September 28, 2005 Lisa Tolliver Show pays tribute to the late Robert Shaw Tolliver and features Food P.A.T.C.H., Westchester County's Food Bank

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY - I was originally scheduled to host both "SCORE Radio" today (featuring Food P.A.T.C.H.: Westchester County's Food Bank) and "The Lisa Tolliver Show" (featuring photographer Rich Remsberg, who recently published Riders for God"). However, SCORE changed the host lineup (which bumped me to a later date) and my father died on September 17. Therefore, today's "Lisa Tolliver Show" featured:
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Guest Christina Rohatynskyj, Executive Director of Food P.A.T.C.H. , who shared that organization's mission and initiatives and provided advice about sending donations to disaster victims,
and
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A tribute to my beloved father (and past guest on a Veteran's Day radio broadcast), the late Robert Shaw Tolliver. Dad died of heart failure related to Stage 4 lung cancer and emphysema. As part of his tribute, I played Luther VanDross' "Dance With My Father."

Thank you Whitney Radio Engineer, Steve Tito, for the tissues. And thank you and bless you, listeners, who contacted me after the show to share your condolences and inform me that you'd kept Dad in your prayers.

Here's the playlist of upcoming shows:

10/26 - Kenneth Brewster, Director of Crowe's Funeral Home - Pre-need Planning
11/9 - Kenneth Guttenplan, Esq. - Estates, Wills & Trusts
11/26 - Eli Gordon, Director of Development, Food P.A.T.C.H. - Fundraising tips and gift basket giveaway
12/4 - Folklorists Steve Zeitlin (Executive Director of City Lore) and Ilana Harlow (Folklore Specialist at the Library of Congress American Folklore Center) authors of "Giving Voice to Sorrow," a book describing grieving and mourning practices in various cultures
12/28 - Holiday Celebration
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Tribute to my beloved father, Robert Shaw Tolliver, 7/15/1931-9/17/2005

QUEENS, NY - My beloved father, Robert Shaw Tolliver, died on September 17, 2005 at 12:44 a.m. from heart failure caused by Stage IV lung cancer and emphysema. I have no doubt that he walks with God and is now at peace. I know that should comfort me, and it does, some. However, I miss Dad terribly, as do the many other relatives and friends who love him.

OBITUARY

Robert Shaw Tolliver (“Bob”) was born in the Bronx, New York, on July 15, 1931, to Pearl Louise Henley and Benjamin Ernest Tolliver. He was the youngest of five children who included Dorothy, Sylvia, Benjamin and Frances.

Bob grew up in the Bronx and moved to Jamaica, NY, traveling to Brooklyn to attend Boys High School. He entered the United States Marine Corps in January, 1952. Bob served as a Corporal during the Korean Conflict and was stationed at numerous U.S. bases and in Okinawa, Japan. He earned the National Defense Service Medal, Korean Service Medal and United National Service Medal.

After receiving an honorable discharge from the U.S. Marines, Robert married Doris Elaine Hutchings on September 8, 1956. They resided in Long Island, New York, with their two children, Lisa Marie and Robert Shaw, Junior. Throughout his life, Bob remained a devoted father and maintained a close and loving relationship with his children.

Bob worked as an electrician at Lockheed Aircraft Corp., where he headed a team whose responsibilities included maintaining Air Force One. In November, 1965, Lockheed honored Bob by sending him to Japan on a classified special assignment.

Bob was multi-talented and generously donated his time and treasures to those in need. Even after he retired, he maintained an active schedule, earning numerous certifications and awards for achievement and meritorious service. For example, he was named “Man of the Year” by the Rockaway Boulevard Senior Center for outstanding volunteer service.

Bob was spiritually grounded as was manifested in his dealings with his fellow man on a daily basis. His deep racial pride was captured in a sixties newspaper article demonstrating his protest to the exclusion of minority contractors in the construction of Rochdale Village.

A fun-loving and gregarious individual, Bob will be missed by all who knew and loved him. His survivors include his children, Lisa and Robert, Jr., daughter-in-law, Annette, grandsons Robert III and Daniel, and numerous nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

~~ Lovingly Submitted: T H E F A M I L Y ~~



SCRIPTURES SHARED IN THE FUNERAL BROCHURE

* * * * * * *
I am the resurrection and the life: He that believeth in me though he were dead, yet shall he live. (St. John 11:25)

* * * * * * *
Come all ye who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11.28)

* * * * * * *
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love His appearing (presence) (II Timothy 4:7-8)

* * * * * *
And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. (Revelations 21:4)

APPRECIATION

The family of the late Robert Shaw Tolliver wishes to express deep and heartfelt appreciation for your loving thoughtfulness and concern, including cards, flowers, phone calls, visits, your presence here, and especially your prayers. May God bless each of you, and may His peace be with you always.

September 14, 2005 Lisa Tolliver Show features author Nina Foxx

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY - Nina Foxx,PhD, just finished writing her fourth novel, Marrying Up and has two more in the works. Read about this prolific and fun-loving author and her books at www.ninafoxx.com.

September 14, 2005 SCORE Radio features National Preparedness Month, SBA Disaster Relief and FoodPatch: Westchester County's Food Bank

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY - It may be easier to avoid a disaster than to avoid media coverage of disasters. For example, good luck trying to avoid media coverage of Category 5 Hurricane Katrina and her devastating aftermath. It's everywhere, and SCORE Radio: Counselors to America's Small Business on New York Radio WVOX AM 1460 is no exception. Today's show was my at-bat as rotating host on the SCORE Volunteer team, and my bench strength included guests Ken Shulman, Public Information Officer with the U.S. Small Business Administration's Disaster Office, and a representative from FoodPatch, Westchester County's Food Bank.

We detailed how our organizations provide and receive assistance for disaster victims. Additionally, listeners were pointed to SCORE's online disaster resistance plan resources. Click the logos below for details:


FoodPatch: Westchester County's Food
Bank

SCORE: Counselors to America's Small Business

U.S. Small Business Administration


Next broadcasts:

September 28, 2005 on WVOX AM 1460

1:00-1:30 pm - SCORE Radio: Counselors to America's Small Business
Online fundraising

1:30-2:00 pm - The Lisa Tolliver Show
Documentary Photographer Rich Rembsberg
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They're real and they're spectacular (no artificial ingredients)

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY - Eyes forward. I'm not referring to the female anatomy (as did the oft-quoted Seinfeld episode whose title I lifted). I'm referring to brushes with the law that increase some celebrities' media impact. Consider freedom fighters Martin, Mahatma and Malcolm. Consider also gangstas and music industry entertainers, such as the dueling East Coast and West Coast rappers, whose legal snafus typically enhance their street cred. Sometimes they even ply their trade from the big house, as did Shyne, Beanie Sigel and Turk--who released their albums from jail, Rapper C-Murder--who got in hot water over the new album and video he produced behind bars, Lil Kim--who dropped her album just before entering jail and the many artists who release titles that highlight their incarceration (e.g., "What Jail Is Like," by The Afghan Whigs; "Long Time No See," by Chico DeBarge; and "Penitentiary Chances," by rapper Turk).

I guess if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. Domestic diva Martha-on-the-block proved equally able to withstand--even harness--legal and prison heat, and continued to drop it like it's hot from the kitchen, garden and elsewhere at Camp Cupcake, where she served time. Her activities there, which I describe as "Martha Stewart Inside Living," have been the recipe for raising her market and media value. Moreover, her release today from house arrest and donning a new accessory--an ankle bracelet that permits law officers to track her movements--have further stirred the media pot and raised serious dough. There's more bread where that came from. During her travails, Martha cooked up two new shows that aren't even out of the oven yet.###

My true-life Category 5 hurricane survival story

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY - "There but for the grace of God go I," keeps ringing in my head, and not just because the ubiquitous reports of devastation and sparks of hope in the wake of Hurricane Katrina are calls to action for every able bodied citizen of the planet. There's another reason.

Hurricane Camille, 1969:

In 1969, my family was blessed to survive, even benefit in some ways from, our experience with Category 5 Hurricane Camille. I wrote about it in a true-life short story posted at Toowrite.com.

NOTE: I'm not thrilled with the liberties TooWrite.com's editors took with my story. I didn't mind their translations from American English to the Queen's English (e.g., rewriting "color" as "colour"). In fact, I rather fancied those. But the story had already passed muster with Mum, a former English teacher, and the editors' more substantial edits were unwarranted and less than beneficial. But that's the price of getting published by Northcliffe Electronic Publishing Ltd. In the scheme of what's happening in the world today, this petty gripe isn't worth the time it's taking to report (or read) it.

Anyway, the summary that TooWrite.com published is listed below. Click "Read story" for the full text.

Title: Rainbows After the Storm
Escalating emergency alerts for the category five hurricane spooked Mom, who stockpiled candles and stood watch for Dad. Bob, Misty and I retreated below decks where the tempest seemed less intimidating.
Date submitted: 15th Jan 2003
Author: Lisa Tolliver
Competition: Competition 8
Read story

Hurricane Katrina, 2005?

Visit www.americanredcross.com, conduct an online search of "hurricane relief," or visit any ISP home page or news outlet to learn how to get and give help. I'll publicly address some of those issues, and what others and I are doing--and can do--about them, in my September 14 broadcasts.
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Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

September 14 broadcast will address disaster resistance and recovery, 2005

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY - My prayers are with those affected by Hurricane Katrina. But there's far more I can offer than that.

Help and advice:

I googled "hurricane assistance" to see how I could help and to find useful links to post here, such as www.redcross.org. The result: a legion of listings - national, regional and local - that is too comprehensive and unfocused to published here. It is preferable for readers to customize their own searches. For example, one might enter "hurricane assistance New Orleans" in his or her favorite search engine. Other good resources to search are ISP portals and news outlets.

Then what? In my case, stay tuned. I will host several subject matter experts in a discussion of disaster resistance and recovery in the September 14 "SCORE Radio" broadcast (at 1:00-1:30 pm, Eastern Time) and part of the "Lisa Tolliver Show" broadcast (which will follow at 1:30-2:00 pm, Eastern Time).

Join us!

Listen live at New York Radio AM 1460 or www.wvox.com, or phone our call-in line at (01) 914.636.0110 to share and hear from anywhere.

Share:

I invite emergency service providers and those requiring assistance to share your stories, tips and resource referrals. Email them to info@360meridian.com or post them at www.communityzero.com/360meridian.

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What’s in a name? (Should Diddy's dropping the P. inspire Lisa to add the T.?)

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY - Madonna does it regularly, in numerous fashions, always like it's the very first time. J-L0, Liz and Roseanne do it with husbands. Demi does it with hair. Halle and Meryl do it for movie roles. Oprah does it with diets. Jacko pays plastic surgeons to do it for him. And Diddy just did it with his moniker. Again. Without missing a beat.

What is it? Grabbing prime media attention by making periodic changes. High profile vicissitudes - whether artful ploys to boost marketability (a la Madonna-Electronica and Diddy) or undesired fallout from their glass-house celebrity status (in instances like power-couple breakups and celebrities' weight fluctuations) - keep the media magnets and has-beens who experience (or engineer) them in the headlines. The changes need not be especially noteworthy to get spotlighted. Notice how changing diet plans, botoxing and moving violations garnered tabloid spreads (and spike search engine rankings) for the likes of Jennifer Anniston, Melanie Griffith and Matthew Perry?

Most recently, P. Diddy announced a name change during promotional rounds for next month's MTV Music Awards, which he's hosting. He is dropping the "P." and will hearafter answer to "Diddy."

Whoa...scratch the record! Didn't recent above-the-fold coverage spotlight his earlier string of aliases (from given name "Sean Combs" to "Puffy" to "Puff Daddy" to "P. Diddy?"). My Ivy League professors and white shoe consulting firm instructors had hammered home the importance of choosing--and remaining loyal to--a strong brand identity, and the risks associated with changing it. But what do they know? They, and most of us "intellectual" shmucks who invested time and money in expensive, prestigious academic degrees, don't earn what Diddy spends in pocket change. Rather, the creator of Bad Boy Entertainment, Sean John fashions and (some say) the meteoric ascendancies of Mary Jay Blige, Jodeci, and (by association) Jennifer Lopez/Jenny-Lo/J-Lo, obviously knows from branding. So much so that some media outlets (such as Yahoo! Top Stories and the national TV and radio news networks) reported the news of Diddy's name change alongside coverage of the War on Terror, Gaza Strip desettlement and Hurricane Katrina.

Who is the man encased under these layers of names? (Click here to read "Q&A With P. Diddy" on VH1's "Say it Loud.") The rapper-mogul was born in New York City in 1970 and hoisted himself by his bootstraps, Horatio Alger-fashion, from paperboy cum hustling events promoter (who tragically over-booked a 1991 City College event where nine people died in a stampede) to millionaire by age 19. He's now a highly regarded entertainment industry impresario and acknowledged maestro of several high profile arenas: food, fashion, Broadway, the silver screen, and glamorous women. Continued allegations of going gangsta (administering beatings, intimidation and shootings) and welshing on obligations (not delivering the memoirs that Random House advanced him $300,000 to write or fulfilling child support commitments with his ex, Misa Hylton-Brim, for 11-year-old son, Justin) have invited slings and arrows but apparently have not crippled his A-list cachet.

Well-known for his brilliant creativity and business acumen, Diddy remains widely heralded as the most influential force in the multi-billion dollar rap industry. Like a Teflon Don Juan, he apparently works his assets well. They were sorely tested recently in a sordid trial that some pundits feared could send him upriver. The upshot: acquittal on gun charges in 2001. Afterward, the media energetically reported Puff Daddy's quest for a fresh start, symbolized by his new label: "P. Diddy" (reportedly coined by Notorious B.I.G. before he died).

Diddy offers various justifications for his latest incarnation. One, "Because I can," is arrogant but true. Other rationales are kinder and gentler, seeking to simplify his cluttered namescape and leave no fan behind.

"I feel like the "P" is getting in the way of me and the public. From now on I will simply go by 'Diddy'," said the multi-named one.

"Nobody knew what to call me," he said. "I'd notice that people were uncomfortable when I'd meet them for the first time, and then they'd ask me what they should call me.

"I even started to get confused myself - and when I'd called someone on the telephone it took me a long time to explain who I was. Too long."

Hence the solution: to be known as simply "Diddy. "Five letters, one word, period."

So sez he, and so it will be. At least for a while. In the wake of such media splashes and changes in course, the public tends to go with the flow.

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. But only if you believe. Fact is, perception can trump reality.

This random rant has inspired me. So much so, I might apply what I've learned: successful people can't live on bread and hard work alone. They require PIE (10% competent Performance with a 90% blend of Image and Exposure). Taking a cue for P. Diddy and others, like "Material Girl" Louise Ciccone/Madonna/Madge/Electronica/Esther, I see I'm long overdue for a major overhaul. Step one, drop "Lisa Tolliver" (it's passe). An easy replacement is "Lisa T." (for a time) and I could inject some pep in my step later with something like "Liddy." Couldn't hurt. And so what if it did? I could always bury the old and reincarnate, shiny and new, like a virgin, named for the very first time.
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August 24, 2005 "Lisa Tolliver Show" stays in tune with vocal specialist / writer / arranger, Deborah Hodge

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY - It was a hot and sunny day. Sometime between 11:30 a.m. and noon, I parked Dad's Olds in Pelham and jumped into her immaculate, shiny black late-model Saab convertible. It was fly and so was she: top down, flaunting the trademark flat top 'do that highlights her elegant widowÂ’s peak and graces her business card and CD cover; powerful stereo discreetly pumping the 98.7 KISS FM radio battle of the Ohio Players -vs- Parliament Funkadelics. In her French blue shirt, black summer pants and black shades, Deborah Hodge was all seven CÂ’ and a bag of chips: cool, calm, collected, confident, classy, captivating and chic. Like her music.

Before the show
We stopped by Best Buy to pick up a second copy of The Diary of Alicia Keys [Limited Edition w/ Bonus DVD] for her and package of blank cassette tapes for me. In the cool, air-conditioned store, I felt my tension begin chilling out. The day had started stressfully: with inquiries about getting Dad into a clinical trial at Memorial Sloan Kettering; investigating how my brother fared in the previous day's medical procedure; and canceling out of a two-day class I'd really wanted to attend in DC but could not, because my actual - rather than virtual - presence was required on a consulting project that's at a critical point.

Deborah's funk music nourished my spirit, reminding me of great times in days past.
Ow, we need the funk
We gotta have that funk
(x2)

La la la la la
Doo doo doo doo doo doo doo, owww!
(x2)

Source: “Tear the roof off the sucker (give up the funk),” from Tear the Roof Off - Parliament

And Deborah herself - whom I met last year through a mutual friend - is a soothing presence. Plus, I get a kick out of even the prospect of broadcasting my shows. (Click here to see Mom's theory about that.) I think it's because I get personally informed, instructed, intrigued and inspired when pursuing my "four-eyed" mission.

My dance with music
Some say music calms the savage beast. It's also energizing. Low-key or upbeat, music has always nurtured my soul. A musician-in-hiatus, I have sung in my church choir, K-12 choruses and the Harvard Radcliffe Kuumba Singers; played first violin in innumerable pit orchestras, recitals, chamber orchestras and full orchestras; dabbled with the various other stringed and reed instruments; and (regrettably, in retrospect) declined a scholarship to study music in college. But despite its being integral in my life, even I can't live on music alone; I need tangible sustenance, too. So Deborah and I grabbed a bite en route to Whitney Radio.

During the show
If you joined us at 1:30-2:00 pm, Eastern Time on New York Radio WVOX AM 1460 or http://www.wvox.com/, you sampled a delicious smorgasbord of original music from Deborah’s CD: Deborah Hodge (play list: “Is it Really?,” “Some One,” “Back in the Day,” and “If Your Heart”) and enjoyed tasty tidbits of her perspectives on the music of today, the music business versus the business of music, and what constitutes good musicianship.

Deborah knows from whence she speaks. The vocalist, composer, arranger, writer, music teacher and bandleader has performed internationally, at times with top “cats” like Stanley Turrentine, and in the camp of Alicia Keys, i.e., MBK (“My Brother’s Keeper”) Entertainment.

Listeners feasted on Deborah’s dish on Ms. Keys, presented over the backdrop soulful selections from The Diary of Alicia Keys [Limited Edition w/ Bonus DVD]. But first, my guest prepared listenersÂ’ palettes in anticipation of an upcoming artist Deborah praised as a must-hear. I can't spell her name or find her easily online, but according to Deborah, talented teen Karinna Passione (sp?) speaks multiple languages and boasts an imminent debut with the house of Jay-Z and Antonio "L.A." Reid (Island Def Jam/Universal Music Group). Deborah will review the CD in an upcoming "Lisa Tolliver Show" segment. Stay tuned.

Contact Deborah Hodge
RoMo & Associates, Mgmt.
Telephone: (01) 212.580.0613
E-mail: eborada@hotmail.com

Listen to upcoming shows on New York Radio WVOX AM 1460 and www.wvox.com
September 14
1:00-1:30 pm - SCORE: Counselors to America's Small Business
1:30-2:00 pm - Lisa Tolliver Show (featuring author Nina Foxx)

September 28
1:30-2:00 pm - Lisa Tolliver Show

If you’re listening, I’m listening. Talk with me!
Dial the call-in line at (01) 914.636.0110
Join my intranet at www.communityzero.com/360meridian
Leave a voice message at (01) 309.279.7528
Write me c/o:
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648 Central Park Avenue #405
Scarsdale, NY 10583 USA
1 Wolfs Lane, Box 655
Pelham, NY 10803-9998
USA
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