Chasing the dream
When you #dream_big, there are days when you open your #heart and hands to try to catch the wind, and fall on your butt. The ability to laugh at yourself is what gets you back up, chasing the dream.
We are all one human family
Can you image being 18 yrs old and traveling the world? 20,000 miles into your trip you come across a little 6 yr old girl who is working breaking up rocks to earn money to feed her family. She looks at you and says, “Hello Sister”. What would you do?
#Maggie_Doyne helped Hima go to school by paying for her tuition, uniform and books. But if you touch the life of one child, what happens next? You see another one and another one.
So what then? Well if you are Maggie, you have your parents send you your life savings of $5,000 (all of your babysitting money) and you buy some land and build Kopila Valley Children’s Home. She has 50 children ages ranging from 8 months to 16 yrs.
Maggie, now 28 yrs old believes that we are all one human family. So she doesn’t just come in and say here is what we are going to do – like she is the expert for what they need. Instead she has formed a community and “we” plan what is needed next.
So she went beyond that Children’s Home to build a school, with the children getting nutritious meals, healthcare and being given a firm foundation for their future. There are now 350 children attending the school. The need is much greater, with over 1,000 applicants each year.
The community also has a Health Clinic and Women’s Center and they are now building a high school. They have a vocational school in planning stages too.
Maggie has been named a #Top_10_CNN_Hero – see her story here:
http://edition.cnn.com/…/…/living/cnnheroes-doyne/index.html
Her website Blinknow: http://www.blinknow.org/our-story
He put himself in danger to save the children
#James_Vernon, age 75, proves that it doesn’t matter how many years have passed, you can remember your #Army training and still exercise your #super_hero_powers.
When a 19 year old burst into the library with two 5″ hunting knives threatening to kill the children, James sprang into action. He blocked the access to the 16 children while they hid and then escaped.
“I tried to talk to him. I tried to settle him down,” Vernon told the Pekin Daily Times. “I didn’t, but I did deflect his attention” from the kids “and calmed him a bit. I asked him if he was from Morton, did he go to high school. I asked what his problem was. He said his life sucks. That’s a quote.”
“I grabbed him and threw… Somehow he wound up on a table” with the knife in his left hand pinned under his body, Vernon said. “I hit him on the (right) collarbone with my closed hand” until Brown dropped that knife. Even though he was cut and bleeding, he was able to keep Brown pinned down until the police and paramedics arrived. He suffered minor injuries and none of the children were hurt.
Had he brought a gun instead, “It would’ve been a different story,” Vernon said. Thank God he was there and put himself in danger to save the children. He is a true #LemonadeMaker.
See full story: http://www.foxnews.com/…/illinois-army-vet-75-saves-16-kid…/
A Pizza delivery person helps a man she delivers pizza's to
#Lee_Haase lives in Ham Lake, Minnesota. He is 76 years old and lives on social security. Due to a storm his former home is not livable. He had no insurance, because he couldn’t afford it. So he moved into a small 12 ft trailer that looks like it is also falling apart. He has no running water, no heat, no bathroom, no stove, no refrigerator. It is unbelievable that he has been living this way for five years and through the cold winters in Minnesota with no heat.
A #Dominoes_Pizza_delivery person is going all out to help a man she delivers pizza’s to. She didn’t know how bad his situation is until when she delivered him pizza and he was shivering with cold. She went right out and bought him a space heater, which blew his electricity out.
She realized that winter was coming and with the conditions he is living in knew that something had to happen. She believed her community would step up to make a difference. And she is right!
Bless you Angela for being a true #angel on this earth. It is very doubtful that he would have made it through another winter without your stepping in to make a difference. You restored his in faith in humanity and ours. You are a true #LemonadeMakers
See the full story here on the #go_fund_me account she set up.
100 Million meals
One small act of #generosity can transform the lives of Millions. $1 can make a difference. Please share this with those on your pages, so we can get the word out and provide as many meals as possible.
#Tony_Robbins, best selling author, entrepreneur and philanthropist is partnering with Feeding America to issue a challenge to all of us.
He will pay for 50 Million Meals as a matching gift to our donations, so that together we can provide 100 Million meals to the 49 Million Americans who struggle with hunger. According to #Feeding_America, every $1 you give helps secure and distribute 20 meals.
As the fall weather begins, those who are at or below poverty level really feel the pinch in providing food for their families. Any kitchen gardens that supplemented the food budget are being put into the winter hibernation. The homeless are also impacted as the weather gets colder to have hot meals to help keep their bodies warm.
In addition to supporting Feeding America, Tony also has a foundation that he started in 1991 that has several programs, one of which is the International #Basket_Brigade program that provides baskets of food and household items for an estimated 2 Million people annually throughout the world.
Donate Page For Feeding America: https://secure.feedingamerica.org/site/Donation2…
Tony’s Basket Brigade: https://www.anthonyrobbinsfoundation.org/p…/basket-brigades/
Bratz dolls transformed
Several months ago we posted the story about Australian artist Sonja Singh and how she was taking #Bratz_dolls (doll faces with too much makeup and skimpy outfits) and removing the painted faces and recreating the dolls to be more lifelike for little girls. Young girls actually love to play with these dolls because they look and dress like they do.
#Wendy_Tsao was so inspired by the artist that she began collecting the dolls from second hand stores and recreating the faces to be like #inspiringfemale role models.
The photo reflects how the doll originally looked and how she recreated the doll to be like #Malala Yousafzai, Pakistani activist and youngest Nobel Prize laureate. She has also created a doll for Jane Goodall, author J.K. Rowling, Somali model and activist Waris Dirie, and Roberta Bondar, the first female Canadian astronaut.
Who would be your favorite #female_role_model that you would like to see in a doll and why?
See more: http://www.takepart.com/…/bratz-dolls-transformed-inspiring…
Malala Yousafzai, Pakistani activist and youngest Nobel Prize laureate. (Photos: Yousafzai: Wikipedia; doll: Wendy Tsao)
Sex trafficking is the new American Slavery
#Sex_trafficking is the new American Slavery.
“People who are having sex with children are not johns and tricks. They are child rapists and pedophiles, so we should call them what they are” #Jada_Pinkett_Smith. We agree. If all men caught with an underage girls were prosecuted, jailed and labeled as sex offenders, it might make a dent in this horrible exploitation.
Finally some good news with the #FBI rescuing nearly 150 underage sex trafficking victims on Wednesday. The sting included children in Atlanta (which is known as a hub for human trafficking), Cleveland, Denver and Detroit. According to a 2014 study by Urban Institute, some traffickers in Atlanta make more than $32,000 a week.
This was a joint effort with the National Center for #Missing_and_Exploited_Children and local law enforcement. They were able to arrest almost 150 of those involved.
So many of these #children are lured away because they are looking for attention, unhappy in their lives at home and/or school. They are manipulated and exploited and it is heartbreaking for the girls and their families.
I hope that the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children is successful in getting these girls the help they so badly need to recover from having their childhoods stripped from them.
See more: http://www.cnn.com/…/14/us/sex-trafficking-sting/index.html…
Sweden Plans To Become World's First Fossil Fuel-Free Nation
Finally a headline that we #LemonadeMakers can love – Sweden Plans To Become World’s First Fossil Fuel-Free Nation. #Solar powers budget is increasing by 800%, so this seems to be the primary source they are leaning towards. They are also closing their nuclear power plants with no replacements planned. Already two-thirds of their electricity is from non fossil fuel sources.
For many years nations around the world have been slow to make changes in their energy uses, even though #climate_change is now an accepted fact by all of them.
Earlier this year, Costa Rica met the entirety of its national power demand using #renewable_energy for 75 days straight.
Denmark, one spectacularly windy day in July, generated 140% of the nation’s electricity demand through #wind_power alone, as reported by the Guardian. Remarkably, much of the excess was given to Germany, Norway and Sweden.
Potter It Forward
An easy to do idea of paying it forward. There is apparently a “Potter It Forward” movement out there that has Harry Potter fans leaving thoughtful inspiring notes in libraries and second hand bookstore copies of the Harry Potter series.
I thought why should we limit it to Harry Potter books or Harry Potter fans? As adults we all had our favorite children’s and teen books we read. What if we put inspirational notes in those books for the children reading them? For the current NY Times bestsellers that we are reading or just finished – what if we put something inspirational in those books?
My favorite Harry Potter quote is “it takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends” – I actually think it takes more bravery to stand up to our friends. That could be a great quote for kids facing peer pressure.
What was your favorite book, either as a child or one you just finished reading? Can you think of a famous quote that might be inspired by the book? Or maybe a quick thought of something wonderful you learned when reading the book?
Next time you are shopping for a book in a store, or checking one out at the library, take a moment and write a quick quote or note and slide it inside a book. It will be like finding a fortune cookie for the person reading the book – tell them to pass it on to someone else in their life they think could benefit from it. Start a movement and make someone smile.
Yoobi
#Yoobi is a company that sells school supplies and has a buy one, give one philosophy for everything it sells. In their first year they had sales of $20M and they were able to provide more than 1 million children with free school supplies. This goes a long way in todays #underfunded_schools.
This is a similar model to #Toms_Shoes. This is really going to help both the students who get the supplies and so many of our school teachers who spend up to $1,000 a year buying supplies for those students whose families can’t afford paper and pencils.
When Yoobi comes to the school they host giveaway events and they drew the attention of Usher who recently teamed up with the company to help design a limited edition school supplies collection. This is a great example of social enterprise. #Usher helps the #social_enterprise company and gives something special to these children. He also helps to promote his own personal brand as a social enterprise.
The company’s social give back comes from a very heart centered place, as the founders mother was a teacher that used to pour her own money into buying school supplies. That is the critical piece to have a successful social enterprise – authenticity.
See more: http://www.cnbc.com/…/businesses-that-give-back-a-new-schoo…
Kindred
“To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson
No matter what is happening in your life, someone else has been in your shoes. Someone else has a #story to share that can help you make it through to the other side. No matter what is happening, you can not only survive, but turn it around and #thrive.
This is what #Kerrie_Cooper learned from her father, making others lives easier. He was one of those old fashioned doctors and his life was all about helping his patients, especially those who didn’t have insurance, or couldn’t afford the drugs they needed to be healthy.
So when Kerrie decided to be an entrepreneur she had some qualifications that her new business would need to meet. I wish that all businesses had this same philosophy.
She dedicates 40% of the merchandise profit to a giving fund to help someone who has been swept up in a major life event. The kind that throws you off your course and stops you in your tracks. When your life as you know it ceases to exist and a new one must be made. The kindred giving fund will serve every day people who just need a #helping_hand to get back on their feet again.
I love her website – #Kindred, we are all in this together. Share this and spread the word – so they can help others get back on their feet.
Website: http://www.wearekindred.org/
See More: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kerrie-l-cooper/built-to-give-back_b_8271016.html
Carl Schneider
The Whitney Achievement School has some very special #teachers, one of them being #Carl_Schneider. Every day after school he walks many of his students home that live in apartment complexes same distance from school.
It started because the teachers there were concerned for the students safety. But it has turned into an opportunity for the teachers to really get to know their #students.
They get to talk about what happened in school that day and decompress about any stress they had. They get a chance to talk about what they learned or have questions about in regards to their homework. They are forming a bond and realizing that the teachers at their school really care about them.
These teachers are #LemonadeMakers because they are going beyond the job description and helping to forge a bond that will hopefully take these students through college and a successful career.
See More: http://www.liftbump.com/…/86110-woman-spots-a-man-walking…/…