Kushi Lam
Kushi is in the Student Council of her school. She loves to help people out and her hobbies are drawing and dancing. She considers herself shy but the more she knows someone, the less shy she is. Even when she’s shy, she is a people’s person. She has been dancing since she was 2 and drawing since she was 3.
It was a cold winter morning. Ms. Tammy looked outside the window at the puffy white snow, which fell the previous night. Ms. Tammy had recently graduated from college last summer and was now a first grade school teacher. She was very tall and had long, wavy brown hair.
She was drying her hair by the window while waiting for her grandmother, who she had invited for a short stay during the winter break. She wondered if her grandmothers’ flight might have been delayed due to winter snow. Suddenly she saw a cab drop her grandmother off across the street. She wanted to go and help her grandmother cross the street because the road was very slippery due to snow.
Before she stepped out, she saw one of her students talking to her grandmother. His name was James; he was little and full of energy. Then James started walking Ms. Tammy’s grandmother across the street. Ms. Tammy was nervous because James was young and hasty. Finally they crossed the street and start walking towards the front porch. Ms. Tammy was now watching them walk on the glistening grass. Once they reached the front door, Ms. Tammy felt very relaxed that her grandmother had reached home safely.
Ding, dong! Ms. Tammy heard the bell ring as she rushed towards the door. When she opened the door, her grandmother gave her a big hug. Ms. Tammy thanked James for helping her grandmother cross the road and bringing her safely to the front door. She gave him a candy bar as a token of appreciation. James told Ms. Tammy a few things he did during the winter break and then he left.
Then her grandmother told her how sweet James was. She told her that James first kindly asked her who she was and if he could help her walk across the street. On the way home he also asked her how she is doing and where she is from. Both Ms. Tammy and her grandmother had a great winter break together. From that point onwards, Ms. Tammy valued James more because he was helpful in the neighborhood.
Serenity Schester
Serenity is 13 years old. Her favorite city is Seattle because of the inspiring art that the city has.Her favorite art sculptures are the totems.
CRACKLE! CRUNCH!
The dry leaves crumbled under Ahoti’s brown, leather shoes. The cold Seattle air bit his skin, and with each breath a foggy cloud was released into the air. Ahoti had just finished his work at the market, when he got home he decided to show his son, Loki, a place that was very special to him.
Ahoti was a Native American, and though his family didn’t live in a tipi or hunt fish or wear feather headdresses, he always had a deep respect for his ancestors, along with their cultures and traditions. His great grandparents were actually part of Chief Seattle’s tribe many years ago, and through stories told by his parents and grandparents, Ahoti came to realize how much their land had changed. He explained to his son that what once was a small forest was now a large apartment complex. What once was a river to catch fish in was now a covered by a dark grey road.
He explained that where there is bad, there is good as well. While the beaver population had been greatly damaged because of Native American hunting, local environmentalists helped their number increase once again. Suddenly, Ahoti and Loki were covered in a big shadow. They looked up, their eyes meeting a familiar sight. In front of them stood a tall totem pole, one that had been there for hundreds of years. It was a reminder to the world about Chief Seattle and his tribe, about Ahoti’s ancestors, and the Native American culture.
Ahoti loved coming here, it made him feel like he had gone back in time to when the Native American’s lived there. Ahoti told Loki that kids, and the youth of the community, have the power to change the world. They could turn simple objects and places into amazing things. Loki now saw the world differently. He saw things from a new perspective. How he had the power to do great things and make the world a better place.
Delaney Rasumussens
Delaney is in second grade. When she was little, her dad always took her along on nature walks. They went mushroom hunting, berry-picking, and geocaching. She has always loved being outdoors and wants to help our planet stay clean.
BUMP! BUMP! The bus went up and down as it turned into the parking lot of the Sunset Hill Beachside Retirement Village. The sun was shining, the summer air was warm and thick, and the waves of the beach were crashing down onto the soft, smooth sand.
Flynn and his class were there for an end-of-school field trip to help the elderly. While they waited to be called in, the kids watched a marathon going on nearby. Finally, the doors opened. When the eager class got inside the village doors, two men greeted them.
“Hello, my name is Elijah and this is my brother Julian. We own the retirement village along with our parents, Carl and Ellie,” said Elijah.
“Today you kids will have a lot of fun jobs that will help the people living here, including escorting them to their rooms, helping in the kitchen, and cleaning the rooms,” said Julian.
Everyone got assigned a task, and Flynn’s task was to help serve lunch in the cafeteria. He washed his hands, and put on rubber gloves, a hairnet, and an apron. Soon people started pouring in, and Flynn served lots of food to them, from mashed potatoes to carrot juice. When the day was over, everybody was tired, and ready to go home. But before they went home all the kids joined the senior citizens outside by the beach. The sky glowed bright red, orange, and pink. The beach water was a calm, deep blue, and everyone stood on the patio enjoying the beauty of the world around them.
Flynn was calm, and felt satisfied and happy because of what he did that day. Helping others made him feel important, and he realized how important it is for everyone to learn to help others without expecting something in return.
Neal Vedullapalli and Anikait Vishwanathan
Anikait and Neal both are close to 8 years old. Neal loves technology and cars. Neal is working a HUGS project where we wants to inspire the kids and parents to hug more! Anikait will be starting third grade. He loves science and technology, playing video games and LEGO. Destination Imagination, LEGO and video games help him to be creative, innovate and experiment without limits. In addition, he loves martial arts and playing the violin.
Once upon a time in the city of Seattle, there were many buildings getting robbed. There was a beautiful red brick building, which used to get robbed all the time. There were four people who lived in that building, Sam, Julie, Alexandra and Martin. Sam was a car designer who used to create cool cars. Julie was a dancer who used to travel around the world to do performances. Alexandra was a chef who made Italian food in a local restaurant. And Martin was a photographer who often forgot to close the doors of the building when he went out.
All the four people would never talk to each other because they did not have time to meet. The robbers knew about this and took advantage of it. All the four people got robbed lots of times and they were losing lots of money.
One day Sam saw Martin in the hallway and they discussed the problem. Then they met with Julie and Alexandra. They all decided to solve this problem together, but they could not do it by themselves. They needed an expert. They had heard about a scientist named Robert who was a genius in creating a shield for the buildings. Even if Martin forgot to lock the building, the shield would not allow anyone who did not live in the building to come in. They met with Robert.
He installed the shield when everyone was gone. This shield was installed outside the building. The robbers could not believe that the owners of the building put up a shield! They decided to try to and break it. They came, checked and touched the shield….BOOM! BOOM! The robbers were electrocuted, and thrown backwards, and the shield protected the building.
From then onwards, there was no robbery in the building. What Sam, Martin, Julie, and Alexandra realized is that when you talk to people and work together to find solutions, you become the protectors of your community!