Lee Brice: Garth Brooks is my hero | Kurt's Country
Neil A. Carousso produces NewsNation original “Kurt’s Country” – a celebration of country music and a slice of Americana with host Kurt Bardella.
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Entercom and Anthony and Deidre Scaramucci Launch Podcast on Radio.com
“Mooch and the Mrs.” Exclusive First Access on Radio.com Starting on September 18, Neil A. Carousso Tapped as Producer in Charge of Content
PHILADELPHIA, PA – September 18, 2018 – Entercom, the #1 creator of live, original, local audio content in the United States, announced a partnership with former White House Director of Communications Anthony Scaramucci and his wife, Deidre. As part of the agreement, Radio.com, the exclusive digital home for all Entercom content across the company’s robust portfolio of 235 radio stations, will launch “Mooch and the Mrs.” Exclusive first access to the podcast will be available to listeners nationwide on the Radio.com app, beginning September 18, 2018.
The new weekly podcast, available at radio.com/moochandthemrs, will feature the couple discussing the world we live in from opposite sides of the political spectrum, while offering an intimate look into the strength of their marriage.
“Anthony Scaramucci’s first-hand political experience from his time in the White House, combined with his and Deidre’s unique points of view, will provide Radio.com listeners with a compelling podcast experience,” said Pam Russo, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Entercom. “We’re committed to providing a forum for diverse points of view and look forward to hearing Anthony’s and Deidre’s differing perspectives on the political landscape, through the unique lens of their personal relationship.”
“Radio.com provides a broad national platform for a wide range of conversations about American politics and American life,” said Scaramucci. “My first-hand experience and insights about the president, the White House and what happens inside gives added context to what we hope will be an engaging review of the events of the week.”
“I know Anthony, I love Anthony, and I also know that many in the country disagree with him,” said Deidre. “I’ll be there for them to make sure their side is represented. I’m confident it will make for some interesting listening.”
Anthony Scaramucci is a frequent commentator on current events. He and Deidre have previous on-air experience together, having joined programming on KNX 1070 News Radio (KNX-AM) in Los Angeles. Based on feedback and interest in these appearances, it’s clear that there is an appetite for a candid and refreshing look inside how this couple manages differing perspectives within their relationship.
Radio.com is now the fastest growing digital audio app in the United States. The recently reimagined Radio.com mobile app and website includes a user-friendly design to provide an enriched user experience and increased value for advertising partners. Radio.com currently has over 300 stations and more than 1,100 podcasts, with more added continuously, on its rapidly growing platform. It is available on home and auto-connected devices, including Amazon Alexa, Amazon FireTV, Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, Google Chromecast, Roku, and Sonos.
Radio.com is a part of Entercom, a leading American media and entertainment company and one of the two largest radio broadcasters in the country.
CONTACT:
Jennifer Morales
Entercom
212-649-9685
Jennifer.Morales@Entercom.com
@EntercomPRAbout Entercom Communications Corp.
Entercom Communications Corp. (NYSE: ETM) is a leading American media and entertainment company reaching and engaging over 100 million people each week through its premier collection of highly rated, award winning radio stations, digital platforms and live events. As one of the country’s two largest radio broadcasters, Entercom offers integrated marketing solutions and delivers the power of local connection on a national scale with coverage of close to 90% of persons 12+ in the top 50 markets. Entercom is the #1 creator of live, original, local audio content and the nation’s unrivaled leader in news and sports radio. Learn more about Philadelphia-based Entercom at www.entercom.com, Facebook and Twitter (@Entercom).###
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Horseback Ride Through NYC Heals Vets, Families
By Neil A. Carousso, ConnectingVets.com and WCBS Newsradio 880
NEW YORK, NY — Sometimes horsing around is therapy.
For Gold Star father Ken Boyd and U.S. Army veteran Mary Ballengee, equestrian therapy has been instrumental in survival.
“When you become a Gold Star parent, it’s probably the darkest, deepest day of your life,” said Boyd whose only child C.J. served as a U.S. Marine Corps corporal. He died in Afghanistan. “We found some solace through equine therapy, working with horses. [It] truly saved my life from suicide and other bad things that go on and happen.”
C.J. Boyd (Photo Courtesy of Ken Boyd) Boyd’s wife joined a Gold Star mothers retreat hosted by BraveHearts where they went horseback riding. Boyd saw progress in his wife’s spirits, but he was reluctant to join. Eventually, she encouraged him and he has never looked back.
“In horses you have to build trust, and the horse will trust you, you trust the horse. It’s just this amazing thing that happens with a horse,” Boyd said, adding he now volunteers several days a week with BraveHearts, which is a non-profit organization that aims to reduce the veterans suicide rate of 20 deaths per day.
“I love going there because we do retreats for veterans and you see some of these kids that come in that they don’t want to be there. They get off the bus from the VA and they don’t really care about a horse, they don’t do anything. Two hours later they have a smile on their face, there’s brightness in their eyes, they’re talking, they found something that trusts them, that they can trust. It’s just amazing to see a transformation in how they want to come back and how they want to do things,” said Boyd. “So, we’ve dedicated our lives and our future to pay it forward on our son’s behalf to help all the other veterans, to help take care of these kids when they come back.”
Boyd will be join Ballengee and many others on BraveHearts’ “Trail to Zero” – a 20-mile horseback ride around Manhattan on Saturday, September 15 to raise awareness of the high veterans’ suicide rate. Participants will ride through the heart of New York City, including Times Square, Central Park and the World Trade Center. They both hope to bring that trail down to zero.
BraveHearts Ballengee served from 1975-78. She battled with trauma from active duty for nearly two decades before she was introduced to equine therapy with a fellow veteran.
Photo Courtesy of Mary Ballengee “I was really shut down and this mustang, he saved my life,” said Ballengee who now goes by the nickname “Mustang Mary.” “He actually taught me many things. He taught me how to breathe out, how to slow down, he taught me patience, he taught me not to be so hard on myself. He gave me life, itself.”
Mustang Mary felt a bond with Pecos instantly.
“In the process of me gentling him, and letting down my walls for the first time in 40 years and discovering myself, I also felt a responsibility that he had to be auctioned off and I could not imagine that but I had to have him believe in people,” Ballengee said of Pecos, which was initially owned by the U.S. Government.
Mustang Mary said the night Pecos was set to be auctioned, she was planning on killing herself. But, the person who bought Pecos gave the horse to her and she was rejuvenated.
Photo Courtesy of Mary Ballengee “[Pecos] just told me you have to do something. You have to do something for the other mustangs and you have to do something for the other veterans such as yourself,” Ballengee said.
Since then, Mary helped launch an all-female veterans riding group in Texas where she lives with Pecos. She is now a PATH certified instructor through BraveHearts’ training and certification program for veterans.
Mustang Mary will proudly ride “Mighty” around the Big Apple “Trail to Zero.”
For her and Boyd, the task is quite mighty, but they’ve saddled in for a determined equestrian mission to help our heroes like they were healed through the power of horse.
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‘It’s Not My Flag, It’s Ours’
An Unsung 9/11 Hero and the Journey of an American Flag
from Ground Zero to Iraq and Afghanistan to The White House
By Neil A. Carousso, Special to ConnectingVets.com and WCBS Newsradio 880
PATCHOGUE, N.Y. — A hero-maker serves heroes.
On Sept. 11, 2001, Donato Panico watched in horror as al-Qaeda hijackers crashed two airliners into the World Trade Center.
He felt he had to do something right away, and as the owner of a Smithtown deli for more than three decades, Panico knew he could provide a needed service.
“(My friend) was telling me that all kinds of commanding officers were killed down there and that they had no food system and it was in total chaos,” said Panico.
He then prepared his catering trucks with sandwiches and drove to Ground Zero the next morning. He got through most of the tight security checkpoints in Manhattan, but he was still far away from the Trade Center when commanding officer Louis Pacheco recognized Panico from his Long Island deli and ushered him into site so he could fill a void serving starving, dehydrated, weary, angry and saddened First Responders.
“A couple months later, (Pacheco) presented me with a flag that they hung in front of the Millennium Hotel,” Panico said. The hotel, which is adjacent to One World Trade Center, suffered significant damage in the terrorist attacks.
Heros 4 Our Heroes, via Facebook 
Heros 4 Our Heroes, via Facebook “He presented it to me and I presented it to a friend of mine in the store whose son was getting ready to deploy to Afghanistan. He hung it over his camp,” said Panico, continuing, “He had the flag commissioned by President (George W.) Bush and he returned it to me 4 years later.”
Panico continued to lend the gifted flag to local police, fire and veterans organizations on Long Island.
“You can’t hold onto something if you don’t give it away,” said Panico when asked why he felt so strongly about imparting such a meaningful and emotional souvenir to patriotic organizations. “It’s not my flag, it’s ours.”
His foundation Heros 4 Our Heroes was born from tragedy. Today, Panico aims to keep a “constant awareness” for the need to take care of police officers, firefighters and our veterans who make sacrifices to keep us safe and free. He is currently undertaking a project to re-build the patio at the Department of Veterans Affairs facility in Northport, Long Island.
Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) was the only local politician to show up at Donato’s fist Heros 4 Heroes Foundation event after 9/11; Panico said his first impression of Zeldin was he’s “special.”
The Republican congressman was deployed to Iraq in 2006 with the 82nd Airborne Division and is currently in the Army Reserves. In a sit-down interview with him, Donato and this reporter, he praised Donato as a selfless patriot while he engaged in the same type of organic camaraderie he has with fellow soldiers. Zeldin said Panico has the “type of character, values, ethics and beliefs” that guided his selfless actions on 9/11.
“If he was on the first floor of the Trade Center that day, he would have went straight up and started rendering first-aid to people even though he wasn’t NYPD or FDNY,” Congressman Zeldin said. “That’s his character.”
Recently, Panico had one particular person he wanted to lend “our” Old Glory that flew in front of the Millennium Hotel on September 11 to: The President of the United States.
Congressman Zeldin invited Panico to President Donald J. Trump’s first State of the Union Address in January. Panico brought the flag to Washington with him in hopes to give it to the President. That’s when Rep. Zeldin learned of the sentimental history of that American Flag. Donato did not get to meet Mr. Trump that day, but Mr. Zeldin held onto the flag for the right time, and on June 20, the Congressman received a phone call from The White House for a last minute policy meeting with President Trump and several representatives.
Zeldin recalled, “All I was thinking of was ‘where’s the flag?’”
After the meeting, Congressman Zeldin told President Trump about the flag.
“You could tell the story was impacting him, he was deeply moved by it, he was moved by Donato’s story, the first responders, the journey of that flag from the Trade Center, overseas being flown over a base to back home,” said Mr. Zeldin, adding that the President brought him into the Oval Office where he had an aide write down Panico’s story for a museum, and posed for a picture behind his Resolute Desk to send home to Donato.
Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead Congressman Zeldin says when he meets with the President like he did when he rode in his motorcade with him to a GOP fundraiser in Southampton last month, President Trump asked about Donato.
Donato feels an unspoken bond with the current Commander-In-Chief, a man he has never met, but respects as a patriot, as he does his fellow New Yorkers and Americans who still suffer pain, sorrow, and illness from 9/11.
Panico still shakes when the calendar turns to September. He and we will Never Forget.
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50th U.S. Open Gets Underway in Queens
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — The top tennis players in the world have descended on Queens for the 50th US Open.
There’s been a lot of stress and anxiety, but the $500 million rebuilding of the tennis center at Flushing Meadows is finally complete.
From @wcbs880 #Chopper880: The #BillieJeanKing #NationalTennisCenter is ready for you! @bradheller14's live reports from the #USOpen begin this morning on #WCBS880; 08.27.18; #Queens; #NYC; #ArthurAsheStadium; #LouisArmstrongStadium; @USTANTC; @usta; @usopen; @Radiodotcom pic.twitter.com/Kdd5MFsEGp
— Tom Kaminski (@TomKaminskiWCBS) August 27, 2018
“This is our capstone year. We have been under construction essentially for six years, taking a break each year to stage the US Open,” said tournament director David Brewer.
There are now two roofs on two stadia at the center, but they will only close for rain, not heat.
“At the end of the day, this is an athletic contest and we want to make sure that we are fair to our players and that they have a level playing field,” Brewer said.
Ready for action as the 50th @usopen begins in Queens. There’s a new Louis Armstrong Stadium to go with the existing Arthur Ashe. I’m with @bradheller14 and @NeilACarousso. @wcbs880 pic.twitter.com/tckglVNJpz
— Peter Haskell (@peterhaskell880) August 27, 2018
The new 14,000 set Louis Armstrong Stadium has a retractable roof, similar to the one installed at the Arthur Ashes Stadium for the 2016 event.
But that’s the only thing that’s different at the new stadium.
https://www.facebook.com/wcbs880/videos/253663922143896/?hc_ref=ARSPiIgvwVmO7J7OVrCvcRqutZXQV5NW8s7C90NsWhx_Wn4Q4KPKIC2H2AAJF7wQE-8&__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARCg8KZwcJffZUfKq9bs9G7i7MwSyRN70IMjuH34hmbkZY7d__TrEYKHMZ3kvRN13Dn1nUYtvz7LIc1lpJ30KXVEHaWKa7AydLY40szCwJ6IuCDgYiacqKJBkacWMyqlVCjfx8w&__tn__=FC-R&fb_dtsg_ag=AdxhxlFVAfUCv-g3smc0BunwbzXxg5HwQQK2jCobgn9l0A%3AAdx-XbDE3ClQHWKNd4rNR3ta3Eqe_GSp8Kile6rdSE-Bew
“What you see when you first walk in here is nothing but concession stands and restrooms — the two things that every stadium needs to have and we have those in abundance now at both levels,” Brewer said.
There are also new flowers and more trees to provide extra shade at the grounds.
https://www.facebook.com/883305061792138/posts/1693529650769671/
On day one of the U.S. Open, there has already been an upset. Simona Halep, who won the French Open in June, was beaten by 44th-ranked Kaia Kanepi of Estonia, becoming the first No. 1-seeded woman to lose in the first round of the tournament.
“It was amazing,” said Rebecca Franson of Idaho, who watched as a top seed was knocked out in the opening round for the first time.
Tim Mercado of Brooklyn Heights likes to root for the underdogs.
“These people out there are just really busting it to get it done, and they’re doing it – they’re not making it billions and millions; they don’t have a million sponsors like wanting them to do this, and you know, being able to come and go out on the courts and just go from court to court to support them, I think that’s important,” Mercado said.
Mercado thinks this is the best day of the tournament, when you can see top players on every court.
It was the first match to be held at the newly rebuilt Louis Armstrong Stadium.
Neil A. Carousso is producing multi-media content from the U.S. Open Grand Slam Tennis Tournament for WCBS Newsradio 880.
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Two-Time Giants Super Bowl Champ Sean Landeta Spends A Night with Our Heroes
By Neil A. Carousso, Special to ConnectingVets.com and WCBS Newsradio 880
NORTHPORT, N.Y. — A humble 6-foot Giant walked into the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center on Long Island Thursday evening wearing his 1986 Super Bowl ring and a debt of gratitude on his sleeve.
“It really gives me chills to think of what they did and why we’re able to live how we do here to come and see the veterans and talk to them and hear their stories,” retired NFL punter Sean Landeta said.
He won two Super Bowls with the New York Football Giants at the conclusion of the 1986 and 1990 NFL seasons. Landeta is an All-Pro and All-Decade Team punter who played 22 seasons – the longest tenure in league history for his position – in the National Football League, mostly with the Giants. He also played for the Rams, Buccaneers, Packers and Eagles.
Retired NFL All-Pro Punter Sean Landeta talks football with veterans at the Northport VA. (Neil A. Carousso/ConnectingVets.com/WCBS Newsradio 880) Landeta is known for pinning the opposing team inside the 20 yard line; he retired with the league record for doing so, and he is currently number two on the all-time record list for most punts inside the 20, second to retired Giants punter Jeff Feagles, Landeta’s successor.
He recalled an amusing story he told a group of veterans, who surrounded him to talk football, of the moment he thanked legendary G-Men quarterback Phil Simms on the sideline of Super Bowl XXI for throwing a couple incompletions that gave Landeta an opportunity to appear in the big game against the Denver Broncos. He told the vets he wanted his family to get to see him play in the big game in person at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. Simms, the Super Bowl MVP, actually set a record for completing 22 of 25 passes, leading Big Blue to victory over the Broncos 39-20.
From the moment Landeta walked in to the building where the veterans live on the Northport VA Medical Center campus, they were fascinated by his playing career, but Landeta was awestruck by the true heroes around him.
“As a player, people are always asking you about you, and you know, I’ve had such good times just asking these guys: ‘tell me about you and where you’ve been and what you’ve done,’” Landeta said, adding, “It really humbles you to see what they’ve done and makes you realize how lucky we are to have heroes like this.”
Sean Landeta lends his 1986 Giants Super Bowl ring to a veteran at the Northport VA. (Neil A. Carousso/ConnectingVets.com/WCBS Newsradio 880) It was a casual night that will stay with those men forever. They took pictures with Landeta wearing his Super Bowl ring on their fingers, watched preseason football on the television, and sat and talked about their services and their current day-to-day struggles.
At the end of the night, everyone was smiling.
“A lot of them seem like they’re in a pretty good place. I really enjoyed my time with them. I hope I can come back again.”
