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jaehyun-eclipsed · 3 years

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Before I Met You | Twenty-One

Next Update: ~January 10, 2021

Pairing: NCT (Jaehyun, Lucas, Mark, Jaemin, Johnny) X Reader/OC

Genre: Romance, Angst, Coming of Age

Summary: Four. There were four people before I fell in love with you… Here are their stories.

Before I Met You Masterlist

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The following day, I woke up and began packing to go home for winter break. Jia had left early this morning to catch a flight back to Beijing, so I was left to my own thoughts about the upcoming lunch outing with Johnny.

I threw on some black jeans, a brown off-the-shoulder sweater, and black knee-high boots. I was finally able to go back to my norm of taking the morning to do my hair and makeup after showing up with minimal effort during finals week.

Yes, I wanted to look cute for this “date,” but I was also just happy to not look like I had just rolled out of bed before going out every day.

I meet Johnny in his room and walk out of the house together with Hendery who was on his way to the airport.

“What are you doing here, Y/N?” Hendery asks.

I’m taken by surprise because I thought Hendery knew Johnny and I were hanging out today, but quickly realizing that Johnny didn’t mention it, I’m not sure how much to tell him.

“Oh, um, Johnny and I are just hanging out today. I think he needs to drop off a book and then we’re gonna grab some food.”

“Oh.”

We wish Hendery goodbye, parting ways as he gets onto a bus heading to the airport. I follow Johnny to drop off his book and afterwards, we opt to grab lunch at my favorite Korean place near campus. The restaurant is basically empty midafternoon with the exception of a few students celebrating the end of finals.

“So, you’re not seeing anyone?” Johnny asks.

I shake my head. “No.”

“Why not?”

Because I’m me. I get involved with people that seem to have weird issues and the person I’m currently interested in has a girlfriend, and yet, I’m still hanging out with him.

Shrugging, I press my lips together before finally saying, “Haven’t found anyone I’m interested in, I guess.”

“What are you looking for then?”

“Someone respectable and smart. Someone I can talk to about anything,” I say. “Someone who isn’t going to have a problem with me having guy friends.”

“Having guy friends?” He quirks an eyebrow. “That sounds so specific.”

“Believe me, when you have guy friends whose girlfriends hate you, you learn quickly that you’ll need to find someone that doesn’t have severe jealousy issues.”

“Your guy friends’ girlfriends hate you?”

“Something like that.”

Johnny scrunches his face in confusion. “Why?”

I shrug. “I suppose they see me as a threat. Not really sure why. It’s not like I want to date their boyfriends.”

At least, that’s been true until now. Though, it’s not like I’m going to do anything to actively steal him. None of this, “you should leave you girlfriend and be with me.”

“My girlfriend doesn’t want me to have girl friends,” Johnny says.

“Oh.”

I wonder why. If I knew he acted like this around other girls, I guess I might understand.

“Does she not trust you around other girls or something?” I ask.

Ah ha. That was a loaded question.

“I guess so. She talked to all her friends and they said the same thing: boyfriends shouldn’t have any other girl friends besides their girlfriend.”

“That’s kinda…” —I grimace— “I don’t know how I feel about that. I feel about that. As long as you aren’t flirting with other girls, then I don’t see why you shouldn’t be able to have other girl friends.”

“That’s what I said!” he exclaims.

Except, I’d argue that you are flirting with other girls, but that’s none of my business.

“Does she have other guy friends?”

“I don’t know. She says she doesn’t.”

I turn away briefly, hoping he doesn’t notice my look of skepticism. That sounds like a lie.

“Does she go here?”

“No, she’s going to a community college in Santa Clara. She’s trying to transfer to a CSU in SoCal.”

So that’s why we never see her around.

“How long have you been dating?”

“Almost two years.”

“So you met in high school?”

“Yeah, she went to a different high school, but my friend introduced me to her and we used to meet up to study a lot during the school year.”

“Oh that’s nice. Do you see her often?”

“Like every few weeks when I go home or during breaks,” he says. “Do you want to see a picture of her?”

“Sure.”

Johnny pulls out his phone and shows me a picture of the two of them at a park. She’s decently pretty—a six and a half at best—but nothing particularly special.

My eyes narrow at him as puts his phone away and begins looking through his menu. Maybe he’s not trying to hit on me if he’s being so open about his girlfriend? But that doesn’t explain everything else that’s happened unless he’s just naturally flirty. I highly doubt that.

“I think I’m going to order bibimbap,” he says to me, putting the menu on the table.

I nod in acknowledgement. “I’m going to order the sundubu-jjigae. It’s cold out.”

“Do you want to do anything afterwards?”

His question catches me off guard. After learning more about his girlfriend and seeing how comfortable he is talking about her when prompted, I’m surprised he wants to continue hanging out. But perhaps this really just is a friendship.

“Was there something you wanted to do?” I reply.

He shakes his head. “What’s your favorite place around here?”

“Um, there’s a bookstore I like that’s a few blocks from campus…”

“Great! Let’s go there afterwards!”

After finishing lunch, we make our way to the south side of campus, surprised to come across a small street fair on the same street as the bookstore. The booths are decorated with fairy lights, creating a very cozy and romantic atmosphere at twilight. We browse the novelty soaps, keychains, and various trinkets briefly before squeezing through two booths to get to the bookstore.

“What kind of books do you like to read?” Johnny asks, trailing behind me as I browse a recent release table.

“Mm, mostly young adult fiction leaning towards the adventure side. I like dystopian novels. You?”

“I like reading nonfiction. I don’t really like fiction.”

“That’s a shame.”

I grab a recent release and begin flipping through it.

“Oh what’s this?” Johnny asks from behind me.

As soon as I turn around, a brown dog puppet is two inches from my face. Johnny is smiling down at me and moving his hand inside the puppet to make the dog look like it’s talking.

“Hi Y/N, my name is Coffee Bean! Will you read me a story?”

My mouth is agape in amusement, part of me unsure how to respond. I chuckle nervously and put down the book in my hand, and quickly scan the table next to me for the closest children’s book.

“Um, do you like If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, Coffee Bean?”

Coffee Bean nods his head enthusiastically. “Yes! Woof!”

I force a nervous smile, still uncertain as to how to respond to this other than to play along. I read a few pages of the book and look up at Johnny. “Do you really want me to keep reading?”

He laughs. “No, it’s okay.” He turns to Coffee Bean. “Did you like that Coffee Bean?”

“Yes!” Coffee Bean turns his head back towards me and presses his mouth against my cheek. “Thank you!”

I smile at him and begin walking towards another section of the store. That was weird. Cute, but weird. Sighing heavily, my mind flashes back to our discussion earlier about Johnny’s girlfriend. He clearly was very comfortable talking about her in front of me. Realistically, it probably would’ve been better for me to completely drop the idea of the two of us ever dating and stay away from Johnny because I didn’t want to get in the way. I’d certainly never want my boyfriend to do something like this.

Y/N, you are going to get hurt if you continue to hang out with this guy. This never ends well when you get involved with a guy who’s already in a relationship. He’s obviously not going to leave his girlfriend. And even if he did because he wanted to date you, wouldn’t it be a bad idea? He could do the same thing to you.

Johnny suddenly appears next to me. “So, it’s six o’clock. What do you want to do? You want to watch a movie?”

I blink several times, surprised yet again by Johnny’s continuing desire to hang out today. Most of everyone at the house has left, so I suppose it only makes sense. If we went back to the house and parted ways, there wouldn’t be anything for us to do on our own. I’d probably just sit in my room and watch a movie by myself.

“Sure… I guess. What do you want to watch?”

“Didn’t you mention that you recently watched some movie… Sally something?”

My forehead creases. “You mean, When Harry Met Sally?”

“Yeah! Let’s watch that!”

What? He wants to watch a rom-com?

Okay, movie and that’s it. You shouldn’t hang around him anymore and after today, you won’t even need to see him.

“Okay then. We can watch in the piano room,” I say. “I don’t have an HDMI cable to hook up to the TV, but the couches are comfy.”

He hums in thought. “Can we just watch in your room? It’ll be more comfortable.”

Um, there must be something about a guy wanting to hang out alone with you in your room to watch a movie, right?

“Like, we sit on the bed?” I ask.

“Yeah.”

I bite the inside of my lip. “Okay.”

“Okay! I’ll bring snacks!”

“This is my blanket now!” Johnny grabs my fleece blanket and stuffed dog off my bed and begins hugging it. “This is mine now too.”

He jumps up onto my bed and crawls into the corner, wrapping himself in the blanket and hiding the plush underneath. He cracks into a wide grin and I can’t help but begin to pout a bit, feeling rather protective over my stuffed toys.

“So what do I get?”

“I brought pistachios and cookies,” he says, gesturing over to the snacks he placed on my desk. “You can have those.”

I glance at the packages and then turn back to face Johnny, dissatisfied with the consolation prize. I pout again. “But I’m not hungry. I’m cold.”

“Hmm,” he hums, pretending to ponder as he holds a playful smile on his face. “Okay, I guess I can share with you.”

I scoff in amusement. “Share? That’s mine!”

A cheeky grin makes its way onto his face. “You said you were cold. It’s easier to stay warm if the blanket is already warmed up!”

I roll my eyes and bite back a smile as I go to set up the movie on my laptop. Slowly, I make my way onto my bed and Johnny trades me my laptop for my blanket. I make no comment as I wasn’t keen on sharing my blanket in the first place anyway.

Before leaning against the back wall, I turn to look at him. “Do I get my dog back too?”

He smiles and shakes his head. “No, I think he likes me better.”

“Okay, fine,” I say, letting out a huff and crossing my arms as I move to sit up against the wall.

Our arms are touching, which is to be expected since we’re attempting to share a twin-sized bed. I’m a bit distracted, not really focusing on the movie, but rather on the predicament I see myself in. Clearly, Johnny has no problem with taking my personal belongings or sharing a bed with me. Originally, I thought we would sit up against the wall length-wise, giving both of us plenty of space not to make any physical contact with each other. But instead, Johnny had other plans and also wanted to use my pillows. So here I am, watching a rom-com with a guy that I happen to like and find very charming, is very kind and playful, but I am very uncertain as to where I stand.

After a while, Johnny hands my dog back to me and I pretend to be unfazed by the famous fake orgasm scene in the movie. What an awkward thing to watch with a guy I barely know.

When the movie ends, I shut my laptop and hop off my bed to put it back on my desk. Johnny crawls over to the other end of the bed, lies on his side and hangs his legs off the foot of my bed. I seat myself back against the wall and pull out my phone.

“So now what?” I ask.

“Um, you said that you’re good at giving advice, right?” Johnny responds.

I lift my head up from my phone and turn to look at him. “Uh, I mean, my friends ask me for advice a lot. So maybe?”

It’s quiet for a moment as Johnny contemplates whether to ask me for advice and how to formulate his question. My thumb scrolls through Instagram, though my mind is somewhere else as I wonder about what Johnny could want advice on. Life? Career? School?

“I’m not really sure what to do about my girlfriend,” he finally says.

That’s not… that’s not what I want to talk to you about.

“What do you mean?” I ask, keeping my gaze on my phone.

“I’m… not really happy with her.”

I swallow nervously. “Why not?”

“You know how I told you earlier that she doesn’t like me having girl friends?”

Can’t imagine why.

“Yeah?”

“It’s stuff like that. She gets upset with me and it’s hard to talk to her. She doesn’t really apply herself in school and doesn’t have a lot of ambition.”

I keep my facial expression neutral, but I’m already not impressed with this girl.

“Just out of curiosity, what do you parents think of her?”

He shrugs. “My dad doesn’t care and my mom keeps asking me when I’m going to get a doctor or lawyer girlfriend.”

“Sounds like your mom doesn’t really like her.”

“Well, my mom likes her, but…”

“She wants you to find someone she thinks is better,” I say, finishing his sentence.

“Yeah,” he admits sheepishly.

Yeah, so basically she doesn’t like your girlfriend.

“What’s her name?”

“Minji,” he responds. “We’ve already broken up twice.”

God, he sounds like Siwoo.

“Why?”

“Because she didn’t like my friend Hyoyeon.”

“Who’s she?”

“She’s my friend from high school,” he says. “She’s two years younger and we were friends in band.”

“Did you like her or something?”

“What? No!” he says emphatically. “She’s like my little sister, but we hung out a lot together.”

I take in the information to create a coherent story. “So… Minji was jealous because you spent a lot of time with Hyoyeon and Minji got angry or something… and you guys broke up because of that, right?”

“Yep.”

“Why did you get back together?”

“The first time was a year ago and I missed her so I thought we could make it work. Then a couple months later, we got into a fight and I broke up with her again, but then I thought I made a mistake so we got back together,” he says. “So what do you think I should do?”

I sit there, staring at my bed spread, trying to figure out how to respond. There is a conflict of interest. I am obviously interested in Johnny and would definitely like for him to be single so that I can date him, but I also do not want to tell him that he should break up with his girlfriend because I’m afraid that I can’t be totally objective in this situation. Personally, if this had been Siwoo, I would’ve told him to break up with her. Perhaps Siwoo is not the best example, but that’s what we have to work with. Johnny’s not happy with Minji and he’s obviously flirting with another girl he likes more. What’s the point of prolonging it?

What’s with me in having guys with girlfriends being attracted to me?

Either they’re unhappy or unsatisfied or I just have a lot more power than I thought. The other explanation is that they’re just assholes.

Wow, Y/N, now you just attract assholes? That must say something about your personality.

Attempting to be as objective as possible, I decide to say the most neutral, yet important, thing I can.

“People don’t change, Johnny.”

He tilts his head. “What do you mean?”

“If you’re upset with the jealousy and the lack of ambition or whatever, that’s not going to change,” I say. “People only change if something drastic happens that causes them to be different.”

“So… are you saying I should break up with her?”

My eyes widen. “No, no,” I say quickly. “I did not say that. I’m just telling you that people don’t change. So it’s up to you whether or not you think it’s something you can handle.”

He’s quiet for a bit and then turns to look at me. “Do you really believe that?”

“Believe what?”

“That people don’t change.”

I nod slowly. “Yeah.”

“But I’m different now from a few years ago. I know a lot of people I grew up with who are different now.”

“Fundamentally, people don’t change. Yeah, you might pick up some new habits here and there, but generally, it’s hard to change unless you know there’s something you need to change,” I say. “And acknowledgement is only the beginning. You have to want to change too. If you don’t, then it doesn’t make a difference.”

“So, you don’t think Minji is going to change at all?”

I’m hesitant to make any comments specifically concerning Minji. So I give another open-ended answer. “If she thinks something needs to be changed and wants to, then maybe.”

In thinking about it, Siwoo is the perfect example here. No matter how many failed relationships he gets into, he never changes his behavior. Get together with one girl, cheat on her or treat her horribly, break up, feel bad for about two seconds, rinse, repeat. Somehow, it never fazes him.

I often wonder if there’s one girl out there that would break his heart enough that it would cause him to change. Even a little bit.

“I’m going to break up with her,” Johnny says after some time.

I look at him and say nothing.

“Yeah, I think it’s time to break up with her,” he says again.

“It’s your decision.”

He sighs. “Yeah, I know. I’m supposed to see her on Monday, so I’ll do it then.”

I remain silent and keep my facial expression neutral. If Johnny actually follows through with it, I’d be happy. But I don’t want to be the reason he breaks up with her. That’s not my place.

“Thanks,” he says and smiles. “You are pretty good at giving advice.”

“Oh, yeah,” I remark. “Sure.”

I put my phone down and lie back onto my pillow at the head of the bed. Crossing my arms across my chest, I close my eyes as a sudden drowsiness overcomes me. I hear some shifting at the end of the bed.

“Are you tired?” Johnny asks.

“Mm, a little,” I mumble.

A blanket is gently draped over me and I hum a quiet “thank you.” Everything is still and peaceful, but I can tell that Johnny is watching me.

And then he asks me a question.

“What if I told you I like you?”

My eyes shoot open in shock and Johnny is smiling down at me, a hopeful look etched into his features. I stare at him for a moment and knit my eyebrows together, having been rendered speechless by his confession.

My lack of response causes a bit of a panic in his eyes and he asks another question.

“Is that good or bad?”

Trying to remain calm, I close my eyes as if his question hadn’t just shocked me.

“It’s okay…” I respond.

Though my eyes are closed, a small part of me is laughing inside, half-aware that my unenthusiastic and non-idealistic response is not how he anticipated this to play out.

“So…” The unsteadiness in his voice is detectable. “What about you?”

“I do,” I answer simply.

“You do what?”

“I do like you.”

I open my eyes again and there’s a shy smile on his face.

“I think you’re really cute and I enjoy spending time with you and I want to keep spending time with you,” he continues.

He climbs up towards the front of the bed and lies with his back against the wall. I feel an arm reach around my waist.

“You—you can’t do that,” I say.

Johnny slowly removes his hand. “Why not?”

“You’re still with someone else.”

My voice is unsteady and I don’t trust it. But quite frankly, I’m not sure I trust my own judgment either.

I shut my eyes again, unable to fight the fatigue. A few moments pass before Johnny speaks again.

“Can I stay here?”

Y/N, you know that he shouldn’t.

“Yes.”

He pushes himself up off the bed and climbs over me. His feet land on the floor with a thump and he flips off the light switch. He quickly climbs back onto my bed and places himself where he was before. I’m on the edge of the bed and there’s about a foot of space in between the two of us. I hear him shuffling around and suddenly there’s a hand lightly resting on the exposed skin of my waist.

“No, you can’t do that,” I say more forcefully. “You’re still with someone.”

He quickly removes his hand this time and then says, “I think I’ll leave you alone then.”

He climbs off the bed again and I remain still until I hear the door open and close. Then I’m alone.

I slowly sit up. There’s a thin stream of moonlight peering in through the missing blind. Looking around the room, there’s enough light to see that Johnny had left his bag of pistachio nuts and the package of cookies on my desk. Biting my lip, I decide to go brush my teeth and wash my face, but when I look at my reflection in the mirror, I feel scared.

What are you doing?

What are you supposed to do with this confession?

Hell, you confessed yourself.

There’s a part of me that feels excited that a boy of interest has returned my affections, but suddenly I’m finding that I don’t know how to process it. I’ve had plenty of confessions before, but this is different and I don’t know why.

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Before I Met You Masterlist

Masterlist

#nct #nct 127 #jung jaehyun #na jaemin #mark lee #johnny suh #lucas wong #wong yukhei #nct lucas #nct jaemin #nct jaehyun #nct mark #nct dream #wayv #superm #before I met you

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catalinaroleplay · 3 years

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Gender & Pronouns: Cis man, he/him

Date of Birth: March 17th, 1983 (37)

Place of Birth: San Francisco, California

Neighborhood: Ventura

Length of Residency: Native — Returned December 2020

Occupation: CEO of Meadows Real Estate

Face Claim: Jesse Lee Soffer

BIOGRAPHY

TRIGGERS: Parental Abandonment, Death Mention, Infidelity.

If you would've told anyone 16 years ago that Sebastian Prescott would one day be considered the outcast of his family… they would've laughed right into your face. There was a time when he embraced the name and everything that came with it. Sebastian became a member of that kind of world by proxy through his father's networking and connections. The Prescott children all lived the fast life, the one where money can buy you anything and everything to the fullest. As one of the middle children, there was a certain kind of freedom where nothing was set in stone, and he was allowed the liberty of choosing his life. Well, until his father Hugh disowned him.

Hugh Prescott grew up one of five children in a lower-middle-class home in Nottingham, a city in the East Midlands region of the United Kingdom. Gabriel, his father, operated a small wholesale produce store while his mother Frieda stayed home, bringing up the children and washing the neighbors' laundry. Money was always scarce. Frieda kept the kids full with bread and vegetables, and when Sunday rolled around, the seven of them would share whatever meat had been cheapest at the store. Given how smart Hugh was, he attended Oxford University after graduation from school in 1955, juggling several jobs to cover expenses. Hugh ended up playing soccer professionally before quitting after a year because of his teammates' frivolous behavior. He then started working for a commercial real estate firm near London and left Nottingham behind. Ten years later, luck struck, and Hugh met Perry Richards, an ambitious man with money who was looking for a business partner with a brain. Wife and kids in tow, Hugh left the UK for what would become the Silicon Valley in the United States.

Their business was to become Richards & Prescott. From years of working in real estate, Hugh had developed a good sense of what land to buy, and Perry handled negotiations with suppliers and tenants. Now a developer in California, he juggled the hard work, first wife Frances, and their now two children. In the following years, the former farmland turned into a considerable profit. It took time, of course, and time wasn't always easy on Hugh. After 14 years in the States, Hugh had to bury his first wife and take care of four children in total while working hard to turn his business into an empire. In 1980, he met Genevieve, a beautiful, smart woman fifteen years younger, and in 1981 he married her. Slowly but surely, the Santa Clara Valley was establishing itself as America's tech hub. As a family, Genevieve and Hugh added four more children to the mix in 1983, 1986, and then twins in 1991.

Sebastian Prescott was born in San Francisco, and two years later, his family settled on Catalina Island, enjoying a private life where no one really knew the business of any of the Prescotts, aside from the fact that they owned a huge house that housed nine people. Given the vast age-gap between the siblings, Hugh's oldest was already attending Stanford University when Sebastian was only two. While the oldest Prescott was making headlines in San Francisco and the Californian mainland, people rarely associated that Prescott with those living on the Island. Not unless they were seen together. It took a couple of years, but things started becoming different once the other two entered young-adulthood. It wasn't hard for gossip to spread in such a small town, and with now more familiar faces being featured in tabloids, people quickly made the connection. They were seen for their money, and life as Sebastian knew it, laidback and normal, was over. The loss of privacy wore Hugh down and turned him into a different person over the years. Something the younger Prescott children always had a hard time dealing with. Genevieve remained the same on the outside but was always worried about her husband on the inside. The three oldest's actions had consequences for the younger: The once laissez-faire lifestyle was over, and rules and obligations followed everywhere.

But rules are meant to be broken. Sebastian grew up in the lap of luxury. Everything he ever wanted was handed to him, regardless of the changes in the upbringing and education. When Bash was younger, he was always easy to get along with. He liked seeing people happy with the choices he made and the actions he took. He was bright and, frankly, the epitome of innocence: Looking to please people at whatever cost, wanting to do and be good. Sebastian felt like he was really getting somewhere with his father, who was so distant from him as he grew from boy to man. But the man Hugh turned into liked to see faults wherever he looked, always displeased and never satisfied. Sebastian could come home with an A, and Hugh would ask what happened to the plus. So, the boy gave up trying and searched for a different source to pour all of his energy into: Friends, girls, and parties. When the last two years of high school rolled around, his mother's role as principal ensured everything worked out perfectly for him regardless. Classes were jostled around to ensure her son would take all the right courses with the right teachers -- anything to make his grades look good for Stanford.

He noticed something was missing by the time he turned eighteen. Once you tasted every kind of expensive liquor, went to California's best clubs, and hijacked a private plane to go to France... there was little else to live for. His life started feeling incredibly empty being surrounded by fake friends and people who only liked him for the money, and where once was the need to break the rules, now laid an inexplicable void that no amount of alcohol or sex could fill. The lack of real friends and a good relationship with his parents became apparent when school ended, and Sebastian was left with practically no one once he distanced himself.

Sebastian's redemption arch would take place over the span of years. Entering college, it took a while until he settled into his 'new' self. By the time parent weekend had come, he'd managed to make one friend and managed to piss off three other people. Things really weren't working out well for him -- especially when he met the one girl that would change his entire life (or, well, a big part of it): Georgina Livingston. Upon meeting her, he used his usual tricks, and when they didn't work on her, he turned to the only other thing he knew to do: annoy the hell out of her. Honestly, she couldn't have been more disinterested. Up until the faithful moment, he'd accidentally tripped her, causing her to spill iced coffee all over her on parent weekend their freshman year. It could've gone better, but soon after the incident, they laughed about it together. Sebastian Prescott had never been in love before, but god, it was a wonderful feeling.

Their relationship wasn't perfect by any means, but Sebastian was willing to work for it. It was honestly the first thing he wanted to keep in his life, wanted to see last forever. But given their ages and sometimes different opinions, their fights tended to escalate more than a couple of times. Of course, they never turned physical, but both knew where to hit to hurt the other person. During one of those altercations, they tossed the word 'break' around, and when Sebastian left that night, he made the mistake of taking it too seriously. All it took was a bar, a girl, and enough liquor to let him wake up next to a random girl the next morning, leaving Sebastian utterly distraught. It could've broken them, it could've driven Geo away, but Bash fought hard to get Georgina Livingston back. Sebastian Prescott bought a ring soon after getting her back, waiting for the perfect moment. But that moment… it never came. At least not until his one-night-stand called him up, informing him that he had an almost-two-year-old daughter and that she couldn't do it anymore. Torn and confused, Sebastian left his home almost immediately, leaving a confused Geo behind.

The news of a kid didn't sit well for his family. In fact, his parents almost went above and beyond to keep him from getting to his daughter. Hugh Prescott was many things, but Sebastian never thought his father would keep him away from owning up to something he considered beautiful. The circumstances were, of course, anything but perfect, but Sebastian knew he had to own up to his mistake and take care of his kid. It was the right thing to do. When he returned home to Catalina, two-year-old Gianna in tow, his father practically closed the door in his face. Disowned; for doing the right thing. So he left Catalina Island and moved to San Francisco, got himself a job, and went to figure himself out as a father of a toddler. Once he felt secure enough, Sebastian returned to Catalina again on a mission to get the love of his life back, to fix what he had broken for a second time. But he came too late; someone else had already picked up the mess he made and fixed his girl. Geo looked so happy, and he couldn't get in the way of her happiness.

It was hard to juggle a job, toddler and dad duties, but Sebastian felt needed. Something he desperately searched for all his life. His daughter Gianna really was the turning point for him. A couple of years into living in San Fran, he reconnected with Gianna's mom Antonia on their daughter's eighth birthday. On a hunt for some happiness of his own, they began dating, first casually, and then it eventually became the real deal. Things looked actually good. Things felt good. At least for a while. They were a real family for about four years before Antonia confessed to being unfaithful. The mom role wasn't for her, at least not for Gianna, who was a full-blown child already. She wanted to do the whole being a mommy thing from the start and actually see her kid growing up without feeling ashamed of having abandoned it early into its life. So, she packed up and left. Leaving Gianna with Sebastian again. It felt like a blow to the face for a while, and while Bash would've loved just to let his disappointment in people take over his life, he couldn't let himself wallow in self-pity forever. Instead, he began to pour his energy into building a business.

Just like his father did all those years ago, Sebastian began working on his business plan. Hugh Prescott always made sure to educate his children about the world they grew up in, which also meant taking them along to Richards & Prescott to show them the ropes. If it were up to Hugh, his children would take some position in his business, just like a couple of them already had. Given that Sebastian disowned, though, he used his knowledge elsewhere. Meadows Real Estate was born on a whim and after a couple of drinks with his friend-turned-business partner.

As Meadow is Gianna's middle name, they chose the name for her, who was the biggest inspiration in his life. His business focused on finding the best houses, apartments, and places for his clients, buying cheap homes and properties, and, most importantly, flipping them into something grand and beautiful. That was the part Sebastian enjoyed most about it. He also prided himself in actually doing the work (or, well, part of it) himself. Gianna's independence was a huge help. When Sebastian was asked about how he did it all while being a single parent, his answer was always easy. Gianna felt more like an adult than a child. She was the one making sure he didn't forget his lunch, did laundry on some days, and was always on top of her school activities. Sebastian got absolutely lucky. Meadows Real Estate turned out to be something outstanding. It didn't take long for it to be successful in the San Francisco area, so an expansion was next.

Sebastian always wanted to return to Catalina Island, just not without having something up his sleeve. Returning home without showing his father he could do well on his own had always been out of the question. Expanding the business to the Los Angeles area, with extra office space on the Island, seemed like a great idea -- especially considering the properties and land the Island had to offer. It also opened the option to work on a couple Bed and Breakfast and vacation home ideas. The permanent move, however, was postponed until everything was sorted out. Gianna needed a place in school, they needed a place to live, and Sebastian needed to work out the client base's nature first. Honestly, so much of his thinking now is thanks to his daughter. While his parents may think stepping up to take care of an unwanted child had been the wrong decision, in reality, it was the best thing that could've happened to him. Gianna changed him for the better, made him a better man.

PERSONALITY

Positive: Outgoing | Responsible | Kindhearted

Negative: Stubborn | Competitive | Impulsive

Sebastian Prescott is portrayed by Nessa.

#all #male #ventura #jesse lee soffer #parental abandonment tw #death tw #infidelity tw

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miraculouslycool · 4 years

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Classifying all the akumas:

The ones you actually feel sorry for:

Stormy Weather - Both times. Poor Aurore needs a break.

Bubbler - Getting akumatised just to throw your bro a birthday party is one of the most purest reasons ever. Never get in between Adrino.

Pharaoh - Jalil’s dad is an asshole who doesn’t know how to treat his kids equally, especially when said son is only trying to impress him. ....No wonder people thought he was Hawkmoth at first.

Lady Wifi - You mess with my girl Alya, you mess with me.

Timebreaker - I don’t know about you, but I would be pissed if my miraculous birthday present was irresponsibly ruined by a person you trusted it to.

Evillustrator - Getting humiliated and mocked for having a crush on your birthday? Not a rollercoaster ride of joy.

Rogercop - Poor dude was just trying to do his job. (Since when did the MAYOR have the power to fire police officers?)

Dark Cupid - Kim was only trying, Chloe!

Horrificator - I can’t for the life of me figure out why Mylene is afraid of Ivan wearing a cloth mask when she literally encountered him as a stone monster - but who am I to judge her fears?

The Mime - Quite understandable. What his understudy did was unforgivable and I’m surprised they still let him be an actor in the play.

Kung Food - I mean.....back then.......who wasn’t mad at Chloe for the stunt she pulled?

Vanisher/Miraculer: Sabrina really needs to branch out her social circle.

Reflekta/Reflekdoll: It is scary how much I relate to Juleka about feeling invisble.

Guitar Villain: Any artist would be livid if one of his ‘peers’ straight up insulted your art.

Simon Says: Gabriel was being an ass on purpose, but why did Alec lie to him about the purpose of the call and didn’t even let Simon participate fairly?

Stoneheart: How ironic, because Ivan is a sweetheart who just wanted to tell Mylene he loves her.

Santa Claws - Because akumatised victims safely drop runaway kids at their homes, am I right, Ladybug?

Riposte - Kagami took losing much better than Max did AND she has all that parental pressure and other emotional baggage hanging over her.

Robostus - Markov kind of has a point. Humans suck.

Dark Owl - C’mon, he was adorable as a pretend superhero! Him getting mocked online was sad. (Did I mention I hate Alec? Because I do.)

Gorizilla - I LOVE this dude. The day he adopts Adrien, I will personally build a shrine for him.

Zombizou - Caline Bustier sucks as a teacher, but she actually tried to resist the akuma!

Syren - Poor Ondine. Kim gives Adrien a run for his money when it comes to being oblivious.

Frightningale - Clara Nightingale is an adorable bean and seeing her cry made me cry. (Props to Laura Marano for voice acting her sadness so well!)

Troublemaker - Penny manages Jagged’s career, and deals with Bob Roth and Alec’s bullshit all while having feelings for Jagged. Where is her respect?! (Probably the same place where Gabriel’s respect for Natalie is.)

Reverser: Nathaniel, why on earth would Ladybug - a full-time superhero with her own life and duties - be writing fanfiction about your art and leave it lying in random places?! I ship Marcanthiel, but he treated him very poorly in this episode.

Frozer- He’s just a desperate man trying to save his business.

Queen Wasp - The one time I genuinely felt sorry for Chloe. Yes, she made some hasty and rash decisions,but at the end of the day, she just wants to please her mother. *Jalil and Adrien want to know your location* And she did learn from her mistake.

Malediktator - Poor Andre. Chloe and Audrey were being bitches.

Backwarder - Welcome to the Heartbroken Club, grandma.

Weredad - Tom is an amazing father. I’m not blaming Chat Noir, although Marinette went a little too overboard with her ‘distress’. (She was an absolute mood, though)

Animaestro - “Pah! Who would want to see Ladybug and Chat Noir as animated characters?” Definitely not all the idiots who came to the movie premiere.

Oni Chan- Raise your hand if you secretly dreamed of hunting down Lila to give her a Pinocchio horn. *raises both hands*

Desperada - Imagine getting fired because you ate your boss’s cereal. *shudders*

Startrain - That moment when your entire life depends on you passing or failing that test.

Kwamibuster - All she wanted was to become known for becoming the second Nicholas Copernicus discoverer of those weird creatures. And she even understood the need to keep it a secret in the end.

Gamer 2.0 - Max learnt from his first time and properly accepted defeat.

Chat Blanc - YOUR SON IS NOT A BASEBALL GABRIEL,YOU PIECE OF SHIT.

The ones who don’t deserve any sympathy:

Mr.Pigeon: Dude, if you love pigeons so much, adopt one. Don’t go about encouraging them to poop everywhere.

Copycat - Chat Noir should not have lied, but what tf is Theo doing lusting after a girl who is half his age?

Darkblade - Corruption and politics aside, like Chat Noir said, the public had made their choice and they chose Andre Bourgeois. This big baby really needs to grow up.

Gamer (The first time) - Max was definitely a sore loser, and may I admit, a little sexist too. Why did he feel the need to explain the rules to Marinette? Would he have reacted the same way if Adrien had beaten him out of the tournament? And he really should have accepted that Marinetter and Adrien beat him fair and square and not have played in the tournament because he DIDN’T GET IN.

Antibug: Sorry that Ladybug didn’t believe the one true thing you said because of you lying to her about literally everything else, Chloe.

Pixelator: Creep alert.

Volpina/Chameleon : She’s the bad guy......duh.

The Collector : Do I need to explain?

Prime Queen: Nadja was making Ladybug uncomfortable with her prying questions. ANYBODY would react the same way.

Befana: Marinette’s grandmother didn’t listen to her son and daughter-in-law about the surprise birthday party, and gets butthurt AFTER her granddaughter tells her the truth about why she is leaving and spending half her birthday with her.

Captain Hardrock - Anarka, you don’t name your houseboat ‘Liberty’ and proceed to interfere with everyone else’s liberty to hear.

Anansi: What the hell was Nora trying to prove by kidnapping Alya? The world is dangerous because SHE created the danger in the first place?

Style Queen - Rich people are petty. (Except for Adrien, of course)

Bakerix - “I disowned my son because he put rice flour in dough!” Uh huh, sure, whatever helps you sleep at night, you racist jerk.

Ikari Gozen - Take a chill pill and let your child breathe, blind lady.

Felix - Not an akuma, but a villain all the same.

Loveater - Am I the only one getting tired of the Bourgeois family (except for Chloe)? Also they had the opportunity to become a cool double headed Cerberus but noooooo....they had to become a two-faced egg instead.

Miracle Queen - Highly disappointed in Chloe, but I know she can become better.

The necessary evils:

Silencer: Luka really stepped it up for Marinette! Bob Roth deserved it.

Oblivio: Oblivio is not a villain. Oblivio saved the love square’s life, and is thus, deemed a hero.

Chat Blanc - Only because he murdered his father......and technically Lila as well.

The dumb ones:

Animan: Really? Getting akumatised because a kid insulted his precious panther? A panther which should not have been offended because it’s a panther and a zookeeper who should have let it slide because he is a goddamn adult?

Gigantitan - Sure, we got a funny episode out of it, but Gabriel, you are better than akumatising a literal baby THREE times.

Glaciator - The only reason this is not in the ‘No sympathy’ category is because I’m not able to understand why the adults in the show are behaving like children.

The Miscellaneous ones:

Puppeteer (both times), Christmaster and the Sapotis: They’re literally kids acting their age. Yeah, you should not condone their behaviour but they aren’t evil.

Princess Fragrance: Can’t really place this one because what Chloe did to Rose was too cruel, but she was still an obsessed fan who was trying to have her celebrity crush for herself. (Before you say Kagami and Ondine did basically the same thing, Kagami actually knows Adrien. Adrien is her friend who she had developed feelings for. Ondine and Kim are even closer than Adrien and Kagami are. Say what you want, but these two girls’ heartbreak was real.)

Despair Bear: He was only trying to help Chloe but mimicking her teddy bear in front of her classmates was too much.

Sandboy: Again, just a kid afraid of nightmares. He could easily be a gender-bent version of me.

Catalyst - Nothing special to say about her, since her motivations were pretty one-track minded.

Feast and Sentibug - Self-explanatory. They’re both sentimonsters.

Time-tagger - We have no idea why he was even akumatised in the future.

Party Crasher - Wayhem’s disappointment was too trivial for me to feel sorry for him....but we did get a powerful villain out of that so.....*shrugs*

#miraculous ladybug #miraculous season 3 #miraculous season 1 #miraculous season 2 #akumas #theories #ml rants #ml analysis

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awkward-bookworm-amber · 4 years

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At the Brink of the End

Hi everyone! This story is an old collaboration between me, loopydroop, and two of our English classmates. Obviously, we’re all more mature writers now, but I find it interesting to see and reflect on our old works. You can find loopydroop’s blog here. So read on and have fun!

“Brring! Brring!” The bell rang loud and clear. Leo rushed out of history class, his least favorite subject. He rummaged through his bag for his phone. When he looked up, he saw Jacquelyn jumping joyfully over to her usual spot by their english class. Leo and Jacq went way back, all the way to preschool. Even as freshman in high school, they still hung out together at lunch. Leo made his way through the busy crowd to Jacq, who had sat down on a bench.

Jacq was going through Leo’s social media posts, particularly his selfies.

“Hey, Jacq.” Leo said, sitting down next to her. “What’s up?”

“Nothing!” Jacq snapped, hiding her phone’s screen in her lap. Her cheeks turned bright red against her fair skin. She relaxed before speaking again. “I was doing nothing. Just...scrolling through Instagram. What are you up to?”

“Not much.” Leo sighed. “Lacrosse tryouts are today. Other than that, my schedule’s empty.”

“Great! I hope you make the team.” Jacq smiled.

“Beep!” Leo’s phone exclaimed. What’s so important? I have my phone on silent! Suddenly, Jacq’s phone beeped too. Everyone’s phone beeped, and the whole school went silent. Then, the campus erupted into chaos. Leo and Jacq just stared into their screens at the notification which had reached every single phone:

THIS IS NOT A DRILL. NUCLEAR ATTACK WARNING. SEVERITY: EXTREME. CERTAINTY: HIGH. AFFECTED AREAS: WORLDWIDE. RESPONSE TYPE: SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER.

Jacq gasped. “What caused this!?” Her eyes were fearful as she turned to Leo. Leo had already stood up to rush along with the others into the nearest classroom. He grabbed Jacq’s hand and pulled her up. Tears began to run down her face as they neared their english classroom.

Before they entered, Leo stopped and turned to her. “Listen, I need you to come and fix this with me.”

“What do you mean? How can we fix this?” Jacq was already torn apart.

“Just trust me!” Leo partially shouted. Suddenly, he hugged her, wrapping his arms tightly around her small body. A tear rolled off of Jacq’s cheek and onto Leo’s black sweatshirt. Then, the chaos faded into the background, and soon disappeared. When Jacq opened her eyes, she was still hugging Leo, and still crying. However, the landscape was different. She was on the sidewalk just outside her house, and the sun was about four hours away from disappearing behind the Santa Clara County Jail. Jacq stood there in complete shock.

“What...happened?” Jacq managed to say. She pulled away from Leo.

“We time traveled, Jacq,” Leo stated. “and I can’t believe it worked.”

“What do you mean? How’s this possible? Time travel?”

“Don’t ask questions, okay? We can’t waste any time.” Leo grabbed her hand and ran up the street to his house. When they reached the garage door, he threw his hand into his pocket, and then unfolded a crumpled sticky note. He quickly entered the garage code, and the screech of metal against metal hurt Jacq’s ears. Leo stepped inside and pointed to a dark blue bike. “Hop on that one. I’ll take my brother’s.”

“Where are we going?” Jacq asked, throwing her body over the seat.

Leo tossed her a black helmet, which she adjusted to fit her small head. “Don’t ask questions, just follow.” He mounted his brother’s bike and strapped on a helmet before riding out into the street. Jacq reluctantly followed.

After around a half-an-hour ride across downtown, the teens came to a stop in front of barren-looking government property. The building was unmarked.

“Where are we?” Jacq asked.

“The Nuclear Control Center. It controls every nuclear plant in the world.”

“I never knew that was in San Jose.”

“Neither did I until a few weeks ago.” Leo parked his bike against a pole and left his helmet on the seat. Jacq did the same. Leo walked up to the door, and waited for Jacq to catch up before grasping the handle.

The door was stuck shut. “Honestly Jacq, I have no idea why I thought we could just prance into the worldwide nuclear control center without stumbling on some sort of security!” Leo, of all people, was losing hope. But he still attempted it. He flung his pitch black backpack off of his back and started to dig right away. “No, no, no!” He threw things out of his backpack like a raccoon going through a trash can for something good. “Aha!” He finally found his shiny, new screwdriver.

Jacq watched him in awe. She paid attention to all the small details: the reflection of the steel door on his brown eyes, the wide grin he wore when he achieved something big. She found it… slightly attractive. No. She didn’t.

Leo jammed the screwdriver in the lock in an effort to disable it. Every now and then, he looked at Jacq, who gave him a nod of approval. After a few tries, the door made a ‘click’ sound and swung open. Standing inside was a surprise they least expected.

“Welcome to your end, children!” President Crudo, the actual president of the United States of America, stood inside the building with roughly a dozen men flanking him. He looked elated. Jacq and Leo immediately noted him as someone not to mess with. But why was he here? Why now? “I was hoping I would have some rivalry. You know, it’s no fun destroying the world if it’s an easy task. Although I will admit, two children finding a way into this place is not what I had in mind.”

Jacq and Leo threw each other nervous glances. Unlike the president, they just wanted to get this over with. Why couldn’t it be easy for once? Then Leo took a big risk. He quickly pulled out a map of the building and chucked his backpack at the president square in the face. He then had dodged the president’s bodyguards, who made multiple attempt to grab him, and pulled Jacq into the left hallway. “Jacq, there’s no time,” Leo rushed through his words. He had to confess, he just had to.

“Leo What’s going on, what are you going to do?” Jacq choked on sobs. Her eyes were emeralds filled with worry, and looking at them made Leo want to cry to.

“Listen, I’ll tell you the truth, but you have to let me do this.”

“Do what? Leo please, if you put yourself at risk to save me-”

“Shhhh.” Leo gently put his finger in front of her mouth as a gesture of silence. They could slightly hear the footsteps of their enemies and could not afford to compromise their location. Not now. “I’m not a normal person, Jacq,” he whispered, “I have a power that no one could even possibly have. I can time travel just by thinking about it. Usually not more than four hours, but this time I took a chance. It was an emergency.”

Jacq’s eyes widened. Her jaw dropped. Not only because he gained amazing abilities, but because he told her. Suddenly, she wanted to do the same thing. But they could not take their sweet time. “How did you…”

“I was trying to figure out the theory of relativity in my garage and, well, I guess things just... happened.”

“Wow.” Jacq appreciated their friendship more than ever.

“Jacq, they’re going to find us. We have to hurry. We’re sitting right by an emergency exit. I want you to take it, run as far away from here as you can, and don’t look back.”

“Leo, what-”

“Just do it.” He was determined. If his plan worked and Jacq made it out, his sacrifice would not be in vain.

“Leo, I need to tell you something.” Jacq was shaking, both of cold and sadness.

“Jacq, we’re out of time.” The footsteps on the stone floor were loud now.

“I know, just one more thing.” She stood on her tippy-toes and kissed him on the forehead. When she pulled away, she saw a single tear on Leo’s cheek. She slowly wiped it away and studied his face, copying every detail and saving it to a file in her brain that she would never delete. She pulled in even closer until they shared their breath.

Leo felt something build up in his chest, a flood that was on the verge of breaking his mental dam. He loved her and he knew it. He always had, from the moment he first met her. And then she confirmed it. It the softest, most beautifully delicate voice, she said “I love you.” And she was gone. She did what he had asked. Now he had to finish it. He ran down the hallway, away from the footsteps, at full speed. From one corridor to the next, until he found the secure vault he was looking for, his only thought was: I’m doing this for you, Jacq. It was already open. Maybe President Crudo wanted to guard it himself, or stay near it in case something went wrong. For once, that horrible person did something helpful. Leo approached the big switch that was inside the vault. He knew a kill switch when he saw one. “Be safe, Jacquelyn.” And with that, he pulled it down.

Jacq was probably about five miles away when she stopped following the directions Leo had set out for her. When she heard it, she had to. She stopped in her tracks and froze. She wanted to believe the explosion wasn’t from the building Leo was in. No such luck. When she finally turned around, she saw a mushroom cloud in the place of the nuclear control center. Her knees buckled and she fell to the ground. All she could do was weep and scream his name. “Leo! Oh no, Leo. Please be alive. You have to be alive.” She knew their plan had succeeded, but was this really what she was willing to pay? She walked over to Leo’s bike, the one he had let her ride, and sat down with it in her lap. As she let the tears leave her, they fell onto the glossy blue of the handle. She didn’t care about what happened to her at this point, for she had already lost part of her soul.

As tears rolled down her eyes, Jacq felt her heart slowing down. The spark for Leo began to break-not in anger, but from sadness. Jacq had never felt this way for someone. She had always thought she would never find love. But then she felt something for Leo.

“Now, he’s gone. There's no bringing him back.’’ Jacq said, feeling a flood of tears about to burst from her eyes. “What am I going to do without him? Is there even a purpose to live? I just want him back!” she exclaimed. “Please…?” she said quietly. The smoke reflected on Jacq’s glazed green eyes. She couldn’t bear looking at the explosion. She could almost feel Leo’s presence around her.

Jacq sat correctly on the bike and rode off into the distance. She thought about what had just happened, still processing that Leo was dead. She thought about the memories with him. She thought about the day they went to a hiking trail and there were snakes near the edge. Jacq was screaming in terror and Leo saved the day. He carried her all the way till the end of the trail. Even though he was exhausted, he carried her anyway.

Maybe I should go to Leo’s home and tell his family the news. I don't know..should I? What if it’s dangerous? I mean, I don't know if there’s anyone following me. She thought. Jacq looked around to see if there was anyone. Oh who am I kidding? This is Leo we are talking about. The one person I ever loved.

Jacq rode down the hill. She looked up to see the bright blue sky. It felt like none of this even existed. Her olive green shirt was ripped up and her white jeans were smudged black with dust all over them. As the wind blew, ashes flew out of her hair.

After a while, Jacq reached his home. She saw the garage open and Leo’s dad cleaning his car in front of it. Jacq got off the bike and walked to him.

“Hey, kid! what’s up? Where’s Leo? And..what happened to your clothes? Let's get you inside and cleaned up.’’ he said. Mr. Kim put a blanket over her and walked inside the garage. But before he could reach the inside, Jacq grabbed his arm.

Jacq felt her eyes filling up with tears.“Mr. Kim…” Tears rolled off her face and onto the driveway. “Leo’s gone…!” she said. Her voice cracked as she cried. His light brown eyes filled with tears as well.

“Wh-what do you mean he’s gone?” he said softly.

“He’s DEAD!” she cried. The tears danced down his eyes as he took her inside. There, Leo’s mom was scrubbing the walls.

Leo’s mother was cleaning up the mess in the kitchen. There was paint everywhere. All the colors you can imagine were painted on the walls. As her sponge squeezed soap out, the liquid dripped down the walls. Mrs. Kim looked at the two of them crying and questioned them. She put aside the sponge and walked up to them. Her black short heels clicked as she walked toward them. She removed her apron and hung it up.

“What happened? Oh my God, is everything okay?” she asked. Her hazelnut-grey eyes watered up as she heard the news. She dropped the cleaning spray and fell to the floor when a little girl came out of the hallway.

“Mama! Come pla-” Mrs. Kim took the little girl’s hand.

“Go pack up your toys sweetie. I will explain later.” she spoke to her child.

“Wh-where are you going?” Jacq asked.

“We are leaving town. I think we need a fresh start. We will come back when we are ready.” Mr. Kim said to her. “We were planning to go for a month with Leo, but I think we might stay there permanently. I’m sorry.”

“Bu-but wha-”

“Go to your parents now Jacq.” Mrs. Kim said to Jacq in the softest voice.

Before she left, she noticed a small machine broken on the floor. Jacq walked up to it and picked up the pieces. She looked around the garage to see if there was anymore pieces. The grey metal walls had some papers of space and information on there. She stood on the washing machine and grabbed all the papers. Jacq took a glance through the papers and flipped one over. The words read:

My best friend Jacq, I know one day you will be reading this. These are papers about my theory on relativity. I challenge you to finish my theory, even if I’m not there. I love you.

Without hesitation, Jacq took the papers, grabbed the bike, and left.

Back into future, where the systems were supposed to go off, Jacq felt like she was nothing without Leo. He was one of the only people that actually cared about her, and has supported with her throughout preschool, elementary, and junior high and now he’s was gone.

Head down in despair, Jacquelyn whispered to herself, “Oh great. Leo is gone and now I have to work toward creating something that no human had even thought of designing.”

“Well then, challenged accepted. This is for you Leo.”

Without hesitations, Jacq started to work on creating something that was going to be impossible to make, possible. With all the encouragement from Leo, she started on the impossible invention, in the garage of course.

#wow I was young #collaborations #I wrote the climax :)#narrative writing

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bountyofbeads · 5 years

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Gunman posted online minutes before killing 3 at festival

https://apnews.com/35e45f6d09e347c4a1c51c52cf77725c

Gunman posted online minutes before killing 3 at festival (Yet again, another racist destroys a family event and ruins lives.) #EnoughIsEnough

By KATHLEEN RONAYNE and JULIE WATSON | Published July 30, 2019 | AP | Posted July 30, 2019 9:35 AM ET|

GILROY, Calif. (AP) — Before a 19-year-old gunman opened fire on a famed garlic festival in his California hometown, he urged his Instagram followers to read a 19th century book popular with white supremacists on extremist websites, but his motives for killing two children and another young man were still a mystery Monday.

Santino William Legan posted the caption about the book "Might is Right," which claims race determines behavior. It appeared with a photo of Smokey the Bear in front of a "fire danger" sign and also complained about overcrowding towns and paving open space to make room for "hordes" of Latinos and Silicon Valley whites.

In his last Instagram post Sunday, Legan sent a photo from the Gilroy Garlic Festival. Minutes later, he shot into the crowd with an AK-47 style weapon, killing a 6-year-old boy, a 13-year-old girl and a man in his mid-20s .

Under it, he wrote: "Ayyy garlic festival time" and "Come get wasted on overpriced" items. Legan's since-deleted Instagram account says he is Italian and Iranian.

The postings are among the first details that have emerged about Legan since authorities say he appeared to fire at random, sending people running and diving under tables. Police patrolling the event responded within a minute and killed Legan as he turned the weapon on them.

The gunman legally purchased the semi-automatic assault rifle this month in Nevada, where his last address is listed. He would have been barred from buying it in California, which restricts firearms purchases to people over 21. In Nevada, the age limit is 18.

Hundreds of people came out Monday night for a candlight vigil in front of City Hall in honor of those killed and injured.

"We cannot let the bastard that did this tear us down," Mayor Roland Velasco declared to cheers.

Legan grew up less than a mile from the park where the city known as the "Garlic Capital of the World" has held its three-day festival for four decades, attracting more than 100,000 people with music, food booths and cooking classes.

Authorities were looking for clues, including on social media, as to what caused the son of a prominent local family to go on a rampage. His father was a competitive runner and coach, a brother was an accomplished young boxer and his grandfather had been a supervisor in Santa Clara County.

Police said they don't know if people were targeted, but at this point, it appears he shot indiscriminately. Twelve people were injured.

Police searched Legan's vehicle and the two-story Legan family home, leaving with paper bags. Authorities also searched an apartment they believed Legan used this month in remote northern Nevada. Officials didn't say what they found.

Big Mikes Gun and Ammo, which appears to be a home-based internet gun shop in Fallon, Nevada, said on its Facebook page that Legan ordered the rifle off its website and "was acting happy and showed no reasons for concern" when the store owner met him. The post said it was "heartbroken this could ever happen."

In California, police had training in how to respond to an active shooter. While they prepared for the worst, they never expected to use those skills in Gilroy, a city of about 50,000 about 80 miles (176 kilometers) southeast of San Francisco known for the pungent smell of its prize flowering crop grown in the surrounding fields — garlic.

The city had security in place for one of the largest food fairs in the U.S. It required people to pass through metal detectors and have their bags searched. Police, paramedics and firefighters were stationed throughout the festival.

But Legan didn't go through the front entrance. He cut through a fence bordering a parking lot next to a creek, Gilroy Police Chief Scot Smithee said. Some witnesses reported a second suspect, and authorities were trying to determine if he had any help.

Police arrested a 20-year-old man who claimed involvement online, but investigators determined he was just trying to get attention.

The police chief praised officers for stopping Legan with handguns without injuring anyone else.

"It could've gotten so much worse, so fast," Smithee said.

The gunfire sent people in sunhats and flip-flops running away screaming. Some dove for cover under the decorated food booth tables. Others crawled under a concert stage, where a band had started playing its last song.

The youngest victim, Stephen Romero, described by his grandmother as a kind, happy and playful kid, had just celebrated his sixth birthday in June at Legoland in Southern California.

"My son had his whole life to live and he was only 6," his father, Alberto Romero, told San Francisco Bay Area news station KNTV after the shooting.

Also killed was 13-year-old Keyla Salazar from San Jose, seen dressed in pink, wearing a tiara of flowers and smiling as she poses with relatives in photos posted on her aunt's Facebook page.

"I have no words to describe this pain I'm feeling," Katiuska Pimentel Vargas wrote.

The oldest victim killed was Trevor Irby, 27, a biology major who graduated in 2017 from Keuka College in upstate New York.

The wounded were taken to multiple hospitals, and their conditions ranged from fair to critical, with some undergoing surgery.

Troy Towner said his sister, Wendy Towner, was at the festival for her business, the Honey Ladies, when she saw a man with a gun climb over the fence. She yelled at him: "No, you can't do that!"

The gunman shot her in the leg and her husband three times, while a young girl dragged their 3-year-old son under a table, Towner wrote on a fundraising page he set up for his sister.

Legan then approached the couple as they lay motionless on the ground and asked if they were all right. They didn't move, fearing he would finish them off, Towner wrote.

Towner said his sister underwent surgery and was expected to have long-term nerve damage, while her husband faces many surgeries.

Candice Marquez, who works for Wendy Towner and her husband, Francisco, told The Associated Press that she had stepped away to go to the bathroom and saw the gunman heading to their tent. She said her 10-year-old niece helped the toddler to safety.

"She was brave," Marquez said.

Jan Dickson, a neighbor who lives across the street from the Legan family, described them as "a nice, normal family." She said Santino Legan had not lived there for at least a year.

"How do you cope with this? They have to deal with the fact that their son did this terrible thing and that he died," Dickson said.

___

Watson reported from San Diego. Associated Press reporter Mike Balsamo in Washington, Natalie Rice in Los Angeles, Scott Sonner in Hawthorne, Nevada, Ken Ritter in Las Vegas, and Martha Mendoza in Gilroy contributed to this report.

#u.s. news #politics #trump administration #politics and government #us: news #white house #president donald trump #legal issues #national security #racism #world news #hate groups #hate crimes #criminal justice #domestic terrorism #white supermacists #gun violence #gun control

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exploreauburnca · 7 years

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CELEBRATE the HOLIDAYS in AUBURN -

There is no shortage of incredible holiday activities for the whole family to enjoy!

Christmas Art & Craft Faire - Nov. 25th-26th

Gold Country Fairgrounds and Event Center: 1273 High St. Auburn, CA 95603

Saturday: 10am-6pm & Sunday 10am-4pm

Enjoy a unique holiday and shopping experience for the whole family. The Faire features more than 100 regional artisans – Fine art – Quality, handmade crafts – Specialty gourmet foods Enjoy delicious foods an beverages from the cafe’ …music and holiday cheer for all…commemorate the occasion, take photos with the Magical Fairytale Princesses and Santa. A stunning array of unique gift ideas for everyone on your list.

FREE ADMISSION AND PARKING

Tree Lighting in Central Square - Saturday, Nov. 25th - 4:30pm-6:30pm

Join us for Auburn’s Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony at Central Square The perfect way to kick off the holiday season! Live Music ~ Cookie Decorating ~ Hot Cocoa

Santa arrives at 5:30pm !

Irish Christmas in America - Dec. 1st - 8:00pm - 10:30pm

This family-friendly performance features evocatively-sung Irish ballads, lively instrumental tunes and thrilling Irish dancing, while evocative photographic images provide a backdrop to some of the rich historical traditions. Take a memorable glimpse into the enchanting spirit of Christmas, as the finest traditional artists from Ireland bring you on a fun-filled start to the holiday season of 2017.

Where: Auburn State Theatre: 985 Lincoln Way Auburn, CA 95603

Price: $30 Adult $20 Child/Student $25 Groups of 10 or more

Mountain Mandarin Orchard Days - Dec. 2nd & 3rd and Dec.16th & 17th

During the winter months, the Placer County hills have a distinctive orange glow from the ripening Mountain Mandarins. The warm days and cool nights in Penryn, Newcastle, Loomis, Lincoln and Auburn make this area a perfect place to grow sweet, juicy, seedless mandarins.

For more information: http://www.mountainmandarins.com/mandarin-orchard-days.html

Festival of Lights Parade - Dec. 2nd at 5:30pm

The Festival of Lights Parade occurs on the first Saturday in December at 5:30 PM. Both parades start at the intersection of Harrison and Lincoln Way, proceed down High Street and end up at the Gold Country Fairgrounds.

For more information: http://www.auburnchamber.net/festival-of-lights-parade

Holidays in the Hills on the Placer County Wine Trail - Dec. 2nd & 3rd

Activities: Wine tasting at 20 participating wineries – Food Trucks – Music – Holiday Specials – Souvenir Wine Glass – Toys for Tots Toy Drive

For more information: http://placerwine.com/events.htm

Annual Messiah Sing Along - Dec. 5th, 7:30pm - 9:00pm

Join this delightful holiday tradition as the Auburn Symphony performs selections from Handel’s great masterpiece, with nationally recognized guest soloists: Jaeho Lee, Liisa Davila, Matthew Hanscom, and members of choruses from around the region. Maestro Jaffe will open with John Finnegan’s classic Christmas Singalong, a medley of the world’s most beloved carols.

Where: Placer High School Auditorium

For more information: http://www.auburnsymphony.com/

Santa at the Promenade - December 9th, 16th & 17th

Bring the kids and take pictures with Santa!

Where: Auburn Promenade, 853 Lincoln Way, Auburn, CA 95603

When: December 9, 16 & 17, 2017 - 11:00 am - 3:00 pm

December 10, 2017 - 11:00 am - 4:00 pm during the Downtown Family Christmas Festival

The Nutcracker - Placer Theatre Ballet opening Dec. 9th

Nutcracker 2017 – Placer Theatre Ballet presents an enchanting holiday treat for all ages in a lively and colorful rendition of this holiday favorite. Join Clara as she steps from a festive party into a magical dream, accompanied by her beloved Nutcracker Prince. Traveling through a Kingdom of Snow, Clara arrives at the Palace of the Sugar Plum Fairy, where a dazzling array of entertainers from around the world give her an evening full of fantasy and fun that she will never forget.

When: December 9th: 1:00 pm & 5:00 pm; December 10th: Noon & 4:00 pm December 16th: 1:00 pm & 5:00 pm; December 17th: Noon & 4:00 pm

Where: Placer High School Theater, 275 Orange St, Auburn, CA 95603

For more information: http://placertheatreballet.org/tickets-schedule/purchase-tickets/

Old Town Auburn Country Christmas - Dec. 9th

Enjoy an old-fashioned holiday and step back in time for Old Town Auburn’s Country Christmas. An annual tradition steeped in 1800s holiday cheer, Old Town Auburn invites you to come out and experience a festive evening of entertainment and family-fun that includes photos with Santa, carolers, a winter bonfire, and more:

Discover one-of-a-kind gifts from local artists, crafters, and shops.

Enjoy food and drink from Old Town Auburn restaurants and bars.

Get inspired with a Holiday Open House at Old Town shops and stores.

Save with special deals at Old Town Auburn businesses.

Old Town Auburn County Christmas is free to attend and is open rain, snow, sleet, or shine. A free shuttle service from the fairgrounds provides ample parking.

When: 5pm - 9pm

For more information: https://oldtownauburnca.com/events/country-Christmas

Downtown Auburn Family Christmas Festival - Dec. 10th

Come enjoy an afternoon of family fun and holiday cheer!

Experience Christmas stories, crafts and games for kids. Artisans and vendors will be selling their wares and lots of tasty treats can be purchased from the local restaurants and food vendors.

Find a bit of Christmas magic with a ride on the Polar Express Train!

Live holiday music will fill the street and set the tone for a special visit from the beloved characters from Frozen! Have your picture taken with Elsa, Anna and if the day isn't too warm, maybe even Olaf!

The Grinch once again will be lurking about trying to dash the Christmas spriit.

The real star of course is Santa Claus! He will make his grand entrance and spend the afternoon on the porch of the Auburn Promenade for photos and sharing Christmas wishes.

When: 11am - 4pm

For more information: www.familychristmasfestival.com

Colla Voce of the Sierra Presents a Celtic Christmas

Colla Voce offers a beautiful and collaborative concert experience featuring a beautiful mix of Celtic songs, including traditional Christmas pieces arranged by Michael McGlynn, composer and conductor for Ireland’s National Choir, Anúna. For this concert experience, Colla Voce will collaborate with several special guests, including musical group, Anam Cara (Gaelic for “Soul Friend”), which will share dynamic traditional tunes on traditional instruments; Damhsa Draiochta (which means “Magic Dance”), an award-winning Auburn-based duo of Irish dancers and sisters, Anja and Mila Rice; and Joni Orban of Crystal Blue Meditation, who will bring a meditative tone to the evening with her Tibetan Singing Bowls. Audiences will enjoy sublime arrangements of Lo, How a Rose, Coventry Carol and Wexford Carol and energetic pieces with the Irish Dancers as well as the humorous Miss Fogarty’s Christmas Cake. As always, this beloved holiday concert experience will take listeners on a journey through an array of emotions with the hope of a transformative experience by all.

Ticket prices: Adults $20, Seniors/Students $18, Children $5.

When: Dec. 10th 3pm - 5pm & 7pm - 9pm

Where: Auburn Placer Performing Arts Center at the State Theatre, 985 Lincoln Way, Auburn , CA 95603

For more information: www.collavoce.org

APPAC & Sugar Plump Fairies presents The Wizard of OZ

Auburn Placer Performing Arts Center and the Sugar Plump Fairies are proud to present this beloved classic film starring Judy Garland as the State Theatre’s annual family movie.

Released in 1939, The Wizard of Oz stars Judy Garland as Dorothy Gale with co-stars Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Bert Lahr, Billie Burke, and Margaret Hamilton. The magic of MGM’s colorful, unique fantasy has melted hearts for over seven decades with its indelible melodies and timeless themes.

Notable for its use of Technicolor, fantasy storytelling, musical score, and unusual characters, The Wizard of Oz has become an icon of American popular culture. It was nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Picture, and won Oscars for Best Original Song for ‘Over the Rainbow’ and Best Original Score.

Tickets: $5.00 Adult, $3.00 Child

When: December 16, 2017 11:00 am - 1:00 pm; 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm

Where: Auburn Placer Performing Arts Center at the State Theatre, 985 Lincoln Way. Auburn, CA 95603

For more information: http://livefromauburn.com/index.html

Old Town Auburn Country Christmas - Dec. 16th

Discover one-of-a-kind gifts from local artists, crafters, and shops.

Enjoy food and drink from Old Town Auburn restaurants and bars.

Get inspired with a Holiday Open House at Old Town shops and stores.

Save with special deals at Old Town Auburn businesses.

Old Town Auburn County Christmas is free to attend and is open rain, snow, sleet, or shine. A free shuttle service from the fairgrounds provides ample parking.

When: 5pm - 9pm

For more information: https://oldtownauburnca.com/events/country-Christmas

APPAC presents Love Actually - Dec. 21st

Follows the lives of eight very different couples in dealing with their love lives in various loosely interrelated tales all set during a frantic month before Christmas in London, England.

Price: $8.00

For more information: http://livefromauburn.com/

#Events Arts & Culture

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santaclaralocalnews · 7 months

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At the Oct. 21 Santa Clara Children’s Business Fair, shoppers of all ages came out to support local youth entrepreneurs. This was the fifth year this annual event graced Live Oak Park. Santa Clara Mayor Lisa Gillmor and Council Member Kathy Watanabe spoke at the awards ceremony. Read complete news at SVVOICE.

#Business Fair #Santa Clara Children’s Business Fair #Oak Park #Mayor Lisa Gillmor #Council Member Kathy Watanabe #awards ceremony #svvoice #news

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pasmy · 2 years

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Winnie The Pooh Reading Shirt

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Setting up the tree, it always fell over once or twice. Taking the decorations out of the Winnie The Pooh Reading Shirt to trim the tree was always fun and Tracy would always be lifted up to put the star or Angel at the top of the tree. Dad would pretend she was flying up like an Angel as he lifted her. When we were decorating the tree in our teens, Tracy would tease dad and say, “Ok dad, lift me up.” Mom always liked it when we would hang the decorations we made in school. One of us kids were always a designated Santa who would hand the gifts out to the others just like on the show. Thank God we had no Aunt Clara to give us bunny suits to wear. We had no uncles or aunts at all. Mom and dad were only children. A Christmas Story has been a staple movie for my family to watch every year. It’s warm and homey and just like the Christmases we had. I even wanted a Red Ryder rifle when I was nine.

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rickhorrow · 5 years

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15+5+5 To Watch : 11419

15 TO WATCH/5 SPORTS TECH/POWER OF SPORTS 5: RICK HORROW’S TOP SPORTS/BIZ/TECH/PHILANTHROPY ISSUES FOR THE WEEK OF NOVEMBER 4

with Jacob Aere

Fully 14.8% of all World Series ads focused on giving back and corporate social responsibility. There were more advocacy and corporate social responsibility ads aired during the first four games of the World Series than any other type of ad outside of auto makers, according to data from Advertising Analytics, a strategy firm that specializes in political and issues advertising. The World Series attracted mostly defense, enterprise technology, and healthcare ads. While this was a departure from typical sports championships, in which consumer package goods and retail ads typically dominate, Axios noted World Series games in DC presented a juicy opportunity for brands to “reach Washington decision-makers in a casual environment. While many marquee advertisers sponsor events around Washington DC, there are few games that will have as high of an impact and as engaged of an audience as a World Series that includes a Washington team.” As the hyper-political environment in Washington becomes more contentious, companies are pressured to take a stand on more issues than they have in the past – and this is reflected in their marketing initiatives. Expect this trend to continue at least through the 2020 election cycle.

The World Series Champion Washington Nationals' “Baby Shark” craze took over Halloween and then some. According to CNBC, Nationals center fielder Gerardo Parra’s walk-up earworm took over Halloween, with MLBShop.com in the 10 days leading up to Halloween selling “more than 4,500 various adult and children's 'Baby Shark' products, totaling more than $100,000.” The children's song became an "MLB phenomenon" when Parra started using it as his walk-up song earlier this season. Fans then "caught on to the 'Baby Shark' craze," contributing to MLB's retail sales. Jerseys for both World Series teams were also hot, with the best-selling jerseys belonging to Astros second baseman Jose Altuve and third baseman Alex Bregman. Nationals champion pitcher Max Scherzer had the third-most popular jersey. “Baby Shark” has amassed more than 3.8 billion YouTube views and reached the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It has also boosted the Korean family behind the educational brand that released the song to a net worth of over $125 million. NHL San Jose Sharks, we’re now looking at you.

We're nine weeks into the NFL season and only one undefeated team remains: The San Francisco 49ers (8-0), who finished 4-12 last year. In Santa Clara, head coach Kyle Shanahan has emerged as this year's Sean McVay — a football guru with a gift for designing plays. Meanwhile, the defense has been lights out and clearly the second-best unit in the league behind New England (which fell flat in Baltimore on Sunday night, losing 37-20). The defensive front, led by No. 2 pick Nick Bosa and $85 million free agent addition Dee Ford, has been dominant. However, no 49er players have yet cracked the NFL’s Top 10 bestselling jerseys. The NFL Shop has released the Top 10 selling jerseys for the 2019 season to date, and Patriots quarterback Tom Brady "topped the list," according to Boston.com. Brady has "moved up two spots from last year," as he finished the 2018 season in third behind Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield and Bears linebacker Khalil Mack. If the trend holds, regardless of how the Patriots finish, it would be the first time Brady has had the best-selling jersey for an NFL season since 2015.

The NCAA cleared the way for college athletes to begin profiting from their name, image, and likeness, a landmark decision that eventually will dramatically alter the economics of college sports. The NCAA’s governing board directed its three competition divisions to immediately consider changing the rules governing such benefits for athletes, and to make all such changes no later than January, 2021. The decision represents a stark shift, following years of NCAA opposition, and comes amid growing pressure from legislators, a month after California passed a law requiring schools in the state to allow college athletes to earn endorsement money. An NCAA working group reportedly released a "set of principles" for the association's board of governors to review, but has not publicly announced any concrete rules changes. Many athletes and pundits alike have dismissed the NCAA announcement as too vague to get behind with any enthusiasm. However, this is the first time that the governing body has really acknowledged that any change to their status quo is sorely needed, so everyone should keep an open mind for the time being at least.

A college players' rights group has entered into a partnership with the NFL Players Association to explore how to maximize name, image, and likeness rights. A day before the NCAA announcement last week, the NFLPA and National College Players Association (NCPA) announced jointly that the partnership will "explore opportunities for" college athletes in merchandise, gaming, licensed products, and "how recent developments impact television broadcast revenues in pursuit of fairness." California's Fair Pay to Play Act granting college athletes in that state the ability to profit off their name, image, and likeness goes into effect in 2023. A similar bill has been proposed in Florida, but it would go into effect far sooner—July 1, 2020. A Pennsylvania bill is expected to be introduced soon. Were college players able to unionize in a similar fashion to the way NFL players are able to collectively bargain, it would put even more pressure on the NCAA to craft new rules that give student athletes the same rights that all their classmates on campus currently enjoy.

The stage is set for the 2019 MLS Cup Final in Seattle on Sunday, November 10. Nick DeLeon scored late in the second half to give Toronto FC a 2-1 win over defending MLS Cup champions Atlanta United before a crowd of 44,055 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in the MLS Eastern Conference final. For the third time in four years, Toronto FC and the Seattle Sounders will meet in the MLS Cup Final. Each franchise has one title from the previous two meetings. Seattle’s CenturyLink Field "will be opened to its maximum capacity" for the event, according to sources. Tickets to the match went on sale to Sounders season-ticket holders last Wednesday, and "about 50,000 were sold," according to the Seattle Times. The stadium's maximum "capacity for sporting events" is 72,000. The Seahawks "packed a record 69,190 fans in the facility” for an NFL game in November, 2016. The Sounders’ record attendance is 67,385 for a match against their rival Portland Timbers in August, 2013.

Premier League Primary Stars USA visits Austin elementary school for soccer-themed learning. On October 25, Austin, Texas elementary school students worked side-by-side with Premier League stars during a soccer-themed educational experience. Premier League, the top level of the English soccer league system and EVERFI, a leader in driving social change through technology and education, recently joined forces to bring an interactive soccer-themed education program to students at Perez Elementary School in Austin. The event was part of the Premier League Primary Stars USA program, an educational initiative focused on health and wellness and social and emotional learning skills. Representatives from the Premier League and associated pro soccer clubs led a digital learning session, a hands-on soccer skills clinic, and a school-wide assembly centered on areas of critical emotional development. Perez students also engaged with visiting soccer stars, met mascots from four Premier League clubs, and saw the iconic Premier League trophy. On hand for the event were Premier League star winger and ambassador Shaun Wright-Phillips, EVERFI Global CMO Brian Cooley, Congressman Lloyd Doggett, and youth coaches from clubs including Aston Villa, Liverpool, Manchester City, and Wolverhampton.

Kansas City, here we come. Our “Power of Sports” program heads to Kansas City this month, highlighting community outreach programs, culturally significant sites, and people who have made a difference through sports. This month, host Rick Horrow visits the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum to speak with President Bob Kendrick about the 100th anniversary of the formation of the Negro Leagues coming up next year and the museum’s role in the celebration and in the community. He also checks in on two of the Kansas City Royals’ youth outreach programs: Royalty Fields grants and a recurring Special Olympics clinic, and hears from James McGinnis, a high school football player from the KC Metro, who suffered a traumatic brain injury and used the Chiefs’ success last season to motivate his recovery. Our Game Changer segment features an interview with former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue filmed in early October at a Sport Business Handbook contributor symposium hosted by EVERFI at their Washington, DC headquarters.

The number of people who watch NFL content on a mobile device has more than doubled in the past year, according to new research by industry analyst Conviva. Data from the latest “State of Streaming” report, which was collated as part of a review of consumption habits across more than 180 countries, indicates that more viewers are adopting streaming options to watch NFL content, with the league seeing a 109% rise in mobile viewership between the third financial quarters of 2018 and 2019. By way of comparison, the NFL’s TV viewership grew by 66% over the same 12-month period. The NFL also saw the number of single-video views for its content go up by 77% and its overall domestic streaming viewership increase by 49%. While mobile NFL viewership appears to be trending upwards, the minutes per play remain at around an average of eight minutes. Conviva says that is an indication fans who stream NFL content on their phones are checking in on their favorite teams rather than choosing that platform to watch a game in its entirety.

The NFL secured wine brand BABE as the official wine sponsor of the league. Babe, a canned wine brand co-founded by Instagram influencer Josh “The Fat Jewish” Ostrovsky and now owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev, has become the NFL’s first-ever “Official Wine Sponsor.” Fans can expect to see Babe’s canned wines filled with rosé, a red blend, and Pinot Grigio at 12 NFL stadiums including the homes of the Miami Dolphins, Washington Redskins, and Denver Broncos. Additionally, the brand will be activating throughout the rest of the season including at the Pro Bowl and Super Bowl. “Wine hasn’t typically been a top pick when it comes to sporting events in-stadium or at home, but BABE is changing all that by bringing a fun, easy, and portable option to game day,” said David Oliver Cohen, Co-Founder of BABE. “Building on Anheuser-Busch’s long-standing relationship with the NFL, we have seized a unique opportunity for BABE to become the football wine the world has been waiting for.” BABE’s NFL launch also comes in a year in which quality canned wines have achieved a level of respectability.

The Orlando Magic have "filed an updated master plan" for their downtown Orlando Sports + Entertainment District that is "expected to more than double" the original $200 million project budget. According to the Orlando Sentinel, the mixed-use district will be built "starting next year on 8.4 acres across from Amway Center." Magic Chief Communications Officer Joel Glass said the project will now cost "well over" $500 million. The district will "contain nearly 110,000 square feet of retail space, a conference center hotel with 80,000 square feet of event space, offices, apartments and a 2,500-space parking garage." The updated plan maintains the original concept from 2018 but "increases the number of hotel rooms by 50 and more than doubles the amount of office space from the original 200,000 square feet to 420,000 square feet." District Director Pat Gallagher said that the office tower "would now rise to 18 stories, which includes the ground-floor retail, multilevel parking structure and commercial office space." The Sentinel notes the Magic's new headquarters "would occupy 40,000 square feet in the office tower,” or close to 10%.

PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan has revealed that the golf circuit plans to roll out on-site betting offerings at its events in the U.S. starting next year. Speaking to the AFP news agency during the Zozo Championship in Japan, Monahan said the move would help keep more fans interested over the course of an entire day of tournament action. “You’ll start to see product in the market place next year,” he said. “When done right, it gives fans the opportunity to engage with your sport over a longer period of time and have more interest in what's happening across the entire player field.” Monahan did not provide details of exactly what kind of betting products would be introduced, but said they are being developed as part of the PGA Tour’s multi-year global partnership with IMG Arena, the agency giant’s sports betting unit. A key component of that deal was to support the PGA Tour’s integrity program, and Monahan added that protecting the organization from betting-related corruption will remain a priority.

Unsung World Series winner this year: Palm Beach County, FL. The most publicized “first” this year involves the visiting team winning every World Series game. However, maybe one of the most important economic “firsts” is the first time the World Series finalists shared a Spring Training facility: the FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. The 7,700-seat stadium also features six practice fields each for the Washington Nationals and the Houston Astros. The 160-acre site also includes a 1.8 mile public walk trail and other facilities. The Palm Beach County Sports Commission touts the facility as a major economic generator for the county, as it also hosts over 1,400 youth and tournament baseball games each year. Look for a series of major announcements by the county and sports commission over the next two months.

The Warriors are the first NBA team to create their own secondary suite product with the launch of Suite Exchange, which will allow for the resale of even the swankiest of premium seating at Chase Center. According to SportsBusiness Journal, Suite Exchange will be "fully owned and operated by the team and will be the only platform in the league that allows for current suite holders to resell their premium areas for individual Warriors games, concerts and other events at the arena." All suite levels will be "available on the platform." Suite Exchange is "modeled after a typical secondary ticketing site, but instead of tickets the suites are resold for single events." Suite holders can "list their suites for a fixed price or they can put the suites up for bid." The team takes an "undisclosed cut from the resale price." All of the suites are "sold out, but strong demand for a premium seat experience at the arena is pushing the team to launch Suite Exchange.” If this business model works the way the Warriors expect it to at Chase Center, look for other NBA teams to follow.

San Diego State is now offering the city of San Diego $87.7 million for Mission Valley stadium site. San Diego State University is "now offering to pay" the city $19.5 million more than before to purchase the Mission Valley stadium property formerly occupied by the Chargers. According to the letter delivered last Monday to San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, SDSU's new offer is $87.7 million, which consists of a "revised purchase price" of $86.2 million for 135 acres of land, plus an estimated $1.5 million to "account for a portion of the site's appreciation" since 2017. In addition, SDSU is "proposing to take over the portion" of Murphy Canyon Creek immediately adjacent to the site "without requiring the city to pay for any past-due maintenance,” according to the San Diego Union-Tribune. The news comes as SDSU cracked the Associated Press college football Top 25 for the first time in many years (they are now #24), an achievement that should aid local enthusiasm for the SDSU West project, as a new football/soccer stadium is part of the master plan.

Top Five Tech

Call of Duty League launches in January, 2020. According to BusinessWire, Activision Blizzard Esports announced the inaugural season of the Call of Duty League will begin with the Call of Duty League Launch Weekend at the Minneapolis Armory January 24-26, 2020. The event will be hosted by Minnesota Røkkr, which is the Call of Duty League team operated by WISE Ventures Esports, under the ownership of the Minnesota Viking owner Wilf family and tech investor Gary Vaynerchuk. The league will feature all 12 of the professional Call of Duty League teams competing across three days, and the opening weekend will feature additional fan and player experiences to celebrate the launch of Activision Blizzard Esports’ highly anticipated new city-based league. In a concept that should appeal to traditional sports fans, the Call of Duty League follows a home-vs-away format with 5-versus-5 professional match play. Throughout the season, each team will host “Home Series” weekends in their market, with multiple pro teams competing at each which will draw in crowds to take part in the events and participate in one of the most far-reaching video game series ever created.

DAZN is looking to make boxing mainstream on the back of YouTube and Snapchat stars KSI and Logan Paul. According to Digiday, two late October snapchat shows from DAZN promoted a fight between boxers Canelo Alvarez and Sergey Kovalev on November 2 and a follow-up match on November 9 between YouTube stars Logan Paul and KSI. According to Snapchat’s self-serve ad-buying tool, the app’s monthly audience of fight and wrestling fans in the U.S. ranges between 10.3 million and 10.7 million people. The Paul-KSI fight, in particular, has the potential to increase DAZN’s subscriber base, given the YouTube stars’ popularity online. The first fight between the two that aired on YouTube last year and cost $10 to watch attracted 1.1 million viewers. DAZN stands to make more money from the Snapchat shows if they are able to entice people to pay $20 a month or $100 a year to subscribe to DAZN in order to watch the fights. That’s largely the point of producing these shows. Having the subscription methods go month by month will allow serious boxing fans to see the Logan Paul vs KSI fight, meanwhile casual fans who are new to the sport will be able to see experienced fighters such as Alvarez ad Kovalev go toe-to-toe.

The World Series ended up delivery big viewership numbers thanks to exciting Games 6 and 7. According to Deadline, Game 7 of the 2019 World Series was a win for both the Washington Nationals and for FOX, drawing in 24 million viewers across all platforms. The overall series itself will likely end up around the 14 million average that the 2014 San Francisco Giants’ clinching series snagged. It hit a home run with 21.19 million viewers in the adult 18-49 demographic, with the first Game 7 since the Astros took the title in 2017 up double digits over last year’s final game. Compared with Tuesday’s Game 6, Game 7 continued the spike the Series experienced in its race to the end, with a 47% rise in 18-49s and 38% in total audience. This was also due to the Nationals’ beating all odds to overcome a 19-31 start to the season to capture the title after going down 3-2 in the World Series. The Series’ strange storyline added to big viewership numbers toward the end as all road teams won the games, the first time this has ever happened across any major American sport. On top of that, the Nationals came back from behind a record setting five times in elimination games this postseason.

World Surf League is increasing their online content. According to SportsPro, WSL Studios division launched this summer and it is the ammunition for an ambitious new content strategy. Since taking ownership of what was then the Association of Surfing Professionals in 2012, the tour’s ownership group has, through a series of acquisitions, steadily aggregated previously separated aspects of professional surfing under a single umbrella including its major events, commercial and licensing rights, and properties such as the Big Wave World Tour and the Kelly Slater Wave Company. WSL Studios launched in August, opening its doors with a debut slate of programming comprising feature-length documentaries, docu-series, daily short-form videos, and a podcast network. On the off-platform side, the aim is to broaden surfing’s reach by distributing content outside of the WSL ecosystem, to draw more people to the sport as it prepares to make its Olympic debut alongside skateboarding next year in Tokyo.

Yahoo teams up with entertainment giant MGM for sports betting. According to Legal Sports Report, the deal between Yahoo and the BetMGM sportsbook app will be offered on iOS and Android this month. Although specific details were not abundant, it appears that Yahoo Sports does not become a consumer-facing sportsbook in the deal. Instead, it will send traffic to BetMGM and get compensated for that traffic, according to a report from SportsBusiness Journal. As of now, BetMGM is only live in Nevada and New Jersey, and in the former, users must sign up in person. But BetMGM does plan on being live in West Virginia and Indiana, among other states. What this deal means for Yahoo is that while Yahoo launched a daily fantasy sports platform back in 2015, they will not be running their own “Yahoo Sportsbook” directly. The benefit of this deal for MGM is that Yahoo’s millions of active monthly fantasy sports users can be funneled to MGM to place bets while Yahoo gets to be involved with sports betting without doing the heavy lifting themselves.

Power of Sports Five

LeBron James spends thousands on food for the Getty Fire’s first responders. According to “Entertainment Tonight,” James paid around $3,000 to help feed firefighters battling the Getty Fire in Los Angeles, California. The 34-year-old Lakers star is one of many celebrities who were forced to evacuate their homes due to the fire, which erupted in the early hours of October 28 and has burned more than 745 acres. Raul Ortega, owner of Mexican food truck Mariscos Jalisco, was called by a member of James’ team to set up a time for his taco trucks to deliver food to the fire’s first responders. James paid around $3,000 to rent the taco trucks, which were set up at Jackie Robinson Stadium, which has been used as a base camp for the firefighters. Ortega says his employees fed around 150 first responders, serving up approximately 600 tacos. The first responders could work better with food in their stomachs and have now contained over 60% of the Getty Fire; however, the blaze is just one of 13 wildfires burning in California in early November.

Parisian soccer club PSG goes green with Gaussin transport deal. According to SportsPro, French soccer giant Paris Saint-Germain has signed a strategic partnership with the Gaussin Group for the supply of self-driving, 100% electric vehicles for public transport and goods transport. The long-term agreement includes equipment for all of the Ligue 1 champions’ infrastructure, including their new training complex which will open its doors in 2022. The deal also falls in line with PSG’s ambition to utilize innovations in sustainable development and autonomous mobility, especially with regard to the practice facility as it bids to become the first recognized Smart City in sports. The Gaussin Group will initially undertake research to understand where to best deploy its autonomous and electric mobility solutions before rolling out its products where it best suits the needs of the club. This deal marks a movement for sports franchises to be more environmentally conscious of their off-field impacts.

John Cena donates $500,000 to firefighters battling blazes across California. According to GiveMeSports, the fires originally emerged in the state’s northern areas, and also ripped through approximately 650 acres within the city of Los Angeles, resulting in the evacuation of over 20,000 people. On “First Responders Day,” WWE wrestler Cena took time away from filming “The Suicide Squad” to post a video to Twitter in which he committed to helping those who are managing the disaster. Cena, who will star as a firefighter in the upcoming comedy “Playing with Fire,” went on to implore the film’s production company Paramount Pictures to join him in helping those he considers truly heroic. Cena’s generous financial contributions will be shared between The California Fire Foundation and the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation. Hopefully more celebrities will follow the path of Cena, LeBron James, and Guy Fieri to help those risking their lives to keep others safe.

Women’s soccer looks to get a massive media boost from Spring Media and Red Bee. According to SportsPro, more than 1 billion viewers tuned into the 2019 Women’s World Cup. Red Bee and Spring Media’s Wnited women’s soccer OTT service looks to capitalize on a market in the spotlight. After the USA secured their fourth title in France earlier this year, European soccer’s governing body UEFA went live with its own OTT service featuring live women’s matches, while the Football Association has also launched its own free platform to air the Women’s Super League. Although a good start, those platforms have regional limitations that the newly-launched Wnited fixes – it is the first OTT service of its kind wholly dedicated to global women’s soccer. In creating the product, Swedish sports agency Spring Media, which distributes more than 500 hours of live sports to more than 220 global broadcasters annually, has expanded its collaboration with UK-based solutions company Red Bee Media. The Wnited product is due to go live in the first quarter of 2020 and expects a sizeable fan base, as half of the Women's World Cup viewers were across digital platforms.

Philadelphia 76ers’ Tobias Harris donates $1 million to charities. According to 247 Sports, Harris announced a combined donation of $1 million to assist nine different charities in Philadelphia. He announced the charities and the dollar amount for each during a community draft at a local elementary school. The benefitting organizations include the Center for Black Educator Development which received $300,000; Read by 4th was given $200,000; The Fund for the School District of Philadelphia, the Foundation for Orange County Public Schools, and Legends Academy were all given $100,000; World Literacy Foundation and True Love Missions each received $75,000; and both WUFSD Wynadanch Memorial High School and Team Up Philly were given $25,000. Although Harris was traded just eight months ago from the Los Angeles Clippers, the basketball star seems to be investing heavily in the youth of Philadelphia, a city facing a major teacher shortage and in which two-thirds of third graders can’t read at grade level.

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csrgood · 5 years

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Everyone Counts: Grants Totaling $3.3M Go to Bay Area Nonprofits for Census 2020 Outreach

The Bay Area Census Funders Collaborative (BACFC) is pleased to announce more than $3.3 million in grants to nearly 130 nonprofit community-based organizations to promote Census 2020 education and outreach efforts and minimize the chances that residents of the nine-county Bay Area region will be left out of the census count.

Census data is used to determine states’ representation in Congress, funding levels for crucial social programs and allocation of billions of federal dollars across a wide range of services.

“It’s crucial that all residents of our Bay Area communities are counted accurately by the census, so we get fair access to political representation and federal funding -- that’s the bottom line,” said Nicole Taylor, president and CEO of Silicon Valley Community Foundation. “The nonprofit organizations that received these grants have great expertise and commitment to their communities, and through their efforts, we hope to get a ‘complete count’ in our region.”

Through a common application and RFP process, the BACFC received 171 proposals amounting to nearly $9.5 million in requested grant dollars to support census education and outreach activities in hard-to-count communities. “Hard-to-count” populations include young children, the elderly, immigrants, homeless people and low-income individuals.

When census information is not accurate, it threatens to muffle the voices of undercounted groups and regions, and undermine the basic political equality that is central to our democracy. Despite the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling blocking the inclusion of a citizenship question on the 2020 census, there is still significant work ahead to ensure a fair and accurate count of all Californians.

The nonprofit organizations awarded grants from the Bay Area Census Funders Collaborative will be addressing the challenge of counting all residents of the nine-county region. Among the grantees:

Self-Help for the Elderly received $15,000 to support the 2020 census by conducting an on-the-ground, community-based campaign to reach, educate and assist the most vulnerable hard-to-count senior populations residing in San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Alameda counties.

Rise University Preparatory received $30,000 to support census participation among the African American community in the following San Francisco neighborhoods: Bayview-Hunters Point, Potrero, Mission and the Richmond.

Multicultural Institute received $20,000 to inform, encourage and prepare day laborers and other Latino immigrants residing in Alameda, Contra Costa and San Mateo counties, to participate in the 2020 census.

Tax-Aid received $12,000 to leverage the concurrence of the census count and tax season by encouraging census completion, serving clients in Alameda, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Sonoma counties.

For a full list of grantees receiving funds from the BACFC, click here.

For the first time, the Census Bureau is planning to collect the majority of census information online and scale back door-to-door outreach and canvassing.

“The East Bay in particular is home to a number of unconventional and untraditional housing units which is a result of our region’s skyrocketing housing costs and limited supply,” said James Head, President & CEO, East Bay Community Foundation. “The reduction in door-to-door canvassing, coupled with the shift to the online census platform and concerns about access to broadband, computer literacy, and hacking -- continue to reinforce the critical importance of our efforts in hard-to-reach communities.”

Federal-level actions and policies including the proposed citizenship question on the census, changes to the “public charge” regulations, raids and deportations have created a pervasive anti-immigrant climate and instilled fear and mistrust among immigrant communities regarding government activities like the census.

Because of these challenges, the BACFC prioritized proposals that included direct outreach activities aimed at hard-to-count communities. Those activities include door-to-door outreach, canvassing, educational workshops and technical assistance. A regional focus ensured that funding would be used across the nine counties to reach a diversity of hard-to-count populations.

“This collaboration enables us to provide Bay Area nonprofits with resources needed to ensure the people in our region are counted accurately,” said Ellen LaPointe, president and CEO of Northern California Grantmakers. “We are proud to be working with local community partners to get the job done.” The BACFC is also working closely in coordination with other regional sources of funding for census outreach, including United Way Bay Area, which is the state-designated regional Administrative Community-Based Organization, and local county offices.

As the administration of the census approaches in April 2020, the BACFC will continue to identify strategies to support grantees and other community-based organizations in census outreach and education to ensure a fair and accurate count.

The Bay Area Census Funders Collaborative is a partnership between Northern California Grantmakers, East Bay Community Foundation, Silicon Valley Community Foundation and other foundations that have come together to support Census 2020 education and outreach efforts to minimize the undercount in our region. Our nine-county Bay Area region is inclusive of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, and Sonoma counties.

We are grateful to many individual donors and the following foundations that have made donations towards census outreach to ensure that there is a fair and accurate count.

Andrea Boehmer, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, East Bay Community Foundation, The Grove Foundation, The Health Trust, Heising-Simons Foundation, Hellman Family, Helzel Family Foundation, John Pritzker Family Fund, Dean and Margaret Lesher Foundation, The Libra Foundation, Lydia & Thomas Moran, Deborah Zimmer, Metta Fund, San Francisco Foundation, Sisters of St. Joseph Healthcare Foundation, Silicon Valley Community Foundation, Silver Giving Foundation, The Sobrato Family Foundation, Stupski Foundation, Sunlight Giving, The Wallace Alexander Gerbode Foundation, Walter & Elise Haas Fund, Y&H Soda Foundation, Zellerbach Family Foundation.

About Northern California Grantmakers Northern California Grantmakers is an association of great people doing great work. We bring together foundations, nonprofit organizations, government, and business to tackle our region’s most pressing social issues. We pool resources, share information, and learn from each other, making our collective impact far greater than if we were going it alone. Learn more at ncg.org.

About Silicon Valley Community Foundation Silicon Valley Community Foundation advances innovative philanthropic solutions to challenging problems, engaging donors to make our region and world better for all. Learn more at siliconvalleycf.org.

About East Bay Community Foundation The East Bay Community Foundation is committed to advancing a Just East Bay. We partner with donors, social movements, and the community to eliminate structural barriers, advance racial equity, and transform political, social, and economic outcomes for all who call the East Bay home. Learn more at ebcf.org.

See more census resources

source: https://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/42634-Everyone-Counts-Grants-Totaling-3-3M-Go-to-Bay-Area-Nonprofits-for-Census-2020-Outreach?tracking_source=rss

#CSR #corporate social responsibility #social good #philanthropy #employee engagement #workplace givi

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expomahal-blog · 5 years

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kansascityhappenings · 5 years

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Gunman posted online minutes before killing 3 at festival

GILROY, Calif. — Before a 19-year-old gunman opened fire on a famed garlic festival in his California hometown, he urged his Instagram followers to read a 19th century book popular with white supremacists on extremist websites, but his motives for killing two children and another young man were still a mystery Monday.

Santino William Legan posted the caption about the book “Might is Right,” which claims race determines behavior. It appeared with a photo of Smokey the Bear in front of a “fire danger” sign and also complained about overcrowding towns and paving open space to make room for “hordes” of Latinos and Silicon Valley whites.

Under it, he wrote: “Ayyy garlic festival time” and “Come get wasted on overpriced” items. Legan’s since-deleted Instagram account says he is Italian and Iranian.

He legally purchased the semi-automatic assault rifle this month in Nevada, where his last address is listed. He would have been barred from buying it in California, which restricts firearms purchases to people over 21. In Nevada, the age limit is 18.

Legan grew up less than a mile from the park where the city known as the “Garlic Capital of the World” has held its three-day festival for four decades, attracting more than 100,000 people with music, food booths and cooking classes.

Police said they don’t know if people were targeted, but at this point, but it appears he shot indiscriminately. Twelve people were injured.

Police searched Legan’s vehicle and the two-story Legan family home, leaving with paper bags. Authorities also searched an apartment they believed Legan used this month in remote northern Nevada. Officials didn’t say what they found.

Big Mikes Gun and Ammo, which appears to be a home-based internet gun shop in Fallon, Nevada, said on its Facebook page that Legan ordered the rifle off its website and “was acting happy and showed no reasons for concern” when the store owner met him. The post said it was “heartbroken this could ever happen.”

But Legan didn’t go through the front entrance. He cut through a fence bordering a parking lot next to a creek, Gilroy Police Chief Scot Smithee said. Some witnesses reported a second suspect, and authorities were trying to determine if he had any help.

Police arrested a 20-year-old man who claimed involvement online, but investigators determined he was just trying to get attention.

The police chief praised officers for stopping Legan with handguns without injuring anyone else.

“It could’ve gotten so much worse, so fast,” Smithee said.

The youngest victim, Stephen Romero, described by his grandmother as a kind, happy and playful kid, had just celebrated his sixth birthday in June at Legoland in Southern California.

“My son had his whole life to live and he was only 6,” his father, Alberto Romero, told San Francisco Bay Area news station KNTV after the shooting.

Also killed was 13-year-old Keyla Salazar from San Jose, seen dressed in pink, wearing a tiara of flowers and smiling as she poses with relatives in photos posted on her aunt’s Facebook page.

“I have no words to describe this pain I’m feeling,” Katiuska Pimentel Vargas wrote.

The oldest victim killed was Trevor Irby, 27, a biology major who graduated in 2017 from Keuka College in upstate New York.

The wounded were taken to multiple hospitals, and their conditions ranged from fair to critical, with some undergoing surgery.

Troy Towner said his sister, Wendy Towner, was at the festival for her business, the Honey Ladies, when she saw a man with a gun climb over the fence. She yelled at him: “No, you can’t do that!”

The gunman shot her in the leg and her husband three times, while a young girl dragged their 3-year-old son under a table, Towner wrote on a fundraising page he set up for his sister.

Legan then approached the couple as they lay motionless on the ground and asked if they were all right. They didn’t move, fearing he would finish them off, Towner wrote.

Towner said his sister underwent surgery and was expected to have long-term nerve damage, while her husband faces many surgeries.

“She was brave,” Marquez said.

Jan Dickson, a neighbor who lives across the street from the Legan family, described them as “a nice, normal family.” She said Santino Legan had not lived there for at least a year.

“How do you cope with this? They have to deal with the fact that their son did this terrible thing and that he died,” Dickson said.

from FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports https://fox4kc.com/2019/07/29/gunman-posted-online-minutes-before-killing-3-at-festival/

from Kansas City Happenings https://kansascityhappenings.wordpress.com/2019/07/30/gunman-posted-online-minutes-before-killing-3-at-festival/

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