Betty Reid Soskin recounts introducing President Obama at the annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony as the conclusion of "The American Narrative." At 97, Betty Reid Soskin is a lot of things, starting with a celebrated African-American storyteller, whose family’s experience goes back to the Dred Scott Decision and progresses through the Civil War and Reconstruction, and on through the Civil Rights Movement and Black Lives matter. She’s also the oldest working Park Ranger in

Morongwe "Mo" Mokone at her NY NOW booth New NY NOW attendee Morongwe “Mo” Mokone made a particularly strong first impression this week at the summer edition of the NY NOW home/lifestyle/handmade/gift market trade show at New York’s Javits Center. Her Mo’s Crib South African handcrafted homeware design and crafts company, which makes eye-catching recycled origami paper swans along with planters and baskets made from recycled PVC water pipes, won a NY NOW Special Mention in th

Stojo cups at NY NOW The next thing in collapsible cups is at the summer NY NOW home/lifestyle/handmade/gift market trade show at New York’s Javits Center this week, specifically at the Stojo exhibitor booth--Stojo being short for “stow Joe,” Joe as in coffee. “It’s all about sustainability--and making it accessible for everyone,” says Stojo’s chief marketing officer Jocelyn Kolkin, noting that Americans discard 58 billion disposable cups annually, hence the Stojo Pocket Cup.

Yafa's new Yookers and Monteverde Engage entries at NSS Pen aficionados know that fountain pens have been making a comeback of sorts over the last few years. At the summer National Stationery Show (NSS) currently underway at New York’s Javits Center, the Yafa pen company, which manufactures and distributes top pen brands, is showing a pair of new models that fill a gap between fountain pens and both rollerballs and felt-tip pens. Yookers is a new brand for Yafa, that offers a