Man paints shells to bring awareness to Epilepsy. Wrestlers and Camp Anchor (summer camp for people with disabilities) community pay tribute to camper who passed away, and more.

On A Positive Note: Working to Raise Awareness

Coming up on a positive note where good news does exist. One man is making his way up and down the Jersey shore with seashells in hand. Really glad that I can help someone else who has epilepsy. It's all in an effort to raise awareness around epilepsy. Plus young Islanders need your help. If I have a big brother, I I mature a lot more and become a better person in life. How you can become a mentor with the Big Brothers, Big Sisters organization over in Connecticut. It's telling kids not to just stay at home and watch TV, and video games until I sign and play sports. One little superstar is combining her love for soccer and reading to enrich the lives of those around her and she's just become the third sibling in her family to turn 100 years old today. Good news does exist and you come to the right place to find it. It's time for on a positive note. Hello. Hello and thank you for tuning in. You're watching on a positive note where good news does exist here. On a positive note, you can be sure to find some of the most heartwarming stories from all around our communities. Our intention with every episode is to help you at home feel good to provide you stories that will move and inspire you. And on that note, let's jump right into our first story that is sure to do all of that. If you've spent any time on the Jersey shore, you may have noticed all different kinds of colorful painted seashells hidden usually in plain sight, painting shells and hiding them up and down the shore has become a fun popular trend over in the garden state. Some of them even painted with messages of hope and inspiration. Well, for one new Jersey man, these seashells carry a whole lot of meaning as he paints them to raise awareness around epilepsy. He's painted and hidden nearly 500 of them. And did I mention some of these shells have made their way to other countries as far away as Asia and Australia? Take a look at this one. It didn't take long for these two women to spot one of Kyle a Demko, which's creations on this Jenkinson's boardwalk bench. I suspect it would raise awareness about epilepsy and the number of people that live with it every day and hopefully find a cure. Kyle's epilepsy began when he was just a child and underwent six brain surgeries. As doctors tried to control it. Last October, he sat down and began to paint in less than a year. More than 400 of his painted shells have shown up as far away as Asia and Australia. I hope it helps a lot of people in the world because there's roughly 50 million people with epilepsy on the shell is a QR code which links to his Facebook page, GoFundMe account and information on what to do if you see someone having a seizure. Mitch remick lives with epilepsy since 2018 and found one of the shells at a coffee shop. So there's people on the outside that don't live with people with epilepsy will learn how to respond to an epileptic episode. Kyle says his mission will continue. He feels lucky to not only be employed by Jenkinson's but also be so close to a perfect spot to share his talents and teach others about his challenges. Glad that I can help someone else who has epilepsy and it's a lot of fun on the beach just to find a little surprise. And um yeah, if you can learn something along the way, it's a good day. Kyle says he hopes he can raise enough money to purchase an epilepsy. Service dog like his friend Mitch has. It's so amazing. The dogs can sense a seizure before it happens. They're trying to bite onto an alert watch during an episode, potentially saving lives. So if you spot one of these hand painted shells, be sure to pass it on. Let's get Kyle that service dog he deserves. Now, you know what that sound means. It's time for today's feel good fact. So it's safe to say most people are fine with never seeing the inside of a police station. Right. Well, one man out of Pennsylvania has just celebrated seeing his 400 check it out. That's Alex Mann. He has autism and over the last four years, he's dedicated himself to visiting as many police stations as possible. And yeah, he's just hit number 400 over in New Jersey. Cops at the station made the milestone real special for Alex. They even painted a billboard to welcome him to town. Just so beautiful. Alex tells us he does this to raise awareness about autism, but also just to show the respect he has for law enforcement everywhere. 400 there are no signs he's slowing up any time soon. A big congrats to Alex and that's today's feel good facts. Now, here's another story that shines a spotlight on how incredible humans really are. Just like all of our stories here. On a positive note, one, art studio has become a creative haven and safe space for adults with special needs. It's called artisan studio and it's located in New Jersey. The special studio offers students classes in all sorts of art forms like drawing and painting, sculpting clay and paper mache collage and more all to enrich the lives of their students. This is Adrian and he's working on a new project today and we're doing fish in um city and he's working on his different plants that you might find there and he's hope he's coloring and using his own, making his own decisions to see what he likes. And I'll help him along, but we like to see the mess um independently as possible. And um and he's really good. OK. What are you drawing today? Do you wanna tell a little bit what you're drawing today? It fish. How many fish do you have in there? 3455, count again. Five. You done did that one twice. Four. Are you trying to trick me? Five. Are you want the fifth one over here? Ok. We can do another one. You wanna have five? OK. Over on Long Island people are coming together to honor the life of one of their own. You're looking at members of camp anchor attending a wrestling fundraiser in memory of Tommy Gallagher. There he is on your screen. You may recall Tommy passed recently after his second battle with cancer. Well, his beautiful family tells us that he attended camp anchor for years and just loved it. And that's where he met famous wrestler Adam or Reiner who was put on shows for all the campers for years. As you can see, I'm wearing a very special tribute shirt to him and because Tommy was so active and into body building all the campers, we've all nicknamed him Tommy Guns. So our nickname for Tommy is Tommy Guns. Sun's out. Guns are out too sweet. All right. Well, Long Islanders, listen up. Our community means you. One nonprofit that matches Children in need with positive role models is sending out a call for action. Big brothers, big sisters. Long Island is struggling with a volunteer shortage. And as a result, hundreds of kids are being wait listed for a mentor. But this is where you come in 13 year old Deshawn mcneil Smith. So I would like somebody that I could depend on somebody I could trust that is older than me. And 13 year old Francisco Rodin, if I have a big brother, I I mature a lot more and become a better person in life are making heartfelt pleas for a big brother to be a role model in their lives. They are among 66 boys on a waiting list for a mentor at big brothers, Big sisters, Long Island. The organization says another 114 boys will be placed on its waiting list soon COVID. We're seeing a lot more social and emotional challenges for Children and we're getting a lot more families that are coming and enrolling their boys into our program since the pandemic applications from volunteers to be big sisters and brothers have dropped about 40%. The group says the need is especially great for male volunteers. Mentoring as an intervention is important. Now, more than ever, our Long Island Children are struggling. They are socially isolated. They're having academic challenges, emotional difficulties, socially, it exceeded my expectations. Quite frankly, Matt Hitler took 11 year old Quentin Grant under his wing in December, 2021 from apple picking to swimming and chowing down at barbecues. This big brother little brother duo has forged a special bond. It's fun, enjoyable with him. I get to do new things. There's material things in life, but this is really what matters. Day, Sean and the other boys on the waiting list are hoping they too can make a special connection with a big brother. Soon. I've always wanted like a big brother. Someone I can take care of me. Ok. We have got to help those kids find the mentors they're looking for. You can head to our website to get involved and remember you have the power to make real change. Well, just before our first commercial break, I want to bring you news of one good thing that's happening in the world today. Here's one good thing that's sure to resonate no matter your age location or otherwise when it comes to raising a baby, they say it takes a village and it's a well known phrase for a reason. Little Riley's father, officer Zach Cotton was a police officer who was killed in the line of duty in 2021. And as Riley was preparing for his first day of kindergarten, his late father's precinct wanted to make sure he knew he had support. So officers at the Louisville Metro Police Department lined the entrance of his elementary school. So he had a mini welcome committee to start kindergarten. The amazing moment you can see there on your screen was shared on social media with the precinct writing quote, Riley has a great support system in place. And ain't that the truth? That's one that just gets me every time and there you have it, my friend. That's today's one good thing. And on that note, thank you for embracing all of this positivity with me. Remember, good news does exist and you can always be sure to find it right here on a positive note. I'm Jordan and I'll see you next time.