Celebrating the angels and role models who make this world a better place.
Profiles En-Courage-ment
Softball Players Demonstrate It’s How You Play the Game
Posted in Role model on the May 9, 2008
>компютри втора употребаpolitical leaders could learn a lot from the members of the Central Washington University’s Women’s Softball Team. The Wildcats were one game behind Western Oregon to proceed to the NCAA’s Division II playoff.
Western Oregon was up. There were two women on base and their right fielder, Sara Tucholsky, came to the plate. She swung at the first ball for a strike and then she swung at the second ball to hit the ball over the center field fence. Her very first home run.
She ran to first and looked up to see the ball clear the fence and missed tagging the base. Overrunning the base about six feet, she stopped to turn and run back when her knee gave out. She crawled back to first base. If anyone on her team touched her, she would be out.
Her coach ran on to the field to talk with the umpire. It was explained that a substitute runner could be put in for her and she would be credited with 2 RBIs but her home run would be stricken.
That’s when Mallory Holtman of Central Washington asked if she and her teammates could carry the player around the bases. The umpire said there was no rule preventing them from assisting the injured player. Holtman and two teammates carried the right fielder around the bases lowering her slightly to enable her to tag each base.
Here is a link to the full story written by Brian Meehan of The Oregonian - http://www.oregonlive.com/sports/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1209525916199200.xml&coll=7
It’s not about whether you win or lose, it really is about how you play the game. Holtman and Central Washington lost that game but they assisted a fellow player run her first and only home run.
Our Youth Do Set Good Examples
Posted in Role model on the Nov 25, 2007
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Jack, his mother and younger brother left New Orleans before Katrina barreled down on their city. Jack’s dad Patrick remained in New Orleans to continue working. Jack stayed with family in Indianapolis during the storm and was forced to stay through the fall semester because of the damage to their home in New Orleans.
When they returned home to their father at Christmas, Jack was stunned to see the condition of City Park. This was the park that he spent most of his free time. The grass brown or overgrown with weeds. He’d tell his mom about the poor condition of the park and how no one was doing anything about it. He and his brother contacted a number of volunteer organizations hoping to help rebuild his community but they were turned down because they were too young.
Then one day he saw a neighbor load a lawn mower into her car and Jack inquired about what she was doing. Kristine Kobila explained that she was part of a small group of volunteers mowing the grass and cleaning up at City Park. Jack asked her if he could help and he has been there every single Saturday morning. According to the organization, Mow-Rons, he is the most consistently reliable member of the volunteer group. His mom says he has missed quite a few sleep overs and parties because of his dedication to cleaning up the park.
Now don’t you want a few kids living in your area with the same kind of passion and dedication to community as Jack McShane.
You can read more about Jack and the Mow-Rons at -
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-08-15-neworleans-teen_N.htm
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/08/24/assignment_america/main3202058.shtml
http://www.bestofneworleans.com/dispatch/2007-08-28/politics.php
If you would like to donate to the Mow-Rons so they can buy more equipment, you can do so through the website that Jack McShane built for the organization at http://www.mow-rons.org/Site/Donate.html
A few people that make this world a nicer place
Posted in Purpose, Role model on the Nov 22, 2007
I read in today’s Washington Post about four people that truly make life a better place for those around them.
Tony Brunswick is a photographer who is taking portraits of homeless families. Mary Brown helps boys growing up in the projects to see and appreciate the beauty that surrounds them. The Chinese American Senior Services Association was founded by Vivien Hsueh an provides a community gathering place for elderly Chinese. Inspired by his mom, Kevin Beverly has granted nine $1,000 scholarships over the past four years to kids demonstrating they are engaged and giving back to their community.
The article by Darragh Johnson as Washington Post Staff Writer is well worth the read. Hopefully, you too will be inspired.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/21/AR2007112102607.html
Young Lives Sacrificed
Posted in Role model on the Nov 12, 2007
When the photos of the fallen soldiers are displayed at the end of the Jim Lehrer News Hour, I can’t help but focus my attention on their ages. These men and women seem to me to be too young to die. But I am impressed that while they are so young they were able to find something in their life that was truly worth dying for.
I was particularly taken by Marine Captain Jennifer J. Harris. At a very young age Jennifer Harris wanted to become a pilot. In high school, she saw the Naval Academy as the means to achieve her goal of becoming a pilot. She worked hard in school graduating fifth in her class and worked to prepare her body for the grueling demands of entering Annapolis.
Captain Harris was the first female Marine helicopter pilot to do a tour in Iraq as a member of the elite Purple Foxes unit. Her moniker was “The Dove.” Rather than fly attack missions, she flew missions to retrieve wounded US soldiers.
She died on February 7, 2007 when the helicopter she was flying was shot down in Iraq by an IED and crashed with six others aboard. Video of the crash was being distributed by insurgents for propaganda purposes. Pilots who have watched the footage underscore the mettle of Captain Harris as she tried to keep the helicopter level as it fell out of the sky and tried her best to save all aboard.
Marine Captain Jennifer J. Harris lived her life with the passion needed to fulfill a hero’s dream.
To read more about this brave hero you can go to the links below -
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7407239
http://www.militarycity.com/valor/2552616.html
http://www.wickedlocal.com/homepage/8998920279337992191
Young family of heroes
Posted in Angel, Role model on the Aug 15, 2007
Jonathan Abrams, an LA Times Staff Writer, wrote an article on February 15, 2007 about a young family that is feeling the hardships of this Iraq war like no other. Ellen DeGeneres invited the young family to appear on her show which encored this week and that is how I came to hear about them.
It seems that Sgt. Claudia Hernandez-Smith received her papers notifying her that she was to report for active duty in Iraq just before summer of 2006. Her husband, Sgt. Gary Smith, did not want his wife to go alone. The family had a meeting and 20 year old Audrey volunteered to take care of her younger siblings while her parents were deployed together.
The military allows these simultaneous deployments as long as child care is provided for the family.
Audrey’s sisters range in age from 3 to 18. Stephanie recently turned 18, Grace is 10, Ashley is 4, and Emily is 3. All the girls were well behaved during the Ellen DeGeneres interview. Ellen asked Audrey if the girls listen to her when she tells them to do something. She responded very honestly, “No.” They know she does not have the same clout that their mom possesses.
Stephanie voiced her concern that her Mom was not around for the big moments of her young life like her graduation, her prom and looking at colleges.
The younger girls get teary eyed each time they talk with their parents on the phone and you could see their emotions swell to the surface when Ellen turned on a monitor with their parents waiting to talk with their children via a satellite hook-up.
Ellen was sure to thank both officers for their service to our country. According to Abrams’ article, they are deployed with a Black Hawk helicopter division of the Army’s 131st Aviation Regiment stationed at Balad Air Base, about 50 miles north of Baghdad.
I applaud the efforts of Audrey Delgadillo and her courage in stepping up to take the responsibility for caring for her young sisters rather than see them split up among family members. I am also inspired by the conduct and courage of the three youngsters. It’s one thing to have your parents go way for a night or a long weekend. It is a very different matter altogether to see both your parents leave for a one to two year military deployment.
These young ladies are my heroes.
The Class of 2007
Posted in Angel on the Aug 9, 2007
I read daily about all these young kids doing the daffiest things so when I headed off to my nephew’s high school graduation in June I had no great expectations.
It was a hot, sunny June Sunday. The exercises were scheduled for 1pm. We arrived early and took our seats among the proud parents in the rear bleachers of the football field. As we waited we heard stories about previous graduation ceremonies and the various weather conditions.
Then the school band began to play the music to accompany the faculty and students’ procession onto the field. The kids swaggered through the gate as if they just accomplished a terrific feat and they had. They finished 12 years of school! Sadly, according to the Business Council of New York, “In New York 58 percent of the class of 2003 graduated within four years, far behind the national average of 70 percent, the study found. Only two states, Georgia (56 percent), and South Carolina (54 percent), graduated fewer students.” So when these kids took their seats, you could almost hear their parents sigh in relief.
Three of the students spoke, the class president, salutatorian and valedictorian. The class president’s speech was a witty and touching remembrance of their four years together. There were many inside jokes that got laughs and applause but also provoked some questions over dinner later. The salutatorian was tasked with talking about the lessons learned over their academic career and the valedictorian’s speech was inspirational to the students and parents alike. It was an encouraging message to the students that planned to go on to college and those that were putting the textbooks and notebooks behind them. Each of these student speakers were smart, poised and articulate.
The keynote address was delivered by the school’s social studies teacher, William Hennessy. What was remarkable about this man’s speech was that he talked about Alexander Hamilton not from the perspective that he was a great man but from the viewpoint that despite his early success and his many talents, he did not achieve his ultimate goal of becoming president. Mr. Hennessy concluded from his research that Hamilton did not react well to setbacks. He stressed to his students that rather than recoil in fear they should learn to face whatever failures they may experience as challenges to be overcome with more effort and determination.
He pointed out that failure is where some of the greatest lessons are learned. What a wonderful message to give kids today who are striving to do well in school, stay on top of their music lessons, be the best athlete they can be and create the art they can be proud of. He reassured them that perfection is worth striving for even if only few attain it because the real goal is learning the lessons that help us to lead fuller and happier lives.
After attending this graduation ceremony, I believe that these kids will bring us the brighter future we are hoping for! Congratulations Class of 2007!
Who deserves the attention?
Posted in Purpose on the Jun 18, 2007
I am so tired of seeing and hearing about these young “celebrities” on the evening news, various magazines and talk radio. We must have something better to talk about than their crazy antics.
I’d like to challenge each and every one of us to discuss people that are really doing wonderful things in the world - Where their actions are really making a difference to their families and their communities.
The world is filled with people who are combating difficult circumstances to make the world a better place. Aren’t they worth a mention?
I recently read an article in a local publication about a young man who is overcoming terrific physical obstacles to pursue a sport he loves. Despite serious birth defects, this young man is a member of the local wrestling program. He even won his first match during the past season. This is a young man that should be a topic of conversation. This is a young man that inspired me just by reading the article. You can read the full article here.
Our communities are filled with many people like this. Let’s give those people the attention they deserve. Let’s make them the “celebrities” that we want to hear about.