Teen turns Mom’s suicide into an opportunity to help others
| November 17, 2011 | Posted by admin under be the change, kids with character, overcoming adversity, teens, whats right with kids today, WRWKT |
Most teens (and adults) prefer to process the adversity in life in private venues. The smaller things, like zits, a less than stellar report card or a fallout with a friend are often things we deal with privately or with trusted people in our inner circle.
It is this truth that makes this lovely video so powerful. It is so unexpected that this young teen, Kait, holds up a sign in this video, sharing that “On October 5th, 2011, my mum died…I found her in my woods hanging. She committed suicide”.
It is staggering to think that this young spirit, who has surely been through a heart-wrenching loss has been able to turn this profound loss into a gift to anyone suffering a similar loss–or is depressed themselves.
Such sweetness, authenticity and care comes through with Kait only holding signs before the viewer. What an exceptional human being. At the time of this writing 16 year old Kait’s video has 419,255 views. Share this beautiful message so it can get into the hands of anyone who needs a dose of Kait’s perspective.
All the best,
Rena M. Reese
Founder, Soul Salon International
Sponsor of What’s Right With Kids Today
*NOMINATE A SPECIAL YOUTH YOU KNOW TO BE FEATURED on WRWKT *
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Rena M. Reese is the founder of Soul Salon International, an inspirational multimedia company which offers coaching, consulting, web-design, publishing support, and fundraising opportunities for individuals and groups. She is the author of several inspirational titles, a professional speaker and coach as well as the host of a weekly radio program, The Soul Salon. Her articles are syndicated in print and online Please visit www.SoulSalonInternational.com and connect with her on Twitter @TheSoulSalon and on facebook
Leah’s Hope
| August 22, 2011 | Posted by admin under compassionate kids, Rena Reese, Soul Salon International, teens, whats right with kids today, youth |
Grace’s first year of life was spent in a Chinese orphanage–but at one year old, she would find a home, a half a world away with the Gimres–and they were thrilled to add her to their family. Grace’s adoption through Journey’s of the Heart, would give her a mom, dad, brother and sister Leah–in addition to many other things that many people perhaps take for granted here in the U.S. One of these things is the opportunity to pursue an education on many levels.
Leah, Grace’s older sister pictured here, realizes how fortunate she is to have access to so many educational choices, especially now as a high school senior with an eye on her future beyond high school. As she began searching for colleges it occurred to her that if Grace had remained at her orphanage, she would not have had access to the many opportunities that Leah has–and now Grace does too.
With this idea percolating, Leah spoke with her parents to brainstorm what she could do to help teenagers living in Chinese orphanages, to go on to college. This is how Leahs-Hope.com, which is a fundraising effort that partners with Journey’s of the Heart Adoption Agency, began.
“When Leah first came to us with the idea of Leah’s Hope, to be honest, we felt overwhelmed with the whole idea. However, we didn’t want to discourage the giving attitude shining through in our daughter. We could not be prouder of Leah and the fierce pride she takes in Leah’s Hope. We are so proud that she is making a significant difference in the future of some orphaned teenagers’ lives.” –Leah’s mom, Amy Gimre
Leah’s Mission Statement from her website: The mission of Leah’s Hope is to connect teenagers, leaving their Chinese orphanage because of their age, with the educational funding necessary to become trained, self-sufficient, hopeful adults.
Helping
Orphans
Prosper through
Education
Fundraising efforts have gone well and one orphan, Di, has been sent through all four year’s of college thanks to the generous donors on Leah’s site. Now, they are beginning the process of finding the next orphan to help send to college. If you are reading this and feel the pull to contribute to this beautiful endeavor, you can make a difference in the life of an orphaned teen by making a contribution to Leah’s Hope.
Leah’s Hope has a mission that is quite personal to the Gimre Family. The gift of Grace, now 10 years old, has touched them all in myriad ways. Leah explains, “There are no words to describe the joy that Grace has brought into my life. She is the best thing that has ever happened to me. Grace is always full of energy and the two of us always seem to be laughing and having a great time together.”
As a high school senior, this is the year of college applications for Leah. It seems her interest and focus on education seems to be converging. Not only is she applying to colleges for her while raising money for a Chinese orphan to go to college, but she is also thinking her college major will be in, you guessed it, Elementary Education.
Leah is a great example of a young woman being inspired at home to open her heart to others. Looking beyond borders to show compassion and hope–and in turn, changing the world with one simple idea put into action. Leah, you are a great example of what is RIGHT with kids today.
All the best!
Rena M. Reese
Founder, Soul Salon International
Sponsor of What’s Right With Kids Today
*NOMINATE A SPECIAL YOUTH YOU KNOW TO BE FEATURED on WRWKT *
See the navigation bar for details.
Rena M. Reese is the founder of Soul Salon International, an inspirational multimedia company which offers coaching, consulting, web-design, publishing support, and fundraising opportunities for individuals and groups. She is the author of several inspirational titles, a professional speaker and coach as well as the host of a weekly radio program, The Soul Salon. Her articles are syndicated in print and online Please visit www.SoulSalonInternational.com and connect with her on Twitter @TheSoulSalon and on facebook
13 year old Eleanor Muzzipapa: Peacemaker
| July 19, 2011 | Posted by admin under Eleanor Muzzipapa, make a wish, Starlight Foundation, teens, Tito Jackson, whats right with kids today, WRWKT, WRWKT? What's Right With Kids Today?, youth |
“All human beings have potiential. In every person I meet or see at school or on the street I can see that potiential. It’s like a spark that goes off in their heartand I always see that.” –Eleanor Muzzipapa
Ask a few 13 year-olds their mission in life you will likely get a range of responses. It would not be unusual to hear a good number of those teens respond with,”I don’t know yet, I am only 13!” But if you were to ask Eleanor Muzzipapa her mission in life, she would be quite clear about it–as a matter of fact, she has already gotten busy achieving it. This Colorado teen from Colorado Springs explains her mission in one short phrase,”Bring Peace To Communites Across The Nation And Worldwide.” She lives with a personal expectation of peace for our world and shared with WRWKT that her greatest hope is, “That everyone will understand that violence won’t be stopped with violence– The only way violence can be stopped is by caring, love,compassion and understanding.” Wise beyond her years, Eleanor will be entering 8th grade this fall and has had lots of practice in practicing these peace principles. She is one of five sisters and has three brothers.
Eleanor is an advocate, messenger, supporter, and caretaker. From as young as age three she began helping with the care of her grandfather and also cared for her younger sister who is autistic. So, it is no surprise that now, at age 13, Eleanor feels the greatest calling to work with the elderly, autistic as well as those in emotional distress. She says she does this because she has “a lot of love, compassion, wisdom, and kindness to give.” Her close relationship with her grandfather allows her to spend time with him listening to his stories about life during WWII and what times were like during the depression. He shares life lessons and one that has really stuck with her is, “You can do anything you want as long as you work hard to get there.”
Eleanor is willing and able to work hard– and she carries a spirit of kindness and volunteerism throughout all parts of her life. at home, school, church and in her community. She is making a difference and she has been recognized for her efforts. She has been awarded a Helping Hand Award, Valuable Leader Award, Outstanding Service Award and Great Kid Award in her 13 short years–so you know this is just the beginning of the terrific contributions she will make in life. This big-hearted teen is a good friend too, she explains, “ I always have people’s backs if they’re getting bullied or they just need someone to talk to I have their back 100%.”
When Eleanor is not swimming, running track, playing her trumpet or hanging out with friends, you may find her on Twitter, Facebook Fan Page or on her website in support of Tito Jackson or her personal website. She is a huge Tito Jackson fan and has such admiration for him and is taken by his kindness. She is a life-long fan of all of the Jacksons and she hopes that she can one day use her gift of writing and singing to “express awareness” to the world and promote her messages of support for those less-fortunate as well as her hope for peace. With a long list of Charities that she supports, Eleanor knows what matters most to her– and she invests her days lifting others up.
She offers her support to:
-HealTheWorld87 From Twitter“You remind me of Princess Diana. You are a great young lady. I wanna be like you when I grow up.”
-KTAJ5678 From Twitter
-Jack5ons_Love From Twitter
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16 year old Marshall Zhang’s quest for a Cystic Fibrosis Cure
| July 15, 2011 | Posted by admin under Soul Salon International, teens, whats right with kids today, youth |
Marshall introduced a “drug cocktail” that creates a super-mix which will actually seek to correct the genetic defect which results in CF. His research not only more
Second graders solve carpool bottleneck
| June 5, 2011 | Posted by admin under envoronmentalists, what's right with kids today? Rena Reese, whats right with kids today, WRWKT |
We have often heard it said that if you have a problem that baffles adults, ask some children to solve it. Concord Hill School students did just that. This group of second graders from Chevy Chase, MD entered and won Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge, solving their school’s “environmental problem.” This small group of 13 second graders figured out that about 60 cars were burning gasoline at about six gallons per hour while waiting in the carpool lane. Not only did they more
Dominic Geragi: Activist & Environmentalist
| May 27, 2011 | Posted by admin under inspiration, kids helping animals, kids with character, whats right with kids today, WRWKT |
Dominic Geragi is one of the planet’s youngest environmentalists and animal activists. This seven year old wonder boy has used many modes of communication and activism to make a difference in the lives of animals living on and around various continents. Among those are a video tweet to President Obama requesting that we stop drilling for oil in the gulf, emails to educate fisherman about saving the seals and he has even used YouTube as avenue to inspire people to respect nature and the animals who share the environment with us.
You can read more about this fabulous kid making a difference in his local community and our global community to creatures with legs, fins, flippers and wings at Kids Are Heroes.
All the best!
Rena M. Reese
Sponsor, Whats Right With Kids Today
Founder, Soul Salon International
*NOMINATE A SPECIAL YOUTH YOU KNOW TO BE FEATURED on WRWKT *
See the navigation bar for details.
Bunny Gets Wheels
| May 1, 2011 | Posted by admin under kids helping animals, what's right with kids today? Rena Reese, whats right with kids today, WRWKT, you tube |
Two abandoned bunnies were found April 17 and it was obvious that one of the bunnies, Joe was born a paraplegic. The tenacious little critter was able to get around, but more
Brian Macdonald pens a song for autistic sister Claire
| April 26, 2011 | Posted by admin under compassionate kids, Rena Reese, what's right with kids today? Rena Reese, whats right with kids today, WRWKT, wrwkt? rena reese, WRWKT? What's Right With Kids Today? |
Brian Macdonald, an 18 year old songwriter/singer from Wheaton, Illinois discovered a powerful way to make a difference in the life of his autistic sister Claire. Brian, a senior at Wheaton Academy High School used his passion for music to compose a song for his 21 year old autistic sister Claire who needed some… more
Evan Seigel: 10 year old HERO
| April 18, 2011 | Posted by admin under whats right with kids today, WRWKT, youth |
For elementary-aged kids, the opportunity to be a school patrol is a responsibility, a privilege–and fun too. When Evan Seigel took on his job as a patrol, he knew it was not fun-and-games and a job to be taken seriously. more
Luna the Jumping Cow
| April 7, 2011 | Posted by admin under Soul Salon International, teens, whats right with kids today, WRWKT, you tube |
15 year old German Youth Regina Mayer didn’t sit around and sulk when her parents said no to her request for a horse. When she was told she could not add a horse to their family farm she set her sights on the next best thing. Regina trained the family cow Luna to show jump. more
