Dear friends & colleagues, As many of you know, Nicole Mason and I co-founded a non-profit this year – Mahila Partnership www.mahilapartnership.org. We are a grassroots organization dedicated to serving vulnerable populations and working on projects related to education, community and disasters. Most recently we have partnered with UMASS Boston’s Center for Rebuilding Sustainable...
by Angela Devlen It’s a different sort of crisis. It isn’t global in scale. But it is a crisis and two things about every crisis that ring true every time, ring true this time. Every crisis is local and it’s leadership in the face of that crisis that makes a difference. Not enough time...
by Angela Devlen I am standing next to my grandmother’s hospital bed and silent tears are running down my face. I love this woman yet I am not sure exactly why I am crying. Tears of relief perhaps. Or is it fear. Or is it because of her suffering. She realizes I am there...
by Angela Devlen The child of every firefighter is terrified their parent will die in the line of duty. I know because I am one of those children. I know because I cried the day the towers fell knowing my worst fear came true that day for all the children who lost parents on...
by Angela Devlen “Battered” is the word they use when you have been in an abusive relationship. It sounds like a word used to describe someone helpless—a victim. — She doesn’t feel like a victim though. Women like her aren’t battered. She is strong, attractive, intelligent, successful and has lots of friends. No...
by Angela Devlen Over the past couple of years, H5N1 avian influenza has caused concern among public health officials and sparked debates around the globe about the significance of this virus, the likelihood of another pandemic and whether the threat is in fact imminent. And like everyone else in my field I am planning...
by Angela Devlen The Butterfly… My old apartment that was lost in the fire was a first floor, modest two-bedroom in a three-family house. I loved it because it had a fireplace and was just feet from the ocean. I felt like it was a place I could begin my journey as a single...
by Angela Devlen It’s probably about 2 a.m., the day after tax day and I am watching a fire envelope not one but two houses. There are several people standing around with looks of concern and fear on their faces. It isn’t their house on fire but it may be. This has been this...
by Angela Devlen Hmmm…a column. That would be great fun I thought when it was suggested I contribute to Big Med. . My response to express my interest? “…as a single mom of a five-year-old girl, working in emergency management in healthcare, with a background in private sector...
