 If you had the RoadSpoke app… hear this here: EXIT of the Day: EXIT 22 I-95s Delaware Expressway to I-676, SR 30 to Wayne PA, in Philadelphia PA “For the subject of this EXIT, former Army Ranger, Decorated Combat Veteran, former Robin Hood Charity CEO, Best Selling Author, and now Governor of the great state of Maryland, Wes Moore, we have had a hard time figuring off what Exit to place this story. It could be placed at Baltimore, The Bronx, or even beside a tiny tropical sugar town of Trelawny Parish on the Caribbean Island of Jamaica.  The story is about being born along the mean and then plummeting. It is a fight against the odds, falling and bouncing back to reach the highest heights, a J Curve -- if you will -- which every person experiences. The best part of this trajectory is Wes Moore’s story is not even half way done. What heights will he attain? Remarkably this Wes Moore wrote a Best Selling book about 2 Black Kids from Baltimore both named Wes Moore. Both started along the same mean, each chose a different path.  The Other Wes Moore is now spending his life in prison, convicted of murder. The Book itself is entitled, THE OTHER WES MOORE.  As for the EXIT of the Day, we chose an offramp that takes you to Wayne, Pennsylvania which is the home of Valley Forge Military School, a dormitory prep school which marked the bottom of our Wes Moore’s plunge and from which he rose to succeed in so many things. You see, as a 3 year old child, Moore witnessed his father's death from a rare virus. Moore's mother took him to live in The Bronx with his grandparents. His grandfather, Dr. James Thomas, was a minister in the Dutch Reformed Church. His grandmother was a retired school teacher from Trelawny Parish. A smart kid, Moore got financial assistance to attend the elite Riverdale Country School. When Moore's grades fell, he got into trouble with the law. His mom yanked him and enrolled him in Valley Forge Military Academy. It was here that he learned discipline and he began to rise. It was here too that he first parachuted which gave him the desire later to lead combat troops with the 82nd Airborne. He went on to attend Johns Hopkins University where graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 2001. He also won a Rhodes Scholarship and attended the University of Oxford in England. In 2005, abandoning a Wall Street Job, Wes volunteered in the Army and saw combat in Afghanistan. Today, in addition to leading crusades against poverty in Urban New York, he is a strong advocate for Veterans Affairs and has produced TV Shows with Oprah Winfrey and TED Talks about reintegrating veterans into society.  Wes is married to Dawn Moore with two young daughters. He lives in suburban Connecticut, many many Exits from the Other Wes Moore — who is still his friend. So it only seems appropriate that we credit EXIT 22 with being the right road for Wes Moore and the right choice for our EXIT of the DAY.” #WesMoore #TheOtherWesMoore #ValleyForgeMilitaryAcademy #RobinHoodFoundation #RiverdaleCountrySchool #82ndAirborne #Army #TrelawnyParish #TedTalks #Oprah    Stars from the Mean Streets of New YorkOn NBC, in the darkest depths of the COVID pandemic, Tina Fey hosted an uplifting experience spotlighting all the potential which surrounds us. “Rise Up New York!” was a coronavirus benefit with Star-Studded Performances from New Yorkers including Chris Rock, Jennifer Lopez, Eli Manning, David Chang, Barbra Streisand, Robert de Niro, Ben Platt, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Bette Midler, Idina Menzel, and Jimmy Fallon. The proceeds will benefit the Robin Hood Foundation Charity for New York’s poor. The Robin Hood Charity is led by Wes Moore, whom we just spot lighted in the last EXIT of the DAY. Frankly, with all the talent that came from the mean streets of the Big Apple they could hold a star studded gala from every one of the 5 boroughs. If you drove by this EXIT and were listening to RoadSpoke you would hear this: EXIT of the DAY: EXIT 10 I-87n; Bronx, Nr Fordham U, “The Bronx is rich and poor -- and always striving. Arguably more famous stars have been residents of the Bronx as anywhere in the world. Stars from the Bronx include: Billy Joel, Regis Philbin, Tito Puente, Ellen Barkin, Red Buttons, Lauren Bacall, Alan Alda, Woody Allen, Al Pacino, Neil Simon, Wesley Snipes, Kerry Washington, Penny Marshall, Afrika Bombaata, Jelly Bean Benitez, Gil Scott Heron , Furious Five, Phil Spector, Steven Tyler, Luther Vandross, Arturo Toscanini, Richie Havens, Andre Harrell, Mary Jay Blige, Stan Getz, Calvin Klein, and Jennifer Lopez.  One Star from the Bronx is a himself a professional star gazer. Astrophysicist Doctor Neil deGrasse Tyson is the Director of the American Museum of Natural History's Hayden Planetarium and a host of PBS's educational-television series Nova.  His mother was of Puerto Rican descent. His African American Dad was the first Director of Harlem Youth Opportunities Unlimited. Like his neighboring star JLo, Tyson grew up in the Castle Hill, Bronx neighborhood. Also like JLo he leveraged his immense talent to rise up from the streets. Where JLo used acting and singing to get ahead, Neil leveraged his inquisitive mind not to mention a championship wrestling physique to attain his advancement into Bronx High School of Science and then through such universities as Harvard, UT Austin, Colombia and Princeton.  Tyson began his interest in astronomy at the age of nine after visiting the Hayden Planetarium. He says, "So strong was that imprint of the night sky that I'm certain that I had no choice in the matter, that in fact, the Universe called me." After that visit to the Planetarium, Tyson recalls, during high school he often slept on the roof so he could watch the stars. Imagine that: ‘ Future Stars -- on rooftops -- watching shooting stars.’ Only in the Bronx.” #NeildeGrasseTyson #KerryWashington #BillyJoel #RedButtons #AlanAlda #RalphLauren #PennyMarshall #MaryJayBlige #LaurenBacall #WoodyAllen
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