Weather Response Plan, implemented from Nov. 1 to March 31, providing people who experience homelessness the best possible information and assistance to seek shelter indoors. It is a low barrier program, inclusive of people with pets or on the registry, and is a collaboration of efforts: The Nashville Rescue Mission shelters the majority of Nashville’s homeless, providing meals and beds for over 600 men, women and children; Room In The Inn partners with local congregations and shelters 150-200 men in the winter; Launch Pad shelters LGBTQ young adults, and Metro’s Emergency Overflow Shelter, which is triggered to open at 28 degrees and serve as an overflow to community shelters, has capacity for 200.

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This has been a cold year. With six weeks to go as of this writing, the Metro Emergency Shelter has already been open 32 nights, compared to the total of 27 nights last year and 19 nights the year before. It also has been a busy year, with numbers pushing 1,000 to 1,200 total community beds per night occupied, compared to 700-900 beds last year. Indeed, the shelters were so busy that on five different nights, the Metro facility reached capacity and The Salvation Army, an emergency contractor for Metro, opened an “overflow” shelter, providing meals and beds for up to 150 people each night. Whether this is because the new transportation/outreach plan is bringing more people into shelter, the facility is more trauma-informed and attractive, or there are more people experiencing homelessness, we won’t fully understand

COVER STORY until the PIT results are released. (The PIT, or point-in-time, count is a count of sheltered and unsheltered people experiencing homelessness that HUD requires each CoC nationwide to conduct in the last 10 days of January each year.) The 28-degree trigger for emergency shelter activation has always been a source of frustration for many advocates, and I can say that since becoming chair of the Shelter Committee three years ago, I find myself even brief ly outside in cold weather thinking about those who live outside — 35 degrees is cold and 30 is very, very cold. I know three people who died outside this year and I am certain there are more. The CoC Shelter Committee, and subsequently the Homelessness Planning Council, passed a recommendation to Metro to open the shelter at 32 degrees. Most cities of our size and in our region have shelter systems that activate at 32 degrees or higher. The Shelter Committee also recommended, and Metro Social Services received ARP funding, to expand Metro Shelter operation days to extreme weather unrelated to the 28-degree trigger, like flooding or severe storm warnings. Last year, rising water killed three people experiencing homelessness at their camp. This year, on Feb. 24, flooded camps and continued rain and flood watches prompted the opening of Metro Shelter. Within six hours, 75 people found shelter at the Brick Church facility. Progress. Providing shelter is not outside of a housing-first philosophy — it keeps people alive until housing is found. Shelter should lessen the number of days lived outside. It should not be an either/or proposition, but a continuum. Surely the solution to homelessness is housing, and more specifically permanent supportive housing with an array of accessible services. However, shelter is the first step on the path to housing, bringing people back into the community, giving hope through connecting them to resources like food stamps, an ID, or health care, and initiating housing navigation through entry into the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) and Coordinate Entry (CE). To that end, the Task Force recruited and trained four flex-team outreach workers to work within the Metro Homeless Impact Division system, providing services to homeless individuals with COVID, connecting shelter clients to resources, and entering them into HMIS and CE. As I continue to work with the shelter system this year, I see many successes to celebrate: a transportation system that is working, a good facility found and hopefully made permanent, HMIS intake during shelter, an outreach community that is amazing, and a shelter system that communicates, solves problems and reacts quickly. Operating a shelter is not easy; clients are often experiencing mental and/or physical trauma and are

distrusting of the system. Issues arise, late night phone calls are made, and I am continually grateful for the common ground that Metro, WeGo, and the nonprofit providers have found to come up with solutions. However, as I talk to individuals grateful for a meal and a place to lay their head for the night, I can’t help but ref lect on the effort involved by both the served and the providers. I imagine myself in the night, leaving all I own in the world only to hope it will be there when I get back, getting into a van, which drives me to a bus station, where I wait for a bus to take me to a shelter, that I leave before 7 a.m. the next morning in the cold and begin the journey back. It would feel like the first step on a path to nowhere instead of housing. I think about shelter providers and the emotional weight of witnessing the same suffering day after day. Or Metro Social Service and Salvation Army employees, working nights at the shelter after putting in a full day in their office. Or outreach workers, advocating on behalf of their unhoused friends and frustrated at the perceived lack of empathy they see them receiving. How does a city as prosperous as Nashville have 2,000 individuals sleeping in shelters or places not meant for human habitation? Fingers are often pointed, but perhaps we aren’t asking the right questions. The words of the recently deceased, Dr. Paul Farmer, founder of Partners in Health, ring in my ears: “The idea that some lives are less is the root of all that is wrong with the world.” I believe that, surely, we can do better. Perhaps we need to listen more: What is it that people need to reclaim their dignity and reunite with their community? Ask them, and more importantly, listen to them. We need to experiment more and not be afraid to make mistakes and learn from them: Does a metro/nonprofit system with smaller, geographically located shelters improve shelter quality and housing outcomes? Would contracting out shelter operations to nonprofits with trained outreach workers improve shelter atmosphere and housing outcomes? We need to educate ourselves more: How do we foster autonomy in those that we work with? How do we inspire hope? Above all, we need to cooperate, work together, and quit pointing fingers, remembering the humanity of all of our neighbors, both the unhoused and the housed. And finally, we really need to build housing in Nashville! Lots of it. Permanent supportive housing, which is different from workforce housing. Shelter should be temporary, and it should reduce the number of days someone lives outside. That can only be so when housing is readily available. If you have ideas, I’m open to learning more lessons if you are. Email me at cathy@thecontributor.org.

March 2 - 16, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 13

INTERNATIONAL NETWORK OF STREET PAPERS

Storybook apps turn African students into writers BY BUSANI BAFANA Suwaiba Hassan published an engrossing story. She used digital apps that are giving literacy a boost. The student from Katsina State in Nigeria, Hassan, won a National Reading Competition for a story she created using the African Storybook reader app and the African Storybook maker app. Saide, an education NGO, developed the apps through its African Storybook (ASb) project. The apps are easy-to-use storybook development tools allowing children to write and publish their own stories, which can be read and shared without internet connectivity. Hassan turned to the online apps to help her write and publish her award-winning story — Titi and Donkey. The story is about a girl who narrowly escaped losing her grandmother’s money to a cunning donkey. Hassan wanted to inspire other girls to write and read in writing it. She did more. Her story motivated parents in her home state to encourage more girls to go to school after Hassan won a National Reading Competition and all expenses paid scholarships to cover all her education levels. Northern Nigeria has a high number of out-of-school children. Conquering literacy one story at a time The African Storybook Project has created a digital library of open license African storybooks to address the challenge of education inclusion and access to appropriate reading materials for young African children. It has been piloted in 15 African countries. The applications are helping conquer illiteracy one story at a time by providing reading material in home languages that reflect local content for children to read, says Jenny Glennie, Saide Executive Director. Saide contributes to the development of new open learning models, including the use of educational technology and open education resources in sub-Saharan Africa. “We are promoting the idea that you have a publisher in your pocket and a library on your phone,” said Glennie. On average, 2000 unique storybooks in 222 African languages have been published online, created mainly by students, teachers and librarians. More than 1.5 million children in Africa benefitted from the storybooks downloaded from the ASb website, especially after COVID-19 hit leading to the close of many schools. The ASb project works with local educators and illustrators, including children, to develop, publish and use relevant storybooks in children’s language. According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), some 40 percent of the global population does not access education in a language they understand. UNESCO cautions that literacy promotion should be looked at from a per-

Reading is an important skill in the development of young learners. Pupils at a primary school in Gwanda, Zimbabwe, enjoy a reading moment. CREDIT, BUSANI BAFANA/IPS spective of multilingualism because several international and regional languages have expanded as lingua franca. In contrast, numerous minority and indigenous languages are endangered. Literacy in local languages encourages reading and writing among learners because they use the material in their mother tongue every day, noted Belina Simushi, Education Program Officer with the Impact Network Zambia, an education service provider operating schools in Zambia. In Zambia, she said learners are taught in English, a foreign language. “Our learners need books to be written in a local language, which I believe can act as a stepping stone for learning how to read and write,” said Simushi. She led a story-writing project in which teachers wrote over 300 storybooks they uploaded online using the ASb Storybook Maker and guide. “I also believe that by accessing books written in Cinyanja [a language widely spoken in Zambia and Malawi], our learners can read about stories, cultures and other topics that can help them enjoy reading books and develop a love for reading books.” Righting illiteracy According to the Lost Potential Tracker, nine out of 10 children in Sub Saharan Africa miss the age ten basic literacy milestones, according to the Lost Potential Tracker, an interactive analysis tool measuring the scale of the global learning crisis. The tool

jointly created by the One Campaign, the Global Partnership for Education and Save the Children in 2021, shows the depth of the global learning crisis. Alice Albright, CEO of the Global Partnership for Education, says reading and writing are essential building blocks for children to succeed. “This tool shows the depth of the global learning crisis — and what a critical situation the world faces if we do not prioritize education.” While Inger Ashing, CEO of Save the Children International, warned that the world faces an unprecedented education emergency worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic. Children in some of the poorest and conf lict-affected countries are the most badly affected. “If we are to live up to our commitments to achieving the full range of Sustainable Development Goals and the children’s right to education, then improving literacy levels is a must,” Ashing noted, emphasizing that being able to read was a foundation skill that enabled children to realize their full potential. The ASb apps have also opened new opportunities to promote and preserve some of Africa’s least spoken languages, which are on the verge of dying off because they are not written down, said Dorcas Wepukhulu, the East and West African Storybook Partner Development Coordinator at Saide. “The apps have enabled a different learning process that goes beyond the usual

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stringing of words. It is motivating. The fact that the stories they have written can be published and read by others is something children are very proud of and want to do,” said Wepukhulu. She explained that they are encouraging many people across sub-Saharan Africa to use the apps while helping the marginalized talk about their experiences and boost languages that have not been published in creating reading materials. Smangele Mathebula, African Storybook Partner Development Coordinator for Southern Africa, noted that the apps had given children a chance to be fully present as they interact with technology in sharing their experiences. The African Storybook Story Maker App won the 2021 Tech4Good Awards in Education given by UK-based Tech4Good Awards. The awards celebrate fantastic businesses, individuals and initiatives that use digital technologies to improve the lives of others and make the world a better place. Saide was also voted the Winner of Winners in the virtual awards ceremony. “Emerging as the Winner of Winners in this year’s awards reinforces our efforts to continue promoting the use of the Story Maker across sub-Saharan Africa as a way of empowering children to tell their own stories and for communities to self-publish,” Glennie said. Courtesy of Inter Press Service / International Network of Street Papers

THE LEADERSHIP OUR CITY NEEDS NOW u

ReElect u

Monte

WATKINS Criminal Court Division V

JUDGE

Experience. Respect. Fairness. Tennessee State University Alum Appointed Criminal Court Judge, September 1, 2013 Re-elected in 2004, 2006, and 2014 Over 37 years experience in criminal law Lifetime member of the National Bar Association Proud parent and grandparent

VOTE MAY 3

EARLY VOTING APRIL 13-28

re e l e c t j u d g e m o n ewa t k i n s .c o m Paid for by the committee to Re Elect Judge Monte Watkins Bernie McEvoy, Treasurer

March 2 - 16, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 15

LA NOTICIA “The Contributor” está trabajando con uno de los principales periódicos en español La Noticia para llevar contenido a más lectores en Middle Tennessee. Nuestros vendedores de periódicos han pedido durante mucho tiempo que nuestra publicación incluya contenido que apele al interés de residentes de habla hispana en nuestra comunidad.

“The Contributor” is working with one of the leading Spanish-language newspapers La Noticia to bring content to more readers in Middle Tennessee. Our newspaper vendors have long requested that our publication include content that appeals to the interest of Spanish-speaking residents in our community.

LOCALES - POLÍTICA - INMIGRACIÓN - TRABAJOS - SALUD - ESPECTÁCULOS - DEPORTES Y MÁS...

L a N ticia 2022

GRATIS

Marzo

Escanee esta imagen para ver La Noticia newspaper edición bilingüe digital

www.hispanicpaper.com

Año 20 - No. 345

“DONDE OCURREN LOS HECHOS QUE IMPORTAN, SIEMPRE PRIMERO... ANTES”

Nashville, Tennessee

Paola Velez, Afro latina pastry chef, and activist, was selected as a Food & Wine Best New Chef of 2021

Conoce tus derechos: ¿Que hacer en caso de una redada? 1. Mantenerse callado 2. Sólo dar nombre y apellido 3. No mentir 4. Nunca acepte/lleve documentos falsos 5. No revelar su situación migratoria 6. No llevar documentación de otro país 7. En caso de ser arrestado, mostrarla Tarjeta Miranda (llámenos si necesita una)

por

www.juanese.com juanese@usa.com

PAGE 16 | March 2 - 16, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE

VENDOR WRITING

MORE ABOUT MY AMAZING CUSTOMERS BY NORMA B., CONTRIBUTOR VENDOR It’s been a really dismal day, a constant cold, rain falling and I’m about to enter what is usually the absolute worst time of year for me. As I sit here trying to figure out the best way to lift my mood and my spirits, it occurs to me that I should write more about my amazing customers! I am certain that’ll do the trick. My people constantly restore my faith in humanity. My hope is that it can do the same for you. Here are just a few examples: First up there’s Mari. (She’s Mark’s other half. Remember him? He’s the guy with the cool overalls mentioned in a previous article.) She stopped by with some shirts, snow boots, and an awesome winter coat. Many of them have already been worn and gotten rave reviews. Yay! I thought I’d come up with a witty nickname for the two of them: “M&M” for Mark and Mari. Cool, right? That is until she told me ALL their friends call them that. I think I’m slipping, or maybe I’m not as clever as I thought. Lenny pulled into the parking lot got out and said, “I’ve been missing you young lady.” OK, for the record, anyone who calls me “young” can visit me as often as they like. I assured him I was out every chance I get. He reluctantly took a paper, smiled and away he went. Randy also got out of his truck and came to me and said he sees me out here

a lot and worries about me. He gave me a good tip and I encouraged him to stop by anytime with or without money. I also told him I also trade papers for food, water, etc. He said, “I’ll bet we become fast friends.” I’m looking forward to that! Ricky, in spite of having cancer, stopped and gave me $5 because he appreciated my positive attitude and how I make the most of every day. I encouraged him to do the same, and to keep me posted how his treatments were going. Yasmine brought me heart-shaped Dunkin Donuts after Valentines Day. (My favorite were were chocolate covered with the custard filling.) Yum! Kathy got out of her car and came to get her paper after making sure I was published in it. She said she knew a couple of my former LoJac now Vulcan drivers who stop for me occasionally. I guess news really does travel! Kitkey (I’m sure I misspelled his name-I spelled it phonetically, how it sounds.) He’s a young man of Native American descent. He stopped and gave me $5 for two papers. Buying multiple papers is a little unusual, but that’s NOT what made this visit special. What made this interaction unique was the fact that after our initial brief conversation, he returned later that same day and asked about my story. After talking

for quite some time, he said he’d look for me whenever he was in the area. I’m not sure how often that’ll be, but that’s pretty awesome, right? There’s the couple whose vehicle looked like an old fashioned Colonial bread truck- Does anyone remember the old bread store in Madison? It reminded me of that, (and you just can’t beat the smell of fresh baked bread.) They gave me all kinds of bread that they said Publix was just going to throw out — Multigrain bread, doughnuts, banana bread, muffins, cookies, hoagie rolls, you name it, they had it. I only took what I could use, but I must admit, it pained me to think of the rest of it going to waste. What a shame, when there’s SO many people who could actually use it. There’s Lindy who stopped to tell me about her mom who she’d recently become the primary caregiver for after she’d suffered a fall, followed by what she believed to be a stroke that ultimately led to her untimely death. It was obvious to me that Lindy was in tremendous emotional pain. Mary, a pedestrian passing by on the sidewalk, gave me $1 and asked me to pray for her. When I asked if there was anything in particular she needed, tears began steaming down her face and she said, “I’m just SO lonely.” Needless to say, the prayer was done on the spot! As always, I ask all of my readers to

pray for them if your heart moves you to do so after all, we can NEVER get too many of those! Finally there’s the USAF veteran who noticed I was having trouble standing up (it happens A LOT if I’ve been sitting a while, or if it’s extremely cold or rainy outside which has happened A LOT lately). He got out of his truck and came to and gave me a tip, when I made it to his truck before the light changed I said, “see I made it to you after all, so you didn’t have to go to all that trouble.” He said, “here, take this too, since you made the effort,” giving me an even bigger tip. Is this an example of getting out of something what you put into it? It sure seems that way to me. Well, I must say, I’m feeling better now. I hope you were able to find a few experiences that were equally uplifting to you as well. Until next time, please keep these examples close in your heart and mind when you’re feeling down and allow them to lift you up, and when and if the opportunity presents itself to do something for someone else, no matter how big or how small it may seem don’t hesitate, just do it! Only then will you experience the true sense of purpose and satisfaction that come from fulfilling the words of Acts 20:35, “There is more joy in giving than in receiving.”

WAY OUT OF THE BOTTOMS BY MAURICE B., CONTRIBUTOR VENDOR Being at the bottom of a barrel with no way out is a hard situation to explore. Every individual has their bottoms, and the depths to each one vary. There are many variations of any specific bottom, but the main concept of the bottom is the ground level. The truth about life itself is that we all have touched the ground once in our lives, but we also intend to reach the highest degree of satisfaction that we can fathom. The state of imagination is what is posed and presented firmly in the minds

of each individual as they attempt to press towards their honorable marks of true success. The various greater expectations of others are usually what holds an individual's posterior from moving forward towards their imaginary mark of success whereas an instant gratification process from the various minds will work for them but not for all others. That's where a certain amount of people become misconstrued. That's where the grades, levels, statuses, categories of people separate.

The feeling of accomplishing certain amounts of achievements leads an individual to perform in certain different manners whereas the work ethic that has been pertained to the success story of that person has that person to carry themselves according to that standard. As of the motion of a vehicle that is equipped with three mirrors a person accomplishing things in life is the same. To move forward is the positive option in and of vitality, therefore one must use the mirrors only to glance at what was in

March 2 - 16, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 17

the past because the main objective is to never create an accident from not paying attention to the present and future. What has occurred in the past is what one has submitted to or surrendered to only to proceed to where one is at. By overcoming the difficulties or tragedies of one's history is how one is able to press forward into today's actions of life. From the bottom to the top is everyone's favorite motto/ slogan, but everyone's concept of the bottom isn't the same as well as everyone's concept of the top isn't.

VENDOR WRITING

LIFE'S NOT FAIR, BUT GOD IS GOOD BY JOHN H., CONTRIBUTOR VENDOR Many times I sit back and wonder where would I be now had I not been raised by Godly parents who preached God’s word to me every day as a child. Most people who see me on the corner say, Every time I see you John you have that big ole smile. How you do it? I say to them, God put it there. Many times it is hard to explain what’s going through my heart and mind at the moment, but God gives me peace. God smiles down on me because he knows I'm waiting for someone I can share His Word with. I had a doctor's appointment this morning and was waiting to see the doctor. I was trying to write this article and couldn’t seem to get my thoughts together so I thought to myself, the only way I can finish this article is if I go to my corner. Seems as if that’s my perfect spot where God speaks to my heart. Much of the time, I sit back and talk to God about why I’m not in the

Big Truck anymore. I feel the way it all went down just wasn’t fair. On the other hand, it seems as if He’s telling me, John, I need you on that corner sharing the Word more than I need you running up and down the road. I’m hoping both ways, whether on the corner or trucking, it all blends out. Sometimes I get so frustrated on my corner because I don’t understand the unnecessary hate from the people who pass you by, judging you because you may have been homeless a few days. It’s just not fair, homelessness, color of skin, ashamed of God’s word. I don't understand. It’s not fair, but the God I serve each day is good. It’s the beginning of the year and this is my first of three articles and I want Nashvillians to know, I love you! Let’s start a great new year by continuing in love. Before Jesus ascended back to heaven, those were his words to the disciples, to love one another.

THEME: M A RCH M A DN ESS ACROSS 1. In ill humor 5. Like a ship? 8. Repeating word on South Pacific map 12. Man-eating fairy tail giant 13. Newspaper piece 14. Pertaining to the ear 15. Family group 16. Not the life of the party 17. Andean animal 18. *Like Sunday, the day of announcements 20. Bodily disorders 21. 19th century Robber baron Jay ____ 22. Architect's software, acr. 23. Articulates 26. Soak up 29. Cuban dance step 30. Auditory canal, e.g.

33. Needlefish, pl. 35. "Star Wars" creator 37. Swindle 38. March edition, e.g. 39. Rest or settle 40. Johnny Cash's "Get ____" 42. *It never ends this way 43. Another word for acetylene 45. High or hilly land 47. Grazing spot 48. Copying machine 50. ____ code 52. *Those remaining in last weekend (Two words) 56. Gives off 57. Afghanistan's western neighbor 58. Beginner 59. Send in payment 60. Halfway around links 61. Besides 62. Biz bigwig

63. *D-___ schools only 64. Swedish shag rugs DOWN 1. ____ Brown and "What's Up, ____?" 2. Gawk at 3. River in Orenburg, Russia 4. Weasel out 5. Go bad 6. Massacre of the Innocents king 7. "I Dream of Jeannie" star 8. *Last year's runner-up from Washington 9. Like word of mouth 10. Those born under Aries 11. Chicken ____ ____ king 13. Between 90 and 180 degrees 14. Spy's cover 19. Crocus bulbs, e.g. 22. *Network 23. *School with most titles 24. Car rack manufacturer 25. Like an implied agreement 26. Your mom's sister 27. Haile Selassie's disciple 28. Boston hockey player 31. Heart pain 32. Ken or Barbie, e.g. 34. *Placement 36. *First A in NCAA 38. Motivate 40. Biology class acronym 41. Benevolent 44. Leavening agent 46. Another word for golf club 48. Rice wine 49. Lacking sense 50. NYSE MKT, formerly 51. Frost design on a window 52. Porto____, Italy 53. Like acne-prone skin 54. Bear constellation 55. Fish eggs, pl. 56. Before, archaic

LOVE BY JOHN H., CONTRIBUTOR VENDOR I love y’all, Nashvillians. Pass it on. First thing I wanna express in this, a guy who was killed on I65 oughta be still living (terrible). It’s what America has taught for years, but it shouldn’t have gone down like that. Tell you one thing though, God says, you sow a bad seed, you also reap it, looking over your back for the rest of your life wondering if something or somebody is about to take your life. It is a miserable way to live. Wouldn’t wanna be in your shoes. Looks as if our Church and government should be the first to show love, they should be an example. Our government doesn't, some churches do, but many don’t. God said, out of everything he commanded, Love was the most important. If we don’t love one another, our neighbors, we don't love Him. 1 John 3:18 says “My little children, let us not love in word, neither

PAGE 18 | March 2 - 16, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE

in tongue, but in deed and truth.” Amazing how we say we love, and on the other hand, we hold back on God’s word. How we rather have money than God’s word? Shame on you. And on down to the 17th verse it says, “But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?” Many times I’m caught in that situation and if it’s something I didn’t wanna do, I still do it. It’s just the love of God that lives in my heart. Some days on the corner, I don't stay very long because I can’t take the hatred that’s very clearly seen from people passing by and the school. Our government took God out of the public schools but seems God lives in their hearts more so than the private schools. Something to think about. Ha!!

FUN

HOBOSCOPES PISCES

“What is the sound of one hand clapping?” asked the wise man. “Probably something like this” replied the wise man’s double-jointed roommate while he f lapped his hands back and forth like flippers making little slapping noises as his fingers hit his palms. Some people are more comfortable with the unanswerable than others, Pisces. Today, before you start playing “If You’re Happy and You Know It’ on a kazoo while frantically one-hand clapping, take a moment to sit with the question.

Yesterday I saw springtime peeking out from behind the tree in my neighbor’s front yard. It’s been sneaking around the neighborhood since the end of last week. Hiding under puddles. Darting past when a bird flaps its wings. We’ve got a few more weeks before it will really show it’s face, but these glimpses remind me that change is coming. It’s the one natural constant that we can always see. Change. It’s coming for you, too.

LEO

ARIES

You fought long and hard to get to where you are, Aries. It took focus and dedication to prove yourself. And now that you’ve shown what you can do, everybody expects you to do it every single day. You put in the work and the reward is that you get to put in more work. It’s kind of exhausting. Keep going, Aries. There may not be a break for a while, but there can be peace in the rhythm.

TAURUS

I hate this parking lot. It’s so long and so crowded and there are so many speed bumps. I’m just trying to find a space close enough to the Wash-n-Win where I don’t have to walk half a mile with my laundry basket and–hup!– here’s another speed bump. Just when you know what you want, Taurus, there’s always something that pops up in the way to slow you down. The trick is to keep going in the right direction without getting ahead of yourself. Tackle the speed bumps one at a time. Give them the time they need. They may slow you down, but they won’t throw you off course.

GEMINI

CANCER

I assume you’ve been keeping up with the news, Gemini? Plagues, wars, natural disasters–it’s pretty overwhelming. And it’s easy to get numb to it–to dismiss it as far away or not a part of my reality. But each of those people in the news is just as complete and complicated and worthy of love as you are. Go ahead and let that overwhelm you for just a little bit. That everybody, whatever their nationality or politics, is just as real as you. Then let yourself arrive back in the place where you are with the tasks that you have to face. Just one of the billions of whole entire people in the world.

Who’s a good Leo? Who’s a good Leo? Are you a good Leo? Yes you are! Yes you are a good Leo! I’m sorry, Leo, I really shouldn’t scratch you behind the ears like that, but it’s just so fun to see how excited you get, running all around with your tennis ball and doing circles on the living room rug. What I’m trying to say, Leo, is that I think you should let yourself get excited about the things that you love. There’s no sense in holding all that in.

VIRGO

I’ll bet 500 years ago it was a lot easier to ignore world events. Like, you’d just wake up in your village and walk around your village to see the people in your village and do your village stuff. These days we wake up and have instant access to everything happening everywhere on earth. Pace yourself, Virgo. You can scroll through terrifying images on your phone, but you can only take in so much. Maybe today or you can look up and talk to the people in your village and do your village stuff.

LIBRA

There’s a TV on in the tire shop. There’s a guy on the TV talking about whose fault all the bad stuff is. He says everything is going wrong and he says he knows why. But I know he’s got it all wrong. He’s so wrong it makes my teeth itch. And I want to hate the guy on the TV, Libra. But I know that hate won’t get us anywhere. So I just imagine that he’s here with me in the tire shop. And that I tell him he’s incomprehensibly valuable based only on his innate humanity. And in my imagining he quietly accepts this and changes his ways. And I stand up and mute the TV.

SCORPIO

Most of us aren’t very good at dealing with big numbers. Like, you probably know what you were doing 10 minutes ago. But what were you doing a million minutes ago? I’ll give you a hint, a million minutes is a little over 2 years. What were you doing a billion minutes ago? You probably weren’t doing much because that was the year 120 AD. I don’t think we were made to have billions of dollars or inf luence millions of lives. Our brains can’t even make sense of it. But maybe for the next 10 minutes you could try to live in the present moment.

SAGITTA R IUS

All the plants I brought inside for the winter are getting anxious. They’re losing leaves and looking scrawny and pale. They think they’re ready to go back outside, but I know we need to wait a little longer. You might relate, Sagittarius. It seems like you’ve been cooped up in here for ages. But it won’t be long now. The days are getting longer and the freezes are getting fewer and farther between. Your day is coming, Sagittarius, it’s just a little further away than you’d like it to be. Stay potted and soak up what you can through the window. We’re almost there.

CAPRICORN

The weeds know what’s coming. They’re waiting down there under the dirt and they’ve got big plans. The weeds aren’t playing around. They won’t rush it. They won’t be late. They won’t get flustered. The weeds know what’s coming but you do too. It’s gonna get warmer and brighter and there’s gonna be some real opportunities to grow. Don’t fear the weeds get in your way, Capricorn. Get to growing and don’t stop till you’re done.

AQUA RIUS

What if you gave it up, Aquarius? Not forever. Just for a while. A month and a week. Just give it up for that long. Find out who you are without it. Decide if that’s who you want to be. Try it out. Give it up.

Mr. Mysterio is not a licensed astrologer, a registered parking attendant, or a zen koan. Mr. Mysterio is, however, a budding intermediate podcaster! Check out The Mr. Mysterio Podcast. Season 2 is now playing at mrmysterio.com. Got a question, just give Mr. M a call at 707-VHS-TAN1

March 2 - 16, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 19

Thank you to all supporters and providers for serving our friends in the community who are experiencing temporary homelessness. Open Table Nashville, People Loving Nashville, ShowerUp, Project Return, Park Center, The Contributor, Mental Health Cooperative, Room in the Inn, West End United Methodist, Councilman Sean Parker, Clencliff Village

*Paid for by Friends to ReElect Lynda Jones, Cathy Werthan, treasurer

PAGE 20 | March 2 - 16, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE

INTERNATIONAL NETWORK OF STREE PAPERS -

VENDOR WRITING

'Surprise' vendor Urs Hebegger on how his fascination with language has helped him appreciate those around his pitch BY URS HABEGGER, SURPRISE VENDOR Charisma. What a word! Charisma. Even if I didn’t know the meaning of the word and therefore wouldn’t have a clue about it, I would still know that it was very special. It’s mysterious. Charisma. A word like the bright sound of bells ringing over a fragrant flower meadow. It’s a magic formula from the department of phonetics! Who may have invented it? I ask myself. The Greeks? The Romans? Praise be to whoever did! Charisma. If there was a hit parade for words, this word would have been number one in the charts for me since day one. Charisma. Soothingly light, this word flows over my lips with its ingenious sequence of letters. Architecturally speaking, it’s a masterpiece. Musically speaking, an overture. Literarily speaking, the high art of poetry. Charisma. A pleasure for the ears. Charisma. What a word! But there is much more behind the word charisma. After all, it has its meaning: charisma refers to the special radiance of a human being. Few are the ones who have it. But every time I meet one of these rare

beings, whose radiating kindness and warmth of heart is thrillingly palpable, I am irresistibly drawn under their spell. These people exist, unfortunately rarely enough, but they do exist. Every encounter with them turns into a personal highlight for me. I have been very lucky to meet some of these very special people while working as a Surprise vendor in the railway and subway station in Rapperswil. When the presence and charisma of a human being causes kindness and warmth of heart to become so very palpable that they almost turn into material, tangible objects, then that is the time for goosebumps. How impressive it is! What makes charisma so striking? What causes it to manifest in a particular person? Is it learnable? If only we could find the answer to these questions; our world would become an infinitely better place. Translated from German by Megan Claeys. Courtesy of Surprise / International Network of Street Papers

Illustration by Sophia Freydl. Courtesy of Surprise.

People have been living under this bridge for 35 years. The Salvation Army had been serving them a meal each week. We changed our approach.

Today, no one lives under this bridge.

LIFNAV.

March 2 - 16, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 21

The New Christian Year Selected by Charles Williams

Charles Walter Stansby Williams (1886–1945), the editor of the following selections, is today probably the third most famous of the famous Inklings literary group of Oxford, England, which existed in the middle of the 20th century, and which included among its ranks the better-known and longer-lived Oxford Dons J.R.R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis—but he was arguably the most precocious and well-read of this eminent and intellectually fertile group. He was also known to have influenced Dorothy Sayers, T. S. Eliot and W. H. Auden. Lacking a proper degree unlike his fellow Inklings, this genius Cockney-speaking author, editor, critic, and playwright was eminently well-versed in both philosophical and theological writings of the remote past as of the present day (the mid-20th century) and used this familiarity to good effect in his poetry, supernatural fiction and his lesser-known devotional selections designed for the spiritual benefit of the faithful in the Church of England. This series of profound quotations, encompassing all walks of life, follows the sequence of the themes and Bible readings anciently appointed for contemplation throughout the church's year, beginning with Advent (i.e., December) and ending in November, and reaches far beyond the pale of the philosophical and theological discussions of his day. It was under his hand, for instance, that some of the first translations of Kierkegaard were made available to the wider public. It is hoped that the readings reproduced here will prove beneficial for any who read them, whatever their place in life's journey. — Matthew Carver

IF you take away due fear, you take away true love. Donne: Sermons.

Ash Wednesday IN our repenting commonly we make such haste as we take away before the fruits come. But if there happen to come any, is not this even our case? Our tears, if any, dry straight; our prayers, if any, quickly tedious; our alms indeed pitiful; our fasts, fast or loose upon any the least occasion; and so our repentance, if any, poenitentia poenitenda, “a repentance needing of another, a new, a second repentance to repent us of it.” To repent us of our repentance, no less than of our sin itself. Lancelot Andrewes: Sermon on Ash-Wednesday, 1624.

1st Thursday in Lent LEAD us not into temptation . . . Power is given against us in two modes: either for punishment when we sin or for glory when we are proved . . . But when we ask that we may not come into temptation, we are reminded of our infirmity and weakness in that we thus ask, lest any should insolently vaunt himself, lest any should proudly and arrogantly assume anything to himself, lest any should take to himself the glory either of confession or suffering as his own. St Cyprian: On the Lord’s Prayer.

1st Friday in Lent WHEN thou attackest the roots of sin, fix thy thought more upon the God whom thou desirest than upon the sin which thou abhorrest. Walter Hylton: The Scale of Perfection. WE know no Gospel without salvation from sin. John Wesley.

1st Monday in Lent THERE is no wrath that stands between God and us, but what is awakened in the dark fire of our own fallen nature; and to quench this wrath, and not His own, God gave His only begotten Son to be made man. God has no more wrath in Himself now than He had before the creation, when He had only Himself to love . . . And it was solely to quench this wrath, awakened in the human soul, that the blood of the Son of God was necessary, because nothing but a life and birth, derived from Him into the human soul, could change this darkened root of a selftormenting fire into an amiable image of the Holy Trinity as it was at first created. William Law: Christian Regeneration.

1st Tuesday in Lent THE darkness is not hidden even from itself; though it sees naught else it sees itself. The works of darkness follow it, and there is no hiding place from it, not even in the darkness. This is “the worm that dieth not”—the memory of the past. Once it gets within, or rather is born within though sin, there it stays and never by any means can be plucked out. It never ceases to gnaw the conscience; feeding on it as on food that never can be consumed it prolongs the life of misery. I shudder as I contemplate this biting worm, this never-dying death. I shudder at the thought of this being the victim of this living death, this dying life. St Bernard: On Consideration.

2nd Wednesday in Lent

1st Saturday in Lent SOLOMON saith, “Man goeth to his long home.” Short preparation will not fit so long a journey. O let me not put it off to the last, to have my oil to buy when I am to burn it, but let me so dispose of myself, that when I am to die I may have nothing to do but die. Thomas Fuller: Good Thoughts in Bad Times. HUMAN nature is so subject to deception that it can frustrate, by some pollution or other, almost every dispensation but death. Sarah Grubb: Journal.

First Sunday in Lent HE who will follow him must forsake all things, for he renounced all things so utterly as no man else hath ever done. Moreover, he who will come after him must take up the cross, and the cross is nothing else but Christ’s life, for that is a bitter cross to nature. Therefore he saith, “And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me, and cannot be my disciple.” But nature in her false freedom, weeneth she hath forsaken all things, yet she will have none of the cross, and saith she hath had enough of it already, and needeth it no longer, and thus she is deceived. For had she ever tasted the cross she would never part with it again. Theologia Germanica.

SORROW for sin and sorrow for suffering are ofttimes so twisted and interwoven in the same person, yea, in the same sigh and groan, that sometimes it is impossible for the party himself so to separate and divide them in his own sense and feeling, as to know which proceeds from the one and which from the other. Only the all-seeing eye of an infinite God is able to discern and distinguish them. Thomas Fuller: A Wounded Conscience.

2nd Thursday in Lent . . . THE trust by which this woman was tried is: to love her Saviour more than her sin. Ah, there was perhaps one who loved Christ more than father and mother and gold and goods and honour and reputation, and yet loved his sin more than his Saviour, loved it, not in the sense of willing to remain in it, to continue to sin, but in the sense of not being quite willing to confess it. Frightful this is in a sense, but it is true, and every one who has merely some little knowledge of the human heart can verify it: there is nothing to which a man holds so desperately fast as to his sin. Kierkegaard: Three Discourses at the Communion on Fridays.

2nd Friday in Lent

my grief, and man He spake, and therefore said, “Not as I will but as Thou wilt.” Mine was the grief, and mine the heaviness with which He bore it, for no man exults when at the point to die. With me and for me He suffers, for me He is sad, for me He is heavy. In my stead, therefore, and in me He grieved Who had no cause to grieve for Himself. St Ambrose: On the Faith.

2nd Saturday in Lent BLESSED whoso loveth thee, and his friend in thee, and his enemy for thee. For he alone loses none dear to him, to whom all are dear in him who cannot be lost . . . Thee none loseth but who leaveth. St Augustine: Confessions. JESUS, while his disciples slept, wrought their salvation. He has wrought that of each of the righteous while they slept, both in their nothingness before their birth and in their sins after their birth. Pascal: Pensées.

Second Sunday in Lent HE seeth all our living here a penance, for kind loving in us is to him age-lasting penance in us; which penance he worketh in us, and mercifully he helpeth us to bear it . . . For this penance goeth never from us till what time that we be fulfilled. Juliana of Norwich: Revelations of Divine Love. ALTHOUGH Christ died as man, and His holy soul was separated from His spotless body, nevertheless His Godhead remained unseparated from both—from the soul and from the body. St John Damascene: On the Faith.

2nd Monday in Lent IN suffering and tribulation there are really certain situations in which, humanly speaking, the thought of God and that he is nevertheless love, makes the suffering far more exhausting . . . For either one suffers at the thought that God the all-powerful, who could so easily help, leaves one helpless, or else one suffers because one's reason is crucified by the thought that God is love all the same and that what happens to one is for one's good . . . The further effort which the idea of God demands of us is to have to understand that suffering must not only be borne but that it is good, a gift of the God of love. Kierkegaard: Journals.

2nd Tuesday in Lent MEN perish with whispering sins, nay with silent sins, sins that never tell the conscience they are sins, as often as with crying sins: and in hell there shall meet as many men that never thought what was sin, as that spent all their thoughts in the compassing of sin. Donne: Sermons. LONG I mistook seeing the end for being in the way. Patmore: Life.

MY will, therefore, He took to Himself, my grief. In confidence I call it grief, because I preach His Cross. Mine is the will which he called His own, for as man He bore

The Contributor: March 2, 2022

Articles inside

MOVING PICTURES

VENDOR WRITING

INSP

HOBOSCOPES

VENDOR WRITING

INSP

NEWS

NEWS BRIEFS

HISTORY CORNER

VENDOR SPOTLIGHT

ESSAY

COVER STORY