Australia blocks Kirin's $430M sale of business to Chinese

125552015_web1_125552015-3a93c723bef9468fb7950492d4ff649e

Gray area of mail-in voting law up to Pennsylvania court

WILKES-BARRE &mdash; Linda Armstrong once told me that she hates the term &ldquo;ground zero.&rdquo;
				And she has good reason to have such a dislike for the term that refers to the site where terrorists struck the World Trade Center twin towers, flying commercial airplanes into the skyscrapers on Sept. 11, 2001.
				Armstrong was there, you see. She was working for Prudential on Wall Street and she she was nearby when the planes hit the towers.
				It&rsquo;s an experience that will bother Armstrong for the rest of her life.
				&ldquo;I think of the innocent people that died &mdash; people who didn&rsquo;t do anything to warrant dying like that,&rdquo; she told me in 2011 for a 10th anniversary story about the attacks.
				Armstrong was getting off a bus in Battery Park on 9/11 when she looked up and saw an airplane flying very low. The plane plowed into one of the towers and downtown Manhattan became a war zone.
				&ldquo;I saw people in the towers holding hands and jumping out to their death,&rdquo; Armstrong said. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t imagine what it was like for them. When you see that, you realize how short and how precious life is.&rdquo;
				Those images, those memories are why Armstrong gave up her career and followed her dream back home to open Dress for Success &mdash; providing clothes and counseling for women transitioning back into the workforce.
				&ldquo;After something like 9/11, you wake up and realize there is a higher purpose,&rdquo; Armstrong told me.
				Armstrong has found her higher purpose at Dress for Success.
				Five years after 9/11, Armstrong decided to give up her Wall Street job and come home. She was a volunteer for Dress for Success in Manhattan and she loved the mission and the results the program offered &mdash; to empower women to achieve economic independence by providing a network of support, professional attire and the development tools to help women thrive in work and in life.
				<a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/797909/dress-for-success-making-a-real-difference-in-peoples-lives" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">For a story this past Sunday</a> on her agency and an upcoming fundraiser, Armstrong said this:
				&ldquo;I knew a pair of shoes could change someone&rsquo;s life.&rdquo;
				And she followed that up with this:
				&ldquo;Everybody thinks it&rsquo;s the clothes, but it&rsquo;s the self-esteem we build.&rdquo;
				And this:
				&ldquo;We get to make a real difference in people&rsquo;s lives. This is the most rewarding thing I have ever done.&rdquo;
				And this:
				&ldquo;But if I don&rsquo;t raise the money, I can&rsquo;t keep the lights on. I gave birth to this agency &mdash; I want to see it grow.&rdquo;
				Those quotes show us the level of commitment that Armstrong has to her program. She will continue to provide her clients with the clothing, counseling and support to get them through the front door and back into the workforce.
				Since Dress for Success Luzerne County became operational in December 2010, her program has reached 1,750 economically challenged women from the area by providing clothing, job interview support and workforce guidance.
				Dress for Success Luzerne County is in the process of collecting online orders for excess clothing inventory sale &ldquo;Drive Up, Diva!&rdquo;
				Participants will drive through the parking lot of LSEO which is next to the agency at 38 West Market St. Orders are being accepted online at &mdash; https://dress-for-success-luzerne-county.square.site/ &mdash; until Sunday, Sept. 6
				Dress for Success needs your help &mdash; it deserves your help.
				Armstrong has proven to always be there for her clients, who need her to be there for them.

Beyond the Byline: Armstrong — from ground zero to a higher purpose