+
Sign up for
The Upworthiest
Our top stories of the day delivered straight to your inbox.
upworthy

People are becoming organ donors in droves thanks to this heroic hockey player.

Logan Boulet was one of the Canadian hockey players who passed away after a horrific bus accident.

The Humboldt Broncos' team bus collided with a semi-truck traveling to a play-off game in central Saskatchewan on Friday, April 6. 15 people, including the bus driver, team coach, and several players — were killed.

Just a few weeks ago, on his 21st birthday, Boulet made a heroic decision. He signed up to be an organ donor.

[rebelmouse-image 19398079 dam="1" original_size="750x386" caption="Image via The National/YouTube." expand=1]Image via The National/YouTube.

The decision saved lives.

In a heartbreaking but hopeful Facebook post, Boulet's godfather detailed how Boulet's decision made a difference.

"[Boulet] is a great hero and one of the nicest people you would have been lucky enough to meet," Neil Langevin wrote. "Logan had made it known, and very clear to his family, that he had signed his organ donor card when he turned 21 just a few weeks ago."

According to Langevin, six people in need will receive organ transplants from Boulet.

As with many families across the globe our house is devastated with the news about the Humboldt Broncos. Our great...

Posted by Neil Langevin on Saturday, April 7, 2018

Boulet's parents confirmed the positive matches for six of their son's organs to Global News on Saturday. "Even in his eventual passing, he will be a selfless hero," they said in a statement.

A hero whose generosity may save many more lives down the road.

Boulet's selfless act appears to have inspired many to follow his lead, as organ donor sign-ups surged across Canada.

According to a spokesperson for Alberta Health Minister Sarah Hoffman, the province saw a "significant increase" in organ donor registrations over the weekend, the Calgary Herald reported. Nearly 900 people registered between Sunday and Monday — over double the number those days of the week typically see on average. Similar spikes in sign-ups were reported in British Columbia and Ontario, according to CBC News.

Some used social media to express how Boulet inspired them to act. "Never thought a junior hockey player in Saskatchewan named Logan Boulet would motivate me to finally become an organ donor," Jeff Vallance of Alberta wrote on Twitter. "He saved 6 lives. Took 4 minutes. You can do it as well."

For many Canadians on an organ transplant waiting list, the increase is an encouraging sign.

While almost all Canadians support the cause of organ donation, just 20% of the country is actually registered as donors. In a country where 4,500 people are waiting on life-saving organs, the surge in sign-ups is welcome.

Americans waiting on the organ transplant list face a similar predicament. More than 116,000 people are waiting on an organ transplant in the U.S., according to the Department of Health and Human Services. More registrations now will save lives in the months and years to come.

Watch a report on Boulet's story from the CBC's The National below:

To learn more about becoming an organ donor in the U.S., visit the Department of Health and Human Services website.

Community

Facebook group brings people together IRL to make meaningful friendships

True

Making new friends as an adult is challenging. While people crave meaningful IRL connections, it can be hard to know where to find them. But thanks to one Facebook Group, meeting your new best friends is easier than ever.

Founded in 2018, NYC Brunch Squad brings together hundreds of people who come as strangers and leave as friends through its in-person events.

“Witnessing the transformative impact our community has on the lives of our members is truly remarkable. We provide the essential support and connections needed to thrive amid the city's chaos,” shares Liza Rubin, the group’s founder.

Despite its name, the group doesn’t just do brunch. They also have book clubs, seasonal parties, and picnics, among other activities.

NYC Brunch Squad curates up to 10 monthly events tailored to the specific interests of its members. Liza handles all the details, taking into account different budgets and event sizes – all people have to do is show up.

“We have members who met at our events and became friends and went on to embark on international journeys to celebrate birthdays together. We have had members get married with bridesmaids by their sides who were women they first connected with at our events. We’ve had members decide to live together and become roommates,” Liza says.

Members also bond over their passion for giving back to their community. The group has hosted many impact-driven events, including a “Picnic with Purpose” to create self-care packages for homeless shelters and recently participated in the #SquadSpreadsJoy challenge. Each day, the 100 members participating receive random acts of kindness to complete. They can also share their stories on the group page to earn extra points. The member with the most points at the end wins a free seat at the group's Friendsgiving event.

Keep ReadingShow less
friendship
Education

3,700-year-old Babylonian stone tablet gets translated, changes history

They were doing trigonometry 1500 years before the Greeks.

via UNSW

Dr. Daniel Mansfield and his team at the University of New South Wales in Australia have just made an incredible discovery. While studying a 3,700-year-old tablet from the ancient civilization of Babylon, they found evidence that the Babylonians were doing something astounding: trigonometry!

Most historians have credited the Greeks with creating the study of triangles' sides and angles, but this tablet presents indisputable evidence that the Babylonians were using the technique 1,500 years before the Greeks ever were.

Keep ReadingShow less
education
Family

Mom’s blistering rant on how men are responsible for all unwanted pregnancies is on the nose

“ALL unwanted pregnancies are caused by the irresponsible ejaculations of men. Period. Don't believe me? Let me walk you through it."

Gabrielle Blair/Twitter

Mom has something to say... strongly say.

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as Mormons, are a conservative group who aren't known for being vocal about sex.

But best selling author, blogger, and mother of six, Gabrielle Blair, has kicked that stereotype to the curb with a pointed thread on reducing unwanted pregnancies. And her sights are set directly at men.

Keep ReadingShow less
women
Family

Dad takes 7-week paternity leave after his second child is born and is stunned by the results

"These past seven weeks really opened up my eyes on how the household has actually ran, and 110% of that is because of my wife."

@ustheremingtons/TikTok

There's a lot to be gleaned from this.

Participating in paternity leave offers fathers so much more than an opportunity to bond with their new kids. It also allows them to help around the house and take on domestic responsibilities that many new mothers have to face alone…while also tending to a newborn.

All in all, it enables couples to handle the daunting new chapter as a team, making it less stressful on both parties. Or at least equally stressful on both parties. Democracy!

TikTok creator and dad Caleb Remington, from the popular account @ustheremingtons, confesses that for baby number one, he wasn’t able to take a “single day of paternity leave.”

This time around, for baby number two, Remington had the privilege of taking seven weeks off (to be clear—his employer offered four weeks, and he used an additional three weeks of PTO).

The time off changed Remington’s entire outlook on parenting, and his insights are something all parents could probably use.

Keep ReadingShow less
parenting
Science

She tattooed half her face and you'd never know it. Her skills are just that good.

This incredible medical tattoo technology is giving renewed hope to burn victims.

All images via the CBS/YouTube

Basma Hameed runs a tattoo shop, of sorts...


Meet Samira Omar.

The 17-year-old was the victim of a horrific bullying incident.

Keep ReadingShow less
Education

8 changes that were made to a classic Richard Scarry book to keep up with the times. Progress!

All the misogyny and racism you may not have noticed are now gone.

Images via Alan Taylor/Flickr, used with permission.

Updating the kitchen.


Remember those beloved Richard Scarry books?

Books from when you were a kid?

Keep ReadingShow less
Education

Voice recordings of people who were enslaved offer incredible first-person accounts of U.S. history

"The results of these digitally enhanced recordings are arresting, almost unbelievable. The idea of hearing the voices of actual slaves from the plantations of the Old South is as powerful—as startling, really—as if you could hear Abraham Lincoln or Robert E. Lee speak." - Ted Koppel

Library of Congress

When we think about the era of American slavery, many of us tend to think of it as the far distant past. While slavery doesn't exist as a formal institution today, there are people living who knew formerly enslaved black Americans first-hand. In the wide arc of history, the legal enslavement of people on U.S. soil is a recent occurrence—so recent, in fact, that we have voice recordings of interviews with people who lived it.

Keep ReadingShow less
history
Trending Stories