Vol. 1, No. 17 April 25, 2020
Please mark your calendars about the following two items:
(1) The Tele-Town Hall with Congresswoman Donna Shalala that had been scheduled for last Thursday is now next Thursday: 4/30 at 4:30.
(2) Farm Share will be distributing food at the Gibson Bethel Community Center on Thursday, May 7 starting at 9:00 am. Unlike the last time, cars will be routed to enter from the north entrance of the parking lot off of 66th Street. A flyer is in the process of being created and as soon as I get it, I will send it out. It will have more details about the traffic flow.
The Governor has put together a draft about the Phase 1 of opening the Parks. It's very detailed. I am posting only a small portion of it. Click here to get the rest.
When it is safe, South Miami will re-open some of its parks. They will be patrolled to make sure that people are keeping six-feet apart and abiding by the other restrictions. As soon as there is more information, I will post it.
Once again, the South Miami Police Department organized a "thank you" tribute to a hospital's working staff. The Larking Hospital Healthcare Worker Appreciation event took place at 6:30 am on April 23. Isabelle Garcia, the owner of Garcia Nevett Chocolatetier, a City of South Miami business, donated the individual treat bags that were distributed to the doctors, nurses and support staff that morning.
The Police Benevolent Association (PBA) sent a letter to South Miami requesting that the City give a temporary hazard pay increase and modified work schedules to the Police. Lt. Jesus Aguiar, PBA Representative, wrote back to the PBA: "I met with [the members] and discussed the above mentioned information, we are glad to say that the City Manager and the Chief of Police have gone above and beyond to meet our needs. At this time, the members of the Lieutenants and Captains Bargaining Unit would like the PBA to retract the requests made in your letter." For me, this is one more indication that our city staff is a solid and conscientious team.
Steven Alexander, City Manager, has posted his second memorandum about the current state of the City of South Miami: COVID-19 UPDATE # 2. Among other things he writes:
"The City has actively been trying to leverage federal dollars to assist the City and others like it with the extraordinary expenses of responding to the pandemic disease. Although South Miami is not fairing as poorly as others, due to the dramatic reduction in certain revenues and the ongoing cost of protecting our employees and continuing to provide public safety and sanitation during this period of unknown length, we still are incurring expenses that should be addressed by federal allocation much like exists for hurricane disasters.
I have written a letter to the Miami Dade County Deputy Mayor who is handling this issue, instructed our excellent federal lobbyist Omar Franko with Becker to work on it directly with Cong. Shalala and the entire Congress and we have discussed it with other local and state leaders.
Senate Majority Leader McConnel has stated in essence that he believes that no federal money should be allocated to State and local governments and he intends to make sure that the Senate does not approve any legislation that would provide such funding." . . .
"Generally speaking, crime is down although still present. The shelter in place effort has resulted in less traffic and calls related to criminal activity but calls for service, such as, please check on so and so at a particular address, have risen. Our police continue to patrol with high visibility to demonstrate to the extent possible the very solid presence of law enforcement."
The City is in the process of scheduling two virtual meetings. Both the May 5th Commission Meeting and the May 12th Planning Board meetings will be held using Zoom. All of us are getting instructions on how to use this new medium. Details on how you can join the meeting will be forth coming.
Yesterday about 200 children's meals were distributed at the South Miami Children's Clinic. Parents whose children are patients at the clinic RSVP-ed to an email sent by Dr. Tina Scott. The food, soft squishy tennis-size balls, and coloring books were loaded into bags. Depending on how many children were in each family, the parent was given that same number of meals and toys. Thanks are due to Kidz Medical Services, Inc., First National Bank of South Miami, Florida Dairy Farmers, and Chef Chris. Chef Chris is credited as the originator of and energy behind this project.
Child care is being provided for the children of first responders:
Message from the Early Learning Coalition:
Child Care for First Responders
and Healthcare Workers Available Now
First Responders and Healthcare Workers can receive financial assistance to pay for child care and help with locating open programs from the Early Learning Coalition, regardless of income level. Click here for many more details and information about how to apply.
Two friends, Kristin Guerin and Jessica Gutierrez have now set up an online buddy system whereby able-bodied and healthy adults can volunteer to pick up supplies for those unable to leave their homes during the pandemic. Volunteers looking to donate their time, as well as people seeking help, can email buddysystemmia@gmail.com.
ACCESS Florida offers - Help with buying food, - Low or no-cost health care, - Cash Assistance,
- Help paying Medicare Premiums
If you know or believe that you have been ill with COVID-19 here are the guidelines about when to end self-isolation:
The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (FDEO) reports that 674,444 Reemployment Assistance claims were verified and 108,216 Claimants were paid between March 15th and April 21st. (16%) Everyone is acknowledging that the Reemployment Assistance (Unemployment benefits) system is very, very slow, because it’s out of date. It has been shut down since Friday in order for up-grades to be made. Efforts are underway asking the all claims be paid retroactive to the date the person became unemployed.
AARP's Senior Community Service Employment Program is seeking participants:
The President of the United States has suggested that injecting disinfectants might be a cure for COVID-19. Here are some responses:
Many medical specialties have weighed in on this one of Trump's Corona strategies: - The Allergists were in favor of scratching it, but the Dermatologists advised not to make any rash moves. - The Gastroenterologists had sort of a gut feeling about it, but the Neurologists thought the Administration had a lot of nerve. - Meanwhile, Obstetricians felt certain everyone was laboring under a misconception, while the Ophthalmologists considered the idea shortsighted. - Pathologists yelled, "Over my dead body!" while the Pediatricians said, "Oh, grow up!” - The Psychiatrists thought the whole idea was madness, while the Radiologists could see right through it. - Surgeons decided to wash their hands of the whole thing and the Internists claimed it would indeed be a bitter pill to swallow. - The Plastic Surgeons opined that this proposal would "put a whole new face on the matter.” - The Podiatrists thought it was a step forward, but the Urologists were pissed off at the whole idea. - Anesthesiologists thought the whole idea was a gas, and those lofty Cardiologists didn’t have the heart to say "no." - In the end, the Proctologists won out, leaving the entire decision up to the a-h s in Washington.
😘
Take care and stay safe!
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