Living is expensive right now, and low-income families are struggling; especially with the weather getting cooler and upcoming holidays. Luckily, a San Fernando Elementary School Teacher decided to take matters into her own hands and attempt to help her students as best as she can. After teaching on zoom for the last year, she saw many different situations, whether it was students simply needing new supplies, to some extreme situations where the students were borderline homeless and occasionally totally homeless. To try to help, she set up a donation list on Amazon and began sharing it everywhere. With the money she raised, she has been able to help students with not only school supplies, but clothing as well. It really is the little things that matter in the end.

Cool Spring Baptist Church, located in Hanover County, has been a saving grace to many families in the area. Children need sports in order to develop and socialize, but oftentimes it is difficult for children, and sometimes adults, to get involved in such activities. Luckily, this church has a recreation center attached to the side of the building, complete with a basketball court and several different types of sports equipment! The church uses the space to run the Compass Sports Challenger League, which includes children and adults of all ages! With the help of 150 volunteers, they are able to provide a basketball, soccer, and cheer season. 

Eric Robinson, father to 1 child, had lost his wife due to Covid while she was 7 months pregnant. Luckily, the child survived. Being a single parent is hard, and with the recent loss of his wife, odds really were against Robinson. Eric’s wife, Emily, had begun to experience flu-like symptoms, but her state worsened the longer she was at home. After testing positive for Covid-19, she was taken to the hospital where an emergency C-Section was performed, one she did not live through. Ashley Schwartze, a nurse at the hospital, decided to pitch in and help this new father out. She organized a donation center just for Eric, and after a short period of time was able to fill his nursery with many necessities for the baby.

Wyatt Denis is an 8-year-old boy who lives right outside of Sturgis. All his life, Wyatt has loved motorcycles. So, when the Annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally begins, he really enjoyed being a part of it. Setting up a free (donations accepted) lemonade stand at one of the checkpoints, many motorcyclists stopped and enjoyed the beverage. This is the second year Wyatt has done this, last year raising just over 4200, which he then donated to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital. This year, he has a slightly different plan for all the donations; 50% will go to a college fund, 30% will go to St. Jude’s, and the rest will go to something fun for him to enjoy, possibly a certain dirt bike he’s had his eye on.

Graduation is a special time for students and something that only recently came back in the last 2 years. Due to Covid-19 restrictions a few years back, many seniors missed the special moment. So, with graduation back, everyone’s pretty excited. A student, however, almost had to miss walking across the stage at his graduation due to shoe attire. This senior had been told by the principal he would have to sit out graduation, and when one of his former teachers heard the news, he took it into his own hands. This teacher went up to the student, and without a second thought, gave him his dress shoes, and saved this young man’s day. This is a real act of heroism, and something the student will not soon forget.

On November 12, 2022, Dante Enez and his wife were on a date, casually driving to pick up their children from their grandparent’s house. When driving past a river in Idaho Falls, Idaho, he noticed a car driving down the boat ramp, and entering the river. Shortly after this, a woman swam out of the car and farther out into the river. Immediately, he drove the car to the boat ramp and jumped out of the car while his wife called 911. The woman refused to be saved and even swam out further into the water, but Enez managed to calm her down enough to take her back to the dock, and ultimately save her life. 

16 years ago, Danielle Gletow began her journey fostering kids, with the goal of “I wanted to be a mother to all these kids who might not feel like they have one.”. Within a year of fostering one child, she found out she was pregnant with her own, which didn’t stop her. She even set up a nonprofit organization, One Simple Wish, to help bring joy to other foster families across the nation! Over the next 15 years, One Simple Wish raised over $15,000,000! Gletow and her team then flew down to meet 9 different adults- all of whom were impacted by the Child Welfare System in their youth- and surprised them with 9 brand new cars, as well as free gas and insurance for a year.

Christiano Piquet was out on one of his routine flights near Homestead, right out of Miami, Florida, where he spotted  a scene that would not soon leave his mind. Down in the canal he was passing, he saw a woman clinging to her vehicle, which had fallen into the canal. Immediately, he began to land, and as soon as he could, ran to the woman, while shouting across the canal for help. While he was trying to help the woman as best he could, a nearby resident was calling 911 and raced to the scene with rope, which ultimately saved the woman’s life. “Mission accomplished. God’s timing is perfect,” said Piquet.

Woodland Cemetery is the final resting place for many, but in recent years, the quality has deteriorated. Fallen trees, weeds, and constant piles of litter have made taken away from its value. And unfortunately, the cemetery has very limited funds to help clean up. Thanks to Marvin Harris, Executive Director of the Woodland Restoration Foundation, over 900 volunteers have helped clean up. The most notable, however, is a 79-year-old retired therapist named George Nixon, who not only spends 2 mornings a week volunteering, but also donates to the cemeteries funds. 

Hundreds of neighbors sent cards to a 16 year old with cerebral palsy battling covid 19, Daniel. Recently, Daniel tested positive for Covid-19, and ended up in the hospital quickly due to complications with previous health complications. His older sister, Caitlyn, posted on Nextdoor to keep Daniel in their thoughts, and the family was soon greeted with hundreds of letters praying for Daniels recovery. So many, in fact, that all the letters are decorating every wall in Daniel’s room. His family is hopeful that all the compassion, love, and kindness will help aid Daniel through a speedy recovery.