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Store Finds the Cutest Way for Autistic Boy to Keep Himself Busy in the Aisles

By
McKinley Corbley
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While 7 years old might be a little young to start working, Dylan Russell is a special exception.

Dylan, who has autism, loves to help his mom grocery shop at the Asda supermarket in Huyton, Merseyside. Whenever they got to the checkout, however, he always got agitated because he had nothing to keep himself busy.

Then, near the end of one of their shopping trips, Dylan started occupying himself by tidying up the shopping baskets near the checkout counters.

RELATED: Workers Buy Toy Panda For Little Boy After Seeing Pleading Note Scribbled on Box

Asda cashier Gareth Hughes spotted the youngster cleaning up and decided to say hi to him and his mother before they had to leave.

“He was such a friendly and pleasant lad and I chatted to him and his mum before they left,” said Gareth. “I didn’t think too much of it until the next week when he came in again, saw me and said ‘Hello Gareth, how are you?’ I knew then I’d made a little friend!”

 

In order to make the boy feel welcome, the store staff started giving Dylan little odd jobs to do, like directing people to the next open check out till.

The employees then went one step further and gave Dylan a tour of the store. He was shown the store freezer, the back rooms, the delivery area – and he was even allowed to make his own pizza.

They also gave him a little gift to take home with him.

“We knew he would be coming back the week after so we made him a name badge which he loved and took home with him,” said Hughes. “It’s just been little things really to show him what we do and make him feel welcome when he comes to the store.”

CHECK OUT: Plane Passengers Are Left “In Awe” of Woman’s Kindness Towards Agitated Boy With Autism

Now, whenever the youngster returns to the store, he is encouraged to relieve his anxiety by doing whatever he can to help out.

“I can’t thank Gareth enough for everything he’s done for Dylan. The store tour was absolutely brilliant – Dylan loved it and we’re so touched,” says Dylan’s mom Michelle. “He’s told everyone what Gareth has done for him and keeps saying ‘I’ve got a name badge’. He’s even been telling everyone he works at Asda! He’s in his element when he’s in the store.”

Click To Share This Sweet Story With Your Friends (Photos by Asda)

Scientists May Soon Be Able to Give Transplant Patients 3D Artificial Hearts

By
Joao Freitas
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Scientists have harnessed the use of 3D printing in order to create a silicone heart that works just like a human’s.

Different from the current existing artificial hearts, the new model is hollow and soft. The most important impact of this characteristic is that scientists can then create internal mechanisms that are actually capable of replacing muscular movements and pumping blood just like a regular human heart.

The scientist that invented this material is Nicholas Kors, a doctorate student in the Switzerland Federal Institute of Technology. According to Mr. Kors, this design is a relatively simple model, but with a very complex internal structure.

CHECK OUT: Breakthrough Treatment With Lab-Grown Corneas Cures Blindness in Sheep

In trials, the organ was capable of pumping a liquid similar to human blood, but the material could only resist up to 3,000 beats, which would equate to half an hour of bodily function. After that, the material has trouble keeping pressure.

Kors, however, says that the trials are still a reason to celebrate.

“We were very positively surprised with the tests, this indicates a new direction on the development of artificial hearts,” said the professor, according to Globo.

The next step for the researchers is to strengthen the material and performance in order to make the function last longer so they can eventually be used as an assistant between a failing human human and transplant replacement. If perfected, the design could save thousands of lives in the future.

Have A Heart: Click To Share With Your Friends – OR,

9-Year-old Has Given Over 7,000 Donuts to Police Officers

By
McKinley Corbley
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This 9-year-old boy may not have any superpowers, but he is a hero to the men and women protecting our communities.

Tyler Carach is a youngster on a mission to give a donut to as many police officers in America as possible.

Since Carach began his quest in Florida, he has already given away over 7,000 donuts to cops across the east coast.

“Cops have been so grateful about Tyler’s visits to their stations. Many have told him that he is a reminder to them of why they do what they do everyday!” Sheena told the Good News Network.

CHECK OUT: Strangers Join Police Officers to Buy 95-Year-old New Air Conditioner

The youth – who has adopted the pseudonym “Donut Boy” – is currently on a 6-week road trip across America to distribute the pastries in American police departments.

Carach originally got the idea for the gesture in August 2016 when he saw several officers in a convenience store. Since he knows from experience that coffee and donuts are a cop’s favorite meal—his mom, Sheena Carach, is a former police officer—he decided to use his own allowance money to buy some treats for the folks in blue.

“I asked [my mom] if I could buy them donuts with my own money. I DID and they were so HAPPY!” writes Carach. “When we left I asked my mom why they were so happy and she said cops were having a hard time right now and that sometimes people choose to judge a whole by a few, and its important never to do that!”

RELATED: When Senior Loses Memory at Dinner, Cops Sit Down to be Her Dates

“I decided right then I wanted to cheer them up, so I told my mom I wanted to thank every cop in America and give them each a donut!”

Bearing a donut-emblazoned cape that reads “I DONUT Need A Reason To Thank A Cop”, Carach has mostly paid for the pastries by doing chores around his house, or collecting and selling scrap metal with his grandfather. Recently, to ease his financial burden, and spread more sugar, he and his mother Sheena started a crowdfunding campaign to support his mission.

You can keep up with Tyler’s travels by following his Facebook page or donating to his GoFundMe.

(WATCH the video below)

Click To Share This Tasty Story With Your Friends (Photos by Sheena Carach)

Gas Station Owner With Heart for the Homeless Keeps Doors Open for Them 24/7

By
McKinley Corbley
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While this may look like an ordinary gas station on the outside, something extraordinary happens on the inside.

The gas station’s owner opens the doors of his facilities to the local homeless community every day, rain or shine.

Pilar Love, a 44-year-old caregiver for an autistic teen, witnessed it firsthand when she stopped at the Santa Fe Springs gas station in Los Angeles County back in May.

WATCH: Man Builds Tiny House for Homeless Woman Sleeping in the Dirt 

“I went to go visit this Mobil station bathroom and the person who was inside the restroom was taking a long time,” Pilar told the Good News Network in a phone interview. “The owner then came over to me and said ‘Oh, I think there might be a homeless person in there washing up in the sink’.”

When she questioned him further, the Asian-American man, whose name she did not know, explained how he had been letting poor people sleep, rest, and clean up in the building.

Love was surprised by his policy since the sight of homeless people at a gas station might be a turnoff for potential customers – but the owner remains compassionate, nonetheless.

“Because it’s been raining a lot lately, he had been letting them sleep right at the facilities,” said Pilar. “I can’t imagine many shop owners would do that – many people so often ignore homelessness and this man is opening up his heart to them.”

RELATED: Teen Invents Rain, Fire-proof Sleeping Bag for Homeless, and Offers Jobs

“I said to him, ‘You seem to have a heart for the homeless,’ and he told me his son was in the military and that it is such a problem in America when homeless people and veterans with mental illness are overlooked.”

Love has returned to the station several times to chat with the man, and it doesn’t seem like he plans on changing his heart anytime soon. Upon reaching out to the Good News Network, Love said that she simply wants the attendant’s generosity to appreciated and perhaps his kindness will spread.

“It just seems really rare to me for someone to be giving the same respect to someone who wasn’t a paying customer … I thought it would be awesome to give him a little bit of acknowledgement cause it’s not always about money.”

Gas Up With Positivity: Click To Share With Your Friends (Photo by Pilar Love)

Dog That Languished in a Cage For 8 Years Now Cuddles With Dozens of Toys

By
Good News Network
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Jojo may have spent most of his life in a cage, but the pup is now making up for lost time with his new loving family.

The 9-year-old dog originally belonged to an abusive family who left him in a rural dog facility with very little physical comforts. Eight years later, he was rescued from the warehouse by Animals R Family, a rescue organization based out of Englishtown, New Jersey.

While one might assume that Jojo has been affected by his harsh history, the pup is dazzlingly friendly and charismatic.

WATCH: Dog Chained Up For 15 Years is Finally Freed 

With the hope of finding Jojo a home for his remaining years, Animals R Family brought him to an adoption event in New York last December – and that’s when he was discovered by Leann and Kevin Karcher.

The couple immediately decided to adopt the elderly hound and shower him with love, attention, and care for the rest of his years. Since they started spoiling the canine with dozens of toys ,Jojo reportedly carries each one to bed at the end of the day so he can sleep in a pile of goodies every night.

“JoJo has quickly made up for lost time,” Kevin told the Dodo. “He loves to play with his toys while laying in the grass and will only sit still for hours if you scratch his belly.”

Kevin says that the most important decision one can make when thinking about adopting a dog, is finding out “which dog is least likely to be rescued” and “then [doing] all you can to adopt that dog!”

Click To Share This Pawesome Story With Your Friends (Photo by Kevin Karcher)

In a ‘World First’, Scientists Reverse Brain Damage in Drowned Toddler

By
McKinley Corbley
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Eden Carlson’s parents were told that their beloved 2-year-old daughter would most likely be a vegetable for the rest of her life – but, then, an experimental therapy reversed her brain damage.

In February 2016, Eden’s mother was horrified to discover that her daughter had broken through a baby gate and drowned in their backyard pool.

The mother immediately pulled her daughter out of the cold 41º water (5ºc) and started performing CPR. The toddler was then taken to the hospital where she was given emergency treatment – and for two hours afterward, her heart didn’t beat.

CHECK OUT: First Ever Quadriplegic Treated With Stem Cells Regains Motor Control in His Upper Body

The toddler was resuscitated, however, and she stayed in the hospital, totally immobile and unresponsive to any stimuli. All Eden was capable of doing was squirming incessantly and shaking her head – she was unable to walk, talk, or respond to voices.

Then, Dr. Paul Harch of the LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine, started giving the toddler normobaric oxygen treatments.

The treatments, administered nasally for 45 minutes twice a day, caused immediate and noticeable success. Eden became more alert and active with each session.

RELATED: New Cancer Drug is So Effective Against Tumors, the FDA Approved It Immediately

78 days after the incident, the family traveled to New Orleans where Eden was required to sit in a hyperbaric oxygen therapy chamber (HBOT) for an equal amount of time every day as her previous treatments.

After just 39 days using the chamber, doctors found that all signs of muscular dystrophy and brain damage had essentially been reversed —a feat researchers now say is a “world’s first”.

“The startling regrowth of tissue in this case occurred because we were able to intervene early in a growing child, before long-term tissue degeneration,” notes Harch. “Although it’s impossible to conclude from this single case if the sequential application of normobaric oxygen, then HBOT, would be more effective than HBOT alone, in the absence of HBOT therapy, short duration, repetitive normobaric oxygen therapy may be an option until HBOT is available. Such low-risk medical treatment may have a profound effect on recovery of function in similar patients who are neurologically devastated by drowning.”

(WATCH the video below)

Click To Share The Inspiring News With Your Friends (Photo by Eden Carlson Miracles)

Mom’s Reaction When She Finds Toddler Playing in Room Full of Baby Powder

By
Good News Network
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Word to the wise: keep baby powder out of the reach of children.

Sheila Boevers learned this lesson the hard way when she walked in on her 18-month-old daughter Juliann playing in a bathroom full of baby powder. At that point, it might be best to enjoy the moment, even if the powder, especially if it contains talc, should not be inhaled.

After getting over the initial shock of the snowy scene, the Iowa mother of two kept her cool…

Little Juliann then offered to help clean up by grabbing a tissue and attempting to wipe up some of the mess.

CHECK OUT: Stunned Toddler Pours All the Bubble Bath Into the Tub (Hilarious)

The patient mother then gave the guilty toddler a bath before vacuuming up the mess.

According to Inside Edition, she did become a little exasperated the following night, however, when she found that her daughters had gotten into the household supply of body lotion. Another lesson learned.

(WATCH the video below)

Click To Share This Cute Story With Your Friends

How a Woman’s Hair Appointment Possibly Saved Her Life

By
McKinley Corbley
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Eileen Korey treasures her luscious red locks – and that’s why she has been going to the same hairstylist every month for the last 15 years.

Her most recent visit, however, provided more than good looks.

Her stylist, Kari Phillips, noticed an unusual mark on Korey’s scalp while she was dying her roots.

Since Phillips insisted that she didn’t see the mark there a month ago, she told Korey to go see a dermatologist immediately.

CHECK OUT: Promising New Drug Stops Spread of Melanoma by 90%

It was lucky she did, too. Korey’s skin tests came back positive for melanoma – the deadliest form of skin cancer. But because Ms. Phillips noticed the spot when it was still in stage zero, Korey will simply undergo a quick surgery for the situ melanoma at the end of the month, rather than chemotherapy and radiation.

“If I have to have melanoma this is the best one to have. It was just this incredible sigh of relief,” Korey told TODAY.

Korey urges other hair stylists around the world to keep a sharp eye out for similar cancers on their clients’ heads that might match the ABC rules for spotting the disease. It could end up saving their life.

A = Asymmetry: One half is unlike the other half
B = Border: An irregular, scalloped or poorly defined border
C = Color: Varies from one area to another, with shades of tan, brown or black, white, red, or blue
D = Diameter: They are sually greater than the size of a pencil eraser, but may be smaller
E = Evolving: Looks like it is changing in size, shape or color

Click To Share The News With Your Friends (Photo by Eileen Korey)

Jack Johnson Insists on Making His Concerts Sustainable-And Starts With the Humble Cup

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Good News Network
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Crowd holds up their Jack Johnson cups - SB Bowl, July 2017

At two sold-out performances in California, Jack Johnson gave each and every concert-goer a souvenir stainless steel cup to eliminate single-use plastic and build on his legacy of greening rock-and-roll.

Fans at the Santa Barbara Bowl shows could fill up for free at any water station and will enjoy a $1 discount on all beverage refills – for the life of that pint at any future concert in the outdoor amphitheater.

For years, Johnson, a favorite hometown son and lifelong surfer, has forced concert venues into adopting sustainability efforts if they wanted to feature his music.

Before agreeing to play somewhere, he hands over a list of environmentally-focused demands in his rider, including a 100% recycling requirement and a request for energy-efficient light bulbs to be installed throughout the facility.

RELATED: Celebs Join Forces to Keep Promise for Suicidal Singer Chris Cornell

“After a show, I look out and see a sea of plastic – the industry I’m part of is contributing in a major way to this problem. I feel a responsibility,” Johnson told Rolling Stone.

For the picturesque Santa Barbara Bowl, the drive to go green was already embedded in their ethos. They’ve made it their mission to divert as much of their waste from the landfill as possible — going far beyond the California requirement of 50% by reducing 90% of their waste after sorting recyclables and composting the rest.

Johnson awarded the venue, which is 90 miles north of Los Angeles, the All At Once Sustainability Award in 2014 for being one of the greenest venues on his North American Tour and donated a water refill station in 2015 that has been used at every Bowl event since.

MORE: New USDA Guidelines Will Prevent Thousands of Pounds of Food Waste

The new campaign is an expansion of the Bowl’s Reusable Pint Program launched in 2014 in coordination with Johnson’s “From Here To Now To You” Tour that began striving to remove single-use plastic from concert venues.

His disdain for plastic led the 42-year-old singer songwriter on a voyage with scientists through the North Atlantic for a documentary about plastic pollution in the ocean. He contributed an original score to the film, The Smog of the Sea, including the song Fragments, which laments the small shards of plastic they discovered wherever they went. (They confirmed that the huge pile of floating trash is indeed a myth, and the real scourge are these “fragments on the sea.”

Johnson has extended his sold-out U.S. tour to support his new album, All the Light Above It Too. The LP, his seventh, which includes Fragments, is set for release September 8th via his own Brushfire Records.

Like the Dead & Company tour this year, which is erecting tents to feature the work of nonprofits, like the Jerry Garcia Foundation, Johnson’s tour dates at the Bowl hosted the All At Once Village Green, with local environmental non-profits and fan engagement to support sustainable local food systems and plastic free initiatives.

(CHECK out the soundtrack of Fragments…and SHARE below)

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A Dozen Homeless People Have Been Reunited with Their Families Thanks to This Start-Up

By
McKinley Corbley
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15 people living on the streets have been positively reunited with their families, thanks to social media and the efforts of this one volunteer organization.

Miracle Messages is a startup that records brief videos of homeless people giving loving messages to their long lost family members. Volunteers then put the videos on social media and locate the family based on likes, shares, and messages.

According to the organization, 30 of their messages have result in 15 happy reunions. Of the 15 homeless people, 40% were lifted off of the streets.

CHECK OUT: 60 Schools Are Installing Washers and Dryers For Homeless and Troubled Students

Kevin Adler, founder and CEO of Miracle Messages, created the project as a means of honoring his late Uncle Mark – a loving family member who lived on and off the streets for 30 years because of his schizophrenia. Adler first put the project in action during the holiday season in 2014; with hot beverages and pastries in hand, he asked homeless people around San Francisco if they had any messages they wanted to send to their families.

The startup has expanded to include a team of volunteers who have their own special reasons for supporting the organization’s mission.

“I chose to volunteer with Miracle Messages to humanize the homeless, because when my family lived on the streets for ten years, we wished someone might empathize with us,” says volunteer Michael Gaulden. “Maybe if a caring family member of ours could have found us and helped us, we would have been able to get off the streets much sooner.”

RELATED: Homeless Piano Player Reunites With Son, Heads to Rehab

While Miracle Messages understands that some people living in poverty prefer not to reconnect with their families, volunteers have found that 90% of their work have had extraordinarily positive results.

“Everyone is someone’s somebody, but the majority of homeless people are totally disconnected from their social support systems,” says Adler. “While relational brokenness and mental illness separate some families, many homeless people are disconnected due to digital literacy, access to technology, lost contact information, feeling ashamed, and/or feeling worthless (i.e., technological and emotional barriers).”

The organization hopes that by forging connections between homeless people and their family, they will be able to life at least 1% of the country’s homeless population out of poverty over the course of the next four years.

(WATCH the video below)

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Boy Trips, Falls and Discovers Rare Million-Year-old Fossil

By
Good News Network
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This 10-year-old boy is being credited with the discovery of a rare fossil buried deep in the New Mexican desert.

Jude Sparks and his family were exploring the Las Cruces desert back in November when he tripped on a protruding substance that was jutting out from the rock. When Sparks fell to the ground, he came face to face with a strange looking jaw bone and tusk.

Upon examining the fossils, the family decided to call Peter Houde, a biology professor at the New Mexico State University.

WATCH: Fishing, 11-yo Boy Reels in a Purse Lost 25 Years Ago… and Returns it to Owner

Houde was shocked to find that the boy had unearthed a 1.2 million-year-old stegomastodon skull.

“A stegomastodon would look to any of us like an elephant,” said Houde in a statement. “For the several types of elephants that we have in the area, this is probably one of the more common of them. But they’re still very rare. This may be only the second complete skull found in New Mexico.”

The family was then invited by the university to help dig up the fossil in May. While it took a lot of careful, delicate precision, the 120-pound skull was finally unearthed and brought to the school a week later.

WATCH: Scientists Discover Species of Adorable Googly-Eyed Fish

Researchers and specialists are praising the Sparks family for their honesty and communication upon finding the fossil.

“As you can imagine, when people find out about these things, they might be tempted to go out there and see what they might find themselves and tear up the land or they might hurt themselves,” Houde said. “To be quite honest, all these fossils from this area are radioactive and especially for children, not something you would want in your home.”

“I have every hope and expectation that this specimen will ultimately end up on exhibit and this little boy will be able to show his friends and even his own children, look what I found right here in Las Cruces.”

Click To Share The News With Your Friends (Photo by Peter Houde)

Watch Foster Kids’ Reaction When Mickey Mouse Tells Them They’re Getting Adopted

By
McKinley Corbley
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Disneyland may be considered the happiest place on Earth for most people, but it is now especially meaningful for these two foster kids.

12-year-old Janielle and 10-year-old Elijah thought that they were just getting a private meet and greet with Mickey Mouse when they were visiting Disney’s Magical Kingdom in April. Little did they know, however, that their foster parents had planned a special surprise.

Janielle and Elijah were handed a sign to hold for their photo op with Mickey. After they took the photo, they looked at what was written on the sign.

CHECK OUT: Why This Air Force Veteran Visited Disneyland 2,000 Days in a Row

Emblazoned on the front was a congratulatory letter stating that Janielle and Elijah’s foster parents of 3 years would finally be adopting them.

Courtney and Tom Gilmour had originally planned on surprising the kids with the sign at a Mickey Mouse meet and greet – but when they wrote about their plans on social media, Disney offered to host a private session for the foster family.

And the results are magical.

(WATCH the video below)

Click To Share This Sweet News With Your Friends (Photo by Courtney Gilmour)

UK Bans Unfair Credit Card Surcharges, Calling Them a ‘Rip-Off’

By
McKinley Corbley
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Starting in January, the UK will be prohibiting Britain’s obscene use of credit card surcharges on the basis that they are “a ripoff”.

According to a statement released by Her Majesty’s Treasury (HMT), British citizens are often given expensive surcharges – sometimes as much as 20% if they are purchasing an airline flight – just for using a credit card.

A 2010 census found that credit card and debit surcharges amounted to over $700 million (£473 million) alone.

CHECK OUT: World’s First Museum of Happiness to Open in UK

“Rip-off charges have no place in a modern Britain and that’s why card charging in Britain is about to come to an end,” said the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Stephen Barclay. “This is about fairness and transparency, and so from next year there will be no more nasty surprises for people at the check-out just for using a card.”

“These small charges can really add up and this change will mean shoppers across the country have that bit of extra cash to spend on the things that matter to them.”

The legislation, which will be enforced starting in January, will outlaw retailers, merchants, government agencies, and local councils from implementing outlandish surcharges. UK representatives will also be working with British businesses in order to ensure that credit card processing fees remain affordable, but without the hefty added price gouges.

Click To Share The News With Your Friends 

UPDATE: Afghan Girls Twice Denied Visas Just Won Silver Medals

By
Good News Network
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These Afghan girls who were twice denied visas to the United States were just given silver medals in recognition of their perseverance and cultural triumph.

The high school students were competing in the First Global Challenge – a robotics competition based out of Washington D.C.

Despite not being from any of the states that are currently subjected to travel bans, the girls had their visas rejected by the Department of Homeland Security. If they had not been granted access, they simply would have watched their robot compete via Skype.

CHECK OUT: Afghan Girls, Not Allowed On Bikes, Shred On Skateboards Instead

According to media sources, however, White House staff intervened at the last minute and encouraged Homeland Security to grant the six teens parole.

Then, on Tuesday during the final scoring and award ceremony, the First Global judges awarded the girls silver medals for “courageous achievement” and “their can-do attitude”.

“I am so excited, and very, very happy,” Ghaderyan told The New York Times. “I still can’t believe this happened.”

(WATCH the video below)

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Arizona Senator Defends His Muslim Opponent From Online Attacks

By
McKinley Corbley
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In a show of diplomatic cordiality and kindness, this U.S. senator has spoken out against the discrimination lauded on the very woman trying to unseat him.

One of the Democratic candidates running to be an Arizona Senator in 2018 is Deedra Abboud, a 45-year-old woman.

Earlier this week, Abboud posted a photo of the Constitution to her campaign page with an inspiring message of government.

CHECK OUT: Opposing Congressmen Become Besties When Forced on D.C. Road Trip

“Almost 250 years ago, a group of dreamers came together and sketched out a revolutionary vision. No longer would they be shackled to the whims of a distant government, nor bound to the religion of an idiosyncratic king,” writes Abboud.

“They set out to forge their own futures, determine their own destinies, and follow their own faith. In their infinite wisdom, the Founding Fathers decreed that this nation would separate church and state, and in doing so protect both institutions. Government would be free from religious overreach, and religion would be free from government interference.”

Unfortunately, the post received a backlash of racist, hateful, and prejudiced comments.

This prompted Arizona Senator Jeff Flake to reach out to Abboud on social media.

MORE: Congress in Unanimous Vote Passes Bill of Rights for Sexual Assault Victims

“Hang in there @deedra2018. Sorry you have to put up with this. Lots of wonderful people across AZ. You’ll find them,” said Flake.

This is not the first time that the Republican senator has stepped up for Muslim Americans, either. He once attended a service at a mosque in order to show solidarity with the Islamic community; and he has remained outspoken amongst several racist policies and rhetoric introduced over the course of the election.

Abboud responded with: “Thank you @JeffFlake for leadership in rejecting behavior that doesn’t reflect our American values. AZ’s amazing people deserve more of this.”

Abboud is a Phoenix-based attorney who converted to Islam 19 years ago. Originally from Little Rock, Arkansas, the businesswoman says that she wants to run for senator so she can represent the state that has given her such a loving home.

Click To Share The News With Your Friends (Photo by Deedra For US Senate 2018)

Man Built $550 Staircase for Park After City Estimated $65,000

By
McKinley Corbley
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An amusing bureaucratic debate has arisen in Canada after a retired mechanic took it upon himself to build a $550 staircase on a dangerous local park trail – which is a substantially lower price tag than the city’s original estimate.

When several community members of Etobicoke, Ontario had fallen down or gotten injured on the rocky Tom Riley Park path, local citizens contacted the city for a price estimate on a staircase.

Much to their dismay, the city said that eight steps would cost taxpayers anywhere from $65,000 to $150,000.

So, Adi Astl stepped up to build the installation himself.

CHECK OUT: Substitute Bus Driver Takes Day to Build Ramp For Disabled Girl He Didn’t Know

With several other neighbors offering to help finance the stairs, Astl hired a homeless man to assist with the project. Within a matter of hours, they had built eight steps for roughly $550.

Though the initiative caused some controversy amongst city representatives saying that “there is no foundation” and the “incline is uneven”, community members have already thanked Astl for his work, saying that it has made the path substantially less dangerous.

Astl, who is in his seventies, say that it was never about the money – it was about keeping people safe.

Meanwhile, Mayor John Tory says that while the original estimate for the staircase was definitely uncalled for, he emphasizes that citizens can’t simply modify public spaces simply because they don’t like the way things are. Additionally, the park already has a more accessible path further past the new staircase – visitors simply used the rocky trail as a shortcut at their own risk.

MORE: Oregon Man Rebuilds Furniture and Better Future For Refugees

However, city council members are now saying that instead of tearing down the staircase to build a new one, workers will most likely improve upon Astl’s installation for significantly less money than the original project.

(WATCH the video below)

Build Up Positivity: Click To Share With Your Friends – Photo by CTV News

A Prescription for Compassion, This Handyman Builds Cheap Wheelchairs and Gives Them to Disabled Dogs

By
McKinley Corbley
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This animal lover dreamed up a brilliant solution for the dozens of disabled pups wandering around his city.

When 40-year-old Pan Chieh isn’t working as a machine operator, he is busy building homemade canine wheelchairs out of water pipes.

Chieh’s design, which only costs about $30 to build, has bestowed mobility onto dozens of dogs in Tainan, Taiwan who can now move around more efficiently. He says that he first got the idea for the design when his friend took in a rescue dog for treatment and was shown a hefty veterinary bill for a new wheelchair.

CHECK OUT: Mall Opens its Doors for Stray Dogs During Winter Storm

Instead, Chieh offered to build her a cheaper prototype.

On the weekends, Chieh and his girlfriend travel around the region and visit animal shelters, rescue organizations, and disabled dog homes. While they sometimes ask for help financing travel expenses, they will often give away the wheelchairs for free.

Additionally, Chieh will make wheelchairs for disabled cats, but the dogs are more at risk from farmers setting traps in order to prevent theft of crops or food.

(WATCH the video below)

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Watch Hilarious Scene Unfold as Wimbledon Heckler is Invited onto Field

By
McKinley Corbley
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When people hear the phrase “good sportsmanship”, they probably don’t associate that with men wearing skirts.

But that’s exactly what happened at the Wimbledon 2017 Championships earlier this week.

4-time major tennis champion Kim Clijsters was playing a double invitational game at Wimbledon when she asked the crowd whether she should serve down the middle or the side.

WATCH: Hero Soccer Player Save Opposing Goalie From Choking

When Chris Quinn, an Irishman from County Wicklow, jokingly yelled “body shot” from the audience, Clijsters was having none of it.

The tennis champ then fired back, gleefully yelling: “Do you think you can handle my serve?”

The players invited the heckler onto the field, and without hesitating, Quinn hopped the divider and grabbed a racket.

He wasn’t allowed to play, however, until he followed the All England Lawn Tennis Club dress code rules stating that players must be wearing all white.

Luckily, Clijsters had some spares in her bag.

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The Belgian athlete ran to her gear and grabbed a white pair of skorts and a long-sleeved shirt.

After Quinn had wriggled into the women’s apparel, Clijsters obliged his request: a 100-mph body shot.

While he managed to hit it over the net, he missed the return. Clijsters then gave him two more shots, both of which he missed.

The players then insisted on taking a photo together before he returned to the stands – still wearing the skorts. Quinn later told the BBC that he plans on auctioning them off for charity.

(WATCH the video below)

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MIT is Developing Color-Changing Tattoos that Can Monitor Your Diabetes in Real Time

By
McKinley Corbley
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Your future tattoo design might be good for more than just personal style – they might be able to monitor our body’s health in real time.

Earlier last month, researchers at MIT announced the development of the Dermal Abyss: a biosensing tattoo that changes color according to the levels of your interstitial fluid.

Instead of using regular ink, the Dermal Abyss’s biosensors can reflect the amount of glucose, alkali, and sodium in your body. This means that instead of having to prick their finger with a needle every day, diabetics could simply check their tattoo – just as easily as checking a watch.

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“DermalAbyss is a proof-of-concept that presents a novel approach to bio-interfaces in which the body surface is rendered an interactive display,” writes the researchers. “It blends advances in biotechnology with traditional methods in tattoo artistry.”

While readers have already been itching to get their own, researchers are emphasizing that the project is still in the very early stages of development. The biosensors are currently being tested on samples of animal skin to investigate the color change’s visibility.

Clinical trials and commercial use, however, are still a long way off.

(WATCH the video below)

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The First Self-Defense Studio in the Middle East that Teaches Women to Fight Back

By
McKinley Corbley
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A female boxer was tired of women in the Middle East being told they had to accept violence and abuse – and now, thanks to her, they can stand up for themselves.

That’s because SheFighter, an exclusively female martial arts studio in Jordan, is the first Middle Eastern organization that teaches women how to defend themselves.

Lina Khalifeh is the founder of SheFighter – and she says that when she first began the company, it mostly consisted of her and a few of her students in her parent’s basement. She eventually started partnering with local gyms in the area in order to host classes. Then, in 2012, she opened her own studio in Amman Jordan.

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Now, the organization has expanded to include 5,000 students of all ages and at least a dozen trainers. The center hosts classes for Syrian refugees, and SheFighter will soon be opening more locations in Saudi Arabia and possibly Kuwait, according to PRI.

The studio gives lessons in taekwondo, boxing, kung fu, and regular boxing, as well as psychological sessions and counseling.

Khalifeh herself has over 17 years of taekwondo experience under her belt. When she first began fighting at just 5 years old, she often got in trouble with her parents because she would get in fights with other boys in order to prove that she was as strong as they were. After she began formal training, she won over 20 medals in tournaments and championships.

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She then got the idea for SheFighter in 2010 when she learned that a close friend of hers was enduring abuse from her family members.

Since SheFighter has expanded, Khalifeh has been recognized by former U.S. President Barack Obama and has been named one of the most innovative, successful female entrepreneurs and “leaders of change”.

While the boxer says that she has faced an exhausting amount of obstacles and difficulties in order to bring SheFighter to fruition, it has all been worth it for the joy and confidence it brings her students.

“Now we’re getting more men who want to enroll their daughters to the training,” Khalifeh told PRI. “I’m really happy about it.”

(WATCH Khalifeh’s TEDx Talk below)

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