Feel-good stories

[oneh2obabe]

It was a heartbreaking request from a grieving father whose baby daughter tragically passed away in hospital.

But when Nathen Steffel from Ohio asked strangers to digitally retouch a picture of little Sophia without her hospital tubes, he was overwhelmed with the response.

Writing on the social site Reddit, he explained that he and his wife were never able to see their daughter without all the hospital equipment.

“Photoshop Request: My daughter recently passed away after a long battle in the children's hospital,” he wrote.

"Since she was in the hospital her whole life we never were able to get a photo without all her tubes. Can someone remove the tubes from this photo?”


She had a hepatic hemangioma in her liver and was on the waiting list for her liver when she passed away.

Sophia died, at six weeks old, from complications involving the pressure on her abdomen because of the hemangioma.

The only photo the couple had of their daughter was one of her with all her hospital tubes.

Nearly 3,000 comments later and the grieving father received an influx of responses, including retouched images, sketches, black and white photos and paintings of his baby girl.

The most popular photo was one retouched by Reddit user ‘Funkybrewster’ who altered the colours to make the newborn look happy and healthy.

“This is super late but I really wanted to help out too. Here's my attempt. I hope I didn't overdo it on the color correction,” wrote the user.

[oneh2obabe]

Mesut Ozil: A true champion on and off the pitch.

Prior to the World Cup, Germany midfielder Mesut Ozil promised to sponsor the surgeries of 11 Brazilian children in need as part of the BigShoe charity campaign. But now that Germany has won the World Cup, Ozil has announced that he will sponsor the surgeries of 23 children — one for every member of the German squad — to show his thanks for the host nation's hospitality throughout the tournament.

The day after arriving back in Berlin with the World Cup trophy, Ozil declared his intentions via his Facebook page. He wrote:

Dear fans,
Prior to the #WorldCup I supported the surgery of eleven sick children. Since the victory of the #WorldCup is not only due to eleven players but to our whole team, I will now raise the number to 23. This is my personal thank-you for the hospitality of the people of Brazil.

Each player on the German team is expected to receive a bonus of €300,000 ($405,778) for winning the country's fourth World Cup title. So it seems Ozil, who became the most expensive German player of all time when he moved from Real Madrid to Arsenal last summer, will be reinvesting at least some of his prize money into the country that hosted one of the greatest moments of his life. It also might help make up for the fact that Germany beat Brazil 7-1 in the semifinals.

[oneh2obabe]

Anniversary Announcement
Bob & Gail Phillips

Wedding Day

Dear Gail, I look at newspaper pictures of new brides every Sunday. I'm searching. I want to see if there is now or ever will be another bride as lovely as you. Been doing that since June 27, 1953. Actually, I already know the answer. There is not - and never will be to me - your equal in loveliness. On our wedding day you were the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. The delightful truth is that you still are. Happy anniversary, sweetheart. You've made me and you keep me the happiest and most grateful husband any bride could ever know. I'd gladly welcome another 61 years of marriage with you. Beyond that I pray we will spend eternity together. All my love, Bob

Published in the Charlotte Observer on June 29, 2014

View Guest Book (38 Messages)
http://www.legacy.com/celebration/charl ... =171539466

[oneh2obabe]

Family of Alberta triplets with rare cancer overwhelmed by open doors in Toronto

An Edmonton family visiting Toronto’s Sick Kids hospital for their triplets’ cancer treatments receive offers of free food and accommodations from GTA residents.

Father Richard Low, left, holds Thomas, mother Leslie Low, centre, holds Mason, and uncle Stew has Luke.

The Alberta parents of seven-month-old medical marvels ( http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2014/03 ... ancer.html ) say they are overwhelmed by the unexpected outpouring of love that Toronto has shown them in their time of need.

Before setting out for Toronto to get cancer treatments for their triplet baby boys, Richard and Leslie Low desperately sought help from strangers.

They wrote a blog post seeking affordable accommodations for a young family of six.

Their length of stay? Unknown. Their next visit? Very soon.

That was on Friday.

By Sunday their website ( http://www.lows-lowdown.blogspot.ca/ ) had been seen by more than 100,000 people and the couple had received 1,000 email responses and counting.

“We were very surprised,” Richard said. “It’s been something else, that’s for sure.”

The emails included discounted offers on vacation rentals, cut-rate corporate suites and even university dorm rooms. Still others offered up their own homes free of charge.

Those who didn’t have accommodations to give the young Edmonton family fighting cancer simultaneously on three fronts, offered food, diapers and emotional support instead.

Mississauga realtor Alvaro de la Terre was among the first so moved by the Lows’ plight that he wants them to have the run of his four-bedroom home while he and his wife take care of the cooking and cleaning.

De la Terre is even willing to throw in free rides to and from Sick Kids Hospital where little Luke, Mason and Thomas Low have been coming for treatment.

“As a realtor, I know how expensive it can be for short-term accommodation and how difficult it is to find,” de la Terre said.

Something about the Lows’ story “touched” him, he said, admitting he has never offered to open his home to a stranger — let alone six — before.

Others were similarly struck.

Leigh, a 24-year-old nursing student at York University who asked to be identified only by her first name, wrote to the Edmonton family to offer pro bono services as a babysitter.

“I appreciate how difficult it is when a family member is getting treatment,” she said. “I felt like they must have so much stress already that if there’s something I could do for them to release a little bit of the stress than why not do it?”

For the Lows, stress has certainly been peaking lately.

On Wednesday they were told that Mason’s cancer had spread outside his eye, triggering the latest trip to Toronto for emergency chemotherapy.

“Now it’s kind of a whole new ballgame,” Richard said.

Both Mason and Thomas have each already lost an eye to the disease, while Luke still has both eyes, but is blind in one.

Known as retinoblastoma, the cancer is a very rare but highly survivable form that attacks the retina during infancy. The diagnosis of all three triplets with the disease was previously unheard of, according to Richard, a medical resident.

On prior trips to Sick Kids, the Lows had stayed at a mix of motels, hotels and condo units, but now that they anticipate returning every three weeks, it’s nice to know there are other, more affordable doors open, Richard said.

[oneh2obabe]

Everyone's favourite pint-size superhero is back.

Last fall, the world fell in love with Miles Scott, aka Batkid.

Thanks to the efforts of Make-a-Wish Foundation – and the support of 25,000 enthusiastic citizens of Gotham (San Francisco) – the 5-year-old leukemia survivor saved the day and restored order to the city as only a superhero can.

The story of the tiny Caped Crusader went viral, reaching over 2 billion people.

After months of planning "Wish Kid Becomes Batkid" finally became a reality on November 15th and took San Francisco and the world by storm! And now the official video has been released.

Hitting the streets in San Francisco with a police escort they filmed caper after caper in real time in order to keep the experience authentic for five year old Miles. There were no second takes. The characters, the coordination team and everyone involved had to make it great the first time. All of the cameras had to be in place, and all the special effects including the pyrotechnics had to be done live once and only once.

[oneh2obabe]

These two girls have been best friends since they were two. But their lives have taken very different paths. So when one got an unexpected gift, she did they only thing she knew to do, she gave it away.

[Lady tehMa]

This thread ought to come with a warning that "Tissues may be required".

[oneh2obabe]

MattyB has a very special message for his little sister Sarah who is often bullied because she is different. And in their music video MattyB makes sure his sister’s “True Color” are shining.

[oneh2obabe]

This story shared by a flight attendant is a true example of humanity at its best. On special days with special passengers; flight attendants have the ability to make a difference, and even give someone the gift of a lifetime – their dream.

“So we’re boarding today and this kid and his family walk on. I noted that he was autistic, but nonetheless didn’t think much of it. So I do what I always do and ask if he would like to go see the pilots. My first instinct is that kids always want to see the pilots since they usually think they are cooler than us. He said yes. He’s up there and his mom says to me ‘He’s actually interested in your job more than theirs’. I instantly melted. ‘He has memorized the demo in 4 different languages. He just loves airplanes’. It reminded me of how I used to be as a kid with the model planes, playing flight attendant with my friends, all that stuff. I knew I had to make this kid’s life and day. So my other flight attendant and I made a ‘Flight Attendant Starter Kit’ which has a seatbelt extender, ice scoop, a sleeve of cookies and a safety information card. We put it in a bag and the other flight attendant and I went up to him and said ‘This is the flight attendant’s starter kit. We hope you like it’. He played with the seatbelt extender the entire flight, buckling and unbuckling it as many times as we passed a cloud. We finally got him up and showed him around the aft galley. The other flight attendant and him did a trash walk together. We let him try the jumpseat and I let him call me in the other galley on the interphone. We finally landed and I told him when everyone gets off the plane he could try the PA system, and he did. He was making the welcome aboard announcement and tears were streaming down his parents face. It became very clear that no one has ever done anything like this for him before. His dad shook my hand and said ‘Thank you. So much. You have no idea how much this means to me, my wife and my son. He will talk about this for years to come because we know he will never become a flight attendant. This is the closest thing he will have.’ I gave him an extra pair of my wings and they left. I just can’t help but to feel proud of myself today. This is this kids dream, and I did something to help get as close as he may ever get to fulfilling it. We might complain about the passengers, co-workers, whatever – but we all got in this industry for a reason. Today is a day I’ll remember for a very long time.”

[ixler8]

NFl has been in the news for the wrong reasons, here's something positive

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/09/2 ... ref=sports

Go Hawks

[oneh2obabe]

A group of mean girls at Grand Prairie High School in Grand Prairie, Texas recently pulled a prank on 17-year-old Lillian Skinner by nominating her for homecoming court. Little did the mean girls know that Lillian’s friends, Anahi Alvarez and Naomi Martinez, promised that “no matter what, no backing down,” they’d give Skinner the crown if either of them were named homecoming queen.

[maryjane48]

The rescue of an 8-month-old dog in the Hillsborough River in Tampa, Florida, brought the community together.

Neighbors heard noises overnight and later spotted this puppy in the relatively cold river and called the police.

He was found clinging to a 10-foot seawall with his front paws.



http://www.weather.com/news/science/nat ... B_92514_11

[oneh2obabe]

Coyote rescued from car's grill, expected to make full recovery.

Early on September 24, Mark Armour thought his car hit something on his way to work as a train conductor — but he didn’t see anything, so he kept driving.

When he pulled into the employee parking lot, people at the train station in Waukegan, Illinois, were shocked to see a coyote wedged in the grill of his vehicle.

“It was even more amazing he survived,” Amber Manley, an animal control officer for the Waukegan Police Department who was called to the scene, told the Sun-Times.

Using safety equipment to protect herself from a potential coyote bite, Manley freed the animal from the truck and placed it in an animal control crate. ”He seemed docile,” she said of the coyote, who was likely in shock.


Manley then took the coyote to Flint Creek Wildlife Rehabilitation for medical treatment. There, staff at the centre discovered the coyote suffered three leg fractures.


Dawn Keller, executive director and founder of the Barrington, Illinois-based wildlife center, set the coyote’s fractures, administered antibiotics, and is hoping to see the animal make a full recovery.

The coyote had its three fractured legs mended. The centre hopes to release the coyote back into the wild after the winter.

Armour, the man who hit the coyote, is now raising money to aid in the animal’s recovery. He named the coyote Vern.

"I am so glad ‘Vern’ will recover. (I drive a Buick Verano) I will be putting the shoulder to my coworkers, to raise some funding to donate to Vern’s recovery," Armour wrote on the wildlife centre’s Facebook wall. “Thank you so much for taking care of him.”

[oneh2obabe]

It's one thing to say you care about your employees, but it's another thing entirely to put your money — and your time — where your mouth is.

On Saturday, Papa John's CEO John Schnatter did just that when he attended a funeral in Spring Hill, Tennessee, for Gordon "Gordo" Schaffer, a 22-year-old employee who was murdered while working the late shift at one of the company's stores earlier this month.


Schaffer's sister, Devan Cronin, wrote an emotional post on Facebook thanking Schnatter for coming and Papa John's for paying for her younger brother's medical bills and funeral expenses.

"We never once imagined that this would touch anyone high up in the Papa John's corporate office, let alone, John Schnatter," Cronin wrote. "He was visibly distraught when speaking to my family about the tragic loss of my brother and it was apparent that he didn't come just to pay lip service."

According to Cronin's note, posted to the Remembering Gordo Schaffer Facebook group, Papa John's sent about 25 delivery cars to the funeral escorted by the Spring Hill, Tennessee, police department.


"This display of support was so much more meaningful than any monetary donation," Cronin wrote.

The Tennessean reports Schaffer was the only employee at the company's Columbia, Tennessee, location on Oct. 20 when two masked men entered the store and demanded he open the cash register and give them money. Though Schaffer did as he was told, he was shot in the chest and died afterward at Vanderbilt Medical Center.

[oneh2obabe]

Emilia and her son LOVE to dance, and watching her and her son break it out like this is amazing! But the most amazing part of all is that Emilia is deaf.