I’m a musician in two old-time string bands and an unapologetically staunch patriot who loves this country and know I’m truly blessed to call it home 🇺🇸
An 11-year-old boy. One crochet hook. 60 skeins of yarn. No pattern. Two weeks. 🇺🇸
While juggling tennis camps and baseball games, Grayson poured his heart into crocheting this stunning American flag blanket—just in time to celebrate America’s 250th Independence Day. 🧨
No fancy instructions, just pure determination and love for his country. The result is a beautiful family heirloom that proves some of life’s greatest treasures are still made by hand. 🇺🇸✨
Proud of this kid and the quiet power of creativity in the next generation.
What an inspiration! 👏
Our 10 days in the Midwest come to a close. Now we move on to Texas for the next part of our great US World Cup Road Trip 🇺🇸
Things I’ve learnt along the way:
- Your weather is not to be messed with
- Your sunsets are stunning
- Your beer is fantastic
- Your barbecue is delicious
- Your scenery is beautiful
- Folk have STRONG opinions on barbecue and gas prices
- Biscuits and gravy are definitely
NOT scones and mushrooms
But above all… the people are amazing, true salt of the earth folk and remind me of back home in Yorkshire (a high compliment)
Thank you Midwesterners 🤍
My husband and I adopted a 10.5 year old dog. Not because we were looking for another dog, but because she sat at the shelter for 3 months without a single person inquiring about her or meeting her and we didn’t want her dying alone. She wasn’t with a rescue but people in the rescue community were networking her because she was the sweetest and was every shelter volunteer’s favorite dog. They would even let her hang out in the office with them. I heard about her and the next day we went to meet her and adopted her.
She was covered in ticks when we brought her home, and it took a lot of vet visits, treatments, trial and error, and patience to finally heal her from it. There were moments where it felt overwhelming, but she was worth every bit of effort. We weren’t sure how long she would live but we didn’t care, because it wasn’t about us, it was about her.
Thankfully she was with us for three years and passed just two months ago at 13.5 years old, which is ancient. She was an amazing dog and I loved her just as much as all my other dogs. Seniors are the best and they’re just as deserving of a loving home as any other dog.
📹treatsnatcher
A three-year-old boy touched thousands of people after choosing to celebrate his birthday by having breakfast with the garbage collectors who worked on his street. 😭❤️
Few people knew that Fred Rogers' kindness extended far beyond television screens.
When a mother contacted PBS hoping to get an autographed photo for her young daughter, Beth Usher, who was suffering from severe epilepsy caused by Rasmussen's encephalitis and facing a life-altering hemispherectomy, she expected a signed picture in the mail.
Instead, Fred Rogers personally called Beth and spoke with her for more than an hour. After Beth underwent surgery and later slipped into a coma, Rogers continued to call regularly, checking on her condition, praying with her mother, and offering encouragement.
Then he did something even more extraordinary. He boarded a plane from Pittsburgh to Baltimore to visit Beth in the hospital. He arrived carrying some of the beloved puppets from Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, including Daniel Striped Tiger, King Friday XIII, and Lady Elaine Fairchilde, and performed a private bedside show for her while she lay unconscious.
Beth eventually recovered, and Fred Rogers remained a cherished friend to her and her family for years, staying in touch until his death in 2003. Beth later shared that his compassion, steadfast support, and genuine presence helped shape her recovery and left an enduring mark on her life.
Sometimes the greatest gift isn't an autograph. It's showing up when someone needs you most.
On September 11, 2001, 24-year-old Welles Remy Crowther was working on the 104th floor of the World Trade Center’s South Tower when Flight 175 hit the building.
He was trapped 27 floors above the impact zone a place almost nobody survived.
But instead of only trying to save himself, Welles stayed behind to help others escape.
Before heading into the smoke, he left his mom a voicemail:
“Mom, this is Welles. I want you to know I’m OK.”
Welles was also a volunteer firefighter back home in New York, and he always carried a red bandana his father gave him as a kid.
Survivors later remembered seeing a man with a red bandana covering his face, leading people to safety, carrying injured victims down stairs, and going back up again and again to help more people.
He reportedly saved at least 18 lives before the South Tower collapsed.
For months, nobody knew who “the man in the red bandana” was.
Then in 2002, his mother read survivor stories in a newspaper and realized they were talking about her son.
Welles Remy Crowther will always be remembered as a real hero. ❤️
🔥NEW: Tennessee woman raises over $267,204 to help an elderly DoorDash driver retire after sharing footage from her doorbell camera
Brittany Smith shared a Ring camera video of Richard, her DoorDash driver who recently delivered her Starbucks order, as part of a fundraising effort
“It was evident from the video [that] this was a task for him,” she said
“He is precious and he is not working because he wants to; he’s working because he has to.”
Smith tracked down Richard on social media and learned he drives for DoorDash to help cover monthly expenses, including medication for him and his wife
“His wife [was] fired from her job (at no fault of her own), and by the time they pay their monthly expenses ... there is nothing left.”
“Let’s help Richard go back into retirement!!” Smith wrote