Friendship Goes a Long Way
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June 23th, 2020
Friendship is born at the moment when one man says to another “What! You too? I thought that I was the only one!”
– C. S. Lewis
Friendship Bracelets
Talk about entrepreneurial spirit! With a small group of friends, 9-year-old Kamryn Johnson raised over $100,000 to help local black owned businesses in Minneapolis. How? By starting a business selling friendship bracelets and donating the profits.
Background: Motivated by boredom, Johnson and her friends felt inspired to start their own friendship bracelet business. After seeing the effect that the coronavirus pandemic and the recent BLM protests have had on local black businesses, Johnson and her friends wanted to help those affected.
The Business Model: “Kamryn & Friends: Bracelets For Unity & Justice” is Johnson’s business, and they hoped to raise a few hundred dollars. But after a few days of hard work, they actually raised over $20,000. With more and more orders by the day, Johnson and her friends enlisted the help of their parents to keep up with the demand and have since donated over $100,000. Now their effort has transformed into a GoFundMe page where everyone can donate to receive their own bracelet.
Permanent Vacation
The last elephant, Kaavan, at the Murghazar Zoo in Pakistan will finally be free! Kaavan, whose only companion died eight years ago, had been alone at the zoo in unsuitable living standards. Now though, the Pakistan High Court officially ruled that the elephant must be transferred to a wildlife sanctuary. All the other remaining animals at the zoo, including birds, lions and brown bears, must also be moved to wildlife sanctuaries.
Breakthrough: Cher, the American popstar, advocated for years on behalf of the elephant. Many animal rights groups have also advocated for Kaavan’s release since 2016. Now, Kavaan, who is 33-years-old, will be able to enjoy the rest of his life in peace among other elephants. A committee is already working to determine the best sanctuary for relocation for Kaavan and the other animals.
Time for a Smart Wheelchair
While wheelchairs are incredibly helpful, they are also long overdue for an upgrade. Most wheelchairs require the user to push themselves around, which unfortunately leads to over 100,000 trips to the ER from wheelchair-related-incidents. These statistics are what inspired songwriter Barry Dean to create a smart wheelchair accessory for his physically disabled daughter, Katherine.
The Tech: The final design takes the form of a piece of software, LUCI, that’s incorporated into a piece of hardware, the LUCI unit. The tech consists of incorporated infrared, radar, and ultrasonic sensors which help measure distance, speed, obstacles, and other details. The end result? A much smoother wheelchair experience helping prevent tipping, crashing, and other accidents.
Availability? While initially beginning as a small project with his brother, Dean’s project quickly grew. And after some consultation with clinicians and some more research, the new wheelchair tech soon became its own company, hiring 12 full time employees, helping bring the tech to those who need it!
Happy Summer!
Monkey Brain Freeze
R & R
Surfs Up!
Bored? We’ve Got You Covered!
Listen: Portland State grad Madisen Hallberg was recording the national anthem. Emmanuel Henreid, an opera singer and musician, walked up and surprisingly joined in. Listen to their beautiful duet!
Read: For a collection of some of the strangest but most interesting articles on Wikipedia, check out the page Wikipedia:Unusual articles.
Cook: Here’s a twist on an old classic: Broil your chocolate chip cookies instead of baking them.
Watch: Cats need cuddles too! Watch this adorable kitten guide his owner’s hand back for more cuddle time.
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