Community

A Local Festival to Change the Way People Look at Aging

First Posted: 5/14/13 04:18 PM EDT Updated: 5/14/13 04:30 PM EDT
Originally published April/May 2013

BY KELLY KENDALL The word “aging” conjures up many connotations, most of them negative—from mere forgetfulness to deteriorating health. But what if aging were seen as a positive? What about the wisdom and perspective that comes with growing older? That’s what organizers of the Creative Aging Festival want to get across—that having lived a long life is not a liability, but an asset. “We want to change the way people look at aging,” says Julie Hill, chair of the festival and also the life enrichment director at Bell Trace Senior Living Community. “Life is really about finding your potential, and people have the possibility of making changes in their lives up until the very last day.” The third annual Creative [...]

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Bloomington in Spring (Photo Gallery)

First Posted: 5/9/13 02:28 PM EDT Updated: 5/9/13 02:28 PM EDT

Spring adorns Bloomington with a world of color. While photographer Peter Hamlin has been documenting the changing seasons in southern Indiana since January, he shot this set of photos in late April and early May, capturing the sunny and rainy days of spring in Bloomington.

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Filed Under: Community, Web Exclusives Tagged With: Peter Hamlin

City Hall Is Certified LEED; A ‘Green’ Example for Others

First Posted: 5/8/13 03:43 PM EDT Updated: 5/8/13 03:43 PM EDT
Originally published February/March 2013

BY KELLY KENDALL When Bloomington City Hall was built more than 100 years ago as the Showers Brothers Furniture Factory, green was just a color. But late last year, the historic building achieved Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. City Hall is the first city-owned building to achieve LEED certification, the nationally recognized benchmark for environmentally friendly buildings. “It’s one of our most prominent public buildings, so we wanted people to see what was possible,” says the city’s sustainability coordinator, Jacqui Bauer. City Hall’s LEED certification was pursued as part of Bloomington’s Green Building Ordinance, adopted in 2009, requiring the city to certify buildings through LEED if the necessary improvements will have [...]

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Filed Under: Community Tagged With: Bloomington City Hall, Jacqui Bauer, Kelly Kendall, leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, LEED, Showers Brothers Furniture Factory, Steve Raymer

Local Churches and Synagogue Win Grant to Install Solar Panels

First Posted: 5/2/13 03:29 PM EDT Updated: 5/2/13 03:29 PM EDT
Originally published February/March 2013

BY JEREMY SHERE For the past few years, the faith-based environmental organization Hoosier Interfaith Power and Light (H-IPL) has been combating climate change by encouraging its member congregations to use less fossil-fuel-derived energy and encourage their members to do the same. Now, with the aid of a $150,000 grant from the Indiana Office of Energy Development (one of only five awarded to 58 applicants), six H-IPL congregations in Bloomington and Indianapolis will go one step further by installing electricity-producing solar panels. “[Getting the grant] is extremely exciting because it’s a product of Indiana congregations from across the religious spectrum coming together to help curb climate change,” says Madeline Hirschland, vice chair of H-IPL and manager of the solar grant. “Our [...]

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Filed Under: Community Tagged With: Congregation Beth Shalom, Hoosier Interfaith Power and Light, Jeremy Shere, Madeline Hirschland, St. Thomas Lutheran Church, Trinity Episcopal Church, Unitarian Universalist Church of Bloomington

‘Bring It On!’ Marks 7 Years On the Air at WFHB

First Posted: 4/23/13 04:49 PM EDT Updated: 4/23/13 04:54 PM EDT
Originally published February/March 2013

BY JEREMY SHERE For the past seven years, the best way to learn about news and issues affecting Bloomington’s African American community has been to tune in to Bring It On!, a weekly one-hour program airing Monday evenings on WFHB, hosted by Bev Smith and William Hosea. “Our goal is to foster conversation by challenging commonly held beliefs, pushing people out of their comfort zone, and getting people to dialogue on relevant issues in a respectful way,” says the show’s founding and current producer, Clarence Boone, a veteran WFHB gospel music programmer and director of Diversity Programs at the IU Alumni Association. Boone first came up with the idea for Bring It On! in 2004. Noting that WFHB had programs [...]

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Filed Under: Community Tagged With: Bev Smith, Bring It On!, Clarence Boone, Jeremy Shere, Lynae Sowinski, WFHB, William Hosea