The good guys thread

[kuhio98]

BECAUSE BEING NICE IS GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH

More motivation to get out there and do something good: A recent study found that people who volunteer actually live longer than people who don’t.

[kuhio98]

Metro students save pennies to buy new playground

NASHVILLE, TN - A Nashville school that couldn't afford a new playground finally got a new one Thursday after saving thousands of pennies.
For at least the last five years, the playground at Lakeview Elementary Design Center was in such poor shape, it made even the principal depressed.
Nine-hundred kids had nothing to do.

"It just was really sad, watching the kids play just chasing each other around," said Dr. Robin Shumate, principal at Lakeview.
The old playground had been on campus since the school opened in 1967. Its equipment was so outdated, most of it had to be removed because it wasn't up to code.
And to make matters worse, the school couldn't get funding to build a new one.

"We tried grants. We tried all different things, but just didn't get any feedback from things like that. So we had to do it ourselves," Shumate said.
The school decided to nickel and dime their way to an upgrade, literally.

"We had penny drives, we had nickels and dimes, we had days for dollars and days for quarters," Shumate said.
It took passion, planning, a lot of patience and teamwork - the principal even took a pie to the face for donations - but three years since they started saving, students finally ran onto their two new playgrounds Thursday.

"Just turning the corner to come to school, it really just tugs at my heart strings," Shumate said.
The school raised nearly $42,000, including about $12,000 in additional donations. They said that money will go toward buying a new swingset.

[kuhio98]

Do Good Gifts

Cooking Set for Kids

Give your budding chefs all the tools they need to cook up a storm with this fun kitchen kit.

Proceeds from each set benefit St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and contain artwork from patients at the hospital and recipes from St. Jude's head chef.

Buy it now at stjude.org, $20

[kuhio98]

Because Cake Can Make a Difference

Tracy Quisenberry started Icing Smiles to provide custom-designed cakes to kids who are critically ill. She connects professional and non-pro bakers with families across the country in hopes that the treats will give children a moment of joy and excitement during a difficult time.

[kuhio98]

Donated Birthday to Abandoned Animals

My daughter, Bella decided that she would rather have animals fed than receive gifts for herself on her birthday. So she asked for dog food, chewies, or cash to purchase dog items for her 10th birthday. She dedicated this to Gateway Pet Guardians, who feed the homeless animals on the streets every morning.

[kuhio98]

Handmade Scarf
This bold, colorful scarf is skillfully hand woven by female artisans from India. It's a stylish gift that gives back.

A portion of every sale goes back to the women who make the scarves, providing them access to a market they would not normally be able to reach.

Buy it now at globalgoodspartners.org, $35

[kuhio98]

Heroic neighbor saves Kansas City family from fire

A Kansas City family is safe after a very heroic deed by their neighbor.

Thursday night, Joe Cassidy noticed a fire had sparked in the basement of his neighbor's house near 75th and State Line. He also noticed several lights were turned on near the top floor of the home.

The Sollars family was inside, but upstairs, and hadn't noticed the fire.

Cassidy banged on their door, then dashed up two flights of stairs to rescue 6-year-old Tess from the family’s finished attic. Seconds later, he says smoke filled the entire house.

Jonathan Sollars said by the time he ran downstairs to see how bad the damage was, his lungs were filled with black smoke.

He tried to rush back upstairs to find his children, but was having trouble breathing.

However, Cassidy had already sprung into action. He guided one son out to the door, consulted with the oldest daughter to find out how many people were inside and scooped up the youngest daughter and carried her safely into the front yard.

"You don't think about your life or anything like that. You just think, I've got to get them out," Cassidy said. "Anybody would have done it. I just noticed it first."

Before Thursday’s fire, the Sollars family and Cassidy hardly knew one another. Now they’re becoming close friends.

"God bless him," Jonathan Sollars said. "I'll always be indebted to him."

There were five family members in the house during the fire, and the Sollars credit Cassidy for making sure everyone got out safe.