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."

Man stops to help stranger, returns to build a ramp

Jennifer and Don Austin were ready to get home. Don had undergone a below-knee amputation because of months of medical problems, and the couple was anxious to let him rest and recover in his own home. They knew Jennifer couldn't get him into the house in his wheelchair, so Don was ready to hop up his front steps with crutches.

He couldn't make it. He was too weak and off-balance, and try as she might, Jennifer couldn't help him. Don sat on the stairs to scoot up on his bottom, but even that proved too much.

At that moment, Steve Smith happened to be driving by. He didn't know the Austins, but decided to circle back and stop. Smith asked the couple if they needed help, and the Austins gratefully said yes. Smith picked Don up and literally carried him into the house.

Smith's kindness didn't end there. The next morning, he came back and asked the Austins' permission to build a ramp. He supplied the manpower and made it happen.

The Austins call Smith an angel, one who saved them twice within 24 hours. They shared his kindness on social media.

Man pulls stranger off subway tracks in the nick of time

We humans like to think we can be brave when needed, that our inner hero can be readily called into action to save the day.

If only.

Truth is, most of us hesitate, grapple with indecision or surprise, or are sluggishly weighing out the pros and cons while the problem unfolds. Perhaps that's why we love hero stories. When seconds count, their best self emerges and they act.

Thankfully, Jonathan Kulig acted. On Saturday night, the 29-year-old had just gotten off a subway and stepped onto the platform. On the opposite platform, he saw something fall onto the tracks. When he reached it, people yelled and pointed to a person lying on the tracks below. The train would come into the station in less than a minute.

Kulig jumped down and scooped up the barely conscious young man. He lifted him to the edge where other subway patrons helped him to a bench. Then Kulig climbed out himself, and was promptly proclaimed a hero. The rescue was caught on video, including the dramatic moment when the train rushes into the station.

Word is that the young man who fell was drunk. He was taken to the hospital with non-critical injuries.

Kulig is employed by Con Edison, and had just gone through the MTA's track safety course. He knew how to keep himself safe as he helped the fallen person. "I did what I had to do," he said.  

Man uses Tesla to stop car with unconscious driver

Manfred Kick was driving his Tesla Model S on the Autobahn near Munich the other night. He noticed a VW Passat ahead of him swerving on the high-speed highway. Kick pulled up alongside and peered at the driver. The man was limp, slumped over the steering wheel, apparently unconscious.

Kick pulled his Tesla in front of the Passat and gradually braked, slowing the runaway car to a safe stop. The quick-thinking Kick then got out of his car, checked for a pulse, and performed first aid, positioning the man so he could breathe. Other drivers stopped and called for help. The man was transported to the hospital after suffering an apparent stroke. He is reported in stable condition.

Kick's expensive car had suffered over $10,000 worth of damage. Because of the nature of the collision, he wasn't sure if insurance would cover it. He told reporters he was just grateful that he was able to help the man get medical attention and that no one was hurt by the runaway car.

Tesla's Elon Musk heard the story. He has offered to expedite and pay all the repair costs associated with Kick's heroic act.

How coffee and kindness got Kyle Bigler a car

Joanne Griffiths has 10 kids. Ten! I'm amazed she can find time to brush her teeth, never mind think about other people's needs. But that's exactly what she did.

Kyle Bigler was a familiar, friendly face at the New Hampshire Dunkin' Donuts drive-through, and he handed Griffiths her coffee early one morning. On her way to work mid-afternoon, she noticed Bigler walking along the road. Just before 11 that same night, Griffiths saw Bigler a third time, working the graveyard shift at a local gas station. She offered him a ride home, which he declined. She discovered Bigler had been walking to both minimum-wage jobs, a trek of about 16 miles a day.

Yes, this young man walked six hours to these two jobs and had done so for about a year. He felt that his learning disability and speech impediment gave him few work options. "No places close to me would hire me and Dunkin' Donuts in Belmont did, so I took it and said I'd walk to work and work for them every day," he told TODAY.

Griffiths was amazed by Bigler's work ethic. She snapped a photo of him at the drive-through and shared his story on Facebook. It went viral.





Among the comments on Griffiths' post were offers of help for Biglin in terms of money and jobs. Autoserv Tilton, a local car dealership, offered another solution - a car.

“I was touched by Kyle’s work ethic and perseverance even when times were tough,” Ryan Parks, sales manager at AutoServ of Tilton ― which donated the car to Bigler ― told The Huffington Post. “I feel like that’s something we don’t see as much nowadays when I compare my generation to my parents’ or my grandparents’ and it was really refreshing to see that.”

Biglin will have to learn to drive and pass his driver's test, but he is overwhelmed and excited. Not only do these wheels mean he can drive to work, they also give him a way to visit with his 3-year-old son Steven who lives with his mother over 3 hours away. 

"Meeting Kyle has humbled me and made me more grateful for what I have." Griffiths tells PEOPLE. “Everyone struggles in life. All that matters is how you respond to the struggle and persevere.”

Sportmanship

These two young ladies trained for years, wishing, hoping, and working toward the goal of competing in the Rio Olympics. Both athletes made their country's team and earned a spot in the 5,000 meter final. 

More than halfway into the race, Nikki Hamblin of New Zealand and American Abbey D'Agostino got tangled up in the pack of runners. Both women fell to the track. When D'Agostino got up and realized that Hamblin was still on the ground, she faced a choice. She could literally get back in the running and continue to pursue the dream of finishing her race in the Olympics, or she could help her fallen competitor. D'Agostino chose the latter.

With both women up on their feet, the unthinkable happened. D'Agostino grabbed her knee in pain and pulled up. It was Hamblin's turn
to return the favor. She helped D'Agostino to her feet and saw to it that she would finish the race. 

Check out what Hamblin said about D'Agostino's kindness that day. Here's a video of an interview with both women afterward. 

In the final days of the Rio Olympics, the IOC awarded both athletes the prestigious Pierre de Coubertin medal. Also known as the International Fair Play Committee Award, this medal has only been awarded 17 times in Olympic history. A rare prize for moments of mutual kindness between competitors who quickly became friends.

A tent, a college, a community, and a car

This story is full of remarkable people, each of whom did one right thing.

Nineteen-year-old Fred Barley was determined to register for college. Even if it meant getting to the Gordon State College campus in Barnesville, Georgia by bicycle, a 50 miles trek which took him 6 hours. Even if it meant sleeping in a tent until classes started in August. He is homeless; he has slept in tents before.


As local word spread about Barley's situation, a number of people stepped up to help. Police didn't charge him with trespassing or vagrancy; they put him up in a motel. A pizzeria offered Barley a job. A Barnesville resident set up a GoFundMe page to help with Barley's college expenses, raising over $183,000 in a month!

The story went viral. One person who heard about it, Andy Ungaro of Philadelphia, wanted to help too. He runs a repair shop and had just received a 2004 Hyndai Elantra as a trade. He fixed up the car so it would run another 60,000+ miles, drove it down to Barnesville, and presented it to Barley as a gift. Ungaro hopes Barley will pass the gift on to another needy college student when he's done with it.

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. 

Five-minute stories

A couple days ago, I watched this terrific TED Talk. In it, Matthew Dicks shares a strategy to increase story ideas - documenting a single event each day of everyday life which might translate into a five-minute story. He's been doing this daily for several years and has found his awareness and attentiveness has grown. Not only does he find fodder for his storytelling passion, he enjoys life more fully than before. All because his radar is ready to find memorable moments and jot them down, an exercise he calls 'Homework for Life.' Sounds appealing, so I tried it.

Yesterday's memorable moment occurred as I sat on the deck. The day was my kind of perfect - 80 degrees with a gentle breeze and iced tea. Somewhere behind me children played ball, their cheers and laughter filling the local quota of joy. Before me were a dozen travel brochures for river cruises, train trips, and other tours Michael and I long to take.

My delight in the present moment wasn't diminished by looking forward to a future trip. My enjoyment of planning the future trip wasn't diminished by my pleasure of my present setting. Present and future were equal. What a joy.

And yes, Matthew Dicks, I wrote that one down.