I am very sad to read that my American friend Keith Wyse passed away earlier this month. He was the founder of Agape Family Life House, based in China. Agape is an orphanage that takes in orphaned and/or abandoned children, many of whom have physical disabilities. Four of Keith's eight children were born with osteogenesis imperfecta (brittle bones). I met Keith and his family in 2012. I once described him as a living saint. I even referred to him as my buddy. He reciprocated. RIP Keith. I first wrote about Keith and his wonderful family in late 2012, in a blog titled My Favourite Moment of 2012. I wrote about them again the next year, in The Unbreakable Wyse Family. Here is a video of Keith sharing his testimonial with the congregation of New Life Christian Fellowship Church in Oak Park, Illinois (ca. 2013).
Today, January 17, would have been Muhammad Ali's birthday. He would have been 75 in 2017. I mourned his death last June 3 like the rest of the world. In 1985, I was privileged to meet him during my first trip to New York City. I recognized him from having watched some clips of his old boxing matches on TV. My parents and I were leaving the Hilton Hotel to check out some sites when I spotted him with reporters nearby. I spotted him from a distance, and quickly told my parents to take me to where he was. I think my parents were shocked that I knew who he was! As soon as he saw me we shook hands and got this photo taken. He also shook hands with my dad. He amazed and impressed all of us. I remember Muhammad Ali to be warm and down-to-earth. By the time we saw him he was in the early stage of Parkinson's disease.
In 2002, I got to see Ali live again in Toronto when the Argonauts football team honoured him in an event supporting Parkinson's research organizations in Canada. Though by the time the ravages of his disease had taken hold of him, he was still a larger than life figure with the soul of a champion. Of all the famous people I have met over the years, Muhammad Ali is definitely one of the greatest. I was sad to see him go last year, yet he had suffered a lot before, during and after his boxing career came to an end in 1981. He had earned his self-appointed title as one of the greatest people the world has ever seen in our lifetimes. Happy birthday, and rest in peace champ.
I took this photo of Muhammad Ali's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. It is the only star that isn't on the pavement.
There is a new radio show that might sound like a typical daytime talk show, but at the same time is unlike any other right now.
Kelly and Company, on AMI-audio, is the first-afternoon talk show to be hosted by a member of the blind community. Kelly MacDonald, a veteran radio and TV broadcaster, has been a part of the Accessible Media Incorporated family for the past 15 years.
“The show came to be on the heels of our morning show, Live From Studio 5, and the need for people who want more than just a reading service,” he says. “They want information more spontaneously.”
Unlike the morning show, Kelly and Company is a lifestyle centered show. MacDonald hosts the program with veteran broadcaster Sharon Caddy (formerly of CTV News Toronto and CTS). They are joined by a weekly group of panelists and correspondents, focusing on topics such as employment, nutrition, sexuality, personal finance audiobooks and sports.
“The Company part of our show is really our way of asking people to give us ideas, subjects and ask questions, and give their own opinions. We don’t come across as experts, but as contributors lending experiences and to combine information with entertainment.”
For Kelly MacDonald, you could say that he has now come full circle in his career as a reporter and broadcaster. A graduate of Fanshawe College in London, Ont., MacDonald started out in radio which he says is his first love. He later moved into television including a show he created and hosted for AMI TV called Blind Sighted before returning to radio for Kelly and Company.
I asked him what the secret is behind his success in a field where people with disabilities aren’t always heard or appreciated.
“I try (to be both serious and funny) because it’s too depressing to be only one way," he replies. "It has been an interesting 15 years for me to do production work, be a volunteer coordinator, do TV work, and now forging on to do what I actually set out to do when I went to college to do radio.”
Kelly and Company debuted on October 31. It airs live weekday afternoons from 3-5 pm ET on AMI-audio.
You can listen to the show live online at http://www.ami.ca/listenlive. AMI-audio can also be heard on digital TV at Bell Fibe 49 and Rogers 196.
Kelly MacDonald (right) with co-host Sharon Caddy
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