Category: housing

MIL-OSI: SECU Foundation Awards $2 Million Grant to Support Expansion of the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

KURE BEACH, N.C., Feb. 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — SECU Foundation has awarded a $2 million capital grant to the North Carolina Aquarium Society, contributing to the expansion of the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher (NCAFF). The development project will increase the interactive space at the state’s most visited aquarium and include a new education center to serve North Carolina students.

Operated under the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, the North Carolina Aquariums include three aquariums and Jennette’s Pier. They welcome more than 1.4 million visitors annually. About 500,000 of those guests visit NCAFF, including tens of thousands of students, who visit on field trips. Through engaging and immersive educational activities, the Aquariums foster a deeper understanding and connection to aquatic environments with the hope that visitors are inspired to protect them.

“We are so pleased to be a part of the expansion of the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher,” said SECU Foundation Board Vice Chair Mona Moon. “With the SECU Foundation grant and the support of many others in the community, improvements made to this landmark Aquarium will propel it to a world-class facility for our state. With a new education center and other exciting additions to be announced later this year, even more visitors from all corners of our state and beyond can engage with our coastal ecosystems and aquatic environments.”

“On behalf of the North Carolina Aquarium Society, we are immensely grateful for this generous grant from the SECU Foundation,” said Society Board Chair Drew Covert. “Among other exciting renovation plans, this grant will fund the creation of a new educational center – one that extends beyond the Aquarium walls to provide truly immersive experiences for students in North Carolina who need it most.”

“We are honored to have the ongoing support of the North Carolina Aquarium Society and their important collaborative work with partners like the SECU Foundation to bolster the North Carolina Aquariums,” said North Carolina Aquarium Division Director Hap Fatzinger. “The North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher renovation and expansion is the most consequential project since the creation of the marine resource centers nearly 50 years ago. We are excited for what’s ahead and the lasting impact this will have on our state.”

About SECU and SECU Foundation
A not-for-profit financial cooperative owned by its members, and federally insured by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), SECU has been providing employees of the state of North Carolina and their families with consumer financial services for 87 years. SECU is the second largest credit union in the United States with $53 billion in assets. It serves more than 2.8 million members through 275 branch offices, 1,100 ATMs, Member Services Support via phone, www.ncsecu.org, and the SECU Mobile App. The SECU Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization funded by the contributions of SECU members, promotes local community development in North Carolina primarily through high-impact projects in the areas of housing, education, healthcare, and human services. Since 2004, SECU Foundation has made a collective financial commitment of over $300 million for initiatives to benefit North Carolinians statewide.

About North Carolina Aquarium Society
The North Carolina Aquarium Society is a nonprofit (501c3) organization dedicated to supporting the North Carolina Aquariums through private fundraising, membership, and revenue generation. Established in 1986, the Society partners with the Aquariums to enhance exhibits, animal care, education programs, and conservation initiatives beyond what state funding provides.

Holding the check left to right are SECU Foundation Board Vice Chair Mona Moon, North Carolina Aquarium Society President and CEO Liz Baird, and NCAFF Director Joanna Zazzali, surrounded by SECU Foundation, SECU, and NCAFF employees and board members from the North Carolina Aquarium Society.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/2f1db278-c292-4ef0-aae9-88c8b6f1a46e

The MIL Network –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Welch Joins Durbin, Senate Judiciary, Approps Democrats in Denouncing President Trump’s Unlawful Transfer of Immigrants to Guantánamo

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont)

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, joined Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, along with Democratic leaders of the Senate Judiciary and Appropriations Committees in sending a letter to President Trump denouncing his transfer of immigrants from the United States to Guantánamo as unlawful and asking for answers to basic questions yet to be provided to Congress.
The Senators begin by denouncing the transfers, writing: “We write to object to your illegal and unjustified transfers of immigrants from the United States to the detention center at Naval Station Guantánamo Bay, which follows your directive to the Secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security to prepare the base to hold tens of thousands of noncitizens. These actions are unprecedented, unlawful, and harmful to American national security, values, and interests. The United States has never sent anyone from the United States to be detained at Guantánamo before now.”
The Senators continue by outlining the unlawful and unjustified nature of the directive, writing: “There is no basis in U.S. immigration law for transferring noncitizens arrested inside the United States to a location outside of the United States for detention prior to or for the purposes of conducting removal proceedings. Noncitizens inside the United States are entitled to numerous protections under U.S. immigration law and the U.S. Constitution. For example, removal processes under our immigration laws afford noncitizens due process and an opportunity to seek protection from removal to a place where they could face persecution or torture. These rights cannot be extinguished by transfer to a location outside the United States. Simply put, if the processes for obtaining a lawful removal order have not been followed, the forcible removal of a noncitizen to Guantánamo violates U.S. immigration law.”
The Senators continue by refuting a false DHS statement to the Committee that suggests immigrants with final orders of removal do not need access to counsel, writing: “In addition, individuals in civil immigration detention have a right to access counsel under ICE detention standards, and immigration laws governing removal proceedings. Impeding access to counsel for detained immigrants also may violate the Constitution in some circumstances. In addition, individuals in immigration detention may have appeal or other review rights and cannot be held indefinitely, and the only effective means by which a detained individual could assert these rights would be through access to counsel.”
The Senators also refute the Trump Administration’s false claim that only high-risk immigrants are detained, writing: “While no noncitizen should be sent from the United States to Guantánamo, it also appears that your Administration’s claims that it was sending ‘worst of the worst’ there are misleading. Public reporting indicates that noncitizens who DHS deemed low risk were sent to Guantánamo. In response to inquiries from Judiciary Committee staff, your Administration has even left open the possibility that families, including children, will be detained at Guantánamo, stating that future decisions regarding detention would be made on a ‘case-by-case basis.’”
The Senators conclude with a striking portrayal of the practical ramifications of this decision before issuing a series of information requests, writing: “Your efforts to house or detain noncitizens forcibly removed from the United States at the MOC and the Camp 6 law of war detention facilities at Guantánamo are cruel, unlawful, and unprecedented. Such hasty and unlawful actions will cause harms to the United States for years to come. As those familiar with the long history of operations at Guantánamo can tell you, detaining individuals there is not a quick fix. Congress has not appropriated funds for such purposes for good reason. Given the isolated location of the base, its controversial history, and the lack of legal authority to detain noncitizens there, continuing down this path will invite more litigation, drain resources, place undue strain on our servicemembers, diminish military readiness, undermine support from our allies, and harm our standing in the world.”
In addition to Sens. Welch and Ranking Member Durbin, the letter is signed by Senators Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee; Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Border Security and Immigration; and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security.
Last Congress, Senator Welch joined Senator Durbin in sending a letter to President Biden expressing support for finally closing the Guantánamo Bay detention facility.
Read the full text of the letter.

MIL OSI USA News –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI New Zealand: Business Appointments – Raine & Horne beefs up executive team in New Zealand with the appointment of James Shepherd
Source: Raine & Horne

Highlights

Raine & Horne appoints James Shepherd as Supervision and Compliance Manager for New Zealand, bringing almost 16 years of industry experience to support the super brand’s rapid expansion.

Mr Shepherd is excited about the company’s growth in New Zealand and is eager to unlock further potential and streamline processes for improved sales and compliance.

Looking ahead for 2025, Mr Shepherd predicts steady market conditions across New Zealand, offering opportunities for savvy buyers and vendors, particularly for downsizing.

Christchurch, NZ (25 February 2025) One of Australasia’s fastest-growing real estate networks Raine & Horne has scored a major executive coup with Mr James Shepherd’s appointment as Supervision and Compliance Manager for New Zealand.

Mr Shepherd, who began his real estate career in 2009 after transitioning from the machinery and construction sector, has almost 16 years of experience working with two major real estate networks.

Besides his compliance role, Mr Shepherd will also assume general management responsibilities for the rapidly growing brand. Raine & Horne has quickly grown its footprint in New Zealand, with over 70 offices since launching in April 2023.

Mr Angus Raine, Executive Chairman of Raine & Horne, is thrilled to welcome Mr Shepherd to the team. He believes his extensive background in office ownership, management, and sales will be invaluable.

“James is a major asset for our business as we expand across New Zealand. He has a strong background in office ownership and management, sales management, and a wealth of recent sales experience in the Christchurch region,” said Mr Raine.

“With his extensive background, he will be responsible for supporting our existing offices and sales agents and helping to grow the office network. His role will, of course, also strongly focus on our compliance framework.”

Amplifying rapid growth for Raine & Horne’s offices, sales agents and brand

Mr Shepherd said he is excited to join Raine & Horne at this point in its growth curve in New Zealand.

“The impressive growth the brand has experienced over the past 18 months, particularly after the acquisitions in 2024, shows a strong upward trajectory,” he said.

“Our new offices want to grow their businesses and are embracing Raine & Horne’s systems and processes, and there’s massive potential for them to expand. I’m excited that I’ll be helping them to unlock this potential.”

Mr Shepherd noted that one exciting opportunity for real estate businesses in New Zealand is the chance to streamline administrative processes and navigate complex regulations more efficiently.

“With my deep understanding of compliance issues, I’m confident I can help streamline the process and free up salespeople to focus on what matters – selling their vendor’s properties.”

Having worked with two of New Zealand’s major real estate brands, Mr Shepherd is excited to be part of a company pushing beyond the status quo.

“Raine & Horne’s unique edge is our advanced technology, and I am eager to drive awareness of our ecosystem of technology firsts throughout New Zealand, particularly the first-to-market AI-powered social media marketing platform, Amplify.”

Mr Shepherd also sees tremendous potential for Raine & Horne’s rural real estate division in New Zealand, drawing from his extensive rural background in farming before his stint in construction.

“New Zealand has a deep connection to rural life, so I see excellent opportunities for Raine & Horne Rural in New Zealand,” he said.

Steady market conditions expected in 2025

Looking ahead to the remainder of 2025, Mr Shepherd believes vendors and buyers can expect a steady year. “While there are still some economic challenges to navigate, I expect the residential property market to remain steady and gradually build momentum.

“It won’t be a year for price surges, but this also means 2025 will be an excellent year for those ready to make moves,” he adds.

“If you’ve got your finances in order, 2025 could be the year to jump in, while conditions remain stable.”

Mr Shepherd also sees a strong opportunity for those considering a move. Despite increased stock levels, the highest seen in a decade, he envisages the potential for better prices in 2025 than the past couple of years.

Finally, Mr Shepherd is excited about the future with Raine & Horne, saying, “I’m thrilled about the opportunities ahead. I’m eager to dive in, visit the offices, meet the teams, and help build the future of this exciting business.”
MIL OSI New Zealand News –
February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Kevin Lombardo’s Family Rebuilt Their Home and Lives After Marshall Fire

Source: US National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Fire Survivors Embraced an Energy-Efficient Passive Design Structure

The family is settling into their new house, enjoying the benefits of the efficient design. Photo from Trendum Media

Sitting in a friend’s Boulder, Colorado, townhouse after the Dec. 30, 2021, Marshall Fire burned his family’s home to the ground, Kevin Lombardo, a National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Client and Infrastructure Services manager, was struck by the enormity of what they faced.

He and his wife Casey had grabbed their two young sons and some precious belongings to flee just before the Marshall Fire engulfed their Louisville, Colorado, home of six years. Driven by wind gusts up to 115 mph, Colorado’s most destructive wildfire ever quickly destroyed 1,100 structures in Louisville, Superior, and unincorporated Boulder County. Two residents died in the firestorm.

“I don’t really know what to do,” Lombardo recalled thinking. “Do I file an insurance claim? Take a picture? Still pay my mortgage? This feels bigger than that.”

Lombardo, who has worked in tech since he was a teen growing up in New Jersey, is used to problem solving and was familiar with NREL’s building expertise.

Having started at NREL in 2007 as a contractor before becoming a full-time employee the following year, Lombardo said, “I know a little bit of a lot of what NREL does. I’ve worked with the buildings folks in the past. Our team [in IT] supports [the U.S. Department of Energy] DOE and the Solar Decathlon.”

But starting from scratch to rebuild his family’s home was overwhelming. He was not thinking of anything special. All he wanted to do was replace their dwelling. “I felt like: I don’t care. Let’s put a house back,” he said.

Their former home was an almost unidentifiable scorched lot filled with rubble. Only a surviving metal mailbox revealed where they had lived. “All the landmarks were gone,” he said.

The next few months became an exhausting blur of trying to navigate a new reality. Slowly, with support from the community and neighbors—getting donated clothing, food, as well as emotional and logistical support—they began with others a journey to recovery, becoming “fire survivors,” not victims.

During a building webinar about passive-designed homes, which use a building strategy that relies on natural sources of heating and cooling to reduce energy use, a new vision finally clicked. While such designs have been around for decades, they are employed more commonly on the East and West coasts using various building techniques to increase building efficiency.

Encouraged by an Xcel Energy rebate program designed to ease the demand for electricity, the Lombardos began exploring a way to rebuild a better structure.

“It hadn’t crossed my mind at first,” he said. “Then it clicked. I blame my mental state at the time.”

After a series of meetings with different builders, the Lombardos decided on an architect, builder, and landscaper who shared their vision. Their ties to NREL emerged.

“I asked my architect and builder, ‘Did you guys ever hear of this Solar Decathlon?’” Lombardo recalled. “And my architect said, ‘Yeah, I competed in it.’ My builder said that he had consulted with some of the student teams.”

The exterior of Kevin’s rebuilt home. Photo from Trendum Media

NREL-Tested Building Technology Used

Techniques tested at the competition and validated at NREL came into play.

“We were holistically tied together,” Lombardo said, noting that after only a couple of meetings, they had a concept. “It took off, and it took off fast.”

Still, it took time. On Sept. 1, 2022, the Lombardo family moved into their secondary rental property in Louisville. The property was unharmed but occupied by renters during the Marshall Fire.

The new footprint that emerged was solid: a three-story, 2,572 square-foot rectangular home, slightly larger than their previous house. But the difference was obvious, reflecting their own adjustments and personal touches. Even the two boys, Max and Miles, had input. The architect asked the boys to draw what they would like. Overjoyed, both sketched out rooms that, as Lombardo said, look like something from Tony Stark’s Iron Man lab. Their desires became reality. Both have lofts in their bedrooms connected by a secret bookshelf door. This helped comfort the youngsters who had been frightened by the devastation.

The loft inside of the Lombardo house was suggested by the two boys. Photo from Trendum Media

Other construction elements incorporated a mix of traditional and cutting-edge building techniques.

The new home is situated on their reclaimed lot to ensure maximum exposure to the sun in the winter, yet the house also has awnings to protect from too much sun in the summer. The exterior of the house is corrugated steel. Also, the entire house is air sealed, and all the vents are ember-resistant vents. That way, if there is another fire and an ember hits the vent, a material within the vent expands to prevent the fire from entering. Exterior walls are thicker than normal construction, employing a 12-inch double-stud technique, which helps with both insulation and fire resistance.

Furthermore, the house is all-electric, utilizing a heat pump for any active heating and cooling that might be needed, and solar panels are being installed. Control and monitoring of the energy usage, air quality, and mechanical systems are accomplished through multiple sensors and an open-source home-automation platform running on a local server in the house.

The Lombardos also chose to leverage additional techniques such as recycled denim and cellulose insulation, a concrete-free “slab” under the ground floor, and a laundry-to-landscape gray water implementation that helps provide irrigation to their native and waterwise perennials and trees in the front yard.

Finally, in spring 2024, the family moved into the house. Hours after the movers left, the electric utility shut off the power for 42 hours due to high winds. A lot of the neighbors got cold and uncomfortable and left for hotels, but because of the high performance of their house, the Lombardos stayed comfortable and warm with no active heating.

The family loves it, even though they still need to make the home their own. “It sort of feels like being on a vacation,” Lombardo said.

The house has drawn plenty of attention as one of several green-technique homes in the neighborhood. They have opened it up for tours, including the Boulder Green Homes Tour in June when more than 140 visitors stopped by.

As time goes by, it becomes more and more like home. “Finding a place for the Christmas tree will make it seem more like ours,” Lombardo said.

Yet, memories of the tragedy linger.

“We don’t want to go through it again. I don’t want my kids feeling like they’re living in a house where it could happen again,” Lombardo said. “So, yes, a fire can happen again. Nothing is fireproof, really.”

But Lombardo and his family feel comfortable knowing that they have done the best possible to ensure their house is safe and energy efficient—and perhaps an inspiration to others.

MIL OSI USA News –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: SBA Administrator Loeffler Issues Memo on Day One Priorities
Source: United States Small Business Administration

WASHINGTON — Following her confirmation and swearing-in as the 28th Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration, Kelly Loeffler issued a Day One memo outlining her top priorities for the agency.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our nation, driving innovation, job creation, and prosperity – and there’s no stronger advocate for small business than President Trump or myself. But over the last four years, the SBA has burdened entrepreneurs with bureaucracy – with its programs becoming mired in fraud, waste, and abuse,” SBA Administrator Loeffler said. “That changes today. My first priority is rebuilding the SBA into an America First engine for free enterprise – by empowering small businesses and fueling economic growth.

“From day one, we will uphold the highest standards of accountability, performance, and integrity, where taxpayer dollars will be safeguarded, not squandered. We will streamline operations, drive efficiency, and ensure programs deliver real results. It’s a new day at the SBA, and I’m honored to lead a team that is committed to serving America’s job creators and citizens when disaster strikes.”

The following priorities have been distributed to all SBA staff as the agency prepares to carry out President Trump’s America First agenda and empower small businesses to thrive:

Supporting President Trump’s America First Agenda
1. Promoting “Made in America” with U.S. manufacturing: The vast majority of America’s manufacturers are small businesses, and SBA programs have powered tens of thousands of them. This agency is committed to supporting the America First agenda by rebuilding American supply chains and investing in manufacturing to strengthen our economy and national security. The agency will transform its Office of International Trade into the Office of Manufacturing and Trade – which will focus on promoting economic independence, job creation, and fair trade practices to power the next blue-collar boom. SBA will also partner across agencies to scale innovative manufacturing and technology startups that will help our nation return to “Made in America.”
2. Implementing President Trump’s executive orders: SBA will enforce all of President Trump’s executive orders including Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government, Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing and Unleashing American Energy. To date, SBA has already taken the following actions:
  - Eliminated the Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility, placing DEIA employees on administrative leave.
  - Paused grants across the agency that do not comply with President Trump’s executive orders.
  - Paused the Green Lender Initiative to reverse the previous Administration’s favoritism for Green New Deal ventures that did not support America’s return to energy dominance.
3. Supporting the Department of Government Efficiency: SBA will continue working closely with President Trump’s DOGE as the federal government moves into a new era of accountability, transparency, and efficiency. SBA will prioritize eliminating fraud and waste within the agency, to ensure American taxpayer dollars are utilized in the most productive way possible to benefit small businesses and economic growth and resilience.
4. Mandating full-time, in-office work for SBA employees: Pursuant to President Trump’s Return to In-Person Work presidential memorandum, SBA will require all employees, unless exempt, to return to their respective duty stations five days a week as of today, Monday, Feb. 24, 2025.
5. Prioritizing workforce optimization: As part of the broader effort to support President Trump’s workforce optimization initiatives, SBA will continue to evaluate workforce reduction measures, including the overhaul of all advisory boards, to ensure the agency is operating with maximum efficiency to deliver results for U.S. taxpayers, small businesses, and those affected by disaster.
6. Cracking down on fraud: SBA’s loan programs should be a powerful tool for empowering small business formation and delivering critical aid to disaster victims. The prior Administration left these programs with unaddressed fraud – including an estimated $200 billion in pandemic-era fraud. Starting today, the SBA will institute a zero-tolerance policy for fraud and investigate fraud across all programs. The agency has established a Fraud Working Group and will appoint a Fraud Czar to identify, stop, and claw back criminally obtained funds on behalf of American taxpayers – working across agencies to prevent fraud.
Eliminating Wasteful Spending and Cracking Down on Fraud
1. Conducting an agency-wide financial audit: As fraud has risen, so too have delinquencies, defaults, and charge-offs on loan programs, exacerbated by the previous Administration’s lax loan underwriting, servicing, and collection efforts. As a result, SBA has not satisfactorily completed a financial audit for several consecutive years. Therefore, the agency will request an independent audit of its financials to address mismanagement, restore the credibility of financial statements, and preserve the solvency of public-private programs like the 7(a) lending program and the Small Business Investment Company program, which are designed to drive economic growth without taxpayer subsidy.
2. Protecting the solvency of loan programs and restoring underwriting standards: Likewise, SBA will review all options to protect the solvency of its lending programs, including revising practices that have jeopardized the zero-subsidy status of programs like 7(a). The agency will also restart its dormant collections programs effective immediately. Furthermore, SBA will restore its underwriting standards, ensuring taxpayer dollars only go to supporting eligible small businesses across America – by conducting a full review of current lending SOPs, ending the “Do What You Do” standard for lending, and enhancing oversight of non-bank lenders.
3. Banning illegal aliens from receiving SBA assistance: Programs funded by American citizens should only benefit American citizens. Consistent with President Trump’s Ending Taxpayer Subsidization of Open Borders executive order, the agency will implement a policy banning illegal aliens from receiving any taxpayer-funded assistance from SBA – putting U.S. citizens and America first.
4. Restricting hostile foreign nationals from accessing SBA assistance: Similarly, in the interest of national security, the agency will implement measures to prevent hostile foreign nationals, especially those with ties to the Chinese Communist Party, from accessing SBA assistance.
Empowering Small Businesses
1. Creating a strike force to cut regulation: For the first time in years, SBA will fully staff and empower the Office of Advocacy to utilize its power to identify and eliminate burdensome regulations promulgated by all federal agencies, as authorized by the Regulatory Flexibility Act, Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, the Congressional Review Act, and other statutes. The Administrator will work alongside the Chief Counsel for Advocacy to cut past and future regulations across the board and partner with all federal agencies to ensure they are working to reduce bureaucracy and costs for job creators and promote successful business formation.
2. Improving SBA customer service, technology, and cybersecurity: Respecting that small businesses must perform for their customers, the SBA must meet performance standards across our own operations. Working with DOGE, the SBA will review the agency’s multiple digital interfaces. To streamline and improve user experience across all platforms, the agency will also review its technology for cybersecurity, response times, and customer satisfaction – including by collaborating with the White House on the application of artificial intelligence.
3. Promoting fair competition by returning 8(a) contracting goals to statutory levels: The previous Administration increased the 8(a) federal contracting goal for Small Disadvantaged Businesses to an all-time high of 15%. This action unfairly tipped the scales against any small business that did not qualify as “disadvantaged,” negatively impacting many veteran-owned small businesses. As part of a broader effort to support competition and equal access to federal contracting for all small business owners, SBA has returned the 8(a) SDB contracting goal to its statutory level of 5%.
4. Relocating regional offices out of sanctuary cities: To better serve Main Streets across America, especially in rural areas, SBA will relocate regional offices currently based in sanctuary cities to less costly, more accessible locations in communities that comply with federal immigration law. Additionally, Administrator Loeffler commits to personally visiting SBA’s regional offices and district offices – to facilitate a continuous dialogue with small business owners and hear directly from local job creators about real-world challenges and opportunities to support growth and innovation.
5. Ending partisan voter registration activities: The SBA will end all taxpayer-funded voter registration activities – starting by rescinding the agency’s 2024 Memorandum of Understanding with the Michigan Secretary of State’s office, which forced SBA district offices to conduct partisan voter registration on behalf of the previous Administration. Instead, the agency will return its focus to its founding mission of empowering job creators, delivering disaster relief, and driving economic growth.
# # #

About the U.S. Small Business Administration

The U.S. Small Business Administration helps power the American dream of entrepreneurship. As the leading voice for small businesses within the federal government, the SBA empowers job creators with the resources and support they need to start, grow, and expand their businesses or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an extensive network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations. To learn more, visit www.sba.gov.

MIL OSI USA News –
February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Man Sentenced After Setting Off Explosive Devices in a Mailbox

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

TULSA, Okla. – Today, U.S. District Judge Raul M. Arias-Marxuach sentenced Patrick Nile Starkey, 57, for Possession of an Unregistered Destructive Device and Felon in Possession of Ammunition. Judge Arias-Marxuach ordered Starkey to 108 months imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release.

“With the help of the FLOCK camera system, agents were able to identify the defendant,” said U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson. “Starkey was a threat to public safety, and I commend law enforcement for working together swiftly to detain him.”

According to court documents, on June 12, 2024, the Osage County Sheriff’s Office was investigating a device that exploded in a U.S. Postal Service mailbox. The investigation revealed that Starkey placed two explosive devices and notes inside a mailbox on the private property of an innocent third-party, in an attempt to harass his ex-wife. FLOCK cameras located within the area helped aided law enforcement in initially identifying Starkey as the subject. A search warrant executed on Starkey’s home revealed ammunition and several homemade explosive devices that matched the devices used on the mailbox.

When agents spoke with Starkey, he admitted to setting off the devices and unlawfully possessing ammunition. He will remain in custody pending transfer to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Osage County Sheriff’s Office, Tulsa Police Department, and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nathan E. Michel and Joshua M. Carmel prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about PSN, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.

MIL Security OSI –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Former Tribal Officer Sentenced to 30 Years in Federal Prison for Aggravated Sexual Abuse and Abusive Sexual Contact

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

RAPID CITY – United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Camela C. Theeler has sentenced an Oglala, South Dakota, man convicted of Aggravated Sexual Abuse of a Child and Abusive Sexual Contact of a Child. The sentencing took place on February 20, 2025.

Oscar Hudspeth, Sr., age 54, was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for each count to run concurrently, followed by five years of supervised release on each count to run concurrently, and a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund in the amount of $200. Upon Hudspeth’s release from federal prison, he must register as a sex offender.

Hudspeth was indicted by a federal grand jury in December 2023. He was found guilty following a federal jury trial in October 2024.

The conviction stemmed from disclosures in 2023 by a female juvenile who reported that Hudspeth had sexually abused her while her mother was married to him in the early to mid-2000s. The child was forensically interviewed and disclosed that Hudspeth touched her in a sexual manner on more than one occasion while he was her stepfather. The abuse occurred at their home in Oglala and while the child’s mother was working. At the time, Hudspeth worked as a law enforcement officer for the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.

This matter is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office because the Major Crimes Act, a federal statute, mandates that certain violent crimes alleged to have occurred in Indian Country be prosecuted in federal court as opposed to State court.

This case was investigated by the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ann M. Hoffman prosecuted the case.

Hudspeth was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

MIL Security OSI –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Murphy, Blumenthal, Colleagues Urge Secretary Rubio To Restore Critical Global Health Programs To Keep Americans Safe
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Connecticut – Chris Murphy

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) joined 19 of their Senate colleagues in sending a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio urging him to restore funding for global health, development, and humanitarian programs. In the wake of the Trump administration’s abrupt termination of key foreign assistance programs and personnel without review, the senators highlight the national security imperatives of U.S. global health efforts, which keep Americans safe, strengthen U.S. leadership, and increase global stability.

“The Trump Administration’s freeze on foreign assistance and opaque waiver process, coupled with the attempted dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has significantly weakened our ability to respond to emergencies, left gaps in disease surveillance, and undermined global partnerships— leaving a vacuum that our adversaries are eager to fill,” the senators wrote.

Without American global health programs, current outbreaks of infectious diseases like Ebola, Marburg Virus, and Bird Flu have the potential for spreading to U.S. soil. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an infectious disease can spread from a remote village to a major city in the United States in as little as 36 hours. Additionally, the foreign assistance funding freeze has stopped critical Malaria interventions before peak transmission and paused many clinical trials and data collection endeavors that require continuous data collection. As a result, product development for desperately needed drugs and vaccines have been brought to a halt.

“The U.S. cannot afford to withdraw from the global stage. Weak health systems in already fragile regions create opportunities for infectious disease to spread unchecked, for extremist groups to gain influence, and for adversaries to expand their reach,” they continued.

The senators warned Secretary Rubio that Russian leaders have publicly praised the decision to dismantle USAID, an agency that helps counter China’s efforts to expand its Belt and Road Initiative in Africa and Latin America. Additionally, China is already stepping in to fill the vacuum left by the United States at the World Health Organization.

“We urge you to reverse the damaging personnel actions at USAID, and swiftly restart U.S. investments in global health, development, and humanitarian aid—not just as a moral obligation, but as part of the necessary strategy to protect America’s national security. In the meantime, there must be a clear process to achieve and implement waivers for these critical programs… Restoring these investments and the professional staff with training and skillsets to implement these life-saving programs will strengthen global health security, reinforce our leadership on the world stage, and make us safer at home,” the senators concluded.

U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) also signed the letter.

Full text of the letter is available HERE and below:

Dear Secretary Rubio,

At a time when the world faces increasing instability—from disease outbreaks, to violent conflicts, to economic crises—U.S. investments in global health, development, and humanitarian aid are more than acts of goodwill; they are strategic imperatives contributing to our strength, security, and prosperity. Without strong and sustained U.S. leadership, American lives and economic stability is at risk.

The Trump Administration’s freeze on foreign assistance and opaque waiver process, coupled with the attempted dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has significantly weakened our ability to respond to emergencies, left gaps in disease surveillance, and undermined global partnerships— leaving a vacuum that our adversaries are eager to fill.

The freeze on global health activities is particularly troubling. There is resounding evidence that global health programs protect Americans. Recent history has shown that infectious disease outbreaks in distant regions can quickly reach U.S. soil, causing devastation to lives and livelihoods. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a disease can spread from a remote village to a major city– including in the United States– in as little 36 hours. Such deadly diseases continue to emerge in countries which need assistance to respond. Consider the following examples:
1. Ebola: Uganda is currently experiencing a deadly outbreak of Sudan Ebola virus in its capital city of Kampala, with a population of 1.9 million people. Suspected cases have also been reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. USAID and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) global health programs are critical to helping countries control and manage these outbreaks. The 2014-2016 West African Ebola outbreak spread beyond the region, with cases reaching the U.S. and Europe. American led investments in global health systems helped contain the crisis, prevented further transmission and strengthened global preparedness. Just within the last four years, USAID and CDC frontline health responders played critical roles in halting 11 similar outbreaks, but we are unaware of any USAID personnel having been deployed to Kampala to specifically respond to the outbreak. The Trump Administration’s retreat from these investments has left the world—and the U.S.—more vulnerable to future outbreaks.
2. Marburg Virus: Tanzania recently confirmed an outbreak of Marburg virus—an illness as deadly as Ebola, but with less treatment and vaccine options. This deadly outbreak has highlighted the urgent need for disease surveillance and rapid response. The U.S. has long been a leader in these efforts, but the freeze on USAID has hindered our ability to detect and contain these threats before they become global crises.
3. Malaria: While malaria may seem like a distant problem, it deeply affects regions where the U.S. has significant interests. The next few weeks, just before peak transmission, are critical for malaria prevention campaigns. Malaria is preventable, but if this particular window is missed, lives will be lost, most of whom will likely be children. The President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) has reduced cases and deaths worldwide, fostering healthier, more productive societies and reducing the risk of political instability and migration crises. The halt in U.S. funding threatens decades of progress. According to Malaria No More, halting PMI programs for 90 days would prevent the delivery of approximately: 9 million insecticide-treated bed nets; 25.3 million rapid diagnostic tests for malaria; 15.6 million life-saving antimalarial treatments; 48 million doses of seasonal malaria chemoprevention; and safe, effective indoor residual spraying for 3.8 million people.
4. Bird Flu: Bird flu has already caused one death in the U.S. and is currently circulating throughout America’s livestock. With the foreign aid freeze, the monitoring of bird flu effectively ends in 49 countries, leaving the U.S. in the dark regarding a pressing threat should the virus evolve or mutate to start spreading more rapidly among humans.
5. PEPFAR: Though the waiver for certain PEPFAR activities is slowly being implemented, critical prevention services remain paused. Without access to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and other prevention services, HIV transmission will increase, risking an upsurge of the disease across partner countries and undermining the more than $100 billion in U.S. investment contributed toward the HIV response to date.
In addition, the foreign assistance funding freeze has paused many clinical trials and data collection endeavors that require continuous data collection. This will significantly delay the product development timelines for desperately needed drugs and vaccines. Clinical trials are now hanging on by a thread and will have to shut down soon if the pause is not lifted. This risks the health of the trial participants around the world and the lives in the U.S. and globally that could be saved thanks to the results of these trials. Furthermore, U.S. global health programs that treat, monitor, and prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, Polio, and other infectious diseases are all vital to saving lives and keeping Americans safe.

The U.S. cannot afford to withdraw from the global stage. Weak health systems in already fragile regions create opportunities for infectious disease to spread unchecked, for extremist groups to gain influence, and for adversaries to expand their reach. Already, Russian leaders have publicly applauded the decision to dismantle USAID, an agency that is also uniquely positioned to forestall China’s expansion of its Belt and Road Initiative in Africa and Latin America. China is already trying to fill the vacuum left by the United States at the World Health Organization when President Trump issued his intent to withdraw. Investing in foreign assistance, including global health and development programs, strengthens our alliances, promotes stability, and reduces the need for costly emergency interventions and military engagements.

We urge you to reverse the damaging personnel actions at USAID, and swiftly restart U.S. investments in global health, development, and humanitarian aid—not just as a moral obligation, but as part of the necessary strategy to protect America’s national security. In the meantime, there must be a clear process to achieve and implement waivers for these critical programs. Nearly all USAID staff and critical implementing partners have been eliminated and payment systems are not functioning for the vast majority of implementers, rendering the waiver process irrelevant. Restoring these investments and the professional staff with training and skillsets to implement these life-saving programs will strengthen global health security, reinforce our leadership on the world stage, and make us safer at home. Sincerely,
MIL OSI USA News –
February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI United Nations: World News in Brief: Famine in Sudan, Gaza polio campaign continues, West Bank update, Kenyan officer killed in Haiti

Source: United Nations 2

24 February 2025 Peace and Security

Secretary-General António Guterres expressed deep concern on Monday following the announcement by Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia and affiliated groups, of a political charter proposing the establishment of a rival governing authority in RSF-controlled areas to the transitional Government.

He warned in a statement issued by his spokesperson that this further escalation of the battle for the country between Government troops and their former RSF allies, deepens the fragmentation of Sudan and risks entrenching the crisis even further.

Sudan is in the grip of a catastrophic crisis as “bloodshed, displacement and famine are engulfing the country,” he said earlier at the opening of the latest UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva.

Preserving the nation’s unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity remains crucial for a sustainable resolution and long-term stability in Sudan and the wider region.

The Secretary-General also condemned the persistent violence against civilians perpetrated by both sides of the conflict – including ethnically motivated attacks – with Sudanese civilians paying the highest price for the ongoing war.

His Personal Envoy for the Sudan, Ramtane Lamamra, is actively engaging the warring parties and relevant stakeholders to secure a cessation of hostilities, protect civilians, ensure humanitarian access, and promote de-escalation, the UN chief’s statement said.

Gaza and the West Bank: Health campaigns and humanitarian relief

In Gaza, the emergency polio outbreak response continues, with a mass vaccination campaign which began on Saturday scheduled to run until 26 February.

The novel oral polio vaccine is set to be administered to more than 591,000 children under the age of 10, targeting those previously missed, in order to close immunity gaps and halt the outbreak.

“Over 261,000 children in Gaza received their polio vaccine on the first day of the campaign, despite all challenges,” noted a representative of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

Since the ceasefire took effect, UN humanitarian partners have distributed tents, sealing materials, and tarpaulins to families – particularly in northern Gaza.

Additionally, over 80,000 children have been screened for malnutrition, and thousands of families have received hygiene kits and water supplies.

OCHA emphasised that sustaining these humanitarian efforts will require continued international funding and a lasting ceasefire.

Meanwhile, the World Food Programme (WFP) said on Monday the ceasefire has enabled it to reach one million people across Gaza with food assistance, including fresh bread, hot meals and cash support, while preparing to extend its reach further across both Gaza and the West Bank.

West Bank turmoil continues

Nevertheless, OCHA has confirmed that Israeli forces continue operations in northern areas of the West Bank, with reports of home demolitions in the Tulkarm refugee camp adding to displacement and destruction.

Mr. Guterres called for “a permanent ceasefire” in Gaza and “the dignified release of all remaining hostages”.

Kenyan police officer killed in a Haiti anti-gang operation

A Kenyan police officer serving with the Security Council-backed Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS) in Haiti died on Sunday after sustaining injuries during an anti-gang operation in the lower Artibonite region, marking the mission’s first casualty.

The officer was wounded during a security operation in Pont Sonde, as part of efforts to curb escalating gang violence. In a statement, the MSS confirmed the death, expressing condolences to his family and colleagues.

Mr. Guterres also reacted to the news, saying he was “deeply saddened” by the officer’s death and extended his sympathies to “the family of the police officer, the people and Government of Kenya, and of course all of his colleagues in the MSS.”

The tragic incident comes amid worsening insecurity in Haiti, where gangs control large parts of the country.

Speaking in Geneva, Mr. Guterres underscored the severity of the crisis. “In Haiti, we are seeing massive human rights violations – including more than a million people displaced, and children facing a horrific increase in sexual violence and recruitment into gangs,” he said.

To address the crisis, the Secretary-General announced plans to propose new measures to the Security Council, including strengthening support for the MSS, the Haitian National Police, and Haitian authorities.

“A durable solution requires a political process – led and owned by the Haitian people – that restores democratic institutions through elections,” he added.

The officer’s death highlights the growing dangers facing international forces deployed to stabilise the country.

MIL OSI United Nations News –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Reed Statement on Life & Legacy of Judge Bruce M. Selya

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator for Rhode Island Jack Reed
PROVIDENCE, RI – After the recent passing of Judge Bruce M. Selya, 90, a proud son of Providence who became the first Jewish person to ascend to the federal bench in Rhode Island — serving as a senior U.S. circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and later as chief judge of the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review — U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) issued the following statement today hailing Judge Selya’s remarkable life and legacy:
“Rhode Island has lost a legal legend whose outstanding contributions to the community and the people of Rhode Island go well beyond his four decades of remarkable service on the federal bench.
“As a judge, Bruce Selya was nationally renowned and respected and set a high bar that many others in his profession admire and aspire to reach. As a man, he will be remembered for his exemplary devotion to the law and uplifting others, particularly those in his beloved hometown of Providence.
“A man of great wisdom, integrity, modesty, wit, and high ethical standards, Judge Selya was known for his thoughtfulness, keen intellect, and judicial temperament. He touched countless lives in his courtroom and beyond, including legions of law clerks he mentored over the years, including U.S. Supreme Court Justice, Ketanji Brown Jackson.
“Over the course of his impressive legal career, he had a hand in over 1,800 opinions, many written in his signature, concise writing style that brings complex issues into focus. He participated in notable cases that helped shape and influence the nation’s jurisprudence.
“An inspiration to many, his example will continue to serve as a guiding light to future generations of lawyers and judges. And his philanthropic work will continue to make a positive difference.
“Our heartfelt condolences to his beloved wife Cindy, their children, grandchildren, and extended family and friends. We join them in mourning a great loss, and in celebrating a life well lived. Thank you, Your Honor, for a lifetime of service to others and for your undying dedication to the people of Rhode Island and the principles of democracy and justice for all.”
Born and raised in Providence, Selya attended Classical High School before going on to graduate with honors from Harvard Law School. In 1982, Selya was nominated to U.S. District Court by President Ronald Reagan and later elevated to the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 1986.
In 2000, U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist appointed Selya to the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, a position Selya held until 2004. In 2005, U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts appointed Selya to the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review, and in 2008 Selya was appointed to the chief judgeship of the Court of Review.
Selya contributed his time and talents to many community causes and public service endeavors, including leadership roles on numerous and diverse institutional boards. He taught law school students and received honorary degrees from Bryant University, Roger Williams University, and Brandeis University.
In 2023, the City of Providence designated Fulton Street as Judge Selya Way.

MIL OSI USA News –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Charlotte Sex Trafficker And Co-Conspirator Are Sentenced To Prison

Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A Charlotte man and his co-conspirator were sentenced to prison today for sex trafficking a minor, announced Lawrence J. Cameron, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.

Robert M. DeWitt, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in North Carolina joins Acting U.S. Attorney Cameron in making today’s announcement.

Tawaan Batten, 34, also known as “Slicc,” was sentenced to 34 years in prison followed by 30 years of supervised release. In December 2023, Batten was convicted at trial of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor, sex trafficking of a minor, and transportation of a minor with the intent to engage in commercial sexual activity. Batten’s co-conspirator, Kristi Heather King, 34, of Locust, N.C., was sentenced to 42 months in prison and a period of supervised release, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor.

“Batten and his then-girlfriend preyed on a vulnerable child and repeatedly subjected her to physical and psychological harm for their profit,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Cameron. “Today’s sentence sends a clear message: federal prosecutors and law enforcement are committed to ensuring that sex traffickers will face the full force of justice.”

“It is difficult to fathom that someone would sell a child for sex. But that is exactly what Batten and King did and now both of them will do federal prison for their crimes,” said Special Agent in Charge DeWitt. “The FBI works tirelessly to hold accountable those who carry out crimes against children, and we devote significant resources to help sex trafficking victims recover from the trauma they suffer.”

According to evidence presented at Batten’s trial, witness testimony, and court documents, from July 2021 to December 2021, Batten, at times assisted by King, sex trafficked a 15-year-old minor victim. Batten met the minor victim, who had run away from her home, in a hotel parking lot in Charlotte. Batten then introduced the minor victim to King, who was Batten’s girlfriend at the time. The minor victim began engaging in commercial sex transactions shortly after meeting Batten.

Trial evidence showed that Batten, at times assisted by King, created and posted advertisements of the minor victim on commercial sex websites and arranged for the minor victim to engage in sexual encounters with customers, usually multiple times a day. Most of these encounters took place in hotel rooms booked by Batten in North Carolina and South Carolina. Other times, Batten and King drove the minor victim to a customer’s location to engage in commercial sex. Batten kept the money the victim earned from these commercial sexual encounters and continued to have the victim work even when she was not feeling well.

According to testimony and evidence at Batten’s trial, Batten gave the minor victim drugs. Batten also controlled the minor victim through intimidation and manipulation, including branding the minor victim with tattoos. Batten also physically assaulted King multiple times.

Batten remains in federal custody pending placement to a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility.

In making today’s announcement, Acting U.S. Attorney Cameron commended the FBI for leading this investigation and thanked the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department for their invaluable assistance.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephanie Spaugh and Daniel Cervantes of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte prosecuted the case.

If you are the victim of human trafficking or may have information about a potential trafficking situation, please call the FBI, local law enforcement, or the National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC) at 1-888-373-7888. NHTRC is a national, toll-free hotline, with specialists available to answer calls from anywhere in the country, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, every day of the year related to potential trafficking victims, suspicious behaviors, and/or locations where trafficking is suspected to occur. To submit a tip to the NHTRC online please visit https://humantraffickinghotline.org/report-trafficking.

MIL Security OSI –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Moving beyond Black history month towards inclusive histories in Québec secondary schools
Source: The Conversation – Canada – By R. Nanre Nafziger, Assistant Professor, African/Black Studies in Education, McGill University

As Montréal celebrates its 34th Black History Month, it is time to fully integrate Black history into Québec education.

As an all-out war on diversity and inclusion rages below Canada’s southern border, an opportunity is opened for Québec to live up to its vision of a truly inclusive and multicultural society.

Integral to this is mainstreaming the histories of Black, Indigenous and other racialized and equity-deserving communities. This can be done through history studies and also through citizenship and cultural education.

It is important to go beyond Black History Month in order to embrace the importance of Black history for Black students and all students — ignored for too long in history textbooks and teaching.

To this urgent issue we bring our combined research and educational expertise. Nanre Nafziger, the first author of this story, has researched how Black/African peoples can reclaim their histories and cultures, and Sabrina Jafralie, who has a PhD in teacher education, has researched Québec curricula and also brings experience as a Québec-born-and-raised teacher at a Montréal high school.

Essential to combat anti-Black racism

Teaching Black history is essential to fighting against anti-Black racism reinforced through negative depictions of African and Black histories.

History education is important for raising critical and actively involved citizens and increasing acceptance and understanding. Educators speak of developing a “historical consciousness” — which includes learning to examine causes and consequences, and to revisit and interpret sources. This is a critical building block for fighting racism and negative depictions of racialized groups.

History education is important for raising actively involved citizens and increasing understanding. Students at Dawson College in Montréal in 2021.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

Québec curriculum development, like most North American curricula, has historically leaned towards a Eurocentric narrative.

Black/African history education is largely absent in Québec’s history curricula, reinforcing the erasure of the contributions of Black people to the development of Québec but also to world history. For example, history and citizenship secondary education (Cycle 1) refers to Black/Afro-Canadian history only in naming enslavement and oppression.

This creates a narrow and damaging history that fails to recognize the diverse range of achievements by Black people. It neglects the rich cultural heritage of Afro-Canadians and reinforces systemic inequities in how knowledge is produced and disseminated.

Sabrina writes: I was fortunate that my Afro Nova Scotian mother taught me our history across Canada. However, it was not present in my education until I created it in high school.

Historical fight for Black history

Researchers have raised concerns that Québec’s “interculturalism” — a longstanding province-specific take on how to address and integrate cultural differences — fails to take into account the complexities of identities and omits important histories.

Such an approach further compounds anti-Black racism in schools.

Black students, parents and educators have called for Black history to be taught in Québec schools year-round and activists have called for the creation of a more inclusive curriculum.

Despite systemic omissions, Black and African communities in Québec have a rich tradition of upholding and preserving their histories through the meticulous work of community archivists and memory keepers.

This includes the creation of Black libraries, books, articles and curriculum materials, oral storytelling and walking tours. Black community organizations offer cultural and community programming that focuses on diverse cultures and histories of Black people. Renowned historian, educator and long-time advocate for Black history Dorothy Williams, created a curriculum toolkit called the ABCs of Black History in French and English for teachers and educators to use in schools.

Recommended revisions

In its brief to the education minister, the Advisory Board on English Education recommended rewrites to “the K-11 history curriculum to broaden its perspective beyond Québec based content and Eurocentricity,” and allowing latitude for schools to incorporate history curriculum relevant to students’ backgrounds.

While it is helpful when school boards mark Black History Month and share resources for teachers, the integration of Black history requires a holistic and comprehensive curricular focus.

Québec may learn from other provinces. Nova Scotia has a curriculum on African Canadian history and Ontario plans to roll out a Black history curriculum in schools in September 2025. Educators in British Columbia created a Black Studies 12 course which helps promote racial equity in education.

Culture and citizenship curriculum

The new Culture and Civics Curriculum (CCQ), a mandatory subject in primary and secondary schools, offers opportunities to address systemic racism with a focus on citizenship, culture and identity. Yet, there is no assurance students will gain competencies to address racism, or teachers will be well-equipped to lead such learning, given the curricular approach. For example:
- The elementary program of the CCQ prepares students to understand “cultural realities” and contains a module on Indigenous perspectives. However, the approach is rooted in Euro-centered sociology.
- Secondary 5 (students aged 16-17) names the compulsory concept of social inequalities (along with sexism and other inequalities related to gender and sexuality; racism and colonialism; socio-economic inequalities; environmental inequalities). However, the teacher decides how to teach these grouped concepts and what emphasis to give these areas.
This means there is a possibility that the CCQ curriculum could address anti-Black racism, but there are too many variables to guarantee it. By contrast, sexuality education and civic education are deemed mandatory and special topics.

Black history now

Including Black history in the curriculum will have a profound, direct impact on students by strengthening their identity, citizenship, and “sense of pride and belonging to Québec society.”

Healthy learning can take place when students and people see their place in history and curriculum, as this creates a sense of belonging. The current curriculum creates exclusion and allows educators to hide in their bias if they desire.

Diverse curricula create space and acknowledge hidden histories and foster a shared humanity and a vision for a shared, socially just, future.

Québec’s complicated history of colonialism, systemic racism and ongoing repression associated with secularism is not one to be shied away from.

Rather, integrating Black history can serve as a portal for inspiring and encouraging critical discourses on histories of communities that are under-represented in dominant stories of Québec.

At a moment when exclusion, vitriol against difference and increasing intolerance dominates social discourse and interactions, Québec can choose another path. Only through critically assessing our past can we look forward to any form of a unified future: nous nous souvenons, we must all remember and be remembered.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Moving beyond Black history month towards inclusive histories in Québec secondary schools – https://theconversation.com/moving-beyond-black-history-month-towards-inclusive-histories-in-quebec-secondary-schools-248832
MIL OSI – Global Reports –
February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Francis − a pope who has cared deeply for the poor and opened up the Catholic Church

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Mathew Schmalz, Professor of Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross

Pope Francis during the Palm Sunday Mass at St. Peter’s Square on April 2, 2023, in Vatican City. Antonio Masiello/Getty Images

Pope Francis, who remains in critical condition and hospitalized as he battles pneumonia in both lungs, was elected pope on March 13, 2013, after the surprise resignation of Benedict XVI.

Prior to becoming pope, he was Jorge Mario Bergoglio, archbishop of Buenos Aires, and was the first person from the Americas to be elected to the papacy. He was also the first pope to choose Francis as his name, thus honoring St. Francis of Assisi, a 13th-century mystic whose love for nature and the poor have inspired Catholics and non-Catholics alike.

Pope Francis chose not to wear the elaborate clothing, like red shoes or silk vestments, associated with other popes. As a scholar of global Catholicism, however, I would argue that the changes Francis brought to the papacy were more than skin deep. He opened the church to the outside world in ways none of his predecessors had done before.

Care for the marginalized

Pope Francis reached out personally to the poor. For example, he turned a Vatican plaza into a refuge for the homeless, whom he called “nobles of the street.”

The Argentinian Jorge Mario Bergoglio, ordained for the Jesuits in 1969 at the Theological Faculty of San Miguel.
Jesuit General Curia via Getty Images

He washed the feet of migrants and prisoners during the traditional foot-washing ceremony on the Thursday before Easter. In an unprecedented act for a pope, he also washed the feet of non-Christians.

He encouraged a more welcoming attitude toward gay and lesbian Catholics and invited transgender people to meet with him at the Vatican.

On other contentious issues, Francis reaffirmed official Catholic positions. He labeled homosexual behavior a “sin,” although he also stated that it should not be considered a crime. Francis criticized gender theory for “blurring” differences between men and women.

While he maintained the church’s position that all priests should be male, he made far-reaching changes that opened various leadership roles to women. Francis was the first pope to appoint a woman to head an administrative office at the Vatican. Also for the first time, women were included in the 70-member body that selects bishops and the 15-member council that oversees Vatican finances. Shortly before his death, he appointed an Italian nun, Sister Raffaella Petrini, as President of the Vatican City.

Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square on April 18, 2022.
Stefano Spaziani/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images

Not shy of controversy

Some of Francis’ positions led to opposition in some Catholic circles.

One such issue was related to Francis’ embrace of religious diversity. Delivering an address at the Seventh Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions in Kazakhstan in 2022, he said that members of the world’s different religions were “children of the same heaven.”

While in Morocco, he spoke out against conversion as a mission, saying to the Catholic community that they should live “in brotherhood with other faiths.” To some of his critics, however, such statements undermined the unique truth of Christianity.

During his tenure, the pope called for “synodality,” a more democratic approach to decision making. For example, synod meetings in November 2023 included laypeople and women as voting members. But the synod was resisted by some bishops who feared it would lessen the importance of priests as teachers and leaders.

In a significant move that will influence the choosing of his successor, Pope Francis appointed more cardinals from the Global South. But not all Catholic leaders in the Global South followed his lead on doctrine. For example, African bishops publicly criticized Pope Francis’ December 2023 ruling that allowed blessings of individuals in same sex couples.

His most controversial move was limiting the celebration of the Mass in the older form that uses Latin. This reversed a decision made by Benedict XVI that allowed the Latin Mass to be more widely practiced.

Traditionalists argued that the Latin Mass was an important – and beautiful – part of the Catholic tradition. But Francis believed that it had divided Catholics into separate groups who worshiped differently.

This concern for Catholic unity also led him to discipline two American critics of his reforms, Bishop Joseph Strickland of Tyler, Texas, and Cardinal Raymond Burke. Most significantly, Carlo Maria Viganò, the former Vatican ambassador, or nuncio, to the United States was excommunicated during Francis’ tenure for promoting “schism.”

In the last days of his pontificate, Pope Francis also criticized the Trump administration’s efforts to deport migrants. In a letter to US Bishops, he recalled that Jesus, Mary and Joseph had been emigrants and refugees in Egypt. Pope Francis also argued that migrants who enter a country illegally should not be treated as criminals because they are in need and have dignity as human beings.

Writings on ‘the common good’

In his official papal letters, called encyclicals, Francis echoed his public actions by emphasizing the “common good,” or the rights and responsibilities necessary for human flourishing.

Pope Francis washes the foot of a man during the foot-washing ritual at a refugee center outside of Rome on March 24, 2016.
L’Osservatore Romano/Pool Photo via AP

His first encyclical in 2013, Lumen Fidei, or “The Light of Faith,” sets out to show how faith can unite people everywhere.

In his next encyclical, Laudato Si’, or “Praise Be to You,” Francis addressed the environmental crisis, including pollution and climate change. He also called attention to unequal distribution of wealth and called for an “integral ecology” that respects both human beings and the environment.

His third encyclical in 2020, Fratelli Tutti, or “Brothers All,” criticized a “throwaway culture” that discards human beings, especially the poor, the unborn and the elderly. In a significant act for the head of the Catholic Church, Francis concluded by speaking of non-Catholics who have inspired him: Martin Luther King Jr., Desmond Tutu and Mahatma Gandhi.

In his last encyclical, Dilexit Nos, or “He Loved Us,” he reflected on God’s Love through meditating on the symbol of the Sacred Heart that depicts flames of love coming from Jesus’ wounded heart that was pierced during the crucifixion.

Francis also proclaimed a special “year of mercy” in 2015-16. The pope consistently argued for a culture of mercy that reflects the love of Jesus Christ, calling him “the face of God’s mercy.”

A historic papacy

Francis’ papacy has been historic. He embraced the marginalized in ways that no pope had done before. He not only deepened the Catholic Church’s commitment to the poor in its religious life but also expanded who is included in its decision making.

The pope did have his critics who thought he went too far, too fast. And whether his reforms take root depends on his successor. Among many things, Francis will be remembered for how his pontificate represented a shift in power in the Catholic Church away from Western Europe to the Global South, where the majority of Catholics now live.

Mathew Schmalz is Roman Catholic and a political independent.

– ref. Francis − a pope who has cared deeply for the poor and opened up the Catholic Church – https://theconversation.com/francis-a-pope-who-has-cared-deeply-for-the-poor-and-opened-up-the-catholic-church-164362

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Council agrees extra funding for vital care services in 2025/26 budget

Source: City of Plymouth

An annual budget that injects more than £30 million of additional funding to meet ongoing cost and demand pressures in essential social care and homelessness services has been agreed by Plymouth City Council.

The additional funds have been included in the £253.4 million revenue budget for 2025/26 approved by at the Full Council meeting on Monday (24 February).

Council Leader Tudor Evans said: “Despite the huge financial challenges we continue to face, we have not only managed to balance the books but also delivered a budget that remains hugely ambitious for growing Plymouth’s prosperity and delivering what Plymouth residents say matters most – creating jobs, more affordable housing, improving health, increasing safety and most importantly, supporting the elderly and protecting the most vulnerable children in Plymouth.

“It is also a budget that protects and enhances valued services such as libraries, grass cutting, street cleansing and repairing our roads and pavements.

“This is a budget that allow Plymouth to continue to do remarkable things in difficult circumstances.”

The additional funding includes £16 million additional funding for protecting vulnerable children, £2 million for school transport for children with a Special Education Needs and Disability (SEND), £12 million for adult social care and £724,000 to support the homeless.

An extra £770,000 has also been allocated to help reduce the Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) waiting list.

The additional funding means that 83 per centof the Council’s total revenue budget is now spent on social care services.

The 2025/26 budget also maintains a £300,000 uplift in the grass cutting budget and an additional £425,000 to increase the staff resource in the Street Services team, which manages grass cutting, street cleansing and waste collection services.

It also includes an additional £250,000 to support funding the Council’s Net Zero commitment, an extra £141,000 to support the Council’s leisure provider Plymouth Active Leisure and £226,000 to support foster carers with an additional allowance.

To deliver a balanced budget the Council needs to continue to transform how it operates to increase efficiency and reduce cost. The agreed budget requires that a total of £9.6 million savings need to be delivered by all Council departments.

They include £3.1 million of savings plans through the ongoing transformation of Children’s Services and £2.7 million of savings in the Adults, Health and Communities directorate through its modernisation plans and contract savings.

To support the budget a Council Tax increase of 2.99 per cent and a two per cent precept to support adult social care services was agreed.

The full council also agreed a capital programme of £395.8 million for 2024/25 to 2028/29.

This includes funding for the transport improvement schemes, such as the Woolwell to The George scheme; the rail station regeneration scheme; investment in housing projects and tackling homelessness; projects delivering the city’s net zero ambitions; introducing zero emission buses; delivering Plymouth and South Devon Freeport, the Armada Way regeneration scheme; highway maintenance, drainage and essential engineering projects; and the regeneration of key waterfront assets such as Tinside Lido through the Plymouth Sound National Marine Park.

MIL OSI United Kingdom –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI United Nations: Eastern DR Congo: Crisis deepens amid a surge in crime and insecurity

Source: United Nations MIL OSI b

By Vibhu Mishra

24 February 2025 Peace and Security

The humanitarian crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is worsening as M23 rebel attacks continue to drive tens of thousands from their homes and claim hundreds of lives, UN humanitarians warned on Monday.

According to the UN relief coordination office, OCHA, aid workers have been among those killed, and widespread human rights violations have been reported, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told journalists at a regular news briefing in New York.

“In Lubero Territory, north of Goma, clashes last week forced more than 100,000 people – about half of them children – to flee their homes,” Mr. Dujarric said.

“Several local health facilities had to suspend activities, and our partners report widespread human rights violations, including rape.”

Escalating violence in North and South Kivu

The humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate as M23 rebels push deeper into the region, capturing key towns and displacing thousands. The security situation remains volatile, with increasing reports of crime and targeted violence.

In Goma, criminal activity has surged, with home invasions, kidnappings and vehicle hijackings targeting humanitarian agencies. Some incidents have resulted in deaths.

A similar increase in crime and insecurity has been reported in South Kivu, particularly in Bukavu and Uvira, where rape and looting have also been documented, according to UN aid partners.

In North Kivu, a humanitarian worker was struck by a stray bullet during clashes in Masisi Territory on 20 February and died from his injuries on Saturday, bringing the total number of aid workers killed in the region since January to six.

“OCHA calls on all parties to conflict to uphold their obligations under international humanitarian law and international human rights law,” Mr. Dujarric said.

Unstable and highly unpredictable

The UN peacekeeping mission in the country (MONUSCO) also warned that the security situation in areas seized by M23 rebels remains “unstable and highly unpredictable”, with reports indicating further advances by the group towards Lubero.

Mr. Dujarric reported MONUSCO’s ability to deliver on its mandate remains “significantly restricted” in M23-controlled areas in North Kivu.

“However, the Mission continues to provide protection to thousands of people who have sought refuge within its various bases while seeking ways to ensure their safe transfer out of Goma,” he added.

Earlier in the day, MONUSCO facilitated the medical evacuation of 19 troops from the Southern African Development Community Mission in the DRC (SAMIDRC) from the eastern regional capital, Goma.

MIL OSI United Nations News –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Armstrong directs flags at half-staff Friday in honor of state Rep. Josh Christy as funeral arrangements set

Source: US State of North Dakota

Gov. Kelly Armstrong today directed all U.S. and North Dakota flags to be flown at half-staff from dawn to dusk on Friday, Feb. 28, and encourages North Dakotans to do the same at their homes and businesses, in honor and remembrance of state Rep. Josh Christy of Fargo. Christy died Tuesday, Feb. 18, at age 43.

Funeral services for Christy will be 11 a.m. Friday, Feb. 28, at Living Waters Lutheran Church, 4451 40^th Ave. S., Fargo. Burial will follow in Riverside Cemetery, Fargo. Visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday at the church, with a prayer service at 7 p.m., and will continue from 10 to 11 a.m. Friday at the church.

Christy was first elected to the state House of Representatives in November 2022 and was in Bismarck for the current legislative session at the time of his passing.

MIL OSI USA News –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI: Tailrow Reciprocal Exchange, an HCI Group Sponsored Insurer, Assumes Just Under 14,000 Policies from Citizens, Representing Approximately $35 Million in Premium

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

TAMPA, Fla., Feb. 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — HCI Group, Inc. (NYSE: HCI), a holding company with operations in homeowners insurance, information technology services, real estate, and reinsurance, announced today that Tailrow Insurance Exchange, an HCI-sponsored reciprocal insurer with plans to write personal residential policies, has successfully assumed just under 14,000 policies from Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, Florida’s state-backed insurance company. The policies assumed represent approximately $35 million of in-force premium.

“We are excited to complete this assumption and officially commence operations at Tailrow. The technology we’ve built and our management expertise enabled us to identify attractive policies at Citizens for assumption and achieve a high adoption rate by policyholders,” said Paresh Patel, HCI’s chairman and chief executive officer.

Tailrow was approved for 20,000 policies, made approximately 18,000 offers and assumed just under 14,000 policies – a 76% acceptance rate. The assumption of policies is effective as of February 18, 2025.

A “reciprocal insurer” is an unincorporated aggregation of at least 25 policyholders operating through an attorney in fact to provide insurance among themselves. A reciprocal insurer is essentially owned by its policyholders, but its operations such as underwriting, claims and management services are provided by an attorney in fact for a predetermined management fee.

About HCI Group, Inc.
HCI Group, Inc. owns subsidiaries engaged in diverse, yet complementary business activities, including homeowners insurance, information technology services, insurance management, real estate, and reinsurance. HCI’s leading insurance operation, TypTap Insurance Company, is a technology-driven homeowners insurance company. TypTap’s operations are powered in large part by insurance-related information technology developed by HCI’s software subsidiary, Exzeo USA, Inc. HCI’s largest subsidiary, Homeowners Choice Property & Casualty Insurance Company, Inc., provides homeowners insurance primarily in Florida. HCI’s real estate subsidiary, Greenleaf Capital, LLC, owns and operates multiple properties in Florida, including office buildings, retail centers and marinas.

The company’s common shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “HCI” and are included in the Russell 2000 and S&P SmallCap 600 Index. HCI Group, Inc. regularly publishes financial and other information in the Investor Information section of the company’s website. For more information about HCI Group and its subsidiaries, visit www.hcigroup.com.

Company Contact:
Bill Broomall, CFA
Investor Relations
HCI Group, Inc.
Tel (813) 776-1012
wbroomall@typtap.com

Investor Relations Contact:
Matt Glover
Gateway Group, Inc.
Tel 949-574-3860
HCI@gateway-grp.com

The MIL Network –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Fourteen Members of Extensive Alien Smuggling Organization Charged and Eight Arrested for Smuggling Hundreds of Illegal Aliens into the United States

Source: US State of California

Note: View the indictment here.

Fourteen alleged members of a prolific alien smuggling organization were charged for their roles smuggling aliens from South and Central America into the United States via the southern border.

A grand jury in Las Cruces, New Mexico, returned an indictment on Feb. 19 against 14 individuals for conspiracy to transport, harbor, and bring in illegal aliens to the United States. Eight of those charged were arrested on Feb. 20 and 21.

“Today’s indictment alleges that the defendants engaged in a sophisticated conspiracy to smuggle aliens into and throughout the United States at great danger to the aliens, resulting in the death of one person,” said Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The Justice Department worked with our partners at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to dismantle an alien smuggling organization based in Mexico that has allegedly smuggled hundreds of illegal aliens, including unaccompanied children, through New Mexico and South Texas. We are committed to eliminating transnational alien smuggling organizations that exploit migrants purely for profit and undermine our national security.”

According to the indictment unsealed today, the defendants participated in a conspiracy to illegally bring undocumented aliens from Mexico into the United States via the U.S. southern border. The indictment alleges that the defendants were also responsible for transporting the aliens within the United States and concealing them in “stash houses” along the way. During some of the smuggling events, the defendants allegedly evaded law enforcement by travelling at high rates of speed on the road and instructing aliens how to flee U.S. Border Patrol and evade checkpoints. Additionally, the indictment alleges that one undocumented alien died from heat exposure during a smuggling event and was abandoned in the desert.

“Human smuggling organizations threaten our national security and exploit vulnerable individuals for profit, putting their lives at risk and undermining public safety,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Holland S. Kastrin for the District of New Mexico. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of New Mexico is committed to continuing to work with our federal, state and local partners to dismantle transnational human smuggling organizations, hold their leaders accountable, and seize the illicit proceeds generated by these exploitative enterprises.”

“We are appreciative of our brave law enforcement partners for their continued vigilance in investigating and apprehending members of transnational criminal organizations who conspire to undermine our nation’s immigration laws for their profit, with a callous and reckless disregard for the sanctity of life,” said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (ICE HSI) El Paso Special Agent in Charge Jason T. Stevens. “As this case sadly demonstrates, human smuggling is a crime that takes lives and puts the public at risk. ICE HSI is passionately devoted to using its abundant authority to identify, investigate, and arrest criminals who prey on the vulnerabilities of people they treat as human cargo.”

Michelle Martinez, 29, of El Paso, Texas; Jesus Calvillo, 44, of El Paso; Jorge Calvillo, 25, of El Paso; Abel Aguilar-Cano, 53, of Albuquerque, New Mexico; and Jose Palomino, 27, of El Paso, made their initial court appearances today in the District of New Mexico and remain in U.S. custody. Edna Valdez-China, 48, of El Paso; Leslie Nicole Calvillo, also known as Leslie Jaramillo, 24, of El Paso; and Melissa Vargas, 22, of El Paso, are in U.S. custody and will make their initial appearances on Feb. 25 in the District of New Mexico. Jorge Alberto De La Cruz-Dominguez, also known as Guero, 54, of Juarez, Mexico; Jorge Valdez China, also known as Lolo, 23, of El Paso; Jonathan Valdez-China, also known as China and Dior, 24, of Juarez; and Alma Guadalupe Valdez-China, 41, of Juarez, are also charged in the indictment.

Each defendant is charged with conspiracy to bring to, transport, and harbor illegal aliens in the United States. If convicted, they each face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

ICE HSI El Paso investigated the case. U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s National Targeting Center, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), ICE HSI’s Human Smuggling Unit in Washington, D.C., and the Texas Department of Public Safety provided substantial assistance with the investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Alyson R. Hehr for the District of New Mexico and Trial Attorney Jenna Reed of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section (HRSP) are prosecuting the case.

These actions are the result of the coordinated efforts of Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA). JTFA was established in June 2021 to marshal the investigative and prosecutorial resources of the Justice Department, in partnership with DHS, to combat the rise in prolific and dangerous alien smuggling and trafficking groups operating in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, and Colombia. JTFA comprises detailees from U.S. Attorneys’ Offices along the southwest border, including the Southern District of California, District of Arizona, District of New Mexico, and Western and Southern Districts of Texas. Dedicated support is provided by numerous components of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, led by HRSP and supported by the Office of Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training; Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section; Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section; Office of Enforcement Operations; Office of International Affairs; and Violent Crime and Racketeering Section. JTFA also relies on substantial law enforcement investment from DHS, FBI, DEA, and other partners. To date, JTFA’s work has resulted in more than 355 domestic and international arrests of leaders, organizers, and significant facilitators of alien smuggling; more than 300 U.S. convictions; more than 245 significant jail sentences imposed; and forfeitures of substantial assets.

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

MIL OSI USA News –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Fourteen Members of Extensive Alien Smuggling Organization Charged and Eight Arrested for Smuggling Hundreds of Illegal Aliens into the United States

Source: United States Attorneys General 7

Note: View the indictment here.

Fourteen alleged members of a prolific alien smuggling organization were charged for their roles smuggling aliens from South and Central America into the United States via the southern border.

A grand jury in Las Cruces, New Mexico, returned an indictment on Feb. 19 against 14 individuals for conspiracy to transport, harbor, and bring in illegal aliens to the United States. Eight of those charged were arrested on Feb. 20 and 21.

“Today’s indictment alleges that the defendants engaged in a sophisticated conspiracy to smuggle aliens into and throughout the United States at great danger to the aliens, resulting in the death of one person,” said Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The Justice Department worked with our partners at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to dismantle an alien smuggling organization based in Mexico that has allegedly smuggled hundreds of illegal aliens, including unaccompanied children, through New Mexico and South Texas. We are committed to eliminating transnational alien smuggling organizations that exploit migrants purely for profit and undermine our national security.”

According to the indictment unsealed today, the defendants participated in a conspiracy to illegally bring undocumented aliens from Mexico into the United States via the U.S. southern border. The indictment alleges that the defendants were also responsible for transporting the aliens within the United States and concealing them in “stash houses” along the way. During some of the smuggling events, the defendants allegedly evaded law enforcement by travelling at high rates of speed on the road and instructing aliens how to flee U.S. Border Patrol and evade checkpoints. Additionally, the indictment alleges that one undocumented alien died from heat exposure during a smuggling event and was abandoned in the desert.

“Human smuggling organizations threaten our national security and exploit vulnerable individuals for profit, putting their lives at risk and undermining public safety,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Holland S. Kastrin for the District of New Mexico. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of New Mexico is committed to continuing to work with our federal, state and local partners to dismantle transnational human smuggling organizations, hold their leaders accountable, and seize the illicit proceeds generated by these exploitative enterprises.”

“We are appreciative of our brave law enforcement partners for their continued vigilance in investigating and apprehending members of transnational criminal organizations who conspire to undermine our nation’s immigration laws for their profit, with a callous and reckless disregard for the sanctity of life,” said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (ICE HSI) El Paso Special Agent in Charge Jason T. Stevens. “As this case sadly demonstrates, human smuggling is a crime that takes lives and puts the public at risk. ICE HSI is passionately devoted to using its abundant authority to identify, investigate, and arrest criminals who prey on the vulnerabilities of people they treat as human cargo.”

Michelle Martinez, 29, of El Paso, Texas; Jesus Calvillo, 44, of El Paso; Jorge Calvillo, 25, of El Paso; Abel Aguilar-Cano, 53, of Albuquerque, New Mexico; and Jose Palomino, 27, of El Paso, made their initial court appearances today in the District of New Mexico and remain in U.S. custody. Edna Valdez-China, 48, of El Paso; Leslie Nicole Calvillo, also known as Leslie Jaramillo, 24, of El Paso; and Melissa Vargas, 22, of El Paso, are in U.S. custody and will make their initial appearances on Feb. 25 in the District of New Mexico. Jorge Alberto De La Cruz-Dominguez, also known as Guero, 54, of Juarez, Mexico; Jorge Valdez China, also known as Lolo, 23, of El Paso; Jonathan Valdez-China, also known as China and Dior, 24, of Juarez; and Alma Guadalupe Valdez-China, 41, of Juarez, are also charged in the indictment.

Each defendant is charged with conspiracy to bring to, transport, and harbor illegal aliens in the United States. If convicted, they each face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

ICE HSI El Paso investigated the case. U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s National Targeting Center, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), ICE HSI’s Human Smuggling Unit in Washington, D.C., and the Texas Department of Public Safety provided substantial assistance with the investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Alyson R. Hehr for the District of New Mexico and Trial Attorney Jenna Reed of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section (HRSP) are prosecuting the case.

These actions are the result of the coordinated efforts of Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA). JTFA was established in June 2021 to marshal the investigative and prosecutorial resources of the Justice Department, in partnership with DHS, to combat the rise in prolific and dangerous alien smuggling and trafficking groups operating in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, and Colombia. JTFA comprises detailees from U.S. Attorneys’ Offices along the southwest border, including the Southern District of California, District of Arizona, District of New Mexico, and Western and Southern Districts of Texas. Dedicated support is provided by numerous components of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, led by HRSP and supported by the Office of Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training; Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section; Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section; Office of Enforcement Operations; Office of International Affairs; and Violent Crime and Racketeering Section. JTFA also relies on substantial law enforcement investment from DHS, FBI, DEA, and other partners. To date, JTFA’s work has resulted in more than 355 domestic and international arrests of leaders, organizers, and significant facilitators of alien smuggling; more than 300 U.S. convictions; more than 245 significant jail sentences imposed; and forfeitures of substantial assets.

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

MIL Security OSI –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI: Rigetti Computing to Report Fourth Quarter 2024 Financial Results and Host Conference Call on March 5, 2025

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

BERKELEY, Calif., Feb. 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Rigetti Computing, Inc. (“Rigetti” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: RGTI), a pioneer in hybrid quantum-classical computing, announced today that it will release fourth quarter 2024 results on March 5, 2025 after market close. The Company will host a conference call to discuss its financial results and provide an update on its business operations at 5:00 p.m. ET the same day.

Key details regarding the call are as follows:

Call Date: Wednesday, March 5, 2025
Call Time: 5:00 p.m. ET / 2:00 p.m. PT
Webcast Link: https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/5jaikwa8/
Live Call Participant Link: https://register.vevent.com/register/BIc3642ee5e70e4bea9d3311a88c4e128a

Webcast Instructions
You can listen to a live audio webcast of the conference call by visiting the “Webcast Link” above or the “Events & Presentations” section of the Company’s Investor Relations website at https://investors.rigetti.com/. A replay of the conference call will be available at the same locations following the conclusion of the call for one year.

Live Call Participant Instructions
To participate in the live call, you must register using the “Live Call Participant Link” above. Once registered, you will receive dial-in numbers and a unique PIN number. When you dial in, you will input your PIN and be routed into the call. If you register and forget your PIN, or lose the registration confirmation email, simply re-register to receive a new PIN.

About Rigetti
Rigetti is a pioneer in full-stack quantum computing. The Company has operated quantum computers over the cloud since 2017 and serves global enterprise, government, and research clients through its Rigetti Quantum Cloud Services platform. In 2021, Rigetti began selling on-premises quantum computing systems with qubit counts between 24 and 84 qubits, supporting national laboratories and quantum computing centers. Rigetti’s 9-qubit Novera™ QPU was introduced in 2023 supporting a broader R&D community with a high-performance, on-premises QPU designed to plug into a customer’s existing cryogenic and control systems. The Company’s proprietary quantum-classical infrastructure provides high-performance integration with public and private clouds for practical quantum computing. Rigetti has developed the industry’s first multi-chip quantum processor for scalable quantum computing systems. The Company designs and manufactures its chips in-house at Fab-1, the industry’s first dedicated and integrated quantum device manufacturing facility. Learn more at www.rigetti.com.

Rigetti Computing Media Contact:
press@rigetti.com
Rigetti Computing Investor Relations Contact:
IR@Rigetti.com

The MIL Network –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI: American National Completes Full Redemption of Outstanding Depositary Shares Representing Interests in its 5.95% Fixed-Rate Reset Non-Cumulative Preferred Stock, Series A

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

HOUSTON, Feb. 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — American National Group Inc. (the “Company”) (NYSE: ANG PRA) today announced that the Company has completed the previously announced redemption (the “Redemption”) of all the 16,000 outstanding shares of its 5.95% Fixed-Rate Reset Non-Cumulative Preferred Stock, Series A (the “Series A Preferred Stock”) and the corresponding 16,000,000 depositary shares, each representing a 1/1,000th interest in one share of Series A Preferred Stock (the “Depositary Shares”). The redemption price for the Depositary Shares was $25.00 per Depositary Share (equivalent to $25,000 per share of Series A Preferred Stock) plus an amount equal to any declared but unpaid dividends and the portion of the quarterly dividend attributable to 1/1,000th of a share of Series A Preferred Stock to the then-current dividend period that has not been declared and paid to, but excluding, the redemption date (which was February 24, 2025) (the “Redemption Date”, and such redemption price, the “Redemption Price”). The Company funded the Redemption Price with the net proceeds from its previously announced sale of 12,000,000 depositary shares, each representing a 1/1,000th interest in a share of the Company’s Fixed-Rate Non-Cumulative Preferred Stock, Series D, together with cash on hand.

None of the Series A Preferred Stock or Depositary Shares remain outstanding, and all rights with respect to such stock or depositary shares have ceased and terminated except only the right of the holders of the Depositary Shares to receive the Redemption Price, without interest. Investors in the Depositary Shares should contact the bank or broker through which they held a beneficial interest in the Depositary Shares for information about obtaining the Redemption Price for the Depositary Shares in which they had a beneficial interest.

In connection with the Redemption, the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) has suspended trading of the Depositary Shares effective prior to the opening of trading on the Redemption Date. NYSE has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) a notification of removal from listing and registration on Form 25 to effect the delisting of all of the Depositary Shares from NYSE. In addition, the Company intends to file a certification on Form 15 with the SEC requesting the termination of registration of all of the Depositary Shares. Deregistration of the Depositary Shares is expected to become effective 90 days after the Form 15 is filed.

ABOUT AMERICAN NATIONAL GROUP INC.

American National Group Inc. offers a broad array of insurance products and services through its operating subsidiaries, American National and American Equity Life. Operating across 50 U.S. states, the group’s customer offering includes annuities, personal and commercial property and casualty insurance and life insurance. For more information, please visit AmericanNational.com/home/about-us/investor-relations.

Forward-Looking Statements

All statements contained in this press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements give expectations or forecasts of future events and do not relate strictly to historical or current facts. They may relate to markets for our products, trends in our operations or financial results, strategic alternatives, future operations, strategies, plans, partnerships, investments, share buybacks and other financial developments. They use words and terms such as “anticipate,” “assume,” “believe,” “can,” “continue,” “could,” “enable,” “estimate,” “expect,” “foreseeable,” “goal,” “improve,” “intend,” “likely,” “may,” “model,” “objective,” “opportunity,” “outlook,” “plan,” “potential,” “project,” “remain,” “risk,” “seek,” “should,” “strategy,” “target,” “will,” “would,” and other words and terms of similar meaning or that are otherwise tied to future periods or future performance, in each case in all forms of speech and derivative forms, or similar words, as well as any projections of future events or results. Forward-looking statements, by their nature, are subject to a variety of assumptions, risks, and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results projected. Many of these risks and uncertainties cannot be controlled by the Company. Factors that may cause our actual decisions or results to differ materially from those contemplated by these forward-looking statements include, among other things, the factors set forth in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, as updated by the Company’s Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarters ended March 31, 2024, June 30, 2024 and September 30, 2024 and any other documents we file with the SEC.

Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date the statement was made and the Company undertakes no obligation to update such forward-looking statements except as required by law. There can be no assurance that other factors not currently disclosed or anticipated by the Company will not materially adversely affect our results of operations or plans. Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements made by us or on our behalf.

Contact: Steven Schwartz

Treasurer, Head of Investor Relations

888-221-1234 ext. 3763

sschwartz@american-equity.com

The MIL Network –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: A peace that rewards aggression is not real peace: UK Statement in the UN General Assembly

Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

Speech

A peace that rewards aggression is not real peace: UK Statement in the UN General Assembly

Explanation of vote by Ambassador Barbara Woodward, UK Permanent Representative to the UN, in the UN General Assembly Emergency Special Session on Ukraine.

The United Kingdom welcomes the resumption of this Special Session on Ukraine.

Three years on, Russia’s illegal and unprovoked invasion has caused untold suffering, most recently in the massive wave of drone attacks over the weekend, reportedly the largest in a single night in three years.

Millions of Ukrainians have fled their homes, tens of thousands of civilians have been killed.

Children forcibly deported.

Schools, homes, hospitals, places of worship destroyed.

And Russia’s forces have committed the most appalling crimes – summary executions, torture, rape.

Enough is enough, as the Secretary-General reminded us.

Russia’s aggression did not begin three years ago, but long before that.

When my Prime Minister spoke to President Zelenskyy this week, he was clear that any outcome to the war must safeguard Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

A peace that rewards aggression is not a real peace.

And a peace that rewards aggression will not last.

Because Putin has a long track record of making deals with his fingers crossed behind his back.

Well, not this time.

We must not make the mistake of weak deals of the past.

This time, there must be peace through strength.

And that is why there can be no negotiations about Ukraine, without Ukraine.

Colleagues, it is not just Ukraine’s security that is at stake.

It is Britain’s too.

But it is the security of all of us.

Every single Member State who does not want to see tanks driving over their border, killing their people, stealing their children and redrawing their borders on a whim.

Today 93 countries again stood with Ukraine, voting to reaffirm our respect for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and for the UN Charter.

We all want an end to this war.

No country more so than Ukraine and its people.

As my Prime Minister has said, the UK is ready to play its part to support efforts for peace.

We will continue to support Ukraine to defend itself and to have its voice heard.

But let us not forget a simple truth: that Russia could end this war tomorrow, by ceasing its aggression and withdrawing its forces from Ukraine.

But the Kremlin shows no more sign of that than they have done at any point in the last three years.

So today, as for the last three years and for the future, we stand shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine and with our allies for as long as it takes.

Until Ukraine wins a peace that respects the UN Charter and delivers a secure future for its people and for all of us.

Updates to this page

Published 24 February 2025

MIL OSI United Kingdom –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI: GigaCloud Technology Inc to Announce Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2024 Financial Results on March 3, 2025

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

EL MONTE, Calif., Feb. 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — GigaCloud Technology Inc (Nasdaq: GCT) (“GigaCloud” or the “Company”), a pioneer of global end-to-end B2B technology solutions for large parcel merchandise, today announced that it will report its unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2024 after the market closes on Monday, March 3, 2025. The Company will host a conference call to discuss its financial results on the same day at 5:30 PM Eastern Time.

To access the conference call, participants should pre-register here to receive the dial-in information and a unique PIN. All participants are encouraged to dial-in 15 minutes prior to the conference call’s start time.

A live and archived webcast of the conference call will be accessible on the Company’s investor relations website at https://investors.gigacloudtech.com/news-events/events.

About GigaCloud Technology Inc
GigaCloud Technology Inc is a pioneer of global end-to-end B2B technology solutions for large parcel merchandise. The Company’s B2B ecommerce platform, the “GigaCloud Marketplace,” integrates everything from discovery, payments and logistics tools into one easy-to-use platform. The Company’s global marketplace seamlessly connects manufacturers, primarily in Asia, with resellers, primarily in the U.S., Asia and Europe, to execute cross-border transactions with confidence, speed and efficiency. GigaCloud offers a comprehensive solution that transports products from the manufacturer’s warehouse to the end customer’s doorstep, all at one fixed price. The Company first launched its marketplace in January 2019 by focusing on the global furniture market and has since expanded into additional categories, including home appliances and fitness equipment. For more information, please visit the Company’s website: https://investors.gigacloudtech.com/

The MIL Network –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Economics: Moody’s Corporation to Present at the Raymond James Annual Institutional Investors Conference on March 3, 2025

Source: Moody’s

Headline: Moody’s Corporation to Present at the Raymond James Annual Institutional Investors Conference on March 3, 2025

Moody’s Corporation to Present at the Raymond James Annual Institutional Investors Conference on March 3, 2025

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Moody’s Corporation (NYSE: MCO) announced today that Michael West, President of Moody’s Investors Service, will speak at the Raymond James Annual Institutional Investors Conference on Monday, March 3, 2025. The presentation will begin at approximately 8:05 a.m. Eastern Time and the audio will be webcast live. The audio webcast will be accessible at Moody’s Investor Relations website, ir.moodys.com.

This event is conducted in compliance with Regulation FD. Senior management may use this content during subsequent meetings with analysts and investors.

Source: Moody’s Corporation Investor Relations

MIL OSI Economics –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Agritech projects, training will strengthen B.C. agriculture

Source: Government of Canada regional news

Rahul Singh, director, B.C. Centre for Agritech Innovation –

“BCCAI proudly supports B.C.’s agriculture and agrifood sectors by advancing agritech innovation and its adoption. The launch of 19 new projects and nine training programs underscores the strong demand for innovation and training among farmers, growers, and small and medium-sized businesses. With support from the government and industry partners, BCCAI is committed to meeting this need.”

Dugan O’Neil, vice-president, research and innovation, Simon Fraser University –

“Simon Fraser University is proud to support British Columbia’s leadership in agritech through BCCAI. By fostering a thriving, sustainable agritech ecosystem, we’re supporting local agri-producers, empowering small and medium-sized businesses, and delivering benefits to consumers, all while driving economic growth. We greatly appreciate the government’s support for innovation and the partnerships that are advancing B.C.’s agriculture and food sector.”

Gavin Schneider, CEO and co-founder, Maia Farms –

“Maia Farms provides a smarter, climate-conscious way to nourish people and the planet. Our team has developed a process that transforms agricultural side streams into sustainable, high-protein and versatile food ingredients through mushroom biomass fermentation. With the generous support of BCCAI, Maia Farms was able to open the foundation Fungal Intelligence Lab in Vancouver, creating 10 full time jobs and paving the way for a new fungal food economy.”

Gaby Wickstrom, chief operating officer, ‘Na̲mg̲is Business Development Corporation –

“The ‘Na̲mg̲is Hydroponic Greenhouse Initiative is a vital step toward food security and sustainability for the ‘Na̲mg̲is First Nation and surrounding region. With BCCAI’s support, we’re enhancing local food production and creating new economic opportunities by providing communities and businesses with fresh, locally grown food year round.”

Michael Williamson, CEO and founder, Cascadia Seaweed –

“Institutional partnerships and government funding give Canadian companies a competitive edge, but more support is needed to drive innovation at scale. We look forward to continuing our work with BCCAI and partner universities to validate that our B.C.-grown, ocean-cultivated kelp can help Canadian farmers increase yields and reduce emissions.”

Chi Ta, CEO, C&T Mushroom Farm Ltd. –

“We are excited to partner with BCCAI on our automated worm farm technology. This initiative transforms organic waste into high-quality fertilizer, promoting sustainability and creating a circular ecosystem for local agriculture. By reusing organic waste, we minimize environmental impact and enhance soil quality. We are proud to contribute to a more resilient and sustainable future for British Columbians.”

Raj Jampala, manager operations, AgriForest Bio-Technologies Ltd. –

“Food security and agricultural innovation are critical for B.C. and Canada. With BCCAI’s support, AgriForest Bio-Technologies is developing advanced vertical growing systems using tissue culture and photoautotrophic micropropagation to meet market demands for high-quality berry and winegrape planting stock. This project will enhance local food production, strengthen the economy, and position B.C. as a leader in sustainable agri-tech.”

Rodrigo Santana, CEO, BeriTech Inc. –

“During the off-season, British Columbians are dependent on lower quality imported berries that are subject to substantial price fluctuations, are mostly produced using unsustainable farming practices and rely on high-carbon transport from distant production regions. Our BCCAI-funded project will provide B.C. consumers with local, premium off-season berries and help local farmers to extend their season, better utilizing labour and infrastructure.”

Annett Rozek, chief scientific officer, Catalera BioSolutions –

“Catalera BioSolutions and Terramera are extremely grateful to be recipients of support from BCCAI in pursuit of innovative agricultural technologies that benefit B.C., Canada and beyond. Together with BCCAI, Catalera is helping to make safe and effective biocontrol solutions the first choice for the future of agriculture.”

Ravi Cheema, chief executive officer, Fresh4Sunset Farms Ltd. –

“The funding from BCCAI will help our farm incorporate advanced technologies, sustainable practices and data-driven strategies for breeding good bugs to fight pests. I am excited to share our data with other greenhouse growers, enabling new entrants to make informed decisions, optimizing treatment plans and reducing pesticide use. By fostering collaboration between universities and private companies, we will facilitate the sharing of knowledge and resources throughout B.C. and beyond.”

Joachim Knauf, CEO/president, ChamberTrust Management International Inc. (CTMI) –

“ChamberTrust Management International Inc. appreciates its partnership with BCCAI for the CeV project that is focused on controlled environment agriculture, artificial intelligence and intellectual property protection. This includes the additional sector knowledge and industry contacts BCCAI brought to the table. CTMI has years of background with international business associations and it was a pleasure and very fruitful to partner with BCCAI.”

Sukh Kahlon, director, Kahlon farms –

“It has been great working with BCCAI. They were a great support in helping with our project to reduce the planting to harvest timeline for early season field strawberry production.”

Ajay Potluri, president and CEO, GreenSmart Technologies –

“GreenSmart is proud to announce the successful demonstration of Liquidseal, a pioneering edible solution that extends the shelf life of cranberries produced in British Columbia. Facilitated by the BCCAI in collaboration with BCIT and Oceanspray Ltd., this partnership advances innovative agritech solutions that extend the shelf life of fresh produce, reduce food waste, provides locally grown high‑quality food and greater access to distant export market opportunities – strengthening food security for British Columbians.”

Mohamed Imam, senior researcher, Perkins and Will Canada Architects Co. –

“Through our partnership with BCCAI, we are creating new ways of integrating urban agriculture into the built environment. This will benefit British Columbians by supporting local food production systems that strengthen food security and reduce environmental impact. This collaboration reflects our firm’s commitment to leveraging innovation and evidence-based design to create resilient cities and achieve our clients’ sustainability goals.”

Rick Cox, president, Ocion Water Sciences Inc. –

“As a leader in reducing environmentally stressful chemicals for use in agriculture, we are excited and grateful for the support from BCCAI and UBC. As a leader in water treatment, Ocion embraced the opportunity to work with industry experts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and to improve productivity and efficiency in the agritech sector. With these projects, we hope to position Canada as a leader, raising the bar for what can be accomplished in collaborative funded projects.”

Kevin Kung, CTO, Takachar Limited –

“This support made possible a first-of-a-kind pilot in the Okanagan area, turning hazardous, wildfire-prone residues into agricultural amendments. By operating this alongside our local community partner, we pushed the technology to its limits and learned tremendous lessons along the way.”

Sean O’Connor, CEO, 4AG Robotics –

“We are super excited to be partnering with BCCAI on this project. As an ecosystem, we can build global leading companies here in British Columbia, while helping increase the quality and quantity of fresh cultivated food in the province. We are excited to be one of the projects selected to harness AI and robotics to improve the profitability and stability of B.C.-based mushrooms businesses.”

Gary Jones, program manager, Industry Development, BC Greenhouse Growers’ Association –

“Funding from BCCAI helped our grower members explore techniques for reducing waste and improving workplace efficiencies as they continue to provide fresh, nutritious and local greenhouse vegetables for our expanding population. Training opportunities like Lean 101 are important for our industry professionals to keep developing their skills and empowering their workforce.”

Renee Prasad, department head, agriculture department, University of the Fraser Valley –

“Biological control is an important tool in the sustainable production of fruits and vegetables. This funding from BCCAI helps the UFV agriculture department connect with growers and answer their pressing questions in implementing sustainable production practices.”

Eric Gerbrandt, research director, BC Blueberry Council, and the Raspberry Industry Development Council, and BC Strawberry Grower’s Association –

“The B.C. berry sector’s sustainability will rely on adoption of superior berry varieties, with improved yield, quality, pest resistance and local climatic adaptation being developed by the BC Berry Breeding Program. A recent BCCAI workshop trained our stakeholders in testing, commercializing and marketing novel plant genetics, paving the way to a brighter future with better blueberry, raspberry and strawberry varieties.”

Shannon Wagner, vice-president, research, Thompson Rivers University –

“Thompson Rivers University is proud to be a contributor to increasing B.C.’s agricultural innovation with the support of BCCAI funding. Sharing innovative precision ranching methods will help improve outcomes for B.C.’s ranching communities and strengthen regional food security.”

Jerry DuBovis, president, Pacific Regional Society for Soil Science (PRSSS) –

“Through our collaboration with BCCAI, we have expanded our capacity to teach soil science skills to early-career professionals in B.C. The skills imparted through our workshops and seminars will greatly bolster B.C.’s ability to sustainably manage soil, an important resource for many sectors.”

Stefania Pizzirani, associate director, Food and Agriculture Institute, and associate professor, department of planning, geography, and environmental studies, University of the Fraser Valley –

“Across B.C., the agritechnology sector is progressing at an exciting and rapid rate. Our recent BCCAI-funded project focuses on developing four micro-credentials in collaboration with the University of the Fraser Valley, Royal Roads and BCCAI. These micro-credentials will help build up the skills needed to meet the emerging and expanding employment needs of B.C.’s dynamic agritechnology sector.”

Paul Adams, Sherman Jen research chair in applied genomics, director of Applied Genomics Centre, Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) –

“The molecular biology workshop for agriculture, presented in partnership with BCCAI and KPU’s Applied Genomics Centre, offers a unique opportunity for industry professionals, government personnel, and university students to gain hands-on experience with qPCR and DNA extraction. This workshop equips participants with the knowledge and skills to apply molecular tools to real-world agricultural challenges.”

Fred Popowich, scientific director, SFU’s Big Data Hub and professor of computing science, Simon Fraser University (SFU) –

“We are proud to have partnered with the B.C. Centre for Agritech Innovation. In November, our collaboration provided essential training, equipping agritech professionals with the knowledge and skills to leverage AI and data science tools and techniques effectively. This partnership highlights our commitment to fostering innovation and sustainability in the agricultural sector.”

Jason Ho, academic director, undergraduate programs, Beedie school of business, SFU at SFU’s Big Data Hub –

“Collaboration with BCCAI and QuantoTech exemplifies the innovative spirit we strive to instill in our students – blending cutting-edge technology with a decentralized business model to ensure urban food stability. Their work highlights the vital intersection of innovation, social responsibility and global perspective, the three pillars of our program.”

Jacob Beaton, owner, Tea Creek Training –

“Tea Creek Training supports Indigenous Peoples and communities to revitalize their food sovereignty systems while utilizing Indigenous technologies. Tea Creek provides introductory skills training for Indigenous participants to enter meaningful employment and apprenticeships. BCCAI’s support is allowing us to build the necessary capacity required to support our Indigenous Foodland Employment Apprenticeship Skills Training (I-FEAST) that is being delivered to Indigenous communities across B.C.”

MIL OSI Canada News –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: ICE Tampa, Pasco County Sheriff’s Office captures illegal alien after manhunt

Source: US Immigration and Customs Enforcement

TAMPA, Fla. – A previously deported criminal illegal alien from Honduras accused of raping a minor under 12-years-of-age was arrested following a manhunt by Pasco County Sheriff’s Office and Immigration and Customs Enforcement Tampa.

Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco announced the arrest of Yobany Gustavo Izaguierre Barahona, 24, charging him with two counts of capital sexual battery with a minor under 12-years-of-age. The victim is safe and receiving the necessary resources.

On the evening of Feb. 20, 2025, Barahona was home with the minor when he forced himself onto the victim. Upon discovery by another individual, the subject fled. In partnership with ICE Homeland Security Investigations Tampa and Border Patrol, the Pasco Sheriff’s Office immediately began to search for the subject, who they located in the afternoon of Feb. 21, 2025.

On June 25, 2021, Barahona was encountered by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection encountered in Rio Grande, Texas. He was subsequently removed by ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations in Houston on Aug. 4, 2021, from the U.S. to Honduras via ICE Air Operations charter flight. Barahona reentered illegally to the U.S. at an unknown date.

ICE HSI Tampa has lodged a Form I-247 Immigration Detainer Notice of Action with Pasco Sheriff’s Office. The investigation remains ongoing, and no additional information is available at this time.

There are no reports of additional victims at this time; however, contact the PSO Crime Tips Line at 1-800-706-2488 or report tips online at PascoSheriff.com/tips if you or a loved one believe you may be a victim. Also, you can contact the ICE Tip Line at 866-DHS-2-ICE (866-347-2423) or report it through the CyberTipline on the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children’s website.

MIL OSI USA News –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: NASA Names Acting Associate Administrator, More Leadership Changes

Source: NASA

NASA acting Administrator Janet Petro announced Monday Vanessa Wyche will serve as the acting associate administrator for the agency at NASA Headquarters in Washington, effective immediately. Wyche, who had been the director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, is detailed as Petro’s senior advisor leading the agency’s center directors and mission directorate associate administrators. She will act as the agency’s chief operating officer for about 18,000 civil servant employees and an annual budget of more than $25 billion. Stephen Koerner will become the acting center director of NASA Johnson.
The agency also named Jackie Jester as associate administrator for the Office of Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs and announced Catherine Koerner, associate administrator for the agency’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate will retire effective Friday, Feb. 28. Lori Glaze, currently the deputy associate administrator for Exploration Systems Development will become the mission directorate’s acting associate administrator.
“As we continue to advance our mission, it’s crucial that we have strong, experienced leaders in place,” Petro said. “Vanessa will bring exceptional leadership to NASA’s senior ranks, helping guide our workforce toward the opportunities that lie ahead, while Steve will continue to provide steadfast leadership at NASA Johnson. Jackie’s return to the agency will ensure we remain closely aligned with national priorities as we work with Congress. Cathy’s legacy is one of unwavering dedication to human spaceflight, and we are grateful for her years of service. Lori’s leadership will continue to build on that legacy as we push forward in our exploration efforts. These appointments reflect NASA’s unwavering commitment to excellence, and I have full confidence that each of these leaders will carry our vision forward with purpose, integrity, and a relentless drive to succeed.”
Prior to her new role, Wyche was the director NASA Johnson – home to America’s astronaut corps, Mission Control Center, International Space Station, Orion and Gateway Programs, and its more than 11,000 civil service and contractor employees. Her responsibilities included a broad range of human spaceflight activities, including development and operation of human spacecraft, NASA astronaut selection and training, mission control, commercialization of low Earth orbit, and leading NASA Johnson in exploring the Moon and Mars.
During her 35-year career, Wyche has served in several leadership roles, including Johnson’s deputy center director, director of Exploration Integration and Science Directorate, flight manager of several Space Shuttle Program missions, and executive officer in the Office of the Administrator. A native of South Carolina, Wyche earned a Bachelor of Science in Engineering and Master of Science in Bioengineering from Clemson University.
As deputy director of NASA Johnson, Stephen Koerner, oversaw strategic workforce planning, serves as the Designated Agency Safety Health Officer, and supported the Johnson center director in mission reviews. Before his appointment in July 2021, Koerner held various leadership roles at NASA Johnson, including director of the Flight Operations Directorate, associate director, chief financial officer, deputy director of flight operations, and deputy director of mission operations.
In her new role as the associate administrator for the Office of Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs, Jester will direct a staff responsible for managing and coordinating all communication with the U.S. Congress, as well as serve as a senior advisor to agency leaders on legislative matters.
Jester rejoins the agency after serving as the senior director for government affairs at Relativity Space’s Washington office where she led policy engagement for the company. Prior to her time with Relativity, she served as a policy advisor at NASA and at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. She has served as a professional staff member for the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. She has spent time in state government as the Chief Legislative Aide to a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives. Jester has significant experience advising on space policy issues, aviation operations and safety policy, and has helped develop numerous pieces of legislation.
With a 34-year career at NASA, Catherine Koerner has been instrumental in leading NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, overseeing the development of the agency’s deep space exploration approach. Previously, she was the deputy associate administrator for the mission directorate. Her extensive career at NASA includes roles such as the Orion program manager, director of the Human Health and Performance Directorate, former NASA flight director, several leadership positions within the International Space Station Program during its assembly phase and helping to foster a commercial space industry in low Earth orbit.
Glaze has a distinguished background in planetary science, previously serving as the director of NASA’s Planetary Science Division before joining Explorations Systems Development. Prior to her tenure at NASA Headquarters in Washington, she was the chief of the Planetary Geology, Geophysics and Geochemistry Laboratory at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and the Deputy Director of Goddard’s Solar System Exploration Division. She has been a leading advocate for Venus exploration, serving as the principal investigator for the Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble gases, Chemistry, and Imaging mission. Glaze earned her Bachelor of Arts and Master of Science degrees in Physics from the University of Texas at Arlington and a doctorate in Environmental Science from Lancaster University in the United Kingdom. Her prior experience includes roles at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and at Proxemy Research as Vice President and Senior Research Scientist.
For more about NASA’s missions, visit:

Home Page

-end-
Amber Jacobson / Kathryn HambletonHeadquarters, Washington202-358-1600amber.c.jacobson@nasa.gov / kathryn.a.hambleton@nasa.gov

MIL OSI USA News –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Medication Errors Happen to Pets, Too
Source: US Food and Drug Administration

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Your dog or cat is sick, and you head to the animal hospital. The veterinarian prescribes medications that you hope will make your pet better. But with pets, as with people, medication errors can happen.

Just as the Food and Drug Administration monitors medication errors that affect people, the agency watches out for mistakes that may harm animals. According to Linda Kim-Jung, PharmD, a safety reviewer in the Center for Veterinary Medicine’s Division of Veterinary Product Safety, “A number of the medication errors that occur in the treatment of people are the same as those we are seeing in the treatment of animals.” For this reason, CVM collaborates with the human drug center at the FDA, the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, Division of Medication Errors Prevention and Analysis to share, learn and disseminate outreach work on medication error prevention.

Errors Easily Made

Prescriptions for pets are sometimes filled in the same pharmacies that serve human patients. Errors can start with something as simple as an abbreviation.
“Unclear medical abbreviations are a common cause of the medication errors we review at CVM,” Kim-Jung says.

Commonly used in human and veterinary medicine, abbreviations are most often used when a veterinarian is writing drug orders or documenting information in the medical record. Medical abbreviations are not universal; nor are the variations. As a result, ambiguous abbreviations and symbols can cause transcription errors. For example, a pharmacist in a human pharmacy may not be familiar with certain veterinary abbreviations for different dosage amounts. CVM has found that the abbreviation “SID” (once daily), sometimes used in veterinary prescriptions, was misinterpreted as “BID” (twice daily) and “QID” (four times daily), resulting in drug overdoses.

“If the vet has prescribed a drug where there’s a strong correlation between the dose and the severity of side effects, an overdose can have serious consequences,” Kim-Jung says. “Poor penmanship can add to the problem, too.”

Problematic abbreviations such as “u” (units) or the Greek letter μ (mu) could be mistaken for the letter “o” or a number zero “0”. Also, the “mcg” abbreviation for microgram could be mistaken as “mg” (milligram). Additionally, when prescriptions are written without a leading zero or with a trailing zero, it can potentially lead to a dangerous overdose error. “So, a 5 mg dose written as 5.0 mg can be misread as 50 mg, potentially resulting in a 10-times overdose if the order is not clearly written,” Kim-Jung explains.

In addition, drug selection errors can occur because of labels or packaging that look alike. Similarly, the pharmacy may dispense a wrong drug if the drug names look alike when written on a prescription, or if the drug names sound alike during verbal orders.

For example, one veterinarian called in a verbal order for Zeniquin (marbofloxacin) an antibiotic for a dog and asked if it was available in generic form. The pharmacist misinterpreted the order as “Sinequan” and dispensed doxepin, a generic formulation of Sinequan. Sinequan (doxepin) is used to treat depression and anxiety in humans. The dog owner called the vet 24 hours later stating that the dog was ill. Fortunately, the dog was treated and recovered.

There are numerous opportunities throughout the treatment process (from writing a prescription to administering a drug) for different people to misinterpret or misread what is written or even typed on the medication’s label. “Mistakes can happen at the veterinary clinic, but also in the pharmacy which fills the prescription, and at home, when the pet owner gives the animal the meds,” Kim-Jung says.

Sometimes, a pet owner is uncertain how to use a syringe or measuring device, or it doesn’t work the way it’s expected to. CVM considers human factors like this when evaluating patient safety and works on system design strategies that can prevent use errors to mitigate patient harm.

Ask Questions

There are a number of things you can do before you leave the veterinarian’s office. Start by asking good questions, such as:
- What is the name of the drug? What is it supposed to do?
- If the drug comes with a device or packaged with a measuring device, ask your vet to show you how to use it properly.
- How much of the medication should I give each time?
- How many times a day should I give it?
- Should I give it before, during or after meals?
- How should I store it?
- What should I do if I forget to give a dose to my pet?
- Should I finish giving all the medication, even if my pet seems better?
- Are there reactions I should look for and call you about right away?
Help Your Veterinarian to Help You

Sharing information is a two-way street, Kim-Jung says, especially if you are getting a new prescription or seeing a new veterinarian. Be sure to:
- Keep a list of drugs that your animal is taking—including over-the-counter products, supplements and prescription drugs—and bring it with you to the veterinary office.
- Discuss any medications that your animal is allergic to or that have caused problems in the past.
- Discuss any serious or chronic health conditions that your animal may have.
Finally, there are some simple steps you can take at home to avoid medication errors:
- Keep animal drugs stored away from human drug products to prevent mix-ups. Accidental exposures to some human topical drugs and other type of human drugs can be dangerous and can cause fatalities in animals.
- Keep your animal’s medications in their original labeled containers.
- Do not share the medication for one animal with another animal unless directed by the veterinarian.
- Do not give human medications to your animal unless directed by the vet.
For more information on veterinary medication errors, see this page.

Your Report Matters!

The good news is you can play a role in helping to prevent medication errors by reporting medication issues directly to CVM/FDA.

MIL OSI USA News –
February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: FEMA Tips to Get Ready for Severe Weather

Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

Headline: FEMA Tips to Get Ready for Severe Weather

FEMA Tips to Get Ready for Severe Weather

Winter and early spring storms can bring snow, tornadoes, hail, lightning and flooding. FEMA encourages Tennesseans to keep cell phones on and fully charged with the volume turned up and severe weather alerts enabled. Follow directions from your local and state officials.If you are planning to travel by car, check your local weather and traffic reports before heading out. Tell others your route and anticipated arrival time. If your roads are not in good shape, consider postponing non-essential travel until the roads are cleared. When driving in wet conditions, snow or ice, increase your following distance to 5-to-6 seconds, and watch for icy conditions on bridges and overpasses. It takes longer to slow down on icy roads. Make sure you have your auto insurance provider and towing company numbers close at hand.Power outages can impact communications, transportation, utilities and much more. If experiencing an outage, keep freezers and refrigerators closed. Disconnect appliances and electronics to avoid damage from electrical surges. Prevent house heating fires by keeping anything that can burn at least 3 feet away from all heat sources including fireplaces, wood stoves, radiators, portable heaters and candles. Always plug a space heater directly into an outlet and make sure its cord isn’t damaged. Never use generators indoors. Never use a gas stove or oven to heat your home. Doing so can put you at risk for carbon monoxide poisoning. If your area is under a thunderstorm warning, go inside. Listen for alerts or warnings, unplug appliances and do not use landline phones. Watch for flash flooding and be sure to look out for downed power poles and lines after the storm is over.Visit Ready.gov for more severe weather tips and resources.
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Mon, 02/24/2025 – 16:27

MIL OSI USA News –

February 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: NASA Marshall Reflects on 65 Years of Ingenuity, Teamwork

Source: NASA

NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, is celebrating its 65-year legacy of ingenuity and service to the U.S. space program – and the expansion of its science, engineering, propulsion, and human spaceflight portfolio with each new decade since the NASA field center opened its doors on July 1, 1960.
What many Americans likely call to mind are the “days of smoke and fire,” said Marshall Director Joseph Pelfrey, referring to the work conducted at Marshall to enable NASA’s launch of the first Mercury-Redstone rocket and the Saturn V which lifted Americans to the Moon, the inaugural space shuttle mission, and the shuttle flights that carried the Hubble Space Telescope, Chandra X-ray Observatory, and elements of the International Space Station to orbit. Most recently, he said they’re likely to recall the thunder of NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System), rising into the sky during Artemis I.

Yet all the other days are equally meaningful, Pelfrey said, highlighting a steady stream of milestones reflecting the work of Marshall civil service employees, contractors, and industry partners through the years – as celebrated in a new “65 Years of Marshall” timeline.
“The total sum of hours, contributed by tens of thousands of men and women across Marshall’s history, is incalculable,” Pelfrey said. “Together they’ve blended legacy with innovation – advancing space exploration and scientific discovery through collaboration, engineering excellence, and technical solutions. They’ve invented and refined technologies that make it possible to safely live and work in space, to explore other worlds, and to help safeguard our own.

Joseph Pelfrey
Marshall Space Flight Center Director

“Days of smoke and fire may be the most visible signs, but it’s the months and years of preparation and the weeks of post-launch scientific discovery that mark the true dedication, sacrifice, and monumental achievements of this team.”
Reflecting on Marshall history
Marshall’s primary task in the 1960s was the development and testing of the rockets that carried the first American astronaut to space, and the much larger and more technically complex Saturn rocket series, culminating in the mighty Saturn V, which carried the first human explorers to the Moon’s surface in 1969.
“Test, retest, and then fly – that’s what we did here at the start,” said retired engineer Harry Craft, who was part of the original U.S. Army rocket development team that moved from Fort Bliss, Texas, to Huntsville to begin NASA’s work at Marshall. “And we did it all without benefit of computers, working out the math with slide rules and pads of paper.”

“Those were exciting times,” retired test engineer Parker Counts agreed. He joined Marshall in 1963 to conduct testing of the fully assembled and integrated Saturn first stages. It wasn’t uncommon for work weeks to last 10 hours a day, plus weekend shifts when deadlines were looming.
Counts said Dr. Wernher von Braun, Marshall’s first director, insisted staff in the design and testing organizations be matched with an equal number of engineers in Marshall’s Quality and Reliability Assurance Laboratory.
“That checks-and-balances engineering approach led to mission success for all 32 of the Saturn family of rockets,” said Counts, who went on to support numerous other propulsion programs before retiring from NASA in 2003.
“We worked with the best minds and best equipment available, pushing the technology every day to deliver the greatest engineering achievement of the 20th century,” said instrumentation and electronics test engineer Willie Weaver, who worked at Marshall from 1960 to 1988 – and remains a tour guide at its visitor center, the U.S. Space & Rocket Center.

Willie Weaver
Former Marshall Space Flight Center Employee

The 1970s at Marshall were a period of transition and expanded scientific study, as NASA ended the Apollo Program and launched the next phase of space exploration. Marshall provided critical work on the first U.S. space station, Skylab, and led propulsion element development and testing for NASA’s Space Shuttle Program.
Marshall retiree Jim Odom, a founding engineer who got his start launching NASA satellites in the run-up to Apollo, managed the Space Shuttle External Tank project. The role called for weekly trips to NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, which has been managed by Marshall since NASA acquired the government facility in 1961. The shuttle external tanks were manufactured in the same bays there where NASA and its contractors built the Saturn rockets.

“We didn’t have cellphones or telecon capabilities yet,” Odom recalled. “I probably spent more time with the pilot of the twin-engine plane in those days than I did with my wife.”
Marshall’s shuttle propulsion leadership led to the successful STS-1 mission in 1981, launching an era of orbital science exemplified by NASA’s Spacelab program.
“Spacelab demonstrated that NASA could continue to achieve things no one had ever done before,” said Craft, who served as mission manager for Spacelab 1 in 1983 – a highlight of his 40-year NASA career. “That combination of science, engineering, and global partnership helped shape our goals in space ever since.”

Bookended by the successful Hubble and Chandra launches, the 1990s also saw Marshall deliver the first U.S. module for the International Space Station, signaling a transformative new era of human spaceflight.
Odom, who retired in 1989 as associate administrator for the space station at NASA Headquarters, reflects on his three-decade agency career with pride.
“It was a great experience, start to finish, working with the teams in Huntsville and New Orleans and our partners nationwide and around the globe, meeting each new challenge, solving the practical, day-to-day engineering and technology problems we only studied about in college,” he said.

That focus on human spaceflight solutions continued into the 21st century. Marshall delivered additional space station elements and science hardware, refined its air and water recycling systems, and led round-the-clock science from the Payload Operations Integration Center. Marshall scientists also managed the Gravity Probe Band Hinode missions and launched NASA’s SERVIR geospatial observation system. Once primary space stationconstruction – and the 40-year shuttle program – concluded in the 2010s, Marshall took on oversight of NASA’s Space Launch System, led James Webb Space Telescope mirror testing, and delivered the orbiting Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer.
As the 2020s continue, Marshall meets each new challenge with enthusiasm and expertise, preparing for the highly anticipated Artemis II crewed launch and a host of new science and discovery missions – and buoyed by strong industry partners and by the Huntsville community, which takes pride in being home to “Rocket City USA.”
“Humanity is on an upward, outward trajectory,” Pelfrey said. “And day after day, year after year, Marshall is setting the course to explore beyond tomorrow’s horizon.”
Read more about Marshall and its 65-year history:
https://www.nasa.gov/marshall
Hannah MaginotMarshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala.256-544-0034hannah.l.maginot@nasa.gov

MIL OSI USA News –

February 25, 2025