I will be Suzane Northrop’s guest tonight on Blog Talk Radio.
Listen Live at 5 pm CDT OR listen to the archived show
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/suzanenorthrop/2010/05/03/the-suzane-northrop-show
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Same Scenario – Different Day
6 AprHave you ever noticed that when The Universe is trying to teach us something, if we don’t get it, the same lesson just keeps coming again and again until we do?
Never has that been more apparent to me than in the area of campus fire safety. When Liz died from a fire in her duplex, I automatically assumed it was just this freak accident that shouldn’t have happened.
However, just this morning I received notification of another fire fatality in off-campus housing at Eastern Michigan University
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Ed Comeau, Publisher
Campus Firewatch
www.campus-firewatch.com
413-323-6002 (tel)
413-896-5718 (cell)
ecomeau@campus-firewatch.com
Student from Eastern Michigan University killed in off-campus fire in Ann Arbor, Michigan
BELCHERTOWN, Mass., April 6, 2010 — A student from Eastern Michigan University was killed in an off-campus fire in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
According to the university, 22-year-old Renden LeMasters was killed in the fire. LeMasters was a senior in the College of Technology.
In an interview with Campus Firewatch, Ann Arbor Fire Marshal Kathleen Chamberlain reported that the fire was reported at approximately 5:30 a.m. and started in the area of the front porch which contained upholstered furniture, trash and other combustibles. The fire, which was detected by a passerby, then spread into the interior of the building through a front dormer window and two doors which were left open when the occupants escaped from the fire. The victim was found in front of the building by the first arriving fire department personnel. The cause of the fire is under investigation and has not been determined at this time.
The building is a two-story, wood-frame, building that had been divided into three units located in the basement, first floor and second floor. There were interconnected smoke alarms in the building but no residential fire sprinklers.
According to Chamberlain, the Ann Arbor Fire Department had previously attempted to have an ordinance passed that would ban upholstered furniture from front porches but was unsuccessful. Before this fire occurred, they were in the process of trying again because of the danger that these conditions present. “These are incredible fire hazards,” said Chamberlain.
Nationwide, this is the fifth campus-related fire fatality to occur in the 2009-2010 academic year, all of which have occurred since January. According to information compiled by Campus Firewatch, 140 people have died in campus-related fires since January 2000 with over 84% of them occurring in off-campus occupancies where a majority of the students across the nation live.
Campus Firewatch is a social enterprise focusing on campus fire safety. For more information, visit our website at www.campus-firewatch.com.
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Campus Firewatch ● P.O. Box 1046, Belchertown, MA ● 01007 ● 1-413-323-6002 (tel)
www.campus-firewatch.com ● ecomeau@campus-firewatch.com
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The similarities are stunningly familiar:
fire call comes in 5:30 am
fire starts on a porch in a couch
the building is a wooden two story
How sad that an ordinance outlawing couches on porches was not enacted – perhaps now it will – but does it really take another death of a college-aged student to make it happen?
A Story That is Meant to be Shared!
13 MarThose of you who know me well, know that my greatest passions are sharing my stories of extraordinary connections to my daughter Liz and fire safety prevention.
I came across a story today that combines them both. It is a wonderful story and for all of you skeptics out there, I hope it will make you stop and think, scratch your head, and wonder … maybe there is more to life than what can be seen?
Yesterday – a day of mixed emotions
6 MarYesterday started off as a great day! I was still on a high after a very successful speaking engagement at a new book club in town. Over 40 people came out to hear me speak and buy a copy of the book my story is in.
Yesterday was also the day that my blog rolled over 10,000 hits. I had been waiting and watching for that milestone for a few months now and I was excited and happy to see it happen.
Later in the day my happiness turned to sorrow when I learned of the death of Darcy Pohland, a reporter at WCCO in Minneapolis. I have done two stories on fire safety with Darcy over the past three years and I could always count on her to make it happen.
Not only was she an outstanding reporter, she was also a very vibrant and bubbly human being. Her enthusiasm for life was infectious and I loved being able to get to know her alittle bit more each time we did a story.
For those of you who live out of the WCCO viewing area, what you don’t know is that Darcy was also a quadrapalegic. One of the few, if not the only QP reporters in the country. At the age of 22 she dove into a pool and broke her neck … changing the course of her life forever.
For many people this type of accident would be devastating and hard to recover from. I’m sure it was extremely difficult for Darcy as well, but you would never know it. She never let her limitations stand in her way. It is said that her favorite word was … perseverence. That is something she had alot of.
Thank you Darcy … thank you for telling my story … for helping me to get the word out about fire safety … you loved the University of Minnesota just like my daughter did … probably even more. I’m so glad you got to experience the new Goopher stadium.
I didn’t know until yesterday that you were as passionate about figure skating as I am. I wish I would have brought my camera when we did our stories so that I could have captured a moment of the two of us together.
I’m sure you are now even more bubbly than you were when you were here … you no longer need your chair. I would like to think that you and Liz have found each other and are dancing and singing with JOY.
You are one of a kind Darcy and I don’t think there will ever be another reporter who can tell my story and the stories of many others the way that you could.
Job well done my friend … you will be missed.
Guest Blogger
3 DecI’ve been asked to provide some of my writing for two different blogs. Both of them have been published this week. Here are the links:
http://lesleehorner.wordpress.com/2009/12/03/kims-click/
If I get enough hits on Monique Chapman’s blog, I will be a guest on one of her radio shows!
Enjoy your day!
Another Opportunity to Share My Story
27 OctI had the opportunity yesterday to be a guest on Achieve Radio with Nancy Wallace.
The show has been archived and it can be accessed at
http://www.achieveradio.com/archplayer.php?showname=The M
Enjoy your day!
Kim
How Will You Spend Your Dash?
19 OctI found this beautiful youtube video on my facebook page this morning and felt it was worth adding to my blog as well.
My Days In D.C.
22 SepI’m back from spending five wonderful days in our nation’s capital. I had never been there before and was able to see many things I have only dreamt about for many years.
The purpose of my trip was two-fold. The main purpose was to partner with Campus Firewatch and promote fire safety issues on college campuses across the country.
On Thursday we kicked off the day with a press conference which included speeches by Congressmen, Bill Pascrell of New Jersey and Joe Wilson of North Carolina.
The highlight was the speech given by Edye Smith, a parent like me, who lost her son in an off-campus house fire.
The second part of the day consisted of breaking up into groups of fire personnel, current college students, and parents.
My group visited staffers of Cong. Keith Ellison, Sen. Al Franken, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, all of whom represent my state of Minnesota.
We were able to convey the urgency of continued education on fire prevention, along with the need to offer incentives for landlords to improve their rental units by adding sprinklers.
There are currently two pieces of legislation that address both of these issues.
It was such a personal day for me. To be able to share the life of my daughter and share her picture with people who never knew her, six years after her death, just boggles my mind and brings me such happiness and peace.
My intention is to spend the rest of my life honoring her and to have the opportunity to work to improve the lives of today’s students is very comforting and rewarding.
And, it was also a wonderful opportunity to see first-hand the workings of our government. The fact that most people never have this kind of opportunity was always on my mind throughout the day.
On the second leg of my trip was spent with my daughter Anna and her best friend Stephanie. Roger and I consider Stephanie to be our unoffical third daughter.
We crammed alot of sight seeing into two full days. The weather was absolutely beautiful and we had a grand time. Here is a list of what we accomplished:
toured the Capitol, including the Rotunda
toured the Supreme Court (saw Judge Sotomayor’s new chair).
visited the Smithsonian to see a Lincoln exhibit, dresses of the First Ladies, and Julia Child’s kitchen.
We visited the White House and saw the First Dog, Bo Obama, out on his afternoon walk! (I was really hoping to see Barack or Michelle, but hey I’m happy we did get to see one member of the Obama family!)
We went to the top of the Washington monument where you can see the entire District as well as Virginia and Maryland.
We ate at a favorite hang out of the Obamas, Good Stuff Eatery, and enjoyed the best hamburger and fries I have ever had … and the beer was great too!
We spent most of Sunday the 20th at Arlington National Cemetery; we visited the graves of JFK, Robert and Ted Kennedy.
We also had amazing seats to watch the changing of the guard at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
I thought about Liz alot that day because it was the 6th anniversary of her death. It seemed fitting that we should spend the day at Arlington.
As we sat in the trolley waiting to start our tour we noticed that the gentleman sitting right next to me had a large butterfly tattoo on his forearm. We all smiled because we knew it was a sign that Liz was with us in spirit.
We returned home Sunday night, very tired, but very very happy.
To view pictures of the trip click on the links below.
Promoting Fire Safety for Today’s College Students
28 AugYesterday Anna and I had the opportunity to do a news story about Liz, the fire that took her life, and our lives since that day.
The main focus was to alert current students who are just moving into off-campus housing.
Getting them to realize and take seriously their own personal safety is a tough sell.
But all we can do is keeping repeating it at every opportunity.
Here is a link to our story:
Welcome
Welcome to my blog about love, life and transformation!
Kim
