A Wisconsin couple on vacation huddled together for days eating what food they'd brought in the car after they became trapped in deep snow on a closed pass near Yellowstone Park in Wyoming. Fearing her life might be over, Kris Wathke used notebook paper stowed in her purse to write letters to all her loved ones telling them how much they meant to her.
A Connecticut man bought a large desk on Craigslist. Luckily it was too big to fit through the door by a fraction of an inch, according to Rabbi Noah Muroff. He and his wife took the desk apart and found a huge pile of cash hidden in a plastic bag behind the deep file drawers. But that is not the end of the story.
Charles Keller of Phoenix, Ariz., is such a massive fan of the 1960s Batman TV show, that he has an exact working replica of the Batmobile and the Bat-cave. Best of all, he turned his hobby into an opportunity to help kids with cancer.
Worth Sharing is thrilled that a young man we've reported on for years, who has removed more than seven million pounds of garbage from America's beloved rivers, has been named the 2013 CNN Hero of the Year. With so many outstanding individuals nominated for the award, each creating miracles for so many people, it is the humble garbageman and defender of the Earth, Chad Pregracke, who takes home this year's $250,000 prize, after five weeks of online voting. WATCH the gala ceremony this Sunday on CNN.
The YouTube collaboration known as Whatever, while in New York City handing out sweatshirts, hats and gloves to homeless people before the winter season, happened to meet a middle-aged man from Czechoslovakia who really needed a friend. They learned Jaroslav's story of bad luck and how all he wanted in the world now, was to simply go back home to see his family.
Grandmas, by their very nature, don't want trouble. But 81-year-old SuEllen Fried of Prairie Village, Kansas, has defied that stereotype and brought her sweet, soft touch to prisoners behind the razor-wire walls for over 30 years. I am addicted to personal transformation, she told CBS's Steve Hartman. Fried started coming to Lansing Correctional around 1980 for what she thought would be a little volunteer work, but ended up committed to these guys — for life.
She's a nursing major in college so we already knew she wanted to help people, but Hillary Sadlon poured on the kindness for others even on a day when she could have been pampering herself. After seeing someone post online about how they did it, the Seton University senior spent months planning how she could be kind, generous and thoughtful on her upcoming birthday and made a giant list called, Hillary's 22 Random Acts of Kindness for Her 22nd Birthday."
I was in a cab heading home from O'hare airport – a journey I make with regularity - when I noticed it. The sign. It was perfectly posted on the back side of the driver's seat and front passenger's seat, inviting Muslim and Jewish riders to help themselves to kosher and halal snacks as a kindness for weary travelers.
Thomas Weller would have died in a snow bank in 1964 had a stranger not helped him. Weller, 65, has been helping strangers in the same way ever since.
A homeless Good Samaritan turned in a lost backpack stuffed with nearly $42,000 in cash and travelers cheques he found Saturday at a Dorchester mall. After returning the bag to its rightful owner, the Boston police honored Glen James yesterday with a citation for his "extraordinary show of character and honesty."
A 19-year-old Dairy Queen employee served more than ice cream at his Hopkins, Minnesota store recently: He stood up for a blind man after his twenty dollar bill, dropped on the ground, was scooped up by a sighted customer who refused to give it back. A typed letter of commendation now hangs on the wall of the DQ shop after a third customer saw the whole scene unfold and couldn't believe how manager Joey Prusak had handled the situation - going above and beyond what anyone could expect.
This software saves millions of dollars in unused prescription drugs from the trash, rerouting them to people who need, but can't afford, medicine.
Allyson Ahlstrom, 18, wanted to scrap the idea of struggling teen girls getting only handed-down clothes from the thrift store. She wanted to boost their self esteem by providing two brand-new head-to-toe outfits for any girl in need, so she started Threads for Teens two years ago in California. This year she takes her clothing store on the road bringing hope and pride to girls in need across the country.
Upon graduating from Baltimore's Maryland Institute College of Art with a degree in Fibers, 21-year-old Rachel Faller took the road less traveled. By "less" I mean virtually by no one, and by "road," I mean that she hopped on a plane, said goodbye to the comforts of American living, and launched a socially responsible fashion label in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. That is essentially what Rachel, now 26 years of age, accomplished on her own - to the great benefit of Phnom Penh families.
A billionaire hedge fund manager has given $10 million of his own money to pay for pre-school programs that would have shut down October 1 with the US Government shutdown. Laura and John Arnold tapped into their personal fortune to reopen Head Start programs for one month to benefit 7000 children in poor families in six states.
They clean up rivers, build homes for disabled veterans and bring health care to some of the darkest parts of the world. They help children who are fighting cancer, living in poverty and a lack of opportunity -- the top 10 CNN Heroes of 2013.
A film like Argo could have been made of the suspenseful rescue by John Riordon in the days before the Fall of Saigon in Vietnam. A young American bank manager for Citibank in Saigon, he refused to evacuate in the days before the Communist takeover to ensure that his staff and their families (105 people) got out before the invasion.
President Obama yesterday presented the Medal of Honor to U.S. Army Captain William Swenson for conspicuous gallantry at the risk of his life and beyond the call of duty. President Obama yesterday presented the Medal of Honor to U.S. Army Captain William Swenson for conspicuous gallantry at the risk of his life and beyond the call of duty. Will's commanding officers wrote, In seven hours of continuous fighting, Swenson braved intense enemy fire, and willfully put his life in danger against the enemy's main effort, multiple times in service of his fallen and wounded comrades… and his endangered Afghan partners.
Over the last two weeks Americans have seen the worst in partisan politics, but the government shutdown has also triggered the generosity of ordinary citizens. Americans have stepped in to fill some of the needs that the government normally fulfills. From Colorado to Atlanta, Arizona to Florida, let's take a look at America at its best.
The bill was $27.75, her reward for paying it was far greater. Sarah Hoidahl, a New Hampshire waitress, even though she is a single mom living on tips, bought lunch for two National Guard service members who were furloughed recently in the government shutdown. The Guardswomen posted the kind note they received from Sarah on Facebook from which thousands of people were inspired -- including the Ellen Show producers.