Jogging for a Smile
Lots of people jog for exercise. And as long as you're going for a run, why not run an errand for someone who needs the help at the same time? That's the idea behind The Good Gym, an organization that matches runners with elderly and less mobile people in their neighborhood who need groceries, errands, or just some friendly human connection. On top of runner's high, The Good Gym volunteers finish ... posted on Jan 23 2011, 1,709 reads

The Wisdom of Old Ted
"I placed Ted's ashes in the ocean and watched as they made a rainbow before dissolving into the sea." So begins the story of an unlikely friendship between Jimpa, a monk, and Ted, a hobo in his 80s who lives in freedom and dignity in a homeless camp. The friendship started when Ted saw Jimpa and said: "I'm hungry can you feed me?" It was to become a sweet refrain from a dear friend. Jimpa fed Ted... posted on Jan 21 2011, 4,426 reads

Dance Class Helps Parkinson's Patients
An unusual dance class takes place in Kirkland: one taught by professional dancers and offered free of charge for people with Parkinson's disease and their caregivers. It's one of a small but growing number of such classes worldwide. At this dance class, the students walk in slowly, some rigidly or with a bit of a tremor. They take their places, not at a ballet barre or on the dance floor, but sit... posted on Jan 18 2011, 3,050 reads

Lessons From Caring For Strangers
In 1973, Charles Garfield discovered a lost civilization in San Francisco: the occupants of cancer wards in hospitals, hordes of anxious people facing a limited life span, whose social and psychological needs were going unmet by their well-meaning, but largely ignorant caregivers. Turning to volunteers, Garfield trained over 15,000 to provide sophisticated emotional support to the seriously and t... posted on Jan 17 2011, 3,379 reads

Matching Kids and Mentors
To the beat of Aretha Franklin, and with pizza-laden paper plates poised precariously on their laps, families sit in the crowd at the assembly hall of Horace Mann Middle School. They are waiting. They look slightly anxious. It's not graduation day- though it is something akin. The seventh and eighth graders here are at a pivotal time in their young lives, when school dropout problems can begin, ex... posted on Jan 03 2011, 2,261 reads

Top Ten Kindness Stories for the New Year
An unexpected display of love at an airport, a ten-year-old returns 200 lost dollars to a stranger, a homeless man helps a single mother smile on a bad day, an orphaned dog finds strength from one small gesture of compassion... These humble stories are a reminder of the power of kindness to transform a moment, a day, a person or lifetime. Start the new year off with some down-to-earth inspiration ... posted on Jan 01 2011, 38,337 reads

New Kind of New Year's Resolution
"I'm not going to shrink my hips or grow five inches in 2011. I didn't in 2010, 2009, or 2008, despite my penchant for making New Year's resolutions that defy common sense and human physiology. The only thing more depressing than a personal pledge unmet is one so unrealistic it couldn't be kept even if plastic surgery was free," Philadelphia Inquirer's Monica Yant Kinney writes. That's why this ... posted on Dec 31 2010, 4,659 reads

How to Change the World While Traveling
In 1989, while touring India, Marc Gold found himself "thunderstruck" when he realized he could save a woman from a deadly ear infection by paying the $1 for her antibiotics. "I thought you had to be wealthy to do such things," he recalls. Since then, Gold has trekked through Asia, handing out money to the needy in amounts as little as 50 cents and rarely exceeding $500. In Vietnam, a small donati... posted on Dec 30 2010, 4,578 reads

Kids on Love
A group of adults posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds: "What does love mean?" The answers were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined. One 6-year old wrote, "If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate."... posted on Dec 29 2010, 637,989 reads

5 Ways Giving is Good for You
As the spirit of giving wraps up this last week of 2010, here's some food for thought: Research suggests generosity is good for you. New studies attest that giving benefits not only the recipients but also the givers' health and happiness, while bringing strength to entire communities. Of course, you don't have to shop to reap the rewards of giving, the same benefits can come from donating to char... posted on Dec 27 2010, 5,178 reads