Look out DC, Que Pa' Ya Va BB!! LATISM'15

"LATISM15 brings together the top leaders and influencers in the space.  Our goal is to share best practices,  reach Latino(a)s in the digital space, and  build the pipeline of  tech innovators.  Together we are igniting Latino(a)s to drive the innovation economy."

If you could lobby in DC what cause would it be? Cual de los siguientes son especiales pa' ti?  Education,Health,Technology,Civic Engagement,Diversity & Inclusion,Business, and National Policy are the starred topics. LATISM15 proposes to instruct top Latino Influencers on how to better organize and project their passions and beliefs and then introduce them to other influencers and lawmakers who can further their causes. This year Babushka was invited to attend as a Top Latina Influencer because of her #StopTheStigma campaign, a campaign hoping to address and eradicate the imensa ignorancia and taboo in our community when it comes to Mental illness. Like BB, influencers on all the above topics will attend to be instructed and guided.

This nation's capitol, our nation's capitol will be the school for over 50 Latino Influencers and a group of hispanic students for the Latino Youth Summit. The goal is to learn,share, and support each other as we strive to have our issues- LATINO issues focused on. LATISM is a group of Latinos who have worked and lobbied for our rights,advancements and inclusion for years. Babushka is humbled and honored to have been chosen, proving that one is never too old to dream and make a difference.

Que cambio would you like to see, and more importante- what are you doing to make it un realidad?

BB2U

P.S.  Now that BB's been recognized, will she slow down a bit?  JU SO FONII !!!!

Ahora si, watch Babushka Burn.

#Latism15   Tweety @LATISM    Feibu https://www.facebook.com/latinosinsocialmedia/

http://conference.latism.org

Month of Love- Months of Movement

HolaHolaHola My Beautifuls!!

February. In this month we've celebrated Chinese New Year, Valentine's Day, and Black History. That's a lot of activity, energy and love. It's also no coincidence.  

For Babushka a new year symbolizes hope, and Valentine's Day of course is love.  Black History is the history, both past and present, of the contributions made by blacks to our lives, the world.  BB sees it as a perfect combination.  We hope to bring enlightenment and love by sharing our histories with each other, and this is the month that the black community can share theirs with us so that we may have a better sense of their story.  And we all have our stories.

For Latinos, September starts Hispanic Heritage Month, September 15 - October 15.  These are our days, our past and present will be highlighted for the world to see. Of course these months are used to celebrate the good, educate on accomplishments, and BB's all for that. But Babushka's also about keeping it real.

Pride is fine if it's for betterment, to help our youth strive higher, however Pride is a double-edged sword that's also stabbing our youth.  We are losing the future because we're hanging on to the past.  The past where being different, not being "strong", was either ridiculed or the person was ignored.  The Pride of solitary self-sufficiency and strength, very clear cut rules on what was sane and acceptable, is from another unelightened time, and we MUST leave it behind.  Unfortunately this is a common thread between both stories. Fortunately, we have a month for mental health enlightenment and share love for this too.

July is "National Minority Mental Illness Awareness Month."  Si, so great is the need that we have a whole month just for this.  According to the U.S. Dept of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health-

" In May 2008, the United States House of Representatives proclaimed July as Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, providing agencies with the opportunity to raise awareness about severe mental illness in diverse communities, while highlighting avenues for wellness and recovery." 

"Mental illness is a leading cause of disability, yet nearly two-thirds of people with a diagnosable mental illness do not seek treatment, and racial and ethnic groups in the U.S. are even less likely to get help".

Their website goes on to say, "During National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, help raise awareness in your organization or community. Encourage your family, friends, loved ones and clients to learn more about improving mental health and illness."

And this My Beautifuls is what I'm asking of you.  My #StopTheStigma campaign has not stopped, and neither has Babushka.  And neither has the climbing rate of suicide among our young.  PLEASE, POR FA, help spread the word about this very important month.  Any event is welcome and needed.  It doesn't even have to be a fundraiser, just a chance to start the conversation going.  We need to have these conversations. 

Being Black History Month BB will share this post from NAMI's Feibu Page-

https://www.facebook.com/officialNAMI/posts/720251101342434?stream_ref=10

Black History Month: A Historic Call for Action

This is for February; what do you have in mind for July?

A long time away you say?

JU SO FONII!!!

Babushka Besos a todos.   Cuidensen.

P.S. The Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Feibu page 

highlights various minorities, and is a page worth the "like".

An Epihany during the Epiphany

HolaHolaHola My Beautifuls!

The Epiphany, aka 3 Kings Day, El Dia de Los Reyes Magos, brought to Babushka many insights and presents  I'd like to share with y'all.  Be forewarned, this will be varied and movido, all over the place. Quee??  JU SO FONII!!!  Ok si, just like all of BB's posts.

First, it was a nice quiet day for reflection. A day to look over the past year and set my intentions for 2014.  Now y’all know Babushka doesn’t do “Resolutions”, but I do like to repasar prior moments and relive the happy ones so I can repeat and expand on them in the New Year.

And yes I know, there are still many 2013 great moments I haven’t shared, but I aim to do better in 2014. Allright, maybe a couple of resolutions won’t hurt… Continuing.  

Because my trio have gone and gotten themselves all grown up, on this January 6th I no longer have to remove camel eaten grass  from shoes, nor have more presents appear under the tree. What I did have to do was get ready for the BCS National Championship game, starring my querido Florida State University Seminoles. Sweetie was amazed he had that day off from work and thanked the Reyes sincerely, and was grateful for another Cuban tidbit he had married into.

#3KingsTLH  pic thx to @MCGLatino

Vieron? Told you this would be all over the place!

The game didn't start until 8:30 p.m., so there was plenty of time to get ready. Meanwhile, we enjoyed each other's company, remembering 2013 and our first few months as a married couple. We also had plenty of time to share our hopes for the future and the visions of what 2014 would be.

It was here that BB had an Epiphany, precise and total. My major Epiphany?  The business of blogging is not for BB.  Don’t get me wrong, I love the people I’ve met, the adventures I’ve had and many of the stories I’ve read because of blogging, but the business of blogging? No quiero, don’t want, and you can’t make me!! More exact, I won't make me.  Si, I want to make a living out of Babushka’s Baile, but if the reason BB left a state job was to live MY way, then why be swept away and overwhelmed by the “gotta dos” of blogging?  The SEO, the plugins, the secret feibu linky groups, the never ending list of ever growing social platforms… ya. Enough.  It’s a numbers game, and Babushka never did well in math.

BB’s a dancer, more figuratively than physically these days, but I still feel the passion and music- deeply and within my soul. But having to follow someone else’s choreography and music in this world of my imaginings is not Babushka’s Baile, and if BB must dance as someone else, then it’s not her Baile, and therefore, pa’ que??

Does that mean no more sponsored posts, no more giveaways, no more of the other things I’ve learned from and enjoyed?  No My Beautifuls, the things BB has written have always been true to Babushka, but the million behind the scenes stress builders- the dancing of the minute waltz in 2 seconds, is no longer.  I will gladly listen to suggestions, listen to other music, and even incorporate it to my own, but it will be BB’s choosing.  The fear of “not making it” overcame the reason for my dance and in trying to learn it all, do it all, I almost lost it all. Almost.

Just like the FSU Seminoles who, forgetting their passion and power, gave Babushka and thousands of other fans near heart attacks when they almost lost the championship. It was literally during the last minute of the game when they remembered who they were, where they were, and how they got there.

But never fear, the colors of this Crazy Cubana continue, and the Plebian Pride is intact. There will still be adventures to share, and the crusades of #StopTheStigma go onward. We will wear out caseloads of Dr.Scholl's and we will saunter in Spanglish among the world wide web, because you My Beautifuls are the perfect partners. And in 2014 we will play our perfect songs. Are you ready? Shall we Dance?

Babushka Besos a todos. Cuidensen.

Enough Talk the Talk- Let's all Walk the Walk!! #StopTheStigma

  RAISE $100 AND GET A SPECIAL NAMIWALKS TSHIRT- FREE!!

 The Easy, Peasy Way to Raise $100

• $10 - Your Personal Donation              $10
• $15 - From Spouse or Parent               $15
•  $10   - From a Work Colleague           $10
• $10 - From 2 Friends at Church           $20
• $5 - From 4 Neighbors                           $20
• $10 - From 2 Family Members              $20
• $5 - From Teacher or School Friends  $5

                                        TOTAL                        $100

7 POINTS

EXPLAINING WHY NAMIWALKS IS AN EVENT 

YOUR COMPANY SHOULD SUPPORT 

1. The Issue & Stigma. This Walk is for an issue – Mental Illness – that many think is the 

“last thing to come out of the closet.” The Fear of Stigma is so great and the Walks are 

giving people the opportunity to come together and make public discourse about mental 

illness and admission of mental illness okay. 

2. Inclusivity. The Walk is “inclusive.” We invite other mental health constituencies to 

join us at the Walk with materials about their programs. (Note: We are not sharing 

revenue. This is a NAMI fundraiser.) 

3. Validation and Good Will. The Walk and its participants are part of a movement much 

bigger than themselves. People will be walking in NAMIWalks in cities across the 

country. People are hungry for this validation. Business sponsors of the Walk will be 

in a very visible and positive position with great goodwill to be gained from the 

community. 

4. Benefit to Employers. NAMI programs are grassroots, volunteer driven programs that 

provide education and support to family members and individuals living with mental 

illness. These programs are not provided anywhere else in the mental health system 

and help employees without any cost to employers. Twenty to twenty-five percent of 

employees are touched by mental illness in some meaningful way and can benefit 

from NAMI programs without charge. 

5. Evaluation. NAMI affiliates evaluate the efficacy of their programs and strive to 

maximize measurable results. NAMI Greater Orlando will use our Walk funding to train 

additional teachers so we can expand our Family-to-Family, Basics and Peer-to-Peer 

programs in response to heavy public demand. 

6. Gratitude. We receive emails and phone calls every single day from people who say 

“Thank you so much for doing this!” and then they proceed to tell their stories – often 

for the first time. 

7. Competence and Commitment. We have a very committed and capable Walk 

Steering Committee. They will make sure the entire Walk effort is exemplary. 

Broward County Sponsor Brochure

Greater Orlando Sponsorship Brochure

Lake Sumter Sponsorship Brochure

Miami Sponsorship Brochure

Palm Beach County Sponsorship Brochure

HolaHolaHola My Beautifuls!!  Que?? You thought Babushka was just going to post the NAMI information and that's all??  JU SO FONII!!!  BB said enough talk the talk, never said no more talk! Cubana al fin...

Right now the NUNCA ALONE team has 2 registered walkers.  Sonia Guerra (aka as Babushka on Valium) and my dear childhood friend Howard Cohen- who happens to be a registered and licensed counselor.  Those S Sisters are slick verdad??  Continuing.

AUXILIO!! SOS!! HELP!!

Let's share this, Tweety,Feibu, Instagram, Pinterest, and even good old fashioned phone calls y emails!!  We CAN do this and help #StopTheStigma - if anyone can do this it is you My Beautifuls.  Please register for the team,donate,share- whatever your heart calls you to do.  And from BB's corazon and in the name of my daughter and myself.  1000x Gracias.

Babushka Besos a todos.  Cuidensen.

P.S. Babushka's plea is in gratitude for NAMI's help during my daughter's hospitalization. 

 The complete story can be found on the top of this post - click on #StopTheStigma for the campaign information.

P.P.S. For those not familiar w/Babushka's style, most of the colored words are links. 

 What can I say?  I find color makes the world (and my blog) purtier.

; )  

#SMCSFBlog

BB Found Her Voice and is Telling Her Story. #StopTheStigma

BB's brought you the story of advocacy, the story of global responsibility, and now it's Babushka's story that you will read. Queeee??? JU SO FONII!!! Of course I wrote the other stories and shared them through my eyes, but this one My Beautifuls is a very real and personal tale that affected BB and her family directly, and unfortunately it's not so fonii.  On the final day of the Further with Ford Conference I needed to change my arrival flight from Tallahassee to South Florida; my daughter was in the hospital, and I needed to sign the admittance papers. On June 28 my daughter was admitted into a hospital, catatonic and psychotic; she was put into a public psych ward two days later.  The official diagnosis- Stress related severe depression.

No words can describe the terror of looking into your child's eyes and seeing nothing there.  No way to contact and penetrate that being who was a part of you before birth, loved sight unseen, who now saw nothing. Nothing but a world she mumbled about in bursts of fear, shivering and then shutting down.  The helplessness was almost BB's breaking point but I knew I had to find help, first for my loved one, then for the rest of us following her. I needed instruction on what to expect, what I could do to help her- now in the hospital and then once she left.  Unfortunately no one wanted to share any information.  It was at this low that I found an ever lower truth- the taboo of mental illness.  No one came forth to help, no suggestions, no recommendations, nada.  In a culture that's all about family, solidarity, opinions and being vocal, the silence was permanent in the latino corner.  Through a friend in Crawfordville I was able to contact that local NAMI (National Alliance Mental Illness) chapter, who then helped me find help in Miami.

BB's forever grateful for the NAMI Wakulla group and forever changed by the incident.  Gracias a Dios my child was released after three weeks in the ward, but obviously nothing will ever be the same.  Babushka will never forget the frustration felt and never wants another mother to go through the same nightmare.  I have started a campaign because it's time to end the taboo, time to #StopTheStigma.  Mental Illness is just that, an illness.  Like the diseases of cancer and diabetes, awareness and education on mental illness are vital.

 A video by the National Hispanic Medical Association, American Psychiatric Association, League of Latin American Citizens, with a very special speaker, Dr. Antonia Novello- the first woman and the first Hispanic to become Surgeon General of the United States.

Awareness and education, but above all, letting them know they are loved.  

Let's share our stories, erase the shame, and #StopTheStigma.

Babushka Besos a todos. Cuidensen.

P.S. If you’d like to help the #StopTheStigma campaign directly,  I have signed up for the Broward County NAMI walkathon and am trying to put a team together to raise funds and awareness. Any donations, be it monetary, sponsorships, or walking with my team Nunca Alone, is very,very appreciated.

The team link is: http://namiwalks.nami.org/PersonalPage.aspx?registrationID=2005278

Link & Facebook pages for #StopTheStigma

Facebook page of Nunca Alone:  https://www.facebook.com/CristylsCry

New Blog- Cristyl's Cry  http://cristylscry.blogspot.com/