How friends, family, and food stamps help this woman with disabilities survive.

When Cassandra J. Perry was 13, a physical disability prevented her from going to school.

She had a genetic connective tissue disorder called Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, which means that her joints are unstable, her connective tissue is weak, she’s more prone to injuries, and she has chronic pain.

When she began living alone as an adult after splitting up with her spouse, she worried about how she’d be able to grocery shop.

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It's time to rethink how we view families on food stamps. These programs show why.

Unlimited fruits and veggies, breakfast, and after-school supper. These Vermont schools serve it all — for free.

No matter what, all students in Burlington, Vermont, get breakfast, even in the hallway if they’re running late to class. They can load up on as many fresh, locally sourced fruits and vegetables as they want.

In other words, these kids don’t have to worry about being hungry during the school day: The Burlington School Food Project runs a free meals program for every child to make sure of that.

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This woman’s story shows how one organ donor could change the lives of a whole family.

Lauren was in her middle school gym jumping rope when suddenly, she went into cardiac arrest.

“I remember waking up in the ambulance,” she says.

Lauren has hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), a genetic condition that prevents the heart from pumping enough blood. This condition has no cure and while many people with HCM can live active lives with very few symptoms or even no symptoms at all, others live with chest pains, heart palpitations, and dizziness during exercise. It can also increase the risk of sudden cardiac arrest. In fact, HCM is the leading cause of sudden cardiac arrest in young athletes.

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Bill Gates' family has a history of Alzheimer's. He's doing something about it.

For Bill Gates, changing the way we diagnose and treat Alzheimer's is personal.

"Several of the men in my family have this disease," he said. "And so, you know, I've seen how tough it is. That's not my sole motivation, but it certainly drew me in."

John Lamparski/Getty Images.

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