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Recent StoriesHere is a selection of my recent stories that have aired on various radio outlets. My complete archive can be heard by clicking the Archive tab on the left.
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Hostage Rescue and Reunion
Former missionary hostages and pilot Mack Scord (second row, right)
In August 1964, in the central African country known today as the
Democratic Republic of Congo, a militant rebel group called the Simbas seized nearly 2,000 U.S. and European citizens, many of them missionaries, and held them hostage in Stanleyville. On November 24th of that year, Belgian and American military forces mounted a dramatic airborne mission to rescue the hostages and crush the Simba rebellion. Recently, some of the surviving hostages, the pilot, and the airplane used in the rescue were brought together by a lucky chain of events.
(Produced for VOA and AARP Prime Time, April, 2013)
Faces of Elephantiasis: In Nigeria, Patients Remain After the Disease is Gone
The LF Support Group in Jos, Nigeria
Before I became a reporter, I was a medical epidemiologist with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and lived in Africa in the 1980s. I recently returned to the continent as a journalist and came face to face with a disease I had only read about in textbooks. Here are my thoughts on that experience.
(Produced for The World, April 11, 2013)
New Strategy Aims to Eradicate Elephantiasis
Hamisu Isa has lymphatic filariasis
The tropical disease known as lymphatic filariasis, or elephantiasis, affects 120 million people worldwide. The devastating parasitic illness causes lymphedema, in which legs, arms and genitals swell to enormous size. Now, a new public health strategy, tested in Nigeria by the Atlanta-based Carter Center, is raising hopes that this crippling disease can soon be eradicated.
(produced for VOA, April 6, 2013)
(produced for VOA, April 6, 2013)
Rotarians Volunteer to Rid Nigeria of Polio
Rotarian Patrice Putnam immunizes a child in Kaduna, Nigeria
They’re at a point in their lives where they could be playing with their grandchildren, working in the garden, or on a cruise, instead, these seniors are spending their leisure time eradicating polio in Nigeria. In December, 2012, I joined a 15-person team of Americans - all Rotarians - as they participated in Nigeria's National Immunization Days.
(produced for AARP Prime Time, April, 2013)
(produced for AARP Prime Time, April, 2013)
Chicken Farmer Up to His Neck in Alligators
Newly hatched alligator
Georgia is well known for its agricultural products, like peaches, pecans, and chickens. Now, in the tiny town of Camilla, one farm is turning out an unusual item that's in big demand in Europe's high fashion industry.
[for listener comments, see NPR Website]
(produced for NPR's All Things Considered, October 7, 2012)
[for listener comments, see NPR Website]
(produced for NPR's All Things Considered, October 7, 2012)
Blind Willie McTell Lives on in Thomson, Georgia
In the 1920s, 30s, 40s and 50s bluesman Blind Willie McTell traveled throughout the south, but Thomson, Georgia - his birthplace - was a frequent stopover. For the past 18 years, the city of Thomson has been celebrating its famous musical son by organizing The Blind Willie McTell Festival.
(produced for Georgia Public Broadcasting, May 15, 2012)
Georgia Jellyfish Are Tasty Delights in China
Jellyfish are a nuisance to fishermen and a danger to swimmers, but in the small costal town of Darien, Georgia, some shrimp fishermen are catching jellyfish and sending them to China and Japan where they're considered a delicacy.
(produced for VOA, March 2012)
Grady Hospital - Atlanta's Health Care Safety Net
For more than 100 years, Grady Hospital has been providing healthcare to the poor and uninsured. But in the past decade, as healthcare costs rose and government budgets shrank, it has become harder for Grady Hospital to balance its books. This came to a head in 2007, when Grady almost lost its accreditation. Major changes were made to the hospital's governance, personnel, and budget. In this three part series, broadcast in January, 2012, on WABE, Atlanta's NPR affiliate, looks at how well Grady is meeting its mandate to serve as the region's health safety net.
(This series was supported in part by a fellowship from the USC/Annenberg - California Endowment for Health Reporting)
(This series was supported in part by a fellowship from the USC/Annenberg - California Endowment for Health Reporting)
STORY ONE: Grady's Mandate: Have budget cuts and staff cuts hurt Grady's ability to serve the poor?
STORY TWO: Grady's New Directions: With government support limited, Grady is seeking new sources of revenue
STORY THREE: Is primary care the solution?: Primary health centers may improve Grady's ability to deliver care
Hidden History Saves African-American Schoolhouse
When the tiny African-American community on Georgia’s St. Simons Island set out to save its one-room schoolhouse, it didn't realize the building was linked to an historic effort to combat racial discrimination in the early 20th century.
(Produced for VOA & Prime Time Radio, November 2011)
