Filmmaker Makes It Her Mission to Reunite People Who Are ‘Erased’ From Their Families After Divorce

Documentary filmmaker Ginger Gentile (Erasing Dad), a child of divorce herself, believes that unfair laws break families apart following divorce or separation, which often leads to erasure of a child or parent. In response to this problem, she directed Erasing Family to help kids of divorce ...

Maria’s Sunday Paper: The Power of Community

The other day, my brother Timothy spoke to a packed stadium as he opened the Special Olympics USA Games in Seattle. As he talked about “taking a stand for inclusion,” everyone in the stadium rose to their feet. Tears filled their eyes. Hearts burst with inspiration. A friend who was...

I’ve Been Thinking … From Longing to Belonging

Once a year I travel ten thousand miles to be with my community. We’re a mixed bunch, that’s for sure. We come from every continent except Antarctica. Some of us live in huge cities, others in tiny villages. Some of us aren’t even human. But when we all come together in a South African...

I’ve Been Thinking … Lunches With the Homeless

Ten months ago, I was walking along Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, shopping for a gift, when a grey-haired man wearing jeans and a jacket approached me. He looked friendly, had a twinkle in the eye, and was holding a sign that read: ‘Need Food For Myself And My Family.’ “Go...

I’ve Been Thinking … It’s Time For Us to Come Together

The following is a speech given by Timothy Shriver at this year's Special Olympics USA Games opening ceremony in Seattle. In a special way, mothers and fathers, and by them I include any people who have mothered or fathered these graduates, nurtured, held, strengthened, guided them, beam with...

Identifying the Signs of Drug Abuse in Teens & Young Adults: 1 Parent’s Journey to Recovery

It’s been over five years ago, now, that I was on a business trip in Washington, D.C. when I received a jarring phone call from my wife at home in Los Angeles. The second I heard the phone ring, I knew she wasn’t calling to say hello. After all, it was 4:25 a.m., Pacific Time. As it ...

Maria’s Sunday Paper: What I’m Thinking Ahead of This Fourth of July

The other morning when I sat down to meditate, my mind was bouncing all over the place and I struggled to access a place of calm. One second, I was thinking about my children. The next, I was thinking about the children who have been separated from their parents at the border. I could fee...

I’ve Been Thinking … A New Generation Must Draw the Line

Before February 14, we thought we had plenty of time. We wanted to do something that would make the world a better place, to fight for justice as lawyers or activists or crusading journalists, to be responsible citizens and raise good-­hearted children. But first we had to finish high school....

Media Veteran Founds ‘Report For America’ to Provide Quality Journalism to Underserved Communities

Steve Waldman, a former Washington political journalist, believes that many parts of our country are underserved when it comes to quality local news coverage. Pulling the best elements of AmeriCorps, Teach for America, the Peace Corps and the nation’s best nonprofit news organizations, Wa...

I’ve Been Thinking … About What We All Can Agree On

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about the state of our union and how much it feels like we’ve become the Divided States of America. These days, we’re living in an age of the preposterous and the unthinkable. We’re subjected to a 24/7 news cycle of anger and adrenaline that entert...