Home Blog Page 1139

Oscars to Celebrate Heroes at This Year’s Ceremony

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 16, 2014

Atticus Finch movie hero-To Kill a Mockingbird

The 86th Academy Awards will be a celebration of movie heroes, the producers announced this week. The theme for the March 2 live broadcast, hosted by Ellen DeGeneres, will honor big-screen real-life heroes, like “Gandhi” and “Erin Brockovich,” as well as super heroes and animated heroes, both past and present.

“We wanted to unify the show with an entertaining and emotional theme,” said Craig Zadan and Neil Meron. “People around the world go to the movies to be inspired by the characters they see on the screen.”

To coincide with the Oscar night theme, the Academy will present an ode to movie heroes in the lobby of its Beverly Hills headquarters. The exhibition, on display beginning tomorrow through March 5, will feature still photographs and posters from 70 titles spanning nine decades, as well as video montages with excerpts from classic and contemporary films.

The exhibit will include films centered on real-life role models, like “Gandhi” and “Silkwood”, super heroes, like “Superman” and “The Dark Knight”, animated heroes, like “Shrek” and “The Incredibles”, and action heroes like “Seven Samurai” and “Gladiator”.

Also included will be literary heroes, like Atticus Finch in “To Kill a Mockingbird”. The character Finch (pictured above) as portrayed by Gregory Peck in the 1962 film adaptation, was voted by the American Film Institute to be the greatest hero in American film.

Stanford Whiz Kids Develop an Amazing Cheap Fix for Clubfoot

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 15, 2014

club foot invention-MiracleFeet

Clubfoot affects one in every thousand newborns, causing their feet to turn inwards, making it look like they’re walking on their ankles. Treatment can correct the condition in most cases, but post-operative physical therapy involves years of wearing an ugly, uncomfortable, and expensive “orthopedic brace” that consists of a pair of clumsy shoes separated by a steel shank with a $300-700 price tag.

Fortunately, a pair of Stanford students have invented a cheap, attractive — even fun — way to treat “clubfoot” in children, that will work well in developing countries and in the U.S., but costs just $20. It’s called Miracle Feet.

– WATCH the video below…

– READ the full story in WIRED

Thanks to Harley Hahn for submitting the link!

Sean Penn and Celebrity Friends Raise Millions for Haiti

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 15, 2014

Goldie Julia Roberts and Gwyneth - JPHRO Haiti charity

The eve of the fourth anniversary of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, Sean Penn’s friends came out to support his Haitian relief organization’s 3rd annual Help Haiti Home gala. Stars like Goldie Hawn, Julia Roberts, Gwyneth Paltrow and Penn’s new girlfriend, Charlize Theron, helped him raise six million dollars in a single evening.

Since Penn’s charity, J/P Haitian Relief Organization, began managing two tent camps which housed 60,000 people displaced by the quake, it has provided support for every family to be relocated, and built earthquake-resistant housing for hundreds. The group also provides health and education services.

The J/P HRO Engineering and Construction team continues to demolish and clear debris today and has already removed 1.3 million tons of rubble. The team’s new strategy is to teach the people how to build safely, according to a report in Variety.

One of the fundraising vehicles for the January 11 gala was an auction for which pop artist Banksy created a painting that went home with Chris Martin of Coldplay, thanks to his generous bid. The biggest bid of the night came from CNN newsman Anderson Cooper, who paid $1.4 million for a sculpture to be made from discarded firearms owned by Penn, according to the SF Chronicle.

To top off the party in Beverly Hills, Bono performed with U2, after not having played together in four years.

For more information go to: www.jphro.org, follow the group on Twitter, add J/P HRO to your Google+ circles, and find them on Facebook.

Blogger’s Search for Stranger Who Saved His Life

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 15, 2014

Jonny Benjamin blogger saved from suicide

A video-blogger who was stopped by a stranger from jumping into a river six years ago has launched a campaign to find the man who saved his life.

Jonny Benjamin, 26, was on a ledge of London’s Waterloo Bridge in January 2008 after being diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, when the man intervened.

Now as an ambassador of the Rethink Mental Illness UK charity he has helped many.

“The empathy, belief and determination that passerby showed me, gave me hope.”

(READ the full story at the BBC – HEAR Jonny’s appeal below)

Thanks to Andrew N. for submitting the link!

Deaf Fullback Stars in Commercial That Will Give you Chills

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 15, 2014

Derrick Coleman Duracell ad

“When the world tells you “no”, you have two options: You can roll over and quit — or you can trust your power.”

Through adversity, pro football running back Derrick Coleman trusted his inner strength. Although he is deaf, the Seattle Seahawks player never let anything stand in his way, on his road to the NFL.

The first deaf offensive player in the NFL, Coleman is featured in a new Duracell advertisement that talks about trusting the power within.

Coleman caught a touchdown pass in a nationally televised Monday Night Football game on December 2nd.

WATCH the video below…

Thanks to Judy Ritchie for submitting the link!

Disability Kept Him From Soccer Stardom, But His Own Animated Super Hero Turns Disease into Strength

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 14, 2014

Comic art Ammon by-Miroslav Petrov

Aaron D’Errico always wanted to play soccer like his superstar dad, who led the USA Men’s National soccer team, but since birth his leg muscles have been damaged by disease. His determination to overcome, however, blossomed within his imagination where he visualized his victories through a comic soccer superhero named “Ammon”.

His comic hero, Ammon, is a medical student with cerebral palsy (cp) who secretly dreams of being a soccer star -– like his father –- but during his search for a cure, he gains superpowers through a blend of science and spirit. The powers are enhanced through each positive action he takes, both on and off the field.

D’Errico himself has become an inspiring hero to many, including Marvel comics icon Stan Lee, and he may become a mentor to an aspiring artist thanks to his online contest offering $2,000 to the winning illustrator.

Signs of Coral Recovery for the Great Barrier Reef

Good Bites

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 14, 2014

Queensland scientists say baby corals are blooming again on the Great Barrier Reef, both in some of the shallows and also deeper areas, say scientists, which demonstrates the ability to bounce back after multiple impacts. (ABC)

Savior Firefighter Earns Lesson From Pulling Husky From Frozen River

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 14, 2014

SunDog

Firefighter Sean P. Coyle is being hailed globally as a hero — from Alaska to Ghana and all over the Internet — for rescuing a Siberian husky who fell through the ice in Boston Harbor last week.

A life is a life, whether it’s four-legged or two-legged, according to the humble public servant from South Boston’s Ladder 19 — who’s been flooded with emails, texts and phone calls since photos of Sylvie’s rescue spread.

“We look at the pets like citizens,” he told the Boston Herald, which first published the photos last Thursday.

-READ today’s update from the Boston Herald

–LOOK at the Original Facebook post below

Elderly Man Whose Wife Just Passed Surprises Young Couple on First Meal Out Alone

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 13, 2014

napkin note buys dinner for young couple

An older man named Lee had just lost his wife of 43 years but instead of crying in his entree, he looked around the restaurant on his first night dining out alone and became inspired by a young couple in love.

He paid for their meal, scribbling a touching note on a napkin…

Rare Horses Released In Spain As Part Of ‘Rewilding’ Effort

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 13, 2014

horses by Mark Hamblin/rewildingeurope.com

For the first time in two millennia, wild horses are once again galloping free in Spain, countering what happened when the Romans moved there and domesticated the animals.

Four-dozen Retuerta horses have been released into the wild in western Spain over the past two years as part of a project by Rewilding Europe.

The Retuerta horse or Caballo de las retuertas is a rare breed of horse indigenous to Spain’s Andalusia region, said to closely resemble the ancient Iberian horses that populated Spain before being domesticated.

(Listen to the story or READ it at NPR News)

Photo credit: Mark Hamblin/rewildingeurope.com

New York City Will Use Pizza Crusts To Heat Homes

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 13, 2014

pizza crusts-Tom Lawrence-Flickr-CC

A new pilot project at a Brooklyn wastewater treatment plant will use discarded food scraps to generate biogas, keep New Yorkers warm, and reduce climate-warming emissions to the atmosphere.

In the pilot program, New York is collecting food waste, such as half-eaten bagels and pizza crusts from cafeterias in the city’s schools, and trucking it to a plant in Brooklyn, where it will eventually be generating enough heat for more than 5,000 homes.

Eventually, the plant will be able to process around 500 tons of food waste per day, which represents about 15% of the organic trash in the city.

(READ the story from Fast CoExist)

Photo credit: Tom Lawrence via Flickr-CC

Parents Flock to Colorado for Cannabis that Cures Seizures

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 13, 2014

seizure treatment sought in CO-Gazettevideo

After failed treatments by some of the country’s best neurologists and most powerful pharmaceuticals, families whose children suffer with severe epilepsy are moving to Colorado to get marijuana oil, a miracle-like treatment that successfully improves catatonic kids.

“No matter what we did, nothing helped. She just got worse until she was almost a vegetable,” said one father. “She had no chance at life.”

Prison Gardens Help Inmates Grow Their Own Food — And Skills

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 12, 2014

prison gardening-plantingjustice

A vibrant movement of prison vegetable gardens is spreading across the country that provides inmates with satisfying work, marketable skills and fresh food to eat. From Connecticut to to California, correctional authorities are finding all kinds of reasons to encourage inmates to produce their own food inside the walls.

In the following video, filmed in December, we see inmates at San Quentin State Prison outside San Francisco, thanks to this video from Planting Justice, a group that says the recidivism rate for the gardening ex-cons is just ten percent.

Couple Marks 66th Anniversary With $15 Waldorf Astoria Hotel Room

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 12, 2014

Fioravantes couple 1948

Tony and Jo Fioravante will celebrate their 66th wedding anniversary today the same way they spent their wedding night, with a stay at the luxurious Waldorf Astoria hotel in Manhattan — and the Park Avenue room will cost the couple just $15.75.

The Staten Island couple, who kept their original receipt from 1948, will pay the same rate this year, even though the room rates in 2014 start at $799.

The Fioravantes are cashing in on the hotel’s long-standing tradition of honoring the original rate for couples celebrating an anniversary of 50 years or more who spent their wedding night at the Waldorf and kept the receipt after all those years.

Continue

Ring Found in Frozen Pipes Returned in Time for 40th Anniversary

By

-

Jan 11, 2014

wedding ring with sapphires-KGO-TV

An Illinois couple wrote a letter saying “Hooray for ice storms” after what they found while dealing with frozen pipes in their kitchen sink last week.

Willowbrook residents Tara Catogge and her husband Ian Comes found someone’s diamond and sapphire ring.

The honest couple immediately called the previous homeowners, who, it turns out, thought they had lost the wedding ring outside.

Random Stadium Seats Leads to Life Saving Donation

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 11, 2014

Football buddies organ transplant-UC-SanDiego

In October 2013, Louis Munoz donated one of his kidneys to William Lynch. The organ match would not have occurred without a bit of serendipity and a big love of football.

Munoz and Lynch hadn’t seen each other in years – then they found themselves randomly seated next to each other with season tickets for San Diego Chargers games.

“Louis and I knew each other as kids and then lost touch. Years later, by surprise, we ended up sitting right next to each other at Chargers games,” said William, a middle school teacher.

Kentucky Facebook Users Rally to Help Homeless Woman Find Shelter in Cold

By

Good News Network

-

Jan 11, 2014

homeless bag lady Dorothy-FBphoto-ConnieMiller

Over the years, a homeless woman known as Dorothy with her carts filled with plastic bags became a familiar fixture to Lexington residents.

She had always refused any invitation to accept food, water or indoor shelter. She preferred to sleep outside, whatever the weather.

But things changed this past weekend, with the approaching arctic blast and its promise of temperatures that could induce frostbite.

1...1,1381,1391,140...1,713 Page 1,139 of 1,713