Bronagh Power-Cassidy sank the second of two free throws for Holy Cross with 3.2 seconds remaining to lift the Crusaders to a tough 63-62 decision over Colgate Jan. 17 in Worcester, Massachusetts.
Power-Cassidy rebounded a Colgate shot attempt in the closing seconds and was fouled. She missed the first of two free throws but made the second to send the Raiders to their fifth straight loss.
Colgate (1-5, 1-5 Patriot League North) played the final 2:35 without sophomore point guard Alexa Brodie, who suffered an injury after scoring nine points and handing out a career-high seven assists. The game was tied 61-all at the time.
The annual Operation Sunshine Holiday Campaign hit its fundraising goal of $65,000 thanks to a big final push from Bill Keeler and his Keeler in the Morning radio show on WIBX 950 AM in Utica.
“This has been such an unprecedented year and to see it end the way it did today is very apropos,” Keeler said shortly after his show Wednesday. “Everyone has so much to worry about right now. I was really surprised how this thing just blew up today. A lot of people all really came together for this.”
Keller admitted he was initially afraid that morning’s show wouldn’t even happen, as he was home in isolation broadcasting from his basement studio while recovering from COVID.
Facing a Christmas that will now be a brighter one thanks to the loving outreach of Operation Sunshine and the Salvation Army of Rome, single mom Joya said she feels the world would be a much better place if everyone felt the same love for others.
“If we all loved our neighbors like they do, it would get rid of all of the hate,” she said, her rosy outlook living up to her name. “It’s the holidays so let’s all smile a little bit more.”
Joya said she has been helped by her local Salvation Army of Rome an Operation Sunshine agency partner to provide a happy holiday for her two fourth-grade sons Jordan and Kaleb. They are “Irish twins,” she quipped … brothers who were born within a year of each other.
HAARC: Racial equity ignored In Madison County police reform process
Hamilton Area Anti-Racism Coalition
The Hamilton Area Anti-Racism Coalition (HAARC) submitted another statement to Madison County about police reform Dec. 16 at a virtual meeting. HAARC continues to center the dialogue around racial inequities in policing. They claim that to date, the Sheriff s Office has not examined or discussed practices that may disproportionately target community members who are Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC).
“The governor’s mandate for police reform was created in direct response to the immense public outcry following the murder of George Floyd and countless other BIPOC people who have been killed by police,” said Cris Amann of HAARC. “If you read the executive order, it is 100 percent rooted in addressing racial inequities in policing. The Police Reform Committee continues to ignore this.”
The Connected Community Elves are making the holiday season a bit brighter for some Rome area children, thanks to a partnership between Operation Sunshine and Connected Community Schools in Rome.
Connected Community Schools is dedicated to uniting a child’s most important influences of school, family and community to nurture them into productive citizens. Their model is spearheaded by Community Alliance, formerly known as Rome Alliance for Education, which is one of the many agencies involved in Operation Sunshine to deliver holiday gifts to needy families throughout the area.
When families register through the online form, they are assigned to organizations based on their location. Operations manager Miranda Majewicz explained Connected Community Schools comes in at the end of registration, picking families as well as taking on those many families who miss the deadline. They then assist the gift giving outreach right up until Christmas Eve.