American Morning
From sex abuse victim to legal advocate
By Allie Brown, CNN
Vershire, Vermont (CNN) - Armed with a law degree, an SUV that serves as a mobile office and her own harrowing personal history, 58-year-old trucker-turned-lawyer Wynona Ward navigates the back roads of rural Vermont.
Her mission: to aid victims of domestic violence.
Ward is the founder of Have Justice Will Travel, a group that works to end the generational cycle of abuse by giving free legal representation and support services to isolated - and often desperate - low-income people and their children.
"For domestic violence victims in rural areas, it can be very devastating," Ward said. "They're out there on these back roads, with no access to in-town services. Many do not have telephones; some do not have a driver's license or automobile. So we go to them." Read the full story »
Do you know a hero? Nominations are open for 2010 CNN Heroes
Army of volunteers saves lives with clipboards, high spirits
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/04/24/art_andrea_ivory.jpg caption="Breast cancer survivor Andrea Ivory is on a mission to educate Florida communities about the disease, one door at a time."]
WEST PARK, Florida (CNN) - "We are an army," says Andrea Ivory of the group gathered with her early on a Saturday morning.
Armed with clipboards, leaflets and high spirits, the energetic Ivory leads them into the neighborhood, where they start knocking on doors. The mood is lighthearted, but their mission is serious: to save lives, one house at a time.
They're volunteers from the Florida Breast Health Initiative, or FBHI, and they are waging war against breast cancer. It's an effort started by Ivory, 50, herself a survivor of the disease.
Every weekend in the spring and fall, she and her volunteers - who include college students, senior citizens and suburban moms, all wearing matching T-shirts - fan out across low-income communities in southern Florida, educating women about breast health.
They especially seek out uninsured women age 35 and older, who statistics show are twice as likely to be diagnosed with late-stage breast cancer, and thus more likely to die from the disease.
Maya nut changes lives while aiding the rain forest
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/04/17/art_vohman_cnn.jpg caption="Erika Vohman's Equilibrium Fund teaches women how to reap the benefits of the Maya nut."]
FLORES, Guatemala (CNN) - In the rain forests of Central America grows the nutrient-rich Maya nut. The marble-sized seed can be prepared to taste like mashed potatoes, chocolate or coffee. To those who stumble upon the nuts on the ground, they're free for the taking.
The problem, however, is that many people living in areas where the Maya nut grows abundantly don't know about it.
Erika Vohman is trying to change that - and improve rain forest conservation and women's status in the process.
"People are living right there, in extreme poverty, not even eating more than one meal a day and there's Maya nut lying all around," Vohman said. "They don't eat it because they don't know."
Vohman has traveled to Honduras, Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua and El Salvador, conducting workshops that teach women how to harvest, prepare and cook or dry the prolific seeds into tasty, hearty foods.
The 45-year-old biologist first encountered the Maya nut while visiting rural Guatemala a decade ago for an animal rescue effort. An indigenous colleague told her of the native resource, once an essential food staple of his Mayan ancestors; the civilization had widely cultivated the large tropical rain forest tree, the Brosimum alicastrum, that produces the Maya nut.
That colleague prepared a Maya nut soup for Vohman and she found it delicious.
Insatiable demand – Americans want their pot!
Happy Tuesday. All this week on American Morning, we're breaking down America's drug addiction and how it's helping fuel the violence spilling over the border.
This morning we looked at the 8.5 billion dollar business of marijuana.
In her report this morning, Jeanne Meserve dug deeper into the issue and found marijuana is the cash cow for cartels with revenue eclipsing cocaine, heroin and meth combined. Watch the story
But how do you stop the supply when there's such a massive demand? Opinions are mixed. There's a small but vocal lobby to legalize marijuana, tax it, and cut out the cartels by bringing the dealing and regulation to Main Street.
Others say it has to start with education about the dangers of drug use, tougher enforcement and targeting of the actual cartel king pins. That's where enhancing our relationship with Mexico comes in.
Here's a look at the debate this morning with Juan Hernandez, who once advised former Mexican President Vicente Fox. He also wrote "The New American Pioneers". We were also joined by Bob Strang, a former special agent with the DEA. Watch the debate
We also got some great comments from our viewers following us on Twitter and calling into the show hotline.
Our amFIX poll asked, do you think the United States should legalize drugs? Here are the results so far:
- No way – 8%
- Yes, all drugs – 48%
- Only marijuana – 44%
Remember, this is not a scientific poll.
Don't miss tomorrow when we bring on Congressman Ron Paul in our 7am ET hour. He's a fierce advocate for personal liberties. Paul says we should legalize drugs and that personal freedom means we are also free to make bad choices. Do you agree? Please weigh in as always.
See you in the morning,
Kiran
Wounded warriors go fishing for recovery
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/04/10/art_ed_nicholson_cnn.jpg caption="Retired Navy Capt. Ed Nicholson's Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing helps rehabilitate wounded servicemembers."]
MADISON COUNTY, Virginia (CNN) - Amidst the tranquility of a fishing trip at the Rose River Farm in Madison County, a wounded warrior says he almost feels "semi-normal again."
The amputee is one of about 1,000 servicemen and veterans who have reaped the benefits of the therapeutic art of fly-fishing, with the help of retired Navy Capt. Ed Nicholson.
"The demons of war, you just don't set them aside," says Nicholson, 67. "But once you get out on the river, the serenity is incredibly healing."
While recovering from cancer surgery at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in 2004, Nicholson witnessed wounded and disabled men and women - many of them amputees - struggling with their injuries.
"Other than being in Vietnam and seeing people in the process of getting hurt, I never really had a full appreciation for the recovery part and what happened after they came home. My recovery was nothing compared to what they were facing. It planted the seed that maybe there's something I could do," Nicholson says.
The solution was obvious to Nicholson, who says being an outdoorsman is in his blood: Get them out of the hospital and into nature.
Mom stands between families and homelessness
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/04/03/art_steinhardt_cnn.jpg caption="Steinhardt converted her basement into a child care center as part of her effort to help low-income families."]
VIENNA, Virginia (CNN) - Despite working three jobs, Carolina Wines and her husband, George Wines, couldn't afford housing. For six months they had to live out of their van, hanging sheets on the windows for privacy and stopping at gas stations to wash up.
A medical disability kept George Wines from working, leaving it to his wife to support both of them.
It was a battle, and they were losing.
Obtaining affordable housing "was impossible," she said. The couple spent five years on the public housing wait list.
"When it would be really cold, in the 20s, I'd be up most of the night keeping the van running," said George Wines.
But with help from Suezette Steinhardt, families such as the Wineses are getting back on track and into their own homes. The couple now have an apartment, and Carolina Wines said she is moving forward with her education and her career.
"Without Suezette," said Carolina Wines, "we would probably be dead."
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