I wish my dad had lived to see this day. Edward Jan Collins was the child of Jewish parents who died in the Holocaust, the brother of siblings scattered by war, the father of children born in America to a better life. As we prepare to inaugurate a new President, our first African American President, he would have been amazed at how far this country has come. My father … Continue reading Patriotism
Ever since I traveled to Kampala, Uganda in 2006 I have wanted to tell the story about the village BeadforLife (http://beadforlife.org) was creating with its members. On our first visit we learned that affordable housing was a dream for the women who were trying to lift themselves out of extreme life crushing poverty. Almost all wished for a home that they would own rather than rent. They … Continue reading Friendship Village
I had my first photos ever in a gallery. A call for entries went out for a juried exhibit at Flash Gallery in Denver (http://workingwithartists.org) and two of my photos were selected. The subject of the exhibit was “Home is Where the Heart Is” and photographers were encouraged to submit their visions of what home means. Proceeds from the exhibit will go to help the Denver Rescue … Continue reading Amazing Grace
The principal of the Challenge School, Edie Alvarez, sent an email to the student body and their families on January 2nd. There had been a fire at the school overnight. Authorities were investigating. Two sheds on the ground were destroyed. It could have been worse. The PTCO sent an email shortly after, elaborating on the loss. All the sets, props and costumes from the theatre department were destroyed in … Continue reading Disaster Relief
I’m so glad we decided not to take that cruise over the holidays. I came back from Beijing feeling a bit flush after 90 straight days of producing at the Olympics. A Caribbean vacation sounded like a great way to spend winter break but my teenage son didn’t want to do anything that didn’t include his friends so we decided to celebrate at home. As I … Continue reading Economy Sucks Journal #1 12.17.08
Juliette dreams of someday marrying a nice man. One unlike the monster who poured acid on her in a jealous rage in July 2007. We are sitting with this young woman, just 19 years old, on a porch near a church in Kampala, Uganda. Juliette is beautiful on the side of her face that she shows to the world. Her eyes are bright and she has a radiant … Continue reading Juliette’s Acid Attack
My husband and I had a newspaper war. Our subscriptions to the local papers lapsed and I didn’t renew them. It was sort of an experiment to see if we would really miss not having the Denver Post and the Rocky Mountain News delivered to our home. Everything is available to us on line and I scan half a dozen news websites a day. Often by the … Continue reading Newspaper War
I first learned the layoffs had begun on Wednesday morning when I woke up. A friend posted a desperate cry that she was trying to stay sane after half of NBC’s network bureau was let go in Dallas. It was deja vu for me. I was downsized 10 years ago and I watched Facebook all day as people started changing their status and talking about getting their resumes together. One colleague is … Continue reading The New Face(book) of News
Our Ugandan driver picked us up from the airport in Entebbe on November 9. We were barely down the road before he asked us who we voted for in the election. He wanted to talk about Barack Obama. He wanted to tell us about the parties all over Kampala on the night Obama was elected. They were still going on days after the election to celebrate the … Continue reading Africans on Obama
I’m taking this attack in Mumbai personally and it makes me sick. I just returned from India on Monday after an amazing few days in Delhi. We went to attend the wedding of Pravheen and Akanksha. We made Indian friends and were treated like honored guests. As Westerners we were welcomed with open arms by a warm and gracious people. We were invited into their … Continue reading Mumbai On My Mind
Vicky Collins Online 