VOA – CONNECT
EPISODE 119
AIR DATE 04 24 2020
TRANSCRIPT
OPEN ((VO/NAT))
((Banner))
Helping Out
((SOT))
This is kind of a local disaster so we’re kind of in the mood to
just help people in need.
((Animation Transition))
((Banner))
Playing On
((SOT))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
I do miss the audience reaction and interaction of a live
performance but there is also something very intimate about
being in your home studio and making music for strangers.
((Animation Transition))
((Banner))
Keeping Calm
((SOT))
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
What attracted me to yoga was that it incorporated a whole
mind/body philosophy and plan of action to help a person.
((Open Animation))
BLOCK A
((PKG)) EMPTY NEW YORK CITY
((Banner: New York, Paused))
((Reporter/Camera/Drone Camera: Aaron Fedor))
((Map: New York City, New York))
((Main characters: 1 female))
((MUSIC/NATS))
((Voice of Sarah Henry, Deputy Director & Chief Curator,
Museum of the City of New York))
At the Museum of the City of New York, we think a lot about
what makes New York, New York. And when we bring it
down to just four ideas: money, density, diversity and
creativity, they're all rooted in and felt in the vibrant street life
of New York. And that energy of New York’s street life is
what I find most viscerally absence during this strange and
quiet time of sheltering in place, staying at home, social
distancing and quarantine.
((NATS: Computer Train Announcement))
Use soap and water and wash for at least 20 seconds or use
hand sanitizer. Please cover your nose, mouth and your
elbow when you cough or sneeze. Let’s work together to
keep our state healthy.
((NATS))
((Voice of Sarah Henry, Deputy Director & Chief Curator,
Museum of the City of New York))
The streets are dense. They're diverse, full of creative
people. People from all over the world. The crowds, the
jostling, people bumping up against strangers and hearing all
the languages of the globe. That's typically the experience
of moving through the streets of New York.
((NATS: Computer Train Announcement))
Stand clear of the closing doors, please.
((Voice of Sarah Henry, Deputy Director & Chief Curator,
Museum of the City of New York))
So much of the way the city was organized and the systems
that were built were designed to fight the unhealthy
environment that was understood to be the sources of
disease. And so, big pieces of infrastructure were created
like the water system, the very existence of the sanitation
system, the housing codes that shape the way the buildings
were built.
((NATS))
((Voice of Sarah Henry, Deputy Director & Chief Curator,
Museum of the City of New York))
But as you get into the 20th century, the changes that you
see as a result of infectious disease are more metaphorical.
They're about human behavior, shaping how people relate to
each other and how we think about certain spaces.
((NATS))
((Voice of Sarah Henry, Deputy Director & Chief Curator,
Museum of the City of New York))
It's going to be interesting to see the aftermath of this really
historic period and whether it changes the direction or the
slope of New York's development.
((NATS))
((Voice of Sarah Henry, Deputy Director & Chief Curator,
Museum of the City of New York))
New York has a lot of monikers and nicknames. One is
famously “The City That Never Sleeps”. Yet right now,
people are feeling that the city that never sleeps is at least
napping. And yet, when you look closer at what it takes to
keep this city moving and all the people putting their lives on
the front lines, whether literally in hospitals or just keeping
the subways and buses moving, deliveries coming and food
on the shelves, there are still a lot of people not sleeping in
New York.
((NATS: Nurses))
Thank you firemen. Thank you.
((PKG)) SALVATION ARMY
((Banner: Salvation Army, Helping))
((Reporter: Ozlem Tinaz))
((Camera: Celal Cevirgen))
((Adapted by: Martin Secrest))
((VOA Turkish Service))
((Map: Fairfax, Virginia))
((Main character: 1 male))
((Sub character: 2 male))
((NATS))
((Banner: The Salvation Army, a Christian movement, is
providing food relief during the COVID-19 pandemic))
((NATS))
((Major Donald Wilson, Corps Officer, Salvation Army))
Since the coronavirus has started, so many people are
already out of work. We're wanting to help supplement
some of their life so that if they can save some money on
food, the money that they save can put toward the rent or
maybe a car payment or whatever it is. A lot of the folks who
are coming to us are individuals who have never asked for
assistance before and so it's very difficult for them in this
time.
((NATS))
((Teddy Miller, Recipient))
I got reduced hours at work. I don't work like I used to. I got
kids at home and I want to make sure I got food in the
house.
((NATS))
((Major Donald Wilson, Corps Officer, Salvation Army))
We have to schedule people so that we don't have a large
concentration of people and expose them to the potential
virus. We have right now, about average, about 15 to 20
families a day and that's all we can handle at the present
time. But also, we have vulnerable adults, people with
health issues or senior citizens that cannot go to the store
themselves. They call us and we take it to the where they
live. We knock on the door and they open it. They get it.
They don't have to touch anything and we wear gloves to
make sure that it's safe for them.
((NATS))
((Captain Srikanth Bhatnagar, Corps Officer, Salvation
Army))
We are serving the lunch because of this virus. Now we are
giving boxes they're going to take with them, because we
have to keep the distance, six feet [2 m]. So, we can
continue serving this people because they are wonderful
people, homeless. They really need our help.
((NATS))
((PKG)) DOCTOR TESTING
((Banner: A Doctor, Testing))
((Reporter/Camera: Genia Dulot))
((Map: Huntington Beach, California))
((Main character: 1 male))
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
I am doctor Matthew Abinante. I am the owner of Elevated
Health here in Huntington Beach. We are a direct primary
care clinic and when this whole COVID pandemic kind of hit,
I wanted to be right out in front and do the testing. I had a
patient that I thought had COVID.
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
When I first started, patients would pull into the back lot and I
would don all my PPE [protective equipment] and this is the
way we would go. Patients would pull down this very narrow
driveway and I would come out and I would instruct them not
to roll down the window, to look straight ahead and then I
would come behind the vehicle and they would crack the
window this much and I would just reach my hand in like this
and do the swab. And so I said, “I am going to swab your
nose and I run away and don’t be offended. It’s a really
awkward visit but I’ll get back to you in two days with the
results.”
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
And then I saw how big this is going to be, the need, and I
saw that the government wasn’t really moving. I am not
critiquing them. The government is not big enough to save
everybody. So, I said, “Hey, I am a small town doc but I got
to do my part.”
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
We popped up here. I got permission from the mall owner
and here we are. We test about 200 cars a day.
((Banner: Now it is 300 a day))
We have about a seven hour wait every day and we end up
turning away cars. We’re only able to operate 9 am to 5 pm.
And the idea of a drive-through site, where somebody just
drives up, he keeps all their germs in their car and then they
come in and get tested, is really attractive for people and
we’re able to help a lot of people that way.
((NATS))
((Lynn, Patient))
I had symptoms in January, in early January and I had a
cough that lasted for like 3 or 4 weeks. So, I thought it would
be worthwhile to find out if I have the antibodies. For one
thing, if I did, then I could donate my plasma and for another,
I wouldn’t have to be so worried about, you know, infecting
someone, getting infected. If we wait for the federal
government to come through with antibody tests, it could be
months. 75 dollars was nothing to be sure that I hadn’t had
it.
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
The rapid antibody test is a cassette testing for IGM and IGG
and that test is 75 dollars. The other test is a nasal swab.
It’s looking for the actual antigen, the actual RNA of the
virus. PCR nasal swab is 125 dollars.
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
President Trump and all these local leaders say, “Testing is
free, nothing out of pocket. The insurance companies are
going to cover it.” Well, when you peel back the layers, it’s a
great talking point for the politicians, but getting down to the
nitty gritty as a doctor like myself in a small community, we
can’t get funding. So, we had to go to a private model. We
have close to 50 positives now. After today, we’ll probably
be close to 60 or 70 and all of these people, we check in on
them frequently. We are sending medications and I am
happy to report, you know, fingers crossed, I don’t want to
jinx it, but we have no patients that have been hospitalized.
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
My wife, we have four little daughters and she was quite
concerned and moved to San Diego, about an hour away,
with her family, which I don’t like to think about because it
will make me cry. Give me a few minutes to compose
myself here.
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
There just been a lot of, you know, like a small town doctor.
There’s been a lot of vitriol and accusations online about me
trying to create fear profiteer and that’s really hard when I’ve
been working 18-hour days and worrying about being sick
myself and not seeing my family. And so anyway, that’s kind
of hitting me.
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
I’ve put in probably about 40 thousand [dollars] and my
friend had put in 200 thousand [dollars]. We have a small
operation here. Normally our family practice, that much debt
and I am not comfortable with that much debt and that would
bankrupt our company. I really hope I could break even.
((NATS: Matthew Abinante))
One, two, three. Oh, didn’t hurt.
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
So, there is a control line. You always have one line. Two
lines would be IGG or IGM and then the third line would be
that you have both. If it’s negative, I am hoping to test on
Sunday morning and go see them (family) for Easter and I’ll
just to have to wear the mask and I would just, I miss my
kids and so, I am not going to cry this time.
((NATS: Matthew Abinante and patient))
What would you do if I was positive?
Well, you will have to test me right away.
It’s negative!!
Negative?
Yeah.
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor/Owner, Elevated Health))
In a way it’s disappointing. I keep telling patients this
because in a way you want to be positive for IGG and say,
“Hey, I already got through it! I am good!”
((NATS))
((Banner: There is still uncertainty whether exposure to the
virus guarantees immunity.
The government of California plans to increase testing in the
near future))
TEASE ((VO/NAT))
Coming up…..
((Banner))
The Band Plays on
((SOT))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
I am home these weeks, trying to offer performances online
and also learning to teach violin lessons online.
BREAK ONE
BUMP IN ((ANIM))
BLOCK B
((PKG)) ISOLATED VIOLINIST
((Banner: Isolated Violinist))
((Reporter: Arturo Martinez))
((Camera: Margaret Batjer, Arturo Martinez))
((Map: Los Angeles, California))
((Main characters: 1 female))
((All orchestra video: Courtesy of LA Chamber
Orchestra))
((NATS))
((Banner: Most of the images in this video were filmed by
the performer herself.))
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Hi, my name is Margaret Batjer. I’m Concert Master of the
Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
I've been home due to the COVID-19 virus. Normally, I am
in downtown Los Angeles almost all week and most
weekends, rehearsing for concerts, playing concerts and
teaching.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
But I am home these weeks, trying to offer performances
online and also learning to teach violin lessons online. I'm
going to be recording some solo Bach tonight and it's a
family affair because of the quarantine. No one could come
to professionally record any of myself or any of my
colleagues and my daughter here is helping. She's going to
be doing the video and my husband will record the audio.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
This week, I'm working to record a program for In Focus,
which is our chamber music series. Our LACO audiences,
who reached out to me in many different ways, are all very
sad to not be going to our concerts. And so, like many other
artistic organizations, we're trying to keep in touch with them
and offer them some relief from the fear and the boredom
and the unknown.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Good evening and welcome to an In Focus concert
presented by LACO At Home. In these extraordinary times,
these broadcasts are, what give our musicians and hopefully
you, a lot of comfort and I do hope that you enjoy this
evening's presentation of In Focus from our homes to yours.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Offering performances online has its own set of challenges.
It's different than performing live. I do miss the audience
reaction and interaction of a live performance but there is
also something very intimate about being in your home
studio and making music for strangers. It could be a 100, it
could be a 1000.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
This is where I sit and do most of my teaching now, which is
odd to say, but with Skype lessons being the only possibility
for me to be able to help my students, this is where I have to
do it, is sitting at a computer.
((NATS: Margaret Batjer and Students))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Is everybody doing okay?
((Student))
Yeah.
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Yeah? It's old. It's getting old, isn't it, this isolation?
((Student))
Oh, yeah.
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
It's getting a little depressing.
((Student))
I had a really great chamber group this year, but we're not
able to meet anymore. And like end of the year recitals and
things like that being cancelled, so, it's very unexpected.
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
It's very tough and my heart breaks for all of you, but we
have to do the best we can under these really difficult
circumstances.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
One of the hardest things for me to get used to during this
quarantine is sitting here at this desk with the computer. It's
so counter-intuitive to being an artist and a musician.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Albert.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
This is one of the challenges.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Albert.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Music is such a hands-on kind of experience for the student
and the teacher and it's difficult when the sound is coming
through an electronic computer or iPad, it's not a realistic
sound. But the students are hungry and they're feeling
isolated. So, their hour or two hours a week with me,
hopefully keeps them challenged and keeps them inspired to
continue to grow as young musicians.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Bravo. Very, very fine.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
I can only think about what it's going to be like the first time I
get to walk back on the stage in our new normal and be able
to make music again.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
What's going to be when all of this ends? Will there still be
the orchestras? Can I financially survive? Will our economy
be at a place where all of us can still do what we love to do,
which is make music? Will people come to our concerts?
Will they be too afraid to go into a hall where you have to sit
shoulder to shoulder? Those are all big questions and I
think it's been tough for everybody, not just me.
((MUSIC))
((Banner: Many orchestras have furloughed their musicians
due to COVID-19 but, so far, LACO is still maintaining their
performers))
((MUSIC))
TEASE ((VO/NAT))
Coming up…..
((Banner))
Virtual Support
((SOT))
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
I still teach the same way and if I see somebody doing
something hard and I see somebody in one of this little
screens backing off, I might encourage them to re-engage.
BREAK TWO
BUMP IN ((ANIM))
BLOCK C
((PKG)) VIRTUAL YOGA
((Banner: Virtual Yoga))
((Reporter/Camera: Jeff Swicord))
((Producer/Editor: Jacquelyn De Phillips))
((Map: Washington, DC))
((Main characters: 1 male))
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
I started doing yoga about 25 years ago. What attracted me
to yoga was that it incorporated a whole mind/body
philosophy and plan of action to help a person.
I saw that it was having a positive effect physically and
mentally from the very first class that I gave myself because
I learned out of books. I like people to experience the state
of calmness, peacefulness, mental clarity, connecting with
their positive energy. When I saw that in Europe, they were
starting to shut down essential businesses, I figured it's
better to close the studio.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
My family's spread out. There's some in Europe and there's
some in South America. There's some in other places, also
all over the US. So, we've all been coping individually as our
smaller knit families. Mostly we've been staying at home
and isolating ourselves, meeting friends online. I didn't want
to stop teaching. I didn't want to stop the business. I didn't
want to take from the people that look forward to coming to
class all the time and enjoy it. So, I put it online, continued
offering classes every day, especially now that people have
a lot of fear. It's a time of need.
((NATS))
Nice moves.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
Now my studio is virtual.
((NATS))
Very good. Inhale, lifting the right leg.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
So now, I have to continue to grow and develop the
business.
((NATS))
If your legs have the strength, go deeper.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
It was hard. Luckily, I had the help of one of my students
and friends who's been essential in switching over and
making it all work.
((NATS))
David, I don’t know why I can’t get into Zoom.
((NATS: Phone))
Let me go to this site real quickly and get a sense of the
layout before I walk you through it.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
Now everything is very user-friendly or tries to be. Some of
my systems aren't that user-friendly, so mixing the two and
figuring it out.
((NATS: Phone))
Can you go to preferences?
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
You have to do a lot of extra work but it's worth it.
((NATS))
Where is preferences?
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
It was nonstop work for a few nights, a few days.
((NATS: Phone))
OK, sounds good.
((NATS))
See you soon.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
It's been a week, eight days now and it's getting a little
smoother every day.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
I wasn't very active on any of the social media and I barely
even sent out emails from my studio. I always relied on
people having a great experience and coming back. So, I
send emails also to let people know that this transition is
happening.
((NATS))
Welcome everyone.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
There's new people doing online classes with me and people
that are trying to see for the first time whether it's worth to
pay for a class.
((NATS))
Exhale, forward fold, make sure the head drops.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
Teaching virtually is different than teaching a live class in
front of people.
((NATS))
Slow your mind way down.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
I'm engaged so, I'm watching. Even when there's a lot of
students, I'm trying to help each individual, even if I have to
go all the way up to the computer and see you in a little
box. So, I still teach the same way and if I see somebody
doing something hard and I see somebody in one of this little
screens backing off, I might encourage them to re-engage.
((NATS))
All the way behind the back leg, Christopher, inhale.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
I think this technology, not just for fitness classes, but in all
industries and businesses, where you can have a very
positive experience without actually having to travel
somewhere, it's going to keep going. Even if this passes all
the way and I open the studio again, people that aren't here
in D.C. can't take my classes but if I continue to offer classes
online, people can still join me from anywhere. I want it to
continue for myself because I like reaching people that want
to take classes with me but are physically very far apart.
((MUSIC/NATS))
CLOSING ((ANIM))
voanews.com/connect
((PKG)) FREE PRESS MATTERS ((NATS/VIDEO/GFX))
((Popup captions over B Roll))
Near the Turkish Embassy
Washington, D.C.
May 16, 2017
President Erdogan’s bodyguard attacks peaceful protesters
“Those terrorists deserved to be beaten”
“They should not be protesting our president”
“They got what they asked for”
While some people may turn away from the news
We cover it
reliably
accurately
objectively
comprehensively
wherever the news matters
VOA
A Free Press Matters
BREAK THREE
BUMP IN ((ANIM))
((PKG)) FREE PRESS MATTERS ((NATS/VIDEO/GFX))
((Popup captions over B Roll))
We make a difference
When we unmask terror
When we explain the impossible
When we confront an uncertain future
When we give voice to the voiceless
The difference is Freedom of the Press
We are the Voice of America where
A Free Press Matters
CLOSING ((ANIM))
voanews.com/connect
SHOW ENDS
EPISODE 119
AIR DATE 04 24 2020
TRANSCRIPT
OPEN ((VO/NAT))
((Banner))
Helping Out
((SOT))
This is kind of a local disaster so we’re kind of in the mood to
just help people in need.
((Animation Transition))
((Banner))
Playing On
((SOT))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
I do miss the audience reaction and interaction of a live
performance but there is also something very intimate about
being in your home studio and making music for strangers.
((Animation Transition))
((Banner))
Keeping Calm
((SOT))
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
What attracted me to yoga was that it incorporated a whole
mind/body philosophy and plan of action to help a person.
((Open Animation))
BLOCK A
((PKG)) EMPTY NEW YORK CITY
((Banner: New York, Paused))
((Reporter/Camera/Drone Camera: Aaron Fedor))
((Map: New York City, New York))
((Main characters: 1 female))
((MUSIC/NATS))
((Voice of Sarah Henry, Deputy Director & Chief Curator,
Museum of the City of New York))
At the Museum of the City of New York, we think a lot about
what makes New York, New York. And when we bring it
down to just four ideas: money, density, diversity and
creativity, they're all rooted in and felt in the vibrant street life
of New York. And that energy of New York’s street life is
what I find most viscerally absence during this strange and
quiet time of sheltering in place, staying at home, social
distancing and quarantine.
((NATS: Computer Train Announcement))
Use soap and water and wash for at least 20 seconds or use
hand sanitizer. Please cover your nose, mouth and your
elbow when you cough or sneeze. Let’s work together to
keep our state healthy.
((NATS))
((Voice of Sarah Henry, Deputy Director & Chief Curator,
Museum of the City of New York))
The streets are dense. They're diverse, full of creative
people. People from all over the world. The crowds, the
jostling, people bumping up against strangers and hearing all
the languages of the globe. That's typically the experience
of moving through the streets of New York.
((NATS: Computer Train Announcement))
Stand clear of the closing doors, please.
((Voice of Sarah Henry, Deputy Director & Chief Curator,
Museum of the City of New York))
So much of the way the city was organized and the systems
that were built were designed to fight the unhealthy
environment that was understood to be the sources of
disease. And so, big pieces of infrastructure were created
like the water system, the very existence of the sanitation
system, the housing codes that shape the way the buildings
were built.
((NATS))
((Voice of Sarah Henry, Deputy Director & Chief Curator,
Museum of the City of New York))
But as you get into the 20th century, the changes that you
see as a result of infectious disease are more metaphorical.
They're about human behavior, shaping how people relate to
each other and how we think about certain spaces.
((NATS))
((Voice of Sarah Henry, Deputy Director & Chief Curator,
Museum of the City of New York))
It's going to be interesting to see the aftermath of this really
historic period and whether it changes the direction or the
slope of New York's development.
((NATS))
((Voice of Sarah Henry, Deputy Director & Chief Curator,
Museum of the City of New York))
New York has a lot of monikers and nicknames. One is
famously “The City That Never Sleeps”. Yet right now,
people are feeling that the city that never sleeps is at least
napping. And yet, when you look closer at what it takes to
keep this city moving and all the people putting their lives on
the front lines, whether literally in hospitals or just keeping
the subways and buses moving, deliveries coming and food
on the shelves, there are still a lot of people not sleeping in
New York.
((NATS: Nurses))
Thank you firemen. Thank you.
((PKG)) SALVATION ARMY
((Banner: Salvation Army, Helping))
((Reporter: Ozlem Tinaz))
((Camera: Celal Cevirgen))
((Adapted by: Martin Secrest))
((VOA Turkish Service))
((Map: Fairfax, Virginia))
((Main character: 1 male))
((Sub character: 2 male))
((NATS))
((Banner: The Salvation Army, a Christian movement, is
providing food relief during the COVID-19 pandemic))
((NATS))
((Major Donald Wilson, Corps Officer, Salvation Army))
Since the coronavirus has started, so many people are
already out of work. We're wanting to help supplement
some of their life so that if they can save some money on
food, the money that they save can put toward the rent or
maybe a car payment or whatever it is. A lot of the folks who
are coming to us are individuals who have never asked for
assistance before and so it's very difficult for them in this
time.
((NATS))
((Teddy Miller, Recipient))
I got reduced hours at work. I don't work like I used to. I got
kids at home and I want to make sure I got food in the
house.
((NATS))
((Major Donald Wilson, Corps Officer, Salvation Army))
We have to schedule people so that we don't have a large
concentration of people and expose them to the potential
virus. We have right now, about average, about 15 to 20
families a day and that's all we can handle at the present
time. But also, we have vulnerable adults, people with
health issues or senior citizens that cannot go to the store
themselves. They call us and we take it to the where they
live. We knock on the door and they open it. They get it.
They don't have to touch anything and we wear gloves to
make sure that it's safe for them.
((NATS))
((Captain Srikanth Bhatnagar, Corps Officer, Salvation
Army))
We are serving the lunch because of this virus. Now we are
giving boxes they're going to take with them, because we
have to keep the distance, six feet [2 m]. So, we can
continue serving this people because they are wonderful
people, homeless. They really need our help.
((NATS))
((PKG)) DOCTOR TESTING
((Banner: A Doctor, Testing))
((Reporter/Camera: Genia Dulot))
((Map: Huntington Beach, California))
((Main character: 1 male))
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
I am doctor Matthew Abinante. I am the owner of Elevated
Health here in Huntington Beach. We are a direct primary
care clinic and when this whole COVID pandemic kind of hit,
I wanted to be right out in front and do the testing. I had a
patient that I thought had COVID.
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
When I first started, patients would pull into the back lot and I
would don all my PPE [protective equipment] and this is the
way we would go. Patients would pull down this very narrow
driveway and I would come out and I would instruct them not
to roll down the window, to look straight ahead and then I
would come behind the vehicle and they would crack the
window this much and I would just reach my hand in like this
and do the swab. And so I said, “I am going to swab your
nose and I run away and don’t be offended. It’s a really
awkward visit but I’ll get back to you in two days with the
results.”
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
And then I saw how big this is going to be, the need, and I
saw that the government wasn’t really moving. I am not
critiquing them. The government is not big enough to save
everybody. So, I said, “Hey, I am a small town doc but I got
to do my part.”
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
We popped up here. I got permission from the mall owner
and here we are. We test about 200 cars a day.
((Banner: Now it is 300 a day))
We have about a seven hour wait every day and we end up
turning away cars. We’re only able to operate 9 am to 5 pm.
And the idea of a drive-through site, where somebody just
drives up, he keeps all their germs in their car and then they
come in and get tested, is really attractive for people and
we’re able to help a lot of people that way.
((NATS))
((Lynn, Patient))
I had symptoms in January, in early January and I had a
cough that lasted for like 3 or 4 weeks. So, I thought it would
be worthwhile to find out if I have the antibodies. For one
thing, if I did, then I could donate my plasma and for another,
I wouldn’t have to be so worried about, you know, infecting
someone, getting infected. If we wait for the federal
government to come through with antibody tests, it could be
months. 75 dollars was nothing to be sure that I hadn’t had
it.
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
The rapid antibody test is a cassette testing for IGM and IGG
and that test is 75 dollars. The other test is a nasal swab.
It’s looking for the actual antigen, the actual RNA of the
virus. PCR nasal swab is 125 dollars.
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
President Trump and all these local leaders say, “Testing is
free, nothing out of pocket. The insurance companies are
going to cover it.” Well, when you peel back the layers, it’s a
great talking point for the politicians, but getting down to the
nitty gritty as a doctor like myself in a small community, we
can’t get funding. So, we had to go to a private model. We
have close to 50 positives now. After today, we’ll probably
be close to 60 or 70 and all of these people, we check in on
them frequently. We are sending medications and I am
happy to report, you know, fingers crossed, I don’t want to
jinx it, but we have no patients that have been hospitalized.
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
My wife, we have four little daughters and she was quite
concerned and moved to San Diego, about an hour away,
with her family, which I don’t like to think about because it
will make me cry. Give me a few minutes to compose
myself here.
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
There just been a lot of, you know, like a small town doctor.
There’s been a lot of vitriol and accusations online about me
trying to create fear profiteer and that’s really hard when I’ve
been working 18-hour days and worrying about being sick
myself and not seeing my family. And so anyway, that’s kind
of hitting me.
((NATS))
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
I’ve put in probably about 40 thousand [dollars] and my
friend had put in 200 thousand [dollars]. We have a small
operation here. Normally our family practice, that much debt
and I am not comfortable with that much debt and that would
bankrupt our company. I really hope I could break even.
((NATS: Matthew Abinante))
One, two, three. Oh, didn’t hurt.
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor; Owner, Elevated Health))
So, there is a control line. You always have one line. Two
lines would be IGG or IGM and then the third line would be
that you have both. If it’s negative, I am hoping to test on
Sunday morning and go see them (family) for Easter and I’ll
just to have to wear the mask and I would just, I miss my
kids and so, I am not going to cry this time.
((NATS: Matthew Abinante and patient))
What would you do if I was positive?
Well, you will have to test me right away.
It’s negative!!
Negative?
Yeah.
((Matthew Abinante, Doctor/Owner, Elevated Health))
In a way it’s disappointing. I keep telling patients this
because in a way you want to be positive for IGG and say,
“Hey, I already got through it! I am good!”
((NATS))
((Banner: There is still uncertainty whether exposure to the
virus guarantees immunity.
The government of California plans to increase testing in the
near future))
TEASE ((VO/NAT))
Coming up…..
((Banner))
The Band Plays on
((SOT))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
I am home these weeks, trying to offer performances online
and also learning to teach violin lessons online.
BREAK ONE
BUMP IN ((ANIM))
BLOCK B
((PKG)) ISOLATED VIOLINIST
((Banner: Isolated Violinist))
((Reporter: Arturo Martinez))
((Camera: Margaret Batjer, Arturo Martinez))
((Map: Los Angeles, California))
((Main characters: 1 female))
((All orchestra video: Courtesy of LA Chamber
Orchestra))
((NATS))
((Banner: Most of the images in this video were filmed by
the performer herself.))
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Hi, my name is Margaret Batjer. I’m Concert Master of the
Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
I've been home due to the COVID-19 virus. Normally, I am
in downtown Los Angeles almost all week and most
weekends, rehearsing for concerts, playing concerts and
teaching.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
But I am home these weeks, trying to offer performances
online and also learning to teach violin lessons online. I'm
going to be recording some solo Bach tonight and it's a
family affair because of the quarantine. No one could come
to professionally record any of myself or any of my
colleagues and my daughter here is helping. She's going to
be doing the video and my husband will record the audio.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
This week, I'm working to record a program for In Focus,
which is our chamber music series. Our LACO audiences,
who reached out to me in many different ways, are all very
sad to not be going to our concerts. And so, like many other
artistic organizations, we're trying to keep in touch with them
and offer them some relief from the fear and the boredom
and the unknown.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Good evening and welcome to an In Focus concert
presented by LACO At Home. In these extraordinary times,
these broadcasts are, what give our musicians and hopefully
you, a lot of comfort and I do hope that you enjoy this
evening's presentation of In Focus from our homes to yours.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Offering performances online has its own set of challenges.
It's different than performing live. I do miss the audience
reaction and interaction of a live performance but there is
also something very intimate about being in your home
studio and making music for strangers. It could be a 100, it
could be a 1000.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
This is where I sit and do most of my teaching now, which is
odd to say, but with Skype lessons being the only possibility
for me to be able to help my students, this is where I have to
do it, is sitting at a computer.
((NATS: Margaret Batjer and Students))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Is everybody doing okay?
((Student))
Yeah.
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Yeah? It's old. It's getting old, isn't it, this isolation?
((Student))
Oh, yeah.
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
It's getting a little depressing.
((Student))
I had a really great chamber group this year, but we're not
able to meet anymore. And like end of the year recitals and
things like that being cancelled, so, it's very unexpected.
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
It's very tough and my heart breaks for all of you, but we
have to do the best we can under these really difficult
circumstances.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
One of the hardest things for me to get used to during this
quarantine is sitting here at this desk with the computer. It's
so counter-intuitive to being an artist and a musician.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Albert.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
This is one of the challenges.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Albert.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Music is such a hands-on kind of experience for the student
and the teacher and it's difficult when the sound is coming
through an electronic computer or iPad, it's not a realistic
sound. But the students are hungry and they're feeling
isolated. So, their hour or two hours a week with me,
hopefully keeps them challenged and keeps them inspired to
continue to grow as young musicians.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
Bravo. Very, very fine.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
I can only think about what it's going to be like the first time I
get to walk back on the stage in our new normal and be able
to make music again.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Margaret Batjer, Concert Master, Los Angeles Chamber
Orchestra))
What's going to be when all of this ends? Will there still be
the orchestras? Can I financially survive? Will our economy
be at a place where all of us can still do what we love to do,
which is make music? Will people come to our concerts?
Will they be too afraid to go into a hall where you have to sit
shoulder to shoulder? Those are all big questions and I
think it's been tough for everybody, not just me.
((MUSIC))
((Banner: Many orchestras have furloughed their musicians
due to COVID-19 but, so far, LACO is still maintaining their
performers))
((MUSIC))
TEASE ((VO/NAT))
Coming up…..
((Banner))
Virtual Support
((SOT))
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
I still teach the same way and if I see somebody doing
something hard and I see somebody in one of this little
screens backing off, I might encourage them to re-engage.
BREAK TWO
BUMP IN ((ANIM))
BLOCK C
((PKG)) VIRTUAL YOGA
((Banner: Virtual Yoga))
((Reporter/Camera: Jeff Swicord))
((Producer/Editor: Jacquelyn De Phillips))
((Map: Washington, DC))
((Main characters: 1 male))
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
I started doing yoga about 25 years ago. What attracted me
to yoga was that it incorporated a whole mind/body
philosophy and plan of action to help a person.
I saw that it was having a positive effect physically and
mentally from the very first class that I gave myself because
I learned out of books. I like people to experience the state
of calmness, peacefulness, mental clarity, connecting with
their positive energy. When I saw that in Europe, they were
starting to shut down essential businesses, I figured it's
better to close the studio.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
My family's spread out. There's some in Europe and there's
some in South America. There's some in other places, also
all over the US. So, we've all been coping individually as our
smaller knit families. Mostly we've been staying at home
and isolating ourselves, meeting friends online. I didn't want
to stop teaching. I didn't want to stop the business. I didn't
want to take from the people that look forward to coming to
class all the time and enjoy it. So, I put it online, continued
offering classes every day, especially now that people have
a lot of fear. It's a time of need.
((NATS))
Nice moves.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
Now my studio is virtual.
((NATS))
Very good. Inhale, lifting the right leg.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
So now, I have to continue to grow and develop the
business.
((NATS))
If your legs have the strength, go deeper.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
It was hard. Luckily, I had the help of one of my students
and friends who's been essential in switching over and
making it all work.
((NATS))
David, I don’t know why I can’t get into Zoom.
((NATS: Phone))
Let me go to this site real quickly and get a sense of the
layout before I walk you through it.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
Now everything is very user-friendly or tries to be. Some of
my systems aren't that user-friendly, so mixing the two and
figuring it out.
((NATS: Phone))
Can you go to preferences?
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
You have to do a lot of extra work but it's worth it.
((NATS))
Where is preferences?
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
It was nonstop work for a few nights, a few days.
((NATS: Phone))
OK, sounds good.
((NATS))
See you soon.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
It's been a week, eight days now and it's getting a little
smoother every day.
((NATS/MUSIC))
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
I wasn't very active on any of the social media and I barely
even sent out emails from my studio. I always relied on
people having a great experience and coming back. So, I
send emails also to let people know that this transition is
happening.
((NATS))
Welcome everyone.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
There's new people doing online classes with me and people
that are trying to see for the first time whether it's worth to
pay for a class.
((NATS))
Exhale, forward fold, make sure the head drops.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
Teaching virtually is different than teaching a live class in
front of people.
((NATS))
Slow your mind way down.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
I'm engaged so, I'm watching. Even when there's a lot of
students, I'm trying to help each individual, even if I have to
go all the way up to the computer and see you in a little
box. So, I still teach the same way and if I see somebody
doing something hard and I see somebody in one of this little
screens backing off, I might encourage them to re-engage.
((NATS))
All the way behind the back leg, Christopher, inhale.
((Diego Del Sol, Owner, Del Sol Yoga Studio))
I think this technology, not just for fitness classes, but in all
industries and businesses, where you can have a very
positive experience without actually having to travel
somewhere, it's going to keep going. Even if this passes all
the way and I open the studio again, people that aren't here
in D.C. can't take my classes but if I continue to offer classes
online, people can still join me from anywhere. I want it to
continue for myself because I like reaching people that want
to take classes with me but are physically very far apart.
((MUSIC/NATS))
CLOSING ((ANIM))
voanews.com/connect
((PKG)) FREE PRESS MATTERS ((NATS/VIDEO/GFX))
((Popup captions over B Roll))
Near the Turkish Embassy
Washington, D.C.
May 16, 2017
President Erdogan’s bodyguard attacks peaceful protesters
“Those terrorists deserved to be beaten”
“They should not be protesting our president”
“They got what they asked for”
While some people may turn away from the news
We cover it
reliably
accurately
objectively
comprehensively
wherever the news matters
VOA
A Free Press Matters
BREAK THREE
BUMP IN ((ANIM))
((PKG)) FREE PRESS MATTERS ((NATS/VIDEO/GFX))
((Popup captions over B Roll))
We make a difference
When we unmask terror
When we explain the impossible
When we confront an uncertain future
When we give voice to the voiceless
The difference is Freedom of the Press
We are the Voice of America where
A Free Press Matters
CLOSING ((ANIM))
voanews.com/connect
SHOW ENDS
