Fire College Scholarship Fund

Nikos Birthday

Carin Handsun — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 17:32:51 +0000

Niko’s Birthday is coming up, October 21. We always had a lot of fun in October because Brett and Brendan (his almost step-brothers!) also have October birthdays, so we would have a big party and usually a bonfire. This year will be having friends and family over to celebrate Niko’s birthday and say goodbye to Fanis, Niko’s Dad, who is leaving for Amsterdam at the end of October. WE will be erecting a beautiful handmade cross from Kyle’s Dad and planting chrysanthemum. Niko’s middle name is Chrisanthos- golden flower. Happy Fall to Everyone.

2011 Scholarship Award Recipient

Carin Handsun — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 14:49:47 +0000

We were very excited to award this year’s scholarship to a very deserving candidate, Steven Gallwitz, from Vanguard High School. Stephen will be attending the Florida State Fire College in the fall of 2011, and has a backgound of volunteering and helping others. He participated in ROTC for 3 years, and many held other civic leadership positions too. Congratulations Steven!

Thanks Mom…

Carin Handsun — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 01:33:32 +0000

My Mom just came through again and donated $300 to Niko’s fund, at this rate we will be funding for at least 4 more years. Last year was a very strange year without Niko and it helps me to think that he has gone on a very long trip, far away. Probably like my Mom must have felt when I moved to Greece 30 years ago. Wow, am I that old? Time does fly. Today I heard from my Aunt in Connecticut and my Dad’s Cousin, Chuck, whom I have practically lost touch with over the years. Good to reconnect and share love.

Happy New Year to All Our Friends

Carin Handsun — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 11:36:37 +0000

Hello, it has been a while since my last post, I do want to make sure all our friends know that Niko’s Scholarship Fund is going strong, and will be presenting an award again this year. Instructions on how to donate are found on the Scholarship Fund Page.

Having Fun at Christmas

We had a lovely holiday season with the family at Grandma’s again. We all got a laugh when we realized Alex picked the same shirt for Christmas two years in a row (yes, he does own more than one dress shirt!). A lot of positive movement is happening for each of us, and overall, living with the natural loss that a family death brings has brought us an appreciation for the ones of us still here. I love you all!

Niko’s Birthday

Carin Handsun — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 12:54:27 +0000

Niko’s Birthday was yesterday, and to honor his life for all the beauty he brought others, I made that day, a day of Love. That is my mission now, to extend that day of Love into a life of Love, a mission which seems impossible at times, but brings with it, a promise of freedom.

My prayers are that this mission will not only enrich my life, but all those who come into contact with me, past, present and future, because in love there is no time and space.

Niko, I love you, my world, I love you too!

$1,425 raised so far!

Carin Handsun — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 18:33:37 +0000

And we have a winner! Brianna Word of NMHS submitted the winning application for the scholarship. She is going to study Nursing at Santa Fe in Gainesville and so, even though it’s not Fire College, its close enough and Brianna can use the money. Her mother lost her job at Taylor Bean and Whittaker and can’t help her with expenses. She has already qualified for (CNA) Certified Nursing Assistant through the NMHS program, and has been helping her grandmother get through a double mastectomy and diabetes. Brianna works part time at Arbys and still maintains a 3.5 and will be the first in her family to go to college. She has already been accepted at Santa Fe. Congratulations Brianna and good luck!

Installing Love

Carin Handsun — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 22:23:56 +0000

This is Awesome!

INSTALLING LOVE Author Unknown
Tech Support: Yes, … how can I help you?
Customer: Well, after much consideration, I’ve decided to install Love. Can you guide me through the process?

Tech Support: Yes. I can help you. Are you ready to proceed?
Customer: Well, I’m not very technical, but I think I’m ready. What do I do first?

Tech Support: The first step is to open your Heart. Have you located your Heart?
Customer: Yes, but there are several other programs running now. Is it okay to install Love while they are running?

Tech Support: What programs are running?
Customer: Let’s see, I have Past Hurt, Low Self-Esteem, Grudge, and Resentment running right now.

Tech Support: No problem, Love will gradually erase Past Hurt from your current operating system. It may remain in your permanent memory but it will no longer disrupt other programs. Love will eventually override Low Self-Esteem with a module of its own called High Self-Esteem. However, you have to completely turn off Grudge and Resentment. Those programs prevent Love from being properly installed. Can you turn those off?
Customer: I don’t know how to turn them off. Can you tell me how?

Tech Support: With pleasure. Go to your start menu and invoke Forgiveness. Do this as many times as necessary until Grudge and Resentment have been completely erased.
Customer: Okay, done! Love has started installing itself. Is that normal?

Tech Support: Yes, but remember that you have only the base program. You need to begin connecting to other Hearts in order to get the upgrades.

Customer: Oops! I have an error message already. It says, “Error – Program not run on external components.” What should I do?
Tech Support: Don’t worry. It means that the Love program is set up to run on Internal Hearts, but has not yet been run on your Heart. In non-technical terms, it simply means you have to Love yourself before you can Love others.

Customer: So, what should I do?
Tech Support: Pull down Self-Acceptance; then click on the following files: Forgive-Self; Realize Your Worth; and Acknowledge your Limitations.

Customer: Okay, done.
Tech Support: Now, copy them to the “My Heart” directory. The system will overwrite any conflicting files and begin patching faulty programming. Also, you need to delete Verbose Self-Criticism from all directories and empty your Recycle Bin to make sure it is completely gone and never comes back.
Customer: Got it. Hey! My heart is filling up with new files. Smile is playing on my monitor and Peace and Contentment are copying themselves all over My Heart. Is this normal?

Tech Support: Sometimes. For others it takes awhile, but eventually everything gets it at the proper time. So Love is installed and running. One more thing before we hang up. Love is Freeware. Be sure to give it and its various modules to everyone you meet. They will in turn share it with others and return some cool modules back to you.

new $100 donation

Carin Handsun — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 22:17:14 +0000

Another dear family friend, donated $100 this week, Aunt Dee and Bill Whalen. Aunt Dee has been my Mom’s best friend since my brother and I were kids, and our families had a lot of fun, in the good-old-days! Thanks Dee and Bill (Bill’s son is a Fire Chief, by the way!)

Senior Pictures

Carin Handsun — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 13:59:30 +0000

Stan Wilkinson Inc, the school photographer for NMHS has donated two full sets of senior pictures of Niko, his Dad and I each got one. If someone would like a 2×3 photograph, I have 9 available, please email me at the link on the right.

A new video compilation

Carin Handsun — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 22:02:54 +0000