A partnership between Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island and Brown University’s School of Public Health, the RI Life Index measures the “lived realities” of Rhode Islanders

PROVIDENCE – If you ask Rhode Islanders what they think about the state of the economy, employment, food security, health care and housing, a few trends begin to emerge.

For example, positive perceptions about the affordability of housing, cost of living and employment have gone down – in some instances sharply – in recent years. Yet Latino and Black residents feel better about their access to health care, while white residents feel about the same as they did a year ago.

Perceptions on food security are more complicated. Overall, white Rhode Islanders feel relatively good about it, but Latino and Black residents, especially in cities with high percentages of child poverty, have a much stronger negative perception on food security. Among Latino residents over 55 years old, the negative perception is even stronger.

These are some of the findings from the RI Life Index, an annual survey that measures the “lived realities” of residents in the Ocean State (the measures are also known as social determinants of health). The index, released on Wednesday, is a partnership between Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island and Brown University’s School of Public Health. Nearly 2,000 Rhode Islanders participated in this year’s survey.

Overall, the index’s score was 57 on a scale of 0 to 100, a point below last year (higher scores indicate more positive perceptions). Some scores, such as the cost of living (21) and affordable housing (31), have been steadily declining since 2020. While others, such as access to health care (68), seem to be rebounding after a dip.

Food insecurity a rising concern

Of particular salience to this year’s index was access to nutritious food (64), which was down two points from last year and nine points since 2021. The areas with the lowest scores for food insecurity were Central Falls, Block Island and Woonsocket.

Melissa Clark, a professor at Brown University’s School of Public Health and the principal investigator for the index, noted that one out of five households is making trade-offs between paying for food or something else.

The index’s results buttress the findings of a recent report from the Rhode Island Community Food Bank, which found that nearly two out of five households in the state struggle to afford food. This has led to a record demand at food banks in the state.

A panel discussion followed the launch of the index at South Street Landing, an office and academic building for Brown University. It featured Andrew Schiff, CEO of the Rhode Island Community Food Bank, along with Kathleen Gorman, professor of psychology and director of the Feinstein Center for a Hunger Free America at the University of Rhode Island; Teddi Jallow, executive director of the Refugee Dream Center; and Alison Tovar, an associate professor and interim director of the Center for Health Promotion and Health Equity at the Brown University School of Public Health.

The panel highlighted the challenges many families face in accessing quality food. Jallow noted, for example, that refugees only get a $1,350 stipend from the government to secure an apartment, get health care and afford food – a paltry sum given the cost of rent and other services in the state. The panel also noted that lawful permanent residents – also known as green card holders – have to wait five years before they can qualify for SNAP benefits. For 20% of respondents, transportation was a barrier to accessing food.

Many of the problems with food insecurity are inextricably tied to other issues such as housing and health care, the panelists said.

“No one is ever just hungry,” Schiff said. “The people who experience food insecurity are also having difficulty affording most of their other bills.”

Policy recommendations were also discussed, such as implementing a program to bridge people out of SNAP benefits, but overall systemic change is needed to address food insecurity in Rhode Island, according to the panelists.

“We don’t have a system in place where we are making it easy for people to get help,” Gorman said.

LINCOLN, R.I. (WLNE) — A tradition continues for its 43rd year as a custom ornament from Rhode Island hangs on the White House Christmas Tree.

President of Beacon Design David Marquis said the whole process begins in Lincoln.

“I don’t think we can express the pride that we feel, the pride and privilege that we feel,” he said.

Beacon Design partners with the White House Historical Association, which was started by Jackie Kennedy with the idea to revamp the inside of the White House while educating the public about the presidents who have lived there.

“One of the things that was very important to Mrs. Kennedy was to get people to understand and realize about the history of the home,” Marquis said.

In 1981, Nancy Reagan designed the first Christmas ornament as a tribute to George Washington.

“They decided that they were going to do a program each year, and they were going to do concurrent presidents,” Marquis said.

Each ornament contains unique elements for each former president, as Marquis describes in the current ornament, a tribute to Jimmy Carter.

“The anchor is for his service in the Navy, but it also represents hope,” he said.

Other elements of the ornament include a submarine and, of course, the White House.

“The nice part about this, is this is a nonprofit, not a political organization,” Marquis said.

A version of the current ornament can be purchased here.

What do Kevin Hart, Aziz Ansari, Leslie Jones, and Melissa Villaseñor have in common? 

Sure, sure — they’re all comics, wise guy … But the real answer: They’re all A-list comics headed Providence in March to take part in what looks to be the biggest comedy fest lil’ Rhody has ever seen.

The Veterans Memorial Auditorium Providence, aka The VETS,  announced Thursday the Lil Rhody Laugh Riot, a four-day comedy festival running March 27- March 30. According to event billing, the fest will be anchored at The Vets and “spill over into satellite venues” around Providence, including the larger Providence Performing Arts Center, and the RI Comedy Connection.

More names will be announced soon, but as of Dec. 12, the line-up includes:

• Kevin Hart: March 27 at 7:30 p.m., Providence Performing Arts Center
• Michael Blaustein: March 28 at 7 p.m., The VETS 
• Leslie Jones: March 29 at 4 p.m., The VETS 
• Aziz Ansari: March 29 at 7 p.m., Providence Performing Arts Center
• Hannah Berner:  March 30 at 7 p.m., The VETS
• Chris Distefano:  March 30 at 9:45 p.m., The VETS

Also on the docket: SNL alum Melissa Villaseñor, Tone Bell, Sophie Buddle, Alec Flynn, Andy Woodhull, and “The Daily Show” correspondent and podcaster Josh Johnson, named “the funniest guy on the internet” by WIRED.

Tickets are on sale for the comedy fest that’s already made Variety headlines — and a Ken Burns account tweet.

“This is absolutely the biggest comedy festival that’s ever come to Rhode Island. We’re super excited,” VETS Marketing Director Michael Gravison said.

… But that’s not all. 

Dovetailing with PVD’s inaugural comedy fest is the city’s inaugural PVD food and wine fest: the Providence Culinary Collective, presented by the Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau, aims to be a “first-of-its-kind food and wine festival” that will take over the city that same weekend.

Talk about bread and circus. You might want to book a hotel room now — you can get discounted rates through the comedy fest site.

Any southern New Englander knows Providence is a foodie destination. (Maybe Kevin Hart will hit up The District again.) Events will include the Rhode Island Wine Experience, “an upscale, educational” pairing event; Taste Community Made, featuring Hope & Main makers; Chef’s Choice classes at Johnson & Wales University; specialty dinners, food trucks and more, according to event billing.

 “This comedy festival, paired with the debut of the Providence Culinary Collective, will showcase the best of what our city has to offer,” said Mayor of Providence Brett P. Smiley in a statement. 

Below, here’s what Marketing Director Michael Gravison had to say about the festival.

Boston.com: So how did this comedy fest come together?

Michael Gravison: It was the brainchild of our programming office and the general management here at the VETS. Basically coming out of COVID we discovered that comedy was really popular, more so than ever before. People wanted to come together. People really wanted to laugh. They were looking for those shared experiences. The comedy scene exploded in Providence. After years of planning, we decided to create a festival that would bring as many people as possible to downtown Providence over the course of one weekend.

The comics span generations, too.

That’s what we’re going for. The whole point  is to reach a number of people, multi-generational, to really bring everybody together.

At the same time, there’s a huge wine and food fest going on.

That was serendipitous. We partner very closely with the Providence, Warwick Convention and Visitors Bureau. When we told them this was happening, they said, “Oh, we’re doing this culinary festival the same weekend.” We thought it was a great idea to partner. We’re taking care of the entertainment, they’re taking care of the food. And really just adds to that total package.

You’ve got big headliners. What can you tell us about some of the others people may not know immediately?

Hannah Berner is a younger comedian, really big online, she’s had some specials. Michael Blaustein has a really popular podcast, he’s a comic touring with his podcast now. Chris Distefano is another big name in the comedy world; he was at the VETS last season.

Leslie Jones and Kevin Hart have never done the VETS or PPAC before. Aziz played the VETS twice, you said.

He sold out both times he played the Vets in 2016 and 2018. So he’s going to be performat PPAC, which is a larger venue.

What are you hoping this fest does?

We want to turn this into an annual event. We want to bring as many people as we can —  from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey. We have hotel partners, where you can book hotel rooms at a festival rate so that you can stay for the weekend. You know, we’re really trying to turn this into an annual event. We’re hoping the last weekend of March, Providence becomes the place to go. 

Lauren Daley is a freelance writer. She can be reached at [email protected]. She tweets @laurendaley1, and Instagrams at @laurendaley1. Read more stories on Facebook here.