ARAB TIMES, TUESDAY, JUNE 22, 2021 NEWS/FEATURES 13

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‘Live Your Life’ Father’s Day gift Kloots hopes people do Father gives girl not forget ‘COVID loss’ a life-saving gift

NEW YORK, June 21, (AP): As COVID-19 restric- CARRIERE, Miss., June 21, (AP): tions lift in the US, many are reacquainting with Sitting poolside with his wife and friends and loved ones, attending parties, booking two daughters, Rhett Shaffette says vacations and celebrating a return to normal. he’s already received the best gift But for Amanda Kloots, 39, a fi tness instructor this Father’s Day. and TV personality, it’s not a return to the life she His 12-year-old daughter is thriv- had before the pandemic, and it never will be. Her ing, eight months after getting a por- husband, Nick Cordero, died from complications of tion of his liver. She received the the virus after more than 90 days in the hospital. He transplant after nearly losing her life was 41 and had no prior health problems. to internal bleeding. Cordero was an actor and singer, best-known for “It was a very close call,” Rhett his work on Broadway in musicals “”, said. His daughter Cecilia, 11 at the “” and “ Bullets Over Broadway,” where time, had spent years in frustration he met Kloots. They married in 2017. on the transplant list, and was twice “I hope people don’t forget what our world was called to be a back-up recipient, only a year ago, said Kloots in an to be sent home interview over Zoom from again in disap- pointment. . “Because of After Cecil- what I went through and how ia’s near-fatal traumatic it was... I will never bleed last year, forget what that was. And the family de- because of that, I’m taking a cided to look slow roll back into society. instead for a It’s a little harder for me to be partial trans- back in huge, big groups. I’m plant from a not there yet.” living donor. Kloots has become a face Kloots And they Cecilia of COVID-19’s devastation. didn’t have to While Cordero was hospitalized, Kloots posted up- This cover image released by Harmonic Alliance shows ‘Devil in the Hills: Coal Country Reckoning’ by Mary Hott with the look far: Tests and scans revealed dates on her social media. It led to a daily virtual Carpenter Ants. (AP) that Rhett’s liver was an ideal dance party to Cordero’s song “Live Your Life” match. A few weeks later, both were as a battle cry to wake him up. The well-wishes prepped for surgery. spread to celebrities including Sylvester Stallone “It was a godsend,” Rhett said. and Priscilla Presley, plus people across the globe “That’s the only way to explain it.” whom had never even met Cordero or Kloots, but Cecilia had been suffering since felt emotionally invested. birth with biliary atresia. That’s Kloots says “it means the world” if her story has when bile ducts in the liver don’t helped others who also went through their own loss form normally, preventing the or- from COVID-19, or just felt moved to appreciate gan from functioning properly. It’s life and loved ones. one of the most common reasons In this rollercoaster year, Kloots says she’s gotten why children in the US require liver used to experiencing highs as well as lows. A major transplants, said John Seal, one of win came in January when she was named one of the surgeons on the family’s trans- the hosts of CBS’ “ .” plant team at Ochsner Hospital for Kloots has also released a new book called “Live Children in New Orleans. Your Life: My Story of Loving and Losing Nick Quality Cordero.” She wrote the book with the help of her younger sister, Anna, who along with their older Having a biological parent as a brother, Todd, dropped everything and moved in to living donor helps with immunity help care for the couple’s infant son, Elvis, while and lowers the chance of organ re- Cordero was hospitalized. Kloots writes that they jection. But some kids awaiting transplants are in foster care or helped create order and a sense of calm in her time situations where a biological parent of crisis. isn’t available or willing to donate. AP: You really had to fi nd your voice in becom- So now there’s a movement among ing an advocate for Nick while he was being treated, pediatric surgeons and programs at a really intimidating time. Would you advise peo- across the country to push for more ple to do the same? anonymous living donors, Seal said. Kloots: Personally, for me, the minute I walk into Organs from living donors have a hospital, I’m just intimidated. So imagine. Yes, been found to be superior in qual- being in the ICU in the midst of a pandemic and you ity to those harvested from deceased have four ICU doctors at the top of their game tell- donors, he said. And because the liv- ing you, based on their experience, based on their er regenerates quickly, children and education, which is a lot, what they think should Cecilia Shaffette relaxes in the backyard with her father Rhett Shaffette, at their home in Carriere, Miss., June 16. The small adults typically only need a happen, what they believe should be going on. It 12-year-old is thriving, eight months after getting a portion of her father’s liver. She received the transplant after nearly losing her life to internal bleeding. (AP) part of a healthy donor’s liver. Both was very hard at times to hold my ground and to say patients can typically expect their “No,” or, “I have a crazy idea.” It was tough. But livers to return to normal size within I encourage people to do it, I really do. And in the a few months to a year, Seal said. end, even the times I felt like so silly offering any “No kid should die waiting for a suggestion that was coming my way via what I was Music liver,” he said. “The biggest risk is Googling or what my Instagram army was telling that time waiting for an organ, and me to ask. In the end, David Ng, Nick’s doctor, said that wait time is getting longer and to me, “It was the Wild Wild West and because you longer throughout the country.” were offering so many suggestions and you were Album of exploration from Lage Living donors made possible 491 being so strong, we did things that we maybe never of the 8,906 liver transplants per- would have done.” And so I think it’s a testament to formed in the United States last year, being as strong as you possibly can. It is hard and according to the United Network for it is intimidating. But you are the best advocate for Hott brings wrongs to light Organ Sharing, the nonprofi t that ad- your person. And when you know your person like ministers the nation’s procurement a husband and a wife does, I wasn’t going to give up By Steven Wine rootsy rock with echoes of Appala- and transplant process. on him until I knew that I had to. chia that perfectly suits Hott’s ap- More than 500 of last year’s liver AP: You speak of signs sometimes on social me- ary Hott with the Carpenter pealing alto and honors a singular transplants were performed on chil- dia. Have you had any signs you believe were from MAnts, “Devil in the Hills: Coal genre: history matters. dren, but only 66 were from living Nick recently? Country Reckoning” (Harmonic Al- ❑ ❑ ❑ donors. And of those, only 22 do- Kloots: liance) nors were the child’s biological par- So many. The other day I was in the car This is grim history beautifully Julian Lage, “Squint” (Blue Note after doing a couple of book interviews and after ent, according to UNOS. told. Records) “We still don’t have enough qual- talking about Nick, you kind of instantly feel sad Mary Hott has put to music the In the right hands, 12 notes multi- and lonely. So I got in the car and I said, “Nick, ity donors to take care of all the kids tragic tale of West Virginia’s mine plied by six strings can produce end- on the wait list,” Seal said. will you send me a sign, please? I really miss you, wars. They ended 100 years ago this less variety. Here’s proof. honey.” And one of the songs that comes on the ra- This cover image released by Harper summer, but her songs show the re- Jazz guitarist Julian Lage’s Blue Transplant dio all the time since he’s passed is “Every Breath shows ‘Live Your Life: My Story of sulting emotional damage still lingers Note Records debut is an exuberant, More than 300 children remain on You Take” by The Police. I turned on the radio and Loving and Losing Nick Cordero’ by in the region. engaging, endlessly inventive ex- the waiting list for a liver transplant it came right on. It fi nished, I turned the station and Amanda Kloots with Anna Kloots. (AP) No wonder: In Hott’s telling, the ploration of styles. Fronting his trio, in the US, along with more than it was on again. It was literally like Nick being like, wars were a violent clash of rich and which also includes bassist Jorge 11,500 adults, according to UNOS “I’m watching you. I’m with you through this every poor involving terrorism, slave labor Roeder and drummer Dave King, Cecilia’s mother, Angelle, de- step of this way.” and sexual exploitation often kept se- Lage echoes and honors guitar sling- scribed transplant day as long, ex- AP: How’s Elvis doing now that he just turned 2? Variety cret. “Devil in the Hills: Coal Coun- ers ranging beyond jazz, from Tom hausting, stressful, emotional, but in Kloots: “It’s crazy. Just yesterday I was looking try Reckoning” brings the wrongs Verlaine to Dick Dale to Chuck the end, worth it. at him and I was like, ”Look at Elvis right now. He to light in a powerful way, and the Berry. Eight months later, Rhett says literally looks like he’s grown up fi ve years in two LONDON: Queen Elizabeth II was smiling album package includes extensive, Imitation is not Lage’s thing, broadly as she attended the fi nal day of the he’s feeling great, is back at work days.” He’s wonderful. He’s such a lover. He’s an informative liner notes. though. On “Squint,” his distinctive and enjoying his favorite pastimes, Ascot races on Saturday, where environmen- “If you don’t believe me,” Hott distillation of his instrument’s possi- old soul. I’ve always said it from the day I locked tal protesters urged the monarch to press poli- hunting and fi shing. He said he’s eyes with him, he’s just a beautiful little boy. He’s sings, “then shame on you.” bilities produces notes that swirl and “anxious to see her be all that she ticians to act faster against climate change. soar and curlicue and twist and shout my best friend. The 95-year-old queen, a keen racing fan Hott is a seventh-generation West can be, now that nothing’s holding Virginian who had a career in soft- and land with a grin. Mellifl uous her back.” Also: and racehorse owner, has attended Ascot almost every year of her seven-decade ware engineering before returning single-note lines are countered with He and Angelle smiled and gig- NEW YORK: Plans are afoot to put some old hit reign. She was absent last year, when the to her native Morgan County to run stabs of dissonance and strummy gled while watching Cecilia, now songs by Britney Spears into a stage musical about event was held without spectators because the local arts council. She released squalls. 12, play a game of tag on hover- woke princesses, and the hope is that the result isn’t of the coronavirus pandemic. Her return her fi rst album of original material The set opens with a lovely, un- boards with her little sister, Lydia. “Toxic.” came two months after the death of her in 2014 and wrote seven of the songs dulating, slightly discordant theme, The girls also practiced some dance The Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washing- husband, Prince Philip, at 99. on “Devil in the Hills.” Among the “Etude,” before the combo settles moves, with Cecilia showing off her ton, D.C. announced last month that it will stage Dressed in a mint-green outfi t and three covers is a moving rendition of into a swaggering, funky groove on leaps and twirls. “Once Upon a One More Time,” featuring Spears’ matching hat, the queen was applauded by “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” “Boo’s Blues.” On “Quiet Like a Before the transplant, this much the crowd as she arrived to cheer on four with Hott backed by gospel piano. Fuse,” Lage plays as if he’s sharing activity would have fatigued and tunes, including “Oops!… I Did It Again,” “Lucky,” horses she owns that were racing on Satur- “Stronger” and “Toxic.” She has a fi rst-rate supporting cast a secret, and an ominous ostinato stressed her body, at times causing day. She smiled broadly as she inspected in the Carpenter Ants, with indie rock leads to resolution at the end. “Twi- pain, discomfort or illness. The musical will have an original story written by one of her horses, Reach for the Moon, veteran Don Dixon and Mountain light Surfer” does indeed sound like Jon Hartmere about classic fairy tale princesses — after it fi nished a close second. “I have a lot more energy, and I Stage house band guitarist Michael a sports soundtrack, with an ending don’t feel bad a lot,” Cecilia said. Cinderella, Snow White and Little Mermaid, among The annual racing meeting west of Lon- Lipton co-producing. The music is that crests. (AP) them — who are transformed after reading “The don is a heady mix of horses, extravagant She said it’s been fi ve months since Feminine Mystique,” a landmark feminist text. headwear, fancy dress and strawberries her last trip to the hospital. “I just feel better overall,” she “Once Upon a One More Time” begins perfor- with cream. thored a farewell column that was published offered by the newspaper’s parent company. mances at Sidney Harman Hall on Nov. 29. It repre- Protesters from environmental group on the paper’s website Saturday morning. The Capital Gazette was owned by Tribune said. sents a signifi cant pivot for The Shakespeare Thea- Extinction Rebellion unfurled a banner Hutzell said he took a buyout that was Publishing until it was purchased last month Her parents see her improving as tre Company, known for it’s more stately offerings. reading “Racing to Extinction” at the race- by Hedge fund Alden Global Capital. well. course on Saturday. The group said four Hutzell was editor of the paper when “She doesn’t wake us up in the The temptation to use already proven, popu- women glued themselves to their banner lar songs to fuel a musical is an old one and on fi ve employees were shot to death in the middle of the night and tell us she’s and chained themselves to the fence in a newsroom in 2018. nauseous or she doesn’t feel good,” Broadway has lately led to shows with music from protest intended to be seen by the queen. Rob Angelle said. “She’s like a normal The Temptations, The Go Go’s, Tina Turner and She was not nearby at the time. (AP) “The murder of my fi ve friends, Hiaasen, Gerald Fischman, Wendi kid now.” Alanis Morissette. ❑ ❑ ❑ Cecilia knows how fortunate she Spears has been under the spotlight lately after Winters, John McNamara and Rebecca ANNAPOLIS, Md: The editor of the Capi- Smith, changed me,” he wrote on Saturday. is, thanks to her father’s love and the recent FX and Hulu documentary “The New generosity. York Times Presents: Framing Britney” looked at tal Gazette, which won a special Pulitzer “I always enjoyed the job. But I became Prize citation for its coverage and courage consumed with the notion that it was my “I’m very lucky and grateful that the circumstances that led to the establishment of in the face of a massacre in its newsroom, purpose to save the paper. A man with a he could do this for me,” she said. “I her conservatorship in 2008 and has spurred sympa- is leaving the Maryland newspaper. shotgun tried to kill us — to kill me and the have an awesome dad. He’s always thy for the singer. Rick Hutzell, who worked at the Annapo- newspaper I’ve poured my life into for 33 been my hero.” lis paper for more than three decades, au- Queen Elizabeth Hutzell years. I wasn’t going to let it die.” (AP)