Joey Wittkugle is a man with Down Syndrome who continues defying the odds and proving doctors wrong.
When he was born, 62 years ago, his mother Bobbi was advised to leave him in an institution. She recalls the doctors saying to her: “You have to put him away. He’ll never talk and he’ll never walk. He’ll never know who you are. He will live to the age of 11 and that will be the end of it,” according to WBTW.
WBTW
Bobbi is 90 and she still takes care of her son. She says that back in the day, people had a completely different perception of people with Down Syndrome and those with certain disabilities. Today, these people are better accepted by the society thanks to individuals like Bobbi and her son who try to raise awareness about this condition. “Sixty-two years ago, nobody knew about them and they kept them in the house. I mean, you did not have them out walking or one thing or another,” she said.
For Joey’s 62nd birthday, his mom and his family organized a car parade.
“I want people to start understanding, when you see one of our children, don’t turn your back at them like they did years ago. They are human, they are special from God and please learn to love them as much as they love you,” Bobbi added.
WBTW
We are very glad that things started to change and now those with Down Syndrome are treated as completely normal people, because they are exactly that. They are able to function on their own and are valuable part of the society.
As for Joey, we wish him a very happy birthday and many more to come. Take a look at his story in the video below.
Elephants always line up for hugs whenever they see her..
David Sheldrick and his wife, Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick, a celebrated author and conservationist, have worked together to care for the wildlife in Africa for many years. They worked hard in order to raise awareness and stop the illegal poaching of elephants for the ivory trade.
However, in 1977, a year after the couple had moved to Nairobi National Park, David Sheldrick passed away suddenly due to a heart attack.
Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick decided to continue her late husband’s legacy by establishing the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, one of the only three organizations on the continent that rescues, rehabilitates, and releases orphaned elephants.
Some of these baby elephants were found ensnared in man-made traps, while some were found after they fell into abandoned wells. However, the majority of these baby elephants were orphaned after their mothers were killed by poachers for their ivory tusks.
These orphaned baby elephants have no chance of survival as they are very dependent on their mother for milk during the first two years. It then takes another two years before they are fully weaned.
Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick soon developed a special formula which consists of baby formula infused with vegetable fat and coconut oil. Due to the success of her formula, she became the first person in the world to successfully raise a baby elephant.
As most of the baby elephants were severely distressed when they arrive at the sanctuary, they are all each assigned a keeper who accompany the baby elephant inside the sleeping stall to provide them with comfort.
When the baby elephants have reached a certain age, they will be moved to a relocation center in Tsavo National Park. There, they continue to be cared by a keeper and will eventually be released to join the wild elephant communities in the park.
Here is Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick’s opinion of elephants: “They’re not corrupted. Their sense of family is as strong as ours. Their memories are amazing and their convoluted thinking and reasoning is equal to that of a human.
The caring and nurturing is far greater in elephants than it is in humans, and loyalty and friendship endures.”
You can watch a video of this amazing story below.
Dogs are pretty good at learning new tricks and obeying commands so watching them perform all the cool stuff they mastered can be a real treat to the eye. Cats on the other hand are not that obedient and would opt to spend their time sleeping instead of goofing around with their humans. And yes, cats don’t let anyone tell them what to do. But, not this particular feline who pretends to be a dog.
When this owner tells the dogs to roll over, the cat wants to be part of the game and to fit in the dogs’ crew so she does the same. Well, if the dogs can do it then why can’t she, right? After all, cats are way smarter than we assume. As for Didga, she isn’t only having fun obeying her owner’s commands, but she’s also proving wrong anyone who believes cats aren’t social creatures.
You can take a look at Didga in action in the video below. Oh, it looks as though the term “copy cat” has been invented to describe her 🙂
How far would you go in order to help someone you have never met before? Two young men named Tre Jones and Marcus Harvey from Marion, Indiana, were willing to risk their own lives for that of a complete stranger.
It was on Father’s Day that they stumbled upon a burning house while taking a walk around the neighborhood. They saw all those people gathered around the place which was at that point all in flames.
Screaming could be heard coming from the house and people said how there was a man trapped inside, to what Tre replied, “So why are you all just standing there?”
The man in question was the house owner, 56-year-old Guy Tarlton, who had fallen asleep while making dinner.
Amidst all of what has been happening lately, a couple of super humans emerge!
Neither Tre nor Marcus had to think twice before they entered the burning home. “I kicked the door open and boom, and then fire and smoke started coming out,” Tre told Fox59. “When I heard his voice screaming, I just felt like I knew I could get him out. I didn’t know how far he was in the house. I knew I was in a better position than he was.”
The flames were huge and smoke was everywhere, so the two brave boys couldn’t see a thing in front of their eyes. Luckily, they felt the man on the ground and managed to pull him out of the house. Ambulance arrived just as Tarlton was taken out and according to reports, he is still in a critical condition.
“I wish him the best recovery, and I’m praying for his friends and family,” said Harvey. Tre added, “I don’t say I’m a superhero, but I’m human. I help when I can help.”
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The whole community praised these young people for their courage. They did the unthinkable when they decided to risk their own lives for the sake of stranger’s.
Dubbed “The King of Comedy,” actor, singer, filmmaker and humanitarian Jerry Lewis had a very successful career which spanned almost eight decades and was under the spotlight practically his whole life.
Lewis was born Joseph Levitch on March 16, 1926, in Newark, New Jersey, to a Jewish family. Having parents who were part of the showbiz industry, it wasn’t surprising that Lewis opted for such a career himself. In fact, he showed interest in the theater at a very young age and knew singing and acting would become his calling.
When Lewis was just 19 years old, he met someone who would help determine his path towards glory, “The King of Cool,” Dean Martin.
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Speaking of their first encounter, Lewis told Today back in 2005: “I turn and I see this handsome guy in a camel’s hair coat. You can die from how handsome he was, sporting his new nose. And we became very friendly. He looked like he needed a friend and I certainly did. And that was really the start.”
Martin & Lewis soon became the most famous duo in the country. “They were very attractive-looking guys, and before that you had duos like Laurel and Hardy and Abbot and Costello and Olson and Johnson. Then Martin and Lewis came along and they were just so different than any of those guys,” said Singer Steve Lawrence speaking to People in 2017, the year Lewis died.
However, on their 10th year anniversary, the duo split and it took them 20 years to reunite again, as it was reported the terms under which they put an end to their collaboration were bitter.
The reunion was described by People as “forced and uncomfortable.”
For 55 years, Lewis was a national chairman and spokesman of the Muscular Dystrophy Association. The telethon fundraisers that he conducted during Labor Day Weekend every year helped raise $1.46 billion to fight the disease since Lewis started it in 1966.
The comedian was married twice. From his first marriage with singer Patti Palmer, which lasted for 36 years, Lewis had 6 children, one of which was adopted. After their divorce was finalized in 1983, Daily Mail reported that Palmer claimed her ex-husband “displayed an open disregard for our marriage,” and asked for $450,000 in support.
Shortly after, Lewis married his second wife, dancer SanDee Pitnick. They adopted daughter Danielle Sara Lewis in 2004 and stayed together until Lewis’ death.
Jerry Lewis has his hand & footprints set in cement in the forecourt of the TCL Chinese Theatre, Hollywood. Source: Shutterstock
The singer and actor suffered from various diseases, among which prostate cancer and diabetes. He also had an open-heart surgery and his death was caused by heart failure.
What left many in disbelief is that the star left everything he owned to his second wife and their daughter. His sons weren’t included in his will. According to Forbes, the will stated: “I have intentionally excluded Gary, Ronald, Anthony, Christopher, Scott, and Joseph and their descendants as beneficiaries of my estate, it being my intention that they receive no benefits.”
Danielle Lewis, Jerry Lewis, SanDee Pitnick arrives at the Premiere Of “Method To The Madness Of Jerry Lewis” at Paramount Studios Theater on December 7, 2011 in Los Angeles, CA Source: Shutterstock
After his death, his sons spoke of their relationship with their late father, with Anthony accusing him of years of physical and emotional abuse.
“When he would show up and park right in front of the big front door, my mom would get on the intercom and say, ‘Your father is home!’ We scattered. We could never predict his behavior on a given day,” Anthony told Inside Edition. “He was emotionally abusive every day.”
Alongside the allegations, Anthony said he was sorry he didn’t get to spend any one-on-one time with his father and didn’t tell him how much he loved him.
The good thing about being a celebrity isn’t just the attention by the wide public and the status, but also the influence and the ability to change the things for the better.
In fact, many famous people do support different causes and fund different projects that aim to improve the life of those who are less fortunate, and we are deeply thankful for their commitment.
One of these people is actor Ashton Kutcher. He’s not only loved by millions because of his great looks and incredible acting skills, but because of his heart of gold, too.
President @realDonaldTrump “vowed to fight for the forgotten men and women of this country—and there are few that are more voiceless and more forgotten and really in the shadows than those who have been victimized repeatedly and trafficked,” @IvankaTrump said. pic.twitter.com/mgXisFg9oL
Back in the day, when he was married to actress Demi Moore, the two founded Thorn: Digital Defenders of Children. This organization aims at identifying and rescuing child sex trafficking victims, and since 2012, it helped rescue around 6,000 humans.
Kutcher is very much dedicated to the organization and can proudly say that together with the law enforcement, it helped identify 5,984 child sex trafficking victims, and rescued 103 children from “situations where their sexual abuse was recorded and distributed.” At the same time, Kutcher’s organization helped track down 6,608 perpetrators.
Speaking to 48 Hours, the That ’70s Show star said: “What we do at our core is we build technology to help fight sexual exploitation of children. You can roll up your sleeves and go try to be like a hero and go save one person, or you can build a tool that allows one person to save a lot of people.”
In 2017, Kutcher was invited to speak in front of the Congress. In his speech, he urged the Congress to take more active role in the prevention of sex trafficking and help vulnerable children and women.
“I’m here today to defend the right to pursue happiness. It’s a simple notion: ‘the right to pursue happiness,’” the actor, model and enterprener said.
“It’s bestowed upon all of us by our constitution. Every citizen of this country has the right to pursue it. And I believe that it is incumbent on us as citizens of this nation, as Americans, to bestow that right upon others, upon each other, and upon the rest of the world. But the right to pursue happiness for so many is stripped away — it’s raped, it’s abused, it’s taken by force, fraud, or coercion. It is sold for the momentary happiness of another.”
However, as a huge number of people praise him for what he does, there are also those who say he should “stick to his job,” that of acting. Answering to these individuals, he brought up a case and said:
“I’ve seen video content of a child that’s the same age as mine being raped by an American man who was a sex tourist in Cambodia, and this child was so conditioned by her environment that she thought she was engaging in play.”
“I’ve been on the other end of a phone call from my team, asking for my help because we had received a call from the Department of Homeland Security, telling us that a 7-year-old girl was being sexually abused and that content was being spread around the dark web and she had been being abused and they’d watched her for three years, and they could not find the perpetrator, asking us for help.
“We were the last line of defense—an actor and his foundation was the potential last line of defense. That’s my day job, and I’m sticking to it.”
Thank you Ahston Kutcher for everything you do. You change one life at a time and we are all forever grateful to you and your organization.
Dwarfism can be a result of either genetics or a number of medical conditions. People with dwarfism have short stature and the average height of those who have this condition is 4 feet. Besides this, dwarfism can also be characterized with average-size torso and very short limbs, especially in the upper halves of arms and legs, limited elbow mobility, disproportionately large head, prominent forehead, flattened bridge of the nose, and more.
The thing is that people with dwarfism are no different than those who don’t share this condition. They function on their own and their restricted growth doesn’t affect their intelligence. In fact, they lead fulfilling lives.
However, their appearance can sometimes be a reason for stares on the streets, and that’s something that can easily affect their self-confidence.
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Rilee is a 5-year-old girl with dwarfism who is doing something incredibly beautiful to fight the stereotypes about her looks. How she does it? By dancing.
For the Dwarfism Awareness Month, October, Rilee’s parents posted a video of her moving to the rhythm of Taylor Swift’s popular hit single “Shake It Off.” Needless to say, she does it in a perfect manner and gathers the attention of many.
There are also mean comments coming from the mouths of mean people about this cute girl. We, however, believe she’s doing an awesome job trying to raise awareness.
You can take a look at her lovely performance in the video below. Please share it with your friends to help Rilee achieve her goal and have people informed about dwarfism.
When I didn’t have children myself, I had this feeling that moms and dads out there just exaggerate whenever I would have heard them speaking of their kids and how happy and proud they were of them.
The truth is that the moment I embraced my bundle of joy, I started realizing that children really are the reason to live and be the best version of yourself once you welcome them in your life.
Kids can be a reason to cry and to smile, and sometimes, they are able to trigger both these feelings at the same time. Knowing that it was you who created that sweet little creature makes your heart fill with a dose of joy and excitement whenever you look at them.
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Yes, kids can make you angry at times, especially when they misbehave and want to do things their own way because they believe they are old enough to make their own decisions, but that’s nothing compared to the smiles they treat you with every single day and the comfort you feel in their embrace.
My children are the greatest gift I have ever received and I can’t thank God enough for choosing me to be their mother.
I wish every person out there to feel the joy of being called a mom or a dad, because those are the words you can never put price on.
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Here are some brilliant thoughts of some even more brilliant minds who make our days a bit brighter and a bit better. This is why we love these tiny creatures so much. Just try not to laugh.
1. “Stay away from prunes.” Randy, 7 years old.
2. “When your mom is angry at your dad, don’t let her brush your hair.” Talia, 9 years old.
3. “Never trust a dog to guard your food.” Patrick, 10.
4. “Do not pull your dad’s finger when he asks you to.” Emily, 7 years old.
5. “Permanent markers can’t be used as lipstick.” Lauren, 9.
6. “Never tell your mom that her diet is not working.” Michael, 11 years old.
7. “Never mess with your sister when she’s holding a baseball bat.” Robert, 10.
8. “If you want a cat, start by asking for a horse.” Naomi, 9 years old.
9. “If your dad is angry and asks ‘Do I look so stupid?’, Don’t answer.” Michael, 11.
10. “If you got a bad grade in school, show it to mom when she’s talking on the phone.” Ellen, 11 years old.
