The good guys thread

[kuhio98]

Operation Finally Home Gives War Hero Andrew Litz a Place to Heal

There are days when former Marine Sergeant Andrew Litz can't bear the sounds of his two young children playing in their two-bedroom apartment in suburban Dallas, when his wife, Heather, reminds them that Daddy's head hurts.

But on this October afternoon, the sturdy, intense former soldier is imagining a new life: one of calm connection with his family.

Standing in the yard of the brand-new home in Gunter, Texas, that will soon be theirs, he smiles. "This," he says quietly, "is a place where I can heal."

More than just bricks and mortar, the house is a safe haven, with five bedrooms and four baths. (Make a donation to help veterans like Andrew Litz, and charities like Operation Finally Home. Tune in to the Homeward Bound Telethon Sunday, Nov. 10 on the Military Channel, or visit HomewardBoundTelethon.org)

Since April 20, 2005, when an improvised explosive device in Ramadi, Iraq, killed two of his buddies and left him with a fractured back and neck, traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder, Litz, 32, Heather, 29, and kids Zachary, 8, and Madison, 6, have struggled, often living in various rental properties.

[Karen]

What a lovely gesture, and worthy cause!

[kuhio98]

Veteran asks for kidney, country answers call
Hundreds pledge to donate to Arcadia man


EDMOND, Okla. —A local veteran took to a street corner to ask for life-saving help and people across the country have answered his call.

Robert Dean, 84, of Arcadia held a sign asking for a kidney donation at the corner of Memorial and Penn on Sunday. He says since then 200 people have pledged to help him.

After the story aired on KOCO 5, it was picked up by stations across the country. Dean says he's gotten call after call. He said, “I had hoped to get one... I love these people.”

People from Florida to Alaska are literally offering a piece of themselves to save his life.

The veteran turned sculptor is narrowing down the list but says he is grateful to everyone.

Dean said, “This is the greatest gift that anyone could give and the greatest gift that anyone could receive… I wish that I could say more than thank you but it's all you could say, thank you.”

Dean says when he recovers from the surgery he plans to throw a party and invite everyone who offered to donate.

[Karen]

Dean says when he recovers from the surgery he plans to throw a party and invite everyone who offered to donate.

What the story doesn't mention is that his act could save more lives than his own. Anyone who gets tested then becomes part of the national database, and if they do not match him, may match some future person in need!

I signed up to be an organ donor when I first got my driver's license - when I'm done with these parts, I hope they can go to good use!

[kuhio98]

What the story doesn't mention is that his act could save more lives than his own. Anyone who gets tested then becomes part of the national database, and if they do not match him, may match some future person in need!

I signed up to be an organ donor when I first got my driver's license - when I'm done with these parts, I hope they can go to good use!

I signed my donor card too. And testing revealed that I'm a match for my mother who will need a kidney transplant in the near future.

[kuhio98]

92-Year-Old Hero Meets 8-Year-Old Girl Whose Life He Saved



John Shear is 92. He's about 5-feet-tall, he's worked as a guard at the Santa Anita racetrack in California for 51 years, and he can still do 30 pushups at the gym every day – which is 30 more than we've ever done.

One day two years ago, Shear heard someone shout out that there was a loose horse in the paddock. "I went to one side and when I looked down, there was a little girl standing there," he told ABC News. The little girl was Michael Key's five-year-old daughter Roxy. Shear didn't even take a beat before deciding to jump in front of Roxy.

"I knew I was going to get hit," he said. "I thought there was a possibility I was going to die but you cannot stop and think, 'Should I or shouldn't I?' There is a five-year-old girl. I'm 90 years old. I have had a life. She hasn't had a life. You got to save that life."

And that's what he did. Shear was critically injured when the horse trampled both of them, and while Roxy was fine, the elderly man spent seven weeks in the hospital. When he got out, there was just one thing he wanted to do.

"I have always wanted to meet [Roxy] and I was so sad that I never got the chance to meet her when I got better," he said. So two years later, Shear went to one of Roxy's dance recitals, and was finally introduced to the little girl, now 8, whose life he saved.

"When her mother came over and hugged me and said, 'You're my daughter's guardian angel,' I felt wonderful," Shear said.

Roxy's father Michael sums up Shear's actions best: "He didn't save a daughter, he saved a family."

Watch their heartfelt reunion below.

[kuhio98]

Hero dog discovers, saves abandoned baby

BIRMINGHAM, England -- A stroll in an English park has a dog hailed a hero, and quite possibly saved the life of a baby.

According to the Birmingham Mail newspaper, a German shepherd named Jade was walking with its owner when the dog ran and laid down next to a bag discarded in shrubs.

When the owner inspected what his pet had found, he discovered a newborn baby girl. He ran to a friend's home to call the authorities, saying he didn't touch the bag so he wouldn't contaminate any evidence.

According to reports, the hospital where the baby was taken has nicknamed her Jade after the hero dog.

Police have not found the mother.

Short video here:

http://www.ktvu.com/news/news/weird-...ed-baby/nbhDt/