Latest news with #Dwyer
Los Angeles Times
4 days ago
- General
- Los Angeles Times
Huntington Beach nonprofit Robyne's Nest, which helps at-risk teenagers, readies for new chapter
The late Fred Rogers, of 'Mister Rogers' Neighborhood' television fame, was given some advice by his mother for tough or scary times. 'Look for the helpers,' Rogers once recalled. 'You will always find people who are helping.' Robyne Wood of Huntington Beach is a helper. That will remain true regardless of Wood's status at Robyne's Nest, the nonprofit she started in 2015 to help at-risk and homeless high school students who are drug- and alcohol-free. But after a decade in charge, she's stepping away. Wood announced last month that she will be resigning as Robyne's Nest executive director in January. She said she feels the timing is right for her. Her husband, Kirby, turns 65 next year and will also be retiring. Her daughter Savana is getting married next year, while her son Parker just graduated from high school. So Wood is stepping away for a new chapter and some well deserved time off. 'I never saw myself being here more than 10 years, I don't know why.' she said. 'Robyne's Nest is doing really well financially. In our schools and in our programs, it's really sound. What better time to hand something off to somebody else to continue it than when it's doing great?' It can be considered a full-circle moment, as Robyne's Nest was born out of Wood's volunteer help when Savana was a student at Dwyer Middle School. Morgan Smith, the director of certified human resources for the Huntington Beach Union High School District, was principal at Dwyer back then. 'In an area of Huntington Beach where there's so much affluence, there's also extreme poverty,' Smith said. 'A lot of families were stacked in apartments three or four families deep. We had kids that went to Dwyer that were sleeping in vans at night. There wasn't a system in place for schools to really have the kind of consistent outreach.' Wood created a food pantry, but as the need became greater, more resources were needed. Smith suggested that she start a nonprofit, so she dove in. 'I had heard about a student who got kicked out of his house when he turned 18, and I was beside myself,' she said. 'There were a couple of other nonprofits that supported that age group, 18-24, but most of them, their idea was to put him in a sober living home, give him a motel voucher for a couple of days, an EBT card and a minimum wage job. I was just like, 'What kind of start in life is that?' It wasn't good enough for me.' Robyne's Nest has worked over the years with the Huntington Beach Union High School District and Newport-Mesa Unified School District. Newport-Mesa trustee Carol Crane has seen Wood become a familiar face at Back Bay High, an alternative school. 'She doesn't do it to be seen, she does it because she wants to,' Crane said. 'It's more to be there and support. Some people do things for their different purposes. For her, it's just very real.' Robyne's Nest held a 10-year anniversary celebration in April. The office on Talbert Avenue, which Robyne's Nest moved into in 2018, has expanded over the years. In the back is a food pantry, and upstairs is space for an in-house mental health and wellness program, as well as a therapy room. Next door is a thrift shop opened in 2022 that's open to the public and helps support the cause. Another key step was opening Robyne's Landing, a shared transitional living house in Huntington Beach for abandoned and severely neglected students. Wood said she lived there herself for three months after a house manager had a family emergency, which should surprise no one who knows her well. 'She is a dynamo,' said Tom Williamson, a past president of the Robyne's Nest Board of Trustees who owns Marina Auto Body. 'I've never met anybody like Robyne. I know that probably sounds like it's buttered up, but let me tell you. If you spend some time with her, 'no' is not in her vocabulary, she gets it done. I wish I had a whole bunch of employees like her. I've got a few, but my God.' Linda Temple, who just retired as a psychologist at Edison High School, said that she started working with Wood when she was providing snacks for high school students. Now Wood has a team of about 50 core volunteers, plus many more who help at the holiday season. 'It's such a transitional time, and it's so critical for students to have support and know they're not alone,' Temple said. 'Even on a good day, they're struggling. You have so many who have issues with parents at home, or they live with grandparents. The mental health issue is huge.' Wood said she herself would have been a Robyne's Nest kid. Growing up on the East Coast, she left home when she was 17 and moved to Maryland. 'I finished my senior year on my own, I worked, I rode the bus,' she said. 'I learned a lot of lessons. I know what these kids go through and try to share that with them.' Wood and her family moved to Huntington Beach in 2008. She has two noticeable tattoos on her left wrist. One is a cross and the other is her favorite Bible passage, Jeremiah 29:11. 'Everything I've done has come so easily,' she said. 'I put something out that I need this, I need that, and it comes. Good karma in the world, God's will, whatever you want to call it. But I think too, people just have trust in us. We're here, we're helping take care of the kids, we're pretty transparent about everything. We're not trying to Band-Aid everything, we're really trying to make lives better with all of the tools that we have.' The person who takes over as executive director at Robyne's Nest will undoubtedly have big shoes to fill. Smith, who has also been principal at Fountain Valley and Marina high schools, knows the nonprofit will continue doing important work, providing a support structure for hundreds of teenagers and young adults over the years. 'The place that they're at now, I don't know if she ever dreamed it would be there, but Robyne is just nonstop,' he said. 'You can't tell her no; she will find a way. We are all just in her gravitational field. She's like a shooting star passing through, and we all just kind of slowly get pulled in with her gravity and become part of it. It's exciting, and it's a lot of fun, but she is that center of the universe and it is all-consuming.'
USA Today
5 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
How did Cameron Kuchar, Charlie Woods fare at U.S. Junior Amateur Championship?
Cameron Kuchar, a rising senior at Jupiter High School and son of PGA Tour veteran Matt Kuchar, lost to California's Kailer Stone 2-and-1 in the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship's Round of 64 on Wednesday at Trinity Forest Golf Club in Dallas. Stone, who led the tournament after the first round of stroke play on Monday, advances to face China's Mingbo Jiang in the Round of 32 on July 24 at 8:45 a.m. Kuchar lost the first two holes of the round but rallied to take a 1-up lead after hole No. 7. Stone then leveled the score on No. 9 and, after the pairing tied four consecutive holes, the Californian won holes No. 14 and 16 before closing out Kuchar. Kuchar was the last of four Palm Beach County golfers who qualified for the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship. Benjamin graduate Pavel Tsar, Dwyer rising senior Wylie Inman and Benjamin School rising junior Charlie Woods all missed the cut after two rounds of stroke play. The U.S. Junior Amateur featured a 264-player field with stroke play at Trinity Forest Golf Club and Brook Hollow Golf Club, both in Dallas. The field cut to the top 64 after two rounds of stroke play. Trinity Forest will host championship match play rounds with the final match scheduled for July 26. Past winners of the U.S. Junior Amateur include current world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler (2013), Jordan Spieth (2009, 2011) and Tiger Woods (1991, 1992, 1993). Eric J. Wallace is deputy sports editor for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at ejwallace@
Time of India
17-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas warns tech founders: ‘Big Tech will copy anything that's good'
Aravind Srinivas , CEO of AI search startup Perplexity , has advised student entrepreneurs to expect their ideas to be copied by large technology companies. Speaking at Y Combinator's AI Startup School, Srinivas said that if a new product has potential to generate substantial revenue, big tech firms will likely replicate it. 'You've got to live with that fear' While addressing undergraduate, graduate and PhD students, Srinivas explained how major players like Google, Meta and OpenAI are always scanning the market for new ideas that can be scaled. 'If your company is something that can make revenue on the scale of hundreds of millions of dollars or potentially billions of dollars, you should always assume that a model company will copy it,' he said. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Select a Course Category MCA PGDM Healthcare healthcare Technology Product Management Leadership Cybersecurity Artificial Intelligence CXO Finance Degree others Data Science MBA Project Management Management Others Design Thinking Digital Marketing Data Science Public Policy Operations Management Skills you'll gain: Programming Proficiency Data Handling & Analysis Cybersecurity Awareness & Skills Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning Duration: 24 Months Vellore Institute of Technology VIT Master of Computer Applications Starts on Aug 14, 2024 Get Details He pointed to his own company's experience. In December 2022, Perplexity launched an answer engine with real-time web crawling. Shortly after, the same feature was rolled out by Google's Gemini, ChatGPT, and Anthropic's Claude. 'They will copy anything that's good. I think you got to live with that fear,' Srinivas said. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Retirees Who Collect Under $3,495/mo SS Could Now Be Entitled To These 'Extra' Benefits Better Finances Learn More Undo Imitation is not the end, Srinivas tells founders Despite the risk of being copied, Srinivas urged founders to keep building and to focus on developing unique products and strong brands. 'Work incredibly hard,' he told the students, and 'don't get discouraged by imitation.' Perplexity's communications lead, Jesse Dwyer, echoed the concern. Speaking to Business Insider, Dwyer said, 'Big Tech companies not only copy your features but they also try to drown your voice.' Live Events Browser wars and market power Perplexity recently launched its Comet browser, shortly before OpenAI announced its own plans to launch an AI-powered browser. Dwyer warned about the risk of monopolistic practices in the browser space. 'Browser wars should be won by users, and if users lose Browser War III, it will be from a familiar playbook: monopolistic behaviour by an 'everything company' forcing its product on the market," he told Business Insider. OpenAI to launch new browser OpenAI is preparing to launch a web browser that could compete with Google Chrome, according to a Reuters report. The browser is expected to integrate ChatGPT-like features directly into the interface. This includes real-time summarisation, smart search, voice commands and contextual memory. With ChatGPT reportedly drawing 500 million users each week, OpenAI's new browser may shift traffic and data away from Google. That could affect Alphabet's ad revenue, which depends heavily on Chrome and its default search settings. Perplexity Pro Airtel offer Meanwhile, Airtel has partnered with Perplexity to provide its advanced subscription service, Perplexity Pro, free for one year to all its users. This includes those on Airtel's mobile, broadband, and DTH services. The offer, which is typically valued at ₹17,000 annually, is now available through the Airtel Thanks app at no extra cost. AI search assistant finds mass appeal beyond students Unlike Google's Gemini Pro offer targeted at students, Airtel's collaboration with Perplexity covers a wider demographic — from school and college students to researchers and working professionals. Perplexity Pro offers real-time, structured answers by tapping into models like GPT-4.1 and Claude, effectively replacing traditional search results with contextual, citation-based insights. Users can upload documents, ask follow-up questions, and summarise complex data within a single interface. Professionals, students tap into AI-powered productivity For students managing research deadlines or preparing for exams, Perplexity Pro acts like a digital assistant, simplifying dense academic material and generating organised responses from trusted sources. Professionals in fields such as consulting, design, and law can use the tool to extract insights from reports, draft content, or generate visuals. The Pro version also includes tools like Perplexity Labs for image generation and coding support, making it useful across a range of tasks.
The Journal
10-07-2025
- General
- The Journal
Debunked: The most popular baby name for boys in Galway is.. not Muhammad
THE FACTOID THAT the most popular name for newborn baby boys in Galway is Muhammad has been shared for years. For so long, in fact, that it has ceased to be true. However, this has not dissuaded anti-immigration activists from continuing to spread it as evidence that Islam is 'taking over'. 'Do you know what the number one name in Galway for newborn boys is?' the anti-immigration activist Philip Dwyer asks in a video posted to Facebook on 5 July. 'It's not Sean. It's not Patrick.' he tells a woman he appears to have approached on the street. 'It's Muhammad. Do you think that's a good thing for Ireland?' 'Your commentary is a bit racist,' she replies. 'It's a name.' 'So, you're OK with Islam taking over countries?' Dwyer continues. 'I don't think they're taking over,' she says. 'It's the number one name in County Galway,' Dwyer repeats. 'Doesn't matter' she retorts. 'It matters a lot!' Dwyer says as the woman turns and walks away. The video, which has been viewed more than 99,000 times, was posted with a description that questioned whether the woman's response was 'why Ireland is in so much peril', along with links to donate money to Dwyer. The most popular name for boys in County Galway last year was Rían, not Muhammad. In Galway City, the most popular name was a tie between Jack and Oisín. Most Popular Boys Names by County, 2024 CSO CSO Muhammad was not the most popular name for boys in 2023 either — it was Jack for the County Galway and, again, Oisín for the city. Advertisement Despite Dwyer's claim, Muhammad has never been the most popular name for newborn boys in County Galway. It had, however, been the most popular baby name for boys in Galway City in 2022, the same year it ranked the 86th most popular name in the country. Its tenure at the top was short-lived; the name was never recorded as topping the city's list of newborn names any year before or since then. Muslims have had a presence in Galway City since at least the 1970s (as shown in this old RTÉ footage ), which is home to Ireland's only purpose-built mosque for the Ahmadiyya Muslim community. In 2022, the year when Muhammad was the city's most popular name, there were 3,699 Muslims living in the whole of Galway county, comprising about 2% of the county's population of 177,737. (Figures on the religious makeup of the city alone are not readily available). Given the relatively small numbers of Muslims in Galway, how did a traditionally Muslim name top the chart in the city that then had a population of about 86,000 ? In brief, it doesn't take many newborns with the same name to make it the most popular in a county. Jack, which last year was the most popular name nationally (and joint-most popular name of newborn boys in Galway City), was given only 490 times in the entire country. The CSO doesn't give exact numbers for Galway City, but we can roughly extrapolate from the data. Galway City has about one-sixtieth of Ireland's population, which indicates that a name given to about eight newborns would have a decent chance to top the city's list. The UK Office of National Statistics (ONS) also released some possible explanations for the popularity of the name Muhammad in Britain. While the size of the Muslim community plays a large part, the name's popularity is also bolstered by wider society using more variation in naming their children (Rían is one such example of a name that would not have been popular in decades past), while the name Muhammad remains 'dominant' in the Muslim community The ONS also speculates that Muslim minorities might be more likely to name their boys Muhammad 'to remind them of their heritage as they grow up in a non-Muslim country.' Claims that Muslims are seeking to take over countries are common in anti-immigrant groups. However, as in the case of hoax stickers promoting Shariah law in Ireland, the evidence of these claims do not stand up to scrutiny. This year, The Journal has debunked claims Ireland is establishing a National Hijab Day , that RTÉ is replacing the Angelus with a Muslim call to prayer , and that the largest mosque in the world is being built in Ireland. Want to be your own fact-checker? Visit our brand-new FactCheck Knowledge Bank for guides and toolkits The Journal's FactCheck is a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network's Code of Principles. You can read it here . For information on how FactCheck works, what the verdicts mean, and how you can take part, check out our Reader's Guide here . You can read about the team of editors and reporters who work on the factchecks here . Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... It is vital that we surface facts from noise. Articles like this one brings you clarity, transparency and balance so you can make well-informed decisions. We set up FactCheck in 2016 to proactively expose false or misleading information, but to continue to deliver on this mission we need your support. Over 5,000 readers like you support us. If you can, please consider setting up a monthly payment or making a once-off donation to keep news free to everyone. Learn More Support The Journal
The Journal
07-07-2025
- Politics
- The Journal
Philip Dwyer loses appeal against trespass conviction at direct provision centre
CAMPAIGNER PHILIP DWYER trespassed at a direct provision centre for International Protection (IP) applicants at Inch in Co Clare where residents were being besieged by protesters outside the property, a court has heard. At Ennis Circuit Court this evening, Judge Francis Comerford upheld the trespass conviction imposed on Dwyer, an anti-immigrant activist, at Magowna House on 18 May 2023. Described in court by his counsel Anne Doyle BL as a 'Citizen Journalist', Dwyer (56) of Tallaght Cross West, Tallaght, Dublin 24 was appealing the district court trespass conviction imposed in March and Judge Comerford also affirmed the district court fine of €500. Dwyer told the court that he was at Magowna House to ask questions in his role as a journalist. Judge Comerford said that Dwyer 'might be entitled to make enquiries and go to someone's door, but he went well beyond it here'. At the time, there were protests at Magowna House where 29 International Protection applicants were being accommodated and there were blockades on local roads which were attracting media attention. Judge Comerford said that a group of people here came to seek refuge 'and were brought by the State to a relatively isolated, rural location where they were alone and away from a lot of resources and facilities'. 'And in effect, they were besieged in the premises they were brought to,' the judge said. 'It was made absolutely clear to them that they weren't welcome and there were protesters outside the property and there were bales of hay blocking access to prevent others joining them.' He said that there were 30 or 40 protesters protesting against their presence. Judge Comerford said that the big difference between Dwyer and protesters outside was that he went inside the property, where the other protesters didn't. Advertisement Judge Comerford said that he accepted the evidence of the Manager of Magowna House at the time, Ahlam Salman who said that Dwyer's presence on the property made her feel 'afraid'. Video footage made by Dwyer was played to the court, where he can be heard saying that he had arrived at a 'people trafficking centre'. In the footage shown in court, Dwyer can be heard saying, 'these are all foreign people telling me what I can't do in my own country'. Dwyer can be seen addressing a Ukrainian man wearing a fluorescent jacket: 'Do you think Irish people are stupid? Do you think we are all idiots? I wouldn't blame you, to be honest with you.' He asks later: 'What is your problem? You are not in Ukraine, this is my country…What are you hiding? I am just asking questions on behalf of the people of Ireland. The people in this country are very concerned about this.' After seeing some men believed to be International Protection applicants staying at the centre, Mr Dwyer asks: 'Why are these people covering their faces….This is Ireland. This is my country.' Counsel for the State Sarah Jane Comerford BL (instructed by State Solicitor for Clare, Aisling Casey) said to Dwyer that his words 'had a menacing undertone' to the people to whom he spoke on the property. In response, Dwyer said: 'I wasn't menacing to anybody.' He said: 'I 100% stand over those comments. We all have to respect one another. I tried to be respectful when I went in there.' He said: 'I was treated very badly. I was treated with hostility… I felt quite intimidated as well. That is part of the job.' He went on to tell the court: 'I have thousands of viewers, sometimes hundreds of thousands.' Counsel for Dwyer, Anne Doyle BL, said that she was not instructed by her client not to enter any mitigation concerning penalty 'as my client stands by his actions', Doyle said that 'he maintains that he was working in the course of his duties and does not accept the verdict'.
