At Only Positive News, we love getting comments from our readers. The idea behind the site, after all, is to share positive news!

One reader, Pete Verral, had this story to share with us:

Hoopoe Books Share Literacy Program located in Los Altos, CA, delivered some holiday cheer to underserved San Francisco Bay Area children with a donation of over 10,000 books. For some children, this was the first book of their own. The book give-away was made possible by a $90,000 grant from the Kaiser Permanente Community Grants Program.

The books (some bi-lingual English-Spanish) were distributed to charitable organizations and schools serving poor and low-income families. Over 2,200 books went to San Francisco children, 3,000 were earmarked for East Bay youngsters and over 4,900 books went to organizations serving at-risk youth in the South Bay.

A nationwide program first introduced in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2006, Share Literacy partners with early education agencies serving poverty level and low-income families, after-school programs and organizations providing ESL and adult literacy instruction.

Maybe you’ve already seen Randy Pausch’s well-known “Last Lecture?” It became a very popular download for some time. He was also interviewed at length by Diane Sawyer, a good friend of his.

Who is this man and why is he considered one of the most inspiring people of 2008?

Randy was a Carnegie Mellon University professor who had only 6 months to live because of his pancreatic cancer. He gave a final lecture on time management at the University of Virginia on November 27, 2007.

This wasn’t your ordinary lecture, given by an ordinary professor. This was one man’s last chance to relay some powerful messages to the world before he passed on, leaving his wife and children.

If you can only watch a few minutes of this inspiring lecture, do so:

The Last Lecture

You probably haven’t heard of Ray Lopez. He’s a quiet guy plus people like Ray are too busy working in communities to bask in the limelight. Ray is the environmental program manager at Little Sisters of the Assumption (LSA) Family Health Service in New York City. His job isn’t particularly glamorous but his impact is constantly being felt by those around him.

Ray works with residents in Easy Harlem to help combat unhealthy environmental conditions such as mold, insect infestation and poor air quality. He teaches residents practical solutions to long-standing problems in order to improve their quality of life. An example? Wrapping duct tape around the edge of a cleaned mattress to form a kind of sticky moat to prevent bed bug re-infestation.

See? Not glamorous? But it’s quiet people like Ray who are making daily differences in their neighborhoods, with a totally hands-on approach (Ray is just as comfortable strapping on a mask and removing mold from a household as lecturing to community members.)

Because of the contributions of people like Ray, Little Sisters of Assumption has become widely recognized for its environmental interventions, receiving the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s Region 2 Environmental Quality Award for its asthma program, which Ray Lopez oversees.

Sometimes, making change in our frenzied world can seem overwhelming. That’s when you can remember soft-spoken men like Ray making differences in subtle ways that make big differences.

Listen to Ray talk about his positive news: http://www.rwjf.org/newsroom/product.jsp

Ray Lopez does NOT let the bed bugs bite

This story is so inspirational, positive and ongoing that it deserves a revisit from Only Positive News.

There are over 1 billion homeless people existing on this planet. The Homeless World Cup was established to put an end to this prevalent problem and to also showcase the skills of people who are often too busy struggling to survive. If you think this is a small, grassroots effort, think again.

This event has taken the world by storm. The first tournament began in Graz in 2003 with 17 national teams. At the 5th Homeless World Cup in Copenhagen in the summer of this year, 48 nations, 500 players were brought together for a once in a lifetime opportunity to represent their country. Melbourne is the host city for the upcoming tournament from 1-7 December 2008.

In preparation, a new Australian team was announced this week to compete. This is the first time a dedicated women’s competition will be held in the history of the Homeless World Cup.

“Apart from coming to Melbourne to represent my country, getting selected to be the Captain of the Women’s team is probably the best thing to have ever happened to me,” Toni Whelan had to say. Whelan was awarded Best Female Player of the 2008 National Street Soccer Championships as well.

Says founder Mel Young:

“The Homeless World Cup has demonstrated the power of sport to change lives, to change the world. The sixth Homeless World Cup in Melbourne is the pinnacle of the year round work by grass-roots football programs in 56 nations, which bring together over 30,000 players for training, to rebuild their lives and communities.

“The Homeless World Cup is growing fast, traveling to the far corners of the globe to engage people who are homeless, to change hearts and minds, and to pioneer imaginative solutions to address this key global issue.”

Australia’s Street Matildas take Uganda’s victory in their stride after their Homeless World Cup match at Federation Square yesterday. Photo: Penny Stephens

Eric Scott Flying High

To continue with our space-age forms for travel, let’s introduce this positive story:

Eric Scott, professional stunt person, catapulted himself into the record books as he jetted across a canyon, with the use of a contraption that used hydrogen peroxide for fuel…without the use of a parachute or safety net.

This is no small deal. For decades, aeronautical companies have been striving for a pack that’s capable of propelling a human a substantial distance. The problem is that jetpacks burn fuel incredibly quickly. And often, as Scott points out, there’s no way of knowing how long you will be airborne.

“This was almost twice the distance that I’ve ever flown before,” Scott says. “I’ve run out of fuel at 29 seconds before – 2ft off the deck. But I had no idea exactly how long it [the crossing] was going to take. I was expecting a 25 to 28-second flight. It always looks good on paper, but paper’s paper and 1,000ft gorges are 1,000ft gorges. Finally, I just made the decision that we’re gonna do it. It was a personal thing. Just one of those things that needed to be done.”

Anytime we make strides to move away from fossil fuel and explore other forms of transportation, it’s positive and inspiring news. And just looks pretty awesome!
Watch Amazing Video of Eric Scott

Willie the parrot isn’t always the most talkative sort. He has a limited vocabulary that includes “I love you” and “mama.” But one night several weeks ago, he had a lot more to say. His owner Meagan was babysitting a two-year old named Hannah in Denver when Meagan went to the bathroom.

“While I was in the bathroom, Willie started screaming like I’d never heard him scream before and he started flapping his wings,” said Meagan, the babysitter. “Then he started saying ‘mama baby’ over and over and over again until I came out and looked at Hannah and Hannah’s face was turning blue because she was choking on her Pop Tart.”

Meagan then performed the Heimlich maneuver on Hannah, which dislodged the food.

“If Willie wouldn’t have warned me, I probably wouldn’t have come out of the bathroom in time because she was already turning blue, her lips were blue and everything,” Meagan said.

Animals have a powerful sense of intuition and recognize danger. When we realize their importance on this planet as our friends and protectors, we can do more to protect them. They need it. They deserve it. What can you do today to give back to the animal kingdom? It could be an extra long walk for your dog or a friendly hug or some volunteer work.

Positive news for Parrots - It's nice to see them in flight!

Share your positive news with us. We’d love to hear from you!

India has itself a new, self-imposed Parliament of youths who seek change.

At first, Ishita Chaudhry gathered friends who were serious about social activism in the confines of her garage. Since then they have grown exponentially.

There is positive news that surrounds us daily. Sometimes its hard to find but often it can be a small gesture or a kind word. Once in a while, positive news is monumental in size and scope.

Today, we celebrate positive news of enormous proportions - ground-breaking, revolutionary and truly amazing. Our world sighs a collective breath, knowing there is promise in in the air.

The first African American, Barack Obama is elected as President of the United States.

His victory speech says it all:

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.

The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America – I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you – we as a people will get there.

Barack Obama - America's New President Elect

Congratulations, world. Today is a day full of positive news and tremendous possibility!

Last year Anchorage residents built a 16 foot snow creature they lovingly called Snowzilla.? It raised quite a bit of interest with news reports being made as far away as Japan and Russia.? This year, the same team of innovators are reaching for the skies and creating a 25 foot Snowzilla.? With child-like innocence they welcomed the two feet of snow a storm finally contributed to the landscape.? There had been none with which to even built a 25 inch snowman prior to last week’s storm.? But now, the team is pushing forward.?

Looking at the video of the snow monster being constructed returns me to a place of innocence and wonder.? A place where anything is possible — it is only a matter of imagination that is needed to make it so.? As the new year begins, I challenge each of you to find that sense of inquisitiveness to seek new challenges and find new ways to express yourself.? Conquer those things you fear and drink in the wonders of the world around us.? You are an incredible person.? You deserve positive things in your life.? Take this coming year and find them.? Make yourself happy and the rest of the world will fall into place.

In a strange twist of events in China, the world’s tallest man reached deep into the stomachs of two dying dolphins to pull out pieces of plastic.? Apparently surgical instruments were unable to get a good enough hold to extract the pieces and normal length arms were too short.? ? The Chinese Herdsman, Bao Xishun, who is listed in the Guiness Book of World Records as being the World’s tallest man stands 7 feet 9 inches was lucky enough to have long enough arms that literally made for a? perfect fit.? Chinese viewers watched the operation on television as the plastic pieces were extracted from the dolphins.? The dolphins are said to be resting comfortably.?