Diversity

Hispanic group to distribute book to students

The Hispanic Chamber Cincinnati USA introduced a new 24-page book meant to educate area students about German, Irish, Jewish, Hispanic, African-American and Appalachian immigrants to the Cincinnati area. "Cincinnati: A City of Immigrants, Struggling Toward Acceptance and Equality" had an initial printing of 15,000 copies.  The Hispanic Chamber will be working to distribute those copies to teachers and students in junior high schools in 14 counties in the Cincinnati metropolitan area. Read full article here.

Athena Foods builds upon Cincinnati’s Greek community with new grocery

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Cincinnati’s Freedom Center may have new path

The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center may become an "independent establishment" within the federal government if museum officials have their way.  The move would increase funding and exhibit prospects. The discussions started when museum officials learned of legislation being pushed forward to create a national emancipation museum - something U.S. Representative Steve Driehaus believes already exists with the Freedom Center in Cincinnati. Read full article here.

Online boutique combines style, social awareness

Several years ago Emily Hill, of Walnut Hills, took a college trip to Thailand where she witnessed first-hand what self-sufficiency and steady work could do for women and children at risk for becoming part of the global slave trade as prostitutes.Many of these destitute young women and girls, some as young as 8, could have become prostitutes without a local organization that taught their mothers how to make purses, jewelry and other items, make money and care for their families.“I looked at these happy and vibrant girls and realized how the situation could have been otherwise, and I knew I had to do something about this too,” said Hill, who works in marketing and had previously operated a small apparel company.The result was stoptraffickfashion.com, an online boutique that Hill runs from her home. She buys women’s accessories from several overseas organizations that exist to help women escape or stay out of the sex trade, then resells them. According to statistics, more than 27 million men, women and children are held as slaves in hard labor work, the sex industry, or as soldiers.The boutique is for-profit, but a portion of any profit goes back to these organizations. In addition, the web site works to education shoppers about the cause their purchases supports.“Most are made by women who want a sustainable income for themselves and their families, so they can feel confident and become part of society. It prevents them from being lured into trafficking,” Hill said.The bags and jewelry range in price from $20 to $80, and Hill looks for styles that will appeal to mainstream buyers.“I want to use this to reach women who may not know about the slave trade, (as well as) reach socially conscious women,” she said.In addition to the online boutique, which launched over the summer, Hill also sells the accessories at local events. She also hosts private home parties. Find out more here. Writer: Feoshia HendersonSource: Emily Hill Founder & Managing Director stoptraffickfashion.com

Casa Mexico opens in Covington’s Latonia neighborhood

Local Habitat for Humanity YP group blazing national trail

Less than five years after Habitat for Humanity’s Young Professional’s effort launched in Cincinnati, a few dozen similar groups have popped up across the nation. The Habitat YP effort has grown so much nationally, that on Oct. 16 members will be heading to Austin, Texas for a Habitat Young Professionals Conference. “We’ll be sharing information, benchmarking and getting everyone in one place. We hope to establish a more formalized manner for starting these groups, so other (Habitat chapters) can access the resources to get this started,” said Habitat Development Director Marissa Woodly. The Cincinnati group was founded in 2005 by Advisory Board Chairman Ryan Derrow, client strategist at Empower Media, and other local YPs. Now, other Habitat chapters are catching on to what Cincinnati already knows: YPs have the energy, skills and dollars to keep this low-income home building organization strong. “A lot of larger companies are bringing YPS into Cincinnati. You’ve got people looking for things to get engaged in and ways to meet new people. So, why not tap into resources and engage the younger generation?” Woodly said. The Cincinnati group numbers 500 plus, including an advisory board, and is all-volunteer. Their efforts run the gamut, from organizing wine-tasting fundraisers and 5Ks to volunteering on builds. The Cincinnati group hit a milestone recently: in 2008 members sponsored the first YP home build in the country, in East Price Hill. And the organization can use that YP energy. With a 10-person staff, the organization will build 10 houses this year and 14 next. Interested? Find out more on the Habitat YP web site. Writer: Feoshia HendersonSource: Cincinnati Habitat for Humanity Development Director Marissa Woodly

Local filmmaker sets crime drama in OTR

Lee Zellars, a local filmmaker who often turns his lens on Cincinnati and its people, will soon debut a gritty, creative crime drama set in the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood.Zellars, who also directed The Spot, which airs on cable access and focuses on friends who frequent a local bar, says “O.T.R: Over-the-Rhine” is along the lines of shows like Law and Order. Shot in black and white, O.T.R features a sister and brother on different sides of the law.“The sister is a serious-minded detective and the brother is on other side of the law as a notorious drug dealer. The sister knows he’s doing illegal activity, but doesn’t know what he’s doing or exactly how he’s doing it. They are as close and brother and sister should be, but she would not let family stand in the way if she could catch him doing what he’s doing,” said Zellars, also a photographer who lives in Avondale. He directed, produced and edited the episodic series.Zellars worked as a photographer at The Taft Museum, YMCA Black Achievers Program, Executive Studio and The Cincinnati Herald. His photos have been in Jet Magazine, The Final Call and Applause Magazine. This isn’t Zellars first attempt at filmmaking: his movie 'Nattyville' was his first feature film in 2004, followed by 'Justifiable Romance' which won 2nd place for best action drama at The Indie Gathering Film Festival in 2006. His third movie 'Dick' won 2nd place for best crime drama in 2007 at The Indie Gathering.OTR features local actors, including three who starred in The Spot. The 30-minute show could be reformatted to a more typical one-hour drama, Zellars said. Writers Kole Black and Brent Bridges developed the script. So far, eight 30-minute episodes have been shot.  Zellars is working to get a local broadcast of the show, possibly on My64 WSTR-TV.The series was shot in different parts of the city, including Over-the-Rhine , Avondale and Corryville. Catch the first three episodes Nov. 5 at 7 p.m. at The Showcase Cinema in Springdale. For more information, including upcoming info on ordering tickets to RozMary Basement TV.Writer: Feoshia HendersonSource: Lee Zellars director, producer, editor of O.T.R.

Building Value gets Cincinnati working, and homeowners thinking Green

Building Value builds up the confidence and construction skills of some hard-working Cincinnatians, while tearing down old, but reusable home and office spaces in an environmentally conscious way. Building Value is a non-profit that salvages building materials. In the past the organization specialized in taking apart small rooms, like kitchens and bathrooms for homeowner remodeling their spaces. But this summer Building Value undertook the region’s first full-house “unbuild,” where workers deconstructed a vacant multi-story house in Wyoming, salvaging more than 6,400 sq. ft. of building materials, and creating green space in the small city. More than 10 people worked on the project for about a week. The unique, salvageable materials were then sold to the public at a reasonable price. “Deconstruction provides an alternative to demolition, and this is all about trying to keep things out landfills,” said Jerry Janszen, director of Building Value. The non-profit was founded in 2004 by Easter Seals Work Resource Center as a way to further its mission, “empowering people with disabilities and disadvantages to increase their independence through work.” In addition to its deconstruction work, Building Value houses a retail center on Gilbert Avenue, a wood working area and warehouse ution space. Since its beginnings, Building Value has kept more than 5,000 tons of building materials out of the city’s landfills. The construction workers, who all go through training, are honing their skills to facilitate these large “unbuilds.” And earlier in the year, the Building Value crew took apart its first big structure, a barn in Indian Hill.  To accommodate its growth into deconstructing large structures, Building Value is moving into a bigger space in Northside in October. “”We’re trying some new techniques and moving in this new direction,” Janszen said. Writer: Feoshia HendersonSources: Lisa Doxsee Communications Manager and Jerry Janszen Director Building Value LLC

Corporate brings fresh kicks and clothes to Springdale

Matt Tomamichel began thinking about opening his own store when he was in college at Wright State University near Dayton, Ohio.  He had a passion for the sneaker and fashion culture, which eventually led him to open Corporate in Springdale. Corporate opened in the summer of 2008 and has seen steady increases in sales each month, but running the 1,000 square-foot store is more of a passion for Tomamichel than it is strictly a business. "I grew up admiring the newest sneakers and when I was old enough I entered retail and loved it. I love just getting up and not knowing what I'm going to get in a day. You never know who may stop by the shop or what might happen in the day," states Tomamichel. Inside the store Tomamichel says shoppers can expect a laid back atmosphere that represents the uprising hipster scene in Cincinnati.  "We are beginning to really support the whole culture, whether you are into music, fashion, the arts or sneakers we relate to everyone," says Tomamichel. The store is unique for Cincinnati with very few competitors that offer similar products like Play Cloths, Another Enemy, Dope Culture, and Undefeated.  The shop also features the requisite Nike and Jordan brands, and will soon feature Corporate-developed New Era fitted caps, but Tomamichel notes that Corporate is more than just another sneaker shop. "We're really trying to be the bridge to all the gaps in the different cultures Cincinnati holds.  I work with everyone because I was never raised to be closed-minded.  We're going to make sure you expand some horizons." The bold vision comes from store owner Tomamichel who says that having worked at Footaction growing up he became frustrated with not being able to make independent decisions.  The name Corporate comes from that experience where he was consistently told "corporate handles all that, we just sell."  Now Tomamichel is the one pulling the strings; he is Corporate. The story goes much deeper than that as Tomamichel left Cincinnati shortly after the killing of one of his best friends.  He met the former owner of Status, Sly Peoples, and began working with Peoples out of Minneapolis to get a better understanding of how small businesses work.  After an unsuccessful second location in Columbus, Tomamichel decided to come back to Cincinnati and open a shop of his own at the age of 22. Corporate is located at 11578 Springfield Pike (map) in the Springdale Town Center development.  Prices range from $30-40 for tees, $50-75 for wovens, and $75-100 for sneakers.  Currently the store has a mens only selection that will be expanded to have womens clothing as well soon.  For more information you can call the store at (513) 771-0432. Writer: Randy A. Simes Photography by Scott Beseler Stay connected and follow Randy on Twitter @SoapboxRandy