The good guys thread

[cassiesmom]

NILES, Mich. -- It was 1953 and then-Pvt. Bob Rodgers had just arrived at Fort Campbell, Ky., for basic training when he sat down to write a letter to his wife after the post's power went out.

Sixty years later, that letter finally turned up, when the U.S. Postal Service gave it back to Rodgers, who's now living in southwestern Michigan.

In the June 13, 1953, letter, the 20-year-old told his wife, Jean, about the routines of life in boot camp. "All you do is march, KP, shine boots, shine boots and shine more boots and brass and more brass," he wrote.

On March 7, New Carslisle, Ind., Postmaster Connie Tomaszewski hand-delivered the letter to Rodgers, now 79. She did so the same day it arrived at her office, she told the South Bend Tribune.

Rodgers was bemused by the return of the letter.

"I asked if they had found the remains of the horse and rider and got the letter out of the saddle bag," he said, smiling. "She just shook her head."

Tomaszewski said it's hard to even guess what might have happened to the letter over six decades.

"There are a million possibilities. ... It could have sat at Fort Campbell," she said. "The important part of it is it did get delivered."

Mary Dando, spokeswoman for the Greater Indiana District of the U.S. Postal Service, said the letter may have actually been delivered, then ended up at a flea market or antique store where a collector latched onto it.

In such cases, people sometimes put them back in the mail for reasons unknown, Dando said.

Rodgers said even if his wife didn't get the letter, it wasn't a big deal.

"She didn't miss it, and I didn't miss it, because I wrote her about every day," he said.

Jean Rodgers died of cancer eight years ago.

The letter bears a Fort Campbell postmark and the date June 15, 1953. It also features two 3-cent stamps.

Asked what her reaction would have been to the letter's final arrival had she still been alive to receive it, he said, "She'd have got a kick out of that."

[kuhio98]

Cop Shuts Down Busy Highway to Save Dog’s Life



These are the kinds of stories that restore your faith in humanity.

A La Porte, TX officer shut down traffic on a busy freeway in a successful effort to save a lost dog’s life. Cujo the rat terrier had escaped his owner on Monday, February 11 and wound up stranded on a busy highway with a bad hip that causes him to limp.

When police officer Kyle Jones saw the tiny pooch while driving in the opposite direction on the freeway, he knew the dog was in a dire situation and could end up as road kill unless he did something. So he turned his car around, turned his lights on and halted all traffic to retrieve the dog and get him out of harm’s way.

“He kind of looked at me and said, ‘Man, I’m glad you’re here.’ He let me pick him right up. Stuck him in the back seat of the patrol car,” officer Jones said of the incident.

Luckily Cujo had an identification tag on his collar, which helped an animal control officer reunite him with his worried owners Monday evening.

“He was all wet,” owner Jeremy Zapalac said. “He was soaked [from the rain]. We got him in, wrapped [and] dried him up and he just slept in his bed all day.”

[kuhio98]

It’s hard to preach positivity when you think about the state of our economy or the rising cost of gas (don’t even get me started)! We like to spend our time commending people who make a positive impact on the world. I am inspired by fifteen year-old Hannah Taylor from Canada. At age 8, she started the Ladybug Foundation to help the homeless and “connect even more hearts in caring for each other.” Today, Hannah’s Ladybug Foundation supports over 50 shelters, missions, soup kitchens and food banks across Canada. The most remarkable aspect of Hannah is her humble nature. As she told me, she hopes “to be remembered as an ordinary human being who believes in the power of caring.”
Lady’s Home Journal 2011

[kuhio98]

Surgery on Sunday

When an increasing number of his patients couldn't pay for their life-changing surgeries, Dr. Andrew Moore decided he wasn't going to just stand by or send them away without doing anything.

So he found a way to make the procedures completely free of charge.

The Lexington, Kentucky-based plastic surgeon initially started waiving his fees for some patients, but soon found that wasn't reaching far enough. He grew disheartened every time a patient told him he couldn't afford to have a melanoma removed because he had no insurance. "It was so frustrating," says Moore, 63. "How was I going to take care of them?"
"We figured out the things we needed to do to make this work," says Moore. "It makes a difference in individual lives."

In 2005 the doctor launched Surgery on Sunday, a nonprofit group of more than 400 volunteer surgeons, nurses and medical professionals who perform free gall bladder removals, orthopedic repairs and other outpatient procedures in a donated surgical facility in Lexington.

To date, Moore's group has performed about 4,500 surgeries – and has a waiting list of more than 500. The program has also spawned offshoots in Louisville and three other Lexington hospitals, with the hope to expand nationwide.

Raising funds through grants and donations to cover malpractice insurance and medical supplies, Moore's band of medical good Samaritans has changed the lives of people like Michael Weyls, who lived in pain and terror after being diagnosed with a cancerous lesion he couldn't afford to have removed.

A doctor he knew referred him to Surgery on Sunday; Moore performed three surgeries and rebuilt Weyls's nose. "It could've killed me, and Dr. Moore worked a miracle," says Weyls. "I thank God for this man."

[kuhio98]

Because Robin Hood Is Real
An anonymous blackjack player, Robin Hood 702, recently played real-life Robin Hood to 37-year-old Jeff Martinez, of Las Vegas, and his family. Martinez is battling stage IV cancer and, despite working 40 hours a week while undergoing treatment, recently lost his home. The generous gambler heard a local news report on the family's struggles and anted up for a year's worth of rent, car payments, and groceries.

[kuhio98]

Brought Little Kitty Home

This July, I had to rush to the neighbourhood drugstore to pick up some medicines for my Dad. As I parked my bicycle outside the store, I spotted a tiny little kitten; bleeding from the neck and all soaked in the rain. Without a second thought, I just lifted her up and put her in a basket to bring her home. After we cleaned up her bruises, we put a little anti-bacterial ointment to soothe it down. One could not help but notice the gratitude in her little, sparkling eyes. Motivated with the expression of gratitude; we went to sterilise a dropper with Dettol solution, washed it with warm water and then fed her with luke warm milk, drop by drop. Oh, it was a sight. She lapped it up all and fell asleep in the ball of cotton we had wrapped around her. We decided to name her 'Sparkle' and keep her with us till she chose to stay. Her bruises healed up in no time at all. A week ago she delivered 3 adorable kittens and turned into a MOM, herself. So, friends that was my little story. Try doing something similar and I'm sure you'll love it. God Bless & Love to All

[kuhio98]

Car from a Co-worker

I had been driving a 18 year-old Yukon to work ever since my 12 year-old Explorer gave up a year before. I could barely afford to put gasoline in the monster, and was constantly worried about it breaking down. One day, a co-worker who had recently come into a fairly large amount of money, walked into my office, and placed a packet of money on my desk. It was 5,000 dollars! I used the money to put a down payment on a good, dependable car. No one in my life has ever done something like that for me! She has always been a caring and thoughtful person, but never in my wildest dreams would I have thought she would have done that for me. Just goes to show that there are still people in this world who care.