running water from the tap.After discovering a second state chemist manipulated quality control data
the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment placed the employee on leave last week and paused work at a key water quality testing laboratory. 
The state health department announced the development in a press release sent on Monday afternoon. It comes after CDPHE previously discovered <a href="https://www.cpr.org/2024/11/22/colorado-water-not-public-health-threat-after-data-manipulation/">another veteran chemist</a> manipulated data for years
Environmental Protection Agency also revoked a certificate allowing the state to validate whether drinking water meets federal health standards for specific metals
The lab at the center of the scandal tests samples from smaller drinking water systems operated by water districts
homeowners associations and municipalities
Those entities deliver water to roughly 180,000 people across Colorado
accounting for 3 percent of Colorado’s 2,100 drinking water systems
Larger utilities like Denver Water conduct in-house water quality testing
said residents served by the systems shouldn’t worry about the water coming from their taps
“We feel comfortable in saying there's no imminent threat to the public's health,” Calonge said.&nbsp;
Previous Coverage: &nbsp;<a href="https://www.cpr.org/2024/11/22/colorado-water-not-public-health-threat-after-data-manipulation/">‘Really weird’ data manipulation by water lab chemist poses ‘no imminent threat’ to public health</a>
Calonge said the investigation indicates the chemists manipulated data related to control samples
which allowed them to avoid recalibrating a machine used to test for metals in drinking water
Results from real-world water samples were never changed or manipulated.&nbsp;
The data manipulation issues impact 69 of the state's more than 2,000 regulated water systems
Calonge said the state has already started retesting water from those specific places by working with other laboratories regulated by the EPA
The list of impacted water systems includes the Town of Nucla
West Grand Valley Water and the Project 7 Water Authority
which supplies water to roughly 60,000 people in the cities of Montrose and Delta
Calonge said correcting the data would only slightly shift the results
The readings could end up higher than federal health standards for specific metals
but not enough to alarm anyone about their drinking water.&nbsp;
Calonge said the initial chemist who resigned had worked for the state for 20 years
The second employee linked to the data manipulation issues was a 35-year veteran of the state health department
Calonge said it appears they intended to “try to get through the testing day a little faster.”
The processes impacted by the data manipulation measure trace amounts of barium
exposure via drinking water can cause a wide range of stomach issues
fertility problems and other health issues
The department plans to continue working with the EPA to determine next steps
Calonge had no estimate for when the lab could resume normal testing
the state plans to outsource the water quality work to federal
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Volume 5 - 2024 | <a class="ArticleLayoutHeader__info__doi" href="https://doi.org/10.3389/frsen.2024.1384562">https://doi.org/10.3389/frsen.2024.1384562</a>
remain unexplored in the Belgian part of the North Sea (BPNS)
although dominated by anthrophony (sounds from human activities)
is expected to be acoustically diverse given the presence of biodiverse sandbanks
gravel beds and artificial hard structures
Under the framework of the LifeWatch Broadband Acoustic Network
sound data have been collected since the spring of 2020
have been listened to and annotated for unknown
To obtain the acoustic features of these annotations
we used two existing automatic feature extractions: the Animal Vocalization Encoder based on Self-Supervision (AVES) and a convolutional autoencoder network (CAE) retrained on the data from this study
An unsupervised density-based clustering algorithm (HDBSCAN) was applied to predict clusters
We coded a grid search function to reduce the dimensionality of the feature sets and to adjust the hyperparameters of HDBSCAN
We searched the hyperparameter space for the most optimized combination of parameter values based on two selected clustering evaluation measures: the homogeneity and the density-based clustering validation (DBCV) scores
Although both feature sets produced meaningful clusters
homogeneous clusters with relatively lower intra-cluster distances
appearing to be more advantageous for the purpose and dataset of this study
The 26 final clusters we obtained were revised by a bioacoustics expert
We were able to name and describe 10 unique sounds
but only clusters named as &#x02018;Jackhammer&#x02019; and &#x02018;Tick&#x02019; can be interpreted as biological with certainty
Although unsupervised clustering is conventional in ecological research
we highlight its practical use in revising clusters of annotated unknown sounds
The revised clusters we detailed in this study already define a few groups of distinct and recurring sounds that could serve as a preliminary component of a valid annotated training dataset potentially feeding supervised machine learning and classifier models
Sounds serve as signals that allow these animals to relate to their environment
making the changing ocean soundscape of the Anthropocene an added stressor to life underwater
Adverse effects in the physiology and behavior of various marine animals were reported due to noise from anthropogenic activities such as vessel traffic
This leads to a need for subsequent clustering and revision of the annotations
which highlights the importance of iterative refinement in data analysis during the process of annotation
we introduce these annotated unknown sounds with a focus on those that are recurring and potentially of biological origin
and propose steps to derive meaningful clusters from these annotations
We discuss the following related questions: (1) how can we (automatically) identify which of the annotations are from the same source
(2) how can we derive meaningful clusters from annotated unknown sounds in the BPNS
and (3) which of the obtained clusters represent recurring sounds that are likely biological
Stations of bottom-moored acoustic recorders were deployed across the BPNS (<a href="#F1">Figure 1</a>), a shallow, biodiverse marine environment with an average depth of 20&#x000a0;m and a maximum of 45&#x000a0;m, characterized by a unique sandbank system, complex acoustic propagation patterns, strong tides and a wide range of human activities such as shipping, renewable energy, fishery and sand extraction (<a href="#B43">Parcerisas et al., 2023a</a>)
The acoustic recorders were steadily fixed to a steel mooring frame with the hydrophones situated 1&#x000a0;m above the seabed
Data were collected using a RESEA 320 recorder manufactured by RTSys (France)
coupled with a GP1190M-LP hydrophone from Colmar (Italy)
The hydrophone exhibited a sensitivity of &#x02212;180&#x000a0;dB/V re 1&#x000a0;&#x000b5;Pa and had a frequency response within a &#x02212;3&#x000a0;dB range from 10&#x000a0;Hz to 170&#x000a0;kHz
Figure 1. The stations of the LifeWatch Broadband Acoustic Network (<a href="#B42">Parcerisas et al., 2021</a>) in the Belgian part of the North Sea (BPNS)
Also shown in the map are the active renewable energy zone and shipwrecks
Audio events considered to be target events (acoustically salient) were meticulously identified and labeled by drawing boxes around each identified signal
This means that in addition to sounds possibly originating from marine organisms
other sounds labeled included anthropogenic and geophonic sounds
Label tag names were cross-checked with tags available in underwater sound repositories, such as FishSounds (<a href="http://fishsounds.net">fishsounds.net</a>) and Dosits (<a href="http://dosits.org">dosits.org</a>)
Sounds with similar acoustic characteristics to the descriptions found online were named accordingly
If a sound of interest could not be related to a sound from one of these online platforms
another tag name was chosen based on auditory characteristics exhibited by each sound
Sounds with similar shapes within the spectrogram
frequency range and duration were assigned the same tag name
AVES extracts the features directly from the waveform
which has the advantage that no parameters must be chosen manually to create a representative spectrogram
and all the snippets need to be cut (or zero-padded) to a certain length before generating the spectrogram images
Both models were developed with the intention of being robust across datasets
by evaluating them on datasets which were not used to train the model
insects (mosquitos) and amphibians (frogs)
and CAE on data from different birds and marine mammals
they were considered appropriate for this study
we filtered all manual annotations to have a minimum duration of 0.0625 s
a maximum low frequency of 24,000&#x000a0;Hz
and a minimum NIST-Quick SNR of 10&#x000a0;dB
For the annotations whose maximum high frequency exceeded 24,000&#x000a0;Hz the high frequency was adapted to 24,000&#x000a0;Hz
This assured that the characteristics of the remaining sounds complied with the requirements of the two feature extraction algorithms and assured the exclusion of false annotations
All sound files were decimated to 48,000&#x000a0;Hz before feature extraction to assure comparability in extracted features
For the AVES-bio-base model, we first extracted snippets from the raw audio files using the start and end time of each annotation. These snippets were then band-pass filtered to the frequency limits of each annotation using a Butterworth filter of order four from the scipy Python package (<a href="#B63">Virtanen et al., 2020</a>)
The filtered snippet was then converted to audio representations using the AVES-bio model (1) subjected to mean-pooling (AVES-mean) or (2) subjected to max-pooling (AVES-max) to derive a 768-feature long vector per sound event for succeeding clustering analysis
To all four different types of feature vectors
we added four additional features which were directly extracted from the Raven selection tables
The four additional features&#x02014;low frequency
were retained in addition to the sPCA-selected features
Overview of the methodology conducted in this study from two different audio representations up to cluster evaluation measures
After feature extraction using the Animal Vocalization Encoder based on Self-Supervision (AVES) and a convolutional autoencoder network (CAE)
the dimensionality of the datasets was reduced by selecting relevant features using sparse Principal Component Analysis (sPCA)
Different values of the hyperparameters of sPCA and HDBSCAN were tested using a coded grid search function
Obtained clusters were evaluated using its homogeneity score and density-based clustering validation (DBCV) score
and visualized using Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection (UMAP)
Intra-cluster distance was calculated as the distance between the two furthest points within each cluster
while inter-cluster distances was calculated for each possible pair of cluster as the average distance between all samples of two different clusters
The different values of sPCA alpha in combination with the different HDBSCAN clustering parameters (epsilon
minimum cluster size and minimum samples) gave a total of 431 grid search results
Annotated samples with corresponding tags in the Belgian part of the North Sea (BPNS)
which excluded audio events related to boat operations
Homogeneity and density-based clustering validation (DBCV) scores of the 149 grid search results (indicated by the grid search result indices on the x-axis) grouped by feature set
The black dotted lines indicate the average of the two scores
while the red dashed line indicates the highest average score among the grid search results within AVES and CAE feature sets
the number of features was significantly associated to DBCV (p &#x0003d; 5.960&#x02013;5)
and the minimum cluster size to homogeneity scores (p &#x0003d; 9.864&#x02013;5)
Boxplots of homogeneity and density-based clustering validation (DBCV) scores for the four feature sets (AVES-max
Homogeneity scores were significantly different between each feature set (all p &#x0003c; 0.05)
DBCV scores were significantly different between the AVES feature sets and CAE-original (p &#x0003d; 0.001)
Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection (UMAP) of the 26 predicted clusters from grid search result &#x00023; 420 (AVES-mean; (A) and the 29 predicted clusters from grid search result &#x00023; 141 (CAE-original; (B)
which had the highest average of homogeneity and DBCV scores among the AVES and CAE feature sets
a clear separation between subgroups of clusters under &#x02018;Whistling&#x02019; and &#x02018;Crustacean Stridulation&#x02019; can be observed
Separation of clusters 3&#x02013;4 and 21&#x02013;24
all represented by &#x02018;Whistling&#x02019;
all represented by &#x02018;Crustacean Stridulation&#x02019;
indicates variation in acoustic representations within the same classification of sound
Agreement of annotations with predicted clusters of grid search result &#x00023; 420
The grids are shaded by the percentage of occurrence of a tag within a predicted cluster
Table 1. Summary of descriptions of the obtained sound types after clustering. Spectrogram representations of each cluster are plotted in <a href="#SM1">Supplementary Figure S2</a>
N refers to &#x0201c;number&#x0201d; and Avg to &#x0201c;average&#x0201d;
Revision (%) shows the number of samples correctly clustered
Spectrograms of revised clusters from the best grid search result which had the highest average of homogeneity and DBCV scores
Each spectrogram is labeled by the cluster &#x00023; and the representative sound tag which had the highest resemblance to the other sounds from the same cluster
provided that the built training dataset is sufficient
Supervised ML models would render automatic detections and classification of already named and characterized sound signatures
Human labeling and classifying efforts of these distinct and recurring sound events would then become unnecessary in the future
Proposed steps to build a validated training dataset that can feed supervised machine learning (ML) models for unknown soundscapes
Unsupervised clustering is applied to representations of human annotations
The steps from human annotation to naming and characterization of relevant sound signatures (enclosed in a grey rectangle) are repeated in a cycle until the training dataset is sufficient to feed supervised ML models
Selecting different minimum sizes of clusters significantly affected homogeneity scores
and the number of relevant features significantly affected DBCV scores
While selecting the best representation model to extract features and applying the most appropriate clustering method have been obvious factors to consider in bioacoustics research, we highlight the performance variations brought by the large search space of hyperparameter configurations (<a href="#B4">Best et al., 2023</a>) which have remained obscure in the literature
mostly related to hyperparameters of algorithms
grid search is therefore a step that should be considered when applying any algorithm
can be used efficiently by neural networks to classify sounds
not all extracted features are directly representative for any dataset
Varying numbers of selected discriminant features in the grid search using sparse PCA contributed to performance variation
we only revised the best clustering result with the highest average of homogeneity and DBCV scores
it is also possible to revise other clustering results which performed as well
such as grid search result index &#x00023; 141 (CAE-original)
small numbers of minimum cluster size and minimum samples were necessary to consider tags in the annotations with only a few samples
Since vocal repertoires remain unknown in the BPNS to date
we rely on this growing dataset to detect apparent and consistently similar sounds which are likely of the same origin
with a bigger dataset composed of annotations that are more representative of the BPNS soundscape
an ample number of bigger and denser clusters is plausibly easier to obtain
Evaluation of intra- and inter-cluster distances between each cluster
Clusters are separated by inter-cluster distance
Line thickness indicates similarity between each cluster
Clusters are numbered according to the cluster number and colored by the representative sound
training on both the original and the cropped spectrograms
The rigor of these models and the influence of hyperparameters must be continuously explored
and (3) applying a band-pass filtering to each snippet
The results showed that for this dataset with such a variety of sounds
the band-pass filtering yielded the best results which could be due to several reasons
it allows for distinguishing between sounds occurring simultaneously at different frequency bands
which otherwise would be confused by the models
This is not the case for non-stationary noise reduction strategies
as both events happening simultaneously would be enhanced
Noise reduction algorithms such as noisereduce can enhance the SNR of signals
but they can perform badly for such short sounds such as &#x02018;Impulsive Click&#x02019;
there are no similar sounds described in the literature so far
Spatiotemporal analyses of sound occurrence (which was not achievable in this study due to biases during data selection)
alongside detailed comparisons of the acoustic characteristics of encountered sounds
are therefore necessary to further infer the possible biological sources of identified sounds
The dataset presented in this study can be found in online repositories such as the Marine Data Archive (MDA) and Integrated Marine Information System (IMIS; <a href="https://doi.org/10.14284/659">https://doi.org/10.14284/659</a>)
The author(s) declare that financial support was received for the research
This research was funded by LifeWatch grant number I002021N
ES&#x02019;s contribution to this research was funded by FWO grant number V509723N
This work demonstrated LifeWatch observation data
which made use of infrastructure (the broadband acoustic network) provided by VLIZ and funded by Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO) as part of the Belgian contribution to LifeWatch
A lot of hands contributed to the maintenance of the network&#x02014;we thank the Marine Observation Center and Infrastructure department of VLIZ and the crew of RV Simon Stevin for their continuous involvement and support at sea
we thank Coline Bedoret for her dedication in annotating the recordings over the summer of 2023
and Julia Aubach for revising the clusters
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations
Any product that may be evaluated in this article
or claim that may be made by its manufacturer
is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher
The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frsen.2024.1384562/full#supplementary-material">https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frsen.2024.1384562/full&#x00023;supplementary-material</a>
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Received: 09 February 2024; Accepted: 22 April 2024;Published: 04 June 2024
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First published: November 19, 2024 09:16 AM
Catalonia's first permanent booktown will celebrate its third anniversary with a "great storytelling party" between&nbsp;December 5-15.&nbsp;
'Calonge, poble de llibres' will bring exhibitions, shows, workshops, presentations, readings and a music and writing jam session to Calonge i Sant Antoni, a Costa Brava municipality that is home to seven bookstores.&nbsp;
With the motto 'Un aniversari de conte'&nbsp;('A legendary birthday'), the celebrations&nbsp;will be concentrated on the two weekends.&nbsp;
The first weekend, December 6-8, will be focused on children's books and young adult literature, including performances and workshops related to two of Catalan children's literature's bestsellers: 'The Colour Monster: The Feelings Doctor' by Anna Llenas, and 'A Terrific House' by Meritxell Martí and Xavier Salomó.&nbsp;
The second weekend, December 14-15, is aimed at adults, with talks, presentations, and even a jam session, bringing together the art of creating live stories (Jordi Campoy, Albert Pijuan, Irene Pujades and Víctor García Tur) with music from Defensa Lenta, the new project&nbsp;Pau Rodríguez (Za!).&nbsp;
Authors set to visit the&nbsp;town in Baix Empordà county also include&nbsp;Roser Capdevila, Artur Laperla, Coaner Codina, Martí Gironell, Marc Artigau, Víctor García Tur, and Guillem Terribas.&nbsp;
The Calonge booktown is made up of various bookstores with different characteristics, with books in Catalan and Spanish, as well as other languages such as English, French, German and Italian.&nbsp;
Calonge is Catalonia's first permanent booktown, joining a movement that began in the Welsh village of Hay-on-Wye in the 1970s.&nbsp;
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after reports of serious problems with testing and data manipulation at a state lab
“We don't have any evidence that any of the results for water testing represent an imminent threat to the consumers of Colorado,” Calonge said
“We had a breach of quality control protocol and that involved data manipulation of controls
He made the comments in an interview with CPR News Friday after news reports raised questions about trouble with data from the state health department
As part of its mission, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) is tasked with <a href="https://cdphe.colorado.gov/about">protecting water quality</a>
Its lab tests samples provided by about 3 percent of Colorado’s 2,100 drinking water systems
Most of them are smaller systems run by municipalities
water districts and other entities like homeowner’s associations
These were the lab results affected by the data problem
A senior chemist with the agency manipulated data
impacting the accuracy of thousands of water tests going back several years.&nbsp;
a veteran of more than 20 years with the agency
“The chemist was cutting quality control processes
“The chemist wasn't changing the actual lab results
but changing the control measures that are used to calibrate the machine.”
Calonge said he believed “it made the job easier.”
CDPHE has taken a number of steps in response to the situation
That includes designing new ways to check the data is being properly verified and hiring an external consultant to do what’s called a “root cause analysis.”
“We are taking it very seriously,” Calonge said
"We'll work to address each one of those issues as we take this segment of the laboratory's work and get back into compliance with what we're supposed to do.”&nbsp;
The problems are severe enough that the federal Environmental Protection Agency revoked a testing certification for the state water quality lab
as the issue led to a gap in data the state relies on to verify drinking water is in compliance with federal standards
“It does not indicate that there is a current or past problem with drinking water,” said spokesman Richard Mylott
EPA revoked the certification of CDPHE’s State Public Health Laboratory to run four tests
Those tests are part of a number of tests used to confirm drinking water meets federal requirements for safe drinking water
“EPA took these actions upon learning that certain chemists at the CDPHE Laboratory had been falsifying quality control data for water quality samples,” Mylott said
“What this means is that we don’t have complete information about past drinking water quality for some public drinking water systems in Colorado.”
Out of more 2,000 regulated water systems in the state
EPA said its understanding is that 69 regulated water systems have been impacted; about 20 of them “will need to resample to confirm that their water is still meeting federal standards.” Those specific systems do not have enough additional data to verify that they were still in compliance during the time in question.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Mylott said the federal agency has worked to make sure the state health department has provided notification to the impacted systems and to see that resampling happens using another certified lab.&nbsp;&nbsp;
and the EPA said it wants to make sure the agency uncovers the full extent of the problem and ensures accountability.&nbsp;
“We understand that learning about these data quality issues may be concerning
and we remain fully committed to safeguarding the integrity of drinking water systems
and protecting public health,” Mylott said
noting local drinking water systems continue to follow strict monitoring and treatment requirements to ensure the water reaching your tap meets federal standards.&nbsp;
a CDPHE spokesperson said that in February
the state public health lab discovered “a quality control lapse” affecting one of its water quality methods
“After the managing chemist discovered anomalies in test results
we removed the acting chemist from all laboratory testing and began an investigation,” said Kaitlyn Beekman
a communications &amp; special projects unit manager with the state’s Water Quality Control Division
Lab supervisors took the time to re-analyze “an extremely large amount of data,” she said
That led to the discovery of an “intentional disregard of protocol by the acting chemist.”
After the state health department notified the EPA
they revoked the lab’s certification “for this method.”
the agency is now contracting with certified commercial labs to perform these tests
“the EPA prematurely revoked other methods performed by the chemist,” prior to the completion of a third-party audit
“CDPHE has no current information that demonstrates a similar intentional disregard of protocols with the other revoked methods.”
CPDHE has appealed this decision to the EPA
and is waiting for third-party data analysis results
One of the systems affected is <a href="https://www.project7water.org/">Project 7 Water Authority</a>
a water wholesaler in the Uncompahgre Valley that supplies water to roughly 60,000 people in the cities of Montrose and Delta and five other municipalities or water districts.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
It sends water samples to CDPHE for testing every three months.&nbsp;
I got an email stating that CDPHE was invalidating some of our samples and I thought it was really weird
the operator at the Project 7 water treatment plant
“They had listed several sample sets and I originally thought
it was an error in their quality control.”&nbsp;
they were alerted that it was “not just a little error in their quality control
but kind of a bigger problem where actually their lab couldn't even run those samples anymore.”&nbsp;
Waldman said he had heard from one resident asking about the problem
He told her he thought the risk to public health was minimal
He likened it to seeing a police speed check post the rate at which you’re traveling and then being able to check that against your car’s speedometer
Being able to check your speedometer and see what it’s reading can give you confidence the speed check is accurate.&nbsp;
It’s similar to machines in labs being calibrated correctly
it doesn’t necessarily mean the lab results are off
“They can't really have much confidence in the numbers
but it's probably in the ballpark,” he said
Based on his understanding of the situation
Waldman agreed with CDPHE’s assessment that there’s no imminent threat to public health
it's theoretically possible there could have been something there to detect
And not to alleviate how it's unethical and unprofessional to do that
but I don't think it's a real public health concern.” 
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Lucia Calonge didn’t make it to the end of the competition but she’s using what she learned on <a href="https://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/kids-baking-championship">Kids Baking Championship</a> to help her grow her craft
and what she’s been up to since leaving the show
How did you get started baking?I have always loved baking because it is a special part of our family. During the start of the pandemic, I began watching <a href="https://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/kids-baking-championship">Kids Baking Championship</a> with my family and when I saw the amazing kids making amazing desserts
I would push my little learning tower over to the counter so I could reach counter height and I would help my mom add a cup of flour
I really started getting into baking on my own when I began watching Kids Baking Championship when I was 8 years old
That’s when I decided I really wanted to bake for Duff [Goldman] and Val [Bertinelli]
and I was motivated to do all that I could to become the best baker I can be
The first baked good I ever made was my great grandma Marsala’s sugar cookies
They are not your typical sugar cookie—they are fluffy
A recipe that has been passed down to me from my Italian great grandmother
I put a lot of love into them and use cookie cutters in all different shapes and sanding sugar in lots of fun colors to decorate them
What was it like competing on the show Kids Baking Championship
It was a dream come true and I am so proud and grateful for the experience
I would wish to be on Kids Baking Championship again
I also would love to get asked back to a holiday special
I am so grateful for all of the love and support our amazing Cincinnati community has shown me
Thank you for cheering me on throughout my journey
What was the best part about the competition
The best part about being on Kids Baking Championship was walking into the kitchen
I had to keep pinching myself because I couldn’t believe I was in the kitchen and on the show
I also loved being able to bake for Duff and Val
It was a pretty special opportunity to have two of the best pastry chefs in the world giving me feedback on how to become a better baker
I look up to Duff and Val and really value their feedback and advice
I feel I am a better baker and I have grown as a person because of this experience
It was also pretty amazing when Duff offered me a job when I’m older because he thought I did a good job decorating my butterfly cake on the first episode
I love to bake all things but if I had to choose one
I would say cakes because I love to decorate them
so decorating a cake is like having a blank canvas to draw on and it allows me to express my creativity in a different way
I am having fun trying all kinds of new recipes so I can continue to learn
 And one of the best parts about baking is packaging up the tasty treats and giving them to someone to show I care
Do you have any favorite bakers that you follow and why
I am very inspired by who I consider to be the best pastry chef in Cincinnati
Chef Megan Ketover [former contestant on Top Chef: Just Desserts]
She is amazing and I have learned so much from her
and she has also been on a baking competition television show
I love to follow Duff because I am a huge fan
I love Christina Tosi and had the opportunity to take her amazing online class
She helped me understand how to get creative with my flavors and textures and she’s super fun
And when I’m looking for a great new recipe and/or to learn a new technique
there are so many talented bakers that I learn from online—Mel’s Kitchen Café
My other favorite bakers that are local are all of the bakers at The BonBonerie
which is a very special bakery to me because I have basically grown up going there on a weekly basis
I even had a birthday party in the tea room
What have you been up to since appearing on the show
I am happy to share that I have been taking orders and that has been keeping me busy
I am also thinking about selling my treats at the Madeira Farmers Market
so I donate a percentage of all of my sales to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption
I recently had the amazing opportunity to teach a virtual cookie decorating class at The BonBonerie and we’ve talked about doing an in-person class and meet and greet this summer
A few Girl Scout troops have asked me to teach a class as well
I love to meet other kids who love to bake
and help others enjoy baking as much as I do
Follow Lucia on Instagram at <a href="https://www.instagram.com/baking_my_way_to_heaven/?hl=en">@bakingmywaytoheaven</a>
<a href="https://link.cincinnatimagazine.com/join/7nd/signup?" target="_blank"></a>
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) recently named a new chief medical officer who is also a familiar face
<a href="https://coloradosph.cuanschutz.edu/resources/directory/directory-profile/Calonge-Ned-UCD2406">Dr. Ned Calonge</a>, <a href="/about-us/administrative-units/office-of-public-health-practice">Associate Dean for Public Health Practice</a>&nbsp;and associate professor of epidemiology at the Colorado School of Public Health
previously served as CMO for CDPHE from 2002 to 2010
not much has changed since he left the post 13 years ago
&ldquo;Much of the core practices of public health are the same,&rdquo; Calonge said
is the magnitude of the challenges public health faces
Colorado dealt with identifying and managing dangerous viruses
H1N1 (which triggered a widespread influenza outbreak)
and SARS-CoV (which causes severe acute respiratory syndrome)
But he noted that &ldquo;none of those matched the impact&rdquo; of the SARS-CoV-2 virus
which triggered the COVID-19 pandemic and its long waves of serious illness
along with the Governor&rsquo;s office and ColoradoSPH
in helping the state manage the pandemic &ldquo;fairly well,&rdquo; Calonge said
The key: gathering and sharing epidemiologic data that allowed leadership to make better
&ldquo;Partnerships and strong leadership from the Governor&rsquo;s office are key elements in being able to respond to whatever comes next,&rdquo; Calonge said
One major goal is to rebuild the state&rsquo;s emergency preparedness infrastructure
which Calonge said has been a casualty of systematic federal defunding
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed that weakness and the need to reinvest
He also specified his major priorities for a second stint as CDPHE&rsquo;s CMO:
&ldquo;The Health Equities Commission engages the leadership of other state agencies that have a stake in addressing the social determinants of health,&rdquo; he said
&ldquo;There is a much larger level of commitment
and activities in an area that is important to me.&rdquo;
Calonge stressed that CDPHE lacks the resources to take on many social determinants of health
But the agency can continue to highlight their importance to public health
&ldquo;Keeping equity issues at the forefront is a key element of what I want to do,&rdquo; he said
Taking on any public health issue will depend on more than committing human and financial resources
It also requires regaining the faith and trust in public health that dwindled during the COVID-19 pandemic
&ldquo;I see that as a major challenge,&rdquo; Calonge said
&ldquo;I never felt this sense of distrust
trusting what we said and letting science move us forward.&rdquo; 
The change in public perception may have come with what some viewed as &ldquo;extreme measures,&rdquo; such as mask mandates
that &ldquo;impeded personal freedoms,&rdquo; Calonge said
he sees an opportunity for public health professionals to dispel suspicions before they harden irretrievably
&ldquo;We need to get back to other aspects of public health that people expect
and vaccinations for schoolchildren,&rdquo; he said
will be for local public health departments to build strong relationships with local boards of health and elected county commissioners who must be responsive to their constituents
&ldquo;The more we can rebuild our relationships with elected leaders at the city
I think we&rsquo;ll be able to be successful,&rdquo; Calonge said
&ldquo;A lot of that is just meeting and talking and listening to people&rsquo;s concerns.&rdquo; 
He noted that outgoing <a href="https://coloradosph.cuanschutz.edu/about-us/2-leadership/biography-of-the-dean">ColoradoSPH Dean Jonathan Samet</a>&nbsp;made that commitment by connecting with communities of color and low-income individuals during the pandemic. He&rsquo;s confident the willingness will continue when <a href="https://news.cuanschutz.edu/news-stories/cathy-bradley-named-colorado-school-of-public-health-dean" target="_blank">Dr. Cathy Bradley moves into the position Aug. 1</a>
&ldquo;All our faculty have the ability to do that through partnerships they have within community groups,&rdquo; Calonge said
The COVID-19 pandemic not only eroded public trust
The ordeal created &ldquo;an impressive amount of turnover in leadership at the local level across the state
It&rsquo;s hard to backfill all of those positions with folks who have experience in training and education,&rdquo; he said
&ldquo;This effort is based on the recognition that
there were significant challenges to maintaining sufficient resources for local public health services,&rdquo; Calonge said
The collaborative has released and is working to implement a &ldquo;blueprint&rdquo; for rebuilding and strengthening the workforce as it moves forward. The <a href="https://www.rmphtc.org/">Rocky Mountain Public Health Training Center</a>, part of ColoradoSPH&rsquo;s <a href="https://coloradosph.cuanschutz.edu/research-and-practice/centers-programs/cphp">Center for Public Health Practice</a>
is contributing remote training for new and established professionals to learn and sharpen their skills
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a natural partnership between public health and the school.&rdquo;
Closer ties between academic public health and public health practice
In his role as Associate Dean for Public Health Practice
Calonge has continued the work of his colleague
in creating &ldquo;academic public health departments&rdquo; that bring together academicians from the school and local public health departments
It potentially opens up more opportunities for students to complete their capstone and practicum projects in public health departments while also helping professionals make academic connections and draw on research that could strengthen their practice and help to build their workforce
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s one of the most exciting things about taking on this additional role as CMO,&rdquo; Calonge said
&ldquo;It also makes my role as associate dean more natural and easier to meet the objectives and goals [of the program].&rdquo;
The three academic health departments created thus far include a partnership between ColoradoSPH at Colorado State University and Larimer County Public Health
The Denver Department of Public Health and CDPHE have also created academic ties
was the first of its kind in the state and produced tangible results when pandemic cases began piling up
The county worked with CSU to expand lab capacity to test people for COVID and for the presence of the virus in wastewater
&ldquo;Because that relationship was in place
the work happened very quickly,&rdquo; Calonge said
the Denver Department of Public Health and CDPHE have been working with ColoradoSPH to create &ldquo;easier pathways&rdquo; for identifying preceptors to work with and guide students
&ldquo;Public health departments get additional people resources &ndash; hands and minds,&rdquo; Calonge said
&ldquo;Students are introduced to a site and public health practice that might create a relationship and a pathway to a career
In future years we could create a pipeline for a well-trained and available public health workforce for Colorado.&rdquo;
No one can say with certainty what new public health challenges will confront Colorado in the years to come
But Calonge is certain that doing so will require people in all communities and all levels of government who are united in the common goal of protecting citizens and their quality of life
&ldquo;As we rebuild our public health response capabilities
we must understand that it&rsquo;s all about establishing relationships and resources,&rdquo; he concluded
we will have the infrastructure to build successful programs when funding becomes available in response to an emergency need.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
Written by Tyler Smith for the Colorado School of Public Health
&copy; 2025&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cu.edu/regents/" data-sf-ec-immutable="">The Regents of the University of Colorado</a>
2021Medghyne Calonge was fired as human resources director from the St
Petersburg office of an online accounting firm
that a federal jury in New York City found her guilty of accessing a protected computer and recklessly causing damage — charges that together carry a maximum prison term of 15 years
A federal jury in New York convicted Medghyne Calonge of accessing a protected computer and recklessly causing damage after she was fired from an office in St. Petersburg. [&nbsp;LinkedIn&nbsp;]The company spent more than $100,000 to build the applicant tracking system and it took two years to create, according to the release. It cost 1-800Accountant more than $100,000 to investigate the crime and rebuild the system and it still hasn’t recovered all the information deleted.
Calonge was hired in January 2019 as head of human resources in the St. Petersburg office. After six months on the job, 1-800Accountant fired Calonge for failing to perform basic job tasks, the news release said. In one instance, Calonge downgraded a colleague’s access to a computer system after the two had an argument, the release said.
After Calonge was informed she was being fired, and before the company could escort her out of the building, two employees witnessed her hitting the delete button on her computer several times, the release said. Over the next two days, she logged into the applicant tracking system and continued deleting records.
Calonge’s attorney in New York did not return requests for comment made via email Wednesday. Messages could not be left on the attorney’s phone because the mailbox was full.
According to her LinkedIn account, Calonge has a bachelor’s degree in sociology and social work from the University of South Florida and a master’s degree in business administration from Saint Leo University. Her profile on another website says she now works as a Zumba instructor, an Avon beauty consultant and a Herbalife nutrition representative.
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</a>The indictment in the case identifies the victim only as “Employer 1,” but Erin Vadala, a spokesperson for 1-800Accountant, told the Tampa Bay Times via e-mail Wednesday, “We are aware of the outcome of the trial and are pleased that justice has been served in this case.”
The company promotes its services in tax preparation and general accounting to individuals and small businesses nationwide, providing mobile and desktop access to accountants, certified public accountants,&nbsp;enrolled agents, and bookkeepers.
“As a unanimous jury found today, Medghyne Calonge intentionally and maliciously caused severe damage to the computers of her former employer,” Audrey Strauss, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in the news release. “Now Calonge awaits sentencing for her crimes.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office declined to comment further on the case Wednesday.
</a><a class="author-bio__content--byline" href="/author/michaela-mulligan">Michaela Mulligan</a>Environment and Climate Reporter
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ruled that municipal utilities across the country must detect and eliminate harmful per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from water sources
a move that is expected to reduce exposure to nearly 100 million people
often called “forever chemicals” because &nbsp;they break down very slowly over time in the environment
end up in water sources a multitude of ways
mainly &nbsp;through firefighting chemicals that seep into the groundwater or by manufacturers who dump the chemicals into waterways
PFAS have been used in a variety of products
including non-stick cookware and water or stain-repellent fabrics
because they have properties that repel water and oil
Exposure to these chemicals have been linked to cancers
and developmental impacts for babies and children
“I’m hopeful that industries are being more responsible and trying to find alternatives,” Calonge says
but adds that there’s more work to do to continue to ensure public health and safety
Researchers like Calonge have long been interested in PFAS in drinking water because of the <a href="https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/pfas/health-effects/index.html" rel="noopener" target="_blank">health risks</a> associated with the chemicals
“There are a number of cancers where there is at least a moderate degree of evidence of an association,” Calonge says
Among those with the highest associations is kidney cancer
which researchers believe may be due to the organ’s role in clearing toxins from the blood
“This number is the least detectable amount of PFAS given our current technology to find it,” Calonge says
“This isn’t necessarily a health-based standard
He adds that length of exposure is also an important factor in health risks
but researchers are still learning more about that piece of the puzzle
Researchers estimate that at least <a href="https://www.usgs.gov/news/national-news-release/tap-water-study-detects-pfas-forever-chemicals-across-us" rel="noopener" target="_blank">45% of the nation’s tap water</a> has one or more types of PFAS chemicals
but not all 12,000 types can be detected with the current level of technology
I felt like we would end up having a low level of confidence to make health risk associations
but I was surprised by the amount of data that was,” Calonge says
He expects more data and technology to develop as time goes on
allowing researchers the ability to learn more about the best ways to reduce health risks
While wading through PFAS news and information can be daunting for the average American
Calonge says there’s also reason to be hopeful
here in Colorado and at the national level,” he says
highlighting legislation that limits or bans products made with PFAS chemicals and the new federal water guidelines
For those who are concerned about health effects of high exposure, Calonge recommends looking up PFAS levels on the state health department <a href="https://cdphe.colorado.gov/pfas-mapping" rel="noopener" target="_blank">website</a>
“That may influence whether you want to use a water filter,” he says
but Calonge says they’re only recommended in cases where exposure is thought to be high
“I wouldn’t tell people to ignore the realities of PFAS chemicals
but I also don’t think they should let this become something that really drives their entire life,” he says
“Think about this risk in the context of other health risks
these risks are made through a conscious decision and exposure to PFAS is not
but it’s still a good way to look at how worried you should be about risks to your health.”
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(KGUN-TV) — It all began on New Year's Day in 2014
Valerie Calonge was the survivor of a brutal New Year's Day attack in which two others were killed
KGUN 9&nbsp;spoke to her daughter Maribel Gonzalez
it feels good to like have people support my mom,"&nbsp;Maribel said during a fundraiser three years ago.&nbsp;
her daughter Maribel was the reason she woke up every morning
there's just so much stuff," Calonge said as she looked at Maribel's picture.&nbsp;
Maribel's support for her mother was empowering
thankful that her mother survived the attack
Everything changed the afternoon of June 3
Maribel and Calonge were living at an apartment complex on the east side
She walked to her friend's house that afternoon
who was still on pain medication six months after the New Year's Day attack
Calonge immediately called Maribel's cell phone and started looking everywhere for her
Law enforcement immediately classified Maribel as a runaway
Calonge and the family would soon learn what happened while they were watching the news
"They said they found a body with a tattoo little tattoo and I saw the tattoo and I basically fell to the floor
screaming and I didn't want to believe it," Calonge said
According to the Pima County Sheriff's Department, <a class="Link" href="http://www.kgun9.com/news/local-news/cold-case-families-speak-out-hope-for-new-leads" data-cms-ai="0">Maribel's body was found three days later in a desert area</a> near Trico Road and Avra Valley Road
"I'm pissed because who would do that to a kid
What kind of sick person would do that to a little girl and then treat her like trash,"&nbsp;Calonge&nbsp;said while wiping tears off her face.&nbsp;
<a class="Link" href="http://www.kgun9.com/news/local-news/new-information-prompts-detectives-search-desert-where-the-body-of-a-teen-was-found-years-ago" data-cms-ai="0">Just last week, the Pima County Sheriff's Department reopened the case</a>.&nbsp;
Maribel's death is still an ongoing investigation
If you know anything about Maribel's death
her mother just wants to know what happened
and to help me and my heart and help us get justice and who did this because what if he is doing this to other people?" Calonge added.&nbsp;
but Calonge says sharing her story is keeping her memory alive today
<a class="Link" href="#report-a-typo" data-name="report-a-typo" class="report-a-typo" data-cms-ai="0">Report a typo</a>
(KGUN) — In the murder trial for the man charged with killing 13-year-old Maribel Gonzalez
the teenager’s mother described the moment she knew her daughter was dead—-and jurors heard Christopher Clements ex-girlfriend testify the night the girl disappeared he wanted to be sure no one looked in his car trunk
Valerie Calonge was badly disabled when a man ran her down with a car six months before her daughter Maribel Gonzalez disappeared
and persistent disability said it made it harder to monitor her daughter
RELATED KGUN 9 TEAM COVERAGE OF CLEMENT'S TRIAL
Maribel said she was going to visit a friend on June 3
Calonge broke down in tears several times as she described searching and searching
She told the jury about Maribel’s butterfly tattoo and said.:
I put the news on and (they said) they found a body and I see the tattoo and I didn’t want to believe it was her.”
Clements' ex-girlfriend told the jury the night Maribel Gonzalez disappeared Clements left after an argument
She said it wasn’t enough for him so he borrowed Stark’s car to get more
She says when he returned he wanted to be sure no one had looked in his car trunk
Stark says he demanded that she immediately wash the clothes he was wearing
clean the shower he’d just used and scrub with bleach anyplace he’d walked
Prosecutors say it showed he had researched information on trace evidence on a body and had researched the Maribel Gonzalez case
Earlier a man named Thomas Keys testified about his friendship with the teenager
He was about 26 years old at the time and said he allowed her to spend the night at his apartment two or three times
Keys said Maribel told him she was 17 but her giggly demeanor made him suspect she was younger
He said they always slept separately and there was nothing sexual about their relationship
though once she said she loved him and he said he loved her too
He says he was expecting her to visit the night she disappeared
When she did not arrive he thought it was another case of her not following through on plans—until it was apparent she was missing—and police came to question him
Shelley Butler will direct the world premiere production based on Nathaniel Hawthorne's classic novel
Hamill has previously adapted&nbsp;Little Women and Pride and Prejudice,&nbsp;all as part of her creative initiative to showcase feminist
With The Scarlet Letter&nbsp;as her latest adaption
the work&nbsp;showcases the strength of a woman who will not let the rules of an unjust society define her
as&nbsp;Hester Prynne dares to strive for a better life for herself and her daughter.&nbsp;
For tickets and more information, visit&nbsp;<a href="https://tworivertheater.org/" target="_blank">TwoRiverTheater.org</a>
Gail Kriegel's new play follows a family affected by mental illness
The Tony-winning Best Musical continues at the Walter Kerr Theatre
Noah Himmelstein will direct Matthew Puckett's original musical
Neumann is the Tony nominated choreographer behind Hadestown and Swept Away
one Tony winner is playing the trumpet while the other is channeling Madame Rose
Due to the expansive nature of Off-Broadway
Thank You!You have now been added to the list
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<a href="https://iberianlawyer.com/monographs/revolutions/">READ MONOGRAPH  </a>
Gómez-Acebo &amp; Pombo (GA_P) has appointed Ana Pedrosa Calonge (pictured) as an associate in the Automotive and Sustainable Mobility team in the Madrid office
Pedrosa Calonge developed her professional career as legal counsel in firms such as Goiko
The new associate holds a law degree from the UAM (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid) and a Master&#8217;s Degree for Access to the Legal Profession &amp; International Legal Studies Program from the Universidad Villanueva
 Montero Aramburu advises on the divestment process of&hellip;
It represents the main source of information in the legal business sector in Spain and Portugal
The digital magazine &#8211; and its portal &#8211; address to the protagonists of law firms and in-house lawyers
The magazine is available for free on the website and on Google Play and App Store
information about deals and their advisors
For further information, please visit the Group’s website <a href="http://www.lcpublishinggroup.com">www.lcpublishinggroup.com</a>
(she/her/hers/siya) Off-Broadway:&nbsp;Psychic Self Defense
Sundance Institute;&nbsp;She Counts Her Dresses
The Public Theater&rsquo;s Under the Radar&rsquo;s Incoming
The Kitchen;&nbsp;Daily Life Everlasting,&nbsp;Eterniday
NYU/Tisch&rsquo;s Experimental Theater Wing and Playwrights Horizons Theater School; Dance/Movement Therapy M.S
our beloved matriarch passed away October 30
at the Ashton Living Center with family by her side.&nbsp;&nbsp;
the sixth child of Jay and Mary Hamlett Calonge
Edith developed strong characteristics that would resonate throughout her life
She was responsible and generous at a young age
qualities she acquired growing up on her family&#39;s farm
She attended schools in Marysville and Ashton
later graduating from Las Vegas High School in Nevada.&nbsp; Edith&#39;s mindfulness during those trying times helped her to become the devoted caregiver for which she would be known.&nbsp;
Edith and Charles farmed in Wisconsin and later in Idaho
She distributed mail from her small office within her home
Dedicated to her job and attentive to her family
Her home was a place for gathering and her hospitality was second to none.&nbsp;
selfless and resilient; overcoming cancer twice
Her determination and zeal for life was evident
as was her steadfast love for family and friends
and good conversation anytime.&nbsp; &nbsp;
She and Charles spent each summer in Alaska camping and fishing with their children and grandchildren
Family picnics were a summer staple as was her love for gardening
She could sling a gun with the best hunters around
but could also sew the most delicate fabrics
Giving time to family was her joy.&nbsp;&nbsp;
She contributed to many community organizations
and was a member of the Dubois Community Baptist Church.&nbsp;
WA; 16 grandchildren; 28 great-grandchildren; and 8 great-great grandchildren
She was preceded in death by her parents; siblings; husband; daughters
Mary Grover and Angela Black; and sons-in-law
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Although researchers have known about the impact of these chemicals for years, there has been little guidance available for clinicians. A <a href="https://www.nationalacademies.org/our-work/guidance-on-pfas-testing-and-health-outcomes#sectionPublications" target="_blank" rel="noopener">new report</a> from the National Academies of Sciences
we were part of a committee of 15 experts in public health
and other disciplines reviewing information on the health effects of PFAS exposure
and heard from many members of the public to formulate a new approach for addressing this important public health concern
Our recommendations represent a shift in the way clinicians should approach this ubiquitous environmental health concern
advising for the first time that testing be made available to many more people
The NASEM report confirms many concerns about the effects of PFAS exposure on health
Exposure to these chemicals increases the risk of kidney cancer in adults
decreased antibody responses to infection or vaccination in children and adults
and dyslipidemia in children and adults — specifically increases in cholesterol
a risk factor for heart attacks and strokes
The committee also found suggestive evidence that PFAS exposure increases the risk of thyroid disease in adults
and changes in liver enzymes in children and adults that may indicate liver problems
It is understandable that people would turn to their health care providers for answers about what they should do as a result of their PFAS exposure. But the current clinical guidance from the <a href="https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/pfas/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry</a> does not provide specific advice on when to test for PFAS and what clinical follow-up should be done
The NASEM report recommends offering PFAS blood testing to anyone likely to have a history of elevated exposure to these chemicals
That means the millions of people living in communities with confirmed drinking water contamination
as well as those with occupational exposure like firefighters
and those who live near possible drinking water contamination: communities near commercial airports
farms where sewage sludge may have been used
or landfills or incinerators that have received waste containing PFAS
Offering PFAS blood testing to individuals likely to have a history of elevated exposure to these substances is not the current the standard of care
The main reason for these new recommendations is that our understanding of the relationship between PFAS blood levels and health risks has advanced enough for testing to be useful to patients likely to have had a significant exposure
The NASEM report recommends that clinicians interpret blood test results using serum or plasma concentrations of the <a href="https://nap.nationalacademies.org/read/26156/chapter/2#11" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sum of seven different PFAS</a>
which could all come from the same test panel
A serum or plasma concentration of less than 2 nanograms of PFAS per milliliter (ng/mL) is not linked to adverse health effects
A concentration between 2 and 20 ng/mL increases the risk for health problems
and clinicians should inform patients about the need for follow-up testing for dyslipidemia
could benefit from reducing their exposure to these chemicals
the report does not focus on this for those with lower PFAS blood levels
Individuals with PFAS levels above 20 ng/mL can face a higher risk of adverse effects
Clinicians should help them identify how they’ve been exposed and prioritize screening for dyslipidemia
Tests for thyroid function and assessments for signs and symptoms of cancers
and for ulcerative colitis should be considered at all wellness visits
Extending PFAS testing to a larger population than is currently being tested will be challenging
Although the committee was not asked to address the challenges of testing
any clinician who has ordered a PFAS test knows that only a limited number of labs currently perform this type of testing
and the tests are often not covered by insurance
possibly costing individuals hundreds of dollars
Many people living in communities with potentially high exposure to PFAS have been diverted from testing by their health care providers and told that testing is not possible or useful
which would be congruent with existing guidance from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
But the NASEM committee believes that testing provides important information
and individuals can use it to understand their own risk and discuss with their clinician the appropriate next steps
The report also offers clinicians advice for more sensitive conversations
like how to discuss the risk of passing PFAS to infants through breast milk or formula
It recommends that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention support clinicians by creating educational materials on reducing exposure
and the pros and cons of testing that they can share with patients
We believe that a key take-home message in the new report is the importance of personalizing both PFAS exposure assessment and care for those with elevated levels of these chemicals
Given how much more needs to be learned about how to decrease PFAS-associated risks
and sensitive issues like breastfeeding should all be based on patients’ values and preferences
Ned Calonge is an associate professor of family medicine at the Colorado School of Medicine
and an associate professor of epidemiology at the Colorado School of Public Health
Jane Hoppin is a professor of biological sciences and director of the Center for Human Health and the Environment at North Carolina State University
and leads an NIH-funded study of PFAS exposures in the Cape Fear River basin
Kemper is the division chief of primary care pediatrics at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and professor of pediatrics at the Ohio State University College of Medicine
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Reporting from the frontiers of health and medicine
During the second day of a trial for <a href=https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2022/09/12/man-accused-killing-arizona-girls-facing-1st-2-trials/10361143002/ target=_blank>a man accused of killing a 13-year-old girl</a>
prosecutors called the girl’s family to the witness stand on Wednesday at Pima County Superior Court
Valerie Calonge gave a tearful testimony of her daughter's last day
seemed to have changed in the weeks leading up to her disappearance
is also accused of killing 6-year-old Isabel Celis in a separate case
the trial for which is slated for February
The trial in Maribel's death is scheduled to last 14 days
Clements was arrested in 2018 and indicted on 22 counts spanning many years
including burglary and two counts each of first-degree murder and kidnapping in the deaths of Isabel in 2012 and Maribel in 2014
Prosecutors for the state include Pima County attorneys Tracy Miller and Chris Ward
while defense attorneys include Joseph DiRoberto and Eric Kessler
according to the testimonies of Maribel’s mother and grandmother
when she was walking with a friend to another friend’s house
her daughter had gone shopping with her and her mother
Victoria Calonge said her granddaughter went home excited to try on the clothes she bought
The girl's mother told jurors she realized her daughter never arrived where she was supposed to the following day
She said she called anyone who would know her daughter’s whereabouts
She then went out looking for her with her mother and some of Maribel’s friends
Who's Lori Vallow Daybell?  <a href=https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2022/09/14/who-lori-vallow-daybell-woman-netflixs-sins-our-mother/8017844001/ target=_blank>The woman at the center of Netflix's 'Sins Of Our Mother'</a>
Valerie Calonge testified it was not until she turned on the TV news that she found out police found her daughter’s body
She recognized a tattoo her daughter had on her collarbone
Calonge described Maribel as “very friendly” and funny
noting that she wouldn’t talk to just anyone
Colange described Maribel as her “mini-me” and told the jury they were close and they spent a lot of time together
we would do a lot of stuff together,” Colange said about her relationship with her daughter before the collision
“She’d go walk with me around Reid Park everyday after work
Calonge said she had been in an traumatic accident
The collision resulted in a traumatic brain injury
She was hospitalized and then sent to rehab for several months
she had a close relationship to her daughter
She pushed herself to leave the rehab before she was ready so that she could be with her daughter again
Calonge lived with her parents for one month
and by May she was able to get an apartment with her daughter
We were happy to be in our own little place,” she said with a sigh
Then she began to cry as she recalled how happy Maribel had been to live with her mother again
she was trying to be my little nurse to help to get better,” she said in between tears
Colange said Maribel seemed more mature and was less chatty about the details in her life
Calonge said she was told that Maribel was going to a friend's house
testifies he was friends with MaribelThe friend’s house was that of a 25-year-old man at the time
was called to the witness stand on Wednesday where he testified Maribel was supposed to see him
Keys said they had been friends for a couple months after meeting at a fair
she approached him and began chatting with him
He said she would sometimes “crash” on his couch
He said she was “giggly” and “silly.” However
prosecutors later revealed police records showed she told him she was 17
During the trial it came to light that sometime during their friendship
Maribel had messaged Keys telling him that she loved him
He responded with a smiley face emoji and eventually told her he loved her too
Prosecutors also called Melissa Stark to testify
Stark said she had been in a relationship with Clements and had a son with him
They lived in the vicinity where Maribel was walking when she disappeared
Lori Vallow Daybell: <a href=https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2022/09/08/lori-vallow-daybell-attorneys-fight-over-filming-mom-courtroom/8029448001/ target=_blank>Attorneys fight over filming Idaho mom charged with murder</a>
they had gotten into a “huge” argument about the attention he was giving her best friend who had been visiting them
Stark said Clements left the house around 8 p.m
on the night in question and returned around midnight
waking her up and asking her if they had bleach
so he left the house and came back with more bleach
he asked her if she had looked in the trunk of his car
She told him she had not looked in his car
Stark said he left again and returned around 5 a.m.
wash the shower curtain and clean the floor “very well from the front door all the way to the bathroom.”
Stark approached law enforcement about what she experienced that night in July 2020
Stark told prosecutors that Clements told her to get back in touch with her friend who had been staying at her place on the night in question to ask if she and her mother
would testify on his behalf that he was home all night while they were visiting
attorneys presented opening statements to the jury
Tucson-based KOLD reported that Miller said Clements’ DNA was found on Maribel’s body and cell phone evidence put him at the scene
Court documents showed that investigators searched Clements’ computer and found hidden photos of very young girls in lingerie or playing at beaches and playgrounds
DiRoberto claimed in his opening statement for the defense that Clements did not know Maribel and had no contact with her family or friends
He reportedly argued that there are no witnesses to establish where Maribel was or who she was with the night she died
DiRoberto admitted a DNA test was a partial match for Clements
though he claimed a full sample would have excluded his client as a suspect
He also criticized the accuracy of cell phone tracking
which reportedly showed Clements was in the area of where Maribel’s body was found the night of her disappearance
She was found near Trico and West Avra Valley roads in Pima County
three witnesses were called to the stand: two law enforcement officers on the case and the bus driver who discovered her body
KOLD reported that retired Pima County Sheriff’s Department Detective Joseph Borquez said Maribel’s body was found under a tree and next to a mound of tires
He said she was naked and there were drag marks that led from the road to the body
Coverage of southern Arizona on <a href=http://www.azcentral.com target=_blank>azcentral.com</a> and in <a href=https://www.reportforamerica.org/ target=_blank>The Arizona Republic</a> is funded by the nonprofit Report for America in association with The Republic
Reach the reporter at <a href=mailto:sarah.lapidus@gannett.com target=_blank>sarah.lapidus@gannett.com</a>
<a href="https://asianjournal.com/" rel="home">Asian Journal News</a>
The Filipino-American Community Newspaper Since 1991
Nikki Calonge never imagined herself performing on Broadway
she made her debut as part of the cast of “Life of Pi.” Despite never having dreamed of this opportunity
has reached an achievement many aspiring actors could only wish for
“I thought I always wanted to be a writer and I know I wanted to live in New York,” Calonge told the Asian Journal
“I am completing my master’s to be a dance movement therapist
creativity is really important to me and I think expression through movement is crucial in understanding myself and helping others.”
Calonge is among 22 cast members &#8211; many of whom are South Asians &#8211; who are making their Broadway debuts
She feels immensely proud of this new family they have created
Her dad is retired Ambassador Generoso Calonge and her mom Gloria is an immigration lawyer from Virginia
“I’m grateful to them because they gave me the freedom to do what I wanted,” she shared
Armed with a degree from NYU-Tisch Experimental Theater Wing and Playwrights Horizons Theater School and training from The Patravadi Theatre and Theater Mitu in Thailand and Traditional Dance and Wayang Kulit in Bali
you take what you can get but there’s no real supply and demand for experimental theater,” she shared
performing in downtown theaters like La Mama
Then the pandemic happened but that didn’t stop her from performing outdoors in Bushwick
A friend saw who saw her at the Chicago Puppet Festival encouraged her to audition for Life of Pi
Calonge describes herself as a physical performer
and is currently in graduate school for dance/movement therapy at Pratt Institute
“Broadway has always been an idea but never…even a trajectory
We live in New York so even the term Broadway feels like a description for things
like the Broadway version of this or that,” she added
Her journey to Broadway happened quite quickly
After a two-month pre-Broadway run in Boston
Boston was an excellent preparation for the cast as it allowed them to work on a smaller scale
which helped foster a strong sense of cohesion among the cast
“The interpersonal aspect of the show has been very familial and friendly
I can’t imagine how other people manage to just slide into shows without this level of comfort and camaraderie,” she said
“It was a small but significant preparation for what was to come
I know I can go to the dojo in the morning and the yoga studio in the afternoon,” she added
“I feel stronger and more capable than ever before and I’m slowly adjusting to the new normal.”
Calonge is one of three puppeteers who bring the Royal Bengal Tiger named Richard Parker
The team of three has specific roles to fulfill as a head puppeteer
they constantly rotate to prevent injury and repetitive motion strain
the puppeteers learned how to collectively breathe and pant and create roars and grunts
depending on the scene and interaction with the titular character
we are not talking in there,” she explained
adding that they follow each other’s internal cues
Each puppeteer has a unique focus and awareness
as the head puppeteer communicates directly with what Richard Parker sees while also connecting with the puppet’s spine
and the heart puppeteer uses their pauses and breath to convey emotion
using cues such as a crossed back leg or a foot on a bench to anticipate movements and actions,” she explained
All puppeteers need to be aware of the overall performance and work together to create a believable world on stage
These visual cues and signals help in making Richard Parker work properly
They need to stay alert and attentive at all times
The movement of the set and the character of Pi all contribute to the overall movement of the animals as well
It’s crucial for them as puppeteers to react to these movements and make them believable for the audience
That fourth puppeteer is the person who’s acting with the puppet so it’s really important for Pi to give just as much response,” Calonge explained
a Sri Lankan actor who won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor reprised his role as Pi on Broadway
the character will be performed by an alternate
This means the puppeteers have to adjust to the dynamics since both actors attack the character differently
“I’m grateful for this experience forever because I think I’ve grown exponentially because of it,” she shared
completing eight physically demanding shows a week is a challenging feat
Calonge has implemented a strict regimen to maintain her energy levels and overall health during the run of the show
She also practices aikido and yoga and gets a lot of massages
the best-selling and beloved novel by Yann Martel transitioned to the theater in Sheffield
England before moving to London’s West End last year
winning the hearts of critics and fans and along with it
five 2022 Olivier Awards including Best New Play
It was adapted for the stage by award-winning playwright Lolita Chakrabarti
“It has been such a privilege to adapt Yann Martel’s modern classic Life of Pi for the stage
To be able to tell this story the way I imagined it
to create the world using my references and viewpoint has been an extraordinary gift
And to see it resonate with young and old audience members alike has been humbling,” said Chakrabarti
a story of survival which all of us can fundamentally relate to after the effects of the pandemic
I am beyond thrilled that we will bring this play to Broadway.”
the play is a stunning new theatrical interpretation of one of the most beloved works of fiction &#8211; a winner of the prestigious Man Booker Prize
with over fifteen million copies sold globally
The story is about sixteen-year-old Pi and his family who set off to emigrate from India
but after their ship sinks in the middle of the Pacific Ocean
Pi is left stranded on a lifeboat with four other survivors—a hyena
The show made its North American premiere at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge from December 2022 to January 2023 before moving into their Broadway home at the Gerard Schoenfeld Theater
The West End production won five Olivier Awards including Best New Play
In a historic first for the Olivier Awards
the seven performers who play Royal Bengal tiger ‘Richard Parker’ were collectively awarded Best Actor in a Supporting Role
A young Cincinnati baker will appear on Food Network and Discovery+ this month as she competes in the "Kids Baking Championship."
Ten-year-old Lucia Calonge&nbsp;from Madeira&nbsp;will be one of 12 young bakers competing in the dessert competition series
"Kids Baking Championship,"&nbsp;hosted by Valerie&nbsp;Bertinelli&nbsp;and&nbsp;Duff Goldman
will feature kids ages 8 to 11 in a variety of challenges
The winning baker will earn a spot in Food Network Magazine and the title of Kids Baking Champion.&nbsp;
<a href="https://cm.cincinnati.com/specialoffer?gps-source=CPNEWS&utm_medium=mix&utm_source=news&utm_campaign=NEWSROOM&utm_content=CPNEWS" target=_blank>▶ Get a great deal on a full-access subscription to Cincinnati.com</a>
Fifth-grader Lucia&nbsp;said she began watching "Kids Baking Championship" along with her aunt&nbsp;when spending more time at home during the&nbsp;COVID-19 pandemic
She then&nbsp;applied for the show after wanting to be like the kids she had seen on TV.&nbsp;
"Because I love to draw and I love to decorate
It's like having a piece of paper that's actually cake and I can draw whatever I want on it."
The show was filmed in August at the Discovery Center in Knoxville
Lucia said she loved meeting the other contestants and is still friends with them
More: <a href=https://www.cincinnati.com/story/entertainment/dining/2021/11/30/cincinnati-restaurants-opened-closed-november/8792518002/ target=_blank>Restaurants that opened or closed in November</a>
More: <a href=https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2021/11/30/miss-usa-2021-winner-elle-smith-kentucky-nicole-wess-ohio/8804855002/ target=_blank>Miss USA 2021: Elle Smith of Kentucky crowned winner; UC student Nicole Wess competed</a>
said it was amazing to watch Lucia achieve her dream.&nbsp;
"This was the first thing she was passionate about that she flourished in," Calonge said
"It was also nerve-wracking: I knew how hard she had worked
but she handled it so amazingly and I was so impressed."
The finale will feature the four remaining contestants&nbsp;in a two-hour episode and&nbsp;will air Feb
For more information on the "Kids Baking Championship," competitors and episodes, visit&nbsp;<a href=https://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/kids-baking-championship>www.foodnetwork.com/shows/kids-baking-championship</a>.&nbsp;
Detectives with the Pima County Sheriff's Department searched the area where the body of a teen was found three years ago
Maribel Gonzales was reported as a runaway in June 2014 and&nbsp;her body was found three days later in a desert area near Trico Road and Avra Valley Road
PCSD says investigators&nbsp;recently discovered additional information which led&nbsp;them back to the desert area where the teen's&nbsp;body was found
Deputies spent the day searching a large area of the desert in hopes of finding more evidence that could lead to an arrest
Gonzales was murdered six months after her mother
survived a deadly and deliberate New Year's Eve hit-and-run
Michael Leday was later found guilty and sentenced to more than 57 years in prison
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147.45.197.102 : b8ad90d4-bf26-4f77-b9ab-6a2bf21c
Medghyne Calonge, 41, of Tampa, Fla., was fired in June 2019 after only six months at the New York-based online accounting firm due to poor performance, according to federal authorities. Prosecutors noted one instance in which she improperly locked a coworker out of a computer system after getting into an argument.
Coworkers say that they witnessed Calonge constantly hitting the delete button as she was fired over the phone.
After being escorted out of the firm&#8217;s St. Petersburg, Fla. office, prosecutors say she then logged into an outside computer system, which the firm used to manage its job applications, erased all 17,000 resumes, and left profanity notes on all of the files.
“Medghyne Calonge intentionally and maliciously caused severe damage to the computers of her former employer,” said Audrey Strauss, acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. “Her actions wiped out information vitally important to the employer company and cost the company money and time to repair.”
After a six-day trial in New York, Calonge was convicted of 2 counts of damaging computers and faces 15 years in jail.
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The owners of an entertainment merchandising company with Kenny Chesney
Brad Paisley and George Strait among clients have paid $1.5 million for 10.84 acres in Goodlettsville with plans to develop a business campus
Terry and Sheri Calonge of Richards & Southern Inc
plan to break ground on the first 40,000 square foot building on that land on South Cartwright Street
Their nearly 60-year-old family business plans to relocate its entire operations including design
distribution and fulfillment from 32,000 square feet of space a mile away
"We’re landlocked," Terry Calonge said about the current building
we foresee continued double-digit growth and so this expansion is to accommodate future growth."
which his parents Bob and Betty Calonge founded to make hand fans and postcards as souvenirs for artists such as Johnny Cash and Roy Acuff
has rode growth in the entertainment industry and Nashville overall
the multi-million-dollar international merchandising business imprints T-shirts
license plates and lawn chairs with the brands of well-known client artists to be sold as souvenirs
The items allow fans to take home with them a visual reminder of their experience at a concert
"The merchandising industry is one of the biggest parts of revenues in the whole picture of entertainment," Calonge said
citing growth in Internet sales and business with the company's touring customers
In addition to selling merchandise during concert and stores worldwide including at airports
Richards & Southern builds online stores for clients
The company has commercial clients beyond entertainers
Richards & Southern expects soon to begin design of the planned business campus
which will include buildings beyond the initial 40,000 square foot location the company will occupy
The property sits on a hill next to touring coaches manufacturer Prevost's service center at 800 S
Calonge said he plans to take advantage of visibility of the 10.84 acres along Interstate 65 in a way that aligns with Goodlettsville's efforts to brand itself as the northern gateway to Music City
Trucks wrapped with pictures of country music client artists such as Miranda Lambert
Luke Bryan and Carrie Underwood that pick up merchandise from Richards & Southern will be visible to drivers passing by
"It will be an attention-getter and people will feel like the name Music City has come to life," Calonge said
"It will heighten the excitement of their experience."
wooded 10.84 acres from a partnership whose members include Glynn Dowdle and Michael Baron
That entity ​developed and built the adjacent roughly 18-acre Prevost/Volvo Coach facility in 2008
"This (nearly) 11 acres of interstate visibility land was left over and after evaluating several options
we felt like this was the best development 'end use'," Baron
said about selling that remaining land to the Calonges
Reach <a href=http://www.tennessean.com/staff/9777/getahn-ward/>Getahn Ward</a> at 615-726-5968 and on Twitter <a href=https://twitter.com/getahn>@getahn</a>
20240 commentsBy Jillian Rousseau and Ebenezer Mamo 
CA &#8211; A jury trial proceeded here in Alameda County Superior Court last week where the accused faced a felony charge of murder for allegedly striking a homeless man three times with a 5.5-pound skateboard
The accused said he had been raped by the victim
“There is no justification…I just wanted to be free of the torment of not being good enough
Deputy District Attorney Maggie Calonge revealed in the trial the accused was said to hear delusions of people’s voices
the accused said he wanted to be “free of mocking” and “laughing” voices that he was hearing
DDA Calonge said these delusions triggered feelings of “inadequacy,” adding the defense argued that the accused was not getting internet at that moment at the McDonald’s where the crime was located.<a href="https://visitor.r20.constantcontact.com/manage/optin?v=001uV3jnccU8bbDWqR4notdIozxYnkzDf5t4swt_xn2fn81oeJpaW4eSMCLTEsehMWu2CAfEhWB-zTXOE625hvguJDtqlV4e71IzNKus3gBkN8=" target="_blank" rel="noopener"></a>
Deputy Public Defender Alexia Cristina Mayorga argued this was merely an act of self-defense by the accused
noting the accused was in a relationship for about a month
Mayorga explained that during the relationship the accused was raped three times by the victim
DPD Mayorga explained that when the police interrogated the accused
the accused told the police about the experience of being assaulted by the victim and asked for a rape kit
DPD Mayorga argued the accused defended himself as he feared future harm from the victim
DDA Calonge argued that the reason why “there wasn’t a rape kit test was because we didn’t believe there was a sexual assault
Even the defendant acknowledges that the sample wouldn’t have necessarily shown non-consensual sex.”
DDA Calonge noted the accused continued to walk past the victim
explaining his reaction to the crime was not triggered by the past
and argued the crime of the accused should be charged as first-degree murder
DDA Calonge further stated this act was not involuntary manslaughter because the defendant was aware of the risk to the victim’s life
Based on PC section <a href="https://www.kannlawoffice.com/assault-with-deadly-weapon.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">245 (a) (1), </a>“Assault With A Deadly Weapon occurs whenever anyone assaults another person with a deadly weapon
or when anyone assaults another person using force likely to produce great bodily injury.” 
DDA Calonge explained this charge was not based on simply assault but that the accused knew the risk and executed the act of killing the victim
emphasizing that this was first-degree murder
DPD Mayorga argued jury instruction <a href="https://www.justia.com/criminal/docs/calcrim/200/252/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CALCRIM 252</a> applied
“The crime[s] [(and/or) other allegation[s]] charged in Count[s] require[s] proof of the union
DPD Mayorga then referenced <a href="https://www.justia.com/criminal/docs/calcrim/500/580/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CALCRIM 580:</a> “When a person commits an unlawful killing but does not intend to kill and does not act with conscious disregard for human life
then the crime is involuntary manslaughter.”
DPD Mayorga revealed the accused went back to the crime scene in person to ask about the condition of the victim
adding the accused did not know the extent of the victim’s injuries and was in shock when he heard his condition
DDA Calonge said the accused later wrote a letter stating
“I can’t stop seeing the image” and that his “heart sunk.”
DDA Calonge brought up this letter during the trial to argue that at the second swing
the accused knew he was hitting a “human being” and the accused “calmly” walked away from the scene once the act was done
DDA Calonge questioned why he didn’t call 911 for hours
DDA Calonge revealed the accused stated he did not remember what happened and did not have his skateboard
DDA Calonge further explained the accused allegedly stated
 “I was just trying to wake his ass up” by trying to get his “attention.”
DPD Mayorga refuted DDA Calonge ’s argument stating when being interviewed by detectives the accused was afraid due to his identity as a Black man and a person as a part of the LGBTQ+ community
Mayorga told the jury the accused was in a situation where he was nervous and afraid for his life
“You’re two white guys and I’m one Black dude.”
DDA Calonge explained there was an incident in Palo Alto where the accused allegedly hit another man with a skateboard on the head
The man did not die but he was injured and taken to the hospital
DPD Mayorga explained the accused is a man coming to California with no employment or community
a man having to learn it all on his own and that explains his mental state
Based on the autopsy, DDA Calonge revealed there were three strikes in the victim’s <a href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/22278-cervical-spine#:~:text=The%2520first%2520two%2520vertebrae%2520of,atlas%2520holds%2520your%2520head%2520upright." target="_blank" rel="noopener">C1</a> which is the ring-shaped bone that begins at the base of one’s skull
according to evidence from the victim’s autopsy
DDA Calonge asked for a first-degree murder conviction
it is “willful intentional express malice,” “premeditation” and “considered beforehand and deliberate thought process.”
DPD Mayorga argued that it is unlikely that the strikes from the skateboard caused the death of the victim
explaining that one would not think a skateboard could be a weapon
DPD Mayorga contended this was merely an “injury” and that it is normal for people to get lacerations after getting hit by a skateboard
The DPD revealed that there were no skull fractures and the deeper wounds were “rare.”
DPD Mayorga further argued the accused could not tell if the victim was injured badly because the victim was under a dark gray blanket and it was so dark outside that even the police officers needed a flashlight to see what happened.<a href="http://davisvanguard.networkforgood.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener"></a>
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“He was months into trying,” wife Michelle Calonge-Haskins said
“I wish he would have so we could have spent more time together.”
Before they could, <a href="https://www.tampabay.com/news/tampa/2021/03/24/bike-man-joe-haskins-who-kept-his-struggling-neighbors-on-the-road-dead-at-79/" target="_blank">he died at 79 on March 21, 2021.</a>
That’s why she knows Haskins would approve of the family’s decision to shutter Joe Haskins Bicycle Shop, which he had owned since 1960.
Calonge-Haskins’ daughter, Brittany Calonge, has been running the business at 2310 N Florida Ave. since he died. But she needs help. The solution would be for Calonge-Haskins to come out of retirement to assist with bike sales and repairs.
“He wouldn’t want that,” Calonge-Haskins said. “He would want me to stay retired. People told us not to make any decisions during the first year after he died. So, we thought we could continue to run the business, but we decided closing is the best decision for us.”
She’s been back in the shop recently, but only to say goodbye to customers.
Joe Haskins Bicycle Shop’s final day is Dec. 17.
Michael Bingham, 20-plus-year customer, left, drops his bike off for repairs and talks with Michelle Calonge-Haskins, wife of the late Joe Haskins, at Joe Haskins Bicycle Shop in Tampa. [&nbsp;JEFFEREE WOO  |  Times&nbsp;]“Customers are of course upset,” Calonge-Haskins said. “They also accept that times change. But it’s been around for a long time.”
Since 1916, according to a sign painted on the side of its building, making it the oldest bike shop in Tampa. Joe Haskins Bike Shop was originally named Tampa Cycle Company and owned by Haskins’ uncle, Anthony Arduengo.
Calonge-Haskins recently found the first receipt Haskins signed as owner. “May 27, 1960,” she said.
Haskins kept the business’ original name through at least 1979, according to news archives. Newspapers first identify it as Joe Haskins Bicycle Shop in 1981.
“They went from downtown on Florida Avenue to Franklin Street, from Franklin Street to Tampa Street, and then from Tampa Street to this location,” Calonge-Haskins said.
Brittany Calonge, manager, repairs a bike for a customer at Joe Haskins Bicycle Shop in Tampa. [&nbsp;JEFFEREE WOO  |  Times&nbsp;]She met Haskins at the Tampa Street location in 1978.
“I lived across from it,” Calonge-Haskins said. “I went over there to get a 25-cent soda and had my 11- month-old son in my arms.”
Haskins’ wife at the time, Dorothy Haskins, asked to hold the baby and for Calonge-Haskins to bring him back as often as possible.
“I did, and then one day she says I should start working there,” Calonge-Haskins said. “I would go in every once in a while, then went full time, and then went to work for the county for 20 years but would still go in on Saturdays.”
Dorothy Haskins died in 2011. A year later, Haskins and Calonge-Haskins married.
“Joe got sick with colon cancer. I got diagnosed with Degos, which is a rare fatal disease,” she said. “We were best friends and decided that we would get married and take care of each other. He died hugging me at the hospital.”
Michelle Calonge-Haskins, wife of the late Joe Haskins, left, assists Beth Harre-Orr at Joe Haskins Bicycle Shop in Tampa. [&nbsp;JEFFEREE WOO  |  Times&nbsp;]Due to diabetes, Haskins needed dialysis three times a week in his final years, Calonge-Haskins said. He was at the shop when treatment was done.
“It took everything he had just to function,” she said. “But he was so dedicated to this place.”
At age 6, Haskins lied about his age to get a paper route to help support his family. His first wife had six kids from a previous marriage.
“He adopted them all,” Calonge-Haskins said. “He bought every one of them a car, put braces on their teeth, put them through private school. He was a real go-getter and loved them all. They were his kids.”
There were a few times that Haskins came close to selling the business.
“But then he’d always say that if we do, we can’t get it back,” Calonge-Haskins said.
So, he instead prepared Calonge-Haskins’ daughter to take it over.
“He was hoping it would still be able to financially take care of her and me,” Calonge-Haskins said. “And then, down the road, she could choose what she wanted to do with it.”
Business is still good: On a recent Saturday, Calonge-Haskins said, they had more than 100 customers. But her daughter wants to try other ventures.
“We have wonderful customers who we will miss,” Calonge-Haskins said. “But it is time to move on.”
</a><a class="author-bio__content--byline" href="/author/paul-guzzo">Paul Guzzo</a>Former Culture and Hillsborough Reporter
TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - A Pima County Superior Court judge sentenced Michael Leday&nbsp;on Monday to more than 57 years in prison after he was convicted in a brutal New Year's Day double homicide.&nbsp;
A jury convicted Leday in September of two counts of second degree murder and two counts of aggravated assault for the deaths of Patrick Balbastro and Cindy Burnett and for seriously injuring Valerie Calonge.&nbsp;
Leday received the max sentence of 25 years for each of the second degree murder charges
He received the max sentence of 7 years for one of the aggravated assault charges and the presumptive sentence of 7 and a half years for the second aggravated assault charge
The two aggravated assault sentences will run concurrently
meaning they will run at the same time.&nbsp;
The judge did give Leday a little less than two years credit for time served
so he will end up spending more than 55 years in prison
Catalonia's Costa Brava is perhaps best known for its sun-soaked coves and small towns bursting with urbanites fleeing the big city every summer. But now, the town of Calonge, population 11,300, is seeking a different claim to fame: books.
'Calonge, poble de llibres' (or Calonge, town of books), is the name of the latest initiative to put the town on the map as a top cultural destination for used book or antiquarian book stores. Calling on booksellers to come and set up shop, the municipality promises "important economic incentives" it hopes will serve to revitalize the local economy "for years to come."
To do so, the local council will provide seven people with €10,000 grants and has made a number of commercial premises available for rent in the town's old quarter. In addition to this, it will also give up to €6,000 in grants to hire staff, as well as subsidize the cost of refurbishing buildings housing bookstores and offer a 90% discount on business license fees.&nbsp;
"I invite everyone looking for the ideal place to live to be brave and come here," mayor Jordi Soler said on Wednesday morning alongside other local politicians, academics, writers, and business owners from the University of Barcelona's Information and Audiovisual Media Faculty. "Life is for the brave. Come here and start your business," Soler said, extolling the virtues of his town.
According to those behind the program, the pandemic has changed our reading habits. With more and more people escaping the boredom of limited social interaction through literature, independent bookstore sales have skyrocketed.
Marçal Font, the president of Catalonia's Guild of Old Booksellers, believes Calonge must capitalize on this trend now. In his forties, he recalls being "young during the last crisis" in 2008 and maintains that becoming a "hub" for book lovers could help the town find its way out of the current one.
'Calonge, poble de llibres', should not depend exclusively on physical stores to attract business, its proponents explain, but also online stores as well as other literary workshops, fairs, and events in order to be a success.
Examples of other book villages are not in short supply, from the Castilian valley town of Urueña, Hay-on-Wye in Wales, Redu in Wallonia, or Chelopek in northwestern Bulgaria, all of which have made a name for themselves in the niche world of secondhand and old books.
And in light of the "Barcelona bookstore miracle," as famed writer Jorge Carrión describes the abundance of bookshops opening in the Catalan capital over the past year, is there any reason why this phenomenon should not be "contagious"?
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The Cala Belladona cove in the Costa Brava towns of Calonge i Sant Antoni and Platja d'Aro is now a dog-friendly beach, as announced by officials from both towns on Monday.
Officials will even open a small bar with services especially for pets.
Many pet owners, both locals and tourists, have been requesting the councils to open a dog-friendly beach in the area as until now they had to go to different towns for dogs to enjoy a swim.
"We are now a fully pet-friendly municipality," Jenny Xufré, Platja d'Aro's councilor for tourism, declared.
"I believe that pet owners consider their pets as another member of the family, and they also like to go on vacation [with their dogs], travel, go to restaurants and [for the animal to be] served water, even go to the beach, and our goal was to be able to offer these services," Xufré added.
"It was a need that many private operators and tourists had asked for," Calonge mayor Arturo Prades told journalists on the beach.
The new beach will be open all year and has 2,500 square meters for dogs to enjoy and play in this space located less than a 10-minute drive from each municipality. Those willing to walk to the destination can access the beach using the Camí de Ronda hiking trail and also from the Via Verda path starting on the C-253 road.
Until now, there were just a few dog-friendly beaches in the Baix Empordà county including Platja dels Griells beach in l'Estartit, Cala del Niu cove in Sant Feliu de Guíxols, and Platja Pere Grau beach in Palamós.
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Federal prosecutors say Medghyne Calonge, 41, of Tampa, Fla. had been let go in June 2019 after just six months at the New York-based online accounting firm for poor performance. One issue prosecutors cited was that she inappropriately locked a colleague out of a computer system after they had gotten into an argument.
Alpert writes about the media and entertainment industries for MarketWatch
He previously worked for the Wall Street Journal
he was part of a WSJ team awarded the Pulitzer Prize for national reporting
     GONZALES – A new hamburger joint is making its way to Gonzales this month
adding more competition to the booming restaurant scene
     The Texas franchise was brought to Ascension Parish by businessmen Chad Calonge and Ryan Brach
They are not newcomers to the Parish or the franchise business
Calonge said they decided to venture into the burger business as they saw an opportunity to make another successful business in Gonzales
     “We felt like there was a void in the market,” Calonge said
“There is to my knowledge no better burger place
It is a fast causal better burger market and we see that there isn’t that concept in Ascension Parish
We have our Rotolo's there that do well and felt like it would be a big hit to bring it to Ascension.”
chose to continue business in Ascension due to their love for the community and the people
     “We have been doing business in Ascension Parish for six and a half years and we really love Ascension Parish,” Calonge said
It’s a great community and we have had great success in this area and the people have been great to us
We have been as active as we could in the community
The local governments are very business friendly also
     Calonge added that they are still looking for dedicated employees to work at the new restaurant
Anyone interested in applying can do so directly through a link on their Facebook page
     Mooyah will be open for business starting Dec
The first 500 customers will receive a 32 oz
reusable cup that can be brought in at anytime for a $1 refill on any soft drink
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Philippines – In a swath of land in Labason
a former soldier named Generoso Calonge was just shy of 30 when he received a letter in the mail that would change the course of his life
It contained a clipping from the Bulletin Today newspaper – now known as Manila Bulletin – advising the public that the Department of Foreign Affairs was holding examinations for its Foreign Service Institute
Then second in command as his infantry battalion’s executive officer
Calonge remembers feeling timid as he tried to muster the courage to tell his commander about wanting to take the exams
“I thought he might laugh at me,” Calonge recalled in an interview with Rappler
Calonge had been a soldier for 6 years after graduating from the Australian Army&#8217;s Officer Cadet School at Portsea
And while he never really entertained the idea of joining the DFA
Calonge said he was unable to shake the prospect of serving beyond his usual routine
Government troops then were fighting against former rebels of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and before that
that wants me to take this exam,” Calonge said
Propelled by what he desribed was a long-held interest in international affairs
a 28-year-old Calonge managed to string together just enough words to ask his commander for permission to file a leave and take the DFA’s exams in Manila
I have a feeling,” Calonge told his commander as he held the small clipping in his hand
Calonge’s commander wished him luck and set him off on what would be a career in the foreign service now spanning over 3 decades
one can find Calonge in the graying Department of Foreign Affairs building that is located along Roxas Boulevard
and a kind face that remembers the legendary diplomats he looked up to: former foreign secretaries Emmanuel Pelaez and Raul Manglapus
Nearly 35 years of government service also meant Calonge may have very well worked in almost every floor of the historic DFA building
he’s had various stints in offices such as the Office of the Undersecretary for Policy
Office of the Undersecretary for International Economic Relations
Office of Intelligence and Security Services
Though he no longer treads the jungles that used to frequent
it is Calonge’s past as a soldier that has
guided and continues to equip him for service in the DFA
His training comes out in the way he speaks
“Even if I&#8217;ve moved to the civilian world
I don&#8217;t think i can just shed off what I learned and what I did in the uniformed service
there is a certain selflessness in you and I think I still have that
if I still have that chance and if government will still send me oversees
“That’s the soldier in me – to go where I&#8217;m told to go
It’s the unique mix of military and diplomacy training that would carry Calonge through a storied career that has seen him come out of challenges other foreign service officers may never see
It was sometime between 2004 and 2005 when Calonge – who was then holding his first major post as consul-general in Dubai – was sent to Afghanistan to ensure the release of a Philippine diplomat kidnapped along with at least 3 others
Barely two weeks before the Philippine diplomat (whose name Calonge withheld) was supposed to depart
he was kidnapped by “rogue elements” at odds with the Afghan government
Calonge and 3 others were sent to Afghanistan to negotiate a release
As they landed on a tarmac in the capital city of Kabul
Calonge recalled seeing French troops of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization who looked “highly trained” and ready to transport him and his companions in armored vehicles to where they would stay
Calonge said he wasn’t too nervous about the situation
he looks back to it as one of the &#8220;highlights of his career&#8221; since it was an experience where one worked for &#8220;a cause or for something or someone.&#8221;
Some 6 weeks later and with the help of the Philippine government
Calonge and his companions completed their rescue mission just before Christmas in the first week of December
“It’s a nice feeling to be operating with other agencies towards a common goal
It doesn&#8217;t make you feel isolated at all,” he recalled as he suggested his training as a soldier was probably what got him there in the first place
“You feel that there is a synergy in all these institutions and government agencies,” he added
it’s the same “do what is needed” mindset that earned Calonge his law degree from the University of the Philippines in 1985
and later on Master of Laws from Harvard Law School in 1988
The same could be said for the various foreign posts he’s held through his career
which include being second secretary consul and later on consul general in Washington DC
head of post in Saipan of the Northern Mariana Islands
Calonge said what’s remained constant is the need to value Philippine national interests when both at home and abroad
But this is perhaps most urgent in Calonge’s latest post where he leads the DFA’s Maritime and Ocean Affairs Office (MOAO)
The diplomat inherits the MOAO at a time when public scrutiny that concerns Philippine waters and maritime zones is at its highest
much attention has been cast on the Duterte administration’s policy on the West Philippine Sea with the President himself criticized for downplaying the maritime dispute in exchange for loans and grants from Beijing
all this has failed to prevent a growing list of Chinese ship incursions into Philippine waters
Aside from this, Calonge steers the MOAO as one of the Philippine government&#8217;s officials in charge of coordinating and overseeing a <a href="https://www.rappler.com/nation/217559-memorandum-understanding-philippines-china-oil-gas-development-deal">memorandum of understanding</a> (MOU) with China on joint oil and gas exploration in the West Philippine Sea
The challenge is difficult enough that Calonge spares only a few carefully chosen words when asked how he would deal with China’s aggressive position in the West Philippine Sea
“They have a long term view and we have to adapt to that….But the important thing is to talk rather than keep to ourselves and do things the way we want them without consulting
or they themselves doing that,” Calonge said
“Diplomacy is 90% or maybe 100% talking,” he added
“We have to avail ourselves of the established mechanisms [for discussion] and see if there will be opportunities that arise.” 
Calonge said one of his main priorities would be to lay the foundations of agreements that would secure all water borders of the Philippines
Tracing lines around a map of the Philippine archipelago
Calonge said securing the country’s was needed not only where the West Philippine Sea stretches out to the South China Sea
but in all maritime zones that surround the country
“You have sworn to defend the country and to see to it that its territorial integrity is preserved,” he said
he said doing so was needed not only to secure the Philippine territory but to ensure food security as well
It probably has all the resources it needs but our people need guidance – especially those in the shore – to help in the preservation of the living resoources,” Calonge said
“The only way to do that is to know where you are
So far, the work has paid off. In the year and a half Calonge has lead the MOAO, talks with Indonesia saw the long-awaited <a href="https://www.rappler.com/nation/236905-philippines-indonesia-maritime-boundary-treaty-now-in-force-august-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener">establishment of a treaty</a> enter into force
That treaty draws a boundary between both countries’ overlapping exclusive economic zones
Calonge hopes to achieve the same thing with Vietnam
“Once I complete that or lay the foundations for all the water boundaries then I would be happy in my job,” Calonge said
Though his career in the foreign service has taken him through a vast array of posts both at home and abroad
Calonge said the fundamentals of what make a good diplomat remain the same
a diplomat should be one who “keeps the interests of the country at heart.” A diplomat
I think there is enough greatness in the Philippines that the country will move forward,” Calonge said
It’s a lesson that prompts Calonge to remember the “prophetic” message his commander once told the younger version of himself: “I am very
you will leave the uniformed service and stay in the foreign service.” 
was shot dead near the municipal hall on Friday afternoon
Police said Calonge was talking with Engineer Edgar Pampanga and Hdj
Abduhari Gapor near the municipal hall in Barangay Poblacion in Mabuhay town when an unidentified suspect walked up to them and shot them
Calonge died while Pampanga and Gapor were hurt
Mabuhay police are tracking down the suspect
while other nearby police stations were asked to assist in setting up checkpoints
– with reports from Richard Falcatan/Rappler.com