PRSUN Radio: A PRdream with Judith Escalona

Tomorrow night's guest at PRSUN Radio is Judith Escalona, executive director of PRdream and MediaNoche in NYC's El Barrio.

PRdream (Puerto Rico and the American Dream) is the award-winning website on the history, culture and politics of Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rican diaspora. The mission of PRdream is to empower community through technology.

As part of that mission, PRdream launched MediaNoche, a new media project and digital gallery. MediaNoche offers residencies and exhibition space for artists working in new media. The Digital Film Studio at MediaNoche is a space for independent filmmakers to converge. Works-in-progress screenings, screenplay readings and a variety of workshops are offered.

Escalona is also a filmmaker.

To read Escalona's bio, go to my blog at www.blogtalkradio.com/prsunradio.

The show will be at 9 p.m. at www.blogtalkradio.com/prsunradio.

UPDATE

To listen to PRSUN Radio's chat with Judith Escalona:



RELATED OPPORTUNITY

FINAL CUT PRO AND PHOTOSHOP WORKSHOPS - Beginning in April
Wednesday, April 8
FINAL CUT PRO BASICS: $300.
Learn the basics for effective non-linear editing.
Mondays and Wednesdays, 6 - 10 p.m.,
Section 1: April 13, 15, 20, 22

*Must have basic computer skills and a familiarity with the Mac interface or have taken the Mac Basics workshop.

Mac BASICS
Learn the basics of using a MAC computer. $50.
April 8, 6 - 9 p.m.

PHOTOSHOP BASICS: 1 day intensive: $175
Saturdays in April, 1 – 6 p.m.
First class: April 4
Learn the fundamentals from a pro. Basic computer skills in pc or Mac platforms.

Call (212) 828-0401 for more information or to register.

Small class size, one computer per student. All workshops are held in the gallery of

MediaNoche
1355 Park Avenue, Corner Store
the entrance is on East 102nd Street, East Harlem

STS 119 Post Landing Crew News Conference

Excerpts from a news conference held March 28 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center with members of the STS-119 crew, which included boricua astronaut Joseph Acaba, following their successful landing of space shuttle Discovery.

courtesy of NASA TV

Tribute to the late salsero Manny Oquendo on Barrio Block

In the Mailbox

Please listen tbo Barrio Block 99.5 FM (in New York City) today 2 to 4 p.m. Special guest Andy Gonzalez and others talking about the late Manny Oquendo the six decades of music is created and help create.

Vaya! -- Americo Casiano Jr.

Editor's Note: Manny Oquendo's music is available at the PRSUN aStore. Here's a link.

El Maestro is more than a gym

I board the #6 train to the Bronx and get off at the Whitlock Avenue stop. As I walk to my destination, I listen to the busy car traffic and the sounds of people working in garages and businesses in the area. Within minutes, I’m in another world. I’m inside a community treasure: El Maestro.
Some refer to this place as “Juan Laporte’s Boxing Gym,” named after Laporte who was a boxing champion in the early 1980’s. But the gym located at 1029 East 167th Street doesn’t serve only as a gym. It’s also a cultural and educational oasis for those with an interest in Puerto Rican and Latino themes.
The center is an endeavor aimed at transforming a social void into a valuable community space. It serves as a social and cultural center for the entire community. It’s a place for community members to socialize and participate in ongoing programs and activities for children, teenagers and adults.
Among the cultural programs that take place at El Maestro are: “Puerto Rican Roots Music performances (monthly), Afro-Puerto Rican Roots Dance & Percussion Classes (weekly), Resident Musical Ensembles (weekly rehearsals), Educational Video Presentations (monthly), Art Exhibitions (monthly), and Spoken Word/Poetry Open Mic and Showcase (monthly). It’s a busy place for sure.
There is also a little league baseball team and softball league El Maestro sponsors.
At the gym, participants learn to box and work on getting in shape. The gym membership fee: $50.


Coto Talavera, head trainer at the gym, says, “The success is not when an individual wins a title.”
The gym has served as a perfect place for members of several boxing members of the NYPD Boxing Team and the FDNY Boxing Team to work out.
“I come here often to train,” said a police officer at the gym who did not want to be identified. “Everything is clean and in complete order; there are no fights. I recommend every Police Athletic League in the city to come here.”
Naralie Pacheco, a female boxing champion and trainer at the gym, said, “When I train fighters here, I demand respect not just to me but for all, and that’s why this place is so special for the community because there is respect.”
For more information about El Maestro, e-mail elmaestroinc@verizon.net or call (646) 337-6775. –- Ismael Nunez

(photos by Ismael Nunez)

Turn off your lights tonight for Earth Hour

Puerto Rico Sun supports Earth Hour.

TONIGHT at 8:30 p.m. you can send your statement about conserving energy by switching off your lights for one hour, Earth Hour.

For more information, http://www.earthhour.org/home/.