Humpty Dumpty Institute Hosts 39th Congressional Delegation to U.N.

The Humpty Dumpty Institute was established in 1988 by Connie Milstein and four other business entrepreneurs whose goal was to solve international problems through public-private partnerships. In January, the HDI held its 39^th Congressional Delegation to the United Nations. The day began with a breakfast hosted by The United States Mission to the United Nations, where Rosemary DiCarlo, U.S. Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, talked about the importance of the U.N. Security Council to U.S. policy, especially in times of conflict resolution and maintaining human rights abroad.

The delegates then heard Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Planning of the Executive Office of the Secretary General, Robert Orr, discuss the United Nations varied interests; the delegates were especially interested in hearing the U.N.’s sustainable energy initiative and promotion of green economic growth. Later, Dr. Mari Ortega, Senior Advisor to the Executive Director of Join United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS, briefed participants on the current state of the AIDS epidemic and what the U.N. is doing in response to this crisis.

Following a private tour of the United National Capital Master Plan (a plan that details upcoming renovations to the U.N. campus), the participants met with Ban Ki-moon, the Secretary-General of the United Nations. His remarks highlighted the importance of cooperation between the United States and United Nations and he discussed his plan of action for his second term as Secretary-General, during which he hopes to achieve fiscal and structural reform.

Finally, the group moved to the U.N. Millennium Hotel for a working lunch. Edmund Mulet, the Assistant Secretary-General Department of Peacekeeping Operations, spoke during the lunch hour about the importance of U.N. peacekeeping operations throughout the world and how member states can contribute to the program. Bill Rouhana, HDI Chairman, closed the day by sharing the history of the Humpty Dumpty Institute with the delegates and encouraged the members of Congress to become more involved with HDI’s international mine action activities and HDI’s Higher Education Alliance in the U.S.

Humpty Dumpty Institute Launches Wishing Well Sri Lanka

The Humpty Dumpty Institute, which Connie Milstein serves as Co-Founder and Chairman, recently launched a new online campaign titled “Wishing Well Sri Lanka.” The campaign was initiated to promote and raise funds for a series of initiatives that will provide fresh water and improve sanitary conditions to over 10,000 residents in northern Sri Lanka, including the districts of Mannar, Killinochchi and Mullaithivu. Funds raised during the campaign will also go to support the HDI’s well-known, long-term school feeding program in Sri Lanka’s Jaffna district.

With the “Wishing Well Sri Lanka” and the donations received through the campaign, the HDI will start off small by building and repairing 230 communal and domestic wells and 100 new toilets. The organization hopes to increase these numbers and expand to new areas as they reach their fundraising goals. Since the conclusion of the 30-year conflict in 2009, an incalculable number of Sri Lankans have returned to their homes in northern Sri Lanka. While the government is working to accommodate the influx of returning residents, the people continue to face challenges. The 30-year conflict left the area devastated and now everything must be rebuilt. There is very little fresh water for drinking, bathing or farming; there are few latrines.

“Please join hands with HDI and help kick start our new initiative by visiting www.wishingwellsrilanka.org and making a generous contribution,” wrote HDI President Ralph Cwerman.

Ford's Theatre Partners with Miriam's Kitchen for Holiday Fundraising

As the holiday season approaches, many D.C. organizations and philanthropists, like Connie Milstein, work to assist those who may need help during the upcoming winter months. The Ford’s Theatre Society, which Ms. Milstein serves as a trustee, is helping D.C. residents in need in a rather unique way this season. From November 18 to December 31, the theatre’s production of A Christmas Carol will raise money for Miriam’s Kitchen by accepting donations during the curtain call of each show. This partnership was inspired by the themes of charity found in Dickens’ holiday classic.

“Each winter, the story of A Christmas Carol renews in us, as it does in Scrooge, a compassionate and generous heart,” said Director of Ford’s Theatre Society Paul Tetreault in a press statement. “In selecting Miram’s Kitchen as recipients of this year’s donation drive, the cast of A Christmas Carol and our audiences can help make a difference in the lives of thousands in the D.C.-area struggling with hunger and homelessness.”

Miriam’s Kitchen has served as a resource for the 12,000 homeless individuals in D.C. for the past thirty years. The nonprofit offers warm, healthy means and case management services to those who may not otherwise seek help. In 2011, Miriam’s Kitchen served more than 4,000 homeless individuals through its comprehensive mental health, medical care, legal assistance, substance abuse counseling, employment resources and housing options.

This is the third year that the Ford’s Theatre society has partnered with a local nonprofit during its production of A Christmas Carol. In 2010, the theatre partnered with So Others Might Eat (SOME) and raised over $77,000. In 2009, the theatre partnered with Bread for the City and raised enough money to provide D.C. families in need with nearly 2,000 meals.

NCCU School of Law Named One of Country's 167 Best

Recently, the Princeton Review listed North Carolina Central University School of Law as one of the nation’s most excellent law schools. Constance Milstein earned her J.D. cum laude from the school after she completed her undergraduate studies at New York University.

NCCU School of Law was featured in the Princeton Review’s 2012 edition of The Best 167 Law Schools. The school is praised for its diversity within the legal curriculum and includes quotes from students who comment the school for its value, emphasis on practical training and the encouragement and guidance of educators and staff.

“Our law school appreciates the continuous national recognition we are receiving with regard to the quality of our program of legal education,” said Raymond Pierce, the Dean of NCCU School of Law, in a statement.

For each school selected by the Princeton Review, the book includes a summary on the school’s academics, student life, admissions and career placement. The law schools are selected based on the opinions of those at the Princeton Review and the integrity of the data collected from the school as compared with other law schools across the country. Student opinions way heavily in the selection as well; the Princeton Review surveyed approximately 18,000 students for this edition of the book.

Blue Star Families Builds Playground As Part Of 9/11 Day of Service and Remembrance

As part of the 9/11 Day of Service and Rememberance, volunteers from Blue Star Families joined others from KaBOOM!, Northrop Grumman and the Fort Meade Community Covenant Council to build a new playground at Fort Meade’s Burba Park. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta was present to lend a hand and get the volunteers fired up. The Day of Service coincided with Blue Star Families’ Operation Honor Cards initiative, which encourages citizens to honor military families, veterans and service members through volunteer efforts.

“It’s that [American] dream that brings us all out here today to make sure that through our work and through our service and through our dedication, we make certain that these kids have a better life in this country,” Secretary Panetta said at the start of the project.

The Burba Park playground will provide military families and hundreds of children with a new, safe place to play at Fort Meade. At the end of 2011, KaBOOM! will have worked to build over 150 playgrounds across the country. In the closing months of this year, the organization will partner with more than 10,000 volunteers to build the final 60 playgrounds as citizens donate their time in honor of military members, families and veterans.

“We are grateful to KaBOOM! and all of today's volunteers for this gift to the military children of Fort Meade,” said Mark D. Smith, Executive Director of Blue Star Families. “Military families have been hit hard by the years of war since 9/11 and this is a wonderful way to say thank you.”

For many years before she became a member of the Blue Star Families Board of Directors, Connie Milstein worked to help military families and veterans. Her accomplishments as a philanthropist and businesswoman made her a perfect fit with BSF.

Humpty Dumpty Institute Announces Higher Education Alliance

The Humpty Dumpty Institute and co-founder Connie Milstein recently announced a new program that will provide schools across the United States with an in-depth introduction to the United Nations. The program, known as the Higher Education Alliance, aims to build bridges between the U.N. and college students by bringing speakers from United Nations Specialized Agencies and U.N.-affiliated Non-Governmental Organizations to American college and university campuses.

On-campus alliance members will organize and run U.N.-related conferences on their campuses and have the opportunity to visit the U.N. headquarters in New York for intensive orientations further explaining the inner workings of the United Nations. Students who stand out for their work with the Higher Education Alliance may be invited to serve as interns in international organizations around the world. Alliance members also convene U.N.-related conferences at their campuses and are invited to U.N. Headquarters in New York for intensive orientations to learn how the U.N. actually works. And finally, select students at Alliance Universities/Colleges have the opportunity to serve as interns in international organizations around the world.

The High Education Alliance currently boasts a combined student enrollment of approximately 300,000 students from 18 universities and colleges in nine states. The Humpty Dumpty Institute is working especially hard to recruit institutions belonging to the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) and the Historically Black Colleges/Universities (HBCU) as well as community colleges nationwide, according to HDI Chairman William Rouhana, Jr.

“These centers of higher education are often underserved when it comes to global and international exposure. We are making a special effort to give these students in particular the opportunity to connect with the United Nations and to gain a better perspective about the global marketplace,” he said.

The Humpty Dumpty Institute is a unique non-profit organization widely-recognized for its work with the United Nations. Over the past four years, the HDI has become well known for its specialized outreach programs between the U.N. and various constituencies across the United States, which work to strengthen the United Nations as an international institution. The Humpty Dumpty Institute also implements large-scale humanitarian projects throughout the developing world. In the past four years, the HDI has begun major development projects in Lebanon, Angola, Eritrea, Laos and Vietnam, among others.

Northern Westchester Hospital Recieves Gifts from Local Brownie Troop

Northern Westchester Hospital Center in Mount Kisco, NY, certainly has a lot of help from the local community. In 2006, Connie Milstein partnered with the hospital to open a second Connie’s Bakery & General Store in the hospital’s main lobby. Earlier this month, ten 8-year-old girls from a Briarcliff Brownie troop visited the emergency room at Northern Westchester Hospital Center. But on that Friday night, there were no injured Brownies. The young girls came bearing gifts – activity bags they had made using troop earnings from cookie sales to keep children who come to the hospital for emergency treatment entertained. Each bag contained crayons, yo-yo’s and activity books and the scouts had decorated the bags inside and out with colorful, cheerful drawings.

The idea for the activity bags came from one of the Briarcliff Brownies herself, a second-grader at St. Theresa’s School in Briarcliff. Madison Mezzatesta’s brother had been taken to the emergency room last summer while on a trip to Maryland. There, he was given an activity bag, which helped distract him while the family waited in the ER.

Emergency Room Director Sharon Marino said that annually, about one-third of patients who come into the emergency room are children. And though the 100 bags would quickly disappear into the arms of waiting children, the troop leaders were already thinking about making more.