“We can’t help everyone, but everyone can help someone.”
WEEKLY BRIGHT SPOTS
🎓 A Door Someone Opened
Thalles Winner DeSouza was working as a shift manager at Wendy’s while finishing high school and trying to find a way to afford college. His bosses, Usama El-Sehrawey and Ernest Smily, recognized his determination and offered to help pay for his education at Cape Cod Community College. DeSouza spent three years there, followed by another year at Bunker Hill Community College, all while continuing to work toward his goal of attending a four-year university. In May, he learned he had been accepted to Yale University, where he plans to study political science, minor in human rights, and follow a pre-law track. DeSouza moved to the United States from Brazil as a teenager after surviving a shooting. He says the support from his Wendy’s bosses changed the course of his life. Before starting at Yale this fall, he returned to the restaurant to thank the people who believed in him and helped make his education possible.
❤️ Giving Endangered Species a Chance
Leonardo DiCaprio and his conservation group, Re:wild, have launched the Phoenix Species Project to help 100 of the world’s most threatened species. The project begins with a $200 million commitment, with $100 million from the Bezos Earth Fund and $100 million from Re:wild. The funding will support animals, plants, and other species in 30 countries, including the golden-crowned sifaka lemur, bowmouth guitarfish, and Hickory Nut Gorge green salamander. Rather than relying on short-term grants, the project plans to provide five years of sustained support for each species so conservationists have time to carry out long-term recovery efforts. The goal is not simply to slow the decline of these species, but to help their populations recover and strengthen the ecosystems they depend on. The project is built around the idea that even species with very small populations can recover when they have the right resources and dedicated people working to protect them.
🍕 A Wall of Shared Kindness (and pizza)
In Union, Michigan, Rosco’s Pizza created a simple “free meal wall” to help people in the community who might not be able to afford a meal. Customers can purchase meals in advance, and those meals are then made available to someone who needs one. The idea gives people a way to quietly help a neighbor without requiring them to know who will eventually receive the food. Community members began contributing to the wall, helping build up meals for others. Rosco’s has continued serving as a welcoming local gathering place, and the meal wall gives customers another way to look out for one another.
Good news from our community:
I was blessed to spend one on one quality time for the first time alone with my new daughter in law. A real blessing to me.
... because the best news comes from one another.
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Meet the Authors:
Hi - We are Hunter and Emily. We started Morning Light because we want to bring positivity and joy to people in all walks of life. 🙏