ACROSS AMERICA — In the runup to the 4th of July, we can all learn from Alexander Burke about liberty, self-government and other freedoms at stake in the American Revolution.
An admitted Vietnam War “draft dodger,” the Herndon, Virginia, man may seem an unlikely symbol of the patriotism attached to Independence Day. He was in the Army at 18, not old enough to vote, when he got his orders to Vietnam. He went AWOL, was arrested and spent a couple of years in prison.
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People serve their country and fight for its principles in different ways. Burke told Patch’s Michael O’Connell that he wages his fight at the election booth.
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Burke hasn’t missed a single election — neither local nor state nor federal — since he became old enough to vote at 21, about three years after he said no to Vietnam. “It’s important for the American people to exercise the right to vote,” Burke said. “It’s very, very important.”
Now 71, he drives around Herndon in his scooter to share that message. “I want to use this to get the word out here,” he told Patch of his election-themed scooter, decorated with flags and campaign signs. “People have responded, well over 50 people. I only had one person give me a hard time. But hey, it’s freedom of speech. Nobody’s going to agree with you 100 percent. You have to have something to say.” » A Patch Exclusive by Michael O’Connell for Herndon Patch
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What Kids Are Doing About Hunger
His sixth grade English class’ annual Feast to Fight Hunger on hiatus since the start of the pandemic, teacher Brandon Lewis knew this was the year he had to bring it back to the Swampscott, Massachusetts, school. Food insecurity gnaws at about 1 in 6 Swampscott families, up significantly from 1 in 18 families about a decade ago, Lewis told Patch’s Scott Souza. Feast to Fight Hunger is a fundraiser for a nearby soup kitchen and the sixth graders learn about culinary jobs while they’re putting on the dinner, but “the goal is to give them more perspective about how some in their class may not do as well as others because they are here six hours on an empty stomach,” Lewis said. “The goal is to teach them how the world really works. How do families end up in trouble? I try to get ahead of the idea that the only people in trouble are the ones shaking a change cup.” » A Patch Exclusive by Scott Souza for Swampscott Patch
This Dog Is A Warrior
The first time Karey Burek of Palm Harbor, Florida, set eyes on the 3-year-old American Staffordshire terrier Denali, her heart sank at the sight of third-degree burns over the dog’s head and back. She and another dog had been doused in gasoline and locked in a room by their owner, who set the house on fire. Denali, the worst injured of the two, was given 50/50 survival odds. “She has such a warrior spirit,” Burek told Patch’s D’Ann Lawrence White. “During the surgeries and burn treatments and all the excruciating pain, she still wagged her tail through it all.” Resilient through physically painful treatment, “she never lost her love for humans or her determination to survive,” said Burek, who considers herself a bit of an underdog. “She inspired me and changed my life.” » A Patch Exclusive by D’Ann Lawrence White for Palm Harbor Patch
Reunion In Time For Graduation
Almost two years ago when they were separated at the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, in the crush of Afghans attempting to flee the Taliban takeover, it seemed impossible Mohammad Mir Shahnoory’s entire family would be together again Wednesday to cheer him on as he picked up his high school diploma in Brick, New Jersey. Joyful hardly describes their feelings. As a postscript to the harrowing story told to Patch’s Karen Wall, the family had another unexpected cause for celebration when they were finally reunited around Memorial Day. Mir has a full-ride scholarship to Harvard and the chance for an elite education. “They loved his story” of escaping Afghanistan and pursuing his dream of coming to the United States, said Christie Williams, who with her husband sponsored Mir and took him into their home while he waited for his family to arrive. » A Patch Exclusive by Karen Wall for Brick Patch
Ukrainian Refugees Receive Warm Welcome
A refugee from another life-or-death situation, the war in Ukraine, recently made his mark at an art competition in Dunedin, Florida, winning best of show awards. After Russia’s army invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Mykola Herun, a wood sculptor, muralist and portrait painter, and his wife of 36 years, Nadiak, were faced with an untenable choice — either leave the country they cherished or pray they wouldn’t become the next victims of an aerial bomb assault. Their daughter, Olena Hristov, told Patch’s D’Ann Lawrence White, her parents were reluctant to leave. “She was afraid of everything, especially for a big change and a long trip,” Hristov said. “My father was ready to go and defend Ukraine, but he has a heart problem, and he is 62 years old, too old to serve in the military.” It took some convincing, but they joined their daughter and her husband in Florida, the precious little they brought with them outweighed by anxiety. The biggest surprise, Hristov said, was the way the city would embrace her parents. » A Patch Exclusive by D’Ann Lawrence White for Dunedin Patch
Police Save Wedding Day
Rachel Harth recently found herself in the middle of every bride’s nightmare that some unexpected calamity will disrupt her wedding. The limo taking Harth, her mother and bridesmades to the same Westfield, New Jersey, chapel where her parents were married 33 years ago broke down in the pouring rain. A police officer who responded to a call about a limo blocking traffic opened his umbrella when Harth and the other women piled into the groom’s limo, an act of chivalry that left a big impression. “The police were just lifesavers!” Harth’s mother told Patch’s Alexis Tarrazi. The wedding earlier this month went on as planned. » A Patch Exclusive by Alexis Tarrazi for Westfield Patch
A Life Well Lived
Rita McCord lived every single one of her 100 years to the fullest. She died in February and will be remembered Saturday at a mass at the Catholic church in Evergreen Park, Illinois, where she and her husband were long-time parishioners. As Patch’s Lorraine Swanson wrote in McCord’s obituary, the centenarian grew up in the Roaring ’20s across the street from Al Capone and her parents rented the lawn of their South Side Chicago home to local press so they could keep track of the mobster’s comings and goings. She gave up a college scholarship after winning an oratory contest so she could work to send her younger brother to college instead. She was the first female ticketing agent for the former TWA. She knitted high-end fashions for Marshall Field’s. She traveled the world and decorated her house with treasures picked up along the way, each attached to a story. She was an “orchid whisperer.” And she wrote a book toward the end of what everyone who knew her agreed was a life well lived. » A Patch Exclusive by Lorraine Swanson for Evergreen Park Patch
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