A small Missouri town has a new firehouse built to last generations, thanks to a humble Powerball lottery winner who wanted to give back to his community.
Mark and Cindy Hill won a $293 million jackpot in 2012, and have been quietly giving to local causes ever since. But their most generous gift yet could not be kept secret for long—they built a new fire station in Camden Point to thank local firefighters for twice saving the life of Mark’s father.
Mark worked with architects, contractors, and members of the local volunteer fire department to get everything just right. The new station was built to be bigger than needed so it could expand as the community grows for decades to come.
The building features training rooms, large bays for fire trucks and the local ambulance, radiant heating in the floors, and is wired for maximum energy efficiency. It’s built from reinforced concrete to last into the next century.
The department plans to formally dedicate the building on July 16, and invite all 500 residents of the little town to the celebration.
Mark doesn’t want people making a fuss over his family’s gift, saying it’s just their way of giving back to their neighbors.
“You know what? If my wife and I could have built this without anybody knowing that her and I were building it, that’s exactly what we would have done,” he told KMBC News.
(WATCH the video below from KMBC News) – Photos: KMBC video
Maine’s first lady waited on tables for several weeks before people realized who she was.
Ann LePage kept a low profile, taking on double shifts hoping to make enough money over the summer to buy a new car, until a reporter recognized her as the governor’s wife.
Her husband, Gov. Paul LePage, is the lowest paid governor in the U.S., making $70,000 a year. He’s tried unsuccessfully to raise the salary for whomever follows him into the office, citing the average salary for a governor in the U.S. to be $130,000.
The couple’s daughter averaged $28 an hour last summer waiting tables at McSeagulls, a seafood restaurant in Boothbay Harbor, so the governor’s wife thought it might be a quick way to raise the extra money for a small truck.
Mrs. LePage hadn’t worked in years, spending her time as a caregiver to her late mother who only recently passed away.
Ann has kept her identity secret while shuttling lobster and chowder to tables full of summer tourists, only admitting to being the state’s first lady if a customer or co-worker asks her because she “looks so familiar.”
“It’s all about the money,” she joked with a WBZ News reporter.
(WATCH the video below from WBZ News) – Photo: WBZ video
It took at least nine people to rescue a loggerhead turtle after she flipped onto her back trying to get back to the sea.
It was no easy chore for the volunteers because adult loggerheads weigh 350-pounds on average. This female had fallen into a trench on a rocky beach at Blowing Rocks Preserve on Florida’s Atlantic coast, couldn’t right herself, and was fading fast.
Florida Fish and Wildlife professionals responded along with members of the Nature Conservancy and worked to dig the turtle out of the sand and safely flip her over so she could continue her trip to the ocean.
The Fish and Wildlife Commission documented the rescue on its Facebook page and is using it as a “teaching moment” for people headed to the beach this summer.
Photos from Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, Facebook
The commission posted tips on protecting and helping the endangered turtles, including advice to refill any holes dug on the beach and stay away from turtles in the evening so they won’t be disturbed on their way to the sea.
Loggerheads are powerful and graceful swimmers in the water, but can become disoriented on land. Efforts to protect them in recent years have included declaring 88 beaches “critical habitat” for the species and even a Coast Guard rescue of 200 turtles when they were trapped in cold ocean currents on the North Carolina coast in January.
These two dogs couldn’t stop frolicking when they eventually were reunited, after being rescued from their former life in captivity, confined to a tiny, muddy pen.
Buddy and Shelby grew up in a small, fenced enclosure that was heaped with trash. When they were rescued last year, the siblings were underweight and suffering from heartworm disease.
PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) paid for their veterinary care, then got the brother and sister into a shelter with a high adoption rate.
The found forever homes with two different families, but PETA kept up with them and arranged for a reunion after each had settled in to their new surroundings.
Buddy and Shelby instantly recognized each other and spent hours playing in the park — with the promise of more play dates in the future.
(WATCH the touching reunion video below)
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A Spix’s Macaw, the bird that inspired the character in the movie Rio, has reappeared in Brazil 15 years after it was thought to be extinct in the wild.
On June 18th the blue macaw was identified by at least six people on various occasions near the city of Curaçá, in Bahia. One of them actually made a video of the bird flying and making sounds.
The director of Bird Life International (Sociedade para Conservacao das Aves do Brasil, SAVE-Brasil), confirmed the information, saying the bird has a very characteristic type of singing.
In the Organization’s official announcement, Pedro Develey says, “The first person to see the Spix’s Macaw was Nauto Sergio Oliveira, a subsistence farmer… who told his neighbors.”
The following day, Lourdes Oliveira and her daughther Damylis saw the endangered bird at 6:20 in the morning and managed to record on Damyli’s mobile (see below). The excitement among Curaçá’s residents was palpable because the bird had not been seen in Brazil since 2000, in that same region. The species is now maintained through a captive breeding program at several conservation organizations under the aegis of the Brazilian government.
For the next week residents will be helping researchers from another important organization, the Chico Mendes Institute (ICMBio), with the efforts to locate the bird and gather more information.
Develey believes the bird was kept as a captive pet and recently released to avoid punishment or fines, because environmental laws are being more vigorously enforced.
“Besides, if this bird was around for longer our video traps would have registered it already,” the director told Brazilian media outlet, O Estado de S. Paulo. “The fact is the bird is flying in his natural habitat and that’s amazing.”
A Philippine teenager discovered a natural solution for killing the larvae of the aedes aegypti mosquito—the insect responsible for spreading the zika virus and other diseases like dengue and chikungunya.
The remedy, derived from the leaves of the San Francisco (Codiaeum variegatum) plant, was discovered by Paul Lumabao. In his research, the young man discovered that substances in the plant are a powerful poison against the larvae of the bug.
The 17-year-old researched the plant while finishing high school in Davao City, where he challenged himself to find a way to stop the reproduction of the mosquito in his town.
Lumabao learned that many insecticides come from the extract of plants, so he began searching for an active ingredient and testing within his community. The ‘San Francisco’ was the perfect plant for the job. The species is very common in the region and often cultivated in public city gardens.
The young researcher announced his findings on May 12th at the Intel science and engineering fair. This year the event gathered 1750 students from 75 different countries.
(Source: So Noticia Boa) Publicize the Progress—Share This…
German police are hailing the actions of a 25-year-old refugee from Syria who turned in a stash of cash that he found inside a donated cabinet.
The city of Minden has called him the “hero of the day” after his honesty led him to return several bank savings books and cash totaling more than 150,000 euros.
While assembling a donated wardrobe in his sparsely furnished apartment, he found a board screwed under a shelf which was hiding the booklets and 100 new 500-euro bills.
Once the man determined by an internet search that the bills were “real” money, he called the refugee officials in Minden, who immediately informed the police.
“This young man has behaved exemplary and deserves great credit,” according to police. “That someone finds and gives smaller amounts of cash to the police is often the case, but such a large sum is the absolute exception.”
The humble young refugee, whose family remained in Syria, arrived in Germany in early October, and has been taking language lessons. Since he already has a bachelor’s degree in communications technology from his home country, he would like to further his studies in Germany to achieve a master’s degree.
The police are now trying the find rightful owner.
The dog couldn’t control it’s excitement when it realized the cat was coming for a visit —not stopping its licking of the kitten’s face during the arrival, nose-first to their play date.
(WATCH the adorable video above from JoLinn Pet House) — Photo: JoLinn Pet House on FacebookSend This Video To Play For Your Friends, Share It…
An Ohio police cruiser won’t be racing to crime scenes any time soon — it’s been turned into a nursery for the mourning dove and her chicks that hatched in a nest there.
The dove, named Gerty, built a nest below the windshield wiper of a back-up cruiser for the Parma Police Department.
When officers found the roosting bird, they went out of their way to make the bird feel at home. They surrounded the cruiser with crime scene tape to keep people away, attached an umbrella to the car to protect her from sun and rain, and even dug up worms for her dinner.
Praise has been pouring in from around the world for the cops on the bird beat.
“I think that’s the cutest thing I’ve seen in my entire week. Thank you for your kindness, from France!” Léa Vallée posted on the department’s Facebook page.
“These cops rock!!! thanks for doing this!” Linda Taylor Woods wrote.
Lt. Kevin Riley says it’s all in the line of duty for the department’s officers.
“We care for all lives, human or animal,” Lt. Riley told WJW News.
(WATCH the video below from WJW News) – Photos: Parma PD, Facebook; WJW News
A dying man’s wish to see his children reunited, years after a war separated them from their parents, came true—and just in time for Father’s Day.
Following a refugee group’s successful effort to reunite them, the man named Mawa collapsed to the floor when he saw his children for the first time in a decade and the five kids — some grown to adulthood — raced to hug him in a tearful reunion.
Mawa and his Wife Nora had fled Sudan’s civil war with their five children, seeking refuge in Egypt. After years of waiting there, the couple were allowed to come to America in 2005, but their children were forced to stay behind, for reasons not disclosed at this time.
Shortly after arriving in America, Mawa was diagnosed with kidney failure. As the condition worsened, his desire to see his children only strengthened.
Nora contacted the International Rescue Committee, which set to work finding the five, and eventually dealing with bureaucracies to bring them to America.
After $200,000 was gifted from the estate of a retired Minnesota farmer to the local ambulance crew, they decided to pay it forward, which sent ripples across three rural counties.
Fred Pitzner left the money so the emergency crews could buy a new tricked-out truck to better serve the community of Gaylord.
City and community leaders celebrated a grand opening in the River District of a mobile restroom facility called the Pit Stop.
The pilot program aims to provide access to a safe and clean bathroom for those who need it. The portable restrooms will be staffed by an attendant to ensure that the toilets and sinks are well maintained and used for intended purposes.
“The people experiencing homelessness in Sacramento have limited access to toilets and lavatories,” said Councilmember Jeff Harris. “As we work towards more permanent solutions to end homelessness in our City, this program is complementary in that it addresses an urgent need.”
The Pit Stop facility, located at Ahern Street, between North A and North B Streets, will provide toilets, sinks, used needle receptacles and dog waste stations. The goal of this effort is to not only provide people a place to take care of their needs with dignity, but to capture measurable data of those who use the facility, and how the City can further address homelessness in the surrounding region.
Harris pushed for $100,000 in the budget to partnered with FAS Services, a San Francisco based organization, that provides staffing and facilitation of the attended restrooms. The restrooms will be open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The pilot program will run for six months allowing staff to fully evaluate the impact and efficiency of such a program.
The Pit Stop program has gained success in San Francisco and has more than a dozen locations in San Francisco.
Thousands of inner city students in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington D.C. will have the opportunity to see HAMILTON, thanks to a $6 million grant from The Rockefeller Foundation.
HAMILTON creator Lin-Manuel Miranda announced on June 23 the Foundation’s commitment to expand the educational partnership that has provided students with tickets to the Tony-award winning show in New York City. The #EduHam program will now reach 100,000 public school children across the United States.
The musical production blended hip hop, dance, and rap, with the Revolutionary War, to create the hottest ticket on Broadway— and one of the coolest American history lessons one is likely to get. (Watch a preview below)
The funding will go to local school districts, and additional cities will be announced as HAMILTON tours the country. As part of their American History studies, students will experience history and see the show for just $10. They will attend special matinee performances and interact with cast members during the program.
The partnership between The Rockefeller Foundation, HAMILTON, The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and the New York City Department of Education was announced in October 2015 and was initially funded through a $1.5 million grant to bring 20,000 public school students from the five boroughs—with large numbers of students eligible for free and reduced price lunch—to see the Broadway sensation. Students in New York benefited from an integrated curriculum developed by Gilder Lehrman that enhanced their experience of the play. The program was such a success, that The Rockefeller Foundation.
“Our initial partnership was such a monumental success, we wanted to fund the partnership nationwide as HAMILTON toured across the country,” said Judith Rodin, President of The Rockefeller Foundation. “Our goal is to not only bring history to life for students, but to have them relate to the actors who make this show what it is; demonstrating that everything is possible for them, no matter what neighborhood they live in, what school they attend, or where they come from.”
The educational program includes a HAMILTON Student Performance and Study Guide and an online HAMILTON portal for students and teachers that offers students a creative platform for developing and producing their own original performances of poetry, rap, songs, scenes and other art expressions, to be performed at the theater prior to watching a performance of HAMILTON.
“The HAMILTON student matinees on Broadway have been such a rewarding experience for all of us at the theatre, thanks to the creativity and the passion the students bring to them,” said Lin-Manuel Miranda. “The performances that they come up with are unbelievable!”
“Rooted in research, the student projects are creative, personal, and inspiring… Kids who didn’t before suddenly care about America’s past, and see their own connection to it,” said James Basker, President of the Gilder Lehrman Institute.
The room was filled with 6,400 fans, and the Dalai Lama didn’t disappoint.
The Buddhist leader returned to Indiana on Saturday for a public talk on “the potential for harmony and the usefulness of compassion.”
The speech quickly sounded more like a personal conversation than a presentation—and, as happens in conversation, he stumbled into many amusing moments.
(WATCH the video above or READmore from USA Today –Note: page auto-plays so adjust speakers)
A week after losing the Indiana 4-A baseball championship, he remembers most vividly the moment when an opponent, instead of celebrating with his teammates without abandon, came over to console him, the pitcher who’d dropped to the mound, face down in defeat.
The Roncalli high school catcher told WTHR ”I saw the heartbreak and the stress on all their players but especially him laying almost lifelessly by the mound. It just really got to me and I just wanted to go over there and tell him everything was going to be alright.”
And so he did.
(WATCH the moment below or READmore from WTHR) –Photos via WTHR video
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A Memphis teen’s offer to carry groceries to a man’s car in exchange for some doughnuts has led to a wave of online donations for him and his disabled mother that have totaled $278,000 in 13 days.
Two weeks ago Matt White met Chauncy Black, a “straight-A student” who was just trying to get some food to eat in exchange for menial work.
The boy struck White as someone who deserved a break, and he is getting so much more than that, after a GoFundMe page was started to raise money to purchase him a lawn mower for starting a business.
Through videos shot by Matt, people learned Chauncy slept on the floor, had tattered clothes, and a courteous attitude and willingness to do anything to earn money.
Donations poured in and now a legal trust is being set up to manage the money. The pair have been moved to an undisclosed hotel, and Matt White has got himself a new family, with the top priority to do the right thing with a sudden windfall of kindness for a poor kid with a bountiful work ethic.
On Friday, one hundred underprivileged children were invited to the Dallas Cowboys football stadium for a giant overnight sleepover party.
Lined up on the field were 100 beds, each outfitted with blue and silver Cowboys swag, cuddly quilts and teddy bears. Not only did the kids get to eat pizza and hang out with NFL football players and cheerleaders, they got to watch a movie on the giant screen, at the end of the night they were told they get to keep the beds, too.
None of these children had a bed at home to sleep in, but now, thanks to Ashley Furniture with their Hope to Dream program, they are in for some sweet slumber.
Mary Ann Downey Kirby was on the field to experience the fun in Arlington, Texas and posted these photos on Facebook, saying Ashley Furniture would be delivering the beds to each child’s home, and she would be the one seen on the sidelines “bawling”.
On its Hope to Dream webpage, people can nominate families in need of beds for the program’s consideration when there is a participating store in their area.
The final game of Argentinian football player Diego Milito was a must-see for soccer lovers here, and when a boy needed a boost to view the departing athlete, a 10-year-old on crutches had just the ticket.
A photo of the pair taken on the sidelines grabbed headlines after Santiago Fretes lent one of his crutches to another Argentine fan so he could watch the game – one Racing team fan helping another.
Frete’s mother, Sabri Bonomo, took the picture that quickly went viral and stirred emotions outside of sporting circles.
“I saw Milito walking around the field and my friend couldn’t see him because of a billboard, so I lent him one of my crutches so he could enjoy with me,” Frete told the newspaper, El Argentino Zona Norte.
The boy’s right leg had been amputated due to a disability at birth, but despite always being on crutches, Santiago is well known at Racing’s youth division trainings.
His mother says he is quite skillful playing soccer. “I usually make videos of his moves when he plays indoor soccer at cidade Pillar”, says Sabri Bonomo referring to a city located 58km (36 miles) outside the nation’s capital, Buenos Aires.
According to Santiago’s mother, the family is awaiting the arrival of a prosthesis from the government.SHARE the Perfect Picture of Friendship… Pass it on.
The legendary New York Times fashion photographer Bill Cunningham died on Saturday, but he leaves a legacy of observations that changed the way many people think about clothes and created an historical record spanning decades.
For his weekend photo spread in the paper, and corresponding video series, the 87-year-old, who tooled around Manhattan on his bicycle, could be counted on to spot the latest trends by looking at the creative ways New Yorkers used fabric, accessories and clothing to create their own fashion statements.
For Cunningham, the Paris runways were certainly interesting, but “it was what happened to the clothes afterward — how they were used, or not used — that really mattered,” according to one cohort at the Times.
“He was among the first to recognize the value of observing what people wore in their everyday life, and to understand that it was a reflection of identity and culture, a means of communication used by all, and thus a crucial historical record,” wrote Vanessa Friedman, in a final tribute.
Here is one of his videos from spring 2016, which exemplified his story-telling style and his use of untouched photos depicting fashionistas on the streets of New York.
After serving meals to the needy in Kansas City for more than three decades, Episcopal Community Services recently switched to the restaurant model of waiting on their homeless clients.
And the regulars were thrilled.
(WATCH the video above from NBC News) –File Photo via WBZ video
