Author: Tammy DiDomenico

Award-winning writer Tammy DiDomenico lives in DeWitt with her husband and two sons.

Entering the Fitzgeralds’ cozy Syracuse home and seeing the energetic, smiling baby who lives there, it’s difficult to imagine the chaos that he and his parents—Samantha and Stephen—went through just five months earlier. After a fairly uneventful pregnancy, Samantha’s blood pressure started climbing during her 37th week. When medication didn’t help, and the baby’s heart rate became irregular, the decision was made to induce labor. It took three days and the threat of an emergency cesarean section, but the fair-haired little guy, whom they named Everett, was seemingly healthy as could be. And, despite his early birthday, he weighed a…

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When the members of the Marcellus-based band Posted took the stage at the Jewish Community Center of Syracuse on Jan. 14 to compete in the annual Battle of the Bands, they had a clear goal in mind. “Stage presence,” bassist Riley Burns says with an assured smile. “We knew we had to interact with the audience,” adds guitarist Dan Wrona, “and let people see how we really enjoy interacting and playing off of each other.” It was Posted’s second time competing, (last year they placed third), and they were ready to show what a difference a year had made. With…

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Over the past several months my husband and I, and many of our fellow parents raising teenagers, entered a new reality. This new phase involves a flammable, two-ton machine that our child — whom I swear was a kindergartener just five days ago — is in control of. My 17-year-old will be taking his driver’s test any day now. It’s a time-honored milestone with a 21st-century twist because technology has raised a whole gamut of concerns that go beyond the skills of the driver or the dangers of the vehicle itself. My oldest son, and many of his friends, spend…

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When it comes to addressing cases of child abuse, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. For Linda Cleary, executive director of the McMahon/Ryan Child Advocacy Center in Syracuse, there is only one constant: People are very uncomfortable talking about it. Each April, which is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, the center tries to change that. Its annual Go Blue 4 Kids awareness campaign is an effort to unite the greater community. Local landmark buildings are illuminated in blue, and blue pinwheels are planted around Central New York to catch attention and spark conversation. It’s important to get people talking about child…

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Anyone who thinks of public education as impersonal and excessively bureaucratic probably hasn’t met Amy Evans, director of special education programs for the Syracuse City School District. With 22 years of education experience, and an amiable, steady demeanor, she approaches her role serving the city’s special education students as if she were born to do it. Evans, 44, worked as a special education teacher, a vice principal, a principal and SCSD’s assistant director of special education before accepting her current position last summer. She earned her master’s degree in special education with a concentration in learning disabilities from Syracuse University.…

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When you walk into Mrs. Kelder’ s Cakes, a compact, tidy bakery located in the heart of the village of Manlius, the attention to detail is palpable. The cookies and cupcakes in the front case are exquisitely decorated and inviting. The bistro tables are hand-painted with designs by the owner’s neighbor. The building itself embodies the vintage charm that Manlius locals love. Certainly, customers might think, the owner — Cyndi Kelder — was born to bake. And definitely, they could assume, her bakery is the fulfillment of a lifelong goal. But they’d be wrong. “Probably, honestly, truth be told. .…

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Regular dental checkups are not commonly listed among most adults’ “favorite things,” but oral health is profoundly important. And it is best learned early. Michael Quigley, a dentist with Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics For All Ages in Fayetteville, is one of many local dentists who recommend establishing strong dental care routines for young children as early as possible. Quigley, himself a new parent to 1-year-old Lilliana, recommends many of the traditional features of dental care for his youngest patients. As a certified pediatric dental specialist, he is also committed to making their initial forays into routine dental care as comfortable…

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St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center has been committed to serving the immigrant populations of Central New York since its inception in 1869. As the hospital has grown, that commitment has endured. Through St. Joseph’s Physicians Family Medicine, the hospital is able to offer primary care in neighborhood settings. At the North Medical Center in Liverpool, Michael Tong, M.D., and his staff serve a growing immigrant population. Tong, a graduate of Marcellus High School who came to the United States from Vietnam as a teenager, understands the needs and concerns of newly settled patients (many also from Vietnam). He is sensitive…

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On a warm morning in mid-June, as the final hours of the school year were winding down at Cazenovia High School, engineering and technology instructor Chris Hurd was putting the finishing touches on his 27th year with the district. But it wasn’t the upcoming summer break that had him energized—it was the classes that he still had to teach that day. “Things have changed so much in these fields since I started teaching,” Hurd says of his long career. “I’ve gone from doing tech projects with seventh and eighth graders, to doing physics with high schoolers. You can teach a…

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