“When asked what motivates her, Cecilia thoughtfully answers …

“When words are not enough,

music goes deep into the soul

and can transform

a seemingly hopeless situation.

Why can’t we all just get along?

We’re from One family called humanity.

Isn’t that enough?”

Endorsed by the

United Nations and the

M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence,

Cecilia St. King is a charismatic

Peace Troubadour

who performs original songs

with positive spiritual messages.

Translating her esoteric studies of

The Ageless Wisdom Teachings into song,

she wraps captivating vocals around Philosophy.

Blending American roots music, that merges rock, BLUES, folk,

spirituals and just a hint of Jazz, her concerts offer a

powerful antidote to turmoil in our current times.

As a Peace Troubadour, Cecilia

has brought sheer joy to audiences in

America, Europe, Japan and New Zealand.

If any artist is able to bring people together, it will be

Ms. St. King when she sings the following words

from her “World Anthem,”

Peace On Earth

“How do you feel at night?

Do you wish for Peace?

Do you feel alright?

We’re really not that different,

don’t you think?

We all seek to find love.

We all need to have hope.”

Cecilia is no stranger to adversity.

Six months after running from the fall of

The World Trade Center,

she was diagnosed with cancer in her throat.

She spent time healing in a monastery in New Zealand

and turned her tragedy into triumph

by being a voice for Peace.

She is genuinely a warm, nurturing spirit

who easily connects with her audience to deliver

inspirational lyrics, and beautiful vocals.

You will laugh, you will cry, but most importantly

you will be left feeling a sense of HOPE.

See her solo or with a band, you are sure to be inspired

and no doubt leave wanting more.

Cecilia was the Keynote Musician for:

* The United Nations Culture of Peace Week

* The Gandhi Institute for Non-Violence Conference

* The National Peace Academy’s

Peacebuildoing Peacelearning Intensive

* The North East Regional Dept. of Peace Conference in RI.

* Binghamton University – NVC Conference

As well as reaching out to Spiritual communities

Cecilia is continuing to enjoy a presence on the stage of

world politics.

She sang for Presidential candidates Dennis Kucinich

and Howard Dean’s presidential campaign.

She also opened a speech for Dean on the Eve of the seminal

Democratic National Convention that

introduced Barack Obama.

Other performances throughout her career include;

* The Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, NY

* Great Waters Music Festival, NH

* The Strawberry Festival in Beacon, NY with Pete Seeger

* The Pre-Parliament of World Religion

*NYC September Concerts

* NYC The Vigil for International Peace in Central Park

*Make Music NY

NYC’s

* The BackFENCE

* The BitterEND

* Kenny’s Castaways

Nashville’s;

* Bluebird Café

* 12th and Porter

* 3rd and Lindsey

* Boulder’s Rock N’ Soul

* The Left Bank Café LR Concert

* Ashland, OR

* Nevada CITY, CA

* GRASS Valley, CA

* Los Angeles, CA

* Berkeley, CA

clubs, schools, prisons, festivals, churches,

senior centers, coffee houses and regional house concerts.

Cecilia was awarded as an Ambassador for Peace

through the Universal Peace Federation

because of her work as a humanitarian.

Steelers Takeaways 

Player Flashbacks through the Decades

This book approaches the Steelers organization and players in a way no other book has – spanning across seven decades of Steelers players, the book is comprised of personal and on-field stories. Author, Ron Lippock has conducted over 400 interviews with former Steelers – from those that played in the 50’s, through ones that have just recently retired. 

These stories and memories are amassed not only from the household names like L.C. Greenwood, Donnie Shell, Antwaan Randle El, Rocky Bleier, and Tommie Maddox, but also from the hundreds of players who fought just to make the practice squad. Their contributions and struggles, successes and failures, all helped to define the Steelers as an organization just as much as the many Hall of Famers. 

These players discuss the adversity they faced – the physical impact of the game, the stress of making and keeping one’s position on the team, mentoring younger players even as they sought to take their roster spot, moving from team to team, and more. 

Players reveal the humor behind the game and how it affected them – from the jokes teammates played on one another in the locker rooms, meeting rooms, and hotels, to the on-field pranks and antics fans are otherwise not privy to.

About the Author

Ron Lippock is the Publisher of the Pittsburgh Sports Daily Bulletin, a daily newsletter that covers Pittsburgh sports new. Over the five-plus years of publishing the newsletter, Lippock has interviewed hundreds of former Pittsburgh athletes, coaches, media, artists, and more, focusing on their more personal experiences and insights. In his day job he is a media executive with experience in traditional print publications and new media. He holds a Master’s degree in publishing from NYU, backed up by 20+ years of industry experience. Ron currently resides in Washington, D.C.

I’m Cory Michelle Johnson, Certified Access Consciousness Facilitator, radio show host, best-selling author, world renowned public speaker, sought after Life Strategist and Universal Movement Creator with business, money, unicorns, bodies and relationships.

Just over 5 years ago that was me above and through the exploration of the tools of Access Consciousness my debt load of $150,000 dissipated, I wake magically happy, knowing that I can create anything for my life.

I’ve been empowering people and businesses for just over 15 years, optimizing happiness and creating the most juicy, desirous life for those who will choose it. With intuitive laser facilitation, I waste no time in getting to the root of any issue. The tools, methods and techniques I use are fast, effective and they work.

Dr Hook™ Starring Dennis Locorriere - The Timeless World Tour

Dr Hook was an internationally recognizable household name throughout the 70’s and 80’s and in many territories throughout the world; it retains that standing to this day. 

Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show did its farewell tour with Dennis on vocals in the late 80’s but it was just the beginning of what he has since accomplished in his long and colourful career. Locorriere penned songs have been recorded and performed by artists such as Helen Reddy, Lou Rawls, BJ Thomas, Olivia Newton-John, Southside Johnny, Willie Nelson and Bob Dylan. As a solo artist, Locorriere has played at countless prestigious venues (Festival Hall Melbourne, Royal Concert Hall Glasgow, Liverpool Philharmonic) and festivals including the UK’s Glastonbury and has released 3 critically acclaimed albums.

Not for 30 years have the massive hits of Dr Hook been sung and played live by a band worthy of that title … until now.

Following the success of the Universal release Dr Hook Timeless (Executive Producer, Dennis Locorriere in the UK, New Zealand and Australia,  Dennis Locorriere, who, from the very beginnings of Dr Hook to the height of their success, was the unmistakable voice of the band’s biggest hits and best loved songs, such as Sylvia's Mother, Cover Of Rolling Stone, Only 16, A Little Bit More, If Not You, Sharing The Night Together, Better Love Next Time, Sexy Eyes, When You're In Love With A Beautiful Woman, Years From Now and many more, is touring the world with an incredibly talented band of musicians and singers, playing all of the hits. 

This is something that has not done since his Dr Hook Farewell Tour in 1985. 

In fact, never before have these songs been recreated live to sound just as they did when they were originally recorded in the famous Nashville and Muscle Shoals studios with some of the best session musicians in the world.

Possessing one of the most recognizable voices in popular music, Dennis Locorriere and the band have already performed sell out shows in New Zealand, Australia, and the UK and will be bringing this unique experience to the rest of the world.

 Dennis says “I know that people love the Dr Hook sound on those original recordings and that's what we're bringing back to them, just the way they remember it and want to hear it performed live”.

Dr Hook™ Starring Dennis Locorriere - The Timeless World Tour, is the show Dr Hook fans have been waiting for.

Also visit the band on … Facebook: at www.facebook.com/DrHookOfficial

Or on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/DrHookOfficial

Kitten Rescue was founded in the spring of 1997 and has grown to become one of the largest and most respected animal welfare groups in Los Angeles. We are a non-profit, totally volunteer run organization devoted to finding loving new homes for unwanted cats and kittens. Kitten Rescue volunteers place approximately 1,000 cats and kittens into new homes every year. Since its inception, Kitten Rescue has rescued and placed over 10,000 cats into loving homes.

In March 2006, Kitten Rescue realized one of its long-standing dreams when it acquired its very own private, no-kill shelter in Los Angeles. The Kitten Rescue Sanctuary is a shelter and boarding facility that can house up to 150 cats. The Sanctuary has a full-time staff as well as numerous volunteers who provide care, love and socialization for the cats housed there. Ciela was rescued from the streets with her 3 siblings and adopted into loving homes.

The majority of Kitten Rescue's animals live in volunteer foster homes until they are adopted. Our volunteers care for orphaned or abandoned kittens that need to be bottle fed, moms with litters, cats that need socialization and sick and injured animals. Kitten Rescue takes care of all of its rescued cats' medical needs, and prior to adoption, every cat is spayed/neutered, tested for leukemia and FIV, vaccinated, dewormed, treated for fleas and microchipped.

We also offer education and assistance to the public regarding all aspects of responsible pet ownership, care of kittens and cats, the importance of spaying and neutering, and the proper maintenance and care of feral cat colonies. During "kitten season", volunteers teach bottle feeding classes for people who want to care for unweaned kittens. Kitten Rescue also distributes City of Los Angeles spay/neuter coupons to members of the public.

Kitten Rescue's goal is to help Los Angeles become a no-kill city.

Jean Broders is the Senior Brand Manager at the Kent Pet Group.  She joined the Kent Corporation Family of companies in 1989, and has served in many roles, including Brand Manager.  Broders has a degree in Communications Studies from the University of Iowa.

Arden Moore – The Pet Health and Safety Coach™ – happily wears many “collars” in the pet world: radio show host, author, professional speaker, editor, media consultant, dog/cat behavior consultant and master pet first aid instructor.

CEO Feline Environmental Enrichment Design Company, LLC November 2014 – Present (1 year 9 months)|Philadelphia, Pennsylvania FEED Co. implements the established science of Feline Environmental Enrichment to design, manufacture and distribute the products that every cat owner needs to keep their cat happy and healthy Inventor The NoBowl Feeding System October 2014 – Present (1 year 10 months)|Greater Philadelphia Area Implementing the science of Feline Environmental Enrichment, The NoBowl Feeding System is the first and only science-based feline indoor hunting system that satisfies a cat’s natural instinct to hunt. Associate Veterinarian Red Lion Veterinary Hospital 2008 – Present (8 years)|New Castle, Delaware Practice focused on wellness and disease prevention.

As the country’s leading multi-media celebrity pet lifestyle expert and influencer, SANDY ROBINS documents the wonderful relationship that we have with our pets highlighting trends and innovative ideas as they happen. Many dogs and cats have lifestyles that mirror their pet parents’ own lives. Nothing is too good for our fur kids. Consequently, the pet industry is a 58 billion dollar business – bigger than toys, candy and jewelry combined. Sandy documents this industry every step of the way highlighting how these trends can improve our pet’s general health and well being and enhance our human-animal bond. She is the winner of the Excellence in Journalism and Outstanding Contribution to the Pet Industry Award presented by the American Pet Products Association. Previous winners include Dr. Marty Becker, Ellen De Generes and Victoria Stilwell. Her award-winning work is very visible on many of the country’s leading pet platforms such as Today.com, MSNBC.com and PawNation, AOL’s petcentric website. She is a regular contributor and columnist in multiple national publications such as Modern Dog, Dog Fancy and Cat Fancy as well as industry leaders such as Pet Age magazine and mainstream media such as Consumers Digest. Her work also appears regularly on a variety of prestigious blogs. Every feature or TV appearance breaks new ground as Sandy details everything from state-of-the-art surgical procedures to improve our pets’ wellbeing to the latest haute couture designs and the new home décor trends as they unfold. Her books include the award-winning Fabulous Felines: Health and Beauty Secrets for the Pampered Cat and For The Love of Cats. Her latest book, The Original Cat Bible is out now. Sandy is a popular guest speaker and works as a TV lifestyle spokesperson for PETCO. She served as a pet safety advisor for TOYOTA and is aligned with many prestigious companies in the pet industry. She is often quoted in mainstream publications such as Martha Stewart’s Living, The Wall Street Journal, Kiplinger’s and websites such as Fox News and Oprah.com. She is featured as a guest lecturer at Cat College, the popular online study course offered at CatChannel.com, is a popular radio guest on stations around the country. She has worked in radio hosting her own show Pawsitively Pets Radio, as well as a segment called House Pets on the On The House network which reached a weekly audience of 1.2 million. If there’s a major event in the pet world, you can count on Sandy being there. She is a regular visitor at all major pet industry expos and a regular attendee at conferences such as the annual Cat Writer’s Conference. She is along-standing member of both the Cat Writers of America and the prestigious Dog Writers of America organizations. Sandy is an avid campaigner for animal shelters and laws that protect animals everywhere. She is a strong advocator of pet adoption. Every pet deserves a loving permanent home and she has been among the first to point out that shelter pets do benefit from the luxurious lifestyles that other pets are lucky enough to enjoy because over-indulgent pet parents are often the first to give donations and organize fund-raising events to help animals that have been abandoned and neglected. Because she often travels internationally, Sandy knows what it hot and happening in other parts of the world too. Of course it goes without saying that she is a besotted pet parent to a menagerie of fur kids at her home in Southern California. The human-animal bond has never been stronger and the benefits of living with pets have never been more evident. Pets Rule!

SusieHayes, MA, CCHT, CST, CNLP

Psychotherapist, Certified Hypnotist, Certified Sex Therapist

Certified Life and Business Coach, Speaker, Author

With over 30 years in private practice in Denver, Colorado, Susie Hayes is committed to helping people access internal resources they never knew they had, to create what they never knew they could - through psychotherapy, hypnosis, sex therapy, business and life coaching.

CONTACT INFORMATION: 303.745.1816

My favorite saying is, 'Find Your Bliss!' That's what I've been doing as I write my Ocean Depths series. It's fun, like reading one of my favorite novels as it unfolds before me. I want to entertain my intended audience and take them out of their world into the fantasy fiction one I've created. How did the Ocean Depths Series start? I dreamed of Triton. It made me want to do a water color of him and the series began! The Ocean Depths series will continue into five to seven books, and I feel very privileged to write it! All of my art in Ocean Depths A Darkness was from life drawing models - real people and they inspired my story.  The plot in Ocean Depths is dramatic, humorous, conflicted, joyful and adventurous, and my endings are always cliff hangers! How fun! My hope for humanity is that we can find our bliss and be good to one another and our planet along the way no matter what belief systems we adhere too or what governments we live under. Is that simplistic? Yes, but often times the simpler an idea is, the easier it is to implement. Another great saying of mine is, 'What one man can do, so can another.' - the movie, The Edge. Why not? Each of us is our greatest asset. Turn off the TV, set aside the phone and invest in yourself. Take the time to learn and become, the rewards are incredible! As human beings, let's start out on our chosen journey, work hard at it, and along the way we will find our bliss!

Anne’s life philosophies were strongly shaped by her experience as the daughter of Alan Watts, well-known pioneer interpreter of Eastern religion and philosophy for the Western world.  At the age of 20 (in 1962) she married successful harpist Joel Andrews. Anne and Joel gave birth to two bright, musically gifted children whom they raised together until their divorce in 1972.  For the next ten years Anne was a working single parent.

Her experiences, along with her ability to empathize with people in a way that transcends social and cultural boundaries, combine in Anne to create a richly loving and compassionate person.

Anne began her formal interest in human potential in 1964 when she first studied with Virginia Satir, founder of Conjoint Family Therapy.  Her career and studies include a BA in Humanities, teaching and interpreting for the deaf and teaching Special Education in public schools.

In 1983, Anne participated in workshops offered by the Human Awareness Institute, founded by Dr. Stan Dale.  There she experienced transformation on a deep and practical level in all areas of participants’ lives; they opened their hearts to themselves and others through the magical healing power of love.  She soon realized that she had found the vehicle to manifest her life commitment, and trained to be a workshop facilitator.

She became a Certified Hypnotherapist and an educator, facilitator and counselor in the areas of Human Sexuality, sexual abuse, family stress, self-esteem, healing the “inner child,” financial and aging issues.  Since 1985, she has facilitated hundreds of workshops in the US, Australia, Japan, England and Germany.

Anne has been enthusiastically received as a guest on radio and TV, and featured in newspapers.  She is a warm and engaging speaker.  She has a successful counseling practice in Santa Rosa, California where she lives in a deeply loving relationship with her husband, Mark Kupke, who has been her partner since 1984.

About Alan Watts

Early Years

Alan Watts was born in London in 1915, at the start of the first World War. At a young age he became fascinated with the Far East, and at fourteen he began to write and was published in the Journal of the London Buddhist Lodge before writing his first booklet on Zen in 1932. He moved to New York in 1938 and then to Chicago, where he served as an Episcopal priest for six years before leaving the Church. In 1950, he moved to upstate New York before going on to San Francisco to teach at the Academy of Asian Studies. Among Alan Watts' earliest influences were the novelist Sax Rohmer and Zen scholars D.T. Suzuki and Christmas Humpreys. In late 1950, he visited with Joseph Campbell and composer John Cage in NYC.

Worldview

Alan Watts was profoundly influenced by the East Indian philosophies of Vedanta and Buddhism, and by Taoist thought, which is reflected in Zen poetry and the arts of China and Japan. After leaving the Church, he never became a member of another organized religion, and although he wrote and spoke extensively about Zen Buddhism, he was criticized by American Buddhist practicioners for not sitting regularly in zazen. Alan Watts responded simply by saying, "A cat sits until it is done sitting, and then gets up, stretches, and walks away."

1950's and early '60's

After teaching at the Academy of Asian Studies in San Francisco, he became Dean and began to give regular radio talks on KPFA, the Berkeley free radio station. In 1957, he published his bestselling Way of Zen, and in 1958 returned to Europe where he met with C.G. Jung. He was an early subject in pioneering psychedelic trials, and, after recording two seasons of the public television series Eastern Wisdom and Modern Life, traveled to Japan several times in the early sixties. By the late sixties, he had become a counterculture celebrity, and traveled widely to speak at universities and growth centers across the US and Europe.

Later Years

By the early seventies, Alan Watts had become a foremost interpreter of Eastern thought for the West, and was widely published in periodicals including Earth, Elle, Playboy, and Redbook. He appeared on CBS television's Camera Three in 1969, and in 1971 he recorded a pilot for a new show titled A Conversation with Myself for NET, the precursor to PBS. When the series was not produced, he recorded the shows with his son Mark and his long-time audio archivist Henry Jacobs in 1972. Overall, Alan Watts developed an extensive audio library of nearly 400 talks and wrote more than 25 books during his lifetime, including his final volume, Tao: The Watercourse Way. Alan Watts died in his sleep in November of 1973, after returning from an intensive international lecture tour.

John Shelby Spong, whose books have sold more than a million copies, was bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Newark for 24 years before his retirement in 2001. His admirers acclaim him as a teaching bishop who makes contemporary theology accessible to the ordinary layperson — he’s considered the champion of an inclusive faith by many, both inside and outside the Christian church. In one of his recent books,The Sins of Scripture: Exposing the Bible’s Texts of Hate to Discover the God of Love(San Francisco: HarperOne, 2005), this visionary thinker seeks to introduce readers to a proper way to engage the holy book of the Judeo-Christian tradition.

A committed Christian who has spent a lifetime studying the Bible and whose life has been deeply shaped by it, Bishop Spong says he was not interested in Bible bashing. “I come to this interpretive task not as an enemy of Christianity,” he says. “I am not even a disillusioned former Christian, as some of my scholar-friends identify themselves. I am a believer who knows and loves the Bible deeply. But I also recognize that parts of it have been used to undergird prejudices and to mask violence.”

A visiting lecturer at Harvard and at universities and churches worldwide, Bishop Spong delivers more than 200 public lectures each year to standing-room-only crowds. His bestselling books include Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism, A New Christianity for a New World, Why Christianity Must Change or Die, and Here I Stand.

Bishop Spong’s extensive media appearances include a profile segment on 60 Minutesas well as appearances on Good Morning America, Fox News Live, Politically Incorrect, Larry King Live, The O’Reilly Factor, William F. Buckley’s Firing Line, and Extra. Bishop Spong and his wife, Christine Mary Spong, have five children and six grandchildren. They live in New Jersey.

Biblical Literalism: A Gentile Heresy: A Journey into a New Christianity Through the Doorway of Matthew's Gospel by Bishop John Shelby Spong

A global and pioneering leader of progressive Christianity and the bestselling author of Why Christianity Must Change or Die and Eternal Life explains why a literal reading of the Gospels is actually heretical, and how this mistaken notion only entered the church once Gentiles had pushed out all the Jewish followers of Jesus.

A man who has consciously and deliberately walked the path of Christ, John Shelby Spong has lived his entire life inside the Christian Church. In this profound and considered work, he offers a radical new way to look at the gospels today as he shows just how deeply Jewish the Christian Gospels are and how much they reflect the Jewish scriptures, history, and patterns of worship. Pulling back the layers of a long-standing Gentile ignorance, he reveals how the church’s literal reading of the Bible is so far removed from these original Jewish authors’ intent that it is an act of heresy.

Using the Gospel of Matthew as a guide, Spong explores the Bible’s literary and liturgical roots—its grounding in Jewish culture, symbols, icons, and storytelling tradition—to explain how the events of Jesus’ life, including the virgin birth, the miracles, the details of the passion story, and the resurrection and ascension, would have been understood by both the Jewish authors of the various gospels and by the Jewish audiences for which they were originally written. Spong makes clear that it was only after the church became fully Gentile that readers of the Gospels took these stories to be factual, distorting their original meaning.

In Biblical Literalism: A Gentile Heresy, Spong illuminates the gospels as never before and provides a better blueprint for the future than where the church’s leaden and heretical reading of the story of Jesus has led us—one that allows the faithful to live inside the Christian story in the modern world.

Growing up on South Whidbey Island, Washington, Mark K. Sargent started his career playing computer games professionally in Boulder Colorado. From there he spent the next 20 years training people in proprietary software. In 2014, he looked into what is no doubt the most ridiculous conspiracy ever, called "Flat Earth Theory", and through extensive research, discovered that it wasn't so laughable after all.

Early in 2015, he released a series of YouTube videos titled "Flat Earth Clues", which delves into the possibility of our human civilization actually being inside a "Truman show"-like enclosed system, and how it's been hidden from the public since 1956.

Rachi Wortham, the former director of player personnel at Oregon State, has been selected to join the Montana men’s basketball staff as an assistant under Grizzly head coach Travis DeCuire.

 

Rachi (pronounced Rah-shee) comes to Montana after spending two seasons at Oregon State working under former Griz head coach Wayne Tinkle.

 

No stranger to the Big Sky Conference, Wortham served as an assistant coach at Eastern Washington from 2007-2011 under Kirk Earlywine. Wortham is also an EWU alumnus, where he was a standout guard from 2003-05, and was part of the Eagles’ first trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2004.

 

“I know Montana. I was at Eastern Washington for a long time, and I’ve seen the way they hold themselves, the way they prepare, the way they compete. They compete like winners, so I’m excited to be part of that mentality,” says Wortham.

 

Wortham and DeCuire’s prior relationship dates back to the mid 90’s when he played AAU basketball under DeCuire at the age of 15 in his hometown of Tacoma, Wash.

 

“We go back a long way,” says Coach DeCuire. “I’ve watched him grow, I’ve watched him kick in doors for opportunities. We’re talking about a young man that has always had leadership qualities, but has developed into a strong leader and a strong mentor of young men, and we need more of that.”

 

In addition to coaching at the collegiate level, Wortham has used basketball as a means of outreach and leadership development for organizations such as TEAM ACCESS, the YMCA of Pierce and Kitsap Counties, the Boys & Girls Club, the Isaiah Thomas Basketball Camp and Lids Team Sports-Nike Team.

 

Wortham’s duties for the Grizzlies under Coach DeCuire will include academic advising, player mentoring, recruiting and community outreach.

Joyce Ekworomadu is a Nigerian-American born August 6, 1986 in Edmond, Oklahoma and raised in Dallas, TX. She attended Texas State University where she averaged 18.9pts/gm, was Southland Conference Player of the Year, led the team to the school’s first ever Conference championship​, became the 5th player in Texas state history to record over 1500 points and 600 rebounds, voted on the all-Decade team, ESPN CoSIDA All-academic team, 3rd Place – ESPN 3PT Shootout (2008), was Nominated for Female athlete of the year and graduated with a BBA in Marketing.

Post college, she played in the WNBA, Poland, Italy and is a current member of the National Nigerian Basketball Team. She has traveled to over 40 countries playing the game of basketball.

Dutch Music Legends Focus Release New Album

“Focus 8.5 / Beyond The Horizon”

Dutch music legends Focus are known around the world for their iconic albums, including the hits HOCUS POCUS, SYLVIA and HOUSE OF THE KING. After the reunion of Focus and the release of the Focus 8 album, the band toured the world and was introduced to new musical styles and influences. The line-up on this album features THIJS VAN LEER, PIERRE VAN DER LINDEN, BOBBY JACOBS and JAN DUMÉE.

The sessions for the album were all recorded in between South American tour commitments during 2005, and every track is a previously unreleased composition by the members of Focus or producer MARVIO CIRIBELLI.

Thijs van Leer said of the album: “For Focus it was a thrill to first jam with Marvio and Marcio in a club in Niteroi and then end up in Rio de Janeiro in order to compose and record these beauties. Having one of the best drummers in Europe with Pierre van der Linden and one of South America’s best drummers with Marcio Bahia on the same album makes the world a better and happier place! Here they are!”

The album features all-star Brazilian musicians including ARTHUR MAIA and MARIO SEVE joining Focus on new recordings, and vice versa, plus a drum duet with MARCIO BAHIA…as musicianship once again goes Beyond the Horizon…

Thijs van Leer, holds the distinction of being the first ever knighted musician in Holland.

To purchase the New Album “Focus 8.5 / Beyond The Horizon” visit

Amazon .com, iTunes, Cherry Red Records

Track listing

1. FOCUS ZERO

2. HOLA, CÓMO ESTÁS?

3. ROCK 5

4. MILLENNIUM

5. INALTA

6. TALKING RHYTHMS

a) CONVERSATION OF DRUMS

b) CONVERSATION OF DRUMMERS

7. SURREXIT CHRISTUS

Visit FOCUS on Facebook  … https://www.facebook.com/Focus-the-band-197272485986/?ref=ts

Visit FOCUS on Twitter … https://twitter.com/Focustheband

KERI BOWERS

As an international speaker, filmmaker, writer, artist and autism advocate – but always an autism mom first – Keri is the owner of Normal Films, and co-founder of The Art of Autism. Keri has made 4 films, including:

Normal People Scare Me Too; a film about autism (2016), created and co-produced with her 27 year old autistic son, Taylor Cross, and produced by Joey Travolta.

ARTS (2008), a documentary highlighting the importance of music, dance, fine arts, and drama as vital tools to help develop a wide variety of skill sets, including educational, vocational, social, and life skills for people with disabilities.

The Sandwich Kid (2007), featuring her son, Jace (Taylor’s brother,) who interviews siblings to explore the intrinsic issues experienced by siblings of people with disabilities.

Normal People Scare Me; a film about autism (2006), which explores interviews (conducted by Taylor) of 65 individuals about living with autsm.

Keri is the author of three books, including Autism Movement Therapy: Waking up the Brain! (Jessica Kingsley, 2015); Mapping Transitions to Your Child’s Future, a workbook supporting transitions and life planning (Self-published; on demand), and Single Pregnancy, Single Parenting (Park Alexander Press, 1994). She was the editor of The Art of Autism: Shifting Perceptions (D. Hosseini). A featured columnist for Autism Asperger’s Digest Magazine, and occasional blogger, Keri focuses on the arts and autism as “power tools” to grow skills in autism.

In addition to operating Normal Films, her small indie production company, Keri is the founder of PAUSE4kids (1999) a non-profit supporting families of kids with special needs. She co-founded The Art of Autism in 2005, a social-entrepreneurship project that connects artists, bloggers, poes and other creatives with opportunities and venues to showcase their varied talents. She has been the creative art director for The Friendship Circle of the Conejo for 7 years, and has worked extensively with The Miracle Project, Los Angeles.

Keri’s numerous awards and recognitions for her work in program development over nearly 3 decades includes the prestigious Phoebe Apperson Hearst Award for Excellence in Education (best program at both the state and national levels, 2002). She has created numerous sustainable programs in the arts and awareness over the years.

BRUCE GARNITZ

Originally from Chicago, Bruce Garnitz honed his talents in San Francisco’s eclectic music scene and polished them at Berklee College of Music in Boston. After graduating, he joined the faculty. Arriving in Los Angeles, Bruce built a reputation for musical excellence. Bruce is an outstanding entertainer, a dynamic guitarist and vocalist and has toured worldwide with his band.

An accomplished composer, arranger, songwriter and musical director, his musical talents have been heard in several popular television shows. His song “Telephone Blues” was in the Sony Pictures release “Are We There Yet?”, his song “Circles” was in the Warner Bros. current release “Scooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster” and his song “Wishing Well” as well as an on camera performance by Bruce was featured in an episode of the TV Show: “Children’s Hospital”. Most recently, he had four songs in the made for TV movie: “Game of Love” starring Heather Locklear in which she sings the song “We’ll Be Together One Day” which he wrote for the film and which she sings in one of the scenes.

His latest CD is called “I Must Be Dreamin'” and is available through iTunes, Amazon

A few words about Bruce Garnitz’s music:

Bruce Garnitz’s music has been described as “Jazz-Clectic”. There is a strong Blues influence from early Chicago roots. With a voice that channels the character in each song, ranging from the lighter to darker sides of life, usually with a twist, his songs take the audience on a musical, maiden voyage through the joys, sorrows and absurdities of the world around us.

Tony Lo Bianco: Actor | Director | Writer | Producer has starred in the Academy Award-winning film The French Connection. He is a Tony-nominated and winner of the Outer Critics Circle Award in A View from the Bridge on Broadway. Obie Award for Yanks-3, Detroit-0, Top of the 7th and Emmy Award for his portrayal of Fiorello La Guardia in Hizzoner! In film, he has starred in The Juror, Blood Brothers, City Heat, Nixon, The Seven Ups, Honeymoon Killers and Kill the Irishman; totaling 102 films. Has directed one feature and 5 television shows.  He is proud of his involvement with The USO, Building Homes for Heroes, The Wounded Warrior Project, NIAF, Sons of Italy in America, Police and Fire Department and many other charitable organizations. Recently, Tony Lo Bianco won an Emmy award for Just A Common Soldier.