Delivering Smiles
After facing food insecurity as a child, Shawn now ensures families in his community have enough to eat
11.13.20
True
This year more than ever, many families are anticipating an empty dinner table. Shawn Kaplan lived this experience when his father passed away, leaving his mother who struggled to provide food for her two children. Shawn is now a dedicated volunteer and donor with Second Harvest Food Bank in Middle Tennessee and encourages everyone to give back this holiday season with Amazon.
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Over one million people in Tennessee are at risk of hunger every day. And since the outbreak of COVID-19, Second Harvest has seen a 50% increase in need for their services. That's why Amazon is Delivering Smiles and giving back this holiday season by fulfilling hundreds of AmazonSmile Charity Lists, donating essential pantry and food items to help organizations like Second Harvest to feed those hit the hardest this year.
Visit AmazonSmile Charity Lists to donate directly to a local food bank or charity in your community, or simply shop smile.amazon.com and Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase price of eligible products to your selected charity.
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When a rescue dog refused to eat, this veterinarian nursed him back to health with pure love
11.21.20
Acts of kindness and compassion are always inspiring. A veterinarian gave a different spin on the phrase "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em".
The poor little pup in this video walked into this shelter with a history of being abused. He was so traumatized that he wasn't eating. The vet treating him wasn't sure what to do, so he decided to book a table for two: a the dog's place. It is not clear whether he got an official invite from the canine in question, but he felt pretty safe about showing up unannounced. He walked into the cage and sat down next to the dog. With his back up against the corner of his new (and hopefully temporary) domain, the rescue stared apprehensively at his human guest. The vet presented a dog dish with food and put it in front of the dog. The frightened pup just looked at the dish and made no attempt to eat. Then he broke out another dog dish identical to the one he just gave to his four-legged patient and started eating out of that bowl. And then came the turning point.
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<p><br></p><p>The man calmly took a bite to gain trust and develop a connection. Then he reached down and pulled a kibble out of the bowl in front of the dog and held the offering in his open hand. After a pause, the dog ate the nugget out of his hand. Then the vet did it again, and the dog ate that kibble, as well. The man then went back to eating out of his own bowl. That was when the pup looked at him, realized it was safe to eat and started to eat out of the dish given to him. </p><p>There is just something about the connection between humans and dogs. I have two. One of them is a rescue who bounced around from home to home because no one cold handle her so I took her when she was two years old. She was afraid of brooms which tells me it was probably the method with which someone saw fit to discipline her. She had no reason to trust me, but yet the moment I met her to take her to her new home, she jumped in my car with such joy. Yes, she was energetic, but it was because she was cheerful. Imagine getting in trouble for being too happy. I can safely say without bias that she is one of those dogs that everyone seems to love. And she loves them right back. In fact, I am pretty sure that girls I have dated have stayed with me a little longer than they would have just because they didn't want to break up with my dogs, too. </p><p>My other dog is a beagle mix who I adopted at 8 weeks and has absolutely no idea how good he has it. I have cooked chicken and put it in his bowl for dinner. Yes, the same chicken you and I eat and he looks up at me as if disappointed that the balance of saffron and garlic was just a little off, and that makes him hysterical. They are family members and not pets, which is exactly the compassion that our hero in the video showed. My hope is that people can learn from his actions of kindness. Be the change. And you don't even have to eat dog food to do it. </p>
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It isn’t always easy to ask for help. But when organizations like Bread for the City bring you into their family, anything is possible.
11.19.20
True
A lot of people here are like family to me," Michelle says about Bread for the City — a community nonprofit located in Washington DC that provides local residents with food, clothing, health care, social advocacy, and legal services. And since the pandemic began, the need to support organizations like Bread for the City is greater than ever, which is why Amazon is Delivering Smiles to local charities across the country this holiday season.
Watch the full story:
Amazon is giving back by fulfilling hundreds of AmazonSmile Charity Lists, and donating essential pantry and food items to help organizations like Bread for the City provide to those disproportionately impacted this year.
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Madeline Swegle breaks 110-year record and becomes the Navy’s first Black female fighter pilot
11.11.20
Anne Owens and Luke Redito / Wikimedia Commons
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When Madeline Swegle was a little girl growing up in Burke, VA, she loved watching the Blue Angels zip through the sky. Her family went to see the display every time it was in town, and it was her parents' encouragement to pursue her dreams that led her to the U.S. Naval Academy in 2017.
Before beginning the intense three-year training required to become a tactical air (TACAIR) pilot, Swegle had never been in an aircraft before; piloting was simply something she was interested in. It turns out she's got a gift for it—and not only is she skilled, she finds the "exhilaration to be unmatched."
"I'm excited to have this opportunity to work harder and fly high performance jet aircraft in the fleet," Swegle said in a statement released by the Navy. "It would've been nice to see someone who looked like me in this role; I never intended to be the first. I hope it's encouraging to other people."
As Swegle's story shows, representation and equality matter. And the responsibility to advance equality for all people - especially Black Americans facing racism - falls on individuals, organizations, businesses, and governmental leadership. This clear need for equality is why P&G established the Take On Race Fund to fight for justice, advance economic opportunity, enable greater access to education and health care, and make our communities more equitable. The funds raised go directly into organizations like NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, YWCA Stand Against Racism and the United Negro College Fund, helping to level the playing field.
<div class="rm-embed embed-media"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">MAKING HISTORY! <a href="https://t.co/jKJONHvL7S">https://t.co/jKJONHvL7S</a><br>— U.S. Navy (@USNavy) <a href="https://twitter.com/USNavy/status/1281362500978716673?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 9, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div><p>According to the <u><a href="https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/demographics-us-military" target="_blank">Council on Foreign Relations</a></u>, the U.S. military has taken significant steps over the past decade to build a more diverse and inclusive force that attracts the country's top talent. However, women and racial and ethnic minorities remain underrepresented in parts of the military, particularly at the highest levels of leadership. A<a href="https://fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/R44321.pdf" target="_blank">ccording to</a> the Congressional Research Service, in the enlisted realm, 63% of senior enlisted troops are white, while 19% are Black; and only eight out of every 100 senior officers are Black. Women represent 16 percent of the enlisted forces and 19 percent of the officer corps.<br></p><p>Lieutenant Commander Joseph Thompson, an officer serving in the Navy's Dental Corps, knows how it feels to be a minority in the military.</p><p>"As a fellow Naval Officer of African descent, I am extremely proud of Lt Swegle's accomplishments. I know the standards of excellence required to be a naval fighter pilot are extremely high. In a historically white male dominated sector of the Navy for her to break through the glass ceiling, not only as a female, but as one of African descent is nothing short of phenomenal...her accomplishments have not only made me proud, but have also motivated me to keep pushing forward in pursuit of my own goals."</p><p><strong><u><a href="https://www.pggoodeveryday.com/impact/" target="_blank">Join P&G Good Everyday</a></u> to take simple, everyday actions to help create conversation and meaningful change in support of <u><a href="https://www.pggoodeveryday.com/impact/take-on-race/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Take on Race</a></u>.</strong></p>
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Do you know that guy who has never had an issue with his TV/internet provider? Neither do I. If you claim you have never had issues with your bill going up without warning, then you are either lying or you own the cable company. Jake Lawson apparently does not own a cable company, and was prepared to communicate his frustrations regarding his bill in a most creative way.
First off, Jake understands what everyone should realize. The customer service representative doesn't own the cable company either, so yelling at someone who is just trying to make a living like all of us is not the answer. Their job is hard enough as it is so give them a break. Jake gave them more than a break. He gave them a song.
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<p><br></p><p><span></span>This <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CHs2G-8AIeG/" target="_blank">video</a> shows Jake calling AT&T and calmly questioning his rate increase. Anticipating that he was not going to get the answer he was looking for right off the bat, he came prepared. He asked if he could share a song he wrote about his thoughts on the matter. I must commend Jake on not phoning it in on the chord progression (excellent use of major to minor on the third and fourth chords in what I would have to deem as the verse). He starts off singing "This morning I woke up to an email, from AT&T that was bothering me." He continues, "This happens every 12 months without fail, so I called up customer loyalty." He goes on to sing that he is going to switch companies if he doesn't get his old rate back. And Rebecca from AT&T made it happen. </p><p>The moral of the story is not that you need to write a song to get what you want, but as Jake will tell you, yelling and screaming isn't the answer either. Just recently I was talked into bundling cable with my internet. They promised me I would get my same rate back if I didn't want to keep the cable TV service. I called up to cancel two weeks later, and lo and behold my internet bill was $7 higher than it was just two weeks ago. I played the "I know you personally didn't raise my rate, but I am sure you can understand how could feel a little wonky if you were in my shoes" card. I got my old rate back, although with not nearly the style that Jake flashed. </p><p>Customer service representatives can go above and beyond, too. Once I called up my TV provider to find out if the bouncing logo in the screen saver ever hits the bottom right corner. I kid you not, she put me on hold while she spent five minutes trying to find an answer for me. She came back on the line to inform me that while the logo has been known to hit the top right and left corners, she had no knowledge of it hitting either bottom corner, though it was unclear as to whether it was possible. </p><p>Jake, I tip my hat to you for spreading cheer even in times of frustration, and for popping out a pretty snappy tune. As for the logo in the screen saver, don't ask me how I know it hits every corner (even bottom left) except for bottom right. And if you say you saw it happen, you are probably the same guy who says they called the Keyser Soze moment in the movie <em>The Usual Suspects</em>. </p>
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