Maj. Lauren Olme wears multiple hats: She’s an Air Force pilot, an assistant director of operations for the 77th Weapons Squadron, a leader, and a wife. She’s also making history as one of the first service members to fly a supersonic aircraft while pregnant. According to a press release from the Dyess Air Force Base, […]
Wearing a sun hat, aviator sunglasses, and a heavy backpack, John Jepkema leaned against the Bright Angel Trailhead. To anyone passing, Jepkema looked like just another of the 5.9 million people who visit the Grand Canyon each year. But after an exhausting five-day overnight trek, Jepkema, at age 91, had become the oldest person to […]
Los Angeles residents Joe Blackstone and Jamie Mohn have long recognized the power of storytelling and the lasting impact it can have on a child’s life. Shortly after getting married, the couple began volunteering to read books to elementary school kids. Then, when they became parents themselves, they created the J3 Foundation to fund child […]
The late Fred Rogers, star and host of the long-running television series Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, once gave a touching endorsement of the importance of caring. “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who […]
The National Center for Education Statistics reports that roughly 1 in 5 U.S. adults are illiterate or possess low literacy skills. I Love Books is on a mission to change that, one book at a time. The social impact organization, founded in 2021, aims to end illiteracy by ensuring that all children have access to […]
Love letters written by a long-distance couple, a diary belonging to a teenage girl, and a photo album originating from the Civil War are just a few of the hundreds of artifacts that Chelsey Brown has returned to their rightful owners. The heirloom hunter, who started doing returns in 2021, has reunited people around the […]
Before Bea Arthur was Dorothy Zbornak on Golden Girls, Pat Sajak hosted Wheel of Fortune, and Tom Selleck was Dr. Richard Burke on Friends, these celebrities served in the U.S. Military. It’s a reminder that people from all different walks of life come together in service of their country, and of how important it is […]
In San Antonio, a one-of-a-kind theme park has welcomed visitors from all 50 states and across the globe — but the main attraction isn’t a sky-high roller coaster. Instead, people flock to Morgan’s Wonderland because it’s a fully accessible space designed with people who have special needs in mind. And it all began with one […]
A nationwide lemonade business started by a 4-year-old, a nonprofit founded by an 8-year-old, and a Nobel Peace Prize awarded to a 17-year-old. These real-life stories of young people accomplishing big things are vastly different, but they all have one thing in common: They center on changemakers who didn’t let their age hold them back […]
According to the nonprofit Partners for World Health, U.S. hospitals discard more than 5 million tons of medical supplies, equipment, and trash each year. Owen O’Neill is interested in that discard — specifically the equipment, like wheelchairs, that could go to someone else in need. In 2002, O’Neill began working as a hospice nurse in […]
On December 7, 1941, a surprise Japanese attack on a United States naval base near Honolulu, Hawaii, would change the course of history and incite the U.S. involvement in World War II. The ambush, which claimed the lives of over 2,400 U.S. personnel, became known as Pearl Harbor, named after the devastated base. Now, over […]
Loss is an inextricable, indiscriminate part of life. Yet when we witness others experiencing it, despite our best intentions, the “right” things to say or do so often elude us — even those of us who have suffered our own deep losses. “I still have struggled when I’ve been with a grieving person,” grief specialist and […]