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Police Hunt Ends When TV Station Spots Boy Napping on Roof

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Good News Network
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Earlier last week, a police hunt for a missing boy ended in an amusing way when a television station helicopter spotted the 11-year-old napping on the roof of his house.

Parents of the boy had reportedly called the Miami, Florida police department when they believed their son to be missing.

After a two-hour hunt, however, a helicopter for WSVN-TV was shocked to see the youngster snoozing on a tarp on the roof.

RELATED: 12-Year-old Saves Friend’s Leg Using First Aid From ‘Hunger Games’ Book

When the boy was awoke by police officers, he was surprised to see the ruckus his disappearance had caused.

But, the boy was very apologetic, saying that he didn’t mean to cause such a stir. He had apparently only went for a stress nap on the roof because he didn’t want to go to summer camp.

(WATCH the video below)

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Cop Apprehends Suspect – All While Dressed as Batman

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McKinley Corbley
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Alleged theft is no laughing matter – but it is made slightly more lighthearted when the arresting officer happens to be dressed as Batman.

Damon Cole, a Fort Worth, Texas police officer who dresses as superheroes for charity, was participating in a child safety event as the caped crusader at a local Walmart when a man walking out the door set off the security alarms.

When the man kept walking across the parking lot, Batman was in hot pursuit.

Cole stopped the man at his car and identified himself as a police officer, asking about the alarm.

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

The man initially insisted that he wasn’t hiding anything, but he eventually admitted that he had been stealing four DVDs – including The LEGO Batman Movie – for his son’s birthday.

The suspect then apparently asked if he could take a selfie with Cole because: “It’s not every day that you’re arrested by Batman.” Cole was more than happy to oblige.

The incident was just another day on the job for Officer Cole. When he isn’t working as a full-time police officer, he dresses up as Superman, the Hulk, Iron Man, and Batman so he can travel across the country and visit children with cancer. He has paid out of pocket for all of his costumes and hospital trips, resulting in a hefty $8,000 price tag.

Cole has since started a nonprofit called Heroes and Cops to better finance his trips and secure corporate donations.

(WATCH the video below)

Holy Social Media, Batman! Click To Share With Your Friends (Photos by Damon Cole)

Pit Bull Elected as Town Mayor in Landslide Election

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McKinley Corbley
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Now THIS is the kind of election that we can get behind.

A 3-year-old pit bull named Brynneth Pawltro has just been elected as the new mayor of Rabbit Hash, Kentucky in a landslide election of 3,300 votes.

Brynn reportedly managed to best several other candidates, including a donkey, a cat, and a chicken. Since this is the fourth dog in a row that Rabbit Hash has elected as mayor, she will be succeeding a border collie named Lucy Lou.

The town’s tradition for furry mayors first came about in the 90s when the residents agreed that they had no need for a mayor.

RELATED: Pit Bull on the Verge of Euthanization Given 2nd Chance by Police

Instead, they decided to start electing animals in a truly representational democratic fashion.

Everyone in the town spends $1 to vote for the pawesome new mayor. Once the election is concluded, all of the money goes right back into the community.

This year in particular, the election funds will go towards rebuilding the town General Store, which burned down in an electrical fire.

(WATCH the video below)

Click To Share This Pawesome Story With Your Friends — OR,  (Photo by Brynneth Pawltro)

Dutch Households to Use Heat From Servers for Free Hot Showers

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McKinley Corbley
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If you’ve ever sat with a laptop on your legs for a long period of time, then you must know how warm computers can get.

Tech companies have spent millions of dollars trying to find innovative ways to keep data servers cool – but this is the first time that an organization has attempted to harness the heat instead.

Dutch startup company Nerdalize is planning on warming dozens of their country’s showers with computer servers starting in August.

Nerdalize has created a specially designed server that doubles as a hot water heater. Dutch families who purchase the server from Nerdalize are estimated to save over $330 in annual gas bills, while simultaneously saving over 3 tons of CO2 from the atmosphere. Since the cost of one of the servers is only about $300, it basically pays for itself within a year.

RELATED: More Dutch Prisons to Close Due to Staggeringly Low Crime Rates

Tech companies will also save millions of dollars in expensive cooling apparatus and data centers that are bad for the environment – which is ideal, considering that data servers are estimated to have become as bad for the environment as airlines, thus making up about 2% of the world’s carbon emissions.

By distributing computer servers across Dutch households, tech companies are expected to save as much as 50% in infrastructure costs.

As Nerdalize so aptly says, “it’s a win-win-win situation”.

Several Dutch households have reportedly already hosted the servers for nine months without incident. Nerdalize’s crowdfunding campaign, which has already raised $750,000 (two and a half times its original goal), will help roll out the servers across the Netherlands in the coming years.

(WATCH the video below)

Become part of the Nerdalize family - Crowd Investment Campaign 2017 from Nerdalize on Vimeo.

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FBI Helps Irish Family Recover Stolen Heirloom After 10 Years

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McKinley Corbley
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After a precious painting was stolen straight out of their home 10 years ago, this Irish family has finally been reunited with their heirloom, thanks to the FBI and other specialists.

In 1949, Irish couple Dr. Frank and Turid Malpress purchased one of the warmly-colored oil paintings of William Conor, a celebrated Belfast artist famed for his work depicting the Irish working class.

For 50 years, the painting “Bringing in the Turf” hung in the family’s home. More recently, the painting was estimated to be worth roughly $40,000.

RELATED: Fire Forces Man To Sell Good Luck Pearl, Turns Out To Be Worth $100Mil

Knowing the value of the paintings, the Malpress family at one point replaced the hanging masterpiece with a replica at the suggestion of the Police Service of Northern Ireland – but they quickly changed their minds, preferring to hang the original instead.

Then, in 2008, the Conor painting – along with a Daniel O’Neil painting titled “The Prodigal Son” – were stolen from the Malpress home.

The Conor painting then resurfaced at an art auction in the Republic of Ireland in 2013.

The family contacted their insurance company who then contacted Christopher Marinello: lawyer and art recovery expert with Art Recovery International.

MORE: Woman’s Wallet Returned 8 Years Later With Money Still Inside

Marinello and FBI Special Agent Luigi Mondini spent four years negotiating the return of “Bringing in the Turf” from the painting’s buyer in Chicago.

Though the details of the case are vague, the masterpiece has finally been returned to the Malpress household this week.

According to the Independent, the Malpresses are “absolutely delighted to have it back in our family” and they are grateful for Marinello and Mondini’s help when “all seemed lost”.

Though the Daniel O’Neil painting is still at large, the successful return of the Conor painting is just one of the completed investigations conducted by Marinello and Art Recovery International.

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Facebook is Celebrating Harry Potter’s 20th Birthday in a Magical Way

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McKinley Corbley
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It has been 20 years since Muggles were blessed with the first installment of the Harry Potter book series – and Facebook has added a small Easter egg for the fans.

In celebration of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone publication in the UK on June 26th, 1997, the social media giant made the words “Harry Potter”, “Gryffindor”, “Hufflepuff”, “Slytherin”, and “Ravenclaw” appear in their respective colors in Facebook posts.

If a user clicks on the words, they get a magical little surprise.

CHECK OUT: After Amusing Twitter Exchange, J.K. Rowling Shocks a Book Club by Showing Up

Additionally, Twitter has added to the anniversary by giving users the chance to tweet a little Harry Potter themed emoji by using the hashtag #HappyPotter20.

The American version of the magical first installment was released one year after the UK version on September 1st, 1998 under the revised name of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Since its publication, the Harry Potter series has sold over 400 million copies, making J.K. Rowling the first author become a billionaire through her works.

And the world has been spellbound by the enchanting universe ever since.

Join In The Magic: Click To Share With Your Muggle Friends

Pakistan Opens First Ever Violence Against Women Center

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McKinley Corbley
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While Pakistan might be a notorious region for female abuse, the country is taking steps towards better gender equality by opening up 36 different Violence Against Women Centers nationwide.

The first of the centers was opened in Multan of the Punjab region. The entirely female-run shelter offers first aid, forensics, medical examination, rehabilitation, post-trauma, counseling, and mental health services, as well as legal assistance.

RELATED: Former Child Brides Win Case in Court: Zimbabwe Bans Child Marriage

The installation of the institutions is a part of the Punjab Protection of Women Against Violence (PPWAV) Act passed by Punjab Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif in 2016. The legislation is expected to take a dramatic stance against domestic abuse and violence against women nationwide.

“Now the situation has changed compared to the past when women go to the police station they are told to go back to their home and accept the violence in the absence of laws on violence against women,” said Shaista Bokhari, Executive Director of the Women’s Rights Association.

The center’s workforce is comprised of 8 female police officers, including 2 inspectors, 2 assistant sub-inspectors, 3 head constables, and 21 female constables.

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Germany Wipes Slate Clean for 50,000 Men Convicted Under Anti-Gay Law

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McKinley Corbley
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Germany has just offered compensation and recognition to over 50,000 gay men who were convicted and persecuted over the course of the last century.

While 50,000 men were charged with the “crime”, only 5,000 are still living. In addition to their criminal records under article 175 of the penal code being wiped clear, however, the victims will be offered $3,300 in compensation, as well as an additional $1,600 for every year that they spent in prison.

The measure, which was approved by the German Parliament on Thursday, was celebrated by lobbyists who have spent years pushing for the act of justice.

RELATED: First Asian Country Rules in Favor of Same-sex Marriage

While it first came into effect in 1871, Paragraph 175 only became strictly enforced by the Nazis in WWII. The sentence for “engaging in sexual acts contrary to nature” resulted in 10 years of hard labor, although there was no legislation addressing gay women. The article was only repealed in East Germany in 1968, while West Germany also dropped the legislation in 1994.

The German Parliament reportedly overturned the sentences of the men convicted during the war in 2002, but they failed to forgive the convictions that followed – until now.

“More than two decades after article 175 was finally wiped from the books, this stain on democratic Germany’s legal history has been removed,” said Sebastian Bickerich of the government’s anti-discrimination office in a statement.

Click To Share The Good News With Your Friends (Photo by DancetechTV, CC)

Watch Crowd Make Amazing Catch When Girl Falls From Ride

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McKinley Corbley
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There was nothing amusing about this young woman dangling from an amusement park ride on Saturday evening – but the resulting rescue was an inspiring example of humanity.

Visitors of the Six Flags theme park of Lake George, New York were shocked to see a 14-year-old girl hanging from the Sky Ride gondola 25 feet above the ground.

As park goers attracted the attention of emergency personnel and park security, several pedestrians gathered under the girl and started organizing themselves into a makeshift human safety net.

RELATED: Tightrope Walker Scales Ski Wire to Rescue Dangling Man

When Park personnel stopped the ride, one man climbed a nearby tree so he could move the branches out of the girl’s path. Once the way was clear, the climber yelled out for the girl to let go.

And she did, landing safely into the arms of the people below.

After being checked over by emergency medical park personnel, she was airlifted to a local hospital where she was deemed healthy with no serious injuries. One of the rescuers was also reportedly treated for a back injury after catching the 14-year-old.

It’s unclear how the teen got caught in such a dangerous situation, as the ride was later inspected and declared in perfect working order. According to the Washington Post, the chances of sustaining an injury on the slow-moving Sky Ride is about 1 in 16 million.

While the event is still under investigation, however, one thing is clear: this group of random strangers were ready to risk their own health just to help a girl in distress.

(WATCH the video below)

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Boy Becomes the Pied Piper of Patriotism For Thousands of Graves

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McKinley Corbley
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When this young boy was alarmed to find a red flag – or lack thereof – in his grandfather’s cemetery, he started working tirelessly to fix it.

Preston Sharp was visiting the grave of his grandfather at McDonald’s Cemetery in Redding, California for Veteran’s Day two years ago when he noticed a total absence of flags, markers, or flowers on any of the veteran’s headstones.

Distressed by the neglected memorials, he kept pestering his mother over the cemetery’s lack of love and care.

RELATED: Veterans Find Peace Protecting African Wildlife from Poachers

In the video below, Preston’s mother explained how she lectured him, saying: “If you’re going to complain about something, you’re going to have to do something about it or let it go.’ And he’s like, ‘Well, I’m going to do something about it, Mom.’”

Preston, who was 10 years old at the time, started what would become a movement that was much bigger than just him.

The youth started by picking up odd jobs in the neighborhood so he could buy dozens of small American flags and flowers. When he placed one of each on every grave in McDonald’s Cemetery, he then moved onto the next veteran cemetery. And then the next. And then the next.

MORE: 2,000 Veterans Just Arrived at Standing Rock to Form Human Shield Around Protestors

Preston then started a GoFundMe page to help pay for enough flags and flowers for every veteran cemetery between Redding and Sacramento.

The campaign has raised a little over $30,000 for Preston’s mission – and he’s been joined by hundreds of other volunteers along the way.

To date, Preston has placed over 17,500 flags. No matter if it’s rain or shine, the youth is insistent on honoring the people who fought for his country – and he doesn’t plan on stopping any time soon.

(WATCH the video below)

Click To Share This Inspiring Story With Your Friends (Photo by the Sharp Family)

Youth Melts Internet Hearts, Escorting Fearful Senior Down the Escalator

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McKinley Corbley
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This photo of a 23-year-old helping a frightened senior down an escalator is restoring people’s faith in humanity.

The image was posted by Paula Piccard at the Holyoke Shopping Mall of Ingleside, Massachusetts, and has since been shared across social media.

Paula was waiting at the top of an escalator when she noticed an apprehensive elderly man standing at the top of the electric staircase.

While others were getting impatient over his hesitance, young Alonzo Johnson asked how he could help the senior.

RELATED: Sweden Opens World’s First Mall for Repaired and Recycled Goods

“The older man was paused at the top of an escalator and a few people started gathering, waiting to get on,” wrote Paula. “It was clear he was feeling unsure and this young man offered the simplest kindness: an out-reached arm and a ‘can I help you on, sir?’”

The older man explained how he once got caught on an escalator, leaving him with an everlasting phobia of the moving stairs. Without hesitating, however, Alonzo said that he would ride with him all the way to the bottom.

Paula then snapped a photo of the heartwarming duo riding the escalator arm-in-arm, and posted it on social media.

HERO: Guy Sacrifices Tesla to Save Unconscious Driver, Elon Musk Offers to Repair It

“In about an hour, the evening news will air and we’ll be reminded of division, race wars, political mud-slinging, shootings and other heartaches,” wrote Paula. “But today, violence, race, age, politics and other social lines were blurred and one person simply helped another. I wanted to hug both of them. Whoever this young man is, YOUR FAMILY RAISED YOU RIGHT! THANK YOU!”

(WATCH the video below)

Click To Share The Sweet Story With Your Friends (Photo by Paula Piccard)

Meet the Singing Cop Who Sounds Just Like Johnny Cash

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Good News Network
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Billy Morgan may look like a regular cop – albeit a tall, dark, and handsome cop – but he’s being hailed as the dopplegänger of America’s favorite country singer: Johnny Cash.

The San Antonio, Texas cop first gained recognition as a lookalike when he covered “Folsom Prison Blues” on the guitar.

Shocked by his resemblance to the original musician, Morgan’s peers complimented him on his uncanny resemblance to Cash.

RELATED: Identical Looking Strangers Seated Together on Plane; In Same Hotel, Too

Since his first comparison to the country singer, Morgan has since done several performances as Cash – and his impersonation is truly striking.

Morgan says that he often played music with a band before becoming a police officer. Now, he says he would like to utilize his musical talent to raise money for charity, while still working on the police force.

(WATCH the video below)

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Homeless Man Gives His Shoes to Diner in Need of Attending Wife’s Birthday

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McKinley Corbley
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Imagine driving for over an hour to meet your wife at a restaurant for her birthday dinner, only to be turned away at the door for not wearing the proper footwear.

Akbar Badshah, who drove from Bradford to a Manchester restaurant, was especially distressed by the rejection because his fasting for the holy season of Ramadan had prevented him from eating during the day.

As he was panicking outside of the restaurant, he struck up a conversation with a homeless man named John.

RELATED: New Opportunities Come to Homeless Hero Who Found Bomb in the Trash

After chatting for a few minutes about his unfortunate circumstances, Badshah took a chance and asked the homeless man what size shoe he wore.

When they discovered that their sizes matched, Badshah offered to give him £10, along with his own sandals, in exchange for John’s boots.

John turned down the money and happily volunteered to swap shoes with the hungry husband.

According to the BBC, John said he was “just happy to help out another human being”.

MORE: Homeless Man Who Became Hero in Manchester Bombing Rewarded With Housing

Once Badshah enjoyed a wonderful meal with his wife, he exited the restaurant and reunited with John so they could switch shoes once more. Badshah pushed for John to take the money several more times until he finally accepted.

On top of that, a nearby pedestrian overheard the conversation and gave John $75 in recognition of his kindness.

Badshah plans on returning to the restaurant and treating John to a meal as another way to thank him for his generosity.

(WATCH the video below)

Kick Off The Good News: Click To Share – Photo by Akbar Badshah

Once Extinct in Japan, Stork Population Soars to 100 After Gift From Russia

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McKinley Corbley
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Once wiped out in Japan, this species of stork is slowly – but surely – returning to the skies, thanks to regional conservation biologists.

Officials at the Hyogo Park of the Oriental White Stork in Toyooka, Japan have just announced the release of a recently-raised white stork, making it the 100th white stork living free in the wild today.

Conservationists first announced the 12-year milestone on Monday.

The species in Japan became extinct in 1971, due to the city’s fast economic expansion, but after receiving six chicks from Russia in 1985 the facility began breeding the storks in captivity. In 2005, the conservation center began releasing the storks into the wild.

WATCH: Check Out These 23 Baby Pandas Making Their World Debut

“I couldn’t be happier and hopefully they will continue flying in the skies all over the country and make other people happy too,” Satoshi Yamagishi, chief of the facility, told Japan Today.

By using eyewitness reports and tracking data, the facility is currently keeping a close eye on how the storks are faring in the local wild. However, the great white birds, which have a wing span of up to 7 feet, can reportedly still be found in China and Russia.

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Jail Inmates Rush to Save Fallen Officer, Rather Than Escaping

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McKinley Corbley
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Six inmates are being hailed as heroes after they saved the life of a correctional officer who passed out during a work detail on Monday.

The inmates of Polk County Jail in Georgia were working outside during a particularly humid morning when their security officer, who asked not to identified, collapsed unconscious. At that point, the prisoners could have taken the van and his gun and sped away, but instead they were only concerned with the man’s health.

The inmates rushed over to the fallen officer and found that he wasn’t breathing. The convicts then removed his gun belt and bulletproof vest so they could perform CPR, while one of the inmates used the officer’s phone to dial 911.

RELATED: Give a Prisoner an Abused Dog and WATCH What Happens, Karmic Connection

By the time emergency medical personnel arrived to help, the guard had started breathing again, albeit laboriously. The officer was then taken to the hospital where he has since been recovering from the incident.

Family members of the fallen policeman bought lunch and dessert for the six men as a thank you for their kindness. Additionally, Polk County Sheriff Johnny Moats said that he would be shortening the jail sentences of the six men by about 25%.

WATCH: Inmates Break Out Of Jail To Save Life Of Officer Guarding Them

The inmates, however, believe that it was simply the right thing to do.

“When that happened, in my opinion, it wasn’t about who is in jail and who wasn’t,” Greg Williams told WXIA-TV News.  “It was about a man going down and we had to help him.”

(WATCH the video below from WXIA-11)

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Boys Win Right to Wear Shorts By Wearing Skirts in Heat-Wave Protest

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McKinley Corbley
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These teenage boys are social activists in the making.

Even though the schoolboys of Exeter’s ISCA Academy were suffering from the summer heat, they still were banned from wearing shorts because of the traditional dress code.

To protest the stuffy school rules, however, 30 male students attended class collectively wearing the tartan skirts issued to the female students.

Though school officials were reportedly quite stumped as to how initially to handle the situation, none of the boys were punished.

RELATED: Cute Russian 5-yr-olds Escape From Kindergarten To Buy A Sports Car

Additionally, the school said that – starting next year – male students would be allowed to wear shorts “as summers are becoming hotter”.

Though the modified dress code won’t go into full effect until 2018 because it “would put undue pressure on some of our families, students will be able to discard their blazers and jumpers.

Students will also be allowed to ditch their ties, undo the first button of their school top, and untuck the shirts if they are feeling overheated.

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A Genius Invention is Saving Thousands of Animals From Drowning in Backyard Pools

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McKinley Corbley
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This revolutionary device has already saved thousands of animals from a terrible fate.

Though biologist Rich Mason normally works to conserve wildlife around the vast brackish waters of the Chesapeake Bay, he was also concerned about the dozens of frogs perishing in his friend’s backyard pool in every summer.

As a means of offering small animals a safe exit from the pool, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employee created the FrogLog: a flotation ramp that attaches to the edge of pools.

MORE: 10-Year-old Boy Invents Device That Will Save Children From Hot Cars

The floating critter dock is surrounded by a mesh skirt that allows trapped chipmunks, lizards, frogs, and squirrels to easily exit the water. The FrogLog’s key feature is a small ramp that leads to dry land.

Since Mason started marketing the FrogLog, which is anchored by a weighted base outside the pool, dozens of buyers have posted photos of the device’s success at saving their wild backyard friends.

“We have had this in the pool all summer and have had no critters lost. Normally there were 2 or 3 frogs a week, but none this year,” says Amazon buyer Johnny_B. “It helps all kinds of animals.”

RELATED: 12-Year-old Saves Friend’s Leg Using First Aid From ‘Hunger Games’ Book

If you’re worried about larger animals like household pets, have no fear – the Skamper-Ramp is a large easily-accessible ramp for cats and dogs to safely exit the swimming pool.

PETA names several other ways in which you can prevent animals from stumbling into your pools – like making sure to keep your backyard trees trimmed. Young forest critters are notorious for accidentally falling out of tree branches and into pools below.

The animal rights organization also warns that wildlife will often wander onto human property in search of food. In order to ward off possible animal trespassers, keep all of your trashcans secure, and be sure not to give food scraps to your backyard friends.

(WATCH the video below)

Click To Share This Pawesome Story With Your Friends – OR,  (Photo by FrogLog)

Celebs Join Forces to Keep Promise for Chris Cornell

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McKinley Corbley
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Though the Soundgarden frontman may be gone, his mission is still being carried out by his fellow celebrities.

Chris Cornell committed suicide at the age of 52 in his Detroit hotel room on May 18th – but before his death, he recorded a song called “The Promise” in honor of World Refugee Day.

The song, which was produced for the film “The Promise”, focuses on the trials and suffering of refugees worldwide.

RELATED: Celebs On Social Media Raise Over $1.5M for Somalian Famine

In April, Cornell and his wife Vicky toured Greek refugee camps to raise awareness for the plights of Syrians. Upon seeing the living conditions of the camps, the Cornells resolved to donate all of the song’s proceeds towards programs dedicated to helping children and refugees.

The song was released posthumously on Tuesday, and A-list stars are spreading the message of Cornell’s noble mission.

Christian Bale, Josh Brolin, Cher, George Clooney, Ryan Gosling, Tom Hanks, Oscar Isaac, Elton John, Jennifer Lopez, Serj Tankian, and Pharrell Williams collectively created a video advocating for Cornell’s humanitarian work under the hashtag #KeepThePromise.

WATCH: Documentary Asks Our Favorite Celebrities in Their 90s How They Stay so Lively

The video ends on a personal message from Cornell saying: “I’m Chris Cornell, and I vow to keep the promise to fight for the world’s most vulnerable children.”

“As humans, we have a tremendous capacity to trudge ahead in our lives and not look at the difficult and challenging moments… but I think it’s important,” said Cornell in a statement. “Educating ourselves on the past is the best way to understand the present and avoid future atrocities by understanding and intervening. We must educate and stand as one to combat this fear and violence, and as citizens of the world, work to protect each other’s human rights.”

(WATCH the video below)

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Vancouver to Eliminate Harmful Single-Use Packaging

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Good News Network
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Vancouver is well on its way to becoming the greenest city in the world – and they are now tackling the arduous problem of harmful single-use packaging.

The city launched their Greenest City Action Plan 7 years ago by setting a goal to reduce landfill waste by 50%. Now they are consulting with local businesses on the most strategic replacements for styrofoam containers, plastic bags, and single-use coffee cups. While members of the community will be able to present possible packaging alternatives to the city council this week, overarching bans on single-use products are very plausible for the future.

Styrofoam is a major contributor to the city’s landfills. While the elimination of styrofoam altogether seems like the most obvious action, Vancouver plans on compromising with small business owners so they need not be overburdened financially.

RELATED: Vancouver Bans the Use of Dolphins and Whales in Aquariums

Additionally, over 2.6 million polycoat-type paper coffee cups are dumped into city landfills every week. Assuming the city issues a ban on wasteful single-use coffee cups, businesses will need to utilize compostable or recyclable coffee cups instead.

“[The cups] take up about 22 percent of the volume of our on-street garbage system, and they’re costing us literally millions of dollars to deal with,” said councilwoman Andrea Reimer.

City representatives emphasize, however, that they will be ensuring the best possible methods of elimination for every stakeholder involved. As community proposals are reviewed throughout the summer, a public survey will eventually be made available in September.

MORE: San Francisco Officially Declares Itself a No-Styrofoam Zone

All of these proposals are a part of Vancouver’s 2040 Zero-Waste goal. The plan consists of several ambitious environmental and renewable strategies with the goal of becoming a zero waste community by 2040. A spokesperson for the city’s communication department was happy to report that significant progress has been made already.

“Cities around the world must show continued leadership to meet the urgent challenge of climate change, and the most impactful change we can make is a shift toward 100% of our energy being derived from renewable sources,” says Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson. “The future of Vancouver’s economy and livability will depend on our ability to confront and adapt to climate change. Moving toward 100% renewable energy is another way that Vancouver is working to become the greenest city in the world.”

Click To Share The News With Your Friends (Photo by Vancouver Landfill and Recycling Depot)

After Daughter’s Death, Dad Bikes 2,000 Miles To Hear Her Heartbeat One Last Time

By
McKinley Corbley
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This dad couldn’t contain his emotions when he heard his daughter’s heartbeat for the first time in six months.

That’s because 21-year-old Loumonth Jack Jr. was first diagnosed with a rare heart defect in January, and he was only given ten days to live unless he underwent a heart transplant.

In the very same week, Abbey Connor was found unconscious at the bottom of a hotel pool while on vacation in Cancun, Mexico. Connor was then taken into a Fort Lauderdale hospital where doctors discovered that she had irreparable brain damage.

RELATED: In Twist of Fate, NFL Star’s Organs Go to the Ailing Sports Hero Who Inspired Him

Connor’s organs were harvested and Jack Jr. became the lucky recipient of her heart.

After the successful surgery, Jack Jr. was contacted by Abbey’s father, Bill Connor. He had reached out to several of the patients who had received his daughter’s organs, but none of them had responded – except Jack Jr.

The two stayed in correspondence and agreed to meet in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on Father’s Day so Bill could hear his daughter’s heart one more time.

MORE: Dad Completes the Circle By Walking His Daughter to Last Day of High School

Then, in order to raise awareness for organ donation, Bill biked over 2,000 miles from his home in Madison, Wisconsin, to Baton Rouge.

When the two finally met, they couldn’t contain their emotions. The father and youth shared a one minute hug in silence before Jack Jr. brought out a stethoscope and let Connor listen to his heart.

After a long meaningful silence, Connor said with a tearful smile: “Well, it sounds like it’s working.”

(WATCH the video below)

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