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This former pro baller isn't building better players. He's building better citizens.

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State Farm

When he was just 14 years old, Felipe Lopez was dubbed the "Spanish Michael Jordan."

He had just immigrated with his family from the Dominican Republic to the South Bronx, and, without missing a beat, had started making a name for himself in New York City — the mecca of basketball.

Lopez starred at Rice High School in Harlem and played college ball at St. John's University. Then, in 1998, he finally made it to the NBA. But it's not just his skills on the hardwood that make him so special.


All images via Felipe Lopez, used with permission.

"When I was in college, I already had the urge to give back to the community," he says. "But there was the financial uncertainties as you go through college."

So in his first year in the NBA, Lopez took action to make an impact both on and off the court.

Immediately, he laid the groundwork for the Felipe Lopez Foundation, a program geared toward providing underprivileged kids with athletic and academic opportunities.

"Once I made it to the league," Lopez explains, "every time I went to the Dominican Republic for vacation, it was not a vacation — it was to travel around the country and give free [basketball] clinics and give out free donations to all the places that I went to."

Lopez even petitioned the president of the Dominican Republic to create a new gym on the site of the playground where he first fell in love with basketball.

"The best way to make ourselves feel good is by giving — giving your time, giving your effort, giving your love to people that need to find their way," he says.

Not even a serious knee injury, which derailed his career in 2002, could slow down his humanitarian work. Lopez kept coming back to the Dominican Republic despite leaving the NBA and playing in leagues across Europe and South America.

In 2014, Lopez returned to New York to give back to the community that gave him so much. He started working with kids at the Bronx Spanish Evangelical Church to support efforts to take them off the street and give them a safe haven from the rampant drug abuse and gang scene in the neighborhood.

It's here that Lopez started getting more recognition for all the amazing community work he was doing. In fact, his inspirational story and heartwarming relationship with one of the campers was recently featured in a profile for State Farm's Neighborhood of Good.

With all the kids he helps, Lopez tries to offer guidance for their future.

"I'm not trying to build the next superstar," he explains. "I'm trying to build the next best citizen that is going to go all around and take all the opportunities that's going to be given to them."

That's why he's trying so hard to set kids on the right path towards college — to him, it's the key to unlocking a world of possibilities.

And to help them get there, he stresses one thing: preparation. "When you talk about preparation," Lopez says, "you talk about readiness, you talk about being on time, you talk about doing your homework." These are the things, he says, that help them not lose sight of their goals.

Lopez also shares his faith with the kids to give them another source of guidance. In fact, that's a big reason why he renamed the Felipe Lopez Foundation to the Ministry of Faith this past year.

Today, almost 20 years since he first launched his foundation, Lopez has only found more ways to give back — earning him a new nickname: "Saint Felipe."

Fellow NBA Cares Ambassador Dikembe Mutombo gave him this new nickname after Lopez became an NBA Cares ambassador in 2008.

"Felipe is special among former players," NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said. "He's magical. Kids respond to him, his manner, his smile. He has almost a special skip in his step."

Today, Lopez also serves as a mentor for My Brother's Keeper, a project started by President Obama. "It's a mentoring program," explains Lopez, "and the point was to raise 25,000 mentors to guide young black men across America."

Without a doubt, paying it forward is at the heart of everything Lopez does.

That's because he knows that at one time, he too needed encouragement and guidance to keep him on the right path and get to where he is today. Now, he wants to do the same for the next generation. Because whether it's trying to pass an exam or make it to the NBA, everyone could use a helping hand or a mentor.

"I see myself as that person that lent me their hand when I needed it," he says. And if all goes according to plan, that's exactly what the kids he helps will say once they reach their goals.

To learn more about his incredible story and how Lopez is reaching his hand out to help kids, just check out this heartwarming video below:

If you're looking for easy ways to take action in your community, get started by visiting the Neighborhood of Good. State Farm will help you connect locally with people and organizations in need of a good neighbor.

Education

A school assignment asked for 3 benefits of slavery. This kid gave the only good answer.

The school assignment was intended to spark debate and discussion — but isn't that part of the problem?

A school assignment asked for 3 "good" reasons for slavery.



It's not uncommon for parents to puzzle over their kids' homework.

Sometimes, it's just been too long since they've done long division for them to be of any help. Or teaching methods have just changed too dramatically since they were in school.

And other times, kids bring home something truly inexplicable.

Trameka Brown-Berry was looking over her 4th-grade son Jerome's homework when her jaw hit the floor.

"Give 3 'good' reasons for slavery and 3 bad reasons," the prompt began.

You read that right. Good reasons ... FOR SLAVERY.

Lest anyone think there's no way a school would actually give an assignment like this, Brown-Berry posted photo proof to Facebook.



In the section reserved for "good reasons," (again, for slavery), Jerome wrote, "I feel there is no good reason for slavery thats why I did not write."

Yep. That about covers it.

The school assignment was intended to spark debate and discussion — but isn't that part of the problem?

The assignment was real. In the year 2018. Unbelievable.

The shockingly offensive assignment deserved to be thrown in the trash. But young Jerome dutifully filled it out anyway.

His response was pretty much perfect.

We're a country founded on freedom of speech and debating ideas, which often leads us into situations where "both sides" are represented. But it can only go so far.

There's no meaningful dialogue to be had about the perceived merits of stripping human beings of their basic living rights. No one is required to make an effort to "understand the other side," when the other side is bigoted and hateful.

In a follow-up post, Brown-Berry writes that the school has since apologized for the assignment and committed to offering better diversity and sensitivity training for its teachers.

But what's done is done, and the incident illuminates the remarkable racial inequalities that still exist in our country. After all, Brown-Berry told the Chicago Tribune, "You wouldn't ask someone to list three good reasons for rape or three good reasons for the Holocaust."

At the very end of the assignment, Jerome brought it home with a bang: "I am proud to be black because we are strong and brave ... "

Good for Jerome for shutting down the thoughtless assignment with strength and amazing eloquence.


This article originally appeared on 01.12.18

Woman describes how Gen X did Halloween in the 80s and it’s so accurate

"Every single member of Gen X can smell this photo."

Photo credit: ~ tOkKa/Flickr

Halloween costumes in the 80s were terrifyingly terrible.

Halloween has come a long way since the 70s and 80s, when Gen X kids donned the worst mass-produced costumes known to man to go out and ask strangers for candy that we were sure was laced with poison or razor blades. Those sure were good times, though, weren't they?

Social media creator Kelly Manno shared a video describing what Halloween was like for kids who grew up in "the forgotten generation," and holy moly is it accurate.


First, Manno showed a photo of someone dressed in an "80s costume" for Halloween, with neon colors and legwarmers and big hair, and said, "Absolutely nobody looked like that in the 80s, especially on Halloween. We looked like this."

Then she showed a grainy photo of kids in the plastic masks and poorly printed costumes that were the hallmark of the age.

"Every single member of Gen X can smell this photo," she said. "It's like a vinyl, like plasticky paint smell."


Manno explained that our parents only took a few photos of us per year, and Halloween was always one of them.

"You knew, before you went out trick-or-treating, that you had to line up with your cousins in front of the fireplace, in your highly flammable costumes, with your mom chain-smoking Virginia Slims, like, 'Say trick-or-treat!'"

Oh, those masks were the worst inventions ever. The eyeholes never lined up properly, so you were constantly trying to adjust them to be able to see even a little bit. "We would push our tongue through the slit in the mask. It would cut our tongue, but then we'd keep doing it again because we were eaten up with OCD and ADD and nobody cared."

Then Manno described the "garbage bag costumes" we had, which were basically trash bags printed with whatever character it was supposed to be. So janky. So sweaty. So crinkly when we walked. But somehow still socially preferable to your mom making your costume from scratch.


"Look at us, we were terrifying," Manno concludes. "No wonder people tried to poison us."

Her descriptions of what it felt like to trick-or-treat in those costumes and haul our own bodyweight in candy are spot on, and people who lived it are feeling the nostalgia.

"So much truth in one video! 😂 I just saw, heard, and smelled my childhood."

"You are literally making me laugh so damn hard, cause you described it exactly as it was, but my mom smoked Winston's!"

"It was always freezing on Halloween that the vinyl/plastic suit would crack and tear halfway through the night."

"Or the rubber band breaking at the second house and you had to hold it up on your face at the door the rest of the night. 😂 Good times."

"The tongue thing is on point. I can still feel it. 😂"

"I can totally smell that picture lol. I remember the steam from inside the mask would have your lashes and eyebrows covered in dew then after a couple streets of running house to house the crotch would tear out. We would stay out until everybody turned their lights off and the pillow case was full."

"Yes!!!! And we used a pillow case for our candy. And no adult supervision."

"My mom made me really nice homemade costumes, but I remember begging for the plastic Strawberry Shortcake garbage bag one. So, she bought it for me one year. That was a terrible, sweaty experience. 😂"

"Let’s not forget having to inspect every piece of candy for razor blades. I swear I lost half my haul to my father in that clean up. 🍬 🍫 😢"

Kids these days have no idea, with their official city trick-or-treat hours and their parents walking around with them and their costumes that actually look like the thing they're trying to be. The 70s and 80s were a wild time, and as funny as it is to reminisce about those Halloweens of old, most of us would agree that the experience has been much improved for our own kids.

Pillowcases still make the best trick-or-treat bags, though. Some things do not change.

Family

Technology expert shares the one message that can get teens to rethink their screentime

“Social media is free because you pay for it with your time.”

via Dino Ambrosi (used with permission)

Dino Ambrosi speaks at a school assembly.

In a 2023 TEDx Talk at Laguna Blanca School, Dino Ambrosi made a startling revelation that perfectly underlines the big question of the smartphone era: What is my time worth? Ambrosi is the founder of Project Reboot and an expert at guiding teens and young adults to develop more empowering relationships with technology.

Assuming the average person now lives to 90, after calculating the average time they spend sleeping, going to school, working, cooking, eating, doing chores, sleeping, and taking care of personal hygiene, today’s 18-year-olds have only 334 months of their adult lives to themselves.

"How you spend this time will determine the quality of your life,” Ambrosi says. However, given the tech habits of today’s young people, most of those months will be spent staring at screens, leaving them with just 32 months to leave their mark on the world. "Today, the average 18-year-old in the United States is on pace to spend 93% of their remaining free time looking at a screen,” Ambrosi says.



dino ambrosi, teens and technology, smartphone addictionAn 18-year-olds remaining time, in months. via TEDx

The idea that an entire generation will spend most of their free time in front of screens is chilling. However, the message has a silver lining. Sharing this information with young people can immediately impact how they spend their time.

How to get teens to reduce their screentime

Ambrosi says his work with Project Reboot through on-campus initiatives, school assemblies, and parent workshops has taught him that teens are more concerned about time wasted on their phones than the damage it may do to their mental health. Knowing the topic that resonates can open the door for an effective dialogue about a topic that’s hard for many young people to discuss. When teens realize they are giving their entire lives away for free, they are more apt to reconsider their relationship with smartphones.

“I actually don't get through to a lot of teens, as well as when I help them realize the value of their time and then highlight the fact that that time is being stolen from them,” Ambrosi told Upworthy.

A Common Sense Media study shows that the average 13 to 18-year-old, as of 2021, spent an average of 8 hours and 39 minutes a day on entertainment screentime.

“It’s important to get them to view time as their most valuable resource that they can use to invest in themselves or enjoy life and tick the boxes on their bucket list. I really want them to see that that's something they should take control of and prioritize because we're all under the impression that social media is free, but it's actually not free. We just pay for it with our time.”

dino ambrosi, project reboot, teens smartphonesDino AMbrosi speaks at Berkeley.via Dino Ambrosi (used with permission)

Ambrosi believes that young people are less likely to hand their time to tech companies for free when they understand its value. “I find that kids really respond to that message because nobody wants to feel manipulated, right? And giving them that sense of being wronged, which I think they have been, by tech companies that are off operating on business models that are not aligned with their well-being, is important.”

He also believes parents should be sympathetic and nonjudgmental when talking to young people about screentime because it’s a struggle that just about everyone faces and feels shame about. A little understanding will prevent them from shutting down the conversation altogether.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

How to reduce my screentime

Ambrosi has some suggestions to help people reduce their screentime.

The ClearSpace app

ClearSpace forces you to take a breathing delay before using a distracting app. It also asks you to set a time limit and allows you to set a number of visits to the site per day. If you eclipse the number of visits, it sends a text to a friend saying you exceeded your budget. This can help people be accountable for one another’s screentime goals.

Don’t sleep with your phone

Ambrosi says to charge your phone far away from your bedside stand when you sleep and use an alarm clock to wake up. If you do have an alarm clock on your phone, set up an automation so that as soon as you turn off the alarm, it opens up an app like Flora or Forest and starts an hour-long timer that incentivizes you to be off your phone for the first hour of the day.

“In my experience, if you can stay off screens for the last hour and the first hour of the day, the other 22 hours get a lot easier because you get the quality rest and sleep that you need to wake up fully charged, and now you're more capable of being intentional because you are at your best," Ambrosi told Upworty.

Keep apps in one place

Ambrosi says to keep all of your social apps and logins on one device. “I try to designate a specific use for each device as much as possible,” he told Upworthy. “I try to keep all my social media time and all my entertainment on my phone as opposed to my computer because I want my computer to be a tool for work.”

Even though there are significant challenges ahead for young people as they try to navigate a screen-based world while keeping them at a healthy distance, Ambrosi is optimistic about the future.

“I'm really optimistic because I have seen in the last year, in particular, that the receptiveness of student audiences has increased by almost an order of magnitude. Kids are waking up to the fact that this is the problem. They want to have this conversation,” he told Upworthy. “Some clubs are starting to address this problem at several schools right now; from the talks I've given this semester alone, kids want to be involved in this conversation. They're creating phone-free spaces on college and high school campuses by their own accord. I just think we have a huge potential to leverage this moment to move things in the right direction.”

For more information on Ambrosi’s programs, visit ProjectReboot.School.

Joy

200 cats facing euthanasia get new lives helping rehabilitate South Carolina inmates

The program began with two cats but quickly grew after the warden realized the profound impact on both inmates and animals.

Photo by Norma Gabriela Galván

A cat, getting ready to do some not-quite-hard time.

When asked to comment about the turn of fate that led it to a life behind bars, one cat said, "None of you seem to understand. We are not locked in here with you. You're locked in here with us! Meow!"

Or that's how Redditor EmiliaFromLV imagined it. While impossible to know for sure, the cats that were facing euthanasia in South Carolina seem delighted in having found new homes with caring humans, even if those humans are hardened criminals and that home is a prison.

Through Allendale Correctional Institution’s unusual yet deeply heartwarming “MeowMates” program, dozens of shelter cats roam the halls and bunk rooms, giving inmates newfound purpose. This flood of felines is changing everything for a group of men who once lived with little to care for but themselves.


It started with just two cats

Originally, Allendale’s program began with a modest two cats, but that number quickly grew after the warden realized the profound impact on both inmates and animals. Today, more than 200 cats call Allendale home, with inmates responsible for their care, training, and the occasional bath—yes, these guys are giving cats baths, even if the cats do tend to start out a little wary.

Jackson Galaxy, the Animal Planet star, recently visited the program and was blown away by what he saw:

"This is the most exciting thing I've ever seen in my life. I'm not kidding! You've got cats everywhere and they're just wandering around, no fear all… it was beyond my wildest dreams."

Jackson Galaxy

Galaxy witnessed firsthand how these inmates, many of whom have spent their lives struggling with anger or isolation, are finding peace, empathy, and even joy through these furry friendships. One man admitted, “I’ve been incarcerated since I was 17, but focusing on this four-ounce kitten melted away a lot of my selfishness.”

Healing behind bars—and beyond

Life in rural Allendale County is hard for everyone, including stray animals, and without the prison program, most of these cats would face euthanasia. Not anymore. MeowMates has given the prison a unique role as a shelter, thanks to inmates who do everything from cleaning litter boxes to handling medical exams (yes, poop samples and all).

As u/Figjam_ZA pointed out, “100% reported reduced inmate stress levels, 85% saw improved work ethic, and 93% reported better self-control.”

"Looking back, to have had a cat back then, it would have been an incredible comfort."

u/madscribbler

To be fair, not all the men came to the program as cat lovers. In fact, one inmate admitted to being outright terrified of them. But a few playful purrs later, he’s now their biggest fan, saying, “There’s nothing that has changed me like taking care of these animals.” The cats, unfazed by typical prison stressors, don’t ask for much—just food, water, the occasional scratch behind the ears, and maybe a little personal space, as u/RoseHil observed: “Just feed and water it, it’s a fur-plant. Then chill out and don’t bring energy to the room the cat hasn’t already.”

Second chances for two, and four, legged friends

It turns out these furry residents have also softened the hearts of their caretakers, even in such a structured and high-security place. Inmates form such strong bonds with their cats that the program actually rotates them periodically to avoid “adoptive” attachment. Some prisoners have told the warden they’d be content spending life in prison if it means taking care of these animals—a sentiment echoed by u/Figjam_ZA, who marveled that “cats are checked on regularly and apparently do really well in that environment.”

While the cats are saving lives in more ways than one, the inmates have, in turn, saved hundreds of dogs and cats through the program since its launch. When Hurricane Matthew hit, Allendale even took in extra animals from other counties, adding emergency sheltering to their impact.

Could this be the future of prison programs?

Despite evidence of lower recidivism and positive inmate transformation, programs like MeowMates aren’t in every prison due to funding challenges. But this “feline felony” is sparking interest and discussions on Reddit and beyond, with u/LimitlessMegan lamenting, “Studies show these programs work, but they’re rare because most prisons don’t actually focus on rehabilitation.”

For now, Allendale is a model for how both man and animal can find second chances, bringing life, purrs, and maybe even a little healing into places most wouldn’t expect.

Science

5 things 'desire paths' - or human-made shortcuts - reveal about people

Going off the beaten path is a heavily studied phenomenon.

Gordon Joly & wetwebwork/Flickr

If you've ever walked through a public park or across a grassy college campus, you've definitely noticed the phenomenon. Inevitably, there's a paved path or sidewalk leading from Point A to Point B. And then, branching off of that path, is a well-worn patch of dirt where people have chosen to walk instead.

Often the unofficial path is more efficient or more pleasant, and it's just so inviting that you can't help but branch off and walk it yourself. These human-made shortcuts are called Desire Paths — or sometimes Cow Paths or Elephant Paths. (Named as such because big, lumbering animals like to take the shortest route between two points.)


Some people say Desire Paths occur when a design fails to connect with human behavior.

Which makes them incredibly useful for urban planners and other people who design walking paths! Desire Paths are studied heavily, and some places even choose to pave over them once they appear, making them more official. (While others intentionally block them off).

There are even cases where no paving was done until Desire Paths naturally formed — when crowds of people did the engineers' and urban planners' work for them.

People are absolutely fascinated by Desire Paths.

The subreddit devoted to them has over fifty-thousand members! There are massive groups on Flickr where people share photos of desire paths they find in the wild. And a recent X thread of desire paths racked up almost thirty million views.

Why is it that Desire Paths spark such a reaction in us? If I had to guess, it's because Desire Paths are small acts of rebellion. They are literally a visual representation of going off the beaten path. The symbolism is powerful in a world that can feel very mundane and predictable.

They're also something that we create together. No one single person creates a new path. They hold a collective wisdom that resonates deeply somewhere in our souls.

And they teach us about ourselves, believe it or not. Here are a few things we can learn about ourselves from Desire Paths.

1. We're not superstitious, but we're a little stitious.

There are lots of examples of Desire Paths forming around archways or leaning objects.

Sure, you could say people walk around so they don't bump their heads, or maybe to make room for passing cyclists.

But I like to think we just don't want to risk the bad karma.

2. Anything that gets in the way of a straight line is annoying.

If we're walking in a straight line, we generally would like to continue in that straight line.
A decorative circular garden right in the middle of the path might seem like a good idea — but only if you want to see it get trampled.

In the same vein, why walk in a complicated squiggly shape when we can just cut right across?

A paved path with dirt path branching off through treeswetwebwork/Flickr

3. We like gentle hills more than stairs.

It's surprising and fascinating how often people will avoid going up and down stairs if they can cut through the grass instead.

Human beings' hatred of stairs is well-documented, but it's interesting to see it play out visually.

A path worn in the dirt next to stairsGordon Joly/Flickr

Some studies estimate walking up stairs is twice as hard on the body compared to walking up a hill.

A path work into tall grass next to stairsthepismire/Flickr

4. We don't like sharp turns.

If you know people, you won't be surprised to hear that we like to cut corners!

A dirt path next to sidewalkDan Keck/Flickr

We're not robots! We don't like turning at right angles. Plus, if we're in a rush, a more efficient path saves us time.

A dirt path cutting through graveyardGeorge Redgrave/Flickr

5. We like feeling connected to the people that came before.

Holloways are a special sort of Desire Path, carved deep into forests and other nature. They are often ancient. They are ever-changing.

A dirt path carved into forestBy Romain Bréget, CC BY-SA 4.0

By walking through these paths, we become a part of them and a part of history.

A quote from Rebecca Solnit sums it up perfectly:

“Walking is a mode of making the world as well as being in it.”

So go ahead and take the road less traveled. Follow your intuition. You might be on to something, and it could be the beginning of a new and better path!