Wiser With Age

Tag: Wiser With Age

  • Former CEO of Telemundo now a leader for Hispanic films and students

    Former CEO of Telemundo now a leader for Hispanic films and students


    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.
    Jim McNamara (Courtesy Hispanic Scholarship Fund)

    Jim McNamara says he was often the only “gringo†in the room who knew Spanish.

    He was born and raised in Panama City, Panama and left for the first time to attend Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida in 1972. Today, he resides in Miami, where he is the chairman of Pantelion and Panamax Films, as well as the Hispanic Scholarship Fund.

    “My dream was to be a golfer,†says McNamara, 60. “I went to college with a golf scholarship.â€

    However, life had other plans for McNamara.

    “Through a series of events, I was befriended by Arnold Palmer – ‘the god of golf,’ he says. “He helped me get more focused, and I got into the sports industry.â€

    One of McNamara’s first jobs was representing athletes and promoting sporting events.

    “I quickly learned I was not a good agent,†he says. “I was transferred to the television division. I didn’t know anything, but I was searching for something I could be good at.â€

    He says he worked his way up the ranks, and then got a job at New World Entertainment, an American independent motion picture and television production company. After five years learning the media ropes, he got a job as CEO of Spanish-language television network, Telemundo.

    “I immersed myself in it,†says McNamara. “We really transformed Telemundo from a buyer [of programming] to a producer. I’m very proud of it.â€

    He says after that experience, he decided he really wanted to give back to the Hispanic community that was truly meaningful. That’s what brought him to serve on the board of the Hispanic Scholarship Fund – a non-profit organization which provides scholarships and pre-college support services to Latino students – and where he’s been serving for the past 10 years.

    “Our message is, ‘Don’t let the cost of college get in the way.’ Now I’ve become aware of what this means to the future of the U.S.,†says McNamara about the organization. “I truly think we are serving the country, and the U.S. Hispanic population directly, with the scholarships and directly informing parents and students.â€

    He goes on to say that he believes with the growing number of Hispanics in the U.S., every American company should hire Hispanics to make up 17 percent of their workforce.

    “It is in their best interest that the entire Hispanic population mirrors the entire U.S. population in education as well,†says McNamara. “We need to address this issue.â€

    Meanwhile, on the work side, he says he also has started producing movies for the same market. “Instructions Not Included†was the first bilingual success in mainstream U.S. theaters in 2013,  “Cesar Chavez” (2014) was the first bio pic about one of the most influential Hispanics for labor rights, and he’s looking forward to the equally inspirational story-plots of “Spare Parts†and “Aztec Warrior†in 2015.

    “It’s a fight between good and evil, and lots of special effects,†says McNamara about “Aztec Warrior,†starring Luis Guzman and Eugenio Derbez.

    He says he’s grateful for each phase life has granted him.

    “The sports job was the PhD, the events taught me how to sell, and best of all was Telemundo,†says the good-natured businessman. “The experience came in not knowing about Spanish television. I learned if you really commit, and I mean commit, you can really do anything. It opened up a lot of doors.â€

    And he adds he’s really grateful that his parents had always wanted him to learn Spanish, despite his initial resistance.

    “Be open to all ideas, and before you make up your mind. Take the time to learn a little about it, before you decide,†McNamara advises to youth.

    My advice to parents, especially Latino parents:

    “Do not let your kids not learn Spanish. There is a lot of peer pressure to not speak Spanish, but you’ve got to insist. English will take care of itself.â€

  • The benefits of using nature as therapy

    The benefits of using nature as therapy


    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.
    (Courtesy Dr. Josefina Monasterio)

    For millennia, our ancestors have existed in a very close relationship with the natural world. We have been intrinsically connected to the rhythms of our natural environment, from our water and food, to the changing of the seasons. As humans we seem to have an innate need to be close to nature and living things. We seem drawn, almost unconsciously, to activities which involve the natural environment.

    It is only in more recent times, largely due to industrialization and urbanization, that man has become more and more disconnected and isolated from the natural world. People in industrialized nations now spend more than 90 percent of their lives indoors. Our time spent outside, surrounded by nature, is estimated at only 1 to 5 percent. In our modern society, that in-built need for relationship with nature has become disrupted, leaving us unbalanced and open to a variety of mental and emotional problems.

    Most people are already aware of the beneficial psychological effects of simply being on a beach, paddling in a stream, or walking in a forest or the mountains. I’m sure it is no accident that we are drawn to areas of natural beauty when taking our holidays. The human need for nature is not just linked to use of its resources, but it also has an influence on our emotional state, thought processes, physical health, and even spiritual well-being.

    Compared to many traditional talking therapies, eco-therapy is often focused much more on experiential learning. Participants are forced to learn to appreciate being present in the “here and now” and immerse themselves in the environment and activities. Because of this, change can often occur without the lengthy discussion often associated with many talking therapies.

    You can develop greater awareness of your own strengths through the use of the natural environment and challenging nature-based activities. This can also build trust and motivation in yourself, and others, as well as reduce anger, depression, anxiety and stress.

    Mankind’s use of nature to enhance well-being, physically, mentally and spiritually, has been around probably as long as humans have existed.

    I make it my daily practice to get up at 4am. I then pray, meditate and read the scriptures. By 5am, I am out the door for my morning walk/run with nature, which brings me close to God. I walk literally looking up to the sky in awe of the immense beauty of the sun, the birds singing happily for a new day, and the smell of jasmine and other scents of trees and flowers. Then I do my yoga, and finally, I jump in the blue ocean to feel the warm water healing my soul.

    Personally, these disciplines have brought me unlimited growth and understanding of my purpose.

    Look around you, and try a nature regimen that works for you!

    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.Dr. Josefina Monasterio is a certified life coach, fitness expert, and nutritional counselor based in Vero Beach, Florida. She holds a PhD in Adult Personal Development from Nova University and a Master’s Degree in Education from Boston University. Dr. Josefina is also a certified Yoga Therapist from the World Yoga Society of Calcutta, India, and host of Healthy Power TV’s “The Dr. Josefina Way.â€

  • NY artist says to make your life a masterpiece, listen to yourself

    NY artist says to make your life a masterpiece, listen to yourself


    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.
    Artist Carol Crawford (Photo/Carol Crawford)

    Carol Crawford, originally from Buffalo, NY, has been creating art ever since she can remember. She inherited her talent from her father – an artist and calligrapher.

    “I used to watch him work,†she says. “He did gorgeous lines. He handed me a bottle of India ink when I was seven and a sable brush. I never spilled anything.â€

    And that’s how it all began.

    Crawford has had a long art career consisting of documentary photography, filmmaking, printmaking, and theater set design. In 1995, she got a masters in interior design from Pratt Institute in NYC – where she has been teaching since 1999. Slightly before that, she also founded her own design firm, Carol Crawford Environments, which specializes in sustainable interior design. And on October 7, her latest exhibit, “Time Frames: Visual Metaphors for the Passage of Time†opens in New York.

    “All the work was done in 2014,†says Crawford about her latest exhibit which she completed while on medical leave from Pratt. “I had spinal surgery, and it took a long time to heal. I thought I would go out of my mind, so I decided to throw myself into studio work. I plunged in. It was an evolution from designs from my sketchbook.â€

    She says what she loves most about art is the ability to communicate and to invent.

    “What I like about it is telling stories,†says Crawford. “I’m looking always to break new ground. It’s mixed media, because I love to shift. I’ve used a lot of wood and plexiglass, and photography has always played a large part. I used to make a living as a documentary photographer – so the camera is an important tool.â€

    Whatever she has worked on throughout her life, she says, she has loved. And she also made sure to make time for everything that was important to her.

    “I’ve been teaching in universities and colleges from California to Maryland for the past 60 years…I love teaching very, very much, but I didn’t want to give up the idea of becoming a mother,†says the busy woman who now has four grown kids and five grandchildren. “…One of the things I had to fight for was to have children and a family – so it means a great deal.”

    Crawford says she wasn’t always so sure about what she wanted. One day her father asked her why she didn’t go to Pratt?

    “We were not rich,†she remembers. “I was always a scholarship student with a job. I thought, ‘How could I do that?’â€

    And then her mother asked her, “Wouldn’t you like to be a designer? You keep doing it for free?â€

    Crawford says she didn’t know how she could go back to school with four kids, and she recently realized it all happened. She had actually graduated from Pratt and is a designer and teacher.

    “Some of the best ideas I’ve ever had was using my brain with my feelings,†she says. “Some of the best artwork has come from that as well.â€

    If she had one piece of life advice that she would tell her younger self, it would be to be true to yourself, others and stick to your dream – even if you don’t know how you are going to make money.

    “If you haven’t already fallen in love with something…listen to yourself,†says Crawford. “If you are an honest observer to life around you, you’ll come up with something that is true to you. You will have success if you do that.â€

  • Actor Tony Plana says, “Show your kids how important education is”

    Actor Tony Plana says, “Show your kids how important education is”


    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.
    Actor Tony Plana (Courtesy Twitter)

    Many might remember Tony Plana from his many acting roles from “Feo†in the film “Born in East L.A.â€Â to playing America Ferrera’s dad in the sitcom “Ugly Betty,†but many might not know his other passion is sharing his wisdom with youth.

    The 62-year-old Cuban-American actor attributes all of his success to his education, and he says he wants to pay it forward.

    For nearly two decades, Plana has been working hard to create educational programming for schools in underserved middle and high schools in the greater Los Angeles area. His East L.A. Classic Theatre program, which integrates acting within school curriculums have proven successful, because it engages students to become avid learners – it connects them emotionally to the school experience. He says young immigrant children, who have trouble speaking because of fear, to troubled runaways, have found a purpose and have learned to thrive because of being exposed to theater.

    “Theater teaches you to collaborate and identify with a group – to create and realize something together,†says Plana. “The wonderful feeling of creating something together and sharing it – it’s very powerful…I started East L.A. Classic Theatre in 1995, because I wanted to become part of the solution…I want to take East L.A. nationally, because [education] is a national problem.â€

    The experienced father of two and educator of many, says it’s all about connections when it comes to educating youth, and it starts in the home.

    “Latino children experience more regression than any other group, because it’s environmental – many are very poor and that’s not conducive to intellectual stimulation,†says Plana, who encourages role-playing with parents in school curriculums. “It’s important to educate the parents about this problem.â€

    He says he’s also created a program through East L.A. called “Creciendo Juntos†to empower parents with information.

    “You have to get involved in finding out who your kids are and what they need,†says Plana, who home-schooled his own children – whether biological, educational, whatever those needs are. “We teach them not to do things for their children, but to make them learn, and parents to become learners themselves. You teach by modeling. Become more educated so you can make more money and raise standard of living. Show your kids how important education is.â€

    Currently living with his wife in NYC, Plana also spends time advocating for other causes when he’s not acting. Most recently, he’s a spokesperson for a non-profit called TECHO, which brings volunteers and low-income families in Latin America together to combat poverty.

  • Want to eat healthy? Eat together as a family, daily

    Want to eat healthy? Eat together as a family, daily


    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.
    Photo/Dreamstime

    Traditionally, family meals have represented much more than just communal eating—they’re a time for good conversation and genuine family bonding.

    Unfortunately, today, many meals are consumed at stoplights or in front of the computer—alone. Solitary dining has become more and more common as busy families are finding it challenging to carve out time for family meals, particularly when all adult family members work outside of the home.  

    A 2014 study found that the majority of American households eat meals together less than five days a week. A 2013 Harris Poll found that among Americans who live with at least one family member, only 58 percent report eating with others at least four times a week, but 86 percent report sitting down to a dinner together at least once a week. The poll also found that the frequency of family dinners is declining with each generation.

    Although solitary meals are occurring on a regular basis now, recent research suggests they are not contributing to you or your children’s well-being. Families that make an effort to eat meals together, at least three or four times a week, enjoy significant benefits for their health, happiness, and relationships.

    For example, kids who eat meals with their families enjoy healthier eating patterns and less obesity. Research shows that children who share family meals, three or more times a week, are more likely to be in a healthy weight range and make better food choices. They’re more likely to eat healthy foods and less likely to eat unhealthy ones. They are also less likely to develop eating disorders.

    Interestingly, a Cornell University study found that families (both adults and children) who eat dinner in their kitchen, or dining rooms, have significantly lower BMIs (body mass index) than families who eat elsewhere. For boys, remaining at the table until everyone is finished eating was also associated with a lower BMI.

    There is also something to be said about the importance of family rituals, and routines, for children’s emotional health. 

    For example, teens who eat with their families at least five times a week are 40 percent more likely to get A’s and B’s in school than their peers who don’t share family meals. They’re also 42 percent less likely to drink alcohol, 59 percent less likely to smoke cigarettes, 66 percent less likely to try marijuana, and tend to be less depressed.

    Other research shows that with each additional family dinner, adolescents have: higher self-esteem and life satisfaction, more trusting and helpful behaviors toward others and better relationships with their parents, better vocabulary and academic performance, lower teen pregnancy rates and truancy, and increased resilience to stress.

    In order for family meals to occur, you must make them a priority.

    If you’re looking for ideas on how to corral your family into eating more meals together, The Family Dinner Project provides some helpful and creative tips.

    One of my favorite sayings is: “If you fail to plan, then you are planning to fail,” and this certainly applies here.

    Making it possible for your family to eat together means not only shopping ahead of time so you have the food to prepare, but also selecting a time that works for everyone—whenever that may be. Just be creative and make your mealtimes as regular, stress-free and as enjoyable as possible!

    A woman with short hair wearing red necklace.Dr. Josefina Monasterio is a certified life coach, fitness expert, and nutritional counselor based in Vero Beach, Florida. She holds a PhD in Adult Personal Development from Nova University and a Master’s Degree in Education from Boston University. Dr. Josefina is also a certified Yoga Therapist from the World Yoga Society of Calcutta, India, and host of Healthy Power TV’s “The Dr. Josefina Way.â€