The good guys thread

[kuhio98]

New swan arrives at Bay Indies

VENICE, Fla. - The lonely male swan at Bay Indies Mobile Home Park is lonely no more.

After weeks of fundraising, residents at the park purchased a new female swan for $1,000 from a seller in Wisconsin. The effort was in response to the death of the previous female. Residents say the swan was killed by a coyote or fox. The male was left by itself, until Monday afternoon.

The new swan arrived at Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport around 4pm. It traveled on board a Delta flight. Gerri Monnier, a Bay Indies resident who led the effort to buy the new swan, was there to pick it up.

"We wanted to hurry this up. A lot of our residents are snowbirds. They are headed back up north and they wanted to see the swan," she said.

In its wooden crate, the swan was placed in the back of an SUV by a Delta employee with a forklift. When the swan arrived at Bay Indies, some of its feathers were ruffled after a long day of traveling. The swan jumped out of its crate, and chased a bystander down the road before it eventually jumped in the water. The male and female immediately noticed each other. As they approached, the swans bumped chests and made a heart-shape with their necks and beaks. It was love at first sight. Dozens of Bay Indies residents watched the two interact for the first time.

"It is wonderful. We have had one lonely swan, so it's wonderful to see the two of them together," said resident Joan Bodenlos.

"It's just marvelous," said resident Carol Sanders.

The hope is for the new female to provide safety and companionship for the male. Many of the residents are hoping the two will have some "little swans" in the future.

Now comes the difficult task of naming the pair. Residents at the mobile home park will vote. Right now, some of the choices are, Bay & Indie, Adam & Eve, and Lucy & Desi.

[lizbud]

I wanted to see the swans & found local news video coverage of them together.

http://www.mysuncoast.com/videos/7_s...b0b0dafe4.html

[kuhio98]

I wanted to see the swans & found local news video coverage of them together.

http://www.mysuncoast.com/videos/7_s...b0b0dafe4.html

Awwwwww

[kuhio98]

Back in the Saddle

Riding horses has always been a big part of my life. Ironically, the man I married was allergic to them. After riding I'd have to take off my clothes in the basement, then dash upstairs to shower.

My daughter, Kaylin, was also allergic to horses as a small child but, like me, she loved them. Luckily her allergies cleared up enough that she could ride comfortably. It was something we really enjoyed together.

In 2005, after 17 years of marriage, my husband and I decided to get a divorce. Shortly before our final court date I learned I had stage III breast cancer. I was 38 years old, divorced, and fighting for my life.

Over the next two years I had a double mastectomy, 11 other surgeries for infections, 16 rounds of chemotherapy, and six weeks of daily radiation. When you're getting chemo your white blood cell count is low and you don't heal normally. But I insisted on riding with my daughter. On one of our rides I got thrown from my horse, and I hung on so hard I ripped all the skin off my hands. In agony I looked at Kaylin and said, "I can't do this," and I wasn't just talking about riding.

Then for Christmas 2006, Kaylin -- who was 12 -- did something that said "You are going to do this, Mom." She called my parents and siblings to ask them to chip in for a special gift. When I came downstairs Christmas morning, there was a beautiful Western saddle sitting under the tree. I was blown away.

Now that I'm in complete remission, my life and passions have been restored in many ways. And about a year ago I was finally able to take that beautiful saddle, put it on our family horse, and ride again.

-- Lauren, Highlands Ranch, Colorado

[kuhio98]

A nice story that gini wanted me to share. There are really many more nice, thoughtful, helpful people in the world than bad. So, let's start giving them more press time!


FULLERTON, Calif. (KABC) -- Robyn Giranda's treasured diamond bracelet is back where it belongs thanks to a good Samaritan with a big heart.
Nine months ago, Giranda, her son and his friends had gone off-roading at the sand dunes near Pismo Beach when her $20,000 bracelet disappeared. Devastated, she filed a report with a park ranger, but assumed it was gone for good.
"Nobody was ever going to be able to find it, and if they did, they weren't going to turn it in," Giranda said she thought at the time.
Months later on a holiday weekend, retired firefighter Joe Mingham spotted something in the sand. When he realized it was a bracelet, he took it to a jeweler to have it checked out.
"They said, 'Joe, there's somebody out there is crying and missing their bracelet.'" Giranda said.
Mingham set out to find the owner, going from police to the state parks department and finally the park ranger who remembered the tearful woman who reported losing her bracelet.
The two met up two weeks ago in Modesto so Mingham could turn it over.
"Every time I talk to him, I just tell him how wonderful he is and truly awesome and awe-inspiring. I don't know what I did to deserve to be so lucky," Giranda said.
Giranda calls Mingham her angel and said it's in his blood to be hero.
(Copyright ©2013 KABC-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

[kuhio98]

Student, four-legged best friend to graduate college

UNIVERSITY CENTER, MI (WNEM) - Delta College is holding its annual commencement ceremony on Friday, and two unique individuals will cross the stage and get a special recognition of their accomplishments.

A highlight of the ceremony will be the acknowledgment of Alan M. Reno and his service dog, Roxie.

Reno, who has cerebral palsy, was paired with Roxie in 2011. Reno earned an Associate of Arts and is graduating as a member of Phi Theta Kappa with high honors.

Roxie has accompanied Reno through 62 credit hours of instruction at Delta and will travel across the stage with Reno on Friday evening to receive recognition for her supporting role in his achievement.

Roxie is a 3-year-old black lab-golden retriever mix. She can open doors with a pull rope or by pressing a door switch. She will retrieve anything that is dropped, can turn lights on and off, retrieve a beverage from the refrigerator and assist with removing clothes.

Roxie was born into a litter of eight pups. Five of those canines went on to become working dogs, including one that works at Comerica Park and another that is a seeing-eye dog in Chile. Roxie was professionally trained at PAWS® with a Cause, located near Grand Rapids.

Reno and Roxie currently live in Midland. Reno plans to transfer to a four-year school, possibly Saginaw Valley State University, to earn a degree in business. From there he plans to attend law school to become a disability rights attorney. According to Reno's family, Roxie has been and will continue to be at his side, everywhere he goes.
WNEM.COM

[kuhio98]

Man gives 100 free meals to strangers

LAS VEGAS (FOX5) - It's National Pay It Forward Day, a movement in which everyone is encouraged to perform a random act of kindness for a stranger. The hope is they'll pass that kindness along to someone else. Las Vegas resident Marcus Mitchell dedicated his life to paying it forward and gave 100 free meals to strangers Thursday.

"You do something kind for a stranger without expecting anything in return, with the understanding that one day you'll go off, pay it forward to someone else, you'll remember this kind act," Mitchell said as he handed out free meal coupons to people in front of the Miracle Mile Shops. He used his own money to buy 100 meals at Fresh Grill and Bar and gave all of them away to total strangers.

"I'm just trying to spread some kindness," said Mitchell, who has dedicated his life to performing random acts of kindness around Las Vegas. It's part of a promise he made to his wife before she died from stomach cancer four years ago. Since then, he's spent half of every dollar he makes on making others smile. That's about $40,000 total in gift cards, hotel rooms, food, concert tickets and more items all given away to people Mitchell doesn't know.

It's not always easy convincing folks on the strip that there is such a thing as a free lunch. Several people ignored Mitchell when he asked if they wanted a free meal. Others simply declined his offer. Rejection doesn't discourage Mitchell, who says if just one person passes the kindness along, it's worth the effort.

"It's pretty rare in this county, good to see someone out here doing something for someone else rather than doing it for themselves," said free meal recipient Sean Dobbs.

"I'm going to give this to somebody that I see that would need a meal," said another recipient, Theresa Talbot.

Mitchell handed out more than 100 coupons for free meals, but fewer than half of the recipients redeemed them.

(KVVU Broadcasting Corporation)