Gas station clerk returns dropped $1 million lottery winner's ticket

Talk about honesty. A Salina Kansas gas station clerk noticed a lottery ticket on the floor of his store. He scanned it and realized it was a winner - not just any winner but the Mega Millions jackpot winner. Plus, the ticket worth $1 million was unsigned. Anyone could sign it and claim it.

This as yet unnamed clerk chose to call the store's owner and see how to handle it. The owner's son came in and together the two figured out who had dropped the ticket. Call it serendipity or coincidence or whatever you like, but the customer in question drove by the station a short time later. The station owner's son came outside and waved him down. The ticket was returned to its rightful owner who also has not yet been identified. 

So this week, Salina Kansas has three very happy people. One is a million dollars richer. Two can close their eyes knowing they did what was right. 

Calm bus driver gets 56 kids off safely before bus bursts into flames

It started as another Tuesday morning for school bus driver Teresa Stroble. She picked up 56 kids bound for the Duncan South Carolina elementary, middle, and high schools. Suddenly, two older students in the back of the bus yelled that they smelled smoke. Thinking quickly, Stroble pulled the bus over into the parking lot of a car wash. In less than a minute, she evacuated all the students from the bus, moved them a safe distance away, and radioed her transportation office to call 911.

The empty bus burst into flames.

Grateful students, parents, emergency responders, and school district officials are unanimous in their praise of Stroble's calm management of the crisis. No doubt, her ability to handle the situation exactly as she was trained to do saved lives.

The students have dubbed Teresa Stroble their superhero.

12-year-old stops a carjacker to save her little sister

Brandie Weiler expected a terrific day with her daughters, 12-year-old Maddie and 7-year-old Mollie. They were headed to Busch Gardens last Saturday, ready for a day of fun. In moments, everything changed. Two cars right in front of them were involved in an accident. Brandie pulled over, grabbed her phone, and left her car to help.

As she was calling 911, Brandie spotted a man who had been involved in the accident walking toward her car. Knowing her girls were in the car, she started yelling and ran back over.

Meanwhile, Maddie kept her wits about her. She saw the man whom she described as 'psycho' climb into the car, mumbling to himself about having to get away. She put the transmission in Drive, knowing that the car wouldn't start while in that position. While the man, later identified as Paul Salsman, struggled to start the car, Maddie kicked and screamed and punched him, allowing Mollie to escape the car's back seat. Salsman was soon restrained and has been charged with several felony counts.

Brandie is grateful she and her husband taught Maddie how to stand up for herself. When asked where she got the presence of mind to fight back, Maddie, an avid horseback rider, shrugged and said, "If I can control a 1500-pound animal, then I sure was gonna try to take care of him." She comes from a family of police officers and fire fighters, and has been told many times that if in danger, she has the right to kick, scream, hit, gouge eyes, whatever it takes.

Maddie injured the growth plate in her wrist during the altercation. For anyone who might find themselves in a similar situation, Maddie has one word of advice. "Fight."

Her one wish was to give

Thirteen-year-old Emma Allred has seen her share of health problems. At age 10, she was diagnosed with a rare form of ovarian cancer. She's had three surgeries so far, with a fourth coming up soon. 

Other teens might feel sorry for themselves. Not Emma.

When she learned she'd been granted a wish by Make-A-Wish, she knew what she'd ask for - a chance to help others. Emma said her wish was to feed the homeless. And the collection of this massive amount of food should be fun. Her community came out to support her, and the result was a dream come true. 

A park near Emma's home in Twin Falls, Idaho was the chosen site. Make-A-Wish supplied face painting artists, popcorn, and cotton candy for the events' participants. They also donated individual bags for the homeless, each containing a toothbrush, toothpaste, blanket, and sleeping bag according to Inside Edition. A local grocery chain donated a truckload of food. Individuals and fire departments donated hundreds of boxes of non-perishables. In all, over 13,000 pounds of food was given in honor of Emma's selfless wish. All will be given to local food pantries. 

Brenda Vogt,director of program services for Idaho's Make-A-Wish told KMVT News, "It's incredibly unique and we are so thrilled that somebody is as kind and generous as Emma to want to give to others instead of have the wish granted for herself." 

This Uber ride led to Brazil

In late July, Liz Willock took an hour-long Uber ride in Philadelphia in Ellis Hill's car. The two struck up a friendly conversation and Ellis mentioned how proud he is of his son Darrell, part of Team USA at the Rio Olympics. As the conversation continued, Liz learned that Ellis could not afford to fly to Rio to see his son compete.

So Liz decided to do something about it. She set up a GoFundMe page, asking for contributions toward the $7500 it would cost for Ellis to see his son participate in the Olympics. The goal was met in just two days through the generosity of over 150 people, mostly strangers. Now when Darrell Hill competes in the shotput on August 18th, his dad will be in the stands to cheer him on.

Kudos to Liz Willock for seeing a problem, allowing herself to feel empathy, and then developing a solution. And kudos to everyone who read about Ellis' situation and contributed to that solution. We need more news like this.

Read the story here and here. 

Unsung Heroes Project

Another site that shares great stories of personal integrity and courage is the Unsung Heroes Project. Not only does the site give story overviews, it provides resources for educators and collaborates in project-based learning opportunities for students, teachers, and parents. The project even offer cash-prize awards to students whose art communicates these untold tales to a greater audience.


Many of their featured projects, that is, stories which have been brought to the public through the arts, involve people who chose to do One Right Thing. One which struck me in its simplicity deals with the difficulties faced by the Little Rock Nine during the 1960s Civil Rights era. Those black students were the first to break the race barrier and be integrated into the all-white Little Rock School District. They had to walk through lines of jeering students and adults just to enter the school, endure untold threats and horrors in an attempt to receive an education. I'm sure they all remember those horrible days well.

And yet, even decades later, Elizabeth Eckford, one of the Nine, still remembers the names of two white students who showed her kindness during her ordeal, Ken Reinhard and Ann Williams. These two unlikely heroes didn't stand by when Elizabeth and the new students came to class. Ken repeatedly offered to walk with Elizabeth despite the verbal and phoned threats he received. Ann saw Elizabeth sitting alone in class and sat beside her, chatty and welcoming. The story of these small acts of standing up for what's right has been immortalized in this short film.

Focus on right

I've been to the beautiful, friendly city of Munich twice, once for pleasure and once for research. Because Munich is my novel's setting, I have spent many hours there in my head as well. That makes the recent horror there all the more painful. The news coverage gives us terrible details about the event, and in a short time everyone knows the shooter's name, age, and background. Perpetuating the perpetrator. Perpetuating the prejudice. 

And yet I'm sure someone in that mall acted valiantly. No doubt someone sheltered a frightened child, protected a potential victim at risk to his or her own self. Soon, I hope, we'll hear about a 'hero' we can all admire.  

Which reminds me of this seldom-told tale which got little (or no) publicity at the time about terror in another city I love, my hometown of NYC. The video below narrated by Tom Hanks was not made until years later. But stories like this are the ones that deserve the most publicity, the ones I hope we remember. 

On 9/11, the greatest boat rescue in world history plucked half-a-million terrified people off the south end of Manhattan in just 9 hours. Some of the boats were privately owned, others were Coast Guard vessels, ferries, tugs, and tour lines. In the uncertain and frightening events of that day in NYC, these courageous boat owners and captains risked their own lives, driving the flotilla right into the smoke and debris of lower Manhattan. 

I choose to focus on these heroes. I choose to tell stories about those who chose right. 

The courage to try

Sometimes I wonder how I'd react in a threatening situation. I like to think I'd act for the good, that I would instantly know what to do and how to do it. But seriously, when faced with a fight-or-flight moment, would I try to change the outcome? Would I even recognize the opportunity to try?

A day or so after the latest terror attack, this time in Nice France during the Bastille Day celebration, an amazing story has emerged. It seems that two quick-thinking bystanders attempted to stop the terrorist and his rampaging truck. One rode his motorcycle alongside the truck and tried to break into the truck's cab. The second actually did get in the truck's cab and wrestled with the armed driver. We may never know the extent these acts changed the outcome as neither was successful in stopping the madness alone. Perhaps their efforts slowed its attack. God knows.

These courageous individuals are as yet unnamed by the press, but they are true heroes in every definition of the word. I hope the media shares their names and their stories. We need reminders of how to behave well in the face of evil if we're ever going to learn how to subdue it.

So many stories

 Yesterday, I had the opportunity to take part in a commemoration of D-Day at the Everhart Museum in Scranton. As reported in the Scranton Times, the museum housed a display of photographs and personal items from late in WWII, focusing of course on France in 1944-45. As is usually the case when touring exhibits from horribly difficult times and places, I found myself looking for street scenes, small clips of the lives of ordinary people. What would it have been like to live there then, to be going to work or raising a family while tanks rolled down the streets of your town?

How did it affect your ability to get to the store, check on elderly family members, or walk the children to school? I find it fascinating to put on someone else's skin so to speak, to learn about an era and think, "What would I do if..."
I guess that explains why I write historical fiction.
Browsing through the D-Day exhibit, one thing struck me over and over - there are so many stories yet to be told, real and fictionalized.