When we hear the word "heroes," people often think of capes and someone with extraordinary powers; however, there is so much more to being a hero. A hero can be someone who makes a difference in their communities by dedicating themselves to something great. It could be a woman who helps put clothes on a foster child's back, a young girl who matches dogs with a sick child just to put a smile on their face or even a man who starts an organization to give women on the street a safe place to start a new life for themselves. These are heroes. In fact, they're all over the world and unfortunately, most of their actions go unnoticed - until now.
Danielle Gletow's One Simple Wish
Danielle Gletow and her husband Joe’s story began when they first became foster parents. After a beautiful 18 month-old boy was removed from his abusive home, Danielle and Joe became his foster parents. In fact, he was wearing a large coat that was two sizes too big, as he didn't have any clothes that fit him. Although they were unaware about the foster care system before, they soon learned about foster care children and the resources that they need to survive, which is unknown to many. After educating themselves about the system, they have since dedicated their lives to it.
They wanted to be able to inform individuals that 400,000+ children live in the foster care system each year and 46% of kids spend 1-3 years in foster care. Not only this, but 20,000+ children age out of foster care every year with little to no support. After realizing these outrageous statistics, the couple created “One Simple Wish” in 2008.
As seen on their website, the goal of One Simple Wish is “to empower everyone to brighten the lives of children in foster care in simple, yet meaningful ways”. On the website, wish granters can search through children's wishes, which might include a new pair of shoes, a new set of clothes or maybe even money for a young child to go visit their favorite animal at the zoo! Once you've picked a wish, you can donate to grant it!
Allison's Stink Bug Project
When Allison was 6 years old, she had a brain tumor and called it the "Stink Bug." After feeling sad and sick, she received her puppy, Coco, from the Prison-Trained K-9 Companion Program, which made her days much brighter. Coco was great company for Allison on the days that she fighting for her life, but instead of dwelling on her illness she decided that she wanted to help other children feel better.
She began selling homemade dog biscuits and lemonade in hopes to raise enough money for a trained companion dog for another child with a brain tumor. Surprisingly, the young girl named her new dog Lucky Bug!
As a result, Allison created the Stink Bug Project and continued partnering with Prison-Trained K-9 Program at Colorado Correctional Industries (where inmates teach commands to rescued dogs), where she has since been able to place an abundance of dogs into loving homes. She states, "Kids in the hospital can get lonely. I know, since I am a cancer survivor. Just before my last chemo treatment, I drew a picture of a stink bug. That stink bug became my metaphor for chemo and cancer going away. I started the Stink Bug Project because I wanted kids with serious medical conditions to have a dog, a best friend, to help them feel better and get them through their stink bug."
Although this organization is only in Colorado, Allison and her family hope to expand it to other states in the near future. Right now, the program has raised over $33,000 for the Stink Bug Project and it only continues to grow!
Find out more on the Stink Bug Project here!
Deputy Andy Conner's The Genesis Project
In 2005 after spending most of his time patrolling Washington's "most problematic highways for prostitution," Deputy Andy Conner felt as if it were time for a change. After arresting women day in and day out, he decided to ask them why they are living this life - but they weren't there out of choice. But arresting these women was not the answer as they'd get booked and then be back on the streets once they were released, which is where he felt he needed to step in. A few weeks later, he started to realize that he was arresting some of the same women, those of which asked for help on how to get off of the streets. He remembers this difficult moment and says, "As a police officer, not only am I to enforce the law, I also need to help people." And that's exactly what he did.
He began speaking to the girls he arrested, asked them about their stories, their hopes and their dreams. Most of the young girls and women had no families, little education (and were denied it by their pimps), no job skills and were trapped. Years later, after several attempts to find them help, Conner's joined forced with a local non-profit called the Corridor, and created The Genesis Project in 2009.
The Genesis Project consists of three phases. The first phase is "Rescue". The women arrive and are immediately given food, hygiene items, clothing and a safe place, which provides them immediate shelter. The second phase is "Restoration" where the facility provides ongoing counseling, job and life skills classes, transportation to medical appointments and court, and access to educational programs such as GED completion. Finally, the last phase is "Release." The women are released to homes that offer counseling and rehabilitation programs in hopes to help them rid their old lives and start a new one.
Since beginning The Genesis Project, Andy Conner's works with the law enforcement officers who call the organization when a situation where a young girl needs help might arise. In doing so, they have been able to help many girls off the streets and provide them an education and skills that they can use for a brighter future!
