December 16 Newsletter Good morning Yavapai County! I hope that everyone is enjoying their holiday season and not getting too stressed over holiday shopping! For any new members, my name is Sidney and I work at Yavapai County Community Health Services as the Exceptional Child Health Resource Coordinator. Welcome to the Yavapai Special Needs Support Network. My job is trying to help people feel more connected during these trying times. So again welcome! Today we are going to take a deeper dive into Kwanzaa. Kwanzaa began in the United States in 1966, therefore it is a relatively new holiday. One of the main goals in its creation was to create pride and unity around all African culture. The holiday is modeled after harvest festivals. Seven is a super important number when it comes to Kwanzaa. There are seven symbols, seven principles, and Kwanzaa is celebrated over seven nights. The seven symbols of Kwanzaa are mazao (the crops), mkeka (the mat), kinara (the candle ​ holder), muhindi (the corn), mishumaa saba (the seven candles), kikombe cha umoja (the unity cup) and zawadi (the gifts). And the seven principles are unity (umoja in Swahili), self-determination (kujichagulia), collective work and responsibility (ujima), cooperative economics (ujamaa), purpose (nia), creativity (kuumba) and faith (imani). Like Hanukkah, lighting candles is a large part of Kwanzaa. Each candle represents one principle of Kwanzaa and one day. The colors of Kwanzaa have very specific meanings. The green symbolizes hope and the future and the red symbolizes the struggle of the people. Kwanzaa gifts are often homemade. Kwanzaa itself is not a religious holiday, so many people celebrate it along with Christmas or Hanukkah. Kwanzaa begins on December 26 and goes until January 1. Tomorrow, December 17, is Wright Brothers Day! So here are some things you may not have known about the Wright Brothers! Because of a coin toss, Orville was the first brother airborne. A toy launched their obsession with flying. Neither brother received a high school diploma. The brothers once printed a newspaper together. They both never got married. They only flew together one time. Orville was involved in the first fatal aviation crash. Neil Armstrong took a piece of the Wright Flyer with him to the moon. Here is a fun article on how to make the best paper airplanes! https://www.artofmanliness.com/articles/how-to-make-the-worlds-best-paper-airplanes/ December is Universal Human Rights Month! This month is a commemoration of the standard and fundamental human rights that all people of the world deserve. This month was established following the atrocities of World War II. To avoid something like this happening again, the United Nations came together and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (can be read here https://www.ohchr.org/EN/UDHR/Documents/UDHR_Translations/eng.pdf ). This Declaration ​ speaks of the rights that everyone deserves solely for being a person on this planet and a few restrictions. Unfortunately people’s human rights are still being violated every day and that is why remembering this month is so important. Tips for Observing Universal Human Rights Month https://www.protocolww.com/tips-for-observing-universal-human-rights-month/ Last but certainly not least click below for the survey. If you just have a recommendation or a question you can also reply directly to this email. :) .