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Pop Culture

John Cena sets new world record with 650 wishes granted with the Make-A-Wish Foundation

He’s become the foundation’s most requested celebrity—and he never turns anyone down.

john cena world record, john cena

"I'll drop everything."

The multitalented, mega famous John Cena might hold many titles, but this might be the coolest one yet—and it has nothing to do with wrestling.

The actor and WWE performer just broke the Guinness World Records for most wishes granted through the Make-A-Wish Foundation. As of July 19, Guinness World Records reports, Cena has granted a whopping 650 wishes. The highest amount any other celebrity granted was 200.

The 16-time world champion first became a wish-granter back in 2002. Since then, he’s become the foundation’s most requested celebrity—and he never turns anyone down.

"I just drop everything. I don't care what I'm doing," he said in a WWE produced video after granting his 500th wish. “I can't say enough how cool it is to see the kids so happy, and their families so happy, I truly want to show them that it's their day.”

Cena happily takes photos, lets kids play with his championship belt and even takes them behind the ropes occasionally. It’s clear that he sees how important it is to create a special experience and goes the extra mile.

“I try to put myself in that perspective of if I had one thing to wish for, where would I fall on that list... So for me to be the name of like, ‘I would like to hang out with this person for the day,’ that’s a pretty strong statement... It really is pretty magical when they get a really intimate experience with the individual and then they get to go see them be a superhero.”

Cena consistently uses his celebrity as a force for good. Earlier in June, when he learned that a mother in Ukraine told her 19-year-old nonverbal son with Down syndrome they were leaving the country to meet him—an attempt to protect her child from the stresses of war—Cena hopped on a flight to fulfill that fictional promise.

The pair ended up spending the entire day together near Amsterdam, “building blocks and eating cake.”

Previously, in 2020, he matched pop group BTS’ $1 million donation to help the Black Lives Matter movement. And back in 2012 he headed WWE’s Be-A-Star anti-bullying campaign.

Plus, let’s not forget about his adorable picture book series, “Elbow Grease,” which teaches kids about perseverance and believing in themselves, all with “high-octane illustrations” of the cutest little monster truck you’ll ever see.

You can find those books on Amazon, but nothing quite beats listening to Cena read his own book out loud.

It's easy to find ourselves cynical at the apparent good deeds of celebrities—viewing charitable acts as virtue signaling, a ploy for a better public image or even covering up something nefarious. But it’s even harder to believe that Cena’s compassion, as unfaltering as it is, is anything less than genuine. This is a great example of how status can be used to share blessings. For a guy whose most notorious finishing move includes hoisting a dude above his shoulders before slamming them into the mat, he still shows us what the best of humanity looks like.

All images provided by Kat Chao

A photo of Kat and her mom, and a bowl of her mom's famous curry

True

Whether it’s the mac n’ cheese that reminds you of simpler times, or the exotic spiced chicken recipe you acquired from your travels, every meal tells a story.

This rings especially true for people whose families immigrate to different countries to start a new life. Immigrant parents often not only save every penny, but spend most of their time away working in order to build a future for their children. Each comfort meal they manage to provide their kids in the very few spare hours they have tells the story of love and sacrifice.

For Kat Chao, that meal was her mother’s Korean curry.

korean foodA photo of baby Kat and her mom and dad

Growing up, Kat’s mom worked weekends to support her family. But that didn’t stop her from waking up Saturday morning to dice up some beef and fresh veggies and throw them into a large pot so that Kat’s dad could heat it up and serve it with some rice to her and her brothers later.

Curry was a quick, easy and inexpensive way to feed a full house, but it served more than just practical purposes. As Kat would wake up to the enticing aroma, she was reminded that her mom was always taking care of her, even if she couldn’t physically be there.

koran curryYUM

As Kat grew a little older, her attitude towards her mother’s curry shifted. Instead of looking forward to it, she would “roll her eyes at it,” as is customary of the rebellious teen. Those less-than-positive feelings were only exacerbated by the media constantly labeling carbs, therefore rice, as “bad.” As a kid who struggled with weight, her comfort food became a source of discomfort.

But as an adult, and now a mom herself, Kat has reached a full circle moment.

korean recipes, albertsonsKat, all grown up with her own familiy

As she makes her own kids the exact same curry dish (okay, maybe a leaner cut of beef, and organic veggies…but otherwise exactly the same!) Kat finds a whole new appreciation for the recipe, knowing how hard her mom worked to even make it happen.

Kat was lucky to have grown up with a meal to look forward to each night. Other kids aren’t so lucky. 1 in 8 kids currently experience food insecurity in the United States. But there’s an opportunity to decrease those numbers.

For every O Organics product you purchase, the company will donate a meal to someone in need through the Albertsons Companies Foundation—for up to a total of 28 million meals.

Is there a dish from your childhood that you’ve longed to rekindle with? You could do like Kat does and give it an O Organic twist. Luckily, the O Organics brand has a wide array of affordable ingredients, so creating healthy swaps is easier than ever. Plus, you can provide nourishment to another family at the same time.

Just think—the next meal you prepare could make all the difference to someone else. If every meal tells a story, that’s certainly a story worth telling.

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Jordan Howlett recently blew people’s minds with a TikTok video where he explained why you could learn a lot about a person based on the side of the bed they prefer. Jordan is a popular TikTok creator with nearly 11 million followers who shares candid monologues, reactions, stories, life hacks and intriguing fast food secrets.

His video was a response to TikTok users Angelina & Skyler, who confessed they don’t usually pick a side of the bed.

(FYI: Your side is determined from the perspective of laying in bed. For example, sleeping on the left side means that your partner would sleep to your right.)

Howlett responded to their video by explaining why the side you choose is so important. “Psychologically speaking, humans will pick a side of the bed due to attitude towards work, personality and income,” he says.

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And just what was that work? Well, it changed from day to day, but it all had to do with health.

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