Source: http://www.aspira.org/reyes_main.htm
THREE KINGS FIESTA
In celebration of heritage, you are invited to a traditional Three Kings Day celebration in Washington, DC.
When: Thursday, January 6, 2005
Time: From 6:30 P.M. - 11:00 P.M.
Where: The Galleria Lafayette Center 1155 21st Street NW, Washington, DC (Between L & M Streets)
Parking is available on 1121 21st Street NW (Between L & M Streets)
Metro: Blue or Orange Line to Farragut North or West Metro Stations
Directions: http://www.dcgalleria.com/content/directions/directions.html
While there is no fee for this cultural activity, in the spirit of the epiphany we will be accepting new children's book donations. Books will be donated to local Latino organizations serving children and youth.
This activity is sponsored by:
The Aspira Association Institute for Puerto Rican Arts and Culture
National Puerto Rican Coalition
Contact us by email 3kings@aspira.org or phone 202-835-3600 ext. 137
Please RSVP.
Saturday, January 01, 2005
Friday, December 31, 2004
New Years Wishes
Photo by "Pandarine." View her collection at flickr.
For my Puerto Rico Sun friends, happy new year!! Peace, love, joy, happiness, health, wealth and everything good in the new year.
Clarisel
For my Puerto Rico Sun friends, happy new year!! Peace, love, joy, happiness, health, wealth and everything good in the new year.
Clarisel
Wednesday, December 29, 2004
Oceano Atlantico Visto desde El Yunque
Oceano Atlantico Visto desde El YunquePhoto by Gilda D. Padilla, puertoricosun
Originally uploaded by clarisel.
Tuesday, December 28, 2004
SOURCE: Hispanic PR WIRE
Technology
Online Holiday Shopping Not So Feliz for Latinos
(HISPANIC PR WIRE - CONTEXTO LATINO)--Area malls and retail stores are often brimming with holiday shoppers come this time of year, hoping to find the perfect gift for loved ones and friends. But as any hurried shopper can attest, sometimes the crowds at the stores and long lines at the checkout counters can take the "merry" out of the holiday season. That's why many shoppers look for alternative ways to do their shopping that don't involve the hassle of getting in the car and spending all day at the store.
Online retailers offer the convenience of fast shopping from the privacy and comfort of your own home. With the click of a button you can purchase gifts and have them shipped directly to your house. Some will even do the wrapping for you. However, as Latinos and other ethnicities are learning, not all of these online retailers make shopping convenient for those who speak English as a second language.
Common Sense Advisory, Inc., an independent research firm, has researched online communications, customer service practices, and business-to-consumer marketing for online retailers and published a study on the ability of these firms to reach the American Latino community online. Unfortunately the results aren't promising for the Hispanic community.
According to the study, of the top 50 online retailers, only four offer content in Spanish. The results are based on the sites' multicultural content, e-mail and Web forms and whether customer service representatives are able to communicate in both English and Spanish.
Most U.S. companies have yet to market to Latinos and other ethnicities. It seems American companies prefer to operate in English, and have expressed that a targeted campaign to Latinos exceeds their budgets. In addition, e-mail communication is rarely conducted in any language except English. However, some stand-out firms like The Sharper Image and 1-800-Flowers embrace the opportunity to tap the multicultural market.
Regardless of the language spoken with these top online retailers, if a customer doesn't receive feedback from a representative, he or she is likely to leave an e-tailer site with a bad impression -- resulting in lower sales for the company and potentially driving more calls to an already overloaded call center this holiday season. Considering most Latinos will not use a company that doesn't meet their unique needs, the retailer is missing out on considerable sales opportunities by the influential Hispanic market.
According to Common Sense Advisory's lead analyst, Donald A. DePalma, Ph.D., "If you sell consumer goods or services online, it is time to review your strategy for ethnic communities in the United States. E-tailers should reassess multicultural opportunities and needs in this changing economy -- not just for this year's holiday shopping season, but in an effort to become trusted suppliers to a financially powerful demographic."
For more information on Common Sense Advisory and this study, visit http://www.commonsenseadvisory.com/latino.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HEALTH
Young Men are Least Likely to use Seat Belts, but Almost 90 Percent of American Adults Wear them Regularly
Rockville, MD--(HISPANIC PR WIRE – US Newswire)--December 23, 2004--Men between the ages of 19 and 29 are the group least likely to wear a seat belt while driving or riding in a car and are three times as likely not to use their seat belt as women of the same age, according to a new data analysis from HHS’ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
The data, from AHRQ’s 2002 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, show that 88 percent of people between 16 and 64 years of age were reported to always or nearly always use seat belts. This number is close to the goal set by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to increase national seat belt use to 90 percent by the year 2005. Healthy People 2010 set a goal of 92 percent use of seat belts by 2010. However, a little more than 5 percent of people ages 16 to 64 never or seldom use their seat belt, and another 7 percent use their seat belts only sometimes.
Other data about the people who never or seldom use their seat belts:
-- Non-students ages 19 to 21 are four times as likely not to use their seat belts as students of the same age (12 percent compared with 3 percent).
-- People with only high school education were twice as likely not to wear their seat belts as those with some additional education (almost 8 percent compared with almost 4 percent).
-- People living in non-metropolitan areas were more than twice as likely not to wear their seat belts as people living in large metropolitan areas (about 9 percent versus 4 percent).
In addition, of all people ages 16 to 64, those ages 16 to 18 were the group least likely to drive or ride in a car without their seat belt. Only about 3 percent of girls and 4 percent of boys were reported to have never used their seat belt.
Details are in Statistical Brief #62: Characteristics of Persons Who Seldom or Never Wear Seat Belts, 2002, found on the Web at http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/PrintProducts/PrintProd_Detail.asp?ID=655.
MEPS collects information each year from a nationally representative sample of U.S. households about health care use, expenses, access, health status, and quality. MEPS is a unique government survey because of the degree of detail in its data, as well as its ability to link data on health services spending and health insurance to demographic, employment, economic, health status, and other characteristics of individuals and families. General information about MEPS is available at http://www.meps.ahrq.gov.
Technology
Online Holiday Shopping Not So Feliz for Latinos
(HISPANIC PR WIRE - CONTEXTO LATINO)--Area malls and retail stores are often brimming with holiday shoppers come this time of year, hoping to find the perfect gift for loved ones and friends. But as any hurried shopper can attest, sometimes the crowds at the stores and long lines at the checkout counters can take the "merry" out of the holiday season. That's why many shoppers look for alternative ways to do their shopping that don't involve the hassle of getting in the car and spending all day at the store.
Online retailers offer the convenience of fast shopping from the privacy and comfort of your own home. With the click of a button you can purchase gifts and have them shipped directly to your house. Some will even do the wrapping for you. However, as Latinos and other ethnicities are learning, not all of these online retailers make shopping convenient for those who speak English as a second language.
Common Sense Advisory, Inc., an independent research firm, has researched online communications, customer service practices, and business-to-consumer marketing for online retailers and published a study on the ability of these firms to reach the American Latino community online. Unfortunately the results aren't promising for the Hispanic community.
According to the study, of the top 50 online retailers, only four offer content in Spanish. The results are based on the sites' multicultural content, e-mail and Web forms and whether customer service representatives are able to communicate in both English and Spanish.
Most U.S. companies have yet to market to Latinos and other ethnicities. It seems American companies prefer to operate in English, and have expressed that a targeted campaign to Latinos exceeds their budgets. In addition, e-mail communication is rarely conducted in any language except English. However, some stand-out firms like The Sharper Image and 1-800-Flowers embrace the opportunity to tap the multicultural market.
Regardless of the language spoken with these top online retailers, if a customer doesn't receive feedback from a representative, he or she is likely to leave an e-tailer site with a bad impression -- resulting in lower sales for the company and potentially driving more calls to an already overloaded call center this holiday season. Considering most Latinos will not use a company that doesn't meet their unique needs, the retailer is missing out on considerable sales opportunities by the influential Hispanic market.
According to Common Sense Advisory's lead analyst, Donald A. DePalma, Ph.D., "If you sell consumer goods or services online, it is time to review your strategy for ethnic communities in the United States. E-tailers should reassess multicultural opportunities and needs in this changing economy -- not just for this year's holiday shopping season, but in an effort to become trusted suppliers to a financially powerful demographic."
For more information on Common Sense Advisory and this study, visit http://www.commonsenseadvisory.com/latino.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HEALTH
Young Men are Least Likely to use Seat Belts, but Almost 90 Percent of American Adults Wear them Regularly
Rockville, MD--(HISPANIC PR WIRE – US Newswire)--December 23, 2004--Men between the ages of 19 and 29 are the group least likely to wear a seat belt while driving or riding in a car and are three times as likely not to use their seat belt as women of the same age, according to a new data analysis from HHS’ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
The data, from AHRQ’s 2002 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, show that 88 percent of people between 16 and 64 years of age were reported to always or nearly always use seat belts. This number is close to the goal set by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to increase national seat belt use to 90 percent by the year 2005. Healthy People 2010 set a goal of 92 percent use of seat belts by 2010. However, a little more than 5 percent of people ages 16 to 64 never or seldom use their seat belt, and another 7 percent use their seat belts only sometimes.
Other data about the people who never or seldom use their seat belts:
-- Non-students ages 19 to 21 are four times as likely not to use their seat belts as students of the same age (12 percent compared with 3 percent).
-- People with only high school education were twice as likely not to wear their seat belts as those with some additional education (almost 8 percent compared with almost 4 percent).
-- People living in non-metropolitan areas were more than twice as likely not to wear their seat belts as people living in large metropolitan areas (about 9 percent versus 4 percent).
In addition, of all people ages 16 to 64, those ages 16 to 18 were the group least likely to drive or ride in a car without their seat belt. Only about 3 percent of girls and 4 percent of boys were reported to have never used their seat belt.
Details are in Statistical Brief #62: Characteristics of Persons Who Seldom or Never Wear Seat Belts, 2002, found on the Web at http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/PrintProducts/PrintProd_Detail.asp?ID=655.
MEPS collects information each year from a nationally representative sample of U.S. households about health care use, expenses, access, health status, and quality. MEPS is a unique government survey because of the degree of detail in its data, as well as its ability to link data on health services spending and health insurance to demographic, employment, economic, health status, and other characteristics of individuals and families. General information about MEPS is available at http://www.meps.ahrq.gov.
Monday, December 27, 2004
El Yunque
Stop in and view scenic photos of El Yunque as well as surfer-in-action shots by photographer Gino Ferreira on flickr. Just click on "GinoPR" for more information about Gino.
Urban Train
SAN JUAN -- Puerto Ricans are finally boarding the famous "Tren Urbano" with officials offering free service for the first few weeks.
Passengers are definitely taking advantage of the free weekend service of the Urban Train, which runs 11 miles from Santurce to Bayamon. While many passengers are now taking the train to just go out for the day to sightsee, others are using it to go to work, shop and do business.
The train was scheduled to open in 2001, but has faced construction delays, safety problems and rising costs. The price tag has nearly doubled from $1.2 billion to $2.3 billion, with the federal government paying about 40 percent.
The cost of a train ride will be $1.50 single fare, which also includes a connecting bus ride, sometime next month.
Passengers are definitely taking advantage of the free weekend service of the Urban Train, which runs 11 miles from Santurce to Bayamon. While many passengers are now taking the train to just go out for the day to sightsee, others are using it to go to work, shop and do business.
The train was scheduled to open in 2001, but has faced construction delays, safety problems and rising costs. The price tag has nearly doubled from $1.2 billion to $2.3 billion, with the federal government paying about 40 percent.
The cost of a train ride will be $1.50 single fare, which also includes a connecting bus ride, sometime next month.
Thursday, December 23, 2004
Puerto Rico has a new governor-elect: Anibal Acevedo Vilá of the pro-commonwealth Popular Democratic Party. Results will be certified next week, but Acevedo Vilá will be the island's next governor.
Acevedo Vilá has won the recount challenge to the governor's seat. This comes a month and a half after the Nov. 2 elections and a host of legal challenges and controversy.
Acevedo Vilá has won the recount challenge to the governor's seat. This comes a month and a half after the Nov. 2 elections and a host of legal challenges and controversy.
Wednesday, December 22, 2004
Health
St. Jude Halloween Promotion Raises More Than $3.2 Million to Help Save the Lives of Children Fighting Cancer Worldwide
MEMPHIS, Tenn., Dec. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Businesses across the country united to help fight childhood cancer through the 13th annual Halloween Promotion benefiting St. Jude Children's Research Hospital(R) and helped to raise more than $3.2 million. During the month of October, participating establishments recognized a $1 donation to St. Jude by writing the donor's name on a pumpkin-themed wall pinup. Hundreds of thousands of pinups were posted throughout the country on the days leading up to Halloween.
Sponsored by Coors Brewing Company, the month-long promotion involved restaurants and retail outlets. Since the promotion's inception in 1992, more than $24 million has been contributed to the hospital's mission of finding cures and saving children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases.
"Our Halloween Promotion partners did a tremendous job this year," said Richard C. Shadyac, chief operating officer of ALSAC/St. Jude, the fund- raising arm of the hospital. "Each and every one of them embraced this promotion and sold as many pumpkins as they possibly could. We are grateful for their help, as well as for all the customers who took part. Each one of the pumpkins they bought will make a difference in a child's life."
"St. Jude would like to especially thank the top six Halloween Promotion fund-raisers for this year," said John Vranas, vice president of Field Operations at ALSAC/St. Jude. "Buffalo Wild Wings, Casey's General Stores, A & P Supermarkets, Favorite Markets, Giant Food Stores, and Petro Stopping Centers all went above and beyond to make this year's program a success."
Founded in 1873, Coors Brewing Company is the third-largest U.S. brewer and the eighth largest brewer in the world. Coors sells its products in North American, Latin America, Europe and Asia. Coors Light is the company's largest brand and is the seventh largest beer brand in the world. For more information on Coors, go to http://www.coors.com/.
"Coors has been a proud sponsor of the St. Jude Halloween Promotion for 13 years," said Roy Gifford, Coors Director of Channel Marketing, "We are so pleased that we can excite people around the country to help St. Jude continue its fantastic work in research and treatment."
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is internationally recognized for its pioneering work in finding cures and saving children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases. Founded by the late entertainer Danny Thomas and based in Memphis, TN. St. Jude freely shares its discoveries with scientific and medical communities throughout the world. No family ever pays for treatments not covered by insurance, and families without insurance are never asked to pay. St. Jude is financially supported by ALSAC, its fund-raising organization. For more information, please visit http://www.stjude.org/ .
Source: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
St. Jude Halloween Promotion Raises More Than $3.2 Million to Help Save the Lives of Children Fighting Cancer Worldwide
MEMPHIS, Tenn., Dec. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Businesses across the country united to help fight childhood cancer through the 13th annual Halloween Promotion benefiting St. Jude Children's Research Hospital(R) and helped to raise more than $3.2 million. During the month of October, participating establishments recognized a $1 donation to St. Jude by writing the donor's name on a pumpkin-themed wall pinup. Hundreds of thousands of pinups were posted throughout the country on the days leading up to Halloween.
Sponsored by Coors Brewing Company, the month-long promotion involved restaurants and retail outlets. Since the promotion's inception in 1992, more than $24 million has been contributed to the hospital's mission of finding cures and saving children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases.
"Our Halloween Promotion partners did a tremendous job this year," said Richard C. Shadyac, chief operating officer of ALSAC/St. Jude, the fund- raising arm of the hospital. "Each and every one of them embraced this promotion and sold as many pumpkins as they possibly could. We are grateful for their help, as well as for all the customers who took part. Each one of the pumpkins they bought will make a difference in a child's life."
"St. Jude would like to especially thank the top six Halloween Promotion fund-raisers for this year," said John Vranas, vice president of Field Operations at ALSAC/St. Jude. "Buffalo Wild Wings, Casey's General Stores, A & P Supermarkets, Favorite Markets, Giant Food Stores, and Petro Stopping Centers all went above and beyond to make this year's program a success."
Founded in 1873, Coors Brewing Company is the third-largest U.S. brewer and the eighth largest brewer in the world. Coors sells its products in North American, Latin America, Europe and Asia. Coors Light is the company's largest brand and is the seventh largest beer brand in the world. For more information on Coors, go to http://www.coors.com/.
"Coors has been a proud sponsor of the St. Jude Halloween Promotion for 13 years," said Roy Gifford, Coors Director of Channel Marketing, "We are so pleased that we can excite people around the country to help St. Jude continue its fantastic work in research and treatment."
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is internationally recognized for its pioneering work in finding cures and saving children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases. Founded by the late entertainer Danny Thomas and based in Memphis, TN. St. Jude freely shares its discoveries with scientific and medical communities throughout the world. No family ever pays for treatments not covered by insurance, and families without insurance are never asked to pay. St. Jude is financially supported by ALSAC, its fund-raising organization. For more information, please visit http://www.stjude.org/ .
Source: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
Tuesday, December 21, 2004
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