The Harp Ladies
The holidays can be difficult for even the strongest person if they find themselves alone. Now, imagine what it’s like for some of the most vulnerable.
The Ruth and Naomi Senior Outreach is concerned with the plight of “elder orphans”; older adults who find themselves alone in nursing homes, hospice facilities or the community at large. Chaplains and co-founders Lynn Bledsoe and Mary Porter visit these orphans, but these are no ordinary calls. The women bring with them not only conversation and companionship but also compositions, or music if you will. Harp music.
WBHM’s Rosemary Pennington recently spent an afternoon with Porter, Bledsoe and a band of volunteers at Sunbridge Care and Rehab in Gardendale. There they performed Christmas carols for the residents in the lobby and then the chaplains personally visited two men, one of whom was dying. Rosemary brought back this audiopostcard.
Birmingham is 3rd worst in the Southeast for ozone pollution, new report says
The American Lung Association's "State of the Air" report shows some metro areas in the Gulf States continue to have poor air quality.
Why haven’t Kansas and Alabama — among other holdouts — expanded access to Medicaid?
Only 10 states have not joined the federal program that expands Medicaid to people who are still in the "coverage gap" for health care
Once praised, settlement to help sickened BP oil spill workers leaves most with nearly nothing
Thousands of ordinary people who helped clean up after the 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico say they got sick. A court settlement was supposed to help compensate them, but it hasn’t turned out as expected.
Q&A: How harm reduction can help mitigate the opioid crisis
Maia Szalavitz discusses harm reduction's effectiveness against drug addiction, how punitive policies can hurt people who need pain medication and more.
The Gulf States Newsroom is hiring a Community Engagement Producer
The Gulf States Newsroom is seeking a curious, creative and collaborative professional to work with our regional team to build up engaged journalism efforts.
Gambling bills face uncertain future in the Alabama legislature
This year looked to be different for lottery and gambling legislation, which has fallen short for years in the Alabama legislature. But this week, with only a handful of meeting days left, competing House and Senate proposals were sent to a conference committee to work out differences.
