THANK YOU, MOMS
WE’VE GOT YOUR BACK May/June 2020
Honoring My Wife for Her Dedication to Our Children
M y wife, Karoline, and I were married for 10 years before we became parents. By that point, we had endured a handful of heartbreaking adoptions that fell through. But on a Tuesday nearly 20 years ago, a phone call changed everything. Karoline and I were asked if we would be willing to adopt four siblings — infant twins, a 3-year-old, and a 5-year-old — from Texas. We had 48 hours to decide. I immediately called my wife, and we looked to our pastor for guidance. We wanted to be parents, but taking on four little mouths to feed in one swing was a lot at once. We decided that we could either walk away or disrupt our life, walk through that door, and leave it all in God’s hands.
amazing to watch her become a mom and continue to be so dedicated to each one of our children. That is why I believe it’s important that we continue to honor our moms each May on Mother’s Day. There are so many things moms do for us that go unnoticed, but they teach us so much. They teach us how to press on. They teach us to be loving and kind. They teach us to be compassionate. They pick us up, push us forward, and support us along the way. My own mother supported me every day and pushed me to be the man I am today. I am thankful for her every day. Karoline continues to offer that to our kids, too. One of her greatest strengths is her innate ability to connect with others, and I have no doubt that this encouragement, compassion, and connection to others has made her the mom she is today. Everyone loves her because she is the kindest, most wonderful woman you will ever meet. Today, those four small children we picked up in Texas are now 22, 20, and seniors in high school, and we could not be prouder of them. Our eldest son is an HVAC technician and will be getting married soon. His younger sister, our eldest daughter, is in the culinary arts and manages an Italian brick-oven pizza restaurant. And our twins are seniors in high school. Our youngest son has plans to begin his own fishing charter business after high school — he’s always loved the water — while our youngest daughter plans to attend the University of South Carolina Beaufort. She hopes to someday help kids like her, who were in the foster care system or adopted. I have no doubt that our children’s successes and passions spring from the nurturing they received from their mother throughout their childhood. I am so glad our children have a mother as strong as Karoline, just as I’m thankful to have a mother as strong as mine, too.
We chose the four children in Texas who needed a home.
Throughout this adventure, I’ve had the privilege of watching my wife seamlessly transform into a mother. She was
built to be a mom. When we adopted our four kids, my day didn’t change too much once I left the house. I still went to work, filed reports, and served my clients, and when I came home, I had four kids to play with, teach, and put to bed. But Karoline has spent 8–10 hours of her day for the past 20 years ensuring the kids have an amazing life. I witnessed how quickly she could adapt from an empty home to one filled with love, care, and attention for those kids. She became a nurse, a teacher, and a psychologist almost overnight to offer those kids a support system that only moms can provide. The mom is truly the glue that holds entire families together. In fact, there were many times my wife had to play peacekeeper in our family, ensuring we continued together as a strong family unit that supported one another. It has been truly
803.366.0333 197 S Herlong Avenue Rock Hill, SC 29732 843.379.5006 78 Sams Point Road Beaufort, SC 29907 803.285.2900 302 N Main St. c Lancaster, SC 29720 843.341.9418 16 William Pope Drive Suites 101 & 103 Bluffton, SC 29909
Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms!
–Bennett Schiller
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HEALTH BENEFITS OF FAMILY GARDEN
Springtime often means nicer weather and more time spent outside, but it also means it’s gardening season. That means it’s time to roll up your sleeves and play in the dirt. If you’ve been searching for a way to get the kids away from technology and engaged with the real world, gardening is the perfect activity for the whole family to enjoy. Not only is it fun, but it’s also beneficial for your kids’ development. For example, gardening can improve your children’s analytical abilities. As Dr. Wendy Matthews says, “Gardening exercises important reasoning, initiation, planning, and organization skills.” Furthermore, several studies, including one at Texas A&M University, suggest that gardening improves a child’s attitude toward fruits and vegetables and may make them more likely to choose them as snacks. Gardening helps kids identify with where their food is coming from, and nothing tastes better than a freshly picked strawberry or pea pod they grew themselves.
Jack Gilbert, a scientist at the University of Chicago and a parent himself, and his co-author, Rob Knight, emphasize the health benefits of garden time in their book, “Dirt Is Good: The Advantage of Germs for Your Child’s Developing Immune System.” The two found that
Zantac Users Sue Over Company’s Negligence and the Known Cancer Connection
Since the 1980s, millions of people have turned to Zantac or similar over-the-counter drugs to combat heartburn. Commercials and advertisements described Zantac as the go-to medication for those with severe heartburn who still wanted to enjoy pizza and spicy foods.
Today, manufacturers and experts are learning just how costly and deadly this mass use has been.
In September 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that Zantac contained unsafe amounts of a carcinogen known as N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) and that storage practices cause this carcinogen to increase. Ranitidine — the compound that comprises Zantac and its over-the-counter competitors — has the capacity to increase the amount of NDMA it houses when it’s stored for long periods of time. Valisure LLC, an online pharmaceutical company, first notified the FDA of this occurrence in Zantac in late 2019 when previous testing found that NDMA reacts and changes with varying environments, including temperature and water.
Many pharmacies and drug stores have removed Zantac from the shelves, and in April 2020, the FDA requested that sales of ranitidine were completely halted.
However, research may indicate that Zantac manufacturer Sanofi and Boehringer Ingelheim may have been covering up the fact that ranitidine can cause cancer. In fact, since Zantac first hit shelves, there have been multiple studies that discovered similar results to the conclusion that Valisure warned the FDA about in 2019. That negligence has put millions of people at risk for developing and dying from cancer. Patients who have been diagnosed with cancer and families who lost loved ones as a result of cancer are making their voices heard in court, and you can, too. If you or a loved one was diagnosed with cancer after continued use of Zantac or another ranitidine product, then you may be entitled to compensation. The experts at Schiller & Hamilton Law Firm are ready to hear about your situation and guide you through the legal process to get the justice you deserve. Don’t wait any longer to inquire! Call our team today at 843.379.5006. As always, we’ve got your back.
BUTTERFLY FLOWERS JEDI
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A t Schiller & Hamilton Law Firm, we have been serving our clients through crises for decades. When the road looks rough, we stand firm in our support for our clients. This spring’s COVID-19 health pandemic has been no different, and we will continue to serve you as it progresses.
exposure to different microbes, like those found in a garden, strengthens a child’s immune system and makes them less likely to develop allergies. If this is your first time gardening, you don’t need much to get started. Grab a few shovels, a pair of gloves for each family member, and fresh potting soil, and you’ll be set. Then, you can decide together which plants you’d like to grow! Carrots are fun because of the surprise factor — just imagine your child discovering that the part they eat grows below the ground! Peas are tasty and fairly easy to grow, as are strawberries. The options really are endless. Depending on the growing season in your area, you can choose to buy seeds or opt for rooted plants. Give Your Kid the Gift of a Green Thumb NING
Your needs don’t disappear just because there’s a health crisis. You still deserve justice.
We haven’t stopped working while health care professionals wage a war against this pandemic. We have continued fighting adjusters and working with you to get the compensation you deserve for your injury. We have continued to contact clients with active cases to develop a process of communication that best serves their needs, and we will continue to guide our clients through the legal process in a way that works best for them. Our team has always been able to communicate with our clients via email and text, so when it was mandated that we limit contact to avoid the spread of COVID-19, the transition was seamless and easy for us. We can also do new client intakes via phone or video call, and we abide by processes that are going to work the best for our clients. If that means we have to bring paperwork to your vehicle so you can sign it, then that’s what we will do. (We can also sign documents on your behalf with your permission.) Don’t hesitate to call if you have a legal problem we can assist you with or if you have a question about your case or claim. This is an uncertain time for many of us in this country, but justice does not have to be put on hold. You deserve compensation for your injuries. Call us today if you have any questions, and let us know how we can serve you.
Last but certainly not least, the best part of gardening as a family is the healthy, fresh produce you’ll get to enjoy all summer long!
TAKE A BREAK!
We still have your back!
LADYBUG MAYFLY MEMORIAL
MEXICO MOTHERS OUTDOORS
POLLEN SUNSHINE TAURUS
WE’VE GOT YOUR BACK.
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Celebrating Mothers
What Is Gardening Good For?
Zantac Users Can Receive Compensation for Company Negligence
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Our Firm Still Has Your Back During the Pandemic!
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A $60,000 Robbery With No Jail Time
Crimeless Theft in Cyberspace
THE $60,000 HEIST
In 2017, sometime between Sept. 11 and 12, a total of $60,000 worth of digital assets were stolen from people around the world. The conspirators didn’t hide their identities, and they faced no criminal charges. As it turns out, there are no laws against stealing spaceships in a video game — even if they’re worth thousands of real-world dollars. EVE Online is a massively multiplayer online game (MMO) that was launched in 2003, and it was on this game that the theft occurred. This science- fiction game is all about spacefaring, but one notable feature of the game is that it allows players to purchase in-game assets with real money. This attracts players who can spend large sums on the game, with some of the game’s largest spaceships costing $9,000. But one thing to note in EVE Online is that no matter how much you pay, once you lose an asset, it’s gone forever. Because of the risk-reward nature of the game, many players unite in huge factions for safety and to pool their resources. One of these groups, Circle of Two or CO2, was the target of the 2017 attack. Within a matter of hours, CO2’s bank accounts were drained and the space stations holding their
fleets of ships were sold to their enemies. It was clear from the beginning: This was an inside job.
The thief was CO2’s own head diplomat, a player called “The Judge.” For years he’d worked his way through the alliance’s ranks, only to use the access he eventually gained to rob it blind. But greed may not have been his only motivation. He’d had public disagreements with CO2’s leader called Gigx, and a rival faction was able to capitalize on this internal conflict. During an in-person EVE Online summit held in Iceland, representatives from The GoonSwarm Federation convinced The Judge to leave CO2 and commit the single largest robbery in gaming history on his way out. In the real world, The Judge’s actions were completely legal — currently, international law doesn’t treat such virtual objects as personal property. But this perception may be changing. As in-game purchases become more widespread in video games, legal lines have blurred, causing an increasing number of lawmakers to rethink what constitutes “ownership” in the digital age. But, for now at least, it seems like a good time to be a space pirate.
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