a COOL community

The theft of televisions, gaming consoles, and games at Mourning Star, a nonprofit organization, got the attention of the community and soon found many neighbors waiting outside the center with TVs, XBoxes, PlayStations, and many games to take the place of the stolen items.

Mourning Star helps children grieving from the loss of a loved one. The counselors use the games and gaming systems as a way to connect with the children who are in need of assistance in going through the grieving process. Sheryl Sullivan, Mourning Star's program director, expresses her amazement in the community, "It is heartwarming to know that for every bad thief we have, we have 10 great people waiting to restore the damage they do if they have the information."

A local Inn even sent over a maintenance man to hook up the systems. Sheryl expresses that the gesture touched them deeply because she couldn't have hooked them up herself. The center even got help from Colleen Quinn, a local radio personality, who spread the word of the theft on her morning show.

Other community members stopped by to give cash to help replace any other items that might need replaced. Employees express that some of the money will be used to fix the window the thieves broke in through. With so many items being donated the center is receiving duplicate supplies. They express that they will be donated to other Mourning Star centers and a new facility planning to open early next year.

Here's to the community members of Hesperia, CA for helping out an important organization in its time of need-stay positive, stay generous, and STAY COOL!

What do you think of the work an organization like the Mourning Star does? Do you know of a child who is grieving the loss of a loved one?

COOL inmates

A half a dozen minimum security inmates at the Missouri River Correctional Center in Bismarck, ND are getting into the Christmas spirit by fixing up toys and bikes that have been donated since early November. These men are a part of the "Christmas Playpen" project which also includes the local paper, the Salvation Army, Go Mini's storage, Dan's Supermarket, and Trans Trash.

To date, the men have completed about 50 bikes and around 12 boxes of toys. The men express that they enjoy the process of fixing toys and bikes for children who more than likely wouldn't be receiving Christmas gifts.

James Thompson states, "Anything that requires using my hands, I like. I figured, if we're going to give back to society, we might as well start here."

Brandon Baumeister expresses that he not only likes the work because he went to school for auto and diesel mechanics but, "It helps out the kids too."

Brandon Anderson adds, "No. 1, I love helping out. The children getting bikes, that's the biggest sticking point for me."

Joe Jennings loves helping as well, "Doing this feels good and it feels good to give back and make sure kids have a good Christmas."

Here's to you inmates for making cool use of your time-stay positive, stay generous, and STAY COOL!

What do you think of this program? Would you donate toys for this cause?