Friends of Aphasia celebrates the life and work of Pete Kozachik.

Featured on the December 14th, 2023 edition of ARIZONA SPOTLIGHT with host Mark McLemore:

• By 2050, experts predict that the global population will reach nearly 10 billion. Leah Britton spoke to a few local food experts to learn more about how our planet's resources will measure up against the growing demand.

Iskashitaa Refugee Network is a grass roots organization that helps rebuild refugee lives through their partnerships with volunteers and local organizations.

AZPM

University of Arizona's campus pantry works to aid faculty and students facing food insecurity.

Courtesy of the University of Arizona

Pete McGraw M.Ed. is the coordinator of the University of Arizona's Basic Needs Center and Services

Courtesy of the University of Arizona

• This Sunday, there is a benefit for the local support group The Friends of Aphasia. The Loft Cinema is screening “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” in celebration of the work of the film’s award-winning director of photography, longtime special effects artist Peter Kozachik. He was the brother of Tucson City Council member Steve Kozachik, and he passed away earlier this year after living with a condition called Primary Progressive Aphasia. Dr. Fabi Hirsch-Kruse, the director of Friends of Aphasia, will explain how this condition can be so wide-spread, yet so rarely discussed. you can find more information and tickets to the event here!

VIEW LARGER Join Friends of Aphasia for a movie benefit honoring the life and work of Visual Effects Artist Pete Kozachik.

• AZPM's Cochise County Reporter Summer Hom spoke with Larry Redhouse, a Native American pianist and composer, who blends jazz with Native American flute and synthesizers. During Native American Heritage Month, Redhouse and the Larry Redhouse Jazz Trio brought their music to Cochise College, where both the college and county are named for the Cochise, a Chiricahua Apache Chief. Redhouse is a member of the Navajo Nation. He said his heritage inspires his music in that, “There’s this groundedness about it. I’m an urban Indian. But it came through my dad — his example of living — which was just grounded. He wasn’t into material things. His spirituality showed through in his living example.” When it comes to his inspiration for songs, Redhouse said it comes from the artists he listened to growing up, like Miles Davis, but also, from his siblings in a family of musicians.