These powerful, compelling and award-winning series which make their exclusive U.S. debuts on HBO Latino are produced by HBO Latin America and include current series Mujer de Fases and Destino Deporte as well Epitafios, Mandrake, Sexo Urbano, Capadocia, Hijos del Carnival and Alice.  Viewers will have an option to watch the Spanish-language series with or without subtitles. Series originally in Portuguese will be shown with Spanish subtitles.

HBO GO can be accessed at hbogo.com or via the HBO GO app – available for download on Apple’s iPad, iPhone and iPod touch, select Android devices and platforms such as Xbox 360, Samsung Smart TV and Roku – and is free of charge to HBO subscribers through participating television providers.

 The Orange County Health Department’s Hepatitis Prevention Program works to educate and encourage people to get tested and get vaccinated to help prevent hepatitis infection.  It is important for people to get tested because if left undetected, hepatitis B and C can lead to cirrhosis, liver cancer, or liver failure.

 The Hepatitis Prevention Program will be providing free hepatitis testing and hepatitis vaccines during World Hepatitis Testing Day on Friday, May 18 from 8:00am – 11:30am at the Orange County Health Department located at 832 West Central Blvd. Orlando, first floor.

“Hepatitis A and B are vaccine preventable.  Adults should be aware of their risk and get vaccinated to prevent this disease,” said Dr. Kevin M. Sherin, Director of the Orange County Health Department.

 Hepatitis is characterized by inflammation of the liver. Hepatitis A, B, and C are the most common types of viral hepatitis in the United States. Symptoms of hepatitis, if they are present, include nausea, fever, weakness, loss of appetite and jaundice. Hepatitis A is transmitted by eating food or drinking water that has been contaminated with human waste (feces). Hepatitis B is spread through contact with the blood or body fluids of an infected person. Hepatitis C is usually spread through contact with blood containing the virus.  There is no vaccine for hepatitis C (HCV). 

There will be another event this Saturday in Sanford. You can read a story on hepatitis and Hispanics  in El Sentinel (Spanish) this weekend.

The station will feature four talented jockeys including Eduardo Robles, Junior Nieves, Franchy and James “El Bandido,” as they bring the best tropical music to the area.

 “As a leader in Spanish-language radio, we constantly seek to serve our listeners by enhancing our stations with popular formats and fresh talent to attract new listeners in our markets, further allowing advertisers to successfully reach their target audiences,” said Jeffery Liberman, President of Entravision’s Radio Division. “We understood the need for an all-tropical format in the market and, with Orlando being one of the fastest growing Hispanic markets in the U.S., we are committed to providing our listeners with this highly in-demand tropical music on Salsa 98.1 FM.”

In addition to Salsa 98.1 FM, Entravision also owns and operates the Univision and TeleFutura affiliate television stations in the Orlando market.

According to Luis De Rosa, one of the event’s organizers, in a statement sent to Hispanosphere, the summit will be an opportunity to honor business institutions such as Goya Foods of Florida, La Rosa del Monte, and the newly established Mech-Tech College, a Puerto Rico based school recently expanded into Orlando.  Summit organizers expect the attendance and participation of local Puerto Rican elected, business, and community leaders, as well as guest speakers representing the White House and the US Small Business Administration.

The Summit, being held at the Florida Hotel and Conference Center. El Sentinel will be covering the event.

All attendees must pre-register. The workshops will cost $10 each and the Summit Luncheon will cost $35.  Online registration can be found at www.dynamiccdc.com/summit/register.html.

Michelle Herrera Mulligan, formerly the managing editor of LasFabulosas.com, is the magazine’s editor-in-chief.  Donna Kalajian Lagani, SVP, publishing director and chief revenue officer of Cosmopolitan, will oversee the brand’s advertising and marketing efforts.

 ”Cosmopolitan for Latinas is the definitive voice of today’s bilingual Latina who is sexy, stylish and intelligent, and wants to see herself reflected in the pages of a women’s lifestyle magazine,” said Herrera Mulligan. “We talk to our readers like a best Latina girlfriend, and cover everything from fashion, food, relationships and careers in a fresh and engaging way.”

 Cosmopolitan for Latinas will be a twice-yearly, stand-alone print edition with a cover price of $3.99. Initial distribution will be 545,000 copies, available nationwide, with a strong presence in top Hispanic markets throughout the U.S.  A digital edition of the publication will be available on Apple, Zinio and Barnes & Noble e-newsstands.  Beginning in July 2012, targeted copies of Cosmopolitan magazine will feature bonus editorial content curated for the Hispanic female consumer.   

“Launching new businesses that address the ever-changing needs of consumers is something that we do especially well,” said David Carey, president of Hearst Magazines. “Cosmopolitan for Latinas aligns with the mindset and interest of a growing demographic eager for content tailored specifically for her.”  

You can read a story on the new Cosmopolitan in Spanish here.

The workshop begins May 12^th and will be held on Saturday, May 19, May 26, and June 2, from 9 a.m. to noon, at the Adult Literacy League, 345 W. Michigan Street, Suite 100, Orlando FL 32806. The workshop will be taught by volunteer instructor Lina Puerta, who passed the exam and was sworn in as a U.S. citizen in April.

 Students will study the questions on the exam, prepare for their citizenship interviews and take part in mock interviews scheduled for the last day of the workshop, June 2.  Class materials will be provided by the U.S. Department of Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). USCIS volunteers will be in attendance to review the citizenship process with students and conduct mock interviews.

So far this year, 17 students have been sworn in as U.S. citizens as a result of hours of instruction in the Adult Literacy League’s citizenship classes. The classes are taught by literacy instructor, Vince Scalise, who has been tutoring and teaching at the League for 15 years. Students enrolled in this class have a 100% success rate of passing their citizenship test. The national success rate is 90-94%, according to the U.S. Department of Citizenship and Immigration Services.

For more information, call the Adult Literacy League at 407-422-1540.

“The Trayvon Martin killing has sparked many discussions about racism throughout our community,” says Bob Longo, News Director of WESH 2. “We feel it is important for us to host a community discussion on this difficult topic with Central Florida community leaders.”

“Race: A Community Conversation” will be hosted by WESH 2 News anchors Jim Payne and Syan Rhodes, and will include guests: Michael C. Blake, Cocoa Mayor; Cynthia Slater, President of the Volusia County NAACP; Allie Braswell, Jr., President and CEO of the Central Florida Urban League; Jeff Triplett, Sanford Mayor; Rabbi David Kay, First Assistant of Congregation Ohev Shalom; Marytza Sanz, founder & President/CEO of Latino Leadership, Inc.; and Glenn Leong, President/Owner of Glenn R. Leong Law Office.

In addition, WESH has commissioned an exclusive poll to gauge the perception and reality of how pervasive racist attitudes are in Central Florida. Those results will be revealed during the special.

“The time is right to address this important topic,” says Jim Carter, President and General Manager of WESH and WKCF, “we are taking the discussions happening all across Central Florida and bringing them to the forefront.”

“Race, A Community Conversation” will simulcast live on both WESH 2, WKCF/CW18 and MeTV on Wednesday and will be rebroadcast on Estrella TV Orlando on Friday, April 27th from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Orlando City Commissioner Tony Ortiz, who brought the need to the attention of Rural/Metro Ambulance, was on site for the donation.  Alejandro Gonzalez, director of external relations for Dominican Republic  Sen. Rosa Sonia Mateo accepted the keys to the ambulances.

In November 2011, Commissioner Ortiz went to the Dominican Republic on a government-related visit. While meeting with Sen. Mateo, Commissioner Ortiz learned that a hospital in Sen. Mateo’s home province of Dajabón, which borders on Haiti, had a critical shortage of ambulances.

 Upon his return, he learned that Rural/Metro Ambulance was getting ready to retire some of their older, high-mileage ambulances. Rural/Metro worked with Commissioner Ortiz’s office and with Sen. Mateo’s representative to make arrangements to donate the ambulances. Immediately after turning over the keys on Friday, the ambulances were driven to a port in Brevard County at which time they will be taken by boat to Dajabón.

On May 4, 2012, at the  Orange County Regional History Center, she will be talking about her new book, “Pink Boots and a Machete: My Journey from NFL Cheerleader to National Geographic Explorer.”

According to a press release sent out to Hispanosphere, that night you can hear her unlikely story of a first-generation Cuban-American “girly girl” who forges her way from a sheltered upbringing to cheering in the NFL to death-defying adventures around the globe with little more than a backpack, notebooks, and pink hiking boots. Mayor has reported on wildlife and conservation issues to worldwide audiences as a correspondent on numerous television programs for more than a decade and is currently a host on the Nat Geo WILD channel. She is redefining what it means to “have it all” for a new generation of women.

Special guest Aixa Diaz, WESH 2 News anchor and reporter, will introduce Mayor.

 A book signing of “Pink Boots and a Machete,” recently included in Reader’s Digest “Today’s Best Nonfiction,” will follow the program. A reception with hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar will begin at 7 p.m. followed by the program at 7:30 p.m. The event is $15 for Historical Society Members and $25 for non-members. For reservations, call 407- 836-7010. 

Bishop John Noonan goes to Cuba. Photo by George Skene

The pilgrimage from Florida is being organized by the Archdiocese of Miami and will include visits to Santiago and Havana where the Pope will be celebrating an outdoor Mass.

 Bishop Noonan is going to Cuba for the first time. Before his trip he talked to El Sentinel. 

 What are your expectations on this trip to Cuba?

It is a joy for me to go on this special occasion, specially when is the visit of the Holy Father for the 400th anniversary of our Lady of Charity. That is really the main reason why I want to go, essentially is to show solidarity with the people.

Do you have plans to meet with human rights activists in Cuba?

I think this is a pilgrimage more than anything else because since it is a pilgrimage it will be a time for prayer and gathering with different religious leaders rather than a fact-finding or a political visit. I think this more of a pilgrimage, a journey of faith, a journey of prayer.

What kind of changes are you expecting after this Pope’s visit to Cuba?

I saw changes after the last visit of the Holy Father, I think in 1997, we saw a whole awareness of people of faith. There was a greater awareness of God in their lives. So, I think visits like this are moments of conversion for people.

What do you think about people who do not agree with the visit?

There are always going to be a percentage of people who don’t agree but the church is for everybody. We can listen to people who disagree but I think we have to look at the people who want more than anything else to hear his message, this is a celebration of 400 years of faith, 400 years of the patroness of Cuba, so I think it is a time to celebrate positively rather that negatively.

The Cuban dissident group Ladies in White has asked Pope Benedict XVI to give them “a minute” of his time during his visit, do you think this is going to be possible?

That is beyond my understanding because that is a political thing. Again, I am not too sure, that is up to the political scene of the whole thing. Will the government allow the Holy Father to meet with the people? That is always a question. His whole message is a message of peace and prayer. Is he going to be allowed to meet those people? I do not know. I do not know anything about this.

How do you feel about meeting Raul Castro? Anything you would like to say to him?

There are lots of things I would like to say to him, but also you have to be aware that I am a religious leader not a political leader. Everyday we pray, even when I lived and worked in Miami, you live and work with people, you see the pain and you see the sorrow. People have not been able to return home, people whose families are still there, people who have not seen their grandparents or brother or sisters, who have died in Cuba. There is that great separation between the two people and yet they are one people.

If you have to write a headline for your visit, what would it be?

There are a lot of things that you would love to be able to write. I think you do not want to be too dramatic. I could think of a lot of thing but I am not too sure how you can express them. The fact that you could you see peace, reconciliation. Havana..Miami they have the straits but there is still the strings attached, people still have their hearts in Cuba and how you can deny that right to be able to be one people.