Martin Luther King Jr. has now been dead longer than he lived. But what an extraordinary life it was.

At 33, he was pressing the case of civil rights with President John Kennedy. At 34, he galvanized the nation with his “I Have a Dream” speech. At 35, he won the Nobel Peace Prize. At 39, he was assassinated, but he left a legacy of hope and inspiration that continues today.

This Web site, first created by The Seattle Times in 1996, contains the story of a remarkable man, images of a tumultuous time, and perspectives of politicians, academics, students and the many, ordinary citizens whose lives he touched. We invite you to explore it.

November is National Adoption Month, a month set aside each year to raise awareness about the adoption of children and youth from foster care. This year’s National Adoption Month initiative targets adoption professionals by focusing on ways to recruit and retain parents for the 107,000 children and youth in foster care waiting for adoptive families. The National Adoption Month poster (PDF – 2,796 KB) notes strategies adoption professionals can implement any day, week, or month to benefit children waiting for families. The Spanish National Adoption Month poster (PDF – 2,494 KB) also provides suggestions for working with Spanish-speaking families throughout the year.

The 2011 theme for National Adoption Month is Build Capacity to Make Lasting Change. The National Adoption Month initiative supports the national adoption recruitment campaign and public service announcements produced in partnership with the Ad Council, AdoptUSKids, and the Children’s Bureau. This year’s campaign is targeted toward the recruitment of families for preteens (8-12 year olds). (more…)

There are almost 19 million veterans in America today, but with over 1,100 war veterans dying each day, there is an urgent need to collect their personal accounts of their war time experiences while they are still among us. There are valuable lessons to be learned and these should be collected by the nation’s library, The Library of Congress. You can help create this historical record by contributing a story or interviewing someone yourself. Capture the oral history of a veteran in your family or community.

The Library of Congress’s Veterans History Project has provided this tipsheet on how to capture veterans’ oral histories on video and audiotape and submitting them to the Project.

The goal of the Veterans History Project is to collect, preserve, and make accessible the personal accounts of American war veterans so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand the realities of war. Please go here to learn how you can participate.

I believe in giving back. I believe that it is incumbent upon those of us who are more fortunate to give back to others, even strangers, all the good things we have received in life. It is our responsibility to volunteer our time, talents and resources for the benefit of others.

There are many reasons why volunteering is beneficial to all involved. When we volunteer our time for a good cause that we are impassioned about, we reap rewards far beyond our efforts. Many people become involved in volunteer activities because of our children, our families, our friends or co-workers. Because of these connections, volunteerism often takes the form of coaching sporting activities, leading Scouting troops, teaching Sunday school, or acting as class mom. These are all necessary and vital endeavors. But there is more.

Read the entire article.

IBM Corp. has passed a milestone, naming the first female CEO in the company’s 100-year history.

The selection of Virginia “Ginni” Rometty, announced Tuesday, is also a statement about the growing influence of women in the top tiers of the technology world.

Two of the biggest technology companies will have female leaders when Rometty’s appointment takes effect Jan. 1. Last month, Hewlett-Packard Co. named Meg Whitman, former eBay Inc. chief and candidate for California governor, as its CEO.

Their appointments are “setting a fabulous example” in the promotion of female executives, said Jean Bozman, an analyst with IDC who has followed IBM and HP closely for years.

Read the rest of the article at businessweek.com.

Disaster prevention includes modifying your home to strengthen it against storms so that you can be as safe as possible. It also includes having the supplies on hand to weather the storm. The suggestions provided here are only guides. You should use common sense in your disaster prevention.

• DEVELOP A FAMILY PLAN – Your family’s plan should be based on your vulnerability to the Hurricane Hazards. You should keep a written plan and share your plan with other friends or family.
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• CREATE A DISASTER SUPPLY KIT – There are certain items you need to have regardless of where you ride out a hurricane. The disaster supply kit is a useful tool when you evacuate as well as making you as safe as possible in your home.
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• SECURE YOUR HOME – There are things that you can do to make your home more secure and able to withstand stronger storms.
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• ONLINE VULNERABILITY INFO – There are web sites that can give you information about your communities vulnerability to specific hazards. These include hurricanes as well as other weather related hazards.
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Visit the National Hurricane Center Disaster Preparedness Webpage